American/New American Restaurants – Page 32

Tower 13-Cardiff Beach Bar (Cardiff by the Sea)

October 9, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for dropping by to read the food blog named mmm-yoso!!! Today, Kirk is Far East, Ed (from Yuma) is East and Cathy has ventured to the NorthWest part of the County.

Football Saturday means college games, not professional football. If it's a noon game on the East Coast, the game starts at 9 a.m. here. The University of Michigan (currently #14 in the Big Ten) Alumnae have two meeting places in San Diego County, and Tower 13 is one of them. {The website logo shows "Cardiff Beach Bar @Tower 13", but 'Tower 13' is the name used by locals.} Across the street is Cardiff Beach…and that's the Pacific Ocean -with many surfers in the water waiting for a wave- on an overcast Saturday before 9 a.m. not long ago.Many televisions are inside this Bar, along with a tremendous variety of adult beverages to choose from. On the counter, you may notice a large dispenser with artfully displayed pineapples; that is one of the flavor infused vodkas sold here. Both college and professional football games are streamed from Thursday until Sunday every week. This was a morning game and we were given the Brunch menu, which is usually only available on Sunday. Above, the Baja Bennie ($10.95). Excellent smoky flavored Black Forest ham, avocado, poached egg topped with a nicely spicy Hollandaise sauce on a toasted English muffin, served with Home Fried potatoes, this was tasty and filling. The Breakfast Sandwich ($8.95) had to be ordered, since that is my default breakfast item. This version, on a toasted Brioche bun included ham, bacon and cheese as well as egg and was accompanied by the same herby topped Home Fries. Very good, very large, nice.

Oddly, we were still winning this game and stayed to watch until the end. Since it was lunch time, we ordered this Bowl of Chili ($7). This photo is deceptive; this is a very deep bowl and enough to share. The chili was meaty, and did have beans, onion, tomato, fresh chilis and a great spice blend. It's made daily from scratch, topped with the swirls of a sort of chili and a tomatillo crema and is really good and right on the edge of 'needing to order beer' spicy.

The lunch menu is quite good and varied here, with appetizers, salads, pizzas, tacos, sandwiches, burgers, many smaller ''extras" plates that can be shared to make or round out a meal. A good place to stop, even if there are no football games on television.

Tower 13 2633 S. Coast Highway 101 Cardiff by the Sea, CA 92007 Website Hours: Mon/Tues: 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Wed: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Thurs: 11 a.m.-midnight Fri: 11-1 a.m Sat: 9 a.m.-1 a.m. Sun: 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Junction Steakhouse and SportsBar – Breakfast (El Cajon)

October 8, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

Here we are, at mmm-yoso!!! reading a blogging about food. Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are not writing today because each of them has something far more interesting and important to do, dealing with timetables and appointments. Cathy's schedule is essentially free, so she's blogging.

Truth be told, breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Enjoying the dark coolness of the morning and seeing the sun rise while getting chores done has been my routine for years. Always on the lookout for local places which open early is habit. Back in February, my post about Junction was about the 1/2 pound burger lunch special as well as about the market next door, which has the same owner. I did have a photo of the above poster in that blog post and am finally following up. The breakfast omelette special ($5.99) is made up of three eggs and any four ingredients you choose. It comes with hash browns and toast. As you can see, the ingredients chosen were cheddar cheese, red pepper, mushrooms and diced sausage. This is a lot of food. The regular (weekend or after 10 a.m. weekday) price of this omelette is $9.45. Another breakfast choice we enjoy from here are the sweet potato pancakes and eggs (5.95). Poached is always my preference and the chef here is good at poaching. The butter that accompanies the pancakes is a vanilla-cinnamon blend and quite complimentary in a non-pumpkin spice way.

Coffee is always a part of breakfast ($2.95). Even though there is a Starbucks on the other end of this mall, I wouldn't ever bring my own cup into a nice sit down restaurant. We usually shop at Harvest Ranch Market after breakfast and then stop at the Starbucks before the next stop on morning errands.

The week is half over- two more days until the weekend!

Junction Steakhouse and Sports Bar 777 Jamacha Road El Cajon, 92019 (619) 588-5467 Website

The Barbecue Pit (El Cajon)

October 5, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, BBQ, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog where you can enjoy a brief respite from the humdrum of your home or office or computer. Kirk is on a sojourn, Ed (from Yuma) is roosting (in Yuma) and Cathy is lingering at various places around the county.

Another meal enjoyed during our quest to go to restaurants as old or older than us led us close to home, on Fletcher Parkway in El Cajon. Family owned since 1947, the Barbecue Pit has a fascinating history having had more than 12 locations around the County, but currently only two remain. Kirk posted on a former location, which is now owned by a former employee and has maintained the same menu, way of preparing the meat, interior decor and legacy of long time neighborhood patrons. The location I'm writing of is basically kitty corner from Beef 'n Bun.

This is not a smokey flavored barbecue: it is a pit barbecue method of preparation, using an above ground sealed pit/oven with (oak) wood heat that basically cooks 'slow and low'(air quality concerns), the same as many different barbacoa, and mixed use barbacoa style Mexican barbacoa de Borrego restaurants around town.When you walk in, you are greeted by a specials board and you walk forward to order (the regular menu is on the wall above the ordering area and can be seen here.)You can see the sandwich buns being toasted, beef and pork under the heat lamp waiting to be sliced and warming area for other meats, along with the ubiquitous plastic and divided plates next to the stack of cafeteria trays.Probably the most fascinating aspect of this old style eatery is the condiment bar, which you can use to fulfill your most craveable personalizations.The interior is neat, clean, simply decorated with a small area of memorabilia above the refrigerated cream pie selection. (See the menu on the wall above to the right?)Our simple meal consisted of the specials noted on the white board as we walked in; one as a meal with two sides (bbq'd/smokey tasty baked beans and coleslaw)(both excellent) ($8.49) as well the sandwich with a bowl of the daily made pea soup (made with leftover ham, which is always great here)($5.49) and a slice of coconut cream pie (99¢).

The pulled pork/chopped beef is mixed with the house made sauce, which is a bit sweet with some tang and has clove as part of the multiple spices. To balance the flavor to my preference, I utilize the condiment bar and put pickles and onions on the sandwich. About halfway through, I also add slaw to the sandwich so the second half is a bit different flavored than the first.

All in all, another comforting meal.

The Barbeque Pit 2388 Fletcher Parkway El Cajon 92020 (619) 462-5434 Open M-Sat 10:30a.m.-9 p.m. Website

Pieology (customized Pizza)

October 2, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Pizza, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for dropping by to read the blog, mmm-yoso!!! Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are both busy picking things up while Cathy is holding down the fort.

There seems to have been an inordinate amount of 'customized pizza' places popping up around Southern California within the past twelve months. I've only posted about one such business but have been to many iterations and here's a post about another using a similar business model. Perhaps you are wondering about the first San Diego location of 85C- it's on the far right of the above photo, right next door to Pieology on Balboa at Genessee.Neat, clean, industrial looking with the current decorating trend of communal tables in the center of the seating area, the drill is the same: order, watch your pies being customized while following them along the line…Watch your personalized dough being placed into a wood fired oven…Choose a beverage or salad and pay, have a seat and your order will be brought out to you. This is a large salad ($7.95) with chicken, Gorgonzola, local organic greens, candied walnuts and dried cranberries. It's very fresh and very good. These are the "herb butter strips" ($2.95)…the fresh dough topped with butter and olive oil and fresh herbs, baked just right-almost crispy yet still chewy. Unfortunately for you reading this (and all of these pop up 'customized' pizza places), The Mister and I are traditionalists and pretty much don't 'customize' and instead order basic items from the menu, in the case of Pieology, it's an order from the "Pizza Lab". Above, the Number 1: Classic cheese pie ($6). Olive oil, Mozzarella and red sauce. Quite nice, with a tasty crust, balance of flavors and simplicity that is difficult to properly achieve.Another day we ordered the Pizza Lab Number 2 item ($7.95): a pepperoni, sausage, meatball, Mozzarella, olive oil and red sauce pie…but (here's the where we went all crazy part) we also asked for mushrooms. This pie was excellent. There is no additional charge; most customized pies are $7.95; know that multiple items are distributed modestly which helps the pie crust bake in three minutes or less.

All in all, three very nice meals here. An interesting concept. We've now been to seven similar concept places and are thinking the $8 price point leads to a good ROI for each business. Other blogging viewpoints of Pieology: Here, here and here. Here too.

Pieology 5575 Balboa Avenue Suite 310 San Diego 92111 (858) 565-0600 (there two other San Diego locations) Website

COMC: Revisits to Golden City and Carnitas Snack Shack

September 25, 2014 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Chinese Restaurants

What the heck? What’s the tie in with these two places? Well, read on and I think you’ll see. Mostly photos in this one….I’ve posted on these places before. So let’s C(lear) O(ut) the M(emory) C(ard) shall we?

Golden City for the billionth time:

**** Golden City has closed

I actually hadn’t been back to Golden City in a while. But after reading Lynn’s post, even though she ordered things that I would never have at Golden City. I thought it was time for a revisit and yet another post to see if they have gone severely downhill. I had thoughts of picking up on my Golden City Hot Pot project, but man, it’s been so hot. Anyway, the photos kind of speak for themselves.

My favorite – the Kwai Fei Ji. Also a favorite of Dennis.

Steamed Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetable.

Macau Roast Pork……on one visit, with my buddy Candice, it was too salty. On this visit, with my coworkers YZ and Lily, it was quite good…..

YZ, from Shanghai and Lily from Shanxi (“I’m from Taiyuan, not Taiwan, ok”) really know the questions to ask whenever we eat Chinese food…. where are the owners from and what is the style of food. I think of Golden City as basically a Guangdong (Cantonese to you) style restaurant that pulls ever so slightly toward Chaozhou (Eastern Guangdong), though many of the dishes that reflect that are no longer on the menu .

Like the Beef Stew (actually a braise) with Radish. I’ve had it when it was quite good. On this day, it wasn’t quite ready for prime time; the beef was nice, tender, moist, yet not falling to pieces, but the daikon was still too hard.

The food can sometimes be uneven. The Fish in Black Bean Sauce had me asking where the fish was during a lunch with Reza.

The textures and flavors were right, but the ratio of onions to everything else was off.

The dishes we order occaisionally draw stares from the gringo ordering customers, as I’ve mentioned before, I really don’t think ordering dishes from the Easternmost Regional Chinese Cuisine….. that would be ABCD (“American Born Chinese Dining”), is what they do best here. And I think folks like CAB, Dennis, and even Kirbie would agree. Nothing fancy, but decent grub.

Golden City Restaurant
5375 Kearny Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

Carnitas Snack Shack:

**** This location of Carnitas’ Snack Shack has closed

The Missus had been fighting a cold during the super hot week we had recently. She doesn’t handle being sick very well. And the heat just made things that much worse. So, while on the road to recovery, the Missus told me She wanted to visit one of Her current favorite places, basically for this.

It didn’t look quite right, but the flavor, the sweet-porkiness was still right on. And the Missus just basically inhaled the thing.

Carnitas now has a second location in Del Mar, which Kirbie, Jinxi, and Faye have posted on…man, it’s Food Blogger Central! I was wondering if there was going to be a drop off at the original location, but no, things were good as ever. It’s really nice that things have really been fine tuned since my first visit back in 2011.

Carnitas’ Snack Shack
2632 University Avenue
San Diego, CA 92104

So how’s this for a pork-a-licious COMC post?

D.Z. Akins – lunch (revisit)

September 23, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Salads, Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping by to read mmm-yoso!!! Cathy is writing a short post today, while Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are not writing and perhaps enjoying some cooler weather or something…

I wrote about D.Z. Akins in 2009 and had more or less forgotten about it until the other day until The Mister said he wanted a 'really good Reuben' as one of his birthday meals. This East County institution (since 1980) has been a regular place to get a quick breakfast and cup of coffee as well as some sort of sandwich to share on busy days.The restaurant has expanded five times since 1980 and the quality and home cooked flavors have never changed. This is consistent comfort food. The interior has murals and autographed photos on all the wall space
There is sweet hot mustard, catsup and salt and pepper on each table and in addition, there is a crock with half sour pickles on each table.This is The Mister's Reuben ($13.95), with pastrami (you can have corned beef or smoked turkey as meat choices…but why?) with his chosen side of potato salad (other choices are fries, slaw, macaroni salad, three bean salad or fresh fruit). The kraut, grilled fresh rye, quality (and quantity) of the meat is exceptional. Swiss cheese was included as part of this sandwich. Yes, there were leftovers.
Looking at the extensive (six page, large and detailed) menu, I spotted what would satisfy a craving – the chopped liver platter (small, $10.95). This is the small platter because there is 'only' one (very large, overflowing-see the carrots stuck into the excess of a scoop size?) scoop of chopped liver salad and 'only' three slices of fresh rye bread. Of course the gigantic scoop of cole slaw and all of those fresh vegetables completed the small feast I got eat there then take home to enjoy later that afternoon. (The 'large' platters of any of the salads (egg, tuna, whitefish, chicken as well as liver) are $5 more, have another (large) scoop of whatever salad, more bread, more vegetables and easily is a meal for two). The chopped liver salad is made of chicken liver, made fresh daily and *so* very good.

Hope your week is going well.

D.Z.Akins 6930 Alvarado Road San Diego 92120 (619)265-0218 Open at 7 a.m. daily website

2015 Rose Parade float road test #4 and breakfast at Connal’s Burgers, Salads and Subs (Pasadena)

September 22, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Bakery, Breakfast/Brunch, Festivals & Events, Los Angeles County, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for dropping by the mmm-yoso!!! food blog. It's Cathy writing today's post. Kirk and Ed (from Yuma) are busy with other things.

An overcast morning in September. How wonderful it was to wake up at 4 a.m. with a chilly temperature of 63 and for it to remain that way for the two hour drive (beginning at 5 a.m.) North. Mechanical and maneuverabilty testing on four more floats that will participate in the 126th Tournament of Roses parade was happening at Phoenix Decorating Company in Pasadena.The Trader Joe's four part entry was the most interesting. The front piece (wheelbarrow with a pumpkin and watering can) is separately driven by a Honda motorcycle and the other attached pieces, depicting a raised bed garden pulling a watermelon and vine with a blossom and blossoming gourd, with the title of "Bedtime Stories", in synchronicity with the parade theme of "Inspiring Stories" is detailed, has spinning, rocking and water spraying parts and will certainly win some sort of trophy for creativity.The details of the City of Los Angeles float, "What's your L.A. Story?" are emerging."Made Possible by Hope" is the City of Hope entry. The Princess Cruises float, still in its rebar phase looks like a cruise ship depicting sights around the world. Titled "50 years of Inspiring Travel", it will be interesting to see the finished design. The original crew of the TV show "The Love Boat" will be riding on this float!

After that bit of fun, we were again hungry (we, of course had stopped at Cream Pan right around 6:15) selecting 'only' a creamy orange brioche and (of course) ham and cheese croissant, to eat in the car with a Starbucks coffee…
One thing The Mister and I are known for is not making plans. We left the road testing and started zig-zagging the streets, heading more or less North and East. Soon, we saw the above signage (there is a complete arrow, which is really great, classic signage that you can see on any of the links to the restaurant) and decided to stop.There is an ordering window at the street as well as a small inside seating area where you can also order. We saw many people from the neighborhood walking in to pick up phoned in orders and a few people driving and picking up meals.You can see an upside down outline of the arrow on the rug in the below photo. It turns out Connal's has been here since 1958…yet we had never heard of it. It is on Washington Street which has many old classic architecture buildings, including both Longfellow and Daniel Webster Elementary Schools.(I can imagine the rivalry).Since I seem to order the same breakfast 90% of the time, things would be no different here. An egg sandwich with bacon on rye toast ($4.59) was my (wonderful, tasty, filling) choice. Because this was one of The Mister's 'birthday days' when he gets to choose the place as well as the food, (we have birthdays seven days apart, which are really eight days of celebrating) (go ahead, use your fingers- if His birthday was Thursday, then mine would be the following Thursday – that means eight days we have to celebrate, but there are only seven dates using math) He ordered the rib eye steak and eggs breakfast ($7.49). The seasoned strip steak was tender and grilled; three eggs over easy; hash browns; sourdough toast…each prepared perfectly and remiinded us of Saturdays in college, when we'd splurge on steak and three egg omelets for breakfast at the counter at a long gone greasy spoon. Good times.

Connal's Sandwiches 1505 East Washington Pasadena, CA 91104 (626)794-5018 Website (the menu website links have old prices, the wall prices in the photo above are 'to go' prices, it's about 50¢ less per item when you eat in).

Nordstrom Cafe-Lunch and Snacks

September 21, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! a blog about food. Sometimes interesting food, interesting places and sometimes the comfort of repetition. Today, Cathy is writing while Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are relaxing, or something.

For the past few weeks, The Mister and I have had one criteria for food. Wherever we go, it must be air conditioned…and have covered parking. More than once, we have stopped at Mission Fashion Valley mall. For those of you non-San Diegans, here's a glimpse of the temperature around 1:30 last Tuesday… similar to this 2007 day (and coincidental visit to Nordstrom Cafe).Nordstrom is a higher-end retail/fashion store which has an in-store cafe, like quite a few other establishments (linked in the second paragraph of that post).More or less cafeteria style, where you order and wait for your food to be assembled (or order, pay and your food is brought out to the table). There is a very attentive wait staff who will refill your beverages for you, even if only water.The go-to item for me here is the Roma tomato basil soup (cup, $3.95, bowl $4.95). I have been known to stop in here during the cold of 'winter' for a bowl of this amazing soup. As you can see, I order in each size, depending on other ordered items (and level of air conditioning inside the store). Tomato soup is always available and there is also a varying soup du jour.The accompaniment to the Roma tomato basil soup is a cheese topped 'crouton' as the staff calls it. Crack is what I call it.Salads we've enjoyed in the past few weeks: Nicoise with salmon ($13.50). The roasted salmon is coated with Dijon and fresh herbs; other items on the salad include green beans, kalamata olives, potato, egg and capers. The second salad is grilled shrimp and arugula with sweet corn ($11.95) which is wonderful and includes grilled polenta croutons. The bottom salad is chicken, apple and goat cheese ($10.75) and even though not in the photograph, has a lot of chicken breast under the plethora of ingredients including fresh apple slices as well as dried apple chips and spiced almonds.There is a wide variety of desserts to choose from, but we have defaulted to the creme brûlée ($5.25) twice. When you are seated, your waiter/ess asks if you would like the brulee now, or a bit later…and so the sugar top is freshly torched and the burnt cream is brought out with a warm and crispy top. You can see in the bottom photo that the cream part is flavored using real vanilla beans…

I hope everyone has been able to keep cool and is looking forward to some 'normal' weather. Hope you had a cool(er) weekend.

Nordstrom, 117 locations around the world. Restaurant information

The Packing House, in the Packing District. A food centric road trip to Anaheim.

September 9, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Chocolate, Orange County, Road Trip, Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, a blog about food. Kirk and Ed (from Yuma) are trying to stay cool. Cathy and The Mister went on a quick road trip North, stayed cool in the air conditioned vehicle and is sharing her one hour drive each way, just for lunch.

In an effort to run away from the stifling heat in our non-air conditioned home, The Mister and I jumped in the car one weekday morning and drove to see a place we had read about in the LA Times. The description reminded us of 'Food Halls' we each grew up with. We arrived around 10:30 a.m.See it? In the back, between the "P" and the "A". The Anaheim Citrus Packing House was rescued from demolition in 2000 and fully restored, opening to the public on May 31 this year. The two acre area just North of it, "Farmers Park", is used for a Farmers Market on Sundays, has an amphiteater and seating, a bocce ball court, public ping pong table and hosted outdoor film festivals this summer and will host other community events (a Fall Festival and Parade, Oktoberfest and a German Christmas Market) later this year. The rest of the 'Packing District' spreads over another five or so blocks, with various shops, stand alone restaurants, a small Food Court area and even a former library turned museum. There is public art, marked on the sidewalks within the District as part of Anaheim Artwalk, all 'Downtown' Anaheim, with City Hall in the midst. The entrance on the East side of the building. If you go in through the doors you see under the signage seen in the background of the second photo, The dual rooster greeters are on the inside on the second floor. Speaking of the inside…
This open central/atrium area, giving views of the first and second floors is just so beautiful. You'll notice so many different seating areas, some for each restaurant and many, like a Food Court, out in the open. The individual tabletops (along the railing) each with an accompanying stool, have a hook on the back/center area to hang your purse or other bags. Notice that seating area at the bottom? Under the Pendelton Wool pads, the whole seat area moves; it is part of the original scale used in the plant. There's a seating area surrounded by history- orange crate labels, photos of the original Packing Plant, the scissors used to cut the opening ribbon… Places to eat and drink here? There are quite a few. Overwhelming choices, as noted by each porcelain tile…

Adult beverages, behind that Gourmet Grilled Cheese, Fancy Frozens on a Stick, Coffee… Crepes, a 'comfort food' establishment that makes a variety of poutines as well as cheese curds, Southern Soul foods, even bulk foods, spices and seasonings (at good prices). There is a juice place, Indian, Japanese and Vietnamese, hot pot, another beer-centric place and a couple of not yet opened storefronts. Pick a craving; you can find a solution here or within a few blocks.

Then there was what we (finally) decided to order.
Chippy's opened when the menu appeared on the screens. The items were properly fried, crispy and not overly greasy and the fish was a very large, moist piece. The squid rings were just OK; not bad, but not great. The onion rings were heavenly. The Chippy Fish and Chips The menu at Wheat & Sons was being written and would soon be open. We knew what we wanted. The Porchetta sandwich, still warm, served on a grilled ciabatta roll with a sort of pesto-esque/herby sauce, rocket greens, pickled radishes. Plenty of fresh garlic -no rosemary- infused pork, as you can see from the cross section. We also indulged in less than a half pound of fresh rillettes. If you can only choose one place for a meal, this is where I'd choose. Wheat and Sons butcher shop
When we walked in, the first proprietor to speak to us was this nice young man who was chipping chocolate before his store opened. That's the whole menu. We ordered a small affogato with vanilla ice cream, regular chocolate sauce and the additional chantilly cream with chocolate shavings. This was THE best, ever. I don't care for chocolate and this was magical to me. Turns out the chocolate sauce is made from…chocolate, not cocoa, as other places use. Dark 180, another 'if you only can order only from one' place.

We will return. It was a fun adventure.

The Packing House in the Anaheim Packing District 440 S. Anaheim Blvd, Anaheim, CA Website

The Dragon Room at Wongs Golden Palace (La Mesa) lunches

September 2, 2014 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Beer, Pubs and Pub Grub, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a simple blog, with each post eventually concentrating on food consumed. Today, Cathy is showing what was consumed and where it was prepared. Kirk is way busy at work and Ed(from Yuma) is doing his own consuming out there.

In 2009, I wrote about Wongs Golden Palace, then a 42 year La Mesa icon. I mentioned our favorite food selection, chicken liver chow mein and had a few photos of the ever so classic faux marble with gold vein tabletops.

Near the end of that now five year old post, I mentioned the bar area and their 'specials', telling you I just can't take photos in the darkened area. Five years later, the photos are still coming out dark. Be forewarned. The food is great, so I am sharing.

The now 47 year La Mesa restaurant and attached bar, the Dragon Room, (there, to the far right) has a classic exterior (as well as interior) design, from the signage to the facade.Once inside, there are four televisions above the bar, lots of signage about specials and a large selection of beer, and liquor…(the pint beer on tap is $3.75).There's a modern juke box, foosball, pinball and of course, a pool table.Here are the best photos I can acquire of the 1/2 lb angus burger. As you can (sort of) see, it is served on a toasted bun (sesame seeded), hand formed, can be ordered with cheese, comes with crinkle cut fries or battered whole onion rings or half and half. $5.50, available only Monday-Friday from 11:30-2:30. It's really good. Taco Tuesdays are particularly good, if you like tacos like Mom used to make, with ground meat and packaged seasoning. The shells can be soft or fresh-fried (my favorite) and the toppings are fresh and plentiful. Three for $3.25 is a usual order; the five for $4.75 is a great deal, and way too much for the two of us to share. The Fish Fry Friday ($7.50) Plate is a particularly good, large, filling meal. On this day, we received eight smaller batter fried (perfectly fried I might add) pieces of a solid white fish, along with a lot of crinkle cut fries, cole slaw and similarly sized bowl of tartar sauce. Excellent. This plus the 1/2 lb angus burger make a very filling meal.

On every day except Tuesday, you can order from the Wongs menu and have it brought over from the kitchen (Wongs Golden Dragon is closed for lunch on Tuesday). I did not photograph the WingsWednesday nor the weekend menu items (Steak and eggs for $8 Saturday from 9-noon is a deal; the pork chop and chicken fried steak and eggs meals, $7 each are also really good diner-type meals). Hopefully, I'll post about those before the 50th anniversary.

Again, apologies for the dark photography. We come here to eat and don't want to interfere with other patrons.

Wongs Dragon Room 7126 University Avenue La Mesa, CA 91942 (619)464-9772