Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar

Waikiki Beach Marriot Resort and Spa
2552 Kalakaua Avenue
Honolulu, Hawaii 96815
Phone: 808-931-6286
Website: http://www.sanseihawaii.com/
Dinner Nightly: 5:30 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
Late Night Dining: Friday & Saturday, 10 P.M. to 1 A.M.

Locals recommend this location as the best sushi in town, and they’re wrong. This is some of the best sushi I’ve had – period.

Sansei has some of the most delicious and innovative sushi combinations, without being too “exotic.” One of our favorite aspects of the sushi was the buttery sauces they were served in. Long after the sushi was gone, we dipped remnants of anything we could find into the leftover sauces, loving every morsel.

Favorites:
Tempura asparagus: Perfectly crispy.
Shrimp cake: If you can find your way through the mess of fried noodles on top, the shrimp cake underneath is amazing.
Panko Crusted Ahi Sashimi Sushi Roll: Instead of cold rice, the ahi is rolled in arugula and spinach, then flash fried in panko crumbs. This is the first sushi I can claim “melted in my mouth.”

Bonus:
Friday and Saturday nights from 10:00 pm to 1:00 am, the menu is half off!

Caffe Lucio - Santa Cruz

We had a really great dinner in Santa Cruz at this place called Caffe Lucio. It was awesome. Lucio is this wiry little Italian guy (that's him on their logo) who is just bursting with energy and so awesome to everyone who walks in. He greets everyone in Italian, and I automatically responded in Italian. He then seemed to take a liking to us, rambling on in Italian while putting his arm around my shoulder and guiding us to our table.

Details:
381 Soquel Ave
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
tel: (831) 427-0164
Open for dinner
http://www.caffelucio.com/

We sat at the bar and shared Bruschetta di Caprino (bruschetta with goat's cheese and grilled marinated veggies), home made gnocchi with tomato sauce, and a thin crust pizza. It was amazing. If you are ever in Santa Cruz, you MUST go there. Everyone working there just seemed to be having a fantastic time.

The pizza cook was wearing this hilarious shirt that said "Free Chorizo" and had an arrow pointing down, and the couple next to us at the bar commented on it. The woman was all "Has your mother seen that shirt??" And the cook just laughed and motioned Lucio over, pointing to his shirt. It said "Half Man," pointing up, and "Half Horse," pointing down. Later, we saw Lucio's very pregnant wife sporting a shirt over her huge belly that said "Lucio JR" on it. Points for the humor and having fun!

I've read a couple reviews that mentioned having to wait - we didn't have this problem, and we went on a Saturday night when there was a college reunion dinner taking place as well. The reviews also mention it being loud and Lucio yelling at waitstaff - it was a bit loud, but we did not witness any verbal abuse. My take was that he was very typically Italian - vibrant and a little bit abrassive. The prices were on the higher side, but that's sort of to be expected at an Italian place in a town with a high volume of tourists.

Good for:
- Atmosphere
- Romantic dinners
- Group events
- GREAT home made gnocchi and pizza

Addy's Rating: 9/10

Rise Supper Club - Los Angeles

A few weeks ago, we went to Hollywood & Highland to the restaurant Rise Supper Club (located at The Highlands Hollywood) for a friend's birthday. I wrote a longer blog about the birthday over at my regular site, but here are some of the details, pros and cons.

Details:
6801 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028
(tel) 323.461.9800
Open for dinner
http://www.thehighlandshollywood.com/restaurant.html

Pros:
- We arrived a bit early for our reservation and were relieved that they still sat us right away
- Our waitress was awesome, paid attention to detail and went the extra mile
- They made up for our late food by adjusting the bill and giving us dessert on the house
- You get into the club for free if you have dinner there, plus you don't have to wait in line
- The menu was designed by a Wolfgang Puck chef
- The decorations were nice, if not a bit generically Los Angeles
- Lots of LA people, if that's your thing

Cons:
- It is pretty pricey
- Our food was served over a span of 25 minutes from first plate to last (for 8 people), so the first served's food was cold by the time the last served got her food
- The view wasn't as spectacular as they would lead you to believe
- They don't have beers on draft
- It is super trendy
- Lots of LA people, if that's not your thing

Food & Drink:
- BEST lemon drop martini I've ever had... I'm not even kidding, it was amazing
- Spicy tuna tartare, it was served on a crispy rice patty and was delicious
- The chicken breast dinner was tasty, as was the filet mignon, pad thai, and "Original Chow Fun"
- If I were to go back, I would definitely be trying the Beef Carpaccio

Good for:
- Birthdays, with a small to medium sized group
- Romantic dinners on the town
- Lemon drop martinis and Spicy Tuna Tartare

Addy's Rating: 7/10

Acqua Al Due - San Diego

Details:
322 5th Ave.
San Diego, CA
tel: (619) 230-0382
Open for lunch & dinner
general site: http://www.acquaal2.it/
San Diego site: http://www.acquaal2.com/index.php

This place is probably in my top 5 restaurants in the world. There are two Acqua al Due restaurants - one in San Diego's Gaslamp district, and one, the original, in Florence, Italy. The one in Florence is located at 2 Via del Acqua... thus the name Acqua al Due ("two" in Italian).

They have the most amazing menu (yes, menu, not menus, it's the same menu in Italy or San Diego!) and my favorite by far is the pasta sampler. It's a sampler of 5 different pastas, and they are "chef's choice," so you get slightly different dishes each time you go. (No worries, though, the dishes are 90% vegetarian)

It's on the fancier side dress-wise, but it's not formal, and dishes range from $10 - $25.

Get the pasta sampler, the filet mignon marinated in balsalmic, and be sure to follow it up with the panna cotta (sublime) and the tirimisu. Amazing food, amazing staff, and amazing atmosphere = the perfect dining experience.

Addy's Rating: 10/10

Pearl Vietnamese - Hong Kong

Details
(852) 2524 9435
G/F 7 Wo On Lane, Central, Hong Kong

Vietnamese restaurant in Lan Kwai Fong serving Vietnamese food as well as fast food variations. Favorite for local businessman and this place has the best sweet/sour/tangy spice sauce that it serves up at each table in pitchers as everyone douses their food with it. I could eat here for days and still want to come back for more.

Very very much a local favorite and hole in the wall. Warning - potentially very scary to newcomers but worth the adventure.

Spring Rolls - The BEST! Just order them and eat. If you don't like them, there's something wrong with you.

Frogs Legs - Tastes like chicken - ok but messy and lots of bones.

Ketchup Rice with Beef cubes - Good stuff. Not terribly healthy but great filler. The ketchup rice is red with a sweet tomato flavor and the beef cubes are seasoned with a Worcestershire flavor. It also comes with a dollup of mayonnaise which tastes quite good mixed around in even amounts with rice and beef cubes. Again not so healthy but good.

Shrimp crackers - Really yummy stuff. Wonderfully topped with a sort of taco mix of onion, seasoned chicken, diced peanuts, parsley, and of course you must douse it with the house sauce. I love the texture, crunch of the cracker with the soft topping and soggy addition of the sauce.

Small Island, Northridge

Details
(818) 341-1884
9545 Reseda Blvd, #16, Northridge, CA 91324

Great food and Great Prices :)
Dishes range from $5-$15

A small Japanese restaurant, clean and very cozy. Great sushi dishes and overall GREAT value for your money. Go eat there and make sure the place stays in business.

Note - they are closed one day of the week - can't remember which, but warning - FYI :)

De Medici - San Diego Gaslamp District

Details
815 Fifth Avenue
San Diego, CA. 92101
ph# 619.702.7228
fax# 619.702.7236
Dinner Served Daily from 5:00pm
http://www.demedicisandiego.com

I give it 5 stars for taste and quality - and the best Fettuccine Alfredo in the world - no kidding.
Dishes range $15-$20 each. With appetizers and drinks, easily $100 for 2 people.

This truly authentic, family recipe Italian restaurant has regulars that include real life Godfathers, Director Francis Ford Coppola, us, tourists as well as Italian tourists. The restaurant is elegant hosting prom kids and formal dinners in general. Although you can come in with flip flops and t-shirts but will just feel under dressed. The outside patio seating is the best where you can watch people walk by in the famous Gaslamp district. The waiters and staff are all very friendly and accommodating.

Cool Thing - above the Hostess podium is an autographed picture and the shell of a bullet from the Godfather I movie. The autograph has signatures of Coppola as well as Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, John Cazale and Robert Duvall. I talked to the manager and apparently Coppola eats there regularly and they have his wine on the menu as well. And really, we've seen mobster Italian Godfathers eating there with family in-tow. So cool!

Fettuccine Alfredo - The BEST in the world. It's the only main course I've ordered there ever. Been there 3 years in a row and each time it tastes absolutely divine. I even heard an Italian tourist come in and taste the Alfredo and exclaim "Bueno". Just watch it because the side of shrimp costs an extra $15 - crazy, and leftovers don't taste as good but they're still pretty great.

Oyster Rockefeller - ok. Nothing great.

Prosciutto di Parma e Mozzarella (Thin slices of prosciutto wrapped around fresh buffalo mozzarella) - Amazing. They use real fresh mozzarella and prosciutto from Italy.

Lasagna - awesome. The lasagna is well-balanced (not too much sauce, enough meat), thick and a hearty comfort food.