THE PICKIEST EATER VLOG: BANH NAM OPENS AT PODIUM MALL

         My friend Steph and I have been trying to find time to meet up, but schedules seem to always get in our way. One day, I was invited by What Mary Loves to the opening of the latest branch of Banh Nam at Podium Mall, so I asked Steph to come with me since I wasn't so sure if I'd be able to finish those veggie loaded Banh Mi's all by myself! 

TURNING A NEW LEAF AT JUJU EATS

So my friends, the day that I had been dreading has finally come. My daughter Rain went up to me as I was on my computer, and asked me, "Daddy, am I having a baby brother?".

I was a bit startled, but I realized that this might be because it was summer and she was bored and lonely. Her cousins all have siblings, and quite a few of our neighbors children all have brothers or sisters as well. I calmly replied to her, "No sweetheart, not yet. Why do you ask?".

And with all sincerity, she answered, "Because I thought there's a baby in your tummy!".

Nice one Richie. You just got owned by a 4 year old.

It wasn't much help that I was shirtless, either, but in my defense, I had a series of events that week so that really didn't help my weight loss program.

As fate would have it, a couple of days later, my friend Spanky offered me a challenge. He asked me to accompany him to Juju Eats in Podium, and if I didn't find anything that I found edible, then he would never bother me with trying healthy food again. 

Honestly, I had heard about Juju Eats from my former boss, who loved their salads, and practically had it every day for lunch. So being the Pickiest Eater in The World, I was naturally hesitant. 

But after my daughter mistook me for a pregnant woman, I decided what the hell.

And let me tell you the truth, for a meal filled with salad and healthy food.. All my fears were dispelled the moment I actually gave the dishes a try.

THE GREAT STEAKHOUSE: HOUSE OF WAGYU

           Like the majority of people around the world, I enjoy a good steak. But I must admit, I am not a Steak snob. I only have two simple rules when eating steak. The first being, that the said piece of meat must contain fat. The more the merrier. It just makes the meat juicer for me. I don't know the science of it, but the bottom line is, I like my steak with a lot of fat. 

        The second rule, is that my steak shouldn't be tough. A steak that lacks of fat would be forgivable, for as long as its meat is tender enough, so i'm not picking off meat bits from in between my teeth afterwards.

       So my entire life, I've gone around with those two simple rules for eating steak.. I need fat, and it needs to be tender. 

       As it turns out, everything I knew about steak was wrong.  

      So I was about to get an education in the subject of steak at where else? 

      The House of Wagyu.

SEBASTIAN'S ALA MODE BARS AND FRUITCICLES!

     Over the course of the past few years, I've noticed that purveyors in the country have become more and more daring when it comes to their ice cream flavors. 

       One in particular, gets a gold star from me when it comes to- not just coming up with unorthodox flavors, but out of the box concepts with ice cream as well. Sebastian's has taught me that there's so much more you could do with ice cream, apart from just scooping it into your mouth (Which I do quite masterfully, might I add). 

     And for the summer, they're going to unleash some new treats that you will most definitely go crazy for.. Sebastian's Fruitcicles and Ala Mode Bars!

    So this is the day that I ate 16 bars of Ice Cream.

YAKU JAPANESE GRILL AT THE PODIUM! - Rinaz

          Though the location of Yaku is quite hidden (some were saying the huge post blocking their entrance was bad feng shui). This was the first thing I noticed upon arriving. Yaku, which means grill, were one of the oldest restaurants in The Podium Mall since the year 2000 and until now they are still very much standing. So much for feng shui! That just proves as well that they have a lot of regulars that love them, and they are attracting new customers as well!

       Yaku is an amazing Japanese restaurant that started off as serving only Yakitori items. It’s their specialty so if you go here, you must try these charcoal-grilled goodness on a stick! I say this to you with sincerity because as i was not feeling very well that night, I was not able to try this plate right here. That is why I am now kicking myself in the butt. But Richie was able to try some so we’ll get to that in a bit. So eventually they also started serving a lot of other Japanese dishes like sushi, tempura, teppanyakis, and noodles such as udon and soba.

NO CLOWNING AROUND AT PAGLIACCI, AUTHENTIC ITALIAN FOOD - RINAZ

It has been years since I last stepped my foot inside the Podium. I don’t even remember the restaurants that I have tried there. I think there was just one and I don’t even remember the name. It was only until a few days ago when I came back to have dinner with blogger friends that I realized how many establishments were there already, and how much I have been missing, particularly a little Italian cuisine heaven called Pagliacci.