Lao Restaurants – Page 2

Takeout From Mekong Cuisine Lao and Thai

August 3, 2023 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants, Thai Restaurants

As you can tell by some of my recent posts, the Missus has really been in the mood for Thai food. Usually, when the weather warms up, we switch from all those noodle soups to Thai and Lao food. Speaking of Lao food….well, recently the Missus was in the mood for some. I had been looking forward to Spicy Lao Kitchen opening, but the place hasn't opened yet. I really didn't feel like driving up to City Heights even though there are two places there just to do takeout. So, I decided to see what was going on with Mekong Cuisine Thai and Lao, after all, it had been quite a while since I last visited.

Mekong Rev 01

I ended up ordering 4 dishes and then went for a walk. I returned in 15 minutes and my food was ready after another 5 minute wait.

Here's what we had starting with the item we enjoyed the most.

We enjoyed the Nam Khao Tod ($20) the most.

Mekong Rev 03

It's better than what I'd had here in the past. Nice and crunchy bits without being too hard; good sour tones, ginger and herbs to brighten things out. Not as much coconut as before, which was kind of sad. It came with a generous amount of lettuce and the portion size was quite large.

Sai Oua ($17), the Lao Sausage had a firm, snappy casing and the filling was fairly tender.

Mekong Rev 02

One the sausages was incinerated and quite bitter. The filling had decent herbaceous tones and this came with a large portion of sticky rice. I do wish there was more ginger and peanuts with the dish. Not quite on the same level as the versions we enjoy the most, but a solid #3-4 pick.

I also ordered the Tum Mak Hoong – Thum Maak Hoong Lao ($15) on the menu.

Mekong Rev 04 Mekong Rev 05 I ordered this at a heat level 4 (on the scale of 1-5) and it was adequately spicy. Though I'd return with friends a week later and we ordered heat level 5 and it wasn't as spicy as this. Of course you can instantly see this is missing the salted crab and the tomatoes are just wedges that haven't been poroperly "briused" in the "kruk". This was slightly funky, not a savory as we enjoy and the liquid was kind of watery.

We also ordered the Yum Nuea ($18) which was a disappointment.

Mekong Rev 06

Look at all that sauce….really watered down. I ordered this at a heat level 4 as well, but it was not spicy at all. The beef was overcooked, I mean, I'm used to lean and chewier cuts of beef in this dish, but this was really tough. It just looked like this was thrown together and dumped in the container.

Still, the Nam Khao and Sai Oua are keepers here. I'm hoping that Spicy Lao will open soon though.

Mekong Rev 07

Mekong Cuisine Lao and Thai
3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 11am – 330pm, 5pm – 9pm

Sunday Stuffs, the Sign but “No Sign” (of life) Issue – Honeyjam Chicken & Beer, Hanzuyu Ramen, and Spicy Lao Kitchen. And Current Problems with Photos

June 11, 2023 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Lao Restaurants, Ramen, yoso-silly

Just a couple of things for a quiet Sunday.

It seems that places are taking longer than ever to open these days. I won't pretend to understand the issues, obstacles, and effort places must take to open…..and while we do appreciate great places to eat opening, sometimes….when the wait is so long; it can be somewhat discouraging.

Case in point, back in fall of 2021, there was a sign for a place named JJ Chicken that was going to open in Renaissance Towne Center. Fast forward to October of 2022, thanks to "FOYs" Patty and Rena, I found that JJ was no longer in the spot, but a place named Honeyjam Chicken was taking its place. Fast forward to June of 2023 and we're still waiting.

Patty had asked me if I knew anything….but sorry, I'm not an "insider", but perhaps a reader of our blog might know.

I'm hoping they open soon.

8895 Towne Centre Dr.
San Diego, CA 92122

And……in the same strip mall I recall seeing the sign for Hanyuzu Ramen. That was in August of 2022. This is what it looks like now.

**** Well, it now looks like this location will be Ujin Ramen?

8935 Towne Centre Drive #113
San Diego, CA 92122+

Aaaand, the one place I've gotten a couple of emails on; Spicy Lao Kitchen, well I first saw the sign in March of 2022. From what I read back in 2022 this place was supposed to open in "Early 2022". But of course, here we are in summer of 2023.

Several folks have asked me if this place is going to open. As far as I know, the folks who own the jerky shop in the strip mall are still intent on opening this place.

5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

Life sure has changed over the last 3 years. I have been told about the challenges with getting staff and supplies. I'm not sure, and hope that it is not, the how things proceed from here.

And finally…….

Are you having issues with photos displaying? Well, for several months, Typepad has been having a problem with their image server. I've tried to be very patient with the issue and have had a ticket open for weeks. But, what I've had to do was send them a link and proof every time an issue occurred. Sigh………

Anyway, I finally did the "Twitter thing" and asked about he issue. And here's the response.

So, my apologies. I understand that there's a point in which I need to consider various "options". Still, we have over 5,000 posts…….I don't want to lose that. I thank you for your patience……

Have a great week!

Midweek Meanderings – Spicy Lao Kitchen Coming to Kearny Mesa and Vinya Vino + Vinyasa Coming to Balboa

March 16, 2022 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants, Wine Bars/Wineries

Here are a couple of places I noticed when doing takeout recently.

Vinya Vino + Vinyasa Coming to Balboa:

I was doing some takeout from Noble Chef a while back when I noticed construction taking place in the old Beverly's location off Balboa.

Doing a bit of research it seems like this'll be a Yoga Studio/Wine Bar/Tapas sort of place….man Balboa sure is changing!

And I had a chuckle wondering if any of the customer base would do yoga, have a glass of wine, and then head over to Noble Chef for some….well…maybe Steamed Pork with Salted Fish? Somehow it just seems like something I'd see further up north? Hopefully I have the target customer base all wrong!

6185 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA 92111

Spicy Lao Kitchen Coming to Kearny Mesa:

Funny, I saw Vinya when doing takeout from Noble Chef…..I saw this one when doing takeout from Golden City.

I believe this used to be the Subway in Spectrum Center. Googling the name of the place led me to this post. Apparently, the owners of the Jerky Shop in the strip mall are opening this up. Now this one, I'm kinda excited about!

5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

Sunday Stuffs: Ban Lao Cuisine Takes Over the Que Huong Space, if You’ve Ever Wondered What I Sound Like, and Other “stuffs”

November 22, 2020 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants, Portland, Oregon, yoso-silly

Just some "stuffs" for Sunday.

Ban Lao Takes Over the Que Huong Spot:

After picking up lunch at Fredcels, since I hadn't been around City Heights since March, I decided to take a quick peek on University to see what was going on. I drove over the 15 freeway and to the corner of Marlborough and University; noticing that Cafe Dore had their doors open. I then took a quick look left and noticed that it seemed that Ban Lao's sign was gone. I was bummed…..I then took a turn into the parking lot and was even more shocked……you see Ban Lao had taken over the space where Que Huong used to be. Que Huong was gone! "CC" had told me that Que Huong had changed ownership a while back and that Jay and his sister no longer owned the place. But this was still quite sad since I'd been visiting here since 2005! Bummer……I'll miss my favorite fish sauce chicken wings and boneless chicken feet salad. After seeing this; I just decided to turn around and head back home.

RIP Que Huong.

Here's a link to something from 2012.

4134 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105

Speaking of sad – I've been looking at posts I did from my Portland Trips:

So, this all started when I read in Portland Food and Drink that Cheese Bar was closing. Wondering what all this collateral damage was from Covid-19, etc. I started looking at all the places we visited during trips to Portland and I was shocked at how many places were recently permanently closed or soon closing. Not including those places that are still temporarily closed.

All Pok Pok locations

Tasty N 'Alder – This one really hurts since it was a favorite of the Missus and even inspired a copycat version of the Missus's favorite dish there.

You can find a list here.

Have you ever wondered what I "sound" like?:

Back at the beginning of October; I received an email from Kristy Totten at the UT:

"I host a podcast with Abby Hamblin about interesting people around San Diego and we were wondering if you'd come on our show this week or next."

Which caught me totally off guard. I'd always thought that I have done a pretty good job of flying under the radar. So naturally, the first thing I did was take a quick look at the Podcast; which is named Name Drop San Diego. I was and still am not quite certain why "FOY ChrisR" recommended me for the podcast. And after reading first the description:

"Name Drop San Diego is a weekly podcast from The San Diego Union-Tribune celebrating people who have shaped San Diego and been shaped by it. Join hosts Abby Hamblin and Kristy Totten each Tuesday as they get to know the people who make San Diego proud."

And looking at the line-up of folks who had already been on the podcast….frankly, I was thinking someone had made a mistake here…..

Still, I agreed to a phone call with Kristy and Abby, who were both so warm and friendly….setting me immediately at ease, I agreed.

Abby and Kristy made the whole process quite fun to be perfectly honest. I'm not sure how; but they worked some magic and made my rambling answers seem somewhat coherent. So kudos to them.

There were a couple of things that were somewhat funny. First, not being a big fan of my voice (though I will say; I got a great face for podcasting), I was surprised at how fast I speak. Second was a totally on the nose observation made by some of my close friends, each of whom said in a similar way that I'd totally fail the "lightning round" since there was just no way I could answer questions on food in a single word or sentence. I guess they know me well.

So, if after all this rambling you're still interested here's the link.

Kristy and Abby if you do read this post; thanks so much to the both of you for a wonderful experience. It was a pleasure.

And Chris, thanks….I think; for the recommendation.

And, I was also reminded of another one I did back in 2008 – here's the link from the wayback machine!

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip – Vientiane Lao Thai Restaurant Revisited (Garden Grove)

August 26, 2019 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants, Orange County, Road Trip

We were in the OC and it felt like a bazillion degrees. It was 10 in the morning and we were getting hungry, so where to go? I had a couple places in mind; though it was just too hot for most of what I had in mind. The Missus had a favorite of Hers, Song Long in mind. And then it came to Her….what would be perfect on a hot and humid day; it had been a while since we'd been to Vientiane; no not the city (though we loved it there); but Vientiane Thai Laos, which we had first tried in 2009 and really enjoyed. So, we drove on over to Westminster Avenue and the strip mall that hosts this little restaurant. Man, has parking always been so bad in this strip mall?

Anyway, the restaurant has changed over the years; it looks much more up to date, though we were hoping that the food would still be the same.

The young lady who served us was adorable, so sweet, and nice.

And of course we started with what was perhaps my favorite version of Nem Khao outside of Vientiane (the city).

Everything was so sparkling fresh. The Missus loved the amount of pork skin and sour sausage in the dish. I wasn't so thrilled as this was not quite as good as what I'd had here before. I thought the rice, instead of being crisp, was on the harder, more chewy side….not bad mind you; just not as crispy, though it was crunchy as what I'd had here on previous visits. There was till that nice sour-sausage-smoky-savory thing going on; but it didn't have the light, faint coconut flavor I recalled.

The Missus wanted Her favorite dish here; the Koong Chae Nam Pa, raw shrimp salad.

These days; the wonderful garlic-lime-fish sauce-chili sauce is now served on the side. Of course it was poured over everything. The shrimp were chilled, with just the amount of toothsomeness you'd want. The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and sweet and tangy. This was every bit as good as what we remembered.

The Missus also wanted Her Lao Style Papaya Salad.

By the time my attention went to this dish, the Missus had almost devoured the whole thing. Not as much salted crab as I recall; but man, this was so perfectly funky and savory; with a stiff spiciness….and again those tomatoes; though this time it had been perfectly bruised in the mortar and was so tender and sweet!

We had decided to add one more dish for the meal and asked the young lady for a suggestion. She recommended the beef salad. Asked how we'd like it done, I said "raw"….she looked up in surprised and said, "are you sure?" And I said, that's how it is traditionally, right? To which she nodded……and it turned out to be the right decision.

And it turned out to be the right decision. Unlike other versions where the meat is minced or chopped and served; this one was pounded in the mortar, making the texture wonderfully tender; like a good tartare. The rice powder added a nice nuttiness; the citrus the acid. The real bonus was the tripe which was surprisingly soft and buttery.

This was just the perfect meal for a hot and humid day. While other tables were getting pad thai and curries (and one dude seemed so hungry he was eating a plain bowl of rice!); we were cooling off with traditional Lao dishes.

It's good to know Vientiane Thai Laos Restaurant is still doing well nearly ten years since we first visited.

Vientiane Lao Thai Restaurant
10262 Westminster Ave
Garden Grove,CA92843
Hours:
Mon      11am – 9pm
Tues     10am – 9pm
Thurs    10am – 9pm
Fri- Sat 10am – 10pm
Sunday   10am – 9pm
Closed on Wednesdays

2020 Tournament of Roses Rose Parade float road test #2 and multiple food adventures: Porto’s, Iron & Kin Coffee, Cafe 86 and Kra-Z Kai’s Lao BBQ

August 4, 2019 Cathy Bakery, Breakfast/Brunch, Caffeine Fix, Festivals & Events, Lao Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about food and there is always a reason we find the food. Over the weekend, Cathy and cc woke early to drive to Irwindale, photograph participate in the second float road test and then took many side roads to enjoy some great foods and beverages while heading home.

Link to Road Test #1

Link to Road Test #3

Link to Road Test #4

Link to Road Tests #5 and #6

First, the road testing for 2020 Rose Parade floats. This early morning, multiple floats were being tested at Phoenix Decorating Company for mechanics and maneuverability, some with 'weight' on board. The weight was humans, who will be riding on the floats during the Parade on January 1, 2020. cc and I were asked if we would like to help by sitting on a float while it was driven a short way down the street, backed up, turned around and then participated in a fire drill, making sure that all the people (including the Driver and Spotter of the float) could disembark in 45 seconds.

The 2020 Kiwanis International float, "Soaring with Hope" passed its road test (the open doors are from where the Spotter and Driver exited for the fire drill).

The Rotary International 2020 Rose Parade entry, "Hope Connects the World" was painted in and road tested. (It wasn't yet painted in for the first Road Test).

This is the off camera side view of the Lutheran Hour Ministries float, "Anchored in Jesus". It will appear as if underwater.

"Hope for 2020", the Lions Clubs International float entry was also tested that morning.

"First Responders Bring Hope", the 2020 entry by Oddfellows and Rebekahs was fully color coded for easy placement of natural materials during Decoration Days and also tested. Behind it was the Mrs. Meyers Clean Day float, taking its first road test. If you zoom in, you'll see a wheelbarrow with what looks like squash covered by an umbrella. No artist rendering yet.

It was fun and informative to be able to help with a road test. Use this link to the Rose Examiner to keep up to date with Tournament happenings.

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It was the start of a day of food and adventure! cc was without Bert and I was without The Mister.

Back to Portos! Only six miles and a few minutes away. My second visit ever. Again, not very crowded (before 9 a.m.)

Sandwiches are available all Day. We decided to share a Pan con Lechon ($6.65) Slow roasted pork, mojo garlic sauce and pickled onion on Cuban bread (with plantain chips on the side). Wow. This was pretty much the best sandwich ever.
I was curious about the Tamal a Caballo ($4.75) as a breakfast item and it was another wow moment. The masa, so very soft, had whole pieces of corn, the savory pork filling, a salsa verde and plantain strips.

We purchased more than several items to take home. I had a handwritten list from The Mister. We also enjoyed beverages at the table. The prices here are great, the freshness and quality are consistent. More menu items will be tried next month.

Portos, many Los Angeles County locations. website

Soon it was off to our next planned stop for coffee. cc had researched and found a coffee shop with an unusual caffeinated offerings in Pomona, sort of 'on the way home'. Iron and Kin opened in May 2018 inside a restored downtown Hotel. Half of the shop is a Craft Cocktail Bar, O'Donovan's Pub, open in evenings. The other side is an efficient coffee bar. cc had asked Josh, one of the owners of Iron and Kin, about the special "Affirmation Drinks" menu (she saw photos on Instagram). We wanted to try each of the drinks, but knew we couldn't drink that much caffeine (or liquid).
Josh was kind enough to prepare sample sizes of each of these unique beverages. First, I must say the espresso, on its own, is of very high quality. A smooth, strong, sweet yet not bitter/sour base to each beverage. The unique Affirmation flavors were distinct, fresh and really wonderful: varying from chillies and cinnamon with cloves to turmeric with ginger, cardamom and honey with black pepper to figs with vanilla, brown sugar and black pepper to smoked salt with cream, brown sugar and Old Forester Bourbon as well as the iced matcha/gingerbeer/limeade/yuzu. Beverages not found in San Diego. Quality.

Iron and Kin 101 E. Third Street, Pomona, CA (951)808-7584 Website
We also made a quick stop at Cravings by 99 Ranch, but didn't snack there. One block away is a Filipino Coffee and Tea Shop. Cafe 86 has been on Edison Avenue since 2014 and serves matcha, coconut, mango, hibiscus, ube and calamansi iced and hot beverages, ice cream and pastries in addition to coffees.
I think ube is the 'new' flavor of the year- even Trader Joe's is carrying an ube ice cream. We only purchased the ube/coconut mini bundt cakes and iced Madelines. These were delicious with a cup of hot tea the next morning.

Cafe 86 4110 Edison Ave Chino, CA 91710 Website

cc had one last planned stop- the only Lao BBQ restaurant in Southern California- Kra Z Kai's. It's located in a large mall area anchored by a Sonic. We each ended up purchasing food to go as well as some to eat in-all of the BBQ meats. The distinct Southeast Asian flavors of garlic and lemongrass with the char grilled meats is just so perfect. The house made sausage is coarse ground and has onion and leeks. Of course, sticky rice is the only proper rice to have with these items, even though steamed and fried rice are also offered.

Kra-z Kais 1218 Magnolia Ave #G110 Corona, CA 92881 (Southwest Corner of I-15 and Magnolia) Website

The end of an epic road trip. There were other stops, because we avoided traffic. These were the highlights…plus my view while on the road test…

Ban Lao Cuisine Revisited

June 3, 2019 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants

**** Ban Lao has closed

My recent revisit to Mekong Cuisine had me wondering how Ban Lao was doing. It had been nearly a year since my last visit, so on that very next weekend, I decided to head on up to City Heights and check things out.

Ban Lao opens at 10am on weekends, so the severe parking shortage in the lot isn't quite as bad. I arrived right after they opened and was seated by the friendly and talkative women working.

Of course I had to decide what to eat. It was fairly warm that weekend so I went with the Nem Khao. The last time I ordered the Nem Khao here I thought the portion provided was on the smaller side. This time though…..

It was twice the size of what I'd previously had here! This was a rather rustic version; large chunks of pleasingly sour sausage; thicker slices of pork skin. It was a very pleasing in terms of savory-sour tones; though the rice that had been on the outside of the ball when fried was more chewy than crisp. Lots of lettuce and herbs provided, allowing for a nice combination of various flavors; from the mild anise to sour to salty, and so forth.

I also went with what was one of my favorite items here – the Sien Savanh, the Beef Jerky.

The version here is not totally dry and hard; rather it is crisp on the exterior and chewy and on the softer side on the interior. The umami of the fish sauce really set things off and the chilies and sweetness in the dipping sauce added another dimension to things.

I enjoyed my meal so I returned the next weekend. Things had cooled off a bit…..we're having such crazy weather this year. Which made for a good opportunity to try the Khal Piak (Khal Peak).

Man, this was a huge bowl of soup. The broth was not quite as thick as the version at Mekong, but it was just as scaldingly hot! It was more salty than that version, along with being more peppery. The noodles in this case had been cut into short pieces, but had a nice chew. The broth had a touch more complexity than the version at Mekong. A couple of standard issue, "squeaky" meatballs completed the soup.

It did "hit the spot" and I left with full, warm belly. Nice to know that Ban Lao is still making decent Lao food.

Ban Lao Cuisine
4126 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105
Hours:
Mon – Fri 1030am – 930pm
Sat – Sun 10am – 930pm

Still Soup Weather! Mekong Cuisine Lao and Thai Revisited

May 1, 2019 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants

**** You can find an updated post here

I'm a bit under the weather – so just a short post tonight.

Recently, while sitting at my PC wool-gathering; basically looking at photos from past trips, I opened my Luang Prabang folder and all the memories came flooding back. The sights and sounds of the Morning Fresh Market….the "River of Orange" as I call, more widely known as the "Saffron Circuit" as the monks collect their morning alms each morning.

Rain or shine…..

Which brought me back to one of our favorite places in Luang Prabang. We never knew the name of the place; it was simply a booth located at the end of the Fresh Market we called "Same-Same", because we'd stop by every morning and the woman running the place would look at us and ask "same-same"? Of course the answer was "yes". And we'd have our coffee and a bowl of Khao Piak, what I pretty much consider the Lao National Noodle Soup.

I'd forgotten how much I loved Luang Prabang……. And the recent cooler-rainy weather led me back to Mekong Cuisine Lao and Thai.

Not sure how things are going as I had the place pretty much to myself during my visit. The young man serving me was pretty serious and stoic; until I started talking to him about the food. He became more and more friendly as my lunch went on.

I hadn't had the Khao Piak (Khao Peak Sen on the menu), so I decided to try that.

In many versions; like this one, the tapioca starch isn't dusted from the noodles and thickens the simple broth. This creates a rather thick soup….this one was perhaps the thickest I'd had in a while, almost like a potage. It was super hot and the density of the broth meant that it stayed lip singing hot for the entire meal. The noodles had a nice chew to them. The flavoring of the broth was very simple; I'm used to having more cilantro and perhaps lemongrass notes; but this one was fine. As I had figured; the chicken, it was white meat was dry and tasteless. But let me tell you, because of the viscosity, this is pretty filling.

And of course I had to have the Sai Ua (Sai Ou on the menu) as during my previous visits, I thought this place made a good Lao Sausage. And yes, it did deliver.

Lovely, slightly sour porkiness, nice lemongrass – kaffir lime leaf – gingery tones, a hint of spice. The rice in the sausage gives it a wonderful texture and every time I've had this here, the sausage casing had been crisped up nicely. As I've before; that tamarind based sauce really isn't needed for this.

The young man said; "it's good, yes? We make our own sausage here." He seemed quite proud, rightfully so. Now, I gotta find other dishes on the menu, because man does not live on sausage alone, right? Hmmm……

Mekong Cuisine Lao and Thai
3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Ban Lao Cuisine Revisited

June 14, 2018 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants

**** Ban Lao has closed

The last couple of week; since we've gotten back from our trip have been nice. At least in terms of work for me. No more long days and weekends. The recent muggy weather has also changed my eating strategy a bit as well. I was craving Lao food. I decided to head back to Ban Lao to see how things have changed since my first visits there.

The place looks basically the same; except for the strategically placed ATM. The menu though, has evolved a bit, with some new dishes.

I was really thinking about getting the Sien Savanh (beef jerky) which I really enjoyed on one of my previous visit. I saw "fried pork belly" on the menu and really couldn't make up my mind. I finally asked the really nice young lady working here. She basically said she enjoys both, but because I'd had the beef jerky before, why not try the pork belly…..such good sales, huh?

This was ok. The pork belly was nicely fried; though there were some tough bits and without that wonderful fish sauce-chili-citrus dipping sauce it would have not been very good. The seasoning was too mild and it was rather plain.

I really wanted some Nem Khao, which turned out being better than what I'd had here before.

Nice crunchy-crispy bits, good amount of herbs, nice amount of pork skin, I think it could have used a bit more sour sausage, but texturally, this was quite nice. The portion size was a lot larger than on previous visits. And while it didn't look like it; there was a good amount of lettuce for wrapping up the nem khao. It's still not quite there in terms of the sour sausage-pork skin-herbs ratio, but it's better than what I've had here before.

A big plus is how nice the staff has always been in this tiny shop. And it seems things are getting better…….

We gotta get back to Laos one of these days.

Ban Lao Cuisine
4126 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105

Asia Cafe (new owners; same food)

September 25, 2017 Cathy Lao Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Thank you for stopping to read mmm-yoso!!! We write about food. Today it is Cathy writing. This is uncharted territory; Ed has died, memories flow. Thanks to everyone for your kind messages about our dear friend.

I remember reading Kirk's two-part post, as well as a third visit, all in 2006, about Asia Cafe.

The first time I went to Asia Cafe, it was in July 2008- I met Ed (from Yuma) when He stopped here *before* checking into his Point Loma motel. He didn't have a mobile phone then and we had to coordinate the meeting time. Neither of us posted about the meal. {We did however, write this post about lunch the following day}.
Other than some new(er) tables and chairs, the exterior and interior haven't changed much. The owners have. The menu (at the bottom of this post) is similar, with the 'off menu' items now listed. Ordering hot tea ($1) gets a nice size mug delivered.
The Mister is back into his spicy cravings mode and ordered the papaya salad ($6) at a heat level of '3'(out of 5). Good thing he did; this was a just right amount of heat for him, while I was still able to taste the freshly shredded green papaya. The tomatoes added a bit of calming flavor as did the savory salty fish sauce in the base. I was here for the Nem Khao ($8) and it did not disappoint. The crispy rice with fried garlic and sour sausage dish was just about as I remembered, although the sausage was a bit more chopped up/in finer pieces than I remembered. The flavors (I could taste the lemongrass in the sour sausage) were all there. As our third dish, (we try to order one for each of us plus 'one for the table'), The Mister wanted to try the Phad See Ew with chicken ($6.50). Crisped pan fried wide noodles with egg, broccoli, carrots and mushrooms made this dish a flavorful combination of comfort.

Some good friend and good food memories recalled today.

Asia Cafe 4710 Market St San Diego, CA 92102