Bananas - Mexican Beverage Shop - CLOSED

When you walk into Bananas, your eyes immediately go into color over drive. From the bright red, green and orange wooden chairs to the fluffy bright yellow couches in the corner of the room to the multi-colored walls, it feels like several buckets of paint exploded and went every which way. In fact, one of the walls does look like paint splotches were thrown upon it.

Once your peepers adjust and you make it to the counter, you'll be able to order any one of several Mexican beverage specialties that are for sale at Bananas. There's the Diabilito Chilemon which is fresh squeezed lime juice blended with shaved ice, sugar, salt, chamoy and comes with a tamarind stick or the Escamocha, which is fresh squeezed orange juice poured over a mix of fresh fruits and veggies, including mango, grapes, cucumber and jicama. You can also order any variety of licuados, agua frescas, liquados, etc.

Hungry for something more substantial? Than order a torta and/or soup for a quick bite and if your sweet tooth needs satisfaction, there are desserts and sweets displayed either in the case or in baskets on the counter that will do the trick. If that isn't enough, you can also order fresh fruit baskets as gifts for business or pleasure.

For my first visit there, I tried the Banana Raspado, a shaved ice drink with banana syrup topped with freshly sliced bananas. While I liked the addition of the bananas, the drink was overall too sugary sweet for my taste.

I took home a Mango-on-a-Stick and yes, it really was on a stick as well as the Fruit de Gallo which had a mixture of mango, pineapple, watermelon, jicama and cucumber. Both were topped with either fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice as well as salt & chile and definitely appealed to my love of tart-sour-spicy flavors, especially when they're combined with fresh fruit and veggies.

When I went a second time, I tried the Cucumber Agua Fresca, a combination of cucumber, water and sugar blended all together. Now that was quite refreshing and something I'd definitely get again, especially on a hot summer day. Since I hadn't eaten yet, I decided to try one of their Tortas.

I settled for the Carne Asada Torta that was filled with refried beans, lettuce, tomato, cheese, avocado and jalapeno. I've never had a torta before, so I wasn't quite expecting the large roll this sandwich came in, but surprisingly, I ate the whole thing up. Suffice to say, I was pretty hungry.

I wouldn't say that this was the best sandwich I've ever had, but it was filling and other than the carne asada meat itself being a bit chewy, all the ingredients came together to satisfy my palate, especially the jalapenos which added a nice kick. :)

I think that Bananas is a great alternative to all the Jamba Juices out there. You get drink combinations that uses ingredients that aren't as mainstream and flavors that offer something a little more unique. I certainly will be returning and am looking forward to trying more items from their drink menu.

Bananas
1345 Huntington Drive

Duarte, CA 91010

(626) 359-6309

(Closed)

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601199326952/

Hunan's Restaurant in Alhambra - CLOSED

Last night, my dining group made a foray into Alhambra to try out the Hunan cuisine at Hunan's restaurant. We ordered a total of 9 different dishes and we definitely chowed down. For the most part, I'd say that the dishes were hit and miss. Either I really liked a particular dish a lot or there would be something I probably would never order again.

The three standouts for me included the following:

* Toss-Fried Mutton with Cilantro - The mutton was tender and upon taking the first bite, the dish didn't seem that spicy, but then it does give you a zing on your palate after swallowing. I also liked the grassiness of the cilantro.

* Toss-Fried Chicken with Hot Sauce - Everything just came together, the heat, the texture, the flavor!

* Steamed Hunan Style Spicy Fresh Fish (Whole) - This fish was awesome. The meat was moist and delicate plus the sauce really complemented the fish meat as opposed to overwhelming it.

The two dishes I would skip over are:

* Three Flavored Dumplings - Not much flavor here. In fact, these dumplings were beyond bland.

* Eggplant & Ground Pork with Pickled Vegetables - Normally, I love eggplant, but this dish was way too salty for my taste.

Overall, I would make my way back to Hunan's Restaurant again. There were a lot of items on the menu I wasn't able to try this time, but would like to another time and hopefully, I'll have even more hits than last night.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594325669815/

Hunan's Restaurant
903 W. Valley Blvd.
Alhambra, CA, 91803
626-289-0789

Dinner at L'Orangerie - CLOSED

For the last few years, I've been meaning to dine at L'Orangerie, but have never found the occasion to do so. With this restaurant landmark finally closing its doors at the end of this year, I finally decided that now was as good a time as any to check this place out. So last Friday, I visited L'Orangerie for the first and last time.

Upon walking through the green door from the valet to the front courtyard of the restaurant, I caught my breath at the very pretty sight before me. There were tables with white linen table clothes, fresh pink and white roses, and candlelight along with sage green wrought iron chairs with a curvy pattern. There was greenery everywhere from potted miniature fruit trees to ivy along the walls. At the end of the courtyard was a beautiful creamy white fountain that had a yellow glow of light at the mouth of the lion where water would normally be streaming out of.

Even the door to the restaurant was no ordinary door. It was a dark blue with a golden knocker and with arched windows above it made it seem larger than it probably was. As you enter through the front door, you're greeted by Sphinx-like statues guarding the entrance into the middle patio of the restaurant, which is where I was guided by the Maitre'd to await the rest of my party. Inside was just as beautiful with more greenery and white tablecloths, but instead of pink roses, white roses were the choice this time and of course, candlelight and crystal stemware were on the tabletops.

Once everyone arrived, we started perusing the menu and eventually placed our orders. Many of us ordered appetizers and that included me. Before the appetizers came, we were treated to an amuse bouche. It came in a little glass cup and it was three-layered. The bottom layer was eggplant, the middle layer was yogurt and the last layer was something sweet, but I can't remember what. It was a weird mix of flavors. I didn't care for it much and neither did most of the people in my party.

As for the appetizers, I decided to share an appetizer with someone else and we ordered the zucchini flowers with basil, tomatoes and olive oil with lemon. Believe me, I'm glad I shared because there's no way I would have been able to finish all four of the zucchini flowers, which is what comprises a full order. A nice thing that the restaurant did was to split the order onto two separate plates.

In regards to the zucchini flowers, while I liked the combined flavor of the acidity of the tomatoes and the slight bite of the basil, the dish as a whole was really mushy. The only time I've ever had zucchini flowers in the past were when they had been stuffed with cheese and deep-fried and those were delicious. Not that I expected the ones I ordered to be deep fried, but just the general limpness of the flowers were quite disappointing to me. They seemed overcooked.

For my entrée, I had the roasted breast of duck with Tonka beans, grilled zucchini and potatoes. I was really disappointed with this dish as well. The duck breasts were too chewy and the bean and veggie mixture left a funny after taste in my mouth, so I took a couple of bites and that was it. So far, it's been three strikes and dessert hadn't even arrived yet. For dessert, I ordered an assortment of 4 crème brulees: vanilla, coffee, amaretto and dark chocolate. Thank goodness for these crème brulees. They were so good. Creamy with lots of flavor. I think if I didn't have at least one good course, I would have been really upset. While enjoying our desserts, we also were treated to two trays of little mini dessert trays, which included cream puffs, a guava-tasting mousse and a few others. The presentation was pretty. Unfortunately, many of us were too full to enjoy them, so I ended up taking most of them home.

While the restaurant is absolutely beautiful, there were more misses for me than hits. The service wasn't that great. It seemed like we were always having to signal our waiter or the bus boy for things we needed. I already mentioned how I wasn't very happy with my food orders, except for the crème brulees. I don't know if the fact that the restaurant is closing down at the end of the year has anything to do with my negative experience there. Whether it is or not, it's too bad that a restaurant that I've always kind of put on a pedestal would come crashing down so hard.

Anyway, regardless of my less than spectacular meal, I'm glad that I was able to say a good-bye. At the very least, I'll have pictures of what was once a beautiful restaurant space and now will be able to share them with you.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594262567567/

L'Orangerie
903 N. La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90069
(310) 652-9770