Barcelona: La Boqueria

A stroll down La Rambla, you will find the entrance to The Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria or La Boqueria, a large food market in Barcelona, Spain. The market has a very diverse selection of goods...

tons of fruits and juice to buy! different kinds of fruits were mixed w/ coconut juice for a very creamy taste:

fresh fruits of all kind cut up and put in containers...

chocolates...

different kinds of eggs...

creamy gelato...

meat...

more fruit!

caramel and candies...

dry fruits and nuts...

Korean restaurant (the only Asian store there)

candied fruits..,

fried fish balls (we tried them and I didn't it, Andy said it was okay...)

fried seafood combination (it was okay...)

Restaurants towards the back of the markets were crowded but we finally found seats at Bar Boqueria.

it was kinda pricey...

We had the seafood combination for two. The huge dish of seafood includes calamari, shrimp, mussels, fish, and razor clams. The seafood was fresh and cooked right, nothing was under or over cooked. It was made with lots of herbs and some lemon juice. sooo much seafood, soooo delicious, sooo worth it!

picture with our food before we devour it!!

Our last day in Barcelona, we decided to dropped by the market for our last fruit smoothie runs. We wanted to try more flavors so we got 5 or 6 drinks at a time (bad idea...). We spent too much time in the market and shopping that we missed our plane to Rome! I blame it partially on the the trains but anyway...

FYI: if you want to use the bathroom in the market you have to save your receipts to show the bathroom lady. If you don't you have to pay .50euros

Ibiza: Beach, Party and Seafood!

Ibiza, a beautiful island in Spain. It's known for having spectacular beaches and is a popular destination for party goers. For us it was a relaxing and fun stay! We stayed in Eivissa and came across a restaurant with a beautiful view and delicious seafood.

a very romantic place to dine especially at night having a candlelit dinner ...

The food at Marco was very good especially the mussels. So far it's the best mussels we've tried in Europe. The food portion is good, price is decent and the staff was really nice. We ate here twice and really enjoyed each time. I didn't bring my camera the first time (damn it!) but we had paellas which was very yummi!

Grilled squid and veggies, the squid was fresh and softveal (according to Andy, the meat was okay...)

I don't have pictures but the desserts was good, we had a fruit ice cream sundae. They also give a complimentary peach liquor shot for dessert. What a great way to end a meal!

Ibiza Sunset <3>
Another place we loved visiting was seeing the sunset in Sant Antonio on the strip where all the restaurants and bars are. We went to the famous Cafe Del Mar. We actually didn't get a chance to eat at these restaurants but I think this would be a great place to dine and hang out.

Some people byob on the beach to watch the sunset. Great place to chill w/ good electronic music from the restaurants and fun atmosphere.

Ibiza 2010 <3>- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Bar Heladeria Marco
Avda Ricardo Curtoys Gotarredona, 1
07840 Santa Eularia Des Riu (Eivissa), Spain
971 331 103

Cafe Del Mar
Carre Lepant, 4 Sant Antoni Portmany (Elivissa)
971 342 516

Taste of Belgium #3: Mussels

In Belgium, mussels are often served with fresh herbs and flavorful vegetables in a stock of white wine or cream. They are usually consumed with frites or bread. This is another must have food in Belgium....

Stesi took us to anther fav restaurants of theirs called Publique.

Sita, Andy and I each got a pot of mussels but each with a different stock. Sita got the original, I got the cream and Andy got the special with wine and garlic. It was topped w/ tons of veggies. The mussels were very fresh, so delicious! It came w/ a sour cream like sauce and a side of frites. The pot does not look big but it has a lot of mussels. It was like an endless pit! I couldn't finish my pot so Andy had to help me...

Steven doesn't like mussels so he got a chicken pot pie like dish w/ a side of frites.

Our table full of mussel shells!! *burp*

Desserts time =) all of them were very good!!!
a) 3 different sorbets

b) chocolate souffles

c) tiramisu

d) crembule on fire!

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Publique
2, Graaf Van Egmontstraat
2000 Antwerpen (Antwerp) Belgium

The Tong's Chinese New Year Feast!

新年快樂

Happy New Year!!

年夜飯 Chinese New Year Eve Dinner:
Chinese New Year Dinner

Last Minute Thanksgiving Dinner 2009

My Thanksgiving Dinner 2009:

4 hours of food/supply shopping

5+ hours of cooking

7 dishes

Spending thanksgiving with people I love = Priceless

Our thanksgiving feast:

This Thanksgiving we did everything last minute! I planned what I wanted to make and shopped the night before thanksgiving. I was going crazy running around finding ingredients for each of the dishes. After all the shopping, I was just too tired to start prepping so I told myself I would wake up really early (at 7am) to start everything...I over slept and totally missed my alarm so I woke up around 9. I was panicing because dinner is suppose to start at 2ish. I didn't think I could finish all 6 of the dishes in 5 hours but with the help of my father and sister (Vivian) we managed cook everything we wanted to make. Yay!

So this year I decided to make 7 dishes, 2 of them are my all time favorite potato shrimp salad and corn casserole (I make these every year! My fans, I mean my family members always request them). Five other dishes are new recipes which came out great!

Lumpia Shanghai (Flipinino egg rolls): I love Filipino food so I wanted to attempt my favorite Filipino dish. Special thanks to Maribeth and Joanne for their recipe:

String bean casserole:

Shrimp and prosciutto with alfredo sauce

Crab quiche

Crown Jewel Cake

Let me know if you want any of the recipes, everything was so simple to make!

Annual 3ave Festival In Brooklyn

Zeppoles, grilled corn, fried oreos, Italian sausages....all usual items at a street festivals. We found a GREAT deal at the 3ave festival from Chef with soul!

Lobster dinner w/ potatoes and corn- all for $12!!

(I wish they had this everyday! I hope you're reading this Brian)

It was so good, we had 2 plates of it!

Other things we tried:

• 6 raw oysters for $10
• New England clam chowder (Large) for $5-it was so good! lots of clam taste with bits of potatoes, and not too salty...so delicious! my picky parents also really liked too.
  

Two happy lobster lovers!

Chef with Sole

8618 3rd Ave(between 86th St & 87th St)

Brooklyn, NY 11209

(718) 680-7653

Summer Cocktail Party for Brother's Big 4-0

My wonderful sister in-law planned a lay back summer cocktail party for my brother's 40th birthday in their back yard. It wasn't anything big, just a simple gathering with close friends and relatives. The food and drinks were so good! And I was impressed by the little details and thought she put into the decorations and making this such a wonderful party!

Table of yummi finger foods (egg rolls, crab cakes, piggy in the blanket)and their sauces.
Other food they had but I didn't take pictures of: chicken skewers, korean style beef, korean fish cakes and some other stuff I forgot...)

delicious home made curry fish balls...
Name tags for all the food and sauces along with cute turtle chopstick holders

pretty flowers everywhere...

POG: juice with passion fruit, orange juice and guava
It was very refreshing and perfect for a summer time drink.
White sangriamore drinks...Beautiful bowl of fruit salad..

The guest "supply" table: fun activities for the kids, suntan lotion, bug spray/candle, and hydrocortisone.

mini tables and chairs set up in their yard

I got introduced to Martha's Country Bakery, OMG they make AWESOME cakes! I'm kinda glad they are so far away from me because I would seriously go there all the time, then I would gain like 100000 lbs! We had napoleon and tiramisu cake.

Happy Birthday Broo!!

Thank you, Rachael (ah so) for planning this wonderful summer cocktail party!
I love you guys!!!

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Bro's Home...

Martha's Country Bakery

41-06 Bell Ave

Bayside, NY

718-225-5200