March 2012 – mmm-yoso

Greece: Delphi and the Leonidas Monument at the site of The Battle of Thermopylae

March 30, 2012 mmm-yoso Greece, Greek Food, Travel

*** Not much food in this one. you can come back tomorrow and hopefully I'll have somthing a bit more delicious for you…..

The Missus really wanted to get to Meteora during our trip to Greece, but there seemed to be only a short two day window to fit a trip. The only way we could make it was to take a bus tour…..as you probably know by now, this really isn't our preferred way of getting to places, but sometimes you just can't avoid it. Which is how we ended up on a pretty long bus ride……for some reason, we find this more exhausting than say…..hiking the Great Wall from Jinshalang to Simitai. The sitting just sucks the energy out of us.

Anyway, we ended up with quite an animated guide….who loved to weave stories and seemed truly excited when we stopped at the site of Delphi, probably most famous for being the home of the Pythia, the priestess of the oracle of Delphi, whose translated prophecies held great power. Of course, there are those in modern times who think it was just, well "gas".

The site itself is quite beautiful as it is located in the mountains.

Delphi was also well known for several other reasons. When the oracles of Delphi were credited with providing advice key to the victory of the Battle of Marathon, the spoils were supposedly used to create the Athenian Treasury, one of the few restored buildings on the site.

The Theatre of Delphi, while not as grand as the one at Ephesus, is still impressive. It could hold up to 5,000 people in its 36 rows and provides a wonderful view.

If you look past the theatre you'll see the ruins of the Temple of Apollo.

It must have been quite a building in its day……

For me, the most interesting structure was up the hill from the theatre…..

Around the 6th century BC, Delphi held the Pythian Games every four years, between the Olympic Games. Athletes from all over Greece competed in a number of events. Up that hill is the stadium, a long (about 550 ft) and fairly narrow (about 84 feet) track.

The stadium could seat up to 6500 spectators.

In Greek Mythology it is said that Zeus sent out two eagles in opposite direction around the earth. Where the eagles met was deemed the "navel of the world", the center of the world…Delphi.

It's quite a sight and a worthwhile stop…..

We made our way down from the mountains and onward toward the plains of Thessaly, man the ride was getting me sleepy. Eventually we stopped on what seemed like a parking lot right off the main road. Right next to the parking lot was this monument:

This roadside stop was home to the monument to Leonidas the King of Sparta. Now does that sound familiar to you? Perhaps you've heard of him…..maybe from the movie 300. Indeed, the Battle of Thermopylae occured just a short distance away.

Looking at the topography changed by land reclamation projects and silt, it's hard to imagine what took place here 2500 years ago.

I'm thinking after the movie, most folks know about the 300 Spartans. But this monument to the side of Leonidas's also adds to the story.

It's a monument to the 700 Thespians who died alongside the Spartans in battle.

After a while, the boredom of the bus ride just seemed to be sapping all the energy out of us. Rain had started falling, which left me wondering how manageable the next day's visit to Meteora was going to be. We eventually stopped at our hotel for the night….which was a massive resort-like complex in the middle of nowhere………

The rooms were nice, but as we figured, dinner was a buffet style chafing dish affair where everyone ate in assigned "shifts".

We actually walked out to the road to see if there was a way we'd be able to avoid this….but it was raining and there was nothing for miles…..

And as brutal as the bus ride seemed, the food was its equal.

Things could be worse…….it could be baloney sandwiches. At least it was sustenance and we knew there'd be another busy day ahead.

Recently Consumed: Visits to Sultan, Golden City, Homestyle Hawaiian, Balboa Market, Noble Chef, Pho King, Okan, and Bristol Farm

March 29, 2012 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Japanese Restaurants, Persian Restaurants, Plate Lunch, Sandwiches, Turkish Food, yoso-silly

Here’s a collection of one-off dishes and other miscellaneous stuff from the last couple of weeks.

Sometimes a dish will arrive that looks just plain delicious. This was true of the Biber Dolmasi (stuffed pepper) the Missus recently had at Sultan.

I just thought it looked so pretty. I’m no great shakes as a photographer; I just point and shoot and after all our meals at Sultan; heck we’re there about every other week. I’ve pretty much keep my camera stowed…..but this one just called for a photo.

It put my Karisik Izagara (mixed grill) to shame……

Oh and here’s a Patlican Kebab for good measure as well……

Sultan Kebab & Baklava
131 Jamacha Road
El Cajon, CA 92019

Cathy and Dennis have already done posts on Balboa International Market. I’ll usually drop by for some dates, walnuts, herbs, ayran, and citrus for the Missus. One day last week I was pretty hungry so I ordered the lamb shank on fava rice (sabzi polo). Love the price….$8.99 and it’s a load of food.

Lamb shank was decent, but the rice was bland and dry….still, the price is right.

Balboa International Market
5907 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

I don’t know why, but on one of my visits to Golden City I only took one shot of the Kwai Fei Chicken. After snapping the photo, I realized that I’ve probably taken too many photos of it already anyway. But just for the heck of it……

Golden City Restaurant
5375 Kearny Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

Not too many plate lunches anymore…….on occasion there’s an exception. Here’s the Korean Chicken from Homestyle Hawaiian.

It had been a couple of months. Mo told me that they were going to renovate and clean up the place a bit…..but it was still a no-go on this visit. Hopefully soon…..

Homestyle Hawaiian Island Style Food
7524 Mesa College Drive
San Diego, CA 92111

A couple of other dishes for good measure…..

Shrimp with XO Sauce Chow Fun from Noble Chef……I was lazy and in a noodley mood.

The Noble Chef
6159 Balboa Avenue
San Diego, CA 92111

I just realize there’s an inordinate amount of styrofoam in this post……I guess I’ve been pretty tired recently……

Here’s the Hu Tieu Mi Kho, which I’ve posted on a zillion times, from Pho King.

Pho King Restaurant
4658 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115

Here are the only two photos from a recent meal at Okan, the stewed shishito peppers with ground beef.

And buta kakuni……

Which was on the dry and bland side….I’ll need to try this again……hope this isn’t the norm.

Wa Dining Okan
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Cathy’s already done a post on Bristol Farms, but recently I was shopping there, really hungry, and lazy to come home and make something. I decided to try out the Tri-Tip Sandwich ($7.99), without the BBQ sauce. The meat is hand cut and it comes with mashed potatoes and gravy which might have just send me into cardiac arrest after eating all that meat. I subbed it out with a pasta salad.

Considering that a lettuce loaded sub with 2 ounces of meat goes for $6.50 – $6.99, this is a pretty good value. The meat ain’t great shakes, it is on the chewy side…they do ask you (or at least asked me) if I wanted to trim the fat off…..guess what my response to that was. The sandwich was topped with muhrooms and caramelized onions. Bread seemed heat and eat, but it was toasted. Not bad….

Also, is it just me, or does it seem like Bristol Farms have lowered their prices a bit? Maybe I’ve been shopping at Whole Paycheck too much recently….. You know, I don’t think I’m a cheapo tightwad, who is always looking to get on the better side of the dollar, and like many do believe in the reality of scale. For example a $7.95 dish which is well made from Sab E Lee will not equal to the same dish which costs $19.95 at Lotus of Siam. Of course LOS will be….better be, better, it’s 2 1/2 times the price. Still, I do like feeling that I get my money’s worth.

**** This location of Bristol Farms has closed

Bristol Farms
8510 Genessee Ave
San Diego, CA 92122

My goodness, I just realized something as I was setting up the categories for this post……this is quite a variety of cuisines…maybe I need to stop grumbling about San Diego’s limited choice…..

Lana’i: Lana’i City Grille and the Lana’i Heritage and Cultural Center

March 28, 2012 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Hawaiian Food, Lanai, Travel

Because we were staying at the Hotel Lana'i, it only made sense that we had dinner at the Lana'i City Grille, since it's located in the Hotel Lana'i.

After all, the restaurant's menu is designed by Beverly Gannon, one of the 12 original members of the Hawaii Regional Cuisine Movement. I'd missed out eating at the Haliimaile General Store a couple of years ago, so this was about as close as I'd get for a while……

The dining area has a nice relaxed and warm feel…

Sorry to say, that photo was taken the next morning……the following photos just don't do the food justice, mainly because it was so darned dark in the room during dinner. Also, I'm pretty discrete, in other words no giant DSLR and especially no flash. I really don't like the attention…..

Anyway, the dishes seemed a bit heavy, so we went with just entrees, which turned out to be a good move. The Missus went with the Pecan Crusted Catch of the Day ($34) which was Ono, served with chorizo mashed potatoes and a chipotle honey butter sauce.

The fish was dry and overcooked, the pecan crust under seasoned and bland. We really enjoyed the mashed potatoes, which were smooth, but not too creamy. The spices of the chorizo came through as the the sauce balanced out the spiciness with a touch of sweetness.

I ordered the Pan Roasted Venison Loin ($38).

The venison was cooked perfectly, it was a loin cut which meant that we were talking about a lean cut of already lean venison. Yet this was toothsome, but not tough. Loved the venison flavor as did the Missus. We were worried that the fruit compote would kill the dish with sweetness, but unlike that now defunct San Diego restaurant that used to dump so much fruit on protein it looked like a fruit cocktail, the stewed fruit appropriately complemented the gamey venison. The mushroom risotto had more than a few hard grains, it was obviously cooked ahead and heated to order. The flavor was very mild and the Missus didn't care for it. Of course, before we left on the trip, I'd been making mushroom risotto just about every week at home. In other words, there wasn't any porcini in this……

Overall, this was a good meal, but nothing particularly outstanding. Our favorite part of the evening was when we got around to chatting with our server, who had a distinct Eastern European accent. We found out that she was from Poland! So how did a young woman from Poland end up working at the Lana'i City Grille? It turns out she came to visit some friends working at the resorts…and ended up staying! As often happens, the food is important, but it's the people and their stories that make the moment. We talked about the very small town/small island life, which is not for everyone, to which she lent insight…"we usually go camping or hiking on our day off….and there's the ferry to Maui. You would not believe how fantastic Costco sounds when you've been here for a while!" She actually made our night…….

Lana'i City Grille located in the Hotel Lana'i
Open Wed – Sun 5pm – 9pm

One morning, while the Missus was taking a nap, I walked over to the old Dole Administration Building. The Lana'i Cultural and Heritage Center is now located in the building.

There's no entrance fee, but donations are welcome. The little two room display area show photos and artifacts in a timeline fashion form the days of the original inhabitants to now. The young woman here was very friendly and took time out to chat with me….she also knew my family as well.

I'm old enough to remember using some of the items in displays….which I guess makes me sort of an artifact as well?

I found this aerial photo of Lana'i taken in 1929 to be very fascinating. Even though the now tall pine trees look like, and were tiny plants, you can still make out what today's Lana'i City still looks like.

What was even more funny is that I saw a photo of my Aunt and Uncle posted on one wall!

Love this sign……..actually I believe it used to be posted on the way to Lana'i City from the airport.

Niu Rou Mania Redux: This time it’s Savory Garden, Mr Dumpling, and Chin’s Convoy

March 26, 2012 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Niu Rou Mian

It's been almost four years since I did a round up post of places to add to my Niu Rou Mian collection. Personally, I feel things have been pretty depressing for NRM in recent years, but thought I'd give it a shot anyway. We've been going through waves of warm almost late spring-like weather followed by blustery storms passing through, so it was really hard to plan things out. But I managed to squeeze in three bowls recently.

Savory Garden:

*** Savory Garden has closed

This restaurant took the place of 168 Restaurant in the 99 Ranch Market shopping plaza.

As a whole, I usually avoid the place during rush hours, and even when I dropped by during an odd lunch or dinner time, I don't recall seeing people eating here. In fact, on my visit, during a late week dinner, I was the only customer during my entire meal!

It must get pretty boring for the folks here, that's probably why they were practicing their Karaoke skills on the television….of course they weren't using a microphone, just quietly singing along…..

So at least I had a bit of entertainment during my meal. Personally, I thought this was kind of cute in a way, though I would probably have a different opinion if they used microphones.

The House Special Beef Noodle Soup ($7.49), which is listed as this on the check-off menu:

Arrived steaming hot, a good sign, though I've got to say it was probably the darkest looking broth I've seen in a while:

I really missed the zha cai – pickled vegetable that 168 used to top off thier NRM with, and fragrance of the broth wasn't particularly beefy. The noodles were decent, not overcooked, the broth wasn't as sweet as others, but in spite of the dark color, really lacked any depth with regards to flavor.

The beef was fairly tender and had decent flavor, but there were only four real pieces and some crumbs…….

Man, that was some dark broth!

I know I still gotta meet "MrZ" here for lunch one day…… so I'll report back then with more. Though based on the lack of customers, I think I'd better get my act together because I'm not quite sure how long this place will be around.

Savory Garden
7330 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111

Mr Dumpling:

*** Mr Dumpling has closed

On my post on Liang's someone mentioned that Mr Dumpling made a pretty good NRM. I kinda hesitated in checking the place out, since the food on my previous visits had not been particularly stellar. Still, Niu Rou Mian? I really had to go and check the place out. The place was totally empty when I arrived……. I actually had to call out several times…Ni Hao…..

While waiting for signs of life, I noticed that they'd put pool tables in on the other side of the wall……I guess they need to bring in customers somehow. This just didn't strike me as a particularly good sign.

A couple of minutes later a live person appeared and I was seated. Of course I order the Niu Rou Mian and was surprised at what I got:

Well technically there's beef, noodle, and soup……but this ain't the Niu Rou Mian I know. It was terrible, the broth lacked nay flavor but salt and the beef was tough and dry. I keep thinking this was some horrible mistake.

While another part of me wonders, "what if it isn't a mistake and this is their version of Niu Rou Mian?" Egads!

Mr Dumpling
7250 Convoy Ct
San Diego, CA 92111

Chin's Convoy:

*** Chin's on Convoy has closed

I'm not sure why I decided on Niu Rou Mian at Chin's on Convoy, but that's what I ordered. It was the most expensive ($8.50) of the three. To my surprise it wasn't too bad.

While the broth could have been richer, it did have a mild beef and star anise flavor, along with a slight "kick". Based on previous experiences here, I expected the soup to be on the sweet side, but it wasn't. The meat could have been more tender, but it was by no means terrible. The noodles and there was a lot of noodles, weren't anything special, but at least they were al dente and nice and slippery.

Though I don't overly focus on price, if quality is good, I'm not quite sure this is worth $8.50.

Chin's
4433 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

I guess I'll have drive up to Temple City again soon and deal with the service at Dai Ho to get a decent bowl……

Sunday Stuffs: Sakura opening another restaurant and revisits to Pho Lucky and Pizzeria Bruno

March 25, 2012 mmm-yoso Italian Restaurants, Japanese Restaurants, Pizza, Vietnamese Restaurants

Well, it was pretty nice there for a couple of days. Anyway, here's something short for a wet Sunday in San Diego.

Owners of Izakaya Sakura opening a new restaurant:

I was quite surprised when I heard this. But according to my sources, the owners of Sakura are taking over the Chilies Thai location for a new restaurant.

Folks might be wondering what gives since it's in the same strip mall as Izakaya Sakura. Well this place is going to be Italian-Japanese. Probably something similar to Spoon House and Akane Chaya in the Gardena area. Not my favorite style and i'm wondering if there's a market for it here, heck even Curry house couldn't cut it. When I asked Dennis for his opinion, he had his doubts too. Time will tell. One more thing I heard is that Kazu will cut down his sushi bar time to oversee this new place…….don't think that's a great idea either.

3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Banh Mi Bo Kho at Pho Lucky:

After a terrible version of Vietnamese style Beef Stew at Pho Mignon, the sudden change in weather, and feeling a bit under the weather I decided to grab some Banh Mi Bo Kho from Pho Lucky. Funny thing is, Cathy mentioned that I've only done one post on the place. I swear I've done more than that. I did find a couple of posts including one on the Banh Mi Bo Kho. I think my Google search is doing weird things…..

The flavor was spot on as is the norm, but the stew was on the thin and soupy side. Lot's of nice tendon hiding on the bottom, though. What's up with the thin stews I've been getting recently? At least this one tasted good.

Pho Lucky
9326 Mira Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92126

Pizzeria Bruno Napoletano:

*** Pizzeria Bruno has closed

Man, it was almost like spring for a couple of days there, wasn't it? And the weather put the Missus in the mood for sitting outside and having a pizza from Bruno. Over time, the Missus has settles on the Marinera ($9) being Her favorite:

She usually orders it with extra olive oil…….

I got my favorite, the Diavolo ($15), with soppressata replacing the pepperoni.

The goat peppers add some nice spice and mild sweetness to balance out the salt from the salami-ish soppressata. Great char on the crust and I've gotten used to eating this with a knife and fork…..

Can't wait until we get more consistent warm weather, we'll be enjoying this more often.

Pizzeria Bruno
4207 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA 92103

My previous post on Bruno can be found here.

Peperonata

March 24, 2012 mmm-yoso Cookbooks, Cooking, Recipes

I don't recall seeing peppers priced quite as cheap as in the last few weeks. The abundance of peppers gave me a chance to make another recipe from Molly Stevens All About Braising. Unlike the Lamb Shanks Braised with Lentils and Curry, this one is quite easy. Peperonata is an Italian stewed pepper dish that tastes great on bruschetta or as an antipasto. While we ate most of it on toasted baguette, the only photos I took were as a relish for a simple pan sauteed chicken breast.

As always I did ad a couple of things to the recipe, in this case some garlic and dried oregano. Since the amount of peppers I had was closer to the three pound mark, I ended up using 1/2 of olive oil. The anchovies in the recipe add a deep savory and salty background flavor and I loved the addition of balsamic vinegar instead of the usual white wine or red wine vinegar.

Anyway……here's what I did.

Pepperonata:

1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 pounds various sweet peppers (do not use green bell peppers) cut into 1/3" strips
1 large onion also cut into strips
2 coves of garlic minced
4 anchovies minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp dry oregano crushed
2 tb balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

– Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat and add red epper flakes.
– Add onions and garlic, stir ocasionally until softened. About five minutes or so.
– Stir in the anchovies, oregano, black pepper and a large pinch of salt.
– Add the peppers and combine. Lower the heat to low and braise.
– Check and stir every 10 – 15 minutes. Lower the heat if the peppers are sticking or getting mushy.
– The peppers should be tender after about 45 minutes or so.
– Remove from heat, add balsamic vinegar and taste. Adjust salt and pepper.
– Let cool to room temperature before serving.

Easy huh?

I'm thinking that you could find numerous uses for this. Add some fresh herbs to serve with antipasto, use it with meats…….

Athens: A little self catering

March 23, 2012 mmm-yoso Athens, Greece, Greek Food, Markets & Grocers, Travel

We headed back to our room after a pretty long day, starting with the Acropolis, down to the Ancient Angora, up to the Central Market, back to Syntagma Square and the changing of the guard. It was time to head back. We did take a short break at Hadrian's Arch, built by the Emperor Hadrian in 131 AD. It is said that the arch marked the dividing line between the old city and the new city of Athens. Just a handful of yards away stands the Temple of Olympian Zeus. Work on the temple was started in the 6th century BC, but not completed until the reign of Hadrian. It was built to be the greatest temple Greece, but was pillaged by the Romans in the 3rd century AD. Eventually, much of the temple was removed to be used for construction elsewhere.

By this time, I'd pretty much had my fill of ruins and temples. Walking back up the hill to our hotel, we ran smack dab into the farmer's market that was just getting started when we left in the morning.

This was how it looked in the morning…….

Right now it was going full blast……..

It had been a pretty long day and we didn't feel like heading off into the mass of humanity that is the Plaka, so we decided to self cater. Hotel Tony had a small kitchenette stocked with plates and utensils. We first headed down a couple blocks and went to the market. We bought some cheese and a bottle of wine.

While the really nice fellow behind the counter fed the Missus samples, I had a look around. I even noticed Soy Sauce being sold. Having picked out what we needed we headed back up to the now dwindling mass of humanity and started browsing.

Of course olives were on our list and this stand had a great selection.

We went through all the booths of tomatoes and found some really ripe ones and some great cucumber as well. No stove so their wouldn't be any cooking going on, though that's not to say I wasn't sorely tempted…..

While the Missus freshened up, I popped open the bottle of wine and set the table. You see, the other thing great about this room at Hotel Tony was the little balcony.

Dinner was perfect for relaxing at the end of a somewhat busy day. It gave the Missus and I time to reflect on our day and plan what was coming up next.

As I watched folks going about their daily routine, getting home form work or taking the dog out for a walk, I was reminded of something that I always mention to folks…… we are more alike than different.

I also reflected on the fact that here I was…in Athens…..over 2000 miles from my home in San Diego, sipping wine on a balcony watching a young woman walking a dog. How did some poor kid from Hawaii ever manage to get here? I have really been lucky……

Of course, I didn't have too much time to dwell on the subject…..I was dog tired.

We'd be having a long day again tomorrow….maybe not physically…..we were headed to Delphi and Meteora in the morning.

Thanks for reading!

Breakfast of Champions: Lana’i Edition Part 2 – Blue Ginger Restaurant, Manele Bay Resort, Hulopo’e Beach, and the Puupehe Rock

March 22, 2012 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Lanai, Travel

The Missus must have felt really comfortable at the Hotel Lana'i. As usual I got up pretty early….She was still counting, sheep, or maybe opihi…. I decided to walk down and grab a bite to eat. Having another meal at Canoe's sounded tempting, but I decided to walk a few more feet, right next door actually and grab a bite at Blue Ginger. There were a lot of old timers hanging out in front drinking coffee. I went to the counter and ordered a "regular breakfast" which consists of your choice of protein (Portuguese Sausage of course), two eggs (over easy), fried rice, and toast. I grabbed a cup of coffee (serve yourself) took a seat at one of the tables adorned with blue vinyl checkerboard tablecloths, and took a look around. I recall someone telling me this used to be the dry cleaners and looking at the pipe fittings hanging from ceiling, I'm thinking they were right.

I quickly figured out why this place was popular with the old-timers. The coffee was serve yourself, the cups were quite large, and you can just keep your caffeine buzz going….

My breakfast was not quite as good as what I had the previous morning. The sausage and eggs were good, but the fried rice was a bit too mushy for me and the toast was loaded with margarine.

As I walked back to our cottage I noticed an interesting vehicle in the parking lot.

Hmmmmm…..

I hung out and watched the TV until the Missus woke. She, of course, instantly wanted to head back to Hulopo'e Beach…of course. But first She needed Her caffeine fix, so we headed down the hill and got a cup of coffee for Her. Wouldn't you know it….as we headed back up Seventh Street, we saw one of the shuttles driving up to the front of Hotel Lana'i. The Missus determined not to miss a single moment of beach time decided to run up the hill to the shuttle. Of course, She first handed me Her scalding hot cup of coffee yelling at me to hurry up as She took off up the hill. Somehow, my stumbling attracted a dog who decided it would be great fun chasing me nipping at my heels. So there I was looking like some pupule (crazy) tourist being chased up the hill by a dog spilling hot coffee all over himself….only to find that the shuttle we were chasing was the one to the airport. The other folks waiting around for the shuttle to Manele were treated to a bit of morning slap-stick courtesy of your truly and his first degree burns.

Now the last time I was in Lana'i the resort at Manele Bay wasn't open yet. So I was interested to see what it looked like. The shuttle drops you off right in front of the hotel and you walk through the lobby and down the trail to the beach. Unlike many other resorts, you're not bothered much at all…in fact the staff was giving us water and even asked us if we needed towels? Well, there are only the two big resorts and the Hotel Lana'i on the island, so I guess they figure you must be staying at one of them……

The lobby of the hotel is beautiful with a strong Asian theme.

There's a sense of quiet and exclusivity on mst of the hotel grounds. The Manale Bay Resport only has 236 rooms so things really don't seem very crowded.

I'm wondering what the staff to customer ratio is……as there seemed to be quite a few people working.

Here's a view of the pool area and Hulopo'e Bay below…….

To get to the beach, you simply walk past the pool and head down the trail past the foundations of a old fishing village…..

I tell folks I know who are going to Lana'i to "look out for all the turkeys." They think I'm joking, but there are folks of wild Rio Grande Turkeys flourishing on Lana'i. I've heard they have to be brined before cooking because they've learned to catch and eat crab and other crustaceans and there's no real above ground freshwater source on Lana'i so they drink brackish water making the meat fairly funky. Sorry to say I've never had it….though I did taste wild venison from Lana'i years ago. Still, it's quite a sight seeing flocks of wild turkey roaming the golf courses…more on that later.

As I mentioned before, the beach here is lovely and the Missus loved it.

After swimming I took Her past the camping area to the tide pools, which are great fun. There's even a stairway built going down to the tide pools.

Hike a bit further up the dirt path and you'll see one of Lana'i's landmarks, the Puupehe rock, also known as the Sweetheart Rock and the Tomb of Puupehe.

Several variations of the story exist, but the gist of it is the same. A young warrior from Lana'i fell in love with a beautiful girl from Maui. He was so jealous and afraid he would lose her that he hid her away in a sea cave near the rock. One day, the weather turned bad, he rushed back to the cave to find she had drowned. He managed to retrieve her body, and with the help of the gods scaled the rock carrying the body of the woman. When he reached the summit, he buried her on top of the rock.

There is an actual rock structure on the top of the rock! The late Archaeologist and Anthropologist Kenneth Emory actually scaled the rock and investigated the platform. He concluded that this wasn't a tomb, but more likely a altar. Nice story though!

Anny’s Fine Burger – Kearny Mesa: A first look

March 20, 2012 mmm-yoso Burgers

I really didn't think I'd be doing yet another burger post this soon. I also thought San Diego was pretty much saturated when it came to burgers. But looking back, I guess I was wrong. After mentioning that Anny's Fine Burger was coming to Kearny Mesa, I was surprise at the response. A couple of folks mentioned the need for a decent burger spot in this area…..and you know what, they're probably right. Still, I hadn't planned on visiting Anny's until they had a couple of weeks. But FOY (friend of yoso) "Green Turtle" seemed pretty excited about the prospect of the place opening and "GT" wasn't alone as I got three emails asking me when I planned on trying the place out. So of course I had to go, even if the signs weren't completely up yet.

First off a couple of things to temper what I'm going to write….the place has just opened, they looked like they were trying to find their footing. The folks working were polite, but tense looking. All understandable.

The menu at Anny's is huge with 30 different burger variations and sandwiches, all of which are posted alongside the wall. Everything from your basic burger, bacon cheese burger, to pastrami burgers and something called the Monster burger with "baked pastrami", turkey, and bacon. And in case that wouldn't be enough, you can add a fried egg and even another 1/2 half pound patty! According to "the wall" all 1/2 pound patties are made with Angus Beef.

When I arrived the place was maybe 1/3 full….the place was packed when I left.

If you've been reading long enough, you know that I'll always try a basic burger first, which is why I ordered the Classic Burger ($5.50). A half pound burger, with lettuce, tomato, pickle, red onion and thousand island dressing.

Oh, yes, notice the fries? Well on this day, because of the grand opening and so forth you can get either fries or a soft drink free with your burger. So this may be enough to get you down there. As for my opinion of the fries? Well, I'll go the "don't look a gift horse in the mouth route" and save that for a later time.

Did you notice something about the burger? Take a closer look……

Looks like a double burger….but I only ordered a single. Well that's because it was actually in three pieces. Once I removed that skewer it fell out of the bun onto the plate. Well, at least I got a taste of just the burger. It was on the tough side, though moist. I'm thinking that maybe this is probably more along the lines of 85-15? The burger could use some salt, but it had a bit of beefiness and there seemed to be an onion flavor. The thousand island dressing was very mild which is not a bad thing. There was a bit of lettuce overload going on as well. The bun was toasted but not hard and dry. There's potential for a pretty good burger here and based on Cathy's post on the Santee location, I'm thinking that they can do better. I'm sure they will once they get all the kinks worked out. Funny thing is….I still think it's better than Five Guys.

I'll give them another shot in a couple of weeks.

Anny's Fune Burger
5375 Kearny Villa Road
San Diego, CA 92123

Hours:
Mon – Sat 11am – 9pm
Sunday 1130am-8pm

So there you go folks…I hope you go and get your free drink or fries!

Bandeja Paisa from Tropicafe

March 19, 2012 mmm-yoso Colombian Food and Restaurants, Latin American Cuisine

**** Tropicafe has closed

I'd had a couple of requests to check out Tropicafe in Chula Vista, mostly from folks who I really didn't know. So a couple of weeks back, I spoke to a co-worker AF, who lived in Colombia from the age of 8 to 18. He'd been asking me if I knew of anywhere that had Colombian food on the menu…anyplace but Tropical Star. I told him I'd heard of a place in Chula Vista called Tropicafe, but hadn't tried it out…..AF told me he'd check it out and report back. Then I didn't see him for maybe a month or so. when I finally saw him, he told me, "the food is pretty much the real deal, but not everything is great. It's worth a try, just stay away from the Mexican food, which is on the menu because they need to make a living." Asked for a recommendation, I was told, "everyone needs to have the Bandeja Paisa the first time. There's better things on the menu, but that's the national dish."

So there I was, taking the Main Street off ramp in Chula Vista and driving into one of the "garage strip malls"……and right across from Juan's Auto Repair and the Mercedes Engine Exchange was this tiny shop.

The place opens at 930 am, and I'd arrived pretty early. The restaurant is pretty small, maybe five tables….I was thrown off by the chafing dishes when I entered, but it was part of a display advertising their catering business. The drill is simple, I walked to the counter and ordered, which I'm sure is not the way, or maybe the way, since half the folks coming after me sat and ordered when the menu arrived and half just sauntered to the counter like I did. The woman in the kitchen in the back smiled and gave me the "peace sign".

Naturally, since I'm very good at following instructions, I ordered the Baneja Paisa. After having a seat, the young man told me there was a problem in the kitchen and my order would take about 20 minutes. I was asked if I wanted something else. I had nothing really to do, so I told him I'd wait, which turned out rather well for me……

As I sat and checked my text messages and emails folks started filtering in. After about ten minutes, the young man delivered a fragrant cup of soup to my table. He apologized for the wait and said 'please try the Caldo de Costilla".

A nice hot, mildly thick soup, the flavor of beef and cumin really stood out. I later read that this is Beef Rib soup and popular breakfast item. The main starch item being potatoes. It was very hearty soup which I enjoyed.

About five minutes after finishing my bowl of soup, the young man came by and dropped off a little plastic basket telling me, "your food is almost ready, but here's one of our empanadas for you to try……"

The color of the empanadas was almost a bright yellow. The out crust was quite crisp, but there was still some heft to it. The main flavor in the filling was of seasoned potatoes, which was very good. The meat really didn't have much flavor and I believe it was chicken based on that. The Aji/Salsa had a nice kick to it. I'm thinking there was some habanero in it.

Soon enough my plate arrived. The name is derived from the people of the Paisa region of Colombia, thus it is the "Paisa Platter", I'm figuring the folks of this area had historically worked some major manual labor, because the Bandeja Paisa ($10.50), along with being Colombia's National Dish, is a major calorie bomb.

If God were Vegan, I'd have spontaneously combusted on the spot……. The look on my face got laughs from the folks on the other table as I stared down this amalgamation of fat and protein. I turned to them and said, "I'm going to need a nap after this…." Which drew some good natured laughs. As for the food….

My least favorite items were the beef which was really dry and had a texture like cardboard; and strangely, the chicharon, which was nice and crisp but without much flavor

The fried egg was nice, but I noticed that they food wasn't salted. I enjoyed the patacones (tostones), basically fried green plantains, very mild and not sweet, but also nice and crunchy. The Aji added a nice punch here. The chorizo reminded me of a spicy Longanisa, it had a nice sweetness, but a little punch as well.

The one item I really enjoyed was the beans, which were seasoned well, with a nice pork flavor and a mild sweetness.

I like that the beans weren't overcooked and went real well with the rice (hiding under the egg). The menu description also mentions an Arepa, which is sort of like a pupusa, but I think I'd have been near death after that. The other table was having a few, so I think I'll save that for next time.

Yes, there will be a next time. Probably some rib soup, arepa, beans and rice. Or maybe some other soup. I really enjoyed the friendly folks working here, if not everything in the Bandeja Paisa.

Tropicafe
2530 Main St
Chula Vista, CA 91911

Hours:
Wed – Sat 930am – 6pm
Sunday 930am – 5pm