Chinese Restaurants – Page 64

Ba Ren’s Yie-Shi (Night Market) Special

May 25, 2009 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

**** Ba Ren has closed

I realize you all are probably pretty tired of my posts on Ba Ren, but I thought this one was interesting. For the Missus's "second" Birthday dinner, She, of course, chose Ba Ren. When we arrived, Wendy spoke to the Missus, and told Her of their latest special (it seems that they always have some new wrinkle), the "Yie-Shi" (night market special).

This latest special features ordering a "ma-la" base, which comes in three heat levels, the "spicy" is a bit thicker, spicier, and more vicious than Ba Ren's Huo Guo. Once you order this, you can than choose some noodles and snacks off the special menu for between $2.99 – $4.99. Tsingtao Beer is $1.50 a bottle, soda is 50 cents. You can only take advantage of this menu by ordering the hot pot.

The best, and most fun part is that after getting your hot pot($3/per person), you're given a basket, and access to the large refrigerator, and pick out skewers at your choosing. Each skewer is 25 cents a piece, you also grab your own soda and beer. At the end of the evening, they count your bottles, cans, and skewers, add your noodles, and tally your bill.

So if you ever wanted to raid a restaurant's fridge….here's your chance.

Our favorites were the beef, intestine, quail egg, mushroom, and potato. We ordered 3 noodle bowls, which are about two-third of the usual portion, and some Crossing the Bridge Won Tons. We ended up taking two of the noodle dishes home, since we ended up eating forty five skewers! When I asked "Roy" how we did, he said, "this is about average, and big eater will eat forty, fifty skewers. In Qingdao, I personally eat over fifty skewers, some noodles, and a few beers." Yikes! So you can eat your noodles while waiting for your skewers to cook in the hot pot.

Well, since I've done a zillion posts on Ba Ren already, I'll keep the rest of the narrative to the minimum.

The Hot Stuff….

The sesame oil-garlic dipping sauce….really"smooths out" the heat.

The remainder of our Cold Sichuan Noodles ($2.99). Sorry, but I was still deciding whether I should take photos.

Spicy Sour Bean Thread ($3.99):

My favorite, the Pork with Preserved Vegetable Noodle Soup ($3.99):

The Crossing the Bridge Won Tons, personally, I enjoy the Hot Sauce Won Tons more.

And of course, there's the "hot stuff"!

All topped off with Sesame Balls in Fermented Sweet Rice Soup:

Sheesh…….we were stuffed! The tab came out just over thirty bucks with beer.

Some details: The menu says served only between 8pm and midnight, but we had this at 6pm, so you may want to ask. To take advantage of the special noodle and snack prices, you're entire table will need to go the "Yie-Shi" route, though you can still order off the regular menu to supplement.

Ba Ren
4957 Diane Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Not to worry, it's not rerun season, I'll have a post on a "new" restaurant tomorrow!

Yummy Yummy Cantonese in Yuma

May 23, 2009 ed fromyuma Chinese Restaurants, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!, Yuma

Kirk has his rotation, and Cathy has her favorites, but today, ed (from Yuma) wants to share info about his #1.

I guess I should begin this post by being completely honest. Yummy Yummy is my favorite restaurant on earth. Don't misunderstand me. It is far from the best restaurant I've been to or even the best that I have eaten at recently. It is far from unique. I suspect that there is a similar restaurant in many cities with a Cantonese community.

It also is not my favorite restaurant because of its sticky tables, minimal decor, or downscale location nearly hidden in a corner of Palm Plaza on Avenue A: Instead, it is the food that brings me back to this place again and again. So I want to share with all of you a guide to my favorite spot - so that you can enjoy the place almost as much as I do. Warning, this post is LONG.

To take one example, the kitchen shows itself to be excellent at deep frying. These two fried chicken entrées are among our favorites. In neither case is the chicken breaded because the chicken is fried so well that its exterior becomes fully crunchy: The yummy yummy chicken, the top picture, is chunks of boneless fried chicken topped with vegetables and crushed peanuts. I actually prefer the second of these dishes, simply called fried chicken and vegetables. Here the back half of a chicken is chopped into pieces, deep-fried on the bone, and topped with vegetables and a standard Chinese sauce. Like fried chicken and gravy — only better.

The frying technique even enlivens old standards. For years, I resisted ordering such an "ordinary" dish as sweet and sour pork, but when a friend wanted it, I got to taste it — and enjoyed it thoroughly. While the sauce breaks no new ground, the pork chunks are perfectly cooked — crispy crisp with no residual grease, each bite beginning with a crunch: This skill at the deep fryer also shows up in the tofu dishes, which will always be served fried unless you specify steamed tofu: I still remember dragging a colleague in here one evening and ordering a tofu dish to share as he was moaning and complaining that he hated tofu. Two bites only and his attitude shifted 180°. Why? The fried tofu has a perfect combination of creamy soft interior and thin skin with just the right bite to it.

Of course, discussing the find tofu dishes here brings up another aspect of the food at Yummy Yummy that makes the place a winner — they know how to use spicy chilies. Look at these two tofu dishes: The plate at the top is tofu and beef, cooked spicy, and the bottom one is tofu and vegetables, also prepared spicy. The family that owns the restaurant was born in Guangdong, but lived for several years in Mexicali, where Mary, the owner/manager/waitstaff, had an uncle who owned a Chinese restaurant. There the family learned Spanish and how to cook with dried red chilies.

The kitchen will also prepare spicy steamed tofu dishes. Recently, I ordered spicy steamed tofu with bbqed pork and received this: Wonderful spicy sauce and creamy tofu. Adding to the textural contrasts of the tofu, shiitakes, and chewy pork was the crunch of strips of pickled veggie (huh? never had that here before). But the slight sour tangy crunch was perfect in this item. Not as good as Kirk's mapo tofu, but about the best spicy soft tofu dish I've ever had at a restaurant.

In fact, most of the dishes on the menu, such as those spicy tofu dishes, can be prepared picante, even if that option is not listed as on the menu. I prefer the seafood combination plate made spicy: While the sliced fish balls and squid pieces are always perfect, sometimes the small shrimp and fish pieces need the added flavor of the chili peppers. I also think the krab here, the type that tends to be pasty rather than stringy, tastes better spiced as well.

The kung pao squid (also known as squid in spicy sauce) is almost always excellent, the tender chewy squid contrasting nicely with the crunch of onion and celery, the mild seafood flavor lit up by the picante chilies: Another favorite is the Kung pao chicken. Usually the tender chicken is highlighted by crunchy celery, water chestnut, baby corn, carrot, and onions: This dish is always a winner and shows off the deep intensity of the chili flavor that the restaurant is capable of.

Another of my favorite items is pork ribs in black bean sauce. On the old menu, it was listed as pork ribs with chilies in black bean sauce, and that is how I always order it. This entree brings together chunks of pork ribs, fresh yellow chilies, and outstanding black beans: Until Kirk provided me with a detailed description of which black beans to purchase at the Ranch 99 market, I was never aware that there was a wide variation from one type to another. Now I understand why the dishes at Yummy Yummy that feature black beans are always so good. Their beans are deeply flavored, soft in texture, and rich with dark chocolate flavor notes.

The black bean chicken with chilies is also outstanding: Another dish that uses black beans here is their version of shrimp in lobster sauce:
Unlike the bland and goopy versions often served, this preparation focuses on the flavor of the shrimp and vegetables, lightly highlighted by the eggy black bean sauce. Note, this dish is found nowhere on the current menu. When the menu was redesigned five years ago or so, shrimp and lobster sauce was left off. But it is still available.

Which leads me to another point about Yummy Yummy. If possible, the kitchen will cook off menu, and the menu does not reflect all of the items that are usually available. For example, the menu simply lists Chinese vegetables as an option. Occasionally, they have none, but sometimes Chinese vegetables can be baby bok choy in a ginger and garlic sauce: Or baby bok choy with barbecued pork (or with Chinese sausage or with beef or with chicken — however you want): Or bitter melon prepared with beef and black beans:
Or Chinese greens (Mary usually calls them choi sum) in foo-yee sauce:
Or green beans (or long beans, when available) in foo yee: This was an especially great dish. So good that I had to take a picture after I had already eaten some of it. These veggie preparations are such a treat for me that I almost always ask what is available that day.

Mary is also willing to prepare vegetables that I bring from supermarkets, from San Diego, or from the Asian market in town. In February and March, which is our local asparagus season, I will often bring in asparagus for the kitchen to prepare. Once recently, I had brought in some special dried Chinese mushrooms, and I was served this: Although I have ordered many dishes from the kitchen using steamed tofu (remember that fried tofu is the default option here), I have usually asked for the steamed tofu in a spicy sauce as shown earlier. This creation, however, focused on the silken smoothness of the tofu, which played against the chewiness of the mushrooms. The delicate and woodsy flavor of the shrooms added a rich subtlety to the tofu. This was another dish that I had never eaten before.

I just want to end this long post with pictures of a few other standard dishes that most of us enjoy at Yummy Yummy. For example, the garlic shrimp (this is at least a triple order)– marinated in garlic and Worcestershire sauce — make a good appetizer: While the chicken chow mein here is boring, the special chow mein is highlighted by a mixture of vegetables and meat:
Similarly, the chicken chop suey (one of the best choices on the $4.25 specials menu) is not as good as the fancier special chop suey:
Wonderfully tasty sprouts, and I particularly like the anise flavored Chinese sausage in the "special" dishes.

If you like beef, the Mongolian beef (no scallions, oddly enough) and the sweeter pineapple beef (pictured here) are both good choices: Beef, chicken, and shrimp are all available with the standard vegetables (usually with alot of broccoli) and are good and reasonably healthy: While not a favorite of most of my friends, the chicken and abalone is one I like because of the subtle blending of the chicken flavor with that of the canned abalone strips: As with the sweet and sour pork, I had never tried egg foo yung here until friends at one of our Yummy Yummy feasts suggested it. It is quite good also: Perhaps now, if you have read through this long post, you begin to understand why Yummy Yummy is my favorite restaurant. All the basic Cantonese standards are done well here. I get my Asian food Jones taken care of, my addiction assuaged. The kitchen is willing to work with customers and vary dishes on occasion. Virtually all items are less than $10, and the menu has specials for less than $5. Even though I have eaten at Yummy Yummy or taken food to go around 400 times, I still look forward to eating there again. If anything happened to this restaurant, my life would be impacted severely. I would not eat nearly as well, nor party as hearty.

Which brings up one last point. As I have become more familiar with the restaurant and Mary has become more familiar with me and my friends, she has been allowing us to bring wine and wine glasses for parties (in fact, my only previous YY post was about a meatless feast here back in 2007). I like to let Mary know in advance if a large group is coming and about any special requests we might have. So now, about once a month, a varied group of us will get together and feast; this lets us all taste a range of interesting dishes (and wine and friendship are good things too). Yummy Yummy is also about the cheapest wining and dining experience in town. And one of the best — at any price.

Yummy Yummy, 2241 S. Ave A, Ste 23, Palm Plaza, Yuma AZ 85364, 928-376-0419. Open 10:30-8:30 Daily

Chinese Kitchen (Chi Tu Thanh Nha Hang) – A revisit

May 18, 2009 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Chinese Kitchen has closed

When someone mentions "hole in the wall", the first place that comes to mind is Chinese Kitchen on University Avenue near College.

When I first did a post on this little shop back in 2006, it was literally that, the ordering was done at a "hole in the wall". Here's a photo from back then.

Having a food blog, is sometimes my stomach's worst enemy…..it seems that I'm always distracted by those "shiny things". New places, new recipes, and new dishes, and places that I enjoy like Chinese Kitchen fall to the wayside. So I recently made an effort to drop by the restaurant.

And my has the place been spiffed up……some new paint, and actual fixtures that look like they belong in a restaurant! Though I'll miss ordering at the hole-in-the-wall, which has been replaced by a counter. The menu, or should I say "menus" look the same, with the huge selection of Chinese Fast-food, which I've never had a chance, nor desire to sample.

In spite of the name, I instead pay attention to what I call the "real menu" of Vietnamese Dishes.

And even beyond that, there's only one item I order here…the Bun Mang Vit (Duck and Bamboo Shoot Soup), and I'm rather surprised it's still five bucks. I've found that I prefer to take my Bun Mang Vit to go…..for a reason I'll explain later.

Take out comes in three parts, the duck, which is made inhouse(I remember being told it was acquired "very fresh"), shredded cabbage, shredded banana blossom, Rau Ram (Vietnamese Coriander), and bun comes in one tidy container. Another contains the sweet, and slightly spicy Nuoc Mam Cham, which also contains minced garlic. And the soup, in which a good amount of bamboo shoots lay rehydrating.

And though it didn't look like that much, it felt pretty hefty, and if you start placing items in plates and bowls you realize that this is a pretty good amount of food.

The reason I usually do my Bun Mang Vit to go, is simple…..I want the bamboo shoots to "steep" in the light broth, which adds a nice earthy-woodsy flavor. I will place the soup in a pot and heat slowly on the stove. After placing the Bun in a bowl, and pouring on the broth, you realize that this is a pretty good sized meal.

I almost miscalculated, which would have led to an overflow. The soup is a good as always, the duck tender and full of flavor, the banana blossom added a very mild bitterness, but not the soupy-astringent flavor that banana blossom can have, to the dish.

Just as good as always, so I guess you can just read my original post, though I think there was much more bamboo shoots this time around. And still five bucks. I still haven't deviated from this, so maybe you can make some additional recommendations for Chinese Kitchen. Though I'm more than happy sticking with my Bun Man Vit.

Chinese Kitchen
6160 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92115

619-286-8778

Tom’s Chinese BBQ

May 12, 2009 mmm-yoso 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.

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!

So of course I got a half roast duck:

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):

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):

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???

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

Sam Woo for breakfast

May 1, 2009 Cathy Breakfast/Brunch, Chinese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog. You are reading it. Cathy happens to be writing today. This is because Kirk and His Missus are (still) on vacation and ed(from Yuma) is (still) working.

Hi. Quick post about what The Mister and I eat when we go out on weekends. I've posted about Sam Woo in 2007 and not much has changed, except the breakfast choices are now $3.50 each and coffee and hot tea are 30 cents each.

We are always torn between the #1 or the last one on the menu. This is #1: rice noodle with luncheon meat, egg and onion. (The last one on the menu is rice instead of the noodles with the same ingredients; it is #33 or some number close to that. The only two menu items with egg and luncheon meat(which is a euphemism for fake Spam, by the way)).

We always get a noodle and dumpling soup, either the won tons (5) -pork and a half shrimp inside each one, or the shrimp dumplings (5) with a whole shrimp in each one. There is cabbage, egg noodles and the broth is always rich and deeply flavored.

Then I usually want some sort of BBQ'd meat with noodles. This day it was BBQ duck. Tender duck, crispy skin with a layer of fat. The broth for dipping is the same deep broth as used for the soup, but the noodles and meat are topped with an anise flavored juice/broth.

You can see the sweetened condensed milk container that comes with the concentrated drip coffee in the background. ( really, it is 30 cents a cup at breakfast).

and, my token photo of the condiments on the table: I end up using the chili oil when I am almost finished, just for a kick to the noodles.

All of this food, two coffees and two teas for $12.35, including tax.

Go out for breakfast this weekend. Anywhere. Enjoy your life.

Sam Woo BBQ, inside 99Ranch complex. 7330 Clairmont Mesa Blvd San Diego 92111

Panda Restaurant-Lemon Grove

April 29, 2009 Cathy Chinese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog. It's about food. Kirk, ed(from Yuma) and Cathy and a few others do the blogging. Kirk is on vacation. The part usually played by Kirk will be played by Cathy today.

Broadway, in Lemon Grove has an array of shops and restaurants. It isn't a "destination" for people from other parts of the county. This restaurant is a good example.

013

Yeah. You are reading it correctly. Sushi. Pho. Panda.

Of course.

The menu is varied, as you would expect.

There is no air conditioning. There are about 15 tables. The owners know just about everyone who comes in to eat here. A local place. Possibly "exotic" for some.

006

The condiment tray on the table has a unique item on it.

The sizzling rice soup Shanghai ($6.25 for the large size) included juicy flavorful shrimp, many fresh pea pods, mushrooms, a flavorful broth and those two rice cakes you see.

We also selected the tempura from the Japanese side of the menu.

Perfectly fried carrot slices, green beans, asparagus, zucchini and shrimp.

This was served with a sweet house made teriyaki like sauce.

We decided to try the chicken chow mein. This is listed on the menu as "(like spaghetti noodles)". We were told when we ordered that the noodles would be crispy.

They were. In a good way. The carrots and pea pods were fresh tasting and still crispy/lightly stir fried and the sauce/gravy was good.

At first. Then I realized it was quite salty.

The menu lsits chow fun as "(like pasta noodles)". Let's not go there.

The owners here are very friendly. There is a selection of 5 different pho to choose from and Vietnamese coffee (hot or cold and thai iced tea (with or without boba).

An unusual mix of cuisines.

Panda Restaurant 7816 Broadway, Lemon Grove 91945 (619)460-7450, open 11-9 daily

Was it hot enough for you today?

April 19, 2009 mmm-yoso Banh Mi, Chinese Restaurants, Sandwiches

Well was it? Man, I saw the thermometer hit 92 today, and we live in a very moderate part of San Diego! I don't know about you, but sometimes the heat really dampens my appetite. Can you imagine having this steaming bowl of Gyeran Jjim (steamed egg)……

I do know folks who enjoy having a nice hot bowl of soup during a heat wave (and love ice cream during the middle of winter), but I'm not one of them. Neither is the Missus. But the Missus has one thing going for Her….when She finds something She enjoys, She'll have it every day until the woman becomes sick and tired of it. I believe I've documented various obsessions pretty well. But this time, the Missus has got two going on at the same time! What's even more interesting is that both obsessions are sandwiches! And even though sammies originate in different parts of the world, they both happen to be vegetarian sandwiches.

In corner A, we have the Vegetarian Banh Mi from LV Sandwiches in Linda Vista:

I was told they make the faux Cha Lua inhouse. I must say, that unlike most Banh Mi Chay, this one has some flavor to it. And it can almost fool me……..

Unfortunately LV Sandwiches has now closed…..

LV Sandwiches and Restaurant
6925 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111

In corner B, is the "Garden Delight" from Sandwich Emporium, our wonderful neighborhood sandwich shop. For some reason the Missus eschews cheese and mayo on this sandwich, but adds pickled jalapenos for a bit of a kick. (A side note, I like the BLAST, which is basically the same sandwich with bacon…)

She has eaten this sandwich on five or the last six days. The Missus has become a bit embarassed about John and Peter ordering the sandwich the minute they see Her. So guess who has to pick up Her sandwiches now???? I mean, I love sandwiches, and the crew at Sandwich Emporium, but 5 times in six days? And I've got a sneaking suspicion the Missus will make it six out of seven tomorrow….I hope they don't run out of sprouts or jalapenos!

Sandwich Emporium
3054 1/2 Clairemont Drive
San Diego,CA
619-275-1351

Meanwhile, I've got my own cure for a hot Sunday:

Yep, it's from you know where, and it sure hit the spot. Also, since Ba Ren has lowered prices, this dish is now only $4.59….cheaper than many sandwiches. I think I'll be eating this a lot more often…..

**** Ba Ren has closed

Ba Ren
4957 Diane Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Of course this looks pretty good right now as well:

But that's a whole 'nother post(yes, another COMC post I'm sure)…..well, you can read about Cathy's visit here. Let's just say it lives up to it's name on the menu, "Vuelve ala Vida" – Back to life!

We hope everyone managed to keep cool and refreshed this weekend!

Turning up the Heat Part 3 – Ba Ren

April 14, 2009 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

**** Ba Ren has closed

Well finally….I guess it's about time I get around to this. In part 1, I posted on revisits to China Chef and Dede's. In part 2, it was a revists to Si Chuan Garden Spicy City, complete with the requisite drama. But what is there to say that I haven't covered in one of my many posts? To make things worse, after a while you kinda get in the habit of ordering the same thing on every visit.

I mean how many posts on Cold Chicken in Spicy Sauce, aka "Saliva Chicken" can one write?

Over the last few visits we've broken away, and ordered a couple of items we hadn't ordered before, or had ordered on previous visits and had not particularly cared for. Of course, after so many visits, I really don't break out the camera much anymore. But here are a few we took photos of.

Lamb with Green Pepper:

If you think this is bell peppers, you're in for a bit of a surprise. It's not super spicy, but the peppers are also a bit sweet, and have that familiar "green" flavor of bell pepper. The lamb was melt in your mouth tender, with a nice soy flavor.

On one of our recent visits, Wendy, the wonderful woman who runs the front of house, remembered I was Japanese. She told the Missus, that the several regular Japanese customers love this dish, Stir Fried Beef with Pickled Mustard Greens:

And I can see why, if you love Zha Cai, you'll love these….in fact, if you love Tsukemono, and the slightly bitter flavor of mustard greens, you'll love this. It is just mildly spicy, but full of savory flavor. One of these days we'll ask Wendy if they can make a version of this with lamb.

Like any restaurant, anywhere, not everything at Ba Ren is a home run for us. I recall one really nasty Bamboo Pith Fungus dish I had several years back….. And this Dried Fish with Eggplant dish will not make our rotation.

The eggplant was done perfectly, but the chewy slices of what I imagine is reconstituted fish was just salty, and not much more. The dish was flat, and lacked depth.

And I guess if there's any reason to do a post on Ba Ren, it's for the seasonal menu. We haven't had the chance to check out much of it yet, but heck….maybe another post after I do?

On this visit we had the first item on the menu, the cumin lamb ribs. Not much meat on this, but man the flavor! If you love gnawing on bones….and maybe having a Tsingtao or two.

And there's a new menu of hot pot dishes as well.

We ended up ordering the lamb hot pot…which was a pretty massive cauldron.

This was pretty spicy, and had a good amount of Sichuan Peppercorns and herbs….just like Huo Guo. There's more than enough to start a major "heat-buzz", but not enough to melt your stomach lining.

Within the writhing red liquid were large pieces of lamb(the braising portions), bean sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, and other stuff.

Some Napa Cabbage leaves, and vermicelli noodles were also provided to add even more "bulk" to the hot pot.

This was way too much food for the Missus and I.

A dipping sauce of minced garlic, sesame oil, and scallions was also provided. The drill was that you'd add a spoonful of the hot pot broth to the bowl, and utilize that as a dipping sauce.

One more important note……on our last visit, we noticed that Ba Ren had dropped the prices on most of their dishes by $1-$2! When we asked Wendy about the price drop, she told us, "it is because taxes have gone up, and the economy is tough.

Also on our last visit we realized something….. we've been coming here for about six years! It just seems like yesterday when I made that u-turn on Diane Avenue, and noticed that a new Chinese Restaurant had opened up. Time sure does fly!

Ba Ren
4957 Diane Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

COMC: Phnom Penh – Chinese Food…….

April 11, 2009 mmm-yoso Cambodia, Chinese Restaurants, Travel

Here's another C(leaning) O(ou the) M(emory) C(ard) post from our trip to Cambodia.

It was quite unfortunate that by the time we hit Phnom Penh, both the Missus and I were kinda bushed. On our first night we were looking for something close to the hotel. As we turned the corner on Street 136, we came across a whole street of Chinese shops and restaurants. It appears that this street is sort of a "Little Chinatown", with a grocer, and several restaurants. After walking down the street, and past the guys making lā miàn (hand pulled noodles)….

We decided to forgo our search, and have some Chinese Food. We were tired, the heat was getting to us…..and frankly, I was missing Chinese food.

We chose the Sichuan Restaurant on the row, which sounds strange because of the soaring temperatures (we visited Cambodia during April, the hottest month of the year), but we liked the look of the restaurant. Plus, when the Missus spoke to the Gentleman running the front of house, his accent was undoubtably Sichuan.

The restaurant was clean, and the menu fairly extensive…..and with a real "Cambodian" feel. There was quite a bit of seafood on the menu.

Another touch was the addition of a plate of raw garlic and red chilies to be used as a condiment.

I nspite of the heat, we found that we were ravenous and ordered a bunch of food, which finished in its entirety. The Missus consulted with the owner of the restaurant on a couple of dishes.

We started with Ma Po Dofu:

This was more of a "brown sauce" Mapo Tofu and was very mild. Very un-Sichuan like.

When in Vietnam and Cambodia, we got into the habit of ordering whatever the fresh vegetable of the day was, as it was always pretty good.

And this was no exception, as it was done simply, and cooked perfectly.

We also decided on trying the Water Boiled Beef, a classic Sichuan dish.

Again, this lacked heat, but came with a good amount of numbing Sichuan Peppercorns.

The owner of the restaurant highly recommended the live "Mekong Riverfish", so we ordered it.

The Missus calls this, "the best fresh water fish ever…." It was simply prepared, steamed, with soy sauce, ginger, scallion, and sizzled with oil, but man this fish was good! The flesh was delicate, moist, light, flakey, with a hint of sweetness. I'm not a big fan of freshwater fish, but this changed my opinion forever.

So what kind of fish was this?

You got me…the Missus asked the owner who said that he doesn't know the Cambodian name for it, and they don't have this in Sichuan, but said they call it something like "Elephant fish" in Mandarin. So maybe one of you will know the English name of this…..

Regardless, that fish was great! And paid the "exhorbitant" price of a whole $12/US for this meal. That's the price of one dish (or less) in San Diego.

"Sichuan Cookshop"
111 Street 136

The next day, we were after some lunch before our drive to the airport. We had just taken a walk through Psar Thmei (the Central Market), and headed back to the hotel, when we noticed that this restaurant:

Had just gotten their delivery of live "Mekong riverfish":

We instantly stopped, and knew what was for lunch!

The interior of this restaurant could have passed as a sibling of the Sichuan restaurant in layout.

Again, the first thing delivered to our table was again what appears to be the standard condiment, the raw garlic and chopped red chilies.

Along with a plate of peanuts….which turned out to be not such a great idea for the Missus's stomach.

And of course we had the vegetaable of the day:

And since this was a Hangzhou restaurant, of course the Young Lady running the place told us to get one of the fish "Red Cooked". In this case the fish was deep fried, than quickly braised with a pseudo-red cooked sauce.

This was a bit of overkill. The sauce overpowered the delicate flavor of the fish.

We ordered the other fish done simply with a ginger-scallion preparation, like we had eaten the night before.

Again the fish had a wonderful texture and flavor. In this case however, it was not prepared with quite the same amount of finesse as the fish we had the previous night. There were a few sections of the fish that were still raw.

Still, for ten bucks, this wasn't bad at all. And we got to bid the other fish farewell before we left the restaurant, and made our way to the airport.

Hang Zhou Restaurant
81 Street 136

There's a part of me that wished that I gotten some Cambodian food for lunch….but there's another bigger part of me that is so happy I got to sample this fish…whatever it is.

Road Trip: Tianjin Bistro – San Gabriel (Los Angeles)

March 22, 2009 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

**** Tianjin Bistro has closed

*** Additional posts on Tianjin Bistro can be found here, here, and here

I'll put off my last post on Vegas. Instead, I thought I'd post on our lunch st.op on the way home from Vegas. We were ready to leave Vegas after our meal at Lotus of Siam, really. Things had started getting pretty crowded, and folks were up to the usual antics on the strip. We woke the next morning, and hit the road by 8am. We did of course, intend on stopping in the LA area for lunch. My initial intent was on stopping at Earthen Restaurant in Haci enda Heights since I'd heard so much about it. And we made pretty good time, rolling into the plaza on Azusa at 1130……but Earthen was already packed, with folks waiting in line, and a 30 minute wait. Plus, the Missus looked over the menu and wasn't particularly moved….not moved enough to wait at least 30 minutes. Better to be on the move, than to wait smelling food for a half an hour. So digging into my "black book" I came up with another choice; Tianjin Bistro in San Gabriel. If you are a long time reader off our blog, you may recognize the location, as being the former Mei Jia Deli.

Mei Jia Deli was a roller coaster ride for us. The place looked like it was always in the weeds, the nice staff being run ragged, the customers down right rude and demanding…. But still, the Missus kinda liked the place. And when "Andy" who used to have a wonderful blog called "the ABC" (we miss you Andy!) told me this place became a Taiwanese Restaurant, no one was more sad than the Missus. It seems this place has a hard time holding businesses, now, a year or so later, it's a Tianjin restaurant again.

The interior looks much neater, but who decided on the pepto-bismol pink paint job? On the good side; perhaps pink will calm the nerves of the high strung and demanding clientele that once visited Mei Jia Deli! Another item of note. The tables are lined with inexpensive pink tablecloths, which is itself lined with plastic that looks like garbage bag material.

The atmosphere was also different; very laid back and friendly. The owner, a very nice gentleman, gave us a good amount of attention from the beginning. The menu, was itself different, and the posted specials on the wall added to the confusion. It didn't help that we weren't really well versed in Tianjin Cuisine. Though Tianjin is a scant 2 hour trip from Beijing, the Missus wasn't too familiar with the cuisine, other than knowing that Tianjin was well known for their snacks and street food. The menu itself seemed to be an interesting combination of various dishes, many of them familiar (as you'll soon read). And it could very well be Tianjin Cuisine, since Tianjin is known to be a port city, and thus perhaps the food has had many varying influences over the years. About the only thing I remember about eating at Mei Jia Deli, other than the Gua Ba Cai, were the Gou Bu Li Bao Zi (Stuffed buns that dogs are not interested in"). I did notice that the menu contained a great number of Lamb dishes which made me very happy.

There was one other thing that the Missus enjoyed. While chatting with the owner in Mandarin about the various dishes, the woman on the table behind us suddenly started chiming in, and than the woman behind the front counter! The Missus was laughing and smiling. She later explained to me that this was "just like Beijing. You could have a seat, and folks would just start talking……" She was in Her element. The woman had told Her, "don't listen to him(referring to the owner), listen to me, I'll tell you what is good here!" There's a straight forward, without being rude attitude to this place and the customers. The Missus told me this is a trait of Northern Chinese, they call "shuang liang" (sorry not sure of the piniyn), being honest, non-pretentious folk. You gotta love it……

We started with the Cumin Lamb($8.99):

One thing I quickly noticed was that this restaurant uses a lot less oil for cooking. As for the lamb, it was much more tender than it looked. It lacked a strong cumin flavor, and the lamb was only mildly gamey. We were both worried that the amount of cilantro used in making this dish would just overwhelm all the other flavors, but it did not. I really loved the large slices of garlic that had been caramelized during cooking. Not a bad dish.

We also ordered the Yang Rou Chuan (Lamb Skewers – $4.99):

Lamb skewers…..one of the ultimate examples of streetfood if you ask me. These were a bit different. Usually the meat is grilled, which helps develop the flavor of the lamb. These were deep fried, so you gained the wonderful texture of deep-fried meat, but it seemed like all the flavor had been lost. We both found this to be quite bland.

While eating, we enjoyed the view of the great pyramids of Tianjin! Beautiful, aren't they?

Pyramids? Tianjin? Ha……these are called "Wo-Wo Tou" , a steamed corn based "bread" (I use the term bread very loosely). The Missus ate this on occasion while growing up….but it is my Mother In Law who misses this. During the hard times of the Cultural Revolution this was a staple in Northern China. I guess there's a whole lot of memories tied up in the humble steamed corn "bread".

Lest you think this in any way resembles American Corn Bread, you're in for a big surprise! It is not sweet nor moist. These cakes while very fragrant are dense, very dry, and very hard to swallow. When the owner of Tianjin Cafe asked the Missus how these were, She said, "I like the taste, but I can't swallow…."

After eating one of these, and almost feeling it sitting in the bottom of my belly, I can understand its usefulness during hard times. It has bulk to it, and will fill you up and "hold you" for a good amount of time.

For my In-Laws, and many of the same generation of Chinese, I'm sure wo wo tou represents many of the hardships, and the good times, of their youth. There's a bit of nostalgia tied up in this and the Missus enjoyed this.

We also ordered the Suan Cai Yang Rou (Preserved vegetable with lamb hot pot – $6.99), Suan Cai Bai Rou (preserved vegetable with fatty pork hot pot) is also available. I was surprised at the portion size, which was very generous.

Suan Cai is a pickle made from Napa Cabbage. It is blanched in hot water, salted, and a weight is placed on it. The fermented cabbage smells just like sauerkraut, and tastes very similar, except in this case it is much more sour. The Missus, knowing of my love for pickled veggies ordered this.

This is a very simple hot pot, made with suan cai, water, frozen tofu, which managed to act like a sponge for the broth, and fatty parts of lamb.

More from my MIL; "this is a winter dish. During the winter, when a pig is slaughtered, nothing is wasted. The fatty parts of the pig is used along with suan cai to make a hot pot." Which is pretty much what this was. The flavor was rather mild, but just as with many soups, stews, and hot pots, it tasted much better the following day. A simple, but satisfying dish. While we were eating this, the owner came by and asked how we liked the food. And added the phrase, "now do not lie….if you lie to me, you lie to your stomach!" I was really starting to like this place.

Last, we had the Pan Fried Dumpling (Tianjin Baozi – $6.99). Which looked just like…..

Shengjian Bao!!! These arrived upside-down on the plate. I noticed a lack of the lovely crust of a SJB, again, much less oil was used here.

The top portion of the bao was pretty fluffy, and enjoyable.

The filling was more firm than other versions, and drier, but not in an unpleasant way. It did have good flavor, porkiness with a nice sesame oil flavor.

It reheated pretty well the next day. Now if it had a better crust…….

There was one more thing the Missus wanted me to taste:

Beijing style yogurt. Bluecherry Yogurt Bar is a Alhambra shop, which looks like it's trying to push fro-yo for the young clientle. But this was a little carton of Beijing style yogurt. At Tianjin Bistro, it cost $2.25. This is a drinkable style of yogurt, which is lightly sweetened, and very tart and sour.

I really enjoyed this………now this would be a fad I can get in to! It reminded me of the refreshing and restorative yogurt we had in Cusco.

The owner of Tianjin Bistro told the Missus that he wanted to serve the kind of food he missed when he first came to America. As the sign says in Chinese, this is homestyle food, some of it simple, most of it hearty, some of it pretty good. I think we'll be back……

Tianjin Bistro
534 East Valley Blvd
San Gabriel, CA 91776

Open Thurs-Tues 11am – 10pm
Closed on Wednesday

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