Ajisen Ramen

Every so often, we crave authentic ramen. So far we found some good ramen houses, but they're over the bay and not as close to us as we'd like. A few months back we found out about Ajisen Ramen. It turns out that Ajisen is a pretty large chain in Japan. We figured since it's a chain, maybe it would taste more authentic than the other restaurants we've been to. So far, we really like this place. Their bowls are pretty large, and it's almost always packed when we go.

 Spicy Pork Ramen. They are not kidding when they say spicy. That pile you see of orange/red is all spice! It's very flavorful if you can handle the heat. I could only handle one spoonful, but my husband finished it all. Just be prepared to have a runny nose.

 Karage. Seriously, this appetizer was humongous, but very delicious.

Ajisen Ramen. This is one of my favorites.

Daiso

A great place to get some Japanese snacks are at Daiso. Daiso is a Japanese "Dollar Store". They have great snacks, paper, pens, dishes, all for less than $5.00 each. I don't think I've seen anything over $5.00 yet in that store.

 There are so many different Hi-Chew flavors. If I get a chance, I love to stock my purse on hi-chews for my snacking moods. Although that doesn't really last long. Once they're in my purse, they don't last very long.

 I have yet to try all these drinks. I need to ask an employee on what types of drinks they are. Although I sometimes like to just pick one without knowing what it is. Surprises are always nice. =)

Light My Fire Spork

This is the best invention ever. A Light My Fire Spork. I keep this in my desk at work so that I don't have to waste a plastic spoon or fork. You just have to be careful when you use it as a fork since the knife portion is right there. It's a little sharper than you'd think. It can be easy to cut your lip when you're very excited about what you're eating. You tend to forget there's a knife section there.

I plan to get another one so that I can keep in my purse. Yea, that's pretty dorky, but I'll always be prepared. Christmas is coming up soon. This also is a great stocking stuffer.

Banana Bread Beer

World Market has a fabulous food and drink area. I was walking through the aisle and a banana bread beer caught my eye. Now, I love banana bread, but as a beer I wasn't sure if that would be good. So of course, curiosity killed the cat. I had to buy it.

Results: It tasted exactly how it sounds. It tasted like banana bread, with just a small hint of alcohol. Despite my love for banana bread, I don't really like it as an alcoholic beverage.

Babybel Love

I love cheese. I'm still a little hesitant on the real stinky ones, but I still love cheese. Mini Babybel is the perfect cheese snack. Yum!

Kee Wah Bakery

Mmmm...I found this asian bakery next to work. I'm on a slow search for anything asian and ethnic in the city I work at. You don't really see them, but lately I've been seeing more ethnic restaurants pop up.

When I'm not too hungry but want a good lunch that will get me full, my go-to spot is this bakery, Kee Wah Bakery. Their food is priced very well, the portions are pretty large, and there is a wide range of options for you. The bakery is also next to a Quickly, so I usually pick up a pearl tea while I'm there.

 That green tea pound cake and the red bean bun (bottom right) was awesome!

 They have these cute lunch trays, tongs and to-go bags that you use to pick out your lunch. As you can see, there are many options to choose from.

 Dessert snacks! The ones I want to try next are their mocha rolls and green tea rolls. (Shown above.)

Above was my latest Kee Wah lunch. A bacon and cheese bun, which I thought looked pretty dirty, (left) and a red bean seasame seed bun (right). Of course, I had to top it off with some pearl tea from Quickly. Just this alone made me pretty content and full. All under $5.00!

Foodspotting

I found out about Foodspotting at the SF Street Food Fest a few weeks ago. I can't believe I haven't heard about this website sooner. I love taking pictures of food and finding out more about food places. This is the best because you actually see pictures of the food rather than go just by reviews. Plus, this is worldwide, versus Yelp, which is only here in America.

Oh Foodspotting, how I am slowly becoming addicted to you.

Tasting 1-2-3...Philz Coffee

Philz Coffee is such a cute place and has some of the best coffee I've ever tasted. I've been told about Philz for quite some time, but there just isn't one close to me. Finally my cousins decided to bring me there for my birthday after taking me to lunch. I love their atmosphere too. A small place, but has so much character. 

I tried their iced mint mojito. It's pretty good actually. I was nervous because I normally don't like mojito's, but the mix of the coffee and mint tasted very yummy. To take home, I decided I wanted some sort of dark coffee. So that's exactly what I told the barista. She was quick to suggest "Red Sea", so I said sure. Great suggestion! The coffee is pretty dark but it's got a lot of flavor. Not too bitter, at least to me.

Can't wait to be in the area again to get more beans and try something else.