mmm-yoso – Page 21 – As in, yoso-silly, yoso-hungry, yoso-full, or best of all; mmm-delici-yoso!!!!! A San Diego based food and travel blog. An Ex-Pat Kama'aina and Friends explore food, restaurants, and travel from San Diego and points beyond.

What’s My Craving? Kuljem Chicken & Beer and Sue’s Korean Kitchen

August 19, 2025 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants

It's strange. In spite of the rather warm weather, I was craving some Kimchi Fried Rice. So, I decided to head to a fairly regular stop for me:

Sue’s Korean Kitchen:

Hard to believe that I've been coming here since 2021. Though it's been over a year since I last visited.

Sues Rev 01

Located in the food court of Plaza Sorrento, its a rather convenient stop for me since I can go to the bank and they open at 1030am, thus I can avoid the "lunch rush".

Sues Rev 02

The simple counter is in place. I guess I haven't visited in a while and I didn't recognize the women working. I wondered if they've gone thru a change of ownership since my last visit?

I was a bit shocked when I looked at the posted menu. There's only one item I get here; the Kimchi Fried Rice and it's actually gone down in price. It was $12.99 on my last visit and is not just a straight $12. I know, it's just ninety-nine cents, but where else have seen prices go down over the last year?

Sues Rev 03

So, of course I wondered if the dish had been changed? Anyway, I placed my order which was ready fairly quickly.

Opening things up, my suspicions were confirmed. Remember when I received the kimchi fried rice from here suffering from shrinkage? Well, even though they tried to hide it by spreading the rice out; I could tell that the portion size was indeed smaller.

Sues Rev 04 Sues Rev 05 The texture of the rice was so mushy.

Also, a lot less kimchi than before. I'm thinking they added some Korean red pepper powder because this was spicier than I recalled, while lacking in the nice fermented tones.

A decent amount of Spam though.

In what I thought was kind of comedic, there were even less strips of egg!

Sues Rev 06

Kind of sad overall as Sue's had been a fairly regular stop for me. I would have preferred that they raise their prices, rather than sell, in my opinion a diminished product. But of course, times are hard and perhaps their customer base prefers not paying a bit more?

Sue’s Korean Kitchen
6755 Mira Mesa Blvd.
Suite 109
San Diego, CA 92121
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 1030am – 8pm
Closed on Sundays

This was quite disappointing and really didn't scratch that kimchi fried rice itch. So, a few days later I decided to return to a place that I hadn't been to in a year:

Kuljem Chicken & Beer:

I know, it's chicken and beer……but I was actually after the fried rice, which I thought was pretty good on one of my visits. I got there right at the opening time of 1130 and was blessed with a parking space as the lot has many 30 minute parking slots, making it somewhat bad at meals times when folks are eating in.

KulJem Rev 01

One of the co-owners; Jin who was half of the original name of the place; remember when it was supposed to be JJ's Chicken?

KulJem Rev 02

And while the name infers to the place being a beer and "KFC" shop….well, I just wanted the Kimchi Fried Rice which is now $17; up a buck from last year. I placed my order and after a short wait my fried rice arrived.

KulJem Rev 03 KulJem Rev 05 Now, this was more like it!

Liked the egg with a decently runny yolk and crisp edges….kind of on the smaller side, but good enough.

The rice was cooked decently and well coated, large pieces of kimchi, I even enjoyed the slices of green bell pepper. Nice fermented-sour tones with a hint of spice.

KulJem Rev 06 KulJem Rev 04 The only thing that I wished for in this version of kimchi fried rice is Spam. There's a good amount of chicken, yes I know it's a chicken restaurant; but I really don't think it adds much to the dish.

It was more than enough to fill me up. Yes, I know $17 for fried rice….but this is UTC and remember, I just paid twenty bucks for a mediocre eggs, black beans, and soyrizo on toast! The place was completely empty during my visit and I asked Jin how business is. He told me that happy hours and dinner are when they do a good amount of business. I'm glad. Hopefully, they'll be open for a while.

So yes…this did indeed "scratch that itch"!

KulJem Rev 00

Kuljem Chicken & Beer
8895 Towne Centre Dr. Suite 101
San Diego, CA 92122
Current Hours:
Daily 1130am – 2pm, 5pm – 11pm

Lunch with JJ – Nómade Tapas and Records

August 18, 2025 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Dog Friendly, European Restaurants

Recently, the Missus had an appointment in North Park and we decided to take JJ along…he really enjoys the area and then grab an early lunch. Of course Bica immediately came to mind, but the place was packed. As we headed west on Adams, I recalled a place named Nómade had opened close to An's and Et Voila replacing what I believe was once as sushi bar?

Nomade 01

The place was listed as dog friendly so we headed on in. It was empty at 1030 on this morning.

Nomade 02

The two women working were very nice and one of them even took photos of JJ! We were seated and handed menus. They brought JJ some water.

IMG_0832a

Nómade calls itself a Tapas Bar, which I believe it becomes during the evening. It seems more of a coffee – cafe kind of place with a small menu for lunch.

Nomade 03

I thought the Missus would go with the Tortilla Espanola, but She decided on the Huevos Rotos ($16) instead. I got the Mollete Toast ($14) and added eggs which was an additional $6….well, twenty bucks for and open faced sandwich.

Nomade 04 Nomade 05 The food did take a while with the Huevos Rotos arriving first.

The sunny side up eggs were nicely done with crisp edges. The Jamon Serrano was sliced too thick making the fatty edges really tough to eat.

The tallow fries were limp, dry, and in need of salt.

The Mollete Toast was better.

Nomade 00 Nomade 07 Though the eggs were overcooked; the yolks dry.

"FOY" Peter might appreciate this open faced toast as it used soyrizo, which had a mild smoky-paprika-ish flavor, along with a smear of black beans. I think a more flavor forward cheese would have done better than the very mild Monterey Jack Cheese used.

The slice of sourdough was nice and crusty; though it was mild in terms of yeasty-sourdough tones I enjoy.

Not a bad open face toast….but not sure it's worth twenty bucks. The Missus was on point when She told me "you can make this at home for less than five bucks". Which kind of sums things up Nomade 08

An nice neighborhood place with friendly staff; though it doesn't seem to be worth going out of your way for. They did treat JJ nice and he even got his photo taken.

Nómade Tapas and Records
3027 Adams Ave.
San Diego, CA 92116

And it seems like they're going to have new hours starting today.

Nomade New Hours

Paris – Jeffrey Cagnes (Rue Montorgueil) and Dinner at Le Colimacon

August 16, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Desserts, France, French Restaurants, Paris, France, Travel

After lunch, we took a nice siesta. Upon awakening, the Missus decided it was the correct hour for le goûter (tea time).

So, we headed on over to Rue Montorgueil (of course) and the Missus picked up some tea from Mariage Freres.

Mariage Frères Montorgueil
90 Rue Montorgueil
75002 Paris, France

And then of course she needed to find some dessert. Our usual stop on the street would be Fou de Pâtisserie, but the Missus wanted to try somethin different. Right up the street is a location of Jeffrey Cagnes, which had opened at the end of 2022. The place had always been pretty packed on our previous trip to Paris, but now it looked like things had settled down a bit.

The Missus liked the look of the pistachio tarte.

So that's what we got.

It was actually a pistachio – orange tarte.

Which the Missus enjoyed with Her tea. Edging on overly sweet, hints of orange, hints of earthy-nutty-vanilla.

Jeffrey Cagnes
73 Rue Montorgueil
75002 Paris, France

We enjoyed just relaxing before heading out to dinner.

While in Milan the Missus requested that I cancel our reservations at Septime and make reservations at a place named Le Colimacon instead. I'd never heard of the place, but went ahead and cancelled Septime and made requested reservations for dinner. The "modern bistro" is located in the Marais on a street we're fairly familiar with Rue Vieille du Temple, where Breizh Café, Edwart Chocolatier, and other places we'd been to are located. We arrived at opening which was at a very "un-Paris like" 630pm. Most Parisians dine after 8pm.

The restaurant is warm and cozy and there's also an upstairs area as well. Service was very attentive and we were spoken to totally in English….which are "red flags" for me with regards to dining in Paris.

The prices weren't too bad and there seemed to be some interesting items on the menu.

Though there was an item on the iPad menu that I wasn't going to order……

I think there was something "lost in translation" here? Hmmm……

Of course I started with a nice Kir Royale!

Which sadly would be the highlight of the meal.

Though the baguette was yeasty and quite good.

First up was the Frisée with poached egg and "lard croustillant"…that would be crispy bacon.

The frisée was crisp with nice, bitter tones, and the vinaigrette complemented it well. The poached egg was ice cold and the yolk overcooked and hard. It also had that fishy flavor. The bacon was on the burnt and bitter side and was chewy instead of being crisp.

The Croustilles de Escargot was up next.

The pastry that the escargot rested in lacked crispness. The escargot was fine; nice and meaty, but the persillade needed more "umph" and was weak in the garlic and flavorful olive oil department.

Seeing Huitres…..oysters from Normandy with a truffle gratinee on the menu…well, you know I had to order that, right?

The oysters were nice and plump with an almost sweet-briney finish.

But the sauce overpowered the bivalves and we really couldn't make out any truffle flavor either.

The last dish up was the Cassolette de Champignons.

This usually creamy mushroom dish was served at room temp, which made it really gluey and pasty. The overall flavor was quite bland.

Overall, nice service though a fairly mediocre meal. All the customers were tourists, which is quite telling.

Le Colimacon
44 Rue Vieille du Temple
75004 Paris, France

As we were leaving the restaurant I asked the Missus how She heard about this place. She then told me that the daughter of the owner has a very popular Instagram account! Say what???

The place was packed with folks waiting outside when we left……ah yes, the "influencer effect".

As we walked back to our room; I tried to recall when we had two mediocre meals in a row in Paris?

Well, I was determined not to make it three in a row!

Paris – La Samaritaine, Nèulo, and a Return to Aux Crus de Bourgogne

August 15, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Croissants, France, French Restaurants, Paris, France, Travel

As I continue to try to get all our travel posts done…….

Having arrived in Paris, we just wanted to relax. We'd been to the city so many times that it almost feels like our….or at least my second home. We decided to stay at the Citadines Les Halles in the 2nd Arrondissement as it was right on the RER Blue Line from CDG and of course my favorite street, Rue Montorgueil is close by.

Looking out from our room in the morning, it seemed like it was going to be a nice day.

We did our usual morning "thing" and had our morning "caffe allonge" at Café du Centre, which I'd already mentioned in my previous Paris post. We then had a nice stroll before trying to determine what we wanted to do this morning. On one of our previous trips, I noticed that La Samaritaine had reopened after being closed for 16 years!

We decided to take a look. Man, talk about a fancy place!

Established in 1869, it had become an iconic building right off the Seine. The department store closed its doors in 2005 due to safety concerns. The luxury goods company LVMH purchased the property and after 16 years the property reopened under the auspices of DFS Group. Even after all of the renovations and such, not everyone was happy about that.

We decided to take a peek…..

We walked up the stairs to the top floor……the art work is quite over-the-top.

There a restaurant which was closed. Not that we'd eat there.

There's also a area with a hologram show going.

This all seemed a bit over-the-top, though somewhat entertaining. We also noticed only a couple of customers shopping…..and really wondered if Parisians would really take to a place like this. La Samaritaine has been touted as revolutionizing the department store concept.

La Samaritaine
9 Rue de la Monnaie
75001 Paris, France

As we headed down Rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie to do some necessary shopping, we stopped in at this patisserie.

They seemed to specialize in flan as there were at least eight different versions available, but the Missus wasn't interested. Of course, I just wanted a croissant aux beurre.

It was fairly light though the interior was on the moist side. Nicely laminated and crisp, but sorely lacking in butteriness. Just a mediocre version overall….I should just give in and gotten a flan….

Nèulo
46 Rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie
75004 Paris, France

We managed to get some shopping done…..I've posted on these places before.

And then of course we did the lèche-vitrine – window shopping (literally translated as "window licking" in French) thing. And of course the people (and pooch) watching.

Along with a dose of history along the way…..

And doing that Flâneur thing ("to wander with no purpose") we came across this…..

It's one of the last 8 remaining towers of the Philippe Auguste Wall, which was completed in 1215 to encircle and protect the city. We would take a tour with the one and only Oliver Gee, who is obsessed with the wall and learn a lot more about it. It's amazing what you run into just walking down the street in Paris!

For dinner, we just headed on over to Rue Montorgueil and Rue Bachaumont to a place that we'd dined at twice before, Aux Crus de Bourgogne. We'd had a surprisingly good meal there, back in winter of 2022…we had passed the place so many times and thought it to be tourist restaurant. We did a follow-up visit and did not enjoy our dinner as much. This would be the "tie-breaker" of sorts. And we picked visiting during lunch.

The service was prompt and professional as always.

The Missus loves tearing into the baguette here. She also loves the rillette that accompanies the baguette!

We had really enjoyed the Vol-au-Vent with mushrooms on our first visit and were happy to see it on the menu on this day.

The puff pastry was on the doughy side and not crisp and light as we enjoy. Good amount of mushroom, but the sauce was a lot thinner than what we'd had here before and lacking in the rich-earthiness.

The Missus had always enjoyed the Escargot here, so we ordered that as well.

This had a lot less olive oil and garlic than before and the snails were on the tough side! Bummer.

This ended up being like our second, not so great visit. Well, I guess we're done with Aux Crus de Bourgogne for now.

Aux Crus de Bourgogne
3 Rue Bachaumont
75002 Paris, France

Oh well…..can't win 'em all! And we are so blessed to be able to return to Paris so often that we're able to try a place on three separate trips, right?

Valle de Guadalupe – La Cocina de Doña Esthela

August 13, 2025 mmm-yoso Baja California, Mexico, Breakfast/Brunch, Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Travel

After having such a wonderful time in Valle de Guadalupe we were headed home. Ivan, who was our driver from San Diego to Puerto Nuevo, then our first day in Valle, was of course exactly on time to pick us up for the trip "home".

But there was one last stop. Aimee had instructed us not to have breakfast at Contemplación Hotel Boutique as she had a "must stop" for breakfast planned for us. It would be La Cocina de Doña Esthela. Which I had heard of since the one and only Anthony Bourdain raved about the Borrego Tatemada. And heck, I didn't know the place is a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant. And a month after our visit, I saw that Gorden Ramsey had visited to learn how to make tortillas as well.

Ivan parked and we walked over. I expected a super long line, but since this was early in the week we actually had no wait!

Though the interior was packed.

And yes, that's a smoked filled dining room……oh, the fragrances filling the air…..and if you thought "Korean BBQ shirt" was potent…..

There were really only two items we were targeting here…..

Of course we started with some Cafe de Olla…..not overly sweet.

And I got a small order of the Borrego Tatemada, which came with consomme, beans, and those huge tortillas.

Was not a fan of the runny, mushy beans; but that consomme…so full of rich, "lamb-y" goodness, nicely spiced, smoky, hints of spices like oregano…perfectly salted; probably my favorite consomme to date!

The meat; which really looked like machaca was surprisingly tender and like the consomme so full of flavor! A dip in the soup, some onions for pungency, a squeeze of lime to add acidity and cut the richness, and man; it was such a wonderful morning!

And as good as the borrego was; the Elote Pancakes were "a-maiz-ing"! Sorry, I couldn't help it!

I'm not a fan of hotcakes; but this is an exception. Forget the butter, we didn't need that. These were fluffy and moist, with a slight grittiness of corn. But the flavor; my goodness, the natural sweetness of the corn, a mild butteriness, we really enjoyed this.

I would say that Doña Esthela did live up to the hype.

La Cocina de Doña Esthela
Ranchos San Marcos, El Porvenir
San Marcos, B.C., Mexico

The Missus even bought some chocolate from this stand outside Doña Esthela

FullSizeRender

We truly enjoyed our time in Valle. Much of the credit goes to Ivan, Isaac, and Aimee Cruz. I highly recommend using the services of Valle Guadalupe Baja Tours. It ain't cheap for two people, but with both Ivan and Isaac being so punctual, knowledgeable, and flexible, plus being able to customize things, we had a great time. And no, Aimee has no idea I have a blog. I'm not sure she's remember who I am. Because I'm just a regular guy who makes really bad dad jokes and likes to eat and explore.

I'm not sure why we took so long to visit Valle…….

Potato Powder Love Noodle a Soft Opening Visit

August 12, 2025 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

Sometimes things happen for a reason. After doing a bit of shopping at the 99 Ranch on Balboa, I went for a follow-up visit to Dao Xiang Noodle which recently replaced Mama Lin's in the food court. I'd already done an initial visit, but wanted to do another to follow-up. But strangely, Dao Xiang was closed.

Dao Xiang not opened

Hmmm…..online it says open daily from 10am to 8pm and it was already just past noon?

Oh well, who knows what problem occurred, I'm hoping its not too serious. As I was headed toward the door, I noticed that the interestingly named Potato Powder Love Noodle, which I noted had replaced Shann Xi Magic Kitchen looked like they were open.

Potato Powder 01

Even though some of the signage for Shann Xi is still on the booth!

I walked on over and yes indeed they were open.

Potato Powder 02

Though only a few "main" items were available.

Potato Powder 03b

Now, I knew PPLN had locations in both City of Industry and San Gabriel, so I was definitely interested. So, it looked like I'd be getting myself some "love noodle" today for lunch!

I really wanted something "basic"….so I got the "Classic" ($13.99) "slightly spicy", with both the potato and knife cut noodles. It's delivered boiling hot to you in a stone bowl, so the soup stays scorching hot for your entire meal.

Potato Powder 04 Potato Powder 05 As you can see; the bowls are not large, but it is absolutely packed with noodles.

The broth is savory, edging toward salty, on the thinner side, but it was more than just "slightly spicy". And frankly, I kind of enjoyed it.

The potato noodles, more like vermicelli was a bit overcooked and a bit too mushy for my taste.

The knife cut noodles were nice, good pull, nice toothsome-doughy feel.

Potato Powder 06b Potato Powder 07 Didn't care much for the small "rolls" of tough beef, but the shiitake and king oyster mushrooms really add a nice depth of flavor to the soup.

Also enjoyed the addition of quail eggs and tofu skin. And of course, you need your veggies….so there's some bok choi as well.

Potato Powder 08

It's priced right and I'll definitely visit again.

I know that I usually do multiple visits at places that are within a certain price range and fairly close to home but made an exception this time. First off, while I'll return, I'm going to wait until the weather turns cooler….I had some sweat dripping down my brow. So, it'll be a few months before I revisit.

Second, I'm not sure how long this is going to be for, but you get a free drink with your meal…which may be a permanent thing since the SGV shops do that, but all the folks eating received free sausages….fairly good sized sausages today. The nice young lady told me it's for "grand opening", so that makes this a bit time-sensitive, and might entice you to visit.

Potato Powder 09

So that you can get your "noodle-love" or "powdery noodle", or "love noodle", or ???? on!

Potato Powder 04

Potato Powder Love Noodle
5950 Balboa Ave (In the 99 Ranch Market Food Court)
San Diego, CA 92111

Monday Meanderings – Gusto Grocery Italian Market Moving from Bay Ho, La Posta de Acalpuco (Hillcrest) Closes, Ajisen Ramen (Kearny Mesa) Closes, and Other “stuffs”.

August 11, 2025 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers, Mexican Restaurants, Ramen, Taco Shops, yoso-silly

A couple of closures and a move for this Monday……

La Posta de Acalpuco (Hillcrest) Closes:

I noticed lots of upcoming changes in my short walk from where I parked my car during my visit to Makai Sushi. Like this one.

Though one of them caught me by surprise. Looks like La Posta de Acalpuco, like El Cuervo has closed.

Like El Cuervo, this was a place I'd go to every so often when my office was in Hillcrest….though mostly when I'd have to work nights as there wasn't much open late in those days. And much like El Cuervo; I hadn't been back in ages.

Times change and it seems that Hillcrest is in major turnover mode.

I'm sure folks are going to miss what I used to call the "late-early crowd"……which someone once described to me as "Goth's, Grungees, Gays, Gargoyles, and the bar scene from Star Wars!" And another once told me "You know, the food here is okay, but it sure tastes better at 4 am!"

3980 3rd Ave
San Diego, CA 92103

Ajisen Ramen (Kearny Mesa) Closes:

This one was fairly widely announced, but I was shocked at how quickly the signage was gone for Ajisen on Clairemont Mesa.

Which explains why they tried Wagyu Street concept. Was never a big fan of Ajisen, though the late Ed from Yuma enjoyed his visit there in 2017. And of course, ramen-maniacs will always remember the Ajisen soup scandal.

7398 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111

Who you calling a creep ummm, Creap?

On occasion, while shopping, I'll see something that will bring a smile to my face. While looking over the ever changing "treasure hunt" at Nijiya, I cam across this.

I've come across this in Japan before…it's known as being the only "powdered creamer" that uses real milk. But on this day I just read "Foaming Creap"….. I know, silly me….. But I was sorely tempted to buy some for folks and see if they got the pseudo double entendre.

Gusto Grocery Italian Market Moving from Bay Ho:

A week or so back, I needed some Pesto Genovese….for some reason, we've starting enjoying Avocado Toast with a touch of pesto. And yes, in spite of what I learned in Liguria, I just didn't see myself making pesto from scratch for some avocado toast.

So, I decided to head up to Gusto Italian Market, which, since they opened their brick-and-mortar shop in Bay Ho next to Rose Canyon Deli has been a blessing for picking up Italian Staples for us, without having to head into Little Italy. So, I headed on up and arrived at 1030…and strangely, the shop didn't seem open.

So, I walked on over and noticed the door was unlocked so I walked on in. I found all the shelves empty! The nice woman who works there came on out, smiled and explained to me that the grocery was closed and moving to "somewhere north"…… Their online orders were being fulfilled at their warehouse now. Bummer, as I'd been kind of taking this place for granted!

I do wish them luck in their new space; wherever that might be!

4901 Morena Blvd Suite 314
San Diego, CA 92117

L&L Hawaiian Barbecue Opens in Clairemont Town Square

August 10, 2025 mmm-yoso Hawaiian Food, Plate Lunch

So, there I was at Clairemont Town Square….having to get something at Ace Hardware yet again, when I turned and saw that it seemed that the L&L I'd noticed was "coming soon" a couple of weeks ago was open?

So I walked on over.

L&L Clairemont 01

As I approached, the "Open" sign got turned on! Well now; I really hadn't planned on having lunch at 10am and really am not enamored with the "cult of Eddie Flores"….who, if I recall once said in the now defunct Honolulu Weekly, which I've mentioned in an earlier post:

"L&L doesn’t use the term “plate lunch” in its mainland restaurants. Instead the cuisine is called “Hawaiian barbecue.” Flores says that with about 80 L&L restaurants on the mainland today and more than 100 set to open by the end of the year—along with 50 or 60 copycat restaurants with names like Waikiki Hawaiian Barbecue and L&K Hawaiian Barbecue—the words “plate lunch” are on their way out."

“In five to 10 years, we won’t call it plate lunch but Hawaiian barbecue,” he says. “Only old-timers will remember the plate lunch.”

Though, there was a time that I enjoyed L&L. Back when we lived in Rowland Heights, I'd be missing home, that's when the first L&L opened on the mainland in Puente Hills Mall, which I've gone more into detail in this post. It was pretty good for a homesick ex-pat Kama'aina back then; though when I returned to the old neighborhood….well almost a decade ago now…man was the food bad. The place has since closed, but that was my last visit to an L&L. My last visit to an L&L in San Diego was almost a decade ago now, to the location in Campus Plaza, which has also closed. I did try to revisit when I did my "Back to the Beginning" post in 2018, but as I walked in I was overwhelmed with…shall we say, the "fragrance"? I've noted that attempt at the bottom of the post.

Anyway, I think my stance on L&L has softened over the last couple of years. And heck, Eddie Flores now retired is chairman of A Better Chinatown Association trying to revitalize Honolulu's Chinatown.

So I thought, why not and walked on in.

L&L Clairemont 02

Well, it sure has been a long time since I've eaten at an L&L for sure. The last time I ate at the Puente Hills location, the Mini Loco Moco was $7….it's now $14. And check out how much the menu has expanded with stuff like Chicken Adobo?

L&L Clairemont 03

The woman working; whom I'm think is one of the Franchisees was very friendly. I fully intended to get something that you don't see much of here in San Diego…a chicken cutlet….not katsu mind you, but cutlet. The difference being; in "local" terms, a chicken cutlet is basically chicken katsu with gravy. It's a way of ordering from back in those "lunchwagon" times. Heck, I remember when Grace's was a lunchwagon near UH. Ok, enough of that.

Well, just like the way I went off on a tangent above; I got distracted when looking at the menu and ended up being really curious about the Kalua Pork & Lau Lau Plate ($18.75)….I don't remember the last time I had decent Lau Lau in San Diego. So I ended up ordering that. The woman mentioned that the Lau Lau comes from Hawaii…she gets it from the same company that distributes the Hawaiian Sun juices she sells.

While the outdoor tables seemed nicer; I just took a seat at one of the two tops in the small indoor space.

L&L Clairemont 03b

And the nice woman actually brought my order to the table!

L&L Clairemont 04 L&L Clairemont 05 Well, where to start? Check out the rice will you? It was very mushy.

You can tell just be looking at the kalua pork. Super chewy and stringy, lacking in smokiness, overly salty, not good eats. It really needed some of the nice, rich, fattiness of the rendered pork fat mixed back in.

L&L Clairemont 06 L&L Clairemont 07 The mac salad was best item on the plate. Unlike what I've had a few times at L&L's here, this one was the classic; simple, well coated macaroni, some carrots….I think there's a touch of onion, nicely salted, quite refreshing.

But man….well most at least, can't live on mac salad alone. The Lau Lau was kinda pathetic. Of course I didn't expect salt fish, but while the luau leaf was quite tender, the pork was again too lean and chewy; lacking in flavor. For me, this was all about the luau leaf (taro leaves), which kind of says a lot about this lau lau. I'm fairly certain; unless they've really gone downhill, this is worse than the frozen Keoki's I can get at Marukai!

L&L Clairemont 08

This was a bumma! Perhaps I had visited too soon? Nice folks, but I did not enjoy my meal. At this point, well I made my mind up.

Since it's only a few miles up the road, I needed to return….and get what I had intended to in the beginning. So return I did a couple of weeks later. Same nice woman working. I ordered the Mini Chicken Cutlet ($13.25)….who'd have thought, over thirteen bucks for a mini plate?

L&L Clairemont 09 L&L Clairemont 11 As you can see, the rice was much better this time. The mac salad had more mayo and less carrots, but was ok.

I went looking for some Tabasco….a must for me for chicken cutlet, but guess what? No moa! This is a full on Sriracha shop…..

The chicken was on the drier side, but the panko batter was nice and crispy-crunchy. The gravy was smooth and not too gloppy, if overly salty and lacking in other savory components. In fact, the whole thing was a bit sodium heavy for me and had me chugging H2O for the rest of the afternoon.

L&L Clairemont 10 L&L Clairemont 12 Not a bad version, but definitely not "return visit" material.

Kind of a bummer since the only place I really think is decent in the huge mall is probably Main Chick…. I'm sure FOY "ChrisR" is going to find that amusing.

Well, perhaps I will return in a few months….perhaps…..

L&L Hawaiian Barbecue
4705 Clairemont Drive
San Diego, CA 92117

Valle de Guadalupe – Olibaja Olive Oil, a “Return” to Vinícola Retorno, and Dinner at Salvia Blanca

August 9, 2025 mmm-yoso Baja California, Mexico, Beer, Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Seafood, Travel, Wine Bars/Wineries

As we passed vineyards on our drive to Vinos Las Nubes, the Missus and I noticed olive trees being used as windbreaks for the grapes. We asked Isaac if Valle produced olive oil and he mentioned several producers of that product in the area. Now this was something we really didn't know! I guess it seemed that we were quite interested in the olive oil and being ever so proactive, when we returned for our next stop Isaac asked us if we'd like to do a tasting! While we were doing our sampling of the wines at Las Nubes, Isaac called around and found a tasting room open, which we headed to after our tasting, lunch, and tour at Decantos Vinicola.

The producer was Olibaja.

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The young lady who provided our tasting was very sweet and also gave us a short tour of the facilities. She was full of information….the few notes I took mentioned Manzanilla olives…..

The olive oil was slightly fruity, with a hint of bitterness, and quite green in color. The Missus had a great time; you know how much She loves Her olive oil having done tastings in several locales.

We ended up purchasing two bottles of olive oil, which is good for daily use, and a couple of bars of olive oil soap as gifts.

Olibaja
Carretera Principal al Porvenir
B.C., Mexico

And then while we were headed to our last stop, Isaac mentioned that his friend, who brews craft beer was working at a tasting room and if we'd like to visit. We said "of course", he then mentioned that it was at Vinicola Retorno which we had visited on the previous day. When we told him this, he was going to revert back to the previous plans, but we told him that Retorno was our favorite wine stop on our tour of Valle and we'd be glad to return. And thus, we "returned" to Retorno.

And we got in a nice tasting of beer and also a special tasting of something, at that time Retorno was doing as an experiment.

Producing a version of Port Wine. Since our visit to Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia, I've come to appreciate a nice glass of Port. Especially with Blue Cheese, something I learned during our cheese tasting at Le Cheese Geek in Paris.

This was pretty good!

Good enough for me to talk them into buying a bottle. And the Missus got a bottle of Her two favorite whites as well.

In the end, we enjoyed the more casual, warm, and personal atmosphere of Vinícola Retorno. In fact, we'd like to "return to Retorno" again soon!

Vinícola Retorno
Santos Degollado 161
Villa de Juárez, B.C., Mexico

We really enjoyed the friendliness, flexibility, and expertise of the drivers that Aimee coordinated for us. She was such a pleasure to work with and arranged all the initial tastings and lunches.

As for this evening; well, four stops worked just fine for us as part of the goal was to relax as well. Which we did back at Contemplación Hotel.

And knowing we'd be wanting to just "chill", I had dinner reservations at the restaurant in the hotel complex, Salvia Blanca which I mentioned in my previous post. We got a lovely al fresco table.

Which came with it's own special "host". This super sweet and friendly pooch!

I think he must be one of the dogs considered to be "staff" by the hotel. The actual host did come by immediately and asked if he was bothering us…..and of course we told him that we loved the extra attention!

Having had my fill of wine for the day; I started things off with a cerveza.

I guess the restaurant has its own line of beer? This was on the fruity-sweet side; but nice and light as well.

As for the food; well, in keeping with we had been eating in the region; it was seafood heavy.

Starting with the Aguachile Oysters.

Nice and refreshing, upfront citrus, with a hint of spice and pungency. The oyster's true colors comes thru in the finish with a meaty-brininess.

The oysters outshone the Shrimp and Scallop Ceviche.

Which seemed bland in comparison. While the shrimp was tender, the scallops seemed tasteless and the marinating liquid seemed a bit on the lighter side in terms of crisp sourness….it could have been that this was served alongside the oysters.

The one non-seafood item was the Tuetano; bone marrow.

A bit of overkill with slices of beef tataki on it, but this was really good on the blue corn tostadas. Wish the bone marrow was a bit more "jelly-ish", but an interesting range of flavors with the blue corn tostadas, avocado cream, cilantro, and pickled onions. Perhaps a bit over-the-top since I like my bone marrow plain, but an interesting dish overall.

The fish of the day was interesting.

A lot going on here. The skin was nice and crisp, the flesh had a nice sweetness to it but was on the drier side. The "sikil pak", a pepito and tomato based sauce could have used a bit more acidity and spice; but was quite rich. The salsa topping had the nice kick of jalapenos and some garlicky pungency.

Which meant I needed a cocktail as dessert.

Overall a nice meal. We love the atmosphere and the vibe.

The wonderful "host" is a plus!

Salvia Blanca (Contemplación Hotel)
Calle Merlot Parcela 325 Ejido El Porvenir
Francisco Zarco, B.C., Mexico

Since we had spent some time exploring the hotel grounds earlier, we decided to take the road down the hill to Calle Merlot and take a short walk down the dirt road.

We had enjoyed our stay at Contemplación Hotel and really had fun experiencing some of what the Valle de Guadalupe had to offer.

Valle de Guadalupe – Breakfast at Salvia Blanca (Contemplación Hotel), Vinos Las Nubes, and Lunch at Decantos Vinicola

August 8, 2025 mmm-yoso Baja California, Mexico, Breakfast/Brunch, Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Seafood, Travel, Wine Bars/Wineries

We slept well after our dinner at Fauna. The rises early in Valle in June and it's great to wake up to this view in the morning.

It was wonderful to make some coffee and sit out on the lanai and take everything in…..

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So relaxing. Breakfast was included in our stay and the restaurant at Contemplación Hotel (which I briefly covered in this post) named Salvia Blanca. The restaurant doesn't open until 830, so we had time to wander along the various paths and do some additional exploring.

We loved all the little art installations along the pathways.

Which led us to Salvia Blanca.

The restaurant was fairly large with a lovely outdoor dining area.

Things start later in Valle…..we were the only folks having breakfast in the restaurant on this day.

Not being too hungry, the Missus and I split sunny side up eggs, bacon, and beans…..

Which (of course) came with tortillas.

This was a fine breakfast. I had made dinner reservations at Salvia Blanca since I (correctly) thought we'd be having a busy day and would just like to relax for dinner. So you'll be reading more about the place then.

Salvia Blanca (Contemplación Hotel)
Calle Merlot Parcela 325 Ejido El Porvenir
Francisco Zarco, B.C., Mexico

After breakfast, the Missus and I decided to explore more of the hotel grounds before our scheduled pick-up time.

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We started noticing a lot of dog themed art along the way…..like this statue of Kuzco.

We would later see several really well behaved pooches around the offices and Salvia Blanca. We were told when we checked out that they consider these dogs to be "staff members"! How cool is that! Sadly, I did forget to ask about Kuzco. I guess that just gives us reason to return, right?

There's even a lovely little chapel on the grounds.

We returned to our villa to freshen up before our driver arrived….and like clockwork, fifteen minutes before our designated pick up time, he was ready and waiting for us.

Our driver today was Isaac, who was very outgoing and fun. And also very flexible as we'd end up making two detours in the afternoon which was lovely.

Our first stop was Las Nubes Bodegas y Viñedos, which had a beautiful setting on a hillside with a lovely view.

We sat on the lovely patio.

Admiring the view and petting the two lovely pooches…..

While doing our tasting….it doesn't get much better than that, right?

If I recall, the Missus enjoyed the Rose here….

For me, it was all about the view and the pooches….

Las Nubes Bodegas y Viñedos
Callejón Emiliano Zapata, El Porvenir
Francisco Zarco, B.C., Mexico

Our next stop was just a short distance away. Decantos Vinicola also had a pleasant view. We did our tasting on the porch area.

Then were escorted into the restaurant for lunch.

We just wanted something refreshing and light, so we got the Tiradito.

Which was interesting as it included Shiitake Mushrooms! Which gave it a more earthy-savory flavor; tempering down the acidity of the dish. I don't recall what the fish was; but it was fresh and fairly meaty. Of course it came with Tostadas.

We also got a half dozen Oysters.

These were also interesting as it was topped with a melon compote, which added a fruity-refreshing aspect to the briny meatiness of the oysters. Quite an interesting combination to say the least.

After lunch, we were met by a very friendly young lady who took us on a tour of the wine making facilities. The pathway was artistically set-up….you just follow the barrels.