Facing East Taiwanese in Bellevue

My friends keep on recommending this restaurant to me before.
They say it is one of the best Taiwanese restaurant in town. I imagined that the place will be like the usual Chinese restaurant in Chinatown (small and a little dirty)- or like Cafe Ori and Yea's Wok (normal Chinese dining places- white with decent tables and chairs without any interior designing) However, this Facing East restaurant is quite different. Though the place is small, it is nicely painted with somewhat earthy-toned bold colors and nice lighting that make the place a little romantic (- I say it is comparable with Tamarind Tree restaurant in Chinatown in terms of their ambience)

There is not a lot of choices in their menu either. I tried their pork burger, which I like, made of pork with basil, pickled lettuce, sweet and sour sauce, and brown sugar.

The other food that my friend recommended me was the spiced pork over rice. This is tasty, but not really that special, because I think you can get it somewhere else as tasty as this.

I also tried their five spiced chicken and It was OK. I prefer Chiang's Gourmet in Lake City's five star chicken. By the time I am almost full with all the food, I am ready to save room for their shaved ice. I read at Yelp's review that they have the beans shaved ice that's really good. I didn't see it on the menu, but I asked my server for it, and they have it. It is shaved ice with seven different beans combination together with grass jelly. It is really good!!! -The small bowl of the shaved ice is big enough for two or three people.
I will come back alone just for the shaved ice (and the pork burger probably, if im that hungry ;))

Nijo Sushi

Yesterday, I went to Nijo Sushi with two of my girlfriends after work.
Located at the corner of 1st and Spring St, it is a cute small restaurant.
They have quite lot of selection for happy hour food (from $3-$5/ portion)
and great cocktails choices.
The only downside from the happy hour is just that you have to order a drink, although non alchoholic beverages is fine (Coke is $2).

I tried their Bainbridge Islander, Agedashi Tofu, Chef Selections, Green Tea Tempura Ice cream ($3 during happy hour- normally $5) and Blueberry Morning cocktail- Stilo Blueberry with Cranberry & Pineapple juice =)

The Blueberry Morning cocktail is great- it is not too strong & not too sweet. Their Agedashi tofu is firmer than the usual tofu, I'd say it is an ordinary agedashi tofu- "so-so" and for the sushi......it is fresh! they don't mix their sushi with cream cheese/ mayonaise/ or other seasonings. it is what it said it is- like the bainbridge islander (pictured) is just asparagus, cucumber, salmon, and shrimp. Plain, fresh, and orgininally flavorful.
I will come back when i want plain fresh sushi.

Mi La Cay

As mentioned earlier in my blog, I was craving for roast duck at certain period of time.
I wasnt satisfied at all after I tried the roast duck over rice at Regent Bakery & Cafe. So the weekend after that, I went to Mi La Cay with friends after church and got this Roasted Duck with noodles. It was really good!!! The meat is tender and flavorful- combined with the thin egg noodles....it's great!

The other picture is the crispy noodle with seafood that my friend ordered. I think it tasted ok. It is decent good for seafood crispy noodle- balanced amount of the veggies and the seafood.

Belle Epicurean

Belle Epicurean
"bringing a piece of Paris to you" is their motto.



I have been a loyal customer of this cafe shop after I tried their dark chocolate walnut brioche bun- I was hooked immediately!
Since it is located only one block away from my workplace, I often go there in the morning before work to relax and refresh myself. Coffee & sweet pastries complement each other perfectly!

Unfortunately, Belle Epicurean decided to discontinue the dark chocolate walnut brioche bun and forcing me to try their almond croissant - Usually I do not like almond croissant because it's always too sweet for me and the paste is too thick (custard like paste) Surprisingly, their almond croissant is very good! Its flaky and salty on the outside, sweet and light on the inside. I have to say, this is the best almond croissant i've found in Seattle.

Ohana Happy Hour

Ohana
~Happy Hour - until 11pm every Monday!

Ohana (means family - if you watch Lilo & Stitch you're surely remember this)
Located at heart of Belltown (1st & Bell St.) is a Japanese-Hawaiian Fusion restaurant.

reviews coming up on my fave Beef Robata & their hand roll crunch spicy sushi..

and mouth-watering banana foster dessert! ~This flambe banana dessert is a must try. I won't post the picture because I am afraid you will drool over your keyboard ;P

.Beef Robatas.
These are the marinated beef skewers to die for!

The meat is tender, the sauce is perfect, accompanied with asparagus ;)

Crunchy Spicy Salmon Hand Roll

DragonFish -Happy Hour

Dragonfish Downtown Happy Hour

reviews coming up soon on their Lime Rock Shrimp! - awesome!!
great deals, loaded shrimps for only $5!

Wann- Japanese Izakaya

Wann-Japanese Izakaya
http://www.wann-izakaya.com/

Their happy hour is all day on Monday!
Compared to Umi and Wasabi Bistro, Wann has less selection on their happy hour sushi menu. Wann offers more traditional japanese tapas like Tatsutaage (Japanese Fried Chicken) and takoyaki.
Personally I think their happy hour menu is not that cheap (only $1-$2.50 difference from their regular menu) and rather small portion, but it tastes good.
I'd recommend their Simply soft tofu and Fire Castle Sushi roll.

Melting Pot happy hour!!

One of my favorite Happy Hour place- They have 2 locations: in Bellevue and Seattle...
The location in Bellevue looks more upscale and newer than the Seattle one.

When I go for the happy hour, I always order the "Brown Sugar and Walnut Brie Cheese" - perfect combination of sweet & salty.

Brie is a soft cows' cheese named after Brie, the French province in which it originated (roughly corresponding to the modern département of Seine-et-Marne)
- learn more at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brie

It is not in the regular dinner menu - it is available at their lounge menu, but you can ask the server to bring you the bar menu and you will have more choices of the appetizers than just the normal salads.

I have tried both their happy hour and their regular dining. The regular dining has more choices of chocolate fondue dippings. (The Yin-Yang is quite popular - a combination of white chocolate and dark chocolate) Last time, I also created my own chocolate fondue of milk chocolate & Bailey's - its yummy!

Last tips from me, for Microsoft employees, do not forget to bring your Microsoft Prime Card- you can get some discounts ;)