It's hard to believe that it's our 19th Christmas here at mmm-yoso!
I just took a look at that post from 2005! My goodness!
Anyway, as always, we hope everyone is having a fabulous holiday season!
Merry Christmas!
Category: yoso-silly
Happy Thanksgiving!
Just wanted to wish everyone a Happy, Healthy, and Safe Thanksgiving!
The Missus has to work over the next couple of days; so we're keeping it simple. I'm just making some Niku Dofu by request.
The folks here at mmm-yoso would like to express how thankful we are for the visits, wonderful comments, and emails. We wouldn't still be around 6,755 days later (yes, I counted on my fingers and toes) if not for all of you!
Thanks as always!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Something to be Thankful For – Lucky’s Breakfast
**** Sadly Lucky Wong passed away at the end of 2024
I'd recently heard that a place near and dear to my heart was up for sale and would be closing its doors; Lucky's Breakfast. From the first time I set foot thru those doors back in 2008, Lucky's has been a sentimental favorite of mine. Beyond the old-school breakfast, it was the owner, jack of all trades, who took your order, bussed the tables, served the food, and cooked everything, Lucky that was the reason I visited. Even though I used to drop by every so often, I'd do a post about every five years it seems. But, I hadn't visited since before Covid, and when I did drop by, usually on weekends, the place would be pretty busy, so I'd just wait. It seems that various social media outlets had made Lucky quite popular. Though, having been a customer for over 15 years, I know Lucky would never change.
Having a weekday off and having heard the news, I headed on over…..
And the place wasn't busy, so I had a seat.
Looking at my old photos, I guess I always sit in the same spot here? I always take a few minutes to appreciate the kitschy beauty of the place….it reminds of diners from my "small kid time". As I've said and repeated on all my posts on Lucky's "I'm sure thousands of stories have echoed off the walls" here.
Of course, there are changes. Of course, breakfasts are no longer $4-$6, but the prices are quite inexpensive for the area.
And of course, that calendar keeps moving. Lucky does look older now, he moves a bit slower, and maybe should take a "second" retirement (his "first" retirement was when the place went from a Chinese restaurant to only serving breakfast).
But there are those things that hold steady; Lucky's always trying to refill your coffee, he hates waste (one of the hipsters left a piece of toast and Lucky wrapped it for him to take with him), and while things move a bit slower these days there's the ever present wit.
I heard the classic "Lucky line", which I've heard many times during my visit to here. When a "mature" woman would order coffee, Lucky would tell them the classic line I heard on my very first visit; "you too young for coffee, it will stunt your growth!"
As for my breakfast…..
It did the trick. And at $9 bucks, this is bargain these days!
As for Lucky selling? Well, I'd heard that the listing was pulled. I thought of asking, but really didn't want to be nosy and the place was filling up. I just wanted to enjoy my visit and take in the "atmosphere".
And of course, Lucky makes sure you get some fortune cookies…..
And in this case; I'll let Lucky's Fortune Cookie have the last word!
Lucky’s Breakfast
3804 Grim Ave
San Diego, CA 92104
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 715am – Noon
We’re Back!
Yes, we're back! And yes, I'm waaaay behind on my travel posts….the ending of our two weeks in Paris, our Taiwan trip, our Prescott – Albuquerque – Santa Fe – Taos, The Big Island and Oahu in February, and even a recent road trip to Buellton/Los Alamos! And here I go again on another trip! I know most folks come here looking for San Diego – SoCal food posts, so I save my travel stuff for weekends. Hopefully, I'll catch up soon now that we're back in town.
We were actually in Italy for Halloween, which was kinda interesting.
And even had one of the best meals of our trip! Yes, it was Chinese cuisine…in Italy!
We really enjoyed our time here and can't wait to go back!
Speaking of "going back". Of course we had to spend at least a couple of days in our favorite city.
Mainly to shop…..
And of course visit our old favorites…..
And do our favorite activities here. One of which is just "people, and pooch watch".
The more we visit; the harder it is for us to squeeze meals at our favorites in a couple of days. Though this time we found a new favorite, which was in plain sight. It seemed to be and is a kinda touristy restaurant, but we found the traditional dishes there to be quite good! Heck, we'd pass this place sometimes 4 or five times a day during our stays and never even though of eating there!
That mistake has been rectified!
One thing that we'd never done in this city is a tour. One this trip, we booked a private tour of our favorite neighborhood, from one of my favorite podcasts. And man was it fun and informative.
There was so much hidden in plain sight….stuff we had walked by so many times and never noticed! The tour was well worth the time and cost!
And of course, you'll always see something new when you visit….like this rainbow!
And then we ended up where we started. We had just one full day; but I got to see an item on my "bucket list".
And to do a bit more exploring.
Things ended on a high note as our last two meals were quite good. A Sichuan restaurant whose menu was developed in consultation with on of my favorite authors.
And a wonderful meal at the favorite restaurant in this city, of a late chef, author, and travel personality.
I know I need to catch up with all my travel posts. I'm hoping to do so soon!
Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Halloween
Yes, we're still travelling. And really enjoying things. Another update soon.
One interesting thing we noticed in London were all the places decorated for Halloween!
The most entertaining for us were all the "ghosts" walking around the grounds of the Tower of London.
They were really amazing and stayed in "character" in spite of the roaming public, really adding to the atmosphere!
Pretty cool eh?
Anyway, we here at mmm-yoso would like to wish you a fun, healthy, and safe Halloween!
And don't work too hard, like this person obviously did!
Happy Halloween!
Hoping that everyone is safe and well……
Man, I never thought I'd be doing one of these posts 2 weeks in a row.
How is everyone in San Diego doing? We're hoping that everyone made it thru Hilary unscathed with property intact.
Things really hit home when I did my Saturday shopping…places did seem a bit more busy, but then I dropped by Marukai for a couple of things and one guy had an entire shopping cart full of Gallon spring water bottles; like 20 of them! And the cashier rang him up (they are 99 cents at Marukai) without blinking an eye. I know, I should have taken a photo, but I was totally in shock. As usual my last stop was at Sprouts, I noticed there was a long line at the registers. And then when I passed the water section, oh my!
Shades of "shopping in the times of Covid"! Though it obviously wasn't as bad, my friend told me that Trader Joe's had been cleaned out.
Since I was running late, I managed to visit Gusto Market and purchase something we "just needed".
Which ended up being part of our "brunch" yesterday.
By early afternoon, Hilary had gone from a Category 4 Hurricane, to a Category 2 (here's the measurements) to a Tropical Storm.
We've been in Kyoto when Typhoon Vongfong hit and I remember Iniki as well. But this is SoCal and the last time a Tropical Storm had hit California was in 1939! I don't think we are quite as prepared for events like that!
At 345pm I opened my phone and stuff just kept on coming….
Man, with the fires in Canada and Washington state, the fire in Lahaina, now the hurricane/tropical storm.
We hope that you all made it thru Hilary unscathed! We hope all is well!
Catching up with the “Fishmonger” at TunaVille Market and Grocery
The one and only Tommy Gomes along with Mitch Conniff of Mitch’s Seafood opened up TunaVille Market and Groceries over a year ago! I have known Tommy for over a decade now and have some great memories of when he was at Catalina Offshore. I basically stopped going to Catalina after he left in 2019. And then of course Covid hit. And then Tommy Gomes got his own television show; the Fishmonger. Look him up now and he's listed as a "Television personality"…..well, at least they got the personality part right!
Anyway, a couple of months back Candice asked me if I'd like to meet her at TunaVille and I jumped at the chance! It would be great to see Tommy and interesting to see if time and "fame" had change him at all. Well, it hadn't, to me he's still the same old Tommy. I had a great time and have returned to TunaVille several more times, even when Tommy's out being a "personality"!
I'm just going to breeze thru this post since I'd like you to just drop by the place for yourself.
The shop is located on Driscoll's Wharf in Point Loma. Though getting there the first time using Google Maps was weird as I put in the address and it tried to take me into the gated Government facility there!
My best advice; if you have problems when on North Harbor Drive, just look for the vintage Driscoll's Wharf sign.
Park in the lot, you can get 1 hour of free parking from the machine in the lot. I park in Lot 'F'.
From there you head toward the water and Regatta Walk.
I like walking along the waterfront….a real "working" wharf. On Saturdays boats are selling their tuna along the wharf.
Unlike the owner, TunaVille is fairly discrete. Sometimes there's a sign outside, otherwise just look for this storefront.
On one of the days I visited, Tommy saw me coming and opened the door for me, waving me in:
Tommy: "See a television star is opening a door for you….."
Me: "Wait, I thought PeeWee Herman was dead……"
You get the picture! It's still Tommy!
The shop is spacious, clean, and wonderful…..
With lovely fresh seafood….I've gotten the wild shrimp from here a couple of times. And as always, Tommy is devoted to the local fishing community.
And prepared items as well.
But visit a couple of times and you'll see that there's a special place where Tommy likes to hold court.
It's at the table right across the dry aging cabinet.
Where Tommy will entice and ply you with wonderful samples of dry aged seafood.
And ever the showman, Tommy will extol you with the virtues of what you are tasting.
You can tell Tommye is in his element here.
And Tommy is really a proponent of what he call "seacuterie", basically charcuterie of the sea.
And strangely enough, the Missus has been into this stuff over the last couple of months too. Here's my last haul from TunaVille. BTW, the Missus loved those percebes that Tommy recommended. It brought back fun memories of Portugal.
And while perhaps his celebrity and success has changed him a bit over the years, he's still Tommy. Recently, I dropped by to get some Salt Farm Ghost Pepper Salt, but they were out. When I asked Tommy about when he was getting more in; he asked me to hang on a minute….and proceeded to call the company and order some for me! His heart is as big as his personality.
So, I'm now a regular customer, whether it's seafood, some stuff for the Missus's "seacuterie" dinner, or just to say hello (which can last up to an hour!).
It was good to see that Mister Grumpy Tommy was doing well!
TunaVille Market and Grocery
4904 N Harbor Drive Suite 102
San Diego, CA 92106
Current Hours:
Wed – Sun 10am – 5pm
Closed on Monday and Tuesday
Saturday Stuffs – Ban Lao Becoming So Saap, Boiling Passion is Now Kanpai BBQ & Shabu, Boston Market (Balboa) Becoming California Fish Grill, and Other “Stuffs”
Just some odds and ends for a quiet Saturday.
Ban Lao Becoming So Saap:
In my post on doing takeout from Mekong Cuisine "FOY" An mentioned if I'd heard that So Saap was taking over the Ban Lao spot in City Heights? Whoa, no I hadn't heard about that. Last I saw, Ban Lao had taken over the Que Huong space. And that was just a couple of years back! So, after doing my usual Saturday errands, I decided to head on over. And wouldn't you know it.
I hadn't even had the chance to visit them at the "new" location! Damn you Covid! Folks that I know who've been to So Saap's Market Street location haven't been overly impressed! Ban Lao was one of the few places where they'd actually make what I consider to be Lao Style Beef Larb. That would be raw beef with beef bile.
4134 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105
Thanks for letting me know about this An! I really appreciate it. I don't think our little blog would still be around all these years without thoughtful folks like you!
Boiling Passion is Now Kanpai BBQ & Shabu:
Speaking of my visit to Mekong and few years back, Boiling Passion occupied that space. They then moved to a smaller space in the strip mall. When I took a glance at the shop I noticed that it was now Kanpai BBQ & Shabu.
First thing I wondered was if this was an offshoot of Kanpai in Chula Vista? Second thing I noticed was that they were on soft opening mode with only Shabu Shabu…."BBQ Coming Soon"? I guess this is really a very "soft….." opening?
3904 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111
Boston Market (Balboa) Becoming California Fish Grill:
On my way back from Nijiya and 99 Ranch Market, I decided to stop in at the Walgreens near the corner of Genesee and Balboa. When I parked, I noticed that Boston Market was gone.
Man, this location of Boston Market had been here forever! I decided to walk on over to see what was up….hoping that perhaps an interesting eating establishment was coming to this location. I should have known better. It's a chain swap out. At least it's California Fish Grill which claims serve only "Responsibly Sourced Seafood". You can read about Cathy's visit to one of their locations here.
5502 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA 92111
Other "Stuffs":
We have a ton of leftovers from various meals, especially our last short Road Trip (posts coming soon). For some reason, I've really been enjoying the leftovers.
This past Tuesday, I was walking out of Clairemont Coffee with my cold brew when something stopped me dead in my tracks. It was a pretty rare sight in San Diego….a rainbow!
For some reason I was so touched by this sight. It reminded me of "home", you know:
"Where I live, there are rainbows
With life in the laughter of morning and starry nights
Where I live, there are rainbows
And flowers full of colors and birds filled with song"
It just brought a smile to my face….and it just brightened my entire day!
So, here's hoping you all have a wonderful and bright weekend!
Sunday Stuffs, the Sign but “No Sign” (of life) Issue – Honeyjam Chicken & Beer, Hanzuyu Ramen, and Spicy Lao Kitchen. And Current Problems with Photos
Just a couple of things for a quiet Sunday.
It seems that places are taking longer than ever to open these days. I won't pretend to understand the issues, obstacles, and effort places must take to open…..and while we do appreciate great places to eat opening, sometimes….when the wait is so long; it can be somewhat discouraging.
Case in point, back in fall of 2021, there was a sign for a place named JJ Chicken that was going to open in Renaissance Towne Center. Fast forward to October of 2022, thanks to "FOYs" Patty and Rena, I found that JJ was no longer in the spot, but a place named Honeyjam Chicken was taking its place. Fast forward to June of 2023 and we're still waiting.
Patty had asked me if I knew anything….but sorry, I'm not an "insider", but perhaps a reader of our blog might know.
I'm hoping they open soon.
8895 Towne Centre Dr.
San Diego, CA 92122
And……in the same strip mall I recall seeing the sign for Hanyuzu Ramen. That was in August of 2022. This is what it looks like now.
**** Well, it now looks like this location will be Ujin Ramen?
8935 Towne Centre Drive #113
San Diego, CA 92122+
Aaaand, the one place I've gotten a couple of emails on; Spicy Lao Kitchen, well I first saw the sign in March of 2022. From what I read back in 2022 this place was supposed to open in "Early 2022". But of course, here we are in summer of 2023.
Several folks have asked me if this place is going to open. As far as I know, the folks who own the jerky shop in the strip mall are still intent on opening this place.
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123
Life sure has changed over the last 3 years. I have been told about the challenges with getting staff and supplies. I'm not sure, and hope that it is not, the how things proceed from here.
And finally…….
Are you having issues with photos displaying? Well, for several months, Typepad has been having a problem with their image server. I've tried to be very patient with the issue and have had a ticket open for weeks. But, what I've had to do was send them a link and proof every time an issue occurred. Sigh………
Anyway, I finally did the "Twitter thing" and asked about he issue. And here's the response.
So, my apologies. I understand that there's a point in which I need to consider various "options". Still, we have over 5,000 posts…….I don't want to lose that. I thank you for your patience……
Have a great week!
A Familiar Face at Izakaya Sakura
Recently, my good friends "XiangJiao" and "YummyYummy" told me that I needed to have dinner at Izakaya Sakura. Izakaya Sakura? My goodness, I mean, I think Sakura has the most posts on our humble little blog. I mean Cathy, the late Ed from Yuma (we miss you so much!), and I have done numerous posts on Sakura, from the "old days" to the day Sakura actually had a sign put up. I mean, what more was there for me to see there?
Still, it had been eight months since I visited, which filled a gap of of three years since I dined in at Sakura…though I did do takeout during the "days of Covid".
So, I thought why not?
And when I walked in, it was a surprise indeed!
But first, the food. I had always enjoyed the Chicken Karaage at Sakura, so I ordered that.
And got some sashimi.
Does the presentation of the sashimi look familiar? Well, it should. When I sat, I was told "Sashimi Kirk-san…." it wasn't a question, more of an affirmation.
And I got quite the sashimi plate; a great combination of what was fresh and available. And then of course the "aji-senbei" to end things.
I'm sure you figured it out by now; Sam was now working at Sakura. It's kind of funny in a way. I've known and been a customer of Sam's for over 20 years. From the days at Katzra, to Sammy Sushi, then Wal-Mi-Do, and finally Sushi Yaro. It's quite ironic and interesting to see him working at Sakura, our most posted on restaurant….side by side with Kazu.
Sam is looking happy and seems to have recovered well from previous health issues.
Yes, the smile is back.
And I think it's more then a bit ironic to think that the purveyor of what I thought was a great example of the neighborhood sushi bar was now at one of our most posted on restaurants.
Life is interesting, isn't it?
Sam currently works evenings on Mon, Tues, Thurs, and Fridays.
Izakaya Sakura
3904 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111