mmm-yoso – Page 277

It’s Pollo Amigo!

March 26, 2013 mmm-yoso Mexican Restaurants, Taco Shops

Sorry, I couldn't help but add bookends of the It and the exclamation point to the name of this very low keyed nondescript little shop in Chula Vista. Last weekend, I drove down to Chula Vista to pick up some mantarraya from the El Vaquero truck for the Missus. Even though there are a couple of newer mariscos trucks in the area, I decided to check out this little shop I saw on my last visit to the area.

The tiny shop looks a bit worn, with simple communal picnic like tables and a small television running.

The kitchen was spotless though and seemed larger than the entire dining area.

The menu featured standard taco shop fare in the form of tacos and burritos. But since this place is named Pollo…..Amigo, what else would I order but the pollo, amigo?

I went with the Special#2. A half chicken, beans, rice, salsa, corn tortillas(3). Then I drove home with lunch…..mantarraya for the Missus and for me, well, it was pollo, amigo! (last time with this silliness, I promise)

The chicken was surprisingly good, much better than most, if not off the hook delicious. Well seasoned and moist, I really enjoyed it and will definitely get it again. Though I won't include the beans which were tragically runny and bland, nor the salsa which was also watery and had the over-powering "green" flavor of straight on jalapeno. The rice was ok, but o the dry side.

Next time, I'll just get the half chicken for $5.99, chop some white onion and cilantro, use a good hot sauce……

And be perfectly happy……

The couple that run this place is very nice, the prices seem good….so perhaps you should ignore the rather shabby exterior, stop by, and have some….pollo…..ok, I promised no more silliness. You get the point.

Pollo Amigo
2540 Main St.
Chula Vista, CA 91911

Is this the new king of salt and pepper chicken wings? Liu’s Chinese Restaurant

March 25, 2013 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants

**** Liu's Chinese Restaurant has closed

Funny thing, I've been in a bit of a Salt and Pepper Chicken Wing slump. Royal Mandarin has been kind of going downhill and the last two orders from Mandarin Canton have been less than stellar. For almost the last year, I've heard folks mentioning a place called Liu's on Coronado Avenue in Nestor. One even dubbed them the "King of Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings". So finally, FOY (friend of yoso) "RightCowLeftCoast" mentioned the place….this provided the impetus for driving down the I-5 toward IB and stopping in a strip mall to find Liu's. Which is located near a Rite Aid and a Barber Shop.

This place looks like something from a different age….man, those 70's were something, right? I loved the A-B-C-D on the window. I always call these types of restaurants ABCDE – abceedee – American Born Chinese Dining Establishments.

Man, the interior of this place is kinda beat.

Though I did kind of love the little figures lined up on the old fashioned diner sill.

And no, the peeling wallpaper, yellow and running signs, the torn seats, nor the rather sticky floor that could use a steam clean, or perhaps a hand grenade didn't bother me at all. I've had no less than three people tell me that this place made really good chicken wings. Places like this don't stay in business by poisoning their clientele.

The menu actually gives you reverse sticker shock…..Shrimp Fried Rice $5.85? I love that all the dishes also had Spanish translations. Still, I was here with one thing in mind, the Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings ($7.50), which happens to be one of the most expensive items on the menu.

If it's all about the batter, you'll like these, not as salty as other versions, but still with a touch of sneaky heat. The batter is lacquer like; which puts it into the class of Mandarin and Mandarin Canton…there's lots of crunch going on here.

My big complaint is the very low quality of the wings. Do you see the wings with the "black" in them. The bones in these wings had broken and the fluid and the marrow from the bones had seeped out, changing the flavor of the meat. I know you probably don't eat wings for the meat, but still…… That one drum on the bottom tasted freezer burnt. Nine wings at $7.50, that means 80 plus cents a wing….in spite of the prices of other items on the menu, that's not a good value based on the lack of quality control. One of these days I gotta learn about how wings are graded and sold…..I'll put that on my bucket list.

The wings here are not bad….in fact, if you run into a batch that isn't freezer burnt, or suffering from marrow ooze, you'll probably like it a lot.

The King of Salt and Pepper Wings…..don't start the coronation yet.

Liu's Chinese Restaurant
1850 Coronado Ave
San Diego, CA 92154

Sidi Bou Said (Tunisia): Au Bon Vieux Temps

March 24, 2013 mmm-yoso European Restaurants, French Restaurants, Sidi Bou Said/La Marsa, Travel, Tunisia, Tunisian Food

One of the places recommended to us by Rafael was Au Bon Vieux Temps. Located right off the main tourist street of Rue Hedi Zarrouk, the place has a nice, almost romantic feel.

Perfectly in character, we arrived just at the beginning of dinner service. We enjoy the quiet before the chaos.

Though folks rave about the views, I really didn't think it that great from where we sat on the patio.

The menu featured both French style and Tunisian style dishes. The prices were the highest we'd encounted in Tunisia, but still pretty reasonable by US standards.

We were still in search of a Tunisian wine we really enjoyed. Not really knowing where to start and wanting a "blanc", we simply ordered the most expensive bottle on the menu at 42 Dinar, which was about $25 US at the time. It turned out to be a good choice as this bottle of Magnifique was light and refreshing, with a crispness to it. We ended up getting this whenever we saw it on the menu.

As the meal goes, we found that we preferred the Tunisian style dishes to the French preparations, like the Fruits de Mer (18 TND – $10 US) which was kind of waterlogged and mushy.

The Duck Pate, a bargain at 10TND, think six bucks, had some potential, the flavor was decent, but the texture was a bit too waxy.

For me, the best dish of the night was my Lamb Couscous (26TND – $15).

This was by far the best couscous we had on our trip. It was light and fluffy. I thought the vegetables were going to be somewhat onerous, but they were fork tender, not mushy, but yielding perfectly under my fork. The lamb was simply flavored, but was also very tender….loved the gamey flavor. It really didn't need the spicy sauce provided, which actually covered up all the wonderful flavors.

The Missus loved Her stuffed squid (22 TND – $13US).

The squid was very tender, we don't really remember much else about this dish.

Right as we were finishing our mains, a gentleman who claimed to be the owner came up to us and started a conversation. He talked the Missus into ordering a dessert, which She loved….probably because of all the pistachios and the rose water. Since She obviously enjoyed the rose water so much, he brought Her a glass with a bit more of it to pour over the dessert….

He also told the Missus She should check out the upstairs VIP area where Presidents, King's, Queen's, and Prime Ministers have eaten. He was a pretty smooth operator.

The Missus managed this photo….perhaps you'll recognize someone.

Overall, this wasn't bad. Perhaps if the prices were a lot higher I'd complain a bit more about the place. On the bright side, we found our favorite Tunisian wine and that makes this meal worthwhile. And as you can tell; we didn't leave hungry.

We admired the sunset as we walked back down the hill.

We were amazed at all the folks sitting and still having coffee at the busy cafe across from Place du 7 Novembre.

Folks laughing and carrying on, chatting as they ended the day.

Meanwhile, right across the street, it was time for prayers at the Mosque.

An interesting contrast for us. Such is life in Tunisia……..

Big Island: The Manago Hotel

March 23, 2013 mmm-yoso Hawai'i - The Big Island, Japanese Restaurants, Travel

After visits to places like Teshima's, Suisan, and Kawamoto's, you can see there's a kind of a running theme in our visit to the Big Island. With that in mind, I just had to stop at the Manago Hotel.

The hotel was built in 1917 and is still owned by the same family. There's a real "old-time" vibe to this place.

Walking down the hallways is like journey back in time…. You wonder what stories would be told if these walls could talk.

I hadn't stopped in here since the early 90's, but it looks the same to me. Especially the somewhat ramshackle, but charming "lunch room"……yes, they call it a restaurant, but it really reminds me of a plantation lunch room….mismatched furniture and all.

There's no menu handed to you when you are seated…..you read what's being served on the peg board and order. After placing your order, the server returns with your "side dishes", which you eat family style….you serve yourself.

Today, along with the big bowl of rice, there was long rice, macaroni-potato salad, which was well chilled, and blanched and marinated bean sprouts which was sort of like namul. The Missus pretty much whacked the bean sprouts and our server brought us another plate!

The one item I always have to get here are the pork chops. The big dilemma is; whether so get it pan-fried, or smothered in gravy. Seeing that there are kids now in college who weren't even born the last time I had the pork chops here, I went for the straight-up pan fried version.

I've been told that the cooks here use cast iron pans which are….well, older than I am. That's a well-seasoned pan. The bone in chops were a bit thinner than I remembered, but the wonderful crust and simple seasoning, salt, pepper, and maybe granulated garlic was just what I wanted. The chop isn't super-tender, but it has a pleasant chew, and was really moist. Sometimes I wonder if my food memories are a snapshot which has snowballed over time, creating its own reality. I'm glad to say, in terms of flavor, this was as I remembered.

The Missus had the pan fried ahi.

Which She said was simple, but well and honestly prepared.

There's something about a good meal which puts you in a nice frame of mind. There's also that great feeling you get when an old favorite still delivers….it makes everything seem right in the world for that moment. What the Manago hotel serves is good, simple, homey, honest, food, a snapshot of a different time. In this day and age of food fads, gimmicks, slow food – fast-food, farm to table, etc, etc, etc….. There's something almost refreshing about that.

Manago Hotel
82-6155 Mamalahoa Hwy
Captain Cook, HI 96704

Thursday Tacos: Tacos el Paisa – Imperial

March 21, 2013 mmm-yoso Mexican Restaurants, Taco Shops, What Howie Eats - Where the Foodie from Foodieview Eats

The Missus: Why do they have taco Tuesday?
Me: Well, I think that Tuesdays are usually a pretty slow day for business, so it's a marketing thing….
The Missus: But why not Thursday?
Me: I believe because business starts picking up on Thursday so they don't need a….
The Missus: That's really not fair….
Me: Ummm, to who? Thursday???

Sometimes it's hard to get past the conversation…..so in deference to the Missus…after all, my boss always tells me, "happy wife, happy life!" It's Taco Thursday. At least here it is…..

I recently had a fun dinner with my friends Candice, Howie, and Jenne. It had been a while since we had gotten together and we had a blast. Anyway, during the conversation Howie mentioned that one of his favorite taco shops is El Paisa. I suddenly realized that I haven't paid this location of El Paisa a visit since it was Tacos el Rico. So I made a mental note to check them out. It was easy enough for me, since I'm in the habit of dropping by the San Diego Public Market every Sunday. Imperial is just a couple of blocks away….there's really no excuse.

Man, they've really renovated this place sine the last time I passed by.

The deck area look really nice……

You can get two different sizes of tacos here; the "minis" run from $1.80 – $1.85, though you can get three for $4.99. The regular sized tacos run from $2.25 – $2.99.

On this day, I went with the Al Pastor and Cabeza ($2.75 each):

The Al Pastor was on the dry side, the spice quite mild, and it lacked the depth of flavor that a good al pastor would have. The tortillas were pretty much middle of the road, nothing outstanding. Ditto for the two salsas I tried….the verde and the roja.

The cabeza was very moist, though it could have been more tender, and rather than being rich seemed more like greasy to me. There were hints of the nice beefiness that I enjoy in cabeza.

The service was rather indifferent to me, though it seems like they really tend to cater to their Hispanic customers.

Still, I could see some potential and thought it only fair that I return. On this visit, the young lady was very friendly. She even brought out squeeze bottles of the salsas to me. On my last visit, all the other tables got those bottles….except me. When I stood up to get limes, she told me to have a seat and brought them to me. Very nice…….

On this trip I went with the Lengua ($2.85) and Carne Asada ($2.75):

The carne asada wasn't too salty and I don't know if it was a byproduct of the griddle, but I could taste hints of what tasted like chipotle and perhaps achiote as well. Just look at the meat and you can see what I mean.

Sadly, this was dry and tough as heck…..it really brought out how gloppy the guacamole was as well.

Looking at the rather grayish lengua wasn't very encouraging either.

Looking closer I could make out the actual papillae of the tongue's surface on the pieces of lengua. It also looked a bit too waxy, but the fragrance was heavenly. And it was surprisingly tender with that somewhat offal-beefiness that I enjoy in good tongue. The onions and cilantro helped to cut the richness and the salsa roja added that bit of pungent push in flavor.

This was good; I'll have it again.

Since I'm in this area every Sunday, i'm thinking I'll hit up La Fachada again. I haven't visited since they moved things around in the parking lot a bit. Unless anyone has some other recommendations for tacos in the area at 10am!

Tacos El Paisa
2494 Imperial Ave
San Diego, CA 92102
Hours:
Sun – Thurs 8am – midnight
Fri – Sat 8am – 3am

Roadtrip: Torrance Farmer’s Market and a revisit to Tasty Noodle House (San Gabriel)

March 20, 2013 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Farmer's Markets/Night Market, Road Trip

The Missus and I had a great time in Vegas and our time there ended on a high note. When we initially made plans for our short jaunt to Las Vegas, we thought we'd do what we've done before, make a quick stop in the SGV for a meal then hit the road home. But after thinking things through, we decided to spend a night in Hacienda Heights. After all, we lived in the area for a good chunk of time. It would be nice for old times sake. We also decided to do some of the things we used to do on a Saturday……that would be hit the Torrance Farmer's Market. So we left Vegas at around 545am and made it to the Torrance Farmer's Market in no time at all!

I've already posted on the Torrance Farmer's Market three times already, so I'll spare you a rehash of the same old story……

Ice chest full of produce, we stopped and topped off the gas tank and headed to San Gabriel.

I'd been craving the Tianjin Baozi from Tasty Noodle House for a while, so that's where we stopped for lunch.

Remember, it was still January, so the Missus was still in the mood for soup and ordered the Suan Cai Yang Rou – Sour Vegetable and Lamb soup which was both warming and cleansing, if not super good.

I prefer mine a bit more sour and salty…..but this did fine.

Of course we got the Tianjin Baozi, which was just as I recall, yeasty aroma, light and fluffy, with a light, yet tasty pork filling.

Just the fragrance takes me back to China.

Seems like everyone who eats here orders this. A guy comes in, has one order for lunch, then proceeds to get five orders to go. Though I don't think you really the full enjoyment of these after reheating.

I could probably eat this a couple of times a week.

Tasty Noodle House
827 W Las Tunas Dr
San Gabriel, CA 91776

After lunch we took our time driving up to Rowland Heights and wandered around the neighborhood…..up and down the streets we used to drive on often….Nogales, Harbison, Azusa, Colima….. We checked into the Courtyard a bit early and got a nap in…..then it was dinner time of course!

Is that Don or Dan…Diego that is: Next let’s try Dan Diego’s

March 19, 2013 mmm-yoso European Restaurants, Pubs and Pub Grub

Well, so much for Don Diego. Coincidentally, just a few months after "the Don" opened up, Dan joined the party. I was curious, especially after seeing the shamrock logo and then the sign that said "Euro Cafe & Pub"……

The first time I visited was on a rainy Friday. I was greeted with a friendly smile and hello. I saw they were full, so I told them I'd be back some other time….but the really nice young lady manning the front and the very friendly gentleman, who I was to later find out was Larry, the owner would have none of that. They had the staff set-up a little two top in the corner, which they did with a smile. Man, this was a very nice first impression.

To me, the menu really defines what Dan Diegos is, a neighborhood pub with grub. All appetizers ring in at five bucks or less and all entrees at $10. The beer list is rings in at over two pages and there are about ten beers on tap. I do wish they'd have more local stuff on tap. On my visits the only local representation on tap has been stuff from Societe. I mean, Ballast Point and Coronado are just down the street.

Back to the menu….it's basically Irish Based and on this evening I started with the Irish Beef Stew ($5).

Not my favorite version of Irish Stew, it tasted a bit too "raw" with regard to the Guinness which made the broth bitter. In my opinion, it was also a bit too loose and watery and could have used a few more layers of flavor, perhaps a bit more salt. Of course I was missing the lamb in this thing…..

I was also curious about the Open Faced Reuben ($10), which made kind of crack up when it arrived as the pickle was actually larger than the "Reuben".

It's basically some house made corned beef….kind of bland and waxy served on a ciabatta like slice of the house soda bread, which wasn't bad. The best thing was the horseradish "Russian" dressing. The fries were fried to perfection and the portion size of SYSCO spuds was quite large.

Usually, I'd kind of cut my losses here……but my Server, Shauna was so very nice, as was just about everyone else in the place. It also seemed like fried items were the way to go here. So I returned….ended up with the same table and Shauna to boot.

This time I went with the Fish and Chips ($10):

This wasn't bad. The fish was moist, it was nicely fried, though the tartar sauce was a bit too mayo heavy. The fries were to the SYSCO standard. For ten bucks I'll take it.

As before, the service was very warm and friendly.

About a week later, Candice, MrQ, and I met up to plan one of our "events". We started at the new Coronado tasting room and decided on checking out Dan Diego's. Along with the Fish and Chips we got the Irish Cheese Fries with Corned Beef ($7.50):

They lost their frying mojo on this one as the fries hit the table on the soggy side. Combine that with waxy-greasy corned beef and cheese sauce, this suddenly becomes stoner food.

Speaking of stoner food….let's hear it for a place willing to put something like "Crunchies" on the menu. Did you ever want to just eat fried batter? Well, here's your chance.

Dan Diego's seems like an okay neighborhood pub; Larry told me he lives in the neighborhood, which is nice to hear. It looks like a quieter place for folks who don't want the crowds or the scene at the High Dive, don't like the corporate feel of Offshore, or the crowd and over-priced food of Luce's. Larry told me the place is named in memory of his late son, so you got to want them to succeed. Hopefully, the food will improve and Dan Diego's can steer a steady course. Right now it's really not worth going out of your way for.

Dan Diegos
2415 Morena Blvd
San Diego, CA 92110

Is that Don or Dan…Diego that is: First up let’s try Don Diego

March 18, 2013 mmm-yoso Mexican Restaurants, Taco Shops

*** Don Diego's is no more

A strange thing occurred round these parts over the last couple of months. Two restaurants with similar names opened up, Don Diego and Dan Diego. At first I thought they were possibly related, but they couldn't be more different….one is a "Taco Bar" and the other is a "Euro Cafe and Pub". Both of them have one thing in common…..a huge selection of beer. I believe each has over a hundred different bottled and a good amount on draft.

Actually, I really wasn't too motivated to try the place out. But the Missus was working one evening and gave me a list of stuff She needed me to pick up. The last stop was from Sprouts (formerly Henry's) on Genesee. It was kind of late and I was both tired and hungry, so I thought why not check out this place.

The place looks more like a sports bar than a taco shop. They've really brightened up the place. You might remember it as being Trattoria Firenze.

There were ten beers on tap and at least a hundred bottled, with a good selection of local beers. I decided to try the various proteins in mini taco form, each ran about $1.85… and got a Yellowtail.

They quickly ran me out a basket of chips, which were thin and crumbly, not really that great, but hey, it's gratis, right?

The salsas are pretty straight-forward. I also noticed that the folks who seem to be running this "Taco Bar" didn't seem to be Hispanic. Which factored a bit into my ordering.

I've developed a bit of a habit when it comes to tacos….I always taste the protein on it's own first, just to see how it tastes. And the Adobada wasn't a good start as the meat was mushy and the marinade very bland.

The carnitas followed the same bland profile.

The carne asada took things one step further and was not only very bland, but also tough as heck.

I think the folks running the place are Middle Eastern, though the guy manning the grill is Hispanic. With this in mind, I ordered the birria just out of curiosity since it was listed as lamb on the menu. This was more like an asado of mutton as it was pretty tough. It did have a surprisingly decent gamey flavor to it.

One out of three ain't a bad batting average for bland meats in store bought tortillas with what seemed like store bought chips. The guys working here were very nice however, they even offered me more chips (I passed). So I thought it only fair to visit one more time.

While the place was pretty busy on my previous visit, things were pretty quiet on this day. Same nice group of guys working though.

I did notice something curious about the salsa bar on this trip…notice the olives and sliced pepperoncini.

I decided just to go off the deep end and try a gyro taco (gasp!), along with the birria this time out.

It was some very dry gyro meat on cold tortillas, topped with a tasteless under ripe tomato slice, topped with a sorta-tzaziki sauce that was too thick. Man, this was just plain bad.

The birria tasted just like what I had before.

I also tried one of the TJ style bacon wrapped hot dogs….ketchup and all.

So let us take this apart, shall we? A mushy hot dog, wrapped with burnt bacon, looking like a certain charred body part in a dry, cold, hot dog bun. I'll go out on a limb here and say the ketchup and mustard were the best part of this…..

No mas……

I will again say how nice the guys here are and I was told that they were going to soon have 32 beers on tap. As for what I ate……well, you can figure that out, right?

Don Diego's Taco Bar
4421 Genesee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117
Hours:
Daily 10am – 10pm

La Marsa (Tunisia): A cup of “Cafe Express” and some self catering

March 17, 2013 mmm-yoso Caffeine Fix, Markets & Grocers, Sidi Bou Said/La Marsa, Travel, Tunisia, Tunisian Food

We got up pretty early in the morning. The Missus decided that we should check out La Marsa, a village which is the last stop on the TGM, the Tunis train line. The Missus however, wanted to walk to La Marsa and we got some basic instructions from the folks at Dar Amilcar. La Marsa was somewhat sprawling, but looked more upscale. There are signs you notice that indicate a more well to do lifestyle; more cars and folks exercising. Folks who have to work long hours or hard labor just don't have the luxury of putting on some rather stylish work-out gear and go jogging. La Marsa really had a laid-back Mediterranean vibe which we really enjoyed….we later found out that many Europeans also enjoy the vibe as this is where the rich Tunisians and ex-pats live. We wandered the streets of La Marsa until we walked pass the Mosque.

Right past the mosque was a rather busy coffee shop….well, the coffee shop wasn't very busy, but the shaded little area across the street was. It seemed like this was where the locals hung out, socializing and chatting.

This seemed like the perfect place for a short break and a "cafe express", what the Tunisians call espresso.

So we had a seat, looked around, and just soaked in La Marsa.

One thing we quickly noticed was that everyone was facing the same direction. Toward the coffee shop and the little street in front of it. I'm not sure why this was, but hey, if it's good enough for the locals, right? I recall tweeting, "having a cup of cafe express with the locals, all facing the same direction, like camels toward the sun." Or something like that.

There was a bit of excitement when two cats decided to duke it out under a chair. What made it slightly humorous was that there was a gentleman seated in it! He was calmly reading a newspaper when all screeching hell broke out below him. He literally levitated out of his seat into the road. Ah, such was the thrill of having a cafe express here; you never knew what was going to happen next.

A few blocks away is the waterfront, here you suddenly knew why this was prime real estate, and why the Ottoman's made this their summer capital, a place to escape the heat.

We loved the palms, the white-washed look, it was so Mediterranean to us.

A few blocks away is this building. You could tell right away what it was…….

The perimeter of the ground floor was ringed by various shops, most of them selling meat, poultry, and charcuterie.

The center portion was where all the produce was located. Here's a view from above.

There was quite a good selection.

Our favorite shop here by far was the little pickle and olive shop.

There was just a staggering array of pickled items in this shop. The friendly guy running the place kept trying to give us samples.

At this point we decided to just go ahead and have a nice self-catered lunch. We'd hit up someplace a little bit nicer for dinner.

Right across the street from the other side of the building is a location of Monoprix Market, the big grocery chain in Tunisia. And next to the market is this Patisserie.

I took that photo a day later since the place was really packed on this day. I was just trying to survive long enough to get a baguette.

We started walking back the way we came, but then decided that the TGM might be a good bet. Thing was, we couldn't find the train station. The Missus went up to a gentleman and asked, he spoke some English, but then I noticed that he was blind. Leave it to the Missus to find the one blind guy in the crowd to give us directions. So we walked around looking for the TGM station. Finally, we saw a young lady, book in hand, she looked like a college student. So we went up and asked her if she spoke English, which she did….quite well by the way. We asked her where the train station was and she told us to follow her. We told her that she could just point it out to us, but she insisted on walking us there. We actually walked back toward the mosque, but on the other side, a good half kilometer. We felt really bad that the young lady, "Sophie" had to walk all this way with some strangers. She led us to the TGM station, told us to wait, and went to the window and spoke to the person issuing tickets. A couple of second later she came back and said, "your train will be here in a few minutes….here are some tickets, this is from me. I hope you enjoy Tunisia." My goodness, what could we say! I felt like we should be giving her some money, but thought that would have just insulted her. So I simply got her name, we shook hands, she smiled, turned around and walked away. Bless you Sophie, you're a wonderful ambassador of your city! You really touched us and we'll always remember your generous and kind gesture.

We caught our train and made it back to the Sidi Bou Said station and did the short 10 minute walk back to the Dar Amilcar.

While the Missus went upstairs to freshen up, I spoke to the woman working and she led me to the kitchen and I got some plates, silverware, and glasses for us.

We ended up having a nice lunch……nice cheese from Monoprix.

Peppers, olives, and various pickles from the stand in the market……

Man, that baguette was really good!

Sitting around the pool……..

Having a nice bottle of wine……

Life was good!

We also met a friendly gentleman who was sunning at the pool. I believe his name is Raphael. He told us he was from Toulouse and visits Sidi Bou Said just about every 6 weeks or so. He told us it's cheaper to have a little weekend holiday in Tunisia than it is in France. Anyway, he gave us a couple of recommendations for places to eat.

Things were indeed looking up.

Thanks for reading!

Saturday Stuffs: Goodbye Lucky Star….hello Jasmine 2? Taegukgi Korean BBQ, because we just need another AYCE joint, right? And other stuff….

March 16, 2013 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Korean Restaurants

Goodbye Lucky Star….hello Jasmine 2????

I hadn't really kept up on Lucky Star since an absolutely horrible visit back in 2005. And though things do take time, I'm really not sad to see the place go. I was recently in the area and noticed that all the signage is gone.

I won't go into the reason why Lucky Star was first shut down, then totally closed. But what I will mention is that I've heard from two different sources that the folks from Jasmine have picked up the lease on the place we called the "Big Red Barn".

Interesting, huh?

The address is:

3893 54th St
San Diego, CA 92105

Just because we need yet another AYCE Korean BBQ on Convoy:

I noticed this a couple of weeks back, but didn't have enough to put together a post. It looks like a pretty humongous AYCE joint is being constructed next to the new site of Zion Market.

Just because we needed another one of these, right?

7655 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111

Didn't you used to be NYPD Pizza?

Now it's something called Oliva Ristorante……

Next to Mr Peabody's on Friar's Road. When I asked someone who works in this little strip mall about the place, they told me, new owners, but same menu. The sign says "Italian & Green Cuisine"…. Green cuisine? Hmmm……

Oliva Ristorante
6110 Friars Rd
San Diego, CA 92108

I hope everyone is having a great weekend…..nice weather like this means it's time to start making stuff like this.