#54 Los Angeles - Santa Monica Pier, Korean Town

Spent the last day in LA (christmas!!) at the popular tourist spot

Santa Monica Pier!

Along the boardwalk, there was stores, food, and most importantly A THEME PARK

Rides are paid on a per-ride basis at the ticket counter

I totally dig the pirate ship

Sat at the last row, held on to dear life and screamed my lungs out till the ride ended

Moving on to the beach...

Though we spent the entire day at the beach, 

the time spent was relaxing, calm and worry-less, 

a luxury we rarely have nowadays in our bustling city

After a whole semester of mugging in school both in-campus and at home,

I truly appreciate every minute of my trip

It was really sunny and warm despite being Winter

Everyone was in summer clothes!

Bring some extra clothing though, the day-night temperature differential is quite huge

Singaporeans showing off their American football skills ^^

BAYWATCH LIFEGUARDS?!!

surprisingly no, the lifeguard wasn't very baywatch-ish 

much to my dismay

The sun sets and it's time to leave the beach before it gets too dark!

Famished we were at the end of the day

With the recommendation of a friend, we headed down to a popular spot known as Korean Town

Lots of Korean specialty stores and restaurants in the area

Skewers - Scallop, Mushrooms, Chicken Gizzards and Shrimp!
wanted to be adventurous with the gizzards but they were so hard to chew :(

US-influenced large portion sizes *_* 

Stir-fry Octopus

Beef Bulgogi - this was good!

Kimchi with Tofu and Chicken

Seafood Pancake - BEST
Very Generous with the ingredients!
The ones I see in Singapore are always mostly flour

With this, we had our last meal in LA.

TOMORROW WE HEAD TO LAS VEGAS!

i believe it was a 4-5 hours drive :0

thank god I don't have a driving license yet 

#53 Los Angeles - Premium Outlets, Xmas Eve dinner at Gordon Ramsay's [+ a message for ❤ ]

Day 2 is Xmas eve and also SHOPPING DAY at the nearest premium outlets to LA

2 hour drive to the nearest outlet!

There are lots of such outlets locations throughout the states

Do take some time off both ladies and gentlemen, you'll definitely go wild

at the crazy cheap prizes of branded goods

such as Coach, MK, Kate Spade especially US Brands

Tip #1: be diligent and leave early! then you can grab the goodies and avoid the crowd

especially the traffic congestion and long queues

We left at 8am :>

-->> http://www.premiumoutlets.com/ <<--

Find the nearest store to where you are staying and the current promotions going on at that respective outlet

& maybe read up some reviews too (on Yelp or tripadvisor)

so as to better plan which outlet and which stores in the outlets is worth visiting

1 day is never enough to ravage an entire outlet trust me

Tip #2: Visit the customer centre and grab the voucher booklet

basically you pay about $5 for it and it consists on discounts which you can use at the various stores

very worth it despite the already crazy price slashes!!

Tip #3: Wear COMFY SHOES and clothes easy for removing 

more time-efficient when trying on clothes haha

both guys and girls will go crazy really

Lots of shopping and walking made us famished during the evening

and it was CHRISTMAS EVE so we decided to go all out

nice-guy Joel reserved a table for us at  Gordon Ramsay's restaurant in West Hollywood

it was about SGD150/pax for a 3-course meal 

if you are a fan of Hell's Kitchen, you probably would know about the famous GR Beef Wellington,

fillet mignon, scallops which constantly appears on the show

portions were small but the execution were pretty commendable

Appetizers

Charcoal Roasted Scallops

This was great! Scallops were absolutely not rubbery like how chef Ramsay would say

the pear chutney on the left was flavorful, aromatic and perfectly complemented the dish 

Black Winter Truffle Risotto

Can't go wrong with truffles and mushrooms 

fungus-lover :)

Main Course

Buttered Poached Lobster

Don't worry there's another chunk of lobster hidden underneath the shell

DELICIOUS. but it was a bit tough cutting the lobster in the bowl it was served in

Black Angus Fillet Mignon

Best of the Night.

The portion was pretty substantial and cooked just right to medium-rare

Tender and high-quality meat looking at you right there

Dessert

 

English Sticky Toffee Pudding

You can't go too wrong with chocolate, ice cream and sweets I think

the table said this was good but not mind blowing

Eggnog Creme Brule

I give praise to the pretty cookie but hearsay the eggnog was a weird variation to the original 

not a fan of desserts so no value-add from me ^^"

dang would have been really worth the $$ if Gordon Ramsay was there but that guy has 

too many restaurants and I doubt he would be working on xmas eve anyway

Nevertheless it was a great day spent with great company
& ticked 2 things off my bucket list!

- 1st Christmas Eve spent in USA

- Eat at Gordon Ramsay's restaurant

our first selfie together :) 

 didn't have the chance to take one before he flew off for exchange

I confess it was pretty awkward at first after not seeing each 5 months

hahaha but awkwardness never last long with 2 jokers :P

p.s. Happy 1st Month Anniversary

Thank you for taking such great care of me in US and even after we're back in S'pore

I'm so lucky to have a pillar of strength who exactly understands what I go through in school

by being there accompanying & providing guidance to me every day

School has never been lovelier

Hope I can continue and always be that ball of joy & calmness for you to rely on 

Love you Yuhua,

Kylie Y.

#52 Los Angeles - Beverly Hills, Cheesecake Factory and Sushi!

On 23rd Dec morning, I embarked on my virgin trip out of Asia!
to Hollywood's hometown, LOS ANGELES

In total, I flew 18 hours ALONE 

stopover at Narita Airport, Tokyo

In an attempt to avoid jet lag syndrome, I adjusted my watch and spammed movie after movie 

sleeping only when it is time for bed in LA

sort of helped I must say, was pretty energetic the next day though I still crashed early

1st glimpse of America's city lights

You know you are in California when you see palm trees everywhere

Had my first meal in the states at the famous Cheesecake Factory in Beverly Hills!

Debut photo of this handsome boy, Yuhua

He had been on school exchange in University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign for the past 5 months

and we maintained our relationship through Skype!

God Bless the inventor of webcam

Connection was pretty shitty though, only till the end did I discover the magic of Google Hangouts

many of the restaurants here has an open kitchen
totally love this concept. cos this way we can watch how the chefs prepare our food
all the hassle and bustle in the kitchen 

and basically there's always a bread basket at every table in a western-cuisine restaurant

the bread came warm and fluffy but contain the excitement about free food people

gotta keep the carbs down and save more calorie space for even better food!

My first encounter with the legendary large portion sizes here

Got a Moroccan chicken with barley drizzled with pesto off the healthier choice menu

but woah the portion sizes are HUGE still

though more protein is always welcomed for me 

vegetables were very sweet and fresh especially the juicy tomatoes *-* 

Yuhua ordered grilled salmon with mash potatoes and bacon

You can never go wrong with salmon

and what's a trip to the Cheesecake Factory without trying out their cheesecake!

ordered the best-selling house specialty Sour Cream Cheesecake

the mix between sour cream, sweetness and umami cheese is amazing

the crumbly crust wasn't too thick and held the cake well together

advise you to leave the whipped cream alone though 

never understood the usage of whip cream in food other than for decoration purposes

Remember to always give a tip or Gratuity (the formal term)  in addition to the amount stated on the bill!

As a general guideline, it's about 15%-25%. Give more if your group is big.

Seems alot but the service standards are seriously much better here

Staff are always smiling and friendly, and really try their best to cater to your preferences

Answering with a "of course" instead of  a straight no 

and most of the time they do deliver what you asked for

which I really appreciate 

because I always tend to ask to substitute carbo sides like rice and potatoes to vegetable options

the other cheesecake options available

Had a nice walk around Beverly Hills area after the meal 

catching up on all the lost time from the past 5 months 

so glad to visit US during the christmas/new year period

coloured lights dolled the already pretty city making it even more dreamy

like how I pictured US to be from the dramas and movies

the 1st day approaching its end as the sun sets

walked abit further down the street to meet the rest of the exchange students

who were in the same group as Yuhua to UIUC 

Tip: Download the Yelp app to find places to eat/visit/shop

it simply has everything you want to find, plus reviews and location settings

Dinner at a Sushi Bar

woah angmoh chef 

and the sashimi fanatic in me continues her legacy

this was freaking good! especially the salmon and hamachi (2nd from the right)

the dragon roll in the background is gorgeous. didn't manage to get a good photo though ^^"

ending my post on the 1st day of  my 14 day-trip with a group shot!

Really enjoyed the time spent with my new friends made and especially yuhua

p.s. Thanks for the roses darling <3