Orlando Japan Festival

The woman in her kimono gently rolled a ball of sugar in her hand and mixed it with a pinch of water. Like a magician, with the sleight of her hand, she began to transform the puddy-like mixture with each stroke into a crane, outreaching its neck and wings and began to paint it pink and red with food coloring. The children looked up at the magical edible creature in awe. Ah, the sights of the annual Orlando Japan Festival.

I’ve always been a fan of festivals. I love the excitement of the crowds as they meander through the stalls, the entertaining performances on display, and most of all, the delicious food that you can only buy with cash money at a festival.

It was to my delight to find not one but over 4 different stalls that served various Japanese food items a la street vendor at the Orlando Japan Festival. Rangetsu, Sushi Tomi, Sushiology, Mikado, Japan Food Aki, and more all brought out their weapons to the foray. From sushi to yakisoba to teriyaki chicken, the vendors ran a wide gamut of traditional Japanese offerings.

My picks of the day were from Rangetsu. The first few Orlando Japan Festivals were actually held on the premises of Rangetsu, with its blue terraced roofs and large outdoor pond scenery. But I suppose in recent years the festival had outgrown the walls of Rangetsu and it was decided to move the festival to the Hunter’s Creeks plaza off of John Young Blvd just south of SR 417.

I chose takoyaki, a popular Japanese dumpling sold on the streets and made with batter and stuffed with octopus pieces and spices. The takoyaki are round and soft with the pleasant rubbery texture of octopus when you bite them.

Also, I choose chicken karaage, a fried style chicken dish with soy sauce, and yakisoba, the long wheat noodles served with chicken and red ginger. All of these items totaled less than 9 dollars, not a bad deal!

Overall the food was great, but it was the combination of street food, anime cosplayers, vendors, taiko drummers, dancers, and the lady with the masterful edible sugar creatures that made this Orlando Japan Festival special.

Takoyaki or Octopus balls from Ran-Getsu at the Orlando Japan Festival

Chicken Karaage from Ran-Getsu at the Orlando Japan Festival

Yakisoba with Chicken from Ran-Getsu at the Orlando Japan Festival

Sayonara!

Find out more about the Orlando Japan Festival here:
http://ld-e.com/japanfestival/index.html

The Ravenous Pig – An American Gastropub – Winter Park Florida

As the sun’s rays retreated behind the clouds in the western sky and the air in the dusky late Central Florida afternoon began to settle, I parked my car along N Orange Avenue in Winter Park and took my partner by the hand as we walked together toward The Ravenous Pig, renown as an American Gastropub, for a dinner out on the town.

The Ravenous Pig may sound like a barbeque place, at first, specializing in pork dishes or something along those lines, but contrary to their name they only have a few dishes that actually emphasize pork (they do have a suckling pig roast once a month however). The Ravenous Pig specializes in a menu that changes by the season and emanates from the chef’s inspiration.

The whole trip was a spur of the moment decision, I had always wanted to try The Ravenous Pig out as I have heard rave reviews about it from friends and professionals alike. The quandary with being spur of the moment at The Ravenous Pig is that there may be a wait time for a table. They emphasize, and I recommend as well, to place reservations for a table before hand to ensure a table. However, if you so choose to take the risk of walking in, you will have to wait in the bar area for a first come first serve basis. Luckily our wait for a booth was only 10 minutes as the line wasn’t too long.

@ The Ravenous Pig – A view toward the Pub area

Inside, the Ravenous Pig is decorated in classy browns and layers of bricked walls. Our server for the evening is sweet and attentive, checking up on us throughout our meal and quite friendly.
For starters we begin with the Crab Hush puppies ($7) a twist on the traditional hush puppy appetizers, made with charred corn, bacon, and served with a orange-habenero aioli.

My partner mildly enjoys the Pacific Halibut ($27), olive oil poached, with provincial summer gratin, olive tapinade, in a tomato fennel broth, though she is not a fan of the olive tapinade.

@ The Ravenous Pig – Crab Hush puppies ($7)

@ The Ravenous Pig – Pacific Halibut

Steak Frites ($24), is a porcini marinated flat-iron steak served with their signature truffle fries and tarragon aioli. The steak was tender and grilled perfectly with a warm outside and a cool red inside, just the way I like it. Truffle fries are basically like shoestring french fries with a hint of truffle mushrooms. The tarragon aioli sauce that accompanies the dish was very unique and all in all the dish was very creative.

@ The Ravenous Pig – Steak Frittes

@ The Ravenous Pig – I enjoy my meat this way

@ The Ravenous Pig – with the Tarragon Aioli sauce

@ The Ravenous Pig – The Frittes in Steak Frittes

For dessert we enjoyed the Custard ($7), served with a coconut cream frozen souffle’ and white chocolate macadamia biscotti crisps.

@ The Ravenous Pig – “The Custard”

@ The Ravenous Pig – The Custard

@ The Ravenous Pig -The coconut cream frozen souffle

@ The Ravenous Pig – The white chocolate macadamia biscotti crisps

Overall I definitely enjoyed my meal at The Ravenous Pig. I would come back just to check out their menu and all the creativity that they put into it. It’s surprisingly refreshing to see such ingenuity in their dishes and I wish more Central Florida restaurants practiced this philosophy, although I do have reservations about their pricing. I would want to come back to try their Pub Burger ($12) since its pretty cheap hah.

Tasty Chomps Rating!
4 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!!

Hours
Lunch: Tuesday – Saturday — 11:30 am-2:30 pm
Dinner: Tuesday – Thursday — 5:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Friday – Saturday — 5:30 pm-10:30 pm

Falafel Cafe – UCF Area

In search for delicious kebab platters and gyros from the near east at the footsteps of UCF? Look no further. Falafel Cafe, a Lebanese and Middle Eastern restaurant, has been around for a while near UCF on the corner of Alafaya Trail and University Blvd right next to the CB&S; bookstore behind Applebee’s. The logo at Falafel Cafe is the Cedar Tree, a symbol of Lebanon.

For starters choose from traditional salads, taboulehs, hummus, grape leaves, and more. Lentil soup is offered during lunch as well, complimentary. For my meal I choose the combination kebab platter, a trio of freshly marinated and grilled chicken, kafta, and beef (or lamb) kebabs ($15.99) with a healthy heap of rice. My friends order the gyro ($7.50). Although I enjoyed my meal, I must say it was a bit expensive. I’ll try some of their other less expensive meals next time and report back.

Chris admiring the inner decor of Falafel Cafe

Lentil soup at Falafel Cafe by UCF

The pita bread at Falafel Cafe by UCF

Lap at Falafel Cafe at UCF

A Look inside the Gyro at Falafel Cafe at UCF

The Combination platter with chicken, beef, and lamb at Falafel Cafe

Delicious Combo platter with a slice of orange

Website
http://www.falafelcafe.com/index.html

Dragonfly Rolls n Bowls – Gainesville

As a visitor to Gainesville since my college days (just to get out of Orlando once in a while), I would always hit up the Bento Cafe with my friends for their delicious and cheap Asian inspired cuisine. Once in a while, I would get to venture out to see what other offerings are out there in Gainesville, the land of the Florida Gators.

Hidden in a plaza off of SW 34th Street near Archer Road, Rolls n Bowls is the latest addition to the whole “fast-casual” trend going on in the restaurant industry these days. The concept is simple: save time and costs by having customers order up front at the counter as the “chefs” make the meals. Usually by throwing the ingredients together in a bowl. In Chipotle’s case, its rice, beans and chicken or shredded pork or steak. At Rolls n Bowls, its rice and salmon or tuna or tofu or veggies instead. They take traditional sashimi fish and place them on top of their rice bowls along with any additional seasonings desired. The cool thing about it is that each bowl can be customized to your wish or you can pick one of the predetermined mixes that they have on the menu. The quality of the fish is ok, not the greatest ever, but not the worst either.

One of the best things is the spicy mayo sauce that they have, its orangey red goodness.

Pita Pit – Halloween in Downtown Orlando

This past Friday I was able to experience for my first time the spectacle that is Halloween in downtown Orlando. It was a fairly nice evening downtown. As my friends and I came upon Orange Avenue, the mayhem began. Thousands upon thousands of Central Floridians dressed in their favorite costumes walked the streets.

Halloween more and more has been becoming a adult themed holiday, with adults having just as fun as the kids dressing up for Halloween. People always say hey I don’t dress like this every day so why not? But just a reminder, underwear and a bra do not constitute a “costume”, for those who like to dress up as their favorite nurse, police officer, or other bdsm persona. And there seemed to be quite a few of those this year on the streets.

It was my first time seeing so many people downtown, I think they should make it into a parade or something like Carnivale in South America some day. Until then, here are some pretty cool outfits out there this Halloween:

It’s the pile of money staring at me from Geico LOL

the scariest costumes of the evening by far

It’s Hellboy, complete with his hellkey hand

Is that ET?

Deadpool is awesome

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!

Beetlejuice!!

Watch out , they ain’t afraid of no ghost…Ghostbusters!!

Street Fighters!

The Tin Man

The Mad Hatter

I thought he was there for crowd control, but no just a costume har har

It was fun until around 1:30am when the alcohol sat in and people started getting handcuffed by the 5-0 or laid out on the streets waiting for the paramedics to whisk them away…cue exit.

Pita Pit has been a long time favorite for those who enjoy staying up late at night whether it be in the college towns or downtown. On this crazy evening we were able to secure a spot in line to get a pita!

The pita we ordered did not come out (a cheesesteak pita) and we just got a regular steak, but I am sure its from the chaos from the evening. I actually am not a big fan of Pita Pit as I find their pita bread a bit too dry and bland, and after a while, it all starts tasting the same….but its healthy and fresh and that’s hard to find late-night.

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http://www.orlandosentinel2.com/data/orbbies/voting/best.php

Voting for the 2009 Orbbies begins Nov. 2 at 10 am and ends on Friday, Nov. 20 at 5 pm.

You may vote once per category, per day. You may also vote once per day for Best Overall Blog (BOB). You must log in to your OrlandoSentinel.com account in order to vote.

Lollicup Boba Tea and Coffee Zone – Downtown Orlando – Mills 50 District

Lollicup is most known for their boba/bubble/tapioca pearl milk teas but at this location in the heart of the Mills 50 District, a little east of Mills Ave on Colonial Dr, there is another culinary offering that deserves note.

At their small corner stall, Lollicup in Viet town also serves Vietnamese banh mi or Viet sub sandwiches that are homemade and fresh, and quite delicious. Traditionally, Vietnamese banh mi are known to be “street food” or “fast food” because people would quite literally pick them off street vendors as they went on their way in Vietnam. Still today, people often pack banh mi up in bags of 5 or more (buy 5 get 1 free) and eat them on road trips.

The banh mi at Lollicup is a pretty decent meal and cheap too, about 8 inches of french bread slathered with some special butter and pork liver pate, filled with homemade cha siu roast pork, cucumbers, cilantro, pickled daikon and carrots all for around $2.50. Pop it in the small toaster to get that slightly crackly toasted skin on the bread and we are set.

Way better than Subway any day.

October 26, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact / Interview Requests:Brian Feldman, (407) 792-9421, projects@brianfeldman.com, @BrianFeldman

Who: Brian Feldman Projects (The Feldman Dynamic, Cracker Barrel® Old Country Chanukah, Brian Feldman Eats Everything Off The Menu At Loving Hut)
What: 24 Hour Vegan McDonald’s®
When: Sunday November 1, 2009: 12am-11:59pm (24 hours)
Where: McDonald’s® Restaurant #38966875 Sand Lake Rd Orlando FL 32819(Sand Lake Rd & International Dr)http://bit.ly/McDmap [Google Maps]
Cost: Free to observe

Always seeking new ways to top Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell as the worst project he’s ever done, Brian Feldman, “Everybody’s favorite monotony monk”, returns to International Drive for the first time since May’s ill-fated Miniature project.

For World Vegan Day (November 1), and as self-imposed penance for missing this year’s Central Florida Veg Fest (it’s not like he was doing anything), Brian channels Morgan Spurlock by remaining inside of the least likely place for a vegan to be – McDonald’s® for, yes, 24 hours.
What will Brian, as a vegan, be able eat? The answer, of course, is anything he wants. Being vegan is a choice, and one that Brian has gladly made. So… dollar salads. And water.

Brian’s chosen McDonald’s® location (one of 31,000+ worldwide) alternately bills itself as “The World’s Largest Entertainment McDonald’s® & Playplace” and “The Most Unique McDonald’s® in the World”. It’s certainly the craziest in Orlando, with “gourmet” meal items (ice cream, cakes, pizza, pasta, wraps and paninis), a wishing well, video games (including miniature bowling), McDonald’s® character murals, side-by-side miniature busts of George Washington, Martin Luther King, Jr., George W. Bush, Rudy Giuliani, Abraham Lincoln and a “hula shark”, CNN, Elvises and Monroes, a second floor caged gift shop with the Statue of Liberty, cutouts of Bill Cosby, Clint Eastwood and Tom Cruise, and, according to MANNETRON, one of only four Mac Tonight animatronics in the world (it’s broken).

This independent project is not sanctioned, endorsed or sponsored by McDonald’s Corporation, Oerther Foods, Inc. or The Vegan Society.

Links:http://brianfeldman.com/ (Brian Feldman)http://mcflorida.com/3896 (McDonald’s® Restaurant #3896http://twitter.com/BrianFeldman (@BrianFeldman on Twitter)http://twitter.com/McDonalds (@McDonalds on Twitter)http://bit.ly/24VMcDfb (24 Hour Vegan McDonald’s® Facebook Event)http://bit.ly/24VMcDrls (24 Hour Vegan McDonald’s® Google Docs)http://bit.ly/24VMcDpdf (24 Hour Vegan McDonald’s® PDF Release)

When referencing on Twitter, please use hashtags: #vegan #McDonalds
Public Transportation / Biking and Walking / Vehicle Parking:LYNX: From Downtown Orlando, take Link 8 to the bus stop across from Panda Express on International Dr. Walk south along International Dr. Turn right on Sand Lake Rd. McDonald’s® will be on your right. From Orlando International Airport, take Link 42; same bus stop. You could also try Link 304 or Link 305, but are on your own. I-Ride (International Drive Resort Area Trolley service): Exit at I-Ride 15. /

Biking and walking are both good for you and pleasant modes of transportation on a Sunday, and anytime! That stated, depending on where you’re traveling from, this could result in an extremely long travel time. Use good judgement! (There are no dedicated bike racks at the event site.) / Vehicle parking lot is available outside restaurant.

Brian Feldman Projects is Central Florida’s premiere experimental time-based art. Dinners on stage with real life families, leaping off ladders for 24 hours, group tours in Google translated Swedish through IKEA, observin’ why people be lovin’ it® – this is what we do.
# # #

First Watch – UCF Area – Orlando

First Watch is one of the few restaurants out there that bucks the maxim about chains/franchises sucking in all matters of food deliciousness. The chain opened up its doors to the UCF area on University Blvd next to Ruby Tuesdays a few months ago and I was happy to visit on one sunny weekend afternoon.

Was I in for a surprise…

There, in front of me at the door was a line 40-minutes long, full of young couples, old couples, families, moms and dads and sons and daughters (most likely patrons of the nearby university) all waiting for some breakfast/brunch action here at First Watch. There is a saying that there is wisdom in crowds…and for the most part, they’re usually right.

The hostess at the front confirmed my worst fears: the line was indeed at least 40 minutes long this late morning and I and my partner would have to wait. As I stood there trying to keep from boring myself to death, I happened to come upon a young man with a t-shirt with words that caught my eyes: “UCF College of Medicine: Charter Class”. As a proud alumni of UCF, I promptly waved toward him and congratulated him on being part of the historic first class of 70 or so medical students and especially congratulated him on the free ride for the whole thing. He was waiting with his partner as well and so we chatted away the time, remarking how fast UCF had grown these past few years and all the crazy-cool things going on with the new medical city planned at Lake Nona. Shortly thereafter his table was called and away he went to enjoy his meal and I, resigned, back to my place in line.

Then, his partner Natalia, suddenly returned to the front and asked us if we would like to join them for brunch this morning. Thankful, grateful for their kindness we accepted and skipped on over to join them at their booth.

For their meals they order a “bacado” omelette, yogurt and fruit crepe, and a pancake filled with chocolate chips, all looking quite delicious.

For our meals, my partner orders the sweet, fluffy belgian waffle with egg and sausage.

I order the Acapulco Express Omellette made with chorizo sausage, avocado, green chilies and onions, smothered with melted cheeses and topped with sour cream and served with a side of homemade salsa, first watch potatoes and English muffin. Simple yet delicious.

Overall the meal at First Watch was pretty good. I particularly enjoyed how the food wasn’t oily or overly greasy like some of the other “breakfast” joints out there, all very fresh and very light tasting.

TJ’s Seafood Shack – Oviedo

I stumbled upon this local joint one afternoon driving by on Red Bug Lake Dr / Mitchell Hammock in Oviedo. Tucked in a plaza next to LA Fitness, TJ’s Seafood Shack is a small place that could definitely be a great spot for locals to come and relax. The decor is reminiscent of a beachside shack, furbished with quirky sayings and different antique signs emphasizing relaxation, a welcome reprise from the busy life of Central Floridians.

The menu is mostly seafood items and everything here is under $10.00 with their most expensive item being the crabcakes at $9.95.

TJ’s Seafood Shack actually won the award for Best Taste for Taste of Oviedo 2009 and it’s not hard to see why. I order the Shrimp Po Boy, a sandwich made with breaded fried shrimp in a loaf. The bread was light and soft, chewy to the bite and the shrimp was pretty good. I liked how they have home made Roumalade sauce and also the option to have fresh fruit rather than fries.

Overall it was pretty enjoyable! I’d definitely come back to see their other offerings.

TJ’s Seafood Shack

(407) 365-3365

http://www.tjsseafoodshack.com/

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http://tiny.cc/orlandosentinelbestbests

and Write in “Tasty Chomps” for Best Local Blog! Thank you!!!

Jeremiah’s Italian Ice – UCF Area

Jeremiah’s sits in an old dusty strip plaza on the corner of University and Alafaya right outside of UCF, awaiting your sweet tooth’s desires. There are actually three of these establishments in the Central Florida area: the original one founded in 1996 in Winter Park along Aloma Ave near Goldenrod, one near 17/92 and Horatio and this one here in the UCF Area.

Several years ago Jeremiah’s expanded to this area, teeming with college students and hipsters alike, all giddy for some soft serve ice cream, italian ice, or a combination of both in the form of gelati. It’s a simple idea enough but as we know, its the simple things that are hard to do well.

Jeremiah’s definitely does Italian Ice well. My particular favorite is the gelati style where you can get layers of soft serve vanilla or chocolate ice cream on top of layers of your choice of italian ice. On this occassion I choose the Black Raspberry and it was savory sweet, delectable to the taste with the slight tartness of raspberry, sweet creamy texture of the ice cream, and slushy coolness of the italian ice all coming together as one in my mouth. A delicious dessert for any meal.

Other popular flavors include the Scoop Froggy Frog, Jeremiah’s signature mint chocolate chip flavor, as well as pina colada, mango, strawbanana and much more. Prices here are reasonable with a generous small cup of gelati going for around $2.60. It’s a classic place to go and brings back memories of the college days every time.

Check out the facebook fan page and fan Tasty Chomps!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tasty-Chomps/139670726036?ref=ts

I discovered the existence of the quaint and thoroughly delicious Paris Bistro first from ScottJosephOrlando.com, where Scott Joseph reported that the French restaurant has a 3 course lunch meal for $10.95 in Winter Park along Aloma Avenue. It was also noted that the Paris Bistro will soon be moving to the Park Avenue district in Winter Park and so I thought I would seize the opportunity and visit it one time before it closed its doors for its move.

The Paris Bistro has since closed since this review, as of the end of September, and will reopen later this week (scroll down below for new address).

The Paris Bistro sat on the corner of an unassuming strip mall along Aloma Ave near the intersection of Goldenrod. If you blink, you might have missed it. I’m pretty sure I did the past few times driving by. The Paris Bistro is small inside, perhaps even cramped, and this may be the reason for their decision to move to a possibly larger venue down the street. The decor is humble with maroon tablecloths, charming booths, and elegant table settings, overall having a very intimate feeling like a small French cafe in Paris. The waiter who attends to our table this afternoon is attentive and caring genuinely about our visit.

On this afternoon, I am joined by a few friends to savor in the tastes of Paris Bistro. We begin by ordering a round of Escargots de Bourgogne (not on the 3 course lunch menu). The escargot is served in a special plate with each of the snails removed from their shells and cooked in a garlic, butter sauce and herbs. The escargot were quite delicious, soft and plump, resembling most like the texture and taste of a crustacean.

For my order, I have le coq au vin, chicken leg pieces cooked in a wine. It actually had a lot of similarities in flavors with the beef bourguignon that I made a few weeks ago. Rich and tender, the chicken has a deep taste from the hours spent baking. The potato gratin side was also quite tasty and crisp from the oven.

My companions also enjoyed the crepe du jour as well as the Paris Bistro burger, made with ground sirloin, lettuce, tomato, dijon mustard, brie and topped with a gratuituously delightful egg, and also a special salmon burger. Scrumptious.

For dessert, I ordered the profiterolles (Home-made Cream Puff With Vanilla Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce), sweet and soft, tender on my tongue.

The restaurant will open this week at its new location according to the Orlando Sentinel . The restaurant will open at 216 Park Ave. in the former Ann Taylor space.

Tasty Chomps Rating
4.5 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS
(C’est si bon)

I’ve been checking out this new blog for a few weeks now and wanted to share it with you all. Its based on a really cool concept of bringing blogging and Orlando tourism together:

Broadway performer Kyle Post and Harlem childcare worker Stacey Doornbos from New York City are spending 67 days experiencing everything Orlando has to offer and sharing each amazing experience through social media along the way.

As Orlando’s Smile Ambassadors, Kyle and Stacey will visit more than 100
Orlando attractions including everything from roller coaster riding to hang
gliding, swimming with dolphins, spa-ing, golfing, gator wrestling, museum
exploring, theatre-going, dining and more.In August, Post and Doornbos beat out
hundreds of applicants from more than a dozen countries for the coveted Smile
Ambassador positions created by the world’s premier vacation destination. Post
and Doornbos are childhood friends who grew up together in Holland, Michigan and
share a passion for theme parks, having taken 30 amusement park trips together
to enjoy more than 618 rides. They took a “friendship honeymoon” to Orlando at
the end of college to celebrate their friendship, not knowing where their lives
would take them. Kyle then moved to New York City and five weeks later was cast
in the Broadway production of RENT. Stacey traveled the world, touring seven
countries in three months before also ultimately ending up in New York City to
work with underprivileged children in East Harlem.

Post and Doornbos live in a two-bedroom condo in Downtown Orlando,
compliments of The Paramount on Lake Eola, with furnishings provided by CORT.
Both of these relationships have been facilitated through the Downtown
Development Board as part of their partnership on this program with the Orlando CVB. For their 67 day assignment, the pair will also be provided cell phones, digital video and still cameras, a Dollar Rent A Car and $25,000 U.S. to cover living expenses back home.

Kyle and Stacey have already begun blogging, tweeting and updating Facebook with photos, video, and exciting anecdotes from their journey.

Followers of the @67Days Twitter account, Visit Orlando Facebook fan
page, and 67 Days of Smiles blog will have the opportunity to win a variety of prizes including gift certificates to Orlando restaurants and attraction tickets.

Follow along at http://67daysofsmiles.com/ as Kyle and Stacey take on the top
social media job in the world!

Also check out this new game they have on their website!
http://orlandoinfo.com/findmysmile/

After a heavy, hearty meaty meal, the perfect place to go in Atlanta would be for some shaved iced dessert at Suno!

Suno located on the outskirts of Atlanta in Duluth, sits in a strip plaza in front of the super H-Mart, the gigantic Korean market. There are many Koreans here who call Atlanta their home nowadays, and having left the snowy winter landscapes of their homeland, they have brought with them to America the advent of the shaved ice dessert!

Cuisines throughout Asia have made use of icy desserts: China and Taiwan have a variant with mung beans and red beans and fruits, Vietnamese have various che which is similar and at times served with crushed ice, Filipinos have halo halo, and Koreans have papingsu.

The shaved ice at Suno is much different from any other shaved ice I have ever had before. The difference is that most other shaved ice tastes just like what it sounds, crushed shavings of water ice, but the shaved ice at Suno has a delightfully creamy texture and taste to it. An excellent invention.

Inside the store, you order first at the counter. Behind the counter is this amazing ice shaving machine where they take their special blocks of ice and shave them. Its a ice cream barber shop of sorts I suppose. After your order, the shaved ice is placed down the assembly line of fresh chilled strawberries, or mangos, kiwis, oreos, chocolates, marshmallows, syrups, etc per your order and voila’ the creation is complete. The end result is a huge tub of icy goodness that is sweet and healthy at the same time * this is due to the low calorie count of the shaved ice lol.

absolutely delicious.

Sadly there are no shaved ice places here in Orlando, but maybe one day they will open up like the frozen yogurt places that are starting to sprout up EVERYWHERE .

On the assembly line for consumption at Suno shaved ice desserts in Atlanta

The multitudes of delicious fruit toppings at Suno shaved ice desserts in Atlanta

a Chocolate marshmallow and strawberry delight at Suno shaved ice desserts in Atlanta

Delicious chilled strawberries at Suno shaved ice desserts in Atlanta

Fruit toppings on the Suno shaved ice dessert in Atlanta

devour and consume, its what i do.

Tasty chomps rating!!!!
4.5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!!

This past week, I attended an all you can eat Italian dinner at the Delta Delta Delta house at UCF. The grand house stands tall on Greek Row, elegant and gracious. All of the proceeds went to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as well as Bella Rose. The tour of Italy included baked ziti, bowtie pasta, meatballs, a vegetarian entree, salad, and cookies.

One of their sister’s families is experiencing a hardship due to their family member Bella Rose. Bella is 2 1/2 years old and has been diagnosed with cancer (high risk stage IV neuroblastoma) that has spread to her abdomen, vertebrae, bone marrow and right leg. Bella will need six treatments after the chemo, that are still in the experimental phase so insurance does not pay for them. This special antibody specifically helps children with neuroblastoma completely rid their body of the cancer and help fight it off. EACH ONE of the treatments will cost $18,000.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is the premier center in the United States for the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other childhood catastrophic diseases. St. Jude treats approximately 6,000 patients a day and does not deny treatment because of the family’s inability to pay.

It was a great event for a great cause with some great food and it was fun catching up with some friends new and old.

Cho Won Buffet in Atlanta

What could be better than korean marinaded barbeque meats? Well I’ll tell you: endless all you can eat korean marinaded barbeque meats. And a sushi bar. and a everything else that you could want from a Korean place bar. All you can eat Korean BBQ? I am so there! !!!

Located in sunny Atlanta, in the northeastern section where a rather large Korean town exists, Cho Won Korean Buffet awaits.

Inside, the restaurant is clean and homey, like a small house with wood finishing all over. Although it is not the best in terms of taste or quality, it is a great value and for $14.06 including tax during lunch for all you can eat. As in most buffets, the sushi is not the greatest and not the largest portions but I am happy regardless. The pork and beef galbi sizzles on the grill as the Korean waitress lady comes by to help snip our meats and move it around to cook thoroughly.

The service was great and overall it was a enjoyable BBQ!

the Meat bar awaits your grilling at Cho Won

The Food Bar at Cho Won

Korean meats on the grill

Phil and Huy enjoy their meats

Krystle (check out her blog) models the sushi

Sushi by Theresa

Sizzle Sizzle

Snip Snip

3.5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!

Hello all! I finally got around to starting this thing:

add me on facebook! fan page! tastychomps! rawrrrr!!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tasty-Chomps/139670726036

Ocean Prime – Sand Turkey District – Dr Phillips Area – Orlando

As mentioned previously on this blog, September is Magical Dining Month here in Orlando. As part of their promotion, a dollar from each meal served goes to Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital. There are many great deals to be had and one of them is here at Ocean Prime.

Situated on the corner of Sand Lake Road and Turkey Lake Road in the brand new plaza Rialto, Ocean Prime sits like a ocean pearl on the area known as “Restaurant Row” Specializing in seafood, indeed having won the Orlando Sentinel’s Foodie Award for Best Seafood 2009, Ocean Prime has a lot to live up to. The place is definitely swankified, shades of blue glow through out the glamorous restaurant. The decor is beautiful to the point of decadence, as if from a scene in the Great Gatsby. Live music plays in the bar lounge area, on this evening a guitarist singer, on other evenings live piano and more.

We are seated at our table and are greeted by our charming waitress, who throughout the meal is attentive and friendly.

But decor can never make up for great food, and in this case, our meals were just good. Not bad but not great either. The three course meal is $30.00 prix fix from the Magical Dining Menu.

We start with a delicious sourdough bread straight from the oven, still steaming.

I begin with the crab cake served atop a yellow corn cream. The crab cake was good, filled with crab meat, though I have had better crab cake else where with more flavor. The yellow corn cream was a nice subtle touch to the cake.

For one of the sides, I order the truffle mac and cheese (not on the magical dining menu). The truffle mushrooms on top of the mac and cheese gave it a strong powerful flavor, pretty good though it may not be to everyone’s tastes.

For entree, I order the 7 oz Filet Mignon, a deal with the $30.00 since this alone is usually $31.00 on the regular menu. The filet mignon was excellently cooked, medium rare and tender.

My partner however did not enjoy her entree as much, as the pecan crusted mountain trout was overwhelmed by the pecan taste and brown butter sauce accompaniment. It was a bit disappointing since Ocean Prime is supposedly known for its seafood. Maybe other items are better?

For dessert I chose the creme brulee, a huge bowl of creamy egg custardy goodness, probably 3 times the amount usually served for creme brulee. My partner orders the chocolate peanut butter pie, which was actually pretty good. We were also served two glasses of champagne as we were celebrating an anniversary on this evening and they usually give complimentary desserts for special occasions 😉

Overall, Ocean Prime provides a very pleasant, classy sophisticated atmosphere perfect for impressing a date or what not but in terms of the food, it is just good. Minus points for value.

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!
4 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!!