July 2015 – Page 3

Barcelona: Barri Gòtic Again, La Ribera, and a Revisit to Bar del Pla

July 9, 2015 mmm-yoso Barcelona, Spain, Spanish Restaurants and Cuisine, Travel

We usually don't spend more than two nights at any location. The Missus is funny that way. She gets "tired" of places and wants to move on. However, I planned on three nights in Barcelona, and in retrospect, even this was too short. We could have easily spent a week, or more. On this morning we had tickets to the Picasso Museum and the Missus had determined that we'd be walking there.

From Sagrada Familia we headed off, first down Avinguda Diagonal, then down Passeig de Sant Joan.

Past the Plaça de Tetuan and the statue of Bartomeu Robert also known as Doctor Robert.

At the end of the street is the Arc de Triomf, built as a main gate for the 1888 World Fair. It now marks the entrance of Ciutadella Park, which holds the Parliament Building and the Zoo.

We decided to stop and have some espresso before crossing the street and passing through the gate.

It's a nice green space, where locals and their dogs love to hang out.

We spent the time before our reservation itme walking the street of Barri Gòtic. It is by far our favorite neighborhood in Barcelona. When we return, this is where I think we'll stay.

We loved the Picasso Museum (sorry they don't allow photos). I really didn't appreciate Picasso until I saw his early works at the Prado Museum in Madrid. He was so talented at a young age; his father was an art instructor and professor at the School of Fine Arts, so Picasso was taught in the most traditional way. His early work really highlites his talent. The transformation from his early works thru his various periods, to cubism is amazing. I finally understood his famous quote: "It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child."

At age 16 Picasso attended the Royal Academy of San Fernando in Madrid. While there he visited the Prado Museum and among the works that made an impression on him was Velasquez's Le Meninas, which I was blessed to see myself. Which Picasso set out to interpret in only the way he can.

It also displayed some of the 40+ interpretations of the classic, an amazing amount of work. It just cemented my appreciation for Picasso. As far as I'm concerned, a must visit.

Picasso Museum
Carrer Montcada 15-23
Barcelona, Spain

After visiting the museum, we meandered around Barri Gòtic, then into the Ribera neighborhood taking time to stop in at the Church of Santa Maria del Mar -the "Church of the Sea".

Completed in 1384, this is the only surviving church built in the Catalan Gothic style. The interior is pleasantly spacious and uncluttered.

Just a few blocks away is the waterfront and some of my favorite pieces of public art.

Barcelona's Face – Cap de Barcelona.

Created for the 1992 Olympics by Roy Lichtenstein it is said to be inspired by Gaudi.

In contrast to previous days, cloudy and drizzly, this day was bright and sunny. You couldn't help but smile…..and you couldn't help but smile along with Gambrinus – The Barcelona Lobster.

This happy crustacean was once part of a now defunct restaurant. When the restaurant closed, the city of Barcelona bought it and installed it here.

We ended our walk at the Columbus Monument, which is also the end of Las Ramblas.

The Missus wanted to return to Barri Gòtic. She saw some shops that interested Her. So we headed back.

She found a shop that sold hand made sandals in the typical Spanish style.

By now we were getting hungry. We had enjoyed our previous visit to Bar del Pla and was just a block away, so why not? There was still a couple of items we wanted to try. Like before, having no reservations, we sat in the bar area.

The Missus had Her crianza and I had a beer. We placed our order.

That phone in front kept on ringing, folks walked through the door trying to get a table, or making reservations.

Meanwhile, I got to watch that flying pig swaying back and forth above the bar.

It was kind of relaxing in that "watching the aquarium" kind of way.

Of course we had to have the pan con tomate…..

Next up, the tasty and porky, Pork Cheeks.

Fork tender, porky, mildly sweet demi glace, this was nice.

This was followed by the House Foie Gras.

Ok, this is foie gras, seared, rich, they love their pine nuts…….a touch of sweetness, the wonderful flavor of pure fat. This was a triggering event for us. From this point on, we'd be having foie gras every single time we saw it on the menu. Every time……

The lamb "terrine" was interesting.

Like the pork trotters we had on our previous visit, this looked like a product of sous vide that had been seared. It was very tender and well seasoned, tasty though that flavor of the pasture we enjoy was quite muted here. Still, not a bad dish at all.

We enjoyed our visit to Bar del Pla and will definitely return when back in Barcelona.

Bar del Pla
Carrer de Montcada 2
Barcelona, Spain

After our post meal espresso's it was time to head off. It was just past 1pm, there was much more to do……

Thanks for reading!

Lunch Revisits: Katsu Cafe and Hinotez

July 8, 2015 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants

Just a couple of recent revisits.

Katsu Café:

Wanting to stay close to the office, but needing to get "out", I decided on revisiting Katsu Café. The last time I was here was right after the change over from Teri Café. In all honesty, the place looks exactly the same. It's also really popular…….it was filled when I left. Funny thing, there's still nothing called "katsu" on the menu. The tonkatsu and chicken katsu are still called "cutlet" on the menu. Go figure.Technically, they are serving "katsuretsu"….but still.

Not feeling very creative I ordered the Chicken Katsu Cutlet.

While still not the huge protein-fest I had on my previous visit; the portion size was still more than adequate. No changes in my opinion of the green salad and mac salad…..though does anyone find that a bit redundant?

The chicken was fried well, the panko crust golden brown and crisp. The chicken was on the dry side. My one pet peeve when I have katsu is when the breading crumbles off. Some separation is ok, but as a whole the breading needs to stay on the protein. As I grabbed a bite of my chicken the breading just fell off.

The end slices were fine, but not anything in between. This usually means something had gone awry with either the temp of the chicken during the breading process or perhaps the temp of the oil was off, or???

In the end, my opinion of the place stays the same…..if you like quantity more than quality, Katsu Café will fill the bill.

Katsu Cafe
7305B Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111

Hinotez:

There were a couple of pretty hot days right when we got back from our trip. I needed a break and wanted someplace fairly quiet for lunch, so I decided to drop by Hinotez.

The place was empty during lunch and doesn't that person in that vintage beer poster in the tatami room look familiar….like infamously familiar?

I went with the Tempura Zaru Soba. My expectation weren't very high, but this was not bad. At first glance, I thought the noodles weren't drained well, but they were, and also quite al dente and chewy, the way I prefer my soba. Everything else was pretty much by the book and nothing special, but not terrible either. The shrimp had a decent flavor, but the batter could have been more crisp, the tsuyu was totally very, how should I say it……"base-like" in flavor.

Still, it didn't offend, and was perfectly fine for this day. I still need to drop by to see if they're still making Japanese Breakfast.

Hinotez
7947 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

What’s My Craving? Homestyle Hawaiian (Chula Vista)

July 7, 2015 mmm-yoso Plate Lunch

Man, it had been a while since I had a plate lunch……a real plate lunch. I was craving some "Korean Chicken" from Homestyle Hawaiian. It's been almost a year since I dropped by. Since it's been even longer since I checked out the Chula Vista location, I decided to take a drive.

The place looked pretty much the same and I ordered the same thing I ordered on my last visit. The combination plate; Korean chicken – chicken katsu. I am a creature of habit I guess.

Was there ever a time when I could have actually finished all this food? Hard to believe. Instead of going "all rice", I'd never been a fan of Mo's mac salad, but today it was passable…more flavor than usual. The Korean chicken, with the teriyaki and mild spice, deep fried to add texture has always been a favorite. The katsu looked quite light in color, but was nice and crisp, and to be totally honest, I've been missing the ketchup based "local kine" katsu sauce too. I barely put a dent in the plate, taking most of it to go. I brought it home and the Missus whacked it. I guess She'd been missing this too.

I didn't see Mo. But I did see a sign announcing the opening of their third shop; on Midway. So I'll probably be getting another plate lunch fix in fairly short order.

Homestyle Hawaiian
1558 E H St
Chula Vista, CA 91913

Revisit: El Salvador Pupuseria y Restaurante

July 6, 2015 mmm-yoso Salvadoran Restaurants

It had been a while since I had a pupusa, quite a while actually. And for some reason I was craving some. So I decided to revisit El Salvador on University.

It had been nearly three years since I'd last been here and the exterior….of what was I'm fairly certain a Pizza Hut once upon a time. The place still looks a bit rough around the edges, though much nicer than when we first visited back in 2005.

I placed my order and things started with the same basic mild and thin hot sauce and nondescript chips. Save that hot sauce; you might need them for the pupusas.

I ordered three pupusas, no pacayas this time around. It took a good 25 minutes for my pupusas to get to the table. Though it looked like other folks were waiting even longer for stuff.

As always, curtido, what is supposed to be lightly fermented cabbage, was delivered to the table.

I say "supposed" because this tasted basically like coleslaw mix with some cilantro and a touch of dressing. This was a far cry from what the curtido used to be like here. This was plain terrible.

The pupusas arrived scalding hot to the table.

I loved the "crust" on these pupusas, though I couldn't put my finger on it, the texture seemed different than what I've had here before. The chichrron and potato and cheese versions were really salty. Usually the pickled flavor of the curtido would help cut the salt and in the case of the chicharron also the grease, but in this case it was no help. Eating those was not very pleasant.

The queso en loroco, made up of the edible bud of the Fernaldia Pandurata and cheese was the best of the bunch. To me loroco has a pungent-artichoke flavor and the milkiness of the cheese really helped move it along without cancelling it out. It was the best of the bunch.

I'm not sure what happened here. It's been a while since I've been here, so perhaps an ownership change? Whatever the reason, things just didn't seem quite right.

El Salvador Pupuseria y Restaurante
3824 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105

Sunday Sandwiches: Dudley’s Deli – Kearny Mesa

July 5, 2015 mmm-yoso Sandwiches

**** This location of Dudley's has closed

I recall Cathy's post on Dudley's Deli's expansion into Santee back in the winter of 2013. During the end of last year, I noticed that Dudley's Deli had also opened on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, next to Bangkok West.

For some reason, the place kept slipping my mind. I'd pass by and tell myself, "oh, yeah, I gotta grab a sandwich there…." And promptly forget about the place.

Finally, I tattooed, Dudley's Deli on my forehead, backwards of course, so everytime I stared in the mirror, Dudley's stared back….well, not really. I wrote myself a post-it note and put it on my computer at work. A couple back to back lunch hour meetings means I'll need to grab an early lunch. Perfect for the early hours (open at 7am) that this place keeps.

The place is simple, a counter to order, a sandwich prep area, a cold case, soda fountain, and a couple of shelves with a few loaves of Dudley's breads.

All the "Premium" Sandwiches are $8.95 and as you can see above fairly hefty. As was the Corned Beef Reuben.

The rye was nice, the sandwich is press toasted making the exterior crisp. Lots of sauerkraut, perhaps a bit too mild for my taste but passable….thousand island(of course), and decent corned beef; I saw Dietz and Watson signs, so figure that's what's being served. This was perhaps, too much of a good thing for me on this day.

After recovering, I paid another visit and had the Italian.

This was my favorite of the three sandwiches I had during my visits. It looked busy, but it was the combination of the sourdough and the pepperoncini, with a very nice mild Garlic-mayo that brought it all together. All the rather strong flavors worked well and I preferred this to Lit'l Pepper's, the "Comeback". The one thing that was unnecessary to me in the sandwich was the ham…..but it didn't interfere with the other items. Also, the tomatoes could have been more ripe; there were on the green side and had no flavor.

While I really enjoyed the Western Wheat Bread used for the TBA, I was not a big fan of this one.

The turkey was nicely shaved, but bland, as was the honey mustard, and there was not enough bacon for my taste. Something acidic, tomatoes perhaps, would have brought something out in the sandwich. As it was this tasted like a nutty swiss cheese and not enough bacon sandwich. Like I said, the bread was the best thing about this one.

Overall, I like having choices and Dudley's gives me another one. I enjoy their breads and am thinking about doing a "Build your own", using that Jalapeno Cheddar Bread. Any ideas?

Dudley’s Deli
9119 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92123
Hours:
Mon – Fri 7am – 4pm
Saturday 10am – 3pm
Closed Sunday

Happy 4th!

July 4, 2015 mmm-yoso Beer, Cooking, yoso-silly

Hope everyone is having a fun and safe Fourth of July!

Like most holidays, the Missus has to work, but today she'll be home at a reasonable time. For the first time since we got back from our trip, I've got a day with no plans and no "honey do's".

So it's been nice hanging out with Da' Boyz and I even have some time to do this…….

And basically just hang out and do a bit of work in our garden, which is starting to shape up.

I think the Missus will be happy with dinner tonight….I even got Her current favorite beer.

Be safe and have a great 4th!

COMC- Portugal: Sintra

July 3, 2015 mmm-yoso Lisbon, Portugal, Portuguese Food, Travel

I know, you're asking…."what, Portugal again?" Yes, I'm always behind on our travel posts it seems.

I just needed to do this last COMC (Clearing Out the Memory Card) post to finish up our trip to Portugal. (Believe it or not, I still have stuff on Belgium and Japan yet to finish) Instead of staying in Lisbon proper on our return trip from Rome, we took the train into Rossio Station and headed out for the 40 minute trip to Sintra, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

We spent our last two nights in this wonderfully atmospheric town. And while our experience with the cuisine wasn't that great, the town is beautiful.

From what we saw on our walk from the train station……

To the view from our hotel room……

To wandering the side streets……

Walking though the little streets in search of a snack or a meal was fun. everything just seemed to be tourist oriented food; even what was recommended by our hotel as being "really Portuguese".

To be perfectly honest, I kind of knew this. But I wanted the Missus to really enjoy Sintra after all the day-trippers had left, when the town was at its romantic best. Which meant staying in the town. It was a nice little break before our return.

Our dinner the first night was at Tacho Real. It was nice, but really nothing special.

Though walking around Sintra after the tourists are gone was wonderful.

The next morning we awoke and had a hefty breakfast and headed on our way.

Up the hill. Where the avenue became a smaller street……

Which gave way to a gate (where admission is paid), then trails, past an ancient Moorish Castle……

And finally to our destination; Pena National Palace.

Originally the site of a monastery, Ferdinand II commissioned the building of a Palace in the Romanticist style.

It is one of those places that is vividly unforgettable.

From the colors, to the restored rooms, to the view.

And yet, you never quite get the romantic beauty of it all until you climb up the neighboring hill.

It's quite an easy task….to let your mind wander; imagining the comings and goings, the intrigue, the stories that this structure could tell. Of how Amelia, the last Queen of Portugal, spent her last night before being sent into exile at the Palace.

The views are stunning and there are many trails on the park grounds.

We were glad we visited and stayed. We got to visit the palace and the park grounds before the buses of tour groups arrived.

We spent our last evening in Portugal walking around Sintra, picking out a little Wine Bar/Tapas place off the usual tourist trail.

A couple of glasses of wine, some small bites….it was a nice relaxed way to spend our last night….

We had started this trip with a pastel de nata and a pork sandwich, so it was probably appropriate to just end it with a low-keyed and laid back meal.

Thanks for reading!

What’s Our Craving? Roadtrip Edition – Song Long and Lien Hoa (Westminster)

July 1, 2015 mmm-yoso Chinese BBQ, Orange County, Road Trip, Vietnamese Restaurants

It had been quite a while since we headed out of San Diego on a road trip. Things had gotten hectic between vacations and various trips we'd taken. And yet, we really weren't satisfying some of our cravings. One of which was the Cha Ca Thang Long from Song Long. So last weekend we headed out, for the first time this year!

I don't think Song Long has changed much since we first visited a couple of years ago. But it had been long enough that the old menu had been replaced with a newer version and the Cha Ca Thang Long had gone up a buck to $17.95.

It's still more than enough for the two of us.

From the caramelized shallots, to the nicely fired fish to what we call the "gift that keeps on giving", the mam nem, which you keep pouring over your bun and greens, only to have it keep "returning" for the rest of the day! It's just a lovely dish, one of our favorites.

It's also good that they open rather early, since we could hit up places before they got busy on this Sunday.

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

Hours: Open Daily 9am – 10pm

Wanting to make the most of our visit, we hit up Lien Hoa, which had moved a short way since the last time I visited. It's been a while since I've had decent roast duck.

This was nice, not salty, could have used a but more bean paste perhaps, the skin is not the best, but the duck is meaty and it actually tastes better the next day.

It really hit the spot.

The place does put a lot of "jus" over the duck. In case you're wondering what to do with the last few pieces of duck and the sauce. Chop up the skin and what meat….little meat if you've done it right, and make fried rice. I actually made omurice with some of the fried rice I made……I was so hungry and the fragrance just took over, thus I forgot to take photos. Next time perhaps.

Lien Hoa BBQ
9311 Bolsa Ave
Westminster, CA 92683

This sure satisfied our cravings…..for now…..