March 2007 – Page 2

Observing Lent-Part 2, A plethora of fast food seafood

March 15, 2007 Cathy Chains, Sandwiches, Taco Shops, What Cathy Eats!, yoso-silly

mmm-yoso is not on vacation. Cathy is continuing blogging and Kirk is merely eating out somewhere and not telling you about it.

Hi once more. This is part of my little blogging about Lent, the Christian sacrifice of the 40 days before Easter, usually having to do with food (although, again, some Christians sacrifice with stuff I think might be even more difficult for some of us, like giving up television for those 40 days, or even the Internet…) one common sacrifice is ‘not eating meat’ for those 40 days, or at least ‘not eating meat on Friday…and now there is a new definition as to "meat". I was raised Catholic and, apparently fish, shrimp and various sea foods do not ‘count’ as meat. You may have noticed this lately…places that normally do not sell fish have some kind of fish sandwich on their menu.

Jack in the Box comes to mind. $1.29 for the fish sandwich.

Quite nice. Two pieces of fish, lightly battered and served with lettuce and tartar sauce on a sesame seed bun.

Del Taco has a fish taco for $1.39.

It is served with two corn tortillas and is one large piece of fried with cornmeal batter fish, on top of a bed of shredded cabbage, a white sauce and some salsa, as well as a wedge of lime to squeeze over it all.

Del Taco also has a crispy shrimp taco for $1.79.

This is served on a single flour tortilla. the shrimp are tasty and juicy and with a nice crust. Its also served with the cabbage/white sauce/salsa concoction, as well as the wedge of lime. I liked it a lot.

As an aside, one of my favorite sandwiches is the tuna salad from K Sandwiches. $3.49. Its made fresh daily and served on a fresh baked croissant.

But, overall, my most favorite, and decadent indulgence is the infamous Filet-o-Fish from McDonald’s -and it is only $1.29 on Friday at most participating McDonald’s. (It used to be 99¢, but with the advent of the raised minimum wage, it all trickles down to us, you know). I used to know the calorie count, but I try to ignore it, and merely enjoy…It’s on the airy white bread bun, served with a lot of tartar sauce and a slice of …mmmmm…American processed cheese food. Its the only time I eat that orange goopy stuff , and I love it.

The most expensive, but by far a meal in itself (you don’t need to buy more than one) is the Fish Sandwich from Carl’s, Jr. ($3.19)

Two large pieces of beer battered fish on a large (made for the $6 burger) sesame seed bun, with lettuce and tomato and tartar sauce. It does taste great and you don’t need to buy two.

And, last, for now, but not least, is the infamous 99¢ Fish Stacker from KFC.

KFC uses their own (patented by them) style of cooking the chicken and also this fish. Its very close to Broaster™ method in that its pressure fried. The fish does not taste like the chicken, it is cooked in its own area of the store. Its a good size piece of fish and served on a sesame seeded roll. It was very good. If you are familiar with the KFC Snackers size, it can be or might not be a meal, depending on your eating habits.

So that’s it for now. I did not bother to show you Rubio’s 99¢ (on Tuesdays only) fish taco, nor their shrimp taco. Its always good there.

Hope everyone is having a good Lent season. As we talked about in the comments section of "Observing Lent, Part One", sometimes the ‘sacrifice’ of having to eat fish on Friday is actually a treat for a lot of us, so it kind of isn’t a sacrifice. Easter is just around the corner, though.

Road Trip: Dynasty Plaza – Rowland Heights(LA)

March 14, 2007 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

There are certain scents…or more appropriately smells, that you only need exposure to once for it to leave a permanent imprint in your memory bank. I remember one specific incident shortly after moving to the Mainland between the Missus and I, before she was the Missus:

"What the heck is that?"
"What?"
"That"
"Whhaaaat!!!"
"Who’s burning tires in this neighborhood?"
"You dummy, that’s skunk!"
"Skunk?"
"Yes, skunk, S-K-U-N-K….okay, retard Q&A is over, let’s talk about something more important…."

It’s amazing I’m still around……….

The scent of skunk is one of those things that you need only smell once…..and you’ll never, ever forget. You see, there are no skunks back home in Hawaii. So to this day, when we have visitors and the now familiar scent of skunk is in the air, and I’m asked quizzically "what’s that". I proudly answer, "that my friend…….is skunk!"

This little shop below is home to another one of those items that you need only smell once, and you’ll recognize it for the rest of your life:

This shop located in Hong Kong Plaza in Rowland Heights, specializes in one thing. You can see it being cooked up behind what I assume is bulletproof glass…..

The Missus had been waiting to try the Chou Dofu, otherwise known as stinky tofu since she first spotted the shop a while back. When we lived up the street all the little shops in the alley had not been built yet, so the Missus got her Chou Tofu from Shau Mei Restaurant located in the same mall. To this day, it remains Her favorite.

To this day, I’ve tried to describe the smell of Chou Tofu accurately…..and failed. The Missus has said when done right it has the "a musty, rotten sewage like smell that comes from a dark, damp place." I think that Eddie of Deep End Dining has probably captured the decomposing heart, and rotting soul of stinky tofu best in his post.

I don’t know if it’s by design, but the entrance and part of the eating area is this little cubbyhole with little air circulation, the smell gets so thick in here, you think it’s permanently attaching itself to your very being….so thick you can almost see it. But at least you’ll be comforted by the sign that says "no msg".

The Missus looked over the menu….

And ordered Her tofu($4.00), which came out a few minutes later.

While waiting the Missus read the article posted on the door(click photo to enlarge), which stated that the fried tofu was perforated to allow the sauce to soak through the entire piece. The verdict? The Missus wasn’t too impressed, according to Her (nope, I didn’t eat any this time) the texture was too mushy, and the flavor really bland. She also said the cabbage lacked any saltiness or sweetness. Bummer, she was so looking forward to this. For now She’ll stick to the version next door at Shau Mei.

Dynasty Plaza
18414 Colima Road(In Hong Kong Plaza)
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

For those Chou Dofu "scientists" eatingchinese.org has a very informative article on the Mutagenic Analysis of Fermenting Strains and Fermented Brine for Stinky Tofu, I’m not kidding, a real scientific article!

Oh, and I just remembered, after your stinky tofu, you can walk a few doors down and get some Fried Pork Rectum for dessert.

Maguro Un-confidential…and other stuff – Catalina Offshore

March 12, 2007 mmm-yoso Seafood, Sushi and Sashimi, yoso-silly

I guess I must ask too many questions…… After a recent conversation on a slow evening at Sammy's, I gathered that Sam was tired of answering all my questions. Now Sam is a really nice guy, but I'm sure everyone has their limits. So I think Sam thought that he could change the subject and end this stream of seemingly unending questions, by giving me sort of a ultimatum. "Kirk-san, you know, I've got nothing to hide, and I always tell you everybody gets most of their Maguro from the same place. So if you ever want to come with me when I pick up Maguro please let me know…" You know what my response to that question was, right? "Just let me know where and when, and I'll be there."

Which is why, I ended up in a parking lot, waiting for Sam. When Sam arrived, he greeted me with a "Hello, Kirk-san how are you!" A short time later we passed through this blue door:

Into a bustling cold warehouse. Sam checked in at the office, and conducted some business, and few minutes later, after donning head covers we were in one of the many large chillers, and looking at tuna. The large chiller was lined with bins overflowing with ice and palettes with iced fish carcasses. While checking out fish Sam mentioned that he sees all of the well known Itamae here one time or another……

During the time I was checking things out, Sam was in conversation with the Young Man in charge of the chiller. The young man pulled out a fish that already had a quarter cut and sold….and the conversation went on a bit longer. Sam was after whole Maguro in the 70 plus pound range. Unfortunately, there was no whole Bluefin on this day, so Sam went into bargaining mode, mentally calculating how much maguro he'd need to hold over until tomorrow when he'll come again. Each fish had a orange tag with basic weight and other info on it. After the conversation Sam decided on purchasing a quarter of the partially cut fish, and a part of one of the pieces stored on ice.

Later on Sam told me that in order to get the optimum amount of Toro and fish, he needed a fish larger than 70 pounds. The 40 pound fish wouldn't provide enough toro to justify buying what was left of the fish.

One thing you quickly notice is how handling of the fish is second nature. All the maguro is handled on the "skin side" as much as possible to avoid contact with the meat.

Sam apologized for not having anything to "wow" me, but I thought this was an interesting little excursion. While waiting for the fish to be cut, a little dolly with 3 Styrofoam coolers were wheeled by with the word 'Ota' written on each….hmmm, we know where this one is going…..

As everything was being packed, Sam took me on a little tour and the conversation drifted to maguro, and various grades, prices, and the such. Eventually, we were chatting about what people tend to call "frozen fish", which confuses a bunch of people, after all aren't Bluefin flash frozen when they are caught? Well, let's just say not all maguro is created equal. Also, the word "freshness" can be a bit confusing as well, since unless Maguro is consumed immediately after being caught, the flesh of the fish will actually taste better after rigor mortis sets in and the muscle tissue starts to break down, creating a natural tenderization process. Think of it as it's own style of "dry-aging".

I remember seeing maguro being sold in a few stores(though not recently) and some sushi bars that were really abnormally cherry red, maguro is not naturally a bright cherry red. So of course I wanted to see, the infamous "frozen fish", having consumed enough of very low grade maguro, a bit off tasting, with a weird texture and color….. Sam led me to a freezer, and opened it, and picked out a pack of really artificially red looking precut fish.

This is what they call "Saku-Maguro", short for Sakudori, which is the word to describe the traditional way of cutting Maguro. So basically "cut-tuna". In this next photo you can compare the color of this precut maguro, with frozen maguro in the case.

Why is the color so different? It's because these filets have been treated with a process called "artificial smoking". You see, tuna flesh contains a pigmented protein that starts to change the color of the flesh when exposed to oxygen. If not treated the flesh will start to discolor very quickly. So it is usually treated with Carbon Monoxide to preserve the color of the flesh. What is not preserved is the quality of the tuna. To quote an anonymous source in a article from the New York Times:

"But "you could put it in the trunk of your car for a year, and it wouldn't turn brown," said one sales representative at Anova Foods, a distributor in Atlanta, who spoke on condition of anonymity."

You can read the article here. There's another really good article from the Washington Post, that you can read here.

So putting 2 and 2 together….this tuna is very inexpensive, do you think that it's the really top notch fish being processed in this manner? Sam did mention that he and most of the good sushi bars in San Diego won't serve the stuff. "Kirk-san, even if you were blind, you would be able to tell from the very first bite." Sam also told me that if you buy frozen, unsmoked raw maguro, that you should eat it within 12 hours of defrosting, otherwise it will start oxidizing very quickly.

I'm not much of a soapbox type of Guy, and think you should eat whatever you want. But I thought this was quite interesting.

Some other photos.

They call this the Lobster Room:

I think this is why:

But maybe they should call it the Abalone Room – look how clean the water is!

I felt like it was clean enough for me to drink, but I fear I may run into one of these fellows:

Some world class Uni comes out of this room:

Kanpachi anyone?

Have a great week!

Time Change Brunch – European Bistro

March 11, 2007 mmm-yoso Buffets, European Restaurants

*** European Bistro has since closed. Chef Axel currently does catering only.

As is our "tradition" we had our "time change" Sunday Brunch. Only thing, this year we’re going to Daylight savings a month early, which not only caused a wave of panic within the various technology sectors, but totally discombobulated our scheduling. And so we were left at noon today, without brunch reservations. In cases like this Jim’s San Diego Sunday Brunchmaster site is a godsend. The Missus was in mood for something a bit "different", so she finally came up with European Bistro in La Mesa. And we were off.

European Bistro is in kind of a strange setting, a "store-front" strip mall, and you can park literally 3 yards from the front the door of the restaurant! Since we’d arrived late and with no reservations, the little bistro was humming, and it seemed like everyone was a "regular". Lucky for us, we didn’t feel like champagne, and so were able to sit outside, on the little table on the sidewalk. We kind of enjoyed sitting there, since it was such a warm and beautiful day…the only thing a bit disconcerting was the proximity of pedestrians walking by on the sidewalk(luckily there weren’t very many)….they could have bent over and grabbed a spoonful of spaetzle if they so desired. But let me tell you, the service was very warm and friendly, Helen and Chef Axel kept dropping by to see how we were enjoying ourselves.

The buffet itself is rather small with a dozen cooked items, a salad, a selection of sausages, cold cuts, breads. and cheeses, a soup, and several desserts. I also understand that the kitchen will whip up an omelet on request. Still, we enjoyed the selection….

For a typical listing and more info on the brunch, I’ll refer you again to Jim’s posting on His website. There were several items we enjoyed….

We both enjoyed the prosciutto, cold sausages, German potato salad, "home fries", and the green beans! Man, those home fries were really good, with onions that have been perfectly fried and caramelized. I thought the Frikadellen(ground meat patties) were very moist, but kind of low on flavor. The Missus enjoyed the Hungarian Goulash, but I thought it bland, and not full of the spice, onions, and other flavors I’m used too….. Still the meat was very tender and moist.

The Missus absolutely adored the green salad, especially the Raspberry Vinaigrette, to the extent of eating three plates of it.

As you can tell, we enjoyed the appetizers and side dishes, much more than most of the cooked main courses…but that doesn’t mean you won’t. Other main courses offered today was a tilapia, penne carbonara, and of course schnitzel(on the dry side).

The Missus also had 3 desserts, a slice of cheesecake.

And two slices of the Chocolate Cake(looked like a bundt to me), with Cherries Jubilee on it…..

As busy as they were, Helen always had time to stop and chat, and answer any questions. There is also a small "deli" case with sausages and various meats for sale.

Now here’s the "kicker", so this a champagne brunch, and you can get mimosas and the like, along with the standard orange juice and coffee(which the Missus liked)……for $15.95! Which we think is an excellent price. The restaurant is small, but very clean, and has a neighborhood bistro feel. And did I mention Helen was wonderful!

Now at that price for Champagne Brunch, combined with excellent service, can you really go wrong?

European Bistro
7097 University Ave
La Mesa, CA 91941

And don’t forget to check out the Sunday Brunchmaster!

Misoyaki (Saikyo Yaki) Black Cod

March 9, 2007 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

Growing up we called this Misoyaki Butterfish, and it was something my Mom made on a regular basis. It seems that Nobu Matsuhisa, and a large contingent of popular chefs have made this into quite a popular dish. A few months ago someone requested my recipe, so here it is.

There are a few differences between my Mother's recipe and the Misoyaki I make nowadays. First, the Missus hated the grainy texture; my Mom's recipe called for just mixing several ingredients together. I've seen recipes where a Bain-Marie(double boiler for us…) is used to mix everything. But this didn't solve the problem of the excess alcohol flavor, so I've solved that problem by first boiling the sugar, mirin, and sake, this will ensure a smooth texture since the sugar is dissolved, and all the alcohol is burnt off. There is a another potential problem, miso should never, ever be boiled, this solved by just removing from heat before adding miso. My Mom used grated ginger in Her recipe, I've removed it from mine. But I've noticed that many Misoyaki recipes are much too sweet for my tastes, so I made a few adjustments. I've found that the addition of Aka ("Red" Miso) adds a bit of a salty flavor, and even some "depth" to the dish. One more note to "Nobu" fans out there…if you've had a problem with your miso glaze, it's because he uses a very high quality "Saikyo" Miso, I've found that the regular White Shiro Miso I use is not quite as sweet. In fact, when I did use Saikyo Miso, my recipe ended up tasting waaaaay too sweet! I just use a Mild White Miso, though I prefer the very mild Hawaiian Miso & Soy Company brand, I've found several others at Nijiya that do just fine.

Misoyaki Black Cod

3/4 Cup White Shiro Miso
1-2 Tb Aka Miso
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup Sake
1/4 Cup Mirin
1 Tsp Real Soy Sauce – the kind really made from soybeans, not synthetic.

Combine Mirin, Sake, and Sugar in a small pot. Bring to a simmer stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Simmer for 2-3 minutes, until all the alcohol burns off. Remove from heat, and add Soy sauce to stop boiling. Slowly add Miso mixing until sauce is creamy. Do Not ever boil miso…..When sauce is cooled marinate black cod completely coating the fish. Marinate for at least 2 days, but 3 days is best. If using a conventional oven, pre-heat at 450 and bake fish for 5-8 minutes. When fish is almost cooked broil for an additional 2-3 minutes until well caramelized.

If you are doing batches over time, divide miso sauce into 2 "batches", brush misoyaki over fish and wrap each in plastic wrap. When broiling or cooking brush on miso glaze as necessary.

The Missus's favorite way of cooking Her fish is to use the toaster oven, she bakes until almost cooked than toasts it.

Why no good photo…well as is the norm, the fish usually doesn't make it to "full-term", and I'll return from work smelling the remnants of Misoyaki on the Missus's breath. At least this time She took a photo as she removed the fish from the toaster oven….not the most artistic photo, but I guess it'll do! Here's the Misoyaki Black Cod eaten 2 days earlier than it should be…..

As you can tell, nothing is written in stone…..have fun with it.

Reid of 'Ono Kine Grindz has a wonderful recipe here. A few years back I shared my recipe with Ed from Yuma, and I think he's become the Yuma Misoyaki Master……..

Mid-Week Munchies

March 7, 2007 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

I guess I must be so very open to "suggestion"…….. Recently, one of my favorite bloggers, Passionate Eater, featured a series on Everyday Pleasures. One of those everyday pleasures really hit home. It was the post on Dry Roasted Pea Snacks that sent me over the edge, and in search of a remedy for the sudden cravings…….

Each one of my acquaintances, no matter what race, has an interesting "snack" that runs the spectrum from Hurricane Popcorn to Kimchi and Peanut Butter Sandwiches(don’t ask). What I’ve noticed about these unconventional snacks is the inclusion of sweet and salty flavors, along with the hints of both the conventional, and sometimes what could be considered a bit strange.

Take for instance, this:

Looks kinda conventional…it’s really only "trail mix", but I’ve added a few things…first off, for every pound of unsalted trail mix(there’s a reason it’s unsalted), I add about 1/4 to 1/3 pound of dry wasabi peas. But the key component are these:

Woooo, if you’re not familiar with these, you should be. It’s basically Garlic Flavored Corn Nuts…but in this case, the corn nuts are a bit smaller in size. I add half a 3.54oz package for each pound of trail mix. What happens to the remainder…I dunno, it must evaporate!

What I did think was interesting, was even though the brand and packaging looks the the same, when we get these snacks from friends who return from the Philippines, both the texture and the taste is a bit different.

These taste more salty, and are harder and drier. After comparing the two, we came up with what was perhaps a startling observation; could it be that the version we get from the Philippines is stale by the time we eat it?

In the end, we rejected that theory……..once we checked the receipt we realized that the version we bought in San Diego were "farlic" flavored…….that would make all the difference! LOL!

I hope everyone is having a great week!

Road Trip: Chabuton Ramen Noodles – Costa Mesa(OC)

March 6, 2007 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Orange County, Road Trip

*** Chabuton has since closed.

Boy, did the hunger pangs really set in during a recent shopping trip to Marukai Costa Mesa. So I decided that I needed something to eat…and fast! Which was a great opportunity to try out the ramen at Chabuton, which opened last year in the Marukai Food Court.

From what I understand Chabuton is the brainchild of Chef Yasuji Morizumi, and is another link in the Chabuya "chain" that has restaurants in Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, and Los Angeles. There also seems to be a rather strong marketing campaign behind the restaurants. I had gone looking for a good bowl of ramen, and ended up reading phrases like, "ramen is arguably the lifeblood of today’s Japan." "Ramen is an open dialogue…" "When Chabuton introduced Tokyo’s urban style ramen to Los Angeles it sparked a conversation." "Our food is meant to feed the soul." "Chabuton is where Americans are becoming fluent in the spiritual language of gourmet ramen……" I can feel that glazed-over look coming on.

And to think, all I wanted was a bowl of decent ramen…and now I’d be attaining ramen Nirvana…the home of perfect, harmonious, slurping…of endless noodles, and eternal chashu bliss! BTW, I do think the "spiritual language" of ramen is the slurp…..

Dizzy from reading all the signs and mission statements, I was glad that the menu at Chabuton is mercifully short, 9 variations on ramen, some rice bowls, and that was it. So how much for a slice of ramen heaven?

I ordered The Classic with Pork Chashu ($8.25).

So let’s pick over this ramen of the gods….. I thought the soup was a thick, though weak tonkotsu style broth. I also thought the oil content was on the medium low side. Funny thing, because I’ve read that many people think the broth at Chabuya is too salty, but I just thought it was missing that bit of umami that would make it taste really good. As it was, I thought the broth to be on the "flat" side. Basically, rich in texture, not in taste. The bitter fried garlic didn’t do a thing for this bowl of ramen, and I’m a garlic lover. The bamboo shoots were fine, and the thin sliced Chashu pork was excellent, soft, moist, and tender.

The thin noodles had a nice crunchy texture, but was missing that nice springy pull that I enjoy. I still prefer the noodles at Santouka. Overall, a decent, bowl, but not a favorite of mine. But still if you’re shopping at Marukai Costa Mesa, and are "Jonesing" for a bowl of ramen you could do much worse.

Still, I never thought I’d come face to face with the "spiritual soul" of ramen in the food court at Marukai!

Chabuton Ramen Noodles
2975 Harbor Blvd. (In the Marukai Food Court)
Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Open – Mon-Sat 11am – 730pm
Sundays 11am – 630pm

Mister Fish and Chips – When Monday is the new Fry-day

March 5, 2007 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Seafood

Well, there I was stuck at one of those strip malls on Balboa avenue, waiting for a prescription to be filled, I was told it would be a 90 minute wait! Sheesh…….well what to do? I could drive home…but then I’d have only about 30 minutes, and would have to turn right around and drive back, it just seemed like a waste of gas. Wait a minute(big smack to the side of my own head), I could eat! Yeah, that’s the ticket…I could stuff my face silly, with really unhealthy food. That’ll teach myself a lesson for getting sick….. And I know just the place…..

Mr Fish and Chips is a small Mom and Pop shop towered over by the Long’s Drug Store and Von’s Supermarket in a fairly large strip mall on the corner of Balboa and Genesee. And just as this little shop is tucked away from the street, it also has a tendency to get sort of "lost in the mix" when I think of places to eat in the area.

The shop itself is pretty small with just a few tables, and the size and arrangement of the furniture always gives me the feeling that the restaurant is pretty crowded.

You can tell by the name of the restaurant what the specialty of the house is here….it’s seafood, fried seafood. I can think of only a few items that aren’t battered or in some way deep fried, and they all end with the word salad.

I usually get the fish and chips here, but I also like the onion rings, so today I decided to go for the gusto and got the Seafood Dinner(1 fish, 5 scallops, 1 "jumbo" shrimp – $7.99) with coleslaw. The hardest decision was determining whether to get the fried zucchini or onion rings…..

Soon enough my order was ready. I always smile when I grab my tray of food here, all available accompanying "dressings" are always placed on the tray with my food! The coleslaw was as I remember, very mild in flavor with a touch of mustard…kind of bland overall, but it helps to cut through all of the batter. And let me tell you, there’s a whooole lot of batter going on….

Not quite your traditional fish and chips……..

The batter is the same for just about all the items…a flour based batter with a leavening agent to give the batter a nice crunch and lightness. The onions rings were a wonderful, crunchy, slightly sweet(in an onion-y way) treat. The "Jumbo" Shrimp was gummy and overcooked, the scallops, though hidden in a large dollop of batter were decent with cocktail sauce.

The fish was pretty good, moist and tender white fish, in a crisp batter….very nice with malt vinegar. I have never liked the Tartar sauce here, it’s too bland…….

Overall, Mr Fish and Chips won’t be setting the culinary world on fire, but it is a good value, and it’ll cure any fried food cravings you may have…..in a good way.

Mister Fish & Chips
5647 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

(858) 279-3474

Open Mon-Sat 11am-9pm
Closed on Sundays

Scenes from the Hillcrest Farmers Market

March 4, 2007 mmm-yoso Farmer's Markets/Night Market

I’ve been snowed under by a pretty nasty virus since this past Tuesday…the usual nasal headache, nasal drip, hacking cough, blah, blah, blah!

But this morning, I got up bright and early, finally feeling almost like my (ab)normal self. And lo’ and behold, it was such a lovely morning! So nice that we decided to head up to the Hillcrest Certified Farmers Market. We really didn’t eat or buy much, I enjoyed stretching my legs a bit, and just enjoyed getting out on such a nice morning.

I know I’ve posted on the Hillcrest Farmers Market before, so I’ll spare you most of the commentary and let the photos speak for themselves.

There were more food vendors than I recall…..it might just be my "cold" talking.

And of course, the food vendors I distinctly remember.

The Guy cracked me up!

But who wouldn’t be proud of this:

And of course all of the products of local Artisans.

The Hillcrest Farmers Market isn’t particularly large…at least compared to the Torrance, Santa Monica, and Hollywood, Farmers Markets we used to frequent when we lived in LA. But what it lacks in size is surely made up for in "personality". There’s also a nice variety of goods, everything from artichokes to……..Rubber Duckies!

San Diego Hillcrest CFM
In the DMV Parking Lot at Lincoln and Normal
Most Sundays, 9A-1P Rain or Shine

Thanks for visiting, I’ll be back tomorrow with a new restaurant post….if I don’t have a relapse!

Road Trip: Little Saigon & Meeting the OC Food Bloggers…..

March 2, 2007 mmm-yoso Dim Sum, Orange County, Road Trip

Last Saturday, I had an appointment with a group of very important people. The meeting place had been predetermined…the location of this chowdown?

Yes, the destination; Little Saigon, Westminster, California. Luckily, I arrived an hour and a half early. I enjoy arriving a bit early as it gives me time to check out the locale, get myself oriented, and breathe in the atmosphere. More importantly, I was able to find a parking spot in Asian Village Center with relative ease.

In Little Saigon you never know what you’ll run into….like a Lion Dance!

Maybe not the most artistic Lion Dance I’ve ever seen; but what was lacking in technique was made up in enthusiasm.

And of course you need a little noise to go with the Lion Dance:

Whoa, that’s my car nearby……….

Having some spare time I was able to take a stroll across the street to the Asian Garden Mall across the street. Well, not exactly a stroll, man does that traffic light change fast…..

I didn’t expect much since it was 9am on a Saturday morning. But of course Asian Garden Mall is no regular mall! The Food Court was alive and buzzing.

From this view, this could almost be any food court in any mall.

You won’t find your local Sbarro’s Pizza here…but if you’re in the mood for a Banh Mi(Vietnamese Sandwich), you’ll find Lee’s Sandwiches.

And instead of the usual stands selling the same chicken with a different sauce, you’ll find dishes such as Bun Mam, Bo Kho(Vietnamese Beef Stew), and Banh Canh.

I was tempted, but stayed the course, and did not give in to temptation……

An entire wing of Asian Garden Mall consists of jewelry stores! I walked to the end of the wing and took this photo:

At the very end is a security kiosk. One of the security guards noticed I was taking photos, and started following me around….thinking perhaps that I was "casing the joint????" At that point I decided to leave. After all I didn’t want to irritate security personnel, and I especially didn’t want to anger these fellows.

Asian Garden Mall
9200 Bolsa Avenue
Westminster, California 92683

I crossed back over to Asian Village Center which was now becoming a never ending circling stream of automobiles. There was an almost constant cacophony of horns blaring….I figured it was just a matter of time until I saw the latest installment of Battle of the SUV’s…… In spite of the mass of metal and humanity in this mall, I knew there was a little oasis of peace in this mall. Having read Wandering Chopsticks fantastic Virtual Tour of Little Saigon, I knew that there existed a Cultural Court in the back of Asian Village Center with statues of Confucius and His Disciples.

Which gave me a nice break. Soon enough it was time to meet the OC Food Bloggers so I walked over, past Duong Son BBQ:

Where I made a mental note to pick up a little something for Da’ Boyz…which I then immediately forgot.

Maybe next time!

I made my way to Dragon Phoenix Palace Chinese Seafood Restaurant, sheesh talk about a mouthful. When the Missus heard the name of this restaurant, She cracked up and said, "all you need is to add, New Golden, to the front, and include Panda after Phoenix, and you’d have the ultimate Chinese restaurant name!"

There’s always a bit of nervousness when meeting a "new" group of people, but all apprehension melted away after meeting everyone; the one and only Chubby Panda, the Epicurious Wanderer, Christian Z of Orange County Mexican Restaurants, Wandering Chopsticks, Deb from Dinner at Six, Elmo of Monster Munching, and Elonweiss who posts on OC Food Blogs, and Her Brother. Joy also made an appearance, but unfortunately Her SO, was caught in one of the inner circles of Dante’s parking hell, endlessly circling the parking lot, and had to leave.

The restaurant itself was the usual bustling Dim Sum restaurant.

I only took two photos of the food. Wandering Chopsticks did a more comprehensive post, which you can read here.

Much of my attention was diverted to the conversation, which ranged from food(what else do you think we’d talk about), to Chubby Panda’s "cheek technique" for taking photos(it’s not what you think). In what was a somewhat novel event, we had most of our language bases covered, from Cantonese(Elonweiss), to Mandarin(CP), to Vietnamese(WC)…I don’t think my Pidgin would have been of much use here.

And two hours went by in a flash. As I got into my car, and somehow made it back to Bolsa Avenue, I couldn’t help but think what a nice group of people these OC Food Bloggers are…..

Thanks again for including me, I am both touched and so appreciative.

And don’t forget to read OC Food Blogs!