As in, yoso-silly, yoso-hungry, yoso-full, or best of all; mmm-delici-yoso!!!!! A San Diego based food and travel blog. An Ex-Pat Kama'aina and Friends explore food, restaurants, and travel from San Diego and points beyond.
Yes, it’s that time again. We’re off on another, all too short trip.
Guessing this one is easy.
From the amazing art.
To the great architecture…..
Land views are lovely.
We’ve stuck to mostly local, traditional dishes and the food has been surprisingly good and hearty.
Every meal seemed to be better.
People here have been amazingly nice. Though the crowds can be maddening.
Anyway, I don’t want to hog up your time.
We hope everyone has a Happy Easter!
mmm-yoso!!! is the food blog you are reading. Kirk is taking some time off and Cathy is writing a few posts, like this one today.
I wrote about Nutmeg Bakery and Cafe in September, mentioning that I wanted to try the weekend brunch…and finally I did.
Located just East of the 15 at the Poway Road exit then left at the first signal light, this five and a half year old Sabre Springs mainstay has been embraced by the locals. The bakery is excellent, making the baked goods (some gluten free as well as vegan) from scratch. The meals also are made using organic as well as locally sourced foods.
The restaurant style is order and pay first, find a seat and your food is brought out to you. We got here just before 8 a.m. and there was a good line of people waiting for the door to open; by the time we left, around 9, there was a line out the door.
The weekend brunch menu changes weekly and has a few 'standard' items. I saw there was a 'special' menu for St. Patrick's Day and suspect there may be a 'special' menu for Easter; if so, I will post it at the bottom of this post. Prices here are reasonable for the quality.
The steak and egg quesadilla ($12) made with grilled skirt steak, grilled onions, corn, cilantro mixed with (local, free range) scrambled eggs folded into a spinach tortilla with a three cheese blend. It was served with a wonderfully medium spicy home made salsa.
The spicy fries ($1.50) were a nice addition and plentiful (I brought the leftovers home).
The Nutmeg Scramble ($13) was excellent- local scrambled eggs with sundried tomatoes and organic spinach, hours made pork sausage and goat cheese, served over herbed potatoes (you see why we had to take potatoes home…so much…) and served with a from scratch buttermilk biscuit (and butter and locally made jam) as well as fresh fruit. This was a really great and special breakfast.
My friend, Ms. C, ordered a small latte which was so pretty. I had a cup of drip coffee- Mostra is served here. It was great.
She also ordered a slice of slice of this cake (I think it was German Chocolate cake, but am not sure; I'm not a 'chocolate' person), to go. She said it was wonderful!
I'll be going back again- soon. Nutmeg is a great place.
Who else has been here? cc, of course.
Nutmeg Bakery and Cafe 12640 Sabre Springs Parkway , Ste 107 San Diego, CA 92128 (858)486-8863 Open Mon-Fri 7:30-3, Sat-Sun 8-2 Website
mmm-yoso!!! is a food blog. Kirk has been blogging most of the year and is taking a break. Cathy is writing this post.
August 4, 2015; K Sandwiches burned. It was a sad day for many, even us here at mmm-yoso; Kirk wrote about this Vietnamese Snack and beverage corner first in July 2005 and again in November 2005. I first wrote about it October 2008 and again in 2012. There have been numerous mentions within our blog posts concerning sandwiches.
After the great fire, it took more than two years for K to re-open…January 5 of this year.
Since this was a former bank, the primary walls remained and so did the footprint; the remodel was not a complete rebuild. Now there's bit more modern feel.
The wall to the right when you walk in is Instagrammable.
The menu boards are clear and with only a few photos. Of course, prices have increased.
The grab and go area at the front has some interesting items.
Like my favorite brand of Chinese sweet sausage in links and in bulk.
As well as fancy refrigerated desserts including artistic jellied items.
The bakery area in the back carries the same items, especially my favorite item to grab when in a hurry-ham and cheese baked in bread (now it is $2.75, the price of some banh mi sold at K Sandwiches years ago)
Pate chaud and other baked items are on the counter being kept warm.
The center island is filled with various snacks and day old bread ends; easy to grab.
Opposite the counter warmer is another warmer with more fresh items and also another refrigerated area.
But, for my first visit back, the order was the same: a Number 9 (grilled pork banh mi)($4.25) and a cup of black coffee ($2.75)
The cilantro still has stems, the pickled carrots and daikon are just lightly pickled, the grilled pork is properly cooked and seasoned, house mayonnaise is just enough and the bread is so very fresh. I had been looking for these flavors for so long and only K Sandwiches seems to do it the way I like it. My comfort food is back.
K Sandwiches 7604 Linda Vista Road (at Mesa College Drive) San Diego 92111 (858) 384-7373 Open Mon-Sat 6 a.m.-9 p.m., Sunday 8-8 Website
Thanks for stopping to look at this food blog, mmm-yoso!!!. Cathy is writing today; Kirk is taking a break.
I wrote about Charley's in 2006 and again in 2013. This 45 year old (yes, since 1973) mainstay in Lemon Grove has been consistent and pretty much unchanged (other than for inflation and, as you can see, new signage) in all this time.
People seem to use the drive thru as much as the walk up window to order at the small kitchen area.
There are six 'specialty shakes' on the menu( caramel, apple turnover, banana, cookies and cream, peanut butter and black raspberry), as well as five 'traditional' shakes (chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, cherry and root beer) . Even though the apple turnover shake is made with two fried pies, and I enjoy the ice cream with pieces of crust, I seem to revert to my (comfort food) banana shake ($3.25) lately when ordering here.
Well, that and a double kabob sandwich. While the burgers are very good here, the unique kabob meat, served on pita is a particular craving for me.
Two pieces of the lightly seasoned ground beef with shredded lettuce, tomato. onion AND chopped green peppers with sliced radishes served on pita bread with mayonnaise. The flavor and crunch of the green bell peppers as well as the crisp, refreshing radish makes this a refreshing and very tasty sandwich.
Charley's Famous Burgers (kabobs and shakes) 8213 Broadway, Lemon Grove 91945 (619)460-2690 Open 8 a.m.-9:30 p.m.
mmm-yoso!!! is the name of this food blog. Kirk has been writing posts most of the year, while Cathy has been busy with work and occasionally a meal. Here's a short post about a new place she found.
While driving to meet a client in Spring Valley on a late Friday afternoon, I noticed this signage, across from the Starbucks, about a block away from Butler's Coffee House. Since I had about an hour to kill, I decided to give it a try.
Neat and clean with about seven tables, the menu is on the wall and grab and go products are easily seen. The menu is pretty standard, with fruit salads, vegetable salads, tortas and sandwiches, smoothies, juices, raspados, ice creams and a few other items. When I first walked in only one other person was there, but by the time I left, it was very busy. I noticed most people ordering smoothies and beverages…but I hadn't had lunch yet…
Since it was a Friday (when I don't eat meat), I thought a Panela cheese torta ($5.99)would be good…the man behind the counter suggested a Queso Fresco torta instead. I do like various Mexican cheeses and Fresco is lighter/airier and more like a Farmers Cheese (which I use to make Mom's cheesecake), so I said I'd try it. Same price.
Served on a fresh, very good quality toasted bollillo, with lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber and a thousand island style dressing, the sandwich was simply perfect. It also was quite large and I ended up taking half home for a late night meal.
Since I was hungry when first ordering, I also asked for a small pico de gallo ($4.99). Fresh coconut, mango, pineapple, watermelon, jicama and cucumber topped with lime juice, chamoy and chili powder.
The savory sauce and spicy chili perfectly rounded out the sweet fruit flavors.
All in all, hearty, tasty and plenty for two meals for less than $12. I'll be back.
Fruity Loco 9766 Campo Road Spring Valley CA 91977 (619)825-7800 open daily 7 a.m.-10 p.m.
Just a couple of things for a sleepy Saturday
Rice Noodle King Opens:
Replacing Dumpling Hut.
My sources tell me that it's the same owners as Sizzling Pot King a few doors down.
8046 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
The Stories of Boiling Passion's Demise Are Greatly Exaggerated:
Speaking of a "few doors down". I was surprised to see this sign when I recently went to grab lunch at Izakaya Sakura.
Which wasn't in place when I noticed that Boiling Passion was becoming Focus BBQ. Looking like the place is reopening a few doors down from the previous location.
So I guess Boiling Passion is back.
3904 Convoy St Suite 114
San Diego, CA 92111
Just to finish things up. On one of my visits to Con Pane to pick up some bread, I decided to drop by the New Americans Museum.
Mainly for this exhibit.
The photo on display to the right below kind of freaked me out…….that gentleman bore a striking resemblance to my Dad.
'nuff said……..
New Americans Museum
2825 Dewey Rd
San Diego, CA 92106
I was a bit intrigued when I first read about Shank & Bone opening in North Park. A Vietnamese place in North Park? Though this little phrase in that post caught my attention “traditional, authentic cuisine and flavors of Vietnam". Okay! You know what I think about using the term "authentic" when it comes to a cuisine. But "traditional", I can buy into that. Could it be? I decided to visit a few days after the place opened.
Traditional or not; the interior design of this shop is something to see. From the Shepard Fairey print to the bright colors and clean design.
In the category of "something to see", so are the prices on the menu; especially "that" bowl of pho…..more on that shortly.
I saw Beef Carpaccio ($12) on the menu. So I decided to start with that.
I also saw watercress; so thought the dish was perhaps a cross between Bo Xao Xa Lach Xoong and Bo Tai Chanh. Turns out it was closer to the former. I love watercress, so I enjoyed the veggies, the mint really helped; though the nuoc mam was weak on the fish sauce and too sweet for me. The beef was rolled up into balls, not the most visually appealing presentation. Upon unravelling the protein, I realized how large the four slices were. This was basically repurposing beef sliced for pho. It was a bit too thick for my taste.
Still, not a bad dish.
I also got the "Signature Pho" ($17). The bowl, sans soup was delivered to the table, and the broth poured from a pitcher tableside.
I noticed a couple of things right off. The basil and sprouts, the portion size of which was small, were starting to turn brown. The broth had a nice fat content and was dark brown, but gave off no fragrance. It was pretty weak; very mild beefiness, no anise tones, very little of anything. The noodles were too soft for my taste as well.
The two slices of top round were typical; on the dry side, though the flank and brisket were nicely done.
The biggest disappointments were the oxtail, which needed more cooking time as it was dry and tough, and the bone marrow, which sounds really good in theory, but quickly became a rather unsightly globule of fat in the bowl and for some reason had lost all its flavor.
Not my favorite bowl of pho by any means. And maybe "no MSG" might not be a good thing in this case? And I was left over thirty bucks lighter in the wallet as well.
The staff though, were a joy, very friendly, and just a nice group overall. Dishes did take a while, but I wrote that off to having just opened.
I was on my way back from Northgate Market the next day and decided to take a detour and try a couple of other dishes at S&B.
This time, I was seated at the bar. I looked over the beer, sake, and soju list. S&B does not have cocktail license, but I was intrigued at the "Old Pho-shioned" ($10). Which, while a bit on the lighter side…to be expected, was fairly decent. I enjoyed the anise-clove-burnt orange tones of the drink.
As for food; well, this time I went with the "Saigon Chicken Wings" ($10).
These were smaller sized wings; which I prefer for the skin/batter to meat ratio. The batter was a bit on the hard side and the glaze really, really sweet. The wings were also fried a bit too long as the meat was on the dry side. Not terrible.
I saw Banh Mi Bo Kho ($11) on the menu during my previous visit and was curious about that.
The beef stew, while on the thinner side had a nice amount of fat. The broth, while lacking a good amount of tanginess, had more than enough black pepper and beefy flavor. The beef was nicely done; not mushy and over-cooked, but unlike the oxtail not tough. I could have used more pungent onions and some anise tones in the broth, but this was fine. I also missed not having beef tendon. But this was, by far, the best item I had at Shank & Bone.
I was going to quit while I was ahead. But then I read Kirbie's post on Shank & Bone (please check it out) and there was a dish that caught my attention. So I decided to head on back.
The same great crew were present. I went ahead and ordered a "Plenty for All" and the Banh Xeo Tacos ($11).
This riff on banh xeo uses the "crepe" as the taco "shell". Very nice and creative. The filling is a combination of chopped pork, shrimp, bean sprouts (not enough), and jicama (not enough). It was on the mild side in terms of flavor. and the nuoc mam was low on the fish sauce and much too sweet. I liked the lettuce and mint, but missed the basil and tiet to (purple perilla) which adds a nice citrusy-anise flavor to banh xeo. Also, the crepe shells didn't hold up real well; but had a nice, light crunch while they did.
I needed a companion to my "tacos" and because that was a pretty large fat globule of bone marrow in my pho on my first visit; I decided to try the Roasted Bone Marrow and Banh Mi Crostini's ($13).
This just wasn't a good value as there wasn't very much bone marrow in these rather "skinny" bones. It was all gone with one slice of banh mi. The "chimichurri" had way to much citrus making it too sour….not a great match for bone marrow.
So that's it for Shank & Bone for now. I wish them well, but there's just so many almost $40 dollar solo mediocre lunches and dinners I can take. Still, it's a nice atmosphere, the staff is friendly…..but it's all about the food with me.
Though if you want hipster Vietnamese, well….this just might be the place.
Shank & Bone
2930 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92104
Hours:
Sun – Mon 11am – 9pm
Tues – Sat 11am – 10pm
Just a quick post of the Missus's favorite breakfast spot. We've done so many posts on Aqui es Texcoco over the years. We're usually here early in the morning, when the place looks like this.
And yes; we order the usual suspects.
And while I'm still fairly consistent, or as the Missus says, "boring". She's been changing things up a bit.
Two recent favorites of Hers. The Enchilada Mixto. The Missus usually goes with lamb, pork belly, and beans.
And She's grown rather fond of the Codornices Asadas - Grilled quail.
Of course, She's not able to eat both in one meal; so She'll often get the quail "para llevar" and snack on it later. It's a bit low on the "return on investment" side of things for me, but the Missus enjoys it.
And that's what really matters…….
Aqui Es Texcoco
1043 Broadway
Chula Vista, CA 91911
While planning our visit to Kanazawa I cam across an interesting restaurant named Iwashigumi. I first saw photos on Tabelog and was quite intrigued. So I had a friend make reservations for us. We took a nice long stroll down to the Katamachi district, a popular shopping and nightlife area. Iwashigumi is discreetly located fairly close to the main street.
The style is rustic, old school izakaya. I believe you can purchase a red lantern for the wall if you want.
As the name indicates; this place is all about iwashi……sardines. Yep, a restaurant specializing in sardines, everything from iwashi honesenbei to iwashi croquette. The Missus loves sardines (remember Tito 2 in Matoshinos), so She quickly agreed.
The set-up is like a sushi bar, with a few tables to the side. There's a certain charm to this place…..
When you order sake, they bring you a selection of ochoko (sake cups), some of which are rather interesting.
The Missus had sake and I started with some "nama-beeru"….
So, based on some of my previous posts on this trip, you can kind of figure that I just couldn't get enough of honsenbei, fried fish bone ("crackers"). The Missus was totally over it, but humored me ("for one last time").
Crunchy-savory goodness!
First up was the Iwashi-sashimi. You'd think this would be on the "oily" side, but this was very clean tasting.
There was a slight chew; the flavor and texture was reminiscent of Aji (Spanish Mackeral).
The Iwashi Tataki was another refreshing dish.
Nice crunchy vegetables to add contrast to the toothsome fish. Funny, we really didn't need the ginger for both of these dishes.
When we placed our order, we made sure to first request the grilled sardine which takes about 20-30 minutes.
Good salt and crisp skin. This was quite rich and oily, a bit too strong in flavor for the Missus. I did need the oroshi and lemon, to help cut the richness.
The Missus had no such problem with the Iwashi no Mentaiko.
This was our favorite dish of the night. The rich, grilled sardine, met straight up with the briny and spicy cod roe. Salty, but in a good way, this one made our night.
At this point, I needed to help the Missus with Her sake, so I choose the goofiest cup I could find.
Of course one needs rice to complete a meal; so we ordered the Iwashi Oshizushi, which filled us up.
We really enjoyed our meal. The service was friendly and efficient. One of the young ladies spoke pretty good English as well. Along with Kuroyuri, Morimori Sushi, and our breakfasts, Iwashigumi made our trip to Kanazawa a delicious one.
Iwashigumi
1-7-13 Katamachi
Kanazawa, Japan
Side note: While looking for the address, I noticed that Iwashigumi is on Michelin's Bib Gourmand list. Good for them!
We'd done quite a bit on this day, so we caught the bus back to Kanazawa Station and our hotel. I had some time to relax, catch up on emails, and work on a post.
For some reason, I found the taxi queue, and the patterns for determining which cab was up next mesmerizing……
You could say the same about Kanazawa……
After a nice respite at Oyama Shrine we headed out, past the city office and art museum, finally coming to the quiet entrance of Kenrokuen Garden.
Declared to be one of the "Three Great Gardens of Japan", we just had to visit. Kenrokuen was once the outer garden of Kanazawa Castle and was built by the Maeda Clan who ruled the area from 1583 to 1871. In 1871 the garden was opened to the public.
This is Hisagoike Pond.
It was pretty mellow; with tourists having a fun time.
Except for the few knuckleheads who walked over partitions and around the ponds and climbed onto structures like Yagao-tei Teahouse which dates back to the 18th century.
Next to Kasumigaike Pond stands the iconic Karasaki Pine.
According to the story the 13th Lord Nariyasu planted the seed from which this tree grew.
There's a nice plum grove. Plum trees start blossoming before cherry blossoms.
Do you know how to tell the difference between plum blossoms and cherry blossoms? Cherry blossoms have a "split" at the end of each petal, while plum blossoms do not.
We had a nice stroll to the other end of the park.
As we headed put the exit and down the hill we saw this beautiful Cherry Blossom tree in bloom. Or was it?
Yep, cherry blossoms…..
The Missus wanted to visit the Higashi Chaya District, so we headed down the hill.
Along the way we saw a shop doing bustling business. Turns out this was the Ishikawa Prefectural Products Center.
There was, of course, gold leaf products everywhere. I ended up buying some food quality gold leaf. We also sampled a bunch of local delicacies and ended up purchasing dried and preserved fish which was mighty delici-yoso!
I was tempted to buy a couple of bottles of "Lame Spray" for some rather "lame" folks I know……they would never figure out that is should be pronounced "lamé". But they really weren't worth the price tag.
Ishikawa Prefectural Products Center
2-20 Kenrokumachi
Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan
We had an uneventful walk to the Asanogawa River.
And crossed over the Asanogawa Ohashi Bridge, arriving at Higashi Chaya, a district full of historic buildings, faux geishas, gold leaf ice cream shops….
It was quite touristy; but in the low-keyed, mellow, Japanese way. And we ended up visiting quite a few shops.
We had a fun time……and it was the little things that seemed to catch our eye…..
We were starting to get hungry. Not sure where to eat, we decided to walk back to Omi-cho market. There was a Kaiten-zushi shop in the market that always seemed to have a line. I'm not big on conveyor belt sushi here in the states. It's usually of very low quality; but heck, if all these Japanese were lining for it…..
We had a wait of about 30 minutes, not bad….though we were fairly hungry.
You can get your sushi two different ways; by grabbing it off the conveyor (of course)…..
Or ordering from the handy-dandy iPad….with English translations as well!
You get tea from the spigot in front of you; the ginger and wasabi are in discreet containers on the table.
The first thing to arrive was the Aji (Spanish Mackeral). I had expected to be a bit underwhelmed. But I was so wrong. The fish was firm, moist, with a hint of oily-sweetness. The ginger helped cut through any richness and the scallions added a nice bit of sweet-pungency.
We picked the "slime meets slime", the lovely "neba neba" Natto and Okra Gunkan sushi off the belt.
This was quite delicious; the rice was so perfect.
The Hamachi was passable if a bit on the dry side. Good fat content though.
We ordered two different version of Negi-toro.
Both were excellent. The quality for the price was amazing. This is what I truly expect to get in a fishmarket.
We got a three piece combo with Hokkaido Uni, O-Toro, and Ama-ebi.
Based on what we had the day before, I expected the shrimp to be fantastic, and it was. But that uni was so briney, with a buttery texture, and that o-toro…..doesn't it look like beef?
We had a o-toro, which was fine….but not nearly as rich and buttery as the o-toro.
More "neba neba" goodness. Squid and Natto. This was so delicious.
Great textural contrast……
We finished things off with Crab and Crab Butter (Kani Miso). Man, this was so wonderfully savory, briney tones, great richness, the crab was tender and sweet.
At this point we'd had enough. You press a button and they calculate your check based on the plates.
The petite Japanese woman sitting next to us ate as much as the both of us and had a tokkuri of sake to boot!
And you knew she was Japanese….she just left her purse by itself, stood up and went to the restroom, which is outside the restaurant. Yes….this is Japan.
When our bill arrived, I looked at it and blurted out "holy crap"! This Missus was startled and thought something was wrong. And no, nothing was wrong, things were so right. You see, the entire meal came to 3300¥, about $31/US. With toro, real crab, amaebi, uni, real wasabi!!! And in Japan, there's no tipping as well.
Morimori Sushi (Omi-cho)
88 Aokusamachi
Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan
Like I always say; in Japan you can eat for 5 dollars or 500 dollars; it's up to you, and most of it is darn good!
Thanks for reading!