New York is known for its Pizza, and it is definitely one of the best in the nation.  But!  Move aside New York!  Because New Jersey Pizza is in town!  Donna’s Pizza, located on 404 Broad Ave Palisades Park, NJ, is THE BEST PIZZA in our minds.  New York Truckers would drive out here just to get a bite of this tasty pizza!!!

picture taken: 3/28/09

Reference: Alex’s Personal Blog

So, I’m in NYC on my way to meet my bro.  I had an hour to spare, so I decided to explore the city and I ran into a huge Hello Kitty statue.  What the heck?  This statue is located in the Lever House court, and was created by Tom Sach.  He didn’t get permission from Sanrio to build it but according to New York Magazine, Sach, “I think it’s better to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission.”

picture taken: 3/24/2009

Reference: House of Kitty Blog, Alex’s Personal Blog

It’s that time of the year again.  Well, taxes, yes.  But more importantly, it’s the cherry blossom season.  Seattle is beautiful during this time, so I took a snapshot of this scene.

picture taken 4/4/09

Oh yeah, one more thing.  I was driving back from the mall and I saw this freaky thing.  What the heck is it?  You tell me, buddy!   Don’t you just love low-budget advertising?

picture taken 4/4/09

Reference: Alex’s Personal Blog

Why can’t we just get along like the folks at REDHOUSE?  Check out this funny video clip on how they do it.  *Thanx to my buddy, BC, for forwarding me this clip.

So, how would I look like if I were a Vulcan?  Well, now we know…  Now we know…

Reference: Alex Choe’s Personal Blog

My father was in the army, and luxurious food was not readily available out on the field.  Common meals in the field included instant noodles and Spam (provided free via the US Army).  There was, of course, kimchi.  So, the soldiers would combine all these ingredients and whatever else was left over to create a dish that is now known as BUDEH CHIGEH, which means ‘Army Soup‘ in Korean.

Ingredients:
1) Leftover Kimchi
2) Instant Noodles
3) Spam
4) Chilli pepper powder
5) Onion
6) Bacon
7) Udon Soup powder
Hondashi powder

Optional Ingredients:
1) Vienna Sausage – my dad loved this.
2) Tofu
3) ANYTHING!!!  BUDEH CHIGEH calls for no specific ingredients other than leftover kimchi and instant noodles.  The rest is up to you.

Procedure:
1) Add instant noodles to boiling water.  Add more water than usual because once all the ingredients go in, the soup will thicken.  Usually more water is added to keep it soupy.
2) Add the rest of the ingredients.  Don’t forget the soup base powder that came with the instant noodle.
3) Adding udon soup powder and hondashi powder makes the soup more mild.
4) Add chilli powder if you want it spicy.  That’s all there is to it!

Reference: Alex Choe’s Personal Blog

Kalbi means “ribs” in Korean, and it is a very representative dish of Korean culture.  There are numerous forms of marinate and they are characteristic to each cook.  Today I attempted to add spiciness to this dish.

Ingredients:
1) Kalbi (short ribs)
2) Seasame Oil
3) Soysauce
4) Sugar
5) KoChuJan (Korean Hot paste)
6) Chill pepper powder
7) Onion
Green onion (negi)
9) Pepper
10) Garlic

Optional Ingredients:
1) Mirin – adds subtle sweetness without use of additional sugar. Its liquid consistency ensures equal distribution through the marinate
2) Lemon Juice – adds the lemon aroma and little acidity
3) Red wine or Cooking Sake – softens the meat and adds the good alcohol smell
4) Chinese soy sauce – a stronger and more flavorful than Japanese/Korean soy sauce
5) Thai Sauce or Sweet&Sour Sauce – gives meat that sweet tangy flavor

Procedure:
1) it’s simple. Simply add the above ingredients to the meat in a bowl, and marinate it for at least a day. This time frame also the sauce to penetrate the meat to give its full taste. The important ingredients are sesame oil, sugar, and soy sauce. This is the foundation of the marinate. Adjust other ingredients to your liking (i.e. Hotpaste for spiciness) .
2) After one day, just cook the meat. that’s all.

Oh snap!  Watch out! GRUDGE is after you!!!  Well…not quite.  Check out this home video of me imitating the famous GRUDGE scene.  I need a life.

Did you know that my brother is the real Karate Kid?  Here’s my bro training for upcoming Karate tournament.  Mister Miyagi, whatcha gonna say?  “Wax on, Wax off…”

BOO!!!! Happy Halloween!!! I hope everyone had a scary one! btw, that’s me wrapped in toilet paper. Can’t see! and can’t breathe! Need to use the bathroom!