LOS ANGELES ― Tal Ronnen catered the vegan wedding for Ellen DeGeneres and wife Portia de Rossi. Casino mogul Steve Wynn tapped him to add vegan dishes to the menus at all 22 restaurants at the luxurious Wynn and Encore resorts in Vegas. Former McDonald’s executives invited him onboard to help launch a chain of healthful fast-food restaurants later this year. And when Oprah decided to try the veg...

If the only Beaujolais you’ve ever encountered is Beaujolais Nouveau and you’ve never tasted a Beaujolais cru, then this is the wine to make you fall head over heels for the region. Unfined and unfiltered, Domaine Chignard’s Fleurie “Les Moriers” from the great 2009 vintage carries the scent of wild sweet strawberries. It’s so lush and vivid, tasting of blueberries, black cherries and plums. The...

Bulgogi is a dish barbecued of thinly sliced beef that is pre-marinated with a variety of seasonings on a hot barbecue pan. Bulgogi has been popular since the 1950s when the beef was served in thin slices to make it more tender and cut down the waiting time for diners. Ingredients ● 300 g beef (sirloin) ● seasoning sauce : 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, ½ tbsp honey, 1 tbsp minced green onion...

Ruo, Ippudo dish out great summer noodles It’s that time of year again, when children gather around convenience stores to pick up their favorite ice cream bars and all throughout the city people are forsaking standard hot Americanos and cappuccinos for iced caffeine. Cold noodles, of course, are also an all-time summer favorite. Naengmyeon (cold Korean noodles) is a classic, but why not change...

Beverage makers advertise that diet soft drinks help customers control their calorie consumption. However, a study suggests that such beverages may not be an appropriate solution. Prof. Helen Hazuda of the University of Texas tracked the health and habits of 474 adults for around 10 years and discovered that those who frequently drank diet drinks saw their waists expand 70 percent faster than no...

A term synonymous with Hawaii much like ukulele, luau or humuhumunukunukuapua’a (the state fish), shaved ice is a must-have for anyone visiting from the mainland. Shave ice, as the locals call it, has its roots in Asian culture, as it was Japanese plantation workers who first started shaving ice with machetes and flavoring it with fruit juice. Since then, the dessert has become symbolic of the ...

Omija-hwachae is a Korean berry punch made with omija berries and honey or sugar, and garnished with pear. Omija-hwachae is a cold drink that is typically enjoyed in the summer. It has a beautiful color and is high in organic acids which are good for relieving fatigue and quenching thirst. Ingredients ● 1/5 cups of omija, 2 cups water ● 3 tbsp sugar ● 2 tbsp honey ● 1/4 pear ● 1 tsp pine nu...

Celebrity drinkers putting vinegar health fad on the map Vinegar, we put it in our salad dressings and dip dumplings in it with some soy sauce. Up until 2005, drinking it was not the norm. Then food goliath Daesang’s Chungjungwon released Drink Hong Cho ― a brilliantly packaged and pleasantly fruity vinegar squash ― for health-conscious Koreans. The beverage was a major hit, reeling in 25.3 b...

WACCABUC, New York (AP) ― “Try it. Go ahead, stick your finger in!” The dollop of spicy hot-pepper paste is hard to turn down, coming as it does from the blender of Jean-Georges Vongerichten, one of the best-known chefs in the world, not to mention the owner of 31 restaurants and the man known for basically revolutionizing fine dining in New York. And we’re in his own home kitchen, yet. So the ...

“Brunch” has been labeled as luxury in Korea. Lovers of bistro food ― called “brunch” by Koreans ― have had to train their appetites to accept small portions served on a big plate. NOVIA e NOVIO, “girlfriend and boyfriend” in Spanish, is a stylish bistro where people can dine on casual western food with big portions at a relatively low price. Located in Dogok-dong, Gangnam, the restaurant prese...

Pyeonsu is a steamed square dumpling stuffed with vegetables and beef. Pyeonsu is served chilled or floating in a cool soy sauce soup. It is a summer delicacy. The dish gets its name from the Chinese characters for the word, “Pyeonsu” which means “a small fragment on the water.” Ingredients ● Broth: 200 g beef (brisket, shank), 10 cups water, ½ tbsp clear soy sauce, 2 tsp salt ● Fragrant seas...