**** Eurofood has moved to a larger location on Miramar Road. You can find an updated post here.
While in Paris during our last visit I took a Baguette class. One of the great things about the class was the discussion with the Boulangère. I asked a couple of questions revolving around the significant differences between baguettes in France/Europe and those in the states. The instructor was fantastic and had actually worked as pastry chef and baker at a couple of restaurants in LA. Most of the discussions revolved around French Baguettes, by law having only four ingredients. And most importantly, the flour that is used. I'll go into that in more detail when that post comes around. Anyway, I decided to see if I could actually get French flour here….and in my Google search a place came up. One that I'd never heard of, with an interesting name, "Eurofood Depot Gourmet Market". Now, I thought it rather strange to both "depot" and "gourmet" in the same name. Looking at the address was even more puzzling as the place looked to be located in an office park. So, I decided to check them out.
I drove on up and saw this little shop in what was indeed an office park in Sorrento Valley. Walking in, I was fairly surprised. It was indeed a tiny shop, but the selection was quite good…….and it really did bring me back to France.
I just had to smile when I saw some of the brands. Benedicta, Bonne Maman, Fossier, Gavottes…….items that would be right at home at your local Carrefour or Monoprix. For some reason it just made me happy. The gentleman working named Franck was a joy. I believed he is one of the owners.
And yes, I did indeed find French T45 Flour.
Though I quickly got distracted by other things.
So far I've made a half dozen visits…….
The cheeses are not note worthy unless you're a fan of various supermarket brands. The snacks are a nice novelty.
The frozen baguettes; I always verify that what they have in stock is from France is something we now always have on hand.
A frozen baguette you might say!!! Well, the one take away I got from my baguette class was how to reheat and revive frozen/refrigerated baguettes. I was already using the technique on various versions bought here in San Diego. It worked fine. And on these baguettes….well, while it's not like going to your local Boulangerie in France and getting "un bagette bien cuite", it's still much better then the typical "San Diego style"…….hard crust, chewy baguette made here.
Now as for the the charcuterie….well, I asked if it came from France, knowing that there are serious importing hurdles. I was told that while Fabrique Delices is indeed located in California, the Owners are from France. Over the last couple of months we've tried quite a few items and here's what we think.
The duck confit is good. The Missus says She prefers what I make, but considering that I'll only make it once a year…..well, She'll take this.
I like the Smoked Duck and prefer it to the version I get from D'artagnan.
They also sell the smoked duck breast in half portions as well.
I like the Truffle Mousse and think the Duck Rillette is decent.
As for the sausages, I like the Boudin Blanc, though the Missus prefers D'Artagnan's Toulouse style sauce to the version from here.
Overall, it great to have a place like this to shop. Where I can get items that are now staples in our household. The prices for some items are quite good as well. Little did I know it would be in a business park in Sorrento Valley. But, wherever it was; I would be willing to make the drive.
The owners are very helpful.
I'm now a regular customer and I'll do more posts as I find other items here.
Eurofood Depot Gourmet Market
6640 Lusk Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92121
Hours:
Mon – Fri 10am – 530pm
Sat 10sm – 330pm
Closed on Sundays
The quality of the ahi wasn't quite as good as what I'd had on previous visits; with more "sugi" (connective tissue) than usual.
And I was happy, because my Pork Gyro was as good as ever.
If you walk in the entrance on the right, you'll be at the proper area. 
If you had walked in the entrance to the left and counter-clockwise through the store, you'll see this overhead signage.
Grab a container and choose from the hot/steam trays
as well as from the chilled trays. At the end of the line are canned and bottled beverages and the cash register and seating area. Everything is $10.99/lb. {there is also a water fountain with cups in the seating area}
The fried items seem to be fresh when we are here; lightly crisp and not greasy. The squid and whole shrimp are a favorite (as you can see from these separate visits). The chilled trays always hold something wonderful. Each of these packed full trays weighed a little less than one pound.
You can also order something from the kitchen- the menu board is right above the trays.
The Bibimbap (mixed rice with meat and vegetables) has been a special taped to the bottom of the menu board for a while now ($9.99). Steamed rice topped with a variety of vegetables and marinated tender, thin sliced beef (you can also get the beef in the per-pound steam tray) topped with an egg. It's served with pickled radish, Kimchi and the mildly spicy, slightly sweet gochujang sauce. A spoon is necessary for mixing the ingredients together. You can have all of this served in a stone pot (dolsot bibimbap) so the rice is sizzling and brown/burned (in a good way) for $2 more (#10 on the photo menu).
#20 on the menu is 'pork cutlet' ($11.99). Topped with teriyaki sauce and served with rice and salad, this is quite a large meal. We were sad that on this visit, the pork was fried just about 30 seconds too long, leaving it a bit dryer and more chewy than usual. 
This was quite lovely and came with bread and butter. The egg was nice and perfectly done; still oozing with goodness, the rustic bacon was also quite good. The roasted tomatoes adding acidity and tangy touches. The red chili based "sauce" was rich but not overly spicy and we enjoyed the earthy mushrooms in the dish.
This sprawling market is quite large with everything from jewelry to shawls to produce.
While some of the pieces of zucchini were under cooked and too hard for my taste, there were a couple that were nice and creamy. These were nicely seasoned and not overly salty.
As we strolled on over to our car, the Missus and I remarked about how much we enjoyed the vibe of Los Olivos. We just wished there were better accommodations (like under $400/night) and perhaps a nice destination restaurant.
