The 5 p.m. Lunch at Pa Pa Walk

Yesterday, I went to Occidental College to visit my friend Sophia, as well as meet up with Jackie. Excited to eat something out of the ordinary, we decided to randomly Yelp something. Bad idea. Three indecisive girls with too many options means an hour worth of time wasted (no lie!). We finally decided on a place in Alhambra called 15 Cats--the sister restaurant of Jazz Cat Restaurant. Unfortunately, when we got there, we realized that the restaurant had moved locations! So we decided to just head to San Gabriel and just settle on a restaurant. We ended up pulling into one of the many plazas along Valley Blvd in San Gabriel, and walked into Pa Pa Walk (better known as 趴趴走 or Pa Pa Zou).

The restaurant is not very big, and squeezes in quite a few tables. I imagine that it would be very loud and cramped when it's a full house. Fortunately for us, we arrived there around 5:00 P.M. for something like our first meal of the day. I really like how the walls are decorated with colorful posters depicting some of their top dishes (such as their creamy soup inside brick toast!). In addition, the menus were very helpful, because they not only have lists upon lists of tasty options, but at the top of each section, there is a box full of some of their top rated dishes. As far as service, I can't say much since it was pretty empty when we were there. But if you take that factor out, service was great, as the waiters were very polite and attentive.

Anyway, after yet another prolonged period of deciding what to order, Jackie ended up getting the Hainanese Chicken Rice, Sophia ordered the Three Cups Chicken with Rice, and I got the Stir-Fry Noodles with Lamb.

Stir-Fry Noodles with Lamb from Pa Pa Walk.

This dish tastes better than it looks! When it arrived at the table, I could already smell the strong, yummy aroma. The lamb was a little gamey, but I like it that way, so it worked out for me. It was also thin, and tender. I also grew up not really liking onions, but the onions in this dish were super sweet and fit in with the other ingredients seamlessly. I was a little surprised by how much veggies they put in, but in a good way.

Three Cup Chicken with Rice from Pa Pa Walk.

I also tried Sophia's dish, also known as 三杯雞, and I LOVED it. Apparently, this Three Cup Chicken dish is made from mixing in a cup of soy sauce, rice wine, and sesame oil. In addition, it is also cooked with garlic slices and basil. The flavor is nice and strong, but despite the amounts of garlic and basil, nothing was overpowering. I think I will order this when I come back to this restaurant.

Hainanese Chicken Rice from Pa Pa Walk.

While I did not try Jackie's dish, she did say that the dish is very good. Again, as with my dish, I was wow'd by how much veggies they put in. Thank you, Pa Pa Walk, for keeping us all healthy :)

In addition to their extensive food menu, they also have a large selection of drinks and desserts. Because we all decided that we wanted to order desserts, we started off with pretty basic drinks. Jackie ordered a black tea, Sophia got strawberry green milk tea, and I got barley water.

Barley water from Pa Pa Walk.

Sophia and her drinks from Pa Pa Walk :D

As you may be able to tell from Sophia's face, drinks were not a disappointment!

Finally, when we were about done with our entrees, we took a look at their desserts. Jackie had her eyes set on shaved ice, which I definitely recommend, as Pa Pa Walk has a wide variety of toppings you can add, and the ice has more of a snow-like consistency.

Jackie & her Red Bean Shaved Ice from Pa Pa Walk.

I originally had my eyes set on the Mo Mo Cha Cha, which is a Malaysian dessert that is like a cold, sweet soup, usually with coconut milk, taro, sweet potato, and tapioca. However, when I tried to order it, the waiter told me that they actually don't serve it anymore! He recommended another similar dessert instead, but I was too bummed to eat anything else :( But maybe that was a good thing, as I was already pretty full...

Regardless, lunch (dinner? linner?) was, as usual, fabulous. The waiting time is pretty average, nothing noteworthy. Prices are quite cheap too. I think Pa Pa Walk is very stable in the dishes they cook, but no big "WOW" factor. However, please do go and try some of their crazy-good shaved ice this summer!

Greetings from Sophia, Jackie, and me!

As always, thanks for reading!

Pa Pa Walk
227 W Valley Blvd, Ste 148-B
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 281-3889

Simple Goodness at A & J Restaurant

OH MY GOD. I just realized as I was uploading this picture... that I actually frequent this place back home (Arcadia branch). I never realized until JUST NOW that it's the same place as the one I frequent in Irvine. WOWWWW. Ok. So. THIS PLACE IS GOOD. LEGITIMATE. For today's post, I am going to focus on the Irvine branch.

The plaza it's located is very nice, but I guess my only complaint is that the parking lot is pretty scattered and I feel like it would be easy to get into car accidents there. Anyway, the actual restaurant is not hard to find, and is quite spacious inside. We were quickly seated, and given menus. While the menu was in both Chinese and English, my friend Satoko and I had trouble ordering, because the separate ordering sheet was only in Chinese. But that didn't stay a problem, as we just told the waitress when we came what we wanted. They waiters all speak good English, so no problems with ordering!

While Satoko ordered Zha Jiang Mian (dry noodles with meat & bean sauce and veggies), I ordered Dan Dan Mian (spicy Sichuan noodles with sesame paste). I usually order the Zha Jiang Mian, which is absolutely delicious, and healthily balanced with protein and vegetables. Today I decided to switch it up to Dan Dan mian, and was happy that I did so. The sesame paste kept the dish from being overpowered by the spicy oils, and so it wasn't that spicy at all! I don't know about you, but that's good for me because I am very bad with spicy foods. We both had the option of either thick or thin noodles, and chose the thick ones! Anyway, I like that the servings were of good size, and good quality. The noodles are perfectly chewy, soft, and fresh.

Zha Jiang Mian from A & J Restaurant.

Dan Dan Mian from A & J Restaurant.

I love that the flavors are kept really simple, and similar to True Food Kitchen, the food is pretty light, so I didn't feel weighted down after dinner. But the best part of the meal, apart from how delicious it was, was the bill. I definitely recommend this to those who are on a tight budget, but still want to get the best deal for food!

A & J Restaurant

14805 Jeffrey Rd, Ste D
Irvine, CA 92618
(949) 786-3585

As a side note, my friend Kirhan is guest-blogging on Matcha & Pavlova. Please keep checking in to my blog and stay tuned for his post. GET EXCITED.

Jazz Cat Restaurant Revisited

Today, my sister and I went to Jazz Cat Restaurant in San Gabriel for a nice hot pot (I know, again...) late lunch. I remember when we first checked out this restaurant years ago-- it was originally located in Alhambra, and while the food was good back then, they have made many improvements since their move to San Gabriel. Usually the wait for food is insane, anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour! So I'm glad we came at an unconventional eating time, as we were seated immediately.

Since their move, I feel like the restaurant became a lot classier and fancier, with their nice black granite tables, and the black chandelier and beads in the waiting area. The chairs were also very heavy, big, and cushioned. In addition, the walls were painted a deep red and lined with paintings, and the jazzy music really set the mood for a relaxing meal. Another thing that I liked was that even though there seemed to be a lot of tables inside the restaurant, the way it was set up made every table seem very private.

Because Jazz Cat is known for their hot pot (and their incredibly tasty specialty drinks!), I ordered their Mongolian Herbal hot pot combination. I had a hard time deciding between the Rose & Cream hot pot or the Mongolian Herbal hot pot, but finally decided with the latter as I ordered Matcha Milk as my drink. I loved my choice, as the soup base tasted amazing with my meat and veggies. Another cool thing about Jazz Cat is that their hot pots are served individually, so each person has their own type of soup and their own trays of food.

Mongolian Herbal soup base, rice, and Shacha sauce at Jazz Cat Restaurant.

My sister also ordered a hot pot combination, but she chose the Mongolian Spicy soup base. As for how different the two tasted, I can't say because I did not try hers, but you can judge from the photo below! From what she told me, it wasn't that spicy when she first ordered it, but it became a lot spicier by the middle to end of our meal. So be careful if you ever order it!

Mongolian Spicy soup base at Jazz Cat Restaurant.

With our soup bases, the combinations also included a tray of meat (we both chose lamb over beef, chicken, or pork) and a tray of veggies and noodles. I was happy to see that our trays were filled with a variety of items like tofu, shiitake mushrooms, and pumpkin. All together, neither of us were able to finish our own trays, as they were generous in their servings. However, I don't think it's large enough of a meal to share between two hungry people either! I guess it's good for one of those days where you have a larger appetite. To match with our food, we were also given small dishes of Shacha sauce as our dipping sauce (you may recall from my last hot pot post). We added soy sauce and a raw egg in ours to give it an extra kick (trust me, it tastes good together!).

Trays of lamb and veggies for our hot pot combos at Jazz Cat Restaurant.

Shacha sauce with an addition of soy sauce and raw egg for our dipping sauce at Jazz Cat Restaurant.

To wrap things up, it was another good meal out. I loved the atmosphere and the quality of our foods. I highly recommend it to anyone who is up for trying new flavors on a cold winter night (if you ever try that rose & cream hot pot that I was considering, let me know what you think!). Just remember to avoid it during popular lunch and dinner hours if you're starving!

Our meal at Jazz Cat Restaurant

Jazz Cat Restaurant
121 E Valley Blvd
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 288-5200

Sizzling Hot Pot Night at Lugi Restaurant

For dinner tonight, my siblings and I went to Lugi Restaurant (盧記) for some authentic Chinese hot pot. This was my first time here, and I had a great meal. We went late at night around 9pm, so there weren't many people inside the restaurant. But even if there were many people, it would be no big deal because the restaurant is pretty big. I also liked that everything in the restaurant was super clean (tables, utensils, plates) and was brightly lit. The only down part was that because it is located in a plaza with a few other restaurants, it may be a little hard to find parking.

Anyway, to start off, we ordered the half and half soup base which consisted of their House Spicy soup base and the Napa Cabbage base. I'm pretty sure my siblings would have ordered the House Spicy base if it were just the two of them, but because I'm a total WEAKSAUCE at dealing with spicy food, we added the non-spicy base.

Our half and half soup base at Lugi Restaurant.

For those who are unfamiliar with eating hot pot, basically a pot of soup base is kept boiling, and we add in meats and vegetables to cook in it. Afterwards, we take it out and eat it with a dipping sauce.

Condiments and peanuts at Lugi Restaurant.

Instead of Japanese shabu shabu, where ponzu sauce and sesame seed sauce are used as the dipping sauce, Chinese hot pot uses shacha sauce (pictured in the top left area in the photo above). What my siblings and I did in preparing our dipping sauces was mix soy sauce with shacha sauce and add in the chopped green onions as well as a little of the soup base. I love the way it tastes with everything! It's seriously like magic sauce--it makes everything taste better.

Clockwise starting from the top: mushrooms, winter melon, egg & fish dumplings, scallops, and frog legs at Lugi Restaurant.

All our plates of food came in a very timely fashion, which is expected since barely any preparation is required. Unfortunately, my siblings and I ordered a little more than what we could consume, but I enjoyed everything on the table. Not everything is pictured, but from what I remember, we ordered: slices of lamb and beef, egg and fish dumplings, winter melon, scallops, frog legs, mushrooms, spinach, watercress, taro, and shirataki noodles. We were adventurous in ordering the frog legs, as we've never tried that in hot pot! It turned out very tender and tasty. It was also my first time trying the egg dumplings, which is made up of fish wrapped with a skin of egg. Yummy!

Lamb slices and spinach at Lugi Restaurant.

Another odd item that we saw on the menu list (but didn't order) was spam. I'm curious as to how that would taste in hot pot. Maybe next time...

Our food cooking in the pot at Lugi Restaurant.

I came out of the restaurant super full and fully satisfied. Everything we ate tasted fresh, and the waitresses were very attentive. An extra plus was that they have a long list of drinks that compliment hot pot well: guava juice, plum juice, white gourd juice, passion fruit juice, and apple soda from what I can remember. I will definitely come back again, especially when the weather gets cold again!


Lugi Restaurant
539 W Valley Blvd
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 457-5111