The Standing Room {Redondo Beach, CA}

The Standing Room, although not really a “restaurant,” is my fav spot in the South Bay!  I’m big on gourmet burgers and these are just awesome.

Ambiance.  It’s a Korean father and son owned operation located inside a Korean-owned liquor store off of Catalina (along the coast!).  Liquor store on the beach may not sound all that classy, and it’s not, but trust this place is very safe and nice.  Their parking lot is tiny, but we generally have no problems finding residential parking nearby.  You’re really just doing pick-up anyway (standing room = no seating).  I do like that they have an “open kitchen” though; just seems fresher, cleaner, and more personal.

Service.  When I was there, there were only 2 people in line and 3 workers in back.  The service was perfectly adequate, but rushed.  You come here ready, without too many questions.  The wait for our food was pretty long, given the small number of people standing around, but I soon realized why.  It seems like most of the regulars call in their orders ahead of time (menu here), and then just come to pick it up.  My BF has been doing this and it’s improved his experience a lot.  Anyhoo, once you order, you’re given a ticket.  You take that ticket to the liquor store’s cashier and pay for your order there (CC’s accepted, thank god).

Order recommendations.   You can’t go wrong with any of their burgers because their meat is so succulent and amazing!  Most of their burgers are $7-8.  Their unique house-made sauces are also heavenly; here’s a list: Bleu Rosemary, Cilantro Parm, Garlic Pepper, Habenero Cream, Hoisin BBQ, Gochu Q, and Korean Aioli.  They’re used to dress the burgers and sammies, but can also be bought on the side as a dipping sauce for $0.50 per ramekin.  Last but not least, their parmesan truffle fries are probably the best fries I’ve ever eaten!  One order ($4) feeds 2-3 people.  On Tuesdays, you can get a personal-sized order of parm truffle fries for only $1.50.  Onto some pictures:

Cash Burger.  1/2 lb Pattie, Bacon Hoisin BBQ, Shishito Pepper & Crispy Pepper Onion. 

Dressed Burger.  ½ Pound Pattie, Bacon, Caramelized Onion, Spring Mix, Bleu, Smoked Gouda, Fried Egg, Tomato Jam, & Korean Aioli.

Parmesan Truffle Fries (heaven…no dipping sauce required, but if you want one, the cilantro parmesan dipping sauce was nice)

If you’re not taking your food home with you, we found this sweet park/picnic area with its own parking lot just a few blocks down Catalina.  This was taken in January 2012; California weather is just obscene…

The Standing Room
Menu / Yelp
144 N Catalina Ave
Redondo Beach, CA 90277

BJ’s Brewhouse: Free Corkage on first bottle

This is a little money saving tip that I believe is nationwide (or at least in states that have corkage).  First, pics or it didn’t happen:

BJ’s — no corkage on the first bottle of wine!!  The policy is printed straight on the drink menu; love the transparency.  $7 for each additional bottle isn’t bad, but it’s not slick.  I used to think Mimi’s Cafe had the best corkage — $1 per bottle; however, I thought it was strange how that price wasn’t really posted anywhere.  The only reason I knew was because I was a waitress there for a few years.  I recently learned that Mimi’s upped their corkage to $5 per bottle, which still isn’t too bad, but Mimi’s is just a fundamentally different type of restaurant than BJ’s, so they’re not really in comparable, IMO.

BJs happy hour deals are otherwise pretty meh.  To check out your local BJ’s happy hour menu, you need to go to BJ’s website and look up your location’s dedicated page.  For Puente Hills (Rowland Hts), the menu is as follows:

Appetizers are all about $10, so at $2 off, they’re not a steal.  Elephant Bar and TGIF have far better deals on bar food during Happy Hour, if you’re looking for that.  BJ’s pizzas are great, so half off mini pizzas is what I usually get, but trust that the mini pizzas are truly personal pan-sized –tiny!

Costco tip.  If you go to the Puente Hills/Rowland Heights BJ’s location, I have a little tip for you.  Show up, put your name down, get a buzzer (always a wait), but instead of standing around the parking lot, walk/drive over to Costco just down the street and pick up a bottle of wine!  Costco has a great wine selection and lots of little descriptions, which make it more fun to shop at for cheap wine than a supermarket.

No Costco membership?  No problem if you’re in CA.  State laws allow you to buy alcohol from otherwise membership-only places like Costco, so just tell the bouncers at the door (lol) that you’re buying alcohol only.  I’ve done this tons of times and had no problems.  FYI, you must pay with cash at the register.

Lemme know if there are any other chain restaurants out there with cheap corkage deals!

$0.01 February Julep Maven Box {Boho Glam}

Lots of bloggers have posted about the $0.01 Julep Maven Box deal.  I placed the order online, and before the week was up, the box arrived at my doorstep (love that)!  If you just want to get in on the $0.01 deal, make sure to promptly cancel before the 24th!  To cancel, simply call 1-877-651-3292 during regular business hours; the process is extremely fast and simple.  I was thankful the person I spoke with didn’t make me sit through a long pitch before allowing cancellation – easy peasy.

Value.  Of course at $0.01 this is a deal regardless, but I’m going to give you a review based on its normal monthly price of $19.99.   I liked all three items enough, but wouldn’t say they’re worth $19.99 to me personally.  I already have quite a few polishes, and at almost $7 per item, I’d rather just choose individual polishes that fit the gaps in my collection.  The service is probably better for people who are in the process of building a collection.

Marisa.  The blue polish is really beautiful.  It looks like a very shiny dark blue, and when the light reflects off the polish, you can see the bright blue shimmer.  I love it!  The formula is also great so far – not streaky and only one coat required.  I just got my box yesterday, so I can’t comment on the duration/wear of these polishes yet.

Oscar.  The gold polish is another story, unfortunately.  It has a goopey consistency that makes it kind of hard to work with.  I think the glitter density is pretty good.  I chose to do a couple layers of Oscar on the tips of my nails.  I also bolstered the glittery effect with a teensy bit of loose glitter on the very tips.

Sephora Code: Free Sample Bare Escentuals (Exp. 3/7/12)

Code BEBARE3 or BEMATTE3 are good for a free sample of Bare Escentuals (regular or matte) with a $25 Bare Escentuals purchase from Sephora.com.  Code expires 3/7/12.

The sample contains:

1. Bare Minerals Foundation (in Matte or Regular) (0.01 oz) (choose from six shades – fairly light, light, medium beige, medium tan, medium dark, golden dark, or medium deep)
2. Mini Kabuku Brush (bristles are soft, but the brush is super tiny)
3. Prime Time Foundation Primer (0.15 oz)

This is the full-sized product next to the free sample, just as a size reference.

Jim’s Steaks Philadelphia {multiple locations}

Is it bad that I got a steak sandwich with provolone instead of cheez whiz?  I just wasn’t brave enough.  Regardless, nothing is more delish in the wee hours of the night.

Jim’s Steaks Philadelphia
Official Website
Open late!

Sephora Ultra Shine Lip Gloss {Precious Coral & Vivid Violet}

I actually added these to a recent Sephora order as fillers (to reach the $50 free shipping minimum), but ended up really liking them!  Select colors are on sale now for a mere $3!

Precious Coral Sparkling & Vivid Violet Sparkling

Mini-review.  These are both “sparkling” glosses, but the texture is very smooth; no glittery grit here.  I don’t typically like the look of shimmery glosses (I feel like my lips look too frosty or reflective), but the shimmer in these is pretty and subtle.  They’re also very long lasting!  For whatever reason, I often find the stickier glosses to have more lasting power than non-sticky ones, but these are thankfully both non-sticky and long lasting!    These are sheer glosses, but they do add a hint of color to your lips (see below).  It’s sort of a small thing, but I also prefer their unique applicator shape–it’s somehow more precise than the usual sponge tip.

Value.  I don’t think I would ever pay full price ($14) for any lip gloss, but at $3 these are well worth their price.  Also, long lasting = better value.

Precious Coral Sparkling

Shimmery but not over the top, right?  Precious Coral is a sheer coral colored lip gloss with fine magenta glitter; the effect is very warm and pretty.

Vivid Violet Sparkling

Vivid Violet is a sheer grape colored gloss with a fine purple glitter; the effect makes my lips look cooler.  In person, as in the above photos, there is a noticeable difference between these two shades.

NOTD: Watercolor Gradient

My first time using a makeup sponge to do a gradient.  The effect reminds me of watercolors

Revlon Minted

OPI Top COat

Essie One Day Without Blues

1 makeup sponge

Method: Use a mint colored polish (Revlon Minted) as the base color.  I actually don’t prefer Revlon Minted because, despite the nice color, this is a really streaky polish that requires about 3 coats *tedious.  Once the base color is completely dry, I put some blue polish (Essie One Day Without Blues) on the tip of a makeup sponge and sponged one layer of polish onto my nails about 2/3 the way down.  I wait for that layer to dry a bit and then sponge another layer 1/2 way down.  Finally, I painted the blue polish straight onto the tips of my nails.  At this point, the nails don’t look perfect – they’re all funky and textured from the sponge, but fear not because topcoat miraculously cures all the bumpiness and gives you a nice watery looking finish.

Review: Maybelline Illegal Length Fiber Mascara

I would guess many Asian girls share my eyelash woes – they’re short, thin and defiantly straight.  Earlier this month, I am Style-ish posted a photo and recommended Maybelline’s Illegal Length Mascara.  I generally like fiber mascaras, so I decided to give this $7 mascara whirl.  The results are pretty impressive (drama, drama!), so we’ll start this review with a before and after series:

Pretty good, right?  Not as perfect as false lashes, but way more dramatic than my natural lashes.  There’s a lot that goes into getting my lashes prepped for mascara, so what you see above isn’t just straight out of the tube Maybelline Illegal Length Mascara.  I’ll go through my process with you step-by-step:

Step 1.  Curl Lashes.

There isn’t a mascara on this planet that could curl my lashes, so I don’t bother searching.  As a matter of fact, “straight” doesn’t even really convey how underachiving my lashes are because they aren’t just straight, they actually point downwards.  My curling routine includes blasting the front of my eyelash curler for a few seconds with my blow dryer and then curling my lashes.  I find this to be the most efficient and effective way to curl my lashes.

What hasn’t worked for me:  Without the added heat, I find I have to clamp and clamp and clamp to get the curl to hold, which, over time, pulls out more lashes than I’d like to lose.  I’ve also tried electronic heated lash curlers, and while they work, the process takes too long.

Step 2.  Apply Mascara Base.

Mascara base is essential for me.  What does mascara base do?  It adds a little bulk and volume, but most importantly (for me), it holds the curl of my lashes under mascara!  When I apply mascara, my curled lashes get wet (from the mascara) and tend to lose their curl.  Sure, you can re-curl after applying mascara, but that not only wastes time and pulls out lashes, but also clumps my lashes together (from the clamping) and makes them into a spidery mess.  No longer with mascara base!

My original obsession was Shiseido’s mascara base (amaaazing), but sadly, Shiseido changed their mascara base formula, so I no longer use it.  Ever since, I’ve been on the hunt for a suitable replacement.  I’ll do a more extensive review on mascara bases some other time, but for now, I’ll recommend Sephora’s Tricks of the Trade Perfecting Lash Primer (only $5!).  It’s not as good as Shiseido’s old formula, but it’s a fraction of the price and works pretty well.

Step 3.  Apply 2-3 coats of Maybelline Illegal Length Fiber Mascara.

Wait until your mascara base dries before you begin applying mascara.  When I apply a fiber mascara, I try to cover all my lashes with the first coat, but then focus the second and third coat on the tips of my lashes only (to add length).  If you must re-curl, wait until your lashes are completely dry.

Although no mascara suits everyone’s needs, I would recommend this to those with similar lash problems to mine.  Enjoy!

NOTD: Gradient Nails {pink red coral}

I copied Elle’s v-day manicure using whatever I had in my polish drawer.  I only brought a very limited number of polishes with me to school, so I didn’t have enough similar-but-different polishes for all five fingers.  I improvised by laying Bubble Bath (which is sheer) over another color, Tart Deco.  The resulting color (index finger) wasn’t great, but it sufficed to complete the manicure.

I got a few compliments with this manicure; it’s eye catching in the least.  When choosing colors, it’s important to pick polishes with a similar finish, meaning it doesn’t generally look good to mix mattes, sheers, and shimmers.

{Revlon Cherry Berry . Essie Cute as a Button . Essie Tart Deco . OPI Bubble Bath . OPI Top Coat}

A quick review on each polish:

Revlon Cherry Berry:  This polish is amazing – it’s actually a very pink red and it goes on very smooth – no streaks and the color looks good with ONE coat.  It’s fool proof and so pretty.  Very youthful looking “red.”

Essie Cute as a Button:  Nice, but a little young looking for me.  It’s great as an accent nail polish.  Pretty and easy to apply.

Essie Tart Deco: I actually don’t like this polish.  It’s much more coral in person than in the photo, but it’s no the color that bothers me.   The problem is it’s just so temperamental–whenever I add a top coat, it changes color, which is frustrating.

OPI Bubble Bath: I think this might be what Giada wears on her cooking show, but I’m not sure. In any case, this one is OK.  It takes 2-3 layers to get it more opaque.  I feel like this polish makes my hands look dark.  Some might call this “bringing out a tan,” but it’s just not flattering on my Asian skin (yellow undertones).

OPI Top Coat:  I actually think this works very well in that it protects against chipping.  It’s not especially fast drying (which would be nice) or especially shiny, but damn, this thing does not chip.  I am really rough on my nails and after a full seven days of this manicure, my polish is still flawless.  The only annoyance is that this top coat makes polish removal a little more work.

Review & Swatches: Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters

I’m 25 years old, which, in my opinion, puts me at a kind of in-between age with regards to lip products.  On the one hand, I feel like lip liner and opaque, creamy lipsticks are still too serious for me, but at the same time, shiny sparkly lip glosses are too young.  I’ve been doing lip stains with balm for a while, but recently added six Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters to my daily repertoire.   I found them on sale at CVS last month for a mere $3 a piece after ECB’s- STEAL!

Review:  Lip Butters are basically a marriage between a balm and a lipstick.  Like a balm, they feel very smooth and moisturizing on the lips.  In contrast, I find many lipsticks to be too drying and many lip glosses to be too sticky.  The duration or “wear” of these Lip Butters is not exceptional, but that’s to be expected as a trade-off for the wonderfully smooth texture.  I would say I need to reapply every couple hours or so.   The pigmentation, as you will see below, is much stronger than a lip balm, but also a tad more sheer than most lipsticks.