Isla Pilipina

We celebrated my mom's birthday a day earlier for dinner at Isla Pilipina, which was the Sunday after Thanksgiving. This was a first for the whole family, but I came here once earlier with a friend the year before. Since then, I've been raving it to my family and trying to plan a dinner, but with different schedules and it being in the city, it was difficult. Finally, we visited on this special occassion. Isla serves traditional and authentic Filipino cuisine in a small 40 seating, BYOB space, but it's food is packed with flavor and to my taste, it's so close to my mom and family's cooking. Reservations are recommended because this place fills up quickly with long waits. It makes me proud to see a Filipino restaurant cooking up such delicious food that other nationalities are lining up to eat here. I'm telling you, it's THAT good! We ordered sweet and sour red snapper, Bicol Express of slightly spicy combination of meat , shrimp, squid, and mussels drizzled in coconut milk; Beef Kaldereta of angus chuck roast cooked in tomatio and pepper based gravy with potatoes and peppers; Daing ng Bangus of sun dried boneless milkfish, marinated and deep fried; Pancit Bihon of pan fried rice noodles sauteed with chicken, mixed with shredded vegetables; Lechon Kawali of deep fried pork belly served with Filipino style gravy. My family genuinely enjoyed the food here and were surprised too on how good it was and how the flavors were right and at times better. See you soon!

Green Basil

It was the day after Thanksgiving, what more to do when your friends are in town...eat and drink! Cristina and Michael were in town and we got the whole gang together for some comfy Vietnamese food at Green Basil in downtown Naperville. Tucked in one of the home like structures in the area, this place was welcoming for a chilly Friday evening. I'm usually not a big fan of Vietnamese food, but after months of Ang asking me to try the Pho, I had it here. As an app, I ordered their egg rolls and my entree as the beef pho. Both of my choices were delicious with clean and fresh flavors. Everyone else ordered Pho as well with some meat entrees to mix it up a bit. The service was on point and they were attentive with our big group. I enjoyed the food and now can add Pho to one my go to noodles soups on my list.

San Diego Fam Jam

Two words after this trip, LOVE FAMILY. Ang, D, my dad and I flew out to San Diego to visit dad's brother and his family. If you know my uncle, he enjoys COOKING for his family, literally loves cooking hence the capital letters earlier. He was the head chef in the U.S. Navy for many many years and that continued with his own family after retirement, still cooking! Prior to our trip, us kids already knew what we wanted...Carne asada fries and In-n-Out. We arrived late on Thursday night and cousin Rodney welcomed us with Carne asada fries, tacos and burritos! Yum-O!!! So good to eat the real stuff where we first learned about it. My uncle also had prepared Sinigang, a sour tamarind soup with meat and vegetables, for my dad. Talk about late night snack and a welcome to SD!

The next day we spent at the outlet mall looking for bargains and *ahem* Gucci products. We were craving for some In-n-Out for dinner, but knowing Uncle, a feast would be prepared once we got home. That morning, he cooked a typical Filipino breakfast of rice, eggs and loginiza and once we were done with breakfast, he was getting started for dinner! Auntie also had bought a dozen of the famous cheeseballs, which we packed as snacks on our drive to the mall. These cheeseballs are amazing, so simple and delicious. The dough reminds me of ensaymada and then stuffed with a cream cheese ball. Dinner that night was a feast including my favorite Filipino dish, Kare Kare, which is pretty much a stew of peanut butter, oxtail and vegetables; prawns cooked in ginger, soy sauce and garlic; lastly shrimp tempura. One word...FULL.

Day 2. We had lunch at Crab Hut in downtown San Diego. This place was amazing. You choose the seafood, spices and sauces and they boil it and serve it in a plastic bag. It's all about getting messy here, no plates, silverware, just you dressed in a fancy bib, your food and a beverage. Started off with their sampler of fried goodness of Fried Shrimp, Crispy Calamari, Fish Fillet, Crab Poppers, Hush Puppies, Onion Rings, Sweet Potato Fries, Cajun Fries & Fried Okra. Ang, D and I shared a bag of their Seafood bucket of King Crab Leg, Snow Crab Cluster, Shrimp, Crawfish, Mussels, Clams, Potatoes, Corn on the Cob and Sausages mixed in Crab Hut's addictive Full House Sauce of butter, lemon pepper and cajun spices on the mild level. This was just enough for the 3 of us. I was the first one out of our trio and threw in the towel, while Ang and D finished it off with Kuya Roderick polishing off his family's bag. I wonder if Chicago has a place like this because this would a be a fun place to eat and entertain. After lunch, we headed to La Jolla to walk it off. Such a beautiful place!

Day 3. It was the Sunday before Thanksgiving and what else is there to do, but a have an early Thanksgiving feast with family. Uncle was already up early and preparing the food. Our cousin Rodel took us our to lunch to finally get our fix on In-n-Out. YES!!! Then took us to the pier to visit the ship Uncle was stationed on and to enjoy the sun and nice weather. It was time for dinner! There was the traditional turkey and stuffing, pancit, lobster, ham and twice baked potatoes. Uncle does it right!

Thank you to our family for making our stay comfortable and fun!