mmm-yoso is not on vacation. Cathy feels like blogging and Kirk doesn't. Thanks for reading my meal adventures.
Hi. Cold again…. If you lived in San Diego forever ago, you remember Woo Chee Chong. It was the first Asian market I ever went to. There were three locations and all of them had a small deli/hot food area where you could buy Peking Duck on Fridays and hot food to go, usually sold by the pound all week long. I remember we would buy the 5 spice BBQ pork for $3.99 a pound…
So, anyhow, they all closed in 1993 and the one on Convoy Street remained a market.
Its in the same parking lot as Dumpling Inn and technically the same one as Jasmine Seafood. First Korean Market. I have no idea what the "Orient Bowl" sign is about. It is not as large as Zion, but it has a good variety of foods, fresh meats, fish and vegetables. 
On the far Northernmost wall there is a large refrigerator section filled only with Kim Chee.
…and the area where the deli counter used to be is just inside to the right of the front door. There is a menu above it, with photos and also this take home one The Mister brought 
home for me to look at.
So, you know, I had to go.
There are six (6) CHAIRS total in front of two tabletops configured at a 90° angle from each other at that front door area.
The people working there are all family. They take great pride in making each meal, with mom bringing it around the corner and placing it in front of you, even though they could hand it to you over the counter. 
So, I me The Mister here after work one evening and I had to try # 19, the shrimp tempura udon ($6.99)
Three tempura'd shrimp, nice and crispy, topped with the dried seaweed powder. A nice, rich broth and very chewy udon that remained chewy through the whole bowl. The Mister tried the #4, Galbi combo ($8.99).
A nice portion of galbi marinated beef ribs, rice, miso, 4 California rolls and 3 pieces of sashimi. The beef was excellent, and so was the rice. The miso was OK, not too watery and the California roll was with real (not fake) crab. The tuna sashimi was sliced thin and good and the shrimp was not bad. There was a lot of food. We also got hot tea from the hot pot next to the cash register.
On another day, I asked The Mister to bring home something for dinner…and, of course he did. I had a craving for # 24, the spicy tuna and vegetable bowl (Chirashi) ($7.99).
The Veggies(and there were a lot; its heavy and I imagine would be served in a large bowl, as Chirashi is at Happy Meal and Nozomi) are mostly cabbages with some sliced green onions and then it is topped with fish roe and also some tempura crunchies. Rice is sent separately in the "to go" box and there were two servings of what is probably Sriracha, although I did not see any Sriracha at the restaurant. The tuna was fresh, tasty and plentiful, and all at the bottom of the cabbage. I uncovered a bit so you could see, but there was a lot. Like pretty much the whole bottom of the box a lot…which was also part of the weight of it all.
The Mister wanted to try 9, the Shrimp Tempura Roll ($5.50)
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There were two tempura'd shrimp in here, real crab meat and lots of crunchies on the outside . It was refreshing and not as expensive at other places.
The Mister also wanted to try the Cutlet Combo (#13) ($8.99) and it came in two packages. They knew it was a 'to go' and clipped the corners on the Styrofoam box transporting the fish, shrimp and pork cutlet that were fried, so they arrived home still crispy. (If you recall, both Kirk and I complained about the soggy tempura on the "To Go" meals from Chopstix Too….this is the solution). The fried fish was excellent, as was the shrimp and the pork cutlet was juicy and had a good flavor. The combo box also came with four pieces of California Roll (real crab; not bad), shredded cabbage, rice and plenty of the various sauces necessary for a good meal.
Island Town does a lot of catering/makes trays to go. We saw some people picking up a tray of 110 California Rolls ($30) on a Friday night . (I counted: 14 by 7, plus 12 on top: I have no idea how they cut the original rolls).
As I said, its family run, and its inside the grocery store, so they kind of have access to the foods that may be either on sale or close to being thrown away anyhow. There are no lobster dishes on the menu, but they were being cooked on the grill when we walked in…
Island Town, inside First Korean Market 4625 Convoy Street, San Diego 92111 (858)571-7183
Closed Sundays. No credit cards, no checks!