mmm-yoso – Page 98

Sushi Yorimichi

October 6, 2021 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Loco Mocos, Sushi and Sashimi

**** You can find an updated post on Yorimichi here.

Sushi Yorimichi replaced Thai Papaya back in June. While I was still working from home a couple of days a week, until the Delta variant got out of control, I managed to make a couple visits between the middle of June until the middle of July.

I visited right as the place opened on all four visits and was the only customer in the place.

The interior has changed slightly from the days of Thai Papaya' the tables a bit more spread out (perhaps for more Covid "distancing"), there're seats in front of the counter.

Like "FOY" SomTommy described to me in an email, having visited soon after they opened, "there's everything on the menu from sushi to ramen to yakitori". And Junichi mentioned that the yakitori is done over on a gas grill, so I wasn't going to be ordering that for sure.

And yes indeed, the menu has everything from karaage to katsu don, to a "loco moco", sushi rolls (of course), yakitori, yakisoba, ramen (both tonkotsu and birria), poke……. The prices though, except for one exception seem to be quite reasonable.

On my first visit, I decided to try out the Katsudon (I chose Tonkatsu – $9). The portion size was quite generous……especially in terms of rice. A good lesson as I'd order just "half rice" the next time.

This was not bad, the egg nicely doused and tender, a bit on the salty side, but that's something to be expected. The tonkatsu was decently breaded, but over-fried and the panko really dark and starting to peel off of the slightly dry pork cutlet.

The rice was decently done, no complaints there. I've had worse….

Junichi had mentioned enjoying the Dashimaki Tamago ($7), so I decided to get that and some other appetizers to spare me all the rice on my next visit. This version had mozzarella cheese and mentaiko (cod roe).

I did enjoy the mentaiko in this version of the Japanese Rolled omelet, it added a much needed savoriness to the tender egg, which I thought was on the bland side. I really didn't enjoy the milkiness of the cheese in this either.

I also ordered the Agedashi Tofu ($5).

I really didn't enjoy this very much. The tentsuyu really tasted like mentsuyu…..the really salty bottled soup base. The tofu wasn't evenly fried; half of it brown, the other half pale white which fell right off the tofu. The texture of the tofu was quite "wet-mushy"….I don't think it was drained properly before making this.

The Chicken Karaage ($5), looked pretty good and it was indeed decently crunchy.

I thought the cutting of the chicken was interesting….some small cubes, some slices where I could tell the cook was checking to see if the chicken was done. The color was dark and rich looking, but this was pretty bland.

My favorite item of the day was the Kawa-su ($5).

While the chicken skin was on the thick side and some bites were overly chewy; the sauce was quite good; balanced soy, sweetness, and sour/acidity. There was a mild spiciness to this as well.

A few days later I decided to return and actually try some of the fish; I went and ordered the Chirashi ($22), easy on the rice.

This was a mixed bag; not the best quality fish, the cutting was a bit on the "thicker" side, and definitely not even in the same league as even Chef Jun, not to mention other places. The rice was terrible, hard and dry, the sushi meshi very mild…perhaps as to not offend? That albacore was dry and cut much too thick, the maguro had a metallic finish, the scallops somewhat fishy. The uni was decent and the salmon standard issue.

I left somewhat disappointed. I guess this place is really just for rolls……

I really wanted to find something that I'd really enjoy here; so I went with one last try……I was somewhat fascinated with the Yorimichi Style Loco Moco ($9)….and you know me and Loco Mocos. I guess Justin Young is right, "You can take the boy from the island, but not the island from the boy". I'd had my eye on that from the first time I opened the menu, so I finally went ahead and ordered it.

This was an interesting dish. The rice, while still a bit on the dry side, was better in texture than what I'd had previously. The egg was decently cooked, still somewhat runny, with no off flavors. The burger had less filler than I expected, but was moist, tender, and mildly beefy. The menu claimed that the burger was topped with Hayashi Sauce, which makes me expect sort of a demi-glace beefiness, along with earthy mushroom-onion flavors, with perhaps a tangy tomato-ness. This was like across between Hayashi style sauce and Japanese Hamburg style sauce, both are similar in many ways. I believe I detected a hint of Worcestershire in this. This wasn't too bad and wasn't overly sweet. Totally Yoshoku.

In the end, I think of Yorimichi to be kind of a "diner" of sorts. There's still ramen/curry/teriyaki/etc on the menu. The prices are quite reasonable, the service efficient. I tend toward the "specialists" when it comes to Japanese cuisine, with a few exceptions. I'm not quite ready to make that exception for Yorimichi yet……

Sushi Yorimichi
2405 Ulric St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Daily 11am – 830pm

The Little Italy Mercato and Pozole Blanco From My Pozole

October 4, 2021 mmm-yoso Farmer's Markets/Night Market, Markets & Grocers, Mexican Restaurants

This past weekend was the Little Italy Art Walk….a great event to be sure, but I felt kinda sad…..you see for the last couple of months the Little Italy Mercato has become a routine for me. I would grab some coffee and park on Ivy Street…..you know, we aren't able to get back to Paris, where I'm able to shed pounds just doing the the Flâneur thing, so every little bit of walking helps.

And then I'll just walk up Kettner or India and do the opposite back to the car. It's been quite fun for me……after all there's a lot to see.

From places that I'm quite familiar with….

To that which I'd never seen before……

In fact, the first time I saw the statue of Frankie Laine in front of Nonna, it brought a smile to my face. As I mentioned in an earlier post my late Mom enjoyed country music….and I grew up to the sounds of Rawhide and Mule Train playing on the record player….in Kaimuki of all places. More about Frankie Laine in San Diego can be found here.

Often times, I'd arrive a bit early and would just walk along the streets.

On one visit, I was taken with the houses on State Street that are from a different time in San Diego's history….it reminded me of our walk in Pacific Grove.

And of course, Little Italy would not be complete without a Catholic Church and Our Lady of the Rosary truly fits the bill. It just looks like it belongs here. I haven't been in the church yet…..but perhaps I'll be invited to a wedding soon!

And it's interesting to see how Little Italy has pivoted to outdoor dining with parklets and such.

And of course, it's always interesting to see how long the line for Morning Glory will be……

I do hope they are checking out the market after their breakfast/brunch…..

And there's always something to keep you entertained.

But, of course I'm here to shop. And after almost three months I've got my favorites.

My favorite is this one – Indian Summer Farms.

It's a one man show, the proprietor, Andrew is so kind, friendly, and gracious. And he has some really great chard, kale, shishito, radishes, and whatever else comes out of his farm in Ramona. The Missus also loves the eggs he sells which he says comes from his neighbor.

I'm sure you want to know what I've been getting the last couple of months…..well, in a previous post I mentioned that the Missus had started to enjoy gooseberries….

Dragon Tongue Beans are so delicious…..it is stringless, sweet, easy to sauté, and if I recall in season until mid-November.

Shishito of course…..

And oh man; purple okra….so sweet and tender, you can eat them raw. While the Missus loves them roasted, She'll eat them dipped in hummus…..

Of course there's all the prepared food and similar vendors….though for us, it's been a mixed bag. On one visit I went ahead and picked up pozole from this stand.

It was pretty good….pozole blanco. The pork was much better than the chicken version.

It's mildly "porky", has a nice velvety texture…. while not quite as rich as "homemade", it's still really nice overall.

Until, of course, the Missus demanded that I make pozole blanco…….which you have to understand is to Her taste. You might want to try this out. It also feeds the "cabbage versus lettuce" thing which I'll go into at a later time.

As a bonus, whenever I see the sign, there's a certain beat that goes off in my head….to the tune of "My Sharona"……"Da da da da dum dum….my pozole!"

I know the Little Italy Mercato is also going strong on Wednesdays, but have only been to the Saturday Farmers Market, so will only list that time for now.

Little Italy Mercato
Saturday 8am – 2pm

I seem to notice something new on every visit. And sometimes, it seems like Little Italy is trying to communicate with me……

Sunday Sandwiches – Revisits to Tadian Cafe, Kim’s Deli, and Rubicon Deli

October 3, 2021 mmm-yoso Sandwiches

Now that I'm mostly back in the office, I've started to make the rounds….it's been super hot lately, so sandwiches are what I've been having for lunch. Great thing about all of these places is that they open a bit earlier than the normal lunch hour. Tadian and Rubicon do online ordering and Kim's is just a phone call away. No muss…..no fuss….

Tadian Deli:

I was actually craving the Chinese Sausage Sandwich, but it's no longer on the menu, so I got the Peppered Roast Beef again. This time requesting a toasted French roll.

This was more "hefty" than what I'd had here previously….but it did well….I requested easy on the sauce, but it was still too much for me.

The avocado wasn't ripe enough and lacked flavor and perhaps a bit too much bread; but definitely better than what I had last time.

Tadian Cafe
5955 Mira Mesa Blvd. Suite K
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 453-5740
Current Hours:
Mon – Fri 9am – 3pm

Kim's Deli:

For some reason, I was craving a Teri Beef Sandwich; so I made a call to Kim's Deli and went to pick up my sandwich. It's hard to complain about a $7 sandwich.

The beef was more tender this time, but also much sweeter.

I even enjoyed the cheese in this.

A good value in my opinion.

Kim's Deli
8515 Arjons Drive
San Diego, CA 92126
(858) 566-0370
Hours:
Mon – Fri 7am – 2pm
Closed on Saturdays and Sundays

Rubicon Deli:

Yes, I'm a pretty boring guy……once I find something I enjoy, I tend to stick with it. In this case it's the the "Super Mario" on Garlic Cheese Bread.

I enjoy the different flavors, from the cheesy-mildly garlicky bread to the slightly sweet tones of red pepper tapenade, the peppery arugula. The balsamic glaze fits right in with a balanced sour-sweet profile.

And my order has always been ready for pick-u when I arrive.

Rubicon Deli (UTC Location)
4130 La Jolla Village Drive – Suite 104
San Diego, CA 92037
(858) 877-9911
Current Hours
Open Daily – 10am – 730pm

So, I'm just wondering…..how many of you have returned to "the office"….or are you still working from home? And how are things going?

Take care and have a great week!

Roadtrip (During Covid-19) – The Collection Farmers’ Market, Ragamuffin Coffee Roasters (Oxnard) and Mama Lu’s Dumpling House (City of Industry)

October 2, 2021 mmm-yoso Caffeine Fix, Chinese Restaurants, Farmer's Markets/Night Market, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, Travel, Ventura County

We slept rather well after our excursion to Anacapa Island then dinner at Moqueca. We woke rather early and I took a short walk. We needed to refuel both on gasoline and caffeine for the drive to Monterey Park where we'd be spending the evening.

I decided to make a stop at the shopping complex called the Collection Riverpark which was right next to the 101 freeway. We had stopped here before to grab some snacks at Whole Foods, but on this morning, being a Saturday, there was a Farmer's Market. Which was pretty mellow, I guess not too many folks want to head on over to the mall at 8am on a Saturday?

Still, we enjoyed the stroll and the Missus figured out how much She enjoyed Gooseberries.

The Collection Farmers Market
2710-2780 Park View Ct.
Oxnard, CA 93036
Saturdays 8am – 2pm

The Missus had been wanting some coffee, so we headed over to the Food Hall in the complex called "The Annex" and Ragamuffin Coffee Roasters.

The Missus really enjoyed Her Pour Over and their Cold Brew was quite good as well.

I think this will be a nice stop for us on future road trips.

Ragamuffin Coffee Roasters
550 Collection Blvd. (In the Annex Food Hall)
Oxnard, CA 93036
Hours:
Mon – Thurs 8am – 6pm
Fri – Sun 8am – 8pm

The drive to the SGV was a breeze and we headed off to our old neighborhood to do some snack shopping at Hong Kong Market, before trying to decide on what to get for a light lunch. We drove down Colima Road and noticed that a location of Mama Lu's had opened up. Some Jiaozi and Niu Rou Chuan (beef roll).

This was back in July when things were looking good, before the Delta surge hit. Still, seats were spaced out nicely. We were seated and then something interesting happened.

We heard strains of Beethoven's Ode to Joy and soon a "robot" made its way past us holding takeout containers!

It followed the set "path" and took the takeout to the front, then promptly returned to the kitchen….rinse….repeat! It was quite entertaining.

First to arrive was the Niu Rou Chuan; which was quite hefty.

The bread was nicely browned and crisp and not overly greasy. The beef was a bit on the tough side and the bean sauce much too sweet for our taste. The slices of cucumber too thick and cumbersome. Not even close to our favorite version from 101 Noodle Express….though we haven't been there in ages…perhaps we'll revisit again one of these days.

And of course we got some Jiaozi….the Shrimp and Pork version.

Well, at least Mama Lu's is pretty consistent. Like my visits to other locations, the wrapper of the jiaozi was on the hard and brittle side. As my MIL taught me, it seems the dough has been over-mixed. The filling was fine, if on the salty side.

Not bad, but not great…..man this had us missing QingDao Bread!

Still, it had been a while since we'd been back and things are always changing.

Mama Lu Dumpling House
17515 Colima Rd.
City of Industry, CA 91748

By now it was time to see if we could get an early check-in at where we were staying in Monterey Park and perhaps grab a nap before dinner.

Thanks for stopping by!

Roadtrip (During Covid-19) – Anacapa Island and Moqueca Brazilian Cuisine (Oxnard)

October 1, 2021 mmm-yoso Brazilian Restaurants, Road Trip, Travel, Ventura County

There was one reason we travelled to Oxnard, and no, it wasn't to check out the abandoned Casa Sirena. While doing research on our previous roadtrip, I planned a stop at Ventura Harbor on the way to Solvang. While doing a bit of research I came across boat trips to the Channel Islands. Where did I hear about the Channel Islands? Then it came to me! It was on one of the late Huell Howser's episodes of California Gold! ( we miss you Huell!) So, after heading down the Channel Islands rabbit hole, to find out that it's called the "Galapagos of North America" and that it is one of the least visited of our National Parks…well, I thought it would be an interesting place to visit. Of course, I'm not quite the intrepid hiker that the Missus (and Her friends) are. So, I decided to keep things simple; we'd just do Anacapa Island, which has basically one loop trail. You get the boat from Island Packers and it takes a bit over an hour to get to Anacapa Island from Channel Islands Harbor.

It's pretty chill, the boat leaves at 930 from Channel Islands Harbor and you need to check in 45 minutes ahead of time.

After checking in; you wait and eventually board, then head off……

The trip takes a bit over an hour…..we were told things were kind of rough on this day, but it didn't seem that way to me. We were told that on occasion, you will see dolphins and such, but not on this day. Eventually, the island comes into view.

There was a Park Ranger and Two Volunteer Guides on board and they provided us with some really interesting info.

Anacapa Island is home to the largest breeding colony of Western Gulls in the world. Nesting season starts in April, chicks are hatched in May and June. By this time of the year (mid-July), the chicks are getting fairly big and are starting to fly away. So, with all these Seagulls….well, there's quite a fragrance if you know what I mean.

The Landing Cove is quite interesting…….

You disembark and then head up the stairs.

From there, it's "seagull city"…..

They definitely run the place and many of them have no fear! The squawking was pretty much continuous and after a while, it seemed like each seagull made different sounds.

There were three guys on the boat who were camping overnight on the island….man, between all the noises and the "guano-ishness", I'm not sure I'd want to do that.

There aren't very many structures on the island and all of them, including the Visitors Center were currently closed.

And there were gulls as far as the eye could see…….

The Missus pointed at one of the birds and asked me what it was.

I told Her it was a seagull chick……

She told me, "no way, look how big they are….."

Well, many of the chicks were just learning to fly……they'd flap their wings a bit and get some air under them….and then come right back down to earth.

There is only one trail on Anacapa Island, it's two miles long in kind of a figure 8. We ended up doing it three times. The views are quite amazing.

The views from Inspiration Point are so beautiful.

We could hear the harbor seals clearly as we passed Pinniped Point.

After our third pass, we headed to the short portion at the west side of the island where the Lighthouse is located. The trail ends right before the lighthouse which is not open to visitors.

We sat on the bench and one of the Volunteers came along. We had a nice chat and I learned a bunch of things.

I asked about that red spot on the beak of the gulls.

And was told that it's basically the "bullseye" for the chicks…..they instinctively peck on the spot when they want to be fed. And then the really nice fellow asked me if I saw the chicken bones and left over french fries on the ground….and yes, we had noticed those. He mentioned that the gulls are expert "dumpster divers" and will fly all the way to Oxnard and Ventura for easy eats!

We also chatted about how graceful the Pelicans were in the air and he mentioned that the Brown Pelicans were almost wiped out in the 1960's. And this one spot, on the west side of Anacapa Island is the primary breeding area for the pelicans.

I really appreciated his insights and I mentioned his expertise he laughed and told me; "no, I'm a retired Botanist, my friend who is the other volunteer here today….well, she's a retired ornithologist!" You gotta love it.

Soon enough it was time to head on over to where the restrooms and main buildings were located. Soon our boat would be arriving to take us back to Oxnard.

I really enjoyed our time on Anacapa; from the beautiful views, the crystal clear water, the kelp beds easily visible.

I loved learning more about the gulls; I think I've kinda taken them for granted and I developed more of appreciation for them…..and even their dumpster diving skills….I recently saw one hauling a huge sandwich across the sidewalk in Little Italy.

If there's one thing I've gained by just travelling in California during the pandemic, it's an appreciation of how diverse and wonderful this state we live in is.

As we left Anacapa, the boat made sure to pass by the photogenic Arch Rock.

We arrived back at Channel Islands Harbor at around 445. We'd only had some nuts and cheese for "lunch", so I thought we should just head on over to Moqueca Brazilian Cuisine which was basically a building away from Island Packers. I had made reservation for 530; but I just thought we'd see if we could get in early.

The restaurant is located on the second floor of a rather non-descript building that holds another restaurant and assorted businesses.

There was only one table occupied when we arrived so we were gladly accommodated.

And were given a nice table with a view of the harbor.

The staff were very friendly and efficient.

I started with a Caipirinha (of course), the Missus a glass of white wine.

It was pretty weak overall, but at least it was somewhat refreshing.

Some toast with Beringela (our server said – "Brazilian Tapenade") arrived with our drinks….which was not bad at all….this was already better than what we'd had for dinner the previous night.

We started with an order of Pastelzinhos (Empanadas), getting 2 beef and 2 cheese.

Nicely fried and crisp. The beef version was nicely seasoned and pretty good, while the cheese version was on the bland side.

And of course, the Missus just needed to get the Mandioca Frita; fried yucca which She really enjoyed.

And since we were at a place named Moqueca, we needed to order the namesake dish, right? Moqueca is a seafood "stew" of sorts that is from the state of Espírito Santo. We simply ordered a small portion with shrimp and cracked up when it arrived in a Korean Dolsot!

It came with some rice that reminded me of a rather dry pilaf, it did well with the tangy-cilantro-mild coconut-mild garlic flavors of the Moqueca. The shrimp was ok quality, but gladly, it wasn't overcooked. The urucum (achiote) provided a bright red color to the dish.

I was actually glad that I had also ordered the sautéed collard greens which went so well with the Moqueca….we ended up just dumping the whole plate into the stew. It added a nice savory-earthy-bitter counterpoint to the acidity of the stew.

This was a pretty good meal, much more enjoyable than what we'd had the previous evening. The staff was friendly and accommodating and while we wouldn't go out of our way to dine here, we'd gladly revisit if we're in the area again.

Moqueca Brazilian Cuisine
3550 Harbor Blvd. Suite 201
Oxnard, CA 93035

Takeout from CoCo Ichibanya

September 28, 2021 mmm-yoso Chains, Japanese Restaurants

I think many people were quite excited when it was announced that CoCo Ichibanya was opening in San Diego, I know that I was. And finally, in March of this past year they opened. And of course there were the lines, so I decided to wait….until they did online ordering which took quite a while. Each time I'd drive by I'd see all the folks waiting. When I saw a trend of shorter lines. And they finally did have online ordering at the beginning of this month, I went ahead and placed an order when I was in the office and was given a time.

I went ahead and drove down to Convoy. I had placed my order right at 11am and was given an 1130 pick-up time. I drove down and arrived at 1125.

As I pulled into the parking lot I received a text telling me that my pick-up time had changed to 1150-1200…..at 1125? Really? Five minutes before pickup you move the goalposts? It was a work day, so I waited 10 minutes and just walked in to check on my order. The folks working were really nice in spite of seeming to be quite harried. And guess what, my order was ready……I asked when I should have picked it up…the answer? 1130.

Ok, I figured that they are busy and still working out the kinks; I returned to the office with my Tonkatsu Curry, sauce level 2 (50 cent upcharge)….I usually order level 5, but I thought I'd just see how spicy this curry really was.

Good lord, this was terrible. From the unevenly fried tonkatsu…notice the breading was peeling off the super dry pork. To the super watery curry, to the dry and hard rice. Man, to think I criticized Zen Curry. I know of a few CI loyalists who will say, "well, because of ingredients and such you can't compare the food to Japan". Well, let me tell you, I'm not comparing this to CI in Japan. The first CoCo Ichibanya outside of Japan opened in Honolulu. In fact it was in McCully and was just a few blocks from where my apartment used to be before I moved to the mainland….the service was terrible and they only took cash, but the curry was nothing like this. Also, when I was doing work in Irvine, the folks I was working with went to CI in Irvine, which was also much better than this…..it was like a whole different restaurant.

A few weeks later the Missus told me She wanted to try CoCo Ichibanya…….so I did the online ordering thing again…….I was given a time 1215 and I went off to do some shopping where I was then sent a text telling me my order was ready……at 1120! Sheesh, so I rushed on over to pick-up my order.

Returning home we got to opening things up right away. I had ordered the Missus's Chicken Katsu Curry with vegetables ($2.80 upcharge), just in case the curry didn't line up with Her expectations. Well, that didn't help at all.

Man, that chicken was so dry…..and like before the breading was peeling off, which means really bad quality control in terms of the temp of the protein and the oil used for frying. Having a taste of a piece I noticed it was barely seasoned. I couldn't hide how watery and bland the curry was behind the vegetables. The Missus looked at me and said, "this can't be Coco Ichibanya".

I'm afraid to say it was.

I got the Karaage Curry and having had the curry on my previous visit, I went with level 5 spice ($1.25 upcharge). Opening my container I knew this was not going to be the curry from Coco Ichibanya I enjoyed.

The chicken was so pale, flaccid, the batter mushy, bland, and the flesh dry. At least the curry had some "zip", but it was watery, and lacking in all that makes Japanese curry enjoyable to me; a nice tongue coating umami richness, some beefiness, a hint of sweetness……

We didn't even finish half.

The folks here are working super hard, the prices are reasonable, it's just that there seems to be a lack of quality control. CI has been open for over 6 months now, so it's hard to blame grand opening jitters. As for a pandemic personnel shortage….well perhaps….. But this isn't the Coco Ichibanya I know.

I was going to try a third takeout visit; but in the end just decided to wait….perhaps down the line, when I'm ok with dining in again, I'll give them another try.

You can read about Kirbie's takeout visit here.

CoCo Ichibanya
4428 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Daily 11am – 10pm

It’s (kinda) Soup Weather – Takeout from Phuong Nga 2 and Mien Trung

September 26, 2021 mmm-yoso Bun Bo Hue, Vietnamese Restaurants

Man, it's been a hot couple of months! We're somewhat happy with the cooler weather the last couple of days and took advantage of it by getting Bun Rieu, then Bun Bo Hue from our favorite places.

Phuong Nga 2:

After working on the Missus to try the Bun Rieu from Phuong Nga 2 for over two years, She finally gave in and we had it for three weekends in a row back in March – April of this year.

I dropped by Phuong Nga 2 and I was surprised to see no one lese waiting for anything. It looks like they are still doing takeout only.

Looking at the notice on the plexiglass partition, I noticed that the prices on most items have gone up by about a dollar. It as a short wait for our bun rieu, but soon enough I was back home, and heating up the broth. Of course I poured hot water over the noodles to warm up a separate.

Much like Bun Bo hue; because of the herbs and veggies, the broth needs to be super hot and you'll get a different texture in every bit as the steaming broth reacts with the crisp shredded banana blossom and morning glory. The bean sprouts adds a whole different texture as it cooks thru along with that mild grassy-almost pea like-nuttiness. The strong anise-citrus tones of the perilla leaves and a squeeze of lime adds a nice acidity, which helps cut through the savory broth which has been elevated with a dab of mam tom. I like the fact that the generous portion of noodles provided is a tad undercook as once it's heated with a pour of hot water, drained, then placed in the bowl it reaches prime texture.

The Missus really enjoys the fried tofu and tomato; I like the cha lua….we both enjoy the pork-seafood "cakes"; though it seemed to be a bit tougher than what we previously experienced. The Missus always eats both red chilies provided.

Phuong Nga 2
4016 54th St
San Diego, CA 92105
Current Hours:
Tues – Sunday 9am – 6pm
Closed on Mondays

Mien Trung:

The first thing I actually wanted when the weather started cooling off was Mien Trung. Man, had it been almost a year-and-a-half since we last did takeout at the beginning of the pandemic?

And the gentleman who was at the counter seemed so happy to see me; he wasn't working during my last takeout visit…….it was great talking to him, he still remembers me from when I first started visiting back in 2006! Man, almost fifteen years now! MT is doing both dine in and takeout; but since it was rather early in the day, there was only one customer eating in the corner while I waited for my Bun Bo Hue.

And since MT specializes in catering and takeout (in the beginning, they only made their BBH for catering), everything was packed perfectly.

After going thru my typical reheating drill (related above), everything was ready.

Loved the slippery noodles; though the herbs and veggies didn't seem as fresh as usual. Nice savory-lemongrass tones from the broth; though it wasn't quite as spicy as I recall. The chili oil fixed that up nicely. The mam tom added deep savory tones and a couple of squeezes of lime balanced things out.

For some reason, I really enjoyed the thick cuts of beef as the flavor was so very deep and intense; the tendon softer than I recalled. Has time made my heart grow fonder?

I realize that I've done over 20 posts on Mien Trung over the last 15 years, but it's been one of those places that I never tire of. Once the weather starts getting a bit cooler or when we've returned from a long trip, MT often comes to mind when I get back home. Of course there have been ups and downs over the years; I think I've documented those. But, there have definitely been more ups than downs.

And of course while eating my bowl of BBH, I couldn't help but think of my good friend; the late "Ed from Yuma". We shared a few meals at Mien Trung and without fail he'd wear a lightly colored shirt which would end up dotted with specks of red from the annatto tinged broth! I couldn't help but wonder what Ed would think about the the state of the the US and the world during the pandemic. We miss you Ed!

Mien Trung Restaurant
7530 Mesa College Dr
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Tues – Sat 9am – 8pm
Sunday 830am – 4pm
Closed on Mondays

COMC, The B(ack) I(n) T(he) O(ffice) Edition – The Market at HFS, TJ Dumplings, and Sue’s Korean Kitchen

September 22, 2021 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Korean Restaurants, Local Kine Stuffs in San Diego, Markets & Grocers, Poke, Seafood

Here's a round-up of places I've been catching up on since I've been "BITO" (back in the office). I hope you don't mind a few "reruns"…..

Another interesting observation is that all of these places opened just before or during the pandemic. Kudos to them for being agile enough to survive for over a year-and-a-half.

The Market at HFS:

A favorite from the first time I walked thru those doors. Real poke, not some concept "Chi-poke" kinda place.

I have noticed that prices have gone up a bit on my last couple of visits….for fish by the pound. The poke bowls are priced the same.

These days I get my poke bowls with half the rice….they tend to give a ton of rice and I can never finish. In fact, when I order for the Missus and I; I just get one medium poke bowl and two half pound containers….of course the Missus needs all the other "stuffs" for Hers.

The Market at HFS
6491 Weathers Place
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 282-0591
Covid-19 Hours:
Daily 10am – 4pm

TJ Dumplings:

**** TJ Dumplings has closed

I just wanted something small for lunch; so I decided to head on back to TJ Dumplings.

Of course I got the Baozi. Opening the box back at the office I noticed two things. First, unlike my last visit, there was no leakage. Second, there's now only six baozi instead of eight. The filling was more moist and tender than what I'd had on my previous visit and the baozi was lighter and more fluffy. It's not going to make me forget my favorite; but these are ok.

TJ Dumplings
6780 Miramar Rd.
San Diego, CA 92121
Hours:
Tues – Sun 11am – 830pm
Closed on Mondays

Sue’s Korean Kitchen:

Like the Market at HFS, I like the fact that Sue's opens at 10am as I often have meetings that stretch thru lunch.

It's funny, the woman working here….I think it might be "Sue" remembers me. She told me; "it's nice to see you, it has been a long time"……I guess a bit over three months can seem like quite a while.

Of course I got the Kimchi Fried Rice with Spam ($9.99). Rustic, hearty, lots of Spam. I like the kimchi they use; there's some nice fermented tones. This is always more than I can finish, so I'll take the rest home and have it for breakfast during the weekends with a couple of eggs.

Good prices, portion size, and the woman who works here is so nice.

Sue’s Korean Kitchen
6755 Mira Mesa Blvd.
Suite 109
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 352-6511
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 10am – 9pm
Closed on Sundays

So there you go……it's nice getting back into sort of a routine.

Hope everyone is having a safe and productive week!

Main Chick Hot Chicken (Clairemont)

September 20, 2021 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Sandwiches

Main Chick, a chain from LA opened two locations in San Diego during the winter of 2020, yet another entry feeding the Nashville Chicken fad. I thought of doing takeout, but hesitated thinking that the chicken sandwich might not hold up well, even with the short 12 minute drive home from Clairemont Town Square. But, after I had the Chicken Sandwich from Bay Hill Tavern (all the way back in April of this year), which held up pretty well as takeout, on one of the days I was working from home, I decided to do takeout.

I arrived just as the place was opening at 11am. The young lady manning the counter was quite friendly and I placed an order for Combo #1 ($14), which consisted of 1 chicken sandwich, which I decided to get naked as a first try, thinking that sauce would probably contribute negatively to the integrity of whatever bread product was used, 1 chicken tender, fries, pickles, and MC sauce…….ahem…yet another "secret sauce-ish" concoction.

The wait was fairly short and I got my order and headed home.

Here's what things looked like when I opened the combo box.

To get a better look at things I placed everything on a plate.

Man, look at all those fries! I liked the "dust" used for seasoning, but the fries were quite dry, though the MS sauce helped things out a bit.

As for how the chicken sandwich handled the short trip home, well…..

I think you can see that it really didn't do well. The bottom bun was mush – can you imagine if I had gotten sauce, the batter for the chicken was no longer crisp, and this being breast meat, it was dry. I also thought the seasoning was way too mild.

And I quickly noticed something about the chicken tender.

What the heck are all those black spots? They had just opened…..did they need to reheat this on the flat top? Was this leftover from the previous day? Of course those black bits were quite bitter and the chicken super dry.

This was quite terrible overall. I made up my mind to just call it quits and forget about Main Chick…..so since only one visit; there'd be no post.

Then back in July I did a post on Boss Bird, which was 17 months in the making. FOY "ChrisR" was quick to send me an email telling me:

"(Boss Bird) has been a huge to medium disappointment in the three times I went.
Main Chick in Clairemont Mesa has a Nashville dark meat chicken sandwich that has been really good to great on four different visits."

I quickly sent Chris an email with photos……still thinking that I was done with Main Chick…….but then; thinking about a dark meat version. Well, I decided to give Main Chick a couple more tries (this was before the last crazy Covid-19 surge). So three days after Chris sent me that email, working from home, I got to Main Chick just as they opened and ordered a Dark Meat Chicken Sandwich $6)….and in a moment of insanity ordered it "Supreme". A quick gander at the menu reveals five flaming chickens next to "supreme".

And while I don't think this was as all around spicy as the XHot from Prince's Hot Chicken Shack in Nashville, it was pretty darn hot. My tolerance for spiciness has gone down as I get older; so this got a nice amount of sweat going. This was much better than what I'd had previously; it had a decent crunch, was more moist, though all that spice pretty much blocked out any other flavors, even with the Thousand Island Dressing…ummm MC Sauce – "Because, you know, You can't touch this….." This was fine, albeit somewhat one-dimensional in terms of flavor, which I can easily say was my fault for ordering "five flaming chicken" hotness.

And so, since I was scheduled to work from home the very next day…..guess where I ended up. This time; I just went with the Dark Meat Chicken Sandwich – Medium.

Before I go on, a quick note….notice the size of the sandwich alongside my ancient iPhone 7….I just wanted to put that into perspective so you know. In this day, while I ate my sandwich, the guy right after me ordered a 3 chicken tender combo…which comes with that huge order of fries along with 2 chicken sandwiches…which I assumed he was taking out. But I was wrong, he sat a few tables down and proceeded to attack everything. Now, according to my calculations; this is like $27 of food for lunch!

I do say that this was nice and moist; though whatever rub they use sure seemed pretty weak as this was really "one note cayenne" being played over and over.

I will say that Chris does have one thing right; the dark meat is the way to go here in terms of some flavor and moisture. Thanks for the recommendation Chris!

It seems that having had Hot Chicken in Nashville and "down South", even all those years ago has left me somewhat jaded. Perhaps my memories are playing tricks on my palate and mind?

After having had three versions of Hot Chicken here in San Diego…….I've been less than impressed. I guess I'll need to try Dave's; though I think I'll wait until they open in Mira Mesa.

Main Chick Hot Chicken (In Clairemont Town Square)
4705 Clairemont Dr.
San Diego, CA 92117
Hours:
Sun – Thurs 11am – 9pm
Fri – Sat 11am – 10pm

Check out Soo's post on Main Chick here.

Sunday “Stuffs” – Lalo’s Closes, JJ Chicken Coming to Towne Center, Taco Stand on Convoy, Nijiya’s Hokkaido Festival, and Other “Stuffs”

September 19, 2021 mmm-yoso Cheese, Markets & Grocers, Mexican Restaurants, Taco Shops, yoso-silly

Here's some odds and ends for a nice Sunday.

Lalo's Tacos Al Pastor Closes:

I noticed that Lalo's had closed when I recently had to drop by Penzy's. I have to say I was a bit surprised since they've been in this spot since we moved to San Diego over 20 years ago. I was never a big fan; but folks I worked with when my office was in Hillcrest enjoyed Lalo's.

I guess maybe the pandemic did them in.

1266 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92103

JJ Chicken Coming to To Renaissance Towne Centre:

Well, at least that's what the sign says.

Since I'm back in the office I dropped by one of my usual stops in this strip mall to see how they were doing (they were quite busy). And noticed the sign in the photo to the right in the window of what I think used to be Edo Sushi?

Doing some quick searches, I wasn't able to find much. Perhaps the next time I stop by they'll be more info…..

8895 Towne Centre Dr.
San Diego, CA 92122

Work on the Taco Stand on Convoy:

Driving down Convoy, headed to Nijiya this past morning, I noticed work on the Taco Stand was going on (read more about it on Eater). So, I took a quick drive into the parking lot from hell….which thankfully was quite empty at 850 on a Saturday morning.

According to the post on Eater, they were "Slated to open in early 2021"……..but of course with the pandemic, difficulty in finding staff, etc, etc, etc….

4646 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

The Hokkaido Fair at Nijiya – Until 09/22:

I dropped by Nijiya last Friday on my way home from work and was amazed at how busy they were! I waited over 20 minutes in line to get to the cashier, who happened to be a young lady that also works at Bay Park Coffee. I mentioned how busy they were and she told me it was because of the Hokkaido Fair……Hokkaido Fair? How the heck did I miss that memo?

Anyway, I went home and mentioned this to the Missus and guess what? Well, we headed back down to Nijiya later that evening. Luckily; even though the parking lot was packed, Nijiya wasn't overly busy. Even though there seemed to be less items then I recalled from previous "fairs" we had a blast. And things were selling fast!

I think that perhaps folks are missing the travel, the variety, the fun and comfort these days. I know I felt a wonderful nostalgia seeing labels and items I recalled from our trip to Hokkaido. And the Missus just enjoyed Her puddings and cheesecake….oh, and those chocolate covered strawberries so much; guess who had to head back the next morning? Which I how I noticed the construction on the Taco Stand.

Anyway, here's some of what we got.

For some strange reason; I have an affinity to Hokkaido cheese…..

Anyway, things seem to be selling fast, so head on down if anything pictured above interests you.

3860 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

And speaking of cheese – well, since I won't be riding the metro in Paris anytime soon:

Talking about the feeling of happiness and nostalgia. I had a surge of joy when I saw this at Bristol Farms.

At that point, the Missus and I decided to do charcuterie and cheese for dinner.

And since, due to the pandemic, I don't think we'll be travelling to France this year, where Epoisses is supposedly banned on public transport, this would have to do. We're really missing international travel and I guess anytime we're able to travel with our tastebuds….well, for now that will have to do.

Take care everyone; be safe, have compassion and empathy during these times!