Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Thank you

This isn't so much a blog but more of just a personal thank you to all those that have ever checked out my blog and my crazy food adventures and especially those that continuously show love and support and apparently look forward to reading my blogs. I would still continue to blog about what I love, which obviously it's food lol, whether anyone cares to follow me and support me, but the fact that I have this kind of feedback is very humbling and rewarding in its own way.
Thank you! Arigato! Danke! Gracias! Salamat!  Stay tuned for next pig out session.
                    Rueben
                       A.K.A
                     Feastm0de

Monday, June 29, 2015

Lenny's

I'm very much into nostalgic things; things that triggers happy memories from my youth and whatnot.  That's what the feel you get walking into Lenny's Burger Shop, with the old school diner look, jukebox playing ( of all songs,  Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen!!) and the aroma of burgers on the flat top grill.
    I remember sitting in the living room as a kid and throwing on my dads records, whether it was Sam Cooke, Otis redding orAretha Franklin..such great memories.  While I sat and reminisced about yesteryear, I ordered a Cowboy Burger for lunch.  What a delicious creation haha. A fresh ground beef burger loaded with bacon (of course),fresh onion rings and BBQ sauce.  Yee-haw!  I definitely recommend this place and with so much to try, deciding on what to order will be the only hard part of this eatery.  Last time I was here I tried the southwest pastrami burger.  The Mexican burger loaded with green chilies and onions I've been told is as amazing.
There's also chili dogs, a variety of loaded French fries and of course shakes and floats, which I may pick up in a minute to complete my feastm0de. Well that's it for now, until my the beast in my belly awakens again


Saturday, June 27, 2015

Snoh Ice Shavery

Being a local boy, born and raised in Hawaii, my version of summertime is such a major contrast than living here in the mainland. On a typical day during the summertime in Hawaii, you may find me cooling off at a beach soaking in sun and saltwater or maybe eating fresh fruits with ice cream or indulging in a Hawaii staple and must have, shave ice and topped with various local flavored syrups.
Living here in Arizona , a typical summer is trying to avoid the heat( lol good luck with that), sweating and consuming lots or water to stay hydrated. Now for me, I'm very adventurous, so although we don't have a beach here, I still enjoy hiking and anything that involves being outdoor. Now, there's other ways to beat the heat here, besides being cooped up at home with the A/C blasting. One of my favorite things to do ( and obviously why you are on my blog page haha) is summertime eats and treats to cool off, whether it's hitting up my favorite ice cream joint, a refresh agua fresca ( fresh water mixed with fresh fruits and a bit of sugar), shave ice or a unique find here : Snoh!            Snoh Ice is a cross between ice cream and traditional shaved ice. The fluffy melt in your mouth texture of snow is combined with the creamy flavorful taste of ice cream, making this new frozen dessert unlike anything  you've tried before. Founded in China, this is a slowly gaining but very popular dessert with Asian infused recipes and toppings such as using condensed milk, green tea, mochi balls, lychee (a sweet Asian fruit) and fortune cookies for an example.  I ordered the Honey dew snoh with mochi balls and drizzled nutella on top. Very refreshing and trust me, the nutella didn't over sweeten or drown out the sweet taste of my honey dew snih but actually kinda balanced it out ( crazy I know lol).
There's a variety of flavors, toppings and glaze to experiment so go ahead and go crazy and get creative. If you have never had the experience of having snoh, I definitely recommend it. ( I hope they have a shop in your city, so I'm sorry as a pre warning if it's unavailable near you) .  I'm much cooler now that I got my snoh fix on so now it's off to exploring my city some more.. Until next time, love, peace and feast ( m0de)!

Sunday, June 21, 2015

Happy Father's Day 2015

So for mine and my brother's father's day dinner, I made a simple meal for us consisting of chicken katsu (a Japanese panko bread crumb fried chicken cutlet) and teriyaki hamburger steak. We didn't need anything fancy for our dinner,which leads me to the real reason behind this blog entry.
  Today is Father's Day and before we lose sight of what today means,allow me to explain further. For me and my brother, as well as fathers worldwide, today isn't just about recognizing the roles men have to their children but to elaborate more on what it means to be a dad and how you can show your love and gratitude to them.
Being a father is to love your children unconditionally, through good times and bad. To be tough enough to teach them valuable life lessons but soft enough to heal broken hearts, scraped knees and fallen tears. Its more about guidance than being strict and a disciplinary. To laugh just as much as or even more so than yelling or scolding them. To love them equally whether they are at fault or not but to be stern to teach them from their mistakes. Love.. The biggest keyword in all of this. Love is a an unconditional emotion and feeling, that should never come second to anything especially materialistic items.  Instead of tech gadgets and video games,expand their mind with books and poetry. Just like food, nourish their souls and hearts with plenty of love, laughter and Faith and help them grow into amazing adults.
For our loved ones and our children, us father's don't need a fancy 5 course meal or an extravagant trip or jewelry.. No, the best way to show us father's that we are important to you is just a simple thank you, or hug and kiss or all the above. Spoken words and heartfelt emotions  will always be the best gift you can give us next to the life that was created to create you, OUR most important gift. If we do all we can as fathers and as parents, seeing our children succeed will be the ultimate reward and  accomplishment we'll ever do while still on earth
Happy Father's Day to all

Friday, June 19, 2015

In N Out Burger (Los Angeles Adventures)

Being out here in Los Angeles,California for these 2 days , there's a few places that you need to check out, for both being highly recommended and having a must visit aura attraction feel to it such as Pink's hotdog on North La brea,with their famous hotdogs named after and for their popular celebrity clientele, or Norm's ( a friendly and competitive alternative to IHOP and Denny's) with their big portions and affordable prices and various locations throughout California, and no visit to California would be complete without hitting up a taco truck and grabbing an order or two and with endless amounts of trucks scattered throughout Los Angeles, finding one shouldn't be too hard.
One place that deserves to be added to this list, if they're not on it already, is In n Out burger. A simple burger joint born and raised in Baldwin, California has been exactly the same, a simple eatery with quality products supporting their claim.
What separates them from the major fast food chains is their food; hand crafted fresh patties and French fries.
I ordered a simple double double ( 2 patties,2 cheese) and a side of fries ordered off their "secret menu" called animal style fries ( fries covered in cheese,secret spread and grilled onions) and a chocolate milkshake to wash it all down. I tend to visit my favorite location near Hollywood ( across from Hollywood Highschool) and I wasn't disappointed at all. Overall , my trip to the golden state was wonderful, eating at some great joints as well as spending time with my mom and explored the city with her .
Eaton Canyon is the hike we went on and its a fun hike and a great way to burn calories to make way to eat again haha
Well until next time, love❤,peace✌and feast (m0de)

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Chinatown (Los Angeles adventure)

So I'm in Los Angeles visiting my mom for her birthday and we decided to venture down to Chinatown to find some plants and other decorations for her place and of course no trip to Chinatown would be complete with out snacking on some food and trust me, there's an endless amount of shops and restaurants to choose from. You will get a crazy mixture of smells ranging from all the roasted and smoked meats such as char sui ( Chinese BBQ pork) and Peking duck to fresh fruits and snacks.
Me and my mom picked up 3 of our favorite Chinese during our little shopping visit. First we had deep fried wonton (a Chinese dumpling stuffed with pork and shrimp ) . Tasty and flavorful packed into a small appetizer that got devoured quickly haha. A bit later we picked up a order of char sui  bao(Chinese BBQ pork stuffed in a steamed bun) . This is another popular Asian dim sum (appetizer) for both being filling and tasty as well as quick and convenient while on the go. Lastly we picked up a pound char sui to take home for dinner. One of the most common item you'd find in just about every chinese restaurants and shops and it goes well by itself , or with rice or noodles too.
There's a lot more to see for yourself while down here. I recommend the seafood and for the bit adventurous try out some of their varieties on Chinese crack seed. Crack seed is the Chinese version of dehydrated and  preserved fruits ranging from salty to sweet depending on your preference. I live the honey plums and lemon peels, a great mixture of my sweet and salty fix. Mahalo for reading and stay tuned for my next adventure haha
      Feastm0de!
  


Thursday, June 11, 2015

Lemon chicken recipe

Lemon chicken:

1 5lb package of chicken (deboned)
1 package of tempura batter mix ( panko bread crumbs is just as fine)

Lemon chicken sauce:
1 1/2 cups of lemon juice
2 cups sugar
2/3 tsp of white vinegar
2 drops yellow food coloring ( optional)
2 cups water
Cornstarch ( mixed in to your preferred thickness)
Lemons for garnish

Now simply deep fry your chicken to a golden brown and pour your sauce on top.           Such a simple recipe and it doesn't take too long. The prep  and cook time for the sauce is about 5 minutes and the approximate cooking time for the  chicken is about 25 minutes. Hope you enjoy it!