Gee, Think.

Kitty and I went to the Ashtanga class for the first time last week. It
was the most amazing workout I’ve ever had. It made me realize how
inflexible I’ve become. It was challenging yet relaxing. The first
class was so advanced that I know I have plenty of room to challenge
myself. Ross, the instructor, is also really good. This guy seems to
really know his stuff. He’s got all the indian names for the yogic
poses. He also seems to know little tricks that turn what could be
basic movements into challenging ones. This keeps students of al levels
continually reaching.
During practice we are stretching constantly. We’re strectching for
about 90 mins straight, but at the sam time really working our muscles.
Some of these poses are specifically designed to rely on muscles which
we do not typically put to use in our daily lives. I have learned,
however, that having these obscure muscles gain strength is excellent
for posture. I’m sure there are other health benefits as well. I think
having balanced muscles helps with your stride, breathing, and avoiding
chronic pain that could develop from slouching, etc.

OH YEAH!
We were served this awesome dessert at a little restaurant in westfield
called “Wild Noodle”. Is a base of sweet nacho type chips, topped with
two large scoops of vanilla ice cream which are themselves topped with
deep fried oreos, which were drizzled with chocolate sauce and
marshmallow goodness. Whoa momma. This was a good one. Split three
ways, it was still quite filling.
Wild Noodle is a fun place. It’s a cross between fast food and a regular
restaurant. Nice atmosphere, tasty eats, and fast service too.

This is another of the folk dances we saw during filipino culture
night. It is reminiscent of double dutch jump rope. There are two
people who hold two bamboo poles. They hold the poles on the ground
about 2 feet a part. The poles are tapped twice on the ground and then
smashed together. There is another couple who must dance between the
poles and avoid getting their feet smooshed by the crack of the bamboo.
We were instructed by Gary the cast member that this dance is from the
central area of the islands.

This shot shows one of several folk dances that were laced theoughout
the performance. These dances were transporting. It was really
refreshing to see a live performance of something so exotic. This
particular shot shows the candle dance. It was performed by two
filopino women in traditional dress. The dance was performed while they
balanced candles on top of their heads. The purpose of the dance was to
signal their fisher husband’s to return from the sea.

There were six star performers in the show. They were all passengers on
a flight to the philapines. The plane experienced some severe
turbulence which left them stranded on a philipine island; hilarity
ensued! The characters were as varied as a cast from the surreal life.
There was a doctor, a young “princess” type, a drugged out rock and
roller, a gay couple, and a pregnant Nun seeking spiritual healing.
The dialogue was quick witted and comical. The cast really made the
show with excellent voices and expressions.

This weekend we enjoyed a performance of filipino culture in a cozy
midtown theater. It was a production with a crew of about 40 people.
The whole thing came from scratch. It was produced mainly by two
dedicated and passionate women.

Ugly Tomatoes? What? What’s going on here. “Ugly” can’t be a kind of
tomato. So is Stop & Shop telling me that the have unappealing
produce? I don’t get it. Have you ever seen tomatoes labelled this
way?

This picture doesn’t quite do it justice, but trust me, the Tribeca
Grand is a pretty nice hotel. They have a huge bar and the service was
quick even on a busy night. The food is excellent as well. I was
there with some friends a couple weeks ago enjoying drinks and hors
dourves. They passed lamb chops which were absolutely amazing. They
were cooked to perfection. They weren cooked just passed raw and so
juicy. I could hardly believe my taste buds. I do enjoy food.
They also served mini Kobe beef burgers. It turns out that Kobe beef is
cattle crop from Japan which is rare because of scarce grazing fields.
The burgers came topped with a bit of avacado which was an exotic and
delicious touch.
I sampled sea bass for the first time here. It was served on a skewer
with a bit of teriyaki sauce; a dynamite combo.
They really put the jumbo in jumbo shrimp. They were enormous. Their
size was a good thing, but the drawback was that you could not get
enough cocktail sauce for the three or four bites it took to eat them.
That’s a good problem to have though.
The fourth of the hors dourves was spring roll. These were decent, but
not phenomenal. Don’t get me wrong, they were tasty, but they couldn’t
really compete with the other offerings. They were essential for the
vegetarian however.
All things said, I would love to go back to this place.

Love seat at the Tribeca Grand Hotel.
Sweet reward for hard work. The lamb chops, spring rolls, Kobe beef
burgers, and drinks aren’t in the picture.

We had reason to celebrate this past weekend so we went out for a
special dinner. Fujiyama Mama is a Westfield restaurant on South
Avenue. It was fairly busy for a sunday afternoon, but we still had
great service. We sat at a hibachi table with four other people and
didn’t have to wait long before our chef arrived.
He got the show off to a good start by talking loudly and banging the
sauce dishes around. That always wakes everyone up and gets them on
alert. It’s the standard kind of antics that you expect from a good
hibachi chef.
The gigantic flame that you see in the picture is the famous flaming
onion volcano. That’s right, it’s an onion that creates that geyser of
fire. Ho ho!! Very exciting!! That’s probably my favorite hibachi
trick.
Our chef also went around the table with the “catch it in you mouth”
trick where he flings grilled vegetables at your face. Having been to
several table cookings at different restaurants, I have noticed that
this can be a way for the Chef to take a little revenge on rude
customers. If you are rude, you may find that the veggie lands on your
cheek or forehead instead of your mouth. Whoops!
I had the steak and scallop hibachi combo. Wow! What a meal! I had
the steak cooked rare and it was quite juicy. The scallops were a
little well done, but still tasty. The rice was awesome, and we even
had a couple of bonus shrimp thrown in there too! Little bonuses do a
lot for me.
I had a Sapporo 33.8 ounce beer to wash it all down. I tried to order
it in a 22 ounce size, but I got the 33.8 anyway. Oh well! I decided
that it was meant to be and guzzled most of it myself. I did share a
glass though.
Hibachi is the way to go if you want to be well fed and entertained at
the same time. Fujiyama does it well.
To be fair, fujiyama should really be compared to another local hibacho
restaurant, Arirang, but I’ll leave that to another post.