Two Hungry Pandas-- Eating & Reviewing Our Way Thru the San Gabriel Valley & Los Angeles

A Taste of Indonesia at Wong Java House

2010-10-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

On my daily commute down Valley Boulevard, an inviting new sign caught my eye at a spot that had been a rapidly revolving door to many ethnic cuisines throughout the years. WONG JAVA in capital red letters lined the window. A coffee shop? Nope. Indonesian. I wasn’t too familiar with Indonesian food, but was pleased that another ethnic cuisine besides Chinese had arrived. Indeed, with Wong Java

Wesley's Ludobites Pictures in Vogue!

2010-10-12T13:02:00.000-07:00

Before posting our next review on a new Indonesian find tomorrow, I (Evelina) wanted to share an exciting feat. Wesley's photos are featured in Vogue Turkey and Vogue Venezuela's story of Chef Ludo Lefebvre's Ludobites! As you've probably read, we're big supporters of the pop-up restaurant and Krissy, Chef Ludo's other half, ask Wesley to come take photos of Ludobites 4.0 at Grams and Papas. We

We're back! Alhambra Source, Liang's Kitchen!

2010-09-28T12:00:00.001-07:00

We’re baccckkk and fired up about sharing our culinary adventures with you. In the mist of school, work, and life, the blog took a backseat. But while our blog was on cruise control, we weren’t! And we have the photos and commentary to prove it. In the next few weeks, look out for an array of posts that include restaurant eats and gastronomical finds all over Los Angeles. We have also

Petrossian: Make Way for Benjamin Bailly

2010-01-12T11:50:00.000-08:00

Ah, after a bit of a hiatus we're back and just in time! dinaLA 2010 is just around the corner and I'd [Wesley] like to share my favorite dineLA 2009 experience at Petrossian in West Hollywood. This will be primarily a photo post because it has been a while and the notes I have are vague.I joined a group at Petrossian gathered by Jo of MyLastBite, which included Danny of KungFoodPanda, Kate of

Grub'bin in a Hollywood Oasis

2009-12-07T11:17:00.000-08:00

After meeting Season 2 Top Chef contestant Betty Fraser at the Food Event, we were convinced we had to have some California comfort at Grub--ASAP. She is doing great PR! At the event, Betty warmly approached us and urged us to try her restaurant, Grub, which she informed us had just been voted #1 brunch and lunch by Citysearch. We exchanged cards and she followed up with an email after. Finally

Ludo Bites Again!

2009-12-04T13:26:00.000-08:00

Shortly after hosting the celebration of Hello Kitty's 35th birthday, Royal/T Cafe is yet again the place to be with "In Bed Together," a collaborative event featuring not only the innovative art of 50 different artists but the innovative food of Ludo Lefebvre. Yes, Chef Ludo Lefebvre is back with the third installment of his guerilla style pop-up restaurant; this time at Royal/T. Upon hearing

Mo-Chica: Contemporary Peruvian

2009-11-22T23:47:00.000-08:00

After hearing the raves Mo-Chica was getting around the foodie community (Jonathan's Gold Essential 99, Ravenous Couple, Gastronomy, kevinEats), we had high expectations for this contemporary Peruvian eatery.Unexpectedly located across from USC in the Mercado La Paloma marketplace, a development of the Esperanza Community Housing Corporation, the eatery was bright and festive even though the

Spago Beverly Hills: An American Seasonal Restaurant

2009-11-07T01:36:00.000-08:00

dineLA Restaurant Week was our chance to try something new and a little more pricey. To choose from the over 200 restaurants participating in the deal was, to say the least, hard, but in the end we decided on Wolfgang Puck's Spago in Beverly Hills. We each opted for the dineLA prefixed menu. The waiter comes around with a delightful assortment of bread to choose from before our appetizers came

More October Fun: dineLA, HKitty, and the Food Event

2009-10-20T01:21:00.000-07:00

dineLA week has been extended till Friday (maybe we'll hit up one more restaurant...), Hello Kitty weighs Three Apples (girl, how you keep the weight down?!), and a culinary extravaganza:Late notice, but if you're looking to save a few Jacksons, be sure to take advantage of dineLA Restaurant Week before it ends Friday. Over 200 restaurants in the LA County are still offering specially priced

The Counter: Where YOU Decide

2009-10-14T17:55:00.000-07:00

We built the burger of our dreams (or what we thought was our dream burger) that night at The Counter, a hip, futuristic looking diner in Santa Monica. More than your typical burger joint, The Counter offers "custom built burgers" that would whet the burger craving of anybody--from your carnivores to herbivores. Our panda mouths were opened. Upon being seated, we had some decisions to make. The

Rosa Mexicano- New York's Take on Upscale Mexican Food

2009-09-28T23:55:00.000-07:00

Last week we were invited to the debut of Rosa Mexicano, an upscale Mexican restaurant that first opened in New York in 1984. Twenty-five years later, the owners are hoping to conquer Los Angeles with their L.A. Live location. Rosa Mexicano introduced us to their take on Mexican food and entertainment with a live D.J., open bar, and of course, their food.Drinks were happily and freely thrusted

dineLA Restaurant Week- A heavy bang for your buck

2009-09-22T00:21:00.000-07:00

It's our favorite time of the year! Restaurant Week is coming upon Los Angeles. From October 4-9 and October 11-16, over 200 restaurants in the Los Angeles Country will be offering specially priced, three course menus. Check out the dineLA restaurant list and prices here!As students, many of our friends have asked: How the hell do you guys spend so much at restaurants? Well, we make money, cut

Lunasia: Does expensive dim sum mean better quality and taste?

2009-09-21T00:04:00.000-07:00

For dim sum, we usually hit up the always reliable and affordable Capital Seafood. The other day, though, we decided to mix it up and live on the edge by hitting up a fancier and higher priced (too expensive according to our Chinese parents) restaurant. One of these "tai gway" places is Lunasia where the cheapest plate is $1.88 . We're moderately firm believers that prices = better quality in

Heaven Would Probably Look Like MILK to a Fatass

2009-09-11T01:52:00.000-07:00

After a dairy-free dinner at Mcafe de Chaya, Wesley drives quietly over to the bright red milk cartons lighting MILK, a dessert and ice cream shop on Beverly Blvd. in West Hollywood. It's a Saturday night and the fat kid’s heaven—Wesley’s heaven—is bustling. The tension in the car mounts as Wes drives up and down Beverly for a spot, since there’s no parking lot. Finally, the horse finds a spot

The Open Door to a Wonderland of Food

2009-09-01T12:55:00.000-07:00

Chef Kouji Yamanashi's creations are what they serve in Alice's Wonderland, formally known as The Open Door. It's as if the food jumped into the rabbit hole (the Monterey Park plaza on Atlantic Blvd. and Garvey Ave.) and went through the whimsical loops (Chef Yamanashi's head) before hitting our dining table. Tater tots--BAM--tossed in truffle oil. Sweet potato fries--BAM--is served with a dash

Soleil: How Many Mussels Do You Have in Your Stomach?

2009-08-25T18:35:00.001-07:00

Perhaps all-you-can-eat Mussels and French Fries wasn't the greatest idea...But we didn't know better.Every Wednesday night, Westwood's Soleil, a French-Canadian restaurant, offers all-you-can-eat mussels and french fries for $14.99. All the mussels we can eat? Woot, the Pandas are there and so were our friends Riley and Serena. Boy were we ready to conquer those mussels and get every dollars

Ludo Bites @ Breadbar - Why must you leave?

2009-08-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

It's been almost two months since our first Ludo Bites review and Chef Ludo Lefebvre's creations continue to be innovative and delicious. The difference between now and then? The place is even more packed as Ludo Bites is nearing the end of its fourth-month run at the Breadbar (last dinner on August 22 is completely booked). Since Ludo's television appearance as a contestant on Top Chef Masters,

Sapp vs. Ord: Thai Boat Noodle Showdown

2009-08-15T20:29:00.000-07:00

The best Thai Boat Noodles in town? After going through two rounds of competition, Sapp Coffee Shop in Hollywood reigns supreme over Ord Noodles just three blocks over. Here's the breakdown of the restaurants and some other items on their menu.Sapp Coffee ShopSapp Coffee Shop isn't really a coffee shop. It's a hole in the wall Thai restaurant that may not look appealing from the outside, but

LA's Sidewalk Cafeteria: Breed Street

2009-08-05T12:11:00.000-07:00

In what can be seen as Los Angeles’ cafeteria, Latino families from all over the southland come out to Breed Street in East Los Angeles to open their kitchens to the community and serve some street food at insanely cheap prices. This gathering happens on a nightly basis, but it is bustling on Fridays and Saturdays. Jocie, our new pal and Breed Street tour guide, organized a get-together with

Mr. Pizza Factory

2009-07-26T14:06:00.000-07:00

Mr. Pizza Factory, located on Wilshire Blvd. in Koreatown, serves the Koreans' take on pizza. The menu offers bulgogi pizza, potato pizza, and even pizza with crab meat. If pizza isn't your thing, they also have pasta and rice dishes. We've been to Mr. Pizza a few times and what keeps us coming back is the sweet potato crusted pizza.When we arrived to Mr. Pizza, there was a small wait for our

Bottega Louie [Downtown LA]

2009-07-23T20:29:00.000-07:00

For an afternoon of casual fine dining, we headed to Bottega Louie, an Italian gourmet market, patisserie, and restaurant located on the corner of Grand Avenue and 7th Street. Amongst the old and rubbish buildings of downtown LA, Bottega Louie or B.Louie, as Wesley calls it, stands out with its tall glass windows and brass trimmings.The inside is even more grandiose; the first step and every step

Luc Dinh Ky • Thanh My • Brodard • The Boiling Crab [Garden Grove & Westminster]

2009-07-18T18:15:00.000-07:00

This summer I've spent a lot of time in the Garden Grove area working on group projects. My group members are natives of this area and I asked them to bring me to their local favorites. This post is a compilation of short reviews - enjoy! Luc Dinh Ky Restaurant First up is Luc Dinh Ky Restaurant [v2]. We stopped by a week earlier but the wait was 40 minutes long, and we were all starving so we

Mr. Chow [Manhattan, NY]

2009-07-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

My last week in New York is conveniently and luckily NYC Restaurant Week. Since 1992, this event has celebrated fine dining at the city's top restaurants. This year, more than 250 restaurants are offering prix-fixe three course meals at lunch and dinner for $24.07 and $35, respectively.To begin my crash course in NYC fine dining, I went to the Tribeca location of the famous Mr. Chow. The

Tango Baires Cafe [Upland]

2009-07-13T22:05:00.000-07:00

Located in a strip mall, Tango Baires Cafe is an unassuming Argentinean restaurant stuffed in between a Baskin Robins and a small dinner. Had it not been for my fellow coworkers, this restaurant would have been overlooked and unvisited.Beef and Cheese Empanadas $1.99 (each)The empanadas are wonderful with just the right amount of flakiness. The outer shell is not too thick, and not too thin. The

Ludo Bites @ Breadbar - A Must Try

2009-06-25T08:12:00.000-07:00

We were fortunate enough to be invited to the latest Food Digger event at Ludo Bites. First, let me thank Will, Marshal, Brian, and the rest of the gang at Food Digger for hosting this wonderful event. With Evelina 3,000 miles away, it was time for me, Wesley, the one lonely panda to step up to the plate and formulate this review.Upon my arrival, I was greeted and introduced to a community of