April 2013 – mmm-yoso

Pho Nhu Y – Clairemont

April 30, 2013 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Pho Nhu Y has closed

Just a couple of weeks after my visit to Pho Cali in Clairemont for my Kearny Mesa pho round-up, FOY (friend of yoso) MrZ told me that the place was under new management. I wasn't quite sure what they meant by "new management"….was it the same name, just new folks, or what. So imagine my surprise when I drove on over and saw a very familiar name.

Of course that location became Thuan Kieu, then turned back to Nhu Y again. Of course, the first thing I thought about was the Bun Mam. We're sorely in need of something other than Pho in the area…..heck even the Pho isn't very good around these parts. A friend of mine, when mentioning another Pho shop linked a comment from that four lettered site. Basically that poster said something along the lines of, "I know good Pho, I worked in the mecca of pho in San Diego…." wait for it, wait for it…. "Kearny Mesa….." yikes, really? Wrong Mesa……

Anyway, if you just took a peak into the restaurant, you'd never have realized that an ownership change had taken place.

Much like the other Nhu Y, there are specials listed at the front of the menu. Unfortunately, the dish I wanted wasn't on the menu. The young man working here was very friendly, perhaps a bit too much for me, but I'm sure other folks appreciate him.

So I decided to settle for the Bun Cha Hanoi which was priced rather nicely for San Diego at $7.95. I was really interested to see how this would turn out.

As a whole, this barely passable. Actually, the best part of the dish was the mildly spicy pickles. The pork meatballs were bland and the marinated pork slices, though better in flavor was on the tough and dry side. Everything else was fine, the greens and herbs fresh, etc, etc……

Still, I wouldn't have been motivated to return if hadn't seen the greaseboard specials……where Bun Mam was prominently displayed.

So I returned a couple of days later and ordered the Bun Mam……and time seemed to stand still. The young man looked at me and really didn't seem to know what to do with me. So he walked over to the older gentleman eating at a nearby table….returned and told me, "sorry, no Bun Mam until after 3 pm." Say what? "Oh, okay, why not?" Reply: "because the smell disturbs our lunch customers…." Really? Bummer……

Let's call that strike one.

Strike two was when the young man told me, "I didn't know Korean's like Bun Mam!"

Strike three was Com Tam Dac Biet, the House Special Broken Rice ($9.95).

You can tell by the photos how this was, right? A symphony of dry; the com tam (broken rice), bi (shredded pork), and the pork chop. Greasy; the Tau Hu Ky (bean curd wrapped shrimp paste) and the shrimp. Bland; the cha (steamed egg and pork). Perhaps I should have complained and sent this back…..so in the end it was my fault…for:

1 – Ordering the Bun Mam before 3pm

2 – Looking (at least to the server) Korean

3 – Ordering the #1 item on the specials menu.

Still, I left on a mission. I was now determined to get that Bun Mam, or die trying……. I explained my mission to the Missus, who thought I'd gone nuts. But I'd be damned if I didn't get me a bowl of that Bun Mam. So I returned about a week later…….after 3pm……. The friendly young man remembered me. and so I finally did get my Bun Mam ($10):

The Bun Mam at Nhy Y/Thuan Kieu on El Cajon Boulevard had changed over the years. It had gotten much more sweet and spicy. This was the version I had back in 2006. Pungent and savory with a touch of spice….it was very hearty. The Bun and the vegetables/herbs added a nice texture and took a bit of the edge off the fermented fish flavor.

There was a generous helping of eggplant and more important pork belly.

Overall, a nice and hearty meal. I explained to the server that I really enjoyed the complex flavors, the combination of salty-sweet-spicy-pungent…umami in this dish. I'm even willing to suffer through the catfish that is served in it. I order stuff that I'm curious about, or enjoy, and I do like the Bun Mam at Nhu Y and recommend that folks give it a shot. Dont take my word for it Ed from Yuma enjoys it too. Apparently other folks do as well. A couple seated behind me ordered a two-fer…Bun Mam and Durian Shakes!

I'd found out from my good buddy "YY" that the older gentleman is actually Nhu Y. So when I went to pay at the register I asked him how his other restaurant was doing. He told me he had sold that restaurant ans was now here.

I guess one day I'll have ot try the pho here. I'll probably do it if I decided to have a meal here before 3pm.

Pho Nhu Y Vietnamese Grill
5375 Kearny Villa Rd
San Diego, CA 92123

Hours:
Daily 9am – 9pm

Eating on the hood of your car: The Mariscos Alex Truck

April 29, 2013 mmm-yoso Food Trucks, Mexican Restaurants, Seafood, Taco Shops

So there I was running low on petrol in City Heights. I decided to stop and fill up at the station on the corner of ECB and Fairmount and what do I see but a mariscos truck! I've passed this corner dozens, maybe hundreds of times and had never seen this truck before.

Since it was almost lunchtime and I was famished, this seemed like the perfect stop…..all the stars were aligned it seemed.

All the standard mariscos offerings were present on the menu posted at the rear of the vehicle. I did find it kind of strange that there were no prices posted, except for fish tacos which were a $1.25.

The woman manning the window looked familiar…..was this truck once one of the Mariscos German fleet? She always seemed a bit gruff before and this time was no different.

The consomme was decent, way too much celery for my liking, but not bad.

I ordered a fish taco and a gobernador, which came out to $6.25.

As fish tacos go, this was ok. All the usual suspects. The crema was mild and the tortilla routine. There was too much batter on the fish, which was on he gummy side. The fish tasted a bit off as well.

I hoped my Gobernador would be an improvement and while not as good as, say the original Mariscos German(no tomatoes), Beyer, or El Pescador, it was not bad.

The shrimp were plump and juicy, though the vegetables were undercooked for my taste. The cheese was perfectly melted and this was super hot, though it could have used more seasoning…oregano, salt, pepper. Still it wasn't too bad.

So I returned the following weekend for another try. Same gruff woman, though she must have a heart of gold as she gave the homeless guy a fish taco……me on the other hand, I just a "yes" as she looked down at me. This time I ordered the tacos de camarones and a taco de marlyn, which cost $7.50 total.

Quite a bit of shrimp in my taco, though this confirmed that I'm not a big fan of the gummy and not especially crisp batter. The tomtoes were green and not very good. The rest was decent.

The taco de marlyn….smoked fish taco was the best item I've had here.

The fish had a nice smokiness to it and while the versions at many places teeters on salty, this one isn't.

Again the peppers, celery, and onions weren't stir-fried long enough, making it them and raw tasting.

It was also a decent sized portion though another customer ordered the same thing while I was leaving and was only charged $6.50. Shades of Vietnam!!!

I'm hoping the pricing was a mistake. I wouldn't want to think the place does random pricing based on customers.

Overall, just ok, not quite in the same league as other trucks I've been too.

Mariscos Alex
In the parking lot of Qwik Corner Service Station
4357 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92105

Big Island: A revisit to Teshima and other stuffs

April 28, 2013 mmm-yoso Hawai'i - The Big Island, Japanese Restaurants, Poke, Travel

On our last full day on the Big Island we decided to just relax. We took a walk down Ali'i Drive then back around Kuakini Highway.

It was a quiet day, so we just drove around a bit and talked about lunch…..yes, you know us. Teshima's"old school Japanese restaurant" charm had really gotten to the Missus. So with not much else to do, we drove back up to Kealakekua and stopped by Teshima for lunch.

The Missus was craving fish so She immediately went for the "Fresh Catch" Sashimi Tray ($17.50) which was ahi.

For some reason, the Missus really enjoys the old fashioned tsukemono and sunomono. Ditto the old school miso soup.

The fish was very, very fresh, and the Missus scarfed up all twelve pieces in no time.

I went with the "Monday Special" ($12.75). Now I've read some complaints about the prices and portion sizes at Teshima…..but take a look at this for $12.75……..

Geeez…..really?

Five slices ahi sashimi, the teri beef was very "local" a bit chewy. The fried fish here is quite good as well.

The makizushi and inari sushi take me back to "small kid" time…though combined with a chawan of rice….man, that's more carbs than I usually consume in a whole day, or two, nowadays.

The Missus got the fried fish, tsukemono, sunomono, and miso soup.

So I had an order of the famous shrimp tempura($7.25) as well.

If you like crunch, these will fill the bill. The tempura is surprisingly light and crisp.

We both thought that it tasted a bit of old oil that needed to be changed though. There seemed to be a bit of an off taste and even some greasiness to all the tempura.

So in the end a good meal, but not wow'd by the tempura.

Teshima Restaurant
79-7251 Mamalahoa Hwy
Kealakekua, HI 96750

We spent the rest of the day "just cruisin' around". Went to various stores, including a couple of health food places and walked around a bit.

After a very typical afternoon nap, we went out and took another walk around……through Long's, Hilo Hattie looking for gifts for the Missus's relatives and friends.

As it was getting to late afternoon, we discovered we were still pretty full. So we thought we'd go for some poke and beer for dinner. We walked back to the KTA and the pre-packaged selection looked terrible, so we went across the street to Sack n' Save. The poke selection there was better. I eventually settled on some ahi limu with inamona and of course boiled peanuts (not pictured), which went well with the Mehana Humpback Blue, which was the best of the three we gried during this trip.

This was ok. Not the best quality fish, the ogo kind of tough and dry, but passable.

I'm not a big fan of seaweed salad, but the Missus likes it……

As evening settled we saw a good number of locals who seemed to know each other parking in the back of the King Kamehameha. It seemed like there was a big party going on. So after eating and a quick shower we headed downstairs and strolled over to Kailua Pier.

That's Ahuʻena Heiau in the foreground. I guess some company was having their Christmas Party….yes, it was that long ago.

The chatter and laughter brought smiles to our faces as we just sat and took in the wonderful Kona evening. We had a great time in the Big Island. It had been too long since we were here last. We'll be back again soon……

Saturday Stuffs: Moby Dick gets harpooned, what’s up with Viet Bakery and Pho, and Paris Bakery and Thanh Son Tofu do the shuffle

April 27, 2013 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants, yoso-silly

Haven't done one of these for a while, so I thought the time was right.

Moby Dick is now "70 Bobcha – Taste of Korea?:

Whatever that is…..

From the day I first saw the sign to actually eating there, I just had a feeling this incarnation was doomed. The owner seemed to have a thing about creating and opening places. The menu was all over the place, the quality of the seafood was decent during my visits….it should be, the guy who owned the place also owns Ocean Harvest, a seafood wholesaler. The spot was humongous and rather difficult to maintain, even with Kazumi manning a sushi bar in the back.

I have no idea what's up with this place now….I'll have to find out soon.

As for Kazumi. He was last sighted at the Snooty Asian, per Eater San Diego.

4805 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

What's up with Viet Bakery and Pho?:

It's actually kind of spooky. I first mentioned noticing this place in the same post as Moby Dick.And just like Moby Dick, this place just didn't do it for me. The dishes were uneven, as was the service, by the time I actually had a chance to try the pho the entire menu had changed. Everything that made the place seem special was gone.

The place isn't "officially closed" though, as you can see by the sign. I know for a fact that at least one offer was made to take over the spot, but it seems that the owners want to try again. They are currently using the kitchen for catering and such. As for the "we'll be opening soon", I wish them the best, but we know that this is often the kiss of death.

3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Paris Bakery and Thanh Son Tofu does the shuffle:

So I'm having a really lousy bowl of Bun Mang Vit and notice that Kien Giang has been replaced by Thanh Son Tofu?

5296 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105

Which got me wondering…..what's going on with the (former) Thanh Son Tofu spot. So I actually drive all the way down there to see. And to my surprise……

I see the Paris Bakery coming soon sign. So either Paris Bakery is moving here, or this will be a second location. There's a good deal of space in this place, so I'm sure they'll be cranking out banh mi and baguettes like crazy. The parking kind of sucks though……

4616 El Cajon Blvd Ste 15
San Diego, CA 92115

Some days you just don’t feel like cooking……

April 26, 2013 mmm-yoso Cooking

Man was the weather nice today……too nice to be cooking. Plus, I've been busy at work so I was a bit too lazy to cook.

So why not have something like this for dinner on a warm evening……

From left to right; nem chua, speck with blue cheese and whole grain mustard, truffle pate, head cheese with cucumber, and tongue and red leaf butter lettuce with whole grain mustard.

Don't kid yourself. Two or three rounds of this with a couple of nice saisons and you'll be full and happy.

I know I was.

I could have used some pickles or something with a bit of acid and maybe some red onion for some pungency, but I really wasn't complaining. Loved the head cheese and the tongue with mustard is nice. We were surprised at how sweet the new chua, a gift from a friend's mom was when lined up with items that are more salty.

This was all we wanted, and really, all we needed tonight.

Here's wishing a happy Friday to you all!

Roadtrip two-fer part 1: Song Long Restaurant – Westminster (Orange County)

April 25, 2013 mmm-yoso Orange County, Road Trip, Vietnamese Restaurants

Time sure flies. Back in mid-February, the Missus and I did a two-fer road trip to Little Saigon. Both destinations were recommendations. The first was made by "Kha" commenting on this post. It was in regards to Cha Ca Thang Long, which is basically fish which uses two items not often mentioned with regards to Vietnamese cuisine; dill and tumeric. The dish is a specialty of Hanoi and we ate it at Cha Ca Thang Long Restaurant in Hoan Kiem District. We've had it at what I thought were the two, Vien Dong and Ha Noi best Cha Ca restaurants in the Little Saigon area. So when Kha mentioned a place called Song Long, which someone else inquired about before, mt curiosity was piqued. Kha then added that he'd had Cha Ca Thang Long at the namesake restaurant in Hanoi as well and his parents thought the Cha Ca at Song Long was better, well…….

Song Long Restaurant:

The interior of the place look like a diner/coffee shop and there was a funny combination Tet/Valentine's day display that was hilarious.

The menu is French influenced Vietnamese, with Bun Cha on one page and Nicoise Salad on the next. Since this arrived just after we sat down, I guess everyone get some bread.

Of course we got the Cha Ca Thang Long ($16.95) and guess what?

This was really good. The fish, which we were told was catfish, something that I usually won't order in the US, wasn't muddy tasting in the least. Tender and moist….and with a lot less oil than the stuff in Vietnam which is literally swimming in two inches of oil, topped with a liberal amount of fried shallots and dill, and a base of onions was delish with the huge amount of the usual suspects of bun, fresh herbs, and vegetables. The mam nem, a heady and wonderful mixture of fermented shrimp paste, a touch of chili, a sweet component, and acid was addictive and the Missus couldn't get enough.

So Kha, as far as we're concerned, your parents are totally right about the Cha Ca Thang Long.

Curiosity got the better of me as along with the fish I ordered the Escargots de Bourgogne ($6.95). Vietnamese love their snails and whelks so I expected this to be pretty good, but it was not.

This was rather cold, the herb butter greasy, and the snails were beyond rigor mortis. This was not good eats.

Overall, the service was decent, not particularly attentive, but this was Bolsa Avenue, so I didn't expect much. I'll be back for the cha ca thang long…..and I saw a bowl of Banh Mi Bo Kho walked pass me that was calling out to me. No more snails though.

Song Long Restaurant
9361 Bolsa Ave Suite 108
Westminster, CA 92683

Hours:
Open Daily 9am – 10pm

Thanks for the recommendation Kha! Thank your parents as well, they know how to pick 'em.

As you can tell, we really didn't load up here as we had another stop after this one.

Stay Tuned!

Frog Legs and Snapper from Red Rooster Catfish

April 24, 2013 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Cajun, Southern, and Soul Food, Seafood

**** Red Rooster Catfish has closed

So there I was on a bright sunny Saturday afternoon, exploring the empty Jacob's Center off of Market.

There's absolutely nothing going on here on Saturday about 1130, so why the heck was I here? Well, I was searching for a rooster….not any rooster, but a Red Rooster, a place named the Red Rooster Catfish. I'd heard about this place from two different people. One of them gave me the address 404 Euclid, which looked real nice on the GPS. It's not until you look around a bit that you realize that 404 Euclid is actually the Jacob's Center, which is set a good distance away from Euclid, with the main entrance on Market.

Which left me wandering around the Jacob's Center with some major doubts about finding the Red Rooster. There was nothing that even looked close to a restaurant.

Until I turned a corner……..

And saw this sign in the window……

And it still fooled me enough that I went around the corner thinking there'd be door to a restaurant or somethin'.

Which was not happening.

It's then I realized that this take-out window was the place and the two tables were it!

So I went back to my car and drove to this side of the parking lot. At about 1135 the place opened, two girls rushed out of nowhere and got to the window in a flash….I guess this was Red Rooster.

I had exactly what I wanted in terms of the mains in mind…….just about everything on the menu is fried. I just didn't know which side to get. The really friendly and tall gentleman named Joris recommended the spicy fried green beans. So of course that's what I ordered, the 3 sets of legs and fried snapper plate ($14). You should know that you don't rush things at places like this, so I had a fairly quick fifteen minute wait. During which I could contemplate things like….if this is "where mmm kisses aah", would "mmm-yoso" do the same?

I gotta say, these were fried very well. It wasn't 100% cornmeal, so while crunchy, the breading wasn't gritty. On the snapper it was perhaps a little too hard, but well seasoned and nothing to really complain about. The batter holds up rather well, I just can't put away all of that fried food like I used too, so over half of it came home for the Missus to try.

The spicy green beans were crunchy, nicely seasoned, slightly spicy, and went well with the mustard – aioli concoction called "mmm sauce".

The snapper just tasted like it had been frozen for a while, from the rather mushy texture to the fishy-slightly sour taste, it really wasn't my thing.

The frog legs on the other hand were really good. Crunchy, moist, and very mild in flavor. It lacked the rather off sourness of "old amphibian/reptile" and was very pleasant to eat. I saved a, ahem, "nice set" for the Missus who really enjoyed it. Loved the meaty parts where the legs, joined, the ah…well how to put it? I guess it's "where mmm-yoso kissed rump"? Something I'm sure many folks always wanted to see……

I'll be back to Red Rooster Catfish the next time I'm craving some good fried frog legs and perhaps try a good variety of the sides…..most of them fried. Joris is very hospitable and friendly. I hope this literal "hole in the wall" does well. I know they fry well……

Red Rooster Catfish
404 Euclid Suite 119
San Diego, CA 92114
Hours:
Tues – Sat 1130am – 7pm
Sunday 1130am – 5pm

Everything is fried to order. Call ahead at 619-795-8684 if you don't want to wait 20 minutes for your food.

Trails Eatery-Breakfast in San Carlos.

April 23, 2013 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

Hey there! You've found mmm-yoso!!!, the blog with more than seven years of writings of what Kirk and a few friends eat, drink and do. Today, Cathy is writing about a recent meal.

As you may know, San Diego County is more than 4200 square miles of land. More than 70 miles of Pacific shoreline from Mexico to the Northernmost edges of the county and inland another almost 200 miles from the shore to the Easternmost edge of the county. What we call "East County" is really still the Westernmost one third of the entire County.

This -in the background- is Cowles Mountain, the highest point in the City of San Diego, just South of Mission Trails Regional Park (the largest municipally owned park in the State of California), in a neighborhood known as San Carlos. The park has over forty miles of hiking, mountain bike and equestrian trails, a rock climbing area, a campground adjacent to a small lake. Many, many people drive to Cowles Mountain daily and hike it, day and night.

Less than a mile from both the Park(which has an entrance from Mission Gorge Road near Jackson) and the Mountain(which is on Navajo at Golfcrest), on the SE corner Jackson Drive at Navajo Road, is The Trails, an eatery serving breakfast, lunch and occasionally, dinner. (See the top of Cowles Mountain to the left all the way back?)

When you walk into the recently refurbished space (the restaurant was featured on an Episode of Restaurant:Impossible), to your left is a
small area selling souveniers. Yes, this restaurant does have many gluten-free choices on rather large separate menu as well as being close in proximity to the actual Trails and Mountain.

Bright, clean, spacious and inviting. The Trails has greatly improved.

The condiment choices are pretty much the usual.

On this day, The Mister chose one of the before 9 a.m. weekday chalkboard specials- a multigrain waffle with bacon($4.99). The waffle was light and fluffy, not heavy or chewy…though you could tell it was a bit 'healthier' and had more fiber than a traditional Belgian waffle. The bacon was quite flavorful; something I have not expected with thin cut bacon.

This particular morning was not about a sensible portion nor about low calorie. I came here for this- the French toast croissant combination, with two poached eggs and one sausage (I could have had two meats and no egg as an option)($7.99). I continue to try and replicate this method of making French toast using a croissant as the delivery mechanism. The egg is only on the top, the bottom is just toasty, flaky croissant goodness. The sausage is quite good (despite the dark color in this photo). It's juicy and has many spices in it, making it the perfect counter to the slight sweetness of the croissant. The eggs, as always, were perfectly poached, with runny, orange yolks.

Coffee is $2.29 and constantly refilled. In addition to an entire gluten free menu (including GF beer), cinnamon roll pancakes and Elvis Cakes (chocolate chip banana pancakes topped with peanut butter) seem to be a common breakfast order here.

It's a neighborhood place as well as a destination: just like Mission Trails Park and Cowles Mountain.

The Trails Eatery 7389 Jackson Drive (next to Keils Market) San Diego, Ca 92119 Open 7 days 7 am-3 pm and 5 pm-9pm Wed-Sat. (Lunch starts at 10:30) website

Trifecta Tavern-another restaurant inside a grocery store

April 22, 2013 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Burgers, Markets & Grocers, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog you are reading. It's about food. Cathy is blogging today: Kirk is busy and so is ed(from Yuma).

After reading about Kirk's post about Whole Foods Market in Hawaii, The Mister and I were curious about 'our' location and when we drove to the La Jolla location, saw it was being remodeled; the parking lot was a mess and signs about a grand reopening in a few weeks were everywhere. We jumped back onto the 5 and headed North, knowing a new Whole Foods had opened at the Via de la Valle exit -the same exit that you take when going to the Del Mar Racetrack. Signage there indicated '400 additional parking places behind Whole Foods', so we drove into Flower Hill Promenade and found the new parking structure. It was practically empty.

An excellent map of the current and soon to be shops of the mall was just inside the walkway to the 'front' of the parking lot. We walked into the store and straight ahead were a series of hot food trays, and to the right of those were a bakery, grab and go area, a sandwich shop, pizza and deli area and to the direct right – right from the front door was the Trifecta Tavern. Because every grocery store seems to have an eat in area.

But- this one, inside Whole Foods, also serves a choice of 24 beers on tap, has a nice wine selection, daily specials and a very easy one page menu. It was lunchtime so we didn't choose an adult beverage, but we may share a beer next time.

You seat yourself, but the waitresses are constantly checking the seating and ready to take your order. Here's a view of the above mentioned area of the store from my seat.

The Mister ordered the grass fed burger, which comes with fries ($8). This was *wonderful*. The bun was light, fluffy, toasted. The burger was cooked to a perfect medium rare and had such flavor. The fries were perfectly crisp, not greasy and lightly salted. Even the ketchup, which was just the Whole Foods 365 organic store brand, had a more pronounced, tomato flavor than I have noticed from other brands of ketchup.

I chose to try a bit of everything- the Nosh Plate ($9). Really really good. Two meats, three cheeses, grilled bread slices, fruit, pickled vegetables and seasoned nuts all served with a house made blackberry mostard. So nice, filling and refreshing. Being able to try the sliced proscuitto and salame was enough for me to purchase some before leaving the store, along with stopping at the coffee and juice bar and purchasing a small cup of gelato before the drive home.

Whole Foods Market-Del Mar 2600 Via de la Valle, Suite 100 Del Mar, CA 92014 (858)436-9800 open 7 am-10pm, seven days a week

La Marsa (Tunisia): Le Golfe

April 20, 2013 mmm-yoso European Restaurants, Sidi Bou Said/La Marsa, Travel, Tunisia, Tunisian Food

We had been a bit disappointed with Carthage and caught the TGM, the light rail back toward Sidi Bou Said. But instead of getting off there, we just went to the end of the line to La Marsa. We had really enjoyed the "vibe" and folks in that little seaside village when we visited. We were also lining up lunch. Rafael, that regular visitor to Dar Amilcar, recommended a restaurant in La Marsa named Le Golfe.

So we got off in La Marsa and like before were totally confused. We knew the address and hailed a cab. But after trying to converse with us for about 30 seconds he drove off. Just then a friendly looking gentleman eating an ice cream cone walked over and asked us…..

"you speak English?"
We both immediately answered, "Yes, do you?"
He smiled and nodded side to side, "No….."
It was really funny. He put his hand up with a single finger pointing to the sky and placed a call on his cellphone. A few minutes later a young lady, obviously his daughter appeared. Alright, she must speak English, right? The first thing she told me was…..

"I don't speak English!"
Me, laughing: "But, you are speaking English!"
Her: "That is all I speak.…."

This was hilarious. We were all laughing. Finally, I displayed the address of the restaurant. I didn't know that I had the phone number on the listing. The nice gentleman used his own cell phone and called the restaurant and got directions. I recall hearing some thing about "tourists…." He then hailed us a cab and gave the driver directions. Our cabbie was very serious looking. The drive was very short, the restaurant was a couple of blocks from the waterfront in a very upscale looking residential area. The fare was just 1.5 TND, about 95 cents! I gave the driver 4 TND and obviously thinking that I didn't know how to calculate prices tried to give me back my money. I explained to him that it was all for him. After all, the distance was so short. 4 TND is basically $2.50. We really enjoyed La Marsa.

The restaurant is very understated. In fact, we would have probably walked right past it.

The look is very modern.

We'd arrived before lunch service, but the nice woman told us to go ahead and have a seat. So we took the table overlooking the beach just steps away.

You gotta love the view.

We had a seat and just took in the view and the breezes from the Mediterranean.

Then the woman came up to us and told us it would be a short while for lunch since service hadn't started yet. We were just happy that they let us in and we were able to take in the wonderful view. But she also brought over some water and even asked us if we were going to have wine with lunch. They could get us started on that right away. So of course we got the Blanc Magnifique. They even brought bread over.

How nice was that? We would have been happy just to have waited, this gracious hospitality just made this experience so nice.

The Missus and I decided to just go for it and order whatever we felt like.

Since we've ordered it everywhere, we decided to get the Salade Mechouia (10 TND ).

Loved the presentation, down to the drizzle of balsamic vinegar and the capers, a local staple, which really added to the mechouia.

Overall, this was good, but not the best we had in terms of just plain flavor. A good salade mechouia has a very pleasant savory-smokiness, this one was good.

The Salade de la Mer (21TND) was very nice and refreshing.

Our favorite dish of the meal was the Seches Grillees (14TND).

Baby cuttlefish, so tender and full of flavor, simply seasoned with salt, pepper, and yes, a good amount of cumin. Grilled over olive wood, which seems to impart a nice smokey flavor which really brings out the sweet aspect of salt.

Goodness, this was possibly the best thing I ate in Tunisia!

The Missus had some reservations over my ordering Les Carpaccio de Bouef (20TND). But they were out of Carppacio de poisson on this day. We were rewarded with a refreshing and delicious dish.

Served on a ice cold slate. This was excellent.

Like the mechouia, because we order it everywhere, we got the merguez (11TND).

This was very nice, though in line with other versions we had during our trip.

We enjoyed a nice relaxing meal. The place started filling up with what seemed to be a combination of ex-pat/foreign officials and well to do locals. In all we spent about $70 US…..we've spent more at a "gastro-pub" in San Diego that didn't even come close to this in terms of food and service. This was by far the best meal we had in Tunisia.

We walked back to La Marsa and the TGM. As we crossed one of the streets I heard the honk of car horn. A cab passed me by, arm outstretched, waving to us. It was the cabbie who dropped us off at Le Golfe! In fact, everytime he'd see us, we'd hear a honk and without a doubt he'd be smiling and waving to us. For a $1.50 tip, we had a friend for life it seems! Such was life in La Marsa I guess.

Thanks for reading!