Travel – Page 25

Taipei – We Arrive and 93 Tomato Beef Noodle

April 14, 2023 mmm-yoso Niu Rou Mian, Taipei, Taiwan, Taiwanese Food and Restaurants, Travel

Our flight to Taipei was about a half hour late. Getting thru customs in Taoyuan Airport was amazingly efficient and since we only had carry-on luggage to deal with, finding the Airport MRT station was also quite easy, as was getting and loading up EasyCards, Taiwan's travel smartcard. Our Airport MRT train left on time and we arrived at Taipei Main Station in around 40 minutes. Now here's where it got interesting…….dealing with Taipei Main Station was crazy. All the floors, all the different lines; the MRT/Metro/HSR/TRA all leave from various tracks at Taipei Main Station. Even with the Missus being fluent in Mandarin it was a beast. We deal and have dealt with train/metro travel quite a bit, heck we even survived Shinjuku Station which claims to be the busiest in the world. But man, trying to find the MRT Blue Line to our hotel, well it just had us flummoxed. Maybe we're out of practice?

Anyway, our hotel was just one stop over on the Blue Line, so we decided to take a cab. Which turned out to be great in several ways; first we discovered Cab Fare in Taiwan is very reasonable with a start at 85 NT ($2.60/US) and 5 NT every 200 meters or so. Cab fare to our hotel ended up being 95 NT, think $3.11. Second, we got our first taste of how friendly cab drivers (as a whole) were in Taiwan. They loved conversations. In fact, the Missus would make it a habit to get dining recommendations from Taxi Drivers during our stay in Taiwan.

We got to our hotel and checked in at around 830pm. The staff at the Resonance Hotel were very professional and accommodating. After freshening up, we decided to head on out to grab something light for dinner. This is when we noticed that many businesses seem to close fairly early. It was 845 and most restaurants in the area were closed. We also noticed that there seemed to be either a 7-11 or Family Mart on every corner. Even more than Japan!

After walking up and down a couple of streets, we settled on this place.

Which specialized in Tomato Beef Noodle Soup! The menu is posted on the wall, you are given a paper to check off your selections. The interior and dining is simple.

We ordered the Beef Tomato Soup and some jiaozi. The Missus had a view into the kitchen and quickly told me; "they are making the jiaozi to order!" And then, "he's cutting the noodles to order as well!" We'd find that this is the norm here in Taiwan.

Our Pork and Cabbage Jiaozi arrived hot to the table.

The Missus walked over to the condiment table and poured us some black vinegar. This jiaozi was very good, fluffy, tender wrappers, tender and nicely seasoned pork filling. Better than anything in San Diego…in fact, just about as good as anything in the SGV!

Then our noodle soup arrived.

Man, the beef was so tender and beefy! The knife cut noodles were a bit thick for my taste, but the texture was very nice, good pull, not doughy or overly chewy. The broth was light on the beefiness and edged on being too sweet. We would have liked a bit more tangy-tomato flavor as well. Still this was quite enjoyable.

And then came my favorite item of the meal, the Fried Pork Chop.

Crisp, yet tender, we loved the porkiness. We'd come to enjoy the pork in Taiwan, it's definitely not "the other white meat here". In fact, the Missus would make fun of me after I enjoyed each pork chop saying; "Taiwan, the land where Kirk never found a pork chop he didn't like!" Which was true. This version was smothered in black and white pepper and we liked the sinus clearing effect of it.

This ended up being a nice, random first meal in Taiwan. And heck, it was just over nine bucks!

93 Tomato Beef Noodle (93刀削麵館)
No. 3-2, Qingdao E Rd.
Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan

We had a nice night of sleep. I woke a bit early, had some tea and just looked out at our view of Taipei.

We decided to head on out and do some exploring. Walking out of the hotel straightened us out! We had left San Diego with temps in the 50's to 60's. Here in Taipei highs were in the 80's with some humidity to match.

We headed out on Zhongxiao East Road, one of the main thoroughfares in the city.

With the sounds, the smells (is that chou doufu I smell?), the lively, yet mellow vibe hitting us. We were so happy to finally be here and couldn't wait to do some exploring!

Thanks for stopping by!

Los Angeles – Far Bar, the Star Alliance Lounge (LAX), and Royale Laurel Class on EVA Air

April 9, 2023 mmm-yoso Airport/Airline/Cruise/Rail Food, Cocktails, Los Angeles County, Pubs and Pub Grub, Travel

After dinner at Sushi Enya we took a stroll around Japanese Village Plaza.

And wandered in and out of some of the shops in the area.

We also passed by the now closed Sushi Komasa with brown paper taped over the windows. We felt a tinge of sadness as Komasa had always been a favorite of ours. In fact, my second post, way back in May of 2005 was on Sushi Komasa.

Little Tokyo seems to be thriving as the place was pretty busy, even on a Tuesday night.

Passing places like Kouraku, the first place I recall seeing plastic Japanese food brought a smile to our faces.

And seeing places like Fugetsu-do always bring back nice memories.

It was a bit too early to head back to our room and hit the hay, so we decided to grab a cocktail. There's a place called Far Bar that occupies the iconic location of Far East Chop Suey which has it's own long history in Little Tokyo.

Man, it's been ages since I'd been in this building! I recall the mezzanine as a place where the Missus and I saw parties taking place the two times we ate here a zillion years ago.

The folks working here are very nice and laid back. The Missus had the Jade Empire and I had the La Luna y el Sol, which featured La Luna Mezcal and Aperol.

Not overly stiff, quite easy to drink.

We also decided to have something small to snack on and went with the Maneki Tots because, well you know we weren't going to have any rolls and it's never a bad time to have some tater tots.

This was actually not bad. The tots were fried nicely, the bacon crisp, the braised pork a bit too sweet, the wasabi mayo added a nice zip, but the spicy mayo was a bit of overkill. Kind of a lot going on here, but what was I to expect with stuff like various sushi rolls, pozole ramen, salmon pasta, shiitake miso burgers, among others on the menu?

We liked the folks working and had a nice, relaxing end to our day.

Far Bar
347 1st St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012

We headed back to our room to catch some shut eye. Just like the last time we stayed at the Miyako Hotel our room overlooked 1st street. And just like that time, we could see the unending line outside Daikokuya.

Our flight the next day was scheduled to leave at just past noon, the flight was going to be almost 14 hours, so we decided to fly in EVA's Royal Class, which meant we had lounge access. Which ended up being a blessing since our flight ended up being delayed.

The Star Alliance Lounge was quite empty and peaceful when we arrived.

It would fill up rather quickly soon after, but by then we were ensconced on the porch area.

Which had a view of Terminal B.

It was basically standard breakfast fare when we arrived, so we just had some coffee, tea, and water.

What was fun was watching the robot "bus boy" do its rounds!

While walking back from the restroom a gentleman had a chat with me. Turns out it was the lounge manager, a really nice guy. I mentioned his "bus boy" and he cracked up and said, "you should hear it sing Happy Birthday in one of about a hundred different languages!"

He also mentioned that I should give the "noodle bar a try, it starts at 1030". And since the lounge staff had just announced our flight was delayed, that's what I did.

Folks rushed the bar when it opened. I got a bowl with the vegetarian pho broth.

Very salty, but I enjoyed the veggies.

Soon enough, it was time to board. The service on EVA is wonderful. The Missus loved the Jason Wu designed pajamas which can be kept and also the Ferragamo amenity kit.

I loved the lie flat seats with a decent amount of space; but wasn't quite sold on the Hello Kitty themed pillows….

Like I mentioned earlier, EVA's service is well regarded and at least based on this trip well deserved. Our meals were also among the best we've had on a flight.

I usually avoid seafood on flights, but that octopus in the salad was so tender.

And the breakfast porridge was also quite good.

Most importantly, being able to get some rest on our flight really makes a difference as we can be awake and alert when we land and can adjust to things quickly.

Our flight departed late, but the pilots made up time in the sir and we arrived at Taoyuan Airport just an half hour late. We then found the MRT to Taipei Main Station and our time in Taiwan had started!

Thanks for stopping by!

Los Angeles – Sushi Enya

April 8, 2023 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Sushi and Sashimi, Travel

When planning our current trip, we decided to fly out of LAX to avoid layovers. The flight was already 14 hours long and we really didn't want to extend our transit time. So, we planned for something like we had done several years back; we'd stay the night in Little Tokyo, then head to the airport in the morning for our flight. It would give us a chance to catch up with one of our favorite little neighborhoods in LA.

Except, this being 2023 and all, we ran into a little problem. We enjoy doing Amtrak to Union Station, then taking the short walk to our hotel in Little Tokyo. On the morning of our trip I received a message from Amtrak, our train had been cancelled and we'd been automatically rebooked to Union Station out of San Juan Capistrano!?!?!? Say what? After spending 45 minutes on hold with Amtrak, our only other option would have us arriving in LA at 6pm, after our dinner reservation. In the end, I made reservations on the FlixBus, which turned out to be a decent option and we arrived at Union Station at 430pm.

Walking to the Miyako Hotel from Union Station in 2023 was a different experience as well, many more homeless, folks with obvious mental health issues screaming at us (it's quite sad), groups of kids on skateboards harassing people acting like they "owned" the sidewalk. Whoa….

Though once you got off Alameda and made that turn on 1st Street things calmed down quite a bit.

We checked in, freshened up, and basically just had to cross the street to get to our dinner destination, Sushi Enya. Actually, we had wanted to check out a place that had been an old favorite of ours. But sadly, Sushi Komasa closed last year when the Itamae decided to retire. Sigh…. Anyway, we decided to check out Sushi Enya and I managed to get us early reservations. We were the first folks in the place and took a seat at the bar.

There were five folks working behind the sushi bar! Our Itamae for the evening was a young man who was quite friendly, it seems like a couple of the folks behind the bar were tasked with making various rolls that folks coming in after us ordered.

We got our order in and our nigiri started arriving. A couple of observations. Enya seems to do a lot of Aburi (torched) nigiri, they also have several tare/nikiri that is used on all the nigiri, so we had no need for shoyu and wasabi, except for a few exceptions. We both didn't care for the quality of the rice used as it was on the hard and chewy side and lacked a nice fragrance. As for the nigiri, well, read on!

Things started with Engawa, the dorsal fin muscle of hirame (halibut) a favorite of ours

The engawa had that wonderful toothsome texture, the nikiri added a nice touch of savory-soy tones with a hint of sweetness. Very clean, great texture!

Next up was the Kinmedai (Golden Eye Snapper).

This was torched changing the texture, adding a layer of creaminess to things. The addition of yuzu kosho gave this a nice salty-citrusy-"zippiness".

I saw Yamaimo "Fries" with Truffle Salt on the menu and had to try it.

This was quite delicious! The exterior crisp, the interior slightly creamy. All the usual sliminess of yamaimo was gone! Not much truffle flavor, but we really didn't need that as there was a delicate starchy-sweetness to this.

Next up was the Albacore.

This was a miss for us as the strong garlic sauce really detracted from the mild flavor of the fish. The sauce overwhelmed the dish.

Things were quickly corrected when the O-toro arrived.

Ethereally buttery in texture…..the fish almost melted when it hit your tongue. Too bad we didn't care for the rice here. The nikiri really added a nice, mild soy-sweet flavor to this.

We also ordered some Uni. When asked whether we wanted Santa Barbara or Hokkaido uni, the answer was quite easy.

The Hokkaido Uni was fabulous, creamy-sweet-briny. As I say, it's like having a creamy taste of the cleanest, freshest water of the Pacific ocean.

From here we decided to order a few more items to complete our meal.

We got some Hotate (Scallop).

With some ginger and the nice nikiri, this did need a bit of shoyu to balance things out. The scallop was sweet and tender.

We both didn't care for the Wagyu Nigiri.

The beef seemed really lean and did not benefit from being torched a bit too much making it very chewy.

We finished with Negi Toro Temaki.

This was fine, though the rice really dropped this a few notches for us.

Overall, a nice meal. Because of being the only folks sitting at the bar it was like we had our own, personal Itamae. Wish we liked the quality of the rice as it would have made our meal that much more enjoyable. As it was, this just illustrated how much we enjoy Tadokoro. We'll have to get our fix there soon!

Sushi Enya Little Tokyo
343 1st St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012

After dinner we decided to take a stroll and see what was going on in Little Tokyo.

Stay tuned!

Where in the world are we?

April 2, 2023 mmm-yoso Travel

Well…..yes, we're off on another trip, call it making up for lost time, or the cringe worthy "revenge travel". This is a place we had planned on visiting right when Covid hit. So now, three years later we decided the time was right?

So, where are we? Well, we've been here just a couple of days, not even half way thru, but we are just loving it!

We arrived and spent two evenings in the largest city here. It was an amazing city where the modern…

Aligns with the traditional.

And we got to try some traditional cuisine that we've always wanted to eat here.

Both in restaurants…..

And in the vaunted night markets.

And even on our short time here, we've gotten to try some of the more modern cuisine as well.

One thing that has really struck us is how kind, mellow, and generous the folks are here. The Missus is having a great time getting recommendations from folks. It's been fun gathering the recs and hearing the Missus enjoy Her conversations….folks are quite opinionated, in a fun way.

We'll be spending a couple of days back here during the tail end of our trip and I can't wait.

We're at our second location right now.

And though we only arrived last night, we've taken to this city. It's more mellow than the capital, folks are very friendly.

And for our two meals out here, we've used the recommendations of taxi drivers! And both meals, though very different were great!

We visited two markets earlier today. One was quite traditional.

The other more modern and artisanal on the third floor of a modern high rise. The young man working the tea stand spent a good hour having taste different teas, many if which were grown on his cousin's farm. He was so kind and generous with his time.

We're enjoying our time here, this trip has so far exceeded our expectations. We expected great food, but it's the people that have really made an impression on us.

And it's only been three nights so far!

Man, if things stay the course, this is going to be one for the books.

Thanks for stopping by!

Toulouse – Le Capitole, Basilique Saint-Sernin, and Dinner at Le Bibent

March 25, 2023 mmm-yoso France, French Restaurants, Toulouse, Montpellier, Carcassonne, and Occitania, Travel

After having a bit of an adventure trying to get out of Carcassonne, we made our way to Toulouse by bus, which ended up taking 4 hours. Once we made it to the city however, things went quite quickly. We were staying right on the the main square Place du Capitole. And it was a snap getting there on the metro, which was fast and efficient.

We stayed at the Hotel du Grand Balcon.

We really enjoyed the location and our room had a view of the square and this being the end of November, there was a lively Christmas Market happening. We loved just watching the goings on from our window.

I listen to quite a few Podcasts and one of my favorites is Join Us In France. A frequent guest on the Podcast is Elyse Riven who runs Toulouse Guided Walks. Not knowing much about Toulouse, I tried booking a tour with Elyse, but unfortunately this being the holiday season Elyse was travelling during our time in Toulouse. That said, Elyse was so generous in making a few recommendations and I did download her VoiceMap audio tour. We really enjoyed Toulouse and I'm hopeful that we'll be able to book one of her walks next time around.

We were quite happy to find that our room was ready when we arrived. We freshened up and then headed out. It turned out that Toulouse was a wonderful city for walking. Our first stop was right across the square at Le Capitole, a combination City Hall, Theatre, with beautiful State Rooms.

To us, Le Capitole seemed more like a grand art gallery, then a municipal building.

From the Grand Staircase which dates back to 1674 and beautiful paintings that adorn it…..

Which leads to three halls, each featuring stunning artwork.

Whoa…..we really didn't anticipate all this grand and quite stunning art!

It was a nice first stop for us in Toulouse.

From Place du Capitole streets stretch out in all directions like a spider web. We headed up north a bit to see Basilique Saint-Sernin. This huge Romanesque style church was constructed in the 11th Century.

This was once the church of the Abbey of Saint-Sernin. Only the church remains. It is said that Pope Fabian sent the church's namesake, Sernin, consecrated as a Bishop to France, which was then Gaul, where the Christian religion had been replaced by pagan beliefs. Sernin, would walk past the various pagan temples, the idols would suddenly not be able to prophesize. The priests grew angry, seized him, tied him to a bull and he was dragged to his death. The Bull finally ended up on the street going up to the Basilica, now named Rue du Taur (Route of the Bull) and at the place where the bull finally deposited the body of Saint Sernin is a church now named Notre Dame du Taur.

The interior, as expected is quite grand.

And is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We even found a statue of Saint Roch, the Patron Saint of Dogs!

We stopped by Notre-Dame du Taur on the way back to the hotel. I took a photo of the exterior of the church later in our visit.

We returned to our room and took a short break before dinner.

One of the challenges I encountered while making plans for our stay in Toulouse was making reservations for dinner. Most places did not do online reservations and my French is horrendous, so there's no way they'd be able to understand what I'm saying. I did manage online reservations at two places, one of which was a recommendation from Elyse. We did try to drop by restaurants to attempt to make reservations, but alas, the places were booked solid. I really need to do that French immersion thing.

Still, Toulouse had a more relaxed vibe than Paris, much less touristy. In fact the Aerospace and Aeronautics sector is the largest employer in Toulouse. We really enjoyed our time in the city, though I'm not going to quite fall in line with this….

For dinner, I had made reservations at a place nearby, off Place du Capitole, named Le Bibent. There was a familiar name associated with Le Bibent, Christian Constant, whose restaurants we've eaten at in Paris. Even though he is now retired, we were interested to see what Le Bibent would be like.

It was a drizzly evening and we were seated close to the bar area. The restaurant has been restored to it's former glory in the Belle Époque style and is quite stunning.

As is typical of our eating habits, we went with three entrees and one plat; starting with the eye catching Carpaccio de Tete de Veau (14€).

This was quite good, the veal head was tender, mild in flavor, it almost melts in your mouth. The mustard seed vinaigrette added a nice layer of sour-pungent tones, the greens were amazingly crisp, with a mild nutty bitterness. We loved the combination of flavors and textures.

The Missus loves Her Oeufs en Meurette (16€) so we had to get that.

The Missus enjoyed the poached egg, the potato mousse was a bit too starchy-gooey for us. The red wine sauce was nice, not overly bitter. This was not bad.

Of course we had to get the Foie Gras En Croute (21€).

The pastry was on gummy side though the "fillings" were really wonderfully "offaly"-earthy in flavor. Loved all the wonderful textures and flavors that the various greens and the pickled onions provided.

And of course, we had to try the Cassoulet (29€), which ended up being quite diapppointing.

We liked the "crust", but things ended there. The beans were hard, the dish was too salty, this was just not good eats to us.

Of course the Missus was hoping for that ethereal Cassoulet, but it was still not to be found.

Still, in terms of price, this was not a bad meal at all.

Le Bibent
5 Place du Capitole
31000 Toulouse, France

And we enjoyed the "feel" of Toulouse.

Folks here were very friendly and kind……

Road Trip – The Winslow Arts Trust (The La Posada Museum), More La Posada, and Dinner at the Turquoise Room

March 19, 2023 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Flagstaff/ Sedona/Winslow/Northern AZ, Mexican Restaurants, Road Trip, Travel

After taking a short break watching the trains go by, we walked over to the area next to the hotel that was once the railroad depot to visit the La Posada Museum, also known as the Winslow Arts Trust Museum.

The Museum goes thru much of the history of Winslow with regards to Route 66, the Railroad, and Native American history and heritage in the area.

We enjoyed our short visit. Especially the menus and items from various Harvey Hotels and restaurants; especially the menus.

How does Thanksgiving Dinner for $2 sound????

Of course travel by car spelled the demise of railroad traffic and the planning of the I-40 meant that Route 66 was going to be bypassed. This foretold the end of an era and the demise of the La Posada.

We enjoyed our little trip back in time and contemplated all these changes as we took one last lap around the grounds of La Posada before checking on our room.

I must admit that Allan Affeldt and his wife Tina Mion have done a wonderful job restoring the hotel, with classic Spanish and Mission Revival Architecture designed by Mary Colter (for those interested, I've been reading this Biography/Coffee Table book about Mary Colter) having gone as far as trying to track down the original furniture. And there are some artistic touches as well.

We really enjoyed exploring, even though some of the art of Tina Mion, which displayed everywhere is not quite to our taste.

By this time, our room was ready. All the rooms are named after different celebrities who have stayed at La Posada. The one we stayed in was the Roddy McDowell (you remember him, right?) room.

Of course while going to our room the Missus had a peek in this one which was being cleaned….

Guess where She wants to stay next time?

We also enjoyed all the historic photos in the hotel.

And of you want even more about the La Posada, here's a wonderful, albeit abridged (the long version can be found playing in the hotel lobby) video that features Allan Affeldt.

Once in our room, we rested up before heading to dinner at the Turquoise Room.

We had early reservations for dinner and were seated promptly. We had really enjoyed lunch at the Turquoise Room on our previous trip to the area and was quite excited to see what was on the menu.

Service was very professional and welcoming. Looking over the menu, the Missus was a bit sad to see that the Lamb Pozole She enjoyed so much for lunch wasn't available. Still, a version of the salad we had enjoyed last time was. We split the Arizona Grown Vegan Salad ($20).

Loved the variety of textures, from crisp kale "chips", to wonderful, almost sweet thinly sliced jicama, the perfectly cooked beans, sweetness from the carrots and green beans, earthy quinoa. We really enjoy this salad.

The Missus surprised me by ordering the Grilled Chicken Breast with Tomatillo Sauce and Tamale ($25)

This was a "airline" chicken breast; which means a boneless breast with the drumette attached. Except for katsu, we almost never order chicken breast when dining out, but this was a n excellent choice. The chicken was moist and tender. I'm thinking that it might have been quickly brined because of the texture of the flesh and the nice flavor which permeated the chicken. The black beans were ono!

I got the "Wild-Wild" Platter ($40). This was not cheap, but we really enjoyed it.

Man, that fried quail was so tasty as was the toothsome but nicely gamy Colorado Venison Medallion. The black current sauce really supported the flavor of the venison. The pork, venison, and bison chili that topped the tamale was quite good as well. Though the tamale itself was really dry and lacking in flavor.

We really enjoyed our meal and the service.

Turquoise Room (in the La Posada Hotel)
303 E 2nd St.
Winslow, AZ 86047

Man, our last three dinners at Joseph's Culinary Pub, Geronimo, and the Turquoise Room were all good. We were three for three!

After dinner, we decided to take a nice stroll around Winslow.

And of course we had to Stand on that Corner again!

We enjoyed our stroll. It was a nice way to end our little road trip. I'm hoping to return again soon!

Thanks for joining us on our little foray to Mesa Verde and Santa Fe, with our stops in Durango, Gallup, and Winslow!

Take it easy everyone!

Road Trip – Nochi Bakery (Gallup NM), a Story About Gallup N.M., and we Arrive at La Posada (Winslow, AZ)

March 17, 2023 mmm-yoso Filipino Restaurants, Flagstaff/ Sedona/Winslow/Northern AZ, New Mexico, Road Trip, Travel

We had a wonderful night of sleep after our dinner at Geronimo and woke refreshed. Sadly, we needed to leave on this morning. So we had a light breakfast at the hotel, drove to Whole Foods and bought up more of those Red and Green Chile Peanut Brittle and hit the road. Our next destination was a visit back to Winslow and this time we were actually staying the night at La Posada. We drove down the 25 thru Albuquerque and then west on the I-40. By the time we got to Gallup it was time for a break.

It was a pretty quiet Tuesday when we drove into town and parked. We walked around a bit stretching our legs after an almost 4 hour drive from Santa Fe and enjoyed all the public art.

While strolling along Route 66, we noticed a Filipino Bakery, in Gallup!

With a tight little menu of Siopao, Lumpia, and sandwiches….here in Gallup!

I decided to get something small to eat and ordered a Siopao, then some coffee at the next counter. We noticed what looked like a Filipino Market right next door….

And took a quick look while waiting for my steamed bun.

Which was ready when we walked back thru the doorway. We had a seat, and I had my light lunch.

The pork siopao was not bad.

The bread was fluffy, slightly moist, a bit on the sweet side but that's to be expected. The filling wasn't too sweet, nice savory tones. Overall, a bit heavy in the bread versus the filling, but this wasn't bad at all.

Heck, I've had worse in San Diego!

The really nice and friendly young lady working the register me their family is originally from LA….now in Gallup of all places.

Nochi Bakery
107 W Highway 66
Gallup, New Mexico 87301

We took our time strolling back to our car.

While driving over the train tracks back to the I-40 West, I crossed over on the Miyamura overpass. Of course, the name got my attention. So, when I got back home I did that Google thing and found that the overpass (and a school in Gallup) is named for Medal of Honor recipient Hiroshi Miyamura who was born in Gallup. His parents were Japanese immigrants. Something I read in the Wikipedia post led me down a rabbit hole. When FDR signed Executive Order 9066 all persons of Japanese ancestry on the west coast were to be placed in internment camps. Cities not on the coast were given the option to do this or not. Gallup's citizens with the strong support of the Sheriff, Michael Mollica did not detain their Japanese-American citizens, the only town in New Mexico to do this! Here's more in the words of Hiroshi Miyamura himself, who passed away in November of last year:

The Only Town in New Mexico – Hiroshi Miyamura from Autry Media on Vimeo.

And more here if you're interested.

Once on the 40 west, it was a nice two hour drive into Winslow. Having been to this little town of around 10,000 before made finding our destination a snap. We had enjoyed our lunch at the Turquoise Room and checking out the La Posada Hotel on previous visit so much, that we decided to stay here for the night. We arrived and our room wasn't quite ready yet, so we headed out to explore the grounds of this historic hotel.

The La Posada has quite a history, a product of the Fred Harvey Company which built hotels all along major rail lines, allowing for passengers to spend a night and relax, or partake of the food in the restaurants manned by the Harvey Girls. Another familiar name associated with the La Posada is Mary Colter, who also designed the Desert Watchtower and was one of the few female architects of her time. In many ways this was to be considered her crown jewel. Unfortunately, the hotel opened right at the start of the great depression and remained open for only 27 years.

The La Posada was gutted and all the furnishings sold off. The building then became the offices for the Satna Fe Railroad. Finally, in a state of disrepair, threatened with demolition, Allan Affeldt and his wife Tina Mion bought the property and set about restoring it to its former glory.

And it is something to see. We spent a good two hours just exploring the halls and the grounds of the hotel.

Along with all of the quite "interesting art" of Tina Mion.

Over the years many celebrities have stayed at the La Posada.

Though I'm still trying to figure out who "Needles the Wonder Dog" was.

We were enjoying wandering around the property. Trains go right past the back of the hotel grounds.

And if you'd like to relax and watch them go by….well, that's easy to do as well.

We were really enjoying our own little "tour" of La Posada and were only about half way done!

I'll get to the rest in my next post!

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip – Dinner at Geronimo (Santa Fe, NM)

March 11, 2023 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, European Restaurants, Fine Dining, New Mexico, Road Trip, Santa Fe/Taos, New Mexico, Travel

We took a short break after our day of hiking and exploring. Our room was very comfortable, I'm sure we'll stay here again next time.

For our "special" meal in Santa Fe, I had originally wanted Sazon, but due to the chef recently winning the James Beard Best Chef Southwest (2022), I just wasn't able to get reservations. So I searched around a bit and saw Geronimo mentioned on many lists. And I managed to make reservations with no problem.

And deciding to make the 20 minute walk up (and then down) artsy Canyon Road would turn out to be a lot of fun. The street is full of historic adobe houses, most of which have been turned into art galleries.

Canyon Road is made for strolling, exploring and enjoying all the art.

I'm glad we headed out early as we spent a good amount of time checking out various galleries and all the wonderful art!

My favorite by far is "Peace Offering" by the late Walt Horton, in which a squirrel offers up an acorn to a sweet looking and curious bear. It looks so wonderfully adorable. You can't help but smile when you see it!

Geronimo is located in a historic 250 year old building. The namesake of the restaurant is not who you think it would be, but rather it is named for Geronimo Lopez who was the house's original owner.

While many folks were seated on the veranda, we chose seats in the warm and classy dining room.

The service was excellent, the perfect mix of efficient professionalism without being snobby or intrusive. Things got off on the right foot with a glass of Champagne.

After perusing the menu; the Missus decided on the four course Vegetarian Tasting Menu ($80) with a wine pairing ($90). I decided to order two appetizers and a side for my meal.

The Missus's first course was a nice Endive Salad.

Nice peppery-bitterness from the endive, I thought the onion vinaigrette had a good pungent-sweet balance.

Up for me was the Wagyu Beef Carpaccio ($30).

Man, this was so good. The clean, almost sweet slices of Wagyu Beef went so well with the bitter-nutty arugula. The shreds of Parmesan added salty milkiness, while the classic addition of capers provided the right amount of a pickled sour and salt. The herb oil really wasn't needed, but the mustard horseradish sauce was just perfect on this.

Next up for the Missus was the Wild Mushroom and Sherry Bisque.

In what was a very classy move, I was brought out a cup of the bisque as well since I had to wait for my next course! Super cool! The bisque was decadently smooth and velvety, but the Missus said there wasn't enough earthy mushroom flavor for Her. Of course, She's become quite the mushroom soup snob.

Since I hadn't expected a course, I had ordered an Old Fashioned, which was quite delish.

Next up for me….why I ordered appetizers part 2, the Foie Gras ($30).

Perfectly seared , this wiggly slice of heaven was delici-yoso, with the duck demiglace adding another layer of rich-savory flavor. The "French Toast" teetered on the sweeter side, but the foie gras nicely brought it back to earth.

I also got a side of Broccolini ($10) which was nicely cooked, because….well, I needed something that actually looked healthy, you know what I mean?

The Missus's next dish was the Risotto.

Nice basil tones and that Parmesan infusion went so well with the peppery-citrusy flavored arborio rice. The artichokes and asparagus were delicious. But, as is often the case with risotto, some of the rice was still on the hard and chewy side. Still, great flavors overall.

The Missus enjoyed Her dessert, the Meyer Lemon Crepe.

This was a nice meal, with classy, yet warm and unstuffy service, and worth the price in our mind. The Missus enjoyed the wine pairing. It was a great way to end our time in Santa Fe.

Geronimo
724 Canyon Rd.
Santa Fe, NM 87501

We headed back down Canyon Road and ran into one of the two couples (the one without the pooch) we saw during our hike. They recognized us first and said hello. We all cracked up! They were headed to Geronimo and we told them that they'd enjoy there meal there. We hope they did.

Ambling back to the hotel, in the light of the "golden hour" (the sun doesn't set until after 7pm in September), admiring all the art, gave us time to reflect on how lucky we were to be able to dine at places like Geronimo and enjoy cities like Santa Fe.

And "Peace Offering" will always bring a smile to my face!

Road Trip – The Picacho Peak Trail, the De Vargas Street House, and San Miguel Chapel (Santa Fe, NM)

March 10, 2023 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, New Mexico, Road Trip, Santa Fe/Taos, New Mexico, Travel

**** Not much food in this one, but if you want to read about the supposedly "Oldest House" and "Oldest Church" in the US read on….

Breakfast was provided by our accommodation at the attached bar/restaurant named El Charro. The Inn of the Governor's also provided a drink voucher for the place. We had walked in the previous evening after dinner for a nightcap, but the two women working were really rude and unwelcoming, something that shocked us, because folks in Santa Fe and especially at the hotel were so nice. We decided not to deal with that so we left. Luckily, the breakfast crew was efficient if not especially friendly.

Breakfast was fine, more than enough to hold us for the day.

Of course the Missus wanted to make sure I made use of all those calories and wanted to do a hike. While doing a bit of research, I came across the Dale Ball trails. This network of 25 miles of trails is named after Dale Ball, the founder of the Santa Fe Conservation Trust. The Missus decided on the Picacho Peak Trail, which didn't seem to be too bad, less than four miles. What I failed to read was the 1200 foot elevation gain! Sigh…..

Anyway, we drove on out and found the main trailhead. A really nice local couple and their trailblazing Labradoodle ("we do this a couple of times a week and he already knows the way") helped to point out where the peak portion of the trail began.

It was a nice day and a good hike, though I was kinda huffing along at the top of the peak. Considering that Santa Fe is at 7,000 feet and adding another 1200, it's no wonder.

Regardless, the scenery was quite nice and I especially liked all of the rock formations near the entrance.

Other than the nice locals with the pooch we ran into only one other couple during the entire hike.

We also came across this…..

And this sign details what we were looking at.

This article from Audubon Society is quite interesting and goes into how climate change is affecting these communal irrigation systems.

After finishing our hike, we decided to head on over to the local Whole Foods and pick up salads for lunch. We also found an interesting snack that we ended up really liking.

Not overly sweet, great peanut brittle with just enough "zip"! We actually found one of the Senor Murphy shops in downtown Santa Fe, but it turned out that WF was cheaper! We'd drop by on our way out of Santa Fe and bought a couple more packages of this.

After lunch we returned to the hotel and decided to spend the rest of the afternoon (before "siesta time") doing a bit of exploring. Santa Fe was established in 1607, so there's a lot of history here. We parked at the hotel and took a short stroll down busy East Alameda Street, then turned south on the Old Santa Fe Trail. Taking a left on East De Vargas Street we came across this.

This is the De Vargas Street House which is one of the claimants of the oldest house in America, the west portion of the structure is said to have been built in 1646. And of course it must be haunted.

It's pretty small, half dominated by a gift shop. But there are some old drawing, photos, and a small museum.

Oldest House Museum
215 E De Vargas St.
Santa Fe, NM 87501

We were a bit underwhelmed, but right across the street is the San Miguel Mission.

Which claims to be…drum roll please….the oldest church in the Continental United States having been established around 1610. The two oldest church structures in the U.S. actually reside in Puerto Rico.

The date inscribed on the beam dates to 1710.

The Bell is said to date back to 1356 and was originally cast in Spain. It was installed in the 19th century.

There's quite a controversy about the actual date of when the bell was cast. In 1914 a Historian named Benjamin Read tracked down a Santa Fe native who remembers the bell being cast in 1856. So it is said that someone had come in and "modified" the date on the bell from 1856 to 1356. You can read more about it here.

Or perhaps even the sign in front of the bell. Which of course skews toward the 1356 date.

Many religious icons have been attached to the frame of the bell.

The Reredos (Altar Screen) is quite beautiful.

For even more controversy, the two paintings on each side of the Reredos was claimed to have been the work of Cimabue dating back to 1287. This was has been debunked.

You gotta love it! We enjoyed our visit here….especially all the "stories".

San Miguel Chapel
401 Old Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe, NM 87501

From the miraculous staircase of the Lorreto Chapel to the oldest house, to San Miguel Chapel and controversy of the bell, we were enjoying the stories and the folks here!

Thanks for stopping by!

Oaxaca – Casa Oaxaca el Restaurante and Yet Another Revisit to Boulenc

March 2, 2023 mmm-yoso Bakery, Breakfast/Brunch, Fine Dining, Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Oaxaca, Travel

We were really enjoying our time in Oaxaca, we loved the vibe, the people, and while our first couple of dinners didn't quite live up to expectations, our last two dinners were wonderful. I chose another upscale place for our last dinner in the city, Casa Oaxaca. We took our time walking to the restaurant.

We wanted to enjoy our last hours in this fine city.

We noted all the clouds rolling in as we reached the restaurant. The al fresco dining area is quite beautiful, until the summer deluge started.

Now having gone to CDMX during this time of the year, we were ready for the thunder storms and rain coming down in buckets for a bit then everything clearing up. Except that's not quite what happened here. It pretty much poured down for almost an hour. Two women, it looked like a mom and daughter had a nice al fresco table, their table was moved when the rain started, but soon it came down harder. They were going to be moved into the dining area when the couple at the table behind us invited them to sit at their table. The two women hesitated at first, but eventually decided to sit at the table with the generous couple.

And not a moment too soon as it came down even harder. The staff started moving everything under cover.

Luckily, we were far enough under the tarps.

We were enjoying our cocktails, listening to the thunder and watching the waterfalls being created by the storm.

And then dinner got underway. Casa Oaxaca starts things off by making a salsa at your table.

Which was quite nice with the Tlayuda with Queso Fresco.

We weren't super hungry so went with two appetizers and a main.

I saw the Tostada de Insectos on the menu, so had to have that.

This one had Chicatanas (Chicatana Ants), chapulines (Grasshoppers), and gusanitos de maguey (Maguey Worms). All on the crisp blue corn tostada, topped with guacamole and chepiche, which added a distinct minty-anise flavor to things. This was nice, but there was a lot going on and you really couldn't make out the different flavors of the insects.

Next up, the Huarachitos con Cornejo Adobado.

Yes, mini huaraches with adobo rabbit. Loved the mild adobada seasoning with the "corny" huarachitos, the acidity of the salsa verde, and the calming avocado salsa. Even though the rabbit was on the chewy side, the interplay of flavors was quite nice.

The main we shared, which came with huge basket of tlayudas was the Lechon con Mole Almendrado.

This was suckling pig confit that looked like a terrine. It was quite mild in flavor, but the ground pork rinds and chorizo powder worked really well, adding a decent smoky-pork spice and flavor to things. The Missus didn't care for the almond mole as it was too sweet for Her tastes. Still, this was a very tasty dish.

By now, things had cleared up and the curtain was raised revealing a beautiful evening.

And remember that couple who invited those perfect strangers to sit with them during the downpour? Well, they were all having a great old time as their conversation and laughter danced thru the moonlight.

It was as if they had known each other for years! This just warmed our hearts and really reflects the warmth and generosity we found in Oaxaca. Things like this stick with us and in turn makes us better people.

The service was excellent and while we enjoyed the food at Origen more, we'll never forget our meal here.

Casa Oaxaca el Restaurante
Calle La Constitucion 104A
68000 Oaxaca, México

Our flight the next morning didn't leave until 230pm. This meant that we could visit at the Missus's favorite breakfast place, yet again. We ambled back up to Boulenc and waited a short time, before getting a table at the downstairs dining room this time. We actually had a view of the bakery next door.

Of course the Missus had Her favorite Avocado Toast.

Man, She just couldn't get enough of this. She really loved the sourdough bread here along with the variety of fermented vegetables and the perfectly ripe avocado.

Along with my Americano, this time I tried the Shashuka.

The eggs were nice and runny. The chiptole harissa flavoring was interesting, not as acidic, quite smoky. Man, that baguette was quite good as well. This prep really brought out the citrus-peppery tones of the cilantro.

It was nice breakfast and a great last meal in Oaxaca.

Man, in four days, we came to Boulenc three times!

Boulenc
Calle Porfirio Díaz 207
68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca, Mexico

As you can tell, we loved Oaxaca. And we're going to make every effort to return ASAP!