Review: Sapporo East

Hello there, good to see you again.

Sapporo East

4612 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050

(717) 303-0333

Honestly, Sapporo East is the absolute best Japanese cuisine in Central Pennsylvania and completely mean it.

Sushi, without a doubt, is one of our guilty pleasures, and to find good sushi is not so easy. When I say "good," I mean so good that you don't regret even a penny that you have spent. For Sapporo East, this is the answer. This place is everything that a Japanese restaurant should be, from the atmosphere to the silverware. Let's have a look inside!

As you can see, the whole place is decorated with authentic Japanese style art and the ceiling is very unique of the Kyoto style architecture. Most of the time at other sushi places, especially at the sushi bar, there are always grumpy looking sushi chefs behind the bar. But for Sapporo East, every sushi chef always smiles and is very friendly.

 I wasn't exaggerating when I said this place is the absolute best: look at how many awards they have won, and this is just a small part of it. There are so many more awards that they put all over the restaurant because this wall alone cannot contain all of Sapporo East's glory!

As always first rule of good restaurant practice the water must be filtered, and Sapporo East didn't disappoint.

If you ordered entree you will get miso soup (fermented soybean soup with tofu) and a house salad as complimentary (the ginger dressing on the salad is just to good; I've tried them in many restaurants and without a doubt, Sapporo East executed it the best).  

Here's the best part: As you can see, the details of these dishes are very detailed. The quality of the seafood is phenomenal, and remember that Pennsylvania is not near the ocean, so high grade quality seafood is somewhat hard to obtain. But it's not a problem for Sapporo East to deliver good quality seafood for their sushi lovers. The prices are not bad at all. Almost the same as the one you can get from a convenience store, but of course the sensation is totally different. Why eat from a convenience store if you can get the real taste of sushi for almost the same price? The white tuna is to die for - so buttery, so firm, and so damn sensational!

This is my recommended appetizer item: Japanese Crab Cake. It consists of fresh crab meat, salmon, and scallop wrapped in dough, and you can taste the crab taste and feel the firmness of scallop bounce back when you sink your teeth in!

Sapporo East is not just about great sushi; their entrees are absolutely phenomenal as well. I guarantee you, it is  the best Japanese cuisine you can ever find in Central Pennsylvania. Above are Unagi Donburi (Smoked Eel Over Rice) and Chicken Hibachi. First, Unagi Donburi. The eel meat is so firm and tasty, with grade A quality authentic Japanese rice and the house special sauce with sweet egg roll garnish. You will experience something unforgettable: the sweetness and the aroma is just at it's perfection. Secondly, Chicken Hibachi, the chicken grilled on hot iron skillet, is cooked well evenly on top of stir fry vegetables such as onion, zucchini, and mushroom. With its ginger scent secret sauce, the vegetables and firm rice compliment the chicken very well. You won't hesitate to order one more, maybe two.

We got a complimentary roll from the restaurant, and to be honest, I don't really know what's it called, but I think it's some kind of eel roll. Nevertheless, it's really delicious and it make me think "oh my goodness!"

And here's the dessert, the amazing Tempura Green Tea Ice Cream! It's a green tea flavored ice cream deep fried with batter, topped with whipped cream - it's so delicious. 

They take care of every details to meet the customer best satisfaction. Even the take out order is packed beautifully in the box, carefully arranged and very detailed.

After the very satisfying meal, you will feel like you have no regrets if this happened be your last meal. You will be more than happy. The staff are very nice and attentive, the quality of the food is very satisfying, and the taste is sensational. If you win the lottery and want to have the best celebration meal in central Pennsylvania, Sapporo East is the absolute best place for you to have the sensation.

Check out their menu at sapporoeastsushi.com

Review: Hunan Express

1010 Wesley Dr #108, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 (717) 697-1666

A lot of people think smaller Chinese restaurants are all the same. Most of them, yes, I agree; on the other hand, this place Hunan Express is not . This restaurant is hands down the best small Chinese restaurant in the area. Let me show you what they have to offer.

As you can see they have lunch buffet for ONLY $5.85!!!! That's dirt cheap for the value and quality of the food. I don't blame you if you will think something like  "With a price this low, the quality must be low too." My friends, I can assure you, the quality and taste are both sensational!  

You can rarely see a restaurant this size offer you lunch buffet, especially for price like this. Or even if they do, the food won't be as good as this one, I guarantee it.

Look at that portion on the plate! There's so much! I definitely recommend to grab a take out box lunch combo. They are so cheap: just $5.65 per combo! The taste, my friends, is absolutely sensational. They always cook their rice to perfection, so this place is a must!

TIPS: 

• Try their Mongolian beef..... you will not regret it, trust me.
• They do deliver and the delivery person is very nice for no charge! So don't forget to give him a tip for his awesomeness. 

So if you're in the area, pick up your phone now order that Mongolian beef and try it for yourself! They also do online ordering.

You can check out their menus on their website,

Review: Arooga's

The best wings in town!!!

Arooga's Grille House Sports Bar is hands down the best place for sports lovers, wings lovers, or both! Because of  the many variety of wings sauces and TV's literally everywhere in the restaurant, even in the bathroom, so you won't miss any moment in your favorite game.

Their hours are Mon-Sun 11 AM - 2 AM. What I love the most is their wing night: you can get wings for as cheap as 49 cents a piece..... how awesome is that!? Before we get to that let me show you why this place is simply the best!

Televisions everywhere!

As you can see they have their special everyday, each is different. My favorite is Wednesday because it's 49 cents per wing? Yes please!

As you can see this is the wings lovers heaven: so many sauces you can choose from, rubs, double dippers, they have them all, from extremely hot to mild.

WARNING: The hottest sauce that they have is called the "Ghost Face Killa." First of all, you have to pay 99 cents extra for 5 wings; secondly it's extremely hot that you have to sign a waiver before you order them because this sucker can actually send you to the hospital.

TIPS: The sauces I highly recommend are the hickory smoked honey BBQ and BBQ ranch; you can't go wrong with these ones. They are very unique and sensational!

Oh yes, all the waitress wear an umpire uniform, making this place really unique. And most of them wear really short shorts or yoga pants.... pretty cool right?

You can order 5 wings for one sauce. Above are sake teriyaki and hickory smoked honey BBQ. They were amazing!

And this is their signature "ghost face killa" sauce made from the hottest edible chilies in the world. Its heat has no comparison but the taste is not as high as its heat. You can barely taste the chicken; all you can feel is your tongue burning, nose running,  and you will start to sweat. And even if you survive this extreme pain, when you get home (you know) you will have the worst time of your life. I have got to be honest here: one time I ate 10 of them, got home, and the next morning spent 20 minutes in the bathroom. After that, I can't walk get to the bed and pass out..........so.........think about consequences before your pride take control over you.

If you looking for a place to hang out and have fun like so much fun Arooga's is the best choice to choose.

Ratatouille the Movie

Hello there, good to see you again.

Disney films always make excellent productions as they know just how to spark your interest; and this time.......your appetite.

Ratatouille. It's one of my all time favorite movie, not just because it's about cooking; the art, story development, character design and many more features are just absolutely gorgeous in this film. Let's see why this animation will capture your heart.

Meet

Remy

He's a rat, but no ordinary rat, who seeks good taste far more beyond the garbage in the trash can like any other rats. He has the talent of sensing good taste. His nose is a blessing: just by smelling the ingredient, he knows exactly what type of dish can be prepared to its finest.

Linguini

A garbage boy who works in a famous high-end restaurant in Paris. He has zero talent in cooking but has a very kind heart, and strong will to be better. He later on teams up with Remy, as he can appear as a human, and Remy can cook. Will they be able to work well together?

Colette

Very gorgeous young lady, a woman among men in the tough kitchen, Colette is very talented in cooking. Always follow orders and recipes from the head chef, she has a very bold personality but can be sensitive sometime.

Anton Ego

My absolute favorite character of this film. He's a critic; a very very harsh one! His famous quote is "I don't like food, I love it, if I don't love it, I don't swallow." The man is hard to please with just good taste; it must be sensational. (He will make you want to drink wine on a regular basis, trust me.)

I guaranteed you that after you watching this movie it will forever be in your legacy movie list that you will want to pass on to your family line.

Marco Pierre White

Marco Marco Marco Marco Pierre F***ing White!

I cannot tell you enough how much much I am obsessed with this man. Marco Pierre White is the one who released the true nature within me, he guided me to knowing myself, what I want to do, and what I love to do. When it comes to cooking, if I have to look for recipe, his name will be the first thing I will search for. He knows everything about culinary world; and when I say everything, I truly mean everything! His technique is extraordinary but simple, and everything he does with food is always the best way to do it. As you might have already known, he's the youngest chef in history to win three Michelin stars. With that said, let me tell you a little bit about him.

Marco Pierre White was born on Monday, December 11, 1961 in Leeds, England. He is the son of  an Italian woman named Maria-Rosa Gallina, whom he always referred to as "my dear mother," and an English chef, Frank White. His Chinese zodiac is Ox and star sign is Sagittarius.

Whoever is born on the Ox year is believed to be a very hard worker,  really self confident, and always judges things as black and white (see what I did there? But seriously!), so there is no mercy when he sees you for who you are. Also, as he doesn't like to be center of attention, he is always  aloof and a bit of a loner. But when he's by himself, he's always thinking very intensely, so never ever make him mad -  you will face the devil himself if you get on his angry side. 

Marco Pierre White has a keen eye for observation and a good memory, making him a lovely family man. His creativity is always outside the box. As you can see, he's a very charming person, and he has what one might say "a killer smile." His smile can make a lady faint and he's a very smooth talker.

Marco Pierre White is a very generous man. He loves helping with charity. Anything he can do to help other people, he never hesitates to do so. The only sad part is when he dedicates himself to help others, nobody seems to do the same for him.

So that's all I know about him.... if you're still interested I will tell you how this man has touched my soul and released it to the world.

When I was working at the restaurant, I looked up to my lovely manager, who also is a chef who graduated under the legend Jacques Pépin.

I wanted to know how to cook like him. He's a very busy man so he couldn't really sit down and teach me everything so he gave me this book.

Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles cookbook, Everybody loves Tony: his charming personality, how he talks, and the way he writes his ideas are just so sublime.

So...I was very excited because I have admired Tony for a long time (I knew him from his famous show No Reservations).

I eagerly searched the book for the first recipe to cook, and I stumbled upon the famous Boeuf Bourguignon (beef stew in red wine) recipe. On his show No Reservations, Season 6, Episode 11 "Techniques Special," he also was teaching how to make this dish, so I studied carefully, followed the instructions in the book very precisely, and made my very first Boeuf Bourguignon. It was good, but not yet sensational, so I thought I might be doing something wrong, and I kept researching on YouTube and found this pure gem.

And I gave Boeuf Bourguignon a try once again, precisely how Marco Pierre White instructed. IT WAS SENSATIONAL! One of the best dishes I've ever had in my whole life, made by me! 

Everything he said was absolutely right: for example, Marco does not use carrots in his stew, and he explains that it will take away from the flavor of the beef. After that phenomenon, I started to look up more recipes from him. There has never been one moment when his recipes were just good; they were all sensational! My lovely wife saw that I was extremely obsessed with him, so she brought me his cooking book for a present for our 1000th day married.

All the recipes were legendary, only most of them required expensive ingredients such as foie gras, caviar, or truffles. So when I got it, I was a little discouraged because I was had been eager to cook every single dish in the book. But then I found this dessert recipe.

I was thinking "hey, we can do this, all the ingredients are not so hard to find...." 

My wife and I got to work. To be completely honest, to us, it was devilishly hard! We were fighting a little over this recipe because it's very time sensitive. When you mix the dough, the butter melts really fast, so everything is extremely messy. I was thinking about giving up, but my lovely wife insisted that once we started, no matter what, we had to finish, even it will turned out to be disaster.

But you guessed it......VOILA! IT WAS THE BEST DESSERT I'VE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE. 

First of all, something you should know about me is I don't typically like dessert because my body doesn't really react well to very sweet dishes, especially chocolate, but his lemon tart is absolutely divine! It was sensational. I could eat the whole thing myself. 

Because of him, I've found myself. My passion. Since then, I couldn't stop thinking about cooking. I can't stop myself from going to the kitchen and starting to chopping onions. Even it's not meal time, I must cook. I love the sensation of a hot stove, chopping ingredients, and creating a good taste. When guest eat over, they are always asking for more.

I strongly recommend for you to study this man and let your taste buds decide what you think of His Holiness of Cooking. I idolize everything about him: his soothing tone of voice, his body language, his fearless attitude, how he chooses his words, his knife skill, his creativity, and his laugh. In my opinion, Marco Pierre White is the avatar of an absolute great dining sensation.