As in, yoso-silly, yoso-hungry, yoso-full, or best of all; mmm-delici-yoso!!!!! A San Diego based food and travel blog. An Ex-Pat Kama'aina and Friends explore food, restaurants, and travel from San Diego and points beyond.
But of course, it’s all those red rocks that capture your attention and imagination.
And JJ did enjoy himself.
There are some nice views as well.
And we finished things up before it got too hot.
We headed back to town and went for a walk around the uptown area.
Where the Missus got to do some shopping.
We were really having a much more enjoyable time on this visit.
We then had a nice nap. After relaxing for a bit, we headed out to dinner, taking time to enjoy the Tlaquepaque Arts & Shopping Village a bit more.
A lot of folks were enjoying the area….taking photos and stuff.
And for dinner; well, we had enjoyed our meal the previous night at Rene’s, so we had made reservations for this evening.
It was good having a point of reference, so we got the dishes we had enjoyed the previous evening. Which were just as good. As was the Old Fashioned.
This time we got the Grilled Noble Bread with just pesto.
And the Foie Gras with Brioche…..
And the Duck Liver Pate….was a definite winnah!
The one “new” dish we ordered was the Escargot. Which was fine.
What took it over the top was the puff pastry like bread provided. Light and buttery, it just went so well with the garlicky – butteriness of the Escargot.
Which would have just been ok, without it.
So, I guess we’ve got a place to eat whenever we’re back in Sedona…..so yes, I guess we’ll be returning since JJ enjoys the hikes here.
Rene At Tlaquepaque 336 Az-179 Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village Sedona, AZ 86336
So, right now…probably because of the recent heat, we’ve had quite a bounty of okra. The Missus requested a Chinese style cold side dish (Liangcai) to go along with some takeout we had from Village Kitchen. So, after looking over several recipesonline, I came up with something to our taste.
I’ve made it several times since. It’s fairly simple; just briefly poach the okra, then plunge into ice water to stop the cooking, then mix the sauce, drain the okra well, slice lengthwise and pour the sauce over.
Since the okra growing in our yard are of various sizes, I stack the cross sliced larger or fatter halves on the bottom and the smaller thinner slices on the top.
Chinese Style Spicy Garlic Okra
6 – 8 ounces of Okra rinsed Pot of water to blanch okra Bowl of ice water
2 Tb Avocado or Neutral Oil 1 Tb Sichuan Peppercorn Oil 1/3 Cup minced Garlic (yes, for real) 1-3 Red Chilies – I had Chile de Arbol growing in our yard Dash of White Pepper (optional)
3 Tb Soy Sauce (I used Kikkoman for this) 2 Tsp Dark Brown Sugar 1 Tsp Chinese Black Vinegar 1 Tsp Oyster Sauce 1 Tb Sesame Oil 2 Tb Scallions Sliced
Bring the pot of water to a boil
Once boiling, add okra and blanch for 2 minutes
Immediate drain the okra and place in ice water to stop cooking
In a jar or bowl, place minced garlic, chilies, and white pepper (if using)
In a small pot heat neutral oil and Sichuan Peppercorn oil until sizzling.
Pour sizzling oil over garlic mixture and combine
Add soy sauce, dark brown sugar, black vinegar, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and 1 Tb of scallions and mix well.
Drain okra well
Once okra is well drained and fairly dry, cut off tops and slice lengthwise.
Arrange okra on a plate and top with sauce and remaining Tb of scallions.
Enjoy your garlicky, mildly spicy visit to “neba-neba” land!
On our first full day in Sedona, the Missus wanted to head out to Her favorite trail here; the West Fork of Oak Creek. It turns out that JJ loved it here too. There are 13 river crossings and the in and back hike is 6 1/2 mils long.
Once in the canyons, we came across ice….in the streams…..
And on the canyon walls.
But this didn’t deter JJ in the least.
And he had fun crossing the streams.
Returning to El Portal, we took a short nap, then decided to head to uptown so the Missus could do some shopping. We enjoyed the views from the Oak Creek Scenic Overlook.
And we took a short “tea break” at the Sedona location of the Spice & Tea Exchange.
Yes, it’s a big time chain, but some iced Oolong after a busy morning did just fine.
We then walked back to our room and had a nice nap. We headed out a bit early for “dinner”, because….well, JJ needed his beef tartare fix at Creekside. So arrived for happy hour and got a table out front.
I had a nice HH Old Fashioned.
The Missus got a margarita. We got some chips……
And JJ got his beef tartare……
Creekside American Bistro 251 AZ-179 Sedona, AZ 86336
And then we headed off for our dinner; which was in Tlaquepaque Arts & Shopping Village at a French Restaurant named Rene’s. I did read that it has the same ownership as Creekside, but the menu looked interesting.
We arrived and were seated in the patio area. Our Server was super friendly. And we really liked the menu. So many items that piqued our interest….we finally settled on 4.
And I celebrated with an Old Fashioned.
Like many places these days; Rene’s charges for bread. Though I gotta say; this one may be worth it.
The bread had been lightly toasted, was quite rustic. The bread came with an olive oil-balsamic dipping sauce, tapenade, and pesto. We really enjoyed the herbaceous-garlic forward pesto the best.
The Steak Tartare was next. This was the only “clunker” of the meal as the steak was really chewy and had a metallic finish.
Too bad, because we enjoyed the chips and homemade cornichons. And that egg yolk looked so lovely. Bummer!
Of course we had to get the Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras.
This came with some wonderful pork belly! Kind of overkill, but we enjoyed the sweet-tart glaze on the pork. The brioche and the Port wine reduction edged on being too sweet, but in the end it complimented the wonderfully seared, savory bomb that was the foie gras. Such nice offal-ly flavors.
And the Pate Maison was also a winnah!
It came with more of that lovely bread. The duck liver pate was so rich and buttery, the fragrance of black truffle danced in the air. Wonderfully textured….with that lovely gelee topping the pate. The mustard and other accoutrements paired well with bites of the pate.
This was our favorite meal of the trip. Service was laid back and nice…..in fact, we made reservations to return the following evening!
Rene At Tlaquepaque 336 Az-179 Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village Sedona, AZ 86336
And just like the previous evening….I ended the night relaxing on the patio with JJ.
I must say, I’ve kinda had my fill of hipster tacos for now and I just wanted some decent tacos. And I recalled in the comments on my post for Bello’s, that Instagrammer chriseatsitall mentioned that El Panson has good crispy tripas. Man, Tacos el Panson……when was the last time I’d been there? Looking at the “Big List” it said February of 2006! Over 20 years ago! Man how time flies, right? And who was even reading this blog back then?
So, I decided to head on over.
I found some street parking and walked over. Went to the counter and ordered the Tripas and an Taco de Adobada…since that meat on the trompo was calling to me. Tacos here are $3.50 very reasonable for these days. Though if you really want to feel bad…..tacos were just $1.50 when I visited way back then.
I went and took a seat in the bright yellow dining room.
And soon enough, the very nice young man brought out my tacos. These were very generously sized tacos. I’m glad I only ordered two.
And I went to the salsa bar to get some lime and some salsa rojo for my tacos.
The tortillas here seemed a bit thicker than usual, which of course meant they held up real well for the entire meal. The maizey flavor seemed a bit on the lighter side though.
Like chriseatsitall said, the Tripas were nice and crispy, the savoriness with some mild funk coming thru nicely.
Really enjoyed the pungent onions, the cilantro helping to cut the richness. I really enjoyed these.
As for the Adobada? Well, since it was cut off the trompo, I expected some crispness, but that wasn’t happening. The meat was on the chewy side.
Very mild in flavor….though there was a hint of fruity sweetness, this seemed a bit bland. I’ll pass on these next time.
Heck, I should probably get some cabeza, right?
Overall, these were decent tacos, though nowhere near the stuff we’ve had in say…..CDMX….man, am I missing the Al Pastor from El Califa. Where we got to check out El Tizoncito which claims to be the first restaurant to serve Al Pastor in current form; made with pork. Fun times……
Tacos El Panson 4433 El Cajon Blvd San Diego, CA 92115 Current Hours: Sun-Thurs 930am â 10pm Fri â Sat 930am – 11pm
A few weeks ago; Calvin mentioned that Todo Sushi (which Cathy has been to), right off the 15 and Carroll Canyon Road had closed and been replaced by an Izakaya. So, I did a bit of checking and it seemed kinda interesting. The place also had a patio, so you know, yeah? The patio looked covered and I decided to take JJ there for lunch.
Man, I hadn’t been in this area for ages…..remember Mo’s Island Grindz???? It’s interesting to note that the other restaurants in this complex is a Subway and a Carl’s Jr. Though there are some other restaurants across the street.
JJ and I walked over and were greeted by a very nice young lady, who told us to have a seat anywhere on the covered patio.
While the patio furniture was a bit worn….the tables a bit lopsided, this was fine. JJ was happy to be out and about and sure wasn’t complaining!
The menu was interesting; everything from sushi/sashimi to fusiony sounding carpaccio, ramen, etc…. And the small dishes were under the heading of “tapas”. I quickly noticed some interesting dishes like kimchi and bacon and Gochu – hmmmm…..Korean Chili Peppers? I quickly asked and was told that the owners are Korean.
Still, I was interested in trying some more Japanese items. So, I went with the Toro Sashimi, which seemed on the pricey side at $20 for 3 pieces and of course some Karaage ($12).
So, here’s the Toro….which was nicely marbled….definitely O-toro.
It was interestingly topped with Caviar, which added a tinge of saltiness. The toro was tender; but cut much too thick for my taste. Though I guess for $20…..
I actually had to ask for wasabi. Which the nice young lady quickly brought to the table.
The portion size for the karaage was quite generous, this surely wasn’t $7 for two pieces. It was not to my liking though.
The batter seemed to be of the “lacquered” type and was already soft when the chicken reached the table. I don’t think it was fried enough.
The “sauce” was too sour and had a more watery texture than I enjoy.
The chicken had a mild soy sauce taste and was on the saltier side; lacking in the light aromatics and sweetness which adds to things. Of course, like I’ve said before, I’ve got like a dozen karaage recipes.
That light colors really indicates that the marinade was too mild. The chicken was moist, though on the very chewy side.
Hmmmm…….well, this seemed like one of those “new style, fusion sushi-izakaya places” that have started opening around San Diego. That toro was not bad though and I saw a dish come out to the one other customer in the place; so I decided to return to try that out.
The same really nice young lady was working and I saw the dish on the menu; with one “typo”.
It’s the Blue Fin Tuna Tartare ($28). Which I ordered. And when it arrived…..
The “Real Carb”….is actually real crab. A generous portion of crab meat. Well, at least they didn’t misspell crab with an “upside down b” if you know what I mean.
The tartare was actually tuna bone scraping; nakaochi….which is pretty rich, though this seemed a bit more mushy than I care for. Ponzu sauce was used for flavoring; though I think something a bit more salty should have been used.
The Taro Chips were…taro chips….
The avocado was perfectly rips and creamy; the caviar was fine; though it really didn’t make a difference in terms of flavor. That crab meat made the dish; it was sweet and oceany.
I thought this dish was worth the price.
So, overall a pretty fusiony sushi/Japanese – Korean spot. The service was very nice; so I might return with JJ again…perhaps to try the Smoked Pork Belly….which seems to be served bossom style. You might want to check out Soo’s post on Izakaya En as well.
Izakaya En 9823 Carroll Canyon Rd. San Diego, CA 92131 Current Hours: Mon – Fri 11am – 845pm Saturday 1145am – 845pm Sunday 1145am – 8pm
After spending two nights in Scottsdale, we headed off to Sedona. The Missus was looking forward to the hikes and such in Sedona….but well, to be perfectly honest, I was kinda underwhelmed by what we ate there on our last trip back during Covid. I think it might have been that we stayed close to the very touristy Uptown area. So, this time, with JJ in tow, I booked us a dog friendly room with patio at the somewhat expensive El Portal Hotel. It was in the Tlaquepaque Arts area. The hotel had only 12 rooms and it had a somewhat historic, Hacienda fell to it.
Check out the lobby.
And our enclosed patio with a firepit.
We enjoyed the vibe here.
And JJ got his own goodie basket.
El Portal Sedona Hotel 95 Portal Lane Sedona, AZ 86336
After unpacking we headed out for a walk. and explore a bit. There’s a charming little church in the Tlaquepaque Arts & Shopping Village.
The Hilton Vacation Club Los Abrigados is also in the area. They have a cute little Javelina statues along Oak Creek.
Which of course meant a photo-op for JJ. Can you figure out which one is the “little piggy”?
We then decided to head off to dinner. There’s an pedestrian underpass to the 179 close by.
And we strolled over to our dinner destination; Creekside American Bistro. I had reserved an outdoor table since we had JJ.
Which had a lovely view.
Service here was very nice…..JJ quickly was brought a bowl of water.
While we got our liquid refreshment.
One of the main reasons we booked Creekside was that they have a doggie menu! And on that menu is “beef tartare”. And you know how much Dad likes his Beef Tartare, right?
So, of course we had to order some for JJ. Though he really wasn’t sure about it at first….
But once he got started…..
Well, that’s all she wrote…..
He finished everything before our appetizers arrived!
The Shishito’s were supposed to come two different ways; blistered and charred.
That shishitos were on the chewy side….kind so strange and that what I think is a sesame based sauce didn’t pair well with it.
The Lamb Lollipops was supposedly flavored with a “Korean” style BBQ sauce, but it was quite mild and didn’t pair well with the mint based dipping sauce.
The lamb chops were really tough and not gamey enough for taste.
The flavor of the Lamb Shank in the Adobo sauce was much better; gamey and enjoyably tender. Not a big fan for the abodo – red curry….kind of a bit too much.
The bean were delicious though.
It was an interesting meal. And the view was quite nice.
We would actually return the next afternoon; but for Happy Hour to get JJ his now favorite tartare, and us a drink.
Creekside American Bistro 251 AZ-179 Sedona, AZ 86336
We walked back to El Portal. This was at the end of January, so weather at night was quite mild. I sat at the fire pit and had a cold one with JJ.
Ever since my first quick visit to Zhengxin Chicken Steak, I’ve been meaning to return to try their namesake chicken steak. On a recent late shopping morning, I decided to drop by. I had some onigiri from Nijiya and I just thought I’d take a chance to see if there was available parking in that crazy lot on Convoy. And I lucked out and found parking.
First thing I noticed when I arrived is all of the different businesses listed……Super Potato Noodle among others……I guess this place has transitioned to a franchise kitchen of sorts?
The skewers; which is what I had on my previous visit are now located along the front window area and you pick your own….sort of like hot pot….very different from when I first visited. And yes, they are also doing hot pot.
There are three different menus listed.
I just wanted to finally try the namesake….I guess, Chicken Steak which is $9.99. So, I placed my order for takeout.
This is what the chicken steak looked like.
The coating was quite crunchy, trending toward hard. The seasoning had a touch of spice which I enjoyed, along with a hint of white pepper. I could also pick up maybe cumin???? The seasoning really skewed toward almost Taiwanese in a sense.
The flesh was a bit dry and more chewy than I enjoy….this was obviously chicken breast, basically a version of cutlet.
Not bad, but nothing I’d crave. Those different concepts/businesses under a single roof…..surely a sign of the times and also of the “chainification” of Convoy.
Zhengxin Chicken Steak 4609 Convoy St. #C San Diego, CA 92111
Recently, I saw some really nice looking watercress and decided to get it. It was very tender and super peppery-bitter. Good stuff, actually. Then I had to figure out what to do with it.
I saw a couple of recipes, like this one that utilized wasabi and thought it might be fun trying it out. I started out with less wasabi….I used paste, with just watercress, and slowly changed ratios and ended up adding cucumbers and tomatoes. Once I added onions….but heck no; it already more than pungent enough!
Also, I started with lemon juice, but settled for rice vinegar in the end. Also, things really came around when I added some dark brown sugar.
This version does a nice job of clearing those sinuses, but still have enough savory-sweet-sour flavors.
It’s been a nice side dish during the recent hot spell.
Watercress Salad with Wasabi Dressing
Salad: 3 ounces Watercress – Rinse and drain well. Trim long stems and cut into edible pieces if necessary 2 ounces Cucumbers cut into 1 – 1 1/2 inch sticks. 3 ounces Cherry Tomatoes (optional) – Sliced in halves/quarters
Dressing: 1 Tsp – 1 Tb Wasabi Paste – depending on your desire for pungent – sinus clearing heat. 2 Tb Neutral Oil – I used Avocado Oil 2 Tb Soy Sauce – I used Kikkoman for this 1 Tsp Dark Brown Sugar 1 Tb Rice Vinegar Dash of White Pepper (optional) Dash of Granulated Garlic (optional)
Combine vegetables and refrigerate.
Place dressing ingredients into a small jar.
Shake to mix well.
Place vegetables in a mixing bowl, add dressing, combine and coat the vegetables.
About a week ago; I heard that Mi Pan Bakery, which I believe I’ve seen at the Little Italy Mercato had opened a brick and mortar shop on Mission Gorge Road. Well, I believe it was time to get a croissant? I headed on over and found the shop. It’s in the former location of Grab & Go on MGR!
The parking lot was full, but a car pulled out just when I arrived….so, I guess luck was on my side? Upon walking in a taking a look, there was no sourdough bread available yet, and just a small selection of cookies and pastries….but they are still in soft opening phase.
So, of course I was getting something for the Missus…but man, prices these days.
I decided on the Cinnamon Roll Croissant for the Missus, even though it’s $9.
To me it seemed like a bit of a take on the Spiral Croissant, which was bit of a fad in 2023-2024. I dropped this off for the Missus who later told me it was way too sweet; though She enjoyed the texture of the spiral croissant. Her favorite is still what we get from Desserts by Clement.
As for the Croissant….man, is $7 the standard for Croissant aux Buerre these days?
This was decently laminated; perhaps a bit on the darker side; but was nice and flakey – crackly, without crumbling to shards. The crumb was nicely honeycombed though perhaps on the overly dry side. Still, it wasn’t overly damp and wet like I’ve experienced at other places recently.
The downfall for this croissant was that it was too sweet and lacked butteriness. Too bad, this could have cracked my top 3. If it had more butter flavor and a more even handed sweet-salt ratio.
Still, it was fun trying it….and perhaps I’ll return if I’m in the area in a few months. Once their past the soft opening phase.
Mi Pan Bakery 6435 Mission Gorge Rd. San Diego, CA 92120 Current Hours: Wed – Sun 8am – 12pm Closed Mon – Tues
There’s now some signage in the front of the place that says “Best Sisig in SD“!
A two item combo was $14.99 at the time of my visit. They just brought out the Beef Mechado….so, in spite of my experience with that being a bit mixed over the years, I decided to go with that.
The portion size was enough for two meals for me these days.
The rice was steaming hot, though on the mushy side.
I’m thinking that it had just finished cooking.
The Beef Mechado had a very sharp acidity and was tangy, though it had a greasy tongue feel.
The pieces of beef were really large and unwieldy, but not as tough as what I’ve had on previous visits. I would have enjoyed the addition of more savory-pungent tones to balance out the tartness.
The Sisig did live up to what I’ve had on previous visits.
Nice varying textures for the lechon; some crisp pieces, some crunchy, some meaty pieces, some a combo of all three. Good sour tones; though I’d like a bit more spiciness for my taste. Pungent – mildly sweet onions. I still think it’s one of the better lechon kawale based versions of sisig in SD. Of course I’m always open to suggestions.
It looks like I might be switching to just a single item plate here…..
R & B Filipino Cuisine 11257 Camino Ruiz San Diego, CA 92126
My visit to R & B had me wondering how Nanay’s was doing…..
Man, I remember when this was Tem’s like over a decade ago now! Though the food has stayed nearly the same.
Anyway, the food was just coming out. Most of it is pork and chicken based; mostly grilled or stir fried here.
I went with the “sisig like” Spicy Chicken and the BBQ Chicken looked better than the pork on this day; so I got that as well. A two item combo here goes for $14.25 now.
A nice sized portion.
The rice was on the mushy side but passable.
I thought the BBQ Chicken was better than what I’ve previously in terms of flavor. Yes, it skewed to the sweeter end; but I could make out fish sauce and some savory components.
It was a bit tougher and chewier than I prefer though.
The Spicy Chicken was anything but spicy in the least.
This wasn’t as tough as the BBQ Chicken, but it needed more assertive acidic – sour tones and other than the single whole pickled pepper I found (which got my attention), it lacked spice.
It was quite a mild dish overall.
I guess I’m done here for a while.
Nanay’s Best BBQ 6715 Mira Mesa Blvd San Diego, CA 92121
I hope everyone managed to avoid the power outages and managed to stay relatively cool over the weekend! Thanks for stopping by!
