Mickey Cheeseboard@Happy Hour ★★★

Home-Craft Cheeseboard for Virtual Happy Hour. My first time. Cheese: Swiss, Monterey Jack, Mozarella, Fromage, French Brie, and Cranberry. Love it with Pistachios. Crackers from Target's Archer Farms. Love the Rosemary Crackers. Blended the Adult Dole Whip drink.

Raku Togo@West Hollywood ★★★

Satisfying Japanese Bento Box. I like the Crab Roll better than the Salmon. Salmon sashimi in the Salmon Bowl was fresh and fatty. Full menu available here. We paired it with Mango Moscato.

Raku's Bento Box $38

Salmon Bowl $25

Bento Box Came in Nicely Wrapped

Homemade Mickey Waffles Recipe ★★★

Making Waffle from scratch. First time. It's actually pretty easy. I had it with maple syrup. Tasted great. Disneyland Esplanade music in background a plus. Got this Select Brands Mickey Mouse waffle maker from BoxLunch years ago. Recipes vary. Below is one of them.

Ingredients:
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon white sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Beat eggs in large mixing bowl with beater until fluffy. Put in the rest of the ingredients and beat altogether.
2. Let the batter rest. Preheat waffle maker for 4-5 minutes.
3. Pour batter into waffle maker and heat for 3-4 minutes.
4. Serve with maple syrup on the side.

Shunji Togo@West LA ★★★

Amazing Shunji Deluxe Bento Box. The appetizer box comes with a piece of paper telling you what everything is and a hand-signed thank you note. $70 per person. You can wait in the parking lot, and they will bring it out for you. Need to order days in advance, or else it will sell out. Paired it with sake.

Filet-O-Fish & Cold Wakame Udon Recipe ★★★

At Home Filet-O-Fish with Buttered Breadsticks. The Fried Fish Filet from Trader Joe's reminded me of Filet-O-Fish from McDonald's, so decided to give it a try. Just happened to have bread, tartar sauce, and lettuce at home. I skipped the cheese. It turned out amazing. Recipe below. For the Cold Wakame (Marine Seaweed) Udon, I had it with soba soy sauce, sliced seaweed, wasabi, spring onions, and ginger. Wakame is healthy.

Toasted Bread with Butter Spread
not wasting the edges – use as breadsticks

Wakame (Marine Seaweed) Udon from Japanese Supermarket

Filet-O-Fish with Breadsticks ★★★
Ingredients:
Fish Filet from Trader Joe's
Bread - 2 slices, can use breadends
Lettuce
Tartar Sauce
Cheese (optional)

Recipe:
1. Spread butter on bread, cut out the sides (keep them and toast together), and toast in oven
2. Bake Fish Filet
3. Spread tartar sauce on bottom sandwich layer (to keep crispiness on top of the fish)
4. Add cheese (optional), lettuce, then add fish, and finish with break end on top
5. Continue to toast breadsticks (cheese optional) until crisp. Serve as side.

Seared Steak & Chile Butter@Blue Apron ★★★

Seared Steak & Chile Butter with Kale & Cheesy Potatoes. Potatoes are roasted for 24 minutes. In honor of Earth Day, paired it with a bottle of National Geographic 2015 Ocean Reserve Blanc de Blancs from Iron Horse Vineyards. The bottle benefits to marine protected areas and sustainable fishing.

Seared Salmon & Ponzu Mayo@Blue Apron ★★★

Impressive Meal from Blue Apron. They do not disappoint. Learning more about cooking from them. Who knows adding garlic, salt, and mirin to Jasmine Rice would make such a huge difference. Vinegar & sugar to marinate Cucumbers and Bell Peppers. Sear Salmon with skin side up for 4-6 minutes, cover, and turn for another 2-4 minutes. Ponzu & mayo mixture on top, then garnish with Togarashi (7 spices) seasoning. Paired it with Chardonnay.

Chicken & Wonton Noodle Stir-Fry@Blue Apron ★★★

Blue Apron Meal Kit Delivery Service. They send you the pre-portioned ingredients and recipe. You just do the cooking. I ended up taking 2-3 times longer than their cooking time. This dish is delicious. They premixed the Asian-style sautéed aromatics for you, but I guess it's butter, garlic, ginger, and green onion inside. Other than that, they provided 1/4 cup of Sweet Chili Sauce, 2 Tbsps of Black Bean Sauce, 1/3 cup Soy Glaze, and 2 Tbsps of Rice Vinegar. Chopped Chicken Breast, Carrots,  Green Cabbage, and Snow Peas. This dish is so good that it inspired me to take my cooking to the next level. I paired it with Junmai Sake.

Chicken & Wonton Noodle Stir-Fry
with Snow Peas, Carrots & Cabbage

Nanbu Bijin Junmai Daiginjo Sake

Masago Salad & Miso Eggplant Recipe ★★★

Favorite Easy Side Dishes. I made the Masago (Smelt Egg) Salad based on the one I had in Hong Kong decades ago. I attempted a lazy version of Miso Eggplant a few days ago. This time I improved it with pre-mixing the marinade. It got bumped to wow, Japanese restaurant quality. Both recipes and masago tip below.

Frozen Masago from Korean Market
just scoop out what you need and put it back into the freezer

Hong Style Masago Salad ★★★
Ingredients:
Masago (frozen one got from Korean market)
Frozen Imitation Crab Meat – 1 stick, boiled, hand-shredded into strands and cut 1" lengthwise
Persian Cucumer – 1/2, sliced
Japanese Mayo

Directions:
Mix everything together and garnish with additional masago on top.

Masago Longevity Tip *Exclusive!
Masago is a trouble itself. When you get a frozen box, you have to thaw it in the refrigerator and use it within a week or so before it turned bad. Recently, I discovered a game-changer hack inspired by its 3-year shelf life:
• Buy a few boxes of them when they are on sale (I usually get it with $1 off each box)
• As instructed, keep it in freezer and never freeze it back after defrosting
• When you are ready to use it, before you cook, pull it from the freezer, use a thin spoon to only scoop out what you need. You will be surprised by how easy it is (put what you scooped in another container if needed and consume within a week)
• Put the frozen Masago back into the freezer
• Now your Masago will never go bad in the freezer and you will always have Masago on hand for any dishes you need! It also tastes great with California Roll, Japanese Tarako Mayo Spaghetti, or Kamameshi Steamed Rice Pot


Miso Eggplant ★★★
Ingredients:
Eggplant – 1, Sliced
Miso
Mirin (Japanese cooking wine)
Olive Oil

Directions:
1. Mix Olive Oil, Miso, and Mirin (about 1 teaspoon each) in a mixing bowl with a spoon.
2. Cover baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat foil lightly with oil so that eggplant won't stick.
3. Coat sliced Eggplant in sauce (dip or brush, front and back) and bake at 425° until Eggplant turns golden brown.

Tororo Soba Recipe ★★★

My All-Time Favorite Simple Vegetarian Dish. Tororo is made from grated Japanese Mountain Yam. Takes plain buckwheat soba to another level. I also topped the soba with sliced seaweed (pre-packaged and pre-sliced), chopping spring onions, sliced shiitake mushroom, and wasabi while dipping it into the soba soy sauce. I oven baked the Eggplant after mixing it with olive oil, mirin (Japanese cooking wine), and miso paste, but I think I will show a better version next time. Edamame beans and Hot Green Tea are great accompanies.

Yamaimo – Japanese Mountain Yam
Use peeler to peel off skin and grate for slimy texture

Japanese Gratin with Shrimp Recipe ★★★

Restaurant Style Gratin. Cheesy gratin made with gratin mix. My first time making it. I love adding rice on the bottom layer before baking. Recipe below. Might try adding white wine to it next time.

Prep Ingredients + Milk + Cheese + Rice

Chardonnay – Perfect Pairing for the Seafood Gratin

Ingredients:
Japanese Macaroni Gratin Mix (brought from Japanese grocery store)
1/2 Onion – sliced
Shrimps (or any seafood or meat)
Water – Room Temperature – 1 cup
Milk – 1/3 cup
Butter – as needed
Parmesan Cheese – as needed
Rice
Parsley (optional) – chopped

Directions:
1. Cook Rice in Rice Bowl (The brand I like to use is Temaki from Marukai Japanese Market). Preheat oven at 480°F.
2. Heat a tablespoon of butter in pan. Stir in sliced onions until brown. Add shrimps.
3. Add water, milk, macaroni, and gratin powder from package. Mix well with wooden spoon. Boil until thickened. Turn to low heat and stir for another 3 minutes.
4. Butter baking dish (will need deeper dish than pictured). Add a layer of rice on the bottom. Pour mixture from pan to baking dish. Cover with Parmesan Cheese. Make for 10-12 minutes until slightly burnt.
5. Sprinkle with chopped parsley (optional).

Pasta fritt Pop-Up@Los Angeles ★★★

New Fried Pasta. Italian comfort food that satisfies both the cravings for fried food and pasta in one. Marinara or Alfredo sauce available for $0.50. The Marinara sauce goes with the fried pasta very well.

Il Classico $9
the original – creamy pasta with Bolognese Meat Sauce

L'americana $8
mac 'n cheese

Follow Instagram @pasta_fritt for pop-up info
pastafritt.com

dine@Carson Porsche ★★★

Casual Fine Dining@Porsche. Delicious food, beautiful presentation, fantastic race track view, great service. Server was very knowledgeable on the race tracks, in case you are interested. The cute little Porsche butter caught me in pleasant surprise. $25 per person for 2-course dineLA.

Porsche Butter

Complimentary Bread & Butter

Summertime 917 $12
svedka vodka, fresh lime juice, watermelon, basil leaf

Grilled Peach Salad (appetizer choice)
smoked burrate, endive, candied marcona almonds, rocket lettuce, mint vinaigrette

Spanish Octopus (appetizer choice)
brussel sprouts, lardo, sherry vinegar, harissa aioli, bacon crumble

Wild King Salmon
creamed cauliflower, summer squash, pea vines, lobster butter

Restaurant View - Race Track

Exterior

Required Visitor Badge for the Restaurant

Restaurant 917
19800 S Main St
Carson, CA 90745
(770) 290-7917
restaurant917.com

Victoria & Albert's@Disney World ★★★

Stunning Meal@Walt Disney World Resort. Exquisite fine dining inside the Queen Victoria Room. Above & beyond excellent service. Excellent food. They truly deserve Michelin Stars. The Langoustine was my favorite. Prix Fixe is $235 per person. Miyazaki Wagyu Beef is additional $55. It's all worth it. Even has unique nose print certificate from Japan. We had the amazing wine pairing. Our server Danny was beyond amazing with his attentive service. Reservations are very hard to book.

Also went:
December 28, 2022
December 23, 2023

Amuse-Bouche
Cauliflower Panna Cotta w/ American Caviar

New Zealand Langoustine w/ Nage Crema

Peruvian Chocolate Crunch

Lail Vineyards Blueprint Sauvignon Blanc, Napa 2014

King Salmon w/ Cucumber & Dill

Alaskan Sablefish w/ Baby Bak Choy

Wild Turbot w/ Toasted Capers & Preserved Lemon

Dieberg Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley 2012

Butter w/ Hidden Mickey

Nori Bread

Smoked Rohan Duck w/ Fuji Apples & Celery Root

Marcho Farms Veal “En Croute”

Australian Kobe-Style Beef w/ Roasted Garlic Potato

Australian Kobe-Style Beef w/ Roasted Garlic Potato
Miyazaki Japanese Beef $55

Miyazaki Japanese Beef $55

Unique Nose Print of the Miyazaki Japanese Beef

Selection of Cheese from the Market

Selection of Cheese from the Market

Sulawesi Island Coffee

Spiced Caramel Apple Dessert

Chocolates

Harpist in Dining Room

Our Amazing Server Danny

Picture with the Amazing Chef Team

Disney's Grand Floridian Resort Spa
4401 Floridian Way
Orlando, FL 32830
(407) 939-3862
www.victoria-alberts.com