mmm-yoso – Page 457 – 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.

Grilled Cumin and Sichuan Peppercorn Lamb Loin Chops

July 25, 2009 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

Today was another grill day, it is still kinda hot here, so the prospect of grilling was quite attractive. I try to do something a bit different during every grill session. Today, I had some Lamb Loin Chops. I really didn't have anything in mind when I purchased the chops. Returning home, I still had no idea of what to make. I was replying to some comments on my Shao Kao 818 postwhen it came to me. We were very disappointed with the Yang Rou Chuan, and I wondered, how hard is it to get the wonderful salty-cumin flavor of good Yang Rou Chuan…… Rummaging through my pantry, I managed to put together the ingredients for this dish.

The Sichuan Peppercorn heightened the saltiness of the dish, and really didn't hit you right away. You felt a numbing "buzz" a few seconds after eating the chops, it was quite interesting. Much like my Cumin Lamb recipe, I do a short marinade before grilling. Make sure to toast those cumin seeds until the wonderful smell of "BO" floats around your kitchen.

Grilled Cumin and Sichuan Peppercorn Lamb Loin Chops:

Spice Mix:
4 Tb toasted Cumin Seeds
2 Tb roasted and ground Sichuan Peppercorn
2 Tb sea salt
1 Tb ground coriander
Ground red chili to taste

Marinade:
1/4 cup Premium Light Soy Sauce
1/4 cup Canola Oil
2-3 Tb Shaoxing Wine
2 Tb Dark Soy sauce
4 cloves Garlic finely minced

– Mix marinade and pour or brush marinade over lamb chops. Make sure to coat lamb chops well.
– Let lamb chops marinate for 20-30 minutes
– Sprinkle on a generous amount of the spice mix, making sure to getting some on the sides of the chop.
– Let chops sit for at least 10 minutes before grilling.

– Grill to desired doneness. As a whole, most Chinese are used to eating their lamb well done. Make sure to turn the chops and grill on the edges and sides as well.

I've been grilling a lot of Shishamo (sm elt) for the Missus. Recently, the Missus found that She really enjoys grilled Urume Maruboshi (dried round herring):

For some reason, the grilled fish always catches my attention. I wasn't quite sure why….until today. Doesn't this look really familiar?

What do you think?

(BTW, The Scream by Edvard Munch is in the public domain in the United States because it was first published more than 95 years ago.)

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Paso Robles: Lunch at Thomas Hill Organics

July 24, 2009 ed fromyuma Paso Robles/Cambria/San Luis Obispo County, Road Trip, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Kirk or Cathy will be with you tomorrow, but today ed (from Yuma) is describing another meal on his summer road trip.

On our first evening in Paso Robles, Tina and I were walking back from a great dinner, and suddenly we smelled the most delicious aromas wafting our direction on the warm nighttime air. Even though we were stuffed, both of us had to track down the origin of such savory scents. Heading up an alley, we discovered the location of Thomas Hill Organics: The next day at lunchtime, we walked around the central park in Paso, looking at menus and discovering nothing as appetizing as those aromas from the evening before. After relocating the restaurant, we were offered the choice of inside or outside seating. Although it was kind of hot (by the standards of Paso Robles, not Yuma) we opted to sit outside in a small partly covered courtyard that sits surrounded by buildings in the middle of the block: The first dish that arrived at our table was a watermelon gazpacho. And it was a thing of beauty: I can think of no soup that would have been as appealing as this summertime gem. The "broth" was red watermelon juice, with a few pools of extra virgin olive oil on top and minced mint and perhaps a squeeze of lime within. The chunks throughout the soup were sweet yellow watermelon. But as we began eating we discovered more: In addition to these halved dark grapes, we also encountered blackberries and raspberries:
The berries and grapes added touches of tartness to the sweet soup.

Soon after we finished the first course, our sandwiches arrived: Each sandwich was accompanied by a truly outstanding salad. Because the Central Coast is lettuce country, chefs have the ability to blend their own selection of various greens, rather than merely relying onlettuces already mixed. These salads contained primarily green and red oak leaf lettuce, two of the best and most flavorful salad greens available. The leaves were lightly dressed with a tomato vinaigrette, accompanied with cucumber slices, and topped with Kalamata olives, radish slices, and goat cheese. Salads don't get much better than this.

The sandwiches themselves were equally outstanding. One of them was a tuna sandwich: As you can see, this is no tuna sandwich like your mother served you. The seared albacore was topped with a slice of thick smoky bacon. Also, the slices of rich herb bread had been pressed like Paninis, so they were crunchy as well as flavorful.

The chicken sandwich may have been even better: On the same type of bread, the chicken breast slices were accompanied by bacon, melted mild cheese, and slices of green apple — the taste of the whole was flavorful and complex. An outstanding sandwich.

This restaurant has been in business about six months, but it is clear they know what they are doing. If we hadn't already made plans for dinner that evening, we would have returned here because the lunch was outstanding. I'm surprised that I had not heard of this place before my visit. I'm certainly glad that Tina and I followed our noses.

Thomas Hill Organics Wine Bar and Bistro, 1305 Park St, Paso Robles CA, 805-226-5888. Website

Niu Rou Mania – Hunan Chinese Restaurant

July 22, 2009 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Niu Rou Mian

**** Hunan Chinese Restaurant has closed

Unfortunately, this is one of those PWTSDS (sounds like putdz) posts……. "Posts Where the Sun Don't Shine". I had thought about just deleting the photos, but I don't get up to North County very much, and I'm not sure I'd want to have the NRM here again. So my apologies in advance……

Somewhere, in the comments section of one of my posts, someone mentioned that Hunan Restaurant in Rancho Bernardo made Niu Rou Mein. Being a big fan of NRM, I made sure to drop by when I was in the area.

To be perfectly clear, there ain't anything "Hunan" about Hunan Restaurant except for the name. I had a meal here years ago, and it was totally "ABCDE" (American Born Chinese Dining Establishment). But looking at the menu board, I noticed a section that had various noodle and rice dishes which looked promising.

So I entered the restaurant, and stepped into an alien green world!

I just found the greenish hue somewhat unappetizing, but I've never let stuff like that stop me before. Since I like to keep a low profile, and never use a flash, the lighting made taking photos somewhat difficult. For a while I tried timing my photos to the opening of the front door which would let light into the place. But of course, the wait between photos would have been pretty long!

The women here are pretty nice, and I simply ordered the Niu Rou Mian, which got the lady speaking to me in Mandarin, during my entire meal……. I don't think she ever figured out that I really didn't understand what she was saying!

Soon enough the NRM ($6.95) arrived.

When my bowl arrived, all I could think was "what the Pho?" That's what the broth looked like, Pho….. Though scalding hot, it was insipid, there was just a trace of five spice flavor, and it lacked any of the richness or the beefiness of Niu Rou Mein. What the heck? The noodles were the packaged stuff I buy from 99 Ranch Market, and was cooked well. What was impressive about this bowl was the amount of meat in this bowl. There was just as much meat under the noodles as was on the top!

The meat was tender, but lacking in flavor. I think I just found a NRM for those folks who think Bun Bo Hue is all about the meat, and should taste like "spicy Pho".

An acquaintance of mine loves the ABCDE food from Hunan, so those dishes might be good. I thought the service was very nice and friendly. But I cna get Americanized Chinese in dozens of places less than 25 miles from home.

Hunan Chinese Restaurant
16719 Bernardo Center Dr
San Diego, CA 92128

Open Daily: 11am – 9pm

Road Trip: Sea Harbour in Rosemead

July 21, 2009 ed fromyuma Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, Seafood, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Not a Kirk or a Cathy Road Trip - This post is part of an ed (from Yuma) Road Trip. Buckle up and enjoy!

It was time for Tina and I to head off on vacation, ultimately arriving in Monterey for a few days. San Gabriel Valley, fortunately for us, is about midway between Yuma and the cool breezes of the Monterey Peninsula. We arrived in Rosemead armed with some recommendations from Kirk for Chinese seafood. At the top of the list was Sea Harbour: (sorry about the drive-by shot)

When we arrived hungry for our 6 p.m. reservation, the stylish restaurant was largely empty, though its numerous fish tanks looked ready for customers: The first item to hit our table was a complementary seaweed salad. It was nothing spectacular, but it was a nice and refreshing way to begin the meal: When we made reservations, I had inquired about corkage fees and was told that I was welcome to bring my own wine for the modest charge of $10. I was happy to learn this as we had come over from Yuma with a special bottle in our ice chest. After I handed the Chalone Chardonnay to a server, it soon reappeared with adequate stemware and a chilled ice bucket. The servers kept our glasses properly filled throughout the meal: Unusually for a Chinese restaurant, our meal was served European style, in courses. First arrived two abalones ($15 each) taken fresh from a tank. Each was prepared in a different style. This one was covered in a slightly sweet soy-based sauce, somewhat resembling a teriyaki sauce:The shellfish was very tender and flavorful. We cut it into small enough pieces so that we could savor each bite; after all, it had been years since I had eaten cooked fresh abalone, and I wanted the maximum number of bites for $15.

As good as that abalone was, both Tina and I preferred the second one: Here the saucing was much simpler — basically just garlic. But that was really all the abalone needed in my mind. It was really good!

The next course represented the only slight glitch in the entire meal. I was hoping for some unusual vegetable, but didn't see anything especially exotic on the menu, so I asked if there was some special vegetable that evening. The waiter said that, indeed, they had a fresh seasonal vegetable, so I ordered it. Like a salad course, it arrived before the major entrée: There was nothing wrong with this order of Chinese greens ($12) at all. As the waiter said, they were incredibly fresh and arrived steaming at the table. The simple preparation showed off the their goodness and impeccable freshness. The only glitch for us was that we had had this very same choi sum at least twice in the previous two weeks at Yummy Yummy. While the vegetable in Yuma was not as fresh as it was at Sea Harbour, I had had hopes for some thing more different.

Our main dish that evening was steamed whole red cod, taken from a tank and as fresh as could be ($36 for about 1 1/2 lbs): This was a beautiful fish, steamed to perfection and presented with a light tangy soy based sauce. Unfortunately, my picture does not do justice to this outstanding entrée because the server was waiting next to our table for me to take pictures before he removed the spine and attached bones, and I felt bad for keeping him standing there.

Now is as good a time as any to mention the wonderful and attentive service. Some online postings at various websites indicate that the service at Sea Harbour is perfunctory and almost rude. Perhaps that is the case when the restaurant is serving its popular dim sum, but Tina and I were treated exceptionally well throughout our meal. While thoroughly professional, all of the servers were friendly. They answered my questions with a smile and generally provided helpful advice. I can't recall better service at another Chinese restaurant.

Now back to the food. I just want to share one close up of the fish flesh on my plate: The taste of the red cod was every bit as moist and tender as it looks in this photo. Each mildly fishy bite melted away on the tongue. It was so good that we consumed everything — cheeks, brains, eyeballs, skin, and anything else we could scrape off the bones.

We were then each brought a complementary bean porridge, which was lightly sweet and slightly savory: I thought that was going to be the conclusion of the meal, but Tina and I both were then given these two desserts: I have no expertise whatsoever with Chinese desserts, but these did taste good and provided an attractive ending for the meal. Thanks Kirk for the rec! The place is definitely yo-so delicioso!

Sea Harbour, 3939 Rosemead Blvd, Rosemead, 626-288-3939

ABCDE – Panda Country Restaurant

July 20, 2009 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants

**** Panda Country has closed

About two years ago, I remember sitting and having some sushi. During the meal, I struck up a conversation with a quiet, somewhat serious, intense young man. And of course, eventually the subject of food came up. As we spoke about Chinese Restaurants in San Diego, the young man asked me, "do you know the best Chinese Restaurant in San Diego?" Now I had this guy pegged as an "ABC" (American Born Chinese), so I immediately offered up places like China Max, Jasmine, Emerald, and Golden City. The young man gave me this strange look, and I suddenly felt like a spaz who meant to scratch his eye but ended up with his finger halfway up his nostril….. "It's Panda Country." Is what he said with total conviction. Not placing the restaurant, and wondering if I've somehow overlooked some hidden treasure, I replied "Panda Country?" "Yes Panda Country, and I should know….." And then the inevitable happened, he uttered the phrase that always makes me shake my head, "because I'm Chinese." And to up the ante, he followed up with, "and I'm from New York, and WE know good food.…" Ah yes, the double whammy, "genetics and geography", I suddenly felt like I was reading a review from that "four lettered" website, full of "I know good xxxx food because I'm (fill in the blank race)." And yet, I still couldn't place Panda Country, until I was making the left turn on Genesee at Clairemont Mesa Boulevard……geeez, Panda Country, I've passed this place thousands of times. The place looked like a typical "ABCDE" ("American Born Chinese Dining Establishment" – pronounced Ab-cee-dee).

Nothing against ABCDEs, in fact I was raised eating at places called Kwok's Chop Suey, McCully Chop Suey, Hee-Hing, and Kapahulu Chop Suey. Eating stuff like Cold Ginger Chicken, Oyster Sauce Chicken, Sweet Sour Spareribs, Almond Duck, Kau Yuk, and Lemon Chicken. Not having much in the way of money growing up, meals from these places marked special occasions. And though I'm not a fan of most of what is served in San Diego at places with names like, "New Eastern Panda Dragon Pearl Garden House Cuisine", many ABCDEs serve good solid fare. And yet, for some reason I couldn't bring myself to enter through the doors of Panda Country for two years.

And of course, I waited until an evening when the Missus was tied up, and not available for dinner.

The fairly dark interior of Panda Country looked like your typical time-warp 70's Chinese Restaurant. The theme was….well Panda's of course.

While waiting for my order, watching folks come in to eat, and pick-up take-out orders, I could make out a typical customer profile. I don't want to sound to age discriminant so I'm only going to say, that there was a lot of blue hair, walkers, and canes. On the good side, I felt like a spring chicken!

And though the carvings looked more like some exotic rodent than a Panda, I really dug the chairs!!!

While waiting for my order, between serving and seating customers, I had a nice conversation with the Server who is from "Canton"……no not Ohio, but the city now known as Guangzhou. He was really nice and friendly. I was told that Panda Country has been around longer than he has, which probably put the place at around thirty years or so. When I asked where the Chef was from, I was told Hong Kong. I quickly brightened and said, "the chef trained in Hong Kong?" To which he replied; "no, the chef is from Hong Kong……" Still I really liked this Guy, and the place was fairly hopping when I left.

Somehow I had remembered what I was told to order here, and even ordered a few more for good measure.

Being a big chicken wing fan, I started with some Fried Chicken Wings ($5.50):

These weren't bad if a bit short on seasoning. Not something I'd order again, but not bad.

One of the items recommended was the "Crispy Beef" ($10.25):

The was more like "candied beef", man was it sweet. It truly hurt my teeth. I was warned about this dish being spicy, which it wasn't. I'm sure if you had eaten this at the restaurant, there would have been a bit more "crunch" to it. The beef was one the chewy side, which is perfectly fine with dishes like this.

The House Special Chicken ($10.25):

If I could rename this dish, I'd call it "General Tso Slept Here" as it resembled versions of the dish known as General Tso's Chicken. In case you're wondering about the story of that dish, you can read Fuchsia Dunlop's version either in her Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook, or read Her article from NPR here. The batter on this was pretty good, it held it's crunch on the trip home. The flavor, for such a robust looking dish was bland.

I also ordered the Shrimp in Black Bean Sauce ($11.95):

This was the best dish overall. I could have done without the frozen peas, and prefer green bell peppers and onions to the zucchini, but this was not bad. Good amount of shrimp, a tad over-cooked, but acceptable. Decent amount of black bean and garlic as well. I think that Mandarin Canton and Mandarin make better versions of this dish. The texture of the sauce wasn't overly gluey and gooey which was also a plus.

OK, before I get a ton of poison pen letters telling me I'm a Chinese Food snob, blah, blah, blah…..do me a favor, and think of something they do really well at Panda Country. And maybe, just maybe, I'll pay them another visit. Maybe not….

Panda Country
4455 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

And the next time the best reason someone can come up with regarding food is their race……think twice.

Roadtrip: 818 Shao Kao aka JN Kitchen – San Gabriel (Los Angeles)

July 19, 2009 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip

**** JN Kitchen has closed

We've passed the JN Kitchen sign on Valley Boulevard many times during our roadtrips to the San Gabriel area. A while back, we noticed that the place had changed hands, and though the JN Kitchen English name had been kept. In Chinese it said 818 "Shao Kao" which means BBQ. We were finally able to pay a visit on a recent trip.

The shop itself is tiny, with just a couple of two-tops, and one modified four-top (two tables placed together). The walls are lines with the usual paper strips of various offerings written in Chinese. The place screams "snack shop", and with good reason, we found that the folks running things in this little shop are from Tianjin, a region which is known for their snacks.

The menu is a small two sided laminated placard.

The Missus and I immediately saw items we were interested in, though the Missus had to do all the ordering since the nice lady waiting on us did not speak a word of English.

I knew I wanted the Guo Ba Soup ($3.50). I loved the version at the now gone Mei Jia Deli, even though we were dissuaded from ordering it.

For $3.50 we didn't expect much, but this was a pretty hefty bowl of "gravy" topped with slices of "Guo Ba" in this case the crepe portion of the Jiang Bing made from a batter using mung bean and millet flour. For some reason, I really enjoy the sour, fermented flavor of the thick, sickly pinkish-brown broth. This version wasn't as salty as what I've had before which made it even more enjoyable.

It is simple, but substantial fare, as the Guo Ba is pretty heavy and will stay with you for a while. Still, I could have this for breakfast quite often. The thick broth was extremely hot, and stayed that way until we finished the bowl.

Of course the Missus, still full of nostalgia, had to order the Jian Bing Guo Zi. This was a bit of an odd looking Jian Bing:

Instead of being round, and looking sort of burrito like, this was flat.

The odd shape was because of the fried cracker like item which occupied the middle of the Jian Bing, instead of the usual You Tiao (fried cruller). To the Missus, in search of the Jian Bing of Her youth, this made this all wrong.

As did the strange spiciness from the chili paste in the Jian Bing. This was just not very good.

Of course any meal here would not be complete without a few items on sticks. The Missus ordered the Chou Dofu (stinky-tofu – $1.20):

I was downwind when this hit the table, and it was fairly smelly, perhaps not in the "musty, rotten sewage like smell that comes from a dark, damp place" league of Dynasty Plaza or Shau Mei, but it was pretty stink. The Missus, upwind when the plate hit the table wasn't impressed, until a wind shift got Her attention. She declared this ok, but lamented the use of sweet chili sauce instead of the appropriate sauce.

We also ordered a few skewers, 2 Lamb ($1.20/ea), 1 lamb chop ($2.50), and 1 Chicken Gizzard ($1.20):

These weren't really that good, more salty than anything. The meat was tough. I thought the gizzards, and the lamb chop, which had a freezer burnt taste, and was so tough that I felt I was chewing on freezer-burnt flavor gum, was the worst. Extra cumin was provided on the side but was of little or no help.

The lamb flavor was also very mild. Not very good in our opinion.

Still, I'll gladly come back for the Guo Ba Cai…….

818 Shaokao/ JN Kitchen
818 E Valley Boulevard
San Gabriel, CA 91776
Open 10am – 10pm Daily

Saturday Stuffs

July 18, 2009 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers, Peruvian Restaurants, yoso-silly

Just a few items for a pretty warm Saturday.

Nazca Grill:

Signs have gone up in the old Aji Seco/Nieto's Taco Shop location on Genesee. Looks like this will be a Peruvian restaurant called Nazca Grill.

Sounds good to me!!!

Costco Stuff:

I try not to spend very much, if any time in Costco, because of the crowds. My mission is to time things right, and get in and out ASAP. But on a recent visit, I took some time to look around and was rather surprised at finding a few interesting items.

As I navigated my way into the produce section….one does not stroll in Costco, what one does is push a cart the size of an aircraft carrier, dodging other massive shopping carts or six wheelers, and hope for the best. I've always hoped that traffic lights and turn signals will become standard equipment in Costco, but I don't think that'll be happening in my lifetime. To be honest, Costco is invaluable for stocking up on those necessities, I can always get a pack of toilet tissue that would make my late, TP hording Mom proud. The one thing with Costco is not just buying stuff you'll never use, or don't need, but buying said items in bulk! Luckily, my phobia of ravenous crowds trying to sample stuff in little cups, and crazy folks at the helm of shopping carts (it's a "Long's" story) keeps me away unless we need something. So of course, browsing at Costco cost me a few bucks more, but I was satisfied with what I purchased.

I was surprised to find Donut/Saturn Peaches.

The Missus grew up eating these in China, and She really loves these fragrant, and sweet peaches. I was shocked to see them in Costco, as until a few years ago they were usually only found in Asian Markets. These were huge, and fragrant, though not as sweet. Pretty cheap too, 2 pounds for $3.49.

I was also lured into buying a package of cedar smoking planks. Because of the amount of grilling we've been doing in the last few weeks, I thought I'd try these out. There were 6 thin planks in the package.

I wanted to take these for a test run, so decided to use some shrimp I had in the freezer.

I soaked the boards for about an hour, marinaded the shrimp in Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Garlic, and Salt, for about 15 minutes, lines up on the board, and placed it on the grill at the end of my grilling session (like I said, I want to milk every single bit of heat from my charcoal), and placed the lid on my Weber.

I think twelve minutes was a bit too long for the shrimp, but the flavor was excellent. The Missus loved the smokiness. So maybe this was worth it.

Costco always finds new ways to separate me from my money……

Some interesting links:

I remember reading this a couple of weeks ago, and for some reason I couldn't help but laugh.

This one is not about food, but I found it funny as well!

I hope you're all enjoying your weekend!

Turo Turo Thursday: Ed’s Filipino Take-out

July 16, 2009 mmm-yoso Filipino Restaurants

**** Ed's has closed

A bit under the weather this evening, so I'll keep this one short. Last Thursday it was Olga's in Linda Vista, this week it's a small turo-turo shop in Rolando, on Rolando Boulevard a few steps from University.

I actually first ate here in the late 90's when doing some consulting work in San Diego. I last ate here a bit after 2001, just a bit after moving to San Diego. At that time it was known as Leah's Filipino Food and made some decent Filipino eats. I had heard that "Leah" passed on in 2003, but one of Leah's relatives kept the business going.

So here I was almost eight years later, wondering what ever happened to……… An as I made the turn on Rolando Boulevard, was "Ed's Filipino Take-out", looking pretty much like Leah's. Leah's lettering still resides on the window, as if a memorial to Her. I don't recall the place only being open from Tuesday to Friday, but it is now. The interior looks a bit worn, with no tables, well, there's one sort of table that looks like doubles for a desk. Six items on the steam table, and other stuff can be cooked/heated on request. The gentleman (Ed?) was very nice, and when I ordered my two plus rice ($5.14), he asked me if I wanted the Adobo Sauce on my rice. Now that was a nice touch, which just goes to show the heart of this little shop. I chose Picadillo and Pork Adobo as my mains.

I found the Pork Adobo to be dry, a bit tough, and on the bland side.

The Picadillo was pretty good though. Filipino Picadillo is a ground beef and gravy/broth style dish, kind of homey, the stuff like mom used to make.

Not quite up to National City/Chula Vista/Mira Mesa standards, but hey, it was just a bit over five bucks. So in case you just need a "fix", and can't make it to any of those places………….

Ed's Filipino Take-Out Food
4204 Rolando Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115
(619) 582-0013

Yes, I know it's hard to compare it to stuff like this:

So let's not. I still haven't been able to finish off a plate from Tita's in one sitting……..

Tao Vietnamese and Japanese Cuisine – A first look

July 15, 2009 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Japanese Restaurants, Vietnamese Restaurants

Among the emails I received early this week was one that started "Hey yoso-Dude….." Dude??? Well, I'll take that over other four letter words that I've been called or other various utterances starting with the letter 'D', often ending in "bag' or a word commonly used to describe any animal of the genus Equus…….

Anyway, this email went on to tell me that he really enjoys Dao Son, and first heard about the place through one of our posts. To return the favor, he thought he'd let me know that on his last visit to Dao Son he was told that they opened a new, more upscale restaurant on Adams Avenue called Tao. Tao also made their own tofu in-house…..we were so there!

After scouting about for a bit I found some parking, and we walked over a half block, and entered the world of Tao.

The interior is nicely adorned without going over the top. The menu is a mixture of Japanese, Vietnamese, and fusion dishes. We noticed a few familiar "Dao Son" items. We also noted that the prices reflected the upgrade in decor being about $2 more than Dao Son.

As with Dao Son, we steered clear of the straight Japanese and Vietnamese dishes. We were disappointed to find the Fried Catfish with Eggplant not on the menu, but pleased to see the Red Chicken. The offerings seem on the lighter side, with fewer fried dishes.

After placing our order, we were brought a free "salad", a nice touch.

This was more of a "herb salad" and will wake up taste buds if you aren't familiar with the flavors of Rau Ram(Vietnamese Cilantro), Ngo Om (Rice Paddy Herb – you'll swear there's cumin in the salad), Tiet To (Perilla), and I swear there was Diep Ca in this as well. It also featured a few small cubes of the handmade tofu, which was of the firm variety, and mildly "beany" in flavor.

Wanting to check out the homemade tofu, I ordered the Handmade Tofu with Oyster Mushrooms in sizzling Basil Black Bean Sauce ($12.95). Can you tell that Tao is really into oversized plates? The plates took up large real estate on the tables. Also, the pinwheel arrangement was a far cry from Dao Son.

I enjoyed the whole cloves of garlic, and the rice, a half red and jasmine rice was a nice touch, even though the rice wasn't particularly fragrant. The oyster mushrooms were ok, but nothing special. The tofu was too mild for this dish. For me good home made tofu should go off on one of two tangents. The first would be a wonderful silken tofu, that would be textural heaven. The second would be a firmer tofu that would have a pronounced "soy-beany" flavor. This had neither, and though the sauce, which tasted like basic black bean sauce, wasn't too salty, the tofu was lost in the sauce. For my taste, the tofu would be better served in dishes like the salad as it is very mild. This was not bad, but not outstanding.

The Missus, wanting to compare with Dao Son, ordered the Tasty Red Chicken($8.28):

I enjoyed this much more than the Missus. At Dao Son, the Red Chicken is sometimes served with strips of white meat chicken which can be dry as heck. These were wok seared dark meat chicken which I enjoyed. The "red sauce" here is more like a glaze than a sauce, and seems to be missing something. The heat is provided by dollops of Sriracha-like hot sauce, which tasted out of place. As you can tell, the Missus and I had switched plates. I think we'll have to go back to Dao Son soon to refresh our taste memory with regards to this dish.

The young lady serving us instantly charmed us when she smiled and told us, "I'm sorry in advance, I've just started working here….." She did a good job, and in fact was a bit over-attentive but I'm sure she'll do well. It didn't hurt that she brought us some free "dessert" while we waited for our check.

Overall, we enjoyed the experience, and we'll return to Tao in a few months. As you can tell, the decor is much more refined than the "divey" Dao Son. The folks are very nice, and the menu large. Parking can be a pain. We're glad that Dao Son has done so well, that the "Hot Chef" could open up a place like Tao. Open less than a week at the time of this meal, I think they did pretty well.

Tao
3332 Adams Ave
San Diego, CA 92116

Lunch: Mon -Fri 11am – 2pm
Dinner: Daily 5pm – 10pm
619-281-6888

As for the FOY who emailed me, when I wrote that I'd like to mention him in my post, he requested anonymity. So let's just call him 'Mr X'! So, thanks Mr X!

Copan Ruinas, Honduras: Churrasqueria Momo’s

July 14, 2009 mmm-yoso Honduran Food, Honduras, Travel

There would be no birds singing "ooo-wee" on this Antigua morning, as we woke at 4am for our 5am shuttle to the town of Copan Ruinas in Honduras. Seven hours later we arrived. Dropped off on a side street, and walking to the inevitable Parque Central, we were both overcome with the heat (though not nearly as hot as Cambodia), and charmed by this little town of seven thousand. Yes, tourism is big business here, and hotels line the streets in every direction from Parque Central.

But it's the locals that add color. At Parque Central, you see tourists milling with the local "cowboys" making for an entertaining, and somewhat surreal experience.

Our first mission upon arriving was finding a place to sleep, which was accomplished quickly. The second was getting some Lempiras, Honduran currency. We entered one of the banks across the street from Parque Central….and to our surprise, we found that they didn't change Quetzales (Guatemalan currency) for Lempiras! In fact, only one location in Copan "legally" made these exchanges. But luckily, as we've found in our travels, everyone will most willingly exchange dollars. One bonus was that the bank always seemed to have its A/C turned to "freeze". In the future, when it was getting a bit too hot, we'd often head off to the bank to exchange cash, and cool off. While I was in line, the Missus walked on over to the three guards, each of them armed with shotguns, and started a conversation of sorts. By now She had the rule of decent eats down….all the police officers and security guards know where to grab decent eats. By the time I stuffed the wad of Lempiras in my pocket, the exchange rate was somewhere about 18.5 Lempiras to a dollar, the Missus had gotten a name and directions to our lunch spot.

A place called "Momo's". As we arrived, it turned out that Momo's was a Churrasqueria, basically a steakhouse.

The seating was "al fresco" on a covered porch like area. And the very nice…and patient young man who served us was a joy. We undoubtedly amused him……..

The place was empty, and we sat near the rear of the porch area. It looked like the family lived in the huts at the back of the restaurant, and there were tropical birds in cages enjoying the shade.

The menu at Momo's is mostly comprised of Desayunos (breakfast items), Churrascos (grilled meats), Pinchos (Kabobs), and Parrilladas (combination plates).

After looking over the menu, I went with the Puyazo, a basic grilled beef. (145 Lps – $6.50):

Looking at the meat, I thought it was going to be rather tough, but I was pleasantly surprised. The meat was tender, with great flavor, undoubtedly grass fed. The meat had been seasoned with salt, oregano, and other herbs. The Missus had a taste and declared it delicious. My meal came with the usual sides, and tons of tortillas.

The Missus started with a Licuados(think smoothie). And when She requested a "mixto" of Sandia and Pina, they gladly made it.

Now the Missus wasn't too hungry, and decided to order something "small". Thinking that it would be somthing light, She went with the Honduran calorie bomb called a Baleadas. She ordered the Baleadas con Frijoles, Queso, y Crema, thinking that the non-meat version would be fairly small.

This was as wide as Her forearm. Baleadas are similar to quesadillas, and is a typical breakfast dish. This one was 15Lps – less than two bucks.

We found that huge breakfasts are the norm here. I saw a young man eating a humongous plate of food….the Desayunos con carne. Check out what was on the plate:

I'm glad that I had a pretty hefty lunch….the Missus had one of Her typical "death marches" in store for me after lunch!

Apparently, the Missus had enjoyed this meal. On our last night in Copan Ruinas, the Missus choseMomo's. So we found ourselves back, with the same nice young man serving us.

The Missus again started with Her Licuados….the young man had remembered us (who could forget), and asked Her, "mixto?" Which is what She got…..

The Missus decided on the Filete Mignon (150 Lps – $8.50):

It wasn't much to look at, and the Papas Fritas (french fries) were and after-thought, but it had decent flavor.

I went with the Churrasco Jalapeno (130 Lps – $6):

This large piece of skirt was smothered in a cheese-cream sauce. There was a whole roasted jalapeno pepper partially hidden in the sauce. Though I enjoyed the Puyazo better, this sure wasn't short on flavor. Of course, there were tortillas provided.

I had thought an order of Plantano Frito (Fried Plantains) would make a nice pseudo-dessert.

For the life of us, we could not figure out what the queso (cheese) and frijoles(beans) were for. I tried eating the sweet plantanos with the queso and frijoles and didn't find that a pleasant experience.

Overall, we enjoyed our meals at Momo's. It also gave us a clue as to how substantial meals are. It is not cheap by Honduran standards. We saw the young man one evening when headed back to our hotel, he gave us a shy smile and a wave. We were enjoying our time in Copan Ruinas……