Hot and Soupy #4: Ochazuke! Suehiro Cafe, Little Tokyo

Being the holidays, I ended up spending a lot of time watching Japanese dramas. And those, well, they make me crave Japanese food.

So one day, while watching Shinya Shokudo, I found myself craving Ochazuke.

Ochazuke, or chazuke, is a simple dish, really, and if I had the ingredients I probably could make it myself. It is made with rice served in a green tea and dashi broth. The toppings vary but the typical ones are salmon, tarako (cod roe), ume, nori (seaweed), etc.

Not having much luck locating a place that serves it in Pasadena, I dragged a friend to Suehiro Cafe in Little Tokyo. Suehiro Cafe is a popular place serving cheap comfort food like katsudon. I ordered the mixed chazuke with salmon, tarako, and nori for $6.30.

The bowl camed with a dollop of wasabi.Mixed Chazuke - $6.30

While it isn't as 'gourmet' and impeccable as the chazuke I had during my kaiseki meal at Wakuriya, this one is all about slurping it down. Warm, soupy rice full of dashi flavor would hit the spot any day. Oh, and I think tarako adds a great texture to the dish, so I recommend you get that topping next time you try chazuke.


Suehiro Cafe
337 E 1st St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 626-9132

The List of New Year's Eve Lists + A Bit More

I still can't decide what to do for New Year's Eve either. In my search I came across some great lists from other bloggers/publications, so instead of rehashing what they said, I'm going to give you links to these lists so that they may help you too! I'll also add a few other things that may not be listed. Here goes:

Los Angeles Magazine: Roundup: New Year's Eve Planner

e*starLA: New Year, New Decade: The NYE Dinner-Party Round Up

Thirsty in LA: NYE Parties in LA: "So Long Aughts, and Thanks for All the Fish!"

OpenTable: New Year's Eve Dinners

For the bigger parties:
LA Times: Ramie Becker's Ring in 2010: Los Angeles New Year's Eve Parties

For more parties and hot shows:
NBC Los Angeles: LA's New Year's Eve 2010 Hotlist
lists of dinner or drinks with shows including Lucent Dossier's Haute Cirque

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Other goings-on:

For an early dinner, Bistro LQ will have a 4-course prix fixe menu at $55 for early seating (5:30-6:30) and a 6-course menu at $90 otherwise. Roasted Maine lobster, foie gras french toast-style, lamb loin, and duck magret are on the menu. Call (323) 951-1088.

Wolfgang's Steakhouse will have their full menu available plus a few specials (Lobster Mac and Cheese, a special cocktail). Not only that, they'll also have their Happy Hour menu available in the Della Robbia room starting at 10pm. And of course, complimentary champagne will go around twice here, at 9 pm (a toast to their NYC roots) and at midnight. Call (310) 385-0640.

Getting Into the Spirit: Infused SKYY Cocktails

When a PR email about the infused SKYY vodkas hit my mailbox, one cocktail recipe in particular caught my interest. That was the Mele Kalikimaka (Hawaii's way of pronouncing "Merry Christmas" and now also a song once recorded by Bing Crosby).


Mele Kalikimaka Martini

1.5 oz. SKYY Infusions Pineapple
3 oz. Eggnog
Splash of Coconut Cream or Coconut Milk
Nutmeg
Cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into martini glass. Top with sprinkling of nutmeg and cinnamon and garnish with a cinnamon stick.


I got samples of the SKYY Infusions Pineapple and Passionfruit and last weekend tried a "punch" using the passionfruit.

I'm bad at coming up with clever names, so here goes the

Passion-Quince Punch

1 part lime juice
2 parts agave syrup
3 parts Licor de Membrillo (quince liqueur that I obtained in Tijuana - I'll probably find a substitute you guys can actually work with sometime)
4 parts Passionfruit SKYY Infusions


The flavors from the fruit infusions come out strongly in this drink. A sweet but quite strong punch that I thought was perfect for my party guests who's not used to drinking but whom you want to get wasted anyway. Plus, it's easy to make when you're rushing to get your party started. (I've been told I always time things too tightly :P )