Back, for real this time!

So yeah, no excuses just life’s been busy between work, planning our wedding (June 23!), and everything else in between.

I’ve got all these pictures of food to post, so this will be more of a photo heavy blog. For once, you’ll get a less wordy post from me!

I was going to start with the worst food I ate in 2011, but since that restaurant is now closed, I’ll spare you.

So let’s get on to the good stuff!

Happy Hour at Dragonfish!

Gotta love Monday All Night happy hours as well as a place with a nice patio! While I don’t have a picture, I thought it’d be appropriate to mention I’ve tried the Tempura Peppered Bacon ($2.95 during HH). It’s definitely something a bacon lover should try once!

Lychee Drop ($3.95 during HH), I can almost never stop at just one! Boy, do those vodka infused lychees pack a punch! Sometimes you’ll even get TWO!

The Lemongrass Collins (also $3.95 during HH), also delicious! I think I’d prefer it without the lemon soda, but I’m more of a gimlet girl that way! Also, a good summer drink even for the fiance (hence two in the photo).

The spicy tuna roll ($2.95 during HH) is delicious, but not that great a value compared to some other HH menu items.

The thai crab cakes ($5.95 during HH) are definitely worth it, in my opinion, but I LOVE me some crab cakes. The tonkatsu ($3.95 during HH) was okay, not anything to write home about, particularly when I can have a lychee drop instead! 😉

While I don’t have pictures, on a more recent visit we tried the Lime Rickey shrimp ($4.95 during HH) as well as the Albacore tuna tataki ($5.95 during HH). The Lime Rickey shrimp are now a must whenever I go for HH. The tuna tataki was good (quite good portion of tuna) as well!

Dragonfish also does ‘Girls Night Out’ every Wednesday. From 6-9, they’ve got some good $5 drink specials and they raffle off prizes!

Ruth’s Chris Steak House Happy Hour (7 days a week, 3-6)

I’ve got 3 words. Prime. Rib. Sliders. They are probably one of my Top Ten happy hour items, EVER. They’ve also got well drinks for $5.50 (mid-shelf booze like Beefeater gin, smirnoff vodka). Full disclosure, last time I went at the end of March, they were good but not as great as they usually are. Also, their crab cakes are my mom’s favorite, they are delicious. I think the obsession with crab cakes is genetic.

Happy Hour at Japonessa
I would be in trouble if Japonessa were closer to my apartment or office. Their Happy Hour (11:30 – 8:00pm in the bar EVERY DAY, plus until 6:30 in the restaurant, *and* Late Night) is one of my faves. Good value and good quality, what more can you ask for?

$5 house bubbly, $5 house white/red, $5 house hot sake, and $4 draft beers!

And now, on to the things that keep me coming back. I can’t decide whether the Super Bad Boy Roll ($6.50 during HH) or the takoyaki ($5 during HH) are my #1 reason for loving this joint.

Behold, the Super Bad Boy Roll (eel, snow crab mix, avocado, cream cheese, tempura’d, topped w/ spicy seared crab, drizzled w/ chili aioli, soy glaze). Seriously, one of these and a miso soup ($1 during HH – chock full of mushrooms, seaweed, and tofu), and you’ve got an awesome dinner for under $10! If you like each of the things listed in the roll, it’s a MUST try.

Nom nom nom. There are only two places in Seattle where I’ve had good takoyaki, this is one of them. If you’ve never tried the stuff and enjoy octopus, you need to order it! I won’t go into describing it, it must simply be experienced.

The spicy yellowtail roll is also an incredible tasty value at $4 during HH.

The tempura is OK ($6 during HH), just when you’ve got the other items to pick from, it doesn’t even compare in terms of “things I crave” and bang for your buck.

And while not on the Happy Hour menu, their Lychee Martini is awesome. I have a weakness for Lychee cocktails, have you noticed?

That’s all for now. A short post coming later this week about a few of my more recent HH adventures to come!