mmm-yoso – Page 373

Road Trip: Pho Thanh Lich – Westminster (OC)

January 6, 2009 mmm-yoso Orange County, Pho, Road Trip, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Pho Thanh Lich in Westminster has closed

I'll be the first to admit that most of my Pho photos look the same. In fact, I've been accused of using a "stunt bowl" on occasion. Let me be very clear…. I have never, and will never use a "Pho double". Hopefully this time you'll know it wasn't just "any" bowl of Pho.

During a recent shopping trip to the "OC", I was in the mood for a bowl of Pho, and decided to stop in Westminster. In retrospect, I should've gotten the blessing of the "Don of Little Saigon", FOY Beach! But this was a last minute decision(and New Year's eve to boot!) on my part, so I'm hoping he'll forgive me. I arrived on Bolsa, the heart of Little Saigon at just about 10am, after seeing the my first option was not yet open, I headed up Brookhurst, and stopped at the corner of Bolsa and Hazard, at Pho Thanh Lich. It's one of a seemingly endless number of Pho shops in the area, and like many of them, shows signs of having a past……the facade indicates perhaps a Pizza joint?

From the fragrance of simmering beef and herbs, to the workers watching a Vietnamese variety show, all things felt right…. as did the requisite slightly sticky tables.

Funny, I took several photos of the interior but the only one that came out was this weird one. It happened when I placed my camera on the table, and accidentally snapped a photo. Go figure; so much for my photographic capabilities.

After several years, and many bowls of Pho in San Diego, I've lowered my expectations with regards to rare beef(Tai). It is usually dry and tough Beef Eye of the Round. I used to get the meat on the side, but to me the difference was minimal and not worth the effort. As they say you "can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear". When ordering Pho at a shop I haven't been to before, I still order the rare steak, but I've set my bar very low. Such is not the case at Pho Thanh Lich. Why?

That my friends is Filet Mignon. For me, you need to order it rare and on the side. The prices here are not bargain basement. The regular bowl, with Filet costs $6. You want the beef on the side, add 50 cents. The young lady who served me was a joy, nervous, and I think new on the job, she led me to my table, and while having some difficulties with my order; she told me, "I so sorry, only Freshman….." Which I took to mean she was new at this….. and any attempts at ordering in butchered Vietnamese would probably only confuse things.

The herbs soon arrived, sparkling fresh. Not the largest portion I've ever had, but very fresh, especially the Ngo Ngai (Culantro, Saw Leaf Herb). Along with soup, it made a nice "family photo":

The broth was interesting, beefy, with a strong ginger/galangal flavor. The broth wasn't the clearest I've had, though not very dark.

Someone once told me this place had very oily broth. I didn't find this to be the case, it seemed to have a decent amount of oil, giving it a nice richness, and I didn't find it to be overly salty(MSG).

I found the noodles to be bit overcooked and mushy. The other cuts of meat, especially the brisket was full of flavor. I had also been told that the brisket and flank here, tastes "offal". All I tasted was a good beefiness.

One more thing; the broth came scortching hot. The better for this:

Very mild in flavor (the brisket will take care of that), but it melted in my mouth.

And a little dessert as well.

Overall, this was an enjoyable bowl. It is not a "meat-fest", but in my opinion does well in the flavor department. The Older Woman manning the register, even smiled at me, and told me "thank you, come again." I think I will. I still have Pho Kimmy in my sights, but did not feel shortchanged by eating here. And you can tell, no "stunt bowl" right?

Pho Thanh Lich
14500 Brookhurst St.
Westminster, CA 92683

Why the regular bowl instead of the large? Well, I wanted to squeeze in one more "snack" before heading home from Orange County.

Red Cooked Pork Hock & Red Cooked Oxtails

January 3, 2009 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

Sometimes even I give in to impulse buying. I saw Pork Hocks (the lower portion of Mr Piggie's front leg) on sale for 79 cents a pound at 99 Ranch Market. I couldn't resist….. I bought three, which came out to a shade over $3.25!

Meet the piggies…..

So what to do with these? I decided to do straight forward Red Cooked Pork Hocks. For us, anything Red Cooked means a 3-phased meal plan. First we eat the meat, second, after straining, comes the boiled eggs, and third phase would be some chicken(first browned than) stewed gently in the remaining liquid with some tuberous vegetable. In theory, you could keep the braising liquid(aspic) going forever, by adding water and other liquids, seasonings, straining and skimming, and refrigeration. I've read accounts of braising liquids and soup being perpetuated in this endless cycle. I once mentioned this to a friend, who was so grossed out over this idea, that she stopped eating with me. I'd better not tell her about sourdough starter since she's a bread lover!

Red Cooking is usually associated with Shanghainese Cuisine, though the Missus recalls it being used in Her household growing up. It is a pretty easy cooking technique, and pretty much lives up to the "sweet, salty, and red cooked" monnicker often used with regards to Shanghai cuisine. There are basically 2 types of red cooking, the first is a short cooking approach, which uses a sugar-based caramelization technique of melting sugar in oil to start things out. This is used with cuts such as pork belly, and takes from 40 minutes to an hour. Since I was using a much tougher cut of meat, I used the slow braising technique, which starts with a "browning step", in the case of the pork hocks, an "oil blanching", with the Oxtails, a pan searing.

So here goes….. I know many familes have their own "secret" recipe. Here's my not-so-secret, but real easy recipe. I let the pork hocks and oxtails rest overnight before eating.

Red Cooked Pork Hocks
3-4 Pork Hocks, rinsed, patted dry with paper towels.
2/3 Cup + 2 Tb Soy sauce
1/3 Cup Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 Cup Dark Brown Sugar + up to 1/4 Cup reserve
2/3 Cup + 1Tb Shao Xing Wine
5 cloves garlic roughly chopped
1-2 1/2" knobs of ginger smashed
3 Star Anise broken in half
4 Scallions – white part only, roughly chopped
1 piece dried tangerine peel broken in half
1 2-3" cinnamon stick
4-5 Cups Water.
2 Tb Canola Oil
3 Cups Canola Oil for frying

1 – Rub Shoulder with 2Tb Soy sauce and 1Tb Shao Xing, and let rest for 15 minutes.
2 – Heat oil in a wok until a temperature of 375 degrees. Place pork hock into oil, and fry, ladling oil over the exposed side of the pork hock for about 1-2 minutes. Turn and repeat.
3 – Remove pork hock from the oil and place on a plate lined with paper towels.
4 – Repeat for all the other pork hocks.
5 – In another pan or wok heat 2Tb, and add the garlic and scallions and saute until fragrant.
6 – Add 2/3 Cup Shao Xing wine, and bring to a boil.
7 – Add Soy Sauces, ginger, 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, star anise, tangerine peel, and cinnamon, and bring to a simmer.
8 – Add 3 cups of water, and place pork hocks in liquid. Add water to cover up to two-thirds of the pork hock.
9 – Bring to a low simmer.Turn pork hocks every hour. After 3 hours taste the liquid, and adjust sugar or water as necessary. I doubt that you'd need more soy sauce.
10 – Cook for another hour, or more as necessary. (These hocks took me 5 hours) The pork should be tender, and close to, but not falling off the bone. Or as the Missus says, "ewww, it's starting to look like an Old Man's neck."
11 – Let the hocks cool in the liquid. Once the liquid is cool, remove the hocks and place in a container and refrigerate.
12 – Strain braising liquid, and refrigerate overnight.
13 – Heat liquid (now an aspic), and place pork hocks into pot.

14 – Remove the pork hocks when heated, cut meat off the bone and chop into pieces. Use the braising liquid as the sauce and pour over meat and rice. Of course you can always go "Flintstone" and grab the whole bone and gnaw away……
15 – Place 6-8 shelled boiled eggs into braising liquid…..and so forth…..

Adjusting for Oxtails:

You can us the same basic technique as my Chinese style Braised Oxtails. Basically searing off the Oxtails seasoned with salt and pepper first.

Adjust cooking times as necessary.

I think I like these even more…..

Remember to wait a day (if you can), it'll be worth it!

Happy New Year!

December 31, 2008 mmm-yoso Poke

Much like Christmas, we decided to lay low for New Year. But here's a sort of festive shot from a wedding we had the pleasure of attending a few weeks back! Many congrats "YY" and "Q"!

All the Missus really wanted was some Poke and Karei Karaage this year. So I hopped into the car and drove up to Marukai Costa Mesa. Even though the Marukai here in San Diego is getting better, the fish department is still lacking. When I arrived at 915 the parking lot was empty, when I left at about 945am the parking lot was packed.

And after making a few stops in the "OC" (you know I was going to make the most of the drive), I came home and made Poke for lunch.

As for the Karei Karaage, I've posted on it a few times before, so I'll spare you all.

I just wanted to do a quick post and wish everyone a safe, fun, and Happy New Year!

Best wishes from the gang at mmm-yoso for a great New Year!

Shabu Shabu House

December 29, 2008 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants

I'd been waiting patiently for the opening of Shabu Shabu House since I first saw the "coming soon" sign back in the beginning of November. Initially the sign read "We will open on November 12th". November 12th came and went, with no sign that this place would be opening soon. Beyond the removal of the target date, you'd be hard pressed to notice anything going on in the place. I'd crane my neck and check out what was going on whenever I passed. Soon enough November turned into December…. and by that time, I'd started losing interest. Luckily, FOY Calvin kept me abreast as to what was going on with the place. Right before Christmas Shabu Shabu House opened.

It wasn't that I'd been craving Shabu Shabu, it was more that I was kinda curious. The restaurant itself is very bright, clean and shiny (as you would expect a new restaurant to be), spartan, if a bit antiseptic looking, which is probably a good look, if you'll be serving raw meat.

I was seated promptly, and handed the one sheet 'menu". It was very clear, this was a straight up Shabu Shabu restaurant. Along with the standard beef (regular and prime), pork, shrimp, scallops, salmon, mussels and chicken are offered. All offerings come in combo/set form. Lunches range from $11 (8 pieces protein) to $19 (12 pieces prime beef), dinner from $14 to $22.

One quick look at the surroundings and I was pretty sure this was going to be straight up kombu in water Shabu Shabu. In essense it's simple boiled beef, with in this case, a scant piece of Kombu being boiled in good old H2O. So for me, in situations like this, it can come down to the little things that matter. On the good, the service was very nice, if a bit too cloying and hovering, which can be attributed to being new and being eager to please. On the bad, no hot tea, only water and sodas….. for me hot tea goes well with Shabu Shabu. Also the heating device is waaay on the other end of the counter, and if you're "vertically challenged", like ahem…me, you might end up dripping stuff everywhere as the meat makes it's way to your bowl of rice. Part of this was my fault, perhaps I should have taken a seat on the higher counter, where the chairs would have put me in a better position for eating.

The meal sets come with "assorted vegetables", in this case, a large helping of Napa Cabbage, some scallions, enoki mushrooms, a few spinach leaves, and a couple of huge sticks of carrot. Tofu and Udon Noodles are also provided:

This was perfectly fine, though perhaps a shiitake mushroom(I'd trade some of the bulky carrot sticks, really I would!), and maybe some shingiku, would have added more flavor and color to the dish.

I went for the Prime Beef Lunch (regular size – $15). Just like Shabu Shabu House in Little Tokyo, they bring out a huge side of rib eye, and slice it fresh for you.

It is cut almost paper thin, and the portion size is more than adequate. Not super marbled, but just right for Shabu Shabu. If the meat were too marbled, all the fat would dissolve in the broth, making the meat tough and stringy, and leaving you with the Exxon Valdez disaster in the pot. Again with an eye toward detail, the Gomatare (sesame dipping sauce – for the meat) was decent in flavor, but the accompanying ponzu-ish, soy sauce-ish sauce (for the vegetables) needs some work. The rice was cooked fine, and I was even asked if I wanted more.

After I finished my meat, the young lady working came over, and skimmed my broth! A nice touch! I was provided with a bowl with some dark looking liquid in the bottom.

After cooking my udon for short while in the broth,I added it and my remaining vegetables into the bowl, along with some broth, and finished off my meal.

And though this was bottled Tsuyu Soup Base, it was added in the perfect ratio for me. It was a satisying end to the meal.

In short, as Calvin wrote, "if you enjoy Shabu Shabu House in Little Tokyo, this is a reasonable facsimile." I couldn't have said it better. Add some hot tea to the menu(another couple came in right after me and wanted hot tea as well), and a better variety of veggies, to go with the freshly cut meat, and I'd be good to go. I don't think I'll grow any taller, so I'll try sitting on the higher counter next time. I found the service to be very good, though it could be because employees out-numbers customers. I think prices are reasonable by San Diego standards. For me, I think I'll make my own at home for a while longer……

Shabu Shabu House
4646 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 268-8648

Oh yes……you know this parking lot, don't you???? I'll just keep it at that!

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Thuan Phat Market, and Yum Cha Cafe coming to San Diego

December 28, 2008 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers

If you're a regular reader of mmm-yoso, you know I've been following the opening of Thuan Phat Supermarket in the former Vien Dong location. Now that the crowds have calmed down a bit, we decided to check the place out.

First thing I noticed was the "SF" logo, and after returning home, I found that Thuan Fat and Shun Fat (aka SF) Supermarket are basically one in the same. Though it was noted that each Supermarket adjusts what they carry for the demographic.

Walking into Thuan Phat, you'd notice little difference from the former Vien Dong market.

The store is brighter, and looks cleaner. But the basic layout is pretty much the same.

This being basically an SF Supermarket makes for a good variety of products, and though the focus of the produce, and most items being Vietnamese, there's also a good selection of Chinese products as well.

The variety of seafood is good, as are the prices. I'm not sure if the prices observed will be regular prices, or are just a grand opening draw.

And though I found all of this interesting, I was a bit distracted. I was on the hunt for verification of some info I was given.

FOY "Chia" mentioned that Yum Cha Cafe was opening in Thuan Phat. In case you aren't familiar with Yum Cha Cafe, it is a very popular take-out Dim Sum (Yum Cha) shop located in the San Gabriel Superstore. It's not the most mind-boggling Dim Sum you'll ever have, but it has always been of decent quality, and very cheap. This made perfect sense since the company that owns Shun Fat and Thuan Phat, also owns the San Gabriel Superstore. I did notice the construction taking place in the now partitioned former "deli" area:

Walking around the corner I noticed a doorway. Above the doorway was all the verification I needed:

So it looks like dining in the Linda Vista area is getting more and more interesting……..

In case you're wondering about Yum Cha Cafe, you can read Wandering Chopsticks post about the San Gabriel location, here.

Thuan Phat Supermarket
6935 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111

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It was the night before Christmas……

December 24, 2008 mmm-yoso Blog

And all through the house,

Not a creature was stirring,

Not even a:

He-he-he…

You know, I jumped into the car earlier today, in an attempt to find something appropriate to photograph for a Christmas post. Not wanting to brave the malls, or anything of the like, I stopped in the parking lot of Zion Market, and happened to looked up….

And call it silliness, or a sign if you will…… But it has indeed been a pretty stormy year for many.

And so I stopped there. So, instead of a post on our Christmas dinner, we divided up the 40 bucks or so set aside for dinner into fives, and are giving it away tonight. Not much, I know. But whether it's to make us feel better, or will make someone's Christmas Eve a bit better, so be it. We can eat simply at home, and I can put aside my snarky cynicism for one night!

How can you tell the Missus wasn't born in the US? Ask Her to sing Her favorite Christmas Carol:

"Jingle Bells, (short pause) ummm, Oldsmobile, da-dee da-dee daaaah!"

A drunk walks up to the Missus:

Drunk: "Give me liberty, or let me diiieeee"

The Missus: "You really don't want to me to make that choice for you right now….really!"

The mmm-yoso gang would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Road Trip: Hunan Seafood – Rosemead (Los Angeles), CA – And we get the answer to an Urban Legend.

December 23, 2008 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

**** Hunan Seafood has closed

Ever since reading this post on Eileen Likes to Eat, I've been waiting for an opportunity to check out Hunan Seafood (formerly CrownCafe). It had been an uphill fight from the beginning. You see, the Missus'sFather is from Hunan, and I've marched ourselves to a few "Hunan" restaurants that have been anything BUT Hunan. When the Missus first heard the name of this place, She scoffed, "Hunan Sea-food? Yeah, right….." You see Hunan Province, is landlocked, bordered by mountains on three sides, and the Yangtze river on one(I don't think Dongting lake qualifies). She explained it to me this way; "Iowa is located on the Mississippi River….would you eat at a place called Iowa Seafood Restaurant?" But the combination of the photos on Eileen's Blog, and the good mood the Missus was in after our "first lunch" at Food Cabin put Her in an amiable state fo mind.

Hunan Seafood Restaurant appears very bright and clean from the exterior, but is starting to show signs of wear and tear in the interior. The service is typical SGV, all business, order quickly, don't ask questions……

We started with something near and dear to the Missus's heart; the Steamed Hunan Ham, Smoked Duck & Fish ($10.98):

The Missus clearly recalls visiting Her Paternal Grandmother in Hunan when a teenager. For a city girl it was quite a shock. No electricity, no indoor plumbing, the potty being in the same shed as the family pigs (totally freaked out, She held out for several days….until Her Dad rescued Her, taking Her into the city to potty), and the very hard life of Lily Blossom farmers. Funny thing is, we now pay thousands of $$$ to experience nearly the same thing nowadays – does anyone else notice the irony? There were of course, the great memories as well……. the wonder of lying on the drying slab and clearly seeing the Milky Way for the very first time. But, as a teenager, being the nice, plump, fresh meat for the local mosquitoes was not much fun.And toothpaste being the only available remedy for mosquito bites….. I can barely restrain myself mentally picturing the Missus covered with blots of toothpaste….wearing Her Jimmy Choo shoes with Her Gucci bag in tow…..

The scent of smoke was very strong when the plate literally hit our table. Looking at the plate, I was quite sure that it had hit quite a few tables in its time. Steaming both moistened the meat, and really brought up the fragrance. The La Rou (smoked pork) had a great texture, the fat soft and buttery, and the meat while smoky in flavor was much milder in saltiness than the preserved stuff you buy in markets. It also lacked the somewhat artificial flavor. The duck was good, but it was the fish that I enjoyed the best:

Salty and intensely smoky, the Missus said this was just as good as the stuff Her Grandmother used make and send Her Dad in China. The fish was slightly dense and chewy, though not as tough as jerky. The Missus had to call Her Father immediately after tasting this…. it brought back many memories.

And then it happened. We had heard of "it" happening before, but had never seen it in person. While waiting for our rice, the Missus murmured, "oh….. my …. God! I don't believe it!" When I asked Her, "what's going on?" The Missus stage whispered; "they're recycling rice….taking the leftover rice from one of the tables and dumping it back into the pot." The ricepot in Hunan Seafood is out for all to see, and as I turned to look, they dumped yet another container of leftover rice from another table into the ricepot…mixed it up a bit and put it into a rice container, which made its way to our table…… I should've taken a photo, but was too stunned. I wish I hadn't seen that….the meat was nice and salty, and I really wanted some rice….. You know, we've drunk Chicha de Jora made from maize germinated in the mouth of the maker, so reused rice doesn't sound too bad…. but for some reason I just couldn't bring myself to eat this rice! I had heard of rice being recycled, or maybe reused for fried rice, and wasting rice is a sin…. however, faced with eating this? So I guess the urban legend of reusing rice is true.

Meanwhile, the wonderful looking Toss Fried Mutton with Cilantro ($9.98) made it to our table.

Just as with the unapologetic reuse of rice, this was an in-your-face spicy. Such is Hunan food; no goofing around with sweet, sour, or numbing flavors. The mutton was moist and tender, but was just overwhelmed with the red chilies (you didn't think those were red bell peppers did you?) and cilantro. You really couldn't taste anything else. Whomever cooked this showed some good cooking technique, but the dish seemed out of balance.

I'd gladly eat food from Hunan Seafood again, ummm…. well, maybe just some take-out, or even better, I'll just force myself to NOT look at the ricepot. We'll probably even bring the Missus's Dad here when they visit, but face him away from the ricepot. But at least we now new the answer to that old urban legend; "do Chinese Restaurants reuse uneaten rice?"

Hunan Seafood Restaurant
8772 E Valley Blvd
Rosemead, CA 91770

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Luang Prabang: The Morning Fresh Market

December 22, 2008 mmm-yoso Laos, Luang Prabang, Markets & Grocers, Travel

The Fresh Produce Market in Luang Prabang gets going pretty early in the morning. I've been told 5am or so. I really wasn't too excited about visiting the market since it was located on a side street right past the Palace Museum, and just steps from tourist central. Man, was I totally wrong! The Fresh Market proved to be the most fascinating market I've ever visited. The following photos were taken during the course of our stay in Luang Prabang, as we passed through the market on the way to "Same-Same" every morning. It got even more interesting after I started recognizing some of the more exotic items after taking a cooking class. So off we go…..

At first glance, this market looks just like any other outdoor market in Southeast Asia.

There's a ton of fresh produce:

The covered meat and poultry section….

Where I snapped one of my favorite photos….

And all the usual suspects.

Everything you'd need, and also a ton of prepared food as well.

And so we strolled along. Just your typical SEA market, ho-de-do (Lunag Prabang has a way of putting you into a calm, relaxed state)….until we turned the corner.

And ummm, isn't that chopped and portioned python? And what about all those honeycombs?

And were those silkworms? And what the heck is in that blue bucket? Is that someone's pet, or "what's for dinner?"

Later on we'd (well, I) found that fried silkworms and bee larvae are delicious!

There's a lot of various dried critters, many of which are used to flavor various Or Lam (stews).

And there were many forest animals, some cleaned and prepped, and some, like that snake on the left, very alive.

And those little bodies in the center were the same as the little dude in the blue bucket. I was told they called these "forest rats". And no, we never saw any Laotian Rock Rats. But this was a veritable edible zoo.

There is a premium on "live"…….

I also saw a good number of turkeys, something I didn't expect.

This woman sold live poultry, which were kept in baskets. Inquire about one of her chickens, she'd quickly pull one out of the basket in a smooth motion for inspection.

Purchase something, and it is dispatched and cleaned in a quick and efficient manner.

The variety is staggering!

Water Buffalo Skin is very popular for dishes like Jeow Bong…..

And no matter how many times we visited, we always noticed something new and different. Like the weird human looking "fruit" the sign said was "Karipom". I haven't been able to find anything on this, so if you have some info I'd love to hear from you!

And there were those items we learned to identify after eating and learning to cook some of the dishes. Like the river moss that they make into Khai Pene:

On the lower left are "Lao Olives", on the right, Sa-Khan, the branches used to flavor Or Lam:

This is called Cha-om….and if you think it looks familiar, you'd be right. It's acacia.

On the right is Wick Wai – Rattan, also used to flavor stews:

Many of the folks in the market are very friendly….even to clueless tourists like us. The (relative) cleanliness was also apparent.

Many of the vendors live in the forests, mountains, and along the rivers surrounding Luang Prabang. Much of what you see is what was gathered for market. Sometimes it's just a few items….a bird, or maybe a few mushrooms……

Whether you want them unplucked, or ready for cooking, you'll find it here.

And of course, that all important staple, Padek, is represented in full ripeness.

I started looking forward to our walks through the market every morning. You'd never knew what you'd see. And in spite of the camcorder carrying tourists, this is a vibrant "people's" market.

At the end of the market is the grill area…….. where all manner of sausages and "meat on a stick" are grilled up.

Grilled pork belly is very popular……

Ever had the feeling that someones dinner was staring you down????

So if you're ever in Luang Prabang, don't forget to check out the Fresh Produce Market….. you'll never know what you'll find!

Our Revised Rotation – What is yours?

December 18, 2008 mmm-yoso Pho, Thai Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants

So finally…… I've revised our "Rotation Page". And removed a few places, a few because they've closed down (Sammys and Mo's), and one because, well, we hardly go there anymore (Mama's - which may make a comeback when the weather gets a bit warmer).

In place of those 3, I've added 2.

**** Pho Lucky is under new ownership.

First, folks keep asking about my favorite Pho shop. And my quick response is Pho Lucky.

There are places that have better tendon and places that have better overall meat, and on any given day there are several places that can do a great job. But for my money, I enjoy Pho Lucky. In fact, when FOY (Friend of Yoso) the "CAB" asked about my favorite bowl of Pho, I was quick to recommend Pho Lucky. You can read about her experience in this post.

I also enjoy the Banh Mi Bo Kho(Vietnamese Beef Stew w/Baguette) here as well. But on one recent visit with Cathy and Ed from Yuma, I was less than pleased. So before doing this post, I (well the weather helped me to) decided to have the beef stew again.

On my visit with Ed and Cathy, I found the beef to be tough, and the broth to be lacking in flavor. On this visit, everything was as I remembered. Hopefully, that was just an off day. The bread itself is unremarkable, I'm pretty sure they get it from Le Chef, as I've seen tags from their packages lying around. Still, I enjoy the beef stew here.

So if you hold my feet to the fire, I'd have to recommend:

Pho Lucky
9326 Mira Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92126

**** This location of Sab E Lee has closed

And of course, Sab E Lee would have to be added. We've been eating there at least once a week. I still go for most of the larb and salad style dishes. Like the Larb Pet (Duck Larb):

Recently, I got to sample a new addition to the menu Naked Shrimp, served the right way…. that would be raw:

The first time I had this dish with a group of FOYs, I thought it pretty good, but a bit out of balance with regards to the amount of citrus. But a few days ago, I tried it again with Ed from Yuma, and it was very good. Nice heat from the chilies, with the bite of raw garlic, topped off with tangy citrus. Ed compared it to Camarones Aguachile, but with a more interesting and complex flavor. As I mentioned before, for me it's the Issan dishes that shine here, so of course it's a bit humorous to hear folks saying the food here isn't "Northern Thai" because it's not like what they had in Chiang Mai (which is Lanna, not Issan). Issan is Northeastern Thai food..…..

Sab-E-Lee Restaurant
2405 Ulric St
San Diego, CA 92111

So if you're interested, our updated Rotation Page can be found here.

And I'd love to hear what's on your rotation this winter!

Osaka Kitchen Returns

December 16, 2008 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants

*** Sorry to say Osaka Kitchen has closed once again

I nearly caused a major pile-up on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard….. while heading East, I took a quick glance at the strip mall right before Shogun Kobe, which includes Suzuya, and had to do a double take!

Was Osaka Kitchen really back? Had the Sushi Deli empire been pushed back to Hillcrest and the Gaslamp? I made a U-turn, and saw for myself. First thought thru my cabeza, "wow, this is great!" Second thought, "you dork, why didn't you notice this before?"

That evening I coerced the Missus into grabbing a quick bite at Osaka Kitchen. I noticed that menu had changed a bit…. long gone were the Izakaya type dishes. This menu was much more abbreviated, though many of the better items like the Menchi Katsu, Omurice, Mayonnaise Shogayaki (Mayo Ginger Pork) were still on the menu.

For some reason, the Missus ordered stuff from the Sushi Menu…. and even though I warned Her, "I think these are items left over from the Sushi Deli menu……" She still ordered it. The Hamachi Hand Roll ($2.90) and the Salmon Skin Hand Roll ($2.50):

In a single word; yuck….. I'm still trying to erase this from my memory, as is the Missus.

I wasn't very hungry either, and went with the Beef Curry Udon ($7.75):

This was not bad….. a bit thinner than I remembered, and perhaps saltier. But there was still some nice heat, even with the curry flavor watered down a tad. The beef was tough. I always enjoyed the Udon noodles here, they always were cooked well….nice stretch, decent bite. And it did a decent job of hitting the spot on a cold night.

I had noticed the specials on the wall, Sujinegiyaki (beef -green onion okonomiyaki), and a few other items. So I returned for lunch. Apparently, I hadn't been paying much attention on my previous visit, as I found, that just like their previous incarnation, Osaka Kitchen is basically a Teriyaki – Rice Bowl kind of place for lunch. Still, I'd be happy with some Chicken Karaage. Until I was waylaid by the very nice and peppy Server, who put this in front of me:

And I'm not sure what happened, but I ordered the December special ($6.50):

Granted, this was a lot of food, and without a doubt worth $6.50. But mass produced gyoza! I've never been a fan of the heavy mayo salad dressing that Osaka Kitchen serves. And I couldn't remember the last time I had a California Roll….. The rice was on the dry side, and the vegetable tempura was terribly bland as was the tentsuyu (tempura dipping sauce), though it was served hot. The shrimp tempura was nice, and the flavor brought back memories of what Mom used to make. The batter was fine, a medium-heavy tempura batter.

The teriyaki pork was okay, a bit on the tough side, but edible. This teriyaki sauce is slightly heavier on the ginger, and not as sweet as many. Which is something I kind of enjoy. It does seem as if Osaka Kitchen was not quite the restaurant it used to be. But I was determined….. next time, it's Mayonnaise Shogayaki, or some similar fascimile or bust!!

Osaka Kitchen
5447 Kearny Villa Road
San Diego, CA 92123

Lunch:
Monday – Friday 11am – 2pm

Dinner:
Monday – Saturday 530pm – 10pm

Closed on Sundays

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