April 2008 – Page 2

Hanoi: 9 Courses of snake at Le Mat (snake village) Part 2 and Bat Trang

April 16, 2008 mmm-yoso Hanoi, Memorable Meals, Travel, Vietnam

After "meeting the snakes", and a couple of shots of snake wine and tea, we were dropped off via motorbike back at the restaurant. The Missus and I decided to go ahead and have our "9 courses of snake". Even though it seemed somewhat touristy, you only live once, right?

We had also invited Hung, our Driver, and Huong(who couldn't make it)…we had noticed that most times Drivers and Guides and their customers would part ways during meal times…the Tourists usually having a hearty meals, and the Guides would just wait, hang out with other guides, or run errands…..we wanted to reverse that notion, and made it a point to eat with our drivers and guides as much as possible, what better way to learn about the place you're visiting!

Soon enough various garnishes, were brought out including the salt-chili-lime dip, some really pungent, but delicious nuoc mam(fish sauce), herbs so fresh and full of life…they almost shone in the sun.

Some rice crackers….

And pickled figs, a nice palate refresher……

More snake wine of course(not as good as what we had just had), rice wine with black bee(strange medicinal-honey flavor), and one bottle that looked like chop suey lizard, snake, and other "stuff"…..pretty nasty stuff. Of course this was the one I was told would "make you strong", usually a good sign of something that would want to make you scrub your tongue with a brillo pad after consuming it……

And of course, you could not proceed without….

A glass of blood, which tasted of rice wine, but left a weird coating on my tongue, and bile which was a bit astringent, but tasted mostly of alcohol. Eat, Drink, & Be Merry has a nice post on "snake shots" in Taiwan.

There was one last piece of business….

When they brought the Cobra Heart out, it was still bouncing around a bit….the Missus decided that She wanted it, and I had no problem with that. She chugged it down with ~~a shot~~ two shots of snake wine.

First course – A Hot and Sour Soup.

There are several different types of sour……this was an example of what I can only call "dead fish sour". It was terrible; I started having doubts……

When the next course arrived, snake meat roasted in betel leaf.

A classic "La Lot" (rolled in betel leaf dish), much like what you'd order in most places with Beef. The snake meat was very mild (tastes like chicken anyone?), which amplified the sweetness of the betel leaf. Very nice.

Stir fried(Xao Lan) snake:

The snake was tough as heck in this dish…uninspired.

Snake egg rolls:

Yes, another classic preparation….these were fried perfectly, and in this case the slight chewiness of the snake meat was a plus. Other than that, not much flavor…..but hey it's fried!

Snake rice.

Another bland, "tastes like chicken" dish.

Deep Fried Snake Skin:

Topped with some dill, and dipped into nuoc mam….chicharron ain't got nothin' on this dish!

Roasted snake meat:

Not bad….texture like chewy, grilled eel…in fact the fish sauce in this dish made it even taste like a mild eel-chicken in flavor.

Minced snake bone:

This was excellent…went through 2 servings of Rice Crackers! Crunchy texture like roasted rice…..nicely flavored!

Chinese-style medicinal snake soup:

Tastes exactly like it's description………..medicinal soup….

Dessert, which I was so full and never tried……

All in all, a really nice experience, even though much of it does "taste like chicken"…..the visit to Quoc Phuong Ecological Farm, and Mr Huong's hospitality made it worthwhile.

And at $10/US a person, I'd say it was, at least to us, a fun experience. After lunch we wanted to make sure and thank Mr Huong; so we walked back to the farm, and made sure to thank him in person. As we were leaving he gave us a signal to wait….grabbed on old vodka bottle, which he rinsed out, and proceeded to fill from his stash of snake wine. Never underestimate the power of "Thank You!"

The last stop on our little day trip was the ceramic village of Bat Trang.

Though Le Mat and Bat Trang are but a few kilometers out of Hanoi, it's amazing how different they are from Hanoi….so peaceful, relaxed, and quiet.

But the relaxed vibe disguises the really hard, tough work that goes on in Bat Trang.

Working the kiln of Bat Trang is heavy, hot, and hard work.

There are a number of shops along the road….

Selling all types of ceramic products

Some ultra mass produced, others looking a bit higher in quality….

As with the other handicraft villages, you kind of wander around, and if you find something that catches your eye, you wander over, and suddenly you're right in the middle of a production line.

We walked down an alley, and right into a workshop.

Right up close and personal…

I'll never look at that mass produced tea pot the same…..so much of what we use without a thought is someone's handwork.

Meanwhile, the Missus had found something that had caught Her attention. This woman, who we'll call "smiling eyes" (when we entered the workshop, you could tell she gave us the biggest smile, even though she had a mask on), was working at her station….she could crank out her pieces at an amazing rate.

Seeing that the Missus was interested, she gave Her a quick lesson…

Then it was the Missus's turn….amazing…from the audience to the production line in minutes! Only in Vietnam!

Everytime the Missus would do something that would potentially mean a few missing digits, Smiling Eyes would come quickly to the rescue while emitting a high pitch "oh-oh-oh"…..

Using the "3 strikes rule", after the Missus ruined 3 pieces, She decided to leave this work to the pros!

Plus we were dog tired….

On the way back to our Hotel, Mr Hung stopped at Cafe Hao, and bought us some coffee. Nothing like Vietnamese coffee culture….a cup can last several minutes, or several hours depending on your mood.

His way of thanking us for lunch. This version was the best I had on our trip. It seems we had come full circle, the day started with a cup, and ended with a cup! Now I'd say that's a productive day!

Hanoi: Van Phuc and Le Mat Part 1

April 15, 2008 mmm-yoso Hanoi, Travel, Vietnam

*** This post has a minimum of food, and some drink, but I thought you'd be interested. If not, we'll have the food portion of this post tomorrow….thanks for being so patient!

On the way back to our hotel to meet our Guide and Driver, the Missus decided that She "needed" some Vietnamese Iced Coffee. Luckily, right on Hang Bac, just around the corner, was Cafe Nang:

This tiny hole in the wall is quite popular, and was always busy in the mornings and evenings. Just like the US, the clientele of these type of coffee shops is mostly male…

We managed to snag a table in the back of the restaurant, with 2 kiddie stools….better to watch the Little Old Lady "do Her stuff" in this cramped little space that serves 2 floors.

It was pretty amazing to see what can be done in this tiny space, and with only 1 burner.

Interesting thing; in Northern Vietnam, Iced Coffee with Condensed Milk is called Cafe Nau Da, not Cafe Sua Da…with a few exceptions. The Missus enjoyed this version, (8,000 VND, approx 50 cents US) though to Her taste buds, it tasted milder than versions She's had at "home".

Upon our arrival at our hotel, I had met with the travel desk and went over our itinerary. On the flight over, the Missus went through Her guides to Hanoi, and decided that She wanted to do a tour of some of the Handicraft Villages. So we managed to snag a Guide and Driver for the day. Our guide, a friendly young man named Hung, was glad to have the work, He usually does the City Tour, and for him this was nice change of pace.

The first village we "hit" was Van Phuc, the Silk Village, located just outside Hanoi.

If you want silk, or silk products around Hanoi, I guess this is where you'd…or at least the bus loads of tourists, get the stuff. The was one really interesting thing about touring these villages…..

You can go just about anywhere…..step into a shop, and start walking around…get caught in some massive rollers…..no OSHA, no liability issues here. It was interesting watching and hearing endless rows of spools, the clacking of gears…the sounds of machinery echoed down the street.

For me, watching the Jacquard Loom, which uses punch cards to determine the sequence of patterns was almost mesmerizing. Stay here long enough and you'd need ear plugs, though! After walking about the various shops and factories for about 45 minutes, we'd just about had our fill, and it was time to move on….

Our next stop was the village of Le Mat, which I had seen on several shows on television. Le Mat is known as the "Snake Village", where snakes are raised for consumption……pick your poison(no pun intended), hungry, thirsty, or perhaps feeling a bit "under the weather"?

Because Hung had to ask for directions once we arrived, I gathered that he hadn't been here too many times. Nevertheless, we ended up at a huge restaurant, named Quoc Trieu.

There were several large glass enclosures with snakes in them, and large containers with what I assumed was snake wine.

After a short discussion, we were walking down a short road, took a left, and started walking down a dike…

And soon enough came to a large, fenced off area….we found out later named Quoc Phuong Ecological Farm.

Just as with our previous stop….you just wander up, open the fence and walk in…..

It wasn't until after we entered, that I thought, "wait a minute…..they raise snakes here, and we just kinda walked up here and are making ourselves at home?" Of course, I kept glancing around at my feet…….

In reality, the place is pretty peaceful.

We walked past huge concrete pens…..

When you walked up the stairs, you saw this:

As we walked up the trail, the Snake Wrangler/Manager, a very mellow Dude named "Huong" met us, and walked us up to an enclosure.

The entire floor of the shed is lined with cages with hinged doors. You could actually hear hissing coming from a few the cages. Mr. Huong(about this time I started calling him "mister") waved me over to one of the cages, unshouldered the flashlight, and proceed to shine it in one of the cages.

Okay, yep, that's a King Cobra alright……nice…time to go and visit our next village!

One problem, Mr Huong didn't speak any English. And so he started opening cages and bringing the snakes out……

One snake….

Two snakes……

Three snakes……

More!!!

Huong actually asked us (translation courtesy of Mr Hung – see, I'm taking no chances…I'm calling them all "mister" by this time) if we'd like to pet the baby cobras. We were told that none of His customers had been bitten, yet…. Turns out behind that quite and mellow demeanor, Huong had a sense of humor.

I did manage to take one of my favorite photos of the trip……

That was a few miles closer than I'd rather be, when it comes to cobras….

As we left the area, I noticed these enclosures:

I was told that snakes are placed here for tours, to do a kind of "show", but there weren't any tours scheduled today, so we got to see the snakes in the pens…which I kinda enjoyed a bit more than a staged "cobra and pony show".

We were shown a few other animals being raised…..

The most interesting were found in these pens:

Guess what????

Yep, porcupines….we were told that it was for eating…..

A few minutes later, we were seated in the patio area, and the fine stemware was broken out.

A barrel was uncorked….

And we had some tea, with snake wine chaser.

This snake rice wine was the best stuff we drank on the entire trip….we kept drinking, and Huong kept pouring…must've done five or six shots. This hootch was pretty smooth, a mildly sweet start, with a floral finish. I didn't think it was very strong, but Hung started getting a buzz on. Huong was nice enough to answer a bunch of questions, which I'm sure he's been asked a zillion times; like "how long does it take to raise a cobra to be ready for consumption?"(answer, about 3 years) And, "what happens if you get bit?"(answer, once you suck the poison out, there are some herbs and plants that help healing.) Soon enough the pangs of hunger set in, and Huong shuttled us back to the restaurant on his motorbike. We had decided to go ahead and have lunch at the restaurant…

How was it??

Stay tuned for part 2!

Hanoi: Banh Gio – It’s what’s for breakfast, and a first taste of Northern Pho Bo

April 14, 2008 mmm-yoso Hanoi, Pho, Travel, Vietnam

In Hanoi, street food stalls, or more appropriately stools are everywhere. You can find Banh My, Banh Cuon, Chao, and all sorts of food on literally every street corner….it is easy to get overwhelmed.

On our first morning, while walking down Hang Tre, on the corner of Pho Lo Su we came across a woman selling Banh Gio:

One look, and a single sniff of the steamed banana leaf wrapped, rice flour cake, stuffed with minced pork and cloud ear fungus, and the Missus was sold.

The Lady serving this hot and hearty food was very warm and friendly…always smiling, and a pretty good business woman, on subsequent trips, she remembered how we liked our Banh Gio….upon unwrapping our Banh Gio, she’d provide a splash of chili sauce, Maggi, and a few strips of julienned ginger.

We ended up having the Banh Gio(5,000 VND – a shade over 30 cents US) here for the 3 mornings we were in Hanoi.

This woman was obviously very social…..the second and third times we visited we sat on the little children’s stools, no one manning the table, and about a minute later the lady would come jogging up, she had been visiting with other people down the street…..always with the biggest smile you could imagine.

Vietnamese God has a post on Banh Gio found here.

An article on various "Banh" can be found here.

Pho Bo at Pho Thin.

I had been warned off the Pho Bo in Hanoi by several people; everyone from Beach to the Dry Cleaning Lady had told me not to bother. But since I’d never had "Northern Pho", I decided that I needed to try it. And after passing these pots on the way back to the hotel, and seeing the name of the place; Pho Thin, I decided to grab a bowl after having the Banh Gio. I had read and been told that the preferred location of Pho Thin Bo Ho(per the article in Vietnam Cultural Window, the name means Mr Thin’s Pho Restaurant) is on Lo Duc Street, but since we were here on Hang Tre…..

I just kinda sauntered up to the place, and the kindly older gentleman smiled, I pointed, he nodded, and off to work they went….

I’m not sure if they are of any relation to the original Chef Thin……

My Pho Tai Chin(15,000 VND – just under a buck US):

The bowl arrived super hot(a common theme in VN & Cambodia – I think it’s really great for health reasons). As I normally do for any bowl of soup, I tasted the broth first….other than a mild hint of scallion and black pepper, it was fairly bland. There was just a scant shaving of well cooked beef and rare beef cooked in the broth. This broth, flavored with the "breath of a cow" needed fish sauce and the provided lime. I added some of the orange colored chilies, which we really enjoyed…..in addition to the heat, there was a nice bit of sweetness to them. The noodles were on the mushy side. As I had been told, this was served with just a few slices of lime and the chilies. Different, very different from the Southern style Pho that is the norm in the states.

I didn’t have much time for "Pho" contemplation, we needed to get back to the hotel for a quick shower….and had to meet our Guide and Driver for a tour of Van Phuc, Le Mat, and Bat Trang…..

Hanoi: We arrive, and Highway 4

April 13, 2008 mmm-yoso Hanoi, Travel, Vietnam

Disembarking from our flight, we noticed something a bit "different" about Noi Bai Airport…..it is a lot quieter than other airports, almost somber. The immigration officials here are no joke either…..stone faced, cold, and dead serious.

We found our driver with minimal effort….there were actually 3 of them from the Hanoi Elegance Hotel, but we didn’t see our names. So we stopped to talk to one of them, and wouldn’t you know it, one of the Guys produces a folded up sign with our names from his pocket!

As we drove into Hanoi, we noticed the latest in motorbike fashion footwear for women….it was either plastic slippers, pumps(black and red seem to be the trend), or these slippers with teensy-tiny heels, that made me wonder how the heck they could actually walk. We could discern a palpable "buzz" as we approached the city. Yes folks, Hanoi is alive…it is a beehive of activity….these bees have two wheels, and make honking noises.

I’m a bit disappointed that we weren’t able to take any photos that can convey the controlled chaos….several times I had intentions of trying to capture that shot, but my focus had to be shifted to more important issues at hand….like trying to avoid getting run over by motorbikes parking or leaving the skinny sidewalks.

The beeping of horns is constant, over time the Missus and I identified several variations…the "here I come" beep, versus the "get the hell out of my way" beep, the "it’s 5am in the morning, and no one is around, but I’m approaching an intersection" beep, and so forth. And yet within this mass of two wheeled vehicles, there is order, and a distinct ebb and flow to it all. It’s those 4 wheeled vehicles you have to watch out for.

As for crossing the street……Jeni of Oishii-eats has a wonderful post you can find here. As mentioned in the post, slow and steady is the way to go. And while we did catch a bit of a thrill the first time we crossed Le Thai To, crossing quickly became routine, and even a bit of a pain in the end. Actually, we found the streets of Phnom Penh to be much more dangerous, the streets are wider, there are more 4 wheeled vehicles, and people drive faster.

Hungry after wandering the streets for a bit, we decided on having a our first meal in Hanoi in a proper restaurant, and wandered over to Highway 4. There would be plenty of time for street food and other stuff later…or so we thought. Both Beach and the wonderful Web Site Savour Asia, recommended Highway 4 for interesting riffs on traditional Vietnamese Food. Plus, the restaurant was located on Hang Tre only 2 blocks from our hotel on Ma May Street.

Since it was only 4pm the place was empty(our internal clocks were obviously messed up), and we were led up the winding, cramped stairway, with tiny steps…..something which we found to be the norm in most places. You will want to watch your step if you’ve had a bit too much Ruou(rice wine).

The seating on the second floor is on mats…..on an elevated floor.

The young lady who served us was very nice, if a bit ummmm……spaced out, in a cute kind of way.

"We’d like 2 bottled waters please…."
"Two waters…….small or big?"
"Big ones will be fine…."
"Okay, but we don’t have any big one’s right now."(So why did she ask us in the first place?)
"Alllrighty…..2 small ones will be fine."
She gives us a shy smile, walks away and starts singing……comes back a minute later because she forgot to take our order….

The menu at Highway 4 is huge, a classic case of Vietnamese menu overload, with everything from Roasted Locust to French Fries(!!!???). Unfortunately, just like the "big" water, they seemed to be out of a few things we wanted to order, like the Deep Fried Pig Tail and Sauteed Ostrich stomach.

The first dish to arrive was the Pork Ribs with Salt and Lemongrass(55,000 VND – approx $3.50/US).

This was served, in what we found to be a classic accompaniment with meat: salt, chilies, with lime….which we enjoyed so much, that we now eat meat this way at home. The pork was extremely tough. I had expected the meat in Vietnam(and Cambodia) to be more chewy, since most animals are raised "free-range"….but this was like rubber.

It was interesting to find that the "appetizer sin" is not only alive and well in the US, as our Catfish Spring Rolls arrived after our entree (64,000 VND, $4/US).

The rice paper served for these spring rolls was different from what I’m used to, thin, crisp, almost parchment like. The battered and fried catfish, was moist, if a bit on the chewy side, and had excellent flavor; a touch of sweet, without a hint of muddiness. The dill was very mild, with just the breath of fennel-anise flavor. The most interesting thing about the dish was the use of wasabi mayonnaise, which I must say that was used in good proportion.

Since there was no Ostrich to be found; I ordered the Whole Roasted Sparrow (36,000 VND, approx $2.25/US):

4 roasted birds served with some herbs, greens, grape tomatoes, and with the ubiquitous salt-chili-lime juice, this may have been my favorite dish on the entire trip. The birds are eaten whole…head, bones, everything. The flavor is a tasty "cornish game hen approaching duck", we were tempted to return just for this.

Buffalo Grilled with Fermented Rice (52,000 VND, approx $4.25 US).

Having had buffalo before, and based on the pork ribs, I expected this to be very tough…but the meat had a pleasant chew to it. More of a 2 part stir-fry than a grilled dish, we detected a distinct sourness to the dish, I’m assuming from the fermented rice. The addition of Ngo Om (Rice Paddy Herb), added a pleasant, palate cleansing, peppery-citrus flavor to the whole dish, which the Missus enjoyed.

Unfortunately for us; we also ordered 2 of the Ruou Samplers (approx 44,000 VND each):

Some of this stuff tasted just plain heinous to us……ginseng, gecko, seahorse, snake, you name it. None of them, save the Black Bee flavored Ruou, which had a mild floral finish, even approached the home made Ruou we tasted in Le Mat, Can Cau, and Bac Ha. Still, we enjoyed our meal at Highway 4, and I’d sure like couple more roasted sparrows.

Things seem to move at a pretty leisurely pace at Highway 4, but it could be because we were the only customers in the place. It may seem amazing to those used to dealing with the price of meals in the US, but this was probably one of our most expensive meals in Vietnam, at close to $20/US. In what was a good reality check for us, we found that none of the locals we spoke to, guides, people at the hotel, and other folks had ever eaten at Highway 4, not because the food was bad…in fact they had all heard very nice things about Highway 4. It was that they couldn’t afford to eat there……

Highway 4
5 Hang Tre
Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi

After dinner, we took a not so leisurely stroll, and ended up at what can be considered the heart of Hanoi, Hoan Kiem Lake. And in spite of the gazillion motorbikes, and the honking horns, there is something about Hoan Kiem Lake that is relaxing…… Though one should not confuse the idyllic photos of the lake that look like this.

That’s the Tortoise Tower (Thap Rua), dedicated to the legendary turtle of Hoan Kiem Lake. Every so often, the mythic tortoise will reappear. A more realistic modern version of that photo would be this….

We thought this simple photo is quite telling, the exotic old Hanoi, and the young, dynamic, vibrant, Hanoi. This Young Lady kept text messaging the entire time we sat, and was still at it when we passed by later; for all I know, she’s still there going at it.

And unless, you arrive early in the morning, or after Ngoc Son Temple closes, the photogenic The Huc Bridge, is more likely to look like this.

Than this…..

Still, there’s something about the place that draws you in…..

More on Hoan Kiem Lake later, and for even more, Wandering Chopsticks has a delightful post here.

Hanoi & Cambodia: First we had to get there – Dumplings, A Lee’s Pit Stop, EVA Airlines, Taiwan International Airport, Hello Kitty, and other stuff…….

April 12, 2008 mmm-yoso Airport/Airline/Cruise/Rail Food, Banh Mi, Orange County, Taiwan, Taiwanese Food and Restaurants, Travel

We had been planning a trip to Hanoi and Cambodia since we had returned from Peru in September of last year. By the time we hit US soil, the Missus was already pondering our next trip. Over the next 7 months, with the help of "Beach", we slowly saw our plans come to fruition. On the day of our departure, the Missus decided that Jiaozi was our good luck talisman…..on our trip to Peru, Her Mom made us Jiaozi before we left, and since everything had turned out so well, why mess with a good thing? So there we were, running to Ranch 99 Market shopping for the fixins for some dumplings. The Missus, who had unofficially retired from Jiaozi making rolled out the dough, I did the filling, the Missus formed the dumplings, of which I boiled half of the dumplings, and fried the other half.

After a busy morning of Jiaozi making the Missus promptly "re-retired".

"What about tradition, and good luck?"
"We'll have to come up with another tradition, good luck is over-rated!"

These were pretty darn good; the chives at the market looked horrible, so we settled for shrimp, Chinese celery, and scallions.

We had packed light…..I mean very light for our 15 day trip. I'm definitely not a "backpacker" like Miss Oishii-eats, and I'm several decades(and probably an entire universe) removed from even remotely thinking of backpacking, but the thought of running through so many locales made the thought of traveling light quite attractive.

For a self-proclaimed "soft American", I think I did pretty good….plus, still-damp T-shirts washed in the bathroom sink felt pretty good in the heat and humidity of Siem Reap.

We turned da' Boyz over to our house sitter, and headed up to LAX. About an hour into our drive the Missus got hungry, and we made a short detour…

Yep, Lee's Sandwiches….cheap, and relatively fast. After getting to the airport, getting through security, and making our way to the our gate, we had our sandwiches.

I still have the same opinion about Lee's, the baguette is too dry, doughy, and the crust too hard, lacking crackle, but for $2.50, this 10 inch Cured Pork(Ba-chi), and Pate will fill you up.

The Missus enjoyed the flavor of the Bi(shredded pork), but it was dry as heck….She chugged down a whole bottle of H2O. I also noticed, that just like in movie theaters, smells carry really far in airports…..so if you happened to be on the same flight as us….yes, that was me….'ol Banh Mi breath.

Lee's Sandwiches(They're everywhere…..)
9261 Bolsa Avenue
Westminster, CA 92683

Beach had made our flight arrangements….suggesting that we fly EVA Airways, with Elite Class seats. Boy was that great advice……with the extra leg room I was able to catch 2 or 3 20 minute naps(I'm usually unable to sleep at all on flights). And the Missus liked all the "stuff", like slippers:

And other "stuff"….

I swear, the Missus would have sold Manhattan for a handful of trinkets…..the selection of movies and shows on the "video on demand" touch screens kept us entertained.

The food was an interesting mix of Asian and Western…..each meal had 1 Western type entree(i.e. chicken with pasta), and one Taiwanese-Chinese entree, like the Seafood Rice Porridge:

There were several "snacks" on the way to Taipei….I saw a Guy put away 3 servings of instant noodles! I wonder what his MSG level was????

14 hours later…..we were in Taipei. Here's the flight crew……

The airport in Taipei is interesting……and quite quirky. Here's the huge Hello Kitty/Sanrio area.

In addition to the Sanrio store, there's a children's area, and a television to keep the youngsters ~~hypnotized~~ occupied.

But the most interesting feature of this Pepto-Bismol Pink area is…….the gate….yes, this is the Hello Kitty Gate!

We did notice a large number of males….especially young men, refused to sit in the Hello Kitty area, and sat near the automated walkways…and as far as possible in some cases. I'll have another post on this gate later on…..

With a 4 hour hour layover in Taipei, hunger pangs eventually set in….and we were drawn in by this sign:

It was a pseudo food court, made up to resemble a collection of street food stands…

Yes, we were suckered in…….and ordered a few items. Starting with the Pig's Feet with Rice:

This was the best dish overall….mostly rice, but the sauce was well flavored, as was the 2 pieces of pork.

The Pork and Mushroom Soup

More like a potage…the broth tasted okay….but the pieces of pork were inedible….

A pork steamed bun…..which was an interesting thing, the Missus broke it open, sniffed it, and said, "don't eat this….."

All sucked down with "Coke Light"…..it's kinda funny, I haven't had anything with saccharin in a while, so the difference in flavor was very pronounced. This turned out to be one of the more expensive meals on our trip $14 US.

Soon enough we were on our way to Hanoi……….

$5 Pizza – Little Caesars- Yes, Cathy also eats here.

April 11, 2008 Cathy Pizza, What Cathy Eats!, yoso-silly

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog about food and Cathy is the one blogging today. Kirk doesn’t want to blog.

Hello. I decided to actually write about one of my even more bizarre food secrets- the $5 pizza. It seems that every pizza place is offering one- usually somewhat pre-made and includes one topping.

Little Caesars started out in Detroit, along with Dominoes. I grew up in Detroit. Those two were my pizza "standards" long before I discovered the really good stuff in Italy. So this is more or less a "comfort food" for me.

I know some people don’t like the pizza from here, but the dough is fresh made daily and yeasty (and not that pre-made with holes punched in it refrigerated stuff), which is kind of a requirement for me to like the bready part of any meal. The cheese is always fresh and never frozen, as other pizza chains use. I do not crave the pizza/dipping sauce from here because the herbs overpower the tomato flavor, but I know people who love it and crave it.

The pizzas at Little Caesars are usually pre- made and hot and waiting, especially around dinner time or around the time Monday Night Football is on TV. They have a timer so you don’t get an "old" one. I think the time limit is 10 minutes before the pizza has to be disposed of/not allowed to be sold, although I have seen the timer set to 7 minutes at one location.

You can order for $4, an "Italian Cheese Bread" , which is the pizza dough squared and topped with only cheese and Italian herbs. You have to wait for this to be baked, so you can also ask for your $5 pizza to be made with a different one item topping. I sometimes get mushrooms and sometimes I get a cheese pie. I do ask that they make the cheese pie "well done" so the cheese is melted and browned. I figure I am waiting anyhow…

It is not bad nor expensive if you need something quick, and it does reheat in the toaster oven in the morning.

Website Little Caesars Pizza, multiple locations across the USA.

We’re back…….

April 9, 2008 mmm-yoso Cambodia, Travel, Vietnam

Well sort of……my body feels fine but my mind is kind of "lagging"(well, maybe it’s nothing new…), so give a me a couple of days to regroup, and in the meantime enjoy a few more posts from FOYs(Friends of Yoso). And here is a short run down of a few places we’ve been(click on any photo to enlarge)….

Starting in Hanoi, with the endless stream of thousands of motorbikes, and crowded sidewalks…it seems like controlled chaos:

And the cramped markets stocked with every sort of item imaginable

Yet, you’re still able to carve out moments of inner peace and tranquility along Hoan Kiem Lake…

Or maybe even coax a smile out of a little girl patiently waiting for a wedding to start

Or just admire the view…

To the village of Le Mat, and a date with a snake….

It was delicious……

To picturesque Halong Bay

Limestone karsts rising out of the ocean…

Perhaps a little "over-touristed", but on overcast days…it’s easy to imagine, perhaps The Land That Time Forgot, or maybe Pirates of the Caribbean?

To the wonderful vistas of Sapa, and a "little" 14 kilometer hike through Matra and Ta Phin villages

And the short hike to Cat Cat Village, with a view that I think even the locals never get tired of….

On to Bac Ha, and colorful Can Cau Market, where we broke bread(actually pigged on pork) with the locals, and had shots of the local moonshine with Giay(Nhang) men. The Flower Hmong added bright splashes of color…..

After a night of more "hootch", poured into used plastic water bottles from plastic Jerry Cans

The huge Sunday Market in Bac Ha is almost overwhelming…..

Flying into Siem Reap, where the only thing warmer than the 100 degree temp, and 80 percent humidity, are the people….

In Siem Reap, smiles are just around the corner…especially from the children

And while we enjoyed sunrise at Angkor Wat

It was the somewhat mysterious Angkor Thom,

the Bayon,

and other ruins that kept our interest.

The floating village we visited on Tonle Sap Lake, was a study in perserverence and adaptation.

And we wrapped it all up in chaotic Phnom Penh…..looking at each other, we said in unison; "isn’t this where we started?"

Wait! Sorry, this is food blog, right? I guess I’m not sure how much "slice of life" stuff I’ll be able to post on……we have dozens of nice little stories, and it wasn’t all "wine and roses", but that just added to the color and sense of adventure…….

So, we did visit many, many markets

And have no fear, there were some interesting meals.

And some pretty darn good street food…

So hang in there while "this piggy goes to market"….

Here’s one of my favorite photos of the trip, I wish Da Boyz could do this!

Beyond the food, the theme on this trip was quite evident….it was about the people, and on that note, we’d like to dedicate this post to the larger than life(how many times have we called him that?) person all the OC food bloggers know as "Beach" who helped us plan our trip, it would not have been as enjoyable, nor as successful without his help, knowledge, generousity, and plain hard work on our behalf. We owe you big time!

Also, mucho Thanks go out to Cathy who held down the fort, and made sure that those mmm-yoso gears kept ‘a runnin!

Asmara Eritrean Restaurant

April 7, 2008 ed fromyuma African Cuisine/Restaurants, Ethiopian/Eritrean Restaurants, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Kirk will soon be back posting about his incredible trip to Vietnam & Cambodia. Cathy will soon post more about her culinary adventures. Other folks help out on this blog as well. Today, though, it is ed (from Yuma) writing about a new restaurant he just visited in San Diego.

When I lived in San Diego about 10 years ago, I delighted in the vibrant Ethiopian/East African community in the city. While my previous exposure to their cuisine had been limited, I loved Ethiopian food. Unfortunately, the Ethiopian restaurant scene in America’s Finest City left much to be desired.

My favorite Ethiopian restaurant (called Asmara) closed. Another place that served good food had virtually no customers, perhaps because no one would have expected a restaurant called Legare to be an Ethiopian restaurant; the warm and friendly owner explained that everyone in Addis Ababa knew that the best restaurant food was at the train station, which being built by the French, was called Le Gare. But for those of us not from Addis Ababa . . .

So I approached Asmara (no connection to its deceased namesake) with a certain level of trepidation. First of all, it calls itself an Eritrean restaurant, not Ethiopian. Eritrean cuisine? I know that Ethiopia and Eritrea have been joined and separated and warring and at peace at various times in my lifetime. So how would this food relate to Ethiopian cuisine? What’s more, the restaurant is so new that workers were painting over the name of the previous occupant on the awning above the main entrance as we were entering:

But when I walked in, I was able to leave my trepidation at the door. This was clearly a professional operation. There was no thick cloud of incense smoke or tables of men playing cards in darkened rooms oblivious to their surroundings. Instead, everything about the decor of the sizable restaurant said clean, modern, stylish, and professional:

Before we go any further, let me apologize for the lack of great food pictures. My old buddy Greg and I were on a guy’s eating trip to San Diego, and we were fortunate to get together with Dave and Michelle, friends from Jamul, who enjoy gourmandizing as much as Greg and I do. So when two large trays of various dishes arranged on sheets of injera arrived, it was hard to keep everyone from attacking the food while I was hurriedly taking pictures. (Remember this important life lesson: always blame others for your deficiencies.)

We had ordered a meat combination, a chicken dish (called here tsebhi dorho – but identical to the douro wat in Ethiopian restaurants), a veggie combo, and shiro, a dish of roasted ground chickpeas with seasonings. Thoughtfully, they put all the vegetarian items on one tray and all of the meat dishes (with accompanying salads) on another, so that any vegetarian would be spared morsels of injera lubricated with meat sauce or juices. This picture of part of the meat platter gives you an idea of how the food is served:

We were all very impressed with the injera, the bubbly sourdough flatbread full of tef flour and flavor. It had a pronounced sour tang and seemed a little thinner and less doughy than other versions I have eaten. For those of you unfamiliar with Horn of Africa cuisine, the injera is the starch, the plate, and the eating utensil. One picks up bits and bites of various foods with pieces of injera held between the fingers. In addition to the injera that covered the platters, more injera wrapped up around itself was also served on the side. However, as everyone who has eaten Ethiopian or Eritrean food is aware, the best tasting injera is that which has lain under the entrees and soaked up all their essential goodness.

Even though the meat combo was supposed to have only two different items, we received a chunky cubed beef and a similar lamb item as well as a longer cooked, falling-apart-tender lamb stew. The two cubed meat dishes looked like this (but clearer):

All the meat items were tasty and richly seasoned, but the fiery chicken dish may have been the star of the meat platter, even though it contained only one chicken leg and one boiled egg (sort of a mother and child reunion):

Similarly, we got more than expected with the veggie combination, which had two different lentil dishes (one darker and more highly spiced than the other), a cabbage and carrot dish, a collard and spinach dish, and a surprise yellow split pea stew, something not even listed on the menu. Except for the one lentil dish, the spicing on all the vegetarian items tended to be more subtle. Please do not click to enlarge any of these fuzzy pictures; they won’t get any better — they will only get bigger:

The most impressive of the items on the vegetarian platter was the Shiro, which came in a covered bowl so we could continue to add more on top of the injera. It had layers of complexities. The nuttiness of the roasted chickpeas and the ~~Ethiopian~~ Eritrean spices contributed to the overall taste. I had been somewhat hesitant to order this item, but it was really good (if not really pretty):

Not counting the cost of the Eritrean and Ethiopian beers that we ordered (my advice: order more conventional beers) the cost of the dinner was about $10 a person. None of the entrées is over $10. I felt that the dinner was a very good value, particularly considering the pleasant setting.

Is this a great restaurant? Well, I don’t know. We didn’t try either of the beef dishes which can be ordered raw (gored-gored and kitfo). However, everything we were served was well prepared and well seasoned. Only the rather ordinary and underdressed salads (containing fresh jalapeno slices to get one’s attention) were disappointing. I can’t recall ever having better East African food in San Diego. This would certainly be a great place for someone who had never tried Horn of Africa cuisine before. On the other hand, the menu at Asmara doesn’t appear to break new ground, and most items listed seem similar to those at most conventional Ethiopian restaurants, except that some have different names.

Perhaps the most unusual thing on the menu is the weekend special, spaghetti with your choice of meat or tomato sauce. This pasta is a reminder that Eritrea spent many years as an Italian colony. In Ethiopia, on the other hand, the Italians were hated invaders whose brief rule had little effect on that nation’s cuisine.

Asmara Eritrean Restaurant, 4155 University Ave, (619) 677-3999. Open daily 11 AM – 10 PM.

Ali Baba Kebab House Family Restaurant- in El Cajon

April 6, 2008 Cathy Mediterranean Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog, with the main role of Blogger played by Kirk, however while He and His Missus are on vacation, the part of Kirk will be played by Cathy.

Hi. Cathy again. I wanted to share this wonderful restaurant with you. On the corner of Main and Avocado in El Cajon, near the Courthouse, for about three years now, Ali Baba has been in business.

It used to be Top Sirloin, which had great food, but a very, very tacky ‘decor’. The interior has been transformed to look like the interior of an Arabian King’s tent. Fabric on the ceiling and walls. Rich, deep colors.

Then there is the food. Wonderful and fresh.

We started this meal with hot tea ($1) and "Ali Baba Blood Juice" ($1.50) , because, you know, we had to. The ‘blood juice’ is a sweet (corn syrup added) iced tea fruit (maybe pomegranate?) blend mix. It is refreshing in the summer especially. I like the minty hot tea myself. We started out with the small Hommus appetizer ($5), served with two pieces of *large* (about 10 inches in diameter- this perception view is slightly askew) fresh, hot baked bread. The hommus is made fresh and the portion size is quite large (the plate is deep). The large size ($8) is served on a platter and is a wonderful portion to share.

We also got the small Ali Baba salad($5), which came out looking like this,

with the chickpeas, olives and tomatoes

on top, along with the lemon (vinegar and olive oil was on the table)

But as you can see, the rest of the salad was Persian cucumbers, which are seen more in this photo, on the bottom of the plate. It is very refreshing and is more like the salads I grew up eating-no lettuce.

I ordered a shawarma sandwich ($6). This photo doesn’t do the size of it justice- I could only finish half. As wide as a soda pop can and much larger than one with the sandwich uncut. Those are pickled turnips on the side and inside the sandwich. The beef is *excellent*, moist and fully flavored. The bread is, again, fresh made.

The Mister ordered a lamb kebab plate ($9.95) ground lamb mixed with onions and spices and grilled over charcoal. It is served with tomatoes, parsley, pickled turnips, onions and fresh baked bread. More than enough food. Wonderful, fresh food!

All the prices are $1 less if you get the food "to go" instead of eating inside. The service is friendly and helpful and there are always large family groups eating inside.

If you live in or are near the East County, you should try it. You will like it.

Ali Baba Kabab House 421 East Main Street El Cajon, CA 92020 (619)442-3622 website

Pat and Oscar’s-and what Cathy always orders

April 5, 2008 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Chains, Mediterranean Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Pat and Oscar's has closed most of their locations. They will be missed.

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog about food. Today, Cathy is back with a short post.

Hello once more. I'm still here blogging and Kirk and His Missus are still enjoying their adventures in Vietnam. I did get an email from him when he was going to be away from the internet for a few days. They are enjoying their vacation immensely and you'll get to see all about it in due time. SO ANYHOW…There is a local "chain" here in San Diego, called "Pat and Oscars". It is semi self serve in that you order, pay, grab plates/silverware/napkins, seat yourself and then have the food delivered to your table. You can put together a bunch of tables for a large gathering and the prices are reasonable, especially for groups. You can see their menu on line at www.Breadstick.com. They make a variety of items, yet after trying everything from the menu over the years, The Mister and I end up ordering the same thing. Always.

The chicken meal for two ($16.99). It includes a choice of a Cesar or Greek salad. I always choose Greek. You can see it has onions, beets, green pepper slices, feta and olives. I really crave this salad.

The meal also includes an order of 12 breadsticks- fresh made, topped with olive oil and a touch of garlic flavor. {The website address is breadstick.com: Pat and Oscar's are *known* for their breadsticks. Sometimes if the line to order is long, they are passing out samples to those waiting: sometimes they had out breadsticks to people in front of the restaurant…it is *the* reason a lot of people eat here. }

Of course, included is a whole rotissiere cooked chicken- either Lemon or BBQ.

Always the Lemon.

The items are always good, fresh, hot and taste great.

You can see The Mister makes open faced sandwiches with his breadsticks and chicken and I eat my salad with breadsticks and enjoy the chicken by itself.

Seriously, we have tried the pizza, ribs, sandwiches, pasta, soups and the BBQ chicken and they are not as tasty as this particular combination. {If the pizza dough were made from the breadstick dough, then *maybe* I would like the pizza here. It isn't}

When you go to the website, sign up for the promotional emails and you occasionally get a coupon for $5 off of $15, and this meal fits in that category.

Hope you all have a nice, uneventful weekend.