mmm-yoso – Page 528 – 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.

Road Trip: J & J Restaurant – San Gabriel(LA), and the San Gabriel Foot Fetish…….

January 24, 2007 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Los Angeles County, Road Trip, Xiao Long Bao

**** J & J Restaurant has closed

Right before the New Year, on one of our road trips to LA, we were in the mood for some Xiao Long Bao(soup dumplings), but instead of Mei Long Village we decided to check out J & J Restaurant. We've always found it somewhat interesting that both J & J and Meilong Village occupy the same strip mall, and co-exist just a few doors down from each other.

On this day the tiny, simply furnished restaurant was hopping……

The Missus and I always appreciate servers who work with no wasted motion, and the two women working today were working with efficient precision. Containers for leftovers were brought to the table with the check, and tea was dropped off on one table as the server walked to the table directly next to it to take an order.

We looked over the menu even though we knew what we were going to order.

We started with the Xue Cai Rou Si Chao Nian Gao($5.25):

We didn't care for this much, the Chao Nian Gao(stir fried rice cake) had been over cooked and was mushy, the Xue Cai(mustard greens) had no flavor, and the dish had a sort of "fishy" aftertaste.

Of course we were here for Xiao Long Bao, and in case you think I needed any help in selected which XLB's to get…something like this will usually seal the deal. Crab being prepared for the XLB.

So of course we started with the Pork and Crab XLB's($5.95):

The 8 good sized XLB arrived perfectly steamed. I found the wrapper to be a tad thicker than the wrapper at Mei Long Village, the very tender filling had a mild flavor, that leaned a bit toward the sweeter end. I thought these were good except for one thing; the soup to meat ratio was way off…we both thought that the XLB had too little soup in them.

Not satisfied with one order of XLB, we also got the Pork XLB($4.95):

These come 10 to an order, and were steamed and served in perfect condition. The Pork XLB had a bit of a stronger flavor, that went well with the soy-vinegar-ginger dipping sauce. But the meat-soup ratio on these seemed to be a bit off as well. In the end, I guess we enjoy a bit more soup in our Xiao Long Baos.

Still, because of the close proximity of the two restaurants, and the very reasonable prices, you can probably do a XLB "crawl" and make up your own mind as to which XLB you prefer.

HC of LA and OC Foodventures has a nice post on J & J Restaurant.

J & J Restaurant
301 W. Valley Blvd.
San Gabriel, CA 91776

An interesting observation…..

I don't know if anyone has noticed this….in fact I'm surprised that the ever observant Andy hasn't mentioned this on his blog, The ABC. After our meal at J & J we walked over to the snack shop in the strip mall next door, so the Missus could get Her shaved ice. While walking we simultaneously looked at each other and went…"what is the deal, with all of the Foot Massage places?"

So what is the deal? I decided to take photos of the Reflexology/Foot Massage shops we found just from walking from one strip mall to the next….less than a block. And here's what we found:

There's even a little price war going on in this strip mall……on one side of the mall, it's $20/hr:

Directly on the other side, it's $15/hr:

I know that with all the restaurants, and other businesses, that workers in the SGV are probably on their feet alot….but man, that's alot of tired feet.

Or maybe San Gabriel has a foot fetish??? We call it the San Gabriel Foot Fetish.

There must be over 30 Reflexology/Foot Massage studios on Valley Boulevard….for some reason we found that to be rather odd…….

Its on Convoy and not pho…Rosa’s Pizza…but, don’t get the pizza

January 23, 2007 Cathy Pizza, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso is not on vacation. Kirk is not blogging, Cathy is.

Click here to see my re-visit to Rosa’s

Hi. You’ve seen this place, and so have I. There was a coupon, The Mister was leaving work, I was hungry, blah, blah, blah. If you go to Nijiya then walk to Sakura…well they are in adjoining malls, and this place is right between them…behind the Mexican place that is in the Nijiya/Curry House parking lot and also next to the Wings and Things in the Sakura/Original Pancake House parking lot…directly facing Convoy.

Since we have been to Italy, The Mister and I are always looking for the “correct” flavors and smells that remind us of those fun times we had (well, I had a fun time, The Mister was attached to the USS. John F. Kennedy and technically working while we were there, but at least there was only one airfare to be paid)… so far, as close as we can get is the Filippi’s on India Street, with the grocery store in front…still.

So, the menu here at Rosa’s is a sort of everything Italian deli place: pizza, hot and cold sandwiches, pasta…oh and buffalo wings.

So, this being the first time, The Mister ordered a one topping pizza and chose mushrooms ($9.99 regular price). Pretty much cheese pie is what we usually get. Its hard to mess up…but boy, if I had only bought myself a Lottery ticket that night… odds are I would not have hit a jackpot, not even one number! It looks like a good pizza, right?

Lots of cheese, a hand tossed crust with the edges tightly rolled, fresh sliced mushrooms…and no salt, no herbs, no olive oil flavor, no flavor at all…the sauce was more or less salt free tomato sauce. The cheese was real- it was stringy, but no flavor. The mushrooms were fresh, not canned. The crust was not too thin and not thick, not chewy and…no flavor. It was odd. I ended up putting anchovies, garlic salt and Parmesan on the plate, just to rub chunks of the pizza in to get some kind of flavor. When I had a leftover slice reheated in the toaster oven the next morning…still nothing. Rosas_002 ..and the crust was way crispy and cracker-like.

But, the saving grace was the buffalo wings The Mister had the sense to also buy. One dozen for $6. HOT wing sauce….and a good size portion of a blue cheese/ranch dressing dip. Meaty wings, not too fried or crispy and coated with a lot of the hot sauce. I could have eaten a few dozen of these. The best wings I have ever had were from Foggy’s Notion, across from Kobey’s Swap Meet, but Foggy’s is long gone. The ones here were darn good.

To be fair, I have to go back and try the sandwiches, you can get two 16 inch sandwiches for $12.75, but I really don’t want the pizza again.

Rosa’s Pizza 3860 Convoy Street, #100 San Diego 92111 (858) 278-1223

Suzuya Japanese BBQ

January 22, 2007 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants

*** Suzuya has closed.

Suzuya Japanese BBQ opened quietly a few months back, with barely a whisper. Suzuya specializes in Yakiniku, a style of cooking very similar to Korean BBQ. In fact, it is thought that Yakiniku evolved from Korean BBQ.

You can tell it's a Yakiniku restaurant by the heavy duty ventilation systems.

Right before Christmas our very own Cathy and I met for lunch. We even found parking in the much too small lot on Kearny Villa Road that Suzuya shares with Osaka Kitchen, and several other restaurants. I found the interior of the restaurant is adorned in a very simple tasteful manner.

The lunch menu consists of about 15 items, and we selected the lunch size portion of the Beef Yakiniku ($7.95), and the Pork Bulgogi ($7.50). All lunch items came with a very generic salad, an adequate serving of rice, and the usual weak miso soup.

The Beef Yakiniku was marinated in a slightly sweet sauce, and tasted pretty much like Bulgogi, Korean BBQ'd beef.

The meat was very moist and tender, and the meat was pretty well marbled. The portion size was a fairly good value for the price.

The Pork Bulgogi, was a version of Daeji Bulgogi. I thought the spice level to be fairly mild, and though the pork had a nice flavor, it was a bit on the dry side.

The ventilation system for the gas grills was excellent, I left without smelling like I'd been grilled. For what it's worth, there were only 3 other grills going at the time, so I don't know how bad it would get if the restaurant was going full tilt.

Unlike Korean BBQ, there is no panchan served, though you can purchase side orders of Kimchi for $2.50. Still the lunch menu seemed overwhelmingly Korean, with items like Dolsot Bibimbap.

So here's the juicy inside info, I don't know if it's 100% true….so for what it's worth, I've been told that one of the Owners is Ichiro…as in Ichiro's Restaurant. Apparently, he and his wife divorced, and she got Ichiro's. He on the other hand met and married a Korean lady….the very nice woman who runs the front of house during lunch, and viola! Suzuya Japanese BBQ.

I recently returned again for lunch, and because I was badly in need of carbs, decided to check out the Kimchi Fried Rice($6.50):

Don't be fooled, it's more food than you think! In this case a decent sized portion of rice was stir fried with Baechu(Napa Cabbage) Kimchi and the Pork Bulgogi, and topped off with a nice runny, easy over egg. The dish was milder, and hence a lot less salty and spicy(lack of spam would lower the sodium level alot). What pork there was in the dish was very soft and tender. Overall, an okay dish….though give me Spam and Kimchi fried rice any day!

I did manage a peek at the dinner menu, and noticed that there were many more conventional Yakiniku type offerings….various cuts of meat, unmarinated, and served with different Yakiniku Tare (dipping sauces). I noticed that some of the prices were pretty inexpensive and was told that most portions are about 4 ounces, so you can get a good variety. Shabu Shabu is also served, and costs $18.95 per person. We'll probably drop by one night for dinner…and I'll make sure to post further information.

As mentioned, the parking lot can be crazy during lunch hours. The service has always been very nice and accommodating.

Suzuya Japanese BBQ
5447 Kearny Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123
(858) 505-0611

Lunch – Mon-Fri 1130am – 230pm
Dinner – Daily 5pm to 11pm

From the when it rains it pours department:

So I'm driving this past weekend when I see a sign that catches my attention. I pull into the strip mall that houses Izakaya Sakura, and wouldn't you know it. We suddenly go from no Yakiniku restaurants in the area…to two, in 8 months!

They are not yet open, but I'm wondering if it's an expansion of Tsuruhashi restaurant in OC? BTW, Tsuruhashi District in Osaka is well known for their Yakiniku, so things are getting more interesting………

Everyday Hero Deli-Great food and helping the community too!

January 21, 2007 Cathy Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

Sadly, Everyday Hero is now closed.

mmm-yoso is the blog's name. Cathy is talking about what she ate today. Kirk will talk about his munchings on another day.

Hi. If you've read and remembered everything I've written, you know I try to hit a fruit/vegetable market around town a couple of times a week. Sometimes its just Henry's but then there is Vine Ripe, which I blogged about in October (since there is a restaurant attached to the market) and there are a few others around town. This one, which was named without any imagination or thought whatsoever, is on Santo Road, at the 52, about one mile (its the first exit) east of I-15; so it isn't far away for most of you. Right inside the market area of The Market there has always been a deli/sandwich place, and it was owned by the The Market's owners (heh heh, I love saying that out loud, the The…) and was Mediterranean and good food, some hot plates, lots of different feta's, etc. But it closed and finally, last July, a wall went up and this new place opened…Everyday Hero…. and I figured, eh, Hero sandwiches…no big deal; probably not very good…and I never went in. BIG MISTAKE. HUGE.

The other day The Mister was off from work and we were going to get veggies and stuff from the The Market and it was lunchtime…and I had my camera, and I am now in the habit of documenting all of my eating habits (my physician will love me when I tell her to come to the blog to see how I eat, especially all those fried foods….) so I figured since its still opened after six months, it might be OK and I wasn't that hungry anyhow.

Its nice and clean inside. Casual. Photographs on the walls…of Firemen, Rescue guys, Lifeguards…oh…Everyday Heroes…hmmm.

There is a menu on the wall to the right when you walk in, which photographed badly.

So here is the paper menu, wherein you can read the prices.

and there were some daily specials on the wall also, and everything looked good.

The Mister decided on the Daily Special sandwich, a Pastrami panini, which came with the chips and soda at no extra cost, this being the Special ($7.45). I decided on the "My Big Greek Panini" ($5.95) which cost the same as the "My Big Greek Wrap" and I was interested in how the panini-ized pita would taste. We both were fascinated with the description of the Soup of the Day- White Bean Shrimp Stew, so we got the large size of that also ($3 I think).

When we ordered we were asked if we had ever been there before; we said 'no' and the nice girl at the counter explained that the Deli has partnered with some of the organizations in San Diego, with the goal of assisting them with their "Wish Lists" and that a portion of the profits go to those organizations, and we could choose which organization we wanted our potion of the profits to go to..Fire and Rescue, Lifeguards or a few others. I immediately said "Fire" for many reasons, but maybe will choose a different organization the next time (ah those Lifeguards….<sigh>).

SO ANYHOW, um…let me get my bearings back. While waiting, I was reading some of the stuff on the walls….it seems the three owners were all in the Hospitality Industry; two of them being Professional Hotel Chefs….one of whom teaches at a Culinary institute….and I started thinking…and then the soup/stew arrived.

Tomato based. Hunks of tomatoes. Tomatoes with seeds. Fresh tasting…a little bit of bite (was described on the wall as fra diablo, but wasn't too hot) …white beans that were not mushy. Good sized large pieces of shrimp that were not mushy but still firm and …sweet…fresh…Oh. My. God.

This was a GREAT stew. I mean *really* good. This was made by chefs, from scratch, not from a can. This was wonderful.

Then my panini came out. Hummus, tomato, provolone, cucumber, caramelized onion, roasted red peppers, feta, a spicy cucumber based sauce on a panini-ized pita. Wonderful! Fresh, crispy veggies and the grilled ones were great also. The sauce was a nice spicy heat and this was one of the best "veggie" sandwiches I have had…ever. The side of pickles and peppers was a nice touch and they were good ones.

Also, the sandwich was presented this way, cut and stacked. A nice little attention to detail. I usually have to 'primp' the food for the photographs I post.

The Mister's Grilled Pastrami Panini came out, in this presentation. Beef pastrami, horseradish cheddar, roasted peppers, sun dried tomato pesto, fresh spinach and chopped pickles.

Yes, it was great. The heat from the horseradish cheddar made it unique. The pastrami was not fatty at all, the grilling was just right in that the bread was not overly crispy.

The food here is made *extremely*, unexpectedly good. I could kick myself for walking by here so many times last summer. The whole story, menu and descriptions are on the website along with catering information. If you are on Interstate 15 at 52, just take the exit East; it is the first exit and inside that shopping area to your right, before the first light (you can go to that light and pull into the parking lot there; it is closer to that end anyhow) , but do give it a try. You'll leave happy after a great dining experience and will also have helped "Strengthen the Community One Sandwich at a Time".

Everyday Hero Deli 5950 Santo Road, Suite K San Diego 92124 (858)694-0741

Monday-Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

When we were leaving, The Mister and I went to the counter to ask about and compliment that home made stew and we were told we could get on the e-mail list for the daily specials for the coming week. On Saturday afternoon I got the email for this week and I am totally wanting to go back and try the asparagus crab soup on Thursday and the meatloaf hero and…well, everything. You can send them an email and ask to be put on the list: everydayherodeli@sbcglobal.net

Addendum: Went back and got the Tuscan Chicken Hero sandwich…OMG…oh yes…warm chicken breast, tomatoes, olives, capers..and you get a choice of white, wheat or sesame bread for the sandwich. Fresh and, again, wonderful. Totally gourmet. Oh, and the pea soup was awsome…with lots of chopped ham in it.

Local Kine Chili

January 20, 2007 mmm-yoso Cooking, Recipes

It’s quite amusing sometimes, when talking to ex-pat Kama’aina’s here on the Mainland…once you get past all of the initial pleasantries ("Wea you wen’ grad?"), without fail the conversation drifts to food, and what we miss ("ohhh man W and M Burgers"), and where to get what ("eh, you seen Purity Port-o-gee Sausage?"). In these conversations there are a few items that have reach iconic status, I’m talking about eye-rolling, lip smacking(taste memory is an amazing thing), stomach growling, iconic status. And what may seem to be surprising to some, is that one of these items is Chili….really, Chili. More specifically, Zippy’s Chili. Somewhere between 1966 when the first Zippy’s opened, to say 1971 when the second Zippy’s opened, in Kaimuki, just a block from where we lived(in the old Crown Drive In location), Zippy’s Chili had already won the stomachs of many locals. At the time of this article in 2004, Zippy’s was selling 150,000 of chili a month. Not only through the restaurants, but Zippy’s Chili had become a big time fund raising item, and of course there is online sales, and you can even get the frozen version at places like Marukai here on the mainland. Now that’s alot of chili…in Hawaii?

Strangely enough, my favorite "local kine" Chili is from Rainbow Drive In, also pretty close to where I grew up. Even the Missus will get into the action, Her favorite is from Cafe 100. But still, the King of the Hill is Zippy’s chili.

Right about now, all you Chili Purists should probably come back another day…..what you may read in the following paragraphs may be graphically disturbing. I’ve been told by many mainlanders that what Zippy’s serves, "isn’t Chili". In fact if I may digress…..Once while still working back home we took one of our mainland contractors to lunch at Zippy’s. Now this guy was one of those everything is bigger and better where I come from (guess the state? it begins with a ‘T’) kinda guy, the other thing was, he wouldn’t ditch the suit and tie, a big no-no. So we took him to "Zip’s" for some local flavor. And he orders the chili…when he get’s his chili and crackers, he makes a face, and spits it back into his bowl, and goes off on a little rant, "this ain’t chili, You People, don’t know what chili is…." Now we were kind of used to Him, but the very large and muscular Polynesian Dude eating his Chili-Spaghetti Plate(with two scoops rice and macaroni salad) was not amused. So Bruddah with the biceps like coconuts, and trapezius muscles like the Koolau’s, walks over and tells our guest; "eh, maybe wea’ you come from, dis’ isn’t chili, but ova hea’ it is. You think if any of these guys went visit you, and nevah like the food, dey would spit ’em out at the table? How do you say it…..you was raised in one barn!" And thus the nickname, "Barn-ey" was born…….. He did learn what the term "No make A" meant after that.

Back to the Chili I made, to be very clear, it’s not Zippy’s Chili, but I think it’s pretty close to many "local" versions. The best that I can determine, it’s a bit similar to Cincinnati style Chili. And many people enjoy it on top of spaghetti, or with cheese and onions on it. It isn’t very spicy(though we like to add Tabasco), and uses a few different items, like ginger. As with items of iconic stature there has been much discussion as to the secret ingredient in Zippy’s Chili, the items I hear the most often is Mayonnaise, and believe it or not Cream of Mushroom Soup, for this recipe I used some Mayo at the end, and it added a nice rich finish. Another item I used is the liquid drained from the canned Kidney Beans, I think the canning liquid adds great flavor, and you won’t need to add any salt. But, if you suffer from a pernicious reverse post-bean reflux…….I wouldn’t add to your flatulence woes by using the canning liquid, and use water instead.

Local Kine Chili

1 1/2 lb Ground beef
1/4 lb Bacon, chopped into 1/4"x1/4" cubes
2 Medium Onions, Chopped
1 C Celery, chopped
1 Large Bell Pepper, finely chopped
3 Cans Kidney beans drained, save liquid(see below)
3-4 Cans Tomato sauce
1 Can Tomato Paste
1 – 1 1/2 C Bean "liquid" or water
2 Tb Ketchup
2 Tb Red wine
2 Bay leaf
3-4 Tb Chili powder
1/2 Chicken Bullion Cube
1-2 tsp Sugar
1 Tb Oregano
1 Tb Paprika
1/4 tsp Cumin
1/4 tsp Grated Ginger
3-4 Cloves Garlic, minced
1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1-2 Tb Mayonnaise(Best Foods or Hellman’s)

1 – Brown bacon over medium heat, when the bacon starts getting crisp add the Onions,

Celery, Bell Pepper, Ginger, Pepper Flakes, and Garlic, stirring to prevent browning.

2 – Once the onion turns translucent, add the Ground Beef, and brown.

3 – When the ground beef is browned add beans, tomato sauce, tomato paste, bean liquid(start with 1 cup), beans, bullion, sugar, oregano,bay leaf, and cumin. Bring to a low boil, than reduce to a simmer.

4 – When chili has been simmering for 5-6 minutes, add in Worcestershire, chili powder(start with 2 Tb), red wine, and paprika. Let simmer for a few minutes, taste and adjust flavor.

5 – Simmer for 30 minutes, and mix in 1-2 Tb Mayonnaise.

Extreme Pita- Ch Ch Chain/Franchise and good and healthy!

January 19, 2007 Cathy Chains, Greek Food, What Cathy Eats!

Unfortunately, Extreme Pita has closed

mmm-yoso is not on vacation, and Cathy is blogging while Kirk is not feeling like doing anything today…except maybe recovering from something exciting at his job.

Hello again. Sometimes I have urges for something semi-healthy and also fast. I also like a good cup of coffee. So, I ran into Starbucks the other day, and there wasn’t even a place to sit down. Next door, I saw this new place- Extreme Pita. I *had* to try it, you know.

It is a newer franchise, started in Ontario, Canada and this location on Convoy, in the parking lot of Dixieline, is the first one in San Diego, there is one in Mira Mesa and more are coming. The menu should be the same at all of them, and I suppose prices may vary a little, since it is a franchise.

The larger, color menu has descriptions and these are the price listings.

Basically, its like Subway in that you walk up and order a pita and then they will be grilling some of what you ordered, asking what vegetables(mushrooms, onions and green peppers) you would like grilled with your meat (or falafel) or not and then what cold veggies you would like, and then what sauces you would like (Tzatziki, hummus, light mayo, light Caesar, light Italian, light Ranch, Greek Feta Dressing, Chipotle-Mayo, BBQ, hot sauce, Hot Cajun BBQ, Honey Mustard, Bistro Sauce, Guacamole). The the pita is tightly wrapped and put into an ingenious double paper/plastic wrapper that will tear off at a perforation IF YOU READ IT the first time, as I didn’t… anyhow, so this is an opened small falafel pita ($4.69) with all the grilled veggies, all the available cold veggies, hummus and tzatziki sauce. Small is 6 inches, regular is 9 inches.

It tasted great and was sloppy. The falafel(s) were the small nugget kind and had been cooked on the grill with the vegetables. I liked it. I read the packaging after I was done eating..

OK, went back with The Mister for lunch and got the small turkey pita (reg $4.99 but on Wednesdays its $3.99…there are daily specials posted at the back of the store; the best day to go is Friday when it is $3.99 for any small pita and a cup of soup).

It looks like this wrapped: and then when you tear at the clearly marked perforation, half of the pita is exposed and you can cut it in half..and viola! Turkey that was sauteed with all the veggies, and I had lettuce, tomato, olives, pickle and light mayo added. It was large enough, juicy, not overly turkey tasting but not weird chemical-ly tasting either. The pita was warm and very, very good. It was a good sandwich.

The Mister decided on an Extreme Classic Flat Baked Pita (its pizza style pretty much, with a pita as a crust)… ($5.29) It’s the larger pita(9 inch), topped with a tomato-y (not spicy) sauce and cheese, then the toppings (4 slices of cooked bacon, pepperoni, mushrooms) are put on top and then more cheese. Then its warmed /melted/nicely crisped in a salamander type broiler. As you can see, its quite large…the mushrooms were good in that they were cooked from raw and not pre-cooked, the sauce was good. It was a very nice and more or less healthy (532 calories, according to the Nutritional Info Guide available at the counter).

This is a newer Franchise in San Diego/the US (many in Canada) and there is another one at 8250 Mira Mesa Boulevard more are planned in San Diego.

I like that you can order online or by fax and that their mission is a healthy alternative.

It isn’t authentic Greek by any means, although they do have gyros (its not on a spit, so its that frozen pre-sliced stuff that is sold in the Mediterranean markets around town..but it is pretty darn good)..and for the most part you can say the ingredients are mostly Mediterranian. Its a unique product that can be extremely healthy. If you think of it as food, it’s good tasting and healthy food and a little bit of something different on Convoy Street. Try it. You will like it.

Website for this location is here.(if you want to order online). The link on that website seems to not have the Nutrition Information link working. The Corporate Link does have the nutritional info working.

Extreme Pita 4898 Convoy Street San Diego 92111 (in the Dixieline parking lot, next to Starbucks) Phone (858) 560-0142 Fax (858) 560-0563

Mid-week Meanderings: Update on Sammy’s, visit to Buga with Ed from Yuma

January 17, 2007 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Korean Restaurants, Sushi and Sashimi, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Well here’s a few hump-day revisits…not too wordy, I hope, since I’ve posted on these places before.

Update on Sammy’s:

**** Sammy’s has closed

Sam has hired on a new Itamae, originally from Yokohama, via Nashville(ask Him it’s an interesting story), and second generation Itamae named Aki. Turns Aki has some pretty good “chops”, no pun intended. On my most recent visit, all I said was “Omakase shimasu”…and here’s what came out:

It all started out with those two slices of battered and fried fish you see. As I grabbed the fish and was about to bite into it, Aki told me it was Chi-ai, otherwise known as the blood saturated maguro meat that is usually discarded…..of course I jammed on the brakes! There are only a few people I know who eat the “dark blood meat”, and I ain’t one of ’em(tho’ my Mom was…). But what the heck, I said Omakase, right? Turned out to be very tasty, not overly fishy, and for once I actually enjoyed the flavor that Kewpie Mayo added to a dish.

Some Aji(Horse Mackerel):

A very nice presentation.

Everything was quite good, I’m a big fan of the Aji-senbei(fried Aji bones), but the chopped Aji mixed with a touch of ponzu, thinly sliced ginger, and green onions, was especially delicous.

An interesting and very tasty Futomaki(fat cut roll) version of Negi-Toro(fatty tuna and green onion roll):

In addition to the thin slices of Takuwan(pickled daikon radish) and Kaiware(radish sprouts), Aki added in a generous amount of Yamaimo(mountain yam) which added a very nice mild sweet flavor to the roll. When I questioned Aki about his use of yamaimo and takuwan in his negi-toro, he simply said, “it is the way that my Father makes it!” And it was very good!

And a Oshizushi(pressed sushi) to finish off:

I enjoyed the interplay of the salty Ikura(Salmon Roe) and Uni that topped the Oshizushi. Really good stuff, that left me stuffed.

Sam is currently closed for lunch, but will reopen for lunch in the upcoming weeks. His hiring of Aki will allow for lunch service as well as allow Sam to actually work on the business end of owning a Sushi Bar.

Sammy Sushi
7905 Engineer Road
San Diego, CA 92111

Previous posts on Sammy’s:

Sammy Sushi.

Our live uni dinner at Sammy’s(sorry but the photos really suck on this one).

Oshizushi at Sammy’s.

A recent visit to Buga with Ed from Yuma:

Ed from Yuma, and His pal Greg were able to make a quick trip into town, and we met up for dinner at Buga, scene of the first known recorded sighting of Ed’s delici-yoso dance. It had been a while since I’ve been to Buga so I jumped at the chance.

We had the good service as on previous visits, though I thought the panchan were not quite as good as my previous visits.

Not that it was bad, in my opinion it’s still the best panchan around, but today the variety seemed uninspired…must just be me.

We ordered three items, starting with the Samgyeopsal(sliced pork belly):

Pork fat rules…man this was good!

And of course some Kalbi:

Great as always.

On this visit Ed decided to try the Kori Gomtang(Oxtail Soup):

Ed was a bit surprised at the look and flavor of this, but I explained to him that the long boiling process breaks down all the collagen and other items and turns the soup white. We flavored the broth with sea salt that was provided. I’ve had much better versions of this back home, and in LA.

Buga Korean BBQ Restaurant
5580 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92117

Open daily 11 to 11

I’ve kept the text short on this one, much more info can be found on my previous posts:

My first Buga post.

Bibim Naengmyun at Buga.

I try the Yookwe at Buga.

And one from our good friend Clayfu at Buga.

Hope everyone is having a great week!

Road Trip – S Vietnamese Fine Dining – Westminster(OC)

January 16, 2007 mmm-yoso Orange County, Road Trip, Vietnamese Restaurants

*** S Vietnamese has closed

On our recent quick trip to Marukai in Gardena, we thought that perhaps a stop in Westminster would be in order…and maybe we'd try something different. So after hearing about S Vietnamese Fine Dining, and noticing it was right off the 405 freeway, we thought it would be an interesting alternative to the Brodard's, Quan Hy, etc……..

S Vietnamese is located right at the edge of Westminster Mall, in what looks like a highly retrofitted chain restaurant facade.

'S' bills itself as a higher end modern and stylish Vietnamese restaurant, and when you enter and notice all the wood paneling, the grand piano, and the art work lining the walls, it sure does look like the right place.

Strangely enough the restaurant was totally empty, at 1230 on a Saturday! The complete stark lack of customers made us feel a bit uncomfortable, and made the large, airy, spaciousness of the restaurant seem a bit "cold".

This was all remedied by our wonderful, warm, and friendly Server, Linda. As we were seated and handed our menus, we were asked, "have you ever eaten Vietnamese food before?" The Missus and I traded puzzled looks, and the thought "uh-oh, was this a mistake" entered our minds. We managed to choke out, "yes, we've had Vietnamese food before…..", and ended up having a nice conversation regarding the various dishes, and got some recommendations.

Based on the recommendations we started with the 'S' Skewers($12):

6 skewers arrived accompanied with 3 dipping sauces. The skewers were a mixed bag, the Garlic Shrimp Skewers barely had any garlic flavor, though the shrimp were of good quality and cooked perfectly. The Soy and Sesame Beef skewers had the most flavor, and mild sweet-soy flavor, but the meat was on the tough and chewy side. The Curry Infused Chicken was the best overall, with moist dark meat chicken. But again, the flavors were really muted; there was barely any curry flavor, in fact, the chicken tasted like a very mild lemongrass chicken. The sauces were so-so, the supposed "peanut sauce" tasted almost like 100% coconut milk, the sweet chili sauce tasted like bottled stuff, the best of the group was the soy-scallion sauce, which we ended up using on everything.

We wanted something with a little "punch" so we ordered the Bun Rieu($8) as our soup:

Supposedly the most "savory" soup on the menu, we thought of it as Bun Rieu Shadow soup…a mere shadow of the pungent Bun Rieu. It didn't help that the soup was served lukewarm, and that the vermicelli noodles were overcooked and mushy. On the positive side, the crab-shrimp "cake" was the absolute best I've ever tasted, sweet and so very soft. The fried tofu was fine, but the soup was very mild in flavor. The garnishes were on the skimpy side, but I must admit that the julienned banana blossom served was the freshest I've ever tasted, slightly tangy and refreshing. Requesting extra garnishes is a must.

The Missus ordered the Banh Mi Ca($8):

This was a breaded catfish Banh Mi. First off the baguette was excellent, perfectly crusty without being hard and dry. The panko breaded fish did not fare as well. The fish strips were dry and flavorless, and we thought that the use of Honey Panko was not the best choice, making the fish too sweet.

I ordered the Bun Cha($10), a dish of grilled pork and pork meatballs that are meant to be wrapped in lettuce leaves with various herbs and eaten:

This was by far the best dish of the day; the pork meatballs had great flavor and the grilled pork served in a sweet-garlic-soy sauce was very soft and tender. In keeping with the use of high quality ingredients butter lettuce was served for wrapping, along with a very large portion of vermicelli, which I ended up pouring sauce over to finish up….we also dipped the leftover baguette in the sauce, it was that good.

For us S Vietnamese Fine Dining was a real mixed bag; on one end many of the ingredients were of good quality, the restaurant decor is very stylish, and the service was excellent. On the other end, we thought that some of the dishes were not prepared well, the presentation of the dishes are not quite at that "fine dining" level, and that many of the flavors that we consider to be the heart and soul of Vietnamese cuisine were severely muted. We didn't think the prices were really too bad; our entire meal cost $45. It seems that S Vietnamese Fine Dining would be a great pick for someone who is perhaps a bit intimidated by Vietnamese food. The dinner menu is much larger with many interesting almost fusion style dishes like Lamb Nuong Xa, a lemongrass and peppercorn crusted lamb dish.

I think the Missus had a very interesting observation; as we were leaving She turned to me and said, "Why do I get the feeling that we just ate at Vietnamese PF Chang's?"

S Vietnamese Fine Dining
545 Westminster Mall Drive
Westminster, CA 92683

Open Sun-Thurs 11am-9pm
Fri-Sat 11am-10pm

International Market and Grill-Persian Kebabs

January 15, 2007 Cathy Persian Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso is being played by Cathy today. Kirk is elsewhere.

Hi. I met a friend for lunch the other day, we talked a lot and I did not take my camera. She knew I liked trying different types of food and She likes it here. Its close to UCSD, was great Persian food, in a small mall area, run by a husband and wife. So, I went back with The Mister on Saturday.

International Market and Grill. There is that one table out front; there are two more inside and a bar seating area also with a total of 6 bar stools. They seem to do a brisk phone in – take out business on weekdays, and actually on the weekend also.

The menu is fairly simple. You can get a kebab in a lavash bread sandwich, or on a plate or with a salad.

There are 4 types of kebabs: Chicken, Beef Filet (marinated top sirloin), Fish and House (seasoned ground sirloin, ground fresh daily). There is a Garden, Greek or Caesar salad. The plates come with basmati rice and salad. For $1 more you can get herbed rice, which I like a bit better, but was not available on this Saturday’s visit. I got the vegetarian plate (salad and rice and a pita). ($5.45).

The basmati rice is so aromatic and light, with a dollop of olive oil on top. The salad is mostly romaine, with onions, tomatoes, cabbage, feta and two Bar-B-Qued tomato wedges. It has an olive oil/vinegar/herb dressing and is also served with Must-O-Khair (yogurt, cucumber and herb dip; I tasted mint more than any other herb, it was quite refreshing).

The Mister got the Greek Salad ($5.95) with a House kebab for an additional $2.75. The salad is the same, but larger, with no grilled tomatoes but has more fresh tomatoes, feta and onions and also olives. The kebab, with the ground sirloin and grilled, is very moist and flavorful with herbs.

If you look at the menu there are daily specials Monday through Friday for $9.95 each. They are not ready for purchase until about 1 p.m. each day and are limited in quantity. My friend says she will come here for lunch and then order a plate of the special “to go” and they are excellent. I want to try all five, actually. I will, you know….

I also ordered two glasses of hot tea ($1.50), freshly brewed and nice and strong. The owner said we could have a free refill.

Afterward, The Mister saw this storefront, two doors down, and walked inside while I went to the car.

Well, with a name like “Tiramisu”… you know, they had to have something sweet.

It’s just a fresh made cream puff shell with fresh made custard and fresh made whipped cream…and the nice lady even put a fork in there. All for $2.50 and well worth it.

International Market and Grill 3211 Holiday Court, Suite 100 La Jolla 92037

(858)535-9700 M-F 11 a.m.-8 p.m., Sat 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m.

Quick Sunday Post – Teba Shio and Binchotan

January 14, 2007 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Cooking

Just a quick post for Sunday here. We had to make a trip to Marukai in Gardena yesterday to restock on a few things, and ended up spending more time in the area than anticipated. After restocking on Binchotan and other stuff.

If you've never used Binchotan, which is a very hot burning, long lasting, "white" charcoal, it's pretty amazing stuff:

Binchotan has some pretty unique characteristics, first off, when tapped it makes almost a chime like ringing sound, it is also quite hard, and doesn't break up like regular black lump charcoal, though you can break it by tapping it against the ground. There much more information on Binchotan on Wikipedia. There's one more thing about Binchotan, at over $5/lb, it may cost more than the food being grilled. That said, for us at least a little Binchotan goes a long way, since we only us it on our little Hida Konro(small clay grill). Because it is really hard to "start", we'll break a stick into several pieces and place directly on the flame of our gas stove until "white", than place in the Hida Konro.

It's amazing how something so simple as Chicken Wings flavored with salt(and some Togarashi), aka Tebashio will taste so very good.

Because only a few wings can fit on the grill at any one time, it's really not "fast" food, but a nice and slow process…that goes great with a few beers.

Don't forget the Yaki Onigiri!

One Other Item:

We were a bit delayed on our return from Marukai. While waiting at the traffic light to exit Marukai, the Missus, turned to me and said, "oh my God, look". There was a dog weaving in and out of traffic along Artesia Boulevard, and finally into the parking lot of Gardena Plaza. Seeing this poor little Dog just wandering along a busy street and parking lot we knew we had to do something. Unfortunately, the poor Dog was very skittish and pretty much terrified, and I wasn't able to approach Her with any success. So while I kept tabs on Her, the Missus ran into the Burger King in the mall and bought a Whopper Jr. She figured that the poor animal must be pretty hungry. We were finally able to get within a few yards of the Dog in the parking lot of Albertson's, and I started breaking the burger into pieces and slowly getting closer and closer to Her. I could tell by Her demeanor that the chance She would bite was pretty low. After what seems like forever, I got ahold of Her, and managed to get the dog on it's back and calm Her. I then carried Her to the car while the Missus ran into the Mailbox/Postal store to find the number of the nearest animal shelter.

As you can see, She was in pretty good shape, but no collar, no tags:

She was in good shape, in spite of being covered with loose hairs and dust, Her nails were trimmed and Her ears had been plucked recently. And even though She was quite hungry and thirsty, She was well fed.

The Gentleman in the Mailbox/Postal Shop was very helpful in pointing out the nearest animal shelter. We hoped that Her Owners were searching for Her, or at least maybe She was "micro chipped". After standing in line forever, we managed to speak to the desk officer and had Her checked out….unfortunately, she was not "chipped"…..

So we reluctantly left, hoping Her Owners were out searching for Her and She would be found. We did leave instructions that we should be called if the owners could not be found, and no one was willing to adopt Her. If that is the case, Sammy and Frankie will have a sister. She is so mellow and sweet that I have no doubt that we can either keep her, or find her a nice family ourselves. So in case you're looking forward to a sweet Corgi-Shepard(?) mix, and live in the LA area……She can be found at:

Carson/Gardena Animal Shelter
216 W. Victoria Street
Gardena, CA 90248
(310) 523-9566

LA Animal Services

Her ID is – A3620754.

Even though it may seem a bit far-fetched, we thought that maybe someone might recognize her and help find her owners….or maybe someone does want a new family member.

Thanks for reading, I'll be back with another restaurant tomorrow!