Asian Candy

So I have been talking about writing my book Asian Candy on my iphone.  Whenever I have an extra moment or two, I edit and write Asian Candy on my iphone.  It is definitely revolutionary!  I must have spent 4 hours editing during my commute.  Talk about saving time! 

Candy is a 25 year old single Asian female in New York City looking for Mr. Right. She goes on many dates, mostly with men she meets on the Internet. Most of the dates don't result in anything exciting until she meets a hot Wall Street banker who leads Candy to sexual awakening of previously unknown heights. Candy has a lot of student loan and credit card debt; her NYU degree and life in the big city do not come cheap. Candy must find a sugardaddy to help pay the bills. Will she find a sugardaddy who will also fulfill her deepest sexual needs? Will she meet Mr. Right? Read about Candy's NYC dating adventures in Asian Candy.

Read the sample first chapter at www.asiancandybook.blogspot.com
Hope you enjoy it and want more!

Asian Candy Book

Asian Candy Book

Ten Ren Tea Journal

I love tea and want to learn more about the different varieties. There is no better place near me to buy tea than Ten Ren on Mott Street. They stock over a hundred different teas.

The ladies at Ten Ren are pleasant, but the best way to test these teas is to order the samplers online. The samplers are not available in the stores, but they should be.

I will chronicle my tea tastings here:

Tian Li (ten Li) oolong:
One of the rarest and highest quality teas. Very fresh tasting, roasted and delicious. I recommend this but it is very expensive. $45 for 2.6 ounces.

2011 First Flush Dragonwell (very limited) green tea:

The tea leaves are small and very tender. A little more bitter than the Tian Li tea in my opinion.

Puh Erh- oh no! Stay away! The name says it all- it sounds like poop err. It will be a big mistake for you to buy this tea. Tastes like the stuff my grandmother used to make me drink when I was sick. Noooooooo. Plus I found a hair in the tea leaves.

Pouchong 3rd grade:

Slightly fermented green tea, fresh and clean. Not bad. Nothing to write home about.

I received, free with my online purchase, a box of the Dragon Well Green Tea bags. This is very good tea, roasty and sweet, not bad for a tea bag.

Bouley Restaurant Review

Bouley
163 Duane Street New York, NY 10013
(212) 964-2525


Cici and I love a great deal, so we decided to go for the $55 prix-fixe 5 course lunch at Bouley today. The restaurant was beautiful, with fresh flowers everywhere.  Cici commented that the waiters were serving like a well-rehearsed symphony. Once in awhile, you would get a whiff of truffles.


The lunch started with an amuse bouche: pumpkin soup with candied pine nuts. It reminded me of the soup I used to buy at the now closed Bouley Market. The soup was so creamy and pumpkin-y that I wished Bouley Market is still open.


For our first course, we both chose the Carpaccio Of Kampachi, Young Blue Fin Tuna And Striped Amber Jack prepared in a mediterranean manne.  The plate was so pretty, it looked like fish swimming in a pool of pretty green flowers.  The carpaccio was melt in your mouth fresh with the most wonderful sauces.


We were fascinated by the guy wheeling around the bread in a cart like one of those dim sum ladies. He was so into methodically cutting the bread that he belonged in a movie about Bouley, or bread, or just any movie. He suggested the Saffron walnut bread with the porcini flan. I also tried the apricot walnut bread (sweet, chewy and fresh) and olive bread. I still think Del Posto has the best bread in the city though.


The second course was the famous Porcini Flan with Alaska Live Dungeness Crab black truffle dashi in its own little pot.  The presentation was so cute. I can see why so many people recommend the flan. The crab meat was outrageously crabby and fresh.  I believe this dish is what makes the air smell like truffles every once in awhile, when someone is served the porcini flan and they open the little pot and let the aroma envelop them (an apparently everyone else) in a cloud of truffle bliss. 


For the third course, Cici picked the All-Natural Pennsylvania Chicken with carrot ravioli, chanterelles, pain d'empics dressing and I picked the Slow Braised Kobe Style Beef Cheeks with blue kale gnocchi.   Cici gave me a bite of her chicken and carrot ravioli. This was not the usual frozen chicken you get at other restaurants. I want, no NEED, the secret of how they make the chicken so tender.  Is it because it's all natural or from Pennsylvania?  We need to know. This chicken was so tender, it makes other so called "chicken tenders" taste like leather (Cici said "old shoe" but I'm not as gross as her).  "They are like chicken meltaways!" Cici later texted me as she finished her chicken that she took home in a doggie bag (more on that later).   Also, the carrot raviloli was so sweet and the pasta delectible, it tasted like pumpkin.  (Before this, my only other taste of a sweet vegetable ravioli are the butternut squash raviolis at Costco.  This aint no Costco ravioli, people!  I am not a snob, I just like good food.)   The beef was delicious as well, with gnocchi on the bottom, but by then I was too full to fully appreciate the beef, however yummy it was.


Next, came a palate cleanser of Honey Tangerine Soup with sancho pepper, lychee sorbet, crystallized honey.  Very refreshing and perfect after all the courses.


We both picked the Hot Caramilized Anjou Pear,valrhona chocolate, biscuit breton, hot toffee sauce, lemon verbena and tahitian vanilla ice creams for dessert.  I did not like the lemon verbena ice cream too much, reminded me of Lemon Pledge.  Sorry. 


The chef provided us an extra dessert: bulgur wheat ice cream. It was a unique taste, creamy and kind of salty.


Cici tasted the bulgur wheat ice cream and said that I would like it because it was salty.


I said, "I was raised on salty plums."


Cici said, "What do salty plums taste like?"


"Olives," I replied.


"Why would you do that to a plum? It's so sweet," wondered Cici.


The chef also presented some complimentary, gorgeous little macarons, wafer thin cookies, chocolates and nut crunch.  By then, we were so stuffed that Cici took one of the wafer thin cookies and said, "Have you seen that guy in Monty Python who was at a restaurant and ate a lot, and then he said, 'I'll just have one more bite, it's wafer thin,' and he exploded?"  I thought that was hilarious.


Not wanting to explode, we did not finish our desserts so we asked for doggie bags. The server who cleared the table acted like this was an unusual request. Yes, we are Hoi polloi.  We take doggie bags. We are not on a date and we don't care. Plus, it's a Michelin Star doggie bag.


If you think we are declasse for asking for doggie bags, witness what happened at the next table: The two guys next to us (not in jackets, as required by the restaurant rules) obviously tourists due to the hotel room key card on the table (see, no little detail escapes me, a skill I honed after watching almost all the Monk reruns), sat down later than us, so by the time their table was cleared for dessert, we were done with our meal.  One of the guys (with an accent) asked for *gasp* more bread.  The server said incredulously, "More bread, with DESSERT?"  Amateurs.  Tourists.  Didn't they know that we New Yawkers don't eat bread with dessert?  Suddenly, it was as if the perfect symphony came to a screeching halt for a second.  The bread guy was notified of the request, and he went over and asked which bread they would like to enjoy some more.  They chose the apricot walnut (good choice).  Bread Guy said, "Let me get you a plate, would you like butter with that?"  Then all was well again as the two bread-loving gentlemen were served their desserts. 


Note: The doggie bags were given to us by the receptionist/coat check girl.  Very discreet.  I like it.


Pardon the low lighting of the photos.  I took them with my iphone with no flash (BTW, does anyone's iphone flash actually take good photos?  Mine does not) and the restaurant was kind of romantically dimmed.   

Deep Thought: Is Sugar the Sex or the Money?

You often hear that women are looking for sugardaddies. For example, Big Ang on last night's episode of Mob Wives told her son that she is looking for a sugardaddy. Her son's response was that rich men are looking for 20 year old girlfriends, so Big Ang should learn to take care of herself.  Side bar: I predict that Big Ang will be the breakout star of Mob Wives.  There is no one like her on earth!  She is fabulous!  All she needs to do is to bring on conflict, drama, threaten to claw one of the women's eyes out.  She won't need a sugardaddy anymore, she will be a sugarmama.

I understand that sugar in sugardaddy stands for money. What about the sugar in sugarbaby? Some sugardaddy blogs say they want sugar. Does that stand for sex? These are my deep thoughts of the day.

Asian Candy

Is it possible to write a book on the IPhone? I think it is now that I have downloaded the App called Pages on my iPhone. It uploads what ever I write on iCloud. This is revolutionary! No more heavy laptop to input my thoughts!

My new book will be in the genre I call Asian Candy: about a single Asian woman dating in the big city. Sort of like Zane meets Amy Tan. Sexy. A little dirty. Stays on your mind a long time.

Cheap and CUTE Yoga Pants

I paid $19.20 for a pair of cute black yoga pants with a funky pink leopard waist band. I got a size 18 (Justice size, which I believe is a size 3 juniors, and size 4 womens) and it fits me perfectly. I thank Cathe and Burr Leonard of the Bar Method for my high, round ass-ets. I think the Justice yoga pants run big because I also wear a size 6 and 8 in the Lululemon Groove pants.

The only thing is, to try things on at Justice, you need a pre-teen daughter or niece, or be subject to dirty looks and or humiliation. Or just buy them and try them on at home! And never, ever pay full price at Justice. They are always emailing those 40% off coupons.

The Most Perfect Salad in the World

It feels like spring today! Here is what I'm in the mood for: Succulent chunks of lobster meat and plump grilled shiitake mushrooms on a bed of field salad greens drizzled with spicy lemon dressing from Nobu...is it almost lunch time?

Nobu TriBeCa also does takeout, so you can go for a walk in the park and get the lobster salad to go.

Cathe: the DVDs that have Kept me Relatively in Shape this Winter

I have been working out to Cathe DVDs all winter and I'm happy to say that despite all my food indulgences, such as eating half the bread basket at Del Posto and devouring an entire box of Special K cracker chips in the sour cream and onion flavor night after night while watching Shameless, I am still able to fit into clothes from Justice, where pre-teens shop.

Cathe DVDs are motivating and effective. I love Cathe's Turbo Barre so much that I have been doing it three times a week for the past month. I don't think I have lost any weight due to my diet but I have firmed up a bit. Is this having my cake and eating it too?

This morning, I did Cathe Afterburn, which is more cardio and intense. I modified the DVD a bit because going down to the floor to do burpees gives me a headache, so I just did more exercises on the plastic discs, such as sliding from side to side while moving my arms. I can definitely still feel the Afterburn, so it must be working.

Brads Raw Leafy Kale Review

I bought Brad's Raw Leafy Kale in the Naked flavor. It was not naked at all: it was coated with a lot of sweet red pepper and cashew nuts. It was very crunchy and tasted heavily of sweet red peppers. If you like Italian dressing, this snack is for you. The leaves are very green so it must be healthier than potato chips. However, at $8.99 a pack, not sure if this will be super popular. I would like to see an Asian soy flavor. That would be delicious.

Starbucks coffee prices are getting ridiculous. I recently paid $12.99 for a bag of Starbucks beans. Sure, gas prices have gone up so it costs more to ship the coffee, blah, blah, blah. I am looking for a cheaper, yet smooth and dark cup of black coffee.

At Whole Foods, I bought a can of Three Beans Dark Roast arabica coffee beans for $5.99 for 13 ounces. This morning, I ground up the beans and made the coffee in my drip coffee pot. As dark and rich as any dark roast coffee at Starbucks at half the price. Run and get some for yourself.

In Search of the Perfect Muffin

Billy's Bakery
75 Franklin Street
New York, NY


I am not a snob. I just like good food. I have to say, the best muffins are baked by Costco. They are like $6.99 for a dozen or some ridiculously low price and can feed the whole office.

I was craving a good muffin this morning, so I walked over to Billy's on Franklin Street. Billy's cupcakes are wonderful, so can their muffins be just as good? I got the muffins in cherry and apple and could not resist a slice of pineapple upside-down cake.*. The cake was $5 and the muffins were $2.50 each. Very sorry to say, the muffins were just ok, not as moist and full of flavor as Costco muffins. The pineapple upside down cake is also so-so. Go to Billy's for one thing: the cupcakes with the fabulous cream cheese frosting!

* I did not eat two muffins and a piece of cake. I just had a taste of each and will share the rest. I swear.

Run Girl, Run!

This morning I was walking to work, blasting music in my earphones, when this guy stopped me on the street.

"Excuse me, where is there a 99 Cent store?" inquired the young man, dressed in a sweatshirt and jeans.

"Lots for Less is right over there," I replied.

"No, I need a 99 cent ring to get married at City Hall. I don't want a $10 ring," he explained. His slightly older bride was right next to him.

Deep thought: run girl, run! Never marry a man who wants to buy you a 99 cent ring, last minute, who won't spring for a $10 ring at Lots for Less! Plus, notice he was going to wear sweats and jeans to his wedding. What ever happened to the sanctity of marriage?

Barnes and Noble Coupon

Save 15% with code L4R3A4X (excludes the Nook). Expires 3/11/12.

Whole Foods

I generally try to stay away from Whole Foods during lunchtime due to the lines, but today I got a deal from American Express: $10 credit with a $50 purchase with my Amex card at Whole Foods. If you have an Amex, you need to register for this deal. I believe the offer ends 3/31.

Oh man, the lines were horrendous, but at least the weather was nice.

I was very upset to find out Whole Foods still had not restocked the yummy Butter marshmallows that are like $8.99 a small bag. Am I the only crazy person who loves them? They are pricey but oh so worth it. Guess I'll just have to satisfy my marshmallow craving with a Peeps fix. (but Peeps are coated with sugar and contain so much coloring!)

The Buffalo Chicken Fingers from the hot food section are A++. Spicy and still crispy after an hour in the take out container. $6 for about six chicken fingers. Finger lickin' good.

As for the salad bar, the tofu salad and cheese mashed cauliflower are what I recommend.

I tried the Blissinger's Pink Grapefruit With Grapeseed Gummy Pandas. Grapefruit gummy bears! Yum! They could make it even better by coating it with sour sugar.

I also got a pack of Brad's Raw Leafy Kale. Tastes crispy, cheesy and nutty, not bad for kale.

Stay away during lunchtime or you wil stand in line for a long time!

Del Posto Restaurant Review

Del Posto Restaurant
85 10th Avenue  New York, NY 10011
(212) 497-8090

My goal this year is to try as many Michelin star restaurants as possible and not eat at the same places so often. I eat at a local sushi restaurant so much that they know me by name.

I made the reservation at Open Table and Del Posto required a credit card. If I didn't show up, they would charge my card $50. The restaurant was not very busy for lunch, so a reservation was probably not absolutely necessary. I mean, would they really turn you away if they had available tables and they had to pay all the overhead, I think not.

Del Posto is perfection. Everything was classy, including the live piano music. I brought my Chanel flap handbag just so I can put it on the famed Del Posto stool for the purse. Unfortunately, we sat in a booth.

So my friend and celeb stylist, Cici, was already at the bar getting a Bellini when I walked in. I chatted with Cici for a moment and the bartender greeted me enthusiastically. I don't drink and was eager to sample all the yummy food I had read about. While Cici was waiting for her drink, I went to check out the restroom, which are separate rooms complete with sinks, or water closets. One restroom was occupied, and the other one was dark. Luckily, I had my Flashlight app on my iPhone and I was able to find the light switch, which was not in the place where you would expect to find it.

We both ordered the Lobster Fra Diavolo appetizer, which was amazing. Huge chunks of lobster in a spicy tomato sauce garnished with bits of seaweed and parsley, and some kind of jelly. Omg, it was perfection, so fresh, the herbs and seaweed complementing the heat of the tomato sauce. Really well done. We were in heaven. The crusty and freshly baked warm bread served with lardo and butter were great with the lobster Fra diavolo.

I ordered the Scungilli pasta and Cici had the swordfish. I guess I should have taken the waiter's hint when he mentioned the most popular pastas and the Scungilli was not one of them. It was lemony and peppery, not what I expected from a seafood pasta.

The desserts were good, but I am really not a dessert person. There was a nice presentation of extra free olive oil gelato lollipops, warm doughnut holes, candied grapefruit and chocolate truffles. I loved the sweetness and tanginess of the fruit.

Loved the lobster Fra diavolo and bread.




Bread with butter and lardo



Amuse Bouche


Lobster Fra Diavolo






Scungilli Due

 


Swordfish

 




Olive Oil Gelato

 


Even the check is elegant!

 









Kori Restaurant Review

Kori Korean Restaurant
253 Church Street
New York, NY 10013
212-334-0908

I had planned to eat light today and go for a walk for lunch, but my friend asked me to lunch today at Kori and I could not resist.

We arrived at 11:45 a.m. because my friend had to attend a meeting later. The restaurant was empty that early. We ordered the lunch boxes which included a spicy romaine salad, fried dumpling, pickled onion, japchae, rice and choice of meat. I chose beef Bulgogi and my friend had short ribs. They served us complimentary soup, endamame and kimchee. Any place that serves free kimchee is tops on my list!

The beef Bulgogi was tender and sweet and the kimchee, red onion, japchae and rice complemented the meat perfectly.

I wish they would sell the japchae noodles as a separate meal choice for lunch. The waitress said that japchae symbolizes long life so it is special to eat japchae. This does not explain shy they can't sell more japchae for lunch.

We finished our lunch at around 12.30 and there was a line almost out the door. Kori is a poplar place in TriBeCa as there are few other Korean places in the area. The ambiance is trendy yet friendly.

My Cleansing Diet

I am taking a break from salty and fatty foods today. For someone used to great restaurant food, a juice cleanse is not doable for me. I get so cold in the winter. I made a pot of vegetable soup, which consists of celery, mushrooms, green beans and Bragg's Amino Acid to taste (it's like soy sauce but healthier). I also added a small amount of rice. After a bowl of this soup, I'm no longer cold. You can add whatever non-starchy vegetable you want.

I Need a Higher Metabolism!

I love to eat but as I grow older, my metabolism is slowing. There is a girl whose blog I follow, and she is a size two but seems like she eats all the time. But she looks like she is in her twenties whereas I am almost twice her age. I remember when I was in my twenties, I was skinnier too. So, I am on a mission to speed up my metabolism.

Here are some ideas:
1. Drink more tea

I ordered a whole bunch of samplers from Ten Ren tea.

2. Do more exercise

I got a lot of dvds to review. I also try to walk whenever I can.

3. Save my calories for food that I really want to eat.
Last night, we had some salad, stuffed artichoke and pizza. The pizza taste stale to me and I did not eat it because it was not worth the calories!

Christian Dior 5 Couleurs Designer Eye Shadow Quad in Green Design

I absolutely love this quad. It takes the guesswork out of eyeshadow. You just put the light cream shade all over your eyelids as a base, add the middle green color as a lid color and the dark green color to your crease to contour, then apply the glittery shade to your browbone with a finger. The dark liner is a bit dry but it creates a nice line with the brush provided. Makes sexy eyes!

Christian Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Sculpting Powder Makeup

I love, love this new powder! The powder feels very smooth and provides a good finish to the skin. I love the convenience of having a sculpting powder and highlighter in the same compact. I use the highlighter on the bridge of my nose to narrow it. The contour powder is good for under the cheekbones and the jaw, and is not too dark that it looks unnatural.

This compact is not cheap at $50, but I got a gift card from Neiman Marcus for buying Uggs and a Burberry sweater. And plus, with my $150+ Dior cosmetics purchase at Neiman Marcus, I got gift bag from both Neiman Marcus and Christian Dior.

Deep Thought: The M&M's Jacket

Have you seen someone in one of those M&Ms jackets? They make you look like a giant M&M. The worst is the yellow colored jacket, because it's so bright-- emphasizes the roundness. Do people actually want to walk around looking like M&Ms? This is the second time in two days I've seen those jackets.

Eating in Chinatown

Joe's Ginger
25 Pell Street
New York, NY

Joe's Ginger is good if you are craving soup dumplings and you do not want to deal with the crowds at Joe's Shanghai. I wanted to compare the difference in soup dumplings between Joe's Ginger and Joe's Shanghai. I ate first at Joe's Ginger, and the soup dumplings were divine. Tender skin, juicy, almost buttery filling of crabmeat and pork. Also tried the Crispy Beef, fried strips of beef with a spicy sweet tangy sauce that was pretty good. Also sampled the spicy beef noodle soup, which was not too good.  In fact, it was terrible.  They should not add jalapeno peppers to anything.  The other time jalapeno peppers ruined a dish, it was at Sushi Samba, when they added jalapenos to a lobster roll.  Ugh.  Why mess with perfection?  Jalapeno peppers should not be in any Asian food, and that's my humble opinion.

I witnessed a funny scenario while I was there. A white guy was eating lunch by himself, and they put him at the big round table in the back with two girls. When another table became available, the two girls jumped up as if to get away from him and to their own table. The guy ate peacefully by himself for a minute, until a couple, another white guy and Asian girl walked in and sat at the round table. The lone guy looked sad eating his big bowl of noodles all by himself in the corner, sitting with two strangers at the round table. So, this is what you need to deal with if you want to eat in Chinatown.Ok, back to the Joe's Shanghai comparison. I ordered a take out of the soup dumplings at Joe's Shanghai, and they tasted pretty much the same, except nothing tastes as good as in a restaurant. So, here's my verdict. The soup dumplings at Joe's Ginger are the same at Joe's Shanghai, except Joe's Ginger is less crowded. Another observation: sometimes, the waiters put the checks on the table before they are requested. This is kind of rude. They also do not take credit cards, so it always feels I spend more money in Chinatown. But then again, this is what you need to deal with if you want to eat in Chinatown.

Soup dumplings at Joe's Ginger



Crispy beef



The Spicy Beef Noodle Soup



My Purchase at Beauty.com

My pal, Cici, who is a fabulous hairstylist and artist, told me about Oscar Blandi's color wand to cover my few strands of gray hair.  OMG, I am so upset about the gray hairs!  Cici told me not to use box hair dye found in drugstores because they have harsh chemicals, and she will color my hair when she sees me again.  I found that Beauty.com has them in stock in all colors, and there is a promotion going on.

Make a $100 purchase and receive a free Erin Fetherston train case filled with samples:

• $10 Beauty.com Gift Card
• Smashbox® Photo Finish® Hydrating Foundation Primer
• Boscia® Oil-Free Nightly Hydration
• Stila® FULL SIZE Eye Shadow Compact, Cloud
• Supersmile® Whitening Introductory Kit
• Murad® Acne Clarifying Mask
• bareMinerals® Pretty Amazing® Lipcolor, Bravado

• ALTERNA® BAMBOO Style Boho Waves Tousled Texture Mist Jane Iredale® Tantasia™ Self Tanner Traditions by Nick Chavez® Yucca Root Shampooing Cream Bvlgari® Refreshing Towel Too Faced® Tinted Beauty Balm H2O Plus™ Face Oasis™ Hydrating Treatment Crabtree & Evelyn® Avocado Body Lotion

  I put my order in and received it in two days!  Here are the photos.  I love the train case-- perfect for my jewelry and love letters.  My favorite is the bareMinerals® Pretty Amazing® Lipcolor in Bravado.  It makes the lips full and pretty.