Patricia Y.'s Profile

I knew I would need a financial advisor/planner one day, but didn't think I'd end up having one in my mid-twenties!

Matt Wong is awesome. He is extremely professional while also being easy to talk to, and gives answers that actually make sense to a person who has no clue about money -- aka ME! Matt took the time to explain all of my monetary options to me, how I would benefit from them, and most importantly, when I'd be seeing the results! He also understands what it's like just starting up as a 'grown up,' so he helped me make achievable goals that allow me to be smart about my money while still enjoying my life. ;)

I would definitely recommend Matt to those who are just starting out and in need of a plan for future investments!

I love macarons more than I love my iPhone. And that's saying a lot. I have been obsessed with baking the perfect macaron for longer than I can remember (okay, 6 to 8 months)... and have eaten more macarons that I'd like to admit... I love macarons.

... but I don't love these macarons. Nor like them, for that matter.

The shells are really thin but dense, and the fillings are less than satisfactory. I had the raspberry, vanilla, and rose macarons.

1) Raspberry: shells didn't really have any flavor... filling was just jam. Come on, now. Why not a raspberry buttercream if you're going to charge a buttload of money for these things?
2) Madagascar vanilla: What kind of ganache is this exactly? It's very thick and almost pasty, or like a thick gel. Oh, it's made with white chocolate? Well, you're doing it wrong. White chocolate ganache shouldn't look like as if I took my old glue stick from kindergarten and whipped it.
3) Rose: Too much rose extract in the white chocolate ganache. Would've been better with a lot less rose extract. Rose water is always preferred.

That's my in-depth review of Paulette Macarons. Do not want.

The end.

I loved, loved, LOVED Anisette. The boyfriend and I came here for brunch a few months ago, to conclude a relaxing weekend in Santa Monica. The decor is extremely kitschy in terms of Parisian decor, but not in the cheesy, "I-want-stab-my-eyes-out" way. Our waiter was undoubtedly French, which I loved, and he recommended dishes and drinks for us when we couldn't decide.

I ended up getting the Brioche French Toast... It comes with vanilla bean crème fraiche, and vanilla butter. I was in heaven. The vanilla bean fraiche was rich but NOT HEAVY, so that was a major plus. I was able to almost finish everything (I have a small appetite in the mornings, so to be able to eat a lot is amazing), and didn't feel awkwardly full. The only thing I would do differently is not order a Bloody Mary, but instead get a Mimosa or Bellini.

The boy ordered the Croque Monsieur, which is just a ham & cheese sandwich. He knew this going into the order. I don't know why he didn't just order something not so ordinary (...shh. Don't tell him I said that). It was tasty, but a tad dry. If we go again, we definitely won't order that.

What fascinated me was the wall of liquor and champagne behind the bar, and the GIANT BOTTLES of Dom Perignon and Veuve Clicquot, and the Raw Bar. I wish we had the time, and most importantly, the appetite, to try their oysters and other shellfish.

Overall, a good experience. I would definitely come again, for brunch, as well as to try other meals!

What a cute place off of Third Street Promenade! I love the outdoor seating. It's great for people watching, and enjoying the summer evening air... Which is long gone by now, I suppose. I love the façade of the building, it's so pretty and gives Socal and the Promenade a European feel.

I came here a while ago for the boy's birthday weekend in September, and I enjoyed it! The ambiance definitely helped. Maybe it was the alcohol, but it seemed like everything on the menu would be _delicious_ and we had a difficult time choosing what to eat. Luckily, our waitress was really helpful, and helped us choose entrees and made suggestions for wine from their _very_ extensive wine menu.

I ended up getting the carbonara with Canadian bacon (bacon makes everything better) and a peartini -- the carbonara was quite good, very rich, but not _heavy rich_, and the peartini was way, way too sweet, and probably a poor choice to drink alongside bacon, but I was so excited and distracted by the niceties exclusively implied by "pears" and "bacon" that I forgot to think about food pairing. Sigh... fail. Boy's pescatore was decent -- the calamari was crisp (if seafood can be crisp... it wasn't tough, nor too chewy, and tasty), but the clams tasted a little bit ocean-y.

Overall, the food is all right, but the ambiance makes up for it. I would come here again just to try more wines and people watch. It seems like it would be divine on a summer evening.

Thank goodness this place is open until 10pm on Sundays! Went here with the boy, and we were fairly impressed with the ambiance and decor. However, I think this set my expectations quite high, and I was a bit disappointed for the rest of the meal.

While we were seated very quickly ('twas late, and was pretty empty), the service following was lackluster. Food came out quick, but the waitress kept forgetting things, like our side dishes! These came out after our entrées did, along with an egg for my tofu soup. By the time I got my egg, the soup cooled down a bit, and I didn't get to cook my egg as much as I liked. So cries! T_T

We ordered bulgogi and beef tofu soup (medium spiciness). The bulgogi was a good texture, but not as flavorful as I'd like. Again, cries. My beef tofu soup was delicious, though. Almost comparable to what I've had in Socal, which makes me happy... Now I won't have to go to LA just to have good tofu soup. I really love all of their side dishes, especially the radish kimchi and those little pancake things.

All in all, a decent trip. I will probably come back to try other things, and give them a couple more chances to stop forgetting my side dishes and egg. =P

At least I am pretty sure I have experienced better... Ask me again when I have eaten brunch here completely SOBER.

Their mimosas were only all right -- maybe it's just me, but it didn't taste fresh-squeezed, although the amount of champagne in it was fine. I drank maybe like, a pitcher's full before even ordering. Bad start.

I ordered pancakes and the crab benedict (no, I didn't eat all of this by myself. I had help!). Pancakes are pancakes, they were quite good -- although, if you eff pancakes up, you probably shouldn't be cooking nor running a restaurant.

The crab benedict was only average. A little too light on the hollandaise sauce and the poached eggs were a tad overdone, but edible. At least it tasted good... But then,when you get bottomless mimosas, everything tastes better.

The service was waaay sub-par. It took forever for the waiter to take my order, he forgot about 75% of the things we asked for, and he barely checked on us. However, if I were our waiter, I wouldn't want to wait on a table full of drunkies, either. Luckily, other waiters and busboys came to our rescue, always filling our pitcher up with more of that ambrosia... Oh, mimosas. I love you.

I've said it before, and I'll it again: SUNDAY FUNDAYS ARE PAINFUL, especially if you spend them at The Clubhouse.

I popped my HOPR cherry last night...
It was so worth it.

Went last night with Vince K. and another friend of ours. They have a reputation for eating like heffers, so I half-expected them to take home seconds!!! They couldn't do it this time, but, there's always next time.

The salad was awesome and served in HEAPING portions. I don't think I've ever eaten beets before -- I tend to avoid them -- but this time, I just went with it, and it was delicious. Best dinner salad I've had in a long, long time, and I ate nearly the whole plate! I ordered the City Cut, which was cooked to perfection -- tender and flavorful, and served with Yorkshire pudding (a new favorite... I totally fell i love with it. I love squishy breads), a baked potato (or mashed, if you choose), and cream spinach. Everything was PERFECT.

A waiter was passing out jalapeno cornbread, so we got in on some of that action too. It was quite good, soft on the inside and a little bit crispy on the outside, and just enough jalapeno to not overpower anything.

There was so much food. I don't think I've ever devoured that much food so quickly... EVER. But it was SO GOOD. I'm definitely coming back again and again and again...

It could be just because I was already buzzin and STARVING, but this place was great!!!

There was a private party in the back and upstairs area, so we were restricted to the bar and dining room. We started out the night in the bar while we waited almost 45 minutes for our table (this wasn't too bad since we had drinks, and a birthday to celebrate... Complimentary blowjob for the birthday girl!!!).

We had a bunch of appetizers. Don't ask me to name them, because I really don't remember much besides the crab cakes, which were quite tastey, and the oysters, which were mediocre and a little bit on the TINY side. I had the Chicken Penne, which, to my surprise, wasn't dry. My best friend had the risotto which was cheesy and very yummy.

Again, I think this was the alcohol and hunger speaking to me. But regardless, the food was delicious, the drinks were strong but never tasted like fuel. Overall, I would LOVE coming here again -- the atmosphere and decor makes it great for parties and getting together in large groups.

P.S. The sundae they give to birthday girls is GREAT. See some of the pictures above for ideas. The banana is totally genius. Haha!

I love this place, but haven't been able to wake up early enough after a long night of drinking to beat the lines. *sobs*

It's cramped, dirty, and sometimes loud, but it's delicious, authentic, FAST (like a Nascar... sorry, I couldn't resist), and cheap. The "small" is freakin' HUGE. More food for my dollar!!! I usually get Pho with tendon, flank, and beef balls. I love that they give you a TON of basil and bean sprouts -- basil is like crack to me, and most places I go to usually don't give me enough to stick in my pho. But Kim Long always appeases my basil + pho addiction.

... I also like saying the name of this place out loud. ^_^

Let's see here...
Free food? Check.
Free booze? Check!
Beautiful/HOT/glamorous/sexy people? CHECK.
Nerd-tastic venue? Check, check, check!

Last night's Holiday Party was FANTASTIC. The Exploratorium is a great place to have a gi-huge-o party, it never felt too crowded, but it also didn't feel too big. I wish I could tell you more about the food and exhibits...but I was too busy being a social drunkass. The only thing i can tell you is that all 2895798 bars in the place were well-stocked, the bartenders were all great, and the drinks were good. All four Jack and Cokes I drank were great. Haha, just kidding. I think I had other drinks besides that... *ponders*

Yelp, you have outdone yourselves. Thank you for kicking off my holiday season with a BANG... No, not that kind of bang. You pervs.