Category: Chinese Restaurants

Midweek Meanderings -China Quick Wok Becoming Fujiyame (Sp?) Ramen, Mikiya Replacing Shancheng Lameizi, and is Poppy Boba Closed?

Chinese Restaurants, Desserts, Japanese Restaurants, Ramen

Here’s a bunch of “stuffs” I noticed while driving around the last couple of weeks

China Quick Wok Becoming Fujiyame:

Driving thru Liberty Park Plaza, on the corner of Mt Etna and Genesee, I noticed some new signage on the long standing China Quick Wok, so I drove on over.

And yep; it looks like the shop is becoming something called Fujiyame – hmmm….not Fujiyama Ramen? Whoa, China Quick Wok has been here forever, I recall the last set of owners taking over in 2011?

4310 Genesee Ave.
San Diego, CA 92117

Mikiya Replacing Shancheng Lameizi:

This one was quite easy to see while driving down Convoy.

Shancheng Lameizi replaced Thai House in early 2022 if I’m not mistaken. Man, they didn’t last very long. Well, one chain is being replaced by another as Mikiya Wagyu Shabu House is moving in. I know they have locations in LA and also recall seeing one of their restaurants in HNL on Kapiolani. I know folks that really like the place. So, looks like Shabu Shabu replacing Hot Pot here?

4225 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Is Poppy Boba Closed?:

Taking the quick way home from Nijiya I passed by Poppy Boba Kitchen and noticed that the sign was gone. It was just after 11am, when they would usually be open.

It seems like they were closed? I believe they just opened like 7 months ago?

So, I did a quick search and Google and the four-lettered spot said Temporarily Closed? But why is the sign gone. And there was also this note.

Hmmm……temporarily closed for like 9-10 months? Perhaps someone is going to give birth perhaps?

It’s just kinda strange to have the sign gone though….

3538 Ashford St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Hope everyone is having a great week!

Dao Xiang Noodle

Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants, Niu Rou Mian

**** Dao Xiang has closed and is now Spicy Duck Wang La Ya

Remember, I noticed back at the end of May that Dao Xiang Noodle was replacing Mama Lin’s in the Balboa 99 Ranch Market food court? Well, I noticed that the stand opened at 10am and waited a couple of weeks before checking them out.

I arrived at around 1015 and it looked like they were just getting set for the day. The menu was kind of “interesting”….

As were some of the “customers” milling around in the area at that time of the day.

I know I joked about Mama Lin’s selling everything from Corn Dogs to Ramen to Spam Musubi, which they spelled “Misubi”….and this menu actually did have Spam Musubi (would you believe the menu says $5 for a Spam Musubi?!?!?!) on it; at least the focus seemed on noodle, fried rice, and dumplings.

Now, thinking in terms of Dao Xiao Mian…..basically knife cut noodles; well you know I was going to order that, right? In the end, I decided on the Niu Rou Mian (Small – $12.50) and because I’m always interested in Jiaozi; I also ordered the Pork and Cabbage Dumplings ($12.50).

The Niu Rou Mian was ok. The soup was too watery, lacking in beefiness, lots of white pepper and saltiness, but quite thin. The beef was quite chewy and lacking in flavor as well. The tendon was really crunchy chunks….not done to the buttery texture I prefer.

The saving grace of this bowl were the noodles; super bouncy, great texture, the definition of “QQ”.

As for the Jiaozi.

The wrappers were really thick and chewy. The filling was decently flavored, could have used more of the fragrant tones…sesame oil, ginger. Really coarse chop of the pork and napa cabbage making it also lean on the “chewy” side.

Overall, except for the knife cut noodles, fairly mediocre. Still, I wanted to do another visit. When I went for that visit, the place was strangely closed at past noon? This was when I ended up going to Potato Powder Love Noodle.

I had some shopping to be done the following weekend and when I peeked over at the food court Dao Xiang was open.

This time the Lu Rou Fan – Braised Pork Rice ($15.49) drew me in. Of course I’m still wishing for the Lu Rou Fan at Jin Feng in Taipei.

This was actually not bad. The rice was a bit on the hard side. Though the soy sauce eggs were nicely marinated, still warm, the yolks lovely.

The pork was on the chewy side, lacked the hint of anise-mild sweetness and of course the porkiness. Still, this was not terrible.

But not something I’d return for.

Still, I did return one more time. Because I saw this sign.

So, it looks like they make XLB….but it was only on weekends. Since I had shopping to do the follwoing weekend; I decided to try out the XLB ($13.99). I ordered it from the really nice guy working the counter. And since I was here; why not try the Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings ($12.49)

The guy actually delivered my XLB to the table….and it looked really strange.

Good lord, this was more of a Baozi, with yeast raised dough! The filling was strange as it was braised pork….very tender, but obviously no porky soup.

Kinda mild in flavor but very tender. I looked at the menu on my way out and noticed they have a “Traditional” Braised Pork XLB, but it’s $14.99 and I was charged $13.99? So maybe the kitchen made a mistake? I really don’t consider any of this as traditional at all. It should be on the menu as a steamed baozi.

The Wings were “Salt & Pepper” in name only. As it was more soy sauce focused.

A bit too wet for my liking as the crispness faded quickly. The flesh very moist, the flavor fine, with a decent mildly sweet-savory tone.

Though like the XLB, not quite what I expected for Salt & Pepper Wings.

The visits were interesting. I’d return for those noodles for something else other than the NRM. With places like Me Sen at the Clairemont 99 Ranch location and Potato Powder Love Noodle opening here next to Dao Xiang, it seems we’re getting some interesting new places. Which I think is a good thing!

You can read about Soo’s visit to Dao Xiang here.

Dao Xiang Noodle
5950 Balboa Ave (Inside 99 Ranch Market)
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 10am – 8pm

Chicken Wing Wednesday – Wei Wei Asian Express

Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants

One of the things I’ve always loved about having this little ‘ole blog for all these years are…well you all! It’s the comments; the great emails, and of course, the recommendations! Admittedly, I’m sometimes a bit slow on the trigger, but I do try to keep track of things via and ever busy Google Map. Recently, I was craving Salt and Pepper Chicken wings. Of course, the usual suspects came to mind.

But then, I recalled some recommendations that I’d gotten years ago from two very dependable “FOYs”; Bruddah’s James and Jack for Wei Wei Express. So, instead of heading down to National City, I was off to Rolando and finding Wei Wei Express in a strip mall (of course), right off University.

I had arrived right at 11am and the place; which screamed “ABCDE” (American Born Chinese Dining Establishment) was already looking pretty busy. There were four cooking stations going full blast.

The set-up is interesting as half of the restaurant seemed like a pick-up. storage area with just a couple of tables. Those boxes on the counter were for trays of food being prepared.

While the “nicer” (it’s all relative) tables were on the other side.

You can tell how much stuff comes out of here by taking a gander at the ceiling….

Anyway, the prices are quite reasonable. Figuring I needed some veggies to go with my wings; I ordered the Saut̩ed String Bean Рthe lunch special, which came with Fried Rice and a Veggie Egg Roll was just $8.45, a bargain these days.

It was simple fried rice…with just soy sauce, decently coated. The Veggie Egg Roll was terrible, chewy, no flavor.

The green beans were adequately fried, still had a nice crunch and snap, but a bit under seasoned, in need of more white pepper, salt, and garlic.

That lack of salt and garlic on the beans made me worry a bit about my Salt and Pepper Wings – 6 pieces, $9.49, but I shouldn’t have worried.

The wings were crunchy, though starting to get a bit soft after the 20 minute drive home. The seasoning was quite good…..Wei Wei does not use MSG….which I kind of liked as the wings had a decent amount of sodium. Very nicely flavored.

The flesh was moist with just the right amount of toothsomeness. No dark patches, no off flavors.

I enjoyed scooping up the chilies-green onions as it it added another layer of flavor. Of course, I preferred the wings to the drumettes.

So, I guess I really don’t need to head on down to National City or Chula Vista for my S&P Wings anymore? I was pleasantly surprised!

This also made me wonder about the local ABCDE restaurant fairly close by; which I haven’t been to since we first moved here over 20 years ago! Hmmm…….I need to be less of a snob with regards to ABC type places, huh?

And, of course I need to thank “FOYs” James and Jack for recommending this place!

Wei Wei Asian Express
6465 University Ave.
San Diego, CA 92115
Current Hours:
Tues – Sun 11am – 9pm
Closed on Mondays

Diamond Palace Revisited

Chinese Restaurants, Dim Sum

Recently, the Missus was craving some chicken feet. So after going thru some of the options for dim sum…..San Diego just doesn’t seem to cut with regards to dim sum….at least to the Missus and I. In the end, because we thought the shrimp based items were decent we decided to return to Diamond Palace.

We arrived at around 1030 and found the place empty.

Which might be great for other restaurants….but since DP still utilizes carts….well, it could mean many items aren’t available or you’d have to wait until they are.

Luckily, there was only one item we wanted that we had to wait for. And the Missus got Her Chicken Feet.

Which She said was better than what we had here before. Much more savory-soy sauce flavor. She enjoyed gnawing on these.

We saw an item not featured on the regular menu, the Shrimp-Fish Ball with Dried Scallop Sauce.

I’m usually not a fan of fishballs, but the addition of tender-sweet-succulent shrimp, along with the intense sweet-oceany and rich dried scallop potage, this was delici-yoso! The sort of sui mai-ish wrapper was fine and didn’t interfere with the dish. This was our favorite item of the meal.

Speaking of Siu Mai. We got the shrimp version. As with many DS places these days, all the items tend to be on the large side.

Like before; tender, sweet, and savory shrimp. Quite good.

I still think the wrappers on the Shrimp Har Gow are a bit too thick.

The filling was a bit too rubbery and on the dry side; though the “shrimpy” flavors came thru nicely.

The one item we were interested in trying was the Pan Fried Shrimp and Chive Cake. This one we had to order off the menu. These were quite large as well.

The wrapper was a bit too chewy for us. But I really enjoyed the full on “chivey – shrimpness” of the filling. If you like the grassy-pungency of chives along with plump, sweet-savory shrimp, this one is for you.

Overall, an enjoyable dim sum meal. Like I mentioned earlier; we stick with the shrimp based items at Diamond Palace. Though if you find other items we should try; please let me know.

As for the prices……well, even after having the “Har Gow price shock” at China Max, I was still a bit taken aback at current dim sum prices here.

Diamond Palace
3993 54th St.
San Diego, CA 92105
Current Hours:
Mon – Fri 10am – 9pm
Sat – Sun 930am – 9pm

Super Dumpling (Carmel Valley)

Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants, Xiao Long Bao

A few months back, I heard about a new XLB/Jiaozi restaurant opening in Carmel Valley named Super Dumpling. After doing a bit of research; I found that these were the folks who owned Sunny Noodle on Clairemont Mesa, which has since been replaced by Spicy Noodle. This kinda dampened the excitement a bit since I wasn’t overly impressed with my meal there. Though the jiaozi was ok, it was definitely not in the same league as Ju Feng Yuan or Lucious Dumpling (both of which I need to return to) in my opinion. Still, a couple of weeks passed and curiosity got the better of me (doesn’t it always?) and I had some time….even with the “crazy boy” at home to head on over to check the place out.

It was an interesting drive as I really don’t get to this area off the 56 very often. It was actually a pretty quick drive. The restaurant itself is located in a large mall with a good amount of parking available.

It was just past opening time as I entered and the simple, but spacious dining room was empty.

The two folks working were really friendly and I was led to a table. There’s also the very typical dumpling making area near the counter as well.

Of course I ordered the Pork and Cabbage Jiaozi ($12.95) and was wondering about the Popcorn Chicken ($10.95) as well since I find it hard to get a good version of that here in San Diego.

The dumplings arrived in a few minutes. This was actually better than what I’d had at Sunny Noodle; though the wrappers were on the thick and brittle side thus tearing easily.

The filling was on the dry – chewy side of the scale, fairly porky, with hints of sesame oil.

Overall, not bad; though I still prefer what Ju Feng Yuan and Lucious Dumpling serves. It does seem like jiaozi is stepping up here in San Diego. My good friend “YZ” had warned me that when she visited, you could tell the jiaozi were frozen. I’m thinking that the filling might indicate that.

As for the Popcorn Chicken. Well, it was quite a large portion.

More like chicken strips than “popcorn chicken”, the batter was mealy – crunchy and somewhat hard, on the salty side with a strong pepperiness.

Though the meat had nice soy sauce – seasoning tones; the chicken itself was really tough.

Still looking for some good Popcorn Chicken here in SD.

Really nice service and the prices were not bad; so I decided to return.

This time I got the Garlic Fried Chicken Wings (6pc – $12.95). They should have called with “Sodium Bomb” chicken wings….good lord and if the chicken wasn’t salty enough, the wings were topped with even more salt! There was a chili based powder provided as well.

The batter was fairly crunchy and fell apart easily. The flesh was moist, but had so much blackish meat. It was hard getting past how salty this was.

Every so often, I get distracted by those “shiny things”…..I had meant to try the Xiao Long Bao here. And I did get XLBs…but while I should have acted rationally; like I did trying the basic jiaozi, I ended up ordering the “Signature” Xiao Long Bao ($19.95). I haven’t had much luck with these “variety” XLBs; if it be locally at Facing East or even in Taipei at Dian Shui Lou. But still, here I went and ordered it.

Yes, quite colorful. And I took some comfort knowing that all the coloring was “natural”, even the blue on the Chicken and Corn XLB, is supposedly made by red cabbage…..why it’s blue…well, you got me?

And which was the best? Well, obviously what I should have gotten in the first place; the Pork XLB.

It didn’t have a whole lot of soup and the wrappers were on the firm and brittle side; like the jiaozi…I prefer my XLB to have a more “pillowy” wrapper. But the filling was quite porky, with hints of what seemed like ginger.

The Chicken and Corn XLB was also not bad – even though that neon-ish color seemed a bit disturbing.

My least favorite were the Korean BBQ Beef XLB which had no soup and was really tough and the Black Truffle; I really couldn’t make out truffle flavor.

The two crab versions were not bad; but nothing to write home about.

I’m glad I got to check out Super Dumpling. Though now I really need to head back to Ju Feng Yuan and Lucious Dumplings.

Speaking of Ju Feng Yuan; I’m wondering if my two “FOYs” who recommended JFY; SD Julie and RD have checked this place out; and if so, what are your thoughts?

And for another view on Super Dumpling, you can check out Soo’s post as well.

Super Dumpling
3870 Valley Centre Drive #301
San Diego, CA 92130
Current Hours:
Mon – Thurs 11am – 3pm, 5pm – 830pm
Fri – Sun 11am – 3pm, 5pm – 9pm

Fish With You Revisited

Chinese Restaurants

**** Fish With You has changed their name to Yonny Mini Hot Pot, though it seems that the Suancai Fish is still offered

Yep, the Missus wanted to get one more visit in before the weather got too hot for Suan Cai Soup….so here's a quick post, cause it's kinda too hot for me to be sitting in front of the PC right now!

Fish With You has become a favorite of the Missus since they opened back in April. Over time, we've settled on the Signature Suancai & Fish…..

Fish With Circle 01

And just split a large order ($26.95).

Fish With Circle 02

Sour-puckery suan cai, tender snakehead, the peppers aren't overwhelming….but as I noted before, if you've got leftovers to take home; remove those chilies before packing it unless you want a nice "spice bomb" when you heat it up, you'll come across a peppercorn once in a while. It's a fairly hearty dish with that suan-tian-ku-la-xian thing pairs well with rice.

And on this day, they nice young folks that work here gave us some Bingfen ("Ice Jelly") for dessert.

Fish With Circle 03

So refreshing!

With the upcoming hot weather, we'll put Fish With You on the sidelines for a bit….but will make sure to return once things cool off!

Fish With You
3904 Convoy St. #101
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 1130am – 10pm

I'm wondering if you've been able to check this place out and if so; what your thoughts were?

Potato Powder Love Noodle a Soft Opening Visit

Chinese Restaurants

**** Potato Powder Love Noodle has closed. Sad, they didn’t even last a year!

Sometimes things happen for a reason. After doing a bit of shopping at the 99 Ranch on Balboa, I went for a follow-up visit to Dao Xiang Noodle which recently replaced Mama Lin’s in the food court. I’d already done an initial visit, but wanted to do another to follow-up. But strangely, Dao Xiang was closed.

Dao Xiang not opened

Hmmm…..online it says open daily from 10am to 8pm and it was already just past noon?

Oh well, who knows what problem occurred, I’m hoping its not too serious. As I was headed toward the door, I noticed that the interestingly named Potato Powder Love Noodle, which I noted had replaced Shann Xi Magic Kitchen looked like they were open.

Potato Powder 01

Even though some of the signage for Shann Xi is still on the booth!

I walked on over and yes indeed they were open.

Potato Powder 02

Though only a few “main” items were available.

Potato Powder 03b

Now, I knew PPLN had locations in both City of Industry and San Gabriel, so I was definitely interested. So, it looked like I’d be getting myself some “love noodle” today for lunch!

I really wanted something “basic”….so I got the “Classic” ($13.99) “slightly spicy”, with both the potato and knife cut noodles. It’s delivered boiling  hot to you in a stone bowl, so the soup stays scorching hot for your entire meal.

Potato Powder 04 Potato Powder 05 As you can see; the bowls are not large, but it is absolutely packed with noodles.

The broth is savory, edging toward salty, on the thinner side, but it was more than just “slightly spicy”. And frankly, I kind of enjoyed it.

The potato noodles, more like vermicelli was a bit overcooked and a bit too mushy for my taste.

The knife cut noodles were nice, good pull, nice toothsome-doughy feel.

Potato Powder 06b  Potato Powder 07 Didn’t care much for the small “rolls” of tough beef, but the shiitake and king oyster mushrooms really add a nice depth of flavor to the soup.

Also enjoyed the addition of quail eggs and tofu skin. And of course, you need your veggies….so there’s some bok choi as well.

Potato Powder 08

It’s priced right and I’ll definitely visit again.

I know that I usually do multiple visits at places that are within a certain price range and fairly close to home but made an exception this time. First off, while I’ll return, I’m going to wait until the weather turns cooler….I had some sweat dripping down my brow. So, it’ll be a few months before I revisit.

Second, I’m not sure how long this is going to be for, but you get a free drink with your meal…which may be a permanent thing since the SGV shops do that, but all the folks eating received free sausages….fairly good sized sausages today. The nice young lady told me it’s for “grand opening”, so that makes this a bit time-sensitive, and might entice you to visit.

Potato Powder 09

So that you can get your “noodle-love” or “powdery noodle”, or “love noodle”, or ???? on!

Potato Powder 04

Potato Powder Love Noodle
5950 Balboa Ave (In the 99 Ranch Market Food Court)
San Diego, CA 92111

Post #5571 – Back to the Beginning Redux, China Max, Sandwich Emporium, and Bay Park Fish Company

Chinese Restaurants, Dim Sum, Dog Friendly, Seafood

I was going thru my "Big List" page recently and came across an interesting post from back in 2018, where I was asked if I'd hit 5,000 posts yet….well, I wasn't even close at that point! But, I ended up going back to places that were among the first I posted open from back in May of 2005 and did revisits. Well, I quickly checked my current post status and it was now over 5,000….go figure! And those three places from post #3951 were still open…well, one had reopened after a fire with a change of ownership, but I thought it would be fun to just do a couple of revisits and it was easy because two of the places are in my 'hood. And it just so happens that this is post #5571…so here goes.

Post #1 May 26, 2005; China Max:

Of course China Max isn't quite the same place I had enjoyed with the late, great, Ed from Yuma. There was the fire in April of 2020, which shut down China Max. The rebuilding took almost 5 years! At which time the original owners decided to retire and CM was sold to the owners of Taste of Hong Kong. I visited during the soft reopening back in March and was really disappointed as it seems China Max wanted to be DTF "light"…..the meal was a disappointment….they no longer really did Cantonese fare. But heck, it was time for me to check in, right? And thinking about doing this post gave me a reason to return.

China Max Circle 01a

Based on what I'd read about the AYCE dim sum and fluffed up posts on "influencer land", I expected the place to be rather busy when I arrived at opening on a Wednesday. But it was empty; I was the first customer of the day it seems.

China Max Circle 02

While my previous meal had been mediocre; I found the young folks working to be really nice and kind. And on this visit it was no different; really nice folks working.

On this visit, I was not going to order any second rate XLB….I was actually going to try the $8.95 Har Gow and the $8.95 Shu Mai, no matter how much my wallet screamed for mercy.

China Max Circle 03

Of course, one of the items that Ed and I  enjoyed at the original iteration of China Max was the Peking Duck. The only Peking Duck item on the menu was something called "Peking Duck Tacos"…..well, going against my better judgement, I ordered that as well.

China Max Circle 04

First to arrive were the Peking Duck "Tacos", which were basically duck already places in the dan bing…..

China Max Circle 05  China Max Circle 06 This was pretty bad. The dan bing was rubbery…speaking of rubbery, the skin of the duck was not crisp, the fat hadn't been rendered from the duck properly and it had way too much sauce. This is what happens when you can't "do your own thing" with Peking Duck.

Next to arrive were the har gow.

China Max Circle 07 China Max Circle 08  I quickly noticed something about these almost $3 a piece shumai…..do you see it? Well, the wrappers were really too thick, but all of them had "puka pants"….suffering from severe leakage. Decent shrimp – savory – sesame flavors, but because of the holes in the wrapper, the filling was too hard and dry.

Last up; the Shu Mai. I could tell just by looking at it, that in terms of texture it wasn't going to be my cup of tea.

China Max Circle 09    First off, look how these lack uniformity, second, how haphazardly the wrappers are placed. Third, the filling was hard and dry. It was also overly salty. The shape was like someone rolled a meatball and just threw wrappers over it.

To say I was disappointed is an understatement. I was hoping that my visit in March was just a fluke….but, after spending almost $30 (w/o tip) on this…..well, I think I'm done with China Max. Quite sad, because CM was the subject of my first post on this blog over 20 years ago.

China Max
4698 Convoy Street #C101
San Diego, CA 92111

Post #3 May 28, 2005 Sandwich Emporium:

Yes, Sandwich Emporium was my third post way back when. Even though it's just a few blocks from home, I haven't been visiting as much as I used to. As indicated in my last post on SE last year, it seems like things have changed in terms of how SE constructed their sandwiches. Well, I needed to take my car for a wash after a recent road trip and decided to head on over to SE.

S Emporium Circling 01

I walked on in and placed my order.

S Emporium Circling 02

And placed an order for my "usual"; the Spicy Julio ($13.50)….I know after my last visit I said it was time to start ordering something different, but old habits die hard…… 

Anyway, here's my sandwich.

S Emporium Circling 03

It was, unfortunately, a mayo heavy mess, with less pickled jalapenos than it used to have. Kind of a soggy mess, with just a smear of avocado and for some strange reason, the tomatoes were MIA.

S Emporium Circling 04

As a point of reference; here's what it used to look like when I did post #3951.

3951 SE 03

You know, I haven't seen the Twins who own the place since before Covid. At one point in time, SE had expanded to locations in Rancho Penasquitos, Escondido, and Mira Mesa. All of which have closed. I'm wondering if they've lost interest in the place or what as there seems to be a lack of QC here. Kind of a bummer.

Sandwich Emporium
3054 1/2 Clairemont Drive
San Diego, CA

And finally……

Post #5 May 30, 2005 Bay Park Fish Company:

The reason I actually started this post was the sign on Bay Park Fish.

Bay Park Fish Circling 01

Yes, just like our little blog, Bay Park Fish is celebrating 20 years! 

Anyway, since they have a nice little patio, I decided to take JJ for a light lunch.

Bay Park Fish Circling 02

Bay Park Fish Circling 03

As I've mentioned in previous posts, the only thing I order from BPF is the Smoked Fish Stack, which is now $16. Now, the last time I visited BPF was during Covid, so I didn't know what to expect.

To my immense satisfaction, the smoked fish was quite good. And I wasn't able to finish it.

Bay Park Fish Circling 04

This seemed a bit larger than I recalled. Smoky-savory-oceany flavors without being too fishy. I took the remainder home for the Missus to sample. She was a bit hesitant to try it, but once She sampled it….well, it was gone in the blink of an eye. I wish there was something else on the menu we enjoy as we'd visit more often……well, perhaps we'll be back soon with JJ to try and find another menu item we enjoy.

Bay Park Fish Company
4121 Ashton St
San Diego, CA 92110

Well, at least one of the three "oldies" delivered…..

Bay Park Fish Circling 00

And now I'm wondering….for folks who have been long time residents of San Diego……if you've recently visited an "old time" favorite, how was it?

Hope everyone has a great week!

Tasty House Opens on Clairemont Mesa – Three Grand Opening Visits

Chinese Restaurants

Back in April, I noticed that a restaurant named Tasty House was replacing Tealightful Cafe in that strip mall on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard that houses EE Nami and Village Kitchen among others. I was interesting in what they would be serving. One day, while driving past, I noticed that the open sign was lit. It was around lunch time, so I decided to dive on in and visit.

Tasty House 01

The place was completely empty when I visited.

Tasty House 02

There was a really nice woman working. She pointed me to a seat and brought me a menu.

Tasty House 03

The nice lady didn't speak much English, but I saw the older woman behind the counter making jiaozi. Looking at the menu, it seemed like Northern style cuisine. There are even suan cai ("Sauerkraut") dishes on the menu. 

Tasty House 04

The prices seemed quite reasonable, so I ordered three items. I think there was a communication mix-up, as to my surprise I was brought a takeout order! Perhaps because I ordered so many items she thought it was to go? I had ordered three dishes so I could take the leftovers home to have the Missus sample. I just had to crack up and took my order to go.

Tasty House 05

The Red Oil Pig ears were cut too thick, making it hard rather than crunchy. It was also served hot….which was a bit strange as I thought it would be a cold dish.

Tasty House 06

It wasn't particularly spicy and cold have used more seasoning.

Of course I got some jiaozi. I had pointed to the menu and asked in my terrible Mandarin "jiaozi???" and the woman laughed and said "SanXian" (䞉鲜 – three delicacies). 

Tasty House 07  Tasty House 08  It came with some chili oil and the appropriate (for the region) black vinegar.

The wrappers on several of the dumplings were broken, thus H2O had leaked in during the boiling process nullifying a lot of flavor.

The wrappers were too thick (I still think Dongbei style jiaozi has thicker wrappers) and on the hard side.

Tasty House 09  Tasty House 10 As was the filling. Really chewy and tough. 

I saved two for the Missus, who took one bite and said "you can have it….."

The best item was the Suan Cai with Glass Noodles. Which also came with pork.

Tasty House 10c

The main feature of this was the very sour-fermented tones of the suan cai. This was definitely not a "shrinking violet"! The glass noodles were overcooked and mushy and the pork on the chewy side. But man, that sourness….whoa! 

Well, this was interesting. The Missus was even a bit interested….so much so, that while driving past the place She determined that we should stop in, take a look at the menu and perhaps order some takeout.

By this time, the Grand Opening sign was in place.

Tasty House 11

While talking to the very nice woman, the Missus determined that their from Dongbei and She proceeded to order two very typical Dongbei Cai dishes that are quite hard to find on menus here in San Diego.

First was the Dōngběi Luàn Dùn which is on the menu as One Pot Out of the Farm ($15.90). It's basically whatever veggies you have stewed with pork.

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A large portion size, very home style, potatoes as the base……..quite a bit of pork.

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This was kinda bland…versions I've had before also used Doubanjiang or something similar to add a nice savory component, this was very plain. A very generous portion though.

The other dish was Páigǔ Dùn Dòujia on the menu as Pork Ribs Stewed with Beans ($15.90).

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Man, as if things couldn't get more bland……

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Very much simple country cuisine. The beans were still crisp; the pork tender, but the dish was really in need of flavor.

All in all very much like home cooked, simple, country dishes.

The Missus was done with the place…and I was kinda not impressed. But, I thought the folks working here was so nice, that I decided to do one more visit and to actually try to dine in.

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It was quite charming; the woman saw me parking my car and actually waved at me….you know I had to give the place one more try, right?

On my previous visit, I saw this sign. A quick Google translate and it said "noodles"…..

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Which, along with the dumplings, they make inhouse.

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So, okay…….this time, I did have a seat and actually dined in.

I really enjoy Zi Ran Yang Rou – Cumin Lamb, so I decided to try the version here. I noticed that the price on the menu had been reduced by a dollar.

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This was by far, my favorite dish that I've had here.

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While on the salty side; the lamb was decently tender, there was a good amount of earthy-savory cumin. This was by far my favorite dish.

And of course I wanted to try a noodle dish and saw this.

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No, it's not the savsage, ahem, probably sausage noodle….but what the heck was Spam Fried Noodle? Well, I was really interested to find out!

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Well, this was another "interesting" dish. The noodles were a bit too mushy for my taste. The simple seasoning, soy sauce based, was just like home cooking. As for the "Spam"…well, it was this.

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It was beef! I sent the Missus a photo of the menu and She said it said beef in Chinese…..I'm guessing that whatever translation tool was used for the menu….like the "savsage", was perhaps a bit off? The beef was on the chewy side and could have been a bit more "velveted". It lacked the wok hay that I expect with restaurant level food.

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In the end; well, to repeat things once again, this is like home cooking and lacks the attributes that separates what one makes at home with what one expects when dining out. It's kind of a bummer since the folks that work here are so nice and the prices are quite reasonable…but really, I'm not going to spend that amount for something I can make at home!

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Tasty House
4726 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92117
Current Hours:
Wed – Mon 11am – 930pm
Closed on Tuesday

Monday Meanderings – Potato Powder Love Noodle (for real) replacing Shann Xi Magic Kitchen in 99 Ranch Market (Balboa), TP Tea coming to Clairemont Town Square, and slicing your own bread at Whole Foods

Caffeine Fix, Chinese Restaurants, Desserts, Markets & Grocers, yoso-silly

I'm doing one of these "meanderings" posts today because I just noticed a couple of things over the last two days that I thought interesting.

TP Tea coming to Clairemont Town Square:

I took JJ to an early morning walk and since I like to keep it some variety, I'll often rotate venues. For some reason, I headed on up to Clairemont Town Square early in the morning, and quickly noticed something new.

TP TEa Coming Soon

Looks like the chain TP Tea – which I guess stands for Taiwan Professional Tea, is opening a shop which was the last known location of Isa.Bella, located in the same structure as Main Chick Hot Chicken. For me, this is great, as I always wondered why there weren't more Asian businesses in this huge complex, other than the Panda Express.

4705-A Clairemont Drive
San Diego, CA 92117

Slicing your own bread at Whole Foods:

The Missus wanted some escargot for dinner, so I headed to the Cuisinery to restock. She also wanted some bread and I really didn't want to drive to Secret Sister or even Con Pane. So, I decided to head on over to Whole Foods La Jolla, which is sort of on the way to the Cuisinery. I had gotten the Baby Boule from there before and had it sliced. It's small and not too expensive and would do in a pinch. When I arrived and walked to the bread counter I asked for a Baby Boule and was told it's now self serve….this includes the slicing of the bread!

WF Sliced Bread 01b

I've seen these used at Con Pane and Secret Sister….but never thought it would be safe for me to use one! 

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But I just tried it out. It's not hard at all. The hardest part was getting the sliced bread into a bag!

It turned out ok.

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And I still have all my fingers…..

Whole Foods Market
8825 Villa La Jolla Dr.
La Jolla, CA 92037

Potato Powder Love Noodle replacing Shann Xi Magic Kitchen in 99 Ranch Market (Balboa):

Yesterday, the Missus told me She wanted me to make my Cumin Chinese Cauliflower. So, I headed over to 99 Ranch Market on Balboa. I walked past the food court to see what was happening adn noticed that Shann Xi Magic Kitchen was closed. Which I thought was strange.

Shann Xi Closed 01

There was a note posted on the counter…never a good sign….

Shann Xi Closed 02b

Which just confirmed what I thought…..well, this location of Shann Xi Magic Kitchen is closed. So, it looks like you'll need to go to the Convoy location if you're craving their food. 

I also noticed a note on the cash register.

Shann Xi Closed 00

And it seems like "Potato Powder Love Noodle" is opening here next month? What a name! I did a quick search and found that PPLN has shops in San Gabriel and City of Industry. Knife cut and potato noodles (thus the name I guess) with various broths.

Man, Shann Xi is one of the "OG" stands in the food court, which has been kind of a revolving door with Dao Xiang recently replacing Mama Lin's, which replaced Saigon 5, and Cluck n Sip replacing Krispy Krunchy Chicken within the last year.

It seems that places are having a hard time staying in business here.

5950 Balboa Ave (In the 99 Ranch Market Food Court)
San Diego, CA 92111