Thank you for stopping by to read mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog. Kirk usually writes, but is very busy doing some research for future posts. Cathy is writing.
The Mister and I haven't had Vietnamese food in a while and the days are beginning to get warmer with cravings kicking in. I haven't written about Phuong Trang in ten years! PT is a place we bring people who are unfamiliar with Vietnamese cuisine. The food here is non-offensive, MOR (Middle of the Road) and made it through the Covid pandemic. PT only did take out for about a year, which is just not the same as eating indoors.
Located in one of the larger strip mall areas with plenty of parking,
the interior is quite large. When we got here, there was plenty of seating which quickly filled by the time we left.
The menu is quite large. Here's a link. One section is "Rice Paper Wraps". This is Thit Nuong Banh Trang- Char Grilled Pork ($17.50). This 'build it yourself' appetizer/meal is quite large and filling. There was plenty of seasoned ground pork, topped with green onion and peanuts.
It comes with hard-form rice paper atop a bowl of hot water for dipping and a plate of green leaf lettuce, mint, cilantro, sliced cucumbers, pickled daikon and carrots, pineapple and, of course, fish sauce. Side note- the water does not have to be warm to get the rice paper to a soft-form. This was filled in fresh flavors and fun to construct while chatting.
As soon as we sat down, I ordered a Banh Xeo-Vietnamese Crepe ($15.95). It takes extra time to prepare.
This rice flour crepe is filled with shrimp, pork, bean sprouts, onion slices, and mung beans. It is also served with the plate of greens (minus the pineapple). Wrapping a bit of everything in a lettuce leaf and dipping it in the fish sauce (another 'build it yourself' meal) makes for crunchy, tasty bites.
On the "Stir Fried Noodle" part of the menu, we went for it and ordered Hu Tieu Ap Chao Hoac Mi Dao (don) Thap Can-crispy egg noodle stir fried with baby bok choy, broccoli, carrot, onion, meat and seafood (chicken, char siu pork, shrimp, imitation crab, calamari and fish cake) in a garlic sauce. We haven't had crispy noodles in a long time and this was so very satisfying. The combination of flavors and textures in each bite was something we had missed.
Under "Broken Rice Dishes" on the menu, we chose Com Tam Tau Hu Ky- Steamed broken rice with ground shrimp wrapped in tofu and a char-grilled pork patty ($15.50). This plate was also quite a good size and everything was fresh in flavors-the char on the pork patty was excellent.
As always, we order hot tea. The charge is only $1 each for the pot.
Phuong Trang 4170 Convoy Street 92111 Website Open Wed-Sun 11-8 Closed Mon-Tue
There are so many television sets in here. Each seat at each table has a view of at least two, even outside on the patio.
Here are a couple of tabletop menus.
The Mister ordered a Happy Hour Group Modelo (16 oz) for $4. I had a taste and it was nice.
We were here on a Wednesday and ordered six 'wings' for $1 each (there were nine flavors (three mild, the rest indicated heat)) and we chose the Honey BBQ. Nicely sauced and topped with sesame seeds, accompanied by celery, carrots and a good housemade Ranch dip. All drums, no flats and quite a good sized serving.
The Happy Hour fried Lemon-Pepper Zucchini ($7.99) was another sizable serving. Light breading, crisp fried and not greasy, the crunch as well as the very pleasant fresh and not seedy zucchini was great tasting on its own and very pleasant with th Ranch dip and housemate marinara. 
The Oggis Stix ($7.99). Pizza dough brushed with garlic olive oil and toped with mozzarella, parmesan and parsley were also served with the housemade ranch and marinara dips. This was kind of a wonderful, decadent bite. since we are watching our carbs; we did take about half of this home and it reheated well.
Here is another tabletop menu- Monday-Friday lunch from 11-2
Here's a cup of potato-cheese soup (add on $2.99). This was very nice on the cool day we were here.
The half balsamic chicken salad ($9.99) was accompanied by a (giant) garlic knot; much fancier than a slice of bread. Spring mix topped with grilled chicken, candied walnuts and Gorgonzola and a house made balsamic vinaigrette.
We decided to try a half flatbread ($6.99) and chose the Charcuterie-Sopressata, Genoa Salami, pancetta, pepperoni, green onion, mozzarella and shredded parmesan. This had Oggis 'pizza sauce' instead of marinara and was a tad 'spicy' but nothing to complain about. I liked the crisp, thin crust and flavor meld.
Not much has changed since the last time, or even from 1947, when The Barbecue Pit first opened in downtown San Diego.
Other than the prices and having a daily availability of brisket (used to only be on weekends).
Walk up, order, pay and you walk away with your tray of food. Efficient.
Find a seat.
Go back to the condiment bar and beverage station. Remember to grab utensils!
A bowl of Navy Bean Soup-filled with beans, carrots, celery and bits of ham. An excellent version almost always ordered (except when I really want the Pea Soup)..
This went well with a beef sandwich. (Soup and Sandwich, $11.99). This is Pit Barbecue-slow cooked over oak-not overly smoked (there is a smokey BBQ sauce available on the condiment bar). The sandwiches are 1/2 pound, the bread is lightly toasted. It all comes together in each bite. 
The Mister ordered the chopped burnt ends plate ($10.99) which included two sides. The burnt ends are meaty, not fatty.
We decided to share a slice of pecan pie ($4.99) which had an excellent, flaky crust, not too sweet filling and still crisp pecans. A nice treat. 
The interior (there is outside seating) has 33 HDTV's, most showing local sports and at least one showing PAWS-a channel about animals. I could see 11 televisions from my chair and The Mister could see eight.
The two-sided menu mentions the weekday Lunch specials, as well as a Monday night special and Happy Hour. There's also a Tuesday night special of Sliders which flashed across one of the TV screens. The other side of the menu has weekend breakfast items.
The grilled chicken salad ($12.95) was topped with a still warm/freshly char-grilled chicken breast. The bowl is very large and we did take home some leftovers. The mixed lettuces had tomatoes, onions and shredded carrots and the ranch dressing was a better quality.
The cheeseburger Lunch Special ($14.75) includes your choice of soda, Bud Light, Coors Light or Amberbock. You also can choose the type of cheese and also get a choice of fries, chips or a salad. The burger is large (at least 1/4 lb) and also char-grilled, made with a coarse grind of beef, keeping the meat chunky and moist. The bun is toasted and those fries have a coating and seasoning, making them very crisp and tasty.
More than 20 beers on tap!
Here is the breakfast menu from a few months ago. Lunch and dinner is also served here.
Well, look at this from the breakfast menu- avocado toast, which comes with two eggs any style and a side of fresh fruit (or hash browns) ($13.49). A good quality multigrain toast topped with freshly sliced avocado and roasted cherry tomatoes. This was a surprisingly tasty and filling breakfast.
The Mister chose a Waffle Combo ($16.49). A strawberry cheesecake topped Belgian waffle with two eggs (over easy), two sausage (or bacon) and hash browns. I liked the waffle (plain). The batter was crisp on the exterior and had a malt/vanilla flavored fluffy interior. The strawberries were very flavorful-see the pink (not white) inner part? The sausage was standard with a nicely crisped skin and the hash browns were not watery and also had a good crisp. 
Coffee is $3.99
Mr. and Mrs. Takeda, who opened Hogetsu in 1983, have retired and passed along their knowledge to a younger couple. The name, Hogetsu, was given by permission of the prefecture when the store opened. The name now must be retired. 
What's that in the top left corner?
They've added a neon sign! Modern times are coming…
There is always a good variety to choose from when I stop in, and everything is always fresh. 
I have purchased the frozen Komochi so I can have a savory snack at home. The container is about one pound. The texture is similar to the suwama (chewy mochi).
Here are a few of my recent purchases. Yes, one day I was able to walk in and only order one coffee and one green tea-each were gentle flavored at first bite and ended up so flavorful at the end. 
The new owners have been experimenting with the name change and did tell me that they have settled on Thank You Very Mochi and will be ordering signage soon. The Takeda tradition will continue.
Step inside, order, pay and your name will be called. There are 18 seats inside and tables out in front.
The Monte Cristo Breakfast sandwich ($14.99) is served with warm syrup and a side of fruit. 
Made with Boar's Head oven roasted ham, Havarti cheese, mustard and mayo on egg-dipped white bread which is pan fried, this hefty sandwich is enough to share. 
There are four soups available daily, all home made: tomato basil, chicken noodle, clam chowder and chili (Cup $5.49-5.99, Bowl $7.49-7.99). The clam chowder is my favorite, although all are wonderfully flavored.
The cheesy flatbread ($11.99) is a meal in itself. A thin, made in-house crust topped with roasted garlic tomato sauce, provolone and mozzarella. Simple and good.
The garlic-cilantro jumbo shrimp plate ($16.99) includes a cup of soup or small salad, sautéed broccoli and asparagus and ten jumbo shrimp which are marinated in the house garlic and pepper sauce and lightly cooked (still meaty and firm).
On the bottom of the wall menu there is a section "Pepper Farm Special" ($7.99). A choice of four cold half sandwiches, chips and a fountain drink. (for $11.99, you can get a choice of four hot half sandwiches, chips and a drink). This is the Bovine: roast beef, havarti cheese, garlic aioli, mustard, red onion, tomatoes, banana peppers and spring mix on a hoagie roll. It's a large half sandwich. 
There are desserts, too.
A lot of the business is take out, but we managed to grab a seat at one of the five tables inside.
There is a menu on the front window and we were handed menus when we sat down. There are lunch specials!
The Mister ordered a lunch special, which came with a chicken based, thick egg drop soup. Complimentary 'crunchies' were brought out with the silverware.
Soon, our orders were brought out. Egg Foo Young (because it was our first visit and I always order EFY on my first visit to any Chinese restaurant-everyone makes EFY uniquely). Lunch Special #23- Salt and Pepper Fish.
The Lunch Specials are $11.95. The Special comes with steamed jasmine rice or fried rice and a vegetable egg roll in addition to the soup (choice of egg drop or hot and sour). You can substitute steamed vegetables and chop suey for additional fees. The batter and fry of the fish was excellent- not greasy, light and crisp. The fish was light and flaky. This was tasty and a good portion.
Mixed Vegetable Egg Foo Young ($14.95)-what a delightful version! Three large patties, filled with bean sprouts, broccoli, peas and carrots and so eggy, fried nicely with a light and crisp crust and topped with a proper (not thick, not salty) brown gravy. One waitress brought us more gravy halfway through- which was just enough to take home with the leftovers.
The southernmost 'anchor' building used to be a small grocer which had a small restaurant connected. Now, the grocery building is another location of Keg 'n Barrel, a beer and liquor store. The restaurant is walled off and a separate business, Sangucheria PSF (Peruvian Street Food), which opened in January 2022. Kirk posted about it 
The small shop has seating for about 35 and is walk up, order and pay. Your food is brought out to the table.
The simple menu has a good variety of choices.
We decided to share. First, a cheese empanada ($6). Thin, flaky crust filled with a hefty amount of warm, firm (not gooey) Oaxaca cheese. This was very satisfying.
The Choripan sandwich ($10) was served with two house made chile based sauces (that one on the left is catsup; the green one had a pleasant heat and that yellow one was spicy, probably habanero or a cousin).
Served on a thin/ crisp crusted, warm bread which was light and airy (and crushed down easily), this weighty sandwich was enough to share.
Two split then grilled chorizo links topped with a house made chimichurri sauce (with distinct parsley, garlic and oregano flavors). You know I am picky about chorizo (see 
That catsup was for the sweet potato fries ($4.50) we ordered. We also shared an Inka Kola ($2.50); the familiar vanilla soda flavor brought back good memories.
There's plenty of parking on this end of the parking lot; the former 
The interior is spacious; there is only one waitress, so I think that is why they have limited seating.
Of course, we ordered hot tea ($2 each) and it was an excellent matcha, strong with a slight bitterness along with a slight sweetness. 
We decided to try the mixed tempura appetizer ($11). Properly fried, light, crisp and not oily at all. Potato slices, broccoli florets and carrot slices along with three large shrimp. This was a sizable appetizer portion we shared, using the house made, not salty tentsuyu dipping sauce. 
The Mister ordered the teriyaki chicken combo ($14) which came with miso soup. A better version-not watered down and containing thicker seaweed slices along with tofu cubes. Flavorful in a not-salty way.
The chicken itself was breast meat, so a tiny bit dry. The teriyaki sauce was house made and not sticky sweet; pleasant. The carrots and broccoli (same as from the tempura) were a nice side along with the rice.
I ordered the sashimi salad ($20) which had very fresh and fatty salmon, soft yellowtail and excellent tuna on top of greens (which included the thick seaweed that was in the soup) and a pleasant (again, house made) ginger-sesame dressing. An excellent lunch salad.