Cross-country Meat Fest, Day 2 – Juicy Lucy’s in Glenwood Springs, CO

We said our goodbyes to Vegas early in the morning, armed with Starbucks Doubleshots and early morning adrenaline. The I-15N leaving Las Vegas was a calm, desolate stretch of highway, a stark contrast to the hoards of sinners ferrying between Los Angeles and Las Vegas a day earlier. As we crossed into a 30-mile section of Arizona, the flat desert terrain rose steeply as we curved around majestic red rock formations. We wouldn’t see flat land for the rest of the day.

Cross-country Meat Fest, Day 1 – The Mad Greek in Baker, California

Whatever illusions of grandeur I had about driving from Los Angeles to New York were quashed quickly. But admittedly it was one of the best travel experiences of my life. Not once did I need to stop at a hotel, and through pure determination that only a food lover can have, I managed to eat great dinners each night. I present to you the first in a five-part series on my cross-country drive across America, with meat. First stop, Baker, California.

A Fine Dining Farewell: Saam at the Bazaar

When I first arrived here in 2002, a fresh-faced college student full of awe at the vastness of Los Angeles, food was the last thing on my mind. Up to that point, the fanciest meal that I had ever had was at a local steakhouse in South Bend, Indiana. It was a great steak in my 18-year-old opinion, cooked to a perfect well done and doused in plenty of A1 sauce.

Seafood Explosion: San Pedro Fish Market

If first impressions are everything, then San Pedro Fish Market may not have lasted more than the 50 years it has been in business. There’s a lot to be turned off by at first glance: the overwhelming crowds, long lines, a pervasive smell of raw fish, high prices, and pigeons and seagulls stalking your every move, waiting to pickpocket your shrimp at an unsuspecting moment. But, oh the food!

To Market, to Market: Santa Monica Farmers Market

In Los Angeles, the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmers Market is to foodies what The Ivy is to celebrity hounds. There is no better farmers market in the city, and for Travel + Leisure, perhaps no better market in the country. Big-name chef spottings are practically guaranteed. But celebrity chefs aside, what sets the market apart is the sheer variety.

Restaurants I won’t find in NYC: La Casita Mexicana

I can’t blame New Yorkers for being a big fail on authenticity, but the thought of shredded beef tacos on flour tortillas has only served to increase my appreciation for great Mexican food. As part of my 20 Things to Do, I resolved to eat the O.G. Mexican before I left, and that meant a trip to La Casita Mexicana.

Mango Guacamole + the secret to great guac

I don’t claim to be a guacamole expert, or to have some secret recipe passed down to me from a long-lost Mexican grandmother, but I have learned a few tricks that ensure that my guacamole gets devoured at every barbecue and party in about 10 minutes.

Qingping Market: Snakes and Tigers and Turtles, oh my!

As an old Cantonese proverb says, “Anything that walks, swims, crawls or flies with its back to heaven is edible.” In Guangzhou, China, capital of the Guangdong (Canton) province, the go-to place for all things edible is Qingping Market, a collection of dusty stalls that spans a 1 km section of Qingping Road and the surrounding streets just north of Shamian Island.

Polka Polish: Falling in love with white people food

My hometown of South Bend, Indiana had a strong Polish community and heritage, though as a precocious Asian American in a mostly white town, I was completely oblivious to this fact. (What can I say, all you white people look alike.) The extent of my Polish cultural knowledge was that 1) there was something called Dyngus Day where a lot of white people ate sausage, and 2) Polish food royally sucked, based on a wedding reception I attended many years ago.

Yee Shun Milk Company: Wishing you were here

It’s past midnight, I’ve got the munchies, and I’m debating whether or not a giant spoonful of Nutella is going to do the trick. Then I stumble across this old photo.

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