days 10-14

I cheated. I broke my diet. My NOW ex boyfriend wanted me to try this cupcake shop in santa monica that he loves because he knows I absolutely love everything cupcake related. Anyway so I tried it and it was delicious!!! amazing cupcakes. then we had dinner and I was not supposed to eat but i figured I had broken my diet already so I had mushroom miso soup and for dessert, mochi ice cream. Mango, grean tea, and coffee. then the next days after that, I said screw it, I'll start again on monday so I ate and had sweets again. but tomorrow for sure I'll start once again since now I dont have a boyfriend to influence me. I loved him and I still do but it was a mutual decision not to see each other anymore. we were happy but I screwed up then wanted to fix things but it was too late according to him then he wanted to be just friends and I couldnt do that so I chose not to see him anymore and he respected my decision:( oh well. we're hoping the things he's going through right now get better and that maybe after that we'll get back together. No i didnt cheat on him in case ur wondering LOL!!! I am fine now but my focus is my job and my colon so boys come last for me right now. Why I shared this with the world I dont know but I love you guys so I felt comfortable.
Anyway, tomorrow is MONDAY!!! time to cleans AGAIN!! YAY!!!! I can do it this time!! I know I can!

Thanx for coming!

SoHo

Happy Birthday, Beloved Michael

On June 25, around 3 am, I woke up and for some reason, couldn't get back to sleep. I lay awake trying my best to get back to sleep. I started praying b/c that is usually a sure way for me to get back to sleep, but not this morning.

As I prayed, I thought about my brothers, so immediately I assumed that the reason I couldn't sleep was b/c I was supposed to be up praying for them. Little did I know that my prayers were for my other brother. The one that made me smile as a kid with the meer sound of his voice... the one that made me want to grow up and marry someone like him... the one who I cried over many times b/c he was so amazing... the one I hadn't seen in years but still held a special place in my heart... the one I would never see again after that day.

I finally fell asleep after about an hour or so & didn't think much of it until about 2:30 when I got a text message saying "Michael Jackson is gone." I'm like, "what do you mean he's gone?" "He died." "He died? 'Beat It' & 'Thriller' Michael Jackson?" "Yes, the King of Pop; he's gone. Cardiac arrest." I remember those texts like it was today.

As I type this, I still cry b/c I love Michael so much & this is still as shocking today as it was that day. Trying to celebrate his birthday will be very difficult, knowing that I'll never see him dance again ~ never hear him sing again... the music stopped that day... my childhood died that day, along with my beloved, Michael.

Michael, I hope that my prayers made a difference & I hope that you are finally resting in peace - no paps, no ugly stories, no lies, no ignorance... just the peace & tranquility that you sought for so long. I love you more & Happy Birthday...

MY NEW QUICHE MOLDS!!!

Yesterday a hostess came upstairs into my kitchen and delivered me a box of some sort. She said, here Mayra, this just came in for you. I took the small box and thanked her. I opened it up and there they were!!! FINALLY!!!! My new quiche molds!!! I tell ya, I get so excited every time I get a new piece of equipment or when I start making a new dessert. Anyway I couldnt wait to try so I made a batch of quiche right away. check them out! YAY!!!! oh I made a sample of one of my new menu items called floating island. It was nice until my stupid boss came a screwed it up with the sloppy caramel sauce LOL It needs slice almonds on top though but I'll have a way better picture in a little bit. ok here are my pics!

food challange

I know it wasnt easy or nearly even possible but I like food challenges so I went for it. What was it? swallow and entire spoon fool of cinnamon without water!!! first of all ground cinnamon is kind of dangerous because It's really dry in your mouth and you cant breathe so you can cough and choke your way to the hospital but I like a good challenge.
You see, My boss's sous chef offered me 30 bucks to eat a spoon full of cinnamon and me being the challenge liking type went for it. I tell ya it's like having the Sahara desert in your mouth!!! imagine having a really fine powder in your mouth that sucks up all your saliva and you cant even swallow because it's so dry that if you breathe in you'll choke. I had cinnamon coming out from my nose and couldnt breathe so I gave up and spat it out. My voice was rough for 6 hours and I felt my throat really raspy.
My boss decided to give it a try after seeing me try it. He seriously almost choked. He had tears running down his cheeks and mucus coming out from his nose. His nose was later stuffed for a few minutes. He was fine later.
So my boss's sous chef couldnt stop laughing at me and my boss and convinced it wasnt possible to do it, he bumped it up to $100 and asked on of my boss's cooks to do it. As the rest of the cooks surround the table along with my boss watching the whole thing and waiting for this guy to choke...


the sous chef hands him a spoon full of cinnamon and and he pops it in his mouth. his reaction to the dry mouth was so bad and everybody started laughing. He begins to move the cinnamon around in his mouth. Sous chef's goal is to laugh so hard so that this cook laughs as well and he has cinnamon coming out from his nose and starts choking thus losing the bet. However I would not let that happen so I stood next to him giving him words of encouragement. "Take his f*cken money dude, take it! your almost there! the rest of the guys joined in. Sous chef still laughing and now seeing that this guy is actually going to make it, starts calming down and his laughter turns into silence. I tell the cook "Look he's not even laughing anymore cuz he knows he's gonna lose his $100. A few second later he swallows what's left of the cinnamon and takes the money. Everybody laughs and high-five's him. He planned on going out for drinks with that money ha ha ha ha!!! it was pretty amazing and well deserved. You see what we do in the kitchen when we're tired and have a few free minutes?? ha ha ha ha it's insane! LOL!!! next challenge is a spoon full of cayenne pepper. I am the first on the list for that challenge ha ha ha ha!! I can definitely take the heat!!

6th, 7th, and 8th day

Sorry i didnt post my past three days of my colon cleansing diet. I've been very busy and tired. Ok so the 6th day was like the 5th day where I wanted everything, the 7th day wasnt bad at all because I was off and didnt have to work with food so the 7th day was easy. Today was my 8th day and boy was I craving rice crackers!!!! I still want some ha ha ha ha ha these are my absolute favorite crackers of all. fried and flavored with soy sauce!! yes those are it above! lol!! anyway now I will have my salt water and will continue until monday. What will I have to celebrate my squeeky clean colon? VEGETABLE SOUP!!!! yes! vegetable soup. you see, because my body is not used to solid food, I have to have something light so vegetable soup has lots of broth that my body can handle and super soft vegetables. Slowly but surely I'll be eating harder foods again. Tomorrow is day 9 and I cant wait until day 15!! Almost there!!!

My new dessert menu

Hi everybody!!! Here's the deal. I am supposed to change my dessert menu for the fall season and will be changed by September. I decided I love you all so much that this year, I am going to do a SoHo Meets SoLo blog reader inspired dessert menu!! Yes a menu designed with all of you in mind. I need your help though. I'd like for you to tell me what your favorite dessert is or fall dessert and I will put it on my list for new menu options. What dessert do you think of when you think of fall? what comes into mind? for me being from America, I think spiced pumpkin. to me that's very fall-like if you will. My boyfriend is from Paris so he said apples and pears so that's on my list too even though I have apple tart tatin already and poached pears on my menu. I can keep those or replace. Anyway wherever you're from, let me know what your favorite dessert is or what you would put on a fall dessert menu. Better yet, it doesnt even have to be a fall dessert. just any dessert. Thanx a billion everybody!!!

SoHo

2009's Top 10 best restaurants in America

Bon Apetit magazine has come up with the 2009's Top 10 best restaurants in America list. These restaurants offer great food and a very satisfied customer. Everywhere from Illinois to California to Michigan,Georgia, Texas and plenty more, there is a restaurant near you that offers incredible food that just hits the spot. Even if it's not so close to you, I say it causes for a roadtrip. Why not? LOL!! Anyway if it's near you and you actually do go. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let me know your experience there. without further ado, here are 2009's top ten restaurants in America.



Bar Jules, San Francisco, CA

Bar Jules, San Francisco, CA
Today's most exciting restaurants have a lot in common. They represent the new standard: simple, satisfying local food—all served with zero pretense. They support local farmers, sustainable agriculture, and regional cuisine. For a taste of our ten favorite new restaurants, cook these delicious recipes.

1. Spring Hill

4437 California Avenue SW, Seattle; 206-935-1075; springhillnorthwest.com

Without much fanfare, the Pacific Northwest has become one of the most exciting foodie destinations in America. Between Seattle and Portland, there are an increasing number of top-notch, chef-driven restaurants—and Mark and Marjorie Fuller's Spring Hill in West Seattle is at the top of that list. Mark shows respect for the region's amazing seafood (Kumamoto oysters, Dungeness crab), but also has the culinary skill to play with texture and flavors. His food manages to be beautiful without being ornate. The sleek space, which Marjorie works with confidence, and the dazzling open kitchen only add to the lofty dining experience.
Get their recipe for: Black Cod with Fennel Chowder and Smoked Oyster Panzanella

2. Cakes & Ale

254 West Ponce de Leon Avenue, Decatur, Georgia; 404-377-7994; cakesandalerestaurant.com

At the age of 27, Billy Allin gave up his job as a money manager and enrolled in culinary school. After graduation, his cooking skills landed him gigs at renowned restaurants, including Chez Panisse in Berkeley and Watershed in Decatur. With his farm-to-table cooking philosophy fully established, Allin and his wife, Kristin, decided it was time to open "the restaurant where we would want to eat," he says. That restaurant is Cakes & Ale (from a phrase in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night meaning "the good things in life"), located east of downtown Atlanta. The couple's ideal restaurant turns out to be a 50-seat neighborhood spot where the kitchen staff often answers the phone when you call to make a reservation, and a chalkboard announces the daily menu, which features simple, precise dishes like braised rabbit grits with saba vinegar and spring onion; buttermilk-rhubarb fool; and the addictive arancine here.
Get their recipe for: Citrus Arancine with Pecorino Cheese

3. Bar Jules (pictured)

609 Hayes Street, San Francisco; 415-621-5482; barjules.com

"How many bowls of clam chowder can you make before you lose your mind?" That was the question Jessica Boncutter asked herself just before quitting her job at a popular San Francisco oyster bar. After she resigned, she headed for London to take a break and hang out with friends—and that's when inspiration hit. "All of my friends were opening restaurants over there, and I said to myself: If they can do it, I can do it." When she returned to the Bay Area, she got to work on Bar Jules, a bohemian lunch and dinner spot in San Francisco's Hayes Valley neighborhood. The chalkboard menu, consisting of fewer than ten dishes, is big on California produce and sustainable ingredients, which, to be honest, is nothing new in San Francisco. What is new is that there's no mantra on the menu, no stuffiness in the dining room—and there are no reservations. Chef Boncutter's simple food includes everything from a perfectly cooked wood-grilled burger to the lamb stew below. One thing you won't find on the menu? Clam chowder.

Get their recipe for: Lamb with Preserved Lemons
Related: How to Get the Reservations You Want (and Why Restaurants Lie to You for Your Own Good)

4. No. 7

7 Greene Avenue, Brooklyn; 718-522-6370; no7restaurant.com

The walls are brick and plaster. The ceilings are pressed tin. And the waitstaff is straight out of an American Apparel catalog. In short, it's a quintessential Brooklyn neighborhood joint. But the first sign that No. 7 is doing things a bit differently than your average hipster restaurant is the fried broccoli appetizer: an entire head of broccoli covered in an impossibly crisp tempura batter and paired with a hummus-like black bean sauce and a dill and grapefruit salad. It's a mishmash of disparate ingredients that somehow succeeds. The same goes for the deconstructed romaine salad (romaine heart, mozzarella-wrapped quince, lemon) and the pumpkin-seed-crusted tofu featured below. The risk-taking, slightly theatrical menu comes from chef Tyler Kord (left), who worked at Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Perry St before opening No. 7.
Get their recipe for: Pumpkin-Seed-Crusted Tofu with Lemongrass Broth, Rice Noodles, and Poached Eggs

5. Woodberry Kitchen

2010 Clipper Park Road, Number 126, Baltimore; 410-464-8000; woodberrykitchen.com

In the early 1990s, long before sustainable, local, and organic became the calling cards of chefs everywhere, Spike Gjerde was showcasing the abundance of the Chesapeake Bay. With the opening of his latest spot in the historic Clipper Mill complex—a brick-and-wood space that has the look and feel of a restored farmhouse—Gjerde takes his farm-to-table commitment to the next level. A wood-burning oven is the centerpiece of a kitchen that turns out dishes like roasted Rappahannock River oysters, Roseda Black Angus Farm hanger steak, and fantastic flatbreads.

Get their recipe for: Spiced Pear Flatbreads with Goat Cheese and Mustard Cream
6. Mado

1647 North Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago; 773-342-2340; madorestaurantchicago.com

Husband and wife Rob and Allie Levitt are fanatical about local and sustainable ingredients. A chalkboard in the dining room lists all the farms that the restaurant works with, and every two weeks Rob receives a 180-pound pig from Slagel Family Farm, butchers it himself, and uses every bit in dishes like ciccioli (pork cracklin's), charcuterie, and the restaurant's signature porchetta (spit-roasted pork loin and belly). Rob and Allie are also regulars at the Green City Market, which means that if there's something new and seasonal at the market, you'll find it on Mado's menu. "We're not trying to break new ground," says Rob of his savory and Allie's sweet cooking. "All we want is to have fun cooking great ingredients simply." Judging from the crowds at dinner and Sunday brunch, that's really all the locals want, too.
Get their recipe for: Clam and Calamari Seafood Stew with Salsa Verde

Related: 5 Tips for Handling a Bad Waiter

7. Feast

219 Westheimer Road, Houston; 713-529-7788; feasthouston.com

The locals didn't have much faith in Feast, a British-style gastropub with a menu that includes bubble and squeak, black pudding, and tons of offal. "They told us that we must put steak on the menu or we wouldn't make it. This is Texas, after all," says co-owner Meagan Silk. Despite the skeptics, Silk, her husband, James, and their friend Richard Knight decided to press on. And it's a good thing they did. Today, the restaurant—and its Brit-centric menu—is a huge hit. For the offal novices, we chose this recipe, which makes good use of beef neck bones and pig's feet. Try it. We promise that it's delicious.
Get their recipe for: Braised Beef with Pears and Fresh Ginger

8. Olivia

2043 South Lamar Boulevard, Austin; 512-804-2700; olivia-austin.com

There's only one thing on the walls of Olivia: a Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings concert poster that chef James Holmes's grandfather gave to him. The image—two groundbreaking country music legends from Texas—captures the spirit of this sophisticated yet laid-back spot. The restaurant's clean art-gallery-esque interior really shows off the poster—and Chef Holmes's food. He gathers his culinary inspiration from (and in) his backyard vegetable garden. The resulting menu includes produce-based dishes like risotto made with squash and greens, and spinach-potato gnocchi with olives and tomatoes. Holmes is also fond of riffs on comfort-food classics, like spaghetti cooked in red wine and the milk-braised pork shoulder here. The diverse clientele—a tattooed musician on his way to a show or an operagoer dressed to the nines—only adds to Olivia's considerable charm.

Get their recipe for: Milk-Braised Pork Shoulder with Semolina Gnocchi
9. The Greenhouse Tavern

2038 East 4th Street, Cleveland; 216-443-0511 thegreenhousetavern.com

This unassuming gastropub in downtown Cleveland is on the forefront of the green-restaurant movement. Reclaimed barn wood, light fixtures made from old bike rims, and a rooftop dining area/greenhouse are just a few of the environmentally conscious elements that went into redesigning the space. But for the epicurean, all this is moot if the restaurant fails to deliver on the food front. Thanks to chef Jonathon Sawyer, who worked with Charlie Palmer in New York and Iron Chef Michael Symon, it doesn't. Ohio-sourced ingredients are the stars of the modern, snack-heavy menu. Goat cheese tarts with tomato salad (recipe at right); hand-ground beef tartare with a cold poached egg; and crispy chicken wings with roasted jalapeño, scallions, and garlic are just a few of the smart, simple dishes that keep food lovers coming back.

Get their recipe for: Potato-Crusted Goat Cheese Tarts with Heirloom Tomato Salad
Also check out: The Top 10 Brunch Spots in the U.S.

10. Hungry Mother

233 Cardinal Medeiros Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts; 617-499-0090; hungrymothercambridge.com

Chef Barry Maiden grew up in Virginia near Hungry Mother State Park, and when he approached his partners with the curious name, it stuck. The South also inspires the food at this smartly designed, low-key neighborhood spot. But gimmicky mama-style country cooking this is not. Maiden's clever cuisine combines southern and northern ingredients with classic French technique. Maine mussels are paired with house-made tasso and cornbread crumbs; grilled Rhode Island squid comes with a side of hominy. The big question is this: Can Bostonians ever truly appreciate perfectly fried cornmeal-crusted catfish served with collards? If they're eating it at Hungry Mother, there's as good a chance as any.

Get their recipe for: Cornmeal-Crusted Catfish with Collards and Creole

Long time no hear!!

Ok so I was driving home from work and I was changing the stations on the radio and I come across a song by "La Oreja De Van Gogh" (a band from Spain) I was so happy to hear them cuz i havent heard this band in a while. The song playing was called "puedes contar con migo" you can count on me. anyway I came home and first thing i did was look it up on youtube.LOL I love youtube!! ok I want to share it with you so here it is. ENJOY!!



thanx charli1994 on youtube

5th day

Ok so today I made chocolate mousse! You have no idea how hard it was to resist it!!! I cant wait until this cleansing thing is over but even then I have to start eating again beginning with vegetable soup or broth to slowly start eating again. This time I have to really cut back on sweets. I blame half of this on my boyfriend LOL!!! He has the bright idea to have dessert for dinner!! LOL!! but it's the best thing ever!! We normally go walk from restaurant to restaurant in our neighborhood trying their desserts. LOL!! I swear I've never met a French guy that eats that many sweets!! But he says he's never met a Mexican girl (me)with that big of a sweet-tooth LOL!! Anyway The first thing I am going to eat when I am able to eat solid food again is sees candy's rocky road footballs!!!! I am dying to try those LOL!! well I may have broccoli first. I LOVE BROCCOLI!!! LOL well that's it for my 5th day. Thanx for stopping by!!

SoHO

3rd and 4th day

Hi everybody!! sorry i have not been around the last couple of days. I have been busy with work and scheduling meetings with friends... you know time to hang out or hit the town kind of meetings. Anyway so back to my colon cleansing diet.
The third day was easy, no hunger because i was going through some rough issues that just made me lose my appetite. HOWEVER those issues are over and now today was my fourth day and boy was I hungry for junk food!!!! I wanted everything that makes your body go on red alert LOL!!!...french fries, beignettes, profiterolle, chocolate cake, carrot cake, rocky road ice cream, oreos, double chocolate mint shakes. you name it, I wanted it. LOL I even go out with my friends and they're all eating in front of me but I tell you the power of the mind is crazy I made myself not care for that stuff for the moment because I know I would give in. So it is now the last few hours of this day and on Monday, it will officially be an entire seven days sans food just tons of water and a cleaner colon. Again, some ppl do this to lose weight, I AM NOT ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO DO THIS TO LOSE WEIGHT!!!!! I am doing this because of my bloating problem. Anyway, I have not lost weight so that's good. I have gained muscle though. I've started having people tell me i look toned and muscular LOL but that's a good thing right? LOL ok well anyway I'll see what happens tomorrow.

thanx for stopping by!!!
soho

I am afraid of

So some people at work think it's strange that I am terrified of live lobsters and crabs. You see we use a lot of those at the restaurant and we get them live from the santa monica seafood company. To me it's just so ugly how they have a hard shell and there's eyes are all... i dont know just ugly. LOL the crabs almost have a human-like face In my opinion that scares the crap outta me. The lobsters scare me period. LOL especially when you grab them and they open their limbs toward their back. OMG they're so scary just thinking about it. LOL!!
But people have some strange fears. for example, fear of long words is called hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia. yeah try telling that to a person that fears long words LOL!!
paraskavedekatriaphobia, or fear of Friday the 13th, is a phobia that scientists believe will still remain despite the best scientific endeavers.

well now you know what I am afraid of. what are you afraid of?

Day two

ok so it's day two of my diet and It's now noon. I just woke up after being up until 3am. I felt hungry last night but today not hungry at all. I feel pretty confident I can do this and I should start feeling energetic within the next two to three days. Not sure how I'll feel later but I'll check in again and let you know. Zie yeah you should give it a try if you want just make sure you see ur doctor first and let me know if you want the recipe.
that's it for now.
Thanx for reading!

SoHo

Lemonade diet

Ok so for the next three weeks I am trying something crazy. what am I trying? the lemonade diet also known as the cayenne pepper diet. you know that diet that beyonce did to lose 20lbs for dreamgirls? yes that's what I am doing. HOWEVER!! I am NOT doing this to lose weight or gain weight or just because beyonce did it or anything like that.
You see, I am bloated every single day of the year all day long. I've had this problem forever and I've taken meds for bloating and I cant seem to get rid of it. So I did what anyone else would do... I went to go see a doctor. My uncle Ray is my doctor so he gave me more pills to take and told me I need to stop eating so many sweets. You see, I have a terrible sweet tooth. I'll eat chocolate mousse for breakfast and sugar cookies for lunch, snack on bits of chocolate in between and have a bit of actual real food for dinner then have dessert. You see where the problem is? I tried everything to stop eating sweets but I am successful for a few months then I go back and eat sweets again.
Anyway my uncle told me I have tar-like build up in my colon so i have to clean it out... this is where that diet comes in. I eat nothing so that all I am doing is drinking water with lemon, maple syrup and honey in it, eight glasses a day and do a "salt flush" at night before bed which is basically two teaspoons of salt in a glass of water that makes you release all the build up in your colon.
Uncle Ray says I shouldnt do it but I've had just about enough of pills so I want to try this out. He says it seems to work but at the same time it's also not very healthy so I got his approval and supervision to go on this three week journey of eating and drinking absolutely nothing but this concoction I whipped up last night for today and water.
Today is my first day and it's 11am here. I dont feel hungry at all but that will change soon I am sure. OK i'll keep you all updated on a day to day progression. Wish me luck!!

SoHo

too cool!!

learn how to open a beer bottle with your arm! LOL awesome!!

NEW WENT ON SVU!!

Do you really have to guess who sent me the link to this new clip of Went on SVU? ha ha ha ha ha yes ur right it was the one and only ZIE!!!!!!! YAY!! Thanx so much!! well here it is thanx to Zie. is it just me or does this man get sexier by the day? HMMMMM... LOL ENJOY!!!!!

My new song!

Hi everybody!!!
ok is there a song you seem to like so much you cant get tired of it but then you do so you move on to another song until you get tired of that one too and move on to another again? well here's my new song LOL it's by Jay Sean and it's called "down" it's a nice paced song and I love working out to it. enjoy!!
thanx for visiting!!!

NK rocked the house of blues!!

Wednesday night, My friend Chris invited me to the House of Blues to watch a band called NK. Since I wasnt doing anything special I accepted the invite and went. He had six tickets because his ex girlfriend knows the lead singer of the band and he gave her six tickets. She couldnt go so she gave all six tickets to Chris and he gave me one and invited four other ppl but none were able to attend. In the end, it was just my buddy and I so we went to the show and it was really really good. These guys have a sort of tropical feel to their music. it's the kind of music you can picture yourself on the beach in a tropical island sipping pineapple juice from a coconut LOL!! but it's a mix between that, and funk, and rock and soul. I dont know it's kind of hard to describe. I took a couple of pictures for you all! check out their website at NKband.com

Random day out

This past week/weekend, One of my friend's from college and I hung out together all day and we decided to go to IKEA and a farmers market let me tell you the home kitchen appliance section in any store is my favorite section to shop at!! LOL and I am a total sucker for farmers markets!! anyway so we stayed forever looking at all the kitchen fixtures, the ovens, marble counter tops and lots of other kitchen related stuff. I am telling you, I am in heaven when I go to the kitchen section of these stores ha ha ha ha!! anyway we took a few pictures and then headed to the exit but one thing caught our eyes at the IKEA cafe, an IKEA FOOD BIB!!! LMAO!! that was too funny to us so I didnt pass up the chance to try one on! LOL!! Oh and my friend Chris LOVES his car which he calls "The Black Stallion" LMAO I call mine "The Prius Royale" or "The Party Prius" LOL! so here are a few pictures. ENJOY! and thanx for coming!



Chris and his "Black Stallion" LMAO!! That's such a cool car name ha ha ha! yes my friends and I do name our cars. LOL my last car's name was "kitty" and my car before that was called "el perron" spanish for "the sh!t" LOL!


Chris and I decided to swap glasses LOL!


I just had to try on the bib ha ha ha ha I JUST HAD TO!! ha ha ha ha It was too funny for some reason LOL!


I am totally loving this tiny industrial looking oven LOL!!

MISHIMA ROCKS!!!!!!!

When I am in a noodle mood, there is no place like Mishima Japanese Restaurant here in Los Angeles!! I am telling you I've never had better soba noodles anywhere else but here!! The broth of all of their noodle bowls is made with 100% natural seaweed and soy sauce.Believe me,it's SUPER DELICIOUS!!
My friend Amina took me there one night when she when she got off work and It was delicious!! I asked her two days later if she wanted to go again. LOL! Yes we did end up going. I have the odon noodle vegetable bowl or the odon noodle fried bean curd (fried tofu) bowl. Both are very delicious and you can adjust the flavor with some soy sauce that is kept on the table and some chili powder/flakes that's also at your table.
The portions are pretty big so bring your appetite with you. The first time I didnt finish my food because it was so much food and I had been really hungry. The second time I did finish my food even though I had just finished eating Mexican food right before we got there. ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! It was just too good not to finish it. My friend isnt vegetarian so she ordered a beef odon noodle bowl the first time and teh second time she ordered a chicken odon noodle bowl.
I made a joke with my friend Amina telling her that I just combined both her cuisines in my stomach so maybe I'll have a little Amina. ha ha ha ha!! Amina is half Japanese, half Mexican. So that was my stupid joke ha ha ha ha!!
We ordered a side of Kabocha (Japanese pumpkin), marinated lotus root, and seasoned spinach. all were mouth watering good!!!

If you ever get to come to Los Angeles, do hit up Mishima for a nice big bowl of steamy tasty odon or soba noodles. they also have a bunch of other stuff besides noodle bowls. so definitely check them out! here are a few pictures of my veggie bowl. ENJOY!!


Mishima Japanese Restaurant
www.mishima.com
(323) 782-0181
8474 W 3rd St, #108
Los Angeles, CA

I placed a piece of my lotus root side dish on my noodle bowl for the picture. LOL!

Mix up ur noodles and dig in!! YUMMY!!! MMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!

One thing i hate at work!

Ok so I was working yesterday and after a very busy day for me I was ready to call it a day. I went to change my clothes and shoes and grab my backpack so I can leave and I see the restaurant's manager run up towards me and asks me if it's possible to for me to make a couple of platters with two dessert cookies and some profiterolle. I was so annoyed with this man because he always does this to me. I had already packed my knives and my baking equipment and now he tells me!! I asked what it was for and he said it was for the owner of the restaurant and a few of his friends. I quickly whipped up some batter to make madeleine cookies, some "cat tongue" cookies, profiterolle, and some chocolate pastry cream to stuff the profiterolle with. By the way if ur not familiar with pastry cream it's the same stuff you see inside eclairs. except mine was chocolate flavor. Anyway I made everything from scratch and placed it on a platter and slapped some raspberries and blueberries on top and viola!! it was done. kind of not the best I could do but I was ready to call it a day and it was extremely short notice. anyway my point being, I hate when this is done to me!!! but today I am off so YAY!!!!!!!!! here are a couple of pictures of the platter. not very good pictures but wutever. ENJOY!!




The madeleine cookies line the platter, I dont know why i was given this stupid platter to plate on but whatever. the five big brown balls in the center are the profiterolle, and under the profiterolle, are the the "cat tongue" cookies.

Heroes offical trailer with Robert Knepper!!

It's quite refreshing to see Mr. Knepper on another show other than prison break right? well him out on Heroes!! He's joined the cast and ready to reinvent himself as an actor. Check it out!! he looks GREAT!!

$90 pizza!!

would you pay ninety bucks for a pizza? a basic pizza? not including toppings? well a new football stadium in Dallas,TX is doing just that!!! Why? click below and find out. Enjoy



The colossal new Dallas Cowboys Stadium is living proof that everything is bigger in Texas. The menu in the luxury suites proves that things there are more expensive too.

Those enjoying a Cowboys game from a luxury suite at the new stadium will have to shell out $90 for pizza and $66 for a 12-pack of domestic beer, reports Steven Sipple of the Lincoln Journal World. Ninety bucks for pizza? That's almost as much of a rip-off as Roy Williams.

It costs $800,000 per year to lease one of those luxury suites, a hefty sum that doesn't include game tickets. On the bright side, the stadium's official Web site says that "having your company's name on a suite makes an important statement about your success" and can help make an impression on clients. (Namely that they're paying you way too much money.)

As for the $90 pizza, that's the cost for a plain pizza. No word on how much each topping costs but, suffice it to say, if you're a fan of pepperoni you may want to consider refinancing your mortgage before you head down to watch the Cowboys.

This is absolutely HILARIOUS!!

ok basically what this is, is a prank pulled by a former male gymnast back in 81 I think and when a gymnast named paula was supposed to go up this male gymnast named paul goes up instead dressed in a pink outfit with bows in his hair and starts to do the uneven bars. He performs really well actually. here's the link. I couldnt find the video info to post it on here. check it out ha ha ha ha h!!
http://www.up-video.com/v/2866/1981-nadia-tour-gymnastics-paul-hunt-comedy-uneven-bars

Time to tease your brain!!!

Hey guys!! It's SoHo here!! Has your brain gone on vacation? bring it back! need a little push? ok I have a brain teaser for you. Let's get those brains working. Try this noodle scratcher. Did you get it? Have fun!!!

At the local games evening, four lads were competing in the Scrabble and chess competitions. Liam beat Mark in chess, James came third and the 16 year old won. Liam came second in Scrabble, the 15 year old won, James beat the 18 year old and the 19 year old came third. Kevin is 3 years younger than Mark. The person who came last in chess, came third in Scrabble and only one lad got the same position in both games. Can you determine the ages of the lads and the positions in the two games?

click "read more" for the answer



Name Age Scrabble Chess
James 15 1 3
Kevin 16 4 1
Liam 18 2 2
Mark 19 3 4

6 Day weigh in

This experiment done by a blogger I think, was REALLY interesting. I know a few people who weigh themselves everyday to determine how healthy they are but I think that's obsessive behavior but of course they dont listen to me. Even my boss weighs himself evey day. That's insane and I nag him all the time. LOL!!! anyway, check this out it's really interesting.


Weighing yourself every day, let alone three or more times a day, in short, is obsessive. Most nutritionists and dietitians will swear that it is mentally unhealthy and because of a lot of factors, a poor way of tracking your weight. In reality, the best way to weigh yourself is once a week, on the same day and at the same time, preferably in the morning. Further, gauging how you feel physically and mentally is important in assessing how healthy you are. Yet, I did the unthinkable recently: I weighed myself six times a day for a solid month.

Wait! Before you get judgmental, there was reason behind my madness. No, I was not trying to squeeze into my bikini. I did not have a big event to go to. I wasn't even trying to lose weight. I was, however, conducting a self-study on how weight is affected by different factors. This 'study' included my weighing myself when I woke up, in the middle of the day and at night, both naked and clothed. Additionally, I kept a journal and recorded what I ate and drank, when I went to the bathroom, when and how much sleep I got, and yes, what I weighed. My findings? Pretty interesting:

1. The 80% / 20% rule works: I'm a big believer in sticking to a pretty healthy diet Sunday night through Friday afternoon, and allowing myself indulgences Friday night and Saturday. In my study, my weight was always the lowest on Friday morning, and heaviest on Monday morning. The indulgences that may have 'put on a couple of pounds' over the weekend was compensated by my healthy habits during the week. (If you are trying to lose weight, you will want to raise the 'healthy diet' percentage to 85% - 90%.)
2. You lose weight while you sleep: Every night, I would weigh somewhere between 1.5 - 2.5 pounds more than I would the next morning. Although some of this can be attributed to the morning bathroom visit, some of it can also be attributed to nighttime calorie burn.
3. Regularity means weight consistency: Yep, if I was not regular, it would definitely add up in pounds. Depending on the length of time between bowel movements, I could see a 1/2 pound to 1 pound add up with no other explanation for weight gain.
4. Water causes the biggest changes: When I drank a lot of water, I would end up weighing a lot by the end of the day. Sometimes, a couple of pounds more. However, in the morning, I would see the biggest weight drop. The hydration factor truly does help you eliminate waste and keep you regular.
5. Sodium adds pounds: I love sushi. In using soy sauce, however, I would see 'weight gain' caused by the water retention due to my sodium intake. If I used the low-sodium soy sauce, however, I wouldn't see as much of a 'weight gain.'
6. Alcohol's delayed impact: If I every indulged in alcohol past a glass or two of wine, it would show up 36 hours later. This assumed that I ate a normal amount (no late night munchies). Basically, I would weigh less the next day, but would weigh more the day after.
7. Clothes are an unpredictable variable: Pajamas don't add weight. But, put on a pair of jeans, boots and a belt with a big buckle, and you are sure to weigh a couple pounds more.
8. Travel takes a toll: Whether I was flying or traveling by car, I always weighted more for a couple of days. Most of the time when you travel, your regularity and hydration levels are disrupted, which can be contributing factors.
9. PMS puts on pounds: Ok...not a lot. But, I would definitely see a 1/2 pound or 1 pound extra due to water retention.
10. Weighing yourself every day is pointless: The BEST thing I learned, was that indeed, weighing yourself every day, let alone more than once a day, is a really bad way of judging your health, let alone your weight. Further, it can do a real number on your head...talk about addictive!

I was glad when I was done. I am finally weening myself off of the daily weigh-ins. I do believe that weighing yourself can have benefits...like ensuring you stay within a healthy range of weight. But, using the scale to monitor your health is a sure way to make you crazy.

How often do you weigh yourself? Have you noticed any of these trends?

NOTE: Throughout this experiment, my weight stayed within five pounds.

Seven year old steals parents car

That's right! a 7 year old steals his parents car and takes police on a chase!! How does this kid know how to drive is my question though!!!! LOL check out the video.

NEW POSTS COMING SOON!!!!

Hey everybody!!!!!!!!!! I've noticed the blog has become a bit dull lately because Laila and i aren't posting as often.We've both been incredibly busy and post when we can. So my goal is to post at least one new thing every day or every two days. I am thinking of going back to our original blog posts where we did a fashion section, a food section, a trivia or mind game section, and a hot man of the week section oh and a quote of the week section. Those didnt seem to be so popular so Laila and I decided to remove them after doing a poll on them but since our blog was still a "newborn" back then and we have more of an audience now, I think we'll give it another shot. Anyway I'll start working on that, In the meantime, feel free to brows SoHo Meets SoLo and if you havent checked out our blogs first posts, please do that, It'll show you how we got started. I'd like to take this time to thank each and every single one of you for sticking with our blog and becoming and becoming part of our blog family so THANK YOU!!! Ok well I have to get going to work so I'll be posting as soon as I get back. Have a GREAT DAY!!/NIGHT!!!