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Taste & See with the Family

Posted on July 4, 2012 by Ching under Family, Food and Drink.

When we found out that mom, Jenni, Sonnie Jay and Reuel were having lunch at Taste & See on Tuesday, Brian and I immediately checked our calendars to see if we could join them. Why? Because we love, love, love Taste & See and I figured mom was buying. I take free food whenever I can get it. LOL. Although, even free food is never free. You pay for it by getting fat. Blech. I’m going to have to hit it hard at the gym after today.

Anyway, I’m sure you’re looking for food porn so here you go…

This is my chicken pabellon wrap.

Sonnie Jay’s Philly is on the left and mom’s SSB is on the right.

Brian’s hamburguesa, which looks so yummy I wish I could reach into the computer screen and take a bite. I didn’t get a picture of Reuel’s Cubano, but you all have seen what those look like. It’s what Brian usually orders when we go.

Jenni had a Philly also, but they put it in a to-go box. She arrived late and mom didn’t know that she had taken the afternoon off. Mom thought that she’d have to immediately return to work and wouldn’t have time to eat lunch with us. Thus, the to-go container.

For dessert we had a couple orders of noodlini, which threw me for a loop because it doesn’t look like noodles at all. I’m not sure who came up with that name. LOL. It’s basically a deep fried banana spring roll, kind of like the Filipino turon but with a twist.

We also had cuatro leches cake, which I could eat an entire pan of in one sitting if left to my own devices. Brian would never allow that, though. Cuatro leches is like the tres leches dessert that you get in many Latin American restaurants. It’s almost a dessert staple or must have on your restaurant menu because people will inevitably ask for it. Anyway, Chef Jason uses cuatro not tres leches because he just has to one-up everyone. Ha ha ha ha!

I’m really glad that Sonnie Jay and Reuel got to experience Taste & See because it is one of our favorite places to eat in Wichita. Plus, every trip to Taste & See is an experience because of the whole open kitchen concept and the TV screens all over the place that show the chef’s every move. The whole Taste & See concept is so perfect for Chef Jason’s personality. He is a natural showman.

Sonnie Jay said the concept might not fly so much where they’re from in Norway because most chefs like their privacy. Not Chef Jason, though. He enjoys being the center of attention. You can’t hide this guy in a closed kitchen. It just wouldn’t happen.

Anyway, from what I’ve heard of Scandinavian food they cook pretty weird stuff like antelope and horse and other things that I wouldn’t even think of eating. I’m not sure I really want to see those dishes prepared. LOL. Perhaps a closed kitchen is the best way to go for some cuisines.

Mom, thank you for buying all of us lunch! It is always appreciated. And thank you to Chef Jason for making such delicious food! Brian and I will be returning for dinner sometime soon for sure.

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The Busiest of Saturdays

Posted on July 3, 2012 by Ching under Family, Life.

I’m so glad that we don’t have to work tomorrow because I could use a break. We were so busy last weekend that I actually had to drive myself around on Saturday. I took this photo while driving behind Brian on Kellogg. Don’t worry. Traffic was stopped. I wouldn’t mess with my phone while I’m driving. I know better.

Brian got up super early on Saturday to help his dad move some things to their storage unit. They wanted to beat the heat, but Brian also wanted to get done in time for racquetball. As for me, I had a date with one of my Zumba buddies and was due at Northwest YMCA for Mary Anne’s Zumba class at 9:30 AM. Even after I picked up my Scooter’s on the way, I still got there over a half an hour early. It worked out perfect though because I had to pay for my day pass and find my way around.

After the first Zumba class, I zoomed over to South YMCA for racquetball with the guys. Jay’s friend Jason, who we used to play poker with at Uncle Roy’s, was there so we got to play doubles. Jay and I made a great team and kicked butt. We played two games and won both. We finished the second game just in time for me to take Adriana’s Zumba class, which also happened to be at South YMCA. I didn’t have to drive anywhere since I was already there. It worked out great.

We had just enough time to meet mom at a house that we wanted to see after my second Zumba class. We were starving, but didn’t have time to stop for a bite. When we arrived at the house, Reuel and his wife Sonnie Jay were there. That was a nice surprise. They had just arrived that morning from Chicago and New York and Norway.

Reuel is my Norwegian cousin. He lives in Norway with his wife. They’re here in the US on holiday, or so the Europeans call it. Their first stop was New York. Now they’re in Kansas visiting us. Next up is either Vegas or San Francisco. They haven’t decided yet.

As luck would have it, none of them had eaten lunch yet either so we all ended up at Louie’s after we got done looking at the house. It was nice to sit down and catch up. After that, we had to run over to the Yoder Meats store at Central and Woodlawn to pick up some BBQ chicken for the cookout at mom and dad’s the next day. We had to pick up the meat on Saturday because YM is closed on Sundays.

As soon as we got home, we had to put the beers in a cooler full of ice so they would be chilled in time for Cory and April’s dinner party that night. In the meantime, Brian had to take off and run over to Jay and Becca’s to help them set up a pool that they purchased for their cookout/party on Sunday. Jay needed help getting it set up before we all had to be at Cory and April’s that night.

I had a little bit of time to rest and enjoy my shower, which I deserved after along day of working out and running around. Brian got home with barely enough time to get a quick shower in. We arrived at the Phelpi’s late, but we weren’t the last ones at least. That honor belongs to Jay and Becca. LOL.

Cory and April were wonderful hosts. We had a great time on Saturday night. Thank you so much for having us over and feeding us all yummy fajitas! I ate way too much! I was trying to make up for all the calories I burned earlier in the day. Though I think I might have over-compensated.

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More Photos From Father’s Day

Posted on June 21, 2012 by Ching under Family.

Jenni finally posted the photos from Father’s Day that we took with her camera.

Mom and dad.

Jenni and me with dad.

Me with mom and dad.

Jenni with mom and dad.

Me with my in-laws.

Dad and Jenni.

Me and Brian.

This last photo is probably my favorite from that day. Thanks for sharing the photos, Jenni! I really appreciate it.

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Celebrating with Our Dads

Posted on June 17, 2012 by Ching under Family, Food and Drink.

We had a lot to celebrate today. We were celebrating Brian’s 38th birthday, Grandma’s 90th birthday, David and Donna’s wedding anniversary, and Father’s Day.

We picked AVI Seabar and Chophouse because we like their food and we figured it wouldn’t be busy.

We had a nice leisurely lunch and plenty of time to take photos and exchange gifts before our food arrived. Speaking of food, here are some photos…

Brian, his mom and dad, and Grandma all got free dessert for celebrating their special days. Brian picked chocolate cake, pictured above. It’s pretty good but I would recommend getting the cheesecake, which is what his mom and dad got. I’m not a huge cheesecake fan, but they have great cheesecake at AVI. I would actually eat it. Brian’s Grandma picked the banana nut cake, but asked for hers to go so I didn’t get to try it. I’m sure it’s equally delicious.

Anyway, if you want to avoid the hassle of long waits and crowded restaurants I highly recommend checking out AVI. The food prices are quite reasonable and the quality of the food is quite good. At least, the things I’ve tried. I had the shrimp and fish tacos today, which were delicious. Brian always gets the same thing every time. He loves their croque madame with a side of the hand cut fries with truffle oil. I have to agree with him on the fries. The fries at AVI are awesome.