September 2018 – Page 2

Banh Mi Hoi An

September 18, 2018 mmm-yoso Banh Mi, Sandwiches, Vietnamese Restaurants

If you're headed down Rosecrans to Liberty Station, you can't miss the sign.

In fact, I first saw the "Grand Opening" sign on one of our trips to El Jardin, which I need to post on one of these days.

On one Saturday, I decided to drop by. I parked in the back and not paying attention almost walked into this guy……

Whom I also saw on my other visit as well. Very sad…..

On both visits; Hoi An was fairly empty. The guy at the counter was quite friendly, the menu had the usual suspects, Banh Mi (priced from around $4.50 – $5.50), Bun, Com (rice plates), Spring Rolls….you get the idea.

I decided to get the Hoi An Special….basically the Dac Biet ($5.50).

Now, I've heard some grumblings about folks complaining the banh mi here was on the small side……I beg to differ. I mean really, this decently sized.

The proteins in the sandwich were on the dry side; though the pickled veggies were decent; sour-sweet enough. Those huge slices of cucumber ruined the ratio of vegetables-pickles-meat-bread. I tasted the meat separately and they just about status quo. Now I know this is pretty much a "Westernized" banh mi shop; but I sure would have enjoyed a bit more pate. The bread was dry and on the stale crumbly side. I actually thought they didn't put any jalapenos in my sandwich; but I found some……for some strange reason they weren't spicy at all.

Just a so-so banh mi.

I returned a few weeks later……and really wasn't sure what to order….so I had a brain fart and ordered the "braised pork", which turned out to be barbecue pork (char siu), duh!

The bread was better this time around, though standard issue, it had been toasted well and was nice and crusty/flakey. The first thing I looked for were….the jalapenos; which again were really mild. Not sure what's going on with that.

I enjoyed the amount of cilantro in the sandwich and the pork was so dry and bland, I could actually taste the pate.

The pickled radish and carrots were crisp, with a nice balance of sour-sweet. Remember those huge slices of cucumber in the previous sandwich? Well, this time there barely a sliver. Go figure.

The banh mi here isn't bad. It just isn't worth going out of your way for.

To me; the perfect banh mi is a symphony of crusty/flakey bread that isn't too chewy; cilantro without too many stems, nice thin slices of peppers for that "jalapeno roulette". The proteins; there needn't be a huge portion, it's all about proportion, should be moist and have flavor, the pate should be somewhat rich with that touch of earth-funkiness. It's something I keep searching for.

This guy working was again quite friendly and asked me to drop by for Happy Hour….hmmm…..chicken wings……..hmmm….

We'll see.

Banh Mi Hoi An
3145 Rosecrans St
San Diego, CA 92110
Hours:
Mon – Sat 1030am – 9pm
Closed Sundays

Tokyo – Kizo Ramen

September 17, 2018 mmm-yoso Japan, Japanese Restaurants, Ramen, Tokyo, Kamakura, and the Kantō Region, Travel

It seems that during the course of our visits to Tokyo that we've developed some "traditions" of sorts. Dinner at Suzunari is one of them. And as we had breakfast, we decided to keep anther going.

The breakfast, we were given vouchers from the hotel, was basic and fine. We decided to head on down to Tokyo Station a few hours early; stash our bags in the always convenient lockers, and spend some time shopping, eating, and just enjoy our last few hours in Tokyo. We did manage to do some shopping; buying some gifts for folks back in San Diego.

When it came time to eat, well, that was easy. It was Ramen Street for us……a little habit that I think will become a tradition. On our first visit, it was the ultra-hyper Rokurinsha, on our last visit Oreshiki Jun. What was it be this time around?

Hmmmm…..we picked two and decided to check them out. After peeking into the two places; Kizo won out.

Mainly because the clientele, at least on this day all seemed Japanese; while the places (i.e. Rokurinsha with the huge line) had so many tourists. A big plus was that the specialty at Kizo is Sendai Gyutan Negishio Ramen…….beef tongue – scallion – shio ramen.

And as is the drill; we ordered a couple of other items on the menu and basically shared the ramen….like the gyoza.

Not the best "skins" which were brittle and plastic-ky. The filling was much too salty and a bit on the dry side.

Not the most auspicious start to a meal.

We also ordered the Beef Tongue Crouquette.

Man, the panko breading on this was fantastic; light and so crisp. This was the only light thing about the croquette as the filling was so rich; great beefiness, but perhaps too much of a good thing. A bit over-the-top for us. Wonderful textures though.

Which had us wondering how the ramen was going to be. We shouldn't have worried…..

As you can tell; we ordered extra ajitama, which was serviceable, the yolk decent and definitely not over-cooked. And those slices of beef tongue were heavenly….so tender, so beefy……as only beef tongue can be. The broth was good; not overly salty, it had almost a light garlic-beef-pork flavor to it. The tongue feel was really good, much thicker than it looked as it coated the nice, springy-chewy noodles well. The negi added a bit of pungency and crunch to things, but really wasn't needed in my mind.

And while we didn't have a whole lot of ramen on this trip, this was easily our favorite.

Kizo (Tokyo Station – Ramen Street)
1-9-1 Marunouchi Chiyoda Tokyo

As we left Tokyo Station I thought "well, it's three down; five to go….I wonder what we'll do when we reach eight?" Hmmmm…..let's not dwell on that.

Let's just enjoy the "interesting" and somewhat humorous signs that are posted…..

As with all of our trips to Japan; this one was chock full of memories….and Sakura!

Thanks for stopping by!

Circling Back to Leilani’s Cafe

September 16, 2018 mmm-yoso Loco Mocos, Plate Lunch

During my lunch at Homestyle Hawaiian; I started pondering my little blogging history with plate lunches and loco mocos in particular. When we first moved to San Diego; there were a lot less places for plate lunches. The first couple of places that I recalled having plate lunches were at Da' Kines and Kealani's, both places are now gone; I think they both now do catering. Among the next places I tried was Leilani's Café and then Da' Kitchen, which became Mo's Island Grinds, which in turn became what is now the little empire called Homestyle Hawaiian. So you could say; other than those ubiquitous L&L's and similar knock-offs, Leilani''s might be the only one of those "originals" still in place.

Which had me wondering how things were at Leilani's. So, the following morning, thank goodness Leilani's opens early, 7am, so I could beat the traffic in PB, I headed on down to see what was going on with Leilani's.

It was interesting to see that the outdoor area was pretty busy; at a few minutes past 7 on a Sunday morning. It looked like folks were having French toast and omelets. I had other things in mind. Since it had been nearly 9 months since my last Loco Moco, I decided on the Hilo Loco ($11), which is what I had on my last visit over three years ago.

Since my musings seem to take me back to the last decade; I though I'd bust out the "Modified Rubio scale", first developed in September of 2005, a while 13 years ago, a version of "loco scoring", first done by James Rubio in his now dormant food blog; Big Island Grinds.

For those playing at home – "The original Rubio Scale measured each item on the Loco, I decided to take the "base" items, the Burger, Gravy, Egg, and Rice. To this I added "Stuffs", that include macaroni salad, Spam, or any other item that comes with the Loco. All items are graded on a scale between 1 through 5, with 2.5 being average."

So, let's have at it shall we?

BURGER: Obviously hand formed with little filler; making it a bit on the tough and dry side. It was quite thick, with a decent beefiness, but could have used more seasoning. Adding a nice char would have brought up the score – 3.0

EGGS: Nice and runny, with crisp and crunchy edges. Winnah! 4.5

GRAVY: Nice and dark, fairly mild in flavor, a bit too "gloppy". And minus for not having Tabasco….only Sriracha. 3.0

RICE: Fairly moist, though many unbroken "lumps" more on the the other "stuffs" next. 3.0

STUFFS: Lots of Portuguese Sausage in the rice, good flavor, though there were lumps of rice not coated with shoyu/sauce and bit more spicy than I remembered. I do think the fried rice at Island Style Café is better. 3.5

Total score – 17, not bad. Considering that the last time I used the Modified Rubio Scale, that L&L only scored a 10.

Service was very friendly. Leilani's is a wonderful neighborhood joint, one that is nicely imbedded, since all the customers looked like folks from the area. I hope they keep going strong!

Leilani’s Cafe
5109 Cass St
San Diego, CA 92109
Hours:
Daily 7am – 3pm

I'd like to dedicate this post to DerekR who often comments. And in this case had coincidentally asked about Leilani's in the comments of my latest HH post. How funny!

Tokyo – Sansei Yotsuya

September 15, 2018 mmm-yoso Japan, Japanese Restaurants, Tokyo, Kamakura, and the Kantō Region

As with most things in Japan; we got back to our hotel efficiently. We were a bit tired from the days activities and after a short nap; we decided to stay in the neighborhood for dinner. The Missus was still in "Yakiniku mode" and we had asked Chef Murata (or at least Reiko had) for a nearby recommendation.

He recommended a place named Sansei…….which caught me by surprise, since I'm a Sansei.

The restaurant is located right on the main street; in the lower level of one of the business buildings lining Shinjuku-dori.

The restaurant it self is fairly small, but comfortable. We were seated at the bar and given menus, which the Missus was able to start translating. When the young lady heard us talking we were given English menus, but by that time we were ready to order.

But first, a nama biiru (draft beer), which was nice and refreshing. The Missus ordered some kind of ginseng beer, maekju, which arrived on ice.

A brazier was delivered to the bar; with lit charcoal in it. We were wondering if we'd end up smelling like grilled meat; but a panel was opened up on the bar which did a great job sucking out the charcoal smoke.

We weren't super hungry, so here's what we ended up ordering.

Mushrooms, which came drizzled with gochujang.

I enjoyed the gyutan, the best. It came sliced a bit thicker than usual, but with the wonderful marbling it grilled up nicely. Crisp edges, toothsome centers, and really absorbed the smokiness of the charcoal real well.

The Missus had fallen in love with horumon during a previous visit to Tokyo, so of course we just had to order the offal combination.

The horumon arrived with a typical slightly sweet-salty marinade of sorts. It was bit on the tough side; even for intestines. The Missus enjoyed the liver, never a favorite of mine.

Overall, we enjoyed the yakiniku we had earlier in the trip at Horumon Dedesuke mmore. But this wasn't bad. Plus, it was rather close to our hotel.

Sansei Yotsuyahonten
3-3, Yotsuya, Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo, 160-0004

I ended the evening like I often do when on vacation; with a couple of "cold ones".

The Suiyoubi No Neko; literally "Wednesday Cat" was a fairly enjoyable Belgian White, very "wheaty", with hints of orange and clove.

This time around; the Missus joined me, having some Sparkling Sake and I finished off with a Hitachino.

And some yuba snacks we got in Nikko….which we actually enjoyed much more than the actual yuba we ate for lunch!

We just relaxed and enjoyed our last evening in Japan.

It had gone by so fast……

Nikko – Toshogu Shrine, Lunch at Yasai Cafe Meguri, and the “Venus of Gyoza” at Utsunomiya Station

September 14, 2018 mmm-yoso Japan, Japanese Restaurants, Tokyo, Kamakura, and the Kantō Region, Travel

We had made the walk up from the train station and into Nikko National Park. We walked up the stone stairs past the walls gilded with moss. It was a lot to take in. On a misty day like this was; walking past moss covered stone lanterns, there is a feeling you get, mystery….wonder….like you've wandered onto a set of some movie…..

We were only spending the day in Nikko, so other than the Shinkyo Bridge, our main focus was on visiting Toshogu Shrine where Tokugawa Ieyasu, Shogun and founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate which ruled Japan for over 250 years, is supposed to be buried.

There is quite a bit to see here. Among my favorites were the Sanjinku, the Three Sacred Storehouses. Which were lined with gold leaf……hard to believe these were storehouses.

My favorite feature were the carvings of elephants that adorn the Kamijinko (Upper Sacred Storehouse), which look like they came out of some Sci-fi comic.

These are called the Sozonozo Elephants (“imagined elephants”), as the artist who carved these, Kano Tanyu had never seen an elephant. Working from descriptions of the beasts he created this interpretation of what he "imagined" elephants looked like.

Right across from these structures is the Shinkyusha (the "Sacred Stable").

Notice all the folks taking photos here. It's because of the eight panels of monkeys lining the structure. The monkeys are depicting the lives of humans.

Especially popular is the Sanzaru ("Three Wise Monkeys").

You know the saying, right? "Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil." Which I've been told are also three of the principles of Tendai Buddhism.

And then it was past the gate and up the stairs to the Yomeimon Gate.

Man, there was a lot to see here…..

From here 200 stone steps leads you up to Ieyasu Tokugawa's Tomb.

Man, that mist sure added to the atmosphere……

After this we headed back down past all the other visitors; even some four legged ones.

Half the fun was people watching…….I guess the hill was kind of steep for some as they seemed to need a little boost.

We walked down the path to Futarasan Shrine…where the fog was really thick. Along with being the oldest shrine in Nikko, the area around the shrine is known for something else.

There is a tree near the gate of the shrine where a cedar and oak have joined together. This has come to be known as the matchmaking tree; you leave an offering for good luck in your relationship.

At this point, the Missus and I determined that it was a good time to head on back down the street and grab some lunch. Our philosophy when we travel is always to see the one or two things that are important to us; the rest is gravy. We always treat a destination as if we'll be returning someday.

We headed back down the street in the direction of the train station. Along the way; we saw this building.

Which definitely was not a "art and curios" shop as folks were eating inside. A quick search on Google Maps determined that this was Yasai Café Meguri, a vegan/organic restaurant. I looked at some of the photos and saw that the place served yuba bean curd; which I really enjoy. Plus, yuba is a specialty of Nikko.

So we decided to eat here. We entered, were warmly greeted, and led to our seats……which made the Missus crack up. It was my kryptonite……..floor seating….

I've mentioned having to sit using tatami style seating before, my fear of having my legs fall asleep then trying to stand and destroying half a restaurant. Oh, the lovely noise of my joints snapping and popping as I sat on the floor.

Anyway, both the Missus and I got the Yuba Bean Curd Special.

We really didn't find this particularly to our taste. Everything was cold; including the rice under the yuba. The food was rather bland; the bean curd skin crunchy, but somewhat water-logged.

The thing we enjoyed the most about the dish was the green salad; the fresh, crisp bitter greens.

Probably just not our kind of thing.

Yasai Cafe Meguri
909-1 Nakahatsuishimachi
Nikko 321-140, Tochigi Prefecture

We made our way back to the JR Station. Got on our train and headed back to Tokyo. We did have an hour layover in Utsunomiya where I decided to search for a statue I'd read about; the Venus of Gyoza.

Walking just outside the station we found her, in all her beauty ummm creepieness uniqueness, a woman creature emerging out of a gyoza. The "Venus of Gyoza". After all, Utsonomiya is considered the "capital of gyoza" in Japan. You can read about it in this article. Over the years; I've started to include one odd interesting place during our travels. And after all; this is still a food blog….and this has something to do with food, right?

The Missus was kind enough to humor me. Then we went back into the station and did some shopping (looking for local snacks) before our train arrived. On time as usual; after all, this was Japan!

Thanks for reading!

Revisits – Luong Hai Ky and Homestyle Hawaiian (Tierrasanta)

September 13, 2018 mmm-yoso Plate Lunch, Vietnamese Restaurants

I should actually call this "weekend procrastination lunches"……two revisits where I took the "long way" to work.

Luong Hai Ky:

On the Sunday that I took the "really long way" to work; I decided to drop by Luong Hai Ky since it had been over three years since my last visit. Let me just say things haven't changed much….the service was perfunctory at best; and that Beef Sate Noodle; well, with all that iceberg lettuce and all that basil….check out all the stems they included; would you like to eat that or perhaps reach into your bowl with your hands and remove them? Sheesh, it's pretty much an egg noodle salad these days.

And that broth that tastes like msg water.

This was basically fifty percent iceberg lettuce which made the dish get cold quickly, the egg noodles were over-cooked. Too little sate was used on the beef. Too bad, because the beef was rather tender.

I think it's back to Tim Ky for me.

This is quite sad because once upon a time before the original owner passed away, the location on Convoy did a pretty good job. But that was over a decade ago…..

Luong Hai Ky Restaurant
10606 Camino Ruiz #2
San Diego, CA 92126

Homestyle Hawaiian (Tierrasanta):

HH has spread out quite a bit since Homestyle Hawaiian opened up near Mesa College nine years ago. With 6 locations; though they disavow the Point Loma location, it's now a nice little kingdom. On a recent weekend; I decided to sleep in and drop by the office in the afternoon. It was nearly 1130 and I was starved, so I decided to take a detour, and wouldn't you know it…somehow, I'm not sure how….I ended up here.

I'd only been to this location once; but it was close to the 52……

The young lady who waited on me was a joy; she humored me when I asked that my combination plate be served in a take-out container. I knew there was no way I'd be able to finish it. I ordered the chicken katsu; Korean chicken combo. An old favorite of mine from back when I could put away a whole lot more…..

The katsu was nicey fried this time around. It was crisp, moist, the breading wasn't peeling off, and of course I do enjoy the "local-kine" katsu sauce…..I grew up eating chicken katsu with a ketchup based sauce. The Korean chicken seems to have changed over time; the sweet-salty flavors, now tend toward the sweeter side. The batter was more hard than crisp this time around and the chicken, while moist, was on the chewy side.

Like, I've mentioned before, never been a big fan of HH's mac salad, but this wasn't bad, nicely chilled, it seems to have gotten better over the years.

Of course I managed to eat less than half of this. I took the rest to work and wouldn't you know, there was someone else who decided to come in on this day…..he was rewarded with a rather hefty container of food.

Homestyle Hawaiian Pub & Eatery
10601 Tierrasanta Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92124

Soi 30th

September 11, 2018 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Thai Restaurants

Soi 30th opened up right next to Lefty's on 30th Street last fall. My good friends and I actually went and ate there at the end of September, basically going through a good part of the menu on that evening. But the focus was on what was going with each other; work and other things have been keeping me from seeing them as much as I'd like to.

I decided not to do a post after that visit; mainly because we were just enjoying each other's company and catching up on what was going on.

That's not to say that I didn't enjoy the food….I did enjoy a couple of the dishes. Though some were quite uneven; I attributed that to being newly opened. It did help that the place was being opened by the former owner of Krua Thai in Chula Vista.

I decided to do a couple of visits on my own; which stretched out over almost nine months. But finally, think it's time.

The restaurant is small; the interior tiny, with some outdoor seating. The set-up is perfect for the "North Park Brewpub" type; you order at the counter, get a number, have a seat.

On my first visit; I went with a dish that I usually use to gauge the cooks Wok Skills; Pad See Eew with Shrimp ($13).

Not an especially generous portion; the shrimp was cooked perfectly, a wonderful tender and plump. I liked the fact that the sauce wasn't overly sweet, but the noodles, while nicely coated, was on the over-cooked side and lacked the smokey "wok hey" that I look for in this dish.

I did enjoy the Thai Jerky ($7); which had been nicely dried, then fried.

Edging just on the precipice of being hard; I loved the chewiness, the flavor, salty-savory, was quite good as well.

On my next visit; two more Thai staples…..

The SomTom E-san ($7), was a bit disappointing.

While the papaya was expertly shredded, this just wasn't spicy….especially for Issan Papaya salad. I wasn't asked for a spiciness level and this was too mild. Not very much salted crab, nor enough tomato. Too much lime and not enough fish sauce; this just wasn't what I wanted.

I had mixed feelings about ordering the Thai Sausage. You see, on my visit with friends the sausage wasn't sour enough and the meat quite mealy. This however, was very good.

Nice light sourness; pork skin, great firm, but not hard texture. Very nice! Sadly, much like CC's visit (check out her post), no ginger, and sliced serrano peppers instead of Thai Chilies.

A few weeks later; it was the Khao Man Gai, which was very disappointing; the chicken was super dry, the rice not flavored enough and hard.

The ginger based sauce needed….well, more ginger as it really lacked zip.

I also ordered the Crispy Chicken Wings.

Much of the rather light batter was flaking off the wings; broken bones, and the meat was moist and tender it had dark spots. I thought it a bit too sweet for my taste and I felt it needed more zip and a crunchiness that would hold out a bit longer.

After this; I decided to give the place a rest for a couple of weeks; which turned out to be months.

When I finally returned; I saw that Soi 30th had Pad Ped as a special; so I decided to order it. The portion size was quite large and that egg was nice and runny.

I found the sauce a bit too "gloppy" and the pork dry. The were lumps of sauce; you know, when you're not on your stir-fry game and you add in the sauce to finish and it lumps up under the heat.

On my next visit; I had what is perhaps my favorite dish at Soi 30th; in fact, I've had it again recently and it was the same; It's the Pork Belly and Chinese Broccoli.

Not over sauced; the star was the pork belly; crunchy, not hard, which gave away to a nice tenderness. Mild garlic tones and I could actual taste some heat here; not much mind you, but at least it was there. During this visit the Gailan was too hard and crisp, but on my subsequent visit, it was cooked nicely. On both visits the fried egg was over-cooked for my taste; but maybe the clientele freaks out over soft and runny eggs? Still, a good dish.

On my last visit, I was curious about the Khao Moo Krob – Moo Daeng; basically red pork (like charsiu) and pork belly. The fluorescent red sauce really caught my attention.

The "red" pork was on the dry and tough side and really lacked flavor. The pork belly though was again nicely fried up, making it crisp and delicious. The sauce was too sweet and missing the nice tangy-savory component used on Moo Daeng. The rice was perfect and fragrant, though the boiled egg was way overcooked, the yolk quite dry.

So, why all the visits? Well, there's something about this place that I like….perhaps it's the vibe…..the dishes I enjoyed had that "hint of Thailand" and while on the gringo side, were not bad. Perhaps I need to do this a some other Thai places that missed the mark previously?

The service was amiable and the prices not bad.

To quote reader EdwardW who emailed me about Soi 30th back in September - "I want this place to do well. It’s close to my home and about as honest Thai cooking I’ve found in San Diego." Well said! And thanks for reading and taking the time to send us an email!

Soi 30th
3442 30th St
San Diego, CA 92104
Hours:
Mon – Thurs 11am – 3pm, 430pm – 930pm
Fridays 11am – 330pm, 430pm – 930pm
Sat – Sun 12pm – 930pm

San Francisco – Mourad

September 10, 2018 mmm-yoso Fine Dining, Moroccan Food, North African Food, San Francisco and Silicon Valley, Travel

Much like our trip to Portland in 2015, part of reason was just to rest in air conditioned goodness….which is what we did after lunch at China Live. We awoke refreshed and decided on a short stroll before dinner. We decided to just take a stroll down Market to the Ferry Building.

It was a nice stroll, past the hustle and bustle, the street merchants were just closing up for the day.

We walked through the Ferry Building, giving the Missus a chance to check out various places as possibilities for tomorrow's lunch.

We walked through and past various shops…..most were closed or closing for the day. And then headed out back to the Ferry Terminals and just basically sat and watched.

I guess this must seem just routine to folks who live in the Bay Area; but for us, it was just relaxing and fun.

A short time later we decided to head to our dinner destination. Our good friend Candice had recommended Mourad, a Michelin Star restaurant that serves Moroccan inspired cuisine with local ingredients and modern techniques. The location was a few blocks from our hotel on New Montgomery Street. We were a bit early for our reservation, so we had a seat at the bar. Our mixologist was quite the showman and very knowledgeable. I had, what might be the best and one of the most expensive ($24) cocktails I've had in recent memory. A magical concoction called "Legend of the Brave".

A blend of Scotch, ciociaro, jalapeno-pineapple shrub syrup, "Scotch mist", and blood orange, this had that nice combination of smokey-savory-bitter and not-too-sweet flavors I enjoy in a cocktail. The Missus had some Scotch and is now somewhat enamored with it.

Soon enough, we were notified that our table was ready. It was in the upstairs portion of the restaurant.

Mourad does have a tasting menu and what they call "la'acha" family sized meals….which based on what we saw on two other tables would be just too much for the Missus and I. We ordered a couple of dinner items and two sides, which turned out to be more than enough for us.

The first three dishes were brought out together.

Things started off with the Lamb Tartare ($18), which was topped with sliced green apple.

The tangy green apple added a nice crunch but really didn't add much to the overly salty tartare. Ditto the wheatberry. The sodium level just wiped out any flavor the tender lamb would have.

Next up; what they simply call "Eggplant" ($18) on the menu.

This dish featured a wonderful range of textures and flavors. From the tender earthy eggplant and oregano, the brightness of za'atar, the crunchy, very clean-brininess of the cucumber. On occasion you'd have the distinct, nutty, resinous of pine nuts mixed in. The bread was hot and wonderful. The puree was slightly smokey, mildly sweet, but also on the salty side. It was best used as a spread for the bread.

When the Foie Gras ($26) arrived….well, we weren't too sure about it. Wrapped with shredded and from what we could taste, pickled green papaya and topped with freeze dried strawberries (??), this was very good!

The crunch, mild sourness of the green papaya and the light sweetness of that trendy freeze dried strawberries to complement the richness of the creamy foie gras was nothing short of amazing. We could detect the slight fragrance of rose water as well. Add to that crisp, buttery, and slightly sweet brioche toast and this was easily my favorite dish of the evening.

In a display of almost flawless timing, our last dish and two sides were brought out seconds after we had finished our first three dishes and our table cleared. We both thought the service at Mourad was very professional and pleasant.

The Duck Basteeya ($25) was presented to us as Chef Lahlou's signature dish.

You really couldn't fault the presentation. The filo dough around the eggroll-chimichanga-ish basteeya was light and crisp; it had been put together perfectly. Unfortunately, while the duck confit was lovingly, we found this to be much too sweet for our taste.

I enjoyed the Heirloom Bean Shakshuka ($10); topped with a "ying-yang" of bread crumbs and what tasted like a feta cream.

The beans had a wonderful texture; just enough of a bite and I enjoyed the blend of flavors in this one.

The Missus really loved the Kale ($10).

This was a wonderful braised kale dish; the Harissa, something I use quite often in my cooking adding some zip. It was a wonderful, hearty dish.

Overall, we enjoyed our meal at Mourad; there were some nice surprises and the meal ended with two comforting dishes. The service was excellent. And that cocktail! I think we'll be back…probably to eat at the bar…..some foie gras, eggplant, kale, and beans……and a couple of those cocktails!

Mourad Restaurant
140 New Montgomery St. #1
San Francisco, CA 94105
Hours:
Mon – Fri 1130am – 10pm
Sat – Sun 5pm – 10pm

Pho Duoi Bo from Royal Garden

September 9, 2018 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Royal Garden has closed

I found myself back in City Heights this past weekend and decided to drop by Royal Garden to see what was going on.

I believe there was some kind of event going on later in the day as chairs were arranged, though all the tables near the window were occupied. Seems like they are doing some decent business these days.

I hadn't had a bowl of pho in a while and I recall thinking it was pretty good on one of my previous visits. So I ordered the Pho Duoi Bo – oxtail pho.

The sprouts were really fresh; though the basil was just starting to turn color. No ngo gai (cilantro) on this visit.

The bowl that arrived was quite huge.

There was one very large piece of oxtail and three smaller pieces. The texture of the meat was perfect; tender enough to be able to remove from the bone with chopsticks, but not falling to pieces. It was obviously cooked in some other liquid since it had a nice slightly sweet, winey-soy flavor, with a hint of ginger, edging almost toward a pork braise. There was also some decent slices of flank and brisket in the bowl; but it really was all about the oxtail.

The broth was darker this time around and more beefy with hints of anise…..it was also a bit on the sweeter side, but not overly salty. It wasn't quite as clear as on my previous visits either. Still; at least there was some beef flavor.

The noodles were cooked perfectly, but for some reason, there was a bunch of smaller pieces of noodles…..I'm thinking I got the "bottom of the package".

Regardless, this was a decent bowl. Looks like I found another place to get my "pho fix". And of course, like I mentioned in my previous post; there's much more to explore on the two different menus.

Royal Garden
4201 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92105
Hours:
Wed – Mon 9am – 9pm
Closed Tuesdays

From Parma to Ferrara

September 7, 2018 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Emilia-Romagna, Italy, Italy, Travel

*** Not much food in this one

After having a huge meal in Piacenza we drove back to the Agritourismo to find out that they had moved us to a smaller room! Apparently, they had reservations for a fairly large family who had booked a small room. We were told that they had tried to contact us, but were unsuccessful……and just decided to move us to a smaller room. Hmmm……well, at least they only charged us half the price for our "new" room….which unfortunately, was in the main building and was really loud….well, whatever. We did manage a nap and woke when folks started heading out for the evening. Still not hungry, we decided to head on back to Parma. I still had my parking stub from the previous day and we managed to find parking in basically the exact same spot, so I didn't have to pay.

We crossed at Ponte di Mezzo and noticed that folks below at Piazza Ghiaia were having a good old time.

As we walked down the stairs I cracked up……it appears that they were having some kind of American themes "50's" night……check out the billboards in the arcade area!

And of course the food trucks were serving burgers……

Among other things.

Our favorite part was watching the band and the folks dancing.

In some ways it seemed like a celebration of being American, in a way we don't really do anymore. It was a lot of fun……

Soon enough we headed back to our room and crashed, awaking the next morning before anyone…..

Grabbing some breakfast and then heading out.

Had things been perfectly timed, it would have been logical to head to Modena next. However, because of some critical dinner reservations, there was an extra night. So, I decided that we might enjoy spending a night in Ferrara. I got us a very nice room right outside the city walls….with parking. The woman who ran the B&B was so nice and the room was huge. It was just a short walk into the city.

Remember how I mentioned that Piacenza was pretty empty on Easter and we were told that folks liked to get out of big cities on holidays? Well, I think most of them were here.

Ferrara itself is quite stunning….more on that in a future post. The entire center of town was a market on this day….and we bought a few gifts.

And perhaps should have bought a few more?

The city is quite beautiful.

And charming. Piazza Trento e Trieste is pretty much the main square in Ferrara, right in front of the Cathedral. This is where we saw what might be our favorite street performer of all time, a puppeteer, who just had the Missus mesmerized, with his performance of a dog trying to impress his "love" to Louie Armstrong's version of La Vie en Rose.

Other dogs passing by would start barking at the puppet…..the gestures, the movement….the "pooch" even got scolded for peeing once….all while trying to impress his "lady friend". We gave this guy 2 Euros and he probably deserved more. When I went to put the coins in his container I noticed that it was almost full! This puppeteer was that good.

Here are a couple of excerpts.

We still watch these every so often. Hope you enjoy them!

And thanks for stopping by!