To celebrate Daisuke’s birthday (now my brother-in-law), we all decided to meet at The Palm Restaurant for dinner. Even though it was not the actual date – Taro’s mom was actually in Japan on the actual day – it was nice to get together and have dinner since all of us are constantly busy. It was a time to catch up and talk about Daisuke’s upcoming events that he will dj for, hear about Mrs. Takeoka’s trip, and share our trip with her since she left the day after we got back. It was a “catch-up” session surrounded by great food.
Taro and I have actually been to The Palm a few times and each time, we think it gets better. The first time we came was for his birthday a couple years back and even then, I remember how tender and perfectly cooked the lobster was. Since then we have brought my family to the restaurant and Taro has dined with a friend at The Palm. So when Taro suggested having steak for his brother’s birthday, I mentioned The Palm since we are members of the 837 Club and they had a pretty good deal for the month of April-May. We each were able to order either a 9 ounce Filet Mignon or 12 ounce New York Strip. Since Taro’s mom does not eat meat, she ordered the Pan Roasted Wild Alaskan Halibut Fillet. To make the night even more fun and special, we ordered a four pound lobster! It was a beautiful sight as our waiter set it down in the middle for all of us to share – and gave us lobster bibs so we wouldn’t make a mess all over our clothes.
As always with the The Palm, there was an excessive amount of food since a starter – either salad or lobster bisque – was included and there was one side included with everyone’s entree. To end the night, we shared a slice of Key Lime Pie (one of my favorites at The Palm and the best Key Lime I have found so far) and Tiramisu. It was nice to go out as a family, which we have not done for a while, and celebrate Daisuke’s birthday.
Happy birthday again, Daisuke, and cheers to good eating with family!
I started off with the Lobster Bisque, which is not too bad. Taro ordered the Caesar Salad with Anchovies so it was a nice balance of soup and salad. Our food came out relatively fast. Taro ordered the New York Strip au Poivre – Aged USDA Prime 12 ounce with brandy peppercorn sauce served with sweet potato fries and creamed spinach. It was a nice cut, but nowhere as tender as my filet!
At The Palm, I have learned to order my meat medium-rare, but on the rarer side. It was delicious, especially since my filet mignon came with jumbo lump crabmeat with hollandaise sauce served with grilled asparagus and three cheese potatoes.
The Takeoka Family:
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To celebrate Taro’s birthday, Andy and Amy treated us to breakfast/brunch at Break of Dawn. They initially found out about the place from their neighbors and suggested it as one of the restaurants we could go to. Always in search of a good breakfast location, we happily agreed. Upon arriving at Break of Dawn, the menu intrigued me with its blend of American/Vietnamese choices. I love fusion places, but a fusion place that serves breakfast? I have not gone to one before! It was hard to make a choice on what to eat, but I finally decided on the Skillet – Roasted New Potato, Bacon, Cheddar Poached Eggs, Guacamole, Chipotle Sour Cream – based on Andy and Amy’s recommendation. (They actually had it the first time they came and thought it was excellent.) Taro was conflicted, but eventually chose the Benedict – Two Soft-Poached Eggs, Grilled Potato Bread, Tender Smoked Ham, Asian Pesto Hollandaise.
When the food arrived, we started off with the Crispy Lobster and Shrimp Roll appetizer. They were so good that we actually ordered another one! Since Amy isn’t a big fan of soup, she gave us the one that came with her food, which was Kabocha Squash. The soup was nice and creamy and had a strong squash flavor; overall, I think am quite fond of squash soup now despite not having it as a kid nor most of my adult life. Shortly after, our entrees arrived and the size of the Skillet was overwhelming! Andy and Amy were not kidding that it could be shared – and that is exactly what Taro and I should have done. I really enjoyed the heartiness of the meal and the blend of ingredients. Taro’s Benedict, the bite that I had, was also good; he shared some with Andy and he had positive things to say about the grilled potato bread.
This was definitely a treat and what made it even more special was that Amy showed me the restaurant website back at their house. Dee Nguyen, chef and owner of Break of Dawn, has such a tragic yet uplifting story to tell. In a gist, he was an up-and-coming Executive Sous Chef at the Ritz Carlton when his son nearly died during a surgery procedure. Dee Nguyen had to make some tough choices, but he was able to open up his own restaurant close to his home. Hence, that is why the restaurant is only open five days a week and closes at 2:3o p.m.; he wanted to be able to stay close to home and spend time with his son. After reading about Dee’s story, I had tears in my eyes and I really admire the balance he has in his life – pursuing his dream of being a chef while maintaining core family values.
I look forward to visiting again and will definitely try something new on the menu! Thanks, Andy and Amy, for sharing this great find in Orange County!
K was also ready for breakfast. I love how she is staring off into the distance.
Afterwards we were able to hang out with Andy, Amy, and K. We first went to Babies R Us and I thought it was cute when Taro sat K on the Sesame Street ride. Once we got back to their house, she just climbed all over her Uncle Taro and even just sat on his lap drinking her juice. I think it is absolutely adorable.
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