I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone this Saturday (wow, tomorrow!) for the next NOLA Eats event at Little Tokyo Small Plates & Noodle Bar.  I have the finalized menu and I think everyone will be pleased with the selections.

I’ve received quite a few RSVP’s for tomorrow [...]]]>

I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone this Saturday (wow, tomorrow!) for the next NOLA Eats event at Little Tokyo Small Plates & Noodle Bar.  I have the finalized menu and I think everyone will be pleased with the selections.

I’ve received quite a few RSVP’s for tomorrow night’s event and even more “maybes”. If you’re a “maybe”, I highly suggest you let me know ASAP if you will be attending. I believe we will probably reach maximum capacity, as far as what I deem will be comfortable in the largest room.

The menu is perfect for eating throughout the night and there will be so much food! Vegetarians, there’s plenty to keep you interested. Meat-eaters, ALL the food, even the meatless items, are delicious. The price per person is $35, inclusive of tax, gratuity, unlimited sodas and a couple of alcohol selections.

SUSHI

• Fresh Salmon Roll
• Vegetable Roll (vegetarian friendly)

SMALL PLATES

• Crispy Fried Gyoza
• Vegetable Spring Rolls (vegetarian friendly)
• Tempura Green Beans (vegetarian friendly)
• Sweet Potato Fries (vegetarian friendly)

FAMILY-STYLE DISH

• Yaki Soba with Vegetables (vegetarian friendly)

ADULT BEVERAGES INCLUDED

• Sapporo Sake
• Sycamore Lane Pinot Grigio (or other selection chosen by me)

Any additional food and/or bar items can be ordered, but unless you pay cash at the bar, you will need to pay me upon ordering. I will be happy to place the order for additional food items on your behalf.

If you need to contact me, I always have my BlackBerry by my side. Here’s my info:

Leslie@nola-eats.com
Facebook.com/LeslieJAlmeida
Twitter.com/NOLA_Eats

Can’t wait to see you tomorrow night!

Oh! If you use Flickr, after the event, you can upload your pictures and share them with other attendees: Flickr.com/groups/nola-eats

Food isn’t just something I consume. I enjoy breathing in a dish’s aromas. Savoring each bite and decoding ingredients. Capturing an eye-pleasing arrangement with my camera. The latter, especially,  is what makes this post about the new Uptown Little Tokyo (aka Little Tokyo Small Plates & Noodle Bar) of exceptional length.

My adorably awesome friend Dorothy [...]]]>

Food isn’t just something I consume. I enjoy breathing in a dish’s aromas. Savoring each bite and decoding ingredients. Capturing an eye-pleasing arrangement with my camera. The latter, especially,  is what makes this post about the new Uptown Little Tokyo (aka Little Tokyo Small Plates & Noodle Bar) of exceptional length.

My adorably awesome friend Dorothy told me to come see her at her weekend gig, the new Little Tokyo on South Carrollton. Not wanting to pass on the opportunity to see Dorothy or miss out on delicious food, we aimed to catch lunch, but just missed it (and Dorothy’s shift), so we opted for dinner. Oh, darn. Now, for those who are looking for weekend lunches, they offer the menu until 4 pm even on the weekends.

Upon entering the restaurant, you can tell that this location caters to the “UniversityPlus” crowd. (That’s my lingo for the 20-something to 30-something demographic.) The music has been lively, the staff youthful and menu offerings different from the other Little Tokyo restaurants. More fun, perhaps? Yes, definitely.

Our server suggested my husband try the Ramune Soda, a carbonated Japanese beverage that isn’t for people with weak thumbs.

Only with the plastic tool that accompanies the soda are you able to enjoy the soda. The refreshing and bubbly beverage is only attainable after you (or your significant other/dining companion with stronger thumbs) depress the marble into the neck of the bottle. With great force and furious anger, you will be sipping on your soda in no time. My husband describes the flavor of Ramune as Crystal Pepsi meets bubble gum.

As much as I love fries, I would pass up a platter to dive into these tempura green beans and sweet potato fries. Both are served with a wasabi ranch dip, but it has just a slight bite, so even the kiddos can partake.

One thing you might not know about me is that I believe there is no such thing as the weather being too hot for a bowl of soup. If there are seemingly edible items floating in a savory broth, chances are I’m going to eat it and not ask too many questions. I was actually excited to learn that they serve ramen bowls. Have you ever met anyone that gets excited by soup?

You can customize your ramen to your liking. At this visit, I opted for the miso base and added chashu pork and hard boiled egg. At other visits, I’ve added extra green onions, which I think I prefer to the extra sprouts. I’ve tasted the mild and “little bit spicy” heat levels, but one day I’m going to be brave enough to order my ramen “gonna spit fire” spicy. Yes, that’s how the menu describes it.

For those wondering, the little white hard boiled egg white-looking sliver with the pink swirl is naruto kamaboko, a type of processed fishcake. It’s made from bits of white fish species, sort of like crab sticks. That is also a type of kamaboko.

Hard Boiled Egg = Crazy Delicious

Noodle Surprise!

In addition to my selections, my husband ordered the gyoza and chicken yakitori. Unbeknownst to me, gyoza is a popular accompaniment to ramen. I didn’t try any of the dumplings, so I can’t say much more than how appetizing they looked. I wasn’t blown away by the chicken yakitori, but I rarely order chicken when dining out. Even prepared perfectly, it’s still just chicken.

It’s virtually impossible to take my son to a Japanese restaurant and have him not order sushi. His favorites, which are done well here at Little Tokyo, are the fresh salmon roll and tuna roll. It is my understanding that they do not currently offer sushi during lunch service, only dinner.

Even after gorging ourselves on all that food, we just had to share a dessert. We ordered the mango ice cream, which comes drizzled in chocolate syrup. I would have preferred it so much more without the topping, but my son loved it. I haven’t met a kid that has turned down chocolate syrup.

We’ve been back to Little Tokyo several times since they opened a month or so ago. Most recently we celebrated Nolan’s fifth birthday. Management allowed us to bring our own cake (the Berry Chantilly from Whole Foods) and the staff went out of their way to make the night special. I had my husband bring Nolan to the bathroom to wash up, and when he came out, we all had microphones and sang “Happy Birthday” to him, karaoke style.

Oh, yeah. You read correctly. They offer karaoke rooms, equipped with flat screen televisions, high-end sound system and comfortable seating. And this, my friends, is where the next NOLA Eats event will be. So, save the date: Saturday, July 3rd @ 8:00 pm – ’til. I’ve got the largest room reserved for a very unique and probably very embarrassing night of food, cherry sake bombs and karaoke. Feel free to state your interest here, as I will be rolling out the invite and RSVP list very soon.

Once a year, they must die and we must eat them.

I know, I know. This post is a bit late. Between my day job and NOLA Eats, I’ve developed carpal tunnel, so I’ve been resting my right hand as much [...]]]>

Once a year, they must die and we must eat them.

I know, I know. This post is a bit late. Between my day job and NOLA Eats, I’ve developed carpal tunnel, so I’ve been resting my right hand as much as possible. Makes it a bit difficult to type. Anyway, let’s get back to the update, shall we?

So, Crawfish Boil 2010. What a tasty massacre that was. We had a great turnout at our hosts’, Lindsay and Keith, home. We bought the crawfish live from Big Fisherman Seafood on Magazine Street. Since most of the fun was had in eating, I will skip right to the pictures.

Lindsay had made some marvelous ice creams for us to taste. I don’t think anyone had fewer than two servings. My favorites were the lavender and the basil with strawberry lemon sauce. Yes, they were as scrumptious as they sound. As I’ve written before, Lindsay has a blog with all of her frozen creations, so be sure to check it out at ScoopAdventures.com.

P.S. – Please bear with me while I test several gallery plug-ins for the site. If anyone has recommendations for a simple plug-in that allows me to create multiple galleries within one post, I will love you for life.

Yes, details were finalized a bit late, but hey, I can only work on so many things at once. One of the perks of being a regular NOLA Eats supporter is you get first dibs on event availabilities. Thanks to those who have already sent their RSVP [...]]]>

Yes, details were finalized a bit late, but hey, I can only work on so many things at once. One of the perks of being a regular NOLA Eats supporter is you get first dibs on event availabilities. Thanks to those who have already sent their RSVP and payment! For those who would like to join in, I am maxing this event out at 30 guests, so get your RSVP in ASAP.

Your $15 gets you hot, boiled crawfish with the fixings, such as corn and potatoes. It also covers the cost of paper products, boil ingredients and extras, like cups, napkins, sodas and seasonings. If you are a vegetarian, but would still like to mingle, feel free to bring your own dish. This event is BYOB, and if you would like to bring any sides or snacks to share, be my guest. Our gracious hosts for this year’s party are Lindsay of ScoopAdventures and her husband Keith, so once I receive payment, you will receive the address to the private location in the Irish Channel. They have a lovely back yard, so we will be very comfortable with the accommodations, unlike a public space (won’t miss those hot, stinky bathrooms!).

Payments can be sent to me via PayPal at NOLA.Eats@gmail.com. When you send the payment, please include your name and how you heard about the event. I will use that email address to send you the location details, so if you don’t check that account, please make certain to include an alternative method for me to reach you. I’ve got a handy event widget over to the right of my website you can use to instantly add the event to your Google Calendar, if you like.

Disclaimer: For those new to NOLA Eats events, I don’t make money from them. It’s usually quite the contrary. I do it because, for six years, I’ve been able to spend time with people I’ve grown to adore. I budget carefully for events when asking for pre-payments, so if there’s anything left over after buying boil necessities, I would be happy to split and refund the difference. I truly work to make the cost as low as possible for my guests to make events more appealing. Unfortunately, if you RSVP for the crawfish boil and are unable to attend or change your mind, I will be unable to refund your money after I have ordered the crawfish. Any refunds made prior to the ordering will be minus fees as set by PayPal.

Back in February at the King Cake Tasting Party, I [...]]]> When people ask me what NOLA Eats is all about, I tell them about my blog, the dining events and the friends I’ve made. One aspect that I usually forget to mention is that the members of NOLA Eats also enjoy giving back to the community.

Back in February at the King Cake Tasting Party, I met Billy Brown, a member of the Digital Arts Service Corps, who is here to help with rebuilding St. Bernard Parish. Billy handles all of the graphic design and social media outlets for the Community Center of St. Bernard. I had never heard of the organization, so Billy was gracious enough to enlighten me. I was touched by the work CCSTB is doing, so I accepted an invitation to take a tour and see what goes on behind the scenes.

http://flickr.com/photos/ccstb

It was quite chilly the day I visited the Community Center of St. Bernard, yet the greetings I received from the volunteer staff were warm and friendly. Billy introduced me to several of the staff members that were there, including Iray Nabatoff, the volunteer Executive Director and Bethany Garfield,  Food Pantry Coordinator. You see, the CCSTB is a grass-roots organization with no funding for staff salaries. Much of the staff I observed were members of AmeriCorps, having left the comfort of their homes to help the citizens of St. Bernard Parish rebuild theirs.

The community center acts as a “one-stop shop” for area residents to take advantage of a plethora of services including legal assistance, food stamp applications, free clothing and help in filing for the Road Home program. In addition to these services, the center also provides a computer lab, telephones and use of fax/copy machines.

But that’s not all. The Community Center of St. Bernard also has a library, where visitors can have their pick from the selection of donated books. From January to December 2009, the center distributed 3,971 free books.

As many locals know, the residents of St. Bernard Parish are a tight-knit group. After the failure of the Federal levees in 2005, many of the Parish’s residents either moved or were forced out of their homes. One of the goals of the Community Center of St. Bernard is to provide a space where residents can socialize and relax. On the day I was visiting, staff members received some much-needed stress relief from an acupuncturist donating her services.

It’s truly amazing what the Community Center of St. Bernard does for its neighbors. In addition to these wonderful services, CCSTB is working hard to obtain the funds required to complete a kitchen to provide free hot meals. While they were prepared to open the kitchen sooner, inspectors would not allow it due to ventilation not meeting code.  For now, brand new professional grade kitchen equipment sits unused and unable to produce meals.

Their kitchen isn’t the only stalled project due to lack of funds. The community center has the appliances for a laundry room, but without the sufficient funds to pay for water and electricity, these services will not be provided.

With all of the good that the Community Center of St. Bernard can do, I was saddened to see the state of the point of my visit, the Mustard Seed Food Pantry. Even though some residents in Arabi, Chalmette and the surrounding areas are back in their homes or have found new housing in part to Road Home and other programs, many people still rely on this food bank as their major source of nourishment. In fact, the Mustard Seed Food Pantry distributed 257,959 pounds of food to 2,520 low-income families (that’s 6,656 individuals) in 2009 alone. On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, 11 AM until 2 PM, residents will line up and wait for their ration, as determined by how many members are in the household. While the pantry has good days and bad days, it was particularly barren when I visited.

This leads me to why I am writing about the Community Center of St. Bernard. As I wrote before, NOLA Eats is exhibiting at the upcoming Alternative Media Expo. Leo McGovern, the event’s founder and organizer, is allowing us to host a food drive to benefit the CCSTB and we are asking for your non-perishable food donations. If you will be attending the Expo, please stop by the NOLA Eats table and drop off as much canned, boxed and vacuum-sealed food items as you possibly can. I’ve been told that the pantry can really use vegetables and proteins.

If you cannot attend the Alternative Media Expo, the CCSTB will be hosting a fundraiser later that evening at the Circle Bar. The Food For Our Neighbors Benefit, where staff members will be raffling concert tickets, restaurant gift cards and stuffed robots (!!!), will get started around 6 PM. Free food will be served up and The Jazzholes will provide live music.

Thank you for reading this post, and I hope to see you out at the Alternative Media Expo.