Restaurant – Yoojin Cho

Trader Joes 101

As a college student, especially as a girl who has never learned to cook properly before college, one of the biggest challenges for me came when I tried to eat well, healthy and on time.

According to a non-profit organization specializing in health, a healthy eating habit involves eating three meals a day (duh), consuming plenty of vegetables and fruits, sitting down to eat, giving enough time to digest and opting for healthy carbs, such as whole wheat or grains.

In between classes, meetings, internships and jobs, however, I have absolutely no time to manage all of the recommended eating tips.

By no means do I count calories and worry about gaining a half a pound. I love ribs, steaks and fried dough balls. I probably won’t hesitate to chow down a Big Mac. But when I have a chance to cook for myself and eat healthy withOUT paying an arm and a leg for “fresh” “organic” ingredients, I will.

Luckily, upon moving to Boston, I discovered a little store called Trader Joes.

For all of you Texans (or southerners) reading this, Trader Joes reminds me a lot of Sprouts (in Plano, TX) or a cheap version of Central Market. All in all, cheap, organic options available, fun and delicious.

Since I, in a way, graduated from dormitories and dining plans, I have done most of my grocery shopping at Trader Joes. Unlike what many people believe, I do NOT spend more than how much I would spend at Shaw’s, and the quality of fresh ingredients is so much higher.

Moreover, they always have witty signs, offer great samples and have the nicest people working there.

To be honest, I tend to buy too much every time I go to Trader Joes. As a food lover, apparently I just have no self-control when it comes to buying delicious goodies, but since I don’t ever regret any of my purchases, I’m still in the clear, right?

Among the 50+ items I always buy, here are some of my favorites.

Sparkling [Clementine, Blood Orange, Lemonade] Juice: If you love no-pulp juice, you’ll definitely love this. Only about $3, this sparkling juice, which comes in various flavors, can add a classy touch to your dinner table.

Hash Browns: One of my guilty pleasures, especially extremely early in the morning, is McDonald’s hash browns. I love breakfast and cannot function without any sustenance in the morning, so stocking up on fried potato goodness at only $1.50 from Trader Joes allows me to make my own hash browns with scrambled eggs.

Charles Shaw Wine: Well… $2.99 per bottle. Enough said. Despite the price, Pinot Grigio delivers the crisp, refreshing taste.

Salmon Filet: One of the main reasons why college students eat significantly more amount of chicken than fish or steak is probably the price. On our low weekly income, it’s simply too difficult to buy t-bone steaks or fresh fish. At Trader Joes, however, you can buy frozen salmon filet for only around $7 per pound. Bring two filet home, glaze them with lemon juice and brown sugar, bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees in the oven. Easy and affordable!

Mochi: Honestly, I don’t know how to describe a Mochi, except to say something like ice cream, but a whole lot better, and I love mango the best.

Chicken Chili: Spice up your nachos. A 2-pound bag of tortilla chips + Fresh salsa + Sour creme + Chicken chili + Shredded cheese = AMAZING NACHO GOODNESS. All from Trader Joes!

(This is the best I can do… What I buy comes in a can)

Chicken Dumplings: Craving dumplings but too lazy to pay a visit to a Chinese restaurant or simply don’t want to pay delivery fee? Never fear, Trader Joes offers many many dumplings in a bag that you can fry or boil in water.

If I do not stop now, I probably never will and list every single item sold at Trader Joes. On the other hand, I really would like everyone to know about these as well: Ciabatta rolls, Corn & Chile salsa, Fresh Tomato salsa, homemade sushi, lobster ravioli and Shell Mac & Cheese.

Delicious. Cheap. Fun.

One last thing… I ❤ Trader Joes Cookbook from Urban Outfitters. Every single ingredient required for each recipe in the book comes from… how did you guess? Trader Joes!

Now, off to look for excuses for another trip to my favorite grocery store!

Hing Loon in Boston? No, Mary Chung in Central Square

London nostalgia: An awesome cheap dinner outing that is Hing Loon with a bottle of Pinot, crispy aromatic duck, sweet & sour chicken, a big bowl of egg fried rice and szechuan beef.

If you have read my previous post about just how much we loved the nice man at Hing Loon, a hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant in the middle of Leicester Square in London, you know and understand my love for sweet & sour chicken, cheap food and fun dining experiences.

Since my return to Boston, however, I simply hit a wall in a search for a Hing Loon alternative.

To be fair, I have not tried many Asian restaurants in Allston, especially near Harvard Ave. and Brighton Ave. Nevertheless, my options for authentic Chinese cuisine in downtown Boston mainly include Panda Express and P.F Chang.

I know. Neither is quite…authentic.

Well, at least nothing like what Hing Loon offered.

Luckily, the topic of ethnic cuisine came up in a conversation with one of my co-workers at BU about a few weeks ago. She lives in Central Square, apparently a home to many different “unique” eateries.

Though I have lived in Boston for three years and have explored various food places, for some odd reason, I had never been to Central Square. I suppose you learn (try) something new every day. So I ended up yelping and googling “Best Chinese Restaurants in Boston.”

After clicking around for a few places here and there, I found Mary Chung in Cambridge.

I know this may be an unconventional way of judging whether a place is “authentic” enough or not, but for me, it works. The homepage is in Chinese, and you have to look for a small “English” button to translate the site. Win.

Before I dive into our dining experience at Mary Chung, a small fact to keep in mind. For a picky veggie-free eater (i.e. me), the fact that I love a certain dish from a restaurant means a lot.

I realize peppers, onions, eggplants, scallions and zucchini all add wonderful flavors to food, but sadly, I just cannot tolerate the texture. And unfortunately for me, most Asian dishes incorporate many many many kinds of vegetables. Once in a while, I will eat a few pieces of onions and peppers here and there, but over all, I always have difficulty choosing an entree and devouring everything on the plate.

Little did I know Mary Chung came with a huge surprise – dishes with limited number of vegetables and with only the ones that I like. Real win.

A couple more surprises upon arrival:

They seated us promptly as soon as we walked into the restaurant, despite our number. Seven is a fairly large group.

Quite a hole-in-the-wall location. While the bright green sign outside on Massachusetts Avenue draw attention to Mary Chung’s immediately, other than that, it’s just a small place.

Families! Kids! Everywhere! which obviously means, oh hey, kids-friendly veggie-free dishes.

Seven of us ordered Sweet & Sour Shrimp, Beef & Broccoli, Baby Bokchoy, Chicken and Shrimp Dumplings, Szechuan Chicken and Sesame Chicken. Total cost including tip & tax? $12 per person. Glorious.

My favorite was Sweet and Sour Shrimp. Fried shrimps doused in sweet and sour sauce with pineapples, onions and peppers. Second favorite was beef & broccoli, nothing out of ordinary, but tasty!

Honestly, I did not have the guts to try the spicy (Szechuan) chicken, but according to my friends who love the extra kick in their food, Szechuan didn’t disappoint either.

They were also extremely generous with rice, which we all love, and the wait staff was patient, friendly and helpful.

All in all, what a great experience! I highly recommend Mary Chung’s if you have the sudden cravings for Szechuan food.

Oh yes, I’m pretty sure we found a Hing Loon look-alike in Boston.

MOUTHWATERING! Cheap Eats in Boston – From Boston.com

My, my goodness. All these look delicious!

If you know me well enough, you know that I LOVE LOVE LOVE food. Don’t care about the calories. Don’t care about the fat percentage. Don’t care about the carbs. I just like to eat tasty food, savor the moment and find fun recipes.

Well, lucky me. While surfing the web this morning, I stumbled upon this slideshow on the Boston Globe website: Cheap Eats in Boston.

http://www.boston.com/ae/restaurants/gallery/cheap_eats/

Yes. Yes. Yes!

I’m definitely checking out these places:

Genki Ya: They have a location in Brookline, not just in Cambridge!

Kowloon: I’m not an adventurous eater, but I actually might want to try this place.

Benevento’s: Shocked to find a North End restaurant on this list. Nevertheless, this pizza looks absolutely delicious.

Garlic ‘N Lemons:I really need to explore Allston-area restaurants more fully. There are so many hidden gems all along Harvard Ave. Also, kebabs and shawarma. My go-to late-night snack of choice. I miss them.

Posto: More pizza. I’m there.

The Talk: Looks like an Italian restaurant. Needless to say, I love everything Italian.

The Snug: A pint of Guinness and a steak pie. Definitely brings back good Dublin memories. Can I just confess here really quickly, Irish accents might be more amusing and more wonderful than British accents.

House of Kebob: I mean… Duh. It’s a house of kebabs? Oh man.

Parish Cafe South End: Anything patio cafe belongs to my “good” list.

Piattini Cafe and Gelateria: OMG GELATO. I consumed lots lots and lots of gelato in Italy. Seriously, to my heart’s content. And I think I’m now ready to search for great gelato in Boston.

City Girl Cafe: Is that… Scrambled eggs on baguette? It’s sooo pretty!

Ducali Pizzeria and Bar: Another North End restaurant on the list of cheap eats? Once again, very surprised.

Nourish: Two words, JUMBO WINGS. Sold.

Via Lago Cafe: The usual suspects on the kids menu… mac & cheese and pasta. Call me silly, but once again, sold. Oh I suppose the creative dinner menu for adults will be great, too.

Now, who wants to sample these dishes?

(Thank you Boston Globe for putting this list together)

La Liaison – the French/Portuguese Man's Latte

We don’t know for sure where he came from. We actually don’t even know his name. But we know for sure he makes darn good latte and croissant.

While we are on the subject of small, quaint, friendly cafes – see the previous post, The Muffin Man – it’s definitely worth taking a few minutes to reflect on my delicious morning routine almost every day before class in London.

La Liaison, located right next to the Gloucester tube, is really a hole-in-the-wall patisserie with coffee, hot breakfast, to-go sandwiches and a variety of pastry.

Unfortunately, I never snapped a picture of the place, so that’s the best I could do with some help of everyone’s trustworthy friend, Google Images. Regardless I suppose the picture does portray the vibe of La Liaison quite well.

It’s small. There are maybe two tables inside the cafe. But people are always stopping by, reading newspapers outside or chatting up their friends in front of the shop.

I first stopped by for an emergency dose of caffeine when I realized I could no longer stay awake in one of my classes. Ever since, picking up a small latte and a croissant became a ritual. More importantly, however, I only paid about 3 pounds for both the coffee AND the pastry. Considering the exchange rates and the high cost of living in the UK, what a feat!

I thought the coffee from La Liaison was always high quality. Though served in rather small portions, with foamy milk, what a perfect way to wake up and start the day.

Along with the coffee, I would always get the chocolate (or sometimes plain) croissant, too. The mysterious French/Portuguese man told me he made them fresh every morning, and yes, I totally believe him.

On top of that, the English Breakfast. If I remember correctly, it was only 3 or 4 pounds. For those not familiar with English Breakfast, the dish consists of eggs – sunny side up, sausages, bread, ham and beans in tomato sauce.

Wait, beans in tomato sauce?

Right. We never really encounter those in America. Next time you’re at a grocery store, stop by the tiny little British section most likely in the far back corner of the store and pick up a can. It’s absolutely delicious.

In fact, I concluded my journey in London with English Breakfast and a latte from La Liaison. I couldn’t think of any other way to leave the city I fell in love with so quickly.

Besides all those delicious goodies, the best part was probably the friendly French/Portuguese man who always greeted me with “Oh, hello beautiful!” with a slight French accent. Let it be a cheesy cliche, but I loved it!

Also, note that is how I came to call him the mysterious French man.

The “Portuguese” part followed soon after though, when I saw him cheering for a Portuguese football (soccer) team.

Confused? Me too.