Life | fabliss

Little Siam Thai Food | West Hills, CA

little siam is a great little thai spot on the west side of the valley.

the one dish that makes it stand out from the rest of the thai joints is definitely the exotic spicy fried rice (pictured above). it’s spicy and extremely flavorful (basil makes everything great). so when we come here…the waitress already knows what are going to order. hence this picture of my family reading the menus is just ridic. what are we even reading?

the other great things we always order:

pad see ew (beef) – great dish here.
pad thai – it is good here (definitely better than a lot of other places in town. my pet peeve is when the noodles fall apart because it was over cooked or when the pad thai color is not slightly orangish). however, i wouldnt say it is the best thing they have to offer.
thai tea (large) – they arent joking when they call this thing large. ($3.50 no bad).

on special occasions we order:

siam fish – white fish fillets dipped in batter and deep-fried topped with special chili sauce. this is a great, great dish. its under manager’s special. ($11)
red curry / or yellow curry
thai bbq

relatively small place with friendly service. they remodeled a few years ago so decor is a little more up-to-date and very clean. pretty cheap, reasonable portions. they did reduce their serving size since i first started coming here but it will still fill you up.

i love this place.

Little Siam
22811 Saticoy St
West Hills, CA 91304

By vivilinh | June 29th, 2013 | Family, Food, Restaurants | 0 Comments

Wine Tasting | Santa Barbara, CA

so when it got a little sunnier, warmer…we took a mini trip to santa barbara to go wine tasting. first stop: paula’s pancake house in solvang for some breakfast.

we ordered the ortega special. roast beef, jack cheese, green chili on a sourdough bread. it was ok. we also ordered the paula’s special danish pancakes topped with apples and fresh whipped cream. this was my first time eating a danish pancake. it was pretty much a lighter pancake! i really enjoyed the texture. wished the the whipped cream was a little sweeter (it was on the bland side) and next time would definitely order berries…not apples.

paula’s pancake house
1531 mission dr
solvang, ca 93463

based on a brochure we picked up and some good ol’ interest research, 4 vineyards per day was considered plenty. 4 vineyards was definitely the magic number. it was the perfect amount of time at each one just lounging and learning about wine. here’s where we went:

imagine wine
carr winery
roblar winery (because it has some food)
brander winery

first stop: imagine wine. met ross. learned about wine, his family, his start, local art, and drank some pretty good wines. we loved it. the tasting room looks like an art gallery. lots of natural light. wine tasting is $10 and you get to try 5 wines.

fell in love with the chadonnay and bought some bottles. oh, one of their wines is called the panty dropper (we know, we felt the same way) this was a great start to the day. we would recommend coming here for sure. say hi to ross for us.

imagine winery
3563 numancia st #103
santa ynez, ca 93460

next stop was next door to carr winery. wine tasting room was darker, colder, dark woods high ceilings and a shuffleboard (yes!). our host was pretty awesome. wine flights were $10. not to mention, they also have wine on tap. a pretty cool place (also on the younger side) to just hang out and enjoy wine with friends.

carr winery
3563 numancia st. #101
santa ynez, ca 93460

we picked roblar because they had food w/ wine pairing. we definitely needed food at this point. gorgeous place. we sat next to the fire place on some comfy couches and enjoyed some food and wine.

we went with the trio package ($20) – tastings of three featured wines paired with three hors d’oeuvres. we liked the wonton, pork was dry and the pears were ok. for the four of us, we just ordered two packages. this was definitely enough.

we couldnt resist. we had to take jumping pictures in the beautiful vineyard.

very pretty winery. would we come back? probably not because there are so many other wineries we would want to try. the wine was ok. nothing very memorable (we didnt buy any here). food was ok. you would definitely be going here for the atmosphere.

roblar winery
3010 roblar ave.
santa ynez, ca 93460

last stop: brander vineyard. we spent quite some time here taking pictures because the property itself is very charming. classic flight with a logo glass $10.

we loved the staff. very friendly and helpful. wine was good. they are known for their sauvignon blanc. we were fans.

i would definitely come back to you, brander vineyard.

brander vineyard
2401 refugio road
los olivos, ca 93441

it was nice getting away…and wine is always better with friends. thank you, santa barbara.

By vivilinh | March 18th, 2013 | California, Food, Friends, Restaurants, Santa Barbara, Travel | 0 Comments

Mammoth in the Winter!

it’s a level 5 friday!! hope everyone is enjoying their friday!

so, this was our second time in mammoth during the winter (we are in the process of learning how to ski). we definitely lucked out on the weather! (i love playing with my dslr in mammoth!) here are some awesome shots during the weekend.

have a good weekend!

By vivilinh | February 15th, 2013 | Friends, Life, Mammoth, Photography, Travel | 0 Comments

Happy Lunar New Year! Hello, 2013

happy lunar new year to all those who celebrate it! this year, my two fabulous cousins and i decided to take on throwing a new year lunch for our family (ahem, all 31 of them). we thought that it was time to take on the traditions of our grandparents and our parents. we cooked the main dishes: thit kho (vietnamese caramelized braised pork belly and eggs and coconut juice), curry, and soup mang cua (vietnamese asparagus crab soup). and we went crazy decorating the house with red and gold! here is a glimpse of our festivities!

as you can tell, there was a ton of food (not all the dishes are even pictured here). while making/planning everything, we realized we dont know how our moms do it (every single year)! so please meet the women in our lives! strong, amazing women who we learn everything from!

happy new year, from our family to yours!

By vivilinh | February 13th, 2013 | Cooking, Family, Food, Holidays, Life | 3 Comments

Our New Year – Japanese Style (Oshogatsu)

hello, oshogatsu (new year)!

each dish has a different meaning-good health, happiness, prosperity, etc. a huge, huge thank you to my sis-in-law/chef (check out her site, here) for preparing this pretty spread for new years! (oh, yes! we get to eat this every year!)