mmm-yoso – Page 221

Village Kitchen – A Bunch of Meals

January 5, 2016 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

Back during the first week of December, I noticed that a place named Village Kitchen had just opened. At first indication, it seemed like a Hunan restaurant. I was interested. I was even more interested when one of my readers "SZ" sent me an email with a photo……of that classic Hunan dish; Fish Head. I sent the photo to a friend of mine and suddenly her dad insisted on going…and last I heard he's visited 6 times since!

I knew after looking at the menu on my first visit; with my coworkers Lily and YZ (YZ has been back with her friends since), that this wasn't typical "San Diego" (where everyone makes the same thing) type dishes, there had to be a story behind this. After visits with Calvin and one (overdue) blow out meal with my good friends, I'd gotten a bit of the background. The young man who owns and runs Village Kitchen has an interesting genealogy; his father owns Dong Ting Chun the Hunan restaurant located in Focus Plaza, in San Gabriel. In fact, if you look at photos on that "four lettered site", you'll find many of the same dishes served here. His background is also interesting; perhaps I'll tell it one day. But let's just say he is highly educated here in the US and I'm guessing he'd rather do this than have a career in science.

One other thing that makes this place interesting; especially for cuisines of the type….the don't use any MSG!

The interior is clean and bright. Don't let the empty tables fool you. The place always fills up soon after opening. Almost all the customers are Chinese.

Some interesting things; if you want water here, you grab a plastic cup and get it from the self serve containers at either the front or the rear of the dining room. Tea is $5; but it is pretty good quality.

Not much more left but the food, right? So here we go…..

My favorite dish….and there's never leftovers for this one is the Eggplant and Green Chili with Preserved Egg ($10.75).

The dish is served up in a mortar; the chilies are mild green chilies and the eggplant seems to have been flame roasted and is both smokey and creamy. Love the flavor of the "pidan" (Century Egg – 皮蛋), the sulfuric finish is still there but tempered. The sauce has two of my favorite flavor components, fermented bean curd and fermented black bean. It's a unique dish and doesn't seem Hunan at all, regardless, it is very delici-yoso…..

I also enjoyed the Stinky Tofu Stew ($11.75).

So did Lily, YZ, and Calvin. It had a nice sour flavor, wasn't too spicy, the earthy, smelly tofu flavor was balanced out by other flavors in the dish. The tofu soaked up all the nice broth which completed the slightly "ripe" flavor of the tofu. The second time I had the dish (photo on right), it was even better, the flavor of cumin coming through. Of course, the Missus believes that if I can eat the ChouDofu, it isn't any good (remember Hangzhou?) Tasting the leftovers; She did say that the second one was better than the first, but this just wasn't spicy enough.

After trying many of the dishes here, I can vouch that this ain't Hunan Chilli King, but the next two dishes are decently spicy.

The Grilled Octopus ($13.75), which has been sliced rather thinly, and is served on a heated chafing dish is the most spicy dish I've had here.

The texture of the octopus was pleasantly chewy and nicely prepared. The portion size was quite large. A very nice dish.

The pickled/sour flavors of the Specialty Fish Fillet ($13.75) heightened the chili flavors in this dish.

The "soup" is full of preserved mustard greens, which actually makes it better than the fish; while not muddy in flavor, it was a bit too mushy for my liking. Still, I'd have this again.

The Hunan Style Lotus Roots ($8.75) was nice and crunchy.

Nicely flavored, but not quite as spicy as I like it, nor could I make out a slight vinegar flavor, which the versions I enjoy the most have. It actually tasted better the next day.

The classic Three Steamed Meats ("Country Smoked Meat Medley – $13.75) was a mixed bag.

The La Rou – smoked pork was fine, better than most, but still nowhere near the versions we enjoy the most. The smoked fish was really bony as was the duck….the smoked flavor was quite good for those though and the Missus, who loves gnawing on things actually enjoyed it.

The Steamed Fish Head with Red Chilies ($17.75) had some delicious components.

The bean curd did well with the chilies, as did the yam noodles. In one aspect, this really reminded me of Hunan dishes I've had…the salt level teetered on the edge of being too salty, but was just enough…. The fish was nice and tender, but a bit too muddy for my taste.

I strangely ordered some Liang Cai; a cold dish on one of my visits; Pig Ear.

The pig ears were sliced nicely and were quite crunchy. Decent flavor; perhaps in need of a bit of black vinegar and a bit of chili oil.

The case of the Salted Long Beans with Smoked Pork ($12.75) is an interesting one.

YZ told me I had to try this after ordering it during a meal with her friends. I thought it was ok; no one at the table enjoyed it, so I took most of it home. The Missus enjoyed this. Salted, preserved long beans is one of Her Father's favorite items. Being from Hunan, the Missus had eaten this when visiting Her Grandmother who, I was told, made a fantastic version of this dish. Of course, this was nowhere as good, but for the Missus, it was a moment of nostalgia.

One of the most interesting items on the menu is called Rock n' Roll Pig Feet ($12.75). I gave the Missus a copy of the menu and asked what the translation of the Chinese name of this dish was……and was told it is a literal direct translation. So, here we have Rock n' Roll Pig Feet. When arriving at the table, the pot (covered of course) is shaken vigorously……rock n' roll!

This was fairly aromatic and the flavor was decent if on the mild side and I think it could have braised a bit longer making it more gelatinous. Not quite "I Love Rock and Roll", but I'm game to giving this another try.

I actually enjoyed the Baby Taro and Baby Turnip Stew ($9.75).

The broth was nice and rich and the flavoring quite good.

The Hunan Classic, Dong-An Chicken ($15.75) just barely missed the mark.

The chicken flavor was excellent; I was told it was very good quality chicken, never frozen. The versions I've tasted have had a bit more of a complex flavor; vinegar, more ginger, a tad more sesame oil. While traditionally not a very spicy dish, I think this could have benefited by maybe one more chili?

Lastly, the one dish that really could have been a winner; the Zi Ran Yang Rou – Cumin Lamb ($14.75).

In terms of the quality of the lamb, to the amount of cilantro (maybe a bit too much), and how the lamb was stir fried, this was spot on. The one big missing thing? There was no cumin flavor here…plus, I like mine with a bit of garlic. I guess I'll need to keep making it at home.

Overall, I'm quite excited about the arrival of Village Kitchen in San Diego. The food is different, interesting, and I'd like to try more. It might even get the Missus out eating Chinese regional cuisine in our fair city again. I'm looking forward to returning and trying even more dishes. The service is decent, they do get a bit confused at times….the business is new, so of course there are little bumps in the road. But you sure won't get "Spicy City service" here. Even though it doesn't quite line up with my favorite Hunan places in the SGV, I urge you to check Village Kitchen out and come to your own opinion.

Village Kitchen
4720 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Revisits: Pho Hut and Hinotez

January 4, 2016 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Ramen, Vietnamese Restaurants

Man, work has been busy. And there were a couple of cool/rainy days, where I just wanted a bowl of noodle soup, and some quiet. Here's where I went.

Pho Hut and Grill:

I didn't expect much based on my previous visits. I wasn't sure what to order and ended up going with the Mi Sui Cao, dumpling egg noodle soup, not cheap at $8.50, but based on those earlier visits, I really didn't want pho.

The bowl was generous and it was better than I thought it would be.

While the broth was a bit heavy with regards to the MSG, it wasn't bad, decent flavor. The egg noodles were done well…..the dumplings were typical, a bit on an under-performer because all of them were torn open and falling apart. Not bad….but perhaps a bit over-priced in my mind.

Pho Hut & Grill
5252 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Hinotez:

When I want a quiet lunch, I'll sometimes hit up Hinotez. There's usually no one sitting at the bar when I at there if it's early enough. And like other visits, the place was empty. Instead of the usual item I order; the Shio Ramen, I went with the Shoyo Ramen.

This was actually a bit better than the last couple of shio versions I'd had here in the recent past. It was piping hot, had a mild, but not too salty flavor. The egg was decent, but the chashu was again cold and dry. The standard issue noodles were prepared decently….could have been more firm, but was a tad better than average. It won't win any awards, but I wanted a quiet and peaceful meal and I did get that…..

Hinotez
7947 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

Kind of Cassoulet

January 3, 2016 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

Remember I mentioned that the Missus requested a restock of the duck confit and a cassoulet for New Year? So, well that actually happened.

The request kind of threw me at first…..after all duck confit is a two day process for me. But as usual, in the end the Missus got what She wanted. Not a traditional "cassoulet" by any means as I portioned things out and heated them in the a gratin pan…..but that just meant more crunchy toppings. And on the second day, I added some collard greens to the whole thing (photo above), I also posted a photo to Flickr. Which leads to this post. I'd kinda gotten distracted making this dish and hadn't taken a whole lot of photos, so was just going to wait until I did this again. But "Hao" who comments every once in a while saw a photo of this on my Flickr page and asked if I'd do a post. So here you go….not quite, but kind of cassoulet.

A couple of items to note, I had just completed making a batch of my duck confit, so I had duck fat at hand as well as confit duck legs. Second, I've seen recipes that call for clove, but since I cure my duck legs with Chinese 5 spice, I figured that there's be that light hint of clove-cinnamon flavor in the background. On New Year's eve, I went out looking for beans. I'd seen Flageolet beans at Whole Foods, but when I got there it was no Bueno. So I ended up with organic Navy Beans, which worked out well. New Year's day saw me running around looking for the rest of the ingredients and I just improvised when needed. Everything was done in between getting called into work…..

So while this might just set you over the edge….remember, it's "kind of cassoulet". After all, I tend to think of cassoulet as being a rustic, peasant dish, something that uses preserved meats and beans. And no, I didn't use a Cassole either.

You might look at the steps and think this is difficult, but it's not….in spite of all the steps, which are just simple strategies and techniques to get the most of what I had, this wasn't too hard. There's a good amount of idle time as well.

Kind of Cassoulet

1 – 1 1/4 pounds Flageolet or Navy Beans

1/2 pound pork belly
1/4 pound pancetta
4 confit duck legs
1 pound pork sausage – preferably Garlic sausage, but what the heck, I used mild Italian Sausage. If you've got an inside line on Toulouse style garlic sausage in San Diego – let me know!

2 medium onions
1 whole bulb of garlic
4 cloves of garlic
6 sprigs fresh thyme
6 bay leaves
1 Tb whole peppercorn

4-5 Tb duck fat
1 quart stock (the good stuff, preferable made at home – veal or chicken)
2 cups white wine – I like something with a nice acidity
2-3 Tb Concentrated Tomato Paste

Salt and Pepper to taste

Part 1 The beans
– Soak the bean overnight in enough water to cover by at least 3-4 inches
– Drain the beans
– While the beans are draining chop the pork belly into cubes
– Brown the pork belly over medium-low heat to render fat. Browning will help the pork belly keep it's shape during cooking. After all, we all love biting into a nice piece of pork belly, right?
– Drain half the rendered fat from the pork belly, then add 2 Tb duck fat
– Add well drained beans and cover with water and combine.
– Create a bouquet garni (so fancy shmancy) of 3 sprigs of thyme, 3 bays leaves, and peppercorns. Add to the pot with 4 garlic cloves
– Simmer for about an hour or so until tender, but still slightly firm – remember, you're going to be cooking this again.

Part 2 Meanwhile, while the beans are simmering, the meat
– Set oven at 325.
– Dice the pancetta
– Prick the pork sausage, this will allow the fat to render.
– Chop the onions and the peeled cloves of the entire bulb of garlic.
– In a large Dutch Oven, brown the whole sausage, then remove.
– Add the remainder of the duck fat to the pot
– Add the pancetta and brown.
– Add tomato paste, onions, and garlic. Stir and let soften.
– Meanwhile, slice browned sausage into slices
– Once the onions and garlic are fragrant, add the sliced sausage back into the pot.
– Add the two cups of white wine and bring to a simmer
– Add the stock and bring to a simmer
– Create another bouquet garni of 3 sprigs of thyme and 3 bays leaves and add to the pot
– Give the whole mess a good stir, then add the duck confit. If you want the legs to stay whole….be gentle
– Place in the oven and let braise for an hour or so, checking once or twice and giving a gentle stir

Part 3 Putting it together
– Once beans are ready drain into a colander, reserving the bean liquid. Remove the bouquet garni.
– Remove the braising meat pot from the oven and turn the temp up to 350
– Add beans and pork belly to the braised meats.
– If more liquid is needed, top off with bean juice.
– Give a gentle stir and return to oven for another 30 minutes. Remove the Dutch Oven, taste and adjust flavor with salt and pepper.
– Return to oven until the beans reach the desired texture.

Part 4 So here's where I do something a bit different

2 slices uncured bacon cut into lardons
2 Tb duck fat
1 Tb finely minced garlic
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
1 cup panko

-Add duck fat and bacon to a cold pan.
– Over medium heat brown and render the fat from the bacon
– When the bacon is almost browned, add garlic, then parsley
– Add panko and stir letting the panko absorb all the oil

-Heat oven to 350
– Add the desired amount of cassoulet to a gratin pan
– Place in the oven until the cassoulet is heated through and starting to bubble
– Remove the pan from the oven and turn the temp up to 450
– Top the cassoulet with flavored panko and return to oven
– Remove when the panko reaches a light brown color

The first day it was pretty much straight up. The second time I put it together and added come collards which the Missus enjoyed, so you might want to try that.

San Sebastian: Atari Times 2 – Sirimiri Atari Akademy and Atari Gastroteka

January 2, 2016 mmm-yoso Basque Country - Spain and France, San Sebastian, Spain, Spanish Restaurants and Cuisine, Travel

As I mentioned previously; Sundays (and Mondays) weren't prime days for many of the better Pintxos (tapas) places during the off season in San Sebastian.

Still, I knew of one place on my list that was open. Right across from The Basilica of Santa Maria del Coro is Atari Gastroteka.

Atari came highly recommended by Candice, so we were glad they were open and doing some pretty good business. I quickly noticed "another Atari" around the corner. Sirimiri Atari Akademy, so I thought why not start there?

It seems that Sirmiri is more of a craft cocktail place. Since it was relatively early; just after 7pm, we managed to get a seat at the counter in the back.

Not in the mood for the typical pintxos on the counter, sitting at a table means ordering the pintxos calientes….basically items off the menu, which suited us fine. The missus got a tinto and I had a crianza (an older aged wine).

We really enjoyed sitting here because we got to watch the garde manger area and the folks expediting the dishes. And isn't that a sous vide immersion circulator?

Of course we started with the Foie Gras Terrine. Remember when I coined the term "Basque Butter"? Well, I think this is a perfect example of that…..looks like a stick of butter, doesn't it?

This was quite a huge portion. It was nicely "foie forward", the pear puree added a mild sweetness without going overboard, the butter toasts were almost like brioche. Hard to fault this.

The Ensalada de Queso de Cabra wasn't very exciting. But we felt a bit guilty having all that foie.

The Solomillo was very tasty, though a bit on the chewy side.

That cherry compote did a nice job of cutting the rice mushroom based sauce. Nice dish.

At this point we had finished our wine and decided to make it Atari times 2 and go next door.

Man, the bar was packed.

We asked on of the Servers for a table and she said it would be a short wait. So the missus got a glass of Txacoli and I got a beer. I really didn't get my hopes up because the place was so busy, but wouldn't you know it, somehow the woman found me about 10 minutes later and told me our table was ready. I was quite impressed and thankful. I told her I really appreciated her work and she said, "oh, do not worry…..this is your table, all night if you want, please enjoy!" And we did our best…..

Starting with the Huevo a Baja Temperatura – basically an egg cooked at a low temp….. The Missus was in heaven.

The texture was amazing, rich and velvety, the flavors tempered by the jamon; this was really good.

Only to be topped by the Foie a la Plancha – this was so good, seared, rich, the flavor amazing.

And yet, the Carrillera (pork cheeks) might have easily been the best item of the evening…perhaps of our entire stay in San Sebastian.

Fork tender, the sauce having a slight hint of sweet, teetering on the edge of too rich….but just holding that line. The texture of the pork was just plain perfect for me. Not falling to pieces, but yielding to the touch.

Plus our Server was just amazing. So busy, but also very friendly and efficient.

So, perhaps we missed out on places like Zeruko, Ganbara, La Cuchara de San Telmo, and A Fuego Negro, but we got to do Atari times two, and that made our stay in San Sebastian a success.

Sirimiri Atari Akademy and Atari Gastroteka
Calle Mayor 18
San Sebastian/Donostia, Spain

After dinner we took a walk around. Business was picking up, but things were still rather quite as we walked to the muelle (port).

Then past the City Hall……

Then back to the apartment for a nightcap of Txakoli……..

We'd finally gotten a taste of San Sebastian…..

Happy New Year!

December 31, 2015 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers

Well, it's another one in the books!

Another New Year's eve, another morning trip to Mitsuwa, Nijiya, and Marukai to check out the Osechi. While the selections have dwindled, I basically do the same thing I've done my first New Year post.

This year, Mitsuwa seemed to have the best and most interesting selection, though these days, there's a lot of preordering going on.

Mitsuwa
4240 Kearny Mesa Rd
San Diego, CA 92111

Nijiya has always taken top spot for Osechi, until this year. The selection was less diverse and I actually heard two older couples actually pick something up and then put it back saying that it was too expensive and not worth the price.

Nijiya Market
3860 Convoy St Ste 109
San Diego, CA 92111

Marukai hardly had anything.

Still, it was nice seeing this sign in front of some products of Hogetsu Bakery.

If memory serves me right, this is Hogetsu's 42nd year of business. Hmm….back in 2011, the Takeda's told me that they didn't even own a computer, I wonder if they have one now. I need to get back down there and check.

Marukai Market
8151 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

This New Year, the Missus requested that I restock our duck confit. Instead of Nishime She wants Cassoulet. So it's making a batch of duck confit tonight, the cassoulet tomorrow. Of course I'm having my traditional soba tonight and since there were some great prices on items when I went shopping this morning, I'll do a couple of nimono items as well.

As we turn the page on another year, the gang here at mmm-yoso would like to wish everyone a safe, healthy, prosperous, and happy New Year!

Bruges: Rock Fort

December 28, 2015 mmm-yoso Belgian Cuisine and Restaurants, Belgium, Fine Dining, Travel

We really only had one full day in Bruges. And in the end it worked out well for us. The place was beautiful in the morning and later evening, when day-trippers left, but it was still rather crowded, and like I mentioned in a earlier post, you pretty much needed reservations for the better dinner locales. Luckily, the wonderful owner of our B&B managed to get us reservations at one of the restaurants that she said were among her favorites in Bruges. A place named Rock Fort. The reservations were for two bar seats which was fine with us. We were just happy to find a place to have a nice dinner.

We headed out early, happy to meander along the side streets, watching the ducks waddling along the sidewalks.

We soon found ourselves back at the City Hall Building. And decided to take a rest as the slow drizzle had petered out.

I noticed something a bit odd and pointed out these four young ladies in various costumes standing in the square.

I wasn't quite sure what this was all about, but we just had to stay and watch. Out popped another young lady with a video recorder and they did several takes of the four of them doing sort of a choreographed strut toward the camera. After finally getting it right, they celebrated with a group hug! What the objective was, who knows…..perhaps only they do? I won't even try to explain this one. Sometimes you see the oddest things.

Rock Fort is located not quite in the center of things, but just across one of the canals; where Hoogstrat turns into Langenstraat.

The façade is subdued and unassuming.

But the interior looks quite hip and very bright white. We entered and the very nice host said that since we were the first customers of the evening, if we thought we'd be done in 2 hours, they'd like to give us a table. Very gracious, the servers hit that balance between not being too stiff, yet professional and amiable.

As the evening passed, we saw quite a few "beautiful people, on several tables there were college aged young men with older women……a middle aged gentleman, dressed to the nines arrived with an entourage, sans reservations, one of the chefs came out to greet them. Apparently they had no reservations. After a short discussion, or should I say negotiation, they ended up sitting at the bar.

As we often will do when confronted with Tasting Menus; we'd work with the staff to get both menu items and the tasting menu, which was no problem here. The Missus had some wine, while I went for a beer….as I went down the menu, looking for something suitable, the cheerful young lady would nod a slight "no"….apparently she did not approve! Finally, I asked "La Chouffe"…..she smiled brightly and said; "good choice". I loved this place!

I did think the buttery popcorn that came along with the cheese and bread was fun and different.

Instead of going thru the entire dinner. I'll go over the highlights. It was actually two choices from the menu that were really outstanding.

The Entrecote of Flemish Beef – wet aged for a month, cured for a month, then dry aged for a month was outstanding.

Topped with pine nuts; this aged rib eye served raw was amazingly flavored, a deep, yet clean beef flavor. The pine nuts added a nutty and slightly sweet flavor to the dish.

The Beef Tartar was also outstanding.

Loved the scallions in this, which added just the right pungency as did the roasted garlic, balancing the wonderful clean flavors. The watercress gave just the right amount of bitterness.

The Chef's menu was no slouch…I mean; there's foie gras, well prepared seafood, and pork belly.

And yes, touches of molecular gastronomy; foams, powders, and such, but nothing got in the way.

The presentation was nice….but nothing could top the two dishes ordered off the menu.

It was by far the best meal we had in Belgium.

Rock Fort
Langestraat 15
Bruges, Belgium

As we took a stroll after dinner, we noticed groups of people making their way up one of the streets.

There was some kind of fair taking place.

After wandering about for a bit; we headed back to the warmth of our room at the B&B.

Our time in Bruges was coming to a close. While I'm not sure if we'll ever return; I can say that B&B B Guest was one of our favorite B&B's we've stayed at; just two rooms, close to everything, but with enough privacy, and a nice breakfast. We took away another thing from our trip. It seemed that just about every place we stayed at had a Nespresso machine. It was nice having a little pick-me-up in the morning or afternoon. We ended up buying one when we got home. Yes, the Missus is a coffee snob, but sometimes She just needs a nice shot of espresso.

We headed off to sleep rather early. The next day, we'd be headed back to Brussels.

Thanks for reading!

Whats My Craving? Bun Mam from Com Tam Nhu Y

December 27, 2015 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

I'd been craving Bun Mam from Com Tam Nhu Y for a while. I finally got a chance last week. Funny thing, Calvin had never heard of Bun Mam, neither had his wife who grew up in Westminster! He had to ask his mother-in-law…. So I made sure to invite him to try some Bun Mam.

It seems that Bun Mam here is evolving. This version was sweeter than what I had last time, rich, lots of shallot and garlic tones, definitely not as spicy, nor nearly as pungent as what I had at the original incarnation of Nhu Y. Still, the flavors are complex, there's a ton of greens and herbs and bun. It's quite a savory concoction……you want to make sure that you don't spill any of it on your clothes. Sammy will often follow me around the house after I eat this….must smell great to him!

Not a fan of the catfish, it was way too bony and muddy this time. The eggplant was fine, the portion size generous, and like mentioned above, it's not nearly as potent as it used to be, but you can't say it's bland. Not a huge fan of the tough pork and shrimp as well…….but, that's not why I order this. It's that broth that keeps me coming back.

Calvin finished all his bun and soup….I guess he liked it! I have a feeling he'll be back, as will I, when I get that itch….

Com Tam Nhu Y
4712 El Cajon Blvd Ste A
San Diego, CA 92115

Beery, um, Merry Christmas

December 24, 2015 mmm-yoso Beer

Well, it seems that another year is just zooming by. So quickly that I really can't keep up with our travel posts. So I thought I'd sneak photos from Seoul and Nagoya into this post.

Folks are usually really busy and preoccupied during this time of the year, so I thought I'd give it a rest, relax, and have a beer. This one is a very nice seasonal, Belgian style Brown.

Nice caramel, slightly bourbon boozy…. Thanks Candice!

Before settling in with my brew, we went on our yearly drive to check out the Christmas lights.

And of course the gang here at mmm-yoso, Ed from Yuma, Cathy, Myself, and even "Sammy-Claus" would like to extend our best Christmas wishes to all of you.

Oh yes, we can't forget Frankie, can we? Where is Frankie?

Oh well…..

Thanks so much for reading and Happy holidays!

The High Dive Revisited

December 22, 2015 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub

While having our drinks at Albie's, it became quite clear that there was no way we'd be getting a table. But we did need to get something to eat. I recalled that the High Dive, always a favorite for beer, never for food, had a new chef, and had elevated their menu a bit. I say a bit because this is my 'hood, be it ever so humble, Bay Park, and tastes around here run rather pedestrian. Still, why not give the High Dive another try?

The menu did indeed have some different things and Candice and I tried a few. Starting with the Chicken Chiccharon ($7).

This was crisp and light, though some pieces were over-seasoned and salty, overall a nice starter.

The item I enjoyed the most were the Chorizo Croquettes; called "Chorizo Potato Ballz" on the menu ($8) – I wonder why they just don't call them croquettes? Are they afraid folks won't know what they are?

Light and crisp breading, creamy and light filling, this was pretty good. The chorizo had a nice smokiness and almost came across with a nice almost beefy flavor. It wasn't too rich, nor was it over-seasoned. Now, if only they'd "86" the runny ranch dressing and replace it with maybe a garlic aioli?

The Naked Spicy Garlic Wings ($10) looked the part, but didn't deliver.

Other than the flavor of bitter garlic; this was very, very bland….as in we had to ask for a bottle of hot sauce to actually eat these. Also, the skin was slightly more gummy than I'd like and it didn't have any spice at all.

The Smoked Pork Tacos ($9) also fell short.

The tortillas, while generic were prepped well, the toppings, the pickled onions, cilantro, cotija cheese were spot on. The pork however, was too dry and had a texture of cardboard, to the point that I really couldn't tell the difference in texture between the pork and tortilla. It was also a bit low in the flavor department; much too mild (I even tasted just the meat), overshadowed by all the other flavors.

So it was pretty much a 50-50 thing. And yet, I felt quite happy with what I had. The High Dive seems to be making strides and with some additional menu upgrades I heard about, may one day really be a place for more than just having a beer and hitting the road for us.

And heck, deciding that I needed to do something different as well, I asked the bartender, who happened to be Mixologist Ryan Andrews to make me a cocktail. He brought me something called the "Mariner's Revenge"…..man, it was great! Great guy….great drink!

Hope springs eternal…..

High Dive Bar and Grill
1801 Morena Blvd
San Diego, CA 92110

San Sebastian: Bar La Cepa

December 21, 2015 mmm-yoso Basque Country - Spain and France, San Sebastian, Spain, Spanish Restaurants and Cuisine, Travel

To be perfectly honest, I should have planned our arrival in san Sebastian a bit better. All but one of the places on my were closed during our stay which spanned from a Sunday, leaving on a Tuesday morning. But like the Missus said, "we had a direction and a plan of where we needed to be when and you can't just skip Sunday and Monday!"

We caught the best from the Bilbao Bus Station….basically a big parking lot and ended up at the Amara "Bus Station", basically another big parking lot. From there we caught the local bus to the "Boulevard" and rather quickly found the street we were staying at on, Calle de Fermin Calbeton. Our apartment was basically right at the edge of things; a great location.

So even though the apartment was rather old the location couldn't be beat.

I guess May is still the low season, the places I thought were only closed on Sundays, were also closed on Mondays and visa versa. So we had a bit of a scramble on our hand when we went looking for a place to have bite for lunch. On De Agosto Kalea we came across a place that was doing some decent business. The bar was covered with pintxos (tapas), but as I mentioned in my post on La Vina del Ensanche in Bilbao, I really never took to those…..they looked pretty, but it just wasn't my thing.

Instead we usually went for pintxos caliente or like this meal, some charcuterie. In this case, the lomo iberico de Bellota, cured pork loin sausage.

he portion was quite generous and this combined with the bread made this more than enough for a light lunch. The sausage was very tasty, paprika forward, with a light garlic and herbal touch. Not overly salty, tender and not too waxy.

The Missus also wanted to try Txakoli, a very dry, acidic, "fresh" wine that is a specialty of Basque Country.

It is traditionally poured from about a two meter height. I was told this is to aerate the wine, creating bubbles, and reducing the carbon dioxide. Our bartender was all to happy to demonstrate….. he was really a friendly and funny guy.

The Missus really took to this and I'd try; with mixed success, to try to pour it from a decent height without spilling stuff all over the place. I guess that's best left to the professionals. and while I've read that special pourers are available to help with the process, this guy didn't need that.

La Cepa was a relaxed, fun place to have lunch and a couple of glasses of Txakoli.

Bar La Cepa
31 de Agosto Kalea
Donostia / San Sebastián, Spain

After our meal we needed to "burn off the meal" and headed off; around Monte Urgull. That's Playa de Zurriola and Gros in the background.

On the other side of the Mountain is Isla de Santa Clara and Concha Bay.

The Basilica of Santa Maria del Coro is quite striking, sitting at the base of Mount Urgull. Completed in 1774 it looks impressive when viewed down Calle Mayor. I'll have a bit more on this place in a future post.

We ended our walk at Plaza de la Constitución.

Established in 1723, this version was rebuilt in 1817 after being destroyed by fire. The apartments ringing the plaza have large and distinctive numbers. You see, these apartment used to be boxes from which to watch bullfights that used to take place in the plaza.

On this day, the entertainment was perhaps a bit less exciting……

At this point, the Missus decided we should take a nice afternoon nap, then head out for some evening tapas. Sounded like a good idea to me!

Thanks for reading!