Category: Chinese BBQ

Tom’s Chinese BBQ

Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants

When we first moved to San Diego…….almost eight years ago today, we'd drop by Tom's BBQ for some roast duck every so often. Back then it was pretty darn good, excellent skin, nice balanced five-spice flavor, fairly tender meat. But over the next year or two, the place seemed to go South….the same folks, in the same looking shop, but the roast duck became rubbery, bland, and the roast pork was even worse. Over time, Tom's became a bit of an afterthought for us…..once when the Missus went to Panchita's Bakery next door, I remember telling Her, "it's been a real long time since we've been to Tom's, maybe we should see if the roast duck has regained form." Only to forget about that a few hours later. So……I guess a revisit to Tom's BBQ was way overdue.

TomsBBQ01 

TomsBBQ02 Time hasn't been real good to ol' Tom, the interior, never the picture of spic n' span cleaniless, seemed coated with the residue of a thousand ducks, which is not necessarily a bad thing. The place is starting to look a bit worse for wear.

The prices at Tom's have always been good, and are still on the inexpensive side….except for the roast duck which now costs $18.50. A half duck goes for $9.50, the most expensive of all the take-out Chinese BBQ places in San Diego!

TomsBBQ03a 

So of course I got a half roast duck:

TomsBBQ04 

TomsBBQ05 The duck looked nice and juicy, and this version did not have "jus" poured all over it. Actually, this duck could have perhaps used some of the drippings, as it was fairly bland. The skin was flaccid and tough, as was the meat. In my opinion Cam Ky down the street is a better choice.

I also ordered a half pound of Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork – $3.50):

TomsBBQ06 

Having never tried the Char Siu, I quickly noticed that Tom's uses a minimal amount of red food coloring. The meat is very lean, and looks dry, but was better than I thought. It could be more moist, somewhat lacking in the umami and sweetness, but this was not bad.

The roast pork on the other hand (1/2 ln $4):

TomsBBQ07 

Was very dry, and bereft of flavor. The skin was hard, and not very good. Guess, what Da' Boyz had for dinner with their rice???

TomsBBQ03 I can't help but wonder what happened to Tom's? I guess my next move is a revisit to Cam Ky, and perhaps another roast duck from Golden City(though technically not a Chinese BBQ joint). In the end, I can't help but wonder if perhaps I'm tilting at "roast duck windmills" in a Quixote-like quest for good roast duck in San Diego? Or maybe I should set my standards lower? Not very likely though……..

Tom's Chinese BBQ
4414 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105

Sieu Sieu BBQ(-Q) and Coco’s (for pie: 2) too!

Chinese BBQ, What Cathy Eats!

Welcome back to the blog named mmm-yoso!!!  Today, Kirk is almost back from His vacation.  ed (from Yuma) is working . Cathy is blogging about another meal.

A good friend, Mr. C,  asked me if I wanted to go for lunch.  I was ready, since I am always hungry.  He suggested Sieu Sieu and I was there at 11:30, on the dot.  He wasn't.  003

Kirk has blogged  about this place and Mr. C has been here a lot, and I took both of their suggestions in mind when I ordered.

006

By ordering the Sieu Sieu chow mein, not crispy. (Something  neither of them had recommended)

Noodles, bean sprouts, onion, shrimp, chicken, beef, BBQ pork.  Plenty of food on this plate. I am unsure what is the difference between 'Sieu Sieu' and the 'combination' chow mein.

Good food.  Lots of noodles.  Not too spicy, but a good flavor to everything. There were leftovers for Mr. C to enjoy at work this evening. 

007

The very large bowl of beef stew/soup with tendon, egg noodles, dumplings, broccoli and onion.

Very very very good, flavorful.  The soft gelatinous tendon was a wonderful treat.  The beef was very flavorful and tender.  The egg noodles were perfect. Lots of noodles.

004

My token photo of tabletop condiments. 008

Along with a blurry cross section photo of one of the dumplings.  Filled with ground pork.  Very very good.

005

Oh yes.  Our appetizer.  One pound of roast pork.

Oh the (just right)crispy skin and tender, flavorful meat.  It was wonderful.   There was a good amount of pickled cabbage on the side.

Even though we did not finish all of our food, Mr. C said he wanted pie for dessert.  

Coc0's is across the street.  We walked over.

009

Mr. C chose the banana cream pie, a bit flat in appearance, but excellent in flavor of the filling and the crust was light and flaky. 

010

I chose the  "pie of the month" for May: lemon meringue. Excellent meringue, excellent crust, tart, lemony filling.

We each had coffee.   Then Mr. C went  to work, with the leftover chow mein.

Excellent lunch.  Thanks, Mr. C (and Kirk) for letting me know about Sieu Sieu.  

Sieu Sieu BBQ 7420 Clairmont Mesa Blvd. San Diego 92111  

Not Duckin’ the Subject: A Roast Duck Comparison – Sam Woo times 2, Jasmine Express, and Yum Cha Cafe

Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

I don't know how many times I've been asked for a recommendation for the "best take-out roast duck in San Diego." And boy do I hemm and haw, and when I finally do make a recommendation, I preface everything with so much "fine print" that it ends  up reading, or sounding like one of those automobile adds. The reason that I've become rather gun shy with regards to roast duck, Chinese BBQ, and even Dim Sum recommendations in San Diego, is that, well, if anything, these offerings have proven to be consistently…..inconsistent. Which is why a place like Yum Cha Cafe may do rather well here. If it's going to be inconsistent, it might as well be cheap…..….

If I'm going to do  roast duck comparison, I might as well have a baseline. So I think this place is as good as any:

SamWooAlh01 

Yes, it is Sam Woo, but no it is not in San Diego. This location of Sam Woo Barbecue is in Alhambra, and in my opinion has one of the better, most consistent take-out Roast Duck in SoCal. Yes, there are several Sam Woo's, Irvine, San Gabriel, and the City of Industry/Rowland Heights location was fairly close to where we lived. But not all Sam Woo's are created equal. This older location has always been good.

SamWooAlh02 

But oh my have the prices gone up over the years. Half a duck here is $9.25!!! More expensive than anywhere in San Diego.

SamWooAlh03 

What makes the duck here so good? First, the skin is not overly tough. Second, the duck is neither too meaty and dry, nor just skin and bones and tough. Saltiness does not overwhelm the duck, even though "jus" is ladled over the duck. And it is not greasy in the least.

SamWooAlh04 

The Missus's typical response after the first bite is always, "what's the big deal….." But She'll always go back for more. The flavoring is subtle, with a very mild-sweet finish.

Sam Woo Barbeque
514 W Valley Boulevard
Alhambra, CA 91803

Sam Woo San Diego:

Compare this with Sam Woo(aka "Sam Woo the Killer Whale")  in San Diego. Surprisngly, a half roast duck here in San Diego is cheaper than in Alhambra ($7.50). I had made up my mind to never get roast duck from here a while ago; but this place gets Ed from Yuma's  stamp of approval, so I decided to give it another go. 

SamWooSD01 

The duck has a tendency to be bony and tough. The skin is hard, and the "jus" is really salty. I don't mind the rather brusque service, but there a real disregard for the customers here. It wasn't always that way, but I've noticed it getting worse every year. Take for example the simple take-out container housing the duck:

SamWooSD02 

It was covered in a variety of Chinese BBQ sticky-oily drippings and hand prints…I made out a thumbprint on one side of the container, that belongs in one of those CSI shows,  but the photo didn't come out. If this happened to some little ol' Chinese lady in Alhambra or San Gabriel, that duck neck would have ended up shoved up…..well you get the picture.

Sam Woo BBQ Restaurant
7330 Clairemont Mesa Blvd Ste 103
San Diego, CA 92111

Jasmine Express:

Is the place I usually recommend in San Diego, thoughitiswithafewreservationssinceI'vegottensomeprettylousyduckfromhereattimes. Jasmine's little take-out stall roast duck (which does not resemble the duck served in the restaurant) was surprisingly even cheaper than Sam Woo's ($7.25 – half duck).

JasExpress02 

You can just see the inconsistency of the roast duck, if you compare this rather good roast duck I purchased in November of last year.

JasExpress03 

Even though the chopping technique was on the sloppy side, the flavors were pretty good.

Compared to the duck I purchased for this post a few weeks back.

JasExpress04 

This one was a bit on the greasy side, and tasted rather bland. The duck served at Jasmine is usually more meaty than the version at Sam Woo SD.

JasExpress05 

Jasmine Express
4609 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Yum Cha Cafe:

**** Yum Cah Cafe has closed

Just for giggles, I thought I'd grab a half duck from the new Yum Cha Cafe, which turned out to be the most expensive of the three San Diego Roast Ducks ($8.25)!

YumChaRD01 

The skin was tough, the meat on the dry side, and the rich duck flavor was lacking.

YumChaRD02 

You may be better off having something else.

YumChaRD03 

Yum Cha Cafe
6933 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111JasExpress01

So there you go. Holding my feet to the fire, I'd usually recommend the roast duck from Jasmine Express, or even take-out from Golden City, but those recommendations are not without reservations. Since I've been doing this food blogging thing, I've posted on a bunch of places that do Chinese BBQ, but there's one place missing from my list. That place is Tom's Chinese BBQ on University. When we first moved to San Diego back in 2001, the roast duck was pretty good. But the quality and flavor got worse and worse, until it just wasn't worth the effort….so maybe, just maybe, one day soon after I recover……..