Copeland's Cheesecake Bistro in Atlanta, GA

When I was in Atlanta last week, my friend, Ken suggested this place for dinner since we love spicy food. This is a New Orleans restaurant, bar and bakery. This place is bright with a nice New Orleans style decor. We sat in the bar area to be in the middle of the action. They have a lot of house specialty martinis, I ordered Lemonhead since the server suggested it for I like it strong and sour. My friend likes the sweet stuff, so he got Porn Star.

For appetizer, we ordered the Crab and Crawfish bake with cheese and asparagus serves with garlic bread and it was delicious!

Dinner for me was the Crawfish Ravioli, for I have not heard of that before and I wanted some crawfish since I have not had any in a long time. It was absolutely amazing. The ravioli have a little hard texture from the baking with cheese in it, and the spicy Cajun sauce with crawfish serves over the Ravioli. I would definitely suggest this dish if you want some unique flavor.

My friend ordered the house special blackened salmon with 2 sides of corn and fried rice, and he loved it! I did not get dessert, but my friend loves white chocolate cheesecake and this is the only place he can get it and it's his absolute favorite dessert of all time. The prices are affordable, we ordered all of that and it only costs both of us about $90, which is not bad including martinis. Next time if you are in Atlanta, please stop by there, for you would be disappointed. Good eating!

Words of Wisdom - Proverbs from Asia

If the thought is good, (your) place and path are good; if the thought is bad, (your) place and path are bad. Bhutanese Proverb

Great desire obtains little. Burmese Proverb

The boat sails by, the shore remains. Cambodian Proverb

If you wish to know the mind of a man, listen to his words. Chinese Proverb

Laws control the lesser man. Right conduct controls the greater one. Chinese Proverb

To a person who has real shame, words are oath. Filipino Proverb

Education in your childhood is like the letters in a sculpture. Indian Proverb

It is not wise to live in water and be an enemy of the crocodile. Indian Proverb

Unless you enter the tiger's den you cannot take the cubs. Japanese Proverb

To know and to act are one and the same. Japanese Proverb

Coming words will be beautiful if gone words were beautiful. Korean Proverb

Fools who know nothing constanly try to show off what they know, but the wise who know all are silent. Korean Proverb

If there's no chili, there's no taste. Malay Proverb

Gold rains in foreign countries, while hailstone drops on own country, still one's own country is better. Malay Proverb

The living are denied a table; the dead get a whole coffin. Mongolian proverb

The more you listen the more you give yourself room for doubt. Mongolian Proverb

To play the violin for the water buffalo to listen to. Thai Proverb

There are no incurable diseases but only incurable people. Tibetan Proverb

Thieves never steal bells. Tibetan Proverb

Hunger brings the wolf to the fold. Vietnamese Proverb

Nice words are free, so choose ones that please another's ears. Vietnamese Proverb

Embracing Change

Embracing Change
Change is the natural state of life, yet we hate changes since we are such a creature of habit. Let just look at the four seasons that we have in place on this beautiful Earth. Spring is about new beginning or renew, blooming of the flowers. Summer is nice and warm to enjoy the new birth. Then Fall is when the leaves fall off the tree to prepare for the Winter hibernation with the cold weather. Then a new cycle being again, and each cycle have it's own significant...we constantly grow. As we learn to embrace changes and take it as it comes life is not that bad, for life is fun and rich.

Burger & Beer Joint

Burger and Beer Joint in South Beach - 1766 Bay Road, Miami Beach, FL 33139

As you all know burger seems to be the trend lately, for they are popping up everywhere. I have tried a few places, Phat Burger, Five Guys, Cheeseburger Baby, 8oz Burger, they were all pretty good.

The one place that I have to give the crown to is Burger and Beer Joint. The place is comfy style with tables and booths with brick walls. The decor can be describe as American rock and roll. Their burger is unique and it's 10oz prime Angus beef and comes with skinny fries. Recently I had the Hotel California, the burger have salsa, guacamole, grilled red onion, cilantro sour cream, sharp cheddar, sunny side up fried egg, and on the side is tomato, lettuce, pickle and onion. The burger is hug and I can only eat half and save half for later, and all the flavor was just amazing bursting in your mouth having a happy tasty party. I had another burger a little while back that I forgot the name, all I remember was that the burger had chili and jalapeno, I love spicy food and it was excellent. For the health conscious, they have turkey burger, and the bun less burger as well. The burger is about $13 up to about $39 for Kobe beef. They have ice cream and milk shake for dessert and a full bar as well. The service have been consistent, no pretentious, just good old American food. Definitely one of favorite place.

Cooking Homemade Chinese Food

Cooking homemade Chinese food is a lot easier than you think. As you know Chinese food is such a wide range from Shanghai to Cantonese to many others that are not well known. The Chinese food you typical get at a restaurant in the U.S. is very Americanize, and I do appreciate that aspect as well. My family's background is Chaozhou, for my grandparents are from the Guangdong region in southeastern China. My parents grew up in Cambodia, I was born in Vietnam and now U.S. Therefore, homemade food for me it's not typical at all. My parents are very creative with cooking variety of dishes and mixing flavors and technique from our variety of influences of our background.

I went to the Asian market to get the grocery and I tend to get whatever is in season. The first dish is a simple Bean Sprouts and Asian Leeks with Oyster sauce. The leeks just need to be cut up about 2 inches long. You start with a hot wok with oil and garlic, and this is the basic to stir fry. When the garlic is golden brown add the leeks, saute it until half way done and add the bean sprouts. Stir it in the wok then add the oyster sauce. I like my bean sprouts crunchy, but you can cook as long as you want to your preference. You can add tofu, egg, or whatever meat to prefer to the dish, for this time I did not want any meat in it.


The second dish is the Chinese Sausage and Long Bean Brown fried rice. You need to cook the rice first, I love my rice cooker just put the rice and water in and it automatically stops when the rice is done. Next, you cut up the long bean and sausage into small pieces. In the hot wok, add oil and garlic. You cook the long bean half way through then add the sausage. Stir it until it's cooked, then add the already cooked brown rice. Now it's time to add seasoning, I like soy sauce, sugar, and red pepper. Again, it's up to your preference what you want to put into the fried rice. Stir it well until the rice is well mix in, and you are finish.

Cooking is fun, just use your imagination and be creative. These two dished took me about 30 minutes to prepare, so healthy home cook meal fast. I believe there is not set rule to cooking. Also, any food can be healthy if you select the smart choice. For example, brown rice is better for you then white rice. Anyway, go to an Asian market and experiment with homemade Asian food.

The one that I go to a lot is PK Oriental Market in North Miami Beach, and you can pick up some Chinese barbecue as well, such as duck, pork or chicken. Fun cooking!

Peruvian food in downtown Miami

CVI.CHE 105



This place have the best Peruvian food. It's a small modern and nice spot in downtown for lunch and dinner. This place gets packed for lunch between noon - 2pm, you might have to wait for a table.

When you sit down they offered roasted corn as a snack, it's crunchy delicious. My favorite dish here is the poached fish. This dish is Chinese inspired, for it reminds me of something my grandmother used to make. The fish is poached and serves with this amazing tasty sauce of garlic, tomatoes, onion and potatoes. I love their hot sauce that they have there, it goes with everything. They have unique ceviche if that is your preference, the sauce it's tangy making the dish tastes very good. I am not a big fan of ceviche with the raw seafood, but this place I would eat it and that says a lot about their famous ceviche. Another good dish is their seafood fried rice, it's similar to Chinese fried rice but with lots of seafood and their unique flavors to make it their own Peruvian style. The dish range from $10 - $20. They have wine and beer as well. This is a hidden gem in downtown Miami.



CVI.CHE 105
105 N.E. 3rd Ave. Miami, FL 33132
305.577.3454

South Pointe's Fine Dining

Smith & Wollensky Steakhouse



I love this place on South Pointe in Miami Beach. This restaurant is located on the new South Pointe Park over looking Fisher Island and downtown. The ambiance is absolutely amazing walking through the park to the restaurant. I recommend sitting outside on a beautiful day watching people, cruise ships, boats, etc.

Their food is amazing and consistence. They are known for their aged steak, but everything else on the menu is excellent. Recently, I tried their crab and asparagus salad, it is unique since I have not had anything like that, the taste is light and refreshing with a little tang flavor from the grapefruit in it. Their special of that day is the angry shrimp, this dish reminds me of a Chinese dish that my father prepare before, the shrimp is jumbo seasoned with a big burst of flavor, flash fry and serves over mashed potatoes. Their dish range from $10 for a salad to about $40 for their main dish. It's a great for lunch, a date, and private dining as well.

Smith & Wollensky
1 Washington Avenue
(At South Pointe Park)
Miami Beach, FL 33139
(305) 673-2800

Authentic Vietnamese Food in Miami?

You bet cha! When I crave home made Vietnamese food, I go to Pho Thang even though it's a long drive for me. It's a simple small restaurant in a shopping plaza. The place it's a mom and pop feel with basic décor.

I have my few favorites there. One of the lesser well known dish is called Golden Pancakes, which is like a crispy crepe filled with pork, shrimp, bean sprouts and onion, and serves with Lettuce, basil, cilantro and nuoc mam sauce. Nuoc mam sauce is a Vietnamese sweet, spicy and sour sauce made of lemon, vinegar, sugar, grated carrot, fish sauce, hot sauce and garlic. When I took a bite it's a fusion of flavor just burst in your mouth, sweet, sour, spicy, salty with the herbs and vegetables combined with different texture of crispy and soft and hot and cold contrast.

Another favorite is the Pho, the Vietnamese rice noodle soup traditionally serves with beef but you can get with other meat or seafood. The juicy flavor is of the beef in the beef broth with the added basil, bean sprouts, and hot sauce which just tantalize your mouth and warm your tummy.

Also, there are Vermicelli bowls with Vietnamese BBQ/grilled pork or any other toppings to your liking, it's made as a noodle salad style serves with nouc mam as well. This is a great dish for summer time. They have egg noodle as well, and you can choose your meat, the beef is good with vegetables stir fry with Chinese influence. If you want Jasmine rice, they have rice plates and you pick the meat of your choice. If you want Asian vegetables, they have a selection for that as well for the vegetarians and health conscious.

The prices are great, dinner for two with appetizers only costs about $30. I highly recommend the food adventurer to try this place. This is definitely one of my favorite places to go eat. Enjoy!

Pho Thang
9539 SW 160th St, Perrine, FL 33157; 786-293-1118