Cuban Food, Mojitos, Calle Ocho and more Cuban Food

A visit to Miami won't be complete without a Cuban food feast. It was hard for me to get myself out of South Beach because that place was just too much fun. Thankfully, my love for food was greater than my love for the beach so I dragged myself out of South Beach and drove to Little Havana for some Cuban food trippin'.

Picture: Versailles Facebook Page

Located in the heart of Miami's Cuban community and along Calle Ocho, Versailles has been serving authentic Cuban dishes since 1971.

Ceviche Tropical for appetizer. Fresh fish cured in lime, cilantro and jalapenos served with diced avocado tomatoes and boniato chips.

Picadillo ala Cubana and Ropa Vieja afterwards. Each dish was of course paired with white rice and sweet plantains.

Cuban mojito to drink. Aaahh.. Life is good!

There was no room for dessert so I ordered Cafe Cortadito, an extremely rich and sweet coffee to finish of my hearty dinner.

Can't get enough of Cuban food so I visited Mojitos Cuban Cuisine located on the ground floor of the Dolphin Mall the next day.

Mango Mojito for starters.

Boliche Asado Con Arroz Blanco y Maduros. Pot roast with onion gravy with white rice and plantains.

And the best Cuban dish I've ever tasted so far... Palomilla Mojitos Suprema. Palomilla steak rolled with ham and Swiss cheese, sliced and served over Demi Glaze sauce. I've probably said this a thousand times but it's worth every calories! This dish still hunts me in my dreams. =)

Juice and Java in Miami

A lot of times I wish I live in Florida. Especially on January when the weather difference between Miami and Wisconsin Dells look like this.

I wish I run along South Beach every morning or practice yoga by the beach on January just like what they do on 3rd Street.

Picture: 3rd St. Beach Yoga

I also wish I could go to Juice and Java everyday.

Picture : Juice and Java Facebook Page

 One of my favorite food spot in Miami is the Juice and Java. Located along Washington Avenue, this little restaurant is flocked by health buffs, tourists and locals for their wide variety of healthy offerings.

They have the healthiest food selection. Last time I was there I feasted on grilled chicken breast, organic brown rice, a side of pesto and veggies. I paired this healthy dish with one of their all natural smoothies and a shot of wheatgrass. It  felt so refreshing to have this kind of breakfast after a night of alcohol abuse.  

For lunch, grilled salmon with organic brown rice, veggies and herb sauce. All their uber healthy platters comes with a choice of organic brown rice, organic quinoa, steamed veggies or baked sweet potato but I'm a true blue Asian so its rice all the way.

This was a food shot from my Miami 2010 trip. Tilapia platter with rice.

Picture: Juice and Java Facebook Page

Next time I want to try their Cranberry Spinach Salad with Grilled Tofu. Looks yummy! =)

Chronicle of My Florida Fall Escape

I went to Florida just before Thanksgiving last year. It was my second time and as the cliche goes, it's sweeter the second time around. It's because every time I visit a place for the first time I have this "see all, do all" attitude. I have to see everything and do everything. I spend a hell lot of time in Googling things, reading Trip Advisor and watching Travel Channel episodes. I have a day to day itinerary of all the tourist spots and restaurants I want to go to. It's pretty exhausting but it's absolutely rewarding. It's also the best way to get exhausted. Really. Anyway when I visit a place for the second time, it's mostly for pure fun and relaxation. 

First stop in Florida is Jacksonville. I stopped for a night to meet with a friend. 

That's me with Nina (the one in hot pink) with two of her friends. They call themselves Asian barbies. Haha! They're so hilarious. =)

We went to Pancitan Atbp., a Filipino restaurant along Beach Blvd. We feasted on authentic Filipino delicacies. 

Pork sisig. I stopped eating pork since May of 2012 but there's always an exemption to every rule. Pork sisig was too good to pass up.

I left hastily after lunch because I want to be able to walk around St. Augustine before it gets dark.

Photo: cityprofile.com

Aerial view of Castillo de San Marcos. The best view of the fort. Castillo de San Marcos is the oldest masonry fort in the US. It's built mainly to protect the city of St. Augustine from pirate raids of the British during the war.

Inside the masonry

The view from the top of the wall was breathtaking.

I of course needed to do a little bit of camwhoring while enjoying the view.

ME..ME..and more of ME..

I also walked around downtown and saw a great deal of Spanish influence in the architecture of the city.

I fought the urge to sit in a bar and have drink. I went back to the car and started driving to Miami. Woot woot!


The only thing I did in advance in Miami is book a hotel. Other than that, I had no plan of what to do, what to see or where to eat. It turned out to be the best plan ever.

One of the many mojitos

I used Cuban mojitos to keep myself hydrated under the heat of Miami sun. I was lightheaded all the time but that didn't matter because I was having too much fun.

I ate tons of sinfully delicious meals.

Seafood Paella from Cafe Carlyle

Tuna tartare from Cafe Cardozo

This was probably the healthiest meal I ate during the course of my Miami getaway. Grilled chicken breast with pesto and organic brown rice from Juice and Java.

I also met with old friends who recently moved to Miami.

We took tons of  pictures endlessly.

We wandered along South Beach aimlessly. Super Fun!

I was sad to leave Miami. But all good things must come to an end. So until next time Miami!

I made one last stop in Florida before I started the long and miserable drive back to Wisconsin. I went to Honeymoon Island in Dunedin Florida. I was so excited to go because I've read about this place before in Travel + Leisure and Travel Channel.

Honeymoon Island is one of Florida's State Parks. There's tons of fun activities to do in the park but it's a really popular wedding venue among other things.

I saw two beach weddings on different parts of the island when I was there. Both weddings were intimate and oh so romantic!

There's just one thing that visitors should beware when visiting the park.

This caution sign was displayed by the state park entrance. I was surprised to see it because the articles I've read before about Honeymoon Island never mentioned rattle snakes. I had to double check if I have my insurance cards in my purse before I got out of the car.

I still had fun walking along the beach despite the rattle snake scare. The weather was perfect, the beach was so beautiful and the atmosphere was so tranquil and romantic.

Can't help but snap a photo of this guy watching the sunset.  Postcard perfect scene.

I waited for the sun to set before I left the park. Before I left paradise.

12.13.12 The Morning After

This will be more of a photo dump than a blog post.

We woke up early to do a little bit of shopping and just bask in the energy of downtown Chicago.

We spent a lot of time in Zara since we don't have it in Madison.

One thing I love about New York and Chicago is its historic and modern architecture. The intricate details of old buildings are just amazing.

And so are the new ones...

I love downtowns!

camwhoring in downtown Chicago

We didn't care that people around us were in a rush to go to work. We just wanted to take our damn pictures!

Before we left, we ate in Little Quiapo, a filipino buffet restaurant in Chicago. As expected, we stuffed ourselves with some authentic Filipino delicacies. We ate waaayyyyy more than we need to.

Pork sinigang. Pork and veggies are simmered in sour broth. Pair it with steaming hot rice and you got yourself a gastronomical orgasm.

Dinuguan. Pork meat simmered in pig's blood with vinegar and chili and some other spices. Hey i know its sounds gross but it's delish!

Me and my fresh coconut juice. Just the way I like it! =)

Food Porn Action in New York City (part 1)

While everybody is busy working out to shred unwanted fats and achieve the perfect body for summer, I chose to defy the rules of society and packed on pounds. It was a four day feast in sugarland and calorie paradise. I don't regret it at all. I don't mind the extra five pounds. I don't mind my maxed-out credit cards. Oh well, not until the bill comes.

My first stop as soon as I got in NYC was a Krystal's Cafe 81, a little Filipino Restaurant in East Village. 

Photo credit: Google Images

Last time I was in New York, I had to go all the way to Queens to get a taste of some delicious Pinoy delicacies.

We finished up the Sizzling Sisig in seconds. Sisig is a staple in any drinking session in the Philippines. It's made up of pork's head and liver. It's broiled, fried with onions then served in a sizzling plate topped with raw egg, pork cracklings and chili. It's an appetizer best paired with beer but I ate it with rice. Hell, I eat everything with rice.

Peter tried Red Horse Beer. The only beer I like. He didn't care much about it though.

I also ordered Sinigang na Hipon for the main course. It's a shrimp dish boiled in sour broth with vegetables. The server brought it in a big bowl and two servings of rice in a separate plate to our table. With it also comes two small individual bowls and plates for both of us. While I immediately rolled my sleeves up and get down to business, Peter was more concerned about how much dishes are we using. I rolled my eyes in disbelief. He must have felt sorry for the dishwasher.

Since I don't come to New York very often, I didn't pass up the opportunity to visit Laduree. For those who aren't familiar with it, it's a popular macaron shop in Paris. They opened their first and only North American location in the Upper East Side last year.

Gazillions of macarons are displayed in the store window. I had to wait in line to even get into the store. Peter thought it was ridiculous to wait in line to get pastries. Not until he finished off most of my macarons.

I got two boxes. One with all the fifteen flavors and one with just salted caramels and pistachios.

I also bought financiers and madeleines. I overheard one guy asking one of the associates if they make it there fresh everyday. The lady said that everything is made in Paris and delivered to New York everyday.

We went to Sarabeth's Kitchen next. They have several locations all over Manhattan but we visited the one right next to Central Park.

Photo credit: sarabethspc.com

It was sunny and breezy so we sat outside.

Central Park Summer: vodka, watermelon liqour, sierra mist and grenadine

The cocktail menu was my favorite. They have an awesome list of drink concoction. I love their champagne cocktails too. I ordered Central Park Summer and Watermelon Crush (vodka, watermelon liqour, pineapple juice and OJ) for starters. Yes that's right. For starters.

Cream of tomato soup topped with cheddar chives and basil oil.

Peter had the Flat Iron Steak Frites served with bernaise sauce and french fries. He paired it with some local tap beers.

I had the Pan Roasted Salmon served with fingerling potatoes, crispy leeks and sundried tomato vinagrette. Oh so yummy!

We also shared the Creme Brulee for dessert. I don't have pictures because we finished the whole thing before we could take pictures.

We were bloated by the end of it. But we didn't stop there.