mmm-yoso – Page 180

Paris – The Louvre and Dinner at Sola

October 20, 2017 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Fine Dining, France, French Restaurants, Japanese Restaurants, Paris, France, Travel

Our time in Paris was nearing end. But we had one last busy afternoon and evening set. First up, a late afternoon visit to the largest art museum in the world; The Louvre. If you've never visited Paris; do yourself a favor, get yourself Rick Steve's Paris Guidebook. While I'm not a big fan of the restaurant choices in his books; he has a whopping 20+ pages on the Louvre….more than I'll ever need to know. In order to really enjoy and not burn out during our trips, we always act like we'll return one day. In other words, we have the places and things we "need to see" and the rest, well, if we get there, it's gravy. Anyway, if you plan on visiting the Louvre, get your tickets online, strategize on beating the crowds, unless you enjoy the crowds. We used the Carrousel du Louvre, the underground shopping mall entrance and getting in was a breeze.

Once in, there are still crowds of course…..some folks seem to have a look of desperation on their faces.

We had kind of planned things out, the best we could, just as we did when we visited the Vatican.

We headed straight for the one thing the Missus wanted to see……you know, right?

Well, the view is actually more like this…..

And if you don't already know, the dimensions of the Mona Lisa is 2′ 6″ x 1′ 9″.

And then we were off; sort of as we took time to enjoy some of the many, many masterpieces in the museum.

Like La Liberté guidant le people (Liberty Leading the People) painted by Delacroix.

Hmmm….where was Venus de Milo? Looks like Bacchus is pointing the way.

Well, there she is!

Such beautiful balance, eternally standing in "contrapposto"

Passing thru the museum, you could peer out the windows and see folks trying to capture their "forever moments".

We enjoyed spending a few hours at the Louvre.

And then taking some time to people (and canine) watch outside.

The Seine makes quite a, well, scene at dusk.

And night seemed to fall very quickly.

We returned to our room and freshened up. We still gad some time to kill before dinner. What to do? Well, hit a café of course. The Missus and I had a nice cup of coffee and relaxed before dinner. When I went downstairs to the restroom, this sign cracked me up.

Our dinner destination was just a few blocks away. The second reservation I made for this trip was at a one Michelin Starred restaurant named Sola. I was especially intrigued by the "Franco – Japanese" cuisine put out by Chef Hiroki Yoshitake. The restaurant is quite discreet.

Only a tasting menu is offered, for a very reasonable 95 Euros. Funny, we both took the drink pairing, which ended up being way too much for us…..which also cost 95 Euros!

Half the customers were actually Japanese and many of the Servers were also Japanese. It was an interesting crowd.

The Amuse was a wonderful, savory-mildly sweet crab in dashi aspic over a thin, light, chawan mushi like egg custard.

Along with an amazing Foie Gras and Miso filled Wafer, touched with the light sweetness of Sake and Maple Syrup.

The Missus really loved the Sparkling Sake that was served with the foie gras.

There was olive oil and bread…..but I really don't remember much about it.

I totally failed on the next dish, as I forgot to take a photo of the Beef Tartare, Beet, and Stratatelli cheese. An amazing range of bright flavors. There was a hint of wasabi detected.

The next item might have been our favorite. Amazingly tender sea beam, topped with thinly sliced, slight pungent and sweet onion, on thin slices of daikon and smoky eggplant.

Let's not disregard the light drizzle of buttery-grassy olive oil. Such a wonderful dish.

The squid in the next dish was so amazingly tender and the baby leek was almost sweet.

I was told that the slightly tangy and eggy sauce was based on kimizu, the Japanese egg and rice vinegar dressing, which did well in this dish.

For me; the star of the Parmesan Crusted Shrimp dish was the Chanterelle Risotto, which was just perfect. The earthy flavors went amazingly well with the shrimp emulsion.

By now we'd had Sparkling Sake, Champagne, and two different sake served in wine glasses. The second of which was matched with shrimp.

Next up was a Chardonnay from Muersault paired with Sea bass and scallop with cabbage and cabbage cream with shiso-celery cream.

Complex, but very clear flavors all around.

We were brought a granite to clear our palates.

We could tell that the last main course was something a bit more robust as a red from Beaune was poured.

This was matched with Wild duck breast with jus and sansho pepper sauce and endive and carrot.

Amazing. That duck was cooked perfectly and was so very tender! The bitterness of the endive helped to balance out the flavors.

And then the desserts which the Missus loved.

There was a sensibility and a certain combination of flavors that just hit all the right buttons for us. A combination of Japanese and French technique and flavors just seemed to work in harmony.

This is a place we'll return to; though we'll share a single beverage tasting the next time.

Sola is currently closed because of a fire, but we're hoping they reopen soon.

Sola
12 Rue de l'Hôtel Colbert
75005 Paris, France

After such a meal (and all the drinks) , we slept soundly thru the night. We awoke for breakfast and then our transfer to Orly. We were flying Business, so we were able to relax in the rather uncrowded lounge.

Soon enough, we heard the call for our flight.

Next stop; Reykjavik!

Thanks for reading!

Beating the Heat – Revisits to Prime Grill and Take-out from the Original Sab e Lee and Thai Papaya

October 18, 2017 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants, Thai Restaurants

I realize that I'm kinda late on these posts. I'm not sure who asked what we were eating during the wonderful heat waves of August; but here's a couple of meals from then.

Prime Grill:

Our instinct is to basically do take-out and hang at home or find a place with good A/C. Add a nice cold noodle dish and some decent panchan to the equation and you have Prime Grill. The Bibim Naengmyun here has replaced the version at Buga as my favorite.

The noodles are stretchy, but not like rubberbands. The sauce has some nice heat for isn't overwhelming; just a touch of vinegar and perhaps even a squirt or two of cho-jang and I'm a happy camper. The portion size is rather large, but I can finish it all when I'm hungry. And in case you need to chill out, you're provided with a bowl of iced broth as well.

The Missus has started to enjoy the Dolsot Bibim Bap here; but She has a secret.

When the stone bowl arrives; She waits….munches on some panchan, has some of my naengmyun. After 5-6 minutes, She gives it a first stir, then She takes the juices from the now empty plates of baechu kimchi and kkakdugi and mixes it in with some chojang….and waits. We get another serving of panchan and eventually She starts eating, after a nice crust has formed. It's about patience and using the kimchi juice.

Prime Grill
4620 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

The Original Sab e Lee:

**** TOSEL is now Zab Linda

I'd kind of avoided TOSEL after my last meal here a few months back. Items such as Catfish Larb and Salted Fish Fried Rice has been removed from the menu. But on one of those super hot Thursdays; Thai Papaya is strangely closed on Thursdays. I decided to do some take-out fro, TOSEL.

Things were a bit better this time around; though the Pad See Ew with Beef was kind of weak in the flavor department…..strangely, it lacked that hint of sweetness that balances out the soy flavor. In addition, when did they start asking how "spicy" you wanted your Pad See Ew? The noodles were dry; there was no wok hey……

The Nam Tok was decent and much better this time around as it had a nice kick.

More on the sour than salty side this time around.

The Issan Sausage is a standby.

And it delivered as usual. A peanut, sliver of ginger, wrapped in cabbage, and you have a nice sour-porky-nutty-pungent bite.

The Original Sab E Lee
6925 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111

Thai Papaya:

**** Thai Papaya has closed

Though this didn't stop me from hitting up Thai Papaya the next time the mercury headed up that thermometer.

I find the dishes at Thai Papaya spicier and more soulful than TOSEL. Of course, it's "different strokes for different folks" and all that.

Thai Papaya by Sab E Lee
2405 Ulric St
San Diego, CA 92111

What are your favorite "beat the heat" dishes?

Santa Barbara Roadtrip – Dinner at Yoichi’s, Mission Santa Barbara, and Staying at the “Secret Garden”

October 17, 2017 mmm-yoso Fine Dining, Japanese Restaurants, Memorable Meals, Road Trip, Santa Barbara County

Things have been really busy for both the Missus and I. Before my next "big push", I felt we both needed a break, just a long weekend kind of thing. So when the Missus needed to go to our old neighborhood for an appointment, I saw the perfect chance. The Missus suggested Santa Barbara. I've passed through many times and had been to places like Solvang; I'd never stopped in Santa Barbara so I was up for it. A alsos knew we'd both be spending a good deal of time sleeping when we weren't eating or walking about.

I'm doing this post a bit out of chronological order, I hope you don't mind.

We got into Santa Barbara a bit early after leaving Hacienda Heights fairly early in the morning, along with stops in Solvang and Los Olivos (a future post). We couldn't check in yet and were staying fairly close to the 101 near East Mission Street, so we decided to check out the Mission Santa Barbara to kill some time.

It was a bright, albeit pretty darn warm day.

Founded by the Franciscan order in 1786, Sunday mass is still held in the very distinctive chapel to this day.

And on this very sunny Saturday, there was a wedding ceremony taking place in the main chapel.

We peeked in and were going to turn around and head out; but one of the really nice Filipino Women manning the doors waved us in.

After spending a short while in the chapel we headed out and down the block.

Across the street is Mission Historical Park; where another wedding, albeit a much more casual affair (check out the dog….looks like part of the wedding party), was taking place.

There's a very pretty rose garden here as well.

By now, enough time had passed and we could check-in. We wanted a bit of peace and quiet, time to relax, and decided on the Secret Garden Inn & Cottages; located on Bath Street. While a pretty good walk from much of SB, we both enjoyed the prospect of staying in a cottage.

We were greeted by Cat of the House, who roamed the yard during the day and hung out inside at night.

Our cottage was named the Wood Thrush and even had a Jacuzzi; though it was much too hot for that during our stay.

It was very cozy and comfortable, even though we made that A/C unit work overtime.

There was breakfast every morning, during the evening, after 7pm, there was hot cider and brownies, which the Missus enjoyed. On Friday and Saturday evenings, cheese and wine.

Chilled filtered water was provided, you had the combination to get into the main house where there were an additional two rooms and grab some water, tea, hot water.

You could eat breakfast or have evening tea at one of the tables…..

For us, the main attraction was the peace and quiet in this more residential neighborhood. I must've slept sixteen hours during our only full day in Santa Barbara.

The owner, Dominique, who is from France is a hoot, quite funny, and very thoughtful as well. Not cheap, but worth it if you want to get away…..

I'd made reservations for dinner on both of the nights we'd be in Santa Barbara. On this night, we had reservations at a Yoichi's. The restaurant had gotten my attention because it did Kaiseki, something that seemed so out of place in Santa Barbara.

The rather discreet restaurant resides a few blocks east of State Street, on East Victoria. There are but a dozen or so tables in the Spartan interior. The woman running the front of house, who I believe is the Chef's wife was amazing, so gracious, the timing of the dishes were perfect.

On weekends, the only option is the $100 per head Kaiseki, which seemed like a bargain to us. This version, unlike the traditional Kaiseki at places like, say, Suzunari in Tokyo, is shorter, makes some modifications, but also gives the customer choices for several of the courses.

There was of course, the issue of what to drink. There was a tight list of sake, wine (several from Japan), and beer. After explaining our preference to our Server, she selected the Mizubasho Daiginjo Junmai. The bright and clean flavor, with the slightly fruity nose, was just perfect for our meal.

Things started with the Zensai course.

This just set the stage for our meal and as a wonderful start; from the refreshing, slightly slimy Jyunsai (Water Shield), which really got our palates refreshed and ready for our meal. It was the perfect start for us.

Next up was the perfectly tender satoimo and even more important, something I'd worried about the Missus enjoying; Ayu (Sweetfish).

But I should have known better since She really enjoyed all the variations of preserved fish in Kanazawa earlier in the year. This version was just perfect, slight sweetness, nice soy sauce flavor, crunchy eggs, quite firm, with a great mouthfeel. A slight fruitiness combined with a mildly bitter finish.

The Sunomono was very interesting, as the tako and the abalone were good, though routine.

The items that really got our attention was the Kyuri Asa-zuke, which was perfectly pickled, not too sour, not too salty, with a perfect crunch; the daikon still had a nice bit of pungency to balance out the sour and the slight sweetness, and a lovely piece of jellyfish, so perfectly prepared. Our least favorite item was the Hokkaido Scallop. The miso really overpowered the flavor of the scallop.

Two items were offered for the "Owan", the soup course.

The Missus chose the version with Unagi.

First off, the dashi was perfectly balanced, very clean tasting, and for us, the star of the soup course. The unagi melted in your mouth.

I selected the version with the clam fishcake.

The fishcake had just the perfect texture, soft and not rubbery in the least. The "hamaguri", simple saltwater clam, in the center of the fishcake was nicely prepared and very tender. And the masutake mushroom added a nice earthiness to the soup.

The sashimi course, the Mukōzuke was next; three different fishes; two cuts of each.

The Hirame (halibut) was excellent, nice firmness, with a hint of sweetness, that piece of engawa (dorsal fin muscle) was so very nice. The Missus didn't care for the Katsuo; but I found the lean firmness very pleasant. We were told that the Bluefin Tuna came from Spain; we found the maguro loin to have a slight metallicness that wasn't too pleasant. That slice of toro though….just melted in your mouth.

Grilled dishes (yakimono) were next. The Missus, well, of course She got the Gindara (Black Cod)

Buttery, it was quite good, perhaps not the best we've ever had, but very tender, not overly salty, perfectly cooked.

The only clunker of the night was the Kamo (Duck) Yuanyaki. Sound familiar? Yes, it's something I make at home, so expectations were high. Unfortunately, this wasn't up to par in our minds.

The duck was overcooked and tough, it was also very salty. Love the pink peppercorns and all, but this was our least favorite dish of the night.

Next up were the steamed dishes and the Missus just loved Her, ahem "Kinki" (Rock Fish). She's been wanting this since we last had it at Suzunari this past spring (I know, I'm behind on posts). And this version served using the classic nitsuke (sweet soy) preparation was fantastic.

The fish was so buttery, the fat just under the skin was amazing. The flavors reminded the Missus of Chinese preparations and She really, really, wanted some rice. I'm thinking this fish hasn't taken off because of the amount of bones; a bit of work, but man is it worth it! When the dish was brought over, the nice woman asked the Missus if She could manage the bones in the dish. When the Missus said "yes", she smiled and said, "yes, most Asians know how to eat fish with bones….." Fantastic dish.

I got the buta no kakuni.

I loved the texture of the pork, not falling to pieces, but still very tender. The broth was very good; light, very balanced, I detected a hint of miso; neither too salty, nor too sweet, I actually drank it all. And like the Missus, I wanted some rice with this!

Well, we got our rice with the second to last course….instead of the usual "Gohan" (Rice) dish, Yoichi's does nigiri. Tonight, two of the three pieces were predetermined; amaebi (sweet shrimp), and salmon belly. The wildcard offerings were Santa Barbara Uni and Negi Toro, so we got one of each.

Considering that the Chef; Yoichi Kawabata once worked at Nobu Tokyo, we expected well made nigiri, which is what we got. The shari was very neutral in flavor and not to tight. The amaebi was sweet with a nice texture; the salmon belly was bright and fresh, though not as rich and tender as I enjoy. Santa Barbara Uni has it's own specific flavor, creamy and sweet, not as oceany as Hokkaido Uni or meaty as San Diego Uni. This was a perfect specimen. The negi toro, was mostly toro and we weren't complaining.

Dessert in these type of restaurants is usually anti-climatic and it is no different here.

Overall, this was a wonderful meal. In fact, we enjoyed it much more than Wakuriya which has a Michelin Star. We loved the pacing, the gracious and warm service. In fact, near the end of our meal, a couple walked in, obviously back packers, shorts, sneakers, backpacks…….apparently, they were looking for some "Japanese food and sushi" and read about this place on that four-lettered site. The Server kindly went over the menu and type of food served here with them. When they looked confused she asked them what they wanted…….rolls and such. She very kindly gave them the names a few places down State Street that would fill the bill.

In the end, Yoichi's had us missing Japan, which, in this case was a good thing. I think we'll be back…maybe just for a quick overnight stay just to eat here again.

Sometimes you find a place that just fits your temperament. I think Yoichi's might be that place for us.

Yoichi’s
230 E Victoria St
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Hours:
Tues – Sun 5pm – 9pm

Fung Fung Yuen

October 9, 2017 mmm-yoso Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants, Dim Sum, Xiao Long Bao

**** Fung Fung Yuen is now Golden Island

Fung Fung Yuen opened this past summer (on the ever lucky 08/08) to quite a bit of hype and fanfare. My friends who visited soon after the initial soft opening told me the place really didn't live up to their expectations. So I waited about six weeks. We'd moved offices and was now a bit closer to the place. Three of us, Calvin, "BigD", and myself, made two visits, after which we decided to give it a rest.

The restaurant does remind me of those "Dim Sum Palaces" of my youth, a nice, rather large, space (formerly Hometown Buffet).

The place is set-up for larger "family style" parties.

During our visits, there only seemed to be 2-3 carts rotating at a time. During our first visit, we never saw the steamed dumpling cart, so no siu mai, har gow, etc. On both visits, we never saw any Cheong Fun.

I've decided to start with the best item we had; which coincidentally was actually ordered off the menu; the Roast Pork ($14.95).

The pork was moist, the skin, while a bit too thick was decent. A very nice dish overall.

A remote second was the tripe.

No off flavors, decently cooked, nice "crunch" the gooey sauce was a bit on the "sweet" side for my taste.

I think it's kind of sad that the two main reasons the Shrimp Siu Mai is number 3 was that it was hot and it wasn't overly tough.

The Soy Sauce Noodles was on the colder side, a bit greasy and overcooked.

Sticky Rice wrapped in Lotus Leaf was barely past warm.

The rice was nice and tender, though the pork was really tough.

One look at the Har Gow and you can tell this wasn't going to be very good.

Dried out wrappers, hard and overcooked shrimp.

The Eggplant stuffed with shrimp was quite cold and greasy.

That sauce which was cold really didn't help matters.

The Ham Sui Gok, the fried glutinous rice dumplings stuffed with pork was also cold, thus the dumpling had become rather gummy. Check out the (lack of) filling, which was cold and tough.

The Bean Curd roll was at least served at a decent temperature. But the strips of vegetables were cut too thick and was undercooked.

Calvin just wanted the Xiao Long Bao.

Looking at the photo; you can kinda figure things out; cold, no soup, really thick, hard wrappers.

And yet, there was something even worse than the XLB; the Pearl Balls, these made with shrimp.

Cold, tough, some of the rice was just plain hard.

There's obviously some kinks to work out here…..things like keeping your product at a decent temp in the carts…..which, by the way, only made one pass, and then was gone. It was a rather unsatisfying two meals. I'm hoping they get things straightened out. I'm hoping they work things out. Folks were telling me how busy the place was, but on our first visit the place was one-third full, on our second even less.

For balance, please check out Kirbie's and Faye's posts.

Fung Fung Yuen
10660 Camino Ruiz
San Diego, CA 92126

Sunday Stuffs – Baguette Bros Closes, Pizza Coming to the Poseidon Project, and Giovanni’s (Balboa) is moving to Linda Vista

October 8, 2017 mmm-yoso Sandwiches, Thai Restaurants

Some items for a beautiful San Diego Sunday.

Baguette Bros Closes:

"Xiāng Jiāo" mentioned this to me the other day. I happened to be in the area so I drove by.

Though they created a bit of hype when they opened a few years back, I never really took to the place during my visits.

"XJ" told me this was going to be another location of IC Monster (Read Kirbie's post here).

4698 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Pizza Coming to Poseidon:

So, this sign is up and the oven has been delivered. I've been told it's a joint venture with URBN…..not my favorite pizza, so we'll see.

Still my favorite neighborhood watering hole.

Poseidon Project
4126 Napier St
San Diego, CA 92110

Giovanni's (Balboa) is moving to Linda Vista:

While taking the back way after fueling up; I noticed that this location of Giovanni's had closed.

Man, I hadn't been here in like 14-15 years! Though Cathy did a post on the Clairemont Mesa over a decade ago. Looks like this location is becoming a Mystic Grill and Bakery, which coincidentally, Cathy has also done a post on.

6133 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

And so, I thought that was it for this location of Giovanni's. Until I drove past the former location of Pacific Time on Linda Vista Road. This surprised me.

So, I checked around a bit and yes, according to my sources, they are reopening here.

5277 Linda Vista Rd
San Diego, CA 92110

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Paris – Breakfast, Notre-Dame de Paris, and the Marais

October 6, 2017 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, France, Paris, France, Travel

Like I mentioned earlier, we really enjoyed our stay at the Hotel Monge. Even Krista at Passport Delicious agrees.

Breakfast at the hotel was simple, but more than adequate.

I actually ate a bit more than usual as I was sure we'd be doing a good amount of walking on this day.

And breakfast acutally held us (other than a snack of gougères and coffee) until dinner later that evening.

And then we were off……..

We strolled up Rue Monge, onward to the Siene, crossing the Petit Pont (Little Bridge) to Île de la Cité, this island, which shaped like a ship, is considered to be the historical center of Paris.

In fact, if you head on over to Parvis Notre-Dame – place Jean-Paul-II, the square in front of Notre-Dame, you'll find Kilometer Zero (aka Point Zero), the point from which all distances are measured and, depending who you ask, either the center of Paris or France as a whole.

This is just the second Kilometer Zero we've actually visited; the other being in Madrid.

The main reason we were here was to visit Notre-Dame de Paris, one of the most well known examples of Gothic Cathedrals. With the two towers rising over 220 feet above the ground, it was quite a site to see. During the construction of the cathedral, as the rather thin walls were built higher and higher, stress fractures started to occur. To combat this, the architects decided to combat this by supporting the walls using flying buttress.

We were lucky; there was just a short line to get into the church on this day.

We entered and were engulfed by history.

For me, it was more about some of the more interesting items were in the chapels. Like this one.

This was in the Chapel of the Holy Childhood. Notice the hair on the sculpture of the young boy. This is the shrine of Saint Paul Chen who was executed at the age of 23 in 1861, one of the Martyr Saints of China.

This is the Chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

And then there's the statue of Joan of Arc, hero to Parisians, who claimed to have heard heavenly voices and rallied the French to several swift victories. Captured by the Burgundians she was turned over to the English, she was burned at the stake in 1431. Pope Callixtus III found her innocent and declared her a martyr in 1456. She was Canonized in 1920.

Notice that Joan is looking upwards…..to this beautiful stained glass window.

Leaving Notre-Dame was crossed over to Île Saint-Louis, the other of the two "natural" islands in the Seine.

Crossing over to the other side of the Seine we entered the district known as Marais.

In the center of Place de la Bastille resides the Colonne de Juillet. Topped by a Statue of Mercury, which looked like it was reaching for the contrail in this capture.

From here we strolled up Rue Saint Antoine, pausing to take in the vibe……

This is the Temple du Marais. It was originally a Catholic Convent, but was given to the Protestants after the French Revolution. It remains a Protestant Church to this day.

From the 13th to the 17th century, Le Marais was home to the nobles who built their mansions (hôtel particulier) in the area.

One that I read about is the Hôtel de Sully.

The courtyard seemed so peaceful, a world away from the busy streets on the other side of the building.

We enjoyed watching this bird taking a refreshing bath…..

This sparrow must have really been having a great time as soon enough, a friend joined in the festivities.

Right out the back of the Hôtel de Sully is Place des Vosges. Originally known as Place Royale, this square was built by Henri IV in 1605.

The buildings that surround the square were once the home to the nobles and aristocracy of Paris.

From here we walked thru the bustling Rue des Rosiers (the Jewish Quarter) and past the Pompidou Center, then decided to head back to the hotel.

With a short stop at Hôtel de Ville (City Hall).

After crossing the river; the Missus wanted to make one more stop.

I'd promised Her that She could get a Hermes scarf during every visit to France. It was time for Her to collect on that promise. So we headed on over to the Hermes shop on Rue de Sèvres, which was a pretty long walk.

We passed this sculpture along the way; it's named Le Centaure de César.

From the Hermes Store back to the Hotel Monge was a bit of a truck and we were rather tired.

We had some late afternoon plans, after all, we had only one full day in Paris on this leg of the trip and the Missus wanted to make the most of it.

But first, a nap!

Cross Street Chicken and Beer (Pre-Soft Opening)

October 4, 2017 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Beer, Chicken Wings, Korean Restaurants

Cross Street has fascinated me since I first noticed that Your Story was closed back in June. I'd heard that the place was going to do KFC….you know K(orean) F(ried) C(hicken), which was confirmed by Eater a few weeks later.

While driving by last week, I noticed that the place looked open. I sent a text to "YummyYummy" who through her connections verified that they were in "Pre-soft" (???) Opening mode. Soon enough, "YY" and "Xiāng Jiāo" and I decided to meet up.

The place is dressed up in the very modern; industrial style that is popular these days. Lot's of staff on hand….super friendly young folks. This being "before" the soft opening, I expected some mishaps, but there were none. Some scrambling, but these folks seem up to the task.

The menu is mostly made up of fried foods, with Chicken Wings (of course) being the focus. It's basically $11 for 6 wings prepared in one of six "styles".

But first that popular Korean drinking snack, Corn Cheese ($8).

These were pretty dull for corn cheese, not enough cheese, the corn not sweet enough.

And some Beer Battered Fries ($6), which I found to be ok.

I thought these could have been more crisp and the fries got soggy fairly quickly.

So, what about those wings. Well, before folks freak out about the $11 for six wings thing; I'll say this, the wings are pretty large, in my opinion too large as I prefer a small to medium size wing….better skin to ratio. The wings were good quality; tender meat, juicy, no broken bones, no off colors.

As to how these compare to the KFC we had at, say, Mirak or Kkanbu in Seoul? Or even Gala, "Bee-Bee-Q", or Kyochon? Well, let's take a look.

The Original……

I was told these were the "signature" wings, but though while it had enough salt, it needed some zing. The wings are so large that I think the double fry method doesn't work as much magic here as all of the fat under the skin did not render down all the way and the batter got soft rather quickly. This was the only wings we had that were served with a "salad" rather than the traditional mul kimchi….which would have done good in this case.

Salt and Pepper…..

Royal Mandarin, Mandarin Canton, and the rest have nothing to worry about for now as again the coating didn't hold out too long. It also wasn't very light and crisp on this version. The flavor was very mild for S&P wings and was a bit greasy as well.

Here's the classic, very typical, sticky, Spicy Korean style wings you get at many places.

I expected a bit more heat, but we were told that they were worried about it being too hot and scaring away the non-Korean customers. It was sweet and sticky. This got soggy really quickly and the young man who I think is one of the owners really apologized about that and tried to take it off the bill. But that's not our style…..hey, they're not even in Soft Opening mode!

I thought the best wings we had was the Soy Garlic…..

While on the mild side with regards to garlic flavor; it wasn't too sweet, had a decent bit of saltiness, the batter was a bit thick, but held up the best of all the wings. This ain't no Kyochon, but I'd take this over "BBQ Chicken" and Gala.

The owners were very nice and gracious….they asked us our opinion….usually we'd balk, but this time we were very honest. We were thanked for our opinion and told to please return because they're hoping to "get better every day"! There was such sincerity in that declaration, that having to run some errands for the Missus, I returned the very next day…..

They were a lot busier this time around, but the service was still very friendly….everyone smiles here. At least on my visits they did.

This time around I had Max Cream, an all malt beer, brewed by Hite. This wasn't too sweet, very light, unobtrusive, slightly winey (cat pee), easy to drink.

I actually ordered way too much food, but really enjoyed myself.

Starting with the Fried Pickle Spears ($8).

While I thought the breading was really hard; I really enjoyed the tart-sour of the pickles….it really got my attention; especially when I took a big first bite.

The Beer Battered Fries were better this time around.

Staying nice and crisp.

I ordered the Original Wings again.

While the flavor was still rather plain and the wings didn't quite have that signature light crispness of good KFC; in terms of keeping a nice crunchiness throughout the meal; this was much better.

As were the Soy Garlic wings.

A bit more garlic; lighter crisper coating that held out well, this was much better than the previous day. They just need to get a handle on rendering out a bit more fat and I think this is a keeper.

So, I guess the really nice folks here weren't kidding when they said things "get better every day". At least it did for me.

I like these folks, I hope they do well. Though I'll wait until or maybe after their upcoming Soft Opening.

I also need to order the Garlic Parmesan wings that Kirbie enjoyed in her post on Cross Street.

Cross Street Chicken and Beer
4403 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Chris’ Ono Grinds Island Grill (North Park)

October 2, 2017 mmm-yoso Local Kine Stuffs in San Diego, Loco Mocos, Plate Lunch

After several years; I finally made it to Chris' Ono Grinds in North Park. I'd been meaning to ever since, sadly, a couple of years after visiting the Mission Gorge location, it was consumed by fire (here's a video). I'd actually been thinking of revisiting the Mission Gorge location about the time of the fire. I put the North Park location on my "list" and well, call it old age, promptly forgot about it. Until recently when one of the guys at work, "BigD from Georgia" told me how much he enjoys the place. Well, even though "BigD" wouldn't know a plate lunch from a slate lunch, I thought it was about time.

It was a nice weekend morning, about eleven-thirty-ish, when I parked and crossed the street into the tiny shop.

The folks here are quite friendly, very hospitable. It was close enough for breakfast for me to order the Loco Moco ($11).

Well, other than the perfect easy-over egg (it was overcooked last time), this was basically a replay. The burger had some nice beefiness, but was really tough and rubbery. The gravy had a sour-bitterness to it that I found rather unpleasant. The rice was fine.

That mac salad was the best thing about this meal. Edging on a bit too sour, it was served nicely chilled, the macaroni was perfectly cooked, the amount of mayo was hitting that top end, but was still within parameters.

Too bad about the gravy, because that egg was lovely.

A couple of weeks later, I was in the neighborhood, so I decided to drop by. This time I went with the Huli Huli Chicken – Teri Steak ($12). One thing you can't complain about is the portion sizes at Chris's.

Well, be it ever so humble, once again, that mac salad was my favorite thing about this meal.

I gotta give it to Chris's though, the beef, while cut thicker than usual for teri beef was fairly tender. I just wish it was better marinated and had less of the salty-heavy ginger glaze.

The Huli Huli Chicken was as before, too sticky sweet for my taste and this time it was really charred to death.

Nice portions, nice people, not my kind of loco moco or plate lunch. In thinking about things; Chris's has the potential to be something along the lines of Diamond Head Market and Grill. Man am I missing home right now.

Chris’ Ono Grinds Island Grill
4506 30th St
San Diego, CA 92116
Open Daily
1130am – 9pm

Paris – A Walk Around the Left Bank, Eric Kayser, and Dinner at Terroir Parisien (Since Closed)

September 28, 2017 mmm-yoso Bakery, France, French Restaurants, Paris, France, Travel

While I was sad to leave Beaune and Burgundy behind, the Missus was excited about returning to Paris. We were staying in the Latin Quarter at the Hotel Monge which I ended up really enjoying. I really enjoyed the area around the hotel; Arrondissements 4 and 5. Did you know there's a Roman amphitheatre in Paris? The Arènes de Lutèce is in the 5th arrondissement and was one of the first places we saw after arriving since it was basically right behind the hotel.

The Arènes de Lutèce was constructed during the 1st Century and could hold as many as 17,000 spectators. It was sacked in 280 AD and even though the area was still called les Arènes, the location was lost to time. Until the 1860's when it was rediscovered while building Rue Monge.

It kind of looks like a simple park. More on Arènes de Lutèce here.

After checking in, the Missus was ready to explore. As mentioned earlier; I really enjoyed the vibe of this area. It just seemed a bit more "real" to me, while still being very French.

The Missus was feeling a bit puckish, so we headed up Rue Monge to the branch of Maison Eric Kayser right up Rue Monge.

The place was doing good business. The Missus went for the Almond Croissant and we both had espresso.

And while the croissant looked beautiful; it was a bit too sweet, and the texture of the croissant wasn't to the Missus's liking.

Eric Kayser
14 Rue Monge
75005 Paris, France

We actually enjoyed the croissants and especially the gougères from this nearby corner bakery more….sorry, no photos this time around….

Bolstered by the espresso we headed off; the Missus wanted to see the Pantheon, so we headed up Rue du Cardinal Lemoine, turning on Rue Clovis, passing Église Saint-Étienne-du-Mont.

And then hitting the crowds around the corner at the Panthéon.

Where many famous French citizens such as Victor Hugo, Marie Curie, and Voltaire are interred.

There are quite a few impressive structures nearby; like this one, the Mairie du 5e arrondissement de Paris.

Which is the town hall.

A few blocks away is Jardin du Luxembourg (Luxembourg Garden), the wonderful green space of Luxembourg Palace, where the French Senate meets. This being a laid back Sunday afternoon, it was a great place to relax for a bit and people watch.

Like I've said many times….folks in Europe really know how to relax and enjoy a leisure day……

From the Gardens, we headed toward the Seine, passing Église Saint-Sulpice.

The church's distinctive round towers reaching to the sky. It's interesting to note that the South Tower, the one on the right in the photo above is actually unfinished. I was told that the an event; one might have heard of, called the French Revolution interrupted the construction and the tower is left unfinished.

From here we wandered the back streets, passing places like Le Deux Magots (The Two Chinamen) Café.

Where folks like Hemingway, Camus, Picasso, and even Jim Morrison used to hang out.

There's quite a bit to see around here; the Hotel where Oscar Wilde died, places where George Sand and Richard Wagner lived…..and even a statue of Voltaire.

There's more than enough history to go around……

That's the view across the Seine from the Pont des Arts.

We decided to head on back to the Hotel Monge and take a short break before dinner. Place Saint Michel was bustling. There were quite a few soldiers patrolling the streets in this area, as crowds gathered around the Fontaine Saint Michel.

There was something happening on every corner it seemed.

After a nice break we headed out to dinner. The place I chose was Terroir Parisien which had been highly recommended.

Strangely, we fond the menu and preparation to be nothing special and very pedestrian. Also, the service was on the brusque side. Terroir Parisien was touted as being a chef driven locavorian (is there such a word?) bistro. For some reason, we weren't particularly drawn to the food here. Since Terroir Parisien has since closed, perhaps others shared our opinion?

Anyway, here's what we had.

Perhaps we'd been eating so well on this trip that we'd become jaded? I'm not quite sure, but everything except the oeufs au plat, lard de Paris (basically two eggs and bacon) was really underwhelming.

Terroir Parisien (Closed)
20 rue Saint Victor
75005 Paris, France

Still, we were enjoying the liveliness of Paris.

And tomorrow was going to be our last in the City of Lights. We intended to make the best of it!

Revisits – Mignon Pho + Grill and Red Moon Noodle House

September 27, 2017 mmm-yoso Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants, Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

So, our office was set to move after years in the Serra/Kearny Mesa area. We'd be heading a bit North. Thus, I decided to revisit a couple of places before we left.

Mignon Pho + Grill:

Or as Calvin's wife calls it; "pho for folks who don't like pho". I dunno, it had been a couple of years, so I decided to check them out again.

I went with the "Trolley Bowl" ($10).

The noodles were decent, though in clump, and the herbs and such were sparse though fresh. Still not sure why they serve ngo om (aka rice paddy herb), with its distinct flavor with the pho here.

The soup always seems to have kind of a bitter – tinny flavor to me. It's also quite weak and overly defatted. The proteins were tough and lacked flavor.

But, this place still seems to do good business. Perhaps it's the service which has always been friendly. Or perhaps it's the Lemongrass Fries, which is the best (only decent) thing I've had here.

Mignon Pho + Grill
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Red Moon Noodle House:

**** Red Moon has closed

Another place that I haven't been to in a while and haven't had great luck with. Though one of the folks that I used to work with really enjoyed the Singapore Noodle at Red Moon. So why not?

The really nice guy working brought me a fork to start? I had to ask for chopsticks? The dish, when it arrived, piping hot, looked quite impressive as it was topped with fried eggs.

Once you got past that though, it was a disappointment. The pork in this was really tough, almost hard.

There was way too much curry powder….it was definitely powder because it left a grainy, bitter residue on my tough. This was actually rather unpleasant to eat.

The noodles were too hard as well.

I took most of this home and had the Missus taste this……big mistake.

Folks have mentioned a "secret menu" (I've had the XLB, it's definitely bought frozen from somewhere else), but I've never received recommendations. So guess what? Singapore noodles….maybe that fork should have been a clue?

Really nice folks here too though….

Red Moon Noodle House
4646 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

I really liked the folks working at both places; but man, the food really didn't and hasn't been my thing here.