Do monkeys like bananas or coconuts better?

Anyone from Rowland Heights and the surrounding area knows about Banana Bay and Coconut Bay. Why these two restaurants have pretty much the same menu, I can only guess, hearing rumors raspily whispered by the alcoholic bum who sleeps next to the noraebang on Nogales after I gave him a dollar and a butterscotch candy or the gussied up goose church womenfolk gossipers who have nothing better to do than gab about other people's lives. Whatever it is, I really don't care. All I know is that while they may not be the best or authentic Thai joints in town, prices are cheap, the food is plentiful, and the live music brings a mixed crowd of thugs, lovers, haters, and kids who love to jerk. So without further ado, here is my take on the two behemoths of R.H.

Lodi dodi.

First up was Coconut Bay:

I shared a Thai Jerky with some friends ($7.95).

Deep fried marinated beef served with a spicy dipping sauce. I thought it was a little too dry, but otherwise okay.

For the main course, I went for the Sukiyaki, thai style ($7.95).

Bean thread noodles, egg, squid (lots of it as you can see), shrimp, chicken, and assorted vegetables in a spicy red tofu paste flavored soup. The soup was actually mild and was served with a side of some sweet spicy sauce, which tasted a lot like Korean gochoojang and vinegar. I added this into my soup, and it helped to give it a little kick.

Secret menu: spicy bbq chicken? A friend tried ordering it here, saying that they would make it spicy if she asked them, but the server had no idea what she was talking about.

Overall, the food was ok. Service was quick, and it wasn't hard to flag down the help. They gave us a 15% coupon for our next visit as we left. It seems that they often have happy hour here for football games or when the Lakers play. There is a bar section with some pool tables (could you add a ping pong table please?) along with big flat screen tvs put up everywhere to stare at when the table conversation takes an awkward turn.

A few weeks later, the Tritons crew met up at Coconut's older sister's joint, Banana Bay.

I hadn't been here in a few years, but what I did remember was that the service had been horrible. And surprise surprise....

Service was wonderful this time.

*A short blurb on service and the dining experience. While the Bolsheviks love to sing about how service is on the same level as food, other radicals embrace the philosophy that the dining experience is solely about the food, and service and the extras are things that matter little. If the food's good, it doesn't matter that I'm treated like doo doo because it's worth the abuse baby(see soup nazi)! Personally, I'm on the fence about this issue. Damn me and the rest of us wishy washers that are bringing down this country. I just thought in this particular case, the service was worth writing about because I found myself saying this shit is BANANAS! (fast forward to 3:15) at the 180 they did*

We were treated to a basket of shrimp chips with some kind of (hoisin?) sauce as we sat down. Never had these before, but they were nice to munch on while we waited for the rest of the party to arrive and get rowdy.

While the Banana Bay Pad Thai special looked tempting (my friend who ordered it was very disappointed), I went for the BBQ Pork Noodle Soup. It had egg noodles, and I asked if they could add vegetables to it, which they gave me me a generous helping of without an additional charge.

I was a little offset by the pink broth color, which was attributed by the bbq pork, but I got over it. The broth had some sweetness to it, so I added a bunch of jalapenos and chilis to give it more of a kick. Overall not bad.

Secret menu try 2: I asked for the bbq chicken spicy for the same friend, and after some haggling, the waiter understood what I wanted and the kitchen complied. (+1 star)

But the main occasion of the evening was that it was the young up and coming Jomo's bday, so we had to celebrate. We ordered him some ice cream atop some banana egg rolls while the live band sang happy birthday to Camp Snoopy's very own Linus.

The rest of the night was celebrated at the noraebang as we sneakily snuck in a box of wine, which caused me to crack up with glee every time someone else or I proceeded to waterfall from the bag. Holla!

Banana Bay: 18230 Colima Road Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Coconut Bay: 18922 Gale Ave Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Another revisit...

Happy Sunday everyone.

Made another visit to Ong Ga Nae with the family. (On a side note, I hate it when people use the word "fambam" instead of family. I find the word stupid and find myself suppressing the urge to punch something.) One of the better BBQ joints in the DB/Rowland Heights area in my opinion. But this time, we didn't go for the BBQ.


Iced barley tea was served first.


Along with some tofu w/ some oil/soy sauce and seaweed sprinkled on top, given free as "service."


You have the choice of white rice or jahp gok bap, meaning assorted grains/beans rice.


You get about 10 dishes here, and they were pretty much the same as last time. They're pretty consistent w/ the banchan here, and it's all nice to eat while waiting for the food to come out. The particular standouts that you don't see often at other places are squid that comes doused w/ gochoojang (red pepper paste) and geh jang, raw marinated spicy crab.


Other two banchan missing from the picture. Kimchi and mook aka arrowroot jelly.


My dad ordered the dolsot bibimbap (Mixed rice w/ vegetables and beef, all cooked in a stone pot). The picture is a bit blurry because of the steam.


And here it is on a plate. Carrots, eggs, seaweed, spinach, arrowroot jelly, beef, and some other veggies whose names I can't recall. I thought it was good, especially the beef, but my dad didn't like it. First place I've seen that puts mook in bibimbap.


Also ordered the nakji bokum, which is spicy stir fried octopus. It came in a big pan with some noodles, mixed in front of us, then ladled out to each person, so I wasn't able to take a picture of it whole, but here is my portion. It also had some squash and onions. I've never really liked this dish too much. It was good, but not something I'd really crave.


I ordered the kimchi jjigae, which is kimchi stew. I've been having this craving lately for kimchi jjigae and can't get enough of it. It came out bubbling hot in a stone pot as well. It also had some green onions and pieces of pork belly. It was spicy, but not overly so. The kimchi tasted okay...I thought the broth was spicier than the kimchi itself.

Overall, I didn't enjoy this visit too much, and I thought everything was just okayIt might have been because I was more thirsty than hungry when I came here. I had the opportunity a few months back to go to their sister branch Ong Go Jeep, also in Rowland Heights, and found the food to be better there, but unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures that night.

Service was good, and we didn't have any problems.


19745 E Colima Rd
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Happy Wok

Yes, I love this place and am not ashamed to say it. I've been going here since high school and not much has changed besides a slight hike in prices. Your basic Americanized Chinese fast food with heaping portions that puts Panda Express to shame. They say they don't use MSG here...a sign that has not always been there. Tastes the same to me.


The 1 item combo: fried rice, chow mein, and teriyaki chicken. Secret: Order the teriyaki chicken, and get a side of steamed vegetables for free. I like to get the sauce on the side. The chicken was a little on the dry side this time, but their fried rice and chow mein were the same as it always had been. Total was $5.14.

I took this home, doused it with siracha, and happily devoured it with some kimchi. Shortly afterwards, I felt horrible physically and was disgusted with myself at killing this plate in one sitting. This is why I only allow myself to come here a few times a year...

19705 Colima Rd Ste 4
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Pho Noodle House

The day after a hard night's drinking. I'm hungover and need some warm beefy soup to dilute all that poison I took in just hours before. My body is tired and miserable...I need PHOOOO! And so off I went to Pho Noodle House on Colima, a relatively new pho place that I had been wanting to try. I came in at their opening hours and found the place empty.


Nem Cuon (pork sausage rolls) $3.49. I had never had these before and decided to try them out. Sausage, cucumber, lettuce, vermicelli wrapped in rice paper. The menu described the sausage as being charbroiled, but it didn't look(where's the marks?) or taste that way to me. The sausage itself had a bit of nuttiness. Otherwise, I found the roll to be fairly bland, although the peanut sauce gave it some flavor.


Standard garnish of lime, jalapeno, basil and sprouts.


Tai Chin (rare steak, well-done brisket) as always for me, regular size for $5.50. (Large for $5.99.) Soup came out hot, which was nice. There was a decent amount of okay quality meat...nothin special. The broth wasn't bad, but I thought there was a little too much fish sauce in it, which was the first time I've ever said that about a bowl of pho I've had. Overall, an average bowl of pho, which didn't really stand out to me from the rest of mediocre pho joints around the area...Still, my stomach thanked me for the pleasant soup.



19756 E. Colima Rd. C & E
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
Open 7 days a week, 10:00am - 9:00pm

Kbbq part dool: Korea House

Along came the rain and brought a damn cold. My body is killing me. Still...the fun had over the weekend was worth the pain. Hope no one else is sick. Now, take a seat next to this warm crackling fire I just started, and let's get on to business shall we?

From what I heard, this place had a fire and had to reopen. I've been here twice, and the place was poppin both times. It is an AYCE place, and you choose between different dinners or lunches, which basically goes the more you pay, the more selection of meats you get. Sorry no picture of the menu, but I think the cost was under $20/person.

What you'll need for some Korean bbq...


Greens. The dressing was average. Nothing special or bad about it. Just something I like to have when eating meat.


Sliced garlic, dwenjang, and some dduk bo ssam (top). I always like to ask for more garlic. Grilling it is delicious, and it doesn't smell as much. I love ssam/rice paper. Maybe because it's a chewy medium to hold together your meat, grilled garlic and salad with some sambal sauce so you can stuff everything in your mouth or maybe it's a substitute for rice, I don't know. But I love it!


Sesame oil liberally sprinkled with salt and pepper to serve as a dip (particularly for the unmarinated meats) and some sambal sauce for a kick.

And you're all set. Of course, some sides would liven up the meal too...


Banchan (side dishes) was a simple selection. On the bottom, some kelp mixed with some salt and oil.


From top left and going clockwise: cucumber kimchi, soy bean sprouts, fish cakes with krab, grated horseradish mixed in some vinegar, kimchi. Banchan was okay...nothing special. Cucumber kimchi was the best. The kimchi was too salty...perhaps as a strategy to have customers drink more water. I like to grill the kimchi.


Along with the meal, you also get some geh lan jjeem (steamed egg) and dwenjang jjigae (soy bean paste stew) in the background. These were okay, and if you like them, you can ask for more...I believe they only come with certain combos.

Onto the meat...


There were about 10 things from the menu we could choose. Here we have the galbi (short ribs), the meat to the right I forget what cut..., some tongue, and shrimp. The galbi was a little to sweet for me. The shrimp had also been in a similar marinade, but with a lot more garlic. The quality of the meat was okay, but if you're paying for all you can eat under $20, you can't have high expectations.


Pork belly on top left, with some more shrimp and tongue.


Closer picture of the shrimp cooking alongside some garlic.


First place I've seen where they offer a whole steak as part of the menu...GODDAMN. Also some chadol trying to hopelessly surround the steak(thinly sliced beef brisket). The steak quality wasn't very good though. I wouldn't get it the next time around.

Service notes: No friendly Korean mamas here. You cook and cut everything yourself, which I don't really mind...I think it makes eating more fun, as long as everyone takes turns haha. Service was good, although it did lag sometimes, which was understandable, given that the restaurant was packed. On the second visit, the service was a little bit more attentive because we came early to avoid the dinner rush. You have a little "bell" on your table that you can ring to let the waitresses know that you want something. Or trying to flag them down in the midst of the chaos works sometimes too. Don't forget to ask them to change that grill every once in a while.

I'd come here again. Sure the quality isn't as great as Ong Ga Nae nor the banchan as extensive, but you do get variety for about $18 to $22, and you'll come out stuffed, believe me. They do have lunch specials as well, which I think was around $12. There also are other AYCE places around the area, and I've been to a few. None of them really stand out to me, but my friends like this place for AYCE, and it does seem rather popular with the Rowlies.


18751 Colima Rd
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Ending note: Parking can be tough here...small lot that insufficiently tries to accommodate a bunch of businesses, so be ready to circle aimlessly around for a while during the peak hours.

A Look at Two Korean BBQ places: Ong Ga Nae

I think this place deserves a shoutout...imo probably one of the best places to get some Korean BBQ in the area, if you're looking for quality meat. It is located in the plaza off Fairway and Colima where Happy Wok and Albertson's is.


Roasted Barley Tea.


Some of the panchan you get. Salad consisting of romaine lettuce and green onions to eat with your meat in a sort of asian vinaigrette. Steamed broccoli, fish cakes, soy bean sprouts. One nice thing you get here is geh jang, which is spicy raw crab that has a kind of gelatin-y texture to it, and you suck it all out.


Otherside of the table going bottom left counterclockwise. Kimchi, baby squid with some gochujang(spicy red pepper sauce), another type of kimchi, and a potato salad. Overall, the banchan is not bad here...above average than your standard Korean places.


The grills here are powered by gas, not charcoals.


Grillling some Galbi with oyster mushrooms and onions. The meat here is superior to many other places I've been to, and that difference in quality is definitely reflected in their prices. One order of galbi was around $25, and I'd say one order would feed about a little over 1 person. I was disappointed on this visit because their marinade wasn't very good, and for some reason or other reminded me of peanuts.


Some cold mool neng myun to eat after the meat. Chewy buckwheat noodles garnished with some sliced cucumbers, sliced beer, pickled radish, 1/2 a boiled egg and Korean pear. You also get some vinegar and mustard on the side to add to the vinegary broth. Ong Ga Nae's version here is good, but to be honest, I've never really been a big fan of neng myun.


For dessert, su jung gwa (a punch made with cinnamon, dried persimmons, ginger and sugar with a spicy kick) was served.

Service has been consistent for the most part. The ladies cook the meat for you in a brisk no nonsense sort of fashion. It does get busy here so if you want something, like more water or a refill on the banchan, you're going to have to ask (loudly) for it.

Ong Ga Nae
19745 E Colima Rd
Rowland Heights, CA 91748


Afterwards, we stopped by Pinkberry across the street and shared a shaved ice, which is hidden underneath all that chopped fruit of strawberries, pineapple and kiwi along side some mochi topped with a good dollop of their original yogurt. The ice below was flavored with some condensed milk, which was a bit watered down. It was a good size for 4 people to share without getting too full.

Pinkberry
19756 Colima Rd Ste A
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Next post will take a look at an AYCE Korean BBQ place

Beer Station

Mornin. Happy lazy Sunday to ya all.

Beer Station inside "Life Plaza"/Diamond Plaza in Rowland Heights. A chill place to drink and relax without having to feel like you're going to be accosted by some punk kids or bothered by indoor cigarette smoke typical of many asian drinking joints. I feel safe drinking here. A Taiwanese old time "pub" type place. I wish I took pictures of the inside decor of this place. Wooden benches and tables. An old bicycle decorated with holiday lights. A poster of Mao.

The name of the place is a bit misleading because they really don't have that big of a selection on beers. Sapporo, Kirin(sometimes), Widmer's Hef, Amber Bock, and Bud Light on tap. They've also got Taiwan Beer bottled. The last time I came here, I noticed they upped their drinking selection to soju (it didn't say what brand) and strangely enough an appletini and other drinks of that nature.


Drink menu. I took a picture because I found it funny that they only had Snapple Pink Lemonade and none of the other flavors, like Fruit Punch or Kiwi Strawberry. Do they sell boxes of just Pink Lemonade? $2.75 my god that is steep...

Complimentary "kimchi" because I don't know what else to call it. Sweet and vinegary cabbage with a sprinkle of spiciness and garlic. It's nice to munch on while drinking. If you go here and don't get any, make sure to ask for some, but be warned: the servers don't always speak the best English. Example: I once asked for it and 15 minutes later, they came out with some stir fried cabbage dish.


Small hot sake. $3.50. About 4 shots. Sometimes it doesn't come out that hot and you can ask them to microwave it for you again. haha.

Large hot sake. Around 8 shots. $6.00. I think it used to be $5.50. The small one isn't worth getting.

Cheap sake I know. But it's cheap for a reason mang. Sake bombs!


Taiwan Beer. For the longest time, I kept thinking this was Tsingtao. It's a pretty light beer with a flavor of honey and apples.

They've got a grilled menu, (skewers), as well as some other items. I haven't tried a lot of their menu. Their fried rice is okay, but nothing too special. I do recommend their three ingredient chicken. It's cooked in a clay pot with lots of garlic and has a lot of basil flavor to it. Also recommended is their beef with satay sauce. And if you're adventerous and want to go balls out, try the chicken testicles. And that's no joke kid.

Chicken skin glazed with some kind of teriyaki sauce. Crispy on the outside with a bit of chew. This was meh to me.


Grilled beef. Seasoned with cumin. Two good sized pieces for $4.


Grilled mushrooms again in that kind of sickly sweet teriyaki sauce. Not bad, but it wasn't very warm when it came out.

Food here is consistent for the most part (their yakitori style stuff at least), and it's nice place to eat while you drink. Their menu is a couple pages long. Service is friendly, and despite a small language barrier, I've never had any real complaints that I can remember. It's a nice and relaxing place to drink, and if they're closing and you still want to party, you can walk next door to the 9 P.M lounge...


(Inside Diamond Plaza, near the entrance towards your left)
1390 Fullerton Rd
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

Stay tuned for my next post, where this blogger ends his night in tears. =*(