Junk Food Tour! [2016]

Even on vacation, I manage to find all sorts of nommy noms! Check out some of the treats you can find at your local Asian market and pastry shop!

Welcome to the Land of Snacks!

If you ever get bored of plain rice, try these rice seasonings out!

Halloween-themed Pocky!

Are you brave enough to try Durian Flavor?

I’ve had cheese Ritz sandwiches, but never custard!

Stopping off at a local bakery, I could see why we have an obesity problem — those cupcakes are huge! ;D

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 10 06 Thu: Junk Food Tour!

Kouraku and Canine & Feline Charity Art Show [2016]

Went to Kouraku for dinner then wound up checking out Q Pop‘s Canine & Feline Charity Art Show, where 10% of the proceeds went to benefit North Central Animal Shelter.

Tonkatsu (breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet) is one of my favorite Japanese dishes.

Here’s a look at some of the puppies and kitties your purchases helped.

Didn’t realize that “purrmaids” (cat mermaids) were a thing.

The colors are different, but the blockiness of this unicorn cat reminds me of Unikitty from The Lego Movie!

This Mazinger is pretty impressive even when you don’t consider the fact that a large amount of it is cardboard.

Heroes reference?

Animals driving vehicles — they’re just like us!

You can buy prints from Dreamworks background painter Ji Soo Kim along with the second Cosplay in America book.

There’s always something new to check out in Little Tokyo!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 09 10 Sat: Kouraku and Canine & Feline Charity Art Show

TOM LA SALE! [2016]

When I heard that the Tokyo Otaku Mode (TOM) Shop was pulling up stakes and heading up north, I cut out of work early to check out their moving sale! Not sure if they’ve ever opened their doors to the public before, but I order from them all the time online. They usually have some great promos and their loyalty program (in the form of TOM Points) is an added bonus — even though they’ve reworked some of their rules regarding the program.

Most of the items were unmarked so you had to bring them up for them to check the price online. What wasn’t so cool was that the Aniplex+ items were full price (as noted) — which meant they were actually more expensive than buying them on their site!

I’m not a gamer, but all non-figure merchandise was 40%!

Happened to run into Sojian-senpai while I was down there so we did some exploring and wound up grabbing noms at Hakata Ikkousha Ramen.

This was the only loot I wound up getting — a Nendoroid of Best Girl Funami Yui from YuruYuri and a free bag of a Japanese snack that wound up being pretty meh, lol. There were a few things that caught my eye but they seemed to be a bit on the pricey side, even with the discount.

These were taken on my fixed focus cell phone, so excuse the terrible quality. ^^;

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 08 22 Mon: Tokyo Otaku Mode LA Warehouse Garage SALE!

Little Tokyo Adventures III [2016]

Happy new year! Granted, January’s pretty much over, but the Lunar New Year began a few days ago so I’m well within the range. 😉

Even though these pictures were ready before the break, I’ve been too busy and lazy (mostly lazy) to put them up. Anyway, here’s a quick trip we made out to Little Tokyo back in August!

The fried rice and ramen at Orochon Ramen are always good!

HoneyMee had just at the Japanese Village Plaza so we went to check it out. It’s Kosher and organic!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 08 05 Fri: Little Tokyo Adventures III

Little Tokyo Adventures II [2016]

I can’t believe that for all the times I’ve gone to Korean barbecue at Manna in Little Tokyo, I haven’t posted about it before!

Before the meat is done, there’s the buffet bar where you can fill up on other things like fried rice and gyoza!

I was actually trying to get a picture of the US Bank building lit in purple in honor of Prince, but nature somehow managed a better tribute.

Fairytale Boutique‘s old space got taken over by Anime Jungle. This is their fourth store!

Also, I went to Teishokuya of Tokyo (better known as T.O.T) for the first time. I ordered the grilled chicken, which arrived with some unexpected sides! Did not expect this to be American-style, lol.

Be sure to try these spots the next time you’re in Little Tokyo!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 04 23 Sat/05 14 Sat: Little Tokyo Adventures II

Benihana and The Cheesecake Factory [2016]

Once in a while, my boss takes me out to lunch and this time he felt like going to Benihana. I haven’t been to Benihana in ages and free lunch is free, so who am I to say no? 😀

Benihana is a restaurant chain that was founded in New York in 1964 that specializes in Japanese teppanyaki cuisine. Now, there are Benihana restaurants all over the world — just don’t try to look for them in Japan, lol.

The main appeal of going to Benihana is the performance put on by the teppanyaki chef as s/he prepares your meal on the steel grill in front of you at your table. I’m sure they must get a lot of training to be able to do all the neat knife and flame tricks without injuring themselves!

So this is how much Ramune you actually get in one of those $3 bottles. ^^;

Vegetable fried rice comes with all of the lunch entrees, which is why that heart is so big (you’re seated with other guests, usually 8 to a table).

After we had lunch, we popped next door to grab some dessert at The Cheesecake Factory — another restaurant chain you won’t be able to find in Japan. (However, the first one in Asia opened this year in Shanghai Disney Resort’s Disneytown complex.)

These were taken on my fixed focus cell phone, so excuse the terrible quality. ^^;

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 04 22 Fri: Benihana and The Cheesecake Factory

Wurstküche and The Pie Hole [2016]

Every time my friends and I go to The Pie Hole, we see the line in front of Wurstküche and talk about trying it some time. Well, that time finally arrived!

Really, Wurstküche is pretty much just a bar that also happens to serve exotic sausages with atypical meats such as duck, rabbit, lamb, and rattlesnake. You also get to choose from four different toppings, but only the first two are free.

Once you place your order, you make your way into the back room, which is dark and loud and not at all conducive to conversation. Some of the benches in the middle have butcher’s paper that you can draw on while waiting for the waitperson to bring you your food (it’s in the Arts District, after all).

My friend tried one of the draft beers while we waited in line and enjoyed it immensely, but the consensus was that Pink’s is much better in terms of not only flavor but price and ambience. Wurstküche was worth trying once, though!

Afterwards, we popped across the street for some dessert from The Pie Hole.

I guess it was just meant to be a gastronomically unfulfilling night, as my selection, the Cereal Killer Cheesecake, also wound up being quite disappointing.

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2016 04 02 Sat: Wurstküche and The Pie Hole

Christmastime in Little Tokyo [2015]

The last trip out to Little Tokyo in 2015 included stops at a couple of old favorites: Orochon Ramen and The Pie Hole!

I know I talk about The Pie Hole a lot, but I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned Orochon Ramen. It was one of the first ramen places I ever went to in Little Tokyo and it’s still one of my favorites.

Of course, we did quite a bit of window shopping as well, since that’s what we also do!

You can tell it’s Christmastime!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 12 12 Sat: Christmastime in Little Tokyo

Holiday Festivities! [2015]

The holidays are all about getting together with friends and family… and food!

One of my friends had just gotten a new place so she invited us over to hang out, and we got to making that holiday staple — gingerbread cookies! Well, not actually making, but decorating and eating, since I got there ridiculously late, as is my habit. ^^;

Decorating cookies is harder than it looks since it requires a steady hand and a creative eye, but I think we did a pretty good job. Of course, the best part is that you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor! 😉

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 12 05 Sat: Holiday Festivities!

Universal CityWalk Hollywood: Part II [2015]

Although it was cool seeing all those awesome collectibles at Things From Another World, the primary purpose of going to Universal CityWalk at Universal Studios Hollywood was to celebrate two of my friends’ birthdays!

You can’t celebrate birthdays without noms! Tony Roma’s is known for their ribs, so I had the Beef Short Rib.

After dinner and TFAW, we wound up at a confectionery called IT’SUGAR.

Even if Hollywood’s Sweet! is the largest candy store in America, IT’SUGAR boasts some of the biggest portions of cavity-makers I’ve seen anywhere!

They also carry novelty candies, Japanese snacks, pop culture goods, and other things that defy description (and good taste! Watch out for some potentially NSFW images/language in the full Facebook album).

Pusheen makes an appearance.

Live long and have full shot glasses.

Star Wars and Hello Kitty Pez Dispensers. There used to be a store devoted to Pez at CityWalk but I think it’s gone now.

I believe that, too. >:3

Bag your own M&Ms (or other non-trademarked hard-shelled chocolate candies)!

We actually came across this after we’d left IT’SUGAR (don’t remember the name of the store, as it was closed and we didn’t go in). I believe they’re candy apples and one of my friends said there’d been a Pikachu one earlier in the evening.

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 11 06 Fri: Universal CityWalk Hollywood: Part II

Full Coverage of Universal CityWalk Hollywood [2015]:

Universal CityWalk Hollywood: Part I
Universal CityWalk Hollywood: Part II