What Cathy Eats! – Page 105

Da Hawaiian Grinds- Plate lunch in Santee (it used to be Shaka)

September 20, 2007 Cathy Local Kine Stuffs in San Diego, Plate Lunch, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso, the blog, is never on vacation. Cathy is posting while Kirk and Ed are not. Primarily because Kirk is in Peru and Ed is in Yuma…they have interesting lives.

Sadly, Da has closed and now the only Hawaiian food in Santee is L&L, and at my house.

Hi. Cathy here, sort of adding onto “Plate Lunch Week”..with my own ‘White Girl From Santee’ point of view…
Yes, we have a Hawaiian Restaurant in East County…

Well, actually, one day it turned into this place. Wherein they changed the name on the sign on the outside; all of the menu items inside still say “Shaka” and the paper to go menu is the old one with the other Shaka locations crossed out:

You can click onto any photo and it will enlarge. We will soon have another Hawaiian Restaurant!

So, Kirk is from Hawaii…I was born and Raised in Detroit and have never been to Hawaii. But I know what kind of food I like to eat…I paid attention to Kirk’s posts and asked him a few questions. This is because, before this place became “Da”, it was “Shaka”. The Mister and I went to Shaka in November of last year. Admittedly I was in a cast to my shoulder with my little broken wrist (I was not on any pain pills at the time, though; I got a prescription for 100 Vicodin and still have 92 in the bottle; you can check) and, well, the food from Shaka was not good. At all. I just didn’t even want to post about it….and I really did not understand what all this fuss and craving about ‘Plate Lunch’ was all about…

One day, I decided to stop and look at the signage in the window. Hmmm. Kirk was doing his “Plate Lunch Week” and I was a bit curious, so I made The Mister come here after work with me.

We got two basic things-Loco Moco ($7.99).

When we were here in November, this particular item was particularly unflavored- not bad, just…nothing. This time however, the rice was nice and sticky, the gravy rich and flavorful, the egg a nice orange yolked done over easy and the hamburger patty, although preformed, had a nice flavor. The gravy, in particular was rich and flavorful and therefore not a waste of calories.

I wanted to try the Katsu chicken and the Kahlua Pork. ($8.99)

WOW. The katsu coating was light and crispy and the chicken moist. The sauce was tangy and not sweet. It went well with the crispy coating. That Kahlua pork- oh my- such good flavor. Light smoky, deep pork flavor, not greasy. I now have cravings for it. The macaroni salad was tangy and not too sweet. I liked it. I don’t like macaroni salad usually…like never have I ever like macaroni salad…this stuff I ate up.

I went to pick up some ‘To Go’ items the other day. (There are some only listed at the cash register)The chicken curry rice plate($6) was excellent, deep flavored curry gravy and with plenty of chicken. The carrots were fresh and not mushy as were the celery and few potatoes.

The chicken wings ($4 for the plate) were so crispy fried with garlic and a light batter.

I got the Katsu Chicken and Kahlua pork again, because I could not believe the serving size in the restaurant. But there was just as much pork in the “To Go” box as on that platter. It was great.

If you notice on the door, there is a sign about “Happy Hour” , Monday-Friday from 2-6 pm. Hawaiian beer for $3. A PuPu Platter with 2 vegetable lumpia, musubi ( a block of rice wrapped with a choice of meat (Spam, Portuguese sausage, Chicken katsu or BBQ chicken) and edamame for $7 and also the boba drinks are $3 (versus $3.50 regularly).

I went one afternoon and just got two vegetable lumpia and a taro boba drink. My first taro boba ever. Not my last.

Taro is a root vegetable and is that beautiful light lavender color. It is a starch, is sort of nutty in flavor, et also like potato and so wonderfully fulfilling, sweet but not too much, even with the boba.

The lumpia were pretty standard. Fresh made and with a good amount of vegetables.

This sign is in the window also, and it is why I did not put the post up sooner. There is a Ukulele playing guy who used to come to the restaurant on Wednesdays, and when I went, one day, he wasn’t thee and he changed to Fridays and I haven’t been able to make it to get a photo. A lot of people come to hear him and eat some great food.

I don’t know if all this food is authentic, or if Kirk would approve, but I liked it and I think you will too.

Da Hawaiian Grindz 205 Town Center Parkway Santee (Backed up to the Costco Gas Station in same parking lot as Home Depot but next to Big Lots) 10:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m, 7 days

Wednesday Wackiness-Helpful hints-What I did on my Summer Vacation

September 19, 2007 Cathy Recipes, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso is the name of the blog…written mostly by Kirk and sometimes by Cathy. Today is a sometimes day, since Kirk is in Peru and all…

Hi. Since you didn’t know me a year ago at this time, we never spent a summer together. We did, but I barely mentioned it. I took pictures anyhow and thought I’d just pass along some backyard cooking tips at you can use for yourself at home, or for when you have to bring something to an outdoor party. It isn’t like we don’t have those out here all year round anyhow. Then I will appease your voyeuristic tendencies and let you know other things I have eaten this summer.

There is a new Albertsons downtown, on about 12th between Market and G streets. It is way fancy. They sell these cheese Kaiser rolls…6 for $1.99…they don’t sell these at the Albertsons in Santee. Makes everything taste better, even a plain cheese sandwich.

So, cooking a burger- push it down/make it a little thinner in the center. Then when it shrinks down, it becomes level and stays flat and round. Don’t keep flipping it over. Three times at most. Be patient. Always toast the bun, either on the grill or in a fry pan indoors. It just tastes better.

Potato salad. As many hard boiled eggs as potatoes. Real mayonnaise. Fresh dill. Salt and white pepper. (you don’t see white pepper when it’s mixed in, but you still get that touch of heat/flavor from it.) (We use white pepper in mashed potatoes also-same reason).

See these three ingredients?

Watermelon, fresh mint, frozen limeade concentrate? Memorize them and then DON’T TELL ANYONE.

Chop the watermelon. Chop the mint. Let the limeade thaw. Don’t add water, just pour the thawed concentrate on it all. Smile when someone asks you what is in it. If, for some reason, there are leftovers, make some *really nice* smoothies the next day.

Here are some photographs of a pool part we went to this past summer.

My friend, Mrs. T., had it in honor of her dad’s birthday.

She made chicken, burgers and hot dogs and we brought the rest and it was a great potluck.

Chips, bowls of home made guacamole, pots of chili, cheese, snacks. There were fresh fruit places and fresh vegetable plates too.

Cake and Ice cream, of course. Two cakes, to be more precise.

Mrs. T spent time every day making a pint or two of unique ice creams or sherbets to have to serve with the ice cream.

She used real cookies, peanut butter, candy bars, orange, lemon, and lime juice from fruit trees in her yard, fresh strawberries and just about everything you could think of. It made the party just perfect.

One of my dear friends, Mrs. B. has a back yard and and garden filled with miracles.

She gave me these citrus selections from her trees and more than these photographed tomatoes, along with a pot of fresh made tomato sauce that I took home and froze into packets. I thought you would enjoy these photos. The small green ones did eventually turn red, by the way. Every day I would snack on some and the darkest red tomatoes would be gone, but the next day…there would be more.

Some days this past summer were really hot and I did not want to cook.

We would go to In-N- Out. This is what we always get.

His is a Double Double with no onions and mine is just a Double (no cheese) with both raw and grilled onions. Fries.

Then there is Costo . In San Diego. the eating area is on the outside of the store, making it convenient on hot days. We don’t even have to walk inside.

A huge slice of cheese pizza is enough to share. (1.75)

The hot dogs and Polish dogs come with a soft drink for $1.50. I ask for a side of kraut and put deli mustard and onions on mine. Cheap, easy, plentiful. No clean up at home.

Finally, a sad commentary into proving I am not much of a Gourmand.

Sometimes I *need* to have Bugles. WITH Asahi.

and sometimes, just sometimes…oh they brought back Banana Twinkies…this box will last me all year…and the last one will taste as fresh as the first. I grew up with Banana Twinkies. That package saying they are "new" is a lie.

I hope all of you have had a nice summer. It is almost Autumn and time for ‘cold weather’ meals and baking. I can’t wait.

I’ll be back with more interesting blogging tomorrow night.

Sam Woo BBQ-Part Two- Lunch Specials!

September 18, 2007 Cathy Chinese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog with the Temp, Cathy, writing while the Main Guy, Kirk, is on vacation. She still writes about food. That’s why you are reading this blog, anyhow.

Hi again. Yesterday, I blogged about breakfast specials at Sam Woo, inside the 99Ranch complex. Here is a little snippet of what the lunch specials are like.

You will notice there are two sets of items- Specials #1-#55 cost $4.95 each and #56-#82 are $5.95 each. The all include rice and a bowl of the soup of the day (sometimes egg drop, sometimes hot and sour, sometimes tofu, and on this day a black bean pork soup)

Pretty much this was the best soup I have had here, in that it was unique with the salty black beans and rich pork broth. You never know what the soup will be, so I always look forward to it.

This is a combination of two dinners post, therefore more than three entrees are shown. #56- honey glazed walnut shrimp, always a favorite. Plump, juicy shrimp, fried in a light batter and then topped with Kewpie- a mayonnaise sauce- and served with those crispy wonderful not sticky honey glazed walnuts. The flavors go together . Really… and this stuff is addictive. The only vegetable served with this- lettuce shreds, which you will like to eat with some of the mayonnaise.

#78- spicy salted squid. Oh yes. You will see plates of this coming out of the kitchen all the time. Fresh squid, batter fried with the spicy salt in the batter. The squid is scored and so it curls into tubes when it is fried, making it easy to hold and eat with chopsticks. Not too hot/spicy- that comes from the only vegetable on the plate; the chili peppers and green onion tops. Still, it isn’t a bad spice or heat. It is very light.

This is #5- shrimp with black bean sauce. Usually we get the rock cod fillet with black bean sauce, but the main thing I like is the black bean sauce. Spicy, salty, onions and green peppers compliment the flavors and you can still taste the sweetness of the shrimp.

#77 spicy salted oyster. Oh my, yes. There are only four oysters on this plate. They were obviously farmed in Chernobyl. Same light salt batter and those chilis on top, along with some more lettuce. Excellent flavor.

I saw some jarred oysters inside 99Ranch across the hall that were this size, so am pretty certain of the source for this dish (you know, after being shucked in Chernobyl). The Mister likes clams, and I like oysters so this dish is pretty much only mine to eat. He will eat maybe half of one oyster, as he does enjoy the salty crispiness of the crust. heh heh…the rest are mine….

Ah, #61- scallop with XO sauce. Oh. XO. Yes.

XO sauce is quite unique. It has dried scallops, dried shrimp, dried red chiles and various other spices. Most people make their own. It is unique, spicy in a good way, kind of crunchy because of the dried small pieces of seafood and…wow…I love XO sauce. Sometimes, we order #55- fresh mushrooms with XO. A whole plate of various mushrooms slathered in XO..and, oh, it’s a vegetable! As you can see, this dish is served with onions and green peppers as well as a lot of thin sliced scallops.

Here is a photo of #11- the rock cod fillet with black bean sauce. After a bunch had been taken off the plate. The rock cod is thin and juicy and the sauce is, again, the same one as witht eh shrim. above -and I crave it. Red and green bell peppers compliment this dish in a nice way. Crunchy and refreshing, to go with the saltiness of the beans.

We usually only get hot tea when we eat here (no charge at lunch, but 30¢ for a pot at breakfast…I dunno) but one day, I had a craving (they sell more of the iced/boba drinks via the attached ‘To Go’ Sam Woo steam tray area attached to the restaurant, but store the ingredients in the glass doored refrigerators where I could see them from where we were sitting) and asked for a red and green bean iced concoction-no boba ($2) sweet red beans and sweet green (yellow) beans, ice, sweetened condensed milk and a cherry. Very nice.

If you are shopping at 99Ranch anyhow and hunger strikes, this is a great place to stop and eat. We have tried just about every item on the lunch menu, and do like the beef and chicken and pork as well as tofu dishes, as well as the deep fried whole fish and the vegetable only dishes (sometimes we get a whole veggie plate because we know there basically aren’t any vegetables with what we ordered, as we always order three plates anyhow..but they usually only give us two bowls of soup, since there are only the two of us eating). I only blogged these most recent meals.

Sam Woo BBQ 7330 Clairmont Mesa Blvd, inside the 99 Ranch mall. Lunch Specials 11 a.m.-4 p.m., 7 days.

Sam Woo BBQ Part One-Breakfast!

September 16, 2007 Cathy Breakfast/Brunch, Chinese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Part Two is here

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog that was started by Kirk, an Ex-Pat Kama'aina. He is on vacation. The Temp, Cathy, a White girl from Detroit and East San Diego County is blogging for now.

Hi, again. As part of my thinking about a "regular rotation" for The Mister and I, stopping into Sam Woo inside 99Ranch Complex for something to go or to eat inside the restaurant comes to mind.

Sam Woo BBQ has breakfast ($3.20 for all items, a choice of 33 different salty wonders, with a charge of 30¢ for a pot of tea, or 30¢ each for a cup of Vietnamese coffee-which I will explain soon) and lunch specials (either $4.95 or $5.95) seven days a week. I will post about lunch tomorrow.

So, anyhow, we went to breakfast this morning.

We got the only rice dish on the menu, #33. Fried rice with Lunch meat (i.e., fake Spam). It is always satisfying, and plentiful, made with peas, carrots and egg as well as the bits of Luncheon meat. We usually take some home to have later- for lunch or dinner. Sometimes we get the #1- stir fried rice noodles with Luncheon meat-same stuff but with noodles.

This day we also got #2 on the menu- Fried rice noodles with bean sprout and soy sauce. This is a favorite- the wide rice noodles, stir fried and slightly burnt, with onions and bean sprouts and in a light, not salty tasting soy flavored sauce.

We, of course always order three dishes (one for each of us and one for the table) and this day got the #10-Won Ton Noodle soup. This is always a favorite. The whole bottom of the bowl is all egg noodles and there are some pieces of bok choy in the rich, rich pork broth that has a slight white pepper kick to it. There are always five dumplings, thin skinned and filled with a lot of great pork filling. The #11- shrimp dumpling soup is the same but the dumplings had half the amount of pork filling and a whole shrimp inside. Some days, it depends on what we want to eat.

There are 6 different porridges on the menu, but Sam Woo does not make the fried donuts that go with porridge. You have to walk across the hallway into the 99 Ranch Market and go to their steam tray area and buy the donuts for 40¢ each. I see families sitting down, ordering and then one person running out the door to get donuts all the time.

Ah, one of the perks of breakfast here. 30¢ pots of tea and 30¢ cups of Vietnamese coffee- it is made in an electric drip coffee pot and not the traditional Vietnamese slow drip pot, but is just as strong, and served with the nifty pitcher of sweetened condensed milk that will 'cut off' the thick sticky substance and works perfectly to keep that sweetened condensed milk from getting all sticky on the container. They don't do refills on the coffee, but one cup, along with the tea is just perfect for me for breakfast.

A nice, inexpensive, wonderfully salty breakfast in a sit down restaurant. It is a great way to start the day. If you have to go grocery shopping, just walk across the hall.

Sam Woo BBQ inside 99Ranch Complex 7330 Clairmont Mesa Blvd San Diego 92111 (619)505-9888 fax (619)514-8988 (The paper handouts all have the 619 area code; I am not sure if this is correct; if you are trying to call and it doesn't go through, try 858 as the area code)Breakfast 9:00 -11:00 a.m. M-F, 8:30-11:00 a.m. Sat-Sun

Sushi Hut- a local (3 store) ch-ch-chain

September 15, 2007 Cathy Japanese Restaurants, Sushi and Sashimi, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog and Kirk is on vacation. Here is another post of what Cathy ate one day.

Hi. I'm back with a short post. The Mister and I went to one of the locations of Sushi Hut (in Mission Valley) around March of this year and were not overly impressed. I even deleted those photos from my camera, planning to not talk about it, primarily because I didn't want to bother going back to try different dishes. Not bad food, not great food, just…food.

We were on Clairmont Mesa Boulevard the other day and saw a couple of places inside the parking lot Kitty Corner from the Rockler Store (and Cheetahs..the men reading this know where I am now, right?) and Lo and Behold, another Sushi Hut. A chain- who knew?

Well, we were hungry; there is a Mexican place and a Boba place a few doors down, but we thought we could try Sushi Hut one more time, just to see if it was still…meh…just food, or something better. We were pleasantly surprised.

The paper menu says that all photos and slogans are copy written, so I won't post a photo of the menu here, but you can look at it on the Sushi Hut website,

Basically the menu has sushi, rolls, Bento Plates, Bowls and wraps, along with some Combinations thereof. They also make some beautiful looking Party Trays.

I decided to let another wrap come into my life- second one ever – I don't know where have been, but I wanted to try this version. Teriyaki chicken, steamed vegetables and sweet rice. ($4.59)It was a Teriyaki Bowl in a tortilla, and pretty good. The chicken was all white meat, the Teriyaki sauce was not overwhelming (and I added some 'spicy teriyaki' from the condiment area after my first few bites), the vegetables were crispy/fresh steamed/not soggy and the rice was a good sticky rice. The serving was quite large for me.

The Mister tried the Bento #2 Platter ($5.29) pretty much katsu chicken cutlets, rice, two fried shrimp and seaweed salad. We recalled that on our first visit at the other location, they told us they were out of seaweed salad, which has become one of my cravings this year for some reason- I have to try the seaweed salad whenever I see it on a menu or for sale in a market. This seaweed salad was good with a few different types of seaweed and a light sesame dressing and good, fresh crunch. The chicken cutlet was lightly breaded and fried and topped with a Ponzu sauce and sesame seeds and the fried shrimp were lightly breaded with breadcrumbs and light fried so that you could taste the sweetness of the shrimp.

All in all, Sushi Hut has a good fast service and fresh food. The rolls are numerous and made fresh to order and some selections come in two sizes if maybe you just want to try a few. We were not impressed with the rolls the first time we got them at the Mission Valley location and did not want to try them on this visit. If you are in the area, stop and try a bite. (This is my subtle way of saying don't go out of your way to try it).

Sushi Hut 8058 Clairmont Mesa Blvd San Diego 92111 (858) 874-5803

5624 Mission Center Road San Diego 92108 (619) 6889214

8240 Mira Mesa Blvd San Diego 92126 (858)689-2475

Website -Click here

Indigo Cafe- a healthier alternative and tasty too!

September 13, 2007 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog, which never goes on vacation. Kirk however is on vacation. This is Cathy, blogging about what I ate.

Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening. Hope you day is going well so far.

There is a place The Mister and I have been meaning to try- but they are only open until 5 p.m. and we are always in this mall after 6 p.m. and merely read the menu taped on the door. We got ourselves together and met for a late lunch the other day and really liked it.

Indigo Cafe and Catering. Near the Registrar of Voters office and in the same parking lot as Palominos and Giovanni's. It bills itself as a " healthier alternative" but makes no other claims. The menu items are not fried and have 'lite' dressings and sauces.

The Mister had the soup and half sandwich ($5.95). He chose the black bean tortilla soup: This is the small size and it was quite enough. A nice tomato base, rich and thick. Chunky not fully blended black beans. A nice spice-heat hit…and served with crackers..no tortilla strips.

He chose the half tuna salad sandwich ( you can choose any of the sandwiches from the menu). It is made with a dill mayonnaise that is very good and served with lettuce and tomato on a nice whole grain bread/roll. The bread was not chewy or heavy. Excellent flavors.

For the first time in my life, really, first time ever…I ordered a wrap. I never have had one before. I looked at menus before and just figured that it was sandwich stuff in a tortilla, a cold burrito and I never wanted to bother. This one was a chicken and Brie- marinated chicken, roasted cherry tomato salsa, fresh spinach and lite ranch in a sun dried tomato tortilla. It came with a side of Cesar salad ($5.75) and was wonderful. The Mister said as soon as he saw there was something with brie…and spinach… he knew I would order it. He was right. The chicken was juicy and tender, the Brie was warm and slightly melted and nutty flavored, the tomato salsa tasted deeply tomato flavored, there was a lot of spinach, nicely layered on the outside of everything, which protected the ranch dressing from leaking out or damaging the tortilla and the tortilla was soft and fresh and I could taste the tomato flavor in it. It was a good size portion and more than enough food. The Cesar salad was mostly romaine lettuce and Parmesan. The dressing was a Cesar, but I think a lite one. It had good flavor but was not overly rich or creamy.

We saw on the chalkboard as we were ordering an in house made dessert- pumpkin cheesecake with a bourbon-sour cream topping ($2.50) and ordered it with our meals, but the nice lady at the cash register said to let her know and she would bring it to us for dessert- that in the heat it would melt…very thoughtful. Not a huge piece, but we didn't need it. A nice cream cheese based pumpkin cheesecake- grainy pumpkin and a bottom layer only graham crust..and that Bourbon sour cream topping…was. It was light and complimented the pumpkin nicely.

Indigo Cafe does the simple things fresh and flavorful. They have a whole smoothie bar in the store and other baked goods for breakfast. I will be trying the home made banana nut bread ($1) very soon. This location is only open M-F, as I think they get a lot of catering jobs for the weekends. It has been around since 2000 and for a good reason. The downtown location is open 7 days and I would think serves a similar, fresh menu (on the website it has a sample menu, since ingredient inventory can change.) If you are in the area, you should try it.

Indigo Cafe and Catering 9353 Clairmont Mesa Blvd San Diego 92111 (Phone) (858)565-2388 (Fax)(858)565-0070 M-F 7 a.m.-5 p.m.

1435 Sixth Avenue San Diego 92101 (ph) (619)702-6478 (fax)(619)702-6477 Hours: Mon 7-3, Tues-Fri 7-9, Sat 8-9, Sun 8-1

website

Point Loma Seafoods- a relaxing lunch on the waterfront

September 9, 2007 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Sandwiches, Seafood, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is never on vacation. Today, Cathy is blogging. Kirk is busy with work and doesn’t feel like it. Ed is in Yuma, ideally also busy with work. Why am I not busy now? Oh well.

Hi. The Mister and I were in one of those depressed moods on Saturday, again (please do not mention the words "state", "Appalachian" or "Oregon" together in any one sentence, for a while). We wanted seafood, and what better place to go than Point Loma Seafood for a nice lunch? It was after 4 p.m. and not crowded. We parked and enjoyed the view first.

We could see the downtown business buildings as well as some of North Island Naval Air Station. We also saw a cruise ship leaving. Most of the fishing boats had not returned from their long day of work yet.

We walked to the front door and saw the Specials Board out front. Fresh raw soft shell crabs were being sold for $5 each, but I know I could not fry them up at home the same way I could get them done here.

Whoo Hoo! Soft shell crabs are in season again. I was going to get my ‘usual’ the fish and chips platter, but, oh no. Having them cook it properly is worth the $12.02 price.

You walk in; it is a fish market. I did not take photos inside, but the menu is up on the wall in back, as well as here and on the website. (where there are some good photos inside the store). The men behind the counter will take your order, give you a number and you wait. When they call your number, you go to get your food and pay.

While waiting, I asked a nice Young Man for ‘about a pound’ of assorted smoked fish ($4.99/lb- in the corner of the refrigerator). I got this beautiful selection :

There was smoked shark, salmon, swordfish, wahoo, bonita and two pieces of salmon candy (belly). The total price for this was $6.74 and it was a snack with our late lunch, as well as being our lunch on Sunday.

Soon, our number was called, we paid and walked next door to the seating area, found and empty table and got ready to eat.

The ceviche cocktail ($4.16) is made with fish only ( no scallops and no shrimp)

along with an excellent ‘salsa’ of fresh, tasty tomatoes, sweet light flavored onions and cilantro, all marinated in fresh citrus juice. You can buy a pint in the counter for $10.90, but this was just the right size for us. (Our beverage here is always the iced coffee, by the way). They have a good selection of beers on tap and bottled as well as wines you can buy by the glass or by the bottle in the store.

The Mister had a craving for the squid sandwich ($7.38) that is made with strips of squid steak and served with tartar sauce on fresh sourdough bread. It is kind of sweet and fried to a proper crispness. I don’t care for sourdough in general and thought the bread flavor took a bit away from the squid flavor and ate a piece of squid with just the (in house made) tartar sauce.

My soft shell crab sandwich. One crab, breaded, fried, plump, flavorful, cut in half and served with the wonderful simple in house made cole slaw on a fresh soft white bread roll. Oh, it was perfectly fried; juicy and crispy and so fresh.

As I said, I usually either get the fish and chips plate, made with whatever fish is in abundance that day and served with skinny crispy fried potatoes and the fresh cole slaw for $9.23, or I will get the tuna salad sandwich ($7.38), made with fresh baked tuna steak and very simply/light dressed with mayonnaise and celery. Always fresh and wonderful.

We went walking around on the waterfront and saw they were getting ready for the fishing boats to come in with fish for processing and took note of the new charges they had for the Fishermen.

We have always enjoyed the simplicity and freshness of the food here and if you haven’t tried it, you should.

Point Loma Seafoods "The freshest thing in town" 2805 Emerson Street San Diego 92106 (619) 223-1109

Mon-Sat 9 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Sun 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Link to website

Nordstrom Cafe-It’s air conditioned-and good!

September 7, 2007 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog and Cathy is one of the bloggers. ( That would be me). There is Kirk and also Ed. They blog when they feel like it. Today, I feel like it. Here goes!

Hi, I’m back. We have had some record heat out here lately and I must admit that blogging has not been in the forefront of my ‘things to do’, but I have a lot of photos in the camera and want to share some meals with you before I forget about the details completely.

This past weekend (Labor Day and all the days preceding it) the weather was crazy. 108° in Santee, with 40% humidity making the heat index read 116°. The Mister and I headed downtown- closer to where the temperature was "only" about 95°.

We went to Horton Plaza, an outdoor shopping mall.

The top floor is crawling with outdoor eating places and there was a light breeze. Then I remembered where I go when it is "winter" out here {The definition of winter in San Diego consists of raining outdoors-rain that is measured in 1/100ths of an inch, by the way}.

Yes, when it is raining out, it is pretty much "soup weather" and Nordstrom’s not only has an indoor Cafe, but also the best tomato basil soup, ever. I crave it and treat myself to a bowl when I can. I just didn’t blog it this past January.

So, the Nordstrom Cafe menu: (click on it if you want to read it)

You walk up, order, pay and then find a seat at any of the lovely, cloth covered tables. Some with a view of the bay. So civilized. So air conditioned.

We were not too hungry in this heat and didn’t even want some of the good coffee they serve endlessly for $1.25, and were also so undecided, (except I knew I wanted the tomato basil soup) that we each got the soup-salad-1/2 sandwich combo($8.50)

First the soup: the tomato-basil is always available and the clam chowder was the soup of the day this day.

Each are served with the in-store-made Parmesan ‘crouton’ shown here. You get two of those lovely, crispy, toasty croutons with a bowl of soup. The tomato-basil is so thick it seems to have cheese as an ingredient, but I have asked and there isn’t any. It is just made with fresh tomatoes ground down to a fine grind/ever so slight lumpiness that is very rich and deep tomato flavor with a light basil undertone.

The clam chowder was not as thick, broth-wise and had celery and potatoes in it. The clam flavor was not overwhelming but the clam pieces were fairly large and juicy. Not the best bowl of clam chowder, but not the worst. Each of the soups had no salt and/or pepper added. A good option for those who are watching out for such additives.

I got the salad with balsamic dressing and a 1/2 tuna salad sandwich on marble bread.

The salad was mixed baby greens topped with julienned red and yellow bell peppers and carrots and, of course a cherry tomato, halved ( I hate biting into whole cherry tomatoes; they pop in your mouth, like eyeballs…)

The tuna salad is nice and made with mayonnaise and onions- but you taste the tuna more than the other ingredients. Lettuce and tomato slices are also on the sandwich. The bread is very fresh here, always. A nice hearty rye.

The Mister got the same salad with blue cheese dressing (a good one, He said) and the 1/2 turkey sandwich on multi grain roll. Even thought the bread itself was smaller than the slice I got, the amount of meat on the sandwich was plentiful and the same amount you would get on a 1/2 sandwich made with bread slices. The turkey had a very good roasted flavor; higher quality than you get in sandwich shops these days. The roll was soft and had a good chewiness to it, very fresh.

Our water glasses were continuously refilled and when we were done we were presented with two of those lovely dark chocolate mint filled sticks.

It used to be that all the stores offered fine dining options, but most of those stores (and their restaurants) are gone and missed, but Nordstrom’s is still here. Stop in. The food is excellent and not too expensive and the service is divine.

Nordstrom’s Cafe- inside all stores. There is also a coffee cart area outside all the stores. With snacks.

Red Berry-Frozen Yogurt on Convoy Street

August 17, 2007 Cathy Desserts, Stuff, What Cathy Eats!

Red Berry has closed.

Cathy is blogging for mmm-yoso today. Kirk is probably still at work. Ed is, you know, in Yuma. It's a short one.

Frozen yogurt. It is everywhere. Sold by the ounce. With and without toppings. Sometimes sold by the cup. Crazy flavors. Cool interiors of stores. Crowds of people.

Eh, I don't crave sweets, you know this. But I have tried quite a few of these places. They are almost outnumbering Boba places. But I haven't seen any with free wi-fi. I do eat yogurt, the 79¢ cream top incarnation from Trader Joe's and the Cream Top from Brown Cow when it is on sale.

I have gone to the very busy new Frozen Yogurt place next to Tapioca Express and Tofu House on Convoy street. Once. They sell it by the ounce there. I got one swirl of peach and one swirl of plain. No toppings. It cost $1.64. It was good, it was frozen yogurt, I remember Heidi's Frogen Yozurt. It was a trend in the 70's and 80's. Meh. I have no cravings.

Here is the latest incarnation: Red Berry.

It is in the mall with Nijiya Market, Shanghai City, some other places, and Curry House. You know where.

If you enlarge the photo you can see the signs on the door-free samples! Whoo hoo! We were there.

The interior is kind of really neat- cool tables, cool chairs, really cool lighting and a neat effect on the stainless steel walls.

Here is a peek at the menu. $3 for a small (plain) yogurt, $4 for a small with toppings- as much as you want- you can top it one time only- The topping bar was pretty extensive- lots of fresh fruits and some dry stuff ( I did not see Mochi, but did not look for long).*** I was just informed that there are indeed mochi available as a topping, but they look like marshmallows and are easily passed over***

We sampled the blueberry (nice, smooth and tart and richly flavored), the green tea (not much tea flavor- tasted almost like the plain – and did not try the strawberry or mango and ordered a small cup 1/2 peach and 1/2 plain. $3.

Pretty darn large. (that is The Mister's big ole' hand holding the cup). Pretty darn good-plain was nice and tart and the peach had a real/not artificial sweet peach flavor- slightly tart. I liked that it was more creamy and not 'gritty' as some frozen yogurt I have tried. Enough for the two of us to share before we walked into Nijiya.

Oddly, there was no tip jar. We asked. Nice young man working there. He chatted with us. The one time I wish there was a tip jar.

Red Berry, Inc. Frozen Yogurt 3860 Convoy Street, #106 San Diego 92111 (858)571-7947

There is another location in Newbury Park. It's a chain!

Sakura for lunch

August 14, 2007 Cathy Japanese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso, the blog, is never on vacation. Cathy is writing.

Hi. This sort of is a repeat post, except I have never talked about Izakaya Sakura . Kirk has blogged the Bento Lunch recently. He has enjoyed a meal or two with Ed here and blogged it a few other times and all three of us recommend it to friends, co-workers and complete strangers online and, well, it is assumed and known that it is just good. The first time I met Kirk (and Captain Jack), it was here, for lunch… Gosh almost a year ago.

This is it-click onto the photo- see the "open" sign? That is all the outdoor advertising you will ever see here. Not on the large billboard on the street nor on the building (it is in the back of the parking lot where the Original Pancake House is located).

Very friendly, not too large, a limited menu- which they will give while explaining what is sold out already. They do have sushi rolls at lunch on weekends and the lunch menu is good until 4:30 on Sunday (opposed to 2 p.m. the other days of the week) and, as always, everything is wonderful and fresh.

We started out with a cold tofu appetizer ($2.50).

I forgot to take out my camera and had to re-assemble this beauty..three medium sized pieces of a firm, fresh tofu, topped with sliced scallion greens, a thinly sliced okra-like vegetable and some freshly shredded horseradish (tasted like wasabi) and surrounded by a lot of large bonito shavings.

I liked the tofu plain but then when mixing bites of it with the wasabi and bonito and onion (the okra like vegetable was not pickled, not salty..it was sliced thin but could be considered crunchy but otherwise added not much flavor-wise) it brought out so many flavors. It was just "fancy tofu" for me.

The Mister wanted something crunchy for his meal, so he got the "mixed tempura" ($7.50) Two pieces of shrimp and one piece of fish, along with

tempura’d green beans, kombucha squash, thinly sliced Japanese eggplant and onion. Light, crisp, fresh. Served with Japanese pickled veggies, salad with a homemade fresh ginger based creamy dressing,

rice, fresh made (hot) tempura dipping sauce and some really good fresh made miso soup. I assume the soup was made with a miso paste; it was so rich/deep flavored and had two small pieces of the firm tofu in it along with fresh seaweed.

I would like to add that piece of watermelon must be one of those Dulcinea seedless personal sized ones that costs quite a bit at the grocery store-it was packed with flavor. The Mister put it aside and saved it for us to share for dessert.

At this time of year, Hiyashi Chuuka ($8.75) is available. I had to…(in fact, I had to yesterday when we went to Chopstix for lunch…but I digress). Cold ramen noodles on the bottom in a light rice vinegar based sauce, topped with cold pork, bean sprouts, corn, shredded cucumber, sliced cold egg, ginger, fresh seaweed and top-topped with dried seaweed seaweed shavings and served on the side, a squirt of Kewpie Mayonnaise and hot mustard. You basically mix it all together and eat. Kind of upgraded leftovers and a real treat. When you consider I do not crave noodles yet I will eat this two days in a row…well, you know I must love the stuff. Oh, I got side of pickled vegetables also.

The one thing we always get at Sakura- night (Izakaya) or at lunch (side order) – is Karaage ($3). A simple, unassuming tidbit of 4 pieces of skinned chicken leg meat deep fried in a light flour breading and served in a bowl of fresh made sauce (not as salty as the tempura sauce) and a pile of shredded daikon radish. At dinner it is not served with the sauce, but I enjoy mixing the remaining tart daikon with the sauce and slurping it up.

That’s it. Lunch. Sakura. Good.

Izakaya Sakura 3904 Convoy, #121 San Diego 92121