Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt – Page 2

Mucha Fruta -Neveria/Fruiteria/Cocteleria (City Heights)

August 12, 2015 Cathy Fruiterias, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, Sandwiches, Seafood, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping to read mmm-yoso!!! on this warm summer day. Kirk is (again) busy with work, errands and stuff while Ed(from Yuma) is (still) busy being retired and exploring Yuma and other places while enjoying life. Cathy is (once more) writing a post.

One day not long ago, The Mister and I were driving down University Avenue and noticed this signage, located in between Tu Thanh which Kirk has posted about twice now.The business on the other side used to be (another) Ali Baba, but now is City Heights Cafe.The menu is pretty much standard. There is a sign in the window for churros with cajeta (caramel made with goat milk) for $1.25 as well as large plantains for $1.50 with but those are fried and aren't being made in the these days of heat. The glass case you see in the above photo shows some of the Thrifty brand ice cream flavors available.The wall opposite has photos of some of the menu items.The glassed in refrigerator displays most of the fresh fruit available that day.One day I was craving a coctele and ordered the shrimp version ($7.75). Only one size and this was plenty. The large shrimp are cooked in the lime/tomato juice to which is added cucumber, onion, cilantro and slices of avocado. There were at least 12 (and I think 15) large shrimp in this cocktail, which was more than enough.Another version of chamango (small, $4) was tried here. Since mangos are in season and available fresh (instead of being frozen), the drink wasn't as cold or icy, it was merely tasty and wonderful.One other visit had me craving the shrimp again, so I ordered a tosti-ceviche ($4.50). It was a great ceviche (again with large shrimp) on top of spicy lime Tostitos (which are only sold in Mexico). It is $2 more than a plain tostada and the melding of flavors is good/unique, but I can now go on with my life and order a regular ceviche tostada next time.Pretty much any visit to a Fruiteria includes a fruit salad (small, $4.25) and our visits here are no exception. Papaya, banana, mango, cantaloupe, watermelon, strawberries and apples along with cottage cheese, granola and honey made this hearty meal a good (and refreshing) choice.The tortas here are wonderful. The fresh bread and plenty of quality ingredients have simple sandwiches being a fancy meal for us to share. Above, a Lomo torta($5.25). Plenty of beef tenderloin, a thin layer of good beans and cheese, Romaine and avocado on the fresh, toasted torta bread. It's great.Then there's the ice creams. Usually we share a two scoop cup ($1.25) but one day, The Mister thought we should share a banana split ($3.95). Who am I to argue. Best part, you choose the ice cream flavors and don't need any sauce to disturb those flavors. Our usual ice cream choices: pistachio, butter pecan and cherry. A perfect snack on these hot days.

I hope your week is going well!

Mucha Fruta 4804 University Avenue (Between Estrella and 48th) San Diego 92105 (619) 282-0282 open 8-8 Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sat and 8-7 on Wednesday, 9-7 on Sunday

Go ahead, click on it; the photo will go upright. I still don't know what I've done to make my camera phone go goofy.

Miramar Cash & Carry Market- Indian treats

July 30, 2015 Cathy Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, Markets & Grocers, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a food blog. Three friends share the writing responsibilities here. Kirk, who is busy with work right now, Ed(from Yuma) who is busy with retirement right now and Cathy, who is blogging this post for you right now.

I've written a good portion of the posts on this blog about local Markets and Grocers, usually mentioning that most have in store restaurants…and then showing you some of the meals from those restaurants.

This Indian grocery store doesn't have a hot foods area.Located on Miramar road, just West of the 15 between Black Mountain Road and the North entrance to MCAS Miramar, the signage caught our eye.

The "Simply South" advertisement of 'fresh batter made here' is why we began shopping here regularly. This very clean, well stocked, quite large Indian grocery has been here since 2011. There's a good selection of fresh produce, yogurts, pre-packaged naan, a whole aisle of just coffees and teas and malt beverage drink mixes and an open refrigerator of various roti. Rice of all types (and brands) along the far wall, frozen foods(35 doors) along the entire back wall.Other brands of dough (in addition to the Simply South brand) for making fresh Dosa, Idli and Uttapam are also sold in the refrigerated area. Sweets and kitchen/household items are also sold here. There are also aisles of sauces, spices, mixes and snacks, none of which did I take photos…it's almost overwhelming for someone who doesn't know brands. I must say that everything I have purchased here has turned out to be very good…but I've spent a lot of time reading the labels for ingredients.Beverages (Indian beer in the refrigerator), syrups…pretty much a regular grocery store…with the most interesting area in front of the cash registers.
Yes, I'm pretty certain the words "Kwality Ice Cream" on the storefront signage caught your eye in that second photo. The Founder of Kwality, a Food Technologist and Flavorist, pretty much began the company while studying at Rutgers University. The photo above, my first taste of 'pistachio nut' had such a complex blend of other flavors (saffron, cardamom and others) all complementing the nutty pistachio flavor.This Falooda Drink for $6 is probably the most wonderful and decadent flavor blend I've had in a very long time. Falooda noodles, watercress seeds, rose syrup, rose kulfi and malai kulfi. The flavor mix was refreshing and cooling and so very different.

The ice cream here makes shopping so much fun.

Cash & Carry 9252 Miramar Road San Diego 92126 (858)566-4819 Open Mon-Fri 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Sat-Sun 9-9 Website

Lil’ Farmers Cafe-fresh. (Kearny Mesa)

July 28, 2015 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Caffeine Fix, Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, Salads, Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping to read mmm-yoso!!! Cathy is writing today; Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are busily researching places and food items.

Some days, I just want a simple meal-sandwich or salad, maybe a coffee. Ending up at Panera, Subway or Starbucks makes for a dull post. I've taken photos of every food item consumed for almost a decade, those don't necessarily show up on the blog but this time, simple foods from a locally owned place are worth sharing. Just a few weeks ago, while driving along 163 South, we noticed this signage over what had been a Starbucks, turned briefly into Pizza Studio (another one of those 'customizable' pizza places) (which, after six months, had a 'Closed for Remodeling' sign on the window). (I did write a post about Pizza Studio, but it was very negative and proven by the sudden closure so it was deleted). Lil' Farmers Cafe is in the same parking lot as Mitsuwa Marketplace, Chopstix Too and (soon to be open) Nishiki.The ubiquitous, hipster, reclaimed wood wall was already there……as was the walk along refrigerated glassed in area.The simple menu (nothing is priced over $5.99 except for the 'to go' organic beverage packs which serve 12) is pretty much all customizable.You can choose your bread and toppings for a sandwich……as well as salad ingredients if you want something added or not included in the menu selections.The beverage selection is interesting (as is the pricing variance between 12, 16 and 20 ounces) and I really like the organic coffee. The concept of a Bacon and Bean salad ($5.49) is interesting. For the first order, I wanted my personalization to be the lettuce choice and the salad dressing (Oil and vinegar, which was mixed thoroughly and in a perfect proportion). Lettuce, bacon, garbanzo and kidney beans, fresh tomatoes and Parmesan. This was very large, very fresh and just right (I am always afraid when the lettuce is already mixed in with dressing, but the technique used here is correct, with no excess 'pooling' at the bottom of the bowl). The Mister ordered a Farmer Panini ($5.49) Roast beef, cream cheese, tomato, onion and (our addition) sprouts. Panini'd and on sourdough, this was a really good sandwich. We ended up speaking with the manager, a very nice lady, who told us the owner is a former San Diego Socker. We've seen him in the restaurant the times we have visited; he is keeping an eye on things and looking for feedback and ways to improve the menu.Another visit had me craving a simple salad. Farmer Greens ($4.49), a nice mix of arugula, spinach, red pepper and roasted tomatoes (I chose sesame dressing) is very good (roasted tomatoes would be a great salad add-on in the future; such great flavor) and hit the spot. The Mister had another menu item in mind, the pesto-chicken flatbread ($5.99). The flatbread (a whole grain dough; very nice) is first warmed, then the items placed on top, then it's all placed back into the small oven for about one minute to melt the cheese and warm the chicken and the flatbread gets a bit crispier. Pesto, chicken, Mozzarella and shaved Parmesan are the only ingredients and truly is all that are needed needed. Again, the flavors are just right.You may or may not have noticed a small area at the bottom of the small menu. Ice cream. 99¢ a scoop ice cream. Only chocolate, strawberry and vanilla flavors (which can be made into a shake). Excellent, extra creamy, 'old fashioned' (to my tastebuds) ice cream. It reminds me of the 10¢ squared/not round scoops of wonderful ice cream from Thrifty's. The bottom of the menu 'flatbread' choice is a sweet version ($4.99). Again, the bread is first warmed, then spread with Nutella and sliced banana, folded over itself, warmed a bit more (the bread is almost toasty) and topped with caramel and chocolate sauce. This was good, if not a bit too sweet (I think a dollop of fatty whipped cream might cut the sweetness, but really have no complaints).

Each visit we've shared a cup of the organic coffee, which is very good. There are no claims made about other organic items here; the freshness on each visit has been remarkable. It's nice to have a local place to enjoy a good, simple meal.

Lil' Farmers Cafe 4240 Kearny Mesa Road San Diego 92111 (between Ross and Trex, just across from the In-n-Out) (858) 430-6554 Website Open Mon-Fri 8-6, Sat 10-6

Bottega Italiana (UTC)…coffee and gelato

May 24, 2015 Cathy Caffeine Fix, Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, a food-centric blog with (almost) daily writings shares posts about various cuisines, new and established restaurants, pubs and other places where food can be found, as well as sometimes home cooking. Today, a short post written by Cathy about a small three-location establishment.

Not that I wrote any posts about the holidays or any New Year resolutions, but now, almost six months into 2015, I feel successful. The free "Steps" app on our mobile phones record how much The Mister and I walk each day and the goal of 10,000 steps a day has become easier and almost regular since about mid-April.

The only thing was, it started getting a bit boring, despite the almost daily weather changes. So, we've become 'those people'- Mall Walkers.Parkway Plaza is covered and air conditioned, Grossmont Plaza is also close to home, but not that interesting to us any more, so one day we drove West to Westfield University Town Center, where we haven't regularly stopped in years.

The Ice Rink and surrounding restaurant choices are new to us and so are most of the shops. (edit- the Ice Rink seating area used to be open to the rink and is now enclosed. Most of the food court restaurants and the food court seating area have been redone since we were last here).

There's also a new movie theater building that was added onto the mall.Down the steps near the entrance (or, exit) of the Arclight Cinemas is Bottega Italiana.

Kirbie visited in January. cc visited the other (Coronado) San Diego location selling Bottega Italiana gelati in November. Faye also mentioned Bottega Italiana in the middle of this post. There is an area selling coffees and San Diego made Chuao Chocolates to take home.The menu is simple, the coffee preparation area is observable, there are a few sweets for sale at the cash register. The gelato is made right here. Daily. The fresh made gelato are beautiful…and overwhelming. We've been offered samples and sometimes that makes decisions more difficult. Fortunately, two flavors can be part of a 'small' size.Also, an affogato (small size gelato ($3.80) with a shot of espresso over it (+$1)) can have two flavors within…in this case, panna cotta (vanilla flavored sweet cream; it's different than (the excellent) vanilla) and hazelnut went perfectly with the brisk shot of concentrated coffee.Another day, a small ($3.80) with Speciale (burnt cream, dark chocolate chips, caramel and sea salt: all able to be tasted in one bite) with a scoop of Opera (pistachio, hazelnut and almond nuts and flavors) was enjoyed at the patio tables out front.

Bottega Italiana is a nice place to stop and get a shareable, excellent treat.

Bottega Italiana 4445 La Jolla Village Drive Suite H-17 (just down from the movie theaters) San Diego 92122 (858)404-0799 website Mon-Th 10-9:30, Fri-Sat 10-10 Sun 10:30-9:30

Iceskimo-shaved snow

February 27, 2015 Cathy Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, the food blog, is where you have stopped for a moment. The food posting of today is written by Cathy. Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are just not feeling it.

As Kirk has mentioned, our weather had been very strange the past few weeks. Very hot days, very cold days, rainy, windy and now, a bit chilly in the morning and evening but clear and pleasant during mid-day…

On one of the hot days, The Mister and I stopped here, the newest location of a business, (which was a pop up inside Pangea Bakery Cafe just last summer), for a refreshing snack.

The location? On the East side of Convoy, just next to Jasmine Seafood Dim Sum, sharing the same parking lot with Dumpling Inn (which will be moving within that same parking lot into the former First Korean Market, which held Island Town restaurant, which had been one location of Woo Chee Chong, a San Diego mainstay since 1899, closing in 1995). (Link to obituary of the son of the WCC founders).

Anyhow, you should be able to see the Aqua colored building… Walking into the small storefront, there are a few tables and some bar stool seating. Straight ahead, a suggested menu is available. To the left are the snow shaving machines. Pricing is by the ounce (48 cents/ounce on our most recent visit). Topping choices can be overwhelming. Pretty much anything you'd like is available… There are six main flavors of shaved snow always available: original (condensed milk), strawberry, green tea, lychee, black sesame and salted caramel.That day, I wanted something simple, so a small cup of shaved lychee was mine. (4.5 oz, $2.16)This is a good photo to show you the delicate ribbons formed by shaving the ice block. The snow melts in your mouth and the bright flavor is just wonderfully crisp; not too sweet.Special Selection that day was the 'Frozen Hot Chocolate'. This order weighed 8.7 ounces (and therefore was $4.18; I can do math in my head and not show the work, because I am old).

Chocolate shaved snow (very good chocolate), topped with dark chocolate bits, fresh strawberries and house made whipped cream, along with two fluted cookies. The depth of flavors in this combination was great. Even though I don't crave chocolate, this really did hit the spot for me.

Iceskimo 4609 Convoy San Diego 92111 (858) 216-1111 Mon-Th noon-10:30, Fri-Sat noon-11:30 Sun noon-10:00

Solano’s Ice Cream in Yuma

January 7, 2015 ed fromyuma Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!, Yuma

Kirk and Cathy are busy elsewhere, so today a short post from the banks of the Colorado River. Although it may not seem like ice-cream weather in much of the US, Ed (from Yuma) and the Yuma Visitors' Bureau want you to know it is always summer here (OK, almost always).

At about the same time Arizona inaugurated a governor who made his reputation and fortune selling gimmicky ice cream franchises (yes, you heard me, Cold Stone Creamery), I thought it appropriate to focus on a local, family-owned, independent ice cream shop in Yuma:

Like Baskin-Robbins, Solano's offers you a lot of flavor choices, but unlike Baskin-Robbins, the friendly folks at Solano's are creative, inventive, and maybe a little weird. Every time you come in there will be at least 18 different flavors of ice cream arranged in tubs with labels explaining your choices:

Here's another photo of some tubs:

While I don't have a complete list (maybe one doesn't exist), we have encountered flavors like balsamic strawberry, sweetcorn raspberry, cinnamon toast, maple walnut, vanilla bean, fruit loops, Yuma Fire Dept (with red hots), malted milk balls, coconut, toasted coconut, pineapple, orange dream sicle, Oreos and cream, sweet cream, rocky road, chocolate, red velvet cake, butter pecan, pistachio, strawberry rhubarb, blueberry habanero, and everybody’s favorite maple bacon (okay maybe not vegetarians’ favorite).

You can buy cups of ice cream with three different flavors – and more than three scoops it seems. If memory serves, on our first trip, Tina chose Yuma fire department , maple bacon, and sweetcorn raspberry:

She liked them all.

More conventional, I picked maple bacon, cinnamon toast, and?:

Maple Bacon is an idea that should spread. Just perfect flavor. The cinnamon toast had the right flavors of cinnamon and toast, but lacked the crunch I was hoping for.

Of course, you can get single scoop waffle cones (maple walnut?):

Or single serving cups – here Solano’s sweet cream:

And if you're really hungry they have a range of Sundaes:

Here's a Sand Dune Sundae (I think):

And a Pecan Grove:.

It took me three evenings to eat this sucker; it was so rich and sweet and filling. And good!

Solano”s is truly a family operation:

I believe I've seen at least three generations working together to make the place of success. I don't have a current price list, but you like good ice-cream, you will find the prices fair and portions large. Some hot evenings in the summer, the service is a little slow, but it is friendly, so I have always enjoyed the weight – correction, the wait.

Solano's Homemade Ice Cream, 1452 South 4th Avenue, Yuma, AZ 85364, open noon to 10 PM every day except Wednesday

Ice cream(y) treats: Matcha Love, Moosie’s, Hammond’s and Niederfrank’s

October 12, 2014 Cathy Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Cathy Eats!

Matcha Love has closed. Moose's, Hammond's and Niederfrank's are still in business.

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about various foods we (Kirk, Ed(from Yuma) and Cathy) encounter, usually with a short story. Today, because the guys are busy encountering various modes of transportation and trying to organize their photos and thoughts, Cathy is writing about a bunch of encounters with a common food.

Wow, we had a few weeks of horridly hot and humid days. Usually, a nice cold glass of water or tea is satisfying, but there were days when the sweet tooth kicked in and needed to be part of the equation. Walking just inside Mitsuwa Marketplace, there used to be a bookstore to your right. Recently, part of that floorspace was replaced with Matcha Love. Earlier this year, Kirbie and Elmo both blogged about this Japanese based franchise opening inside Mitsuwa locations. Ito-En, the worlds largest supplier of green tea, is the owner of this business. The limited menu assures quality of the product. The limited variations of product assures freshness. This day we ordered the Triple Ice Waffle Bowl ($4.75) which was three servings: matcha, black sesame and vanilla soft serve ice creams. The other flavor, Hoji-Cha, is roasted green tea-traditionally an after dinner flavor and needs to stand alone; the flavors will not go well together. As it was, the strong, tannic matcha flavor, as well as the deep black sesame flavor each -needed- to be 'rinsed' with the vanilla after a few bites. This is 'adult' ice cream and not sweet at all. Very good and refreshing.

Matcha Love inside Mitsuwa Marketplace locations The San Diego location is closed.While walking down Adams Avenue, after a delightful lunch, we saw this storefront I had read about on cc's blog. Since it was going to be another hot day, we dropped in. Moosie is a nickname of a grandmother of the owner and the ice cream is "super premium hand made" by Alhambra based Fosselmans Ice Cream Company.Lemon custard and pistachio almond were our shared choice this day. The prices are fair for this quality (fat content) of ice cream. The location is in the middle of an area with an overwhelming selection of interesting restaurants.

Moosie's Ice Cream 4073 Adams Avenue San Diego 92116 (619) 634-4185 open noon-10 p.m. dailyDriving East on University, stopping at the signal light was the only way I noticed this signage. I had read Kirbie's opening day post as well as three posts written by cc about this newly opened North Park gourmet ice cream selling destination.Hammonds offers 89 flavors of Tropical Dreams brand super premium ice cream and sorbet, made in Hawaii (super premium means 18% butterfat). Even though you can get samples of the flavors, it's so difficult to decide and Hammonds has the perfect solution!The Hammonds 'Taster'- three, four, five or six small scoops of your favorite flavor on a (very) small cone. ($1.30 each) Our choices this day were all ice creams (we decided next time it will be all sorbets, based on our samples). Cherry Royale, Rum Raisin, Pistachio and Kona Coffee Almond were chosen, so that we tried nuts as well as fruits and all with the various ice cream-iness. Hammonds serves a quality product with great variety.

Hammonds Gourmet Ice Cream 3077 University Avenue San Diego 92104 (619) 220-0231 website open noon-10 Sun-Thurs, until 11 on Fri-Sat

Realizing my most recent post about Niederfrank's was in 2007, I thought another stop (with documentation) was due. Kirbie wrote about her 2009 visit and CC has by far outdone me in Niederfrank's postings since she lives nearby. Niederfrank's has been in National City since 1948 and supplies ice cream to many San Diego County area restaurants and snack shops.The original storefront is barely changed, as the primary business of quality ice cream is unchanged. This day, we chose 'Almond Joy' flavor (coconut with almonds and chocolate) as well as a yellow pistachio and dark cherry. As always, fresh, good and a happy feeling afterward.

Niederfrank's 726 "A" Avenue National City, CA 91950 (619) 477-0828 fax (619) 477-0876 Opens at 11 a.m. daily. Click here for website.

I hope you're having a nice (and extended) weekend!

Yogurt Swirl-(Mira Mesa)-Yogurt and Shaved Snow

May 31, 2013 Cathy Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the name of this food blog. Kirk and Ed (from Yuma) just have no time to blog today. Cathy has plenty of time, so she's sharing this little food find.

One overcast morning last week looked gloomy, but was going to be warm, according to the weather report on the radio. Planning ahead (and satisfying a craving), The Mister and I drove toward Mira Mesa Boulevard. The mall across Black Mountain (same side of MMB) from Lucky Seafood seemed to be a good place to stop.

Located next to Pho Cow Cali Express (and a soon to open Indian Supermarket), I was inspired to finally stop here for a snack after seeing several posts on the Pink Candles blog, written by friend and fellow blogger, canine cologne. I also read Kirbie's post about shaved snow, Mary's viewpoint of Yogurt Swirl and Jinxi's post describing shaved snow last October.

When you walk in the door, you see the usual frozen yogurt serve yourself stations straight ahead.

The Mister took a small amount of yogurt flavors to try. The plain yougurt is wonderfully tart, the way I like it. The chocolate had a very pronounced cocoa flavor. His third choice, strawberry, had no artificial color (as you can see) and it tasted very much like fresh (not artificial) strawberry.

Turn to the left when you walk in and there's the area where you order, pay, get toppings…and in the far corner to the right-see it?

The snow ice shaver. We ordered a small mocha flavored snow and the nice lady went to the back and brought out that rounded block of ice creamy goodness, placed it in under the clear dome and started the machine going with the foot pedal.

We were given a choice of two toppings, one from each side of the divider. (Sweetened condensed milk also comes with the shaved snow, but I thought that would take away from the flavor and declined).

The small mocha flavored snow ($4.99) is quite a substantial size. The 'larger' size is $2 more and basically you can have another flavor of snow, served on a large plate(it looked to be 7"x7"). The snow had a very good combination of coffee and chocolate as its flavor. The chopped almonds seemd a natural topping to mix with the flavors and the side of sweet choices had a coffee jelly among choices, but also had those cute, multicolored mini mochi. The above photo doesn't quite show how large a serving is, but The Mister and I shared and neither of us went home hungry.

Now for pictures that will clarify any descriptions. Shaved. Slices. Snow Light, thin, easily melt in your mouth goodness of cold ice cream.

Through and through your serving bowl, light airy, flaky. This is a wonderful cold treat and I will seek out other versions around town, but am very happy here at Yogurt Swirl.

Yogurt Swirl 9168 Mira Mesa Blvd San Diego 92126 (858) 693-9999 Mon-Th noon-9 p.m., Fri-Sat 11 am-10 pm, Sun 11 am-9 pm

The Baked Bear – and a good memory

May 12, 2013 Cathy Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Cathy Eats!

Here you are reading the blog mmm-yoso!!! It's where Kirk, ed(from Yuma) and Cathy (as well as a few others) share posts with an underlying subject of food. Today, Cathy is sharing.

One afternoon last week, The Mister and I drove West and found a place to park near The Crystal Pier, a public pier (where you can fish) as well as a hotel at the end of Garnet Avenue, in the Pacific Ocean.

It's quite a walk down and back the 872 foot long wooden pier, quiet and beautiful.

We left the pier, walked straight ahead, past a few restaurants, took a left on Mission Boulevard and saw this building and sign next to the Fatburger.

Well, I had never heard of this place…and we had just had a nice walk, justifying an ice cream sandwich. Had to…

{It turns out The Baked Bear opened just last week, Kirbie has already posted on it}

Spacious, clean and not crowded. A nice young lady at the counter asked us if we had been there before. She then told us a common ordering method-pick a cookie flavor or two different ones, then pick an ice cream flavor…and I started to read the flavor choices on the menu board-

The first and second main sandwich choices: Cookies, brownies OR waffles!!!

When I was growing up in Detroit, one special treat my brother and I would sometimes get was a waffle ice cream sandwich at the counter at Kresge's, a Five and Dime store. (Here's a photo). Oh, I knew what I wanted.

The cookies were freshly baked, and the waffles (under the cover to the right of the cones) were already made…but…well, you'll see. Cones and cups were also available…for people who are here for the ice cream and not a sandwich.

The selection of 12 ice cream flavors. Premium ice creams, from different companies; a very nice detail. We chose butter pecan.

The soft, fresh waffle had one side already crispy toasted. That side had the ice cream placed on it and then the waffle was folded over the ice cream, then it was placed on the flat toaster (above; like a panini maker without the ridges), to get the exterior of the waffle warm and a bit crispy…and perfect.

I know people are buying the cookie sandwiches -the cookie selection was tempting- but the waffle is absolutely my idea of an ice cream sandwich.

The waffle was just enough crispy to not turn soggy and the ice cream was a very good quality of butter pecan- salty and not too sweet with crispy pecans. The waffle stayed intact and we were able to share the sandwich without a sticky meltdown. It really was perfect.

Fond memory #2: I sent my brother the above photo attached to a text message…with no words… and he immediately texted back "Kresge's!!!" Yes, he also remembered our special snack outings.

The Baked Bear 4516 Mission Blvd San Diego 92109 (858) 886-7433 website

The rest of the story (3rd memory)-

I call Mom daily. When I told her about The Baked Bear ice cream waffle, she immediately relayed a story about the horse drawn waffle cart that used to show up on Fridays in the Detroit neighborhood where she, my dad and my brother and I grew up. She told me the man would yell from the cart "Rzecz naleśnik", which is "pancakes" in Polish. She said the cart also had ice cream.

After some research, I found This Blog Post with a photo of a New York horse drawn waffle cart. It was a memory she hadn't ever shared before. I realized Food carts are not a new invention, nor are waffle ice cream sandwiches.

Happy Mother's Day.

Up2Yoü Cafe-time for a snack

May 7, 2013 Cathy Caffeine Fix, Desserts, Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!!, the blog about food, is the website you have selected to read. Kirk, ed(from Yuma) and Cathy share food experiences here. Cathy is writing today because the guys are busy with appointments galore.

The other day, I was craving something sweet and The Mister figured how to use the maps app on my iPhone. While I was driving, he did a search for 'desserts', saw the pin drops and told me to take a right from Convoy onto Vickers Street. Lo and behold, I found a place to park along this street of mostly Commercial/Wholesale/Maintenance businesses.

Up2Yoü Cafe is closer to Convoy on the North side of the street; you may pass it at first, but since Vickers is a Court, you'll see it when driving back…

When you walk in, you'll notice random, eclectic decor throughout (yes, those are black and white photos of Beatles)…

We happened to walk in when a large group was leaving and had a choice of seats in this 29 person capacity space (which oddly has about 36 seating spaces). That's the cash register, with card and board games on the counter. Pay attention to that pink and blue signage on the back wall; I'll get to it at the end…

The menu is simple and easily changeable, each section hanging by "S" hooks.

Quite a few beverage combinations are available. I selected the sweet orange tea($2.75)- it was freshly, perfectly brewed. (It's not sweetened, just the flavor is 'sweet orange', and it was very pleasant.)

Served in a *huge* cup, along with our order of a crepe ($3.50), filled with Nutella®($50¢), banana ($1) and topped with vanilla ice cream ($1),

Here's a blurry photo of a cross section. You can see that whipped cream was also inside the crépe.

The crépe was very good on its own, quite overfilled and the whipped cream was *fresh*. The vessels for conveying the various toppings are honey toast (which The Mister and I estimated to be 4x4x2 inches in size) and waffles. There are also banana splits and something called a fried banana cheesecake: nothing savory here. It was very good and we will be returning to try other items in various combinations.

(After I wrote this, I saw that Kirbie's Cravings had done a post in October last year; she has a great photo of the honey toast and a link to Erin's post on Serious Eats. It looks like snow ice is either gone or just one of the easy changes from the menu board. )

Up2Yoü Cafe 7770 Vickers Street San Diego 92111 (619)663-6388 Closed Mondays. T-Th 12:30-11, Fri-Sat 12:30-midnight Sun 12:30-10

Oh. The pink and blue signage on the back wall?

Restrooms.