The Sundry Tomatoes

DATE: Quite Awhile Ago LOCATION: Santa Barbara Shellfish Company 230 Stearns Wharf Santa Barbara,CA 93101 If you’re ever out in Santa Barbara and make your way to Stearns Wharf, head straight over to Santa Barbara Shellfish Company and write your name down on the clipboard in front, because the wait for this place is long. Then take some time to stroll the pier, maybe grab a scoop of ice cream and enjoy the lovely sunset. There’s no waiting room inside the place, so be sure to also pack a light cardigan or jacket as you wait outside on the pier for your party to be called. I’m glad we were troopers and stuck out the wait, because I’m about to tell you what was so AH-mazing about this place. Usually I like to save the best for last but I really can’t, so here it goes. Best New England Style Clam Chowder!!! It’s a sad irony that one of my favorite New England clam chowders ever was in California. But it’s true. It had the perfect chowder consistency and texture, no...

Hello my foodie friends! Happy New Year and Happy Valentine's day and all that junk. My buddy is in town this week and we have definitely hit up some nifty nosh spots, and I'm back to tell you all about it. First up a Texas staple: Whataburger . Fail. That meat patty was so floppy and thin! I like my burgers thick. This burger is 90% bread and toppings and 10% meat. no no and no. Where was the beef!? The fries were boring and generic. Only upside, the bill was dirt cheap. Ah well, live and learn on that one. On the other hand, a few days later my buddy and I had JewBoy Burger food truck and that was much tastier. I ordered the Jewboy Burger because I'm boring with burgers and like it served the most classic way available. This has meat I could actually get a measurement on and seasoned like a good home-made burger. The bread was a little bit too big and I don't like it when my last 3 bites just bread and ketchup. Last one or two bites of bread are okay, 3 is...

DATE: Summer 2015 LOCATION: Jeannine’s Bakery 15 E. Figueroa St. Santa Barbara, CA 93101 As we said goodbye San Diego and moved on from LA (and Santa Monica), we said hello to Santa Barbara. After being in those fun-filled, active and hopping SOCAL cities, Santa Barbara was a more leisurely paced and quiet town. So quiet and tame, that this seemed to be a bit of a sleeper on our trip. But looking back, Santa Barbara held a lot of good moments, photos and memorable foodventures. Fun tip: the Santa Barbara County Courthouse is a beautiful Spanish Colonial revival building, with lovely architecture and gardens, this place would make for a great wedding. Which there was one going on as we were exploring the grounds! But anyways, this is a food blog so onto the food! Strolling around downtown Santa Barbara was glorious, with its Spanish Colonial influenced buildings and street after street full of places to shop and eat. We decided to stop at a cute corner with al fres...

DATE: Summer 2015 LOCATION: Katsuya 11777 San Vicente Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90049 Unfortunately, I cannot remember exactly what I ate at Katsuya , a place named to have the Best Sushi in LA . But it's no wonder why Katsuya has been given this title. With a  master chef serving up Japanese dishes in a  modern, artful and trendy spot, makes it a sought after hot spot with a long wait if you do not have reservations. Although I may not be able to tell you exactly what I ate here, I can at least show you every tasty morsel I managed to capture from the omakase menu. This chef's tasting menu was totally nosh-worthy and surprisingly filling. That is not to say I didn't wish I had another bite of some of the delicious tastes put in front of me! Whether you are a sushi lover or a basic sushi noob, Katsuya is definitely well worth it and  great for date night.   Bottom Line: Be bold and go for the omakase. The chef's tasting menu really does give you a taste...

DATE: Summer 2015 LOCATION: Blue Plate Oysterette 1355 Ocean Ave Santa Monica, CA 90401 During our time in LA, we spent a lot of our time in Santa Monica. There’s just something about the boardwalk & beach life that I love. Life can be crazy and chaotic, so whenever I can retreat to the fun, simplistic pleasures of life, I will gladly indulge in it. Somewhere during our days at the Santa Monica Pier, biking to Venice Beach and soaking in the beach life, we made our way to Blue Plate Oysterette . Not too far from Santa Monica pier on Ocean Ave, this place was a casual but classier change from the wings and funnel cakes we had been gorging on. The place definitely speaks to me, since it's all about fresh seafood with a New England vibe. It wouldn’t be right to go to a restaurant named Blue Plate Oysterette and not get ourselves a plate of oysters. We did another East Coast vs. West Coast comparison. On the East Coast side, we had our all-time favorite Blue Po...

DATE: Summer 2015 LOCATION: Pink's Hot Dogs 09 N. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, CA Hello again, foodie followers! I have to apologize for the severe lack of food blogging, it’s been quite a busy year. It’s been a year since my West Coast adventure back in August 2015, and I still have many more food ventures to share from it… Not to mention my fellow Sundry Tomato, Esther , will be taking part of this blog to the south, with a focus on Austin, Texas! But fear not my NYC foodies, I will eventually return this to our NYC home base once the West Coast Eats edition is complete :) Or I’ll try to sprinkle a few in here & there. (Oooh sprinkles) So on a sunny LA day, we decided to stop for an in-between meals “snack” at Pink’s Hot Dogs , a Hollywood Legend Since 1939. Pink’s is a very casual but iconic spot where you walk and line up outside, and once your food is ready, grab your tray and head to the back and pick any table. We stood on line for about a half-hour roughl...

DATE: July 2016 LOCATION:  Taco Flats BURNET ROAD ATX Hey Everyone! I've finally moved down to Austin  permanently  and basically I'm a New Yorker pretending to be an  Austinite !  I live down the road from a place called Taco Flats that the boy and I have been eyeing for a while. For some reason I just wasn't all that excited about the menu because I thought Torchy's was it for me. But he kept insisting and so I finally gave in and we stopped by for brunch. And I don't want to say he was right, but he certainly wasn't WRONG.  So here's what I had: Black & Green  grilled jack cheese, refried black beans, scrambled eggs, guacamole, grilled onion  and   Mister Popeye  spinach, fried egg, pico de gallo, avocado  At first glance the black and green looks a little bit like diaper contents, but I assure you, what this really is, is a Mexican grilled cheese!  That little bi...