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What I Learned From My First Job and Working in the Food Industry

2/1/2021

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     In June of 2020, I began my first ever job and-- surprise surprise-- it was in the food industry. Starting a new job can be overwhelming and even more so during a global pandemic. Lucky for me I got a job at Baskin Robbins, a place dedicated to feeding people's cravings and serving happiness in a cone to its customers. 
     Before I started working on the inside, I had no idea how challenging it is to manage a customer or even to do something as simple as scooping ice cream. When I began training at Baskin Robbins, I had to practice my scoops and weigh them to make sure they were the perfect amount. I would do this for hours during my first three days of training and when I moved up to interacting with the customers there was so much I didn’t know: How was I supposed to respond when someone asked why one scoop of their ice cream is bigger than the other? What do you do when they don’t like how their milkshake tastes? What is the proper way to respond to a thank you? The greatest lessons I learned in my six months at Baskin Robbins had to do with how to read people, and also that hot fudge makes everything better. 
        Most people don't consider the interpersonal skill and emotional intelligence needed in fast food service. You have to pick up on a person's mood based on their body language and tone of voice they speak in and then adjust yourself accordingly. On top of the difficulty of reading people as is, we now have to do it where a mask covers half of their face. When a restaurant worker gets your order wrong your emotions kick in and the worker has to stand behind the counter and take it. Employees who work in food and drink all come to work with their own emotional baggage but it's their job to mellow yours with a stress scoop or a cheery banana split. No matter how busy, how loud, or how stressful a situation is, the employee must read it and handle it. At the end of the day, you’re always walking out the door with a scoop of satisfaction. 
      I can’t say my experience at Baskin Robbins was perfect but it changed my whole perspective on the fast-food industry. Six months ago I was not a generous tipper, but now that I’ve seen how every cent adds up, I always tip. Six months ago I didn’t specify all the details of my order; now I do because I understand what it's like trying to maintain a fast and efficient customer service environment. Six months ago I didn’t know how to properly do the dishes, now...I try my best. Fast food and restaurant industry workers have a level of intelligence that is only developed through experience, and now that I’ve learned what it's like I applaud my comrades who also work in the industry. And as my chapter at Baskin Robbins comes to a close, I am so excited for my next chapter at Chick-Fil-A. Have a tasteful day! 


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Carrot and Daikon: Pre-Quarantine

3/8/2020

5 Comments

 
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Once upon a time humans used to go to restaurants to sit down and enjoy the ambiance.  This “once upon a time business” was actually only a few weeks ago, but for now while we're stuck with Postmates and to go, let’s reminisce on the sit-down eating days…

Appearance seems to really entice the appetite. So it’s no surprise that curb appeal can really matter at restaurants and food stores. We associate nicer outsides with high quality food and vise versa.

But, what was once a Taco Bell is now an amazing bahn mi place that can break down our biases about restaurants, and startle the mind with high-quality food inside of a fast food exterior. Carrot and Daikon don't look much different than a Taco Bell. And its surroundings certainly don’t  raise your expectations. It is located on the corner of Newland and Westminster Blvd. surrounded by a 7 Eleven, casket store, donut shop, beauty salon, and Shoppy Max. Each business is advertised with its name in two languages at the top or even just one you don't understand.

 When first driving by, we missed the entrance to the lot  because we were surprised by its curb look. Once we saw the place I worried they'd have a mediocre banh mi with a greasy fast food taste (don't get me wrong sometimes I crave that taste), but their fresh ingredients, perfect bread, and juicy, crispy-edge meat proves wrong every assumption we made before entering the restaurant.

​The place itself reflected the culture of Garden Grove with old men enjoying Vietnamese iced coffee, regulars popping in, and a diverse group of customers eager to dig into their food. 

At the front counter, there's a spread of food wrapped in banana leaf that to my surprise was Vietnamese bologna as well as plastic display cases filled with baked goods like an empanada-like pastry filled with a sweet pork mixture called a pate chaud. 

Behind the counter are employees working nonstop pumping fresh bread out of the oven, assembling sandwiches, and making boba drinks. The airy and crispy French bread is slathered in a garlic aioli and topped with cilantro, carrot, daikon, and jalapenos. Both my dad and I tried the crispy pork belly sandwich which was the perfect amount of fatty, warm, and  toothsome crispiness. Compared to all of the bahn mis I’ve ever eaten, this one was so perfect compared to the rest because of its ratios. At Carrot and Daikon they don’t skimp on the meat and they use perfect amounts of slaw and jalapenos. Next time, I’d be interested in trying the Vietnamese bologna, as it seems to be one of their specials. It’s only fair to warn you that the sandwiches are as big as your face and you will end up eating all of it. 

The best restaurants could have Michelin stars and beautiful interiors, but they could also be holes in the walls or former Taco Bells. The famous Jonathan Gold birthed the idea that the best food finds in SoCal are often in strip malls. The best meals don’t have to be expensive and fancy either, the best meals can be simple but well made. After my visit to Carrot and Daikon I’ll definitely be more open to restaurants no matter their shape, size, or look. 



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Gringos Guide to Mexico City

1/19/2020

3 Comments

 
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By the time you wake up in Mexico City, everyone is already setting up shop on the corners. Tortas and tlacoyos are being prepared as early as nine in the morning and the city is filled with over twenty million hungry people. 
Created by Mexico City native Elena Reygadas, Rosetta Panaderia is loved by those near and far. Regadas started her foundation in an Italian restaurant but the breads there became so popular that she opened the panaderia. The bakery is located in the heart of the neighborhood Roma Norte, where the streets are lined with beautiful old row houses and leafy trees.
Every morning, employees run back and forth between the restaurant and bakery carrying trays of freshly baked bread on their heads. The small bakery has an indoor bar-like seating area and benches outside but the best place to eat fresh bread is in the Plaza Rio de Janeiro park. ​ 


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The bakery’s menu ranges from sweet cinnamon or canela rolls to savory bread rolls. Some of the must orders at the bakery are ricotta and guava bread, cinnamon rolls, and the cheese and tomato quiche. The breads are flaky and filled with flavor in every crook like croissants with unique flavors. The ricotta and guava bread combined sweet and savory into one soft-centered, crunchy-outside roll. The quiche was a surprise stand out made with fresh tomatoes and gooey goat cheese.
To truly experience the bakery at its best you have to sit on a bench in the park. If you’re lucky you might even get to meet Floppy, the small golden lab who soaks up the sun by the replica of the David statue amongst many other dogs. The bakery is the perfect place for your early morning outing before a trip to Frida Kahlo's Casa Azul or the Zocalo. 

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Decorations in the Zocalo.

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The GMO/GMF Debate

7/24/2019

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 The debate on the safety of genetically modified foods has lasted for decades, so what's the big idea? For decades, we have been gentically-modifing organisms, creating nutrient rich foods such as kale and squash but many people are still anti-GMO.  Some people don't eat foods that are genetically modified because they believe it is unnatural and could cause heath problems. Ninety percent of scientists believe that GMOs are safe, so why should we have to label GMOs and why do some people stay away from them?

Before we dive into the debate, ask yourself what is your stance on the issue or do you really know what GMO stands for? If you don't know what GMO stands for, it stands for genetically modified organism. Usually this means that an organism is genetically altered through scientists adding genes to an organism that code for a desired trait. By genetically modifying something we can add vitamins and nutrients to something as simple as a peanut. In fact my great grandfather, in his lifetime, began to research ways to modify the peanut to have lots of nutrients for a low price on the market. His goal was to use this peanut to end world hunger. So while we worry about genetic modification causing cancer or disease, we forget that GMOs could help save the world.  

One big issue surrounding the GMO and GMF debate, is should companies label whether their products as containing GMOs clearly on the front of their package.  Although it is a small complaint, it is a big deal to some people but is seemingly easy to fix. If GMOs aren't so bad then why don't brands just label GMOs on their packaging? There is a GMO law being implemented about labeling but with the power and money of big corporate brands it may be hard for the law to fully take. 

To take a look at actual GMO labelling myself I went to Ralph's and explored the bread isle. The brands Simple Truth Organic and Dave's Killer Bread stand out as non-GMO breads proudly reading so on the packaging.  Other brands such as Orowheat, Western Heart, Natures Harvest, Wonder Bread, and Sara Lee don't claim to be non-GMO but, they pride themselves on no artificial flavors, colors, or high fructose corn syrup. So does this make up for them being non-GMO? Some people say to avoid Sara Lee, a seemingly healthy bread, at all costs because the ingredient list goes on and on and is filled with GMOs. Let me know in the comments below if you think that GMOs ruin the "healthiness" of a food. Non GMO or containing GMOs always read the label on your bread if you are looking to find the       healthiest bread for you.

After researching GMOs, I would like to believe that they are safe. Though, I will limit my intake of them because they are frequently used in prosecced food. GMOs could help save the planet but we still need to do more tests to see the longterm effect of GMOs on the environment and the human body. What's your stance on GMOs? Have a tasteful day!

P.S. I recommend you check out this youtube video by Jimmy Kimmel revealing how much we really know about GMOs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzEr23XJwFY
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What's in your bread of choice?
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The Crack Shack

7/6/2019

10 Comments

 
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Recently, my dad and I had the pleasure of eating at the Crack Shack in San Diego. With a name sounding that criminal, I think they must be breaking some laws to make their chicken taste so good. This local, micro-chain of fried chicken restaurants--with multiple locations including Costa Mesa, Century City, Pasadena, Encinitas and San Diego--is a firecracker. While tasting Southern food you are sitting in a very SoCal space. The Crack Shack is an all outdoor space and an open atmosphere which, as the website says, welcomes in the ocean breeze. Hipster, but also family friendly, the restaurant even has lawn games. The line started to wrap around as we waited for our sandwich showing how popular of a place it is. 

Both my dad and I ordered the firebird sandwich. To say we are strong supporters of the hot chicken trend right now is an understatement. The chicken was crisped up to the edges and the inside was perfectly cooked, juicy thigh meat. Smothered in a sweet and spicy sauce, the sandwich fits my description of a perfect meal. The crispy onions and ranch sauce perfectly complement the spicy flavor and give your mouth a cool down.  Among many hot chicken and fried chicken places popping up, this one stands out because of the venue and sides that are just as delicious as their  sandwiches.

Along with our sandwiches, we ordered the Baja Chop salad which came with fresh tasting ingredients and went surprisingly well with the sandwiches. The Baja Chop consists of a lettuce/greens mix, guacamole, radishes, cotija cheese, and charred poblano dressing. With five simple ingredients, the salad perfectly tied together the meal.  There seems to be an assumption that places serving fried or fast food don't use fresh ingredients. The Crack Shack proves this assumption wrong with plenty of fresh and healthy options. Some of these options include their Anti-Salad Power Bowl and the Miso Healthy bowl.

But, to be honest, the thing that stood out to me the most at the Crack Shack was the schmaltz fries, some of the best fries I have ever had in my life.  Schmaltz is clarified goose or chicken fat used to fry or as a spread on bread. Schmaltz has a strong connection to Jewish culture. Since the Jews were forbidden by dietary laws to fry their food in butter or lard (deriving from non-kosher things) shmaltz was the best substitute. To make schmaltz fries they start out by soaking the potato pieces in beef fat, then boiling them in water. To obtain a creamy inside, they fry the potatoes in a low-temperature fryer and freeze them overnight. Then they fully fry them to have a crispy outside and smooth mashed potato-like inside when ready to be served. With a variety of dipping sauces to choose from including chimichurri, baja hot sauce, kimchi bbq, buttermilk ranch, cracksup, and a sweet and sour sauce, these fries are bound to change your life and perception of fries.

In the future, I hope to learn more about the hot chicken fever that has hit Southern California and explore chicken places in my home town of Long Beach. If this tickled your fried chicken bone I urge you to check out Brian Addison's article on Kim Prince's hot chicken. Have a tasteful day!
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Travesãno de la Frontera

6/22/2019

16 Comments

 
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Fresh cacao beans at Casa Cacao!
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A look at the market.

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Brasas Tacos, a must for all taco lovers looking for the perfect taco in Tijuana.
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Freshly made empanadas served with chimichurri and chipotle sauce.
Living in Southern California I am part of a community filled with immigrants. But not once did I think about the place where immigration really happens or have a knowledge of what crossing a border is like. Since I have U.S citizenship it is easy for me to cross the border but, on the trolley ride over I could sense all the different feeling of the other passengers about to cross the border.

Across the aisle, a woman is holding her cross necklace and whispering a prayer. Two middle-aged men are catching up, both speaking Spanish. My one year of Spanish means I can't understand a word of it. You can sense all the different feelings about crossing the border. When you get to the border you first show your passport and then you cross over a small line on the ground and you are in Mexico. Such a small line has such an effect on many people's lives. Part of that has to do with the fact that there are also soldiers there holding rifles. Not everyone can cross the border so easily. Once my dad and I crossed into Tijuana, we looked around and were so excited. Across the way was a gigantic Mexican flag that you could see from miles away. The roads were filled with vendors selling street food and souvenirs. 
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​Our first stop on the trip was a small restaurant called Casa Cacao or Chocolate House. The shop was run by a husband and wife team who used all the English they knew to help us figure out what to order. We ended up with two cups of the 70% dark hot chocolate. The hot chocolate had notes of cinnamon and was foamy and smooth. It was also served with a bread that you were supposed to dip in the hot chocolate. We thought it was bland but the owner explained it was a good source of protein because of all of the eggs in it. Not everyone eats just for flavor. The husband running Casa Cacao came walking around to each table showing off the fresh cacao beans and prints of the Aztecs with chocolate. He was an unofficial teacher showing customers the worth of cacao and its origin. Along with cacao beans he also brought out crickets in lime and chile for us to taste showing us how the Aztecs would get protein. 

Next, we stopped at a market filled with fresh produce, cheese, spices, and moles. The cotija cheese at the market was so fresh and salty and the locals all seemed to be going for the same añejo cotija.  There was even a whole enclosed area filled floor to ceiling with different kinds of spices. We left with mole a and bag of dried chiles.

All throughout the streets of Tijuana, there is art of all sorts. One of our favorites was a mural with a hashtag "Todos Somos Migrantes."

Our final stop before heading home was a food court called Colectivo Nueve. The selection of food was very diverse including two Japanese restaurants, tacos, an empanada place, and Italian food. Though, the first item on the Italian restaurants' menu was a quesadilla! First, we had tacos from Brasa Taqueria, some of the best tacos I've ever had! I ordered a chorizo taco topped with beans, onions, cilantro, and guacamole. For such a simple taco it had incredible flavor. Behind the cashier I also noticed an older woman making fresh tortillas to order (both corn and flour). We additionally ordered empanadas from a brother-sister owned shop called 19/87, standing for the brothers birth year.  We ate the fresh and golden empanadas with a variety of fillings. We shared a smoked fish empanada, chorizo and jalapeno empanada, ham and cheese empanada, and a poblano con elote empanada (our favorite). Seeing all the variety within the food court was so amazing and unexpected. Not all the food in Mexico has to be Mexican.

If you get the chance to go to Tijuana I urge you to study the people around you, obsereve the feelings of people, talk to people, and try the foods that they are eating. If you want to know the sever's favorite thing at a restaurant simply ask, "Cual es tu favorita?"

Thank you for reading and make sure to come back next week for a post on fried chicken restaurant, The Crack Shack. Have a tasteful day! 




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Travel- NYC!

10/22/2018

4 Comments

 

Nothing is better than fall in New York City! I was lucky enough to visit just a few weeks ago. Here's a glimpse into my trip!

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Holy Guaca-Lola- The Blogdentity Crisis

7/20/2018

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Hello foodies and lovers of food! Welcome back to Holy Guaca- Lola. Todays post will be a little different than most of my posts. Currently I feel that I am going through a blogdentity crisis, like an identity crisis but about my blog, and since you all have been here along my blogging journey I want to share my thoughts with you.

Food has been my passion for as long as I can remember but as I grow older my passions are shifting. Writing just about food lately has felt forced and not fun anymore. I love to write but I am feeling not as passionate about just food writing. Recently, one of my passions has become helping the community and making change for the greater good. Another one of my passions is traveling. While I love writing about food I feel the need to incorporate some of my new passions into my writing. This may mean that Holy Guaca-Lola will go under construction. As I discover who I am I want the things I create to tell something about who I am.  I will still want this blog to be mostly about food but I want to find a way to mix my new passions of traveling and activism into my food blogging. What do you think? What types of things do you want to see on the new Holy Guaca-Lola? Thank you for sticking with me on this journey! Have a tasteful day! 
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New Yum City! (Part 1)

8/18/2017

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 Recently, I visited New York City where I experienced an amazing and truly unique "fenture" (food adventure) and learned to love things that I thought I wouldn't like. One of the most unique and fun places we went to was an incredible soft serve ice cream place called Taiyaki--the fish-shaped, waffle cone and soft serve dessert cafe that has us all wondering about if the ice cream tastes as good as the pictures look. I can confirm that I was blown away and extremely happy with this amazing ice cream. When we walked into the store there were excited milenials everywhere and even little girls dressed in tutus and unicorn  horn headbands. Everyone was packed into the small box and jumping with excitement. My dad and I had walked through the breathtaking and art gallery filled SOHO in anticipation, and  when we were handed our gourmet cones our day was made. I ordered a regular red bean filled cone that had a swirl of vanilla bean and strawberry soft serve topped with unicorn glitter, a horn, and ears made out of sugar and cookies. The strawberry and vanilla together was a creamy refreshing treat after walking through the New York heat and the slightly warm fish cone tasted like soft and crumbly sugar cookies with a thick and chunky sweet paste at the bottom. Although I am not a fan of red bean, I tried my dad's black sesame cone and accidentally got a bite of red bean that complimented the black sesame's cookies and cream like taste. We were both really impressed! Get ready for more yummy in New Yum City!
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Eating Through Cerritos (Part 2)

8/10/2017

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Cerritos, a culturally beautiful and inviting gem in the big area of Los Angeles. A lot of the time I blog about bigger and more drawn to restaurants. This post is about the hidden and very visible gems of Cerritos and its welcoming center for all races. Being of Indian/Asian decent I have seen that not many cities have as much of a diverse population as Cerritos, I believe that this is important to be recognized when so many races are currently being shut down and torn apart.  I believe that food can be a peace keeper and a force of love that tells a story. As you are reading through these many gems of this multi-cultural city, I would like for you to think about how food has made you feel at peace in a world of war and hate. 

Cafe 86
A place to find all things ube in the most creative ways, Cafe 86 uses the amazing ingredient of ube, a purple yam, and makes it a indulgent sweet! The cafe features things such as ube pop tarts, ube flan cupcakes, an ube butter bar, and so much more! The Ube pop tart came with a beautiful dark purple drizzle that tasted like frosting that comes on sugar cookies. The filling is a sugar sweet paste wrapped in a buttery and almost pie like crust. The pop tart did not even need to be warm to melt in your mouth because of its perfect moistness. The ube flan cupcake was unreal and completely unexpected and amazing. As my dad put it, "it tasted like lucky charms marshmallows." It seemed like the cupcake was what a candy store would taste like. The ube butter bar was extremely rich and buttery smooth. It was almost like an ube cheesecake bar. I was amazed by the smooth texture on top of the rough graham cracker  crust.    
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