Pan Asian - Damn Good Thai Food in Las Vegas!!

My favorite new Thai restaurant in Las Vegas!!!  I LOVE THIS PLACE!!

So many of you visit Las Vegas and you're always on the Strip. Get in your car and get off the Strip for some delicious Thai, Malaysian and Vietnamese cuisine and come say hi to Lisa and David Wong.

Pan Asian
2980 S. Durango Drive, Ste 101
(Near Sahara, by Storage One)
Las Vegas NV 89117
Neighborhood:Westside
702.629.7464



Thank you Lisa and David for opening up your restaurant to me and allowing me to share all your amazing food!!  I can't wait to go back and take my family!

Happy Holidays dear friends!!

May you all be blessed with much love, happiness and good health...and damn good food of course!!!

xoxo,
Doreen

Get your own bag!! @POPPED Gourmet Popcorn Shop in Las Vegas

POPPED
9480 S Eastern Ave, Ste 110
Las Vegas, NV 89123
702.998.9234
Hours:  
Mon-Sat 10am-9pm
Sun 10am - 8:30pm


I love this place!  I rarely buy flavored popcorn...but I crave eating the popcorn from here!  From the first time I walked in on the very first day the opened...I was hooked!!  It was fate that I happened to be in Henderson that very day...I swear!  I rarely go to the other side of town...unless I'm getting custard from Nielsen's...but that day...I was there for something else.  


These three young chefs/entrepreneurs:  Olivier, Zelma and Jean-Francois are cool, hip and creative!  


Check out the videos to find out more about them...their food philosophy and find out more about some of the flavors they have!


My absolute favorite is the Spicy Pickle...which is a secret item...so you have to tell them you're a friend of mine and ask for it!  They'll make it up special just for you!  Just thinking about it, my mouth is salivating...the dill pickle is so incredible and the habanero powder can seriously kick your ass, but it is so addicting.  When I'm driving back and forth between L.A. and Vegas, I always wish that I had a bag with me...but get a little nervous and think...it could be dangerous because I could start coughing from the heat and Lord knows I don't want to crash while I'm driving.  


I've brought bags to parties and shared with friends...and they all love it too!  I can't tell you enough how much I love this stuff!  If you're in Vegas...you gotta go in and try all the awesome flavors they have!


Thank you Zelma, Olivier and Jean-Francois for taking the time to sit, share your popcorn and chat with me!!  







Please note:  all rights reserved:  diningwithdoreen.com  NOT dingdingwithdoreen.com.  hahaha

Happy Halloween on the Vegas Morning Blend

It's Halloween and time for some spooky but ultra cool looking food.  I'm one of these people who feels like less is more...and when I was asked to do something ghoulish for the Morning Blend...I had some ideas in my head and ended up finding Adam's Spooky Apples on Mattbites.com.  I fell in love with it and of course...had to share this with everyone!

You have to see the amazing pictures that Matt Armendariz took of Adam's apples.  I just love the look...so gorgous!

Anyhow...here's the clip from the show!  Enjoy!  You can all easily make this at home. Click on the link to see the video.

http://www.vegasmorningblend.com/videos/132825853.html

Adam's Scary Apples

recipe courtesy of Adam Pearson


Red & Black Candy Apples
8-10 medium sized apples
8-10 wooden twigs, trimmed
3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 cup of water
several drops of cinnamon flavored oil
1/4 teaspoon of red food coloring
1/4 teaspoon of black food coloring


Clean and dry the apples. Try to remove as much of the wax as possible. If you purchase them from your local farmer’s market then chances are they have not been treated with the food grade wax that makes then shine. Remove any stems or leaves and insert a twig into the end of each apple. To facilitate easier twig entry you can carefully sharpen the end of the twig or use a candy stick to create a guide hole. Set apples aside.


Heat and stir sugar, corn syrup and water in a saucepan until sugar has dissolved. Boil until the syrup reaches 300 degrees on a candy thermometer. Don’t go over 310 degrees or your candy burns and then you’ll be sad.
Remove from heat and stir in flavored oil and food coloring.


Dip one apple completely in the syrup and swirl it so that it becomes coated with the melted sugar candy. Hold the apple above the saucepan to drain off excess. Place apple, with the stick facing up, onto a baking sheet that’s greased or lined with a silpat. Repeat the process with the remaining apples. If your syrup thickens or cools too much, simply reheat briefly before proceeding. Let the apples cool completely before serving.


A note about the black apples: Lighter colored apples (Granny Smith, Golden Delicious) work well in making the red appear bright and glassy; darker apples like red delicious help the black candy appear as dark as possible. Muy spooky!
Also, Adam made one batch with red food coloring and after he had a few red apples he reheated the candy mixture and added black food coloring. Adding black to red will make it darker. He repeated the dipping process. Black food coloring can be found online or at specialty baking stores.


* My Notes
1.  Adam found his cinnamon oil at a cake supply store or it's also available online.  I wasn't able to find it, so I just used cinnamon extract.

2.  If you can't find black food coloring you can make it. Mix 3 parts red, 3 parts blue, and 2 parts green.  

3.  Always keep a bowl of ice water near you when working with sugar.

4.  It will take about 30 minutes to get your sugar to 300 degrees.

5.  The corn syrup is used to prevent the sugar from crystallizing making it smooth and easy to dip.


Dao and Shawn having some fun on set!

Get Fraiche...cause it's all about the happy hour!

Fraiche
9411 Culver Blvd
Culver City, CA 
310.839.6800


Happy Hour:
Sunday - Thursday from 5pm to Close
Friday – Saturday from 5pm to 7 pm

Happy Hour Menu!!

Let's be honest...times are tough and we are ALL looking for a great bargain!  Ok, maybe some of you are well off and don't need to worry, but who still doesn't love a good deal?!  

Anyhow...I've been wanting to check out Fraiche for quite some time and a friend of mine, let's just call him Jon, works there told me many a time to go down and check it out.

Lucky for me...Kerri and Noriko were free to hang out and of course...we were looking for something cheap to eat...but good of course!  So off to Fraiche!  Plus we had some other recommendations to go there...

So we were just going to get a few items, keep it light and just enjoy some tasty morsels. 


salmon tartare - $6
basil aioli/avocado/chives/shallots and crostini

This was so light and delicious!  My only wish...more crostinis, but I didn't even use one and it was still super good and I loved it.

baby beets - $6
ricotta/orange/pistachio

Yum...who doesn't love baby beets cooked to perfection?  The little bit of ricotta and orange was just refreshing and so lovely to eat.
 
crispy chickpeas - $3
lime/chili/sea salt

Just an easy crispy little tid bit that's great to munch on.
 
truffle burger - $9
onion/boschetto/truffle aioli 

I just want to same yum...yum...and yum!  The burger was juicy and tender and cooked perfectly.  (medium rare for me)  It wasn't overwhelmed with a bunch of crap and you can just taste that beautiful essence of truffle.  Some people don't like truffle, yes it is true...some people think truffle smells like ass, but not me.  Truffles are heaven to me!!!  And I can never get enough of it!  It was so juicy that it was just dripping down my arm.  I swear...this is better than any Carl's Jr. burger commercial burger!  I'd rather lick truffle flavor off my arm than pineapple juice!  

Anyhow...loved it!
  
french fries - $4
aioli duo/parlsey/sea salt

These were delish!  Great with the burger!

So you can see, we had a nice assortment of food for three of us...and then...Vito and company went nuts!!  These next items were not on the happy hour menu and were sent to us compliments of the house (Vito) because of my friend Jon.  
 
caprese salad
heirloom toms/burrata/pesto/crispy shallots

I freaking love burrata!!  If you have never had it, you need to go somewhere (reputable) and eat it!  This was so great!  Love pesto with tomatoes and burrata.  You cannot go wrong with this dish!  
 
house made agnolotti
wild mushroom/Mascarpone/truffle butter

The pasta was perfectly cooked, loved the abundance of mushrooms and again...more truffle heaven in my mouth!  But wait...there's more!
 
truffle risotto
need i say more?

This was turning into a truffle feast...and look at how much fresh truffles we got!  Holy moly!!  I couldn't stop the fork from going to the dish and then into my mouth!  It was sick!!  
 
seafood tower
oysters/mussels/clams/shrimp/calamari ceviche/tuna ceviche

Ok, when this tower came out...I thought my stomach was going to bust!  Thank God I was wearing a big airy dress or else, I would've been forced to unbutton my pants so the button wouldn't fly off my pants!  
 
Yes...they sent us another truffle burger!!  This is what the entree portion will look like when you order it.

We didn't eat this extra burger, because Noriko and I already ate half of the first one and we had all that other food...so lucky Nathan got this one!

dessert!

I can't name all the desserts but I can tell you what's in it!  We were soooooo freaking stuffed...it was disgusting how much Noriko and I ate.  So much great food and so little stomach space.  But you will be proud to know that we ate almost everything!!!  

The triangle dessert is like a...uh...ok..it had ricotta in it I believe.  Then chocolate lava cake...and a mascarpone dessert!  OMG!  Ok...I like!  I'm sick with the flu and can't remember what was in it! I didn't mean to lie.  But just so you know...it was all damn good!  I'm sorry Vito I couldn't remember the names of all the desserts.

Beyond saying thank you to Vito and Jon for the spectacular service...my hats of to Chef Gerardo Perez!  What a delicious meal that the three of us completely enjoyed and were stuffed to the gills!  Can't wait to go back!

The 3 Musketeers (more like 3 stuffed pigs, ok...2 stuffed pigs, Kerri didn't eat that much).  Happy hour menu changes...so try something new and delicious and won't cost you and arm and a leg!  And of course, don't forget the drinks!  Great deals!  $5 and $6 for drinks...so check the menu!

 

Thank you Kerri and Noriko for sharing this delicious eating feast with me at FRAICHE!  I can't wait for the next happy hour here!

Chocolate Mochi Crunch!!

Do you like chocolate?  Do you like arare (Japanese rice crackers)?  Well you can get it in one tasty bite now!!!  Chocolate Mochi Crunch!!!

Check out these tasty bits and other tasty goodies available from these awesome Japanese aunties!  Thank you Karen and Joyce for sharing these tasty AND healthy goodies with me!  But most importantly, thank you Kori Shintaku Brown (Pastry chef and daughter of Karen) for creating these delicious snacks for all to enjoy!  

Remember it comes in chocolate, spicy, regular and dark chocolate!

You can pick up your own chocolate mochi crunch at:

Karen-Ginger Gifts
17209 S. Figueroa Street, Suite A
Gardena, CA 90248
310.808.9988

Or go to their website for locations:

www.impressionsfinefoods.com

By the way...they are having a Fall Warehouse Show!  So check out the info below!

You’re Invited

There’s no place like…

Karen-Ginger’s Fall Warehouse Show

together with

Jazzmin Trunk Show

Join us on September 17th 10am-
4pm
September 18th 10am-
2pm

For All of Your Gift Giving Needs

from the pantry of Karen-Ginger Gifts
and our wide selection of specially selected gift
items

Gifts to Go-starting from $10

 Holiday Gift Preview

Free Personalized Ribbon on all orders

$250+

Let the magic begin...

                                                

Karen-Ginger Gifts, Inc. dba Impressions Fine Foods
17209 S. Figueroa Street #A, Gardena, CA 90248
TEL (310) 808-9988 FAX (310)808-0988
Email:karen@karenginger.com

Tasty Clouds: Gourmet Cotton Candy!

Owner Nina Rodecker takes a few moments out of her day from spinning her delicious flavored cotton candies to talk to us about her popular Tasty Clouds cotton candy!

There is no comparison...this is hands down the best tasting cotton candy I've ever tasted.  Love all the great flavor choices.

You can buy all her products online at www.tastyclouds.com.  Even Tasty Clouds flavored sugars to use in your own cotton candy maker!  You can have your own Tasty Clouds cotton candy party and impress your guests!  How cool is that?!  They have a variety of other products available like caramel apples, sweet sticks or snow cones!  

If you're looking for something fun for your next event...give Nina and call see if she can make your favorite flavor of cotton candy!

If you want to see what's available and pick up your own tubs or cones, you can check out the Tasty Cloud showroom.

Tasty Clouds Showroom
12325 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles CA 90025

Hours
Monday-Friday 9:00am - 5:00pm
Weekends by appointment only

Tel: 310.990.2435

www.tastyclouds.com

What the hell is Fluff Ice?!

I got a chance to go back and talk to owner Matt Hui as he introduces their newest flavor Thai Tea...some cool new things to add to your next boba or tea drinks!

http://www.examiner.com/fluffice

Fluff Ice

500 N Atlantic Blvd #153

Monterey Park CA 91754

626.872.2123

www.fluffice.com