yoso-silly – Page 14

Traditions- Rosca de Reyes (from Su Pan) and Calendars

January 6, 2018 Cathy Bakery, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!, yoso-silly

mmm-yoso!!! welcomes you to this first Saturday of 2018 with a post from Cathy. Kirk is feeling a bit under the weather.

Today, January 6, is the 12th Day after Christmas. This evening, the 12th Night, is when The Mister and I take down our decorations (which went up on Christmas Eve). It is traditionally known as the Feast of the Three Kings or Epiphany.

Earlier this week, we dropped by Su Pan Bakery to order the Rosca de Reyes, a traditional pastry symbolizing a King's ring which we will have while working on dismantling the tree and cards and decorations. {If there were people helping us, then whomever gets the piece of Rosca with the hidden tiny plastic 'Baby Jesus' inside would be responsible to host the Candelmas Day meal on February 2, another traditional day to take down decorations}.

I did purchase a small Rosca to mail to family back East, hoping they would receive it today…but the weather is very bad and the Post Office tracking shows it probably won't get there until Monday. At least it will be pretty much frozen and probably still fresh. Samples of Rosca on the counter…

Su Pan is probably our favorite bakery, not only for the sweets, but also the fresh bread and the breakfasts (tortas, burritos and plates), lunch tortas and, on Friday and Saturday evenings, street tacos- grilling out in the parking lot.
A ham and egg and cheese breakfast bollilo ($4.99). The bollilo (bread) baked here, of course, is fresh. A nice, light crispy, perfect crust. The filling is a wonderful, light scramble of egg and cheese and pieces of ham. The combination of bread and filling is just a perfect breakfast bite.
The bacon, egg and cheese burrito )$4.99) is also a perfect meld of flavors (as well as filled with wonderful pieces of bacon).

Su Pan Bakery 5006 El Cajon Blvd San Diego 92115 Website Open 5 a.m.-10:30p.m. daily

Another New Year tradition for us is changing the calendars with new, business giveaway calendars. The Mister and I usually are on the hunt for these beginning in November, but this year, we were busy and only managed to acquire a few on our own, and I was thrilled to have been helped by my friend, cc, who, with another friend, (Astroboi), went around acquiring(mentioned at the bottom of that post) the majority of the calendars this year.
As always, we must have an Orchard Supply Hardware train calendar (since 1931, all of their calendars have featured trains-the artist this year is John Winfield ). We usually picked one up after decorating Rose Parade floats in Pasadena, but now there is an Orchard Supply close to home. Nijiya Market always has a beautiful, botanic themed calendar and the Zion Market calendar is quite large and good for writing appointments.
Both Seafood City and Lucky Seafood Supermarket have the traditional 'bamboo' calendars, with drawings depicting the Year of the Dog. Otay Mandarin Chinese Restaurant gave away a beautiful, desktop/standing calendar.

There were more, including the Beautiful photography of the Hudson River Valley, given away by the Marist College, a refrigerator magnet calendar from a local realtor, the HMart desktop style, the Buffalo Exchange (which has the calendar in Spanish, indicates the Days of the Saints and begins in December) and, when we were in Pasadena for the Rose Parade Showcase of floats (another post), we stopped in at the House of Cookies and Mrs. Arsen gave us one of their Armenian themed calendars (with Armenian text). It's hanging right next to my desk and I'll try to learn from it this year.

I hope everyone is having a great year, filled with tradition.

Midweek Meanderings – End of an Era? Emerald and San Tong Palace Close and Taking the “One-Chip Challenge”

January 3, 2018 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, yoso-silly

**** I know most of you know that Emerald has reopened.

Emerald Closes:

As mentioned earlier today in Eater. Emerald suddenly closed their doors on New Year's Eve. My understanding is that it was rather sudden. I've heard from two sources who tell me that Pearl in RB is also on the market.

According to the posted letter they have "closed their doors due to retirement"……

3709 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

San Tong Palace becoming a Sichuan Restaurant?:

Now that our office has relocated, I don't get down to Kearny Mesa quite as much as I used to. But I did notice this on New Year's eve while returning from grocery shopping.

Man, San Tong Palace had been there forever. I heard that the owners had decided to retire. The sign is interesting….doesn't say much. And Spicy City is in the same strip mall.

4690 Convoy St #105
San Diego, CA 92111

Doing the One Chip Challenge:

I brought a couple of packages to Paqui Ghost Pepper Chips to my friends one evening. I kind of enjoyed it; but it is pretty spicy. Which gave "Al" the idea that we should…..yes we….but not her, should do the one chip challenge.

So the arranged night arrived….but only three of us showed up! Talk is cheap.

Yep, this chip is no joke. One of the guys actually threw up later on.

It is really hot….as with really spicy stuff; I got the hiccups, sweated profusely, but made it through without any other ill effects. The agreement was five minutes without yogurt. Which I did.

It does feel like you've chewed up a hot iron and are gargling with battery acid. The heat starts slowly; the first 10-15 seconds are not bad. Then it gets really hot and kind of hangs around for about 15 minutes or so. I felt like I ate a couple of uni…….shells…..

There's actually a video of this….which will hopefully never see the light of day.

Happy New Year

December 31, 2017 mmm-yoso European Restaurants, French Restaurants, Markets & Grocers, yoso-silly

Happy New Year!

Much like I've done every year since December 31st, 2005, I started my day with a visit to Nijiya, Marukai, and Mitsuwa.

I think I've noted that compared to those early years, the variety available has gone down significantly. Probably because of preordering and changing of tastes.

This year, Mitsuwa seemed to have the better "stuffs".

They definitely won out in the protein category……

I did enjoy the "instruction signs" Nijiya put out for items like kazunoko….just in case, you know….you get the urge to try it out.

We enjoyed going out for New Year dinner last year. So I made reservations for an early dinner at Et Voila. Man, we got in at 5pm and there were already folks eating! I'd never seen the place this busy this early……

Et Voilà!
3015 Adams Ave
San Diego, CA 92116

We then decided to walk on down 30th street and had a nightcap at Toronado.

Toronado
4026 30th St
San Diego, CA 92104

Sorry to say I'm not one for top ten lists….when it comes to meals and such I guess I'm always looking to the "next one". I'm often, like I'm doing right now, starting to plan three trips ahead.

I am however, somewhat sentimental. And having lost both an amazing companion and a good friend and contributor to this blog this year has been hard. It's not something you easily turn the page on.

With that in mind, I'm hoping the upcoming year will help to repair out those torn pages pages….the creases will remain for sure, but I'll be able to read them, reflect, and smile at the memories.

As the year comes to a close, everyone here at mmm-yoso would like to thank you for dropping by and extend best wishes for 2017!

Merry Christmas!

December 24, 2017 mmm-yoso Alsace, France, Paris, France, Travel, yoso-silly

I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season!

Funny thing, we're not real big "Christmas folks". But something strange happened during our last trip. First, we visited Galeries Lafayette in Paris. Every year, there's a theme, and a huge Christmas Tree spanning five stories under the dome of the department store. You can click on the image and it will take you to the video page.

And then we went to the city of Strasbourg, which claims to have the largest Christmas Market in Europe. They say that Strasbourg is the Capital of Christmas. The entire city becomes a Christmas Market.

Yes, it's very commercial, but for some reason all the happy people, all the sights and sounds, just put us in a great mood.

You could say we found our Christmas spirit!

Want to see more amateurish videos?

You can find them on Flickr – here, here, and here.

We hope you have a fantastic and delici-yoso Christmas!

Thanksgiving Day, 2017

November 23, 2017 Cathy Cooking, What Cathy Eats!, yoso-silly

We at mmm-yoso!!! wish everyone reading a Happy Thanksgiving Day. Kirk and His Missus (as well as Cathy and Her Mister) are enjoying non-traditional Thanksgiving Day activities (and meals). Cathy is writing this post.

The Mister and I found some good prices on turkeys and sides a few weeks ago. We couldn't wait and have had our feast. Of course, a regular side dish is always made and usually consumed as an 'appetizer'. Fresh cranberries weren't even available in the stores yet….but have been purchased for future meals. The leftovers were wonderful!

The temperatures in San Diego County will be in the 90's today; it will be summer-y, not autumn-y.

You'll be getting a couple of posts about how all of us observed this holiday.

Until then, be safe, enjoy this day of Thanks, family and/or friends, and/or strangers and have a Happy Thanksgiving from the mmm-yoso gang!

Midweek Meanderings – Red Card Cafe Closes, Sprouts Opens, and Kroran Cuisine Coming Soon

November 8, 2017 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

Red Card Café Closes:

While driving on Morena a couple of weeks ago; I noticed the "For Lease" sign, so I stopped to take a look.

I was quite surprised to see that Red Card Café had closed down. They had just brought on a new chef and revamped the menu at bit a few months back. Things had looked promising.

Sad to see them go.

4140 Morena Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Sprouts Opens in Bay Park:

Or if you prefer; Clairemont. It depends whom you talk to.

While I was sad to see Keil's close. I felt really bad about all the employees who had been there since we moved to the area fifteen years ago. I hardly ever shopped at Keil's; or any of the large supermarket chains. So, I guess Sprouts makes sense for us. They opened up on the 25th of October.

Good to see the strip mall filling up. Now, I'm wondering what's going to take the place of the Hometown Buffet and the old Mike's BBQ.

3015 Clairemont Dr
San Diego, CA 92117

Kroran Uyghur Cuisine Opening in the Former Nazca Grill Spot:

So, I've been working fairly long hours, some of it in the OC. It's often dark when I leave for work in the morning and likewise when I drive home in the evening. I saw a sign in the window of the old Nazca Grill. So, I took a turn into the strip mall for a look.

So, Kroran Uyghur Cuisine, huh? This is going to be interesting. The sign says "Coming in 2018".

4310 Genesee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Happy Halloween

October 31, 2017 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

Hope you have a fun and safe Halloween.

Pretty nice stuff around the neighborhood. But nothing beats this one in Los Olivos! Yikes!

Quebec City – A Quick Trip to Lévis, Dinner at Le Lapin Saute, and the Secret of the “Red Door” (A K-Drama Tie-in)

September 11, 2017 mmm-yoso Canada, Canada Food and Restaurants, French Restaurants, Quebec City, yoso-silly

We took a short break after our wonderful lunch. Getting back up, the Missus was itching to "do something….anything". I asked the concierge about taking the Ferry across the St Lawrence to the city of Lévis. The very friendly concierge said that just the views of Quebec City was worth the $7.10 CAD (about $5.75) round trip. So off we went. The rather cloudy, rainy weather made for a rather dramatic view of Chateau Frontenac and Terasse Dufferin from the river.

When we arrived at dock, we just walked out and took a look around. The Missus saw these stairs and of course we ended up walking up.

We felt a bit odd when we reached the top; it was almost like we walked into someone's yard.

There were some nice looking homes on this side of the river.

And the views were wonderful.

This is Notre-Dame-de-la-Victoire de Lévis Church.

We took a loop, before heading back down to the dock via the not so picturesque street. And then headed back to QC. We took another break before heading off to dinner.

The place I selected for dinner was on busy Rue du Petit-Champlain. A place named Le Lapin Saute and yes, lapin means "rabbit" in French. The restaurant looks really colorful from the outside and was totally packed! Folks were eating out on the patio in spite of the drizzles.

Luckily we had reservations.

I had been wanting to try a beer and ordered the Anne Baillargeon from Microbrasserie de l'ile d'Orléans.

A very light, fizzy, blonde lager….nice and refreshing.

There was one item I really wanted to try here; the Rabbit Poutine.

You are given a choice of gravies; we chose the version with mustard and it did not disappoint as it added a nice touch of pungent-sweetness that cut the richness. We love the potatoes in Quebec; this version was crisp, but all the fried potatoes seemed to be quite dark, but very sweet. The braised rabbit was very moist and tender, very clean tasting, with a slight almost chicken flavor.

The Cassoulet however, was a mixed bag.

While the sausage was wonderful as were the lardons; the beans were tough and undercooked, the rabbit dry and tasteless, and the duck confit dry and very salty. There was a lack of thyme-garlic flavor and the dish, other than being salty was a disappointment. The Missus started requesting my cassoulet immediately after.

The service was very friendly, even though the place was slammed. You gotta love Canadians, they are always so polite!

I'm certain we'll return; if only for that poutine and perhaps one of the nice looking salads next time.

Le Lapin Saute
52 Du Petit-Champlain St
Quebec City, Canada

Before heading back to our room; I decided to take a photo of the Red Door.

What's up with the Red Door you might ask? Well, while walking on Rue du Petit-Champlain during our first afternoon in QC, we noticed a preponderance of Korean tour groups and everyone was taking a photo next to this door. So, when we returned to our room I Googled "red door quebec city" and oh my! Apparently, a K-Drama, known as Goblin, was partially filmed in Quebec City. The series was the second highest rated drama in Korean cable history. And it's made Quebec City a destination for Korean tourists! The Red Door is the portal from Korea to Quebec City and plays a rather large role in the K-Drama. Who'd have thunk? We'd actually run into another Quebec City Goblin filming location before we left the next morning. I texted the photo of the Red Door to our friend and K-Drama junky, "Xiāngjiāo" and got a really excited response "oh-my-god…how did you find the door"! Funny thing, we didn't find the door, the door found us.

I guess that's how Quebec City works!

Thanks for reading!

And now for a short break in the action…..

August 6, 2017 mmm-yoso Cooking, yoso-silly

It's been a busy year for me and I haven't been able to see my dear friends much this year. At least not all together. But this being "C's" Birthday….well, I just couldn't say no.

And it was such a beautiful day. So, while I still put in some hours at work today, I met them afterwards for dinner. Plus, these are the folks who take whoel roasted pigs to Karaoke and hold Thanksgiving in August, who roasts whole pigs in their parent's backyard. I think "C" wanted seafood……so here's the spread.

So where's the seafood? Ummm, here…..

Happy Birthday C! Here's to many more!

Thanks for indulging me folks!

Returning to Tiger! Tiger!

July 8, 2017 mmm-yoso Gastropub, yoso-silly

**** Tiger! Tiger! has closed

I sure felt the heat the last couple of days. Must be getting wimpy in my old age.

Just a short post for today…..the humidity almost makes me want to head back to the office…..almost.

A few days back we just decided to get the heck out of the house and head to Tiger! Tiger!. We hadn't been back since January.

As usual the Charcuterie Plate was just what we wanted.

Though the cucumber – avocado salad was less than stellar. The cucumbers were old and the skin tough….perhaps they should have been peeled. The avocado was brown; too bad, because that dill based dressing was nice.

Still, it was a nice break.

And yes, I still haven't really ordered anything off the regular menu.

Tiger! Tiger!
3025 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92104

It's been tough heading back to Tiger! Tiger! You see the last time we were there at the end of January, was the night we lost Sammy.

It was really strange; the Missus had a rare night off; She's been working like crazy like I have this year. Sammy, who had done deaf two years ago and usually wouldn't hear us when we got home anymore, met us as we returned at the door. I'd recently gotten him some steps so he could hang out on his favorite place on the sofa and we got a kick watching him use it. But you could tell; he was getting up there. He still ate well and his enthusiasm for life was unabated.

The Missus's co-worker knitted this silly looking cap for Sammy and this is our last photo of him on that day….I guess he wasn't amused.

He seemed extra energetic when we got home, running around, bugging me to play with him and his favorite toy of the hour. He just kept going and going….we just cracked up.

I went into the room we use as an office and Sammy took his usual position right behind my chair. I heard a sighing sound, Sammy looked at me, gasped, and he was gone. We grabbed him, ran out of the house and over to the Pet Hospital, but it was for naught.

In way, I think Sammy planned it out…..his Mommy was home, he'd had a great and fun evening, enjoyed his dinner, and got to say goodbye.

Typical Sammy.

Until we meet again.

SammyK

July 5, 2002 – January 25, 2017

Strange, our visit to Tiger Tiger was on the 5th……I didn't even realize it until the Missus mentioned it later that evening…..Sammy would have been 15. Maybe???

Rest well my friend.