Eat Drink Style Leaving for Las Vegas

Mexico City
June 8th, 2008

I woke up in the morning and saw Jeni next to me staring at her hand. As she turned her palm, shiny rays of light reflected off of it, and I could see her smile fluctuating from small to big. Last night, was a very special and emotional moment for us. It was her birthday, and also the day I got down on one knee, hands out and head up... asking for her hand in marriage. In a matter of 2.5 years, we went from strangers, food blog acquaintances, friends, boyfriend/girlfriend to fiance/fiancee. When we got back to Los Angeles, we experienced a total high that could only be felt when you know you've found the one for yourself. But then, we were faced with the daunting task of planning our wedding. I prayed for this day for a long time, but I dreaded the emotional/physical aspect of it. I did not want to see how Bridezilla she could get, nor did she want to see Groomzilla.

We decided that we would not be puppeteered by our parents. My mom being very traditional Chinese, and Jeni's mom being very traditional Vietnamese, we were worried that we would have to celebrate our union at some Chinese banquet restaurant. We did not want to see the red walls, dragon decor or hear the tinkering of chopsticks against the glasses on our special night. It just wasn't us. We definitely wanted to celebrate with our friends and family but we didn't want to start our life together with a 5-digit debt - that's ludicrous. We started looking at galleries in Chinatown and they were just too small. Then we checked out this place North of Chinatown called The Marvimon House, which was simply awesome. It had a New York feel to it, large enough to hold our party and great ambiance. Problem was, the package did not include catering, bartending, valet nor DJ. The thought of the costs was getting to be nauseating and this is exactly what makes/breaks a marriage before it even happens. But we reminded each other that we had to be true to ourselves and make the best out of what we could afford.

On the drive back home, we were quiet. It was obvious that we were depressed and that we would have to give in to a place like Marvimon and spend a good decade of our lives paying off something society has MADE you believe is the right thing to do. Everytime you're at the market, you're stuck in front of a magazine rack of bridal magazines. It was at that moment in the car when things would turn around for us.

Me: "J?"
Jeni: "Yes."
Me: "Let's not do it this way."
Jeni: "What are we going to do?" I paused, ready for her to turn away in dissatisfaction.
Me: "Vegas. Come on. Just us and our family. And we'll have a small reception with our friends when we get back."
Jeni: "Our friends will be bummed."
Me: "No they won't, it's what we want."

Instead of getting high-fived on the face, Jeni's face glowed with a smile and I knew it was meant to be. Hey, her mom did it that way, no way she could contest. We told our parents the same night and they were stoked for us, especially for not having to fork out mass amounts of money for a 10-hour day.

No no no, not in a casino with a singing Elvis and red carpet. Let me tell you how easy this was. We looked around a few casinos and found MGM to offer the best packages and was highly regarded on The Knot, a site for bridezillas of all shapes and sizes. Ok done. Where do we eat? Well, MGM has some of the most gourmet restaurants on the Strip including Joel Robuchon. Not surprisingly, this was the toughest part of our decision to get married in Vegas. We settled on Craft Steak since we had heard a lot of good things about it – plus we're fans of Collicchio's simple and homey style of cooking. And within a week, everything was set. We did all of this without getting into a single argument.

On Thanksgiving, instead of heading over to my aunt's for the 25th consecutive gravy fest, we were driving on the I-15 towards Las Vegas. My mom rode with us, Jeni's family in another car and my dad/sister/nephew in another car. This would also be the first time our parents would meet one another, so there was a bit of nervousness. But everything went smoothly and a few hours later, we found ourselves filling out forms in a sterile courthouse in Nevada. Good 'ol MGM included a limo driver that would take us to apply for the marriage certificate. What was funny was that there were NO PENS, only pencils with erasers on them. I guess people do realize things as their filling out the forms... like how drunk they really are. But we didn't use the eraser once.

This lady behind the counter was NOT happy about working on Gravy Day. We paid our $50 and we were out of there... halfway married. We hugged our parents and headed back to the casino for dinner. We didn't end up staying too late because tomorrow would be the big day.

Besides the fact that this was our wedding day, Las Vegas is always an excuse to do things you wouldn't normally do. Drink till 8 am, hit on a 20 in Black Jack, or like spend $100+ on BREAKFAST. Only one thing came to mind for breakfast, the lovely Bouchon by Thomas Keller. I've eaten here at least 3 times and have never been unsatisfied. Cheers. I started with some white wine and a mimosa for Jeni.

Various Oysters
Cheers. I started with some white wine and a mimosa for Jeni. By the time these guys came out, I think we were already happy due to zero food in our stomach. But nothing a few Malpeques and Kumamotos couldn't do for you.

Seared Scallops with Mornay Sauce
I wish seared scallops would just grow on trees. It'd make life a lot easier for me if I could simply pluck these tasty bastards and place them in a bucket for later consumption. These were served with a mornay sauce which is made of heavy cream, gruyere cheese and parmesan cheese. This is fabulous.

Thomas Keller's Bacon
Most places when you ask for a side of bacon will give you 3 measly pieces. Not Mr. Keller though. At $5-6 you're going to get what you're paying for... a plate of crisp pieces. These were fried beautifully but flat on taste. That's ok Mr. Keller, no need to flog yourself.

Sourdough Pancakes
Oh my. Sourdough + Pancakes = one happy, buzzed bride. I don't know what else to say but these are just done perfectly.

We staggered out of Bouchon with a nice buzz and jolly belly. While Jeni went to get ready at the salon downstairs, I went down to the tables and played some tables. When I gamble, there's no point in thinking about how I would play a hand... I might as well just walk up to the tables, give them mymoney and say "Thank you, that was a lot of fun." And walk away.

It was now 3 pm, with under two hours before our ceremony would take place downstairs. There was one thing we didn't do before leaving for Las Vegas... informing our friends. As a surprise, we sent everyone announcement cards a day before we left. We laughed at the various reactions people would have but again, this is what we wanted to do. And they would be more than happy for us. And slowly, the texts and facebook comments started rolling in haha.

"Very sneaky."
"So you guys, to do this."
"Bastards."
"I would so be there in Vegas right now."

Its customary for the groom to not see the bride all day, but someone had to photograph her getting ready. I could tell she was excited yet relaxed – we were both very happy. 4:30 pm, we headed down to meet our families.

And here is my second love of my life, standing in at 3' something and 40+ pounds, my nephew Taylor. He was dressed adorably in a shirt, vest and pants. He had no idea what we were doing and seemed to be more involved with his pack of chocolate Pocky.

There was a total of 10 people there, in a room that could hold 60. I admit, it was very plain, but nothing could be more special than having our parents and siblings there. I spoke with the officiant for a few minutes about the procedure and took my place at the front of the altar. I looked at my family, and they smiled back in approval for everything we had chosen to do. And suddenly, the music started to play. I could see two silhouettes behind the frosted doors as they opened. There was Jeni with her arm locked with her dads. She immediately turned red and started to cry as her dad kissed her on the cheek. I took her hand and wiped her tear away as we faced the offficiant.

I really can't remember what was said or what we had to repeat, but I just remembered how beautiful she looked. I do remember hearing... "you may kiss the bride". Within 15 minutes, we were done. It was easy and most importantly, special to us. We headed up back to the room with the family and popped some champagne.

Besides staying at the hotel we would have the ceremony in, why not make it even easier by selecting a restaurant from their fancy list of places to dine at. We choose Craft Steak because it had the best price and offered a family-style meal.

Yes, the food was simple and tasty as it looked. Everyone enjoyed the meal.

To this day, I still would not change the way we did things. It was our night and we made a promise to do as we pleased. And everything went well. I can't tell you how many of my guys friends now hate me and envy an understanding wife like Jeni. Wedding in Las Vegas. The End.

Back in Los Angeles, we now had only two months to plan our wedding party because we wanted it to happen right after our Honeymoon in Brazil and Argentina. Good things happen when you let creativity flow in. With the help of Jeni's brother, Jeremy, the three of us began collaborating on our own... not with some gallery owner who got a money boner when you said the "w" word. He knew a friend who ran a small design shop in Chinatown who referred us to Remy's On Temple, a quaint gallery in Filipinotown/Echo Park. The place had everything we wanted, space, back area and an ambiance that matched our taste for an urban lifestyle. Not to mention, within our budget. Done.

Now what do we eat? The gallery space was meant for standing and walking, not sit-down tables. To stay true to what we loved, and what everyone else loved, we decided to hire a taco lady. We tried Taco Arizas, where we had our first date, the popular Taco Zone on Alvarado/Sunset and even a random taco shop. But I had remembered my coworker hiring a place in Highland Park called My Taco. We went there for a tasting and the daughter of the family was very impressive. She had printed us a folder with an estimate and had her t's crossed and i's dotted. The food, of course, was done super well. The recipes are from her parents and brother, who is now a line cook at one of our favorite restaurants in Glendale, Palate. Done.

To cut down on costs, I designed the invitations, Jeremy would DJ and Jeni would take care of any decorations. I had also finished taking some motion design classes and this came in time for creating a slideshow. Done.

For decorations, she used her invaluable skills from working at Sanrio in high school to come up with cute things I could never even conjure up. Since it was a gallery, we needed to have some art work up but at the time, the curator only had this creepy series on dolls that have undergone some Frankenstein surgery. We were creeped out. And again, we decided to showcase what Jeni and I were about... food. We simply printed out our favorites and spent a night glueing/cutting them up. Done.

Photography? No problem. I remembered that my coworker, who also has a food blog, had a great eye. Check out her posting on visiting Cuba. Done.

On the day of the wedding party, we got up early to do final decorations in the gallery. I hung up the photos, Jeremy set up his turntables and Jeni ran around like a crazy bride cussing out everyone. Just kidding, she was calm as ever. And before we knew it, it was 8 pm – time to party.

I can't tell you how fast time passes by. You have an average of 2 mins to chat with people and it's exhausting. I think I ate one taco the whole night. After the party was over, Jeni, Jeremy and I headed over to Ruen Pair in Thai Town for some noodle remedying. We were all exhausted from a long week of running around. But the three of us made things happen and its exactly what we wanted. A successful party with no debt. Done. Thanks for reading. Brazil and Argentina are coming up soon.

Read Jeni's posting on our wedding.

Remy's On Temple
2126 W. Temple Street
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(213) 484-2884
Contact: Jonathan

My Taco (Highland Park)
6300 York Blvd. Suite 4
Los Angeles, CA 90042
(323) 256-2698
Contact: Vanessa

Eat Drink Style Mariscos Chente, Los Angeles - A Shrimp Morgue in Mar Vista

It was a Saturday afternoon and I sat patiently hunched forward with hands crossed on a table with a lazy susan. Jeni was by my side and so was Eddie, Rickmond and Javier. Eddie, also known as the ultimate predator and every animal's/insect's worst nightmare had invited us to a day of adventurous eating. Just before, we had stomached a Filipino duck egg in its nascency – eyes sheathed with very thin veiny skin, claws just firm enough to give you a nice prick in the throat and enough feathers to remind you that you were in fact, consuming a dormant mammal. We had also just finished live spot prawns that jumped out of the pot brought out by the server. About 10 minutes before, they had added a Chinese rice wine and covered the shrimp with a lid, intoxicating them to a lethal state. We picked up the shrimp with our hands the second we their antennaes became limp. We took off their heads, exposing their brain and pulled off its shell. The shrimp was so sweet and fresh, and a few times, I thought I felt the pulse of the once alive shrimp on my tongue. It was exciting and unexpecting.

And now, we were up for the final dish, live lobster... sashimi. All of us looked at each other with confusion and excitement. Eddie saw the server coming through the double doors with a large platter, rubbing his hands together in sheer joy. When the server laid down the platter, we saw not one, but two lobsters. They faced each other on a bed of ice, with antennaes in full motion and making contact with each other. In between the two lobsters, was a small pile of light gray flesh resembling that of red snapper sushi. But then, there was something that caught out attention. The lobsters were moving, but it was only their head that remained. The thorax, abdomen and tail were nowhere to be seen. For a moment, there was an eerie silence. The server even looked at us to get our reaction, almost asking us through ESP, "are you really sure you want this?" We hesitated for a few seconds, and one after the other, we straightened our chopsticks and grabbed a piece of the flesh. I saw the lobster staring at me as I reached my chopsticks into the flesh pile in front of them, even brushing their antennaes. I dipped the lobster sashimi in the provided soy sauce and wasabi, which is not a typical condiment in a Chinese restaurant. I then put the piece of lobster in my mouth and looked at the lobster still alive and kicking. For a second I felt it was a bit wrong, but that quickly changed once my palate approved of the sashimi. My god, it was delicious. Sweet, beautiful texture and reminiscent of sweet shrimp (ama ebi). Once we had finished the sashimi, we cleaned out the heads of the lobsters and by this point, they had fortunately died. I wondered if they could see me eat them alive and I certainly hope they didn't. I felt as though I had walked away with murder and I'll never forget this delightful meal. Note: the lobster is very well dead upon being cut up and Eddie quotes that the remaining nerve or muscle reflexes will still be in effect for a little while.

Almost a year later, I was reminded of that occasion with the live lobsters the second I walked into Mariscos Chente in Mar Vista with my coworkers. With its white walls, green tables, blue-tiled floor, stainless steel metal and open dining area, I was mildly reminded of a morgue – a shrimp morgue to be exact. But I knew this place, much like any other humble Latino-run restaurant, was not about decor or adornments. They had something very delicious in store for us.

Mariscos Chente is run by Sergio Eduardo Penuelas and his wife, Maria. ("Chente" is short for Vicente (Vincent) in Spanish, which is Maria's fathers name – the original chef of MC's dishes.) They come from the Western Mexican states of Sinaloa, and Nayarit respectively – both of which offer an extensive list of seafood dishes. According to Street Gourmet LA's great discussion and review on Mariscos Chente, "it's Nayarit cuisine with a Sinaloan chef." I had eaten ceviche a dozen times, but had never tried Nayarit or Sinaloan-style food. Let's go.

Cubeta de Cerveza (Bucket of Beer)
Eating a Mexican seafood meal without some sort of alcoholic drink is simply immoral. Even more immoral than eating the flesh of a live lobster. The food gods will make sure you spend more time in the purgatory rather than ascending to heaven. Chef Sergio knows that, and that's why he endows you with your very own cubeta de cerveza... 6 beers for $15. Salud!

Grilled Marlin Tacos
I watch a lot of Discovery Channel and National Geographic, especially the ocean related stuff. If there's one fish I do want to catch and cook up before I die, it's a marlin. Pretty easy stuff considering it'll only take 4 hours and rip off all the skin from your palms. This is one TOUGH fish and tough fish means tough meat. Right? Wrong. Leave it to Chef Sergio to give you some of the tastiest, smokiest marlin tacos you'll ever have. The meat has a consistency of pork and its super moist. A simple dip into the hot, cucumber-infused green hot sauce and you can relax knowing that Chef Sergio just saved you 4 punishing hours of skin-tearing pain on your palms. Guys will be grateful.

Ceviche de Camaron
Your standard dish at any Mexican mariscos restaurant. But you'll notice a large portion of cucumbers are mixed in – that's because Nayarit and Sinaloa use it heavily in their cuisine. This ceviche was done very well. Just the right amount of lime and not too sour. The shrimp was well balanced with the cold tomato and cucumber cubes – altogether it was very refreshing. I would get this again and maybe even request an octopus (pulpo) version.

Coctel de Camaron y Pulpo (Shrimp & Octopus Cocktail)
Another standard dish that comes in a glass, rather than a plate. It's almost the same as ceviche only there is ketchup added. In addition to the freshness of the shrimp, octopus and vegetables, there was a nice smokiness in the juice and I can't quite figure out its origin. FYI, this is also the Mexican version of the "hair of the dog" and I believed it as we passed this along to everyone at the table. You will be completely sober after eating/drinking this. I have to say, I am now a huge fan of lime juice that is mixed with seafood, ketchup and veggies. Mmm, Sea Juice anyone?

Camarones Aguachiles
And here is the reason why I deem Mariscos Chente as a shrimp morgue and why I am reminded of the "Day of the Living Lobsters". The server brought this out to us and we were immediately attracted to the dish. The shrimps were all facing outwards, staring at each one of us. Their bodies had been butterflied beautifully, and the flesh resembled a cape behind their heads. And they weren't flying anywhere else but into our stomachs. The plating of the butterflied-Shrimp with heads still attached and the combination of gray, green and purple colors immediately hit our brain as true food porn. It was naked. It was sexy. And it was true Mexican seafood. Aguachiles refers to the stellar sauce that Chef Sergio makes – a little lime, chiles and cucumbers are blended together in this harmonious sauce that accents the sweetness of the shrimp. Not quite as sweet as Spot Prawns but still delicious. I love the texture of raw shrimp.

Camarones a La Diabla
The server set this down and immediately reminded of a massacre. The shrimp, some beheaded, lay on the plate amongst fallen comrades in their own blood pool. It was beautiful. Considered to be the spiciest of Chef Sergio's dishes, this is simply fantastic. Chef Sergio serves up the perfectly sautéed shrimp in a sauce made of two types of chili (Nuevo Mexico and Chili de Arbol), cooked onions and butter. I think I tasted a hint of beer but that could be from my cubeta de cerveza. I have never found a Mexican seafood sauce as spicy, buttery and smoky as this and we made sure to lick that plate clean. We added the rest of the sauce into the shrimp cocktail and jokingly told Sergio to check out our invention: Ceviche a la Diabla. He laughed and then walked away muttering... "pinche chino." Just kidding.

Another Gratuitous View of Camarones a La Diabla
If Chef Sergio bottled this sauce up, he would make a fortune and shrimp would hate him forever.

Camarones a La Pimienta
I think these are in my top 3 of Sergio's shrimp dishes. I am a black pepper freak.

Camarones Checo
All you're going to taste in this is garlic, tons of spice and butter. You will love.

Camarones Borachos
These shrimp are deep-fried, and then sautéed with Worcestershire sauce (Salsa de Ingleterra) and tequila. Wasn't my favorite because the shrimp was way overcooked. It was nothing like Japanese deep fried shrimpheads.

Pescado Zarandeado
And this is probably Sergio's most proud dish – the pescado zarandeado. The verb zarandear means to shake or stir, but it has nothing to do with this dish that requires grilling with a special robato tool. He uses a fish called Snook and after filleting it in half butterfly style, he adds a sauce made of soy sauce, limes and mayonnaise. The fish is then folded back into its original form and sent to grill hell. And this beauty is served upon a turquoise tray – I love it.

Chef Sergio Eduardo Penuelas
Here is the shrimp mortician himself. Everyday, he probably sacrifices over 3,000 shrimp. He is the nicest guy and I have to say, probably the best Mexican seafood chef I had ever met. My biggest problem with ceviche in general has been the overuse of lime more as a way to mask older seafood, rather than 'cook' the seafood. But Chef Sergio has helped me realize my love for Mexican seafood once again. His sensibility of adding just the right amount of everything is exhibited in every dish we tried.

Compared to your "standard" Mexican restaurant, there is a lot to be learned about Nayarit and Sinaloan cuisine as there are huge differences. We didn't get to try the Nayarit specialty, pescado zarandeado, which is a whole-grilled Snook fish marinated in soy sauce, lime, chipotle and mayo. It's supposed to be the most popular, if not best dish at Mariscos Chente. Nor did we get to try the many variations of sautéed shrimp in various sauces such as pepper and oil, butter, garlic and tequila. The good thing about Mariscos Chente is that the menu is small enough for you to complete in about 4-5 visits and it's comforting knowing that anything you do try will be made by a very talented, warm chef that will have you coming back more than once. Thanks for reading.

Mariscos Chente
4532 S. Centinela Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90066
(310) 390-9241

Mariscos Chente reviews on Los Angeles Times, Street Gourmet LA and Exile Kiss.