mmm-yoso – Page 246

Yellowtail: Wild versus Mild

August 17, 2014 mmm-yoso Cooking, Seafood

On one of my trips to Catalina Offshore, I noticed two different trays of what was called "Yellowtail", which really didn't resemble Japanese Amberjack or Greater Amberjack (Kanpachi) which I'm familiar with. In fact, the two fish, which I was told are of the same species, did not even look related at all. One tray was the "wild", which was/is running at the time, the other was farmed in from Baja.

I mentioned this to Tommy, which also made it clear what kind of Amberjack this was when he told me the Japanese name….Hiramasa. Since there was a large price difference between the two, I asked him what the real difference was? His response? "You should get some of each and compare…." Which is what I did.

They were nice enough to wrap each piece separately for me…….even telling me which was farmed and which wild.

So, tell me….do these look like the same species?

The farmed sample, on the top, felt like it had more fat, the wild version seemed a bit more firm, but the only way was to actually cook the two the exact same way.

So, simply seasoned, salt, pepper, oregano, smoked paprika, granulated garlic……

Then sauteed in the same pan…..

The difference was quite striking, as you could predict, the farmed fish, being much more fatty, was more delicate, it started flaking off. The flavor was really mild, though it was quite moist….this means, as a cook, you have bit more leeway. This was more of a fish for folks who don't like the flavor of fish….if you know what I mean. In other words, it will take on the flavor of how you season. It's not very flavorful.

As I figured, the wild version was much more dense. You need to be on top of it because it will dry out. The flavor is a much more pronounced "white fish". With mild brine tones, you know you're eating fish.

What is interesting right now is; wild Yellowtail Amberjack goes for half the price of the farmed version! Of course, the season only lasts about three months. As it stands, if I'm cooking, I'll probably go with the wild…….though I'd probably enjoy a good, moist, fresh, sahimi grade Hiramasa at the sushi bar.

This was actually a nice little "project", Tommy comes through with the best suggestions as usual.

Czech Republic – Olomouc: The Plague Tower and Drapal

August 15, 2014 mmm-yoso Cheese, Czech Food and Restaurants, Czech Republic

Ever heard of Olomouc (Oh-loh-moats)? Well, I wouldn't blame you if you hadn't. We here in the states seem blissfully unaware of any city in the Czech Republic not named Prague. The Missus' tolerance for staying in one city is quite low, knowing this, I had to come up with a plan. I thought why not travel to some of the other cities, not the big tourist destinations, but real cities, with real people. The city of Olomouc appealed to me because it is the historic capital of Moravia and is a University town. There's supposed to be quite a bit of history here.

It was quite rainy and overcast during our stay in Olomouc and we were kind of glad to be staying right across the train station.

On the good side, it was easy finding our hotel, after staying in apartments staying in a rather corporate hotel felt like a nice change of pace.

Especially when you can get a suite for under a hundred bicks a night!

Did I mention that once you get out of Prague, things are really inexpensive?

The down side? Well, it only five tram stops to the center of the city….but, if you decide to walk it, like we did, it's at least 20-25 minutes, which seemed much longer with the cold wind and intermittent showers.

Still, we found the City Center with little difficulty. The Royal Town is made up of the Upper Square with the Town Hall and the Lower Square, where several churches and the market is located.

One of the main sights on the Upper Square is the Plague Tower (Column of the Holy Trinity).

This striking, yet ominous looking spire was built in the 18th Century as a monument of thanks for surviving the plague that ravaged Moravia between 1713 thru 1715. It is the tallest tower of it's kind in Europe. Master Stonemason Václav Render designed and donated his entire fortune to build this tower. As we found, the Czech people love a little "twist" or tragedy….so they'll quickly add, unfortunately, he died before its completion and thus, never saw the beauty of what he designed.

We found Moravian folks to be quite friendly, yet quite proud….there also seemed to feel a bit of competition with Prague. They'll be quick to tell you, "our tower is a full six meters taller than Prague's". Astronomical Clock? "Ours runs for a full six minutes at noon, not a mere few seconds like Prague!"

Both sights are next to the Town Hall. In fact, on the day we were here, there was a wedding party taking photos in front of the Plague Tower. Which I found odd for some unknown reason.

I also quickly noticed how empty the town squares were….I'm not sure if it was the weather, or what, but after Prague, this just seemed so quiet.

After checking a few sights out, we went looking for lunch. Unfortunately, our first choice Hanacka Hospoda seems to have closed down so we had to go to "Plan B". Walking through the Lower Square and outside of what seems to be former city walls we found Drapal, which, like Kolkovna is a Pilsner Urquell Restaurant.

I'm not sure what it was, but we followed a sign at the door around the corner, only to find it led to nowhere….the door was actually where the sign was posted, duh.

You usually don't hesitate in most places in the Czech Republic. You see an opening and go get the table, waiting around will draw stares.

Our server was a very nice young lady who didn't speak a lick of English. The menu however, was translated into English. There is a little "local secret" with many of these restaurants; they have a very cheap lunch menu. Mainly for locals, this list is never written in English. Here in Moravia, it's actually written in the local dialect. Here in Olomouc, it's the Hanakian dialect.

Of course this being a Pilsner Urquell restaurant we needed to start off with a couple of brews. A pilsner for me, a Half and Half for the Missus.

I had done a bit of research before our trip and there were a few regional specialties we wanted to try; starting with Hanácká česnečka – Garlic Soup. If you've read long enough, you know I love garlic, so I couldn't wait to try this.

We tried this just about everywhere we went in Olomouc. This was probably the best one as it wasn't too salty and the beef based broth didn't have a strong artificial flavor to it. I enjoyed the garlic flavor, which (of course) I didn't think was very strong at all. There's a nice heartiness to this soup which had croutons, sausage, and some Olomoucké tvarůžky – Olomouc stinky cheese in it, making it actually Loštická česnečka.

Speaking of stinky cheese; Olomoucké tvarůžky, we needed to try this.

This is classically eaten on bread with butter, and no kidding onions! I really didn't think the cheese was particularly smelly, it did have a mild smell, sort of like feet, so I'm thinking Brevibacterium is used to ferment the cheese. Brevibacterium linens is the bacterium which causes foot odor….don't you just want to out and grab some Limberger right now. The cheese is very waxy and low in fat, it has PGI Status in the EU and only cheeses from Lostice is allowed to be called Olomoucké tvarůžky. One other little detail, this cheese is supposedly aged under meat…..

For my main, I chose the Spicy Pork Neck in potato pancake.

The pancake was really salty which really knocked the dish off kilter.

The Missus went with the standard pork neck with cabbage and dumplings.

The pork was adequately tender and moist. It had a decent pork flavor. The fermented cabbages was not bad, though the Missus is a sucker for these.

We still weren't sold on the waxy potato dumplings, nor the rather dense bread dumplings, and this did nothing to change our opinion.

In the end, this was a really inexpensive (like under $25 with beers) and hearty meal, which went well with the rainy and windy weather. In spite of not being our first choice it was still and enjoyable meal. We were now ready to head back out into the rain and wind.

Original Restaurant Drapal
Havlickova 1
Olomouc, Czech Republic

Midweek Meanderings: Little Piggy does Karaoke and Thanksgiving in August

August 13, 2014 mmm-yoso BBQ, Filipino Restaurants, Memorable Meals, yoso-silly

Little Piggy does Karaoke:

I've often mentioned what a great bunch of friends I have. We all get along and always have great time. These guys are up for anything; like the "Amazing Graze" and our Porcine Party. Sadly, I haven't been to help plan or attend many of the recent events, work has kept me busy over the last year or so. So when one of our gang said she wanted to do karaoke for her birthday, it was naturally a "yes, of course." But there was a catch, she also wanted a whole roast pig as well! Not a big deal, right? I mean, I see folks dragging swine into karaoke rooms all the time….yeah, right? Anyway, it was easy enough to get the assignments done; YummyYummy with her connections and persuasive manner would talk the place into letting us bring an entire hog into one of their rooms, I swing the swine, and the rest would be gravy, or is that sauce.

Anyway, after polling some of my acquaintances, and my "Filipino Mom's" in the office next door to us, one porker rendered its way to the top, Porky's Lechon. Now, I gotta say, based on my visits and meals at the place this was a major leap of faith. But I gotta say, this was a very moist fifty pounder.

In case you don't believe that we actually brought a whole pig into a karaoke room, here's "Xiang Jiao" doing the honors as the disco lights dance around it's roasted body…… To paraphrase the lyrics on the screen…."This pork has taken its toll on me……"

Thanks to JohnL for sacrificing his van to transport said swine…..I hope it doesn't still smell like pork heaven. Big thanks also to TFD and MrC for getting the Hen Xuc Banh Trang and baking the cake, and of course "YY" and Quanito for coordinating the room.

Thanksgiving in August:

Recently "XJ", "YY", and their family moved into new digs. they've been wanting to do sort of a house-warming type of thing. "XJ" had also gotten a Weber Smokey Mountain…she's really BBQ Grrrrl I guess, and wanted to put it into service. So I brought my WSM over and we did a little BBQ kinda thing for the gang.

Of course BBQ takes a while and needed our strength, so their mom was nice enough to make us a delicious breakfast.

We timed things pretty well and everything was ready by 2pm as we had planned…..tri-tip, salmon, ribs….

And a whole lot more…..charcuterie and cheese board, TFD's mom made a delicious pork and jackfruit salad, roasted vegetables, salad, and of course dessert.

Around the time we were setting up, someone said "this is like Thanksgiving, but better!" And so it came to pass, Thanksgiving in August. I think we'll make this a tradition. A pretty good idea, don't you think?

Nothing like the power of pork to bring people together!

Hope you're having a great week!

The Haunted Looking Aisles of Hana Mart

August 12, 2014 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers

**** Hana Mart did not last long either.

Well, U Mart sure didn't last long, did it?

By the end of the first quarter a change over was already occurring. I felt really bad for the folks who started up U Mart, who used to have small, mom-and-pop First Korean Market. Just think, you close up a shop that has been surviving for years, taking a shot at the big time….and going down in flames. Kind of sad. I asked around a bit and one thing really stuck out…..I was told that among the really bad decisions made, the worst was putting all the produce in plastic…folks like to touch, smell, feel, and I guess sometimes even throw the fruits and veggies around? Anyway, I was told that the former owner of U Mart was still in the picture helping to manage Hana Mart.

The Missus and I visited one weekend afternoon and the place was deserted…..as in, "you could hear a fish fart" quiet.

The prices, even for produce was competitive and I'd say of better quality that Zion Market, where I've been less than satisified as of late.

I felt kind of sad, which soon turned to creeped out….this seemed like a set for an Asian horror flick. I expected to hear a young girl laughing, catching a glimpse of a pony tail and school uniform which turns the corner. Curious, I'd follow only to be startled by a faceless apparition, making strange clicking sounds, which then sucks the life out of me! Yeow…..

There was not a single customer in the place…….

Eerie, yeah?

Finally, I saw a flash of yellow….what was it? Some kind of alien creature that feeds on human flesh? No, it was only the cashier…whew….

We ended up buying bunch of stuff, including some baechu kimchi which was better than the stuff we get at Zion. It's kind of sad, I'm hoping that business picks up.

Hana Mart
4611 Mercury St
San Diego, CA 92111

We heard a bunch of laughing when we were paying for our groceries. At least Happy Family, which Cathy posted on seems to be doing well.

Circling Back to Phuong Trang

August 10, 2014 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

Here's the latest in my "circling back" series, where I revisit places that many folks really love, but, well, I'm not quite as impressed.

I've always considered Phuong Trang to be very "middle of the road" Vietnamese Food….as in Pho not to offend. Toning down the flavors, creating a "safe" experience with regards to Vietnamese food in San Diego. There are those who disagree, which is fine, to each his or her own. I've had some decent meals at Phuong Trang and I believe they do a few items rather well…..though it really is a short list. So what I decided to do was to try items that folks have recommended to me. In some cases I also ordered items that I had enjoyed here in the past. I'm pretty sure you're tired of my posts on the pho here…no worries, I'm not going to keep beating that dead horse.

It's probably a good time for a revisit to Phoung Trang as they recently unveiled an updated sign. The interior still looks the same.

I decided to start off with probably the one dish that I think they do well here; the Butter Wings…..though the last time I ordered those wings, they were terrible, greasy, bitter burnt garlic, just plain horribly made.

This time it was back to what I was used too. Perhaps these were even better.

Light, crisp, moist, nice MSG and all that…….

At least two folks had mentioned the Bo Luc Lac here, so I decided to order it.

In some ways this was a typical PC – PT dish. The steak was nice and tender, I do like my Bo Luc Lac with watercress, but the sizzling plate makes a nice dramatic presentation. The flavors were really weak; lacking anything else than a rather salty flavor….no deep savory tones from fish sauce or even oyster sauce, no sweet tones, no black pepper…… The fried rice was decently prepared, though again the flavor was really muted.

Well, it was a one 'fer two….though picking those wings which I've had many times was kind pretty much a ringer.

The next time around, I just stuck with a single dish, Suon Ram Man. Basically spareribs marinated, then browned in a base of fish sauce and sugar, it is then braised in water, coconut water, or Coco Rico….which by the way, is a winna'. These however were not….

The ribs were on the tougher side, but not inedible. Again the flavors here were less than satisfying. In spite of the looks, this was on the bland side…….gloppy, bland, chewy spareribs.

I was going to stop at this point, but decided on one more meal. It had been pretty hot so I wasn't going for any soup nor anything really heavy.

I started with some Cha Gio, egg rolls. These were usually pretty good as they use the appropriate rice paper. It's also good that, like the wings, they'll do half orders of these.

I think there was a bit of glitch with oil temperature today as the egg rolls were on the hard and chewy side, lacking any crispness, making eating this rather unpleasant. Man, these were disappointing since they are usually pretty good.

Looking for something refreshing, I decided on the marinated beef salad called Bo Tai Chanh.

Where to start with this one? First off, this was a huge salad….it was also really bland, really needing more herbs, and the "dressing" was really watered down. The beef, "cooked" in citrus was actually pretty good, and there was a lot of it. Overall, this really needed a flavor boost, it didn't help that the tomatoes were under-ripe and had no flavor as well.

Well, this one was an "O" 'fer two……

Right before this meal, I sent a text to "YY" telling her that I was going to Phuong Trang one more time, just to do my due diligence….she told me I was nuts. Why would I punish myself like this?

In the end, I did change my opinion of Phuong Trang a bit. Instead of thinking of the food here as being dumbed down; perhaps I should look at the place as being the "gateway Vietnamese Restaurant". One that will lead the more adventurous eater to a wonderful cuisine. Yeah, maybe that's the ticket…..

Phuong Trang
4170 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Roadtrip COMC: Sea Harbour

August 8, 2014 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Dim Sum, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

A few weeks back we finally had some time to return to the SGV….we hadn't been back since we got back from our trip. I gave the Missus a list of places and She decided to forgo those choices and just return to Sea Harbour for dim sum. I've posted on the place a couple of times already, so I decided to do one of my C(learing) O(ut the) M(emory) C(ard) posts.

So it'll be mostly photos from here on…other than commenting on that "interesting" menu item to the right. I felt if I ordered this, it would try to hump my leg…..or something like that.

Still our favorite dim sum in LA.

Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant
3939 Rosemead Blvd
Rosemead, CA 91770

Strange what you notice when waiting for take-out. Here's the sign right next to the front door of Shufeng Garden. I thought it was a kind of odd location….unless of course, this is a common occurence here.

I hope everyone has a great weekend! No choking allowed!

Chef Chin revisited

August 7, 2014 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Niu Rou Mian

**** Chef Chin has closed

Well, sort of……. I've posted on this place when it was just Chin's on Convoy. I actually had dinner here after the name change which was….well, ok. It was too dark and my photos never came out. A few weeks ago, feeling the need for some Niu Rou Mian, I decided on revisiting.

Even though it was pretty hot out, I just needed some NRM.

I don't know if it was bad timing, or if it was the "b" team in action, but this wasn't even close to what I had here before. Sorely lacking beef flavor, this was very salty, missing the nice kick I had in previous versions. The beef was fine, moist and tender, but those noodles were terrible. I was never the biggest fan of the noodles here, which are passable when prepared well, but when overcooked and mushy……

I ordered the fried pork chop, which was even worse than the NRM.

Greasy, soggy, and too salty….I think I'll leave it at that.

After this visit, I wondered if it had just been a bad day. I'd been craving Shanghai style cold dishes and with all the hot weather, it just seemed like the right time to try again….this time with my buddy "R" along for the ride.

We started with the Wined Chicken, which was pretty good.

The texture was spot on, the mildly cured texture, not too salty, and without the overly boozy, sometimes bitter flavor of too much Shaoxing, this was a decent rendition of the classic "Su Cai" dish.

The five spice beef was nicely flavored, not too sweet, which this type of cuisine can be.

If it were just a bit more tender I would have enjoyed it more.

The cold roasted duck's flavor was much better than what I've had here in the past. The nice sweet-soy flavor came through nicely.

Nice duck flavor, combined with a toothsome, but not too tough duck, made this the best dish of the day.

I'm glad the duck and chicken came through with flying colors, because the Wuxi Spareribs, a dish that's usually pretty good here was terrible.

Usually, I'm complaining that they make make it much too sweet here. But this time it really lacked flavor….the sauce was very bland. Combine that with gloppy gooeyness, sometimes a mild plus when sauces tend to be heavily flavored just made this a mediocre dish at best. The spareribs really lacked flavor, though they weren't too tough. Bummer, because this was possibly my favorite here.

At least my second meal was better than my first. If it gets terribly hot, I might just head back…..I'm hoping those spareribs are much better. The lunchtime crowd here is quite diverse, mostly made up of folks ordering the "ABC" style dishes, perhaps that's why the NRM wasn't very good?

Chef Chin
4433 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Roadtrip: Ha Noi Avenue – Westminster

August 6, 2014 mmm-yoso Orange County, Road Trip, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Ha Noi Avenue has closed

Last weekend, the Missus really wanted to drop by Portola Coffee Labs…..She has become a real coffee nerd. She's got all the gear to make pour-over coffee…..

Anyway, on the way down to the OC we started getting hungry. This gave us the perfect chance to check out a place I'd been wanting to try for a while; Ha Noi Avenue.

We really don't get to this end of Westminster Boulevard very often and I was hankering for some Bun Cha.

As with many businesses, this was obviously some kind of fast food joint….you could still see the drive thru lane and speaker board outside. The restaurant isn't very large, but is quite clean. Most of the customers were in rather large groups…families. And all were eating just about the same thing; Bun Cha, Cha Ca Thang Long, and Banh Tom, all the trappings of Northern Vietnamese Food.

I read of some instances where service was lacking, but we didn't experience any of that….in fact, the guy serving us was kind of, well jovial in a way. When we placed our order, he smiled gave us the "thumbs up" and said, "good….good!" Apparently he approved.

Fairly soon our table was loaded up; three plates of bun, two large baskets of herbs and greens, the pickled papaya and carrots in fish sauce, mam tom, nuoc mam cham, Banh Trang Me…..

Just the fragrance of the bun cha took us back to Bun Cha Dak Kim in Hanoi. While it was not nearly as good…..it was good enough. All the base flavors were there; the ground pork patty was a bit on the large size and not quite as tender, but the flavors, salty-sweet-savory-porky were just what the doctor ordered.

On another note, the bun here was perfectly prepared….just the right texture for me; not overly sticky or mushy.

When I saw Nem Cua Bể (crab spring rolls) on the menu, I had ot have it.

While not nearly as flavorful as #1 Hang Manh, lacking in the amount of savory flavors (crab) and not as light as I prefer, this was still not bad. Crisp, molten, and lovely with lettuce and a dunk in the nuoc mam cham.

The only real clunker was the Cha Ca Thang Long.

The fish, while moist was very bland. We've gotten used to all the flavors from Song Long's version of Cha Ca, amking this seem puny and missing some parts we enjoy like the fried shallots and peanuts. The mam nem was really watered down and weak. We'll pass on this next time and go for the Banh Tom instead.

And yes; there will be a next time. Funny thing, even though the signs say "pho" not one single customer (all Vietnamese) was having it.

Ha Noi Avenue
8432 Westminster Blvd
Westminster, CA 92683
Hours:
Wed – Mon 830am – 830pm

It's kind of nice to have all these options if we want a breakfast/lunch, we can go with the Cha Ca Thang Long at Song Long which opens at 9, or some Hue favorites at Ngu Binh which also opens at 9, or if we're in the mood for Banh Cuon we can go to Pho Tau Bay which opens at 8……

In the end, the missus got Her coffee beans at Portola, I got a cup of Kyoto Drip cold brew. And we got a nice little trip down memory lane. To a place crowded wall to wall with people, steep and skinny stairs leading up to an almost communal dining area, at #1 Hang Manh…….

It was wonderful taking that trip in my mind, down the dusty streets, dodging motorbikes, and eating like crazy in edgy Hanoi…..

I think it might almost be time for another trip…..

Turo Turo Tuesday: Doing some “research” edition R&B Filipino Cuisine and Manila Fast Food and Desserts

August 5, 2014 mmm-yoso Filipino Restaurants

Recently, "YummyYummy" who had her first real exposure to Filipino Food at Kamayan Night at Villa Manila asked me which turo-turo (point-point) place made the better lechon kawali and sisig in the Mira Mesa area; R&B or Manila Fast Foods. While I do believe that timing factors in with regards those two dishes, especially the lechon kawali, I felt up for the challenge….hey, it's deep fried pork, who wouldn't be up for it? At it's most basic, lechon kawali is simply pork belly that has been simmered in water with perhaps some bay leaf and peppercorns, cooled, seasoned, then deep fried. Still, there was quite a difference in the versions served at R&B and MFF, especially with regards to the lechon sauce.

Anyway, without further ado, here goes…..

R & B Filipino Cuisine:

The lechon kawali here has wavered substantially during my past visits. So what would happen this time?

The lechon was probably the best I've had at R&B. It's a bit on the drier side, but not dried out. I think time was on my side this time around. The skin was crisp, though it seemed a bit over-fried. I even enjoyed the lechon sauce, which was less bitter than I recalled, also having a mild sweetness to it. The sisig was good, a nice balance of sour and spicy, though there were some hard and chewy bits in it. Again, probably the best I've had here.

You know, after all these years, I'm waiting to try the hamonado……

R & B Filipino Cuisine
11257 Camino Ruiz
San Diego, CA 92126

Manila Fast Food and Desserts:

So, I've also had mixed results here as well, though I think MFF has been the more consistent of the two.

So, what did I like? Well, my goodness, these were some pretty hefty pieces of pork….it had just come out of the kitchen and were very moist. As you can see, there are no complaints regarding the fat being rendered off (though I'd say that isn't a bad thing). The skin was a bit too hard and man, this was fatty. Yet it was quite enjoyable in that "this was nice, but I'm glad we're not having this again for a while" kind of way. Not as seasoned as R&B, but much more moist and decadent. Not a big fan of the lechon sauce this time around as it tasted watered down…..though the pork was not.

The sisig was much more mild than I recall, though the texture was good. For me, it needed at bit more spice and vinegar, but was very tender and moist without being mushy.

The folks here have always been really friendly….I've been cutting down on rice and carbs, the gentleman who served me was very funny as we determined the amount of rice I wanted. In the end, I was declared, "you can't be Fiilipino"…. which they found funny. But ,they did go easy on the rice for me. The folks here are really friendly and nice.

Manila Fast Food and Desserts
8979 Mira Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92126

So there you go "YY", it's all about timing and what you enjoy….part of the fun is figuring that all out!

Bun Mam Monday – Com Tam Nhu Y

August 4, 2014 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

As the clouds and humidity swirled on into San Diego….with the weather turning slightly monsoon-like, with rain falling in August, my thoughts suddenly turned to Bun Mam. I'm not sure why, but that funky, fermented-fish based umami bomb broth called to me. So I decided to check out Com Tam Nhu Y, which, if you're keeping score, used to be Nhu Y, then, having been sold, became Com Tam Thuan Kieu, not to be confused with Com Tam Thuan Kieu for a blink of the eye….only to become Com Tam Nhu Y, not to be mistaken for Pho Nhu Y in Clairemont, opened by the former owner of Nhu Y. Really….can you say soap opera in the making? Who needs "Real Housewives of xxxxx", when you can have "Noodleshop Stories of San Diego"?

Well, whatever…..I was here for the soup……

The last itme I visited, I thought the broth had taken a turn to a lighter and an almost sweeter soup. Well…..it was back to the good 'ol Nhu Y broth on this visit. Dark and funky, it was raised by the squeeze of lime and the melange of herbs to cut the thickness of the broth. It was also a bit more spicy…….like a broth that had been steeping for a while. This is one of the few soups that can overcome the rather muddy flavor of low grade catfish……you take in the smooth and buttery texture of the fish.

The stuffed jalapeno really didn't do much for me and the shrimp were slightly over-cooked, but I knew what makes this dish tick….that really rich and funky broth. This was actually pretty close to what I had recently at Nhu Y Clairemont and I didn't have to wait until after 3pm to order it. Though that Hispanic couple who came in and sat behind me, then moved after my soup arrived may want that 3pm rule implemented here….hey, this ain't your neighborhood or restaurant, sometimes you might want to experience real life….. and real food….

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