Ignite Sushi Bar & Lounge

The closest thing to sushi around here? Ignite Sushi Bar & Lounge on the third floor of the MGM here in Detroit.  I’ve been having a craving and never got to try the place out last time I was in Detroit soooo….. why not?!  I finished up work, crazy busy work day, I got dressed up and decided to have a solo dinner date with me, myself and I.

So security in the front of the casino told me to get the Michigan roll, but ya’ll know that I’m not a fan of cream cheese in my sushi – in fact W likes to get it sometimes just to spite me haha – so I ended up with the safest, but a unique, option.

Hawaiian Roll
Inside: tuna, cucumber
Outside: Ebi (cooked shrimp), avocado
Toppings: kiwi, pineapple sauce, spicy sweet sauce

Spicy sauce was basically sriracha and some other stuffs.  I dug the kiwi and pineapple flavors, it was flavor overload, and I actually enjoyed it, minus the drowning in different sauces.  Remember guys, less [sauce] is more!  But then again, I’m not a huge sauce girl.

Edamame

Always a fav snack of mine, they were overcooked – to the point where a lot of the pods had broken open – but still tasty.  I love flaked salt.

Ignite Salad
organic michigan lettuce, radish, carrot, scallion. w/ ginger dressing and salmon sashimi

Crunchy fresh veggies, a light yummy dressing and fresh sashimi atop.  The dressing was a bit overload, and the bottom half of my salad was SWIMMING in dressing.  Womp.

So the food wasn’t bad.  Aside from the fact that all the rolls had a ton of mayos and sauces all over them…. and the edamame was a bit overcooked.  But the service was horrible.  The people were super nice BUT, I never got napkins, no one ever came over to take my drink order, they don’t even have a drink menu!!!… and I had to ask them about 4 or 5 times before I finally got my first drink order, super late.  AND they said they had 4 different sakes but just brought me over a random cold one. UM…. okay… but after the 3rd tiny bottle, I didn’t care much anymore.. and just shrugged it off. NOM NOM NOM.

But if you’re not into sushi they have some small pites like yakitori, noodle dishes and some cute sliders.

I’ve read some reviews on how there were fruit flies, sauce overload, etc… it wasn’t dirty, and the place was pretty swanky.  I got there towards the end of ballroom dancing and it seemed like a lot of fun.  But the sun doesn’t go down til super late so after dinner I wasn’t really in the dancing mood yet with the sun blasting in the big windows on the dance floor.  I stuck out like a sore thumb, as in I was palest one there and I think the only Asian.. hahaha… I definitely wasn’t in Kansas anymore but the music was banging and smiles were everywhere.  I had a great time.  I’d go for fun and if you’re desperately needing sushi and don’t wanna risk some random place in Detroit.  Don’t expect a mind-blowing meal but just have a few drinks, put on your dancing shoes and have a good time.

“Are you a Vegetarian?”

And yes I actually got asked that, the waitress only saw me eat the last two dishes and not my starter.. so I guess that’s why, but still… always awkward when I get asked since I’m SUCH a huge meat eater. HAHA. OMNOMNIVORE!

Worked late and then headed over to one of W’s restaurants, Bourban Steak,  for some grub.  I was craving some raw meat and W knows me too well so I sipped my water and the first thing I got sent was delicious RAW BEEF!

This was the closet thing to a tartare they have… MMMMM

Kobe Beef “Kibbeh”

Cucumber Yogurt, Pickled Beets, Grilled Pita Bread

Totally satiated my craving for tender raw meat.  Haha always reminds me of the movie P in the part where eating raw meat turns her evil LOL…. I’m an evil mofo ;]

OK, onwards to my vegetarian part I suppose… SOOOO GOOD and carbo loading <3

Fava Beans and Sprouts on a Crostini, SOOOOOO FREAKING GOOD.  DE-VOURED!

And a yummy panzanella… toasted crunchy croutons with tomatoes, onoins and more sprouts. SOOO GOOOOOOD

I am a happppppppy girl :]

W fed me well, once again :]

A full Tiffie is a happy Tiffie :]

The Keg, and 4th of July Fireworks in June – Only in Detroit, well, and Canada

July 4th in June… it was a beautiful day for fireworks, a bit windy – W & I both took a nap back at the hotel after our huge burger meal [food coma much?] and then woke up to head out to wander the festivities. Can you believe this was taken after 8pm? Always sunny.. in Canada and Detroit HAHA…

It was still sunny and after wandering the carnival which was exactly like the one in Detroit from the day before, we headed to The Keg for dinner.

You can get regular sized wine.. or KEG SIZE!!! Obviously I got the keg :]  What can I say?! It’s how I roll….

After ordering I headed to the restroom.. it was PACKED. a bunch of kids came in from outside – which was also PACKED from all the people waiting for the fireworks, so it took FOREVER.  But by the time I FINALLY got back, some food and drink was there ready for me. YAY

Warm fluffy bread.  Kinda reminded me of my favorite bread from Coach Grill but the crust wasn’t as yummy.  But always thumbs up for warm fluffy bread!  It’s a simple thing but a lot of restaurants don’t always do it :[ Cold bread STINKS! OH so does hard butter, this butter was soft and creamy....

W's meal came with a salad so he got the wedge :]  It wasn’t like this sexy thang, but it wasn’t bad either.  I like my blue chese more chunky than crumbly tho.  And the wedge part was a bit weak.  In this case, more is more :]

Iceberg Wedge
Crisp lettuce wedge topped with tomatoes, bacon bits w/ Bleu cheese dressing 

My Keg sized wine… doesn’t look that big at the moment?

Well here it is compared to my big fat head! SEE?! HUGE  - Anyways I wanted to try Canadian wine, obviously, this is me we’re talking about here, so I got the Henry of Pelhem, a Gewürztraminer from the Niagara Peninsula, Ontario… It didn’t say what year it was but it was pretty tasty so I had two KEG glasses :D

W’s Prime Rib.. I think it was a bit overcooked… and not fatty enough.  I told him to get the 16oz because I always get a smaller size Prime Rib and then get sad hahaha.. he could barely finish this, I tried helping :]  On the side came garlicky mashed potatoes – he was between this and the twice baked potato, waitress said mashed was better… it also came with sauteed button mushrooms, grilled zucchini.. and a random red pepper slice – which he gave me since W doesn’t like bell peppers haha.

Prime Rib Keg Classic Dinner

Lobster & Shrimp Summer Salad

An entrée salad of mixed greens, cremini mushrooms, corn, avocado, black beans, and tomato in a mango sesame dressing. Topped with lobster meat, shrimp and pine nuts.

This thing was freaking HUGE! NO LIE.  See, another comparison with my huge head.  It was fresh and delicious!!!! AND it came with a whole half avocado – beautiful.  I asked for dressing on the side but they forgot – but the dressing, mixed in, was light and not overpowering or heavy PHEW.

Afterwards we headed back to the hotel room to chill for a bit before the fireworks but then realized that it was the PERFECT spot for fireworks.  This is from our window.  Got really got videos too :]

Happy early Fourth of July! Celebrating America.. in Canada.. HAHAHA…

As soon as the fabulous show ended, the streets were SWARMING!!!!

Bye bye Canada, Call me, maybe?!

And remember, Litter is Beneath you…

We headed back earlier than we planned since there isn’t much to do in Windsor… O Canada, why you so boring?! LOL… W did some work in the kitchen and I did some work back in the room and then we headed to the pool to play.. it was FREEZING and I barely ate all day long so I jumped into the hot tub to thaw off…

And then I finally got to eat some real food… W had some work to do still so I headed to the Breeze Food Court for a Bacon Cheeseburger for W and a Chicken Burrito for me :] Yum yum yum, Tex-Mex always does this body good!  Now I just need a margarita!!!

My burrito with extra everything!!! HAHAHA… I like extra everything :D

Simon’s Prime Hamburgers, it’s like Five Guys but Canadian…

After playing on the Detroit side, we decided to go to the Canadian side for the carnival there and the fireworks…. so we packed our backpacks and off to Windsor, Ontario Canada we go..

HAHAHAHAHA

SMOOOOOOOTH… I can’t stop laughing at these ads.. google them, they’re hilarious!

We first stopped by a Tobacco shop for some cigars :] The guy seemed talkative and probably lonely? Windsor is such an empty city.  But yeah you can drink 19+ but then you can only get tobacco 19+ too. Not bad.

And while we wandered to search for our hotel, my eye caught this.. so obviously we had to get some.  We’re both Leos so we got the Leo Bubble Tea from Bubble Tea Express— Hibiscus + Litchi with tapioca pearls and we added some Mango Jelly for more texture. YUM.  This was SO delicious, not too sweet with a slight plum tart taste to it.

W sipping away. :]

Our view from the hotel room was PERFECT for the fireworks… and had a gorgeous view of Detroit.  So sad how beautiful Detroit looks from across the river… but then when you’re in it, it’s almost depressing. Womp

WE WERE STARVING.  We only had a bubble tea all day so we HAD to eat something.  We looked for a deli but ended up choosing between burgers and shwarma….  We ended up here at Simon’s PRIME Hamburgers.  Basically a Canadian rip off of Five Guys, but with poutine.

No wimpy burgers for us.

W got the Baconegg’r Double with Fried Egg, Bacon, Cheese, lettuce, Ketchup, Tomato, NO onion…

and I got the Big Greek Double with Feta Cheese, Tzatzki, lettuce, Tomato and Onion….

Double is the only way to go. W got bored of his burger half way but I loved mine, for a double patty burger it was surprisingly light, probably because all the condiments were pretty light and fluffy. The bun disappeared in your mouth and kinda demolished but I liked that it wasn’t heavy or too chewy. FLUFF FLUFF.  We didn’t realize that the burgers CAME with fries so we had a side of fries. SHAME ON YOU CASHIER! You’re supposed to warn us.

Fries overload.  They were SO tasty tho.  Perfectly crispy and fried.

And it all started with Pretzels…

Oh pretzels…

Life has been blessed and yummier than ever since we started talking 6 months ago :]

Riverdays, Scary Carnival Rides + Diner Food – DETROIT

What better way to start the day than to sleep in and head down to the pool?  I played some word search, splashed in the pool and then….

HOT TUB <3 Oh I’ve missed you so.

There was some showers during the day so we were gonna just go to Motor City to wander and eat BUT the weather didn’t seem to bad so we did what we initially planned to do.. Riverdays at the Riverfront with a Carnival, Jazz and a Boyz II Men concert. BOMB DIGGITY!

Looking into Canada

Carnival!!!

 only wanted to ride the scary rides…

This was my first and ended up being the best one…

I did the peace fob sign and everyone looked at me funny. BTW, out of the WHOLE place, I was the token Asian, you think I’m kidding but I’m SOOOOOOO SOOOOOOOOOO serious.

Boyz II Men singing I’ll Make Love to You <3 Classic

After a fun sweaty time and winning a piggie.. we headed to the GM Ren Cen center to wander…

And ultimately ending up at the Lodge Diner in Motor City for dinner!

Seriously the place was practically empty and yet we had a 10 minute wait, a couple RIGHT behind us was told 15 minutes. WTFREAK?! Good food tho… so I guess worth it.

We had awesome game placemats… I got sudoku and W got wordsearch, how fitting, our favorites!!!

We both started with a Chicken Noodle Soup which we doused with Tabasco… sooooo chunky, fresh and delicious

We waited for a table longer than the food took to get to us LOL

W’s Pot Roast, Mashed Taters and Veggies…

Pot Roast was super tender but apparently they give different portions each time.. last time he had this he said the amount of pot roast to mashed potatoes was flipped… :[ Suck

The meat shirt I got him TEEHEE…

….and then he got pot roast on himself where it says “Not Meat. Kidding!” LOL

My Garden Omelette.. I have a thing with breakfast for dinner, esp at diners…

Fresh huge pieces of fruit, the omelette was HUGE and filled with delicious crunchy veggies.. perfectly cooked and the hash browns were crispity and perfect.

Piggie helped me eat.. my wheat toast was toasted perfect and smoothered with butter NOM!

Best napkins EVER!!!!

Father’s Day Dim Sum

Me in Daddy’s shoes!

Daddy’s little girl

In this family we tend to celebrate holidays and birthdays for a whole span of time… so Saturday we headed to Rockport for lobsters and sunshine. It was cold and a bit gray at first but warmed up and the sun came out – we ended the night at CPK for our usual meal of Veg pizza, lettuce wraps and miso shrimp salad – and of course margaritas!!!

Lobsters and Clam Chowdah from Roy Moore Lobster Co

We were supposed to go to church on Sunday but mom and I slept in… haha poor dad was ready at 8am.  We previously planned on getting brunch somewhere but haven’t had Dim Sum in ages so we decided to go to celebrate the best guy in my life!

We got to New China Pearl around 1 and it was a TON of people and a 30 min wait.  #76

As soon as we sat down we got a plethora of braised chicken feets… a few of these, my favorite!!! 鳳爪

Fatty meaty juicy steamed shortribs 豉汁排骨

Ginger Sweetened Tofu Pudding 豆花

Shumai 燒賣

Spicy Black Bean Clams 豉汁炒蜆

Water Chestnut Cake – Ma Ti Gao 马蹄糕

I would have preferred it just steamed and not also panfried but it was slightly sweet and crunchy and good.  Not greasy but still, would’ve liked it better just steamed.

Pan Fried Turnip Cake 煎蘿蔔糕

Spicy Tripe 牛百叶

Egg Tarts 酥皮蛋撻

A Dim Sum must!!!  No dim sum is complete without ending with these :D

Sweet Sesame Balls 芝麻煎堆

We got a lot more food including black sesame and egg custard buns but I didn’t take pictures of everything, just some highlights.

New Met Bar Items…

I’ve blogged about Met Bar + Grill a million times and eaten there triple the amount… but they had a few new items and I got TWO of the NEW ITEMS so I figure I’ll talk about them.

Peach Mojito

Super tasty, what can I say… I love a good mojito!

Burger of the month…

Guacamole and Cheezy Chips

Chili Chicken Gorditas

Really good, I’d prefer a crunch to the tortillas on the bottom though and easier to eat, these just fall apart.  Flavor wise they were great.

Mexican Burger w/ Arugula, Butter Lettuce, Sprouts, Jack Cheese, Jalapenos, Guacamole, Salsa, etc..

Key Lime Tart

It was WAYYYY too sweet. And I like sweet, but SO sweet my tongue went numb and it was almost mealy/pasty from the sugar.  Awkward.  The pineapple on the side was good.. as was toasted coconut over the whipped cream.  Apparently we were the first peoples to try it so the waiter wanted to have our feedback. OOPS.

ANYWAYS.

He was nice neuf to take it off the tab – altho it wasn’t much – but we gave him that and then some for tip since he recognized us! WOOT

Oysters + Clam Chowdah + Johnny Cupcakes

Tuesday was a busy day for W and the Clio dinner.. I worked and ran some errands and did a lot of outfit changing hahaha… I also ended up ordering half of the room service menu for dinner.. pizza, burger, fries, chocolate pudding cake, ice cream, the works. FAT. It was SOOOO GOOD though.

Like, I wore this outfit to go to Shaw’s….

And this one after.. hahaha cuz it was a little chilly.  I’m such a little fashion whore.  Cool part of the day was when I got asked to model.

W was supposed to leave W morning but ended up staying a day :] YAY!  So I took the day off so we could spend the day together.  We slept in with blackout curtains but our bellies got the best of us and we needed to eat.  The SUN was finally back out so we also decided to wander around Boston…

We ended up being too hungry to NOT eat first so before we even got outside we grabbed a quick bite at Legal Seafood’s in Pru.  It’s not one of my fav Legal’s locals.  I like the one in Copley better [it's also less touristy]… and I think the Framingham one, minus the whole alcohol issue, and by the Wharf is the best.  *shrug*  OH, I dislike the Chestnut Hill one the most. WORST SERVICE AND SANGRIA EVER.

Anyways.  A dozen oysters.  All WiAnnos.  SOOO GOOD.

We got His and Her Clam Chowdahs.. I ordered first and I got a cup, he got a bowl. DAMMIT  I had Chowdah envy :[ I did it his way and added tabasco sauce to it, SOOO GOOD... Except he added more salt and I added more pepper.  What can I say opposites attract :] We’re so similar and so different. I love it.

He ended up getting a burger. WOMP. Overcooked and just looked meh.  But then again it’s a BURGER at Legal Seafoods.  I scolded him – he counteracted with how Saltwater has great burgers. HO HUM. I’ll have to get one when I’m back up in Detroit soon.

I got a bucket of steamers.  They were tiny so there were a lot.  W said it was a New England thing and actually had no idea what I was talking about.  Steamed Steamers aren’t really his thing, but he did try one – minus the little penis head haha.. probably cuz I told him to pull off the foreskin LOL my B – He actually thought of CLEVELAND STEAMERS – Don’t worry I gave him one later. HAHAHA. JK. Maybe. HELLO!!! SFW FOOD BLOG HERE!

The meal was ridic expensive and even after W didn’t eat his burger and his waitress was all like, “I’m sorry I’ll take something off” she took freaking 4$ OFF WTF!? LAME.  Tax was more.

Anyways.  At least their mojito of the day was good.  We walked around Newbury and I got a shirt at Johnny Cupcakes <3 JOY.

Yep.  Dinner was Cheesecake Factory.  Don’t judge. It was derricious!

The Morning After… at Wagamama & SAVORY FROYO at PINKBERRY!!!

Okay, fine. It was the AFTERNOON after.  We didn’t really drink close to enough to be hungover but WHY NOT eat for it? W and I slept in, obviously, but A worked so she met up with us for lunch….. we were gonna head to Cafeteria [MMM Mac&Cheese]… but it was kinda crappy out and W wasn’t feeling well [and had to buy pants!] so we went to Wagamama. MMMM, always a tasty noodly treat.

After going back and forth between a lot of items… we chose.

A got the  Veggie Itame - rice noodles in a spicy green coconut and lemongrass soup topped with stir-fried chicken breast or fried tofu, beansprouts, chillies, red onions, scallions, bok choy, peppers and mushrooms. garnished with cilantro and lime

She let me have a slurp and it was tasty!!!!  I find coconut broths to be heavy but this was pretty good.  Altho fav one would still have to be from Urban Belly. Anyways.  You dont miss the meat at all.

ONE COMPLAINT: They served A’s dish to someone else… next to us.. apparently they always eff up orders here.. it’s good but srsly?! And then “rushed” the re-order but she got hers sooooo long after ours. UGH. Annoying.

I got the Chicken Chili Ramen - spicy broth and ramen noodles topped with fresh chilies, red onion, bean sprouts, cilantro, scallion and a wedge of lime

And W got the same as me but with grilled steak. I should’ve gotten steak :[ My chicken SUCKED and I only had like 1.5 pieces.  But I added a lot of shichimi 七味唐辛子, "seven flavor chili pepper"  in it and made it even spicier.  My nose got sweaty.  They also have soy sauce and chili oil for condiments.

After our bellies were full... A and I hurried over to Pinkberry, right next to Wagamama.. at first W resisted but he gave in and got a cup of froyo too.  BUT, OMG, they have SAVORY toppings now?!?!?!

Yep, those are diced peppers, tomatoes, olives, cucumbers and basil....

Since we're curious we got given samples.  I tried the cucumber, pepper, EVOO and a tasty spice.. maybe paprika?!  And a salty sunflower cracker.  A had the one with olives, pesto, tomato and another cracker :]  It’s actually served with their Greek Yogurt and was surprisingly really tasty.  *cue W’s face squishing in disgust* hahaha…

I ended up with this tho, sweet for me !!!
Half strawberry, half salted caramel with mangoes and raspberries!

DEEEEEEEEEELISH!

After shopping around a bit and relaxing W went to prep for the dinner and I did a little work.. and by little I mean little… cuz soon I was dressed and ready to head out for drinks and dinner with the chefs.

When I finally got to shake Ken Oringer’s hand, I may have a giggled one too many times. OOPS. These may have been to blame.  I had a champagne cocktail, some of W’s drink and this tequila/jalapeno smokey drink [with mango ice cube YUM].

We ended up not eating dinner with the chefs, just had a few drinks and then W and I went to O Sushi for a delicious sushi/sashimi dinner.

It was the first time I had their Hamachi Kama – only disappointment was this Tako [octopus] dish that was just salmon and octopus chopped in cubes with cubed tomatoes and cuc and etc… meh.  But Hamachi Kama had crispy skin and juicy moist meat. YUM – I had a delicious Lychee Saketini along with the meal as well :] NOM!  They give you a shaker full so you get about two martini glasses!!!