As in, yoso-silly, yoso-hungry, yoso-full, or best of all; mmm-delici-yoso!!!!! A San Diego based food and travel blog. An Ex-Pat Kama'aina and Friends explore food, restaurants, and travel from San Diego and points beyond.
This is pretty much a COMC (Clearing Out the Memory Card) post. During our time in China we stayed in Jianyang for one evening, here are some photos we took during that time.
The hotel provided a buffet style breakfast, that looked quite typical, but had quite a few breakfast items that were interesting.
Sure there was rice porridge and the like…..but there were a number of spicy Sichuan dishes as well. I had really never given thought to what the typical Sichuan breakfast would be…..the thought of having some "ma-la" (numbing hot) dishes first thing in the morning seemed very different to me.
Just as tomatoes are often treated like fruits in China, potatoes are treated like true vegetables. It's not uncommon to see them stir-fried.
I wasn't sure how my body would react to having this stuff early in the morning….but it turns out that I enjoyed it to some extent.
Even though the population of Jianyang is pegged at 1.2 million and I'm assuming growing as the local textile industry does, the streets in the area where we stayed were wide and pretty much empty. Perhaps everyone had already gone to work……
This seems really great, but as anyone who has tried to cross the street in China knows……other than driving on the correct side of the street (something which is rather flexible in its own right), the "rules" here are different. Because there was no traffic, cars and trucks were driving as fast as they could on these streets….shades of Phnom Penh!
Many of the smaller businesses were located on the side streets…..
I heard a familiar buzz as we passed the Baozi stand…..I immediately knew what it was, as we turned the corner I found that my hunch was correct.
It was the local morning market……
For me, the most entertaining set-up were all the meat hanging for display, it was a literal "meat curtain".
The meat did look quite fresh……
The market itself wasn't too crowded, so after a cursory walk-through we headed back down the street to a bit more exploring. Daily life in Jianyang seemed a bit more laidback, though the speed of things in Chengdu seemed quite relaxed as well.
You never know what you'll see wandering down the street in a city that you don't reside in.
You see things that are unfamiliar, greeting them with almost a child like wonder…..
I loved the makeshift "ramp" built from rebar. You relaly couldn't make out the rebar from a distance. You'd suddenly see a jug zipping across the sidewalk!
We saw this hanging in front of a Jianyang Mutton Soup shop(luckily no carcasses of wild dog in sight), we saw a typical display of how the Chinese stretch the law a bit….
There was an older man with a large cutting board squatting on the sidewalk chopping and hacking at the mutton. Imagine if you will, someone doing this on a major four lane road in your city! He was dressed in the typical stained white teeshirt, white paper hat (after all there are hygenic standards, right?), cigarette dangling from his mouth, hacking away. Suddenly, a police vehicle drives to the curb and one of the guys starts yelling …..I'm assuming telling him not to portion his mutton the the sidewalk. The "chef" ignores the officer. So what does the guy in the car do? He grabs a megaphone and starts using the darn thing, loud enough to shake the leaves off the trees (which are falling on the chopped mutton meat). He screams for about five minutes, but is just ignored. So what does the officer do next? Does he and his partner get out of his vehicle to enforce the law? Heck no, they just swear at the guy (so the Missus says – through the megaphone) and drive off. Jianyang's finest on the job!
Later that morning, the Missus' cousin took us on the short tour of one of the lakes in the area. There are islands in these lakes that house hotels and resorts. You can get to them by boat.
We ended up having lunch at one of the hotel restaurants. Nothing particularly memorable.
Like I said earlier; potatoes are treated as a vegetable…..
Actually, the "saliva chicken" (so good you can't stop drooling) was decent. Not very spicy (La), but it numbed half your face (Ma).
As a whole, like we were told, the food in this part of Sichuan isn't as spicy-hot.
For dinner we were taken to a Hot Pot place.
Which was more of a "hip" hot pot shop, where the young folks seem to going for hot pot and socializing.
Actually, the broth was pretty good, though again, more numbing than spicy.
It was a nice side trip for the Missus as She got to meet relatives…….
Man, it was almost like summer for a couple days there, wasn’t it? I don’t ever remember it hitting 80 degrees around New Year! The weather put the Missus and I in the mood for some mariscos. And though we thought of heading to La Playita, or even down to Godoy. We simply wanted a couple of tacos and it was well past the time of El Pescador or El Prieto. Then I recalled that FOY (Friend of Yoso) Candice had mentioned that a mariscos place had opened near the border or PB and La Jolla called Oscar’s.
Getting there was interesting……when going North on Mission you take a left at Turquoise and the place comes up rather fast. If going this route, you might have to figure out where to take that u-turn. Only street parking is available as far as I could tell. The restaurant is tiny, located right next to a smoke shop…or as the Missus says, it’s right next to the “Hoo-kar” (Hookah) store. He-he-he…..
There are literally 6-8 seats in the place and a small counter area outside. The kitchen is bright and shiny and the young man running the place friendly and most helpful. We saw grilled snapper tacos on the greaseboard, but they had run out for the day when we arrived. The menu is compact, with many of the “regulars” you’d see at one of those mariscos trucks.
The Missus started with the Smoked Marlin Taco ($2.75 – tacos de marlyn):
In terms of price, this was cheaper than most trucks, though it wasn’t nearly as stuffed. I never got a shot as the Missus polished it off in no time. She told me the fish was spot on in terms of flavor, but there was a bit too much cheese on it. I dunno, She cleaned this out pretty quickly.
I ordered a Fish Taco ($1.99)
Very routine, nicely fried, though a bit on the smaller side. The batter was fine, though I prefer mine a bit more crisp. There were some hidden what tasted like habanero in the pico, though the salsas are served on the side…a pretty nice touch. The tortillas were massed produced, but decent.
The “Fish Stew” (small – $1.50), was probably the weakest item we had. Served in a 8 ounce styrofoam cup that you’ll usually get the gratis consomme in at most mariscos joints. There were two shrimp and a small scallop or two along with a not so tasty piece of fish in this.
This caldo was just too weak, tasting mostly of celery and lacking the deep flavor of what you’d get elsewhere.
To finish off, I ordered the Cucaracha ($7), also known as camarones a la cucaracha……cockroach shrimp.
The shrimp were headless, but nicely fried before being put to bed in very bracing, spicy-sour, tomato-chile sauce, which was more like a broth. The shrimp were cooked well, the meat tender, the shells adding a nice crunch…making the sounds that you would get when you step on the unofficial Hawaii state animal. This definitely called for some tortillas since there was so much sauce. I ordered some tortillas….which they nicely never charged me for (though I’m thinking it should some with them). But man, it was too sour and spicy for me….man, my tolerance is getting real low, I think I need to head back to Hunan Chilli King to build my resistance and get maced by my food again. The Missus on the other hand, went through this like a hot knife through butter….though She told me “that sauce is burning a hole in my stomach” on the way home.
While really not quite up to par with our favorite mariscos joints, this place wasn’t bad and is a nice addition to the neighborhood. The folks here are very friendly and the prices not bad at all for the area.
Oscar’s Mexican Seafood
703 Turquoise St
San Diego, CA 92109
The Missus has been trying to cut down on meat consumption over the last year and I'm really trying to support Her. However, there's just so much roasted vegetables, which we make twice a week one can really deal with. This started me off on trying other vegetables and greens, stuff like Chard, Kale, Celeriac, Rapini, even sauteing Collard Greens. Mushrooms now is a big part of the Missus' diet. I'll often now make protein for me and a large shared veg dish for us, or even something just for the Missus. We're also trying not to waste as much….and I had half a Kabocha staring me in the face. For New Years I'd made Kabocha Nimono using half the squash…..now I needed to do something with the other half. I'd also bought a bunch of parsnips most of which I roasted with potatoes….
Looking for some inspiration, I opened Yotam Ottolenghi's wonderful cookbook, Plenty. I really trust this cookbook, ever since I tried out the Mushroom Ragout with Poached Egg recipe and it turned out to be one of the best things I made all year. As fate would have it, I opened up the book to a recipe for roasted parsnips and sweet potatoes with caper vinaigrette…….I guess it was meant to be. I basically subbed the kabocha for the sweet potatoes and adjusted the cooking time.
For me, cookbooks tend to be a set of ideas and guidelines, though many times I'll follow the written recipe the first time through, making adjustments later. To me, Ottolenghi's book is more of an idea book. Using items I had on hand and adjusting for taste, this came out real well. The adjustments? I used 12 cloves of peeled garlic rather than a split bulb, kabocha for the sweet potatoes of course, replaced the fresh thyme and rosemary with dried thyme and oregano, two fairly large red onions instead of four, two vine ripened tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes, and I used honey instead of maple syrup in the vinaigrette. The recipe times the addition of the vegetables into three stages to make sure that everything is cooked, but not overcooked.
Speaking of the vinaigrette, the Missus initially didn't want me to use it, but I eventually wore Her down and She ended up loving what it added to the dish…..just a slight acid and mild sweetness, not enough to interfere.
Roasted Parsnips and Kabocha with Caper Vinaigrette
About a pound or a bit more of (peeled)parsnips cut into 1 1/2" – 2" long by 3/4" pieces 2 medium-medium large red onions cut into wedges 12 cloves garlic peeled but left whole 1/2 kabocha pumpkin sliced into pieces about the same size as the parsnips (leave the skin on) 2 tomatoes cut into eighths Dried Thyme Dried Oregano 3/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I used Spitiko) Salt and Pepper
– Preheat oven to 375 – In a bowl coat the parsnips, onions, and garlic with 1/2 cup of the olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, and oregano. – Spread on a baking sheet or roasting pan – Roast for about 20-25 minutes. – Coat kabocha with more olive oil and add to the pan, combining with the other ingredients. – Roast for about another 30 minutes – Add the tomato wedges to the pan and roast for about another 15 minutes. You may want to give everything a gentle stir then finish off. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
After adding the tomatoes put together your dressing. Combine: 4 Tb Capers chopped 1 Tb Honey 1/2 Tb Dijon mustard 3 Tb Extra Virgin Olive Oil – I used a low acidity Picholine Olive Oil for this 2 Tb fresh squeezed Lemon juice
Whisk ingredients together to emulsify.
Remove vegetables from the oven….I put everything into a nice cast iron pan which I intended to use at the beginning bt proved too small. Pour dressing over the veggies and lightly mix.
This turned out well….I can only imagine what other combinations of root vegetables and herbs can be done in this manner.
Strangely, one of posts that I most often get emails and comments about is the one on making Okonomiyaki. It's quite interesting, I'd get stuff telling me that you don't need the yamaimo, saying it doesn't make any difference in the texture, always from folks that had never even tried using it for making okonomiyaki(I have tried not using yamaimo – the result is fine, but it ain't the same)…so if you've never even tried using it, how would you know if it makes any difference? But hey, okonomi means "what you like", so whatever floats your boat…..I know what floats mine…a couple of tablespoons of gooey, grated yamaimo. Secondly, it's about the folks who tell me to use a non-stick…….I've never gotten the kind of wonderful caramelization you get with my cast iron pan on any non-stick…even the new expensive non-stick pan I have is basically for crepes and items that don't need a nice crust. Personally, I prefer mine to look something like this.
The Missus had been looking through a couple of recipes in Elizabeth Andoh's new cookbook Kansha. The one She found most interesting used this…..
It was the recipe for Natto Okyaki, a natto pancake of sorts. The reason I'm not linking to the cookbook is that the recipe really didn't work out…it uses soy milk and only two tablespoons of soba flour. Needless to say it really never really firmed up. It tasted pretty good…maybe a bit bland, but really made a mess and looked, well not very attractive. But the seed had been planted….plus, I still had a good amount of Soba-ko left over. I decided to use my base okonomiyaki recipe, replacing cake flour with Soba Flour and using natto as the main filling. I liked the idea of using zucchini in Ms Andoh's recipe so I cut back on the cabbage. I didn't think dashi and natto would make such a great combination, so I used plain water. I had thoughts of making and incorporating mustard paste, but had the idea of using wasabi instead. I also added some soy sauce to add another layer of flavor. It tuned out pretty well. It's also a nice way of having natto if you've never had it before or want to eat it, but find the look, smell, or sight of it rather unsavory.
I used a half recipe, but made two smaller okonomiyaki. After doing the first with the standard katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes), okonomi sauce, furikake, etc…the Missus found She preferred it unadorned using a simple wasabi-soy sauce mixture for dipping……as the name says, "as you like it"……
Natto Okonomiyaki
Batter: 1/2 Cup Soba flour, sifted 1/2 Cup water or Dashi 2 TB grated Yamaimo/Nagaimo(Japanese Mountain Yam) 1 tsp salt
1 – Sift Flour into a bowl.
2 – Add Water, yamaimo, and salt.
3 – Mix to a pancake batter consistency(do not over-mix). The batter will be sort of a gluey pancake batter
Filling: 2/3 Cup finely shredded cabbage 1/2 Cup finely julienned zucchini 2 scallions green parts only finely sliced 1/4 Cup finely sliced red onion 1-2 Tb Benishoga 2 – 1 1/2 oz portions (usually styrofoam trays) of natto 1 Tb prepared wasabi 1 Tb soy sauce 1 Egg
1 – Add natto to batter and using chopsticks stir in a figure eight motion to separate the sticky beans and incorporate into batter 2 – Add the cabbage, zucchini, scallions, onions, and benishoga. Crack an egg on top and stir to mix. 3 – Add wasabi and soy sauce and gently incorporate. 4 – Oil up your pan and your ready to go…..
My original okonomiyki recipe can be found here. Have fun and make it "your way"! Just don't tell me not to use yamaimo, or to use a non-stick pan…..
We all have our rotation of restaurants that we hit. Not all of them are stellar, but whether it's convenience, price, service, or something else, it ends up on our rotation. And no matter where it is, chances are, unless the place makes just one thing (something that perhaps more places should do), you'll run into a clunker as you work down the menu. The Missus and I always joke about Lotus of Siam which is one of our favorite restaurants. The one funny thing being, that on every visit, we've into one real clunker of a dish. LOS isn't alone in that aspect, as here are a couple of places I really enjoy and have posted on before…..but recently have encountered 1 dish that just didn't sit well…….
Wa Dining Okan:
We've done a number of posts on Okan over the years. Perhaps not as many as Dennis's multi-part offerings, but quite a few….. There are quite a few things that Okan does well, simmered items, some fried items like the chicken gizzards…..
The gobo salad, even the daikon salad……
But once I had to go and order the Salmon Belly Carpaccio……carpaccio?
Granted, I do a maguro carpaccio, but I'd never think of taking a fatty piece of high oil fish and taking a blowtorch to it making it seem slimy and greasy, combined with a sauce that made it seem even more fishy……then throwing capers on it. This was just a bit too much for me.
There is alot to like here…….but that dish didn't do it for me…it more like did it to me…
Wa Dining Okan 3860 Convoy St San Diego, CA 92111
Kayaba:
**** Kayaba has closed
I usually enjoy my meals at Kayaba, which usually consists of Tonkatsu.
It's priced, at least for me, quite reasonably. I was itching for some tonkatsu recently….the Missus was depressed since Sakura was still closed for renovations and She couldn't get Her weekly Ten-don fix. I told the Missus that I thought Kayaba made Ten-don……..I should have kept my mouth shut…..
First off, the tempura were barely room temp and overcooked. It had apparently been left around since we were both surprised that my dish took a good fifteen minutes and the Missus' was up in less than three! The rice was hard and the Donburi tsuyu was really dark and salty….as if they took bottled tsuyu and forgot to dilute it with water.
Man, I'm still feeling the repercussions from this one…..
Kayaba 4240 Kearny Mesa Rd Ste 119 – In the Mitsuwa Marketplace San Diego, CA 92111
I guess like the song goes: "C'est la vie", say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell….. I know it's a Chuck Berry tune, but this is my favorite version…maybe because it has Albert Lee on guitar.
Of course you might be more familiar with this scene…..
I realized on one of our recent trips back to Hawaii that I never did show the Missus my old neighborhood. When we first met, I'd taken Her to a couple of my favorite places to eat, but I'd never really went into detail about it. I consider myself very lucky to have grown up in the Kaimuki/Kapahulu area and it holds a very special place in my heart. Back before our trip to China, I hadn't been back to the area in over a decade and I had wondered how the area had changed. We didn't have much money and my Mom never did learn to drive so everything was either Da' Bus or footmobile for us. In that way, the set-up of Kaimuki was just perfect, even though it's situated on a hill, the main drag, Waialae Avenue is perfect for walking. According to the Historic Hawai'i Foundation's site:
"Kaimuki is a naturally dusty, dry area that wasn’t heavily populated during pre-contact times because of a lack of water supply."
When development started, the main pipe was located along what is now Kaimuki Avenue. Like many now urban neighborhoods, Kaimuki was designed as a suburb, a place where people would live, then commute to Honolulu for work. When the H-1 freeway cut through Kaimuki, the neighborhood became very connected.
Because Kapahulu was literally right down the street, I've always considered it my neighborhood as well. So it was only right that we start our day at Rainbow Drive-In.
Kapahulu sure has changed….Alex's Drive In is long gone, as is KC Drive In (tho' they were never the same after they moved from the Ala Wai) and Love's Bakery has been gone for a couple of decades so is Kapahulu Theatre. But all through that Rainbows has endured and is apparently going strong. I did wonder if things had changed much……I used to recall getting chili here for under a buck.
One thing I noticed right away was a sign that explained the food….say what? Who needs an explanation of Chicken Cutlet…..Loco Moco maybe…why?? When I jokingly asked what was up? The lady at the window told me, "aaah, it's for all da' tourists eva' since the Obama thing." Oh…. I do recall:
“I’m going to get a plate lunch. I might go to Zippy’s. I might go to Rainbow Drive-In. I haven’t decided yet…." Circa 2008.
The Missus wanted a chili dog……while I grew up eating the chili here, I wasn't a big fan of the hot dogs Rainbow uses. It is skinless with a real mystery-meat texture, which strangely reminds me of eating cold Vienna sausages. But whatever, it's what the Missus wanted:
For some reason the chili struck me as being on the sweet side…..I'm guessing my tastes have changed quite a bit since I last had this.
I got a BBQ Beef Sandwich. No it's not slow smoked brisket on a bun……this is a Teriyaki Style Beef sandwich. Local style teriyaki (BBQ) is more salty and less sweet than what is the norm on the mainland.
From the photo you can tell that the meat is not the most tender, but it's what I grew up eating. It's also much better than most of the L&L stuff. For some reason, I've gotten to appreciate the role of lettuce in these type of sandwiches, it seems to cleanse and refresh the palate. Love the mayo and onions too…..
Rainbow Drive-In 3308 Kanaina Ave Honolulu, HI 96815
There are just two requests that the Missus has when in the area; one of them is Leonard's. I still remember the pure bliss on Her face the first time I took Her to Leonard's for malasadas.
Unfortunately, it seems like Leonard's is a major tourist stop nowadays…..two tour buses pulled up as we arrived and there was a line out the door…..
The Missus decided that it just wasn't worth the wait…..so we moved on to Her other favorite stop in the area; W & M Burger…..
Located right off Waialae Avenue, with half a dozen parking stalls, this little joint is a big part of my younger days. This location is actually not the original, I'll have that a bit later on in the post. W&M always seemed on the expensive side when I was a kid, but luckily, one of our neighbors used to work there….so she'd often bring home a ton of burgers at the end of the day. The parking is absolute "horrors", so we always plan our trip to arrive before it gets too busy for lunch. You can take your chances in the City Mill parking lot next door, but leave someone with the car, or hope you have some luck. Just to digress; the location of City mill was where I had my first taste of pizza as a kid; at a place called Chico's Pizza……
Actually, the woman working the counter I recognized from way back when……
The burgers at W&M are basically teri-burgers made from a "secret" blend of soy sauce etc…… Since we were on what was basically a crawl, I ordered a Deluxe, no mayo/sauce/etc, and some fries "extra crispy"……
The Missus wasn't too fond of the fries extra crispy, so I think I won't order it that way anymore. But that burger was a spot on taste of my youth……
It's one of the few things that the Missus says tastes exactly the same as the first time She ate one.
In a nice distraction move, the Missus told me, "don't you have to take a photo of the front." Which I did, only to turn around and find Her chomping away at that burger……..slick move……
W & M Bar-B-Q Burger 3104 Waialae Ave Honolulu, HI 96816
Next stop was right up the street. Dating myself, I'll tell you that this was Crown Drive-In when we first moved from Palolo Valley to less than a block from here. But just a short while later it became…..
I believe that this was the second location for Zippy's (McCully was the first). It is also kitty-corner from my elementary school…Ali'iolani.
Which, except for missing the huge, rickety, auditorium looks basically the same.
I should have ordered chili and rice, but for some reason went with the chili-loco moco……
Man, the chili tasted terrible…..very bland, but almost rancid……
I also had a piece of the fried chicken, which tasted much better than the last time I had it.
I don't quite know what to say….maybe bad day for the chili and good day for fried chicken. Oh well…….
Zippy's 3345 Waialae Ave Honolulu, HI 96816
This is, of course, one of perhaps a zillion locations…..
After this I drove up to Palolo to check out my Intermediate (now called "middle") school….Jarrett. It's a sign of the time I guess, as now there's a fence going around the school.
We drove out of Palolo Valley via 9th avenue and I pointed out what we called the "Jade Building" which we considered kinda swanky for this area when I was a kid. It was pretty much the only high rise in the area. Here are some photos from Jade Circle taken by Ian Lind from his blog. Funny thing is, Ian's wife Meda actually taught a class I took….small blogging world, huh?
On the corner of 9th avenue and Waialae was one of the most important businesses to us. It was a small IGA market called Zane's Market. This market used to deliver groceries if you bought over a certain amount. Since we had no car, it was godsend…..
Right across the street is the original location of W&M Burger.
A bit further up the street is Kaimuki Park, where I wasted a good deal of time as a kid……
Right across the street was my favorite saimin stand Tanoues, now long gone, of course…but the memories remain.
Man, the facade of the old Queen Theatrewas still there. I remember watching movies there when I was a kid…until they started showing porn films, in Kaimuki! Yikes!! Eventually, the place was raided, then shut down. The place is now 75 years old, I'm hoping that it is somehow restored…… unlike Kaimuki Theatre, which used to reside here:
Kaimuki Inn used to be here……
All those places are gone….but as we turned the corner on Koko Head I saw a familiar sign….
What is crack seed you may ask??? It's basically what we called preserved, salty and sweet preserved fruits that the Chinese brought to Hawaii. The most well known being Li Hing Mui. This place has been here for as long as I can remember.
Even more funny, the same guy is still running the place….I'm thinking for over the last 30 years or so??? He was very friendly….though my recollection of him was as a pretty tough, no-nonsense guy. Maybe time has muddled my memory, or he's mellowed over the years?
Of course I got some olive peel (aka Olive Cake) and rock salt plum……
Turning to cut through the municipal parking lot, the Missus chuckled when I told Her that the first place I had "Mexican food" (using a very broad definition here) was indeed at a place called Jose's…..
I was surprised and rather pleased to see that Victoria Inn was still alive and kicking:
After this, I thought the Missus had enough and it was time to head on back. As I gassed up the car, there was one more building I pointed out to the Missus. In that spot was a Food Pantry, which I thought was an odd location on Harding and 11th avenue. I think they still have their offices there. There are quite a few more places…but I think this is more than enough for a post…… And if you actually stuck around to the end…well, thanks so much for reading!
One last thing….if you've spent anytime in Hawaii since 1981, I'm sure you'll recognize this one – Kanipoli Slack Key. Always makes me smile when I hear it:
We've decided to keep things pretty low-keyed for this New Years. Nothing too fancy or difficult for our New Year dinner.
Just some fried shrimp and Karei Karaage, which is kinda becoming a New Year tradition for the Missus. I needed to have some soba since it is New Years eve, so went with some Cha Soba. Marukai had some really lovely young watercress and for some reason I'd been craving it. While putting it together I wondered if the shoyu-mayo dip is a Hawaii thing, Japanese thing….or is it just something my Mom used to do? Regardless, other than tempura, it's my favorite way to eat watercress.
I did the usual rounds of Nijiya, Mitsuwa, and Marukai, and noticed that the amount of Osechi-ryōri to be even less than last year. I'm guessing changing demographics, tastes, and economics are creating less of a demand as time goes by. It's something I really started noticing in 2010. There was just a fraction of the amount at Nijiya.
And even less at Mitsuwa.
As we turn the page on another year, we just wanted to extend our warmest New Year wishes to everyone. It's been a tough year for many, I just hope the upcoming year is a better one.
I really became a big tea drinker after our trip to China nearly two years ago. And it just carried on after I returned; I drink tea everyday at work, just placing leaves in a large cup I have and adding hot water as the day goes on. It does help that one of the "big" gifts for Chinese is tea. Here's a bunch of containers I threw together for a quick photo:
All of these are from China. We've also been pretty lucky, everytime we nearly run out we'd get a package or have visitors. The Missus' cousins loaded us up with enough for at least another nine months or so…until we start worrying about running out! It seems that the younger generations don't drink much tea, so we've been the beneficiaries. The packaging of some are quite elaborate, looking like something out of Raider's of the Lost Ark. The reflection on the Missus face when She opened this one also reminded me of a movie.
I'm really just a tea drinker, though I know what I like. We also know when something really stands out, as the tea we were given in the red container to the left did. I took a pack to work and noticed how fragrant this was, the finish to me is a bit sweet. Meanwhile, the Missus did some research and found out that Jinjunmei Black Tea is a famous and very desirable black tea that is supposedly grown from a rare species and only found on the slopes of certain mountains at an elevation of 1500 – 1800 meters in the Wuyi Mountains.
The Missus also told me the stuff selling for up to $180 for 50 grams…50 GRAMS! Of course I was at work and had just gotten my first cup of tea……Jinjunmei tea when She called and told me this. Sigh…..I looked down at my cup of tea, not quite knowing what to do……drink it I guess…..but somehow it just felt wrong. Needless to say, the Missus and I keep telling ourselves that we'll have a nice pot, well, "next weekend…..maybe".
Honolulu Coffee Company:
On our last (thankfully) trip to Ala Moana Center, with the Missus riding high from just purchasing a pair of Manolo Blahniks She wanted, I decided that we should sit and have cup of coffee. The smells coming out of this shop was just wonderful……….
I don't drink a whole lot of coffee anymore, but the thought of some decent Kona Coffee just sounded right. The Missus, asked me what to get…. looking at Her bag with the Manolos in them I told Her the French Pressed 100% Kona of course. At eight buck for a cup of coffee it ain't cheap. The Barista told us it would be four minutes and thirty seconds…not four minutes, not five minutes, but four minutes and thirty seconds. And what we got was the most perfect cup of coffee I've had in ages. Smooth, but not too smooth, fragrant, nice finish…..
The Missus, a regular coffee drinker knew better than to ask me if I wanted anything in my coffee….. The Barista came by a few minutes later and asked what we thought of our cup…..I told him, "I'm far from an expert, but this is the best I've had in recent memory….you could get me started on coffee again." On the flight back I read that the Barista who is head of quality for Honolulu Coffee Company, Pete Licata is the 2011 US Barista Champion and took second place in the World Barista Championship. I'd say the quality is quite good……
Honolulu Coffee Co (in Ala Moana Center) 1450 Ala Moana Blvd, Ste 3066 Honolulu, HI 96814
What I'm craving:
Strangely, I'm craving this:
Man, I haven't had the broasted chicken form there in over ten years now! I dropped by on one of my solo trips a couple of months back, but the place was swamped and they told me it would be 2 hour wait! You gotta be kidding….I could be back in San Diego by then! But maybe I should have just sucked it up and waited…sigh….
I've never really been able to get a half decent lau lau in my time on the mainland and I've tried quite a few. This dish of pork and salted fatty fish wrapped in luau (taro) leaves packaged in ti leaves and steamed for hours seems simple, but here away from home, it ain't. First off, almost every version I've had on the mainland is minus the salted butterfish. Second, many use spinach, though I've seen taro leaves at many Polynesian markets and even 99 Ranch Market a couple of times.
Needless to say, it's one of things that I always mean to get when I go home, from either of my two favorites, Ono Hawaiian Food in my old neighborhood, or Helena's which I understand has moved (and has also won a James Beard award!). Since my In-Laws live all the out in Ewa Beach, finding the time to check out either place when it's not packed to the gills is quite a challenge, one that has gotten the better of me during my last two trips home.
Also, during that time, I'd heard about Highway Inn in Waipahu…which sounded really familiar. I even saw the bit on DDD. During one of our visits, I asked my MIL's former co-worker Melissa, a life long Ewa Beach resident, about the place….and suddenly realized that I'd eaten at the old location on Waipahu Depot Road, near the old sugar mill. Excited, I asked her about the food and was simply met with…."well, it's ok…" Not exactly a seal of approval, but man I wanted some Lau Lau.
So we managed to get some time to check out Highway Inn.
One of the items that folks seemed to be talking about at Highway inn is the Pipikaula, traditionally salted dried beef. The father of a friend on mine used to make a mean version using drying the beef in his front yard in his akule box. Naturally, much of it used to disappear into thin air…….
So the Missus ordered the Pipikaula ($5.45) and a side of rice.
Man, this was kinda tasteless and fairly bland in addition to being sinewy. The version I like at Ono's is more traditional, but not hard like jerky, with a salty flavor that a friend of mine from New York always says tastes like corned beef. The version from Helena's is, I believe made from shortribs and have a real beefy flavor and isn't nearly as tough as this.
Of course I ordered the Lau Lau combo ($10.65):
The poi was a bit too thin for my taste, but I enjoyed the flavor. I'm thinking it was at least a "day old", making it a bit more sour, but I prefer it that way.
The lomi salmon wasn't my favorite, almost all tomato, too salty. It also lacked a good pungency, which is usually provided with some onion. I usually love mixing my lomi salmon with poi….but not today….
I thought the lau lau, though a bit small inside was pretty good, if a bit too fatty.
I love the flavor of luau leaves used on the lau lau; they have a slight bitter taste with a mild sweetness to them, much like collard greens. and when they've been absorbing some of the juices of fatty pork and the savory fish, it's heaven with a dash of chili pepper water which wakes everything up. The pork was fine and I appreciated the flavor the salt butterfish added to the lau lau.
I'm still longing for Helena's or Ono though……
The service was friendly, very local. Folks I know grumble about the portion to price ratio, but I had no complaints. Won't be having that pipikaula anytime soon though.
Highway Inn 94-226 Leoku Street Waipahu, HI 96797
Funny, writing this brought back memories of my favorite lau lau. And it couldn't be bought from any restaurant or store. When I was in High School I worked in a restaurant. One of the manager's was a Hawaiian-Chinese woman who took me under her wings and taught me the ropes. She could be really tough and took no prisoners…in fact, her nieces and nephews used to call her "Auntie Titta". But she was also the type of person who, if she liked you, would go to the ends of the Earth for you. Once a year, the family, most of whom lived in Waianae would get together and have an all day (and most of the night) party at Pokai Bay. Now Waianae back then wasn't the most welcoming place for a skinny, shark-bait, 112 pound Japanese kid from Kaimuki…..but man did that family welcome me! And they had this huge round thingy that looked like a large metal float that had been made into a makeshift steamer………and they made the best, bombucha, lau lau I'd ever had. It was so good that I easily ate two…then, I stopped myself not wanting to be a bad guest. But someone realized that I still looked hungry and gave me another, then another….until I had consumed five! From that day on they always asked her, "hey, Titta, where's your skinny Japanese son…you know, the one who can really eat!" And as long as I knew her, I was always invited to the family luau……
Here's one from the "I need to pay more attention when I'm shopping files." Walking through the produce department at Nijiyatwo weeks ago, something grabbed my attention….. I looked, then looked again, then read thelabel. Wow, it really was fresh chanterelles……..I don't recall seeing them at Nijiya before. I've seen Chanterelles at Bristol Farm and Whole Paycheck, where prices were pretty high. Here they were $9.98/lb, to me, perfectly affordable.
The Missus had never had chanterelles before….and now She loves them. I've had to go back every couple of days and pick up a pound or so.
Instead of chopping, I'll just "peel" the mushrooms ending up with nice sizes pieces.
I simply start the mushrooms in a cold, dry pan and over medium heat let all the liquid out of the mushrooms. After a few minutes I add a good amount of olive oil, garlic, herbs, then white wine bringing it to a nice bubble before tasting, adding salt and pepper, then cutting the heat. What's left can be used as a base for pasta, or perhaps like the Missus enjoys them; simply eaten with bread. Don't know how long these will be available…..but I'm making the most of it. I just saw FOY (Friend of Yoso) "Xiang Jiao" during my most recent visit.
I need to pay better attention, god knows what I'm missing…..
Nijiya Market 3860 Convoy St Ste 109 San Diego, CA 92111
Izakaya Sakura still not ready for business……
I drove by earlier today and it looks like a work in progress.
Saying goodbye to a fellow blogger:
About a week before Christmas, Dennis of A Radiused Corner contacted me with some terrible news. A bit later I read a post on Kat's blog about the passing of Nate, the author of Hwn Pake in Okinawa. I've always enjoyed Nate's no nonsense approach to food and life. Through the magic of blogging I was able to vicariously share in those meals and moments. Nate's "local" sensibility really struck a chord with me, and I can't thank him enough for sharing those moments over the years. Though I never met him, I could really relate to his posts and am thankful that he made space in his life to share them…
The ever-thoughtful Dennis was nice enough to organize a lunch in Nate's memory and kind enough to invite me. It was a nice moment, Dennis, Carol, Cathy, and I were able to share thoughts and memories……..
I did feel that I needed to order something appropriate, so made sure to have gravy all over my chicken cutlet and roast pork.
The hotel provided a buffet style breakfast, that looked quite typical, but had quite a few breakfast items that were interesting.
The meat did look quite fresh……
