SUSHI IKE, 5/28/09 (HOLLYWOOD)

*warning! this paragraph will be

entirely in caps,so don't trip!* ;p

SUSHI IKE IS MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE SUSHI RESTAURANT!! I DARE ANY OTHER SUSHI JOINT TO ATTEMPT TO COME CLOSE TO THE FRESHNESS OF THEIR FISH...HANDS DOWN,SUSHI IKE WILL WIN!

There,i've said it so you should check them out too. It's located in a strip mall @ Hollywood/Gower,across from Pep Boys. But don't let the strip mall mentality fool ya. Even though there may not be anything fancy about the interior,say like,Katsuya...no matter,they don't have time for that,it's all about the meal. The staff & sushi chefs,including Ike are very congenial,and make you feel very welcomed. I pretty much have come here every Thurs for lunch. Today was my first day back since i 've been on my diet,and it was delicious! Pictured are crab sushi (real,meaty crab meat!) & snapper with green ice tea. I also ordered spicy tuna handroll (my fav) that had just the right amount of kick to it. Seriously,try this place! You will definitely be pleased :) http://www.yelp.com/biz/sushi-ike-los-angeles

SHRIMP SALAD,5/26/09 (MY CREATION)

As of yesterday i've lost 14lbs! I'm cautiously optimistic :) I attribute this to following my friend Amanda's diet (http://www.thehollywoodagentdiet.com/), which has helped me eat healthier & be more conscious of what i'm putting into my body. I tried booze for the first time last week & my system hated it! I had a shot of my beloved Makers Mark & i literally gagged (lol)! First off, I prolly shouldn't have done a shot,more like on the rocks,but still! It's all about moderation from this point on...booze calories are a mofo! Anyhoos,the cool thing about this diet is that i can have all the fresh veggies i want (and i do love veggies!). Last nite i found some leftover shrimp in my freezer & threw together this salad. Total guilt free dinner! :)

VEGAN HOUSE, 5/22/09 (HOLLYWOOD)

Vegan House is my second foray into having vegan cuisine. And the idea of dining at vegan restaurants is starting to grow on me :) I met my friend Tim there (who initially introduced me to Truly Vegan earlier this year), around 1130am on friday.Tim's heart was set on having blueberry pancakes (he has a kookie habit of eating his pancakes from the inside out lol!),but unfortunately the batter wasn't prepared yet :( Since we were sitting out side & it was a bit chilly,we both settled on having a bowl of wonton soup. One word...yuuuuuuummmmy! It reminds me of my homemade chicken soup (minus the chicken). It came in a generous portion with lots of veggies & potatoe stuffed wontons. And the price? only $4.99...awesome! I will definitely come back & try some of the other cheap items on the menu :)

FRED 62, 5/21/09 (LOS FELIZ)

Yvonne & I hit up Fred 62 for something light on this devil of a Thurs & and some retail "therapy" in the surrounding area. Yvonne had the "La La"salad & I had a crunchy Chinese Chicken salad...as you can see from the sh*t eating grin on my face,it doesn't take much to make me happy! :)

P.S.(i thought the "good luck cats" display was cute!)
http://www.fred62.com/index.html

PURAN'S RESTAURANT,5/18/09 (LOS FELIZ)

Yvonne treated me to a early supper yesterday & because i'm one to not turn down a freebie,i gladly accepted :) I met her at Puran's, which i've never been to. The sun was beginning to set & it was nice to get away from the usual restaurant noise i'm used to. The place is small & intimate with high ceilings. The menu touts the food as being fresh & organic. Since i'm still on my diet kick,I decided to have a Greek salad.

Very tasty! Yvonne (lil Miss Hurricane) decided to have the 3-course meal: chicken pesto wrap with fries,sole kabob with cous,and for dessert, raspberry sorbet...i guess she was hungry ;p

http://www.puransrestaurant.com/

TRULY VEGAN RESTAURANT,5/9/09 (HOLLYWOOD)

As of today i've lost 8lbs! I already have more energy & as much as i joke about missing booze...with these results i can do without it for awhile. Don't fret (ha!), it doesn't mean i'm entirely giving it up,i'm just slowing my roll. Today I was running errands & passed by Truly Vegan.I remember a friend introduced me to this place for lunch awhile back. The food was good,cheap & they definitely give you nice size portions...i'm there,enough said! I ordered iced green tea with the "protein salad" which consists of salad greens,tomatoes,garbanzo beans,avocado,onions, & topped with vegan" bacon bits. Sooooo good! Afterwards I was full,but i felt great that i ate a meal that counted towards my health :)http://trulyvegan.net/

THE STANDARD HOTEL,5/7/09 (DOWNTOWN L.A.)

*HOT IN THE CITY!!!*...geez! Last Thurs was horrible in Hollywood. It was hot & humid,so what's a girl to do? Why head over to the Standard Hotel & chill on the roof top! At least that's how we roll ;p This was my first time doing this,but my partner in crime (Yvonne),has done this many times. I was apprehensive because i thought you had to be a hotel guest...not the case. Sweeeet! We took the subway downtown,then made the uphill trek to the hotel. I wish i had taken pics of the lobby because it's very modern & loungey,but the light on my camera phone isn't the greatest.The first pic is of us in the elevator,on our way to heaven. And as the doors opened up,voila! Immediately Yvonne stripped down & got in the pool. I hung out on the sidelines. Mindful of my diet,i kept it simple & ordered a grilled chicken salad (which we split) & seltzer water. Diet or no diet,it was toooo hot drink in this heat lol. Eventually some people vacated one of the little water bed pagodas,so we grabbed one. So awesome! I laid back on the bed & left my feet lazily drape out...I could seriously get used to this ;p I felt like sharing this expierence with another friend so i called Amanda H. I told her to get her buns down here..stat! Amanda eventually got there & it was peas & carrots after that. She ordered chicken/beef skewers & we all kicked it out the water bed. Here's a funny side note,a couple had ordered a lunch,but one of them didn't finish the other half of their sandwich,so they left it behind. Without missing a beat,Amanda grabbed the plate & brought it inside our pagoda. She split it with Yvonne & had a mini meal out of it...good times (lol)! We were there for about 4hrs,getting nice tans,good food & convo...but then the sun began to set (bah!). Time to get back to reality! Oh well,there's still summer around the corner & i can't think of a better way to spend a Thurs afternoon in the city ;p

A NEW TWIST....

I started a new diet yesterday that i will be on for 3wks,so my regular blog updates will be slightly different for the next few weeks. For one,i'm not going to be drinking alcohol (oh,the horror! lol). And secondly,my food is pretty much limited...seafood is cool & all,but i won't be going buckwild on tacos for awhile (lol). Trust me,it's all for the good :) In the meantime,i will be posting pics of things i've cooked, sights, and whatever tickles my fancy! ;p...YAY!!

This is a lil sumptin' sumptim' i made last year with some leftovers. It's my version of chinese chicken soup: ingredients: sugar snap peas (luv the crunch factor!), shitake mushrooms,sliced chicken breast,scallions, & carrots. I make different versions of this all the time,and it's a great cold buster :)