mmm-yoso – Page 379 – 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.

E & Drink- mini Hot Pot, Tea, Coffee and More- inside the 99Ranch building

July 2, 2012 Cathy Caffeine Fix, Taiwanese Food and Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

E & Drink has closed

Click here to link to a more recent visit

Hi. You've found mmm-yoso!!! the food blog. Kirk, ed(from Yuma) and Cathy usually write about food and things related to food. Today's post is about food and Cathy is writing because Kirk and ed(from Yuma) are busy.

This is the Clairmont Mesa Boulevard entrance to 99Ranch Market. The 'back' parking area is closer for me, since I exit from the 52 at Convoy Street, but the other day I decided to get out of my comfort zone and did things a bit differently. The fountain, with its oxidation, is quite beautiful.

99Ranch Market has undergone renovations recently and is a regular stop for groceries (and, like most other markets The Mister and I frequent, has an eat in area-there will be an updated post soon). Once inside the building, you are in a long hallway which has several businesses along with the Market. Three of those businesses are are sit down restaurants.

Yes, three. At the North end ('my' parking lot entrance), across from Sam Woo in the former Video Store space, E & Drink has popped up.

The Mister and I had passed E & Drink several times in the past two weeks, checking out the menu at the entrance and making mental notes to stop in. They seem to specialize in Taiwanese Hot Pot and boba-like drinks and snacks. It finally was time. (See that orange rice cooker in the above photo? Tea eggs are being sold for $1 as a grab and go snack.)

Once we were seated, we were given both a beverage menu and a food menu. The lady behind this counter is making beverages. I like the idea of a dual level additional seating bar area. There are about 20 two person tables that can be reconfigured for groups in the rest of the eating area.

The decoration is modern, with one television and overhead music, which was on pretty loud until someone complained. We were here at lunch, but the menu remains the same all day with one small difference.

The Hot Pot Lunch Special includes green or black tea (hot or cold); no beverage is included with the Hot Pot Dinner. That's the black tea on the right. It is slightly sweet and has a nice tannin 'bite' to it. I did not order the Lunch Special, so no beverage came with and ordered my usual, (because I can't decide) a coffee milk tea ($3.55). The beverage selection is extensive and I have plans to try other items. Add-ins, like boba and sago are 25¢ and I think the prices are reasonable, especially for the size. The coffee milk tea tastes of all three flavors-very refreshing.

When we first sat down, two small plates of a sort of appetizer were brought out- cucumbers and cabbage, both lightly pickled. A nice salty accompaniment which we 'saved' to use with our meals; there are no condiments on the tables. Our utensils, small plate and napkin were also brought out.

We had also decided to try a tea egg appetizer ($2.50 for two)

This was really good. The egg white took on the flavors of anise/five spice and the egg yolk took on the tea flavor. (As a side note, the eggs in the rice cooker at the entrance are in there longer and have more flavor that the ones from the kitchen, at least if you come in to eat closer to opening time. In any case, all are good.)

Since The Mister had ordered a Hot pot, he was given a choice of five sauces to go with and chose the peanut and the spicy bean sauces (the ones he did not choose were soy, hot chili and bar-b-que sauce). Not knowing what was in his pot, he added on a side of cuttlefish dumplings for $2.25. Below is the menu page of add- ons for the Hot Pots.

Oh. His hot pot?

The seafood. Served in a mini wok on top of a nice stand which held a sort of sterno heat source which was lighted at the table, this didn't need any add ins and in fact, the dumplings could not be added in right away because the pot was filled. There were several pieces of a flaky white fish, some squid rings, two head on shrimp, fresh tofu, several types of mushrooms, fish cake, krab and an egg along with broccoli and bok choy. All in a very rich seafood broth which was not salty. There were also clear rice noodles on the bottom of the pot AND a choice of rice or noodles came with the pot. (The Mister chose the (very good) sticky rice) .

At first, I was going to try a few items from the "Small Dish" menu, then at the bottom, I saw the "E & Drink House Special" and had to for this first visit.

Quite a large serving of marinated pigs ears, marinated tofu, marinated seaweed and (raw) peanuts.($7.99) Wonderful! The marinade had sesame oil as well as the traditional marinade which includes cinnamon, anise, soy, pepper and garlic. This was a wonderful combination of flavors, a very large portion and in combination with the hot pot, a *lot* of food.

We will be back- to try other hot pots (there were about ten to choose from) and some of the fried items…

E & Drink 7330 Clairmont Mesa Boulevard San Diego 92111 *Cash Only* open 10:30 a.m.-midnight, seven days

COMC: Chinese Breakfast at Chin’s Miramar

July 1, 2012 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Chinese Restaurants

**** This location of Chin's has closed

I realize that my last two posts were pretty wordy, combing for almost 3000 words….a bit too much. So I decided that it was time for a COMC (Clearing out the memory card) post.

Just about all photos here. Since Ba Ren closed, this is just about the only place we go to for Chinese in San Diego. Not always the best, but I do enjoy several dishes on the breakfast menu…..not a real big fan of dinner, though. One thing that's really nice for folks who were worried about having to deal with a Chinese only menu….which for me is a non-issue since most folks here are nice and helpful. They now have a handy dandy photo based menu…….

For more info, I guess you can read my previous posts, including the stuff from way back in 2006.

Only photos from here……..

Chin's Seafood & Grill
9355 Kearny Mesa Rd
San Diego, CA 92126

Breakfast from 930am to 230pm Saturday and Sunday

Tunis: Restaurant Le Caire, what is Zgougou and does it belong in ice cream, and morning in Tunis.

June 30, 2012 mmm-yoso Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt, North African Food, Travel, Tunisia, Tunisian Food, yoso-silly

It was quite a scene, Avenue Habib Bourgiba……the Missus was taking a rest, as I wandered back out to pick up some "eau de mineral….no gas", that would be bottled water. On the map, there are streets perpendicular to Habib Bourgiba, but many of them are almost alleyways. Right around the corner from the Hotel Carlton was one of them Rue de Caire. On these sidestreets there are tons of restaurants and one of them is Restaurant le Caire. Not in the mood for more busy places, this tiny restaurant close to the hotel, not too busy, away from the crowd on the street, was where we decided to grab something to eat.

The restaurant had a couple of tables filled, it seems by locals or Tunisian tourists…..not much French being spoken, they were ordering in Arabic. Looking at the menu, this appeared to be Sfaxian as well. The guy running the place was really friendly and as soon we sat he brought out a tray with "today's catch".

We placed our order based on what we saw…..funny thing was, later during our meal, the plate was brought out to the table next to us and it looked like exactly the same seafood, in exactly the same position on the plate was brought out. I'm guessing these were the "stunt" fish….used for ordering purposes.

Soon enough the bread and Harissa was brought out.

This was a bit better than lunch, with a mild garlic taste, but still rather monotone in taste.

The Missus had also ordered a salad, I thought it was mechouia, but She had ordered Salade Tunisienne….which kind of freaked Her out when it arrived with what looked like canned tuna topping it.

The Missus hate canned tuna. In fact, there's only one brand I eat, She must dramatically leave the room! So I knew this was going to be interesting….well, there's not only one brand of tuna I eat, I do enjoy many of the Spanish, Italian, and French labels of canned tuna, but sheesh, they cost an arm and a leg. I knew this was mediterranean tuna, so I told the Missus, "I think it's worth a try." Not the best, but the Missus thought it not bad. She did enjoy the ripe tomatoes, diced cucumbers, olives, with just some olive oil and lemon.

I also wanted to finally try some brik, basically a very thin pastry called warka, thinner than even filo, filled with a raw egg and a variation of other items, tuna, onions, harissa, capers, etc…..

Some places will even ask you how you want your egg done………

It's deep fried to a golden crispness, when done well it's wonderfully crisp and light, and the magic happens when you cut it open.

The Missus didn't care much for the tuna in this and though I enjoyed it at the time, it would pale in comparison to versions we would have later on.

My grilled fish tasted fresh, was grilled nicely, the skin nice and crisp, flesh moist, but again was lacking in salt.

It was better than what we had for lunch though. The frites were the typical soggy and dry version we had earlier. I was also served a plate of very bland and over-cooked rice. Now I'm from Hawaii where we joke that every meal should come with "three carbs"….well considering the big basket of bread, the fries, and the big plate of rice……..what can I say?

The Missus again ordered crevettes grille – grilled shrimp.

These shrimp were nice and sweet, just a tad overcooked, but not bad. The only complaint…..yeah, you got it, lacking in seasoning! Of course it came with frites as well as a huge plate of overcooked, bleh pasta. We were to find out later that folks really cooked their pasta to death because it was thought to help "digestion"!

As we left the restaurant, darkness had fallen on Tunis. The demographic on the street had changed….the young men were still drinking coffee, now joined by older men, but the women who were seen out and about shopping or eating ice cream were gone.

The Missus decided that She wanted to try some ice cream, which along with various pastries seemed to be very popular. Right next to the hotel was a little shop wher the Missus got a two scoops and we sat in the now empty table across from the shop. The top scoop was a delicious pistachio flavor. The bottom scoop tasted very odd, not necessarily sweet, but strangely familiar. Turns out the Missus had selected zgouguo as Her other flavor. Zgougou is a Tunisian dessert based on nuts from the aleppo pine.

Tunisia is a Muslim country. All the women and young women we had seen with respect to what folks wear here in San Diego dress rather modestly, from those who are covered from head to tow completely in black, with even eyes covered, to those in jeans and blouses. So we were rather shocked to see two women get out of a cab in very mini-mini skirts and walk to a blackened out and partitioned doorway next to the hotel. I could only draw one conclusion…….which the Missus didn't believe. Hmm…….

The next morning we got up bright and early. Breakfast wasn't ready yet so the Missus and I decided to take a look around. As we entered the lobby of the hotel I could hear a woman yelling at someone….now this was at 5 in the morning! The guy in the lobby saw us, sheepishly smiled and told us in English, "no worry, some friends make joke with each other!" As we stepped out of the hotel we saw one of the women from the night before, now dressed with a nice shiner around her eye in addition to her mini-skirt. Must have been one heck of a joke. I looked at the Missus and told Her, "really now….you don't believe me?" And was dismissed with a wave.

This is Rue de Caire in the morning. I walked up and took a photo of the restaurant. We'd find a multi-floor shopping mall near the end of the street with a Monoprix Supermarket in it later in the day. Great place to pick up water and other items.

The streets were empty and it made for a nice walk.

Here's another photo of the Cathedral of St Vincent de Paul.

This is Bab el Bahr also known as Porte de France.

Bab el Bahr means "sea gate" and before the French arrived this gate opened from the Medina to a path to a lagoon. The French built the European part of the city outside of it and destroyed the walls of the medina. They called this the Porte de France a dividing point between the Old and European sides of the city.

It was nice to able to walk around crossing the street without having your head on a swivel.

Tunis: The Central Market and Restaurant Abid

June 28, 2012 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers, North African Food, Seafood, Travel, Tunisia, Tunisian Food

How did we end up in Tunis? Well, it's kind of a long story….in the beginning, during the planning stages things just happened as they always do. The Missus starts planning for our next trip just about as soon as we return from our last vacation. But this time we had a short interlude as we travelled back to Hawaii. This put our plans, at that time it was Rome/Morroco into kind of a holding pattern. By the time things started up again it was late February. I felt our time in Istanbul was basically unfinished business and the price of a round trip from San Diego was rather reasonable…so I booked it. Then one day the Missus asked me about Tunisia….she had never heard of the country, you believe that? I guess it's one of the benefits of an education in a Communist country. Thinking it over, I thought it was a great idea, there was so much history in Tunisia, after all historic Carthage was there…."home of Hannibal" I told the Missus. To which She replied, "you mean the cannibal?" Sigh…..there was much talk and planning after that, but the result was us flying from Istanbul to Carthage-Tunis airport. I'd read a good bit about the taxi cons at the airport….which turned out to be pretty true. We were met just outside the arrival hall by a nice young man who asked us if we needed a taxi. I asked him if he was the driver, he said yes and led us to a taxi, immediately grabbing the Missus' bag. We got to the taxi stand, one guy opened the trunk, he opened the door, and a third guy came out…the real driver. You can pretty much figure out what was going on here, right? Everybody had their hand out, one for leading us to the taxi, the dude for opening the trunk, and the driver wanted to charge us 40 dinars, about $25 bucks for the drive into Tunis, which would cost about 5-10 dinars. Anyway, we got him down to 10 dinars and got our ride to the center of Tunis, right smack in the middle of Avenue Habib Bourgiba, the main drag. We quickly noticed that there wasn't much English going on and the folks at the front desk of the hotel really wanted nothing to do with us. The room was cheap, the location great, the supposedly in room wi-fi was only really good from the balcony of the hotel restaurant, which only served breakfast……we snuck in whenever we wanted to check our email and stuff.

After a quick shower we headed out to crowded Habib Bourgibat o find some lunch. One thing we quickly noticed was how friendly people were…….from the touts that wanted us to have coffee at one of the many shops to groups of young men on the street, trying to guess where we were from…"konnichiwa", "ni hao"….whenever we'd answer with hello, they'd look at us funny. i'm sure many of these had some racket going on, but it was all in fun. It was warm, but there was a slight breeze, a warm breeze. Using what we'd soon find out was a pretty outdated map, I searched for the restaurant…..we were pretty bushed. All in vain….nice folks tried to help us, but I really knew only three words in French, the second language in Tunisia…well, I actually knew a bunch of stuff when it came to food, but other than that it was mostly, "bonjour", "merci" and "pardon"……I milked it for all I could. After walking all almost all the way down Habib Bourgiba past the Clock Tower….it seemed like the restaurant and the address I was looking for didn't exist?

It seemed like we were throwing our lives to the wind crossing the street….which was somewhat intimidating until we got used to things. It seems like there are no driving laws in Tunisia…..only suggestions. If you thought crossing the street in Vietnam was tough….try it with a zillion yellow cabs flying around you.

We ended up turning around and walking all the way back down in the opposite direction. We were surprised to find a large cathedral right on Habib Bourgiba….the Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul….very photogenic. Here's a photo from the next morning.

In maps the street sure seemed long….but it was not too long of a walk. The masses of people made things seem congested and it was getting much hotter. The Missus thought the Central Market was close by and She stopped and asked a bunch of guys standing around….there were many groups of men standing about and drinking coffee at like 1 in the afternoon! None of them spoke English, but they really tried hard and we finally got pointed in the right direction when I said, "Rue de Charles de Gaulle". And after passing mobs of folks and merchants with open boxes of stuff on the street, we made it into the market……

I was rather surprised at the huge amount of seafood being sold……..

There was a booth where three guys were hacking away at a huge tuna….wasn't bluefin, though. I was later told that all the premium fishes go straight to Japan.

It was much less crowded inside the market than the streets outside. It gave us some time to figure out where we wanted to eat next.

After deciding our next attempt at finding something a place for lunch. We walked back into the now fairly hot street and the crowds. We found Habib Bourgiba again and headed back in the direction we came….we'd traveled enough and knew how disorienting things can be your first day in a large city in a foreign country..but when I almost ran smack into barbed wire and the guy holding a machine gun in front of the Interior Ministry, the Missus had starting getting a bit frazzled. Remember, Tunisia had just gone through a revolution a bit over a year ago…..folks I'd spoken to thought us a bit crazy to be coming here….unjustifiably so. So anyway, we crossed the street and crossed back, found the sign for Rue de Turque and started looking for the street parallel to Habib Bourgiba called Rue de Yougoslavie and wasn't able to find it. We kept walking unitl it just seemed too far. Spoke to a couple of folks who had no idea where Rue de Yougoslavie was. As we headed back to Habib Bourgiba I saw it. Apparently, Rue de Yougoslavie no longer exists…..the street sign on the side of the building with the name was blacked out with paint and it was now called something else! The street was actually just a block away from the main street! It was then a short walk to our destination, Restaurant Abid, which had been described to me as a place where the locals ate Sfaxian influenced dishes…seafood. Sfaxian cuisine was also supposed to be quite spicy as well.

It looked kind of as advertised, very clean, all local customers, and very inexpensive. The guy running the place…..who I think is Abid, a large jovial man, who reminded me of John Rhys Davies character in Indiana Jones spoke good English and greeted us with a booming "WELCOME, WELCOME! Thanks Gods you come here….."

We were starved and were excited to try some Tunisian dishes for the first time. We were given a small plate of the standard condiment, harissa, basically a chili paste/sauce. The version from Sfax is supposed to be really spicy and we were warned when it reached the table.

I'm guessing you're not supposed to be able to tolerate the stuff plain and the dude almost had a dyspeptic fit when the Missus and I each took a small taste……it was slightly spicy, heat, but nothing else…..other than being a bit spicy it was pretty plain. The bread we had cut it even more….

The fish soup was very fishy and the Missus couldn't handle it.

I was really excited to try mechouia, the classic "salad" of roasted peppers.

I expected smokiness, maybe some garlic and herbs….fruitiness from the olive oil, but this was pretty bland and seriously lacking in salt.

At least I really enjoyed my merguez. The sausage had been deep fried, which really crisped up the natural casing. The sausage was slightly gamey with some mild spice.

I never had frites that I enjoyed in Tunisia until the day we left. These were limp, soggy, and kinda dry…..but that's the way they were just about everywhere.

The Missus ordered the crevettes grille – grilled shrimp.

One thing you quickly notice. The shrimp aren't all the same size, which for us is a good sign….it means it's not obviously farmed raised. Unfortunately, the shrimp were cooked to death and like most everything else lacking in seasoning….it was just strangely bland.

Not quite the first meal we had planned, but hey, the place was super clean, and the meal cost us about the equivalent of $13 US!

We had regrouped during our meal and settled down. Our bearing were much better as we headed back to our room. The Missus wanted to have something sweet for dessert……since Habib Bourgiba is considered the Champs-Élysées of Tunisia, why not stop at the cafe of the same name. We managed to place our order in the crowded cafe and actually found an open table, no mean feat at that time.

It was here that I got my first taste of the coffee in Tunisia, which wasn't overly strong, but just smooth enough for my taste. This would be the first of many cups of "cafe express" (espresso) for me.

We really took notice of the crowds drinking coffee in these cafes, overwhelmingly male, aged from 18 to maybe late twenties. We'd see these guys drinking coffee all day. I really came to appreciate the Cafe Culture, but on the other hand, shouldn't all these young men be working? It really doesn't bode well for Tunis to have all of these seemingly well educated, well dressed young men who should be on their way to starting careers to be wasting their post college days in cafes all day long. Hopefully things will improve in the future…….

Midweek Meanderings: Just Open or Opening Soon – Red Moon Noodle House, Sushi Bar Kazumi is back, Kogi BBQ, Ramen Yamadaya

June 27, 2012 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

Man, I go on vacation for a month and the entire Clairemont food scene changes…..just kidding! Here are a couple of recently opened or soon to open places in the Clairemont/Convoy/Kearney Mesa area.

Red Moon Noodle House:

Man, I didn't even hear about this one! One of my favorite FOYs (Friend of Yoso), "Yummy Yummy" told me about this shop. It's in the former location of Morning Glory, next to Tofu House and Yogurt World. Hours seem kind of funny, they skip lunch and open at 3pm….maybe that's only during the grand opening period? Anyone checked this place out yet?

4646 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Remember Sushi Bar Kazumi in Hillcrest?:

I'd heard rumors that Kazumi was looking for a new spot around Convoy after closing his shop which was a fixture in Hillcrest. Did you know that the original Kazumi was on Engineer Road where Sushi Yaro is currently? Anyway, I was a bit surprised to see that he reopened located in, ahem Moby Dick Fish Market and Grill, which I mentioned here.

I've heard that pretty good things about the food being served here and I used to go to Kazumi in Hillcrest when I was doing consulting work here in the late 90's……so I guess I need to check them out soon. Being that the place is owned by the guy who used to own Convoy Sushi and Fish Market
and North Park Sushi and Fish Market, I'm pretty sure the prices will be fairly reasonable.

4805 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 9211

Is it really Kogi BBQ?:

Or does the owner have to look out for a lawsuit from Roy Choi? This one was mentioned to me by MrZ.

This is the former Suzuya location next to Mama Jamaica's and Oton. I guess since it's a Korean BBQ, the change over was pretty quick.

5447 Kearny Villa Rd
San Diego, CA 92123

Actually, I was alerted to another opening by MrsZ, but didn't have time to take photos. Apple Korean Restaurant has opened next to Chopstix on Convoy. Sorry MrsZ, i promise you equal time and billing next time!

Ramen Yamadaya opening on 07/25:

As mentioned by Dennis in his post. By the way, happy four year Bloggversary Dennis! I saw the sign when I dropped by Best Donuts for a sandwich.

I was actually surprised that Big Fish Grill lasted so long. I heard from a very reliable source that the folks took out all the fixtures and equipment in the middle of the night and just bailed on the place…….wow…. I was also told that this happens more often that folks would think.

On the good side….I can't wait to get me some good tonkotsu ramen with an extra dose of garlic from Yamadaya!

4706 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

There is another "new" place very close by…..I just haven't had the time to check them out. My friend who is an active participant on Chinese message boards say the results have not been positive.

Anyone been????

Easy Roasted Eggplant with Tomato and Greek Yogurt

June 26, 2012 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

Well, it doesn't get much easier than this………

I was looking at the cover of Yotam Ottolenghi's fantastic cookbook, Plenty. And that eggplant dish on the cover looked really good. I'd had some success with other recipes in the book, so I thought I'd use his method for roasting the eggplant in the oven. I set the oven at 400. I had four medium small eggplant and cut them down the center. I then scored them, making sure not to cut all the way through the skin of the eggplant. I then placed the eggplant cut side up on parchment paper, brushed the slices with about a half cup of extra virgin olive oil, seasoned them with sea salt, pepper, and about a half teaspoon of dried oregano.

Roasted at 400 for about 40 minutes gave me this.

These were allowed to cool down completely and were then put away for the next day.

The recipe in the book uses lemon thyme in addition to the salt and pepper and tops with pomegranate and a buttermilk-yogurt sauce. I went with mixing a half cup of yogurt with two cloves of garlic confit. I topped with diced tomato and a good quality extra virgin olive oil. A slice of lemon provided the possibility of a bit more of an acid punch.

Doesn't get much easier than this……..

Fusion or Con-fusion Part 1: fuze restaurant & lounge

June 25, 2012 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Korean Restaurants

*** Update: This place has closed

I'd gotten a couple of recommendations for this place, but really hadn't given it much thought. The menu seemed, well bulgogi sliders and kalbi tacos, it just smacked of a fad-following restaurant. Heck, I really never bought into the food truck thing (has anyone seen Roy Choi actually in one of his trucks recently?)….I mean, I love loncheras and all, but most of them seemed more hype than hope. So I really didn't get too excited when a couple of places opened up selling kalbi tacos and such. Still, after reading FOY (Friend of Yoso) and super food blogger Kirbie's post on fuze (yep, that's how they spell it….little 'f'), I thought why not? Heck, I'd even make it a twosome and do a second part on the other place that folks had mentioned to me……"Jiggle Jiggle". After all, I can claim to have eaten kalbi tacos back in the late 90's….of course, it was Alan Wong making those tacos……

If I recall, this place used to be Mr Wasabi, right?

The interior is still rather spartan.

There was no one around when I first visited and the young man was very nice. In fact, on both visits I thought the service was decent and the guys quite friendly. The menu seems an amalgamation of straight ahead dishes Kalbi Jjim, Pajun, and Kimchi Jjigae. Combined with some fusion-ny dishes, Fuze Pajun, Bulgogi Philly Cheesesteak, Dduk Bok ki?

I decided to start things out with the "Fuze Pajun"($7.95), supposedly a riff on the traditional Korean savory pancake.

Overall, a mixed bag. The mayo, katsuobushi(bonito flakes), and sauce made this seem more like okonomiyaki, which suites me fine, since okonomi pretty much means "as you like it". The pancake itself could have been browned a bit more, it was pretty gummy. I believe there were three shrimp in the whole thing….but in a really gutsy move, this was a pretty sneaky pajun/okonomiyaki. There were strips of roasted jalapeno in it, giving it a bit of a sneaky heat….you never knew what you'd be getting in your next bite.

I also ordered the Kalbi Tacos ($7.95).

So, of course the first thing I did was fish out the kalbi to see how it tasted. It actually had some flavor….what we in Hawaii call "local kalbi", more sweet and closer to teriyaki than kalbi. Of course at this price point it was "LA Kalbi", cross cut beef ribs and on the tough side.

Didn't care much for the tortillas which were I believe were white corn. They had been either grilled and griddled, but with no fat attaining a rather dried cardboard like texture. The kochujong based aioli was mild, but did no harm, ditto the tasteless and toothpaste textured guacamole.

The fact of the matter was that I could still taste the kalbi, even though there didn't seem to be much of it present.

The cabbage provided what I thought to be a decent counter-point.

The meal turned out to be decent….enough so, that I decided to return, just to see…..

On this visit I went with the dish that Kirbie enjoyed the most, the Bulgogi Sliders ($9.95). Just a word of warning; if you're expecting a meat-fest, this ain't it. The sliders are two (or perhaps even one for some of you out there) bite deals. The amount of fries dwarfs them……

But I'll tell you what, the beef is very tender……still tending to the sweeter side, but very tasty. The scallions add a very mild pungency, the aioli, well, I could just do with a good mayo. The rolls are typical store bought deals and ended up getting kinda soggy.

If I were to have this again (and I very well may), I'd tell them to pass on the crumbled dry herbs…I believe it's thyme, which just adds to much to the flavor of some perfectly decent natural fries. As for the ten buck price tag….I'll let you decide on that one.

Speaking of price tag, I also could not resist ordering the Chicken Wings ($8.95), the sweet and spicy version.

Well, let's just say, Kyochon this ain't…though at over a buck a wing (8), they sure are charging that way! Heck, this ain't even the napalm like wings from BBQ Chicken. Compared to those two….this would be, well, almost bland. The batter was also a bit less crunchy than I would have desired. It seemed dipped into sweet chili sauce with a bit too much sesame oil for my taste.

Overall, my impression of fuze is a fairly positive one. I didn't expect haute, or even great food, but a couple of the items were fairly good.

The kalbi may be beat suited for tacos because it is on the tougher side, though I may want to just have the bulgogi straight up. The young men were quite nice…..but of course my meals were during slow periods, but they seemed like pleasant guys.

So fusion or confusion? One thing I'm pretty sure of, the person heading up the kitchen can cook, though I'm thinking some of the dishes were kind of "just thought up". The price point for lunch may be high, but if you're having drinks and pub grub this might do the trick.

fuze restaurant and lounge
9379 Mira Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92126

Hours:
Monday – Friday: 11am – 11pm
Sat – Sunday: 11am – midnight

You can also check out Mary's post here.

Stay tuned for part 2…..do I giggle giggle at Jiggle Jiggle!

The 2012 San Diego County Fair: Part One

June 24, 2012 Cathy Festivals & Events, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about food. Sometimes the bloggings consist of events surrounding food, whether the purchasing and preparation, the adventure of getting to the city, county or country serving the food, or the exploration of the surroundings of where the food is served, Kirk, ed(from Yuma) and Cathy try to write about the background and history of the meals blogged about. Today, Cathy is blogging.

Hello again. Usually I post about the San Diego County Fair before it opens. This year, I thought I'd change it up. Also, I was at the Fairgrounds before most booths were set up.

As an example, here is a photo straight down the Midway: the Ferris Wheel wasn't even set up yet.

However, Chicken Charlie had his booth constructed….

That day, the Home and Hobby Competitive Exhibits were being judged…

Preserved Foods, the "heart" of the Fair, had a lot of entries this year. Above are some pickles being judged.

There are many Craft categories and competition is plentiful. So many entries.

As well as the Felting, Spinning and Weaving competitions.

The Quilting competition has many categories which always have many beautiful entries.

So. The Mister and I did go to the Fair for the first time this year one morning before the fog had lifted (yay June Gloom!). The Theme this year is "Out of this World". You can see Don Diego (above) dressed in a sort of astronaut suit.

It was busy that morning. You can see the Ferris Wheel all the way at the end of the Midway…

To the left of the entrance are the various Flower and Garden Show entries. Above, you can see some decorations incorporating the Fair Theme.

Other competitors made use of unusual plants which looked to be "Out of This World"

Other competitors use plants as well as all of the space given to share a vision of the Theme.

The Gems, Mineral and Jewelery exhibits are fascinating, as always.

Design in Wood always has beautiful items.

One local High School has an Instructor who supervised the students to create basic weapons-and enter them in the Fair. These are sling shots, trebuchets, catapults and marshmallow shooters entered by one class…

The Home and Hobby displays all the competitors, with their respective awards, ready on opening day.

The Preserved Food and Liquer competitors are also displayed with their respective awards.

The quilts are displayed all around the second floor of Home and Hobby.

Along with all the Collections…

This is a collection Started after June 1 last year. It is Max's fur brushed from him and formed into a cute display. This entry won a few prizes.

OK. The food at the Fair. This is a preview of some of the offerings- you can choose what you'd like to eat if you are there.

The Bacon A Fair booth is selling a 2 pound turkey leg wrapped with one pound of bacon. Yes, people are buying it.

If you walk over the Race Track, to the infield, where the Children's rides, games and a new Zip Line are located-go to the left.

The Lobster Shack, a new vendor, is here. Look to the right in the above photo.

Those two beautiful copper pots are filled with water and on top of a huge stove/heat source. You can see the basket to the left being filled with live lobsters.

A whole lobster dinner is $25. There is a person who will crack and 'start' your lobster for you. There are also other offerings for a bit less (lobster roll sandwich is $17) and those prices are not bad for this kind of fresh made meal.

However, this is the County Fair, so the once a year offerings are plentiful..

…along with the creative booths. As far as what The Mister and I ate on this visit?

My usual. An artichoke sandwich ($9, with $1 avocado added-$10, includes tax and the salad)

This is what I get every year. The roll- a hearty slightly crunchy, toasted wheat roll with melted cheese, olives, sprouts, the avocado, tomato and plain (not marinated) artichokes. It's just perfect.

This day, The Mister and I got all wild and crazy and spent $3.50 (instead of $3 for a single flavor whichis also a bit smaller) on a Neopolitan cream puff. Chocolate, strawberry and vanilla whipped cream (the strawberry is nice, not artificial flavor) on a fresh made (we got to the booth before the puff pastry was finished baking that morning) flaky light puff pastry roll.

Oh, there are rides and a lot more I haven't shown. This is the San Diego County Fair, 2012 edition.

Here's the back side of the Entrance- a cute Exit sign for this year. We'll be back. There is a lot more that goes on at the 5th largest County Fair in the U.S.A.

San Diego County Fair Website. There are so many daily contests and events (This weekend is Beer Fest; July 2 will have Food Trucks on the infield) and also many ways to get disounted tickets. If you live here, you've seen ads since the beginning of May-Much more publicity this year. Go. Enjoy!

Istanbul: Asmali Cavit

June 23, 2012 mmm-yoso Istanbul, Travel, Turkey, Turkish Food

One of the things I most regretted about our previous visit to Istanbul was that we were unable to visit a Meyhane, what we would basically call a "tavern". Where small plates are served with the Turkish national spirit, the anise flavored drink called raki.

I wanted to rectify that omission and did a bit of research before we left. We also missed out on visiting the Beyoğlu area, which is considered by many to be the heart of modern Istanbul. Beyoğlu would probably be more familiar to folks like Ed from Yuma and the Greeks as "Pera". As I mentioned before, getting around Istanbul using public transportation is a snap. We simply took the tram to the last stop Kabataş, then the funicular up to Taksim Square.

Now just about every large city in Peru has Plaza de Armas, New York has Times Square, San Francisco, Union Square……Istanbul has Taksim Square, which seemed to be wall to wall people when we walked up the stairs to sunlight. There was also some large rally going on as well.

So we headed off down historical İstiklal Caddesi, once known as "Grande Rue de Péra". There are supposedly tons of historic buildings, many of which represented many different styles, from Neo-Classical to Art Deco. But the pedestrian street was just packed to the gills with people….and I mean just totally packed that we felt like little fish in a giant school being pushed along.

So while we did manage to take in some interesting sites, we just kinda pushed along until nearly reaching the end of the avenue and a cross street named Asmalimescit.

The side streets seemed like little peaceful oasis from the crowded avenue, though the masses had started to dwindle near the end. On this street was a meyhane mentioned by the New York Times and other sources named Asmali Cavit.

The place was empty except for one rather raucous raki fueled party when we arrived. We appeared a bit early, but the very nice gentleman running the place led us to the counter where all the mezes were to start us out. It seems that in spite of the menu, most folks here know what they want upon arrival…..something we saw several times as folks arrived when we were leaving.

A lot of stuff was not available and we'd had quite a large lunch. We stuck with some mezes and the guy behind the counter recommended the shrimp…….

Of course I recognized the "standards"….the saksuka was not my favorite, fairly bland. The ezme was smokey and spicy, with a nice touch of tangy and pungent flavors. The pickled items were nice and refreshing. The patlican saltasi, the eggplant puree, was smokey and delicious. The shrimp wasn't anything to write home about….I think the guy serving us were worried that our palates might not survive anything particularly challenging.

All the dishes were decent renditions, but we weren't wowed by them. I'm not a big fan of anise flavored spirits, but I took to raki….of course the more I drank, the more I enjoyed! Turkish raki is closer to ouzo than Greek raki (tsipouro/tsikoudia). Overall, a decent meal, with prices much lower than the old town.

After finishing our dinner, we headed back to Istikal Caddesi. By now the crowds had dwindled.

We decided to catch the vintage tram back up to Taksim Square and head back down that way. But when the tram stopped, it went out of operation. The conductor came out and announced something….one of the folks waiting saw us and very proudly announced in English, "there is big meeting….BEEEEG MEETING, track blocked, tram cannot go!" You know, folks here are really great. I'm guessing that the rally we saw earlier had gone into full demonstration mode and the tracks were blocked. Anyway, it's not something we wanted to get mixed up in. Instead we caught the Tünel (Tunnel), next to the London Underground, the second oldest underground rail line in the world.

It a very short trip just 600 yards or so.

Instead of catching the tram back to Sultanahmet we decided to walk back, which was the right choice as we got the chance to take in the sunset on the Galata Bridge which is where I took the first photo of the "Where the heck are we" post.

It gave us a chance to take in a nice evening.

While the "balik" (fish sandwich) boats were doing great business, the Spice Market was closing up shop for the day.

We stopped the Missus's favorite place in Sultanahmet Park to take in the Blue Mosque……

While we chatting about the next morning and our flight to Tunis.

Thanks for reading!

K Sandwiches- more than sandwiches

June 21, 2012 Cathy Bakery, Banh Mi, Caffeine Fix, Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is the Food Blog you have stumbled upon. Kirk and ed(from Yuma) are not blogging today, for various reasons. Cathy has no reason to not be blogging.

If you go to the "Search" box at the top left column of this blog and put in "K Sandwiches", you'll get 2600 links to mentions of it on this blog. Between all of us blogging here, we haven't even written 2000 posts yet. Apparently we at mm-yoso!!! post about it, or places near it, using this former Bank Building on the intersection of Convoy where it turns into Linda Vista and Mesa College Drive where it turns into Aero Drive as a Point of Reference/Landmark as well as posting about the food here.

The parking lot is not this empty very often; such emptiness is unusual.

Inside, there is a small area with fresh baked breads, rolls and croissants.

As well as a "steam tray" area, with rice paper rolls and various other savory choices.

There is also a small area of fresh made dessert items(I don't have a photo, but there is Vietnamese yogurt here; it is different and very good).

Here is a view of the cash registers from a table against the wall. You order (the menu is just behind and above the cash register area-straight ahead when you walk in) and/or pay for items you have picked up. The steam tray and all the other above photographed area is just on the other side of the registers.

This is Sandwich #25- tuna salad ($3.99). The simple tuna and mayonnaise mix is spread on the fresh baked large croissant and filled with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles and pickled jalapeños.

One day we picked up (from left) two shrimp cakes (50¢ each), a pate chaud ($1) the shrimp spring rolls ($2.50)and two eggrolls ($1). All fresh, light and crispy and filled with the corresponding meats.

Our latest 'must get' is from the steam trays- the chicken curry ($4.99). When you get it to 'eat here', it is served in this glass pie plate. The chicken is tender, and the curry sauce is fascinating- coconut milk is definitely part of the base, along with those chilis you see in the photo…and it is served with a fresh, hot, crispy roll. Lately, we make sure we get here before noon, so the curry won't be gone for the day.

Then there is another current obsession. Sandwich #7- the sardine banh mi ($2.85). A fresh crispy roll. The sardines -in a tomato sauce- are heated, crushed and served on the sandwich with the standard accoutrement-pickled daikon, carrot, cucumber, fresh cilantro (still on the stem…a bit annoying, but expected here) and raw jalapeño. It is perfect. The flavors are complimented by the hot cafe ($1.75)-strong coffee- I added half and half to it…and new/not on the menu but taped near the registers- mung bean milk (iced or hot, $2.75).

Always an adventure ending in a great meal. I hope everyone is having a good start to Summer.

K Sandwiches 7604 Linda Vista Road at Mesa College Drive San Diego 92111 (858)278-8961