Sunday Sandwiches – Grab & Go Subs (Mission Gorge)

**** This location of Grab & Go has closed

I recently had to take my vehicle in for scheduled service. I will usually get an early appointment time and wait at the dealership. I’ve been impressed at how quickly everything is completed these days. In at 8 out by 930! On the other hand, I had been planning to check out some places for lunch, but I won’t complain about a quick turnaround.

Thus, I needed to grab something for an early….very early lunch. As I drove North on Mission Gorge Road, I saw Grab & Go! Well, it had been ages since I’d been to this location of G&G. The Convoy Court location used to be a regular stop for me when we had offices close by; but heck I hadn’t been to that location in over 7 years as well!

I guess it was time for a revisit.

G and Go Rev 01

I walked on in; the place looks almost the same as those days “BC” (before Covid).

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Of course the prices are not.

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My favorite at G&G the Hot Spicy Capocolla is now $13.49. I believe the last time I had that sandwich it was under seven bucks!

I decided to eat al fresco and found a nice quiet spot at Heritage Park.

G and Go Rev 04 G and Go Rev 05  Opening the sandwich up, the first thing I noticed was how much shredded lettuce there was. So much iceberg that it could have sunk the Titanic. Also, I remember Grab & Go as having some of the messiest, sloppiest sandwiches and this definitely lived up to that rep. One of the reasons I enjoy this sandwich is that it’s toasted, the bread was yeasty-crackley-crusty goodness. Also appreciated that the Provolone was melted. The jalapenos added some heat though not a huge amount. The oil and vinegar dressing is perfect for this sandwich; mayo would be overkill in my opinion.

G and Go Rev 06

While the huge amount of lettuce kinda threw the flavors off; it was just too much, this was quite a hefty sandwich. I guess I’ll need to return again soon.

Grab & Go Subs
6435 Mission Gorge Rd.
San Diego, CA 92120
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 8am – 3pm
Closed on Sundays

Saturday Stuffs – The Burger Joint Replacing SuperNatural Sandwiches and Zhengxin Chicken Steak Coming to Convoy

Just a couple of things for a typical San Diego "June gloom" Saturday.

The Burger Joint Replacing SuperNatural Sandwiches:

While heading back to the office after picking up lunch yesterday, I noticed new signage was up on the now former location of SuperNatural Sandwiches, so I took a quick detour into the parking lot.

IMG_9384 IMG_9386  Well, so that gentleman I ran into while checking out what was going on here back in April was right. The location is turning into a burger and beer shop. I cracked up when I noticed "smashburgers" on the sign. I guess smashburgers are this year's birria or K(orean) f(ried) c(hicken)?

As I was leaving the parking lot I noticed the signage on the side of the shop. Both for the Burger Joint and also the Pizza Joint, which is also in this mall. I'm guessing the folks from the Pizza Joint is taking over this space?

Sad to see SuperNatural's run come to an end; after all, I'd been a customer from the days in the San Diego Public Market, but things were not quite the same, at least to me, after new ownership took over. So perhaps this change is for the best.

7094 Miramar Rd. #122
San Diego, CA 92121

Zhengxin Chicken Steak Coming to Convoy:

While driving back from Nijiya this past Sunday, I noticed new signage in the former location of Mochinut on Convoy, so I turned into the parking lot and took a look and a photo.

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I made a mental note to check things out online, but didn't need to after reading this on Eater San Diego. According to the post, Zhengxin Chicken Steak has more than 20,000 outlets!

I'm surprised this didn't open at UTC!

4609 Convoy St. #C
San Diego, CA 92111

Hope everyone is having a great Saturday!

Revisits – Philadelphia Sandwich Company and Tadian Cafe

Just another "Sunday Sandwiches" post.

Philadelphia Sandwich Company:

In my last cheesesteak post on the Wise Ox and Evan's Deli & Brew FOY "ST" mentioned that the Philadelphia Sandwich Company had changed ownership. So, a couple of weeks back, I decided to head on over.

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The place looked a bit more "spiffed up" then I recalled. The women working here have always been nice and friendly to me. So, I did pose a question regarding ownership. Apparently, Joe Creszenzo the long time owner of PSC sold the place early last year to the folks that run Abbey's BBQ next door. Wow, so I guess I hadn't been back here in nearly 4 years!

Anyway, I went with the usual, the Joe's Special with Provolone (regular size, now $12.50). Back at the office I opened it up and my goodness, it looked totally different from what I'd had here before. There was a lot more meat in this.

Phil Sandwich 02

First off, there wasn't enough cheese on this, thus it was lacking that nice milkiness I enjoy. The meat was a lot darker and carmelized but really chewy and salty. The roll was really bready and soaked, falling apart, I think they've changed bread and no longer use Amoroso rolls. Not enough onions in relationship to the meat. As with a good banh mi, proportion of ingredients do matter.

Now granted PSC has never been a favorite of mine, but I don't think this is an improvement at all.

The Philadelphia Sandwich Company
6904 Miramar Rd. Suite 207
San Diego, CA 92121
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 10am – 8pm
Closed on Sundays

Tadian Cafe:

I was wondering how Tadian Cafe was doing. It had been about 10 months since my last visit. Being that Tadian does not do an upcharge for online ordering, I took a look at the menu and was pleasantly surprised to see that a favorite of mine was back on the menu. So, I went right ahead and placed an order. Another good thing about Tadian is that they open at 9am, so it's a good option for picking up an early lunch.

Tadian R 01

So, I drove on over and as always, my sandwich was waiting on the counter when I arrived.

So, what did I get?

Tadian R 02  Tadian R 03 Well, my favorite sandwich here is the Chinese Sausage Sandwich ($9.99), I get it with a fried egg ($1.50), easy on the mayo, extra toasted. While it's on the "bready" side, getting the roll extra toasted enhances the crustiness and diminishes the potential for sogginess as Tadian, even when I ask for easy on the mayo will have too much of it. I enjoy the meaty lup cheong, which has a nice salty-porky-sweetness. The egg adds more savory tones and the avocado tempers things down. To me, the onions add a good pungency and is necessary, as is the mild sweet acidity of the tomato. Everything has a part to play here.

Tadian R 04

I do wish they had an option for cucumber, but I did enjoy this sandwich. I need to drop by more often.

Tadian Cafe
5955 Mira Mesa Blvd. Suite K
San Diego, CA 92121
Current Hours:
Mon – Fri 9am – 3pm

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Revisits – Avian Sandwiches and Paris Sandwiches

Well, I'm going thru a bit of sticker shock…..I recently paid $23 for a bowl of ramen, yikes! And then I dined at a kind of hipster sushi place for lunch and the menu prices really got my attention; though I did eventually get the sashimi lunch combo which was priced at……yep $23, same as the ramen? What is going on here?

To calm down, I decided to get a Banh Mi wondering what prices were going to be like. Here's what I found.

Avian Sandwiches:

During my shopping rounds I wanted some breakfast and strangely enough there's a real shortage of places that open early in the Kearny Mesa area, though I understand that Banh Mi Express now opens at 8am. Still, it had been a while since I last visited Avian Sandwiches (remember when they were just a water and fro-yo shop?) I stopped by on my way to Nijiya which opens at 9, getting there around 845 on a Saturday.

Avian Rev 01

There seems to be several groups of "coffee old-timers" who hang out in this strip mall; the group who hang in front of Avian and those who do Pho Hoa Huong. Anyway, the interior of the shop still seems packed to the gills with snacks, lottery stuffs, water, and various knick-knacks.

Avian Rev 02

I decided on the Banh Mi Nem Nuong ($7.95). I believe this has gone up $1 since my last visit. I found a corner to hide in while I waited for my sandwich which was ready quite quickly.

Once at home, I opened up my sandwich.

Avian Rev 04

This seemed fairly hefty.

Avian Rev 05

Splitting the halves, I was shocked at the amount of pickled veggies!

Avian Rev 06

Also, the position of the nem nuong…perhaps my mouth isn't big enough, but it was impossible to get everything in one bite at the middle of the sandwich, you'd get the pickled veggies and the really potent jalapeno, but no pork. Things got better as you worked your way to the ends. Glad to actually have cucumber in my banh mi which seems to be a rarity these days. 

The bread was on the dry and crusty side, but better than what I'd had last time. Too many stems from the cilantro, I prefer mostly leaves. A bit heavy handed on the aioli, but at least it was spread evenly and helped when getting a mouth of pickled veggies, cucumber, and jalapeno. The nem nuong seemed to have been seared, enhancing the sweet-porkiness.

Avian Rev 07

To me a certain proportion of protein to veggies to bread is important and this was a bit off.

Avian Sandwiches & Fresh Drinking Water
6937 Linda Vista Rd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 8am – 7pm

This sandwich had me kind of wondering what was going on in terms of banh mi, so I decided to head on over to one of my newer favorites, Paris Sandwiches, which just opened in Mira Mesa a little over a year ago. So, I decided to head on over and grab a Banh Mi Nem Nuong here as well.

Paris Sandwiches:

Paris Rev 01

Like Avian, there are a bunch of guys hanging out on the tables to the side of the shop.

The Banh Mi Nem Nuong is now $7.05, it was $6.75 last July. I walked up to the counter and placed my order, then retreated to the counter to wait.

Paris Rev 02

On a funny note, the gal who brought the sandwich to the counter called out my number….in Vietnamese! After trying a couple of times, she called out "39", I cracked up and walked on over to pick my sandwich up. She also had a nice laugh as well. As did the woman standing next to me, who laughingly said; "no, you don't look Vietnamese!"

I know where the bread is baked, thus know what to expect in that category.

Paris Rev 03

The bread this time around was really light and crackly….like so flakey it exploded upon my first bite! I actually found "baguette shrapnel" in the pocket of my shirt later that evening!

This sandwich was more balanced in terms of ingredients, though I missed the cucumber and the jalapeno was not nearly as hot as Avian's version. It was also put together so you could get all of the ingredients in each bite,

Paris Rev 04

I did like the nem nuong from Avian better and the cucumber, but in terms of bread and proportion of ingredients, I though Paris won out.

Paris Sandwiches
10606 Camino Ruiz
San Diego, CA 92126
Current Hours:
Mon – Fri  730am – 630pm
Saturday   730am – 6pm
Closed on Sundays

This was fun little comparison. I should do them a bit more often. This brought back some fond memories if doing a Mira Mesa banh mi comparison over a decade ago and that when I did my very first Banh Mi post back in 2005, the Banh Mi Thit Nuong cost $2.50! Yikes…..

Pepper Farm Deli (Santee)

Here you are, stopping by to read mmm-yoso!!!  Kirk, who writes the majority of posts, is wandering around the world with His Missus, while Cathy is 'holding down the fort' and writing about food.

A wonderful addition to Santee opened in 2020 into a prior taco shop storefront in the mall anchored by Home Depot.   Pepper Farm Deli sells more than hot and cold sandwiches.   Salads, flatbreads, wraps, burgers, plates, smoothies, breakfast and more are on the menu.  Soups and sauces are made from scratch.  Organic vegetables and fruits, Boar's Head meats, antibiotic free chicken.  Bread is delivered daily.  I could go on, but here, just look. 

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IMG_4981IMG_4981 Step inside, order, pay and your name will be called.  There are 18 seats inside and tables out in front.IMG_5207 The Monte Cristo Breakfast sandwich ($14.99) is served with warm syrup and a side of fruit. 
IMG_5213 Made with Boar's Head oven roasted ham, Havarti cheese, mustard and mayo on egg-dipped white bread which is pan fried, this hefty sandwich is enough to share.  

IMG_5006 There are four soups available daily, all home made: tomato basil, chicken noodle, clam chowder and chili  (Cup $5.49-5.99, Bowl $7.49-7.99).  The clam chowder is my favorite, although all are wonderfully flavored.
IMG_7568 The cheesy flatbread ($11.99) is a meal in itself.  A thin, made in-house crust topped with roasted garlic tomato sauce, provolone and mozzarella.  Simple and good.

IMG_5006 The garlic-cilantro jumbo shrimp plate ($16.99) includes a cup of soup or small salad, sautéed broccoli and asparagus and ten jumbo shrimp which are marinated in the house garlic and pepper sauce and lightly cooked (still meaty and firm).

IMG_5216IMG_5220IMG_5203 On the bottom of the wall menu there is a section "Pepper Farm Special" ($7.99).  A choice of four cold half sandwiches, chips and a fountain drink. (for $11.99, you can get a choice of four hot half sandwiches, chips and a drink).  This is the Bovine: roast beef, havarti cheese, garlic aioli, mustard, red onion, tomatoes, banana peppers and spring mix on a hoagie roll.  It's a large half sandwich. 

Quality at fair prices.  We are regulars.

Pepper Farm Deli 235 Town Center Parkway, Suite H Santee 92071 (619) 201-8129 Open Mon-Sat 8-8, Sun 8-5 Website

IMG_7571 There are desserts, too.

Sunday Sandwiches – Deli Mart (Miramar)

While I was on my way to Sunrise Deli to pick up a sandwich for lunch, I noticed a shop on Dowdy Drive, which is a pretty busy road off of Miramar. The name of the place was Deli Mart. Now why hadn't I seen this place before? I did a Google thing and found the hours and some other info and was happy to note that the shop opens quite early (730am) on weekdays.

Deli Mart 01

The shop is located on the street facing side of a round-about driveway on Dowdy Drive. All the other businesses along the driveway seem to be auto or cabinet repair shops. The shop has several dedicated parking stalls on each side of the building.

The shop is a bit larger than it looks from the front with a few simple table and chairs indoors and out front.

Deli Mart 02

Deli Mart 03

The shop has a large variety of chips and snacks, along with a selection of beer as well. On all three of my visits, the same two gentlemen were working. The younger one makes the sandwiches and the older handles the counter and phone. 

Deli Mart 04

The prices are quite reasonable for this day and age; sandwiches range from $7.95 to $11.95, with breakfasts even cheaper. All three of my sandwiches were priced at $9.95.

I wanted to start with something simple and went with the Torpedo.

Deli Mart 05 Deli Mart 06  All sandwiches come with a pickle wedge. This was a straight forward, no-nonsense 3 meat (Salami-Mortadella-Cappicola) on a French Roll. There provolone, with Italian Dressing and mayo. I enjoyed that the sandwich wasn't over-dressed. It was a bit too much bread to "stuffs" ratio. I prefer the almost same version of the sandwich is better at Creative Deli. This really gave me The Sandwich A'Fare (now closed) vibes. Still for the price these days….

I returned a week later and went with a more "interesting" sandwich choice, the Stoner's Delight.

Deli Mart 07  Deli Mart 08  Not sure about the how or why the name of the sandwich was earned. But this was a turkey and mortadella on sourdough. I enjoyed the heat brought on by the jalapenos, but it was over-dressed, with too much "chipotle" (only in spirit) aioli. Again, the amount of protein was decent in proportion, though folks wanting a super stuffed sandwich would not be satisfied….but really, would you get one for under ten bucks these days?

On my last visit, I decided to try a "hot sandwich" and went with the Reuben.

Deli Mart 09 Deli Mart 10  So, the rye bread was nicely toasted which held up to the generous amount of Thousand Island dressing. In keeping with the previous sandwiches; this was quite simple. Corned Beef, mild Sauerkraut, Swiss on Rye. It's a sandwich that one might think is on the smallish side, but it was enough for me. The proportion of savory, salty, earthy, worked fine. The toasty bread held up fine and this did the trick as a light lunch. Deli Mart 11

There are so many of these little shops that keep us fed and I'm always interested to see what is offered. It isn't fancy, but it's what keeps us going, right?

Deli Mart
9210 Dowdy Drive
San Diego, CA 92126
Current Hours:
Mon – Tues 730am – 5pm
Wed – Fri 730am – 6pm
Saturday 10am – 3pm
Closed on Sunday

Road Trip – Devisadero Peak Trail, Lunch at Manzanita Market, and Strolling Around Taos

After our meal at Doc Martin's we took a typical after dinner stroll. Downtown Taos was indeed quite charming.

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While most of the shops were already closed, the relaxed, tranquil vibe gave us time to appreciate the town. We loved the public art.

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And as the sun headed down, the adobe buildings just came alive. It was indeed the "golden hour"!

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With nary a person in sight, it was a wonderful stroll.

We slept well, woke early, and headed off to the do some hiking. I gave the Missus a couple of choices and She picked the Devasidero Peak loop trail. It was a quick 5 minute drive to the trailhead. The trail started off a bit steep, but the views were lovely on this morning in early May.

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And while we didn't run into any other folks on the trail, there were indications of folks who had come before us.

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And the signage on the trail was pretty good.

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The Missus is all business when hiking; She wants to get it done ASAP.

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I on the other hand, like to enjoy the views and on this hike, the little splashes of color provided by the wild flowers.

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We enjoyed the hike and finished in a shade over two hours.

We headed back to the hotel, parked, and decided to grab an early lunch. We had walked past a little sandwich/juice bar/health food shop the previous evening called Manzanita Market and decided to pop in.

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It was a cute little shop with a hipster-hippy-ish vibe. The staff was very friendly.

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We placed our order and the Missus had a seat, while I took a look at some of the local items available for sale.

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I loved the name of this hot sauce brand, Taos Hum. 

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In case you hadn't heard of the Taos Hum, it's a low frequency humming/buzzing noise that certain residents of Taos have heard since the 1990's. There have been studies into the hum over the years, but it still remains a mystery, and has been reported in other places around the world. And this Taos Hum Hot Sauce would remain a mystery to me as well as I ended up not getting a bottle. I can and may order it online; or perhaps wait until we next visit Taos.

The Missus had ordered the Mediterranean Vegan, which came from Sage Bakehouse (Santa Fe) Sourdough.

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The sourdough was quite good. This was bit on the blander side in terms of flavor in spite of the pickled onions and lime-garlic spread. The textures were very nice; the creamy tahini, crisp veggies and bread. The greens had a pleasant bitterness to them as well. So very healthy!

I got the Naples which also came on that good sourdough bread.

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This was a pressed sandwich and was served hot. The bread was a nice crisp-crunchy and I loved the milky-gooey carneros cheese and the nicely spiced-salty sopressata. The mildly assertive feta-garlic sauce and the surprisingly good tomato jam really made this sandwich a winner!

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Such a nice place for a light lunch!

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Manzanita Market
103 N Plaza
Taos, NM 87571

In retrospect, we should have spent at least another day in Taos, but we'd try to make the best of our last evening!

ZZZ_8677 

Midweek Meanderings – Is SuperNatural Sandwiches Rebranding and Pieology Balboa Closes

Just a couple of things for a beautiful Wednesday in San Diego.

Is SuperNatural Sandwiches Rebranding?:

**** Update – The Burger Joint and Brew is replacing  SuperNatural Sandwiches

So, back in January, after a not-so-great visit under new ownership, I decided to give SuperNatural another shot. When I arrived, the place was closed with a sign saying "closed for the holidays, will reopen mid-January". Ok, during that previous visit, I had noticed a sushi bar was going in and other stuff going on, so maybe some construction was taking place. In March, when I did my takeout order from Bann at Gourmet Artisan I took a peek at the shop and noticed that there seemed to be some construction going on. Though that "reopen mid-January" sign was still posted. This afternoon, I was passing by and decided to see what was up. Well, the place is still closed.

SNS Closed 01

With that reopen in mid-January sign still up. I find the "We are Back Now Open" sign somewhat interesting.

SNS Closed 02

As I turned to head back to the car, a gentleman walked by and said "they are permanently closed". He was one of the locksmiths working in the shop next door. He added; "I think the owners are going to switch things up and change the menu renaming the place Burgers and Sandwich".

So, it'll be interesting to see what happens here. If this is the end of SuperNatural, it's a sad demise, I really enjoyed their sandwiches from back in the days when the original owners had a stand in the San Diego Public Market and had enjoyed the food many times over the years. Of course, I didn't enjoy my visit under the new ownership, which I think only lasted a couple of months.

So, stay tuned, and we'll see what happens here.

7094 Miramar Rd. #122
San Diego, CA 92121

Pieology Balboa Closes:

Had to run an errand and ended up at Balboa Mesa Shopping Center. While I was walking to my car I noticed that the sign for Pieology was gone, so I walked on over.

Pieology Closed

And yes, Pieology has closed. I know Cathy has made several visits over the years so I let her know.

Interesting changes in this area over the last couple of months.

5575 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA 92111

Sunday Sandwiches – The Wise Ox (North Park) and Evan’s Deli & Brew

Every so often I crave a cheesesteak. Actually, it's more like "cheesesteaks" as I'll usually have a couple from different places to quell the craving. It had been a while, a couple of years actually, since I've had a decent cheesesteak and opportunity knocked twice in the last couple of weeks. So, of course I answered…..

Evan's Deli & Brew:

The Missus was wanting some cookies from the Cravory, so I headed on over to Point Loma. I had heard that the shop that replaced Gaglione Bros in the strip mall also made cheesesteaks. So, after getting some cookies for the Missus I walked on over.

Evans 01

And as in the sign on the shop; cheesesteaks are front and center on the menu.

Evans 02

And they even have Tastykakes.

Evans 03

The couple running the place were very friendly and it as a short wait for my Mushroom Steak; I got an 8" for $10.49 which is a bargain for a sandwich these days.

Evans 04  Evans 05 The yeasty, standard Amoroso roll stood up well. The meat was decently shaved, fairly tender, moist, and beefy, the mushrooms earthy, and the white American cheese added a complimentary, not overwhelming milky gooeyness to the sandwich.

This was a nice, standard cheesesteak. Something that's not easy to find in San Diego.

Evans 06

Nice owners, decently priced, I'm sure to visit again.

Evan’s Deli & Brew
3944 W Point Loma Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92110
Hours:
Sunday 10am – 7pm
Mon – Sat 10am – 8pm

The Wise Ox:

I'd heard that the Wise Ox, a butcher shop owned by the Trust Restaurant Group made a good cheesesteak. I had thoughts of checking out the place earlier, but the parking situation in the strip mall is terrible. But, since we were staying at the Lafayette, I was in walking distance to the North Park location.

Wise Ox 01

I walked over and arrived just as the place was opening. I was greeted before I entered the shop by the nice gentleman getting the smoker going. The shop offers a nice variety of soy sauces and such, along with sausages and other meat products.

Wise Ox 02

I went and ordered the Cheesesteak ($12.99). The friendly guy behind the counter took my number and told me he'd text me when my sandwich was ready. I started going for a stroll; but my sandwich was ready in like 5 minutes!

Wise Ox 03

The meat, I was told it was New York Strip, was thinly shaved and very beefy-tender. It wasn't as moist as the stuff from Evan's, but I could tell based on the texture and beefiness that it was of higher quality.

The Amoroso roll really stood up well in this sandwich; though as you can see, there was less beef than other versions of cheesesteak I've had before. Thus making it more "bready".

I enjoyed the onions in the sandwich.

Wise Ox 04

I didn't care for the pickled peppers which, in my mind detracted from the overall flavor of the sandwich, especially, at least to me, muted the cheese and beefiness. I'd probably ask not to have that next time. Still, if you go for the quality of beef, this might be the cheesesteak for you.

The Wise Ox Butcher & Deli
2855 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92104
Hours:
Sun – Mon 10am – 5pm
Tues – Sat 10am – 6pm

Wise Ox 05

It was nice to get some decent cheesesteaks since so many places where I'd enjoyed the sandwich before like Monkey Paw, Pop's, and others have closed.

Beginners Diner and the Lafayette Hotel

Recently, we needed to have some work done on our house. It was scheduled (and took) for four days. I needed to be present onsite during parts of the day. The Missus however, was working on a couple of those nights. In the end, we decided to do a staycation and stay at the recently renovated Lafayette Hotel. I would shuttle the Missus back and forth to work, spend the nights at the hotel, the Missus would sleep during the day, and on Her nights off, we'd relax and explore a bit.

CH Holdings spent 31 million renovating this historic hotel and we were interested to see how it was. Well, it was quite chic and lavish, in a retro, over-the-top manner. From the time set foot into the lobby.

Lafayette 01

The check in counter is a small kiosk, which doubles as a coffee bar.

Lafayette 01b

The Missus actually enjoyed the coffee from here; I believe She'd always get the Ethiopian. There are no phones in the room, so the hotel and concierge can be reached by text.

There are four (now five) venues to get your cocktail fix at the Lafayette. We actually took time to try all of them. Check out the simply named "Lobby Bar" with the statue of Atlas at the center.

Lafayette 05

Crazy, huh?

We checked in on a Sunday and I easily found parking around the corner, no need to feed the meter….more on the parking, or lack thereof later in the post. The Missus had to work so I enjoyed the Lobby Bar.

Lafayette 06

Classic cocktails; the bartenders work super hard here as the place was quite busy. Man, I'd hate to see the place on the weekends. The bartender still made time to greet and chat with each customer.

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On one of the Missus's nights off, we stopped by for a cocktail before dinner and the Missus tried the famous Pimm's Cup. She said it was a bit too sweet for Her.

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We were told that folks stood three or four deep on some weekends! Speaking of customers, they seemed to fit into four specific categories, the multi-generational adults, the "TikTok/Instagram/Influencer/Look at me" group (who were always doing selfies and filming….we saw one group walk back and forth down the front steps like six times!), the Hipsters, and the "Hip Replacements". I'll let you figure out which group I fit into.

Lafayette 03c

Our room was humongous.

Lafayette 03

Check out the wallpaper.

Lafayette 03b

The beds were comfortable and there was a huge mini-bar in the room. Because our room was overlooking El Cajon Boulevard it was a bit on the noisy side; but the Missus still managed to get some sleep at night.

There's a nice, more laid back pool bar.

Lafayette 04

The Missus and I had a nightcap here on our last evening. The drinks were described as Italian-Tiki in theme. As with all our interactions with staff at the Lafayette, the service was amazing.

Lafayette 09

Lafayette 10

Overlooking the historic pool.

Lafayette 08

That pool was designed by…..well, I'm thinking most of you wouldn't recognize the name, but it was one of my mom's favorite actors/athletes, Johnny Weissmuller, who is probably the definitive Tarzan and to claims to have invented the Tarzan yell!

In fact, there were several moments when I wished the place did tours. Most folks working really didn't have much of a grasp on the history. Except on my last day there, when I spoke to…I believe his name is Dexter. He told us the room we were staying in is his favorite; according to Dexter, room 326 is where Bing Crosby stayed, it's where Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner stayed. It's also where; clearing one's throat a certain president and a certain "Blond Bombshell" stayed under assumed names and off the books. I dunno, but it makes for a great story, huh?

On one of my evenings at the Lafayette, I decided to check out the very retro looking 24 hours diner in the lobby; Beginners Diner.

Beginners Diner 01

My goodness, I loved the classic diner look. I had a seat at the counter.

Beginners Diner 03

It was pretty early for dinner, so the place was pretty quiet.

Beginners Diner 02

I really wanted to try the Wagyu French Dip, but they were out. So, I ordered the Cali Banh Mi ($20). Soon enough it arrived at the counter.

Beginners Diner 04 Beginners Diner 05   I didn't care for the fries which quickly got limp and were over salted. 

The sandwich was not bad. A bit too bready and the sambal aioli was kind of weak. But the pork pate, think (pate Campagne) was swiney and winey, if cut a bit on the thinner side for my taste.

Beginners Diner 06

The place was getting quite the "hipster infusion" as I was leaving. On an interesting note, the Missus took a walk during one of Her days there and told me the place was packed with folks form the 60+ club. My good friend Candice also noted that quite a few folks who were regulars at the old Red Fox; which has moved across the street now frequent this place.

Beginners Diner 07

Beginners Diner (In the Lafayette Hotel)
2223 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92104
Open 24 Hours Daily

You know, I've never been the biggest fan of CH Holdings restaurants which always seemed more style than substance. We were hoping that our upcoming dinner at Quixote would change that.

But I was really enjoying the Lafayette…….and it was time to head on to the Lobby Bar for a nightcap.

Lafayette 11

Lafayette 12

The Lafayette Hotel
2223 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92104

Thanks for stopping by!