Stop #38: San Diego, California, USA

The Crack Shack
BEST FRIED CHICKEN EVER! They source Jidori Chicken from Southern California, only using humanely raised poultry from small, local farms, allowed to roam freely on pastures and eat preservative- and antibiotic-free food. And I could taste the difference. The chicken was healthy, nice-sized and juicy (even the white meat). There were 6 options for sauces: kimchi BBQ, Baja hot sauce, cracksup, ranch, mustard, and Sriracha 1000 island. So so good!

SPICY AND JUICY! Firebird—Spicy fried thigh, cool ranch, crispy onions, pickles, potato roll

BEST FRIED FRIES EVER! Mexican Poutine—Schmaltz fries, pollo asado, jalapeño cheese wiz

YUM! Mini biscuits—Miso-maple butter

One thing I loved about Southern California was the outdoor eating, casual but trendy.

For more information, visit http://www.crack-shack.com.



In-N-Out Burger
Maybe it's not healthy but who cares! I love their burger! It's simple and to the point when you just want a classic burger.

There are many items on their secret menu. I asked for "well done fries." They were just a little crispier. CRUNCH! 

For more information, visit http://www.in-n-out.com.



Carnitas' Snack Shack
I love pork and I am happy to see more and more places dedicating their love to pork. They gave so much carnitas on the taco! The house made guac was so refreshing. The pork belly fell apart and was so rich in flavor.

Snackshack Guacamole & Chips—Crispy chips, house made shack guacamole

Carnitas Tacos—Guacamole, pico, lime

Pork Belly App—Braised pork, sweet-spicy glaze, frisée salad, apples, radish, lemon vinaigrette

Look at this beautiful outdoor seating!

Next time I'd like to try the Triple Threat Pork Sandwich (pork loin schnitzel, pulled pork, bacon, pepperoncini relish, shack aioli). 

For more information, visit http://carnitassnackshack.com.

Extraordinary Desserts

I must have done something right in my life so whomever is in power up there led me to this dessert place. It was heaven. It was NOT cheap but it was WORTH every penny. The cakes were artistically made with passion.

Chocolate Tiramisu—A perfect blend of chocolate and coffee. Espresso soaked chocolate cake layers surround a dark chocolate mascarpone mousse. This handsome layer cake is finished with alternating stripes of chocolate ganache and espresso whipped cream. 

Apple Crostatas—The Crostata is a baked tart and a form of pie. Each is filled with almond cream, pastry cream, and fresh seasonal fruits. Yes, it was decorated with real flower petals and edible gold leaf. 

For more information, visit https://extraordinarydesserts.com.



The Taco Stand
The Taco Stand had a more modern take on tacos. Overall, it was good but I wished the fish was bigger on my Baja Taco. The Mar Y Tierra Fries was unique and insanely good!

Baja Taco—Battered fish, cabbage, cilantro, tomato, onions, chipotle sauce

Al Pastor—Rotisserie marinated pork, cilantro, onions, cilantro sauce, pineapple

Mar Y Tierra Fries—Grilled shrimp with flamed grilled angus steak (100% certified angus beef), fries, guacamole, sour cream, cheese

For more information, visit http://www.letstaco.com.



Oscars Mexican Seafood
There were so many taco places and I had a hard time deciding which ones to try given the limited time in San Diego. I was happy that I didn't skip Oscars. It was a local favorite and I could see why. The seafood was so fresh that I could almost taste the ocean. The freshness made a big difference when it came to seafood.

Taco Special (Smoked Fish, Shrimp, Scallops)—Served with Cabbage, Onion, Tomato, Cilantro, Avocado & Cheese

For more information, visit http://www.oscarsmexicanseafood.com.




The Baked Bear
What an awesome and fun place for ice cream sandwiches! I smelled joy when I walked in.

1. Pick the cookie or brownie.

2. Pick the ice cream.

3. Warm up the ice cream sandwich (optional).

4. Happiness. Chocolate chip cookies with vanilla ice cream.

Top cookie: White Chocolate Macadamia Nut; Bottom cookie: Snickerdoodle (Yes, you can mix and match!)
Ice cream: Salted Caramel Fudge

Life is short, eat cookies. :)

For more information, visit http://www.thebakedbear.com.



Shorehouse Kitchen
Brunch done right! I loved the food and atmosphere. They offered free self serve coffee while you waited for a table.

Coffe was smooth and strong. I asked for macadamia nut milk. What a nice treat!

Buttermilk Pancakes. At first, when I was pouring the syrup, I wondered why it was watery. The waiter informed me that it was pure organic maple syrup. The sweetness was prefect on the fluffy pancake. Delightful.

Angus Short Rib & Hash Brown Potato Cakes—Cabernet Braised Angus Beef with Eggs and Toast. That short rib hash brown was so flavorful.

For more information, visit http://www.shorehousekitchen.com.

Stop #37: Orange County, California, USA

Din Tai Fung
I don't care what people say; I will always be a Din Tai Fung fan. I know some people think it is too expensive but I just love their food and atmosphere. The service is always professional and attentive. I never feel rushed. I can sit and enjoy my meal peacefully. I also like to be treated nicely and pampered, nothing wrong with that! The restaurant is clean and upscale. The food looks and tastes like art. I am a fan!

I mean, look at these soup dumplings (XiaoLongBao)! Xiao long bao (literally "small basket buns," named for the bamboo baskets they’re steamed in) have delicate skins that encase a pork-based filling and its broth. Din Tai Fung has an army hand-making the dumplings. Quality is everything!

Shrimp & Pork Wontons with Spicy Sauce

Shrimp & Pork Dumplings

Pork Chop Fried Rice

Sesame and Red Bean Buns

For more information, visit http://dintaifungusa.com.

Snooze Eatery

The wait for this place was insane, always 2+ hours. But thankfully I used NoWait app to get myself in the queue while I took my time getting over there. Pancake Flight was the best way to try a variety

of pancakes and french toasts. 

Here I had the lemon poppyseed pancake (seasonal), blueberry danish pancake and OMG! French Toast. What made the French Toast "OMG!"—Bread & Cie brioche stuffed with mascarpone then griddled and topped withvanilla crème, salted caramel, fresh strawberries and toasted coconut. Everything was yummy. I am actually not a big lemon fan but I was being adventurous and ordered the lemon poppyseed. So glad I did that. It was the most memorable out of the three. 

French Toast Neat—For the purist, French toasted Bread & Cie brioche completed with mascarpone whipped cream, seasonal fruit and Slopeside pure Vermont maple syrup.

For more information, visit http://snoozeeatery.com.

Porto's Bakery & Cafe

This was years in the making; I finally made it to Porto's. The bakery was mentioned in Six Feet Under, over ten years ago. They had expended since then but they kept their friendly services and fresh pastries. Surprisingly, they were still giving out samples. I got an entire cheese roll to try! They had a constant line going out of the door. They really didn't have to give out free samples to attract customers. That spoke volumes of their customer services. 

Things to try here: Meat pie (pastel de carne); Potato Ball™ (stuffed potato); Cheese roll™ (cheese filled pastry); Guava strudel (pastel de guayaba); cakes; cupcakes; cookies; anything and everything! 

For more information, visit http://www.portosbakery.com.

Stop #36: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Federal Donuts

Dear Federal Donuts, thank you for entering my life. I have been to a few locations. The shops are always busy, no matter what time. The fancy (special flavored) donuts do run out by early afternoon. The donuts are so moist and so flavorful.  Every bite of it makes me happy.

Surprisingly, they also serve fried chicken and it is so so good. They have three different glazes you can try—honey ginger, chili garlic, and sweet soy garlic. My favorite is honey ginger.

For more information, visit http://www.federaldonuts.com.

Green Eggs Cafe

It was 9:25AM on Sunday morning and there was already a 45-minute wait. It was frigid cold outside and people were all waiting on line. It was not a hole in the wall. They had plenty of seatings and the cafe was spacious. What was going on? We had to find out. Luckily, the wait was 25 minutes and we got in. The food arrived and I understood why—large portion, reasonable price, and most importantly, tasty food!

The “Kitchen Sink”—Three eggs scrambled with sausage crumbles, Gruyere cheese, potatoes, peppers & onions, topped with a homemade jumbo biscuit and country style pork sausage gravy in a cast-iron skillet. Honestly, this dish did not look very appetizing when I was researching and looking at pictures posted by other reviewers. But it sounded delicious, so I had to try. I was so glad that I did. It was so flavorful and all the ingredients mixed really well together.  

Chicken & Waffles Benedict—6 oz of southern fried boneless chicken thigh and two poached eggs on buttermilk wa e half with maple syrup and hot sauce hollandaise. This was a little disappointing as the chicken was a little dry and the hot sauce tasted off.

Red Velvet Pancakes—Red velvet pancakes with chocolate morsels and strawberry mascarpone layers, topped with maple syrup, chantilly cream and fresh strawberries. Not everyone does red velvet pancakes well, so I needed to know how theirs compared. Thankfully, it was available as a side order. The pancakes were so soft and moist. I could not stop eating it. Mmmm... yummy!

Classic pancakes with chocolate chips. You want to eat it, don't you?  

For more information, visit http://greeneggscafe.com.