Common Bond -Garden Oaks

Heard alot about Common Bond drive thru, never seen it in person until now.

This location is sitting at the corner of Shepherd and 34th.

From the sitting area, you can see the drive thru and line of cars wrapped around the building.

Because they are to-go, they don't have fancy anything - true grab and go.

I got the Bacon Egg and Cheese croissant sandwich.  It's pretty sizable for breakfast/brunch.  There are also lots of pastries to boot.  Of course, you could be sitting in the drive thru for all that too. 

There is a decent area for sitting down to enjoy the food or coffee, but all the food and drink are really made for a grab and go.  So yes, you can sit and enjoy but you don't see many people camping out as you would at a coffee shop.

Common Bond Garden Oaks

Drive Thru

3210 N. Shepherd Dr

Houston, TX 77018

281-888-2906

https://www.commonbondcafe.com/

 

Brian's Bitchin' Bakery

You guys know I'm a big supporter of Brian's Bitchin' Bakery. 

Having been a supporter for a few years and their stuff is truly good.  Even though I cannot have the cookies, I made sure to support when he had tiramisu.

And when they say they have tiramisu flight, just get out of my way!!!

First up is the Banana Milk.

Literally banana milk soaked Lady Fingers, Banana Milk mascarpone, some meringue bits in there, and banana chip crumble.  How brilliant is that?  It does taste like you're having banana milk.  Most importantly, their consistency is always on point, it's not dry, it's not over flavored.  They hit the Goldilocks zone just right.

Next up: we have here Matcha Raspberry

This time it's Matcha soaked Lady Fingers, Matcha mascarpone with raspberry jam Chantilly cream, so good! So soft!  It was really good and mild.

This is Thai Pink Milk Teamisu - It has Thai Pink Milk macaroni cream, strawberry jam and bits of freeze dried strawberries.

I'm not sure how he does it, but my first bite was like a Spring in the Park, I had to message him to let him know that.  It was THAT good.  Gosh, that was amazing!  Light, airy, flavor is there but not too heavy or strong.  Mind you, tiramisu itself can possess lots of flavor because of the soaking, but it didn't take over, which is amazing. 

Last one on this flight is Uber Coconut Cream.

As much as I like everything of theirs this is probably not my most favorite after having the Spring in the Park.  Maybe had the orders been different it could've been different.  I cannot taste much ube but definitely the coconut.  It was soaked in coconut ube milk, ube vanilla mascarpone cream, and coconut Chantilly cream here. 

I would say if you catch him doing one of these definitely try it again.  It's worth your while.  If not, their cookies are out of this world, I just can't have them now.  Sometimes I do pre-orders when they have them.  Sometimes they do pop-ups with other markets.  So go and check them out.

Brian's Bitchin' Bakery

https://briansbitchinbakery.com/

 

Luce Coffee

I'm used to going to Luce Ave Coffee, this is my first time at the bigger Heights Location.

This was bigger for sure, 2 floors.  I will say downstairs can be chaotic.  You walk in, place the order, and then everyone just hang about as they get your food and drinks on the left side.  But there's not exactly lots of space to hang while you wait.  There are couple tables in the front, and a bar seating at the back, but on a Saturday where it's busy, you ran out of space to stand even.

Grabbed a croissant and a latte.

There are alot of seating upstairs.  THere's bar seating around the opening.  Of course there is a layer of glass to protect the drink making area, otherwise it wouldn't be very smart.

Upstairs also has a roasting room, this is where some of their events takes place.

Here's a better shot of what it looks like downstairs.

Luce Coffee

1717 W. 34th Street

Houston, TX 77018

832-962-8902

https://lucecoffeeroasters.com/main-location

 

HRW - PS 21

This year there weren't too many menus on the Houston Restaurant Week that excites me.

We came back to PS 21. 

You can do the HRW for dinner is $55 for the prix fixe and lunch is $25.  The place is small, so a reservation is a great idea.

I got a mojito

Casablanca - with tumeric, ras el hanot syrup, lime, and cardamom bitters

I got the Petatou - which has goat cheese on top of potato salad with olive and thyme.

I got the Crispy Salmon, which are salmon filet wrapped with pastry baked and a side of ratatouille.  Entire dish was great.

For dessert, we each got something different to split.  We got Crepe Suzette, it seemed to be a bit overcooked on this one.  It's too crispy on sides.  It's suppose to be chewy crepe. At any rate, it does have the citrus-y taste.  But the ice cream was good.

I got the Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding.  That was a great ending for the night. It is nice and moist and it had bourbon caramel sauce with the ice cream.  We liked this one best.

As mentioned earlier, it pays to have a reservation early on, simply the place is small so walk-in might now work.  They have a small parking lot but they do have valet.  So getting there also helps with parking as well.  We got a new server the night we were there, so it took longer because he has to get thru his training.  But food is good, service is fine.

PS-21

2712 Richmond Ave

Houston, TX 

346-571-8988

https://www.ps21htx.com/

 

Senbei from Japan

My neighbor asked what can she bring from Japan...

I asked for Senbei, which is rice cracker in Japanese.  They have all sorts of flavors.

This one has 2 flavors, one is deep fried octopus the other is deep fried squid.

This is the octopus - the flavor is light, and the pieces are huge.

I like the squid flavor one better, it truly have more taste and flavor coming through.  I guess you can say it taste more like fried seafood if you didn't know it was squid I particular.  And the way they squish the rice cracker, you wouldn't have known, but the flavor is there.

Senbei comes in different flavors, it can be with nori (seaweed), sweet, spicy (with wasabi), sour (with vinegar), and salt (popular with soy sauce of course).  There are big ones like a piece of cookie, or these ones like crackers, or ones you get a Trader Joe's that are really snack size.  It's truly a great snack, it's got flavor and filling.  Add that to your snack repertoire. 

 

Hello Kitty Cake

I got a Bokksu that has Hello Kitty version of the box.

They came with all sorts of Hello Kitty snacks and of course other limited edition goodies.

In it is the Baumkuchen - this is a Germany style split cake.  It's also call a tree cake because it has little rings like a tree does.

The Japanese love the Baumkuchen because it represents longevity and prosperity.  This one has nothing to do with Hello Kitty, just the packaging.  But it is a good chocolate cake, I won't lie.  How you make these is that. you basically have a pin (like a rolling pin) and you make layer and layer of cake (like pancake).  You basically continuously drape & wrap the pancakes around the pin, and build the layers.  When you cut them sideways, is where you get the tree rings.

If you don't want to try making it, definitely try eating it!   

 

Salami Potato Chips

Here's another weird snack I found.

On a mail-order site, I saw that they're selling Salami Flavored potato chips.  As you know, curiosity kills the cat, so here goes:

So the inside look like normal bag of potato chips.  The flavor: it taste extra salty and there's a meaty after taste.  Is it something I'll buy again?  Yes probably.  Is it something I can eat over and over?  No, I would eat the seaweed one over and over, but not the salami.

Give that a try!

 

Gourmet Salted Egg Fish Skin

This week is going to be random snack week.

I saw this and had tried some version of this before, but was also curious what could cost $11.  Curiosity wins, so here we go:

Basically this is fish skin chips, sprinkled with salted egg.  To be honest, I cannot taste the salted egg.  I did like the crispy bit, and if you have congee, this would go great with that.  The pieces of chips are huge, and they do get messy because they break easier than potato chips. 

I will say this is messier than I had pictured.  It is better if it goes with a bowl of congee, but also good on its own.  I feel somewhat healthier because it's fish skin, but for the price of $11 is a bit high for a snack.  So maybe once in a while, not a regular thing? 

 

At Cha

This is my first time at At Cha. 

This is kinda cute for a wall art.

I got the Matcha Rose latte, because it sounded good, but didn't realized it's so pretty.  Of course, I had to mix it up, (and preview) it turned light green-ish brown.  But, it does taste like matcha with a hint of rose to it.  That'll work.

We came here because we knew they carry Brian's cookies.  But keep an eye as to when they restock, the cookies goes quick.   They are closed on Mondays.

At Cha

9889 Bellaire Blvd

Ste 234

Houston, TX 77036

832-203-7647

https://www.yelp.com/biz/atcha-houston-2

 

Hong Kong's Cafe

It's been a long time since I've been here for breakfast.

Came back for my breakfast set.  Got my eggs (sunny side up), meat (yes, that's spam), toast (already came buttered), and a side of noodles (I got vermicelli with mustard greens and shredded pork).  Keep in mind, that came with a drink (lemon tea -not pictured).  

That is truly a full meal.  I literally skipped lunch, just because it has so much food on the plate.  It is served every day from 10-11:30a, come early and grab a seat.  Keep in mind, they're closed on Tuesday!

Hong Kong's Cafe

9108 Bellaire Blvd

#A

Houston, TX 77036

713-772-9633

 

Creamery at Union Station

Of course, you must have dessert when you're at the Ballpark.

We went to the Creamery at the Union Station, just really because it faces where the old Union Station used to be (which is now the gift store).  

The line does get line, but it moves fast.  And they all come in a little helmet.

I got the Butter Crunch, and then step to the side and added toppings.

They've got sprinkles, nuts, crushed Butterfingers, and caramel or chocolate syrup.  Go to town!

Perfect break before the 7th Inning Stretch.

There are 5 of these ice cream station all throughout the park.  

Creamery at Union Station

inside Minute Maid Park

Section 106, 128, 153, 251, 411, 429

https://www.mlb.com/astros/ballpark/information/concessions

 

The Butcher at Minute Maid

What is it at a Ball Game but junk food!!! YES!

This is where calories don't count and it's fun and free for all.

We came to a cart around section 116 that sells BBQ.  Of course, there are other places that does, it's just further to walk. 

For $16, you can get a giant spud with toppings and meat for an add of surcharge.  Their brisket is 18hr smoked so it's nice and moist and soft.  Of course, they have other sides too, like potato salad and cole slaw.  As the assembly line goes, you can put jalapeño, bbq sauce, and whatever else you want on top of that.

It's cute that they have utensils in a little Astro logo bag.  And yes, with BBQ you would need a ton of napkins.

We got some excellent seats there and close enough to food and to the field.  So awesome to be so close to the action.  LOVE IT!

The Butcher

in Minute Made Park

Section 116 & 224

https://www.mlb.com/astros/ballpark/information/concessions