2021 December
Blog by: Maelynn Le
All photos were taken by Maelynn Le
Photo: San Diego, CA
Photo: Los Angeles, CA
From December 3rd-6th, I went to San Diego and Los Angeles, CA to celebrate my birthday weekend. It was honestly one of the most exciting, exhausting, and memorable trips I have ever done! I have gone down to San Diego once before with my family and Los Angeles a few times but it has been a while since then. I loved my experience in both of the cities I went to and the memories I made are the ones that will be never taken away from me. Of course, my favorite part of the trip was the food and I found some great food places in San Diego and Los Angeles I found that were super yummy and recommend you guys checking out!
Haurmama Noodles and Buns (San Diego, CA)
Photo: Koala bun; Strawberries and Cream
Located in the outskirts of Little Italy, Haurmama Noodles and buns are known for their (pretty obvious) Noodles and cute buns! Aren’t these buns so cute? I was so happy I checked out this place in San Diego! I got 3 of their sweet buns and the koala which has strawberries and cream were definitely the best! There was a perfect ratio of the dough and filling in the bun. When I bit in that bun, the strawberry was very creamy and it just tasted appetizing. I really recommend their sweet buns but I also recommend their Garden party ramen which is vegetarian. The noodles are kale and they had a vegetable ramen broth that made my heart warm! It was just mouthwatering and I feel in love with the ramen. The noodles had a great texture and the flavors were basic, but a great bowl of ramen for vegetarians out there!
2. Takoyaki Tantora (Los Angeles, CA)
Photo: Original, Mentaiko, and Ponzu
On December 4th, I went to Little Tokyo in Los Angeles, CA. One of the places I went to was takoyaki Tandora and I found them because of the Tray Guys on youtube. If you don’t know what Takoyaki is, it’s basically octopus balls made from wheat flour based and cooked in a molded pan. They tried and review this place and they thought this place was the real deal. Since I was going to LA, I wanted to stop by and try this place out. I tried 3 of their flavors and the Try Guys were right, this place is the real deal in Little Tokyo! My favorite flavor would the Mentaiko because the sauce I was in lobe with. I really wanted more of this sauce because it has a combination of sweetness and a spicy kick to the takoyaki. That sauce was everything so therefore, you must try the mentaiko because it was tasty.
3. Bae (Los Angeles, CA)
Photo: Mixed Feelings ( Charcoal Pineapple and Vanilla swirl with charcoal cone)
Bae has two locations: Little Tokyo in Los Angeles, CA and Houston, TX. Of course I had to try this place out in LA since I was in Little Tokyo. I‘ve been seeing people post about this black and white swirl on IG for a while now and I was curious what the black swirl specifically was. It turns out that was charchol pineapple which it sounded interesting . If you love a good pineapple dole whip, this taste exactly like it. The charcoal pineapple and vanilla swirl was such an interesting favor combination that it worked well with. To be honest, I don’t know what charcoal taste like but I didn’t really get any however, the pineapple and vanilla were very smooth. I liked it and would get it again.
4. Not Not Tacos (San Diego, CA)
Photo: Eggplant Parmesan, Mash Potatoes, and Tofu Mixed Veggie tacos
Located at the Food Hall in Little Italy, Not Not tacos serve up interesting interpretations on tacos. I think it’s unique and quirkey on how they take foods that you typically don’t see in a taco, and broke the rules of a taco! Typically, you don’t see any of these types of foods in a taco but I think anything can go into a taco if you use your imagination. My favorite one was the eggplant parmesan because the eggplant was soft, there was flavor in the marinara sauce which had a kick to it, and the taco shell was perfect. Everything about what the rules of a taco are, should be broken because almost anything can go into a taco.
5. Bobboi Natural Gelato
Photo: Agostino (Argetine Dulce De Leche and organic ripe banana)
This gelato place is also located in the Food Hall in Little Italy and this is the best gelato flavor and gelato in general I ever had! You guys need to trust me on this! The difference between gelato and ice cream are gelato is more of a creamy, smoother and softer texture that uses more milk and less cream. Ice cream is icier, more airy, and a bit denser. They both use similar ingredients but the texture is different. This place serves a great amount of typical Italian gelato flavors but this flavor in general really is the best. It’s dulce de Leche with organic ripe bananas and these flavors were really powerful. It was honestly love at first lick. When I tasted it, it was the smoothest and lightest gelato I ever had in my life. Compared to other gelato places, some of them were either too heavy, too icy, or not all of the flavors came through. This place is no joke when it comes to authentic gelato. Please try this gelato place out if you are in Little Italy!
6. Allegro (San Diego, CA)
Photo: Eggplant Parmesan, Potato Gnochii, and Rigatoni pasta with Parmesan cheese made in a Cheese Wheel Pasta
Aren’t these pastas delightful to look at and to eat? Allegro is owned by Chef Marco and he makes real deal Italian cuisine. I loved all of these dishes but really stood out to me was they have a cheesewheel pasta special imported from Rome Italy. It’s a 14 day old cheese wheel pasta and they toss the pasta in the cheesewheel so the pasta gets cheesy. The cheese is Parmesan and that was the tastiest Parmesan cheesese I ever tasted. It made the rigatoni (tube pasta) a whole lot tastier. I was stunned on how great it tasted. If you want authentic Italian food, make sure you check this place out! I recommend their cheesewheel pasta special! Add black truffle if you can!
7. Tuk Tuk Eatery (San Diego, CA)
Photo: Soy Noodles with vegetables
Need something quick to eat at Seaport Village? Tuk tuk Eatery is right there! If you want rice bowls, baos, noodles, desserts, or Boba, they have it all! This spot is great if you need a break from walking around. I would get their soy noodles because the texture of the noodles were great and the vegetables were cooked nicely. The flavors were just enough to complete the dish and everything ties together. I do also recommend getting their baos because the baos were fluffy and the sauces they put in the baos were perfect and mild. Great quick eat if you need to go somewhere, this place I would check out at Seaport Village!
8. Zucchero (San Diego, CA)
Photo: Pistachio Cannoli, Rasberry, Pistachio, and Vanilla macarons
Perfect way to end San Diego and this guide! You would be missing out on the Little Italy experience if you didn’t get a cannoli. (Added macarons because of photos but it tasted super well)! Loved the shells and the flavros of the macarons and would get them). Cannoli’s are a classic in Italy and they are the best sweet treat to end anything. The cannoli shell was crunchy and the filling was perfect! Perfect amount of cream on each side of the cannoli and the filling flavor was a nice amount of pistachios! Love the texture of the pistachios and it tasted like you were in Italy.
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