NY Family Vacation

Photos from UK Business Trip

Family Vacation

These are various pictures from family visitors in October.

Takara

Pan Seared Tuna

Location: 150-11 14th Avenue, Whitestone, NY 11357
Cuisine: Asian Fusion, Japanese, Sushi
Phone: (718) 747-1368, (718) 747-1465
Prices: $17/person (dinner)
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 10
Service: 10
Value: 10
Environment: 8

Frequency: Unique

This is my new favorite restaurant. It was recommended to my parents by Auntie Remy, who is a regular there. One night, my parents went out with her and brought me left overs... a portion of the pan seared tuna, which is now my favorite dish. Since then, we've gone there for several family occasions.

Their specialty is sushi and Japanese food, but the owner has experimented with and expanded the selection to Asian Fusion. For their entrees, the seafood is the best I've ever had and I haven't even tried all of their dishes yet. The pan seared tuna is the most original dish I've seen. The edges of the tuna are seared and the middle left rare. The pieces are setup in a mountain shape around a clump of sesame soba noodles. It's then topped with seaweed and caviar. Spicy mayo forms a moat around the mountain.

The owner is also a chef and concept developer. He seems to have a personal relationship with his guests. He has hung out with us as well as every other table, making everyone feel at home. The restaurant is family run, so the staff is just as friendly as the owner.

While some dishes are mid-range to pricey, you do get your money's worth with portion size.

Cranky's Cafe

Location: 48-19 Vernon Blvd., Long Island City
Cuisine: Cajun
Phone: (347) 738-4921
Hours: SUN (9am-10pm); MON-FRI(8am-10pm); SAT (9am-10pm)
Website: www.crankyscafe.com
Prices: ~$20/person (dinner)
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 9
Service: 8
Value: 8
Environment: 7

Frequency: Unique

Click here for the Picasa album 

Fish Deboning

This is the deboning of the fish @ Tung Yi Fung. The goal is to filet the fish without flipping it over. This was an OK job as he pushed the veggies off the plate (saved by Uncle Charlie)... and the segment close to the head broke.

Tung Yi Fung

Location: 135-29 37th Ave., Flushing, NY, 11354
Cuisine: Chinese, seafood
Phone: (718) 886-8233
Prices: $15/person
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 8
Service: 7
Value: 8
Environment: 7

Frequency: All the Time

There's nothing new here. All stats are the same as before. I just wanted to bump this restaurant up with Auntie Remy & Uncle Charlie's visit.

Click here for recent photos

Shogun Palace

Location: 34-20 Linden Place, Flushing, NY
Cuisine: Asian, Buffet
Phone: (718) 888-1133
Website: www.shogun-palace.com
Prices: $11/person (lunch)
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 8
Service: 7
Value: 10
Environment: 7

Frequency: Unique

I'm not a fan of buffets, but I'd have to say that this is one of the better ones. The location probably doesn't help the business much, but it's a nice find if you know about it. With a lunch price of $11, you'd think they would hold back on the good food, but there's actually a full variety of choices. There are no cheap variants of dishes. The soup station is even open for service. Trays at the counter were replaced quickly when they ran out. The environment was actually pretty nice... better than many banquet halls in Flushing.

Click here for the Picasa album

Unidentified Flying Chickens (UFC)

Location: 71-22 Roosevelt Ave., Jackson Heights, NY
Cuisine: Korean
Phone: (718) 205-6662
Website: http://ufchicken.com/
Prices: $10/person
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 10
Service: 10
Value: 9
Environment: 7

Frequency: All the Time

I actually don't think I ever reviewed this one because I've always taken out from there. This was the first time I ate in. I think UFC shares the title of Best Korean Fried Chicken along with Mad for Chicken. The two are very similar, but I'd say UFC holds the edge in the secret sauce while Mad has the better organic meat. Service is excellent as the store owner is always available and hospitable to his customers. Prices may seem high, but you get a lot when you stop and think about it. The quality of the ingredients is also top notch.

Click here to visit the Picasa album

Broadway Chinese Cuisine

Location: 83-17 Broadway, Elmhurst, NY 11373
Cuisine: Chinese
Prices: $15/person
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 5
Service: 9
Value: 6
Environment: 7

Frequency: Uncommon

This is supposedly one of the best Chinese restaurants in Elmhurst, but I wasn't impressed by the food. It was OK, but maybe it's just because I eat in Flushing's Chinatown all the time. I guess it could be the choice of dishes as well. For more details, check out the comments on each image. On the plus side, the service was great and the place was clean.

Click here to visit the Picasa album

Auntie Remy & Uncle Charlie's Vacation

Auntie Remy and Uncle Charlie came over from the Philippines to visit for a few weeks this Spring. They were actually here over a week ago, but went with my parents and some friends on a group vacation to Cancun. I took this week off to spend time with them while they're in NY.

The following album covers a home dinner and another one in Elmhurst the next day. Click here to see photos.

Holiday Food Fest

I had the whole week off and wasn't traveling. Since Wiley has combo vacation/sick/personal days, the tendency is to have a lot of days at the end of the year because of overpreparedness for being sick. Naturally, I spent the week meeting up with friends over meals.

This album consists of:

1) Oceanic Seafood Restaurant: This was a Friday lunch with my parents, Uncle Bock & Auntie Kim at a new buffet restaurant that took over the former Gala Manor. Full review in the future.

2) Pre-New Year's Dinner @ the Yeo's: This was a home-cooked meal by Auntie Kim.

3) New Year's Dinner: 2 rounds of Korean BBQ at my parents'.

Christmas 2012

Pasto

Location: Greenhills Shopping Center, V-Mall, Ortigas Ave., Greenhills, San Juan, Philippines
Cuisine: Italian
Hours: ???
Phone: (02) 722-4992
Prices: About $15 per person
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 8
Service: 9
Value: 8
Environment: 8

Frequency: Unique

For the last meal in Philippines, we went a little lighter and ordered 2 pastas, a thin crust pizza and appetizers for 3 people. Portions weren't all that big either, so it was just right. If I wasn't stuffed this whole vacation, I'd say the dish sizes here are a little on the small side. Italian food is sort of a secondary must-eat for me here because the ingredients have a different taste... as they probably do in many parts of the world. A bowl of pasta or pizza can be made the same way, but the tomatoes and cheese will vary in taste. Click on the slideshow below for full comments on each dish.

Service is almost always a 9 in the Philippines, so there's nothing special there. The environment was cleaner than most places in the city and this is a restaurant in the mall! There were no flies and the decor was very classy. The dining area was well lit and had good acoustics. You get a good amount of food for the money you pay and they even throw in a free appetizer if you spend over 1000 pesos and use a BDO card!

Philippines Day 10

We didn't really go far on the last day. Instead, we just had people dropping by the hotel and Greenhill area all day long. We had Uncle Ramon in the morning. Uncle Ruben and family also came and stayed all day. For lunch, we ate at Choi Garden with Ifore and Jiselle's families. After that, my parents went back to the hotel to await more visitors. I went out with Ifore & Jiselle to get the last achievement on my list... Razon's.

When I returned to the hotel, Auntie Day, Auntie Remy and Auntie Shirley also came by. Then Uncle Mariano came over. My dad & I then went up to his apartment (also in the hotel). For dinner, we split up into 3 parties. My Mom went out with her family. My dad went out with Uncle Mariano & Auntie Susanna. I went out with Matt, Hanika and Margaret to Pasto (separate entry coming soon).

Philippines Day 9

Day 9 Highlights:

JT Manukan Grille is another must see for me on Philippines trips now and I was able to get there with Ifore and family on Day 9. For the full review, please see last year's entry.

After lunch we headed to Craft Coffee a new place that brews their coffee fresh. 

Then I went to get a birthday cake for my mom @ Red Ribbon. My mom's birthday is next week, but my dad & I will be heading back first. Also, it's better to do her birthday with all of her family present.

We ended the day with a huge family dinner party at Elan Cafe. This is typically done the night before we leave, but we actually have an extra day this year.

Philippines Day 8

Jollibee Unboxing

Philippines Day 7

We got a lot done for our half day in Boracay, getting up early for breakfast @ Seabreeze Cafe and then spending the morning on the beach and pool. 

Traveling back to Manila wasn't so efficient though. We were making good time until we arrived. The flight was short... maybe 40 min. Once we were allowed to use electronic on board, I played one of my Arkham Asylum recordings... 38 min and didn't get through all of it. When we got to Manila, there was traffic at the gate and we just sat on the runway for about 20 min. Then the drive back was so packed that it took us 2 hours to get back to the hotel... 40 min flight + 2 hour drive!

At least we ended the day with Chicken Charlie!

Boracay Part 2

• Breakfast @ Seabreeze Cafe
• Island Hopping Boat Tour
• Lunch @ Natalia's Kitchen
• Estacio Uno
• Jonah's Snack Bar
• Real Coffee
• Dinner @ Mesa