Wednesday wanderings – Sab E Lee 2 opening in November and Thai Cafe closes

Sab E Lee 2 Coming Soon:

I dropped by and had an early lunch at Sab E Lee this past Sunday. Koby, the owner greeted me with a big smile, and told me, "I have some big news for you." Koby told me that he had found a space for a new restaurant, but wouldn't be sure until Monday. Koby then gave me his cellphone number and told me to call him. Instead, I told Koby that I'll drop by on Wednesday. So today, while I nosh'd on my Grilled Duck Larb:

Koby filled me in. So here's the scoop; the new restaurant will be called Sab E Lee 2 and is opening in Santee. The address will be:

9159 Mission Gorge Road
Santee, CA 92071

Luckily for us, he is keeping the Linda Vista location of Sab E Lee open. The new restaurant will have most of the items on the current menu, but will also add some more "Americanized" Thai dishes. I dunno about that, but I'm happy that my favorites will still be on the menu. According to Koby, the Chef of the restaurant in Santee is a good friend of his that has a lot of experience and used to be a chef at a four star hotel in Bangkok. Target opening day is the first Monday in November. I'm happy for Koby, they sure have come far in a bit over a year.

A Sab E Lee story:

I thought this was pretty funny. Sab E Lee is a very tiny restaurant, and because of the closeness of tables, sometimes you can't help but hear what everyone else is saying. On this day, a woman was seated with who I believe was her young son (maybe four or five?), a smart looking blond haired young man. I give the woman credit, they were eating Papaya Salad and Grilled Pork Neck, and the young man was digging in like a trooper. Out of the blue, the little one tells the Mom, "do they eat horse-ies here?" The Mom tells him, "I don't think so…..why?" The boy points to the lettering on the windows and exclaims, "it spells, I eat hoof!"

I snorted so hard, that I could feel my Beef Salad coming out of my nose! I guess it kinda looks like "I Eat Hoof". What do you think?

Thai Cafe closes:

Unfortunately, with the current economic unrest, more restaurants are closing than opening. And for every new restaurant opening, there seem to be two or more closing. Thai Cafe on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard is the latest casualty.

RIP Thai Cafe……