American/New American Restaurants – Page 23

Driving across the USA (in our Chevrolet)Part 4- The drive home and some American restaurants

November 21, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Road Trip, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, food blog. Kirk is working some heavy overtime hours while Ed(from Yuma) is busy planning a Thanksgiving feast, so Cathy is writing about food and things today.

Link to Part One

Link to Part Two

Link to Part Three

It is only a few days before Thanksgiving. I read that 43.9 million people will drive more than 50 miles from home for the holiday (defined as between Wednesday and Sunday this week). In light of that, I think it's a good time for this conclusion post of our Summer of 2016 Road Trip from San Diego to Detroit and back.

We left home and took the exit to Ann Arbor, where The Mister and I met decades ago. Pizza Bob's was a favorite place for us. We enjoyed the unique Chipati, invented when we were students.
West on the 94, we stopped in Jackson to drive through a former Hot 'n Now building which is currently a nice, local owned coffee shop, Jackson Coffee Company. No indoor seating, no wifi, just coffee (they roast their own), beverage concoctions, some sandwiches and hot pretzels.

Chicagoland is about five hours from Detroit. An easy drive.
Kirk wrote about Buona Beef, a Chicago area Italian Beef joint which some people like and other people avoid. A simple sandwich here is sort of like an Arby's roast beef and is tasty on the fresh French roll.

Buona Beef Restaurant 1170 N Arlington Heights Road Itasca, IL 60143 Website
Kirk did enjoy his dog from Gene and Jude's back in 2010 and not much has changed (the price has gone up 61¢). It's good.

Gene & Jude's Red Hot Stand 2720 River Rd River Grove, IL 60171 website

After a while, we were in the Quad Cities area and stopped at the Moline, Illinois Maid Rite location.

As a side note, all restaurants and businesses in the Midwest have a small vestibule area-a double doorway where you can step inside and stomp snow off your boots, shake off/take off your coat or close your umbrella before walking inside a main building. Even Costcos have vestibules. We sat at the counter at this location, because we could.The 'traditional' toppings for this lightly seasoned loose meat burger are mustard, onion and pickle. Ketchup is available, but it's for the fries. The burgers are all served with a small teaspoon as your only cutlery…so you can scoop up any meat that falls out when you lift the soft bun. Maid Rite is a true midwest tradition.

Maid-Rite Quad Cities website

We stopped for fuel and looked for a place to eat in Richfield, Utah.

The signage on Main Street brought us in.

Clean, simple, family run and very good.
Light bites and ice cream, unphotographed. This was a great find.

Ideal Dairy 490 S Main Street Richfield, UT 84701 (435) 896-5061

There were unplanned/non-food stops along the way.

A tourist trap.

The original Pony Express station, in the middle of a park in a residential neighborhood.
The birthplace of President Gerald Ford.

Themed rest areas (this one was windmills-old and new blades).
A giant Golden Spike…but this one is in Omaha, Nebraska. It is where President Abraham Lincoln declared the joining of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads *should*occur, but it didn't happen here (Promontory, Utah is the 'official' location). This is where the largest train yard in the USA is, so if you are in North Platte, Nebraska, stop here.

If you are driving across the USA this holiday season (or anytime), do enjoy our wonderfully organized highway system as well as the National Park System signage and stop to enjoy the local people and places. Safe travels!

2017 Tournament of Roses Rose Parade float road testing and breakfasts: Chuck Wagon (Corona); Rod’s Grill (Arcadia); Silver Dollar Pancake House (Corona)(revisit)

November 20, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, Diner, Festivals & Events, Los Angeles County, Ontario/Riverside/San Bernadino, CA, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the name of this food blog. Kirk is not writing today, neither is Ed(from Yuma). This is just another Cathy posting.

Chuck Wagon has closed. In February 2023, Rod's Grill closed but will open under new management. Both are sadly missed.

This year has been different. In addition to having a tremendous amount of friends and neighbors die (I stopped counting in mid February, after there had been 23), I tried to keep things more or less normal, writing a post about the first Float Road Test for the 2017 Rose Parade. The Mister and I drove to subsequent monthly road tests (and afterwards, breakfast) and took photos. This post is a summary of what we ate and some of what you will see on television on January 2, 2017 (there's never a parade on Sunday).

Trader Joe's will have another three part float in the 2017 parade, (parade theme is Echoes of Success), titled 'All Aboard! 50 Years of Serving the Best'. The American Armenian Rose Float Association road test in August showcased a magnificent looking float. The road test two months later showed the color outlined (coloring outlines are there to help decorators as well as help if there are any problems with decorations during the actual parade: you'll still see color) fully expanded float, titled "Field of Dreams", depicting the 'Echoes of Success' of the American Armenian diaspora success story.

I'll take some breaks from floats and road tests, interspersing breakfasts enjoyed driving home.

Because we got stuck in traffic (again), we stopped at a place we have been passing for several years. The old fashioned sign (which must look very cool at night) is a friendly welcome to the naugahyde, paneled, not recently updated interior; half of the building is a 'bar' area, open in morning hours. The breakfast menu is served all day. Let me preface this by saying that we took home a lot of leftovers. The 'Chuck Wagon Country Breakfast' ($11.95) was absolutely wonderful in quality and flavors! Three eggs (poached, of course), two (large, flavorful) link sausages, two thick pieces of smoked meaty bacon and a slice of country style ham with a side of thinly sliced, crispy home fries topped with green pepper and onions. There was also a choice of toast or pancakes with this plate. Ever since the summer road trip and meals across the USA with either my brother or nephew, pancakes have become a slight obsession. The ones at Chuck Wagon are notably good; from scratch flavors, slightly sweet, fluffy with a delicate crust .
The perfectly prepared, real cube steak chicken fried steak was lightly breaded and fried perfectly ($11.50). The flavors were fresh, the country gravy (again, from scratch: there were flour lumps) and even the crispy hash browns were wonderful. The fresh made from scratch biscuit-flaky layers with the golden, crispy crust- was great.

Another really great Corona restaurant.

Chuck Wagon Cafe 1070 6th Street Corona, CA 92879 (951)737-7162 open daily 6:30a.m.-10 p.m.

Returning to some float road tests… Rotary International's float, 'Doing Good in the World' is just so cute even without the coloring outlines added! Shriners Hospitals for children, 'Anything is Possible', is adorable! From the artist rendition(see end of post for a link), it looks like the mascot, Fezzy Bear, will be riding on the float in January. Union Bank has again teamed up with the American Heart Association for the float 'Keep the Beat Alive'. Last month, we didn't even bother going on the freeway to get home, took side roads parallel to the 210 and noticed Rod's, a corner coffee shop that's been in Arcadia since 1957. Taking seats at the counter, because all the aqua naugahyde booths were full, we took note of some posted daily specials (even on weekends!)

The 'pork sausage w/ fresh apples- cheese omelet' ($9.95) was most unexpected (and in keeping with my penchant for fresh apples). Yes, breakfast sausages and sautéed fresh apples filled this large eggy-cheesy breakfast omelet! There were some great home fries and toast which accompanied this surprising menu special. These banana walnut crepes which came with two eggs and sausage ($8.95) were filled with a fluffy cream cheese-cottage cheese mix and topped with toasted nuts and nicely ripe banana slices; not crazy sweet at all. These are not delicate flat crepes, but also not thick pancakes…more of a Swedish pancake.

So glad we stopped here! Rod's Grill 41 W Huntington Drive Arcadia, CA 91007 (626) 447-7515 open 6 am-9 pm daily

United Sikh Mission USA has another beautiful float, 'Together We Rise', which I think will be a prize winner not only for its beauty, but also for the message. Western Asset (an investment group) is sponsoring this float, 'Prosperity in the Wild' which won't have any riders, but instead much animation. This rather simple looking float from Farmers Insurance has a 'reflection' of the parade route in the front 'window' (including the rose colored line that is in the center of Colorado Boulevard, a guide for float drivers, who drive 'blind' while speaking to the 'spotter' who each has a small window in front to observe the activities in front of the float). The title of 'We Came, We Saw, We Covered' is a slight clue as to the 'surprise' you will see on January 2. (see the bottom of this post)

One last breakfast, a repeat visit.

If we find ourselves in Corona and notice there is no line waiting for seating, we stop at Silver Dollar. This day, it was convenient to sit at the counter instead of waiting for a table to be available.
This is the two egg, two pancake deal (the second egg was brought over later)($5.49, additional .69 to substitute sausage patty for links-worth it!) was particularly good. The 2 bacon, 2 egg (and biscuits with gravy instead of toast) ($8.59) was enjoyed by The Mister. The country gravy and fresh flaky not too large biscuits were just right with the perfect over easy eggs and bacon.

Silver Dollar Pancake House 710 East Sixth Corona, CA 92879 (951) 737-5977 Open Mon-Sat 5 a.m.-4 p.m., Sun 6 a.m.-4 p.m.

Rose Parade preparations. Diners for breakfast. America.

See artist renditions of some 2017 floats here.

What's going on under that Farmers Insurance float? Here's a sneak peek:

Seattle – Terra Plata

November 11, 2016 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Seattle, Washington, Travel

During our most recent stay in Seattle; having dinner at Sitka & Spruce would seem to be the obvious choice. But after our last meal there, we decided that maybe a change was in order. We'd arrived for an overnight stay on our way to our final destination.

On our previous visit, we passed what seemed to be a very popular place named Terra Plata; literally "Land to Plate". Reading a bit more, it seems that the focus was on local growers and artisans, which seemed like the perfect meal for us.

We arrived at the Renaissance without incident. I used to stay here all the time, but for some reason hadn't during our last few visits. They seemed to have done some nice upgrading of the rooms and the corner room we had was very comfortable.

It was a pleasant walk to the restaurant, heck, it's basically next to S&S, and we've been to Seattle so many times. The dining room is nice and warm, though seating is pretty cramped; fitting as many bodies in as little space seems the trend these days. The place was half full when we arrived at 6pm and quickly filled up. The menu, as is also the norm these days was a simple single sheet, fairly vegetable heavy and meant for sharing which suits our preferences,

We started with a couple of cocktails; the Missus a "Seattle Raindrop" ($12) and I a "Will I Tell" ($13)….both were a bit too sweets for our tastes.

After looking over the menu; we decided to forgo the meat options. We've been finding that vegetable and starters are more interesting items these days. It seems that in the case of mains; the kitchen has to keep it kind of close to the vest while the other courses seem more fascinating.

We did need a bit of "protein" so we started with the Charcuterie Plate ($20) which was on the pricy side, but we loved the presentation.

The real winner on this plate was the chicken liver terrine, which had the perfect amount of liver flavor combined with a pleasant texture, and just a hint of winey-sweetness. The pate champagne was also quite good; not too salty, great texture. The Missus loved the mustards and pickles; especially the pickled capers and cornichons. The lomo iberico was too salty, cut too thick, making it hard, and the Duck Rillette was really bland and hardly had any of the nice assertive flavor we enjoy.

I should have skipped on the Risotto ($20). I've mentioned the issues I have with typical restaurant par cooked prep for risotto. This just didn't do it, the core of the risotto was hard and crunchy. This version also had too much marscapone for my taste and not enough salty components.

Loved the chanterelles, so earthy, and the addition of brown butter was nice, though it clashed with the marscapone in my mind.

The Missus, who loves lentils and broccoli, really enjoyed the having both of them in the Broccoli with Moroccan Spiced Lentils ($14).

This basically looked like a stir fry; the flavor was nice and savory, though I think it could have used a bit more balsamic. I think they are also using Worcestershire or something similar to give this a flavor close to soy sauce. A nice dish.

We both really enjoyed the Beets with Walnut Romesco and Feta ($14).

The various greens added a nice combination of bitter-herbaceous flavor to the "just crisp enough" and sweet beets. The Romesco Sauce had the perfect amount of garlic and slightly smoky-sweet flavors which went nicely with the milky-salty feta. This was just a wonderful dish.

So nice, that I decided to finish things off with an Old Fashioned ($11).

The service was friendly and warm, the room got really loud, and like I mentioned before; the tables are really close together….the server kept bumping into me and the person seated in back of me when passing. The price; well, the Missus actually was kind of shocked….over $100 for mostly vegetables…but of course we had the three cocktails and such.

So, Sitka & Spruce or Terra Plata……I think the Missus enjoyed the execution at Terra Plata more….perhaps the next time we're in Seattle we'll do one after the other. Or who knows, maybe there will be another great option?

Terra Plata
1501 Melrose Ave
Seattle, WA 98122

Seattle – Sitka & Spruce

November 9, 2016 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Fine Dining, Seattle, Washington

**** Sitka & Spruce has closed

I thought I'd do this post a little out of the usual chronological order and you'll see why in a future post. I mentioned getting stranded in Seattle on the way back from Vancouver due to the Great Delta Debacle of 2016 in an earlier post. Anyway, being stuck in Seattle isn't that bad for us….of course I lost extra vacation time. But I quickly got us a hotel and reservations at a place we really enjoyed during our last "visit" Sitka & Spruce.

While we did enjoy our meal we really weren't quite as impressed this time around and perhaps the best part of the meal was my cocktail, called "The Garden".

Loved the addition of the celery bitters and oregano, which gave this white grape juice and ancho reyes cocktail a wonderful complex array of flavors. Not too boozy and quite refreshing. The sweetness of honey and citrus really balanced things out.

We started with some Shigoku Oysters ($3/each), which is basically a new variation of Kusshi Oysters a strain of Pacific Oyster.

These were very mild in flavor and perhaps a bit too firm for my taste. Also, one of the oysters tasted a bit off; but I suffered no ill effects.

We also ordered the combination of pickled and fermented vegetables with pickled egg ($11).

This was a lot of pickles….a lot, enough for 4-5 people, except for the egg of course, which was very good. The Shishito Peppers had a very nice texture and the beets were delicious. Probably too much of a good thing though.

Next up; the Heirloom Tomatoes and Halloumi ($18).

The tomatoes were good…a bit too mild in flavor and acid. This dish had way too much basil on it. The big surprise was the seared Halloumi, which had a fairly crisp exterior and a creamy interior. It added a bit of saltiness to the dish which was welcomed as was the presence of Shiro Plums which added a pleasant sweetness.

The Crispy Yukon Golds with Tuna and Egg Yolk ($14) was quite good.

That egg yolk added rich creaminess and the tonnato (a tuna-mayo based sauce) added a nice creamy-savory flavor as well. The olive oil was lovely and the potatoes delicious. The tuna confit really had no flavor and brought nothing to the dish in our opinion.

The Broccoli with Charred Eggplant ($13) was quite good in spite of the rather greyish hue of the dish.

Think broccolini with baba gannoush. The restrained amount of Aleppo Pepper added some zip to the smoky eggplant puree. The anchovies were a bit too salty for this in my opinion.

The seemingly odd combination of Nectarines, Lardo, Seared Shishito Peppers, and Chickpea Puree ($14) sounds a bit disjointed, but it worked quite well.

An interesting combination of textures and flavors; sweet, that chlorophyll-sweet-mild spice of the peppers, the texture of the lardo, and topped off with a nutty hummus like puree, this worked nicely for us.

As with our previous meal; we were intrigued with the combination of textures and flavors, some of which worked better than others. Though during our previous visit, we had that one dish which we thought was just amazing, which we didn't find on this visit. Still, while you might think $120+ for mostly vegetables (and cocktails) is mighty steep, the meal was a fun little ride.

Sitka & Spruce
1531 Melrose Ave
Seattle, WA 98101

Marie Callender’s and San Diego Chicken Pie Shop- chicken pie two ways

November 3, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog with daily posts ranging from the unusual to common foods, is back again today with a post from Cathy because Kirk is very far away right now, too busy eating than writing, while Ed(from Yuma) is busily composing a post while eating.

This is yet another post of the coincidental birthday week foods enjoyed by The Mister and myself. We enjoy a meal out each day, beginning on His birthday and ending on my birthday (Mondays this year) and there have been coincidentally similar foods ordered by each of us when we had our individual choice of birthday meals.

I've never written about Marie Callender's, a restaurant chain which is headquartered in California and had its beginnings here in the 1930's, selling pies. It used to be considered a 'fancier' family restaurant we stopped in to visit regularly, which fell off our radar years ago. The fireplace in the back room has been overtaken by a television set! We were here because The Mister was wanting some of that old fashioned 'comfort' food as His birthday meal. As always, a large piece of still warm Marie's famous cornbread with whipped butter was brought out to the table before we even ordered. I remember when Marie's began selling a lot of their products on the shelves and in freezers, especially cornbread mix. It's nice to enjoy some of that memory evoking food at home. On this day, I decided to try the lunch special quiche and salad sampler ($8) choosing a Caesar salad and spinach-based Lorraine quiche. Out of the oven fresh and warm, with the light, flaky crust, this quiche was a filling, custard based, spinach filled, cheese and bacon topped great meal. The mini pot pie meal ($10.99). A classic pot pie (with only a golden crust on top) is quite large and also served piping hot. The filling with cubed white meat chicken, peas and carrots in a not-salty gravy is the same as always, comforting.It's called a 'meal' because not only do you get a pot pie and salad, but also your choice of a slice of one of the famous dessert pies (there are more than 20 available daily) is included! After much discussion (of what I called The Misters meal choice a 'pie-pie' meal), we decided to share a slice of double cream lemon pie for dessert. So tasty, creamy with that perfect crust. A great birthday meal.

Marie Callender's , multiple locations. Website

One morning The Mister reminded me it was a was 'my' birthday day (it does get boring going out to eat daily, especially near the end of that week, closer to 'my' day). We started driving,

noticing that the San Diego Chicken Pie Shop, which I had only written about twice, was already open. This classic diner, open in San Diego since 1938, began in 2009 serving breakfast from 10 am-noon on weekdays and 8 a.m.-noon on weekends. The Mister was not in a 'pot pie' mood and ordered a Hot Turkey Sandwich ($7.29), which is typical: turkey surrounded by white bread, topped with the same gravy placed on top of the chicken pot pies and served with mashed potatoes.

We had walked in while the breakfast menu was still available. I wanted breakfast, but also chicken pie; 'The Neighborhood Grind' ($9.25) was my choice. There were choices of egg prep, gravy and breakfast meat. The Grind is a classic Chicken Pie Shop chicken pie (which is filled with chicken, turkey and gravy; no vegetables), topped with two eggs and country gravy, accompanied by hash browns. My choice of sausage instead of bacon was great! Those sausages were tasty, large, fresh and something I will order again; hash browns were perfectly crispy; the pie, fresh and as I remember. The eggs on top of the pie and eaten with the crust were a great taste combination and the whole plate was extremely satisfying.

San Diego Chicken Pie Shop 2633 El Cajon Blvd, San Diego 92104 (619) 295-0156 website

There you go, six birthday meals in only three posts. We hadn't planned our cravings and realizing the coincidences, a pleasant bonus. I hope your week has been going well.

Tobey’s 19th Hole…more meals

October 29, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping to read this food blog, named mmm-yoso!!! Kirk is out and about and having a wonderful time with His Missus. Ed (from Yuma) and Tina are living the good life (in Yuma) and Cathy is writing today.

Here we are, in beautiful San Diego, 4200 square miles of a County, with thousands of places to eat or grab a snack. Everyone has a place close to home or close to work and even a place close to where they relax.

I've written about Tobey's 19th Hole, the coffee shop/diner located at the start and finish of the Balboa Park Golf Course since 1934, only two times, even though it's where we have a regular stop for breakfast, the occasional lunch and where we take out of town guests for a small meal and great view of downtown, even on overcast days. The delightfully simple breakfast of 2 French toast with 2 eggs (over easy) and 2 sausage ($9) is filling and tasty.

Alternately, you can ask for a 1-1-2 with a pancake ($ 6) and still be satisfied because the pancake is so large and the one ( if scrambled) egg is fluffy and light.

The breakfast sandwich (toasted English muffin with sausage, egg and cheese, $5.50; substitute ham for an additional 50¢) is a tasty, filling $6 meal. There was a day last week when we saw the sandwich board and each of us knew what we would order. We briefly thought of sitting at the counter, but since it was a weekday and not crowded, stuck with a 'view' seat.

The $10.50 option came with soup or salad and the Navy Bean soup (house made, of course) was filled with chunks of bacon and so very tasty. The salad was fresh and crisp and standard.

The house made meatloaf is a favorite. It's juicy, soft and two slices makes it a plentiful meal. Instead of doing (either choice) as a 'sandwich' with top and bottom breads covered with gravy) we each opted for the toasty garlic cheese bread rolls-seen in the background. The hot beef sandwich is filled with a lot of tender roast beef. Of note, the mashed potatoes are real and the fresh vegetables of the day were wonderful.

A great place for food, views and the ability to have a quiet conversation. Other bloggers have been here, too: cc, Dennis, Faye and Mary.

Tobey's 19th Hole 2600 Golf Course Dr. San Diego, CA 92102 (619) 234-5921 Open daily 6-6 Website (old menu prices)

Perry’s Cafe (El Cajon) Breakfast revisits

October 26, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

Here you are, back at mmm-yoso, looking for an interesting post about food in San Diego County and beyond. Kirk is too busy to write anything today and so is Ed(from Yuma), so it's Cathy doing the writing.

Kirk has written about the original location of Perry's Cafe in 2007, 2010 and 2012. cc and I met at the original location last year, Dennis wrote a nice post in 2013 and Mary stopped here in 2014. I wrote about the El Cajon location ("my" Perry's) in 2011.

Both the El Cajon and the Pacific Highway location are known 'truck stops' and have been open since 1985. Each has the same hours (6 a.m.-2 p.m. daily) the same menu, consisting of Breakfasts (Italian, Mexican and traditional American) and lunches (Mexican dishes, sandwiches and salads). The El Cajon location is closer to home and we stop here on weekdays (weekends are a madhouse, with lines out into the parking lot) for a quick breakfast and/or lunch. This post is only about breakfast.

The interior is a step back in time. The food is simple, good, diner food.

One thing about breakfast sides here: you can get toast, an English muffin, biscuit or a fresh, warm from the oven blueberry or bran muffin. Sausage links or patties are available and the hash browns- well, if you've read Kirk's posts, those are his favorite item here. The sausage patty is excellent and the poached eggs are always perfect. The Mister is in a waffle/pancake phase and the strawberry waffle with (properly made) over easy eggs and bacon ($9.25) was his craving this day. Another day, I wanted the French toast, with blueberries ($9.75). This came with (my choice of) bacon and poached eggs. That egg dipped, pan fried bread was just so very nice; crispy exterior and fluffy, eggy interior. The blueberry topping was kind of a pie filling in style, but not at all sweet, other than natural blueberry sweetness. Just right. The smoked pork chop breakfast ($9.25) was an excellent choice, as was the house made baking powder based biscuit which was brought out with a plain (not sausage) pepper gravy. The jiggly, over easy eggs were so very runny, which melded perfectly with the crispy hash browns.

Always a satisfying, tasty and fresh breakfast stop. Traditional diners are the best. We are fortunate to have these two in town.

Perry's Cafe 475 North Magnolia El Cajon, CA (619) 440-5724 open daily 6 a.m.-2 p.m.

Beerfish and Point Loma Seafoods- Clams two ways

October 25, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Seafood, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping by to read mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog. Kirk and His Missus are doing something somewhere right now. Ed (from Yuma) and Tina are relaxing after a really nice little vacation. Cathy is writing this post about some meals she had with The Mister right here, in San Diego.

Briefly mentioned at the top of this post, it was 'birthday week' for The Mister and myself not long ago. A week apart, Mondays this year. Once I started writing about our eight meals out, I had noticed commonalities in our respective choices. Opening in June, there was a lot of buzz on various media sites about Beerfish, a small (1500 square foot interior, 1300 square food outdoor patio area) seafood centric restaurant on Adams Avenue. Walk up, order and pay and your food is brought to your table. There are 30 taps serving local craft beer and also a few wine selections. The limited menu is ever-changing based on availability of fresh seafood. We were here for clams and not beer.

First, our side order of fresh made onion rings ($4) (beer battered, of course) was delivered to the table, accompanied by a fresh, but plain, aioli. The batter was crunchy, not greasy and the onions very mild; really nice in textures but it needed something. I ended up putting Mexi Pep (and eventually some salt) with the aioli to get a complimentary flavor that I wanted. The one item I had been reading about, Clam Toast ($10.90) was my choice. This was a mix of flavors: too many flavors for my palate, unfortunately. Each item was good on its own: sourdough bread (fresh and toasted), topped with a lemon mayonnaise, (very fresh, plump) chopped clams, mixed with a good amount (almost the same amount) of meaty chopped bacon along with grilled sweet onions and topped with fresh herbs, microgreens and fresh chopped garlic. Quite a bit of garlic. This would have gone well with some beer. The Mister ordered the steamed mussels and clams ($13.90). Again, there was a tremendous multitude of flavors, which may have gone well with beer as well as separately. The four mussels and dozen clams were plump, fresh and wonderful. The broth had two whole lemons, shallots, leeks, herb butter and, again, a tremendous amount of fresh chopped garlic. All this was served with a flavorful, fresh sourdough (with an unsalted, whipped butter-which are just right together).

The freshness is there, the clams were what I wanted and I enjoyed them-plain. When we go back, we will have to share a glass of beer and perhaps ask for less or no garlic and perhaps other items on the side.

Beerfish 2933 Adams Ave San Diego, CA 92116 (619) 363-2337 website Open seven days 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.

The Mister's birthday meal choice was fried clams fromPoint Loma Seafoods, a place I blogged about first in 2007, again in 2010, 2011, 2012, and most recently in 2014 The fresh, lightly battered, perfectly fried Ipswich clams are in season in September, (about $19 for the plate) and just the perfect childhood food memory for The Mister. I got the fish and chips plate ($12), which is my own 'fish friday' childhood memory. This was really good, as always.

Point Loma Seafoods 2805 Emerson Street San Diego, CA 92106 (619)223-1109 website Open Mon-Sat 9-7, Sunday 10-7

Chicken Charlie’s FryBQ: some daily specials

October 22, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping to read mmm-yoso!!!, a blog about food. Kirk is just too busy to write a post right now and Ed (from Yuma) is finishing up a post which you will enjoy soon, so Cathy will be writing today.

This location of Chicken Charlie's has closed. There is a new location in Rancho Bernardo.

A few people noticed that I barely mentioned one particular booth at the San Diego County Fair this year. Chicken Charlie's has been a staple at the San Diego County Fair for 20 years. When someone asks 'what's the new food at the Fair this year?', Chicken Charlie and whatever his new concoction is is brought up. Always something interesting and fried perfectly, quick service. The stop at the Chicken Charlie's trio of booths makes your trip to the Fair is closer to being complete.

Almost two years ago, Charlie Boghosian opened a storefront in San Diego at the corner of Balboa at Genesee. Kirk wrote a post about it . The Mister and I stopped in a few times and after a while, realized the food there wasn't all 'Fair Food'.

In addition, there are almost daily 'specials', mentioned on Facebook…crazy prices on regular items and sometimes a not on the menu board item. The specials have a limit of four and I've found myself walking in just to find out with the special is (because, believe it or not, I am not always on Facebook daily) and staying to try an item. Most of the specials are between $5 and $10.

What is on that regular menu? Most of these items…

Chicken and waffles, two pieces, $6.49 (regular price). I must say that Charlie knows how to fry chicken properly. It's never greasy, always crisp and filled with flavor. The waffles are an added bonus.

The shrimp filled pineapple/Maui Chicken ($9.95, special price, about every two weeks, is $6).

Also about every two weeks, the chicken or shrimp salad is $5. This is a great meal, plus a savings off the regular prices of $6.95 and $7.95.

There are times when we just want a different or additional side dish (if we share a special) and the onion rings ($2.95) and fried zucchini ($3.95) just hits the spot.

One day there was a 5 fried shrimp and 5 wings basket with fries (but I substituted the cucumber tomato salad, which I really like)($8). You can see the large shrimp, which are lightly dusted with seasoned flour and fried.

There was a $12 special not long ago. It was three pieces of fried chicken, five shrimp and three meaty ribs, along with a side of fries (and you can see I substituted cole slaw). So very good and enough to share. This was a 3-4-5, for $6. Three shrimp, four riblets and five onion rings. The ribs here are fried then covered in a very nice sauce. Always meaty. This wasn't a special, just a half rotisserie chicken with one side ($7.95) which is also prepared so well. Charlie knows his chicken.

The only special we did not like was mashed potatoes, topped with chili and bacon, topped with two fried chicken pieces and all of it covered in a cheese sauce, topped with green onion. It was $6. Each item, individually, was good. The combination was insipid. Too much going on, unnecessarily.
The lobster slipper tail basket ($11.95) has never been on special. There were at least ten (I think 12) lightly battered and fried slipper lobster tails-meaty with a thin shell- served with melted butter (and the included side, this time we chose fried zucchini). Really good, again, shared. A couple of weekends ago, the special was…a fried Twinkie topped with chocolate and bacon…$1. Ever so lightly batter dipped, it was like biting through a delicate potato chip to get to the warmed Twinkie filling. Chocolate and bacon on top-bonus!

Chicken Charlie's FryBQ 5407 Balboa Ave San Diego, CA 92111 (858) 279-1111 Sunday-Thursday 10:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10:30-10:30 website

The Summer of 2016 Drive Across the USA – Part Three: What We Ate (the local places)

September 23, 2016 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Detroit, Michigan, Road Trip

Thanks for dropping by to read mmm-yoso!!!, a blog about food. Cathy is writing about her summer drive back East-not a vacation, not planned. After all the hubbub, there was time to eat out at places which were not chains.

Link to Part 1

Link to Part Two

Link to Part Four

This third part of the 2016 foray out of California will not contain places or foods one might typically associate with the Detroit area. (Since this wasn't a vacation, there were time restrictions; I will get to three places in particular on the next trip). All of the restaurants in this post have familiar foods and are places where special meals occurred when I was growing up.

The Midwest. Beef. Sign of the Beefcarver, where we went for Sunday meals out.

Cafeteria style with waitresses who take your tray, seat you and refill your beverages. (The first small photo is where you can hang your heavy winter coat when you walk in; it is Michigan). There are only two locations left, but beginning in 1957, this was THE place to go, with many locations.

Known for hand-carved, slow roasted beef, which is and has always been my choice (and a comfort food) The hot beef sandwich (top on white bread, bottom on pumpernickel) shown with various cafeteria chosen sides and the condiment bar selections of pickles, beets, horseradish and sour cream.Then there is the chopped round steak plate, which my brother chose. Also very good, because…meat (along with mushroom gravy).

There are many Coney Island restaurants in Detroit, with people having a favorite one close to home and another favorite close to work (similar to taco shops in San Diego). Leo's Coney Island is a nearby, local chain. It's been around since 1972. Most coneys also have Greek selections on the menu, like this wonderful avgolemono (chicken/egg/rice/lemon) soup.

But of course the actual 'coney' (on the right- a smokey, natural casing hot dog) topped with beanLESS chili, onions and mustard, along with a 'loose'-(loose hamburger in a hot dog bun, topped with the same) is a typical order.

Long ago, there were Polish restaurants in every neighborhood in Detroit city. Those are now in the suburbs. I went to three differentPolish restaurants this trip and these photos are typical meals.

As soon as you are seated, a basket of breads, crackers and butter are brought to the table. Two slices of each flavor (marble, white and rye) in plastic lunch bags.

Soup is also served at every meal. This one, dill pickle soup, is my favorite. Each restaurant has a 'Polish Plate"which includes everything seen here: kraut, kielbasa, pierogi and Gołąbki (gah WHUMP key)-stuffed cabbage.

Here's a cross section of some pierogi - with mashed potato, cottage cheese and sauerkraut fillings.

Chicken dumpling, chicken noodle and creamy mushroom soup were also consumed at various meals this trip.

Another common food on a 'Polish Plate' is City Chicken, which I wrote about in 2014. I was slightly disappointed in this version, because it was made of chicken (!) instead of the traditional veal and pork…because real chicken is now cheaper, defeating the whole purpose of 'city chicken'.

There are also 'family style' places in the suburbs, similar to Jimmy's, Perry's and other 'diner' type establishments we have out here. comfortable, with comfort food.

Yes, omelets and liver and onions type of comfort food, along with cabbage soup.

Of course, there are the 'Dairy XXX' type places on every street corner. Soft serve, sundaes, flurries, treats.

Interesting factoid- these all open on Memorial Day weekend and close on Labor Day. One of the reasons Michigan public schools don't start until after Labor Day- so that seasonal employees/students can finish up their summer jobs.

Thanks for reading! Hope your weekend is good.