Anima Pizza & Pasta

Right smack dab in the middle of Koreatown is Anima Pizza & Pasta, a restaurant that seems imported directly from Italy. It’s in walking distance of our apartment (think near Wilshire & Vermont) and we are so happy that it is! It’s actually in the same strip as another favorite restaurant of ours, so it’s twice the greatness. We discovered this gem late one night (think near 10pm) and we’ve been going back weekly ever since. The quality of the food far surpasses the dollar signs on their menu–it’s excellent food for a bargain.

Aug062015

Wiki Poki Review

As someone who grew up in the diner capital of the world, there’s some confusion when entering a restaurant that only serves one thing. Luckily, Wiki Poki also has miso soup. When you find an eatery that specializes in one particular delicacy, the execution of the dish has to be nearly flawless or success is unattainable. Just look at the fresh seafood that Wiki Poki uses to create their amazingly healthy and delicious containers of love. You walk in and out in no time with only $10 less than you entered with just a few minutes before. Secretly, I don’t want to write this glowing review because it will only lead to more traffic here and I want to keep it all to myself.

Post-workout goodness

Feb032015

Bar Hayama Restaurant Review (Los Angeles)

On Sawtelle, away from the long lines and commotion of popular spots like Tsujita LA and others, is Bar Hayama. Highlighted by a beautiful outdoor seating area, this bar offers four seating options and multiple menus worth of food. As a result, being seated and served takes far less time than eateries closer to Olympic. Still, as Hungry & Fit, the most important dining aspect is the food, but let’s take about what makes this fiery location worth a visit.

Jan262015

Simply Pho You Restaurant Review (Los Angeles)

Restaurant? In a sense. It’s not the best word I’d use to describe the atmosphere at Simply Pho You on Vermont (just off Wilshire Center–Fit things it’s a hilarious name) in Koreatown, Los Angeles. Tucked in a strip mall on a crowded corner that gets loads of foot traffic, there isn’t any space for outdoor seating. While the inside also lacks square footage, management has loaded family-style tables with plenty of seating. No over the-top-decorations, no attractive hostess at an over-sized station, no wasted space. They just want to serve you food, and I love it. Efficiency bursts out of the kitchen with one of the hardest working wait staffs I have ever seen. The food is well worth the small price you have to pay. Restaurant? Again, not quite. I’d imagine this is what a Vietnamese block party feels like and I have few complaints.

Nov132014

Cafe Korobokgur — Koreatown, LA

Although Los Angeles brings its hardships in living and finding our way, Koreatown is certainly not lacking in its culinary scene. Get ready for a ton of reviews on Koreatown restaurants. We love to walk around our neighborhood and find hidden gems to feast our faces on. We almost always come out smiling. Especially from places like today’s review– Cafe Korobokgur. Sound like a mouthful? We think so, thus we call it “that little gnome place.” And we mean it in the best way possible.

Cafe Korobokgur is an American-Korean fusion cafe. I keep wanting to call it “little” but it’s actually quite large for a cafe. It’s adorably decorated with cute things here and there (with Miyazaki things too which is a plus). It has an incredibly friendly atmosphere. It is certainly a place I would call “hip” but not overcrowded with people, which is nice. It has its own character and feel to it, which I really appreciate in food establishments. They are them and they aren’t afraid to show it. You’ll find cute quotes, sayings, and pictures all over this place. There’s a little “cafe front” and then we assume the kitchen is in back. This cafe is not just for drinks, but for food too. They also have an adorable restroom.

Can you find the Cat Bus?

We came here for dinner one night. There were other Koreans and Korean-Americans here–mostly our age–that brought their study supplies or friends to enjoy. Again, we come in with a smile to a relaxed atmosphere. When we are in good, generous moods, we like to spoil ourselves with food. And that means 3-course meals. After bringing us some fruit-and-cucumber-infused water, our waiter took our order. For appetizer, we got seasoned fries and fried calamari. They served different seasonings for the fries which was fun to try out and it was certainly delicious and cooked well. The fried calamari also pleased us. After appetizer, it was time for our main dishes. I got the kimchi fried rice and Hungry got Don Katsu. We were both satisfied with our entrees, though I couldn’t even finish mine. The kimchi fried rice was nice and spicy, so that I had to take slow. For dessert, we got something original by this place called a “Jarming.” Basically it is a mini mason jar filled with a dessert. We decided on the banana nutella sponge cake Jarming and it was absolutely fantastic. I seriously cannot stress enough how good this little thing was. They also make them in tons of different flavors and make seasonal ones too!

Fried calamari

Full of YUM

The service was a bit slow, so don’t come here in a rush. However, it is part of the relaxed atmosphere, I think. We are definitely going to head back to Cafe Korobokgur again and enjoy its adorable details and its yummy food soon. The drinks were rather expensive, but if nothing else, that Jarming will reel me in for another round for sure. If you’re in Koreatown, be sure to stop at Cafe Korobokgur and don’t leave there without a Jarming! I promise, you won’t regret it. And as always…stay hungry and fit!

BONUS KITTY PIC

Sajah resting in between a set of reps

Sep092014

Fine Italian Dining: Bottega Louie

Recently, while Hungry was out of town, I spent some time with my brother in Downtown Los Angeles. Now my brother is a very generous man. He will always take me or us (if Hungry is around) out to breakfast, lunch, or dinner–no questions asked! That’s why it’s always a treat to go around to new places with him. He knows such a great variety of restaurants. That night I had slept over, so the next morning we decided on a breakfast place before I headed back to Santa Monica. Sophie (Kai’s partner) and Kai agreed we had to go to Bottega Louie.

Me, my mum, and my brother

Wow. What an experience. First of all, this place is huge. It used to be a department store building, so you can only imagine. Tall, tall ceilings, with incredible square footage–think 4000 (not kidding). You enter and the first thing you see is their lovely bundle of treats at a huge counter. You don’t have to sit down to eat here in order to fix your sweet tooth. You can just order from their bakery section. I’ve definitely had macarons and more from there–YUM. Every worker there is dressed impeccably in black and white–it brings you to a fine dining atmosphere. We are seated immediately as we arrived just as it opened for breakfast.

Our waiter was unbelievably professional and catering. He waited on our every word and treated us like kings and queens. Our bellies were very anxious at this point, especially after Kai’s been telling me about all the incredible things he has eaten here in the past. He orders “the best grapefruit juice he’s ever had” and I get a water. This place is fancy–they change your silverware for each part of the meal and clean up after you. The service is absolutely incredible.

Beyond drinks, we start with the beignets with raspberry sauce. Many of you know my affinity for New Orleans, so I was all over this. Kai isn’t a big sweets person, especially when it comes to pastry. However, these are very different from traditional New Orleans beignets so I was a bit cautious. Throw caution out of the window for this one, folks. We both bite into these steaming round beignets with granulated sugar (not powdered sugar) and both look at each other with wide awed eyes. WOW! Absolutely incredible, fresh off the press. I’m literally drooling as I write this. It’s hard to describe how good they were–think puffy, delicate, and dream-worthy. The raspberry sauce (I usually don’t dig dessert dips) was out of this world fresh with subtle tart flavors that completed this dish. Yes, I did just dedicate an entire paragraph to the beignets. THEY WERE THAT GOOD!

The magic

We moved onto our final course. Kai ordered portobella mushroom fries for us to share and mushroom ravioli with an egg baked inside. Sounds crazy, right? The ravioli is huge, enough room for them to somehow (I suspect magic), cook an egg inside. I got the eggs benedict without the meat. Oh boy, were we a happy pair. I had never had mushroom fries before. They were incredibly long, deep-fried in some batter and served with a pesto aioli. Absolutely wonderful. The mushroom-egg ravioli was fantastic. My eggs benedict knocked it out of the park–executed perfectly. It was such a happy meal and experience and we could’ve really used some wheel chairs after the meal. We were FULL.

Ravioli

Eggs Benedict

Overall, dining at Bottega Louie was such a wonderful experience that is somewhat unusual to me. I usually don’t go to fancy restaurants, but it was just so great on all levels: the service, food, and atmosphere get an A+! I can’t wait to take Hungry there. They also serve lunch and dinner so the options are endless! Next time you’re in Downtown LA, stop by Bottega Louie at least for a sweet at the bakery, if not a full meal! As always, stay hungry and fit!

Aug052014

Gourmet Mexican in Colorado: Comida

Our friend and client in Colorado has been talking about this place, Comida, since I’ve met her. She said the first time she had a taco there, she cried because it was so good. She’s been trying to get us to go and finally on our last day in Colorado, we went with her for some lunch. Comida is located in Longmont, Colorado, but could easily be placed in New York or Los Angeles–it’s trendy!

Comida is basically gourmet Mexican. I don’t necessarily love gourmet, but I do love me some Mexican. The menu was fairly small, which I like. Most of the options had meat, so I opted for an egg and bean quesadilla. Chris and Crystal got three varieties of tacos and we all split a plate of nachos. Crystal got a watermelon jalapeno margarita and a pomegranate lemonade, I got a Jamaican margarita, and Chris got a Boylan’s soda. It was a wonderful array of food.

Presentation is beautiful, no doubts there. They definitely make it look appetizing so that you can’t wait to dig in. The plates are stylish as is the way they lay everything out. Prices are decent. It’s gourmet, so it’s a little more expensive than your typical Mexican joint–about $4 per taco. However, on most dishes, the flavor is worth the slightly expensive price. Hungry really enjoyed the tacos (especially Stella’s Pork Carnitas) and I couldn’t get enough of the Not ‘Yo Nachos. The quesadilla was slightly less in flavor, but luckily I had some salsa to dunk it in. My margarita was also delicious!

All in all, I would come back. We got to sit outside, which was very nice and peaceful. The flavors are great and are enough of a reason for us to return if we have the time when we visit Colorado again. All in all, Comida gets a thumbs up from Hungry and Fit!

Mar222014

Boulder’s Hidden Gem: Tibet Kitchen

I’m appalled we haven’t written a post about this wonderful wonderful food place in Boulder. Anyone who has visited so far should know about this place: Tibet Kitchen. This place was our spot when we first got to Boulder. It had free wifi and $5 lunch specials. It really can’t be beat. It is absolutely one of my top five spots here in Boulder and it doesn’t get nearly enough attention. Cheap, quality big portions. Is there really much else you would ever need?

Momos!

Tibet Kitchen is a perfect place for a wholesome, healing meal. Whenever I meet Chris for lunch in Boulder, we usually go here. It makes us feel good and keeps us happy. It’s healthy–full of vegetables and well-cooked and seasoned meat. It leaves you feeling very satisfied without a hole in your wallet. Lunch specials run as low as $4.95–no joke! It is incredibly affordable. The most expensive item on the menu is probably $8.75. Yeah it’s that cheap.

The staff is all of the same Tibetan family and they are so accommodating–you will always be offered a cup of their free chai. And that chai is the only chai Hungry will drink. It’s pretty darn good. And boy are they generous with portions. I always have to take something home and it’s a great place for Chris. He can easily get filled up for under ten bucks. I’m telling you, this place is a gem!

MORE MOMOS

I’m sure not many people have had Tibetan food, after all, it’s a pretty small country with not a lot of recognition–especially food-wise. It is similar to Nepali food if you’ve had that. If you haven’t, I would say it’s a cross between Indian food and Chinese food with its own distinct flavor. It’s all made with wholesome ingredients, there’s basically no way to be unhealthy here. The flavors are warm and savory and some dishes have some spice. One of my favorite parts of the Tibetan cuisine is the ting-mo. It’s a Tibetan bread roll, basically dough folded time and time again to make a fist-sized ball of delicious steamed dough. I will eat tons and tons of them. I have a problem. Another star of Tibetan cuisine are the momos. These are dumplings filled with vegetables or meat. Tibet Kitchen makes them from scratch to order every time with fresh ingredients. They are so delicious and so filling. Otherwise, there are plenty of curries and such too.

From top to bottom….momos, ting-mos, and a main dish

If you’re in Boulder, please do yourself a favor and go to Tibet Kitchen. It’s affordable, filling, delicious, and healing. The people are wonderful and the atmosphere warm. I always leave happy. The only negative is that the parking lot is tiny, but can’t blame them too much for that. Eat at Tibet Kitchen to stay hungry and fit!

BONUS KITTY PIC

Nymeria being a ball of cuteness

Nov132013

Restaurant Review: Sushi Hana (Longmont, CO)

Being fanatics of Japanese food, Chris and I are always looking for new and yummy places. We have high standards for fish, we both come from coastal cities, so don’t blame us! One day at work, my boss took me out to Sushi Hana in Longmont (where I work…about 15 miles from Boulder) for a lunch meeting to get some work done. It’s this little place that would be extremely easy to miss if you weren’t looking for it. Luckily, I wasn’t driving.

We get seated immediately, after all we were there just around 11am–an early lunch. We get a hot pot of green tea to share which was perfect for a sunless, cold day. After much mulling over the lunch menu, I decide for a “sushi box” which is basically a bento box, but with sushi instead of tempura or a teriyaki dish. Overall, the fish was good (I got tuna) and the meal as a whole was very enjoyable. I got a lot of food for just $11. There was a maki roll on top of that, pork dumplings (didn’t eat), big thing of delicious rice, salad, soup, and an orange. Like I’m saying, ridiculous amount of food. The atmosphere is delightful: quiet, cultural, and peaceful. We stayed there for a while after we finished our food, and the polite, friendly server continued to fill our green tea cups. I left very full.

My delicious lunch

Usually when we do reviews, it’s of places Chris and I have both gone to. So what did that mean? After work, one Friday, I take him to Sushi Hana. This is a good sign–means I like the place enough to go back! Similar to the last experience, we were seated right away. I took the initiative to get us some green tea. This time, I ordered the salmon teriyaki box and Chris ordered the una-don (eel over rice). The salmon was cooked very well, and again, I couldn’t finish all my food (good thing I had Hungry with me). I also got the tuna-avocado maki roll which was really delicious and I preferred it without the soy sauce, another good sign. Chris said the una-don was good, but a little small. Good thing he had to finish mine!

Aaand the salmon teriyaki

Overall, Sushi Hana is a good spot, at least for lunch. It isn’t our favorite (see Kho’s or Korea House), but is definitely on our good list. If you’re in Longmont, hit up this spot for a great lunch special! Eat Japanese food to stay hungry and fit!

BONUS KITTY PIC

What I wish my every day was

Sep062013

Efrain’s Magical Mexican Food (Fit’s Restaurant Review)

I think we may have found one of the best Mexican spots in Boulder. Yes, I’m excited too. It’s a little out of the way, but it’s a scenic drive through the Wild West (it seems like). You pass these old rusted buildings, lots of old mining spots, and such. Anyhow, we get there one night, and it’s packed. And it’s a Wednesday! Obviously, this place was popular. And it had good reason to be.

The spot is called Efrain’s II as in #2. Yes, weird name, but there are actually 3 of these wonderful restaurants, one in Layfayette and Longmont as well. They obviously saw the good fortune in expanding, and boy are we glad they did! We get there around 7:30-8pm and wait for a table for around 20-30 minutes. I had a margarita while we waited and we watched some baseball. I was surprised how busy it was because it was a Wednesday. Come on, people! But it was a good sign. Chris had gone there with his friend a few weeks earlier and had wanted to take me because he knows my fervent love of good Mexican food (helloooo, I grew up in SoCal).

Great margarita!

Mr. Muscles over here

Chris’ meal from a few weeks earlier

Once finally seated, they were quick to serve us with some chips and salsa. The bad thing about this is that there were endless refills. So yes, I obviously filled up on chips and could barely eat my meal. No surprises here, folks! As I sipped away on my margarita, Chris got a Mexican Coke (he loooooooves them). He ordered the Steak San Lorenzo (a sizable meal that even he couldn’t finish) and I ordered the fajitas. Vegetarian, of course.

Mexican coke

I couldn’t believe how big my portion was. For my fajita platter, I received three tortillas, a huge plate of lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, beans, rice, guac, etc. and a huge pot of fajita-styled vegetables. I couldn’t believe it. Everything was cooked well with lots of flavor. Chris thoroughly enjoyed his steak and we left a happy couple. The atmosphere is kinda hectic, but once you get seated, you’re in your own happy bean-and-cheese world. I can’t wait to go there again and again. Good Mexican food with a good price? Don’t mind if I do. Load up on Mexican food to stay hungry and fit!