October 12, 2008
This post was written by Keri
Can you believe this snowy weather already? I was shocked to wake up to Aaron getting ready to shovel snow… I am not much of a winter person (I hate being cold), but the massive white snowflakes were just beautiful! Except for the trip to church, it was nice to be inside and enjoy the scenery! Jacs loved the snow- check out this video clip of her playing in the first snowfall of the year!
I have added more pictures and video clips to our shutterfly website- don’t forget to check it out. I didn’t realize that I was sending all the members emails every time I updated the site- so sorry! I think we fixed it so that shouldn’t happen again. Unless you liked the emails- then let me know and we can add you back on to the mailing list. The video clips are in the category “Jacs in Action”. You need to know the password to watch!!
Posted in About Aaron, Family Fun, Homemade Baby Books 
3 Comments »
September 30, 2008
This post was written by Keri
Jacs turns 11 months old on the 31st of September. That day does not exist! So we will celebrate it on the 30th. In honor of our little pumpkin, here is a list of 11 new things that Jacsie can do that makes us smile!
- Makes noise- she loves to baby gab. Her favorite words right now are “dad” (& any form of the word) “tickle” and a strange noise that sounds like a chicken. She intergrates the word “mom” into her mad scream. What a daddy’s girl!
- Share- She loves to hand things to you! From the half eaten baby treats during sacrament meeting to the magazines on the table. We always say “Thank You”!
- We have mastered open and close, and now it is IN and OUT! She loves to pull out her diapers from the organizer, toys from her cupboard in our kitchen, and anything in a drawer! She will take a toy out of a bin, put it in a drawer, take it out of that drawer and put it in another drawer, and then put it back in the bin. A lot of work! I had her helping me take clothes out of the dryer-now she wants to pull out the clothes from the laundry baskets.
- Jacs has learned to feed any food that she doesn’t want anymore to the two eager and always willing dogs. We try and stop them but Jacs just laughs and laughs and melts our hearts! I am sure when she gets older this trick won’t be so funny :).
- Loves being on her feet- she much prefers standing to sitting, and can go from sitting to standing without furniture assistance anymore. She took her first steps about three weeks ago and has been hobbling around ever since. She’s still independent- she will just stand and stare at you until she is ready to walk.
- She is a daddy’s girl. A member of our bishopric made the same remark last week- Jacs kept looking at daddy playing the organ music and happily screaming “dad!” (my Sundays are now mostly spent in the foyer) It is so precious to see their sweet bond although I am a tiny bit jealous…..
- I was researching and read that 1 year olds know the meaning of about 50 words. That made me nervous- I sat up one night counting all the words that I knew that Jacs really understood and could only count about 12. (dad, dogs, milk, more, peek-a-boo, george, henry, baby, mom sometimes, hi, bye, elmo, duck) Well, since that sleepless night, I have tried to pay more attention and am noticing more and more words she knows. I am so proud of her quickly catching on to new things.
- She can sign “more” and it is so incredibly cute! You can definitely tell what food she likes because she will keep doing the sign. (like baby yogurt melts) It is amazing to me how accurately she will do the sign- such a smartie!
- She loves to talk to on the phone. She is learning how to hold it correctly and will make a few noises- like dad. She thinks that daddy lives in the phone when he is gone- even if he is in another room!
- She gives us the cutest little kisses… it just makes my day when I will ask Jacsie for a kiss and she gives me a little wet peck. She loves to kiss the baby (herself in the mirror or in pictures) and her stuffed animals.
- She loves playing peek-a-boo! We just say “peek” and she will either crouch down or tilt her head to play. She doesn’t seem to tire of the game!
Posted in Baby Boo, Hiking 2 Comments »
September 29, 2008
This post was written by Keri
It is finally happened. We have uploaded 500 pictures on dropshots- our account is full. Rather than buy the upgrade or constantly delete pictures to make room for new ones, we went with Shutterfly. I actually set up this account back in November 2007 but Dropshots was easier at the time. Shutterfly has gone through some upgrades with their photo album sharing, and it actually is pretty nice! It has more bells and whistles- which we will have fun playing with in our spare time (if indeed that does exist). Our Shutterfly page is password protected- for those that want to visit the site the password is the name of our first rowdy mischievous dog. Don’t forget to leave comments on pics that you like- Aaron and I enjoy your thoughts on our darling baby.
Posted in Family Fun No Comments »
September 25, 2008
This post was written by Keri
This month I was sifting through my options on what kind of book I would make for Jacs. I started on a “Let’s Eat!” book- taking various pictures and writing the story line. And then, suddenly- a miraculous gift appeared through email. Well, maybe not miraculous, but a great opportunity nonetheless. I recieved a free offer to make a photobook through Shutterfly. I put the food book on hold and spent the late night hours creating a book about our family vacation to Canada. So although this will be more of a family keepsake book rather than a bedtime book, I am still counting it for this month’s homemade baby book. And to all those that believe that I could go into business creating homemade books- thank you. It means the world to me.
Posted in Family Fun, Homemade Baby Books 4 Comments »
September 22, 2008
This post was written by Keri
I thought I would have a creative art activity with Jacsie today. It seemed like a good day to get messy and finger paint! I used food coloring with some applesauce- knowing that Jacs is curious and likes put things in her mouth. She had a great time squishing the red, blue, and yellow applesauce between her chubby fingers- with shades of green and brown oozing out of her fists- and then spreading it all over her high chair tray. The colorful applesauce managed to spread all over the high chair (and herself) in less than 10 minutes. Perfect time for a bath!
Posted in Baby Boo 3 Comments »
September 18, 2008
This post was written by Keri
Looking at the podium to see who the last speaker of our sacrament meeting was met by a huge bear yawn from me. Oh great, I thought. High Council speakers seemed to add an extra 30 minutes to the meeting. I was getting antsy to go home and have lunch and Jacs was trying with all her might to crawl under our bench.
This member of the high council was no different. As he talked my mind drifted to the many tasks that I needed to accomplish for the week. I thought about the unfolded laundry pile and what we should have for lunch. Jacs was getting more restless, and I was too. I glanced at the speaker just as he was telling a story of some youth in our stake. Several years ago a group of about 20 young men (including Tim- a short handicapped boy with a great attitude and John- a gargantuous boy who played football at the local high school.) These young men hiked up to a waterfall- some of the leaders staying back with Tim to help him up the rocky slopes. Tim never once complained about the trek- despite the fact that it was so much harder on his poor, frail body. Once the whole group was at their watery destiniation they had a picnic lunch and enjoyed the beautiful green scenery. Then it was time for the descent- the leaders very concerned about Tim knowing that this would be a harder trip for him to make. As they were contemplating this issue, they noticed John walking towards them. He scooped up Tim with his massive arms, put him on his back, and without saying a word continued his journey downward. One of the leaders (who happened to be the high council speaker) approached him after the long hike back with great humility and appreciation for the task. John reassured him that it was no problem at all- it was no load.
So you can tell my interest was peaked at this point… the speaker went on to conclude with the lyrics from the oldies song “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother“.
The road is long
With many a winding turn
That leads us to who knows where
Who knows where
But I’m strong Strong enough to carry him
He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother
His welfare is of my concern
No burden is he to bear
We’ll get there
For I know
He would not encumber me
He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother
If I’m laden at all
I’m laden with sadness
That everyone’s heart
Isn’t filled with the gladness
Of love for one another
It’s a long, long road
From which there is no return
While we’re on the way to there
Why not share
And the load
Doesn’t weigh me down at all
He ain’t heavy he’s my brother
How many times do we look at serving our fellowman as a hard task? If we truly thought of each other as brothers and sisters, wouldn’t we (and shouldn’t we) be more willing to help each other along this journey called life?
Posted in About Keri, Family Fun 1 Comment »
September 2, 2008
This post was written by Keri
Aaron had the opportunity to teach a computer class in Toronto last week and we got to go along for the ride! We were all so excited to be with daddy for the week and to go back up to Canada! Aaron and I both served our missions in Toronto and it is always like going home when we go back.
We scrambled to get everything aligned so we could make the trip. We needed to pack, so I made a list so we wouldn’t leave anything behind. I also checked online to see what other mom’s packed for their babies for the airplane ride. Aaron has a great routine for packing, so we also followed that and we were able to get everything nice and snug in just 2 carry-ons, his computer bag, and our diaper bag! I checked with our pediatrician to see how the airplane ride would affect Jacsie’s ears. He reassured us that everything would be great- just pack a binky and her bottle so she would have something to suck on during take off and landing and she would be just fine. We also needed to get our passports. Aaron, Jacs, and I rushed to the post office and filled out the forms and got our pictures taken. Jackie’s picture is so adorable! It is the cutest passport picture I have ever seen! Luckily, the passports came in just 9 days!
Sunday~ Take off to the great white north!
The day finally arrived when we would make our journey up to Canada! 
We left early Sunday morning to insure that we would have plenty of time to park our car, check in, and relax at the airport. Yes, I said relax at the airport! Because of Aaron’s sky miles, he is a member of the crown room- a quiet, comfortable place to relax while waiting for your flight. It was very luxurious compared to the blue benches by the airline gates! Of course, having a sweet little baby in a room with muffins and orange juice in her close proximity only means one thing- a huge mess. Jacs is into everything and as hard as we tried to keep things from her, she finds a way to get them anyway! We flew first class on a direct flight up to Toronto. Oh, it 
was so nice! There was plenty of room for our long legs. We ate a yummy chicken and rice meal and watched Made of Honor- Aaron hated it but I loved it! Very much a chick flick. Jackie slept most of the way up… she was a fantastic flier and we had nothing to worry about! 
Aaron also has headphones that reduce background noise- they somehow mute the sound of the airplane engines. I wore them on the way to Canada and back home and I can’t see myself flying without them… they make the airplane ride nice and quiet. While we were landing, I let Jacs look out the window at the airplanes and she was so happy to see the planes! She was so excited that she was just babbling away. We want to buy her a little fisher price airport for her birthday.
After we landed and got our rental car, we headed straight for our hotel. 
We stayed in the Metropolitan Hotel which was located right in the heart of the city. Looking out the window you had a wonderful view of the CN Tower. We dropped of our luggage and headed for Buskerfest- a four day festival showing off a collection of skilled and entertaining world class street performers. This entire street festival is dedicated to supporting epilepsy, so it’s close to my heart. 6 years ago, when Aaron and I were in Canada, we went to Buskerfest and it was amazing to see how much it has grown- from about 100 people to over 500,000! We ate at Tim Hortons- a doughnut 
shop that is a staple of Canada. After enjoying ourselves at Buskerfest, we headed for the subway to buy our week passes. We rode the new subway line out to Don Valley- which was one of Aarons old areas. You can totally tell that this subway line is new- it is very clean and modern. Hearing the chime of the subway doors opening and closing and the stations smelling like car repair shops brought back so many memories of riding the TTC as a missionary.
Monday~ Hockey Hall of Fame and A day of remembrance
There was so much to do on our first day in Canada! Jacs and I took the subway to Union Station and walked over to the Hockey Hall of Fame. This is one of Toronto’s must-see museums. Hockey is a very important sport up in Canada! We saw a lot of displays about famous hockey players and different 
trophies or cups that have been won. We got to walk inside a model of a hockey team’s locker room- equipped with the jerseys, helmets, and all! We got to see part of a movie about the famous Stanley Cup- the trophy awarded to the best NHL team of the season. It is the only trophy awarded in sports that has the winners names engraved on it. This movie showed different hockey team winners and how they spent their day with the Cup- one family ate ice cream out of it, another took it up a mountain peak…. it was an interesting movie! And then we headed up to the display to see the actual Stanley Cup.
I was so excited! I was not expecting to see the real deal! We walked right up to this huge cup, read some names that were engraved on it- and got our picture taken with it! Pretty cool, eh! Afterwards, I grabbed some lunch at the mall and we headed back up to the Eaton Centre. This is a huge, four story mall that would make any shopper happy for several hours (I am not one of those people however). Jacsie and I went to the Roots store and bought us some matching shirts- I think they are really cute! Afterwards we headed outside to find the city hall building. We walked into Trinity Square- where they have an old Holy Trinity Church. In the square we found a labyrinth- a flat maze built with different color bricks. We attempted to enter the puzzle but I got way to dizzy, so I opted for taking Jacsie’s picture instead. Somewhere between the labrynth and the Eaton Centre we lost Jacsie’s pink flip flop. They are the cutest shoes, too! I was a little bummed but I figure her shoe size is changing rapidly anyway. 
The Toronto City Hall building is spectacular! Right outside the building, there is a sculpture from Henry Moore known as Three-Way Piece No. 2 (usually called The Archer). We had seen a smaller version of this masterpiece at the University of Utah’s Museum of Fine Arts just a couple weeks ago! It is a very modern, two tower building with a small rotunda in the center. Visitors enter through the center and are allowed to visit the first and second floors. 
Jacs and I took a self guided tour through the building. We saw a very unique mural designed with nails, a small model of the city, and the Toronto coat of arms. When we were through touring city hall, I decided that we needed to go back to the hotel and rest a bit before we met up with daddy for the evening. RIght outside city hall, nestled in the trees, was a small kids park (ages 6 and under). I 
seized the opportunity to let Jacs out of her stroller and play. Oh, she loved it! While we were playing at the park, we saw a massive film crew taping a TV show called Flashpoint- that was neat to see the behind the scenes work and gear that goes into a TV show! When we finally did make it back to our hotel, we took a 5 minute dip in the indoor pool and got ready for daddy to come home from work.
Aaron and I had already decided that Monday night would be our Scarborough/ Pickering night. We hopped into the rental car and drove out to Pickering (about 30 min. drive with traffic). We saw one of Aaron’s old apartments in Don Valley on the way and that brought back a lot of memories for him. When we got to Pickering I emotionally prepared myself to visit the home of one of my dear friends that has passed away, Phyllis. Before we left for Canada I looked her up and found out that she had passed. I had a hard time with it- I never got to say goodbye! I had the blessing of teaching her about the gospel and seeing her get baptized at the age of 84. I knew that her son still lived in that home, and I wanted to drop of a short video that I had made in her memory. They weren’t home, so I took the liberty of walking right into her backyard where her ashes were cast. Being at her home and her backyard brought back so many 
wonderful, happy memories. There were still and peaceful moments seeing the lush, forested backyard that she loved so much. As we were about to leave, we met some of her relatives who lived in her basement and had the chance to verbally let out some of the grief. It was very therapeutic for me, and I am glad we had the chance to go to Pickering. Afterwards, Aaron and I headed out for Scarborough- to find the house where we first met so many years ago! Aaron spotted the home first and we took pictures hoping the family inside wouldn’t mind. Then we went to the Town Centre, it’s the big mall in Scarborough- and we got there just 30 minutes before closing. We walked around a bit, pointing out changes here and there, and decided to eat at a restaurant there called Moxie’s. We weren’t terribly impressed with the service, and the food wasn’t wonderful either. By the time we got back to the hotel we were all very tired!!
Tuesday ~ Distillery District and Chinese Lantern Festival
Tuesday morning Jacs and I slept in until about 10 we were so exhausted! We took the subway to union station and walked to St. Lawrence market. This is a big, open, old building that houses several fresh food markets and odds and ends shops. We didn’t stay long- I wanted to head to the Distillery District which was several blocks away. The Distillery District, is a national Historic Site and represents the largest and best preserved collection of Victorian Industrial Architecture in North America with over forty buildings. There have been many movies and television shows filmed here because of the brick lined streets to the European piazza styled areas. Jacs and I went through some creative art galleries, antique car shops, but ultimately spent most of our time there in a yummy chocolate shop known as Soma chocolatemaker. The rich, chocolately smell of this shop captivated me from the start! There was several specialty items you could purchase- from Mayan hot chocolate to the actual cacao bean itself! We ended up getting some chocolate squares that were so delicious! It made the very long walk worth it!
I wanted to walk by some old churches that I had seen on our way to the Distillery District. They ended up being very old, beautiful churches. The first one we visited was an Anglican church. This church had the long, colorful stain glassed windows, the ornate baptistery, and cute little doors for the pews. I felt very much the tourist taking pictures while people were sitting at their pews having some religious time. We then went to the United church, which was not open, so after taking a couple snapshots we went over to the catholic church. This looked similar to the Anglican church with stain glassed windows, lighted candles, and quiet patrons but there was a couple noticeable differences. First, the appearance of Mary. There was a statue of Mary outside the church and inside there was a little altar with her picture. There was also the brown, curtained box for you to talk to the priest. I had never seen one before so that was cool. Right outside the catholic church there was St. Michaels Choir School- something I would never see where I live!
As we left the catholic church, we found ourselves at the Mackenzie house. This was the last home of William Lyon Mackenzie, leader of the 1837 Upper Canada Rebellion and Toronto’s first mayor. I had to carry Jacs around and she was so squirmy and is getting so heavy that I would have to set her down for awhile in each room. Luckily, the tour guide was a sweet young girl who was very happy to hold Jacs while I took pictures. The house also has a fully-functional 19th-century print shop, similar to the one Mackenzie used to publish newspapers. I was able to make Jacs a little souvenir using the old printing machines!
When we met up with Aaron we headed out to Ontario Place. We took a streetcar to the CNE (the Canadian National Exhibition- country’s largest fair). It was very busy! You could see tons of rides and food stands everywhere! We entered an extremely large building to get some dinner. The food possibilities were endless! We ate curry and roti, one of our favorite Indian dishes. It was a lot more spicy than I remembered! After we fed our scraps to the sea gulls, we entered the large animal building. We saw lots of farm animals, including the sweetest little baby lamb I ever saw! They also had a display of butter sculptures- I never thought art would come out of butter but there you go!
We then headed to the Chinese Lantern festival. This is the largest festival of its kind in North America. It featured a world of animals, dinosaurs, and marine life, as well as a special glimpse at some of the world’s architectural wonders. There were 32 majestic sets to view as each continent bursts forth in the brilliant form of these intricately designed, colossal displays. The world’s first permanent imax theater is located at Ontario Place. This theater is spherical in shape and has an older feel to it. We took Jacs to her first movie in this theater. It was about dinosaurs- not incredibly interesting, and Jacs had a super stinky diaper in the middle of the movie- other than that, it was a great experience!
Wednesday~ Sand Baby and 360 degree tour of Toronto via CN Tower
Despite all the walking Jacs and I did the previous day, we headed off Wednesday morning to the section in Toronto known as Chinatown. It is called this for the obvious reason of all the Chinese markets, banks, and businesses located here! I wanted to find Jacsie a little Chinese dress- and my mission was soon accomplished at a very friendly Chinese shop right in the heart of this section of town!
We spent more time at the childrens park and Jacs played in the sand for the first time. We can call her our sand baby now! She just loves the feel of the sand in her chubby little hands. We also met some other friends there. Jacs loves to be around other little people and she was very curious about what they were doing. One little boy, i think his name was Daksh, was from India. His mom told me that her and her husband went to their temple, opened up a book, and pointed to the letter D and thats how they decided what the first letter in his name would be. I thought it was interesting!
This was our night out on the town! We went to a very upscale restaurant located in the CN Tower. The restaurant also revolves slowly while you dine, so you get more than just a single, fixed vista of Toronto. Jacs was fairly good while we ate chicken (me) and rabbit (Aaron). It was a great view of the city- we really enjoyed the rotating floor and the ability to view the city while we were eating. Afterwards we took a few moments to view the city at the observation deck. It was very breezy so we didn’t stay out long. We then headed for the famous glass floor. This floor has been specifically 
designed to be walked, crawled, even jumped on! It is very durable and can actually withstand the weight of 14 large hippos. Jacs had a great time crawling around and even made some new friends there! We walked around the Rogers Centre (formally known as the sky dome). 
This is where the Blue Jays play baseball and the Toronto Argonauts play football. I had forgotten my subway pass, so we decided to walk back to the hotel. It was great just to walk around the city that we love so much! We even got some swimming time in, although the water was FREEZING!!!!
Thursday~ High Park and Ferry ride
When Jacsie and I were at the Mackenzie house Tuesday, we got a coupon to attend another historic museum in the Toronto area for free. I decided to head out to the Colbourne Lodge for no other reason than I was told it was close to the subway. Counting on not walking very far, I opted for comfort and put on my worn out flip flops. Then we took the subway out to High Park where the museum is located. HIgh Park is Toronto’s largest park with almost 400 acres of beautifully landscaped and manicured gardens, open grassy areas, and an unkempt wooded terrain. It’s not flat either- with steep inclines and declines that made the journey a bit harder. The views, however, were spectacular. I didn’t know exactly how to find the
lodge, and with the park being so large it took us over 30 minutes. I was so exhausted by the time we got there that I asked the tour guide if I could sit down in every room! This house boasts the oldest standing washroom in Canada. We quickly went through this house- my feet were starting to hurt and I wanted to rest them. I grabbed some lunch at the park cafe and we headed for the subway for our ride to the hotel. When we got off at our station, I thought it smart (despite my aching feet) to go to the Eaton Centre and ask if they had seen Jacsie’s lost flip flop. We walked around the mall for about an hour until my feet starting to really hurt! I literally hobbled back to the hotel, eager to put my feet up for awhile.
When Aaron got back from work we took Jacsie on her first ferry ride to centre island. During the day this island has a small amusement park. There is great views of the skyline of Toronto. The weather was a little drizzly and it was dark and windy, so we were concerned about Jackie getting cold. We basically just took some pictures and then waited for the ferry ride back to the city. Aaron and I were starving so we stopped at the Hard Rock Cafe downtown for some dinner. While we were there it started raining really hard. I thought we would get drenched on our way back to the hotel! By the time we finished eating, though, the rain had stopped so we ran (well I hobbled still) the two blocks back to our hotel.When we got back, Aaron took me through his packing routine so we would be ready to go Friday. We didn’t want to miss our flight and we knew that every minute counted! We got our carry-ons packed and Aaron put them in the rental car so all I had to worry about was the stroller and the diaper bag.
Friday~ heading home… maybe not
Jacsie and I spent the morning of our last day walking around the Eaton Centre and the Atrium on Bay (office building with some shops and daddy’s training center) until mommys feet couldn’t go any further. That’s when we went up to the third floor, found the Canada Training Center, and I plopped on a chair happy to just sit and wait for Aaron (he had about 3 hours left). The staff at this training center were so nice and just doting over Jacs- everyone in Canada has been so helpful and complimentary of our little Boo. She was just so popular- from the Chinese couples on the subway to the wealthy businessmen in their fancy suits on the elevators! The lady in charge of the training centre let Jacs and I play in an empty classroom while we waited for daddy. She was so happy to look out the windows and watch the people below.
When daddy was finished we rushed to drop off the rental car and check in at the airport. Much to our dismay, we found out by the delta ticket agent that we had missed our flight by 5 minutes. (You have to be checked in an hour before take off on interntional flights). I thought I was going to have a panic attack! 
I was very stressed at the situation but Aaron took care of things and we ended up on a 6 AM flight to SLC. Looking back, I see that things worked out for the best. We got to stay over night at the airport’s hotel (Sheraton)
- which was very comfortable after all the stress of the day. If we had made our flight, we wouldn’t have had the extra night to wind down. Jacs had a great time playing hide and go seek in the curtains (she loves playing in curtains and we don’t usually let her play in them because they are at other people’s homes). Because we needed to leave the hotel at 4, we put Jacs to bed early. She was not very happy with this plan! Aaron spent a half hour walking her to sleep- it took him 5 minutes to reach one end of the hallway and back. When we tried to put her down, we heard Jacsie’s first really angry cries. She did not want to go to bed!
Saturday~ early morning departure-
We woke up around three in the morning and got ready to check in- there was no way we were going to miss our flight today! Jacs was surprisingly happy and she was a hit at the airport, and I will say that having a baby with you at the airport has it’s perks- we got to wait in shorter lines! The flight attendants and airport staff thought that Jacs was very cute, too. They loved the big, red flower she had in her hair (not something you see a lot in Toronto). She slept all the way to Atlanta. We were both worried that she would be awake the whole flight from Georgia to SLC but she ended up sleeping away that flight, too! I had her new favorite baby crackers on hand just in case- they are called Baby Mum Mums and we are going to have to wean her off of them since they are Canadian. They are the perfect size for her and they are healthy, too.
All in all, it was a great get away- we saw and did so much- but be it ever so humble, there really is no place like home.
Posted in Family Fun 4 Comments »
August 19, 2008
This post was written by Aaron
Ginseng Korian BBQ and Tofu
475 Castro St, Mountain View, CA 94041, (650) 967-3913
Last night, being the hungry man that I am around dinner time, I was in the lookout for a restaurant. A good restaurant mind you- not something that I could eat while in Utah. When I’m on the road, I want good, ethnic and authentic cuisine. As such, that means no Mexican, Chinese or fast food. No standard restaurant chains, like Chili’s or IHOP. No steak houses (with a couple exceptions). In other words, I’m looking for “the best kept secret” of the city. Ginsing- Korean BBQ and Tofu may just be that secret. At least one of them.
At first impression, I thought to myself that I hadn’t had Korean in a long time and it would be good to try again. So, I entered the restaurant ready to be served. At first impression, the restaurant was styled nice and had an inviting atmosphere. What I found a little odd, but appreciated later, was the fact that there was no counter, no podium for the waiter, no till in public view. All that was visible was the tables to sit at and the chairs to sit upon. However, something that caught my eye, as my waiter took mput the beef on top toe to my table, was the fact that there were grills in the table itself. Is the chef going to cook for me, like those famous Japanese steak houses? He certainly doesn’t have the room to do so. However, above every table is a vent to catch the smoke and steam from grilling.
Beginning to grill the beef and ribs.
The large assorted array of side dishes.
The restaurant interior looking from my table.
Well, I was intrigued to say the least. So, as I got my menu, and looked it over, I made my decision. BBQ beef and ribs. Within a minute or two, the waiter brought a number of side dishes to my table. I had no idea what they were, and still don’t. I wasn’t sure if they were part of the main course, or if I should start eating them. I waited to see what the main course would provide. Very shortly after bringing out the side dishes, my waiter brought out a drill plate for the grill in my table, lighted it with a lighter and walked away. I’m getting excited. This is going to be good. Then, he quickly came out with a large plate of raw beef, raw corn and two raw ribs.
Then walked away.
Wait, what? Does he expect me to grill this myself? Certainly, there must be some mistake. I was hoping to purchase cooked food, or have the chef grill for me. I’m in no mood to grill for myself. So, I called the waiter over, asking him what I’m supposed to do. He politely showed me how to grill the beef and ribs, explaining that the slice of onion is to keep the beef warm when I’m finished grilling it.
Well, I’m here. I might as well start. So, I began grilling the beef slices and two ribs. Within a few minutes, I actually started enjoying it. This is kind of fun. The waiter also kept coming to my table, making sure I was doing everything correctly, and that I was ok. He would adjust the flame of the grill as necessary, so as to not burn my beef, then walk away. Needless to say, by the end of the meal, I was thinking to myself that I would be perfectly happy coming again, and trying something different from the menu.
As far as the flavor of the meal itself. The beef was marinated to perfection. It had a most wonderful flavor. It was a little sweet and tangy. The ribs, which were huge, were mostly fat and tendons, but had a good flavor as a result. The corn was exceptionally sweet- absolutely a joy to eat.
Some of the side dishes were good, some, well- odd. One side dish was dried and baked anchovies (I think- could have been sardines). I wasn’t fond of that, but some of the vegetables were good. I only wish I knew the names of those side dishes, so I could document them here.
All-in-all, I would highly recommend this restaurant. I really enjoyed grilling my own dinner, and the food was fabulous. The atmosphere was inviting and the service was outstanding. The only things I would improve with the restaurant was having all the side dishes listed on the menu, so I knew what I was eating. Further, it would’ve been nice to know before I ordered that I would be doing the grilling. However, with that said, not all items on the menu required the patron to cook for themselves. Some items I noticed were coming out of the kitchen already prepared and cooked.
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