I hope we have time. Place looks very cool! Thank you for the rec!!
Was in the neighborhood getting coffee at Kean (no Sidecar visit) and made a first time visit to Hi Time Wine Cellars. Wow! What a store! The family has been in business since 1957. Also they have a tasting area down stairs. You can spend at least an hour there looking thru the wines, booze, and beer.
There is a sake tasting coming up for you FTC sake geeks
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For anyone interested: Eduardo reps the EHH book.
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They do a sake tasting every month and I enjoy the selection. They are definitely my go-to for buying sake in the area. If you buy the sake in their tasting on the night of, they also give you a 10% discount! In January, they did a Dassai tasting which included the Dassai 23 Centrifuge as well as Dassai Beyond which was crazy good value. The only downside is that their tasting is usually in the middle of the work week…
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Love Hour
They are at Green Cheek in Orange on Fridays for the next few weeks
Single $6 Double $9 Triple $12
Martin Potato rolls
Super smashed down with lots of crispy bits
Great pickles they make themselves
This is a double. Very good burger but I always go back to In n Out. Is this burger twice as good as a double double? I know they are completely different but that’s how my mind works.
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$20 seems like a pretty fair deal for sake tasting with someone of that magnitude.
6 sakes for $20? Hell yeah! Sakes of the level he will be pouring go for about $15/pour.
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Thanks for this.
One of the absolute best sake from that portfolio is the Nechi Otokoyama Junmai Daiginjo. Haven’t had it in almost two years but it’s truly spectacular, and shines in a wine glass. Could end up being pretty expensive, but maybe this is a good opportunity to ask Eduardo and Hi Time about special ordering if the price is right.
Also highly recommend the non fruity sake of Minakata, stellar brewery. That Black “Gokusen” Daiginjo is truly good stuff, competition grade gold medal winner in previous years.
Between Minakata Daiginjo and Nechi Otokoyama Junmai Daiginjo, one can have magical mystical pairings at the favorite fine dining joints (Providence, SGO, Hayato if he decides to carry it/fanfuckingtastic for kaiseki for sure, Mori Sushi, Mori Onodera’s next venture, and perhaps Somni and more.
What I also love about these two is that they are also great food sake, not just the easy smooth sippers.
$20 for 6 sakes is brilliant pricing! I’d say whoever goes, pick the heck out of his brain and any sake questions you have. He’s very well connected and knows a lot of sake industry folks in the US and in Japan!
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The bun at In n Out is vastly over looked. And I guess I am one of the very few who really enjoys their fries.
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I think the toast on that bun is something most places never achieve at whatever predice point
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Irrawaddy Taste of Burma
Okay I gave Burmese food a try. I appreciate the variety from all of its different influences but I can say as of now it’s not one of my favorites. Although I do like Northern Thai food that has a Burmese origin. Would love to visit Burma one day too.
Maybe the Chinese influence Garlic Noodles would be up my alley.
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Supporting Chinese eateries by carb loading before the L.A. Marathon… I was recently informed by esteemed experts that all people who plan to cheer on the runners need to do this before the race. #cuzitsnotasprint
Northern Cafe (Monterey Park)…
Snowy Mountain Baked Char Siu Baos from Long’s Pastry (Chinatown)… #asgoodasTimHoWan
Egg white & crab meat fried rice, Hop Woo (West L.A.)…
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So noble of you my friend!
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I need to get myself to Long’s earlier in the day the Snow Moutain/THW style char siu baos, are sold out often. I can’t believe the Big Chicken Bun here at Longs is not on some random foodie list for best value. I should get a pink box of those too
Hilltop’s Jamaican Market & Restaurant, Pomona.
On the off chance you actually come in through the front door, stepping inside feels like stepping straight into island time. The green and yellow of the Jamaican flag adorn the walls, a thatched roof service area is built at the back. A collage of Bob Marley and some beach scenes set the mood. A tourism stand, set up by VisitJamaica dot com is ready to handle your vacation curiosity.
More likely than not you have entered from the parking lot in the back, past the converted metal drum used to grill jerk chicken, and through the attached market. Here you will pass hot sauces from around the Caribbean, jars of Jamaican jerk sauce, plantain chips and other packaged snacks from back home, and a few refrigerators full of ginger beer and other sweet sodas.
Hilltop’s has had quite a makeover since the beginning and is now humming along in its 27th year of business. Beloved by its neighbors in Pomona, you might also find that your fellow customers have driven from parts of Los Angeles because they prefer the food here to those located nearer to their homes.
The menu is full of all the favorites, which can be purchased as meals that include Jamaican rice and peas, cabbage or spinach, festival and plantains. The “small” portion is probably already large enough for two people when it arrives, the large is more fit for a family. If this is not enough meat, they also sell 32 ounce “cups” of each.
A smaller option is a meat-only portion that is labeled as a “side.” This is a bit backwards though as it comes without any sides, but regardless of the terminology is a good way to try a bit more without filling up on carbs. The side of curry goat ($8.50, above) was a good start, tender hunks that melt off the bone easily when touched.
Like most curries and stews made here, they all take time and are prepared beforehand, requiring little to no wait when ordered.
Rather than arriving dry with a squeeze bottle of jerk sauce, the side of jerk chicken ($8.50, above) comes slathered in sauce already. A puddle forms at the bottom of the bowl, ready to be dipped and dragged through for more. While this presentation may not be the preferred way for everyone, the chicken itself is undeniably delicious and well prepared.
Do not pass up the chance to grab at least one of their homemade patties, all on display in a case at the service area. They have jerk and curry flavors, but the standard beef patty ($3, below) is a traditional delight. These are probably as thin as you will find, but flaky and delicious, just the right portions of each flavor and texture.
Like any self-respecting Jamaican restaurant should, they also offer a full line of fresh juices and smoothies, as well as plenty of breakfast options even though they do not open until 11am each morning.
No big deal, we are on island time after all.
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