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Sanrio Small Gift LA + Blogger Meet-up

By Suki on 2010/11/16

After a full night’s sleep and a carb-loaded breakfast, we drove up to LA to meet up with some Foodbuzz bloggers on Saturday. It happened to be the opening weekend of the Sanrio Small Gift LA event, so we decided to check it out. We picked up Sophia and Mimi along the way and met up with Eden and Amanda.

Here’s the obligatory group photo [aka evidence that it really happened!]:

Since it was the opening weekend, things were a little crazy. There were carnival games, food trucks, mini golf, a mini Ferris Wheel, an art gallery of Sanrio-inspired artwork, and even a photo booth for dressing up as the characters.

The line for the gift shop went from one end of the hangar to the other. We spent most of our meet-up time in that line, chatting and people-watching.

I remember being a Sanrio fan [specifically Pekkle because he was my favorite color at the time - blue] as a child, but since everything was expensive, trips to Sanrio were a treat. Many of the attendees were adults because I’m guessing just like for me, it’s a very nostalgic experience.

By the time we got to the front of the line, Jen showed up, so she joined us in the shop. This is where we split off from the rest of the group because we were in our own nostalgic haze. Sanrio was still big when we were in high school!

As expected, most items were overpriced because of the branding. The item on the right with all the character miniatures was $200!!!

Once we were able to get out of that store, the others had already moved on, and RV and I were on a time crunch. My college friend, Ann, was also at the event, so we met up with her. She bought a few prints from the artists at the event. The art gallery was probably my favorite part of the event.

RV had helped me buy some tickets for games while we were in the store, so after finding Ann, we all went to see what games they had set up. We played a few games to use up our tickets, taking home prizes like a deck of cards and a bookmark.

The biggest surprise, however, came with the ring toss.

I casually asked the gal behind the counter what the “surprise prize” was, and she responded that I’d have to get a ring around the orange pole to find out. On my first try [I'm the green ring!]:

Hilarious!

So I did end up having my question answered. It was a blanket with buttons to convert it into a Snuggie-type robe. LOVE IT! It kept me warm on the car ride home.

And no visit to a carnival-type environment is complete without some photos in cardboard cut-outs!

Happy 50th anniversary, Sanrio!

Los Angeles – Death, Mac ‘n Cheese, and Groundhogs!

By Suki on 2009/05/01

Originally, RV and I were planning on leaving Los Angeles on Monday. But after walking around a bit on Friday and hearing about a particularly good deal at one of the restaurants nearby, we decided “What the hey, we’ll stay another day as long as it’s okay!” And of course, being as awesome as they are, Jen and Alex let us stay another night. We remained out of their hair most of the time, so that probably helped. Aside from the evening plans, we didn’t really have much of anything else on the agenda. Wandering around, looking for food and just taking it all in before finding ourselves back in SF? Found random spots to take pictures…

Somewhere along the way, we came across the Museum of Death [Watch out - it's a MySpace page!]. And to take words from my Yelp review: Wow. Just wow. We were wandering down Hollywood on our way to a Thai place down the street, and this unusual spot caught my eye.

On the outside, it doesn’t look like much. There are several signs around the building that say “Museum of Death.” Entrance is $15, and it is NOT for the faint of heart. The aim of the museum’s founders, married couple J.D. Healy and Cathee Shultz, is that visitors to the museum leave grateful to be alive. And after a bit of time inside the museum, you really do feel good to be alive… and wonder what is WRONG with all the psycho-serial-killers!

It was rather gruesome, and I was feeling faint at some parts. Just had to remember to breathe. It was pretty amazing though, just how extensive the collections were. Definitely a very random place to wander into when you didn’t really have much planned for the day.

After the Museum of Death, we wandered around West Hollywood a bit before heading back to the apartment to join Jen and Alex for dinner at Citizen Smith. Half off all food on Mondays, and it’s totally worth the discounted price! Large platters of Mac ‘n Cheese for $5. The other entrees are normally priced high, but at half off and for the taste, there’s no reason not to swing by. We also ordered a burger and a meal-sized salad. They cover their sweet potato fries in sugar and cinnamon and call them “churro fries.” Tasty!

To end the evening, we hopped over to Space 1520 for the last in the series of Monday night outdoor movies for Bill Murray month – Groundhog Day! It got a little chilly, but it was definitely not as windy as SF.

Good times. Wondering when my next trip to LA will be. Perhaps August? Maybe sooner?

Los Angeles – the Valley, Scoops, and Taco Zone!

By Suki on 2009/04/27

While Jen and Alex rested off their hangovers from the Alter Egos party, RV and I went up to the Valley to visit Jeshii, Yayoi, and Little Joe! The last time I had seen Jeshii was when he told me that Yayoi was pregnant. I’d seen photos of Joe over the last few months, but to see him in person at three months old, wow! It’s sunk in. One of my close friends has a baby! And Joe was so well-behaved while we enjoyed brunch at CiCi’s Cafe. Steve [Ace] was there also, and I hadn’t seen him for a few years, I think. Good to catch up. The food was pretty good too!

After brunch, we hung out for a bit at their house. Caught up a bit. I’m considering returning to LA in August for the annual Death March. Will see if I can fit that in!

Upon returning to LA, we made our way over for ice cream at Scoops! I think I make sure to visit every time I’m in LA. Unfortunately, we got there about half an hour before closing, so there weren’t a lot of flavors left. I ended up with the Brown Bread [with Grape Nuts] and a vegan Salty Chocolate combo. Still very good.

And then a few hours later, Taco Zone! I’d heard so much about this taco truck from Jen and other friends. It was much easier to track down because they park in the same spot every night – on the side of the road, right by the Vons parking lot. Very convenient location! The food was pretty tasty; we ordered the suadero burritos on Jen’s recommendation. We grabbed everything to-go and chowed down on the back of the car.

If I visited LA more frequently, I’d return to SF a very fat girl… I just keep on eating… Oh, wait. I do that in any city already!

The rest of the evening was relaxing. Watched Duplicity back at the apartment. It was a little confusing at first, but then it all came together. I actually really liked it because the portrayal of corporations competing for secrets cracked me up. A bit over-the-top.

Los Angeles – Canals and Alter Egos

By Suki on 2009/04/26

On day number two, RV and I headed for the canals of Venice after a brief stop for lunch at a Burmese market/eatery for lunch. I’ve always loved the area because of the unique houses and gorgeous canals. It hasn’t changed very much since I was in the area last, except maybe a few extra “For Sale” signs.

After a scroll around the canals, we headed for Venice Beach. It was much too windy, and there were too many people trying to peddle their goods along the walkway, so we got out of there. It was quite the feat to find a bathroom that wasn’t one of the public ones at the beach. We found ourselves at Seed. No bathrooms for customer use there, but we did fill our bellies with a vegan cupcake and an iced coffee [Yeah, we ordered a beverage despite our original task at hand - to find a toilet!].

The joint birthday party for Jen, Neil, and James was in the evening. The theme was Alter Egos, and all guests picked name tags on the way in. All the names had been pre-determined, which was part of the fun. You didn’t know who you would become until the party. I ended up with “Dorah,” and RV was “Gabriel” for the evening.

Good times, but I think it got a little frustrating for some people who didn’t know very many people, and all they had was a fake name! There were some pretty awful names in the mix too, including “Edna,” “Grizelda,” “Eustace,” “Archibald,” etc. I guess it was better being referred to as “The Explorah” the entire time. There was someone named “Norah” there also.

By the end of the party, I had decided to sift through the name box for something a little more crazy and ended up with “Apollonia,” except I pronounced the “pollo” portion like chicken in Spanish!

So nice to catch up with everyone in LA, as well as meet the new faces. Kristen made the cakes – aren’t they AWESOME?

Los Angeles – Refreshed and Chasing Taco Trucks!

By Suki on 2009/04/25

I’m in LA today. It’s good to be away from home. It keeps me from just wrapping myself up in a blanket and staying in all day long, casually browsing job listings on Craigslist or LinkedIn on the laptop.

RV and I arrived yesterday afternoon. Alex was kind enough to pick us up from the airport, and we started off our trip by trying out Kitchen 24 in Hollywood. Basically, a fancy version of a diner. The servers wore pink pants, and I had french toast for lunch.

Most places we check out SHOULD be new while we’re down here since I’ve not been lived here since 2004, and my last trip was several months ago. After walking around in the neighborhood, I can say there’s a lot to see just within a few blocks, so we’ll be entertained for the few days we’re here. We spent a few hours hanging out at the apartment, playing Little Big Planet. YES, they have that game here! I’ve been obsessing over the Sackboys for some time now, so that was pretty exciting. While time-consuming, it’s fun to see what the characters can do.

When Jen got home from work, I told her about Kogi BBQ being on Vine, possibly nearby, and we looked it up right away. Turns out it was just a block up! We immediately headed outside to get in line for it, totally expecting a reaaally long line. It was actually not too bad of a line, and we had our food in hand in 20 minutes. It’s basically a taco truck with Korean-style meats that announces its location using Twitter [@kogibbq].

Since I’ve been following all these food trucks and carts lately, I’ve decided to start a new Twitter account for that purpose. Follow @hungrysuki for my foodie adventures, my first one being Kogi BBQ!

After the delicious KBBQ tacos, burritos, sliders, and dessert [Yeah, we ordered a shit-ton!], we hung out [aka painted their new apartment bathrooms] until finally deciding to go out. Ended up downtown at Bar 107 where we caught up with a few others to finish off the night.

Wondering what today will bring… aside from the guaranteed boozing madness that will ensue tonight at the joint birthday party that was the real reason we flew down for the weekend! Can’t wait!

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