Korean BBQ Sunday at Susan Feniger's Street. Yay!

I had so much fun yesterday at Street...

...where we enjoyed a lazy Sunday of FABULOUS Korean BBQ with all the fixins...

Kimchi Station

Grill Station

The above was a typical plate: some kimchi (there were several to choose from like Fresh Peach and Carrot Scallion) Grilled Corn and a Mixed Seaweed Salad.

Though the most important part of the day might have to go to...

Pulled Pork Sliders with Gochujang Miso Barbecue Sauce. Though I must say the Ssamjang Chicken and the Beef Shortrib Skewers with Asian Pear and Hyangshin Sesame Barbecue Sauce were to die for. 

Still, sometimes it's the smallest thing that can float your boat. I was ba-lown away by this little drink:

It was a Tamarind mixture. Like Lemonade but Tamarind-ade. It was one of the best drinks I've had in a long while. Unique flavors and completely addictive - and yet no alcohol. Hmmm. Yay!

Me & My Cute Friend, Ellen. We were so happy.

The party was thrown in conjunction with Giant Robot...

I took that picture without having yet met either one of them but they were the geniuses that steered this ship. Kajsa Alger is the Executive Chef and Partner at Street and her cooking -- it just comes from the heart. Eric Nakamura is the publisher and founder of Giant Robot. They had an Asian Pop Culture magazine for a long while and their brick & mortar shop on Sawtelle in West LA sells all sorts of Asian pop art goodies including some of what I'm about to show you. I loved this stuff.

Air Plants for 9 bucks

I happen to think air plants are for people who truly aren't trying to kill plants they simply just don't know how to keep them alive. These are SO easy you really have to be a plant murderer to screw this up. [My first foray into owning air plants happened as a result of my interview with Valerie Jurado, a wonderful floral designer out here in Highland Park. She was making them as ornaments this past Christmas].

They're really freakin cute, aren't they?

I also became kind of transfixed by these:

Handmade Coffee Mugs by Mari Nakamura. $20.

The thing that hypnotized me most was the shape of each cup was unique to that cup. In other words, you'd always know it was your mug.

I guess the thing I'm realizing about Giant Robot - the allure of their products was not just about how thinks looked but how they felt. It all reminded me of being a kid. Case in point...

Kwik Coin Purses $4

Rubbery purses - the size of the palm of your hand - called Kwik Coin Purses (I think). On the other side is a slit to stow away secret treasures like notes to your best friends, friendship rings or 50 cent pieces. They're fun to touch and squish and Eric was saying he remembered them from when he was a kid. I kind of do too now but at the time I couldn't quite place them. I love stuff like that. And by the way, you can order Giant Robot products online if you can't make it there. Just click HERE to see what they have to offer.

Maybe because of the playfulness of Giant Robot or the fact it was almost entirely buffet style, but this whole experience felt less like we were hanging out at a restaurant and more like we were at a really good party with awesome food. Though truth be told, I've often found that to be the case at Street.

Shishito Pepper & Shitake Mushroom Skewers from the Kitchen Window

Bibimbap Brown Rice Salad in Lettuce Leaf - deeeeeeelish dish

My husband, Ellen & Carlos. 3 of my favorite peeps.

I'm missing one photo that is driving me crazy. It was of two of the Grill Station employees, Kat and Manny (whom I kept calling Vinny. Sorry Vinny). Manny's preparation for the meats for grilling well.. He bears a lot of responsibility for my happy memories. And Kat was just super nice and is out here from New Orleans and I just want to say Hello Kat! Remember to check out Pazzo Gelato!

You know how I won't talk about a place if I don't think it's worth it? Like I didn't create this thing to write negative stuff about any place be it a shop, restaurant or gallery. I think there's enough of that online. And all the places I cover - if they're not an actual famous site or piece of street art or something - are small businesses. One bad review and well you know, that could be very lethal. I figure there's enough of that out there and I'd rather just weed out the bad and steer you towards the good.

But what qualifies as "good" isn't only a testimony to the quality of the product. For example, I love the food at Street and have since it first opened. I knew it was special for many reasons but the reasons I feel comfortable blogging about anything come down to quality, uniqueness and the customer service -- which has to be awesome.  At Street that certainly is the case. They treat you like family -- that is if your family is nice to you and cleans up after you and sees to your every need. Okay they don't treat you like family. Whose family is like that? They treat you the way you should be treated at a restaurant. 

Chef Kajsa & Rose the Manager

Now know that if you go, not everything from this particular event will be on the menu. The menu at Street rotates. But most likely you'll find a couple of the items featured here. No matter what, you'll learn about food. And you'll have a good time.

Susan Feniger's STREET, located at 742 N. Highland Ave., LA, CA 90038. 323.203.0500. Hours: sun-thurs 5-10pm, fri-sat 5-10pm, brunch sat & sun from 11-3 and fri lunch 12-3. $5 cocktails at the bar every fri from 12-7pm. I recommend making reservations. They have valet but you usually can find street parking.

And now I have to get back into the day. What a beautiful day it is! I've always loved Memorial Day Weekend but let's face it, this is a pretty somber "holiday." I think it's important to acknowledge why it exists - it's true meaning -- which is to pay our respect and express our gratitude to those who've made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country. I don't know what to say beyond that. I suppose I simply wanted to express that out loud and will take some time to think about that as the day moves on. Regardless of where you fall on the scale of politics and discussions about this country -- I find it's important to know not everything is about you. But a lot has been done and is being done for you.