mmm-yoso – Page 44 – 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.

Sunday Sandwiches – Revisits to San Diego Bakery & Café and Banh Mi Express

July 28, 2024 mmm-yoso Bakery, Banh Mi, Sandwiches

A couple of recent sandwich revisits for a nice Sunday.

San Diego Bakery & Café:

"FOY" SomTommy recently mentioned that the prices for the formerly $5 Bolillo at San Diego Bakery & Café had gone up substantially over the last couple of months. It had been a while since I last visited, so I decided to drop by after doing my regular Saturday morning shopping.

I easily found parking and waltzed on into the rustic shop at around 845 and took a look at the chalkboard menu and yes, prices have indeed gone up!

SD Bakery Rev 02

The last time I'd had a breakfast bolillo here it was $5, it was now $6.50. Whoa, a 30% increase in the last five months! I know times are tough and there's all that inflation and stuff, but wow!

SD Bakery Rev 01

I decided to get the A la Mexicana.

SD Bakery Rev 03

Man, this had a good amount of jalapenos! It was quite spicy. The bolillo is nicely toasted and light, though up to the task of handling the eggs, beans, and stringy cheese.

SD Bakery Rev 04

While there has been a 30% price increase, with Banh Mi now going for seven bucks and up, I guess this still falls into the "inexpensive" price range? What do you think?

San Diego Bakery & Café
6959 Linda Vista Rd.
San Diego, CA 92111

Banh Mi Express:

Speaking of Banh Mi. Just a couple of weeks before, I was having coffee and breakfast at Finjan (I need to make another visit before I post), when it suddenly dawned on me that I hadn't been back to Banh Mi Express in a while. I was aware that the shop now opens at 8am on Saturday, it used to be 10am when they first opened. So, I decided to drop by.

Banh Mi Express Rev 01

Taking a quick look at the menu, I noticed that prices hadn't gone up since my last visit here.

Banh Mi Express Rev 02

I decided to get the Banh Mi Thit Nuong ($6.99). Interesting thing, while the prices remain unchanged, the bread looked totally different from when I last had a banh mi here.

Banh Mi Express Rev 03 Banh Mi Express Rev 03 (2) The bread looked like a rolled French Baguette. It was quite crusty, though a bit more dense then what I'd call a typical banh mi. The jalapenos were really mild. There was a thin sliver of cucumber….though I must say that cucumbers are MIA in many banh mi's these days. There was a good ration of pickled veggies to mayo to pork.

The only issue I had….and it's quite an issue was with the pork which was super dry and hard; like jerky.

Banh Mi Express Rev 04

I'm thinking I need to order a different banh mi next time. This would have been a good sandwich, if the protein had been better.

Banh Mi Express
9353 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92123

Road Trip – Lucky Luke Brewpub (Lancaster, CA)

July 27, 2024 mmm-yoso Beer, Burgers, Los Angeles County, Pubs and Pub Grub, Road Trip, Travel

So, what were we doing in Lancaster? Yesterday, I posed that question. Well, what happened is that the Missus had found out that the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, a state park, resided just to the west of Lancaster. According to what the Missus had heard, the poppies start blooming in Mid-March, and voila! Here we were. We had a light breakfast at the hotel and then headed on out arriving at the park right before 9am. Unfortunately, we were a bit too early for the poppies this year!

Regardless, we ended up hiking both loop trails, and the views were quite nice.

As you can tell, we were the only folks in the park during our entire stay.

We saw a number of gophers and a couple of Bobcats. And even some wildflowers.

The trails were easy to walk and nicely maintained.

And, as if to tease us a bit, near the end of the trail….well, we saw the first poppies starting to bloom!

We did enjoy the solitude and the relaxing peacefulness of the walk. The Missus mentioning returning one day when the poppies are really in bloom.

We walked back to the hotel and had a light lunch, then headed on back out to explore a bit. Lancaster is quite sprawling and we ended up restocking on water, snacks, and stuff at the Target and Vallarta Market on Avenue K. Then it was nap time, one of my favorite parts of the day during road trips!

Upon waking, we headed back out and walked around the BLVD a bit, stopping into shops that were open. We found many places are closed on Mondays here.

And of course, there's all that public art.

Soon enough, it was time for dinner. I had thought that we'd head to Le Papillon, a more upscale restaurant right across from the hotel, but the Missus just wanted something simple and basic. Which was just across the street from where we were standing.

We liked the outdoor seating. The interior looks very "sports bar-ish". Seemed like locals came by to watch sports and grab a brew.

IMG_5915b

So, of course we had to get a table outside and I decided to get a Brown Ale.

This was light with a slight sweetness, very easy to drink.

The service was interesting; the woman who initially waited on us really didn't seem to want to deal with folks at tables, She mainly wanted to hang with the folks at the bar. The gentleman who came by and took over was very friendly and efficient.

We had a view of West Lancaster Boulevard and there was something going on for young people at the Performing Arts Center next to the Movie Theatres across the street.

Which was showing Kung Foo Panda???? You gotta love it.

The Missus ordered the Lemon Agave Salad.

Which, except for the pepitas was quite routine. At least the dressing wasn't too sweet, but this is totally something you can get out of a bag from your local grocer.

I got the Pub House Burger.

With Tater Tots.

IMG_5924b The tater tots were nicely fried, crisp, not hard, and the interior slightly creamy.

The burger came in a brioche bun, which was a bit denser than I thought it would be; but it wasn't overly sweet and held up well to all that cheese sauce. The cheese sauce was much saltier than I'm used to. I also enjoy a bit of pungency, which this lacked. And as you can see; there was a lot of cheese sauce. Luckily, the pickled jalapenos added a nice counter balance of pickled spiciness that I enjoyed. While the bacon could have been cooked a bit more; I prefer it more crunchy, it did add that smoky-savory component to the burger.

The burger itself didn't look like much, but it was fairly tender, seasoned quite well, and did the job. Not a bad burger as a whole.

There was one item on the menu that I could not resist. The Fried Wisconsin Cheese Curds. Wisconsin you say? Cue in to a flashback of my favorite cheese curds, served at The Old Fashioned in Madison!

These were a bit over-fried and too gooey, not squeaky-stringy. The batter was crisp though. The flavor was mild, man what I would have given for some horseradish dip with this!

Still, this was a decent dinner, in Lancaster. We liked the very laid-back small town feel to this area. At least that's what it was like on this Monday.

Lucky Luke Brewpub
735 West Lancaster Blvd.
Lancaster, CA 93534

After dinner we took another stroll up and down the BLVD area. In the end, I thought I'd put in some decent mileage.

IMG_5939.

We returned to our room, relaxed, and watched the sun go down on Lancaster.

Tomorrow we'd be headed back to Rowland Heights for a night and an Omakase dinner in City of Industry of all places!

Stay Tuned!

Road Trip – Charlie Brown Farms (Littlerock, CA) and Dinner at Cantarito (Lancaster)

July 26, 2024 mmm-yoso Los Angeles County, Markets & Grocers, Road Trip, Salvadoran Restaurants, Travel

So, if I said we'd be going to Littlerock and Lancaster, perhaps you'd think we'd be going Arkansas and Pennsylvania? Well, actually no. You see the Missus had a specific destination in mind for this road trip which started with a sort of "staycation" in Carlsbad and then took us to the SGV for a night. We took our time to our "destination" for this RT; the city of Lancaster in the Northern part of Los Angeles County. Why Lancaster? Well, the Missus had a specific reason which I'll reveal in an upcoming post.

We'd be taking the 210 to the 14 from the SGV to Lancaster. While doing a bit of research, I saw that there's one of those roadside stops like Eddie World and Bravo Farms that I enjoy so much fairly close by. So, we took a short detour on the 138 to Charlie Brown Farms.

While not as large as other places we've been to; I have to say, the amount of "stuffs" here was crazy!

Along with the usual nuts, peanut brittle, and varieties of candies and sodas that will bring a nostalgic smile to your face……

There was a huge variety of other food as well.

We ended up getting a bag of the fried garlic, which I really enjoyed.

And there are some interesting canned and bottled foods available.

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Just in case you need some pig's feet, lips, & hocks in your life.

There's much more than food available as well.

All of those novelty items.

And you just knew that Elvis had to make an "appearance", right?

As I took my bag of peanut brittle and the fried garlic to the register; the guy in front of me bought a $170 worth of bottled sodas! I asked the friendly cashier about this and she told me "it's totally normal"! Whoa!

There's a place that serves minidonuts, and a BBQ restaurant, funnel cakes, ice cream, and shakes.

This was a fun stop!

Charlie Brown Farms
8317 Pearblossom Hwy.
Littlerock, CA 93543

Our room at the Residence Inn Lancaster wasn't quite ready when we arrived, so we decided to head out for a stroll.

First thing we noticed was all the Air Force and Aerospace monuments.

Then I realized that Edwards Air Force Base was just a short distance from here! Duh!

There was also quite a bit of Public Art.

I came to find out that Lancaster is considered one of California's Cultural Districts, like Barrio Logan. There an Museum of Modern Art, but it closes at 4pm on Sunday, and would be closed on Monday so we missed out on visiting.

As we were checking things out on the "BLVD" I received a text message that our room was ready and we checked in.

We had but a small, early lunch, so I looked over my "list" of places in walking distance where we could have an early dinner. Cantarito, a Salvadoran restaurant was just two blocks away. Since it would be closed the next day, a Monday, we thought we'd dine here.

This seemed like a good option so we walked on over. We were the only customers in the place on a warm Sunday in March. The woman working was very friendly.

We ordered three pupusas and the yuca frita o sancochada.

First to arrive was the salsa and the curtido.

The salsa was the typical thin, not overly spicy version tat we're used to at Salvadoran places. But that curtido was awesome, it was fermented, nicely sour-savory-tartness, with hints floral-anise-citrus hints. I'm thinking they use a good amount of Mexican Oregano? We went thru two bowls of the stuff. The woman working got a kick out of the fact that we enjoyed the curtido so much….we could eat it like we would kimchi!

And then my cerveza arrived. It was simply a Modelo; but the Missus saw that frosty mug and immediately took control of it.

It was so refreshing on a rather warm day! Talking about "hitting the spot!"

As for the pupusas? Well, the Loroco version had too much cheese, we didn't care for the texture as it was a bit on the chewy-doughy side. The chicharron was actually ground pork. The best one was the hongos as it provided some earthy-mushroomy goodness, though it was suffering from some "leakage".

As for the Yuca Frita o Sancochada, well, this was an interesting dish.

This was a huge, but interesting dish. The menu said pork rinds, but this was fried chunks of pork. Man, it was quite porky and full of flavor, but really hard and chewy, like chunks of fried jerky. Make sure your teeth are in good shape if you order this. We enjoyed the yuca. While the exterior was crisp, the interior just melted in your mouth, the texture was amazing! I don't think they do the usual "boil and fry" here. I'd gladly get the yuca again!

Overall, a decent dinner; not impressed by the pupusas, but the curtido and that yuca was so good!

Cantarito Salvadorian Restaurant
730 W Lancaster Blvd. #102
Lancaster, CA 93534

After dinner we took a stroll. It seems that Sunday evenings are pretty quiet in downtown Lancaster.

There was one place that we dropped into that was quite lively.

It seems that this is a Craft Beer – Underground Bowling Alley.

We popped in to take a look, but didn't hang around.

There was one other place that looked pretty lively and we'd end up having dinner there the following evening.

On this evening, we just took a stroll around town and enjoyed the public art.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Sieu Sieu BBQ Revisited

July 25, 2024 mmm-yoso Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants

Recently, the Missus was wanting some roast duck. All the usual suspects came to mind. But, for some reason, I was wondering how Sieu Sieu BBQ was doing. We used to go to Sieu Sieu back when they were in Linda Vista and our last visit was back back in 2018, my does time fly. And so I headed on over to Sieu Sieu.

Sieu Sieu Rev 01

Much has changed since the days of Covid. There's no more noodle soup on the menu nor is there a dine in option. These days it's all takeout.

Sieu Sieu Rev 03

It was quite interesting as I arrived right at opening time on a Sunday and there were actually two "old timers"….well, I probably qualify as an "old timer" these days….ahead of me. It was interesting to see what they ordered.

Sieu Sieu Rev 04

The two of them ordered the roast pork and the pickled mustard greens.

Sieu Sieu Rev 05_b

So, I got some roast pork, cut to order, and mustard greens, along with a half duck.

When I got home and decamped what I had bought. Well, I liked the mustard greens, but the Missus didn't appreciate the slight sweetness. I also noticed that there was pork intestine in this. A great bonus for me, but if you're not into it…well….

Sieu Sieu Rev 06

For me, this is wonderful side dish.

As for the Roast Pork. Well, it was so tender and juicy, full of flavor. But we didn't care for the way it was chopped.

Sieu Sieu Rev 07

Since part of the enjoyment of Chinese roast pork is the skin, and because it been obliterated into fragments when chopped, we could not enjoy the porky crunchiness of the pork. I'd also advise you to eat this in a timely manner as it gets drier and tougher over time. If they would chop this in a more thoughtful manner, it would be a real winnah!

As for the roast duck.

Sieu Sieu Rev 08 Sieu Sieu Rev 09 Well, the flavor was on the milder side. The skin kind of rubbery. It did better brushed with the jus and put into our air fryer. It was, as with many versions of roast duck these days, very meaty, but quite dry.

Well, it was great following those "old timers" here. That roast pork was really good, if they'd just chop it right. As for the duck; well, I'll just move on. Still, it was nice revisiting Sieu Sieu after all these years.

Sieu Sieu Rev 10

Sieu Sieu BBQ
7420 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Tues – Sun 930am – 630pm
Closed on Monday

Don Chicken (Encinitas) and Cal Pacific Orchid Farm

July 24, 2024 mmm-yoso Chains, Chicken Wings, Exploring San Diego, Korean Restaurants

**** Don Chicken has closed

Recently, I was up in the Encinitas area and decided to make a couple of stops on my way back home. The First was to the Cal Pacific Orchid Farm which I had heard about from some folks I know who live in North County and also read this on Hidden San Diego. I decided to stop by. The huge greenhouse is located off of Orpheus Avenue which parallels the I-5. It was interesting finding the place as there’s a discreet single lane driveway from the street which heads up to the greenhouse and the small parking spaces.

Cal Pacific 01

Many of the beautiful plants are in lovely arrangements and the staff are so friendly. The gentleman working that day was very nice and spent almost a half hour chatting with me. My grandparents on Maui grew orchids and my Mom had a couple of plants when we lived in Kaimuki. For some reason, I thought that orchids needed a rather humid environment to grow, but the gentleman went through some of the various species, how they thrive in San Diego, that they do like moisture, but not too much water and not too much direct sun….which is why we saw so many in the Cloud Forest in Ecuador.

Cal Pacific 02

Cal Pacific 03

The gentleman obviously enjoys his job and has a real passion for orchids.

Cal Pacific 04b

One thing I found interesting is that Cal Pacific will “board” your plants if they are not doing well, not blooming, or in need of additional care!

Cal Pacific 05

The folks here are wonderful. I’m going to make sure to get my orchids from them!

Cal Pacific 06

Cal Pacific Orchid Farm
1122 Orpheus Ave.
Encinitas, CA 92024
Hours:
Mon – Sat 9am – 4pm
Closed on Sundays

Of course the next item on the agenda was……well, what’s for lunch? A while back, someone, I don’t recall who, asked me if I had been to Don Chicken. I looked thru my emails and searched through my comments but was not able to find that recommendation. Well, you know me, could I fight off the temptation of some “KFC”? Probably not. Especially when it’s just a ten minute drive away.

Don Chicken is located off El Camino Real in one of the many strip malls lining the street. I arrived a few minutes before opening, so I headed over to Baker and Olive a few doors down to take a look at things.

Don Chicken 01

The open sign lit up just as I started heading back toward the restaurant. Don Chicken is yet another chain from Korea, though my friends told me that the chain is really popular in Ho Chi Minh City? Which, for some reason made me think of Crispy Chicken n’ Tomato which declares itself the most popular KFC in Japan.

Don Chicken 02

On this day, the place was a one man operation, at least while I was there. The menu features Oven Baked and Fried Chicken in various sauces. The specials include bulgogi, tteok-boki, a chicken sandwich, and even katsu. But, since this was a KFC joint, I was just going to get the Fried Wings. The wings only come in orders of 10, a bit much for me, but at least it was priced at $15.99, which was much cheaper per piece that the $8.99 I paid for 4 wings at BHC recently.

And after a short wait, my wings were ready.

Don Chicken 04 Don Chicken 05 The wings came with a rather large order of Mul Kimchi, crisp, not overly sweet, a good palate cleanser for fry-o-lated foods.

As for the wings, well these weren’t overly large, which I prefer as the skin/batter to meat ratio to more to my liking. The meat was moist and tender, no dark areas and no off flavors.

Don Chicken 06 Don Chicken 07 The batter was somewhat crunchy, but it really got soggy quickly. The seasoning seemed quite mild, but I had a raging thirst after eating 6 of these wings. I took the remaining wings home and even tried to revive in the air fryer, but that didn’t work too well. I’m thinking that if I tried this again it would have to be with some kind of sauce; but based on experience with other KFC chains of this ilk, I’m going to assume it’s going to be too sweet and heck, it already gets soggy-mushy too quickly anyway.

So perhaps I’ll just give it a rest? If you’ve visited Don Chicken what was your meal like?

Don Chicken 08

Don Chicken
215 S. El Camino Real Suite G
Encinitas, CA 92024
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 11am – 9pm
Sunday 3pm – 9pm

Hatsuzakura

July 22, 2024 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants

Since I went ahead and posted on the somewhat "old school" Izakaya Sakura (which we've crazily posted on 40 times over the years!), I thought I should do a post on a newer and more hip location; Hatsuzakura. A couple of months back, the Missus and I were in the area at around 430, right at opening time. The restaurant is run by the daughter and the namesake of Michelin starred Soichi Sushi next door. While, from I had heard, the place is a favorite for desserts, and while I wouldn't quite call it a Kissaten, nor a Shokudo, it was quite interesting.

Hatsuzakura 01

We were warmly greeted and led to a two top, in this very anime pink, Instagram ready restaurant.

Hatsuzakura 02

The Missus and I cracked up as we sat. This was quite interesting. The entree menu was a single page; with so many Yoshoku dishes, which we should have anticipated in a place like this, right?

The staff was really welcoming and we looked over the menu.

Hatsuzakura 02b

We decided on three dishes. As we waited two young ladies, dressed in Barbie pink walked in and were seated at the bar. A few minutes later, two working stiffs who looked like they had just finished a job walked in, quickly took in the restaurant, looked at each other, did an about face and bailed! It was quite funny.

It was a bit of time but our first dish, the Chicken Karaage ($13). This was a very unique looking karaage, apparently it is the recipe of Chef Soichi.

Hatsuzakura 03

It was very lightly colored and seemed to have been coated with katakuriko? The chicken was sliced thinly, giving it a nice, light, almost ethereal crispness. We're glad it was dark meat chicken as the seasoning was quite mild, though the chicken was tender and quite positive in the "fowlness" category. It did need both the lemon and Kewpie mayo.

Next up was the Tamago Sando ($10). As soon as the sando arrived, the Missus said; "what's going on the crust is still on the sandwich?" Too many trips to Lawson I guess. Though I did agree that having that crust on made it seem "un-sandoed"…..

Hatsuzakura 04

The egg was chopped too coarse for us, the filling wasn't evenly spread thru the sando. The bread was very dry and lacked the fluffy qualities of a decent shokupan. The filling was nicely seasoned, but just seemed to be missing something.

The last item up was the Omurice ($17).

Hatsuzakura 05 Hatsuzakura 06 Egads! This was a bit too much for the both of us. The egg was slightly overcooked, which isn't too bad. But so was the rice. But the thing that really got us was how overly sour; almost puckery, and sweet this was. Also, the menu said it was filled with chicken fried rice, but other than a few tiny pieces, it seems that the bird had flown the coop?

Still, the service was wonderful and that chicken karaage was interesting. Plus, I saw those "Animae Girls" eating something that I just needed to try. And yet, it took me several months to finally return.

When I did it was for lunch service. Same nice folks greeted me and I had a seat at the bar.

Hatsuzakura 07

On the previous visit; I saw the two young ladies each have two Bakudan Onigiri; one with kombu and the other with something else. They each put away their two onigiri and also shared a doria…..sheesh even more rice. So, I went ahead and ordered the onigiri ($7).

Let me just say, if anything fits the definition of Bakudan ("bomb") Onigiri; it's this. It's like 2 1/2 scoops of rice made into an onigiri.

Hatsuzakura 08 Hatsuzakura 09
Take a look at the size of this beast! It uses like half a sheet of nori to wrap it. The rice was nicely cooked, but man, about halfway thru it became quite a task to try and finish this. There just wasn't enough kombu in this. I don't know how those two young ladies put away two of these? If I did that a couple of times, I'd probably be trying out for a Sumo league somewhere!

Of course I also got the karaage this time as well. But it was slightly different this time.

Hatsuzakura 10 Hatsuzakura 11 It wasn't fried quite as well, though it was more highly seasoned this time. I swear they put some togarashi on this which I liked. One the negative side, the cut this time around was thicker, with some fairly large pieces. The thicker pieces were dry and only the thin slices made it thru the meal maintaining some crispness. I'm glad they gave me two slices of lemon as I needed them both. Not as good as what we'd had on the previous visit.

Hatsuzakura 12

In the end, the service was very nice; but I guess the limited menu and style of Japanese food offered is just not our thing. I was glad to have tried it though.

Hatsuzakura 13

Hatsuzakura
2123 Adams Ave.
San Diego, CA 92116
Current Hours:
Tues – Sat 11am – 3pm, 430pm – 9pm
Sunday 11am – 2pm, 330pm – 6pm
Closed on Mondays

Eating to beat the heat – Zaru Soba from Izakaya Sakura

July 21, 2024 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants

Man, it's been pretty warm the last couple of weeks, huh? And not just hot, but humid as well. I was looking for a place to grab lunch in the Convoy area and of course Izakaya Sakura came to mind. Funny thing; even though Sakura has long been a favorite of mine; I'd only dined in twice since the days of Covid and my last visit had been over a year ago! Well, it seemed like the right time for a revisit.

Sakura Zaru 01

There were actually 8 folks waiting ahead of me when I arrived at 1130 for lunch. On an interesting note; everyone seemed on the "older" side of things. I guess time is passing and the customer base for more traditional Japanese is just getting older?

Second item of note; several of my favorites, especially the item I had in mind, the Gyokai Natto is no longer on the menu. I was tempted to go for the Chirashi; but Kazu wasn't behind the bar; plus, I didn't feel like spending $32 for lunch on this day!

So, I went with another warm weather favorite from Sakura, the Zaru Soba, which, in these days where pho is $12+, seemed price right at $10. In need of a protein option; I went with a side of Karaage ($6.50) as well. What was also interesting was the service….I had gotten used to sometimes experiencing rude and perfunctory service here. But the two women working were so nice. I got my water refilled without asking, I was asked how my meal was not once, but twice! Man, what is going on here?

Sakura Zaru 02 Sakura Zaru 03 My zaru soba arrived looking pretty much the same as always. The tsukemono, mildly pickled, crunchy, which I enjoy with a touch of shoyu seemed so familiar.

Things looked the same as always, until I removed the top of the little bowl of Tsuyu. Let me stress "little". This was probably half the amount of tsuyu I recalled being provided.

Sakura Zaru 04 Sakura Zaru 05 As I will usually do when having zaru soba, I have a taste of the tsuyu straight up. And man, this was potent! Very strong dashi, nice soy sauce tones, quite savory. I'd only be doing a one-third "dunk" of my noodles in this! I added all the fresh wasabi and scallions, and a bit of ginger which really added a pleasurable pungency and palate cleansing layer to things.

As for the noodles; they were as expected; perfectly cooked, with a nice springy "pull".

Sakura Zaru 06

In the end, perhaps my palate had become adjusted to things, but I chugged the last bit of tsuyu. Which by this time seemed somewhat invigorating.

As for the chicken. Over the years, as I've noted in previous posts, the karaage can be somewhat inconsistent. Today, it was quite good.

Sakura Zaru 07

Much more flavor than I recall; I didn't even need the dipping sauce! Less crunchy, more on the crisp side, the chicken was moist and tender. Heck, I swear I could make out some togarashi in this? And $16.50 for lunch! Heck, we sometimes pay more for a sandwich these days, right?

I had one more pleasant surprise. I went to the restroom and saw this posted.

Sakura Zaru 08

Man, this brought back some great memories! I looked at the date; a this was from almost 14 years ago! Since we all know that nothing is ever lost on the Internet, I went and found the original article by the one and only Naomi Wise (RIP, we miss you!). You can read it here if desired. Gosh, this was back in those days, before the place had a sign put up! BTW, that "sign of the times" post was one of my favorites.

Well, it's good to know, even though time has passed, with all the new fads, and generational differences, Izakaya Sakura still delivered.

Izakaya Sakura
3904 Convoy St Suite 121
San Diego, CA 92111

Sakura Zaru 09

Hope everyone is keeping cool and enjoying the weekend!

And as always, if you have some suggestions for places to eat during our heatwave; please feel free to let me know!

Guadalajara – A Food Tour of Barrio Santa Tere

July 20, 2024 mmm-yoso Guadalajara/Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico, Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Taco Shops, Travel

There were so many iconic dishes from Jalisco, that doing a food tour, which we'd done with great success in Oaxaca and even CDMX, seemed like a no brainer. So, I went ahead and booked the small group Gastronomic Tour of Santa Tere. It seemed like it would tick all the boxes, we'd learn so much about barbacoa, birria, tortas ahogadas, stuff that had become quite popular in San Diego over the last few years.

The area, Santa Tere (Santa Teresita) is still known as being "working class", yet is but a 30 minute walk away from where we were staying. We were looking forward to tales and history of the items we'd be trying. Unfortunately, the tour guide was a very nice young lady, whose basic duty was just leading us to various eating establishments and ordering food for us.

Still, it was an interesting introduction to local places in the city.

We met a block away from the Mercado and were led into the market.

And this stand; Fonda Mariquita which was super busy.

We were told that it's all about the quesadillas with green sauce here. So, we asked for the version with nopales con huevo. Very tangy salsa verde.

The tortilla was thick and quite crisp, almost like an empanada. The milky queso helped to quell the puckery and tangy salsa verde.

Fonda Mariquita (In Mercado Santa Tere)
Calle Andrés Terán 523
Santa Teresita, 44200 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

We then stepped out of the Mercado and across the street to this place.

I was quite thrilled; after all Jalisco is the home of Birria and of course, I love birria de chivo.

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The folks here were so friendly, our guide ordered us birria de chivo which was quite good; gamey, nice spice, the broth was rich and flavorful, nice smokiness.

This might have been the best we'd had….but there was a place we headed to for dinner that was even better!

Still, birria de chivo, better than anything I've ever had in San Diego.

And the service was wonderful!

Birriería La Victoria
Calle Manuel Acuña 1511
Villaseñor, 44200 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

We then headed back around the Mercado.

And we were brought to this storefront.

Which cracked us up. That whole modern looking area is just seating. Everything really happens here.

To the left of the "dining area" is where the tacos for Tacos Juan are put together.

Of course, being on this tour meant we'd just have a seat……

Man, those caramelized onions and charred peppers were so good.

The actual grilled queso and tortillas for the barbacoa tacos dorados were fabulous.

It actually outshone the barbacoa….which almost seemed like an accessory. That texture; the corn and cheesiness.

Tacos Juan Santa Teresita
Calle José Clemente Orozco 465
Santa Teresita, 44600 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico

We then headed back thru the Mercado.

And made a stop for agua frecas….sorry, was having too much fun and didn't take a photo.

Our last stop was for something I'd been wanting to try in Jalisco.

Tortas Ahogadas are a way of life here. And this shop…again, the food is prepped outdoors and there is indoor seating, seemed like just what we wanted.

The line made it seem so promising. Here's where having to just find a table and not order made things easy for us.

Man ,these guys work hard!

So, when we were asked how spicy, we told the young lady that we love spicy, we've had some pretty spicy tortas ahogadas here is San Diego.

But, I think they went easy on us. The Birote (bread) was outstanding, yeasty, almost like a good sourdough, the meat tender, the sauce had a nice level of acidity, but was not very spicy.

I think they might have gone easy on us.

Tortas Ahogadas El Profe Jimenez
Calle Andrés Terán 841
Villaseñor, 44600 Guadalajara, Jal., Mexico

In the end, while I wish the "tour" was more than someone taking us to places and ordering….I really can't recommend this, it was nice to have the variety and exposure to dishes we'd had many times in the past.

Guadalajara – Dinner at Restaurante Allium and Antojitos Sanchez (at Tianguis del Parque Rojo)

July 19, 2024 mmm-yoso Farmer's Markets/Night Market, Fine Dining, Guadalajara/Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico, Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Taco Shops, Travel

Our flight from Mexico City to Guadalajara International Airport was right on time. Our driver was on time and the drive to our hotel; the Hotel Portobelo took about 30 minutes and was uneventful. The hotel is large, modern, and close to Zona Centro and all the historical sights. It is also right across the street from Parque Revolucion, which I found out is more commonly known as Parque Rojo, the Red Park to locals. Our flight had arrived at 1130 and it was just after noon when we arrived at the hotel. Check-in time was 3pm, so we decided to stow our luggage and go for a stroll. Lucky for us; there's a huge flea market, called Tianguis del Parque Rojo that occurs on Saturday.

And we spent a good amount of time exploring.

There was just about everything under the sun available here.

Something we soon noticed. Folks were quite friendly here, people would smile at us, wave us forward, we were the only Asians in sight, so I'm sure we stood out.

Soon we came across a food stall named Antojitos Sanchez. Folks seemed to be enjoying their meal, so we decided to give it a try.

One of the young men eating spoke perfect English and told us to sit next to him….folks actually moved over for us, in case we needed some help. Like I said, great people.

The Missus got a coconut agua fresca, which She loved so much and chugged down in like a minute! We ordered a second one!

We ordered tacos. The chicharron….the young man was surprised we ordered that, was so tender and full of flavor.

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The fatty portions and meat basically melted in your mouth! Such porky goodness, we didn't want to spoil the flavors by adding anything….we just wanted to "pig out" if you know what I mean.

We got the quesabirria tacos. The tortillas were very good and the cheese had been expertly melted and were so crisp!

The birria was fairly mild in flavor, though quite tender. For us, this was mostly about the wonderful texture.

The folks working were just plain wonderful; as was the young man who volunteered to help us! This was such a nice start to our visit here!

Antojitos Sanchez (at Tianguis del Parque Rojo)
Americana, 44160 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Market on Saturdays

We headed back across the street to the hotel. It was getting pretty hot and we thought we'd just wait in the air conditioned lobby of the hotel. Luckily, our room was ready early and we settled in.

As for dinner; well, it was going to be the total opposite of lunch. I had made reservations at Restaurante Allium which I had read about being a champion of local products and possibly the best restaurant in the city. To make things interesting, the restaurant was 5 kilometers (like 3 miles) away from Hotel Portobelo and we decided to walk, which was quite interesting.

Anyway, we made it to the location, which seemed to be an upscale business district with many high rises.

The restaurant is set-up in a modern, somewhat minimalistic style, with a visible kitchen. The service is warm and professional, it seems to be the place where the business elites come to eat.

Things started with an amuse sort of a aguachile bite, which was nice and refreshing.

There's only three wines by the glass, none of it from Mx, but the Missus though it fine.

And various salsas and butter are kindly provided.

We ended up ordering two appetizers and two entrees.

First to arrive was the Octopus Carpaccio.

As we would find with the other dishes, there's a lot going on here. From "tomato overload", both fresh and sun dried tomatoes, to an interesting flavor that seemed like dashi, which I later found was Katsuobushi, there was nice acidity, the avocado was nice and buttery, and the octopus very tender. The sourdough bread was a bit over-toasted, but still retained a nice balance.

The other appetizer we ordered was the Seabass Ceviche.

There was a bit too much going on here, though the texture of the fish was wonderful, it was overshadowed by all the acidity in the dish.

The Missus ordered the Lamb as Her main.

My goodness, those asparagus tips were amazing, so sweet and tender. The lamb shoulder was fine, a bit tough, we wished it was a bit more gamey, the dish gravitated to the sweeter end of the flavor spectrum.

I got the Pork Belly.

Once again, the produce was so good, those green beans had a nice, slightly sweet-chlrophyllic flavor. The frisee added a much needed balance to the sweet sauce. The pork belly was tender, but I wish there was more porcine flavor and less sweetness to the dish.

In the end, this was an interesting dining experience, the staff were so professional, yet warm and friendly.

Restaurante Allium
Avenida Providencia 2411, Plaza Leben Providencia
Guadalajara, Jalisco, México

We decided to catch an Uber back to the hotel. It had been an interesting day. Such diversity between our first two meals in the city. And yet there was one thing that seemed universal; the kindness and smiles of the folks here!

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Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip – Array 36 (Temple City)

July 18, 2024 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Fine Dining, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, Travel

Way back in March, the Missus had requested a specific road trip. We'd be taking our time to our destination. We first stayed in Carlsbad and had a fine dinner at Jeune et Jolie, after our morning coffee and some breakfast we headed to the SGV. As usual, we stayed the night at the Courtyard at Monterey Park and had made reservations for a restaurant in Temple City. I know what you're thinking, "sigh, is Kirk going to do yet another post on Bistro Na's?" Well FOYs, I'll give you a break from that for now, ok? I had read about a restaurant that opened in Temple City in October of last year. The place had Shanghainese influenced dishes along with an $98 Roast Duck dish carved tableside, which had to be ordered ahead of time. I'd read that the renovation of the restaurant, named Array 36 cost over 3 million dollars, with the goal of setting a new level of fine dining for Chinese cuisine in Los Angeles. So, of course we had to try things out.

I made reservations for 5pm, right when the place opened.

As we entered, the haunting moodiness of the restaurant engulfed us.

There's a huge hologram of a whale projected on the wall. It's quite a trippy scene.

We looked over the menu and placed our order. Soon enough, a serving of Kai Wei Cai, those little before meal snacks that are supposed to "open up the stomach" arrived.

The beans were quite nice; but it was the pungent-sour-mildly spicy laba garlic that we enjoyed. This was a great start to the meal.

Of course we needed to try the duck. There as no way we'd be able to finish a whole duck, so no "flaming fowl", the tableside torched and carved duck. No we went with the half roast duck ($68).

Which came with all the standard accessories. The fat had been rendered nicely, but the skin was not as crisp and delicate as we like. The flavor was quite mild and the meat tough and dry.

The dan bing, those "pancakes" one enrobes the duck and accoutrements with were large, thicker then we like and on the chewy side for our taste.

There's a version of Dragon Well Shrimp on the menu, something we really love. We still talk about the wonderful version we had all those years ago at Jiangnan Restaurant in Beijing. It's called Stir Fried River Shrimp on the English menu. We got a small order which was $58.

Man, this was bad. The shrimp was overcooked and tough, was too salty, and lacked depth of flavor.

We also ordered the House Special Smoked Plank Pork ($28).

The pork was on the chewier side of the scale, a bit too sweet for our taste, but heck, this was Shangainese influenced so that makes sense. Mild smokiness, decent pork tones. Not bad.

The last dish would prove to be a winnah! The Beef Fried Rice with Black Truffle ($22).

This was quite possibly the best fried rice I'd had in a while. While there was just a wisp of black truffle flavor; the rice was perfectly cooked and coated, the seasoning a nice balance of salt and savory.

At least the meal ended on a high note. The service as excellent, the interior a world of it's own. But in the end, it's about the food, and sorry to say, in spite of watching that hologram whale swimming on the wall across us, I don't think the dinner was worth the $200 price tag.

Array 36
5449 Rosemead Blvd.
San Gabriel, CA 91776