Tuesday, July 28, 2009

~Food Haul~

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Hello food addicts <3
As you can see from the picture above, I made some damage at Kim Phat on Jarry.
Couldn't resist buying some goodies hehe.
I was only going to do restaurant reviews but since its a food blog and i'm a food addict and this is food we are talking about...i figured i'd mix things up a little and add in some food haul!
(So you can see how fat i will get...just joking C=)


-Hello Kitty Candy
I couldn't resist! notice my HK music player and i also bought HK MAC cosmetics!
They were pretty expensive but that's because they are 100% made in Japan.
They come in lemon, strawberry and grape flavour, and comes with a special sticker!

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Hello Kitty grape flavoured candy

-Hello Panda cookies
The classic Hello Panda's filled with choco yummyness! =3
It's been a while since i've eaten these.
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-Pocky and Pepero
Another classic!
Pocky now comes in small individual bags of 7 pocky choco sticks!
Pepero is the korean version of the japanese sweet.
Aren't the packages shiny?! haha
Now all i need is to find someone to play the pocky/pepero game with me ;)
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-"Round/balled cookies"
I forgot how these are called =/
But they taste like childhood memories!
Let it melt in your mouth or crunch, it's the perfect thing to munch (on)

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-Honey bow-tie
These are soo good to eat but kinda greasy haha.
Fried flour coated with honey!
To be eaten with a glass of water near by!
Honey bow-tie

-Seaweed rice crackers
This was actually my sister's pick!
She likes seaweed a lot hehe
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Seaweed cracker

-"Korean" Udon
This is what my sis and i had for dinner C=
Some good ol' japanese udon...korean style! Exactly the same but with the added spicyness
Left: Seafood flavour Right: Katsuo (mushroom)
Each come with two servings per pack!
We had the one i picked (left) hehehe. It was very easy to make and delicious!
We added some "beef balls" for meat.

Korean Udon

Do all these goodies make you hungry yet? ;)

Monday, July 27, 2009

Noodle Factory



1018 Saint-Urbain
(514) 868-9738

Wonder why my blog is named addicted to ramen? Wonder no more!
it is because i love ramen and noodles in general (so happy i found a background with soba <3)
When you are a drama addict like i am, you always salivate when you watch the characters eat ramen! (i.e.: Gokusen, Ramen Girl, Boys Before Flower kor)
Therefore, my sister and i decided to google up some ramen/noodle shops!
We stumbled upon Noodle Factory located in good ol' Chinatown, just in front of the bakery Harmony!

Ambience
As you can see in the picture above, there is a chef that is preparing noodles and dumplings right in front of your eyes! (behind a glass window for sanitary reasons of course).
How many restaurants do you know that prepares food right in front of you! not many i am sure!
It may well be called Noodle "Factory", it is rather small compare to an actual factory.
It can seat up to 30 people. Quite small but they do have air cons and the feeling is amazing when you finish a big bowl of ramen with well-earned sweat! (at least that's the way i feel..)
I would say small but cozy.

Food
LOVE IT!
However, some have said it lacked seasoning and taste. It really comes down to how "seasoned" you like things to be.
I found it just perfect and anyways, the point of eating noodles is not to drink the broth but to enjoy the noodles and toppings! Not to say that there isn't more than one way to eat noodles!

Must try
- #22 Pork and Spicy vegetables noodles
-#3 Fried spring onion pancakes

Price
I found it very reasonable. A big bowl of ramen for 6.95$ and the pancakes were 3$.

OVERALL RATING

10/10

Generous portions for a small price! I'd say if you don't have a big appetite to share the bowl of ramen and take some appetizers. And if you do share, they will make the bowl a bit bigger ;)


Sunday, July 26, 2009

Odaki Japanese Restaurant


1836 Sainte-Catherine West
(514) 846-1268

Buffet
Lunch: 16.99$
Dinner: (Sunday-Thursday) 22.99$
(Friday & Saturday) ~26.99$

My first review will be on Odaki on St-Cath's near Concordia (NOT to be confused with Odaki on Saint-Laurent!) because that's the latest place i've been to..hence it is the freshest in my memory and palate! Also, because when i tried searching for reviews about this place, i could not find any decent ones. I've been a Kanda-shipper for a long time and was very hesitant when my good friend proposed we tried it and i must say i did not regret going somewhere else for once!

Ambience
Very modern and slick decor.
Good for all types of people (i.e.: business, family, students, date..)
The little conveyer belt gives a nice "japanese" feel which i like!
Now when we think about conveyer belt, we imagine sitting on stools and the conveyer passes in front of us...unfortunately that is not the case.
However, I was happy to actually be able to pick food up from it haha.
If there are still available tables, you can choose to sit "beside" the contraption.

Food

The food was very delicious!
Yet, some will agree and some won't.
If you are looking for a place to eat a variety of sushi, this is not the place.
Odaki indeed offers sushi but it specializes more into side dishes.
There are the traditionally famous sushis you will find at any sushi place and there are a wide variety of asian cuisine. Japanese, chinese, thai, vietnamese, you name it! it's probably there!
(I'm not sure about korean though..maybe in the main menu)
Now the pro about this concept is that if you want to bring someone but don't know if they like sushi or not, they should still be able to enjoy the odaki experience with the dishes.
That's why i can finally bring my mom who doesn't like sushi haha.
I was very happy to have been able to eat somen (cold soba) and sweet omelette!
However, i was sad that they didn't offer kanda's BBQ eel =C

Must try
- Somen (conveyer belt)
- Sweet omelette
- Spicy roll
- Garlic shrimp
- Fried scallops

Price
I found the price very decent for a rapport qualité/prix. It is close to Kanda's.
***I previously said they didn't charge if you left any pieces..well i went back today (29/07/09) and it read at the bottom of the page that they charged 1$ per piece.
=/

OVERALL RATING

7.5/10

I look forward to coming back a second time and maybe add some more info about Odaki!
I was indeed impressed by this restaurant but then again, i'm a sucker for anything that is visually well-presented.
***UPDATE 29/07/09
This second time around, there were more people therefore no more seats next to the conveyer belt which really dissapointed me because i wanted my sister to try it out.
very dissapointing because if you aren't next to the conveyer belt, you can't pick up the stuff you see. Since i knew already, i was able to ask the waitress who was kind enough to bring us a flavoured somen, sesame mochi and some fruits.
In consequence, i lowered my rating down.

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not eat well.

At this moment and for a long time,
I have felt the exact words of Virginia Wolf.
We cannot think, move, love, feel, etc..
if we have not eaten well.

I have always loved eating good food
and who doesn't enjoy doing so?! haha.
Lately, i had the chance to eat at many different places around Montreal.
But like any other avid searcher of reviews and ratings before actually going to the place itself,
I googled and many times, it took me a while to find decent information.

Then it hit me!
Why don't i start a Food Blog to help people from Montreal
know more about the restaurants around town?!

So here starts the adventure!

Bon Appétit!