Gastropub – Page 7

Sunday Sausagefest: Salt & Cleaver, Toronado, and a little S&M (that’s Sausage and Meat)

November 30, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub

**** All of these places have closed

In my most recent post on Tiger Tiger I mentioned that the Missus has been on a beer and sausage tear….so this meant that we've tried a couple of places. Here are a bunch of one and dones.

Salt and Cleaver:

We visited a couple weeks after Kirbie and CC.

We must be getting old….it just seemed like the music was playing way too loud……

Anyway, since it's about the weiners……

This one is called the Duck.Duck.Pig ($11).

The duck confit was fried crisp, but was alas, also dry as leather. I thought the orange marmalade was a bit too much for the duck and bacon sausage which was fairly mild with mild smokey tones. I liked the grind, but the Missus prefers either a coarser grind or fine and rather loose. The flavor was fairly nice, but this was a bit too much.

Since the Missus doesn't do much bread these days, a sausage board is always welcome. The meat board ($13) comes with 4 sausages.

The Smoked Beer Bratwurst was very bland. The Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno was quite nice, not too sharp or spicy, a very nicely put together sausage. The Smoked Spicy Cajun had a nice kick, but was really salty and I didn't like the casing on this one; it was too tough. We enjoyed the Linguica, a bit on the mild side, but the flavors went together well. The mustards and sauces were fairly routine.

Altogether not bad and we may return……

Salt & Cleaver
3805 5th Ave
San Diego, CA 92103

Toronado:

Granted, I really wanted to come here for the beers, but I walked the Missus into checking the place out for the sausages.

Loved the bartender here……she was very cool, sorta funny, in a rather detached way. She was good at helping folks make beer selections.

There's really no frills about Toronado. It becomes very clear when you order the Sausage Plate ($12)….it comes to the table exactly as ordered….a plate with 3 sausages…..nary a garnish, sauce, mustard, or anything else except the juices leaking from said encased meats.

This was oh-fer-three. The "Morrocan Lamb" was dry and gritty and really needed a bit more seasoning. The Jalapeno Cheddar was a far cry from Salt & Cleaver. The Bratwurst was also too dry and hard as was the casing.

We did enjoy the Pork Belly Skewers ($6).

Loved the texture of the pork belly, crisp on the exterior, creamy like buttah' interior. The sweet chili sauce was too sweet for us, but this was pretty good overall. The jicama-cilantro slaw could have used more flavor.

Of course, like I said, I came here for the beers.

Loved the selection. I was missing Belgium and this was just the fix I needed. I don't think Belgian's travel real well as the flavors are not quite the same as what we had in Belgium, but I'll take it.

Candice and I are trying to talk our friends into doing a 30th street corridor beer crawl. So I'm sure I'll be back soon enough.

Toronado
4026 30th St
San Diego, CA 92104

S & M – That's Sausage and Meat:

So, sorry to disappoint anyone who had thoughts that perhaps mmm-yoso was totally going off the rails. Anyway, this is the latest creation from the folks behind Slater's 50/50. The location is quite familiar….this is the former site of Gulf Coast Grill, which lasted much longer than I ever thought it would.

We visited on Veteran's Day, just a short time after they had opened.

I love the logo…….simple, but to the point. The place is bright and wide open, it'll be great during warmer weather.

Like Slater's the menu is full of, well, interestingly, uninteresting items……twists on stuff I know I can get better elsewhere. So, just trying to play it straight we kept out of the flavored bacon jar, instead playing "straight man" for the main part. Trying to see what kind of clothes the Emporer was wearing…if any.

We started with the Charcuterie Board ($11).

This would be almost the antithesis of a Slater restaurant, in having a very mild prosciutto and soppressata. Not a good value. The one item we both loved was the nicely fermented cabbage and the pickles….the dill pickles were just fantastic.

Since the Missus is still on Her "no bread" shall pass these lips kind of thing we went with the Sausage Board ($15).

I love alligator – pork sausages, so the Alligator-Antelope Andouille seemed like a good pick. Unfortunately, I found it to be very tame and bland, lacking in that paprika-garlic-file-chili, smokey-savory flavors that make a good Andouille. I've cooked with Antelope which has a distinct flavor, I couldn't make that out here. The Missus chose Her favorite sausage of late…..Mexican Chorizo. Man, this was way too mild in flavor, lacking in any heat or zip. I will say, that Whiskey Mustard is a wonderful sweet-spicy-sour-tangy condiment and I could live on those pickles.

I had a Modern Times (Blazing World) Amber, mildly (by San Diego terms) Hoppy with a clean finish and the Missus was happy with Her Almanac sour.

The whole ordering, seating, sign process is both neat and kind of strange at the same time….it's really not clear that you order at the counter (or do you?)…which we did. You get these flip cards which indicate your order, when you don't want to be bothered, and when you want to pay. It's a hybrid of the typical gastropub/bar/fast casual ordering system where you're given a number for folks to bring your order. The twist here is different, even though you order at the register, you don't pay(though you do leave your credit card)…..at least we didn't. You flip the sign and someone comes and brings you your bill….if you pay with cash, this seems kind of strange and redundant….you either have table service or you don't. Oh, and even though we indicated "Scram" folks came by five times to see how we were doing…..though they were really nice and I totally understand having just opened they wanted to do well. I really liked our Servers…..we'd come back just for the pickles and mustard…..

If you'd like to see the other items on the menu; please read Kirbie's post.

S&M Sausage & Meat
4130 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA 92103

And just because I'm feeling silly:

I usually listen to music on iTunes while doing my posts….and yes, they are still usually a one pass deal. Anyway, this song came on…….and took me back. I grew up during the 70's and 80's and this one made me recall the music video…back when MTV actually had music videos. It hasn't aged well, but what the heck. Plus, I always wanted a 'Cuda….though my preference would be for a '70.

The ending is so Miami Vice. One of the guys we knew used to actually dress Miami Vice style…light colored jacket with pastel t-shirts and loafers….white loafers. Egad……he thought he was so cool. He was quite short; like five foot-two, so when we used to see him at the club we used to call him, "Miami mice….."

COMC – The Rule of Three Edition: Tiger! Tiger! revisited

November 13, 2014 mmm-yoso Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub

**** Tiger! Tiger! has closed

The Missus had been on a tear since we returned from Belgium. It was beer and sausages at least once a week. It took me a while to get the Missus to visit Tiger! Tiger! with me, but once She did; well there was no stopping Her. So now, we have this huge collection of photos….

Yes, there's the beer, in fact, I don't think I've ever had a bad pint here. Come early and the folks manning the counter will actually spend time with you, trying to find the best fit. Speaking of fit, for us, Tiger Tiger presents us with a pseudo Goldilocks principle. Yes, Blind Lady Ale House has, in my opinion, a better curated selection of beer…Tiger Tiger is fairly short on sours, which the Missus loves, but TT's food is definitely better. Waypoint Public's food, at least to the Missus has the edge and the selection of beers can be really great, but man, it's pricey…$12 for a pint. It seems that TT is just right for us to enjoy weekly! Ah yes, the Rule of three.

So anyway, here's a C(learing) O(ut the) M(emory) C(ard) collection.

Part 1 – Encased meats:

There seems to be a different sausage featured weekly. While I don't really follows fads, it looks like sausages are in right now…..lucky us.

My favorite – The Smoked Kielbasa…oh man….

The Missus' favorite – The Bratwurst. She likes a more coarse cut, or even a gritty style filling.

Honorable mention…I don't think Tiger Tiger serves dishonorable weiners.

The Spicy Hungarian.

Pork and Jalapeno.

Part 2 – There's a rotation of meat paste, ummm, Pate as well.

Our unanimous favorite; the Chicken Liver Pate.

Smooth and rich, this did well with the sweetish chutney.

The country style pate with pistachios is tied for next.

With the country style pate flavored with smoked paprika.

This country style pate was good, but really didn't do well with the sweet flavor of the chutney.

Part 3 – Mom always told me to eat my veggies. So Mom would be pleased to see me eating the wood fired vegetable offerings.

My favorite would be the Padrons…well because we like them so much we grow them.

The Missus enjoyed this eggplant dish more than I did.

We both enjoyed the roasted brocolini…..

The Missus hates spaghetti squash and it's really not among items I seek out, but this version was pretty good.

So there you go; our meals at Tiger Tiger in 3 parts…..

You know, it took us three (yikes, there it is again!) visits before I got the Missus to even try something from the regular menu; the Puerco.

Which She really liked, but She was right back to Her trilogy of sausage-pate-veg on the very next visit. I gotta say……I really can't complain.

Tiger! Tiger!
3025 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92104

Nolbu Mini Gastropub

September 30, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Chicken Wings, Gastropub, Korean Restaurants, Pubs and Pub Grub

**** Nolbu has closed and is now Yummy House

Well, since we did Common Theory yesterday. I guess Nolbu deserves equal time, right?

Hidden behind the Convoy institution that is Chopstix, this tiny little place is easy to miss. I'm really not the Min Sok Chon, Thang Thang, soju bomb kind of guy, but I got a few recommendations from folks I knew. Though I still had reservations because when I quizzed these folks on the food, the standard answer usually included big portions, and not remembering much because they were…shall we say…..taste deadened and mush minded from overindulging a bit?

It is a pretty small and somewhat cozy kind of place. There are only 5 beers on tap. The main drink of choice for most of the young people who go here are the flavors of soju…."white gummy bear"???

The bartender/server on both of my visits was a very nice and friendly young woman named Nancy…very calm, very chill.

The menu is full of what I call "Kogi-truckish" dishes…you know, bulgogi tacos, bulgogi quesadillas, bulgogi fries, stuff that's already kind of passe'

The dining area is set-up like one of those faux outdoor porch type of restaurants. A acquaintance of mine actually knew the Korean name of that style of set-up….but you know; old age and all that. I just can't seem to remember the term right now.

There's actually one reason I came to Nolbu…the Korean Spicy Wings ($8.99). Almost everyone I spoke to mentioned these wings, though none could not really tell me much about the flavor.

The wings are quite large, the flavor as you can imagine is based on kochujang and almost tastes like my Spicy Misoyaki without as much bean paste. It is indeed a basic sweet chili sauce…sticky, more sweet than spicy, perhaps in need of a bit more complexity. maybe a bit more sour/tart, or savory-garlic tones. The batter was nice at first, perhaps a bit too thick, but still crunchy, but it got really gummy in minutes. Not terrible….but definitely not… Kyochon by any stretch. In fact, this eerily reminded me of the stuff they used to serve at BBQ Chicken, though not nearly as crunchy.

I also decided to try the mandu ("Dumplings" on the menu – $6.99).

These weren't very good in my opinion, too much cabbage filler, the sauce also tasted watered down. The wrapper were decent, but I'd take a pass on these next time.

Overall, not bad and as always I thought a return visit should be done.

One funny thing; when I was waiting for my drink a guy walked in laden with bags….shopping for supplies I'd guess. All the plastic bags were from Zion Market! I guess that's where they do their shopping? I really think stuff like that should be done via the rear entrance.

This time I came with my friends YummyYummy and Candice. We had the spicy wings again, which were a bit better this time…less sickly sweet and the texture held up a bit better.

We also had the haemul pajeon – the seafood pancake ($12.99), a bit small for the price.

But with a pretty generous amount of well…..Zion Seafood probably….. I will say that in terms of texture it was less gummy and a bit lighter than what I'd had at Common Theory, though it was 2/3 the size.

I also wanted to try the Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings ($8.99).

A bit light in flavor, these wings swere pretty straight-forward…basically naked, without a coating, but not bad….I'd have these again, as these were nicely fried.

The same five beers on tap; my favorite being the Stone Arbalest since I do enjoy tripels, quads, and Belgian strongs. this one was pretty good, light citrus-woody flavor with a mildly boozy-hoppy finish.

While waiting for my friends to meet me, the same young man walked in ladened with plastic bags….again from Zion Market.

Anyway, in terms of food, this place serves up a more Asian flavor than Common Theory. I was surprised that the food wasn't as salty as, say Min Sok Chon. They do have a decent bottle collection, but only five draft beers and the temps on my second visit seemed a bit off. As much as I like the folks working here, there's really no working knowledge of the beer they're serving…it's more of soju service. As in the version of an umbrella drink - soju served up in a half watermelon.

That said; I might drop in again for some wings and a beer…..if I feel like eating groceries from Zion….

Nolbu Mini Gastropub
4633 Convoy St. Suite 102
San Diego, CA 92111

Common Theory Public House

September 29, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Chicken Wings, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub

Common Theory Public House, which opened and created some nice buzz a couple of months ago is one of those places that leaves me torn. There's so much about the place I really like.

I love the lay-out, the folks manning the bar are usually really nice…..especially "Dave" who has been there on most of our visits. Yep, we….this is the Missus' favorite place for Happy Hour, they've (usually) got a nice selection, though I wish they'd keep more up to date lists on Tap Hunter or their website. One of the partners, Cris is the nicest guy ever and they've got an awesome progressive happy hour which starts with three bucks off draft beers starting at 3pm.

Any issues I have with the place is based around their food….though admittedly, much of the bar grub in San Diego is pretty basic stuff. After trying some of the regular menu items, we decided to stick with Happy Hour. And while there are a few "Asian" influenced dishes on the menu; it is heavy on the fried stuff. Now all of the above is fine with me; it is reasonable and perhaps in the business sense, realistic. To us, and we've been here over a dozen times is that the same dish can vary wildly from visit to visit.

The Missus really only orders two things here, the first being the truffle-duck fat fries, which is a nice happy hour bargain at five bucks.

It can run the gamut; never terrible, but different every time. One the visit above, the fragrance of truffle was rich, the duck comfit moist, the fries limp, and it was way too salty.

The next time the confit was dry, it was barely salted and it seems that the truffle flavor was AWOL. Then there are times when they get it so close.

Doesn't that look like two different dishes….crisp fries, nice truflle flavor, the confit was on the dry side but fine….where was the salt?

The one item we sometimes get that has never let us down are the pickled eggs……

The eggs are fine; it's that pickled watermelon rind, with a anise flavor that just raises it.

The Missus favorite by far are the Truffle Duck Fat Chips, it is usually nice and crisp.

The one item on the dish that always seems different is the cotija-garlic bechamel like cream sauce. Once or twice it has been close to perfect. That's the one in the photo. At other times it has been too salty, or totally lacking in flavor, we could barely make out the garlic in the sauce.

I actually thought the white corn tamales were not bad…moist, nice pork flavor. Not bad at all.

I understand that Cris's Mom makes these.

So, as you can see, it's about the beer here for us…and who's going to complain when you can get a Liefmans Oud Bruin for four bucks? Or a Three Philosohper's?

On one evening, Cris told me his cousin runs Golden Chopsticks and an Uncle cooks at Mandarin Canton. So I just had to try the Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings. Which came out looking a bit different from what I expected.

Still, these were pretty good, nice flavor, crisp, moist, it could have used a bit more garlic…and MSG…. Which I mentioned to Cris, who laughed and described to me the story of his cousin coming over and trying to teach the chef how to make these, handing him some MSG. The chef had never, ever used the stuff in his career and really didn't know what to do with it. I thought these were good enough to mentioned that this might be the best version North of the 94.

Until my next visit at lunchtime with a good friend of mine. The wings were greasy, flavorless, not very crisp. I recently tried them again with the Missus.

What we got was sort of a "tweener". Also, it was now 4 wings for 5 bucks which didn't seem like such a good deal. The batter was hard instead of crisp and like the Missus said, "it needed some zip".

There were a few weeks where it seemed that the usual selection of beers – up to 32 taps seemed a bit out of alignment. On one visit there were 5 Porters or Stouts, on another 10 IPA's…I know, this is San Diego, but man, a third of your taps? Recently things seemed to be balanced a bit better, but they are still a bit short with regards to sours…at least in the Missus's opinion.

Here are a few other menu items I tried.

This is the beast they call the Bourbon Bacon Wrapped "Corn" Dog.

Good God, who hired Chicken Charlie? This is basically a battered and deep fried smoked garlic sausage. For some reason the deep frying and the batter does this no favors as it just really muddles all the flavors.

I tried the Hellfire Wings, which weren't very spicy; pretty much kicked up Buffalo style wings.

Not bad, but not memorable either.

The Chorizo Scotch Quail Eggs were hard and dry.

Something that I don't think is on the menu anymore is the Korean Seafood Pancake – Haemul Pajeon.

It was a bit short on seafood and more gummy than I prefer, but that classic soy based dipping sauce just made you want to keep on eating the thing.

Like I said, there's a lot to like about Common Theory. It's a really nice spot run by super nice folks. Polling all my good friends we came to the same conclusion; this place could really be a special spot if they got their kitchen and menu in order.

I hope that day will come soon. Until then, we'll still be coming for Happy Hour, it's the Missus' favorite watering hole……she;s happy with a Monk's Cafe, Hitachino Nest, or the place's best seller, Avery White Rascal.

Common Theory Public House
4805 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Cheers! Kanpai! Ganbei! Yo! Gun bae!

Brno: The Dragon of Brno, Jiří Birk’s Wheel, and other secrets of the town hall. Dinner at Stopkova Plzeňská Pivnice

September 19, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Czech Food and Restaurants, Czech Republic, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub, Travel

After lunch, we had a nice little nap. When we awoke, the weather had cleared. This was the first time we saw such clear skies in the Czech Republic. The Missus was ready to go back out exploring again.

Brno was a city with a great sense of humor, it seemed to thrive on a good story, with that little "twist" to it. On one side you'd see the interesting statue, take a look from another angle and it would look a bit strange, perhaps odd, maybe somewhat creepy……

Up on Petrov Hill, we headed back to the Old Town Hall…..which is a little treasure trove of stories….

The first thing you really notice are the pinnacles above the portal of the Old Town Hall…..and you quickly notice that the center one, the tallest and most obvious is strangely bent. Of course there's a legend about this one, right? According to one of the stories, the Architect and Sculptor Anton Pilgram who built the portal and pinnacles found out that he wasn't going to be paid for his work; so he decided to leave his not-so-little mark on the Old Town Hall….another story suggests that Pilgram was too drunk when designing the pinnacle, which led to a "little problem" when it was built. Shades of the "Indecent Little Man" of St James Church!

During the late 10th and early 11th centuries, there are stories of a great beast terrorizing Brno. It is said to have lived in a cave near the Svartka River, eating and tormenting the citizens of Brno. A butcher came up with a plan to rid the city of the "Dragon", he filled a pelt with quicklime (Calcium Oxide) and set it in front of the cave. The beast, thinking it to be an easy mark devoured the lime filled fur bag. When the beast drank water from the river, the exothermic reaction killed the beast which now hangs in the Old Town Hall.

So here's the Dragon of Brno:

Hmmm….sure looks like a crocodile to me. According to what I read, this was probably brought back from the Crusades. Though I prefer the Brno Dragon story…..

And then there's my favorite. It's about this:

Yep, a wagon wheel, but not just any wagon wheel. You see, in 1636, in a pub in Lednice a wheelright named Jiří Birk claimed that he could fell a tree, build his wheel, and roll it from the town of Lednice to Brno (over 25 miles) in a single day. This seemed like easy money, so a bet was made. Jiří Birk was a real master of his craft, and he managed to do what folks thought were impossible and win his bet. The amazed Mayor hung the wheel in the Town Hall. All's well that ends well, right? Remember, this is the Czech Republic, and boy do they like to add those little twists to their stories. After the feat, rumors started going around that Birk had made a bargain with the Devil, who helped him achieve his feat. Folks started avoiding him, he lost all his business, and Jiří Birk died a broke and broken man.

As we made our way to Freedom Square, the sunshine made Brno seem like a total different city from the one we'd seen the day before. Folks were out and about, walking their dogs….you know, I think people might actually take their dogs to work with them…we say them on Trams and at all times during the day…even having lunch with their owners in business suits.

Freedom Square was abuzz; there was a band playing, people were milling about….. this actually did look like the second largest city in the Czech Republic.

Everyone loves a nice, mild, sunny day….as these two young men illustrate.

Man, those kids made me hungry. It was time for dinner. We decided to eat at this pub, which we found out was another Pilsner Urquell restaurant.

By now we were used to the drill in these places; you head right in and find yourself a table. We found an area away from all the cigarette smokers……some of these places can reek of cigarettes when busy. Luckily, it was still early.

I started off with a Fénix, a light, wheat beer with citrus tones. It was very easy to drink.

Well, you know what we started with, right? Pickled sausages of course. These were really light in terms of sourness and really just tasted like Kielbasa.

Even though we were no longer in Olomouc, I wanted to try the Pickled Cheese.

I really enjoyed this. It was a bit more ripe, funky, milky, and had less of a waxy texture than Olomoucké tvarůžky.

I saw Pork Cracklins on the menu and of course had to order it. Fried pork with crouton like cubes of bread that seemed to have also been deep fried. To be eaten with more bread! Of course, there was that ramekin of lard to use as a spread….so hell, I'm not complaining about this one bit!

We also ordered the Smoked Lamb Sausages.

These tasted a bit like merguez, but I feel it needed a bit more spice and it really didn't have enough stronge lamb flavor for us.

This was a decent meal. We avoided most of the heavy smokers and got a couple of pretty good dishes. Remember when I said, "once you leave Prague" things really got inexpensive. If I recall, the entire meal, including 3 beers came in under $25/US, which I thought was bargain…..I mean really, who serves an entire serving of lard here in San Diego? If you do, let me know!

Stopkova Plzenska Pivnice
Ceska 5
Brno, Czech Republic

Brno was a blast, there seemed to be an offbeat sort of humor and it was without a doubt a totally different lifestyle. In the morning, when we were leaving the apartment we noticed that trash was being picked up. One of the guys opened up the area where the dumpster was contained. He called the driver and brought out two bottles of Pilsner Urquell, which were either left for them, or just thrown away. You can be sure they weren'r going to let those bottles go to waste. They popped the tops and actually clinked the bottles together in a toast and chugged down the beer, both finishing with an "aaaah"….things sure were different in the Czech Republic.

We were leaving for Prague in the morning. Back on the Student Bus. There were so many here in Brno, but there's one thing left unsolved and is still bugging me. On Masarykova is the oldest pharmacy in Brno.

But I still can't figure out what the lobster has got to do with the place…lobster…pharmacy…what's the connection? Also, why only the body of the lobster….what about the tail? Brno has so many stories…this one has evaded me.

Olomouc: Side trip to Kromeriz and lunch at Minipivovar Moritz

August 30, 2014 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Beer, Czech Food and Restaurants, Czech Republic, Gastropub, Travel

There are some benefits associated with staying in corporate style hotels…..many of them have pretty hefty, buffet breakfasts included.

The Missus and I went over the plan for the day over breakfast. Being right across the street from the train station also had it's benefits. We had decided to do a day trip to the city of Kroměříž, where the Archbishop's Summer Palace, listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

We caught the train to Hulin, changing to a tiny little train which was more like a single car to Kroměříž. Exiting at the train station, we made our way up to the main square. Things were pretty quiet on this day…..

Except for some music….we followed the notes and were treated with a nice performance in front of the local museum. That kid on the left was really getting down….to traditional Czech Folksongs!

The main reason for coming here was to visit the Archbishop's Chateau and the gardens. Unfortunately, the gardens were closed because of all the rain.

So we decided to just have a short walk around, then head back to Olomouc. It was nice to just get out and about….once out of Prague, we found folks to be much more friendly, laid back, and things were much cheaper.

Then we headed back. The train trip was kind of funny because apparently there was some kind of glitch with our train transfer. The attendant on the train didn't speak any English and he tried so hard to explain to us what was going on. Folks here are friendly….all I had to say was "Olomouc" and one of the other passengers used sign language basically telling us to follow her….which we did, ending back up in Olomouc. We then got on the tram….right tram, wrong direction, to the amusment of the tram operator….who basically told us to just stay on. In other words we got the scenic tour. And ended up at our destination Moritz Microbrewery.

Like many similar type businesses, this was a basement type deal. On a wet, windy, and cold day, this was a cosy deal.

We had been pretty disappointed with the beer in the Czech Republic so far. But since we were at a microbrewery….

And we were pleasantly surprised, the 10° was quite refreshing, clean, mildly hoppy, but with nice floral-citrus to my palate. This was by far the best beer I'd had in the CR so far.

Being in Olomouc, well, we had to have the Hanácká česnečka – Garlic Soup.

Bitter and much too salty…..

Seeing what became one of our favorite items; the Utopenci, basically pickled sausage, one of the things we brought back with us. This was a bit too mild for my taste.

As I mentioned before, at places like this there are "lunch specials" which are really cheap, under five bucks US. The problem being, these specials are never written in English and even more interesting, in Olomouc they specials are written in Hanakian, the local dialect. For the Missus this was a challenge….She decided to randomly order something from the local menu and went ahead and chose something at random.

Which was this:

Basically pork and bread dumplings……. for about four bucks. I'm sure this would surely fill up the hungry local!

Tired of Gulas, I ordered ribs….which seemed so cheap at under ten bucks……kind of scary actually. I was shocked when this hit the table.

Man, this was like 3/4 rack of spareribs……..lightly seasoned, but with some smoke flavor. This really wasn't too bad…..could not even come close to finishing this.

We ended up taking most of this back to the room, having it for dinner.

Heading back to the hotel, we stopped by the Lower Square.

Which seemed so quiet…….

I'm not sure if it was the weather, or if this is normal…..

We'd be leaving in the morning, which is an interesting story itself. We enjoyed our stay in Olomouc, but were looking forward to our next destination.

Stay Tuned!

Olomouc: The Astronomical Clock, Turtle Fountain, St Wenceslas Cathedral, Svatováclavský Pivovar (St Wenceslas Brewery), and Museum Night

August 29, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Czech Food and Restaurants, Czech Republic, Gastropub, Travel

After lunch, my main objective was to catch the tram back to our dry, warm hotel room for a much needed siesta. The Missus however, had other plans, the clock was inching its way to high noon and the Missus wanted to see the "show"…..which, unlike what happens in Prague lasts a whole six minutes…which seems like 60 minutes in the wind and rain. It was just the Missus and I, plus about 4 (of 12) hardy, perhaps foolish, obviously tourists who actually stood and watch the parade of figures march by. The original clock was said to be the grandest in Europe, but it was destroyed by the Nazis in World War 2. This version was rebuilt by the Communist regime in 1953. So instead of apostles marching by, you get milkmaids, blacksmiths, teachers, chemists….good communists one and all!

So, while the clock in Prague had me humming "It's a Small World", this one was more like, "Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho, it's off to work we go….."

There are many fountains in the Upper Square area. most of them have characters out of Greek Mythology. There's one of Caesar, who is said to have founded Olomouc, though the city was once a Roman encampment, there's no documentation that Caesar actually ever visited in person.

But my favorite, is the Turtle Fountain right next to the Town Hall.

The turtle is said to represent Olomouc's ability to persevere. On its back resides a pillar on which there are etchings of maps and other documents. The fountain itself is called the Arion Fountain which actually depicts the story of a poet saved when thrown overboard by a dolphin and yes, there's a dolphin and I suppose the poet…..but it's the turtles I remember.

We did eventually make it back to our room and a short nap ensued. After which, the Missus was ready to get going. So we made the same walk we did earlier…….

This time around, in spite of the angry looking clouds, we took our time. We turned up a street and found St Wenceslas Cathedral. Not only is Olomouc a college town but the Roman Catholic Archdiocese for the Czech Republic is located here. It was established in 1063….. So a visit to St Wenceslas Cathedral just seemed to be the right thing.

The rather imposing Neo-Gothic Church was named after "Good" King (Saint) Wenceslas on the thousand year anniversary of his death in 1935.

Being the seat of the Catholic Church, there have been many esteemed visitors. Their visits have been documented on displays within the cathedral, Pope John Paul II (more on this later) and Mother Teresa (Matka Tereza) jumped out at me.

And while I'm a sorta-kinda agnostic-thiest, born Buddhist, raised Jehovah's Witness, grown to cynic…..I respect the beliefs of others.

I also find the history, as much as I'm willing to scratch, fascinating. And yes, those are photos of Mother Teresa's visit.

What seemed a bit strange to us, was, while Olomouc has a population of over 100,000 with an urban population of about 500,000, things just seemed mighty quiet.

We headed back up to the Upper Square area and it seemed almost abandoned.

The Missus also wasn't sold on my choice for dinner either…..and it became even tougher when we had to try and find the place. Which, we of course finally did, a non-descript simple building.

And yet, there seemed to be no activity. However, this was no sign of what was actually going on within St Wenceslas Brewery. As you walked to the door, you could hear the buzz of conversation. This was the largest concentration of people we'd seen in Olomouc so far!

Like most places in the CZ, you saw a table and went for it….then you ordered every single beer on the menu.

Which is what we did. And you should do as well. They do like a good "head" on their beer here.

Our server was totally awesome, he was friendly, kind, accommodating, and willing to let us try every beer they had. My favorite was the 12°, which, while not outstanding, had a distinct peppery bite to it. To be honest, we still hadn't had anything that got our attention.

So, how about the food? As I mentioned before, Moravia has its own specialties….and we were going to go for it!

First up; Hanácká česnečka – Garlic Soup. This seemed like canned beef broth…it was very salty.

Of course we had to try (again), the Olomoucké tvarůžky, you can read more about how this is cheese supposedly aged under meat, etc.

I was still scratching my head……….it really didn't have the "ripe" flavor I enjoyed in a cheese nad really seemed mild.

Though I did enjoy the pickled camembert.

The Utopenci, the pickled sausage known as "Drowned Man" was ok, less sour than we preferred.

In one of our favorite moments….the Missus asked our very friendly server if She could get and order of "just cabbage"…….really, all She wanted was fermented cabbage. Aiyah. The server said he's asked the kitchen…..and guess what?

She got Her plate of cabbage! Just for this; if we're ever back, we'd come here in a second.

Of course there was more beer…….

While waiting for our check we noticed a group of gentlemen wandering around looking for a table. Well, in the Czech Republic, it's "dining Darwinism" when it comes to that. I grabbed one of the guys and told them we'd be leaving soon….just hang on and we'd be done. It turned out that they were visiting professors from Chile! So, who know who you might meet at Svatovaclavsky pivovar?

Saint Wenceslas Brewery (Svatovaclavsky pivovar)
Marianska 4, Olomouc, Czech Republic

As we headed back to the hotel we noticed people…many more folks than we'd seen before, standing in lines. After looknig around a bit we found that it was "Museum Night" in Olomouc, where admission to various Museums were free. We couldn't help but indulge!

And while we enjoyed the dramatic displays at the Natural History Museum, our favorite photo was this…….

Giant Rodents looking at a kid who wants to be a giant rodent!

On the way back, we decided to stop by the Archdiocesan Museum, located next to the St Wenceslas Cathedral. This museum was built after Pope John Paul II's visit, when he asked the Archdiocese and the city to build a museum to document/celebrate its history.

We had a great time visiting the museums. What was quite apparent was the hospitality and pride of the locals. They obviously knew we weren't from these parts, but went out of their way to welcome us. Moravian pride and hospitality……..

Brussels: Grand Place, t’ Kelderke, and Le Fin de Siècle

June 5, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Belgian Cuisine and Restaurants, Belgium, Brussels, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub, Travel

I'm not sure exactly when the Missus and I decided on Belgium as a destination, but somewhere after the New Year, the Missus's love of Belgian brews ignited, and airfare to Brussels seemed reasonable…Prague had always been in the picture, but Belgium, well, that decision was a rather late one.

Which is how we found ourselves in a terrible line at passport control. Honestly, it wasn't even a line at all, just a mass of people in a hallway, more of a cattle pen perhaps, for what seemed a distinctively unorganized entry to the "Capital of the European Union". We basically stood an hour and half in a huge blob of people before making it the actual line for passport control and customs. The folks here are very friendly and nice though. You also seem to have to walk through the entire airport to get to baggage claim (luckily we only had carry-on). It was a slam dunk from there. We found that public transportation in Brussels, like most big cities in Europe is an absolute joy. Down to the lower level and the Express Train to Brussels Centraal Station. The folks at the apartment we were staying at, above an art gallery just a few blocks from the station, perfectly situated for us, gave us impeccable instructions. Within a few minutes we had the keys, gotten some good tips on the area, had climbed up the rather narrow stairway, showered, and were on our way.

We were but three blocks from what became our landmark……

The famous Manneken Pis. You know how they say, "you can't miss it"? Well, in this case, you could miss it if not for the crowds that surround this tiny statue of a little boy peeing…..

The only other constant in the area is the cloying smell of waffles and chocolate, so thick that you can almost see it.

In spite of all the tourists, we quickly noticed that the pace here was quite laid back, unlike Rome, things were low stress, no hard sell, seemingly no scams…..

Grand Place, the former central market square, UNESCO Heritage site, the heart of Brussels, is just a few blocks from Manneken Pis. Also known as Grote Markt in bilingual Belgium, it is indeed a grand sight, even as the clouds rolled in and drops of rain started pouring down.

With the rain falling, it seemed like a good time to get something to eat. Both the Missus and I were starving after our long flight(s). We had been for warned about the "restaurant row" on Rue de Bouchers, by guides, online, and even the folks at the apartment. However, we didn't want to be slogging around, a bit groggy from lack of sleep (I can't sleep on flights), in a city we weren't familiar with. Enter t'Kelderke, located in Grand Place. Yes, it's a tourist restaurant of sorts, downstairs in the cellar right on Grand Place.

I really came to enjoy this type of cellar restaurant. I think there's something rather comforting and cozy, in spite of the darkness…..

Our Server was a rather nice fellow, not overly friendly, but amicable……

Hey, we were in Belgium, right? So it was time for a beer. Not much on the list here, so we started with a Grimbergen Tripel. Kind of light for a tripel, mild citrus tones, not very boozy, and fairly thin tongue feel.

Much like the restaurant itself, it was agreeable, nothing that would challenge you in any way.

The Missus started with the Carbonnade Flamande, the classic Belgian Beef and Beer stew.

And stoemp of course. The stew was ok, the flavor beefy but a bit too sweet, the beef also had a decent flavor, but several pieces were much too tough and fairly dry. The stoemp tasted of too much parsley.

I ordered a Horse Steak medium….which was cooked to a perfect medium.

While the frites were something that could have out of a bag with SYSCO on it; definitely not up to what I would consider Belgian standards, the horse was pretty good. Perhaps not the most gamey, nor sweet horse I've had, more like a powerful grass fed beef sirloin. The Missus absolutely loved it. The Server recommended a mushroom sauce which was served on the side. It had a nice flavor, perhaps a bit heavy on the butter, but not bad.

One thing we quickly noticed, which was a recurring theme was that things weren't overly salted….a nice change of pace from what we're used too.

Overall, a decent meal in a very high tourist area.

T'Kelderke
Grand' Place 15
Brussels, Belgium

By the time we worked our way back up to daylight, the rain had long passed and things had dried up a bit. Before we headed back to the apartment for a nap we headed out the other end of Grand Place and to the Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert. Built in 1847, this place claims to be the oldest operating shopping mall in Europe.

I really loved the neo-classical design which bestowed a sense of elegance to the glass covered arcade. You really expect great works of art to be lining the walls instead of windows to various chocolate shops and cafes.

We then headed through Rue de Bouchers, wall to wall restaurants waiting for tourists and past the Church of St Nicholas.

Running right into the huge building known as the Bourse – The Stock Exchange Building. Here's a photo of the front form across busy Boulevard Anspach.

Funny thing, we'd just arrived and in the matter of minutes had seen most of lower town sights!

We headed back to the apartment and took a well earned nap. In spite of the rather heavy lunch (and beer), we awoke hungry. We headed on out, walking past all the places we passed before. You notice much more the second, and third time around. Near MP there's this mural of Tintin, the world famous cartoon created by Brussels born cartoonist Hergé.

The Missus and I really enjoyed the murals and street art of Belgium.

Crossing Anspach and past what we call "Brussel's Chinatown" (more in a later post), we got the area known as St Catherine. We really enjoyed the vibe of this area, which seemed even more laid back. The area is dotted with cafes, restaurants, food shops, and such.

Just south of the area on a rather non-descript street is a place I really wanted to check out.

Not much of a sign to speak of, communal seating, the menu is written on a chalkboard (in French – but I heard the Servers explain the dishes in English to some folks), nice selection of beer (served at the perfect temp), this is the type of no-nonsense places I love….though if you'd move this to San Diego it would be full of hipsters and called a Gastropub. And it would make a killing. The prices are right, the service can be on the brusque side…..until they understood that we really appreciated the food and drink. You don't hesitate here….you spot an opening and you go for it.

Decisiveness wins the day here. If they are busy feel free to walk up to the bar and politely order your beer; which in my case was a Trappistes Rochefort 10, a wonderful brown quadrupel with a slight raisin and a wonderful, smooth, tongue coating texture. Man, now this was a beer to sit and savor. As you can tell, I was really starting to get into this.

The Missus ordered what might be Her favorite Gueze of the trip; a Mort Subite. This seemed to have the right combination of a mild fruitiness along with all the sour attributes of a Gueze without being too dry. Something interesting we found was that folks were somewhat surprised that the Missus, a woman, enjoyed sours.

Of course we ate……this time I ordered the Carbonnade Flamande(made with Chimay) which we both really enjoyed. The beef was perfectly cooked, very tender, but not falling apart. The flavor was a nice beefy, with a balanced sweet and savory thing going for it.

The Missus just had to order the Sausage and Stoemp.

Without a doubt the best Stoemp I've ever had. The Missus really enjoyed this, especially the sauce, which I believe was also made with beer, mustard, and probably beef stock.

This was one of our favorite meals of the trip….

The price at 34 Euros ($45) we thought was very reasonable.

Le Fin de Siècle
Rue des Chartreux 9
Brussels, Belgium

After dinner we walked around a bit, enjoying the public art.

We stopped by a Carrefour Express and picked up a couple more bottles……just for a nightcap, right?

The Belle-vue Gueuze was very basic, not too sour, middle of the road, with nothing that really stood out.

The Brugge Tripel was quite effervescent for a tripel. Kind of boozy, with some mild fruit. Not the nice texture that I like in a tripel, but not bad.

Yes, we were having a heck of a time….can't you tell?

I realize this was a long one. If you hung around 'til the end, I thank you for reading!

COMC: Blind Lady Ale House and Ballast Point Tasting Room and Kitchen (Little Italy)

January 17, 2014 mmm-yoso Beer, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub

Just a real quick C(learing) O(ut the) M(emory) C(ard) post on this very warm Friday…….couldn't you use a cold one to start off the weekend? Isn't it Happy Hour time yet?

As with all my COMC posts…keeping the verbiage to a minimum. Have a great weekend!

Blind Lady Ale House:

To make it short and sweet, we enjoy the food at Tiger! Tiger!, We prefer the beer selection at BLAH.

The folks at both places have always been great.

Our favorite item on the menu is the Charcuterie Plate……we're fond of the Country Style Pate's

Once one of the kitchen staff came out to talk about making sauerkraut with the Missus. They chatted for like 15 minutes about it! You gotta love that.

The Missus is now hooked on Craft Beer and it basically started here with a glass of Three Philosophers. Crazy…..

The Missus loves the vibe here so much, that She decided we should stop in on New Year's Eve. That says a lot, doesn't it?

The folks here know their beer, know how to pour it, and they seem to take really good care of it. Drop by and you'll see.

Blind Lady Ale House
3416 Adams Ave
San Diego, CA 92116

Ballast Point Tasting Room and Kitchen:

Met my good buddy Candice here.

I was shocked at how busy the place was..on a weekday!

There's a good sized tasting area…where, well, you can taste of course!

Specialty Brewer Colby Chandler is here, so you'll always find something interesting.

When I visited, it was Brewpub area that was really busy.

The pretty straight-forward pub grub was pretty good.

As we were finishing up, Colby, who I know from our Beer Week dinners at Ba Ren and Sab E Lee Santee, came over and said someone wanted to meet us. This is where I get really uncomfortable….I like to keep a very, very, low profile. Anyway, that handsome dude manning the kitchen here is Travis Clifford, whom you might know from his blog Travis Like Food. No wonder we haven't had a post in forever! Like most of the food bloggers I've met, Travis is a very nice, down to earth guy, even though he likes those JIB stoner tacos! (JJK) So if you drop by, make sure you say hello. I gotta get back here again soon.

Ballast Point Tasting Room and Kitchen
2215 India St
San Diego, CA 92101

Tiger! Tiger!

December 15, 2013 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Gastropub, Pubs and Pub Grub

**** Tiger!Tiger! has closed

Over the years, I'd been to a couple of Gastropubs but had always been disappointed in my visits one way (decent food, but way over-priced) or another (mediocre food, still way over-priced). A couple of months ago FOY Candice decided to prove that I was wrong and took a merry band of us to her two favorite gastropubs. Our first stop was a place I'd always wanted to check out, but never found the time, nor was I able to convince the Missus (if you think I'm a hard sell….) to take a chance and check them out.

It was late on a weekend afternoon when we visited. There were 6 of us, which meant we could taste a nice variety of food.

I'm not a beer-o-phile; though I enjoy more than my fair share of Craft Brews. Here at Tiger Tiger, things seemed slanted more on the food end; whereas our second destination Blind Lady seemed to have a stronger focus on beer. Other than being owned by the same group, both locations are equipped with a wood fired oven, which is put to good use here.

We started off with the Sausage Poutine Fries.

Call me a purist; but I'd really like my poutine to have cheese curds and brown gravy. The sausage gravy made it taste too much like breakfast and the sausage seasonings kind of detracted from the dish.

I didn't care much for the Wood Fired Oysters as well…..just too much.

It was almost as if this dish was created to make one think they weren't eating oysters.

My opinion took a 180 when the Puerco entered the scene.

Sorry, not the best photographic representation of this lovely sandwich. The wood-fired pork had a mild smokiness to it; I like the pickles, they cut through any richness. The bread was nicely toasted…..good flavors, good combination…..by far my favorite item.

My friends understand that I view the "slap-anything-on-a-baguette-and-call-it-a-Banh Mi" syndrome with a cynical and somewhat jaundiced eye. By my definition, this really ain't a Banh Mi. It is however, a nicely put together sandwich. MrQ loved what the combination of cilantro and pickled onions brought to the party. The aioli had a nice kick that brought everything into focus for me.

Candice told me that there are always a couple of seasonal vegan offerings on the menu. Wood fired veggies sounded good. We started with the Spaghetti Squash, not my favorite thing in the world, but here it was really well done.

The pesto like sauce really gave the usually bland squash a nice boost in flavor.

The Wax Beans were really delicious.

The beans still had a bit of snap, good salt-acid in the flavor, along with olive oil to give it a bit of richness.

All in all, I enjoyed the food…..and the company of course! In fact, I ended up bringing the Missus here a couple of weeks later. But that's another post. On this day, we were off to our next stop; Blind Lady Ale House……..

Tiger! Tiger!
3025 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92104