Steamers

Went out on Saturday night for the first time in a long while. A couple of my friends wanted to go to a jazz bar, and invited a group of us to go. And so we did.

One Car, Three Stooges, taken after the fact

We met up at a restaurant in Anaheim, K'ya (pronounced KAI-YA, supposedly Hawaiian). The theme of the food there is street food from around the world. The fare was simple, but delicious, and cheaper than you might expect, considering the ambiance and location. A good place for a date.

I commented that the restaurant must save a bundle on washing dishes, since the victuals were all served on paper, like real street food.

Images:
Left, Top: Jamaican Jerk
Left, Center: Grilled Scallops and Shooms

Right: Loco Moco

After our meal, we headed out to the jazz club. This is the moment where a (somewhat) monumental event took place: I used the compass on my iPhone practically for the first time. I was told to go North on Harbor Blvd, and had a bit of trouble figuring out north without being able to see near by landmarks, so I whipped out the iPhone and promptly made a U-turn. Another car was not so lucky; they were tardy by a half hour.


When we arrived at Steamers, located in downtown Fullerton, we(as in, our car) was unsure as to where to park, I was sure that there was much parking available, but nowhere as close as we wished it to be, being that Steamers was located in the popular SOCO night district. So we found a place in a back alley to park, hoping to whatever deities were out there that the car would be safe.

We entered Steamers, which was packed to the gills. Thankfully, we had a reservation(under the name Lazarus(spelling?), really.) and we had a space for ten prepared close to the stage. 

The theme for the night was Latin Jazz. The band(the name of which I don't recall) was good, and got better after I got a couple drinks into me. I had the house's Blue Note Martini(strong, sweet, recommended) and a Jack an' Coke(what's there to say, it's a Jack an' Coke). The rule I have for bars is to always try the house special first. The said, after comparing everyone's drinks, the Sangria sucked, but the appletini was candy-liciousness, but not at all manly.

There was no dance floor, but two of our friends managed to find a space and had a coupla steps. The space looks bigger than it really is, mostly just a strip two feet across and five feet long. They made what they could of it.

I really enjoyed music, just closing my eyes and letting the sounds invade my head, reverberating inside my skull. Of course, the same could not be said of others in our party, whom bore quickly(the youth of today...sigh).

Of course, everything must come to a balance, and our check came.
My charge was:
$8 cover charge
$7.5 Blue Note
$7 Jack an' Coke
$2 IRS
$4 Gratuity            

$28.5 Total

Please note I had the minimum two item requirement per person/per set. Also note that the cheapest thing on the menu was a Coke at $3 a can +glass&ice, no refills. They have an excellent espresso bar, I heard.

I also covered a friend, who's birthday I had missed last week for the Thanksgiving get together(see Good Night post). His tab was $40. For the entire night, including dinner for myself, I spent around $90USD. Not cheap. I only planned to spend half of that, and would have, if birthdays and guilt didn't come into play.

The night was fun, and new experiences are always welcome. Hopefully, they won't always be so overpriced.

Now pondering the feasibility of opening a jazz club.