Why I Like to Review Restaurants and Use Yelp

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Jessica

Review websites such as: Yelp, Zomato *formerly UrbanSpoon), Tabelog, and TripAdvisor have changed the way we obtain reviews and discussions centered around restaurants and other businesses. Yelp in particularly has grown rapidly and has dominated the online review of establishments.

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews and comments about Yelp from classmates, professors here at City Tech and from my family and friends. Based on their comments and feedback, it’s a love and hate relationship with Yelp, but everyone is entitled to their own opinions just like I do. When it comes to Yelp, most of my friends would describe me as a serious Yelper because I use and rely Yelp a lot to make my decisions of where to eat and I can be considered an active member because I’ve written a lot and have been a member of Yelp since July 2010 (almost six years). I would like to share with you a few reasons why I like to review restaurants on Yelp and like to use Yelp.

1.Yelp is FREE and has an abundance of information and in my personal opinion, I think it’s quite easy to use.

2. On the mobile app and website, you can now see these statistics based on your profile, reviews, and photos. This comes in handy especially because you can see what’s effective and what do your friends and followers like to see. In addition, there’s a section called Rating Distribution where a user/reviewer or a visitor can see what businesses do you review the most and what neighborhoods.

3. I also enjoy using the Bookmarks section a lot because I like to save the places I want to visit or have visited and need to review because it reminds me of places I want to try and comes especially handy when my family, friends, or boyfriend ask me where would I like to go for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or dessert. Additionally, if I read about a restaurant or place that sounds interesting and I may bookmark that place so I know to check it out or visit.

4. The Yelp Elite Squad is Yelp’s way of recognizing and rewarding people who are active in the Yelp community and role models on and off the site. To be considered as a Yelp Elite member, is based on a number of things (well-written reviews, high quality tips, detail personal profile, active voting and complimenting record, and a history of playing well with others). Members of the Elite Squad are allocated a badge displayed alongside their profile and reviews. After being elite for 5 years, they’ll receive the Gold Elite Badge like I have, and after 10 years, they’ll received the coveted Black Elite Badge.

5. If you are a user of Yelp and visiting a certain establishment or restaurant, there are places that gives you a discount or FREE food, just by a tap on your phone to “check-in”. Who wouldn’t like a discount or FREE food? Checking in also lets your friends and fans know where you area and also lets you know who in your social network has visited the place you are at.

6. I also love that you can create lists on Yelp. I don’t know about you, but I am a huge fan of lists because it keeps everything organized and in one place (most of the time). I must admit that I don’t always update my lists because I review so much that I sometimes forget. If you would like to see more of my lists, please click here.

7. I also like Yelp because when I do have a good experience at a restaurant or any establishment, sometimes I get a lovely and personal message/comment from a staff member or the business owner thanking me for the review and hope that I will return. There are instances where business owners don’t agree with my review or are apologetic if I had a bad experience and those feedback and comments help me as a customer and reviewer too.

8. There’s also a Tips section on Yelp where you can read a user’s tips on a certain business. These are NOT reviews, but can give you insight on little bits and pieces that may go on a business that you may not be aware of. I often leave tips if I want to warn my friends and followers or there’s just a service or food that’s outstanding that needs to be known.

All in all, I’ve been using and on Yelp since July 2010 and most people don’t know that I am an Yelp Elite member or that I review restaurants on Yelp, but now you do. My reviews are all based on personal experiences, my personal opinions, and research. I like to write reviews on Yelp because I like to keep track of where I’ve visited, eaten, and to share my experience with others and friends don’t let other friends eat at bad restaurants.

*If you are interested in following me on Yelp or reading my reviews, please click here*

Do you use any online review websites to read or search for a certain business? If so, what is it and do you write reviews?

An Unforgettable Experience at a Celebrity Chef Restaurant

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Jessica

It’s not every day that I have the opportunity to eat at a celebrity chef restaurant or enjoy food with my family at a fine dining, upscale restaurant. The day after Christmas, my family and I had a family day in Midtown – lunch at LandMarc which is owned by celebrity chef and television food personality – Marc Murphy and we watched the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City.

The inside of LandMarc was quite dark, but definitely an upscale atmosphere and the window seats gives you a great view of Columbus Circle & Central Park. The staff were friendly and helpful. We all ordered individual entrees and a few appetizers/side dishes to share.

We ordered the Roasted Marrow Bones, Grilled Octopus, French Onion Soup, and Brussels Sprouts with Bacon. The roasted marrow bones was accompanied with onion marmalade, grilled country bread, and fig jam. I’m not a huge fan of bone marrow, but these were excellent and full of flavor! My boyfriend ordered the French onion soup and it was delicious and full of beef-like broth. The grilled octopus was delicious! The Brussels sprouts with bacon was yummy! The Brussels sprouts were sauteed just perfectly and the bacon was had a nice crispy-ness to it.

My boyfriend ordered a Steak & Eggs which looked really vibrant and tasty! His dish also came with home-fries and a watercress salad. The steak was cooked just the way he likes it – medium well. The home-fries had a little spice to it.

The Seared Scallops with Polenta & Mushrooms sounded fantastic, so I decided to give it a shot. The scallops had a nice golden shade of brown on top, The mushrooms and polenta was very buttery and filling. There were instances where the scallops were unpleasant to eat because it felt sandy and it gets worse.

Well when I was eating the scallop, the texture felt weird and later on that evening, I felt very sick and the next day it was a family holiday party, where I felt like I had no appetite and ended up vomiting and realized I had food poisoning from the scallops. Luckily my mom only had 1/2 a scallop so she didn’t end up with the damage, I did. It took a few days to recover and I had to be extremely careful of what I was eating after that day.

I really wanted to like LandMarc mostly bause it’s a celebrity chef restaurant, but the very fact that I had food poisoning from the scallops and not to mention the fact that they had sand in it just wasn’t a pleasant experience for me. I may return for a second chance, but I will most definitely not order the scallops and make sure my food is properly cooked again.

What’s Been Cooking In The Kitchen – Part 2

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Jessica

Lately, I’ve been quite proud of how much I have taught myself to do and tried in the kitchen these past few weeks. While my schedule has been a little crazy and it’s been a little tiring, I have also been making good progress. For this specific post, I am going to be sharing what I’ve made the last few weeks, sorry no recipes written down just yet, but yes get ready to be intrigued and salivate:

I’m not very good at making Chinese soups or herbal soups, but my boyfriend loves watercress and I tried to make him a watercress soup we both often drink at our homes. The soup was missing a key ingredient that usually gives off a natural sweetness to the soup and I also didn’t use real pork meat. I used pork bones instead.

My boyfriend & I were invited to a Potluck at our friend’s home and I decided to make Vietnamese summer rolls since they would make a great appetizer and snack for the potluck. Everyone enjoyed the rolls and said they look and taste like restaurant quality.

Last week I made steamed eggs with Chinese sausage and roast pork, soy sauce chicken drumsticks, and sauteed vegetables for dinner for me and my boyfriend. The soy sauce chicken drumsticks were an A+ to my boyfriend. It was meaty, tender, and delicious!

There was leftover pumpkin, mushroom, and Chinese sausage in the refrigerator yesterday from dinner on Friday night, so I chopped it up and used it in a fried rice and made a pumpkin fried rice which was quite scrumptious!

My boyfriend has been sick and has been coughing, so my mom told me to make this Asian Pear soup which is a popular soup in China and is a traditional Chinese medicinal soup. It’s usually consumed with Northern apricot kernels which is what you see in the picture above and rock candy for sweetness.

Well this is all I’ve been making so far and hopefully found it to be intriguing.

What hobbies have you been finding yourself doing more often lately?

Good and Affordable Eats in Downtown Brooklyn

Posted on March 16, 2016 by Jessica

Finding good quality and affordable food in Downtown Brooklyn for a student can be mission impossible sometimes and as a student I must admit there’s not much in Downtown Brooklyn that’s within our budget, but while attending City Tech for the last few years, working in Downtown Brooklyn for over 3 years, and researching on Yelp I have come to realize there are certainly good food for an affordable price from anywhere between $5 – $15.00 and here are five places I would like to share with you where you can get a good quality meal for a good price:

Brooklyn Fare

Besides Trader Joe’s (located in Cobble Hill), there’s another supermarket/organic market where you can build your own meat entree or vegetable entree or pick up a sandwich. This market is known as Brooklyn Fare and it’s about a 10-12 minute walk from school. Their meat entrees are usually $9.99 and for vegetable entrees are $8.99 (prices may have changed). It’s a great place to visit and they have a lot of great products you may not find at Trader Joe’s.

Cafe Metro

Cafe Metro is by far one of my favorite places to go to for lunch because it’s my to-go place for salads! Panera, Au Bon Pain, Hale & Hearty, and many other restaurants and fast food casual places have salads and provides a customer with the option to build their own salad, but I find that it’s a lot more expensive at these places. I spend just a little bit under $10 for my salad, but I can add a lot of different toppings and special toppings without an extra charge unlike other restaurants. If you love salads as much as I do, than you will love Cafe Metro. Lines can get crazy between 11:30AM-1PM, so I usually pre-order my salad to avoid the crazy lines.

Hanco’s

When I first discovered there was a Vietnamese spot that opened up in Downtown Brooklyn, I was very excited about this! Vietnamese food is almost no where to be found in our area. If you love Vietnamese food, check out Hanco’s as they have an array of items such as banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) , pho, rice vermicelli, bubble teas, coffee, rice dishes, and various appetizers. It’s a little more expensive than what you can find in South Brooklyn and Chinatown, but you won’t be spending $15+ on a sandwich or a bowl of noodles for sure.

Court Order

Last December, I stopped by Court Order for lunch because I remembered my boyfriend said they had pretty good wraps and soups and all made from scratch, but what he didn’t tell me was that Court Order actually gives student discount (must present school ID) which is 10% off, but you must spend $5.00 or more. I actually found out during my first visit and took advantage of that student discount. How many restaurants/food places do you know that gives you a student discount? The food is pretty good here and mostly under $10, now that’s a good deal!

Golden Fried Dumpling

Golden Fried Dumpling has been in Downtown Brooklyn for 3+ years now and it still remains as the most cheapest, affordable, and tasty dumplings on this side of Brooklyn. The price range for their dumplings range from $1.00 – $5.00. Now I mean seriously, where are you going to find hand-made dumplings for that cheap in Downtown Brooklyn? Any way, besides dumplings there are other menu items that are just as inexpensive like: sesame pancake sandwiches, rice & noodle dishes, buns, soups, and etc. I wouldn’t recommend eating here as they have very limited space and seating area in this establishment, but it is worth checking out.

Hopefully I have inspired you and woke you up to a few places that have cheap and affordable eats that can fit within your budget as a student. If you would like to read more about different restaurants in Downtown Brooklyn that I’ve tried you click here or if you want to hear more about affordable restaurants, click over here.

Are there any restaurants in Downtown Brooklyn you feel are affordable and has good quality?

What’s Been Cooking In The Kitchen

Posted on March 9, 2016 by Jessica

Happy March everyone! This post is going to be a little different because instead of a typical restaurant review, I will actually like to show you what I’ve been cooking lately. I’ve had extra time on my hands the last two months, so I’ve used that time to blog and cook. Here’s what I’ve been making lately and prepare to salivate –

Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad

I absolutely love salads! One afternoon I was inspired to make a salad for lunch so I ended up making a Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad, minus the grilled chicken because it was store bought and it was at this point, I realized I’m not a fan of Caesar dressing – too fishy.

Poached Egg Roasted Chicken Salad

I never thought that you could add a poached egg and top it off on a salad, until I got inspiration from a friend who’s also a foodie. The poached egg added a smooth texture to the salad and the yolk was extra runny.

Chunky Guacamole on Multi-Grain bread with Toasted Almonds

I’ve also tried to make a chunky guacamole on Multi-Grain bread with toasted almonds. The result: very yummy and crunchy!

I’ve also been cooking dinner for me and my boyfriend. For one night, I made mixed vegetable corn soup, sauteed Japanese mountain yam with mixed mushrooms, and sweet & sour chicken.

Roasted Chicken & Craisins Salad

Last week, I made a roasted chicken salad with craisins and a fried egg. Everything was yummy and really vibrant and exciting. The fried egg added an interesting texture to the salad. It was a true success!

Well this is just a glimpse of what I’ve been making the last few weeks. It’s been fun and interesting. I am glad to always test myself to see how much I can make and do and so far it’s great. I look forward to challenging myself to cook more.

What hobbies do you enjoy doing that you have found yourself doing more often?

Brunch at Manila Social Club

Posted on March 2, 2016 by Jessica

My boyfriend, friends, and I had brunch at Manila Social Club located on Hope Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The cuisine is Filipino/French. We made reservations for noon on a Sunday and surprisingly, it wasn’t crowded at all. The restaurant was very clean, simple, cozy, and relaxing. The staff are very friendly, super nice, and laid back. Brunch is usually crazy, busy, and feels rushed, but when you come to Manila Social Club – it just feels relaxing and not rushed. It was such a wonderful experience that I didn’t want to leave.

Biscuits with Ube Butter

We were given complimentary biscuits and ube butter. These were probably the best biscuits I’ve had so far because they were fluffy and had a little sweetness to it. The ube butter complimented the biscuits very well. The ube butter was unlike anything I’ve ever had. It had a smooth and melt-in-your-mouth texture, not too sweet. I really liked this!

a glass of Tres Leches and a glass of Ube Iced Latte

Tres Leches & Ube Iced Latte

My boyfriend ordered the Tres Leches (espresso, milk, Dulce de Leche, whipped cream). This drink can be served iced or hot, but my boyfriend got it and hot. This was an interesting concoction in terms of taste and I also think it would taste a lot better if it was iced. I got the Ube Latte (ube infused with simple syrup) and it can be served iced or hot. I got it iced and it was interesting. It was a little too sweet for me even when I mixed it. I liked that Manila serves most of their drinks in cute mason jars!

Appetizers

We ordered three appetizers.The Lumpia Shanghai are Filipino egg rolls filled with duck and longanisa (sausage/chorizo). It came with two types of sauce – one was spicy and the other tasted like a fish sauce. The Lumpia Shangai were crunchy, fresh, and yummy!We also had the Longanisa Sliders which are sliders with daikon pickles and lotus chips. The Longanisa Sliders were adorable, moist, and just really delicious. Who would ever though lotus chips would or could taste so so so good? The Spam Fries is listed as a side dish under Manila’s menu, but we treated it like an appetizer. I almost always order Spam Fries at a Filipino restaurant. First off, love love love the presentation and creativity behind it. The Spam Fries weren’t salty at all. I wonder what was their secret to making some of the sodium diminish.

Mango Souffle Pancake

My boyfriend loves mango and he’s a pancake type of guy. The Mango Souffle pancake looked like a giant,fluffy cookie with chunks of mango embedded inside. I tried it and loved every bite of the pancake and there’s that Ube again, extremely yummy!

Garlic rice

My boyfriend & our friend ordered the Garlic rice as a side dish. We all felt it was a little bland and definitely not enough garlic flavor in the rice.

Roasted Vegetable Paella

One friend ordered the Roasted Vegetable Paella which looked absolutely vibrant, inviting, and hearty. The paella tasted yummy and is a good vegetarian option if you prefer something vegetarian.

My girlfriend and I ordered the French Toast Espesyal. The French Toast is deep-fried with black & blue jam, mango syrup, and macapuno ice cream (coconut). I don’t typically order sweet dishes like pancakes, waffles, or French toast for brunch, but this sounded really good. In my own opinion, I kind of regret ordering this dish because it was just too sweet for me. and very filling.

Longanisa Hash

We also ordered the Longanisa Hash as a side order too. Everything was cut into perfect bite size. The Longanisa Hash was delicious and just full of flavor.

Overall, it was a delightful experience at Manila Social Club. I definitely want to come back and try their dinner menu some time. I would most definitely come back to Manila Social Club again and it’s definitely one of the best restaurants I’ve been to in Williamsburg. There’s really something genuine about Manila Social Club!

Have you eaten at any restaurants in Williamsburg before? If so, what was your experience like?

The Best Things I’ve Ate In 2015

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Jessica

Hi everyone! I am happy to say that I have returned back to The Buzz for this semester and will be continuing sharing my food adventures and food blogging tips with you.

I would like to start off by sharing a list I’ve compiled of the best things I’ve ate in 2015 and where you can find it. 2015 was really an amazing year and I had a great opportunity to try a lot of different foods and cuisines. Here’s my list and I hope it’ll inspire you try to these dishes and drinks –

*Note these dishes and drinks aren’t arrange in any specific order*

Red Sangria

15. I typically don’t drink Sangria during brunch, but since it was offered during the brunch weekend special if you order a brunch, eggs, or omelets. I really liked Parigot‘s Sangria because it was refreshing, fruity, and had floral and plum aromas. I also liked that were chunks of apples, pears, and oranges.

Wild Mushroom Ravioli

14. Last September, my boyfriend and I went to the NYC Dumpling festival and one of the dumplings we tried was the wild mushroom ravioli and oh boy, was it mushroom heaven! I really love mushrooms, so discovering a creamy mushroom-filled ravioli was like a treasure. I’ve never had ravioli quite like this one before.

Caesar Salad Pizza

13. Who knew that a salad pizza could taste so good? During my first visit to Luigi Pizza, I ordered a Caesar Salad slice and man, was it one of the best slice of pizza I’ve had so far! The Caesar salad slice had a nice crunch to it and it had crispy chicken, romaine lettuce, cheese, and Caesar dressing around the slice. It was mouth-watering delicious!

Affugazi Affogato

12. The first I stepped into Brooklyn Farmacy, I was excited and hooked! The sundaes at Brooklyn Farmacy are awesome. The first sundae I ordered was the Affugazi Affogato. It’s really a great combination of chocolate and espresso! I enjoyed the large scoop of vanilla ice cream encased in a hardened chocolate shell which was almost impossible to break through.

Homemade Grass Jelly with Mixed Fruits & Ice Cream

11. Last Summer, I discovered this dessert during a trip to Toronto, Canada from Tracy Dessert. The homemade grass jelly with mixed fruits & ice cream was the absolute perfect solution to a hot, summery day and man was it hot the day I had this dessert. Everything tasted fresh from top to bottom. The grass jelly tasted really fresh and yummy, compared to the ones I’ve tried in New York.

Roast Pork Taco

10. I typically don’t eat tacos, but when my friends brought me and my boyfriend to Tacos El Bronco I was excited to try something different for once. I tried the roast pork taco and it was absolutely delightful! It was warm, vibrant, and delicious! The guacamole had a nice and rich creaminess to it. The taco wasn’t spicy at all which I liked. The roast pork was really tender and moist. This taco was screaming and bursting with deliciousness!

Linguine with White Clam Sauce

9. I’ve had different versions of Linguine with White Clam Sauce, but the best one I’ve had so far was from Mussels & More. Their version was on point! There wasn’t too much sauce and the sauce was just the right thickness. I also liked that it wasn’t too garlicky and you get a combination of clams in a shell and chopped clams.

Breaded Baked Clams

8. Another dish I tried from Mussels & More that was different and that I truly enjoyed was the breaded baked clams. The staff here highly recommends ordering the clams breaded because it tastes a lot better and they were right! The breaded baked clams had a crisp and crunchiness to it, but also tender.

Bisque Mussels

7. I think it’s pretty apparent that 2015 was the year I went crazy for mussels and seafood. A meal at Mussels & More wouldn’t be complete without some… mussels and so far my favorite one is the bisque mussels. They were soaked and tossed with lobster, brand, tomato, garlic and cream. Yum! Doesn’t that sound good? It’s truly a pot of lobster and mussel goodness. The mussels are cooked to perfection at Mussels & More!

Spam Fries

6. I tried out Manila Social Club with my boyfriend and friends and one of the menu items we tried was their Spam fries. I have had Spam fries at a different Filipino restaurant before, but the ones from Manila Social Club were unique in terms of taste, presentation, and creativity. I think it’s adorable how they set the Spam fries in the famous Spam can itself. The Spam fries were crispy on the outside and moist like Spam should be on the inside. I also found it interesting that the Spam fries weren’t overly salty.

Crab Dip with Crostini

5. Last Labor day weekend, I went to Ocean City, MD with my boyfriend and friends and one of the restaurant we visited was called Hooked and we tried an appetizer that I was completely “hooked” on called: Crab Dip with Crostini. This was one of the best appetizers I’ve had so far. The crostini was toasted, fresh, and crunchy. The crab dip was amazingly delicious with just the right amount of cheese to make it gooey and delicious.

Chessie’s Crab Mac-n-Cheese

4. While we were on vacation at Ocean City, MD – my boyfriend and I also tried out Shenanigan’s Irish Pub & Grille and I ordered their famous Chessie’s Crab Mac-n-Cheese which sounded and looked divine! The Chessie’s Crab Mac-n-Cheese consisted of twisted Cavatappi pasta with their Harp® lager and white Irish Cheddar sauce loaded with lumps of yummy crab meat and topped with Old Bay bread crumbs. The lumps of crab meat was really fresh and was no joke!

Crabmeat Salad

3. I typically don’t order salads at Asian restaurants and Prince Tea House isn’t known for their sandwiches or savory menu items, but I really enjoyed their Crabmeat Salad. I really liked the salad because it was very simple and tasty at the same time. It tastes similar to kani salad, but with greens and tomato to mix in. They provided a serving of ranch dressing for me, but it wasn’t necessary.

Lobster with Assorted Seafood on Yee Mein

2. My family and I were having dim sum at Golden Bay Restaurant one weekend and my dad ordered the Lobster with Assorted Seafood on Yee Mein. This was probably one of the most interesting Lobster dishes and with an assortment of seafood. I really liked the noodles, creativity and presentation of this dish. It is expensive, but well worth it.

Lobster Salad

1.My boyfriend and I went to a friend’s wedding banquet at Royal Queen in Flushing, Queens last year. The dishes we had that night were extremely unique. One of the dishes we had that I really liked was the lobster salad because it was served individually and the lobster meat was covered in mayonnaise and served with melons in the center.

So this list covers the best eats I’ve enjoyed in 2015. I am looking forward to more eats this year.

What are some of the best things you’ve ate or done in 2015?

What I Learned From Blogging on The Buzz

Posted on December 16, 2015 by Jessica

Hi everyone! You probably know me best as the crazy, passionate foodie on The Buzz and you were probably looking forward to a blog post about food, well today’s post is going to be a little different. This is my last post with The Buzz as next semester is my last semester and I will need to take care of other obligations. I just want to take the time to reflect on how far I’ve come with food blogging on The Buzz and what I’ve learned.

It’s been an honor to be a part of a team at City Tech particularly for blogging because I am passionate about blogging and I always love to meet other bloggers no matter age, sex, niche, major, and etc. Although I haven’t had much opportunity to meet the other bloggers because I go to school and work part-time, I still felt a connection.
It was nice to show another side of me in front of City Tech, besides as a Hospitality student. I was able to share my love and passion for food and restaurants through The Buzz, something I haven’t been able to do too much of in my degree/department.
I learned how to remain determined and motivated to stick to a blogging schedule and even though at times I had hundreds of topics I can blog about, it always came down to – what do I think everyone else would be interested in or what haven’t I blogged about yet?.
I learned a lot from other students just by reading their blog posts and looking through their pictures they post. I really felt everyone’s creative juices coming together.
One last item I am very fortunate about is to be able to build up my blogging/writing portfolio and I will have the opportunity to show it to future companies of the work I’ve done and how far I’ve come.

If your interested in keeping up with me and my food adventures, you can always read my food blog – Ambitious Eats or keep up with my Yelp reviews. Thanks to everyone that has helped me and supported me while I was on The Buzz! It’s been a great pleasure to blog for this community.

For Future Openlab bloggers: If you ever need advice on starting a blog or blogging itself, you can contact me through school e-mail and etc. Most importantly when you blog for The Buzz, be yourself

Why I Love to Cook

Posted on December 2, 2015 by Jessica

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving and was able to eat lots of good food! I know I did. If you’ve been following my blog posts than you know that I normally like to write about restaurants, lists of foods I like, and etc. Today I would like to share with you why I love to cook, because even though I don’t have time to do it as much as I’d like to I still love it! So here’s five reasons why I love to cook –

1. Cooking allows me to let out the creative side of me. Cooking is an art and masterpiece. When I am in the kitchen cooking away, it just feels nice to be away from everything else and everyone else for a little while. It feels peaceful, yet fun. The creativity kicks in when I am plating my dishes and making a decision of how I want it to look or appear to the eye. I also feel the most creative in cooking when it comes to deciding what herbs, spices, seasonings, ingredients to add.

2. While cooking can be fun and easy, it can also be hard and challenging. However, if you don’t face the difficulties or challenges that comes with cooking, you won’t be fearless and you won’t ever know how far you can take something. I have gave myself challenges to learn how to make certain dishes/recipes and some have been a failure, but with more practice and effort they have become successes. I was never really good at folding dumplings in the crescent fold, but after learning from my boyfriend and more practice I became good at it.

3. Another reason why I love cooking is because I have the opportunity and ability to learn from foods I’ve eaten and restaurants I’ve been to on how to plate food just by looking at it. Some of the foods I’ve seen presented have been incredibly amazing and just so artistic that I almost don’t want to eat it or touch it.

4. I like to control what goes into the food. There are times when I go to restaurants and I do like to pick out certain foods that I don’t like such as raw peppers, raw onions, ginger, and etc. When I cook, I am able to control how well I want certain ingredients to be cooked and whether if I want to add them or not. I also don’t like to add too much sugar to the food/dishes if I don’t need to. I also don’t like to add too much oil if I don’t need to either.

5. I love to cook because cooking has opened my eyes, heart, and stomach up to a lot of different foods that I thought I would never like or make. I never thought I would like Brussel sprouts, kale, and arugula , but I do! Cooking and food has motivated me to try different cuisines, foods, ingredients, and just be a little more opened and less picky.

There’s so much about the experience of cooking I enjoy. It’s everything behind-the-scenes as well – the scent of fresh basil, the fragrance of cilantro, the taste of butter, the crackle from the skillet, and the sight of a perfectly roasted chicken hanging up by the window at a Chinese restaurant. Cooking speaks to all of my senses.

Do you cook or bake? If you do, what do you like most about it?

Soup Dumplings make their mark in Downtown Brooklyn

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Jessica

Image Credit: Downtown Brooklyn

After going to school and working in Downtown Brooklyn for over three years, it’s hard to find good, authentic, and tasty Asian foods (in my opinion). Approximately a month ago, Yaso Tangbao made their print in Downtown Brooklyn located on a relatively quiet, but very commercial block between Fulton and Willoughby Street. Yaso Tangbao is a counter-serve, fast-casual dumpling restaurant.

I waited about a week after it opened to finally try it because I wanted to hear feedback from my colleagues and on Yelp first. I went on a Friday afternoon with my boyfriend for lunch and it was quite crowded! There are a few communal tables along with benches for you to sit and eat, as well as smaller tables ideal for two people, and counters with seats. The service is pretty quick and the staff here are very friendly and nice too.

The main star of the restaurant are the soup dumplings or xiao long bao. Yaso Tangbao offers two types of xiao long bao – one with pork ($8.50) and one with a mixed blue crab and pork filling ($11.00). My boyfriend and I tried the pork xiao long bao and truth be told, I wasn’t expecting them to be as good as they. The soup dumplings were freshly-made, each one squirting out a rich and savory broth and a chunky pork filling. It was absolutely delicious and goes well with the soy and vinegar sauce.

We also tried the chicken curry pan-fried noodles, but it wasn’t really what we expected. The noodles were on par and crunchy! The sauce and chicken on the other hand wasn’t on par. There wasn’t much taste to it and the sauce was watered down. I don’t think we would order this again.

All in all, we enjoyed our experience at Yaso Tangbao. The xiao long bao are phenomenal and I would definitely return just to try them again. I highly recommend Yaso Tangbao if your in the area and don’t know what to do for lunch. This is definitely a spot/restaurant worth checking out.

What new restaurant/cafe have you tried lately?

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