San Francisco – Kin Khao

I wanted something interesting for our last meal in San Francisco. We'd had dinner at Mourad the night before, so I thought following that up with a Michelin Star Thai Restaurant might make a nice pairing for this trip. To make it more interesting; the owner of the restaurant is former uber blogger Pim Techamuanvivit; who ran the super popular food blog Chez Pim. The restaurant claims to create Thai Food that is seasonal, sustainable, and yet stays true to its roots.

The rather tiny restaurant is located in the Parc 55 Hotel. The place was pretty packed when we arrived; luckily, we had made reservations.

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There's a certain "hipsterness" to the place and the menu. Our Server was wonderful, sweet, friendly, and while not quite displaying what we'd call Michelin Star service, was very nice. She helped us make some decisions on dishes. We were looking for items with some spice….when we mentioned enjoying Issan-style dishes, she told us she is from Issan and helped us select items for our meal.

Instead of going with some of the heavier or entrée dishes; we kept it rather light and tried four different items.

Starting with the Yum Kai Dao ($12).

IMG_1499 IMG_1501To be perfectly honest; we were drawn to the "Wok Fried Duck Egg" in the description and it definitely delivered a perfectly runny, richly flavored yolk. We both enjoyed this elevated Yum Kai Dao; basically a fried egg salad. There was a nice variety of sliced and torn vegetables; cilantro, mint, shallot, kale added a mild bitterness, and there were a few slices of sneaky sliced Thai Bird Chilies. This was very lightly dressed which suited us just fine as we could make out all the ingredients.

Next up was a dish I'd read about, being a fan of Nam Tok (I still make Neua Nam Tok on occasion); we both thought the Nam Tok Beans ($14) would be worth trying.

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The earthy flavor of the Rancho Gordo Cranberry Beans came through nicely, but was quite dry. This dish really lacked the savory-sweet flavors along with having not enough herbaceous (mint-lemongrass-cilantro), nor enough spice and lacked enough nutty rice powder to suit our tastes.

One of the things I really enjoyed about Chiang Mai was the nam prik; basically dipping sauces for your sticky rice. So I just had to order the Nam Prik Ong ($18) a take on the classic Tomato and Pork dipping sauce. We also got sticky rice to have with this; sorry no photo….sadly the rice was too soft and wet.

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The pork rinds were nice; crisp, light porky goodness. The nam prik was much too thick for our taste and just had too much pork. The acidic tomato goodness was missing……along with having enough spice. This really did seem to taste more like a "ragu" we had in Emilia-Romagna than a nice spicy-garlicky-tomatoey nam prik ong.

If you've read our little blog long enough; I think you'd be able to predict what our last dish would be; the Sai Ua and Nam Prik Noom ($19).

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Finally, there was something that brought on the heat (I'm glad we weren't asked how spicy we wanted things – this place served items the way they thought it should be)…..the fruity-fragrant and spicy chili paste – nam prik noom; had a nice variety of chilies. Our wonderful Server told us that this would be the dish we should order and she was right. It actually tasted great with those pork rind strips. This version of Sai Ua was very dense with a definite porkiness to it. It really didn't have as much herbaceousness as other versions we've had, but was quite good. The perfectly ripe cucumber was just the right foil to cure the richness of the sausage and temper the heat of the nam prik. IMG_1493

Overall, while kind of a mixed bag, it was a fun meal. The dishes try to keep a modern edge and a Thai soul, while creeping close to being fusion. While I don't think we'll return the next time we're in San Francisco, I'm glad we tried Kin Khao.

Kin Khao
55 Cyril Magnin St. (In the Parc 55 Hotel)
San Francisco, CA 94102

 

Soi 30th

Soi 30th opened up right next to Lefty's on 30th Street last fall. My good friends and I actually went and ate there at the end of September, basically going through a good part of the menu on that evening. But the focus was on what was going with each other; work and other things have been keeping me from seeing them as much as I'd like to.

Soi 30th 01

I decided not to do a post after that visit; mainly because we were just enjoying each other's company and catching up on what was going on.

Soi 30th 02 Soi 30th 03That's not to say that I didn't enjoy the food….I did enjoy a couple of the dishes. Though some were quite uneven; I attributed that to being newly opened. It did help that the place was being opened by the former owner of Krua Thai in Chula Vista.

I decided to do a couple of visits on my own; which stretched out over almost nine months. But finally, think it's time.

The restaurant is small; the interior tiny, with some outdoor seating. The set-up is perfect for the "North Park Brewpub" type; you order at the counter, get a number, have a seat.

On my first visit; I went with a dish that I usually use to gauge the cooks Wok Skills; Pad See Eew with Shrimp ($13).

Soi 30th 09

Not an especially generous portion; the shrimp was cooked perfectly, a wonderful tender and plump. I liked the fact that the sauce wasn't overly sweet, but the noodles, while nicely coated, was on the over-cooked side and lacked the smokey "wok hey" that I look for in this dish.

I did enjoy the Thai Jerky ($7); which had been nicely dried, then fried.

Soi 30th 10

Edging just on the precipice of being hard; I loved the chewiness, the flavor, salty-savory, was quite good as well.

On my next visit; two more Thai staples…..

The SomTom E-san ($7), was a bit disappointing.

Soi 30th 14

While the papaya was expertly shredded, this just wasn't spicy….especially for Issan Papaya salad. I wasn't asked for a spiciness level and this was too mild. Not very much salted crab, nor enough tomato. Too much lime and not enough fish sauce; this just wasn't what I wanted.

I had mixed feelings about ordering the Thai Sausage. You see, on my visit with friends the sausage wasn't sour enough and the meat quite mealy. This however, was very good.

Soi 30th 08b

Nice light sourness; pork skin, great firm, but not hard texture. Very nice! Sadly, much like CC's visit (check out her post), no ginger, and sliced serrano peppers instead of Thai Chilies.

A few weeks later; it was the Khao Man Gai, which was very disappointing; the chicken was super dry, the rice not flavored enough and hard.

Soi 30th 12

The ginger based sauce needed….well, more ginger as it really lacked zip.

I also ordered the Crispy Chicken Wings.

Soi 30th 11

Much of the rather light batter was flaking off the wings; broken bones, and the meat was moist and tender it had dark spots. I thought it a bit too sweet for my taste and I felt it needed more zip and a crunchiness that would hold out a bit longer.

After this; I decided to give the place a rest for a couple of weeks; which turned out to be months.

When I finally returned; I saw that Soi 30th had Pad Ped as a special; so I decided to order it. The portion size was quite large and that egg was nice and runny.

Soi 30th 04 - Pad Ped

I found the sauce a bit too "gloppy" and the pork dry. The were lumps of sauce; you know, when you're not on your stir-fry game and you add in the sauce to finish and it lumps up under the heat.

On my next visit; I had what is perhaps my favorite dish at Soi 30th; in fact, I've had it again recently and it was the same; It's the Pork Belly and Chinese Broccoli.

Soi 30th 05 Soi 30th 06Not over sauced; the star was the pork belly; crunchy, not hard, which gave away to a nice tenderness. Mild garlic tones and I could actual taste some heat here; not much mind you, but at least it was there. During this visit the Gailan was too hard and crisp, but on my subsequent visit, it was cooked nicely. On both visits the fried egg was over-cooked for my taste; but maybe the clientele freaks out over soft and runny eggs? Still, a good dish.

On my last visit, I was curious about the Khao Moo Krob – Moo Daeng; basically red pork (like charsiu) and pork belly. The fluorescent red sauce really caught my attention.

Soi 30th 07 - Khao Moo Kob - Moo Daeng Soi 30th 08The "red" pork was on the dry and tough side and really lacked flavor. The pork belly though was again nicely fried up, making it crisp and delicious. The sauce was too sweet and missing the nice tangy-savory component used on Moo Daeng. The rice was perfect and fragrant, though the boiled egg was way overcooked, the yolk quite dry. 

So, why all the visits? Well, there's something about this place that I like….perhaps it's the vibe…..the dishes I enjoyed had that "hint of Thailand" and while on the gringo side, were not bad. Perhaps I need to do this a some other Thai places that missed the mark previously?

The service was amiable and the prices not bad.

To quote reader EdwardW who emailed me about Soi 30th back in September - "I want this place to do well. It’s close to my home and about as honest Thai cooking I’ve found in San Diego." Well said! And thanks for reading and taking the time to send us an email!

Soi 30th
3442 30th St
San Diego, CA 92104
Hours:
Mon – Thurs 11am – 3pm, 430pm – 930pm
Fridays     11am – 330pm, 430pm – 930pm
Sat – Sun   12pm – 930pm

Siam Nara Revisited

A reader recently asked me if I'd been to Manila Fast Food and Desserts recently, because she thought things had changed. I hadn't been in about six months so I thought I'd check things out….problem was; it was Monday and the place is closed on Monday. Duh…. So, I had to find a place for lunch. There are quite a few options in this strip mall and I chose Siam Nara since I hadn't been back in over seven years!

Siam Nara Rev 01

The place still looks quite nice inside.

Siam Nara Rev 02

I hadn't planned on having Thai, so I really wasn't prepared and ended up choosing something off the lunch menu.

Siam Nara Rev 03

Which started with a very bland, water-logged "soup".

Siam Nara Rev 04

Soon enough my plate of food arrived….good lord, this was pretty large. Since I hadn't been to Siam Nara in so long, I'd forgotten a couple of things….like, even though I ordered the som tum "spicy", it had barely any heat at all, was light on the fish sauce, and too sweet for my taste. I totally got "gringo'd" on this one. Or perhaps that is basically how they make the food. The sticky rice was very moist and perhaps the most unsticky, sticky rice I'd had in a while.

Siam Nara Rev 05

Man, that's quite a bit of fried chicken; which was nicely fried, crunchy, but very bland. I wasn't going to use any of the sweet chili sauce, until I bit into the very dry chicken….it was so dry…then I recalled that all those years ago; I thought the kai yang here was on the dry side as well.

I'm going to stop here and not even go into the egg roll and the potato curry won ton thingy.

Yes, it's a very generous amount of food, but it's just not my kind of Thai.

Siam Nara
8993 Mira Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92126
Hours:
Open Daily 11am – 10pm

What we eat to beat the heat – Thai Papaya by Sab-E-Lee

**** Thai Papaya has closed

Man was it hot today in San Diego? Man; it was hitting the high 90's over here in Bay Park! And as always with temperatures this high; the specter of fire danger hovers overs us. We hope everyone, their families, pets, and homes are safe.

 I've mentioned in previous posts, that's it's not Sab-E-Lee weather for us until it starts getting into the high-70's or 80's. And well; today it surely surpassed that. It had been a while since I'd dropped by. The Missus was going to get home after me today; so I dropped by Thai Papaya for take-out.

Maylee was in the kitchen and came out to greet me with a smile…..things are just better when she's there.

Thai Papaya BTH 01 Thai Papaya BTH 02Of course I got the Missus's favorite; the Som Tom Khai Kem, papaya salad with salted egg. Savory-salty, with the acid balancing things out. The duck larb was outstanding on this visit, great mildly-gamey, almost beefy with sweet tones; just enough acid, great with the wedges of cabbage.

And yes; there are several places that make a better Thai Sausage than what SeL sells; but we still order it; it's very consistent and along with sticky rice fills out the meal.

Thai Papaya has changed up their hours a bit. Now closed on Tuesdays and open from noon to eight pm the rest of the week.

Thai Papaya by Sab E Lee
2405 Ulric St
San Diego, CA 92111 

Yes, it's just a short post today…….it's probably too hot to be sitting around reading a post. And I'm sure you really didn't want to read about my most recent bowl of pho, right?

Aaharn by Koon Thai (National City)

**** This location of Aaharn has closed

The weather's been warming up, so the Missus decided it was time to start hitting up Zarlitos again for Her weekend poke breakfast.  While driving past National City Boulevard, I noticed this.

Aaharn NC 01

At street level of Bayview Towers. The thing that caught my eye was the "by Koon Thai" on the signage. Returning home, I did a bit of searching and found out this is a new "concept" by Koon Thai. Along with this National City location, there's one on Kettner near Santa Fe Depot. Shows how long it's been since I've been around those areas, huh?

Anyway, that evening, with the Missus working, I decided to drop on by….yes, back and forth to National City twice in a day! Now that's dedication, right? Actually, I was that curious about the place. Which was small, but I liked the décor.

Aaharn NC 02

The young lady working was so warm and friendly.

The menu can be described as Koon Thai "light"……stuff like gyoza? But there were still some ungringo dishes on the menu. I placed my order, not really thinking a couple of things thru.

I started with the Nam Tok, which I ordered spicy. The poor young lady was so concerned about my personal welfare….I assured her that I'd be able to take the heat…evening mentioning Sab e Lee. But she looked so concerned (more about this later), that I ordered it medium.

Aaharn NC 03 Aaharn NC 04This was definitely not a "Thai sized" portion. Holy smokes, there was a decently sized steak under the herbs and veggies. On an interesting note; unlike what I've had at Koon Thai, the lime-sugar-saltiness was decent if a bit on the mild side for my taste. I've usually found the beef at Koon Thai on Convoy to be pretty tender. This on the other hand, looked great, but was cut way too thick, and was really sinewy and tough. I'd have appreciated more lemongrass flavor and roasted rice powder, but at least this wasn't too sweet. Oh and it wasn't hot at all….barely tickling my tongue.

I was happy to see a Koon Thai favorite on the menu; the Khao Karr Moo ($10). Again, I found the portion size to be quite large.

Aaharn NC 05 Aaharn NC 06There was quite a bit more pork that what I get at Koon on Convoy. There was a nice balance of sweet-soy sauce going on. The pork was a bit drier and tougher than I prefer; except for the darker, fattier slices. There were boiled eggs, decently done for this dish which takes me back to Thailand. I wish the usual pickeld greens were used instead of the gringo broccoli and carrots.

Still, not too bad. The young lady was very nice. When I mentioned the spice level not being up to par, she apologized and told me a couple of stories about folks not quite knowing what "real" Thai food was like and the various questions, challenges, and folks basically almost dying from "mild" level heat. I get it.

I decided to return yesterday and there was this really nice young man working….same friendliness and warmth, a really nice guy. As temperatures had soared to the mid-eighties, I wasn't in the mood for any curries or soups. I saw something called "Herby Chicken" ($12) on the menu and asked if it was "Kai Yang" and he smiled and said "yes".  A whole half chicken arrived.

Aaharn NC 09 Aaharn NC 10The photo above really doesn't do the portion size justice as it is a pretty hefty half chicken. As with most American birds, the thigh and leg meat was vey nice and moist, but the large and hefty breast was really dry and didn't absorb much flavor. In terms of taste, well, this was quite mild for me. It was salty enough, but definitely needed more. I use lemongrass, garlic, and ginger in my recipe. It could have also been a touch sweeter. The skin was tough and rubbery.

Aaharn NC 11

Still, this wasn't bad by any means, better than many Thai restaurants in San Diego.

I also got free Thai Coffee/Thai Tea with my entrée. I'm guessing this is a grand opening perk.

Aaharn NC 12

Aaharn NC 08 Aaharn NC 13I love the artwork and really enjoyed chatting with the folks working here. I was told that someone actually came in and had no idea what Thai Curry was!!! The top selling dish? Pad Thai.

I hope they do well. I might return one of these days. I was the only customer in the place during both my visits. I hope and wish them well.

Aaharn by Koon Thai
801 National City Blvd
National City, CA 91950
Hours:
Mon – Fri  11am – 3pm
                   430pm – 9pm
Saturday  430pm – 9pm
Closed Sunday

There are three or four parking spaces behind the building specifically assigned to the restaurant. Though I parked along A Avenue. After driving in Italy and France, I've kind of learned to appreciate roundabouts and there's one here.

Aaharn NC 15

I also enjoy the historic homes in the area.

Right next to the quite 70's looking building is Morgan Square Plaza, a colorful little oasis. And on this day, it looked like some teens were having their graduation pictures taken.

Aaharn NC 14

They added some life to a rather desolate area on a Saturday evening.

Circling Back to Di Chan Thai Restaurant

**** It seems that Di-Chan has closed

Right before our office moved from the Kearny Mesa area, I noticed that Di Chan Thai had new signage. A bit of a more modern freshened up look. It had been 12 years since my last visit. I hadn’t been too impressed with the “Ameri-Thai” style food. But heck, a new look, a new leaf, right?

Di Chan Circle 01

Di Chan Circle 02 Di Chan Circle 03Man, look how bright it is here now!

The woman working was really friendly and quickly brought me a menu.

It was the typical “pick your style – pick your protein” menu of most Thai places.

Not really sure what to get; I went with the Garlic and Pepper Shrimp ($8.95) spice level 10…….I figured that it would be basically a five.

First up; the worst soup that I’ve had since my visit to Appethai.

Di Chan Circle 06

Talk about bland…..

Soon enough my plate arrived.

Di Chan Circle 05

Let’s just forget about the wonton and other stuff. Focusing on the main. The broccoli was soggy and over-cooked, the shrimp was as well…..quite rubbery. The sauce was watery, too sweet, and lacked almost any spice at all. There was garlic, not so much pepper…….not so much my taste either. It seems like the veggies and shrimp were cooked over too low heat as there was a lack of wok hay.

I’m sure folks who just want “some grub” for less than nine bucks might like this.

In the back of my mind, I thought if lunch was even half way decent, maybe I’d come back for dinner. I think I’ll pass for now.

Di Chan Thai Restaurant
5535 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Revisits – Supannee House of Thai and Pho Xpress

A couple of revisits for a quiet Sunday.

Supannee House of Thai:

It's been quite a while since I did my post on Supannee back in 2013. I'd been back a couple of times, though not in a year or two. Over time, it seems that Supannee has become a favorite of CC and even Cathy.

Suppanee Rev 01

On this day, I needed to drop by Trader Joe's in Liberty Station, so I thought I'd head a bit further south and have lunch at Supannee.

Of course I needed to get the Thai Sausage which is now $11.

Suppanee Rev 03

This sausage that is made inhouse was what brought me to Supannee in the first place all those years ago. And while it was a bit drier that I prefer, it did "hit the spot". In fact, I think they've adjusted the recipe a bit as it's even more flavorful, the lemongrass and kaffir lime leaf somes shining thru, and there's more of a chili kick. Nicely grilled, this was a great start to lunch.

I wanted to try a curry and went with the Roasted Duck Red Curry ($16).

Suppanee Rev 04 Suppanee Rev 05This was very nice; in spite of the decent amount of spice, I could make out the flavor of the coconut milk in this. I often stay away from Thai Curries at restaurants because it's often too sweet….and I'm really not a big fan of fruits in my curries. But let me walk that back here. In this case, other than the curry being on the "thin" side, all the flavors worked in harmony. There was a generous portion of duck in the curry as well. All flavors of the ingredients, the duck, pineapple, tomato (added a nice acid), and grapes, worked both in harmony and individually in this dish.

The service was also very nice. When I took the leftovers home, the really nice young lady gave me an order of rice (I'd finished my bowl…a rarity these days) as well. Same young lady was so gracious and helpful to the woman who told her, "no meat, no dairy, no shellfish, no gluten, low sodium, and I'm allergic to peanuts".

I gotta get back here more often.

Supanee House of Thai
2907 Shelter Island Drive
San Diego, CA 92106
Hours:
Mon – Fri 1130am-230pm, 5pm – 9pm
Sat – Sun 12pm – 9pm

Pho Xpress:

So, since our office moved, I'm outside the free shuttle range for the folks who work on my car. So these days, I need to go Saturdays or Holidays. The first time, I took the trolley and just went "cruising". On my latest visit, I waited the three hours.

After paying and heading out, I decided to grab something to eat. It was pretty chilly out and I hadn't been back to Pho Xpress in nearly two years.

P Xpress Rev 01

Instead of ordering the pho like I usually do; I went with the Banh Mi Bo Kho. What I got was disappointing.

P Xpress Rev 02 IMG_3074This tasted like pho broth with some bo kho seasoning dumped in it. It lacked any kind of rich beef flavor, tomato, etc…..it was so bland. The carrots were still raw, the beef very tough. This was so thin that I thought I'd read the menu wrong….but no, it says right there "Beef Stew". At least the banh mi was warm and fairly crusty. But this was disappointing as a whole.

Also, since the guy who took my order insisted on correcting my pronunciation of "bo kho"…they should have actually made me a real bo kho, right?

Pho Xpress
6533 Mission Gorge Rd
San Diego, CA 92120

EaThai Bistro (San Diego/Rolando)

mmm-yoso!!!, the name of the food blog you are reading.  Now that you know why Kirk hasn't been posting much…He and His Missus are on a well deserved vacation…Cathy is holding down the fort and posting about another San Diego restaurant.  

Maybe you remember when Kirk posted about Chinese Kitchen, the first time a two part post in 2006 and a follow up in 2009. IMG_9070 It was the place with the literal 'hole in the wall' for ordering…had been there since the 1980's (when The Mister and I frequented the inexpensive take out establishment), which closed about five months ago. 
IMG_9067 You don't have to order at the window any more, there are 14 seats with tabletops as well as an area to wait if you order or are picking up 'to go'. 
IMG_9067We were given complimentary Thai iced tea, since they are still in their opening phase (regular $2.50).  It was not too sweet, and the tea portion had a pleasant, spiced flavor.  
IMG_9067We also were given small cups of vegetable tom kha soup, which was very good.  I might just order a bowl on one of our wintery-cool days.  
IMG_9067 IMG_9063 The Thai sausages appetizer ($7.95) was wonderful!  The coarse grind pork sausages are made here, have a skin with a snap and has the wonderful bit of sour taste.  They are different than other house made Thai sausage (the ones made at Supanne House of Thai which are herb filled), yet delicious on their own, served with ginger, cabbage, cucumber and peanuts. 
IMG_9063 Thai Style papaya salad ($7.95) was fresh made (I heard shredding in the kitchen), at a level of "2", which was just enough chili pepper/heat to still be able to taste the green beans, tomatoes, garlic and dried shrimp along with the peanuts. It was really good.  I am eager to try the Lao style of this salad on my next visit- made with fish sauce and the 50 cent optional addition of salted crab.   IMG_9057 The larb ($8.95, chicken) wasn't quite what we are used to- there were no crunchy (roasted rice) bits, so the texture was not as interesting; thinking it was forgotten.  The lime juice, onions, cilantro and mint were all very good and fresh.

All in all, a good choice of food for this part of town.  

cc has been here, too!

EaThai Bistro 6160 University (North side, just East of College Avenue) San Diego 92115 Open Monday-Saturday 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Closed Sunday (619)583-8888

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Koon Thai Revisited

A couple of more lunch revisits before we moved offices.

Koon Thai: Koon Rev 01

It had been just about a year since I'd last visited. So I decided to see what was up with Koon Thai. Looking over the menu, I decided to against my better sense and didn't order the dish I enjoyed the best here, the Karr Moo. I ended up ordering the Khao Nar Ped ($11.50). By the way, prices have gone up fairly quickly here….I'm thinking about a dollar a year.

I soon regretted my decision.

Koon Rev 02 Koon Rev 03The duck was so tough and rubbery; severely over-cooked. There was very little duck flavor and this was rather bland overall. I actually thought the gailan was the best part of the dish as the rice was too dry and that sauce, which had a nice zip was very one-dimensional. This has me wondering how the other dishes that I had actually enjoyed here would be these days.

Koon Thai Kitchen
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Beating the Heat – Revisits to Prime Grill and Take-out from the Original Sab e Lee and Thai Papaya

I realize that I'm kinda late on these posts. I'm not sure who asked what we were eating during the wonderful heat waves of August; but here's a couple of meals from then.

Prime Grill:

Our instinct is to basically do take-out and hang at home or find a place with good A/C. Add a nice cold noodle dish and some decent panchan to the equation and you have Prime Grill. The Bibim Naengmyun here has replaced the version at Buga as my favorite.

Prime G Heat 01 Prime G Heat 02The noodles are stretchy, but not like rubberbands. The sauce has some nice heat for isn't overwhelming; just a touch of vinegar and perhaps even a squirt or two of cho-jang and I'm a happy camper. The portion size is rather large, but I can finish it all when I'm hungry. And in case you need to chill out, you're provided with a bowl of iced broth as well.

The Missus has started to enjoy the Dolsot Bibim Bap here; but She has a secret.

Prime G Heat 03

When the stone bowl arrives; She waits….munches on some panchan, has some of my naengmyun. After 5-6 minutes, She gives it a first stir, then She takes the juices from the now empty plates of baechu kimchi and kkakdugi and mixes it in with some chojang….and waits. We get another serving of panchan and eventually She starts eating, after a nice crust has formed. It's about patience and using the kimchi juice.

Prime Grill
4620 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

The Original Sab e Lee:

**** TOSEL is now Zab Linda

I'd kind of avoided TOSEL after my last meal here a few months back. Items such as Catfish Larb and Salted Fish Fried Rice has been removed from the menu. But on one of those super hot Thursdays; Thai Papaya is strangely closed on Thursdays. I decided to do some take-out fro, TOSEL.

SEL Fix 01

Things were a bit better this time around; though the Pad See Ew with Beef was kind of weak in the flavor department…..strangely, it lacked that hint of sweetness that balances out the soy flavor. In addition, when did they start asking how "spicy" you wanted your Pad See Ew? The noodles were dry; there was no wok hey……

SEL Fix 04

The Nam Tok was decent and much better this time around as it had a nice kick.

SEL Fix 02

More on the sour than salty side this time around.

The Issan Sausage is a standby.

SEL Fix 03

And it delivered as usual. A peanut, sliver of ginger, wrapped in cabbage, and you have a nice sour-porky-nutty-pungent bite.

The Original Sab E Lee
6925 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111

Thai Papaya:

**** Thai Papaya has closed

Though this didn't stop me from hitting up Thai Papaya the next time the mercury headed up that thermometer.

Thai Papaya Heat 01

I find the dishes at Thai Papaya spicier and more soulful than TOSEL. Of course, it's "different strokes for different folks" and all that.

Thai Papaya by Sab E Lee
2405 Ulric St
San Diego, CA 92111 

What are your favorite "beat the heat" dishes?