Andy Milonakis Loves the Taste of Raw Sea Urchin in the Morning

So we'd say he's doing alright

August 9, 2012

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Welcome to My Morning Routine, where we take a look at how people kick-start the day. And by people we mean celebrities

Andy Milonakis might still be best known for his self-titled show on MTV, but anyone keeping tabs on his Twitter feed and YouTube channel knows he's a hardcore sushi lover and tea connoisseur. So how does this late riser kick off the day?

I'm kind of a horrible insomniac. I honestly feel good about myself if I go to sleep before like 5 a.m. Sometimes I get into a kind of normal routine where I go to bed around 2 or 3, and wake up at 11, which I get really psyched about. Then slowly but surely it will creep back to where I'm awake until the sun comes up. I never say, "Alright, it's getting late. I should go to sleep." It doesn't work like that. I can't go to sleep unless my eyes actually just shut on themselves.

I really like making tea. I'm particular about it, though. I just installed a glass distilled water delivery system, and I use it to make a lot of white tea. I steep it for a couple minutes and then pour it over ice. It's the opposite of coffee. I feel like tea is one of the healthiest drinks you can have in the world. It's one of my favorite things to drink in the morning--I don't deal with crazy caffeine.

I totally don't mind if sushi is my first meal of the day. Some people can't really stomach that type of thing as their first meal, but to me it makes more sense than having a huge pile of hash browns, bacon, and all that other stuff. I mean, it's not like I'm the poster boy of health, but I feel so much better when I'm eating pieces of nigiri instead of a big hash brown-bacon breakfast. I went to the farmer's market in Hollywood the other day and saw the seafood section--they had live sea urchins in a big tank. I had them cut them in half and I was eating sea urchin right there and I felt pretty good that that was my first meal.

I actually cook a lot, but I don't cook breakfast very often. I did invent this one breakfast thing that I make: I take a Trader Joe's curry naan bread and cut out a hole or two, then I put it in a cast iron pan and crack an egg in each hole--the naan gets really toasty and I'll put a little hot sauce on it or something.

The other breakfast thing that I'm really obsessed with right now is chilaquiles. There's this place called Madame Matisse in Silver Lake--they have a really good one. It might be a little white boy style, but it's good. And I really like Blue Jam Café on Melrose for goulash. My stomach has to be in the mood for it because it's a little bit heavy, but it's one of the best soups that I've had in LA. I don't really do a lot of traditional breakfast eating.

Being from New York, I realize how bad the bagels are in L.A., so when I'm there, I can't wait to get a pumpernickel bagel with a little butter. It's so simple but it's so amazing.

In New York, you can eat out at a different place every day for the rest of your life and never get bored. New York wins as far as food. L.A. wins as far as produce. It's easier to eat healthy and light.