UYE- Sake’t To Me

The theme was sake! I enjoyed everything! All the foods were delicious, I loved trying all the sake there and loved having 2^nd’s and 3rds of it. I’m not a big sake fan but I just had to attend this as I want to be more knowledgeable in it. A year ago my second favorite spirit, whiskey (UYE was coined Whiskey Business), was the other potluck that was a must for me to attend. Both times I just had to make something with the theme drank. I don’t think anyone could taste the whiskey in the ribs so I had to make sure they could taste the sake in the May babies birthday cake!
There was about 2 hours before the event and felt bad I didn’t put much effort into the dish I was bringing so I did the Ironchef thing and made some organic edamame dip for chips, which I turned into boiled wontons. For the late comers, you missed out on it. :(
Good food, good company, happy birthday to the May babies and I think this was the last UYE potluck we’ve had. Oh well, it is kinda hot to host a potluck outside during the Summer anyway.

I can’t give anything to these potlucks other than 5 stars. If I could give more, I would. Everyone, is so friendly and kind. I look forward to them.
And, yes, the food was amazing as there are many « UnilocalERS» that can cook and bake. I still have dreams of Michael’s desserts. But, there were many other dishes that were incredible… spring rolls, chicken, various noodle dishes and plenty of Sake to taste. But, for those people that think you shouldn’t come to these potlucks, because you have little or no skills in the kitchen, should think again. I brought a dish that I have never made before and I was disappointed with it. But, live and learn… Even by the end of the night, when all of the cockroaches came out, was a good time.
So, as incredible the food was, the company was even better. As someone who is rather shy with new people at first, I always feel comfortable being at these UYE’s.

I swear, I’m not usually this lame. Ended up bringing a case of water and the nicest bottle of Sake they sell at the local Smith’s. In our defense, we tried Costco first but couldn’t find any Sake, and there were no large sushi trays in sight, and we were planning on making something all week but we were running really late. :(
There was so much good food, and at least 1 ok-​tasting Sake (I guess Sake isn’t my thing). Edamame wontons in Sake broth, spring rolls, Japanese ramen with egg, bacon wrapped asparagus, make your own hand-​roll station, shrimp steamed in Sake, rice vermicelli noodles, another noodle dish with several kinds of toppings, green tea cakes, a white frosted cake that looked awesome, the Chicken Drumsticks that were deliciously spicy!
Everything was delicious, and we’re definitely making something to compete with next time! Oh you say it’s not a competition? I don’t care, I’m bringing the dish that everyone’s going to talk about in the reviews.

Thank you everyone for coming out and making this potluck such a success. There were a few new faces to this event and I would like to take the time to welcome them into the Unilocal family.
As with any event, there is no shortage of food. The booze was ever flowing as well. The company is the main reason why I look forward to this monthly ritual. Yes, the food is a bonus. Get a few drinks in me and everything is good, but the people who come out makes it enjoyable.
Japanese food is one of my favorite cuisines. Now trying to make it is not something I have ever attempted. Originally, I was going gutsy and planning to make red bean and walnut stuffed green tea mochi. That was a fail. I almost got it right, but the consistency was off. When all else fails, I just bust out my mom’s eggrolls. That is a sure fire way of getting people to forget that your other dish sucks.
I would thank Kevin for the birthday cake, but Tony T. and I did not get our names on it. So Stephanie, Molly, April, and Lisa all had their names placed on the cake, yet Tony and I didn’t… What are the common denominators in this equation? RUDE! :p
I kid. It was a really nice gesture when he wrote in our names with his finger. Just a little too late. This Taurus will hold a grudge. Just you wait.

Everything was superb — from the venue and weather, to the food and the company. If I knew how much fun these things were going to be, I definitely would have left the little man home. I kept worrying he was going to run off somewhere or eat the dogs’ food, lol. I wish hubby and I had more time to make rounds and stay well into the night. *Thank you* for the invite David/​Cristina, awesome event! And thanks to everyone who lovingly prepared the great grub. Looking forward to the next potluck picnic! :)

Not a cook? Don’t worry, bring edamame! That was my solution anyway… I can at least boil water.
This was my first potluck UYE — wowza was I impressed with everyone! Am I the only person on Unilocal who doesn’t cook? I loved the theme of this event because I was able to try a ton of great new food and I suddenly felt more cultured. Highlights of the food for me were: Lisa R.‘s miso eggplant and shishito peppers, David S.‘s mother’s egg rolls (YUM!), the beef dish from LJ R, and of course Michael K’s green tea cheesecake *drooling*!
So I quite possibly may have been the first one to break into the sake, but at least I poured shots so I wasn’t drinking alone. :) This will likely be the only time in my life I ever get to try so many different sake at once! I I got out of there long before I got toasted, and long before the critters aka roaches showed up. I was sad to leave and would have loved to have hung out longer, but Tiger Jam tickets to see Kid Rock were calling my name.
Till next month. Sake’t to me!

Another awesome UYE Potluck. If you haven’t been able to attend any so far come on by to the next one. Great food, drinks, and people, good times. Also it seems like the food being brought are getting a lot more WOW, like we should open up our own business and of course, those who have um, will all be giving up our Elite badges. No I’ll never do that, not now at least.
The sober and hungry bunch before we knew what we got ourselves in
Thanks Tina S. for the pics and Kevin P. for leaving to go pick up some charcoal, someone should Photoshop them both in.
Let’s see if I can remember everything that was brought, I’ll try not to drool oops to late. There were desserts Michael K’s green tea cheesecake and Asian fudge (I walked away with these left overs haha yum), Kevin P’s birthday cake with sake and berry filling, and Tom F’s pancake sandwiches. There were Christina W. and Arvin C’s bacon wrapped asparagus, their grill, and I’m sure something else, Jin C’s ramen and his stove, Stephanie S’s spicy chicken, Kevin P’s edamame dumplings with broth, Lisa R’s eggplant and noodle dishes, Tony T’s BBQ pork, Kayla M. and Shane N’s edamame. I’m sorry I kind of forgot the creators of the other delicious dishes but there was another noodle dish, a curry dish, a couscous dish, a shrimp and sauce dish, another spicy chicken I think it was Tien N’s, another chicken dish from the ladies who came later, some fried rolls and a sushi station. There were plenty of sake, a Black and Gold sake, a TY KU coconut sake, various lychee sakes and other sake, and 6 pack of Sapporo. There was water and non-​food items. There were pets and even kids. It was fun finally meeting face to face with more awesome Unilocalers. Thanks for everyone who came and contributed to make this awesome.
I don’t know what I made because I never follow recipes when I cook. I just threw a bunch of ingredients together. You know a splash of this and that, a dash of this, oh some of these, etc. Basically is was sliced up beef marinated the night before and cooked up an hour before the UYE. With my phone camera, stove lighting, and a large white dish I saw this
everyone else saw this
both awesome pics. I was just satisfied my dish was empty at the end of the night.

It’s days like this I wish I had more stomachs and the ability to slow down time!
I am so impressed by everyone’s dishes. I gotta step up my game! My top 3 savories were David’s egg rolls (Wow!), Kevin P.‘s Edemame dumplings with miso broth (OMG!), and I don’t know who made it’s Curry (than you for bringing curry!).
It’s really tough to pick my favorite dessert… Micheal K’s creations were not only delicious but beautifully presented and then there is Kevin P’s birthday cake that had my name on it!!! I can’t decide. LOL! Thank you so much Kevin, that was so thoughtful and Happy Birthday to all the other May babies!
Chaos wants to thank everyone too, for being so nice to him, he loves you all!
The weather was perfect. The Hills Park was beautiful! And because of my Unilocal family I had a busy but great day that took my mind off the crap that life can hand you. Thank you and I appreciate you all more than you know!

Dear Michael K.,
You made the best green tea cheesecake I’ve ever had. It was literally heaven on a little golden plate! Thank you, you’re a talented man!
Thank you also to Kevin who slaved away making the actual birthday cake! Although David and Tony werent on it, we all very much appreciated it!
The food was super yummy, and location was awesome! 5 minutes from my house? Heck yes! It was a wonderful time and wonderful people! Got to meet Rod, Tony, and the sweet man Jin. My boyfriend Chaos was in attendance as well.
My favorite item was def the cheesecake, it was sooo buttery and delicious! Sahara gave Chaos a run for his money in the looks department! Haha.
This was a really fun and happy event. All the people in attendance were awesome and sweet! Thanks to everyone and my boo boos David, Christina, April, and Arvin for being amazing! The only bad part was at the end when the cockroaches tried to take over! Damn creeps!
Tony also found out cockroaches love sake, who’da thunk it!

Sake theme potluck at the park with 89XXX Unilocalers, and the weather was fantastic (breezy and not too hot or cold). Everyone that prepared food and desserts for the event all did an excellent job. But that is to be expected from foodies that also loves to cook, even if their day jobs are anything but related to food and beverage (with a few exceptions).
I arrived fashionably late, due to my new work schedule, so I have no idea who made what. But I will comment on what I tried and thought it deserved special commentary.
Lisa R’s miso marinated eggplant dish was great. If that is something I can order at the local Japanese restaurant, I would totally order it and have a feast with just a bowl of hot steamed rice.
Michael K’s Green Tea Cheesecake was an unanimous Best of Show winner. I tried a good number of green tea desserts in Las Vegas alone, and this easily ranked as one of the best in my opinion. So if you would like to sample more of his blue ribbon desserts, I am organizing a donation drive for him to purchase silicon baking molds, so he does not have to make them two at a time.
Christina and Arvin, hooked it up with Bacon Wrapped Asparagus. Simple ingredients, easy to prep, and always a favorite at izakayas.
Spicy Chicken Drumsticks. It was good, and has a nice kick.
Curry. I liked it a lot even when I am beyond stuffed, and it was cold too. Imagine how much better it was hot. No clue who made it though.
168’s Chinese Honey BBQ Pork. $ 8/​lb. Always a hit at potlucks. For those that can’t prepare food for potlucks, this is a good time saving solution to showing up at potlucks without committing the dreaded potluck faux pas.
Spicy Marinated Chicken from Greenland Market, expertly grilled by Specialist Tien.
DIY Sushi Rolling Station. It is always fun when you get to play with your food.
Sake. Sake. And more Sake. It was a decent sake tasting for those that showed up with proper I.D.s. For those that stuck around, we also discovered that the roaches love the sake and drank it up like sailors on shore leaves.
Fun times for all, including our four legged friends. Can’t wait for the next event.

Sake-​religious? Nooooo… sakelicious!
This was a night to remember — the perfect weather, great people, spectacular food, amazing view, and lots of varieties of sake in fluorescent shot glasses! I dragged a different David S. to David S.‘s event (in fact, I made him drive me!) toting 2 bottles of sake (Momo junmai nigori, a real hit and Tyku Coconut nigori), miso eggplant and shishito peppers that I was cooking until the minute we left, and mentaiko pasta with condiments (hand grated daikon, tamari shiitakes, mitsuba, myoga, shiso leaves, and shredded nori). I made the mentaiko sauce with some yuzu juice mmmmm yuzu!
I had also purchased an abundance of salmon skin for Christina W.‘s grill but forgot it in Henderson (woops) — salmon skin party tomorrow anyone?
Between enormous amounts of food, sake tastings, and desserts, this was a delectable feast! I enjoyed everyone’s dishes — Jade W. had a make-​your-​own temaki station, David S. made incredible curry, Christina W. made a rice noodle salad with mango and cucumber, Stephanie S. had spicy glazed chicken, Kevin P. made edamame dumplings and strawberry sake birthday cake for 5 of us May bday peeps, Michael K. made 2 ridiculous desserts– green tea cheesecake and Asian fudge, Tom F. made nutella and marshmallow fluff pancake sandwiches, Jin C. made ramen, Kayla M. and Shane N. brought edamame… an on and on and on — LJ R. and April D. — I cannot even remember what y’all brought! Woops!
We were having a grand old time and I met some new people including Christina B. who moved to Vegas TODAY from NJ!!! Then the area became infested with roaches so we all skeedaddled. That’s all she wrote!