mmm-yoso – Page 544 – 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.

Portland: Park Kitchen

June 21, 2006 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Portland, Oregon, Travel

*** Park Kitchen has closed

I really didn't do much "research" for my trip to Portland. I usually have my face in guides, and read my eyes red looking over various websites. This time, I decided to minimize my anal retentive research. But that doesn't mean that I just decided to forgo any planning whatsoever. I did purchase a book; Best Places Portland, just so I could have some points of reference. And I also read through two Food Blogs; ExtraMsg.com and Portland Food and Drink, along with the requisite checks on Chowhound and eGullet. There was one entry on Portland Food and Drink that jumped out at me; the review of Park Kitchen. I read through the menu sampling, with dishes such as:

Pork belly mole with pumpkin seeds and oranges
Batter fried green beans with tarragon and bacon
Prosciutto of duck breast with fromage blanc and figs
Duck with root beer spices and cornbread pudding

And I was very intrigued. But still, I put off calling in reservations until the very last minute, which was the Thursday I arrived in Portland. So Thursday night, I decided to call and make reservations for Friday. And when I called I mentioned that I'd like to make reservations for Friday, there was a pause……a breath, and a "what time are you looking at?" When I said I could be there right at first service at 5pm, I could hear Her smiling when the very nice Gal said: "Just come on down, if it's for one, and around opening, we'll find room for you!"

When I entered Park Kitchen, the first thing I noticed was how very tiny this little restaurant was. There were just a few tables squeezed together, along with a bar area in the restaurant. Later I discovered a few more tables to the rear of restaurant near the kitchen.

This makes for a quite "intimate" seating situation, one that my Asian sensibilities sometimes feels uncomfortable with. But that all ended with my Server, Kevin. He made me feel so very welcome, and had such an intimate knowledge of the dishes on the menu, that just having Him to explain and guide me heightened the entire dining experience. If you ever read this; "thanks Kevin, I wish I had someone like you at every restaurant I eat at!" I had decided to order several small plates, and Kevin explained that 4 small plates are equal to an app and an entree. As I perused dishes such as Crisp Duck Blini, Peas, and Lavender; Kevin poured me a pint of Roots Organic IPA. This IPA, was very "hoppy", on the bitter side, and woke me up!!!

I started with the Chickpea Fries with Pumpkin Ketchup($8.50):

Served in the manner of pomme frites, these were wonderful. What was explained to me was that chickpeas are mashed, spread on a tray and baked. They are then formed, breaded and deep fried. Yum! At the beginning of my meal, I asked Kevin what the food at Park Kitchen was all about. I was told that the combinations are innovative, but always pull in the flavor of the "familiar". Chickpea Fries? Yeah, right! But as I ate them, there it was, the familiar, falafel like flavor, the caraway seeds adding character; the pumpkin ketchup acting as a fine tahini. So good, I really didn't need the ketchup….Good stuff!!!

At this point, I needed another brew. I asked Kevin what he recommended to go with the meal, and he got me a Siletz Spruce Ale:

Spruce Ale!!! Never had it. But it did work, the ale did have the scent of spruce(just like Christmas…), but was quite light and refreshing. In fact, the Spruce Ale did a fine job of palate cleansing between bites of food. I now understand that Spruce cuttings and other flavorings are added instead of Hops to offset the sweetness of the malt.

Being the big time lamb lover, I ordered the Lamb Tartar, spiced chickpeas, and mint($10.50):

My favorite of the night. Minced lamb and mint, served with a chickpea puree, topped with a quail egg. The lamb was moist, and though I could have done with the lamb being a bit wilder in flavor, this was good. The flavor of the mint reeled you back into the realm of the familiar, and cut the richness. The pseudo-hummus did the same.

Duck Ham, Preserved Strawberries, and Goat Cheese Fondue($9.50):

The preserved strawberries were fabulous with a nice anise flavor to balance out the sweetness, the mild goat cheese added a creamy texture. The weakness of the dish was the very tame duck ham, which I thought was quite flavorless. Still those strawberries……..

I asked Kevin for a recommendation for my last small plate. He recommended the Sherry Soused Spinach, 8 Minute Eggs, and Hazelnuts($9.50):

This earthy dish, had so many components(the Spruce Ale didn't help), the slight bitter tastes aided by nutty flavors. I do think that some "salty" component would have made the rich dish shine more, but it's very hard to complain about perfectly boiled eggs.

I even ordered dessert! Strawberry Panna Cotta with Verbena and Pistachio Amaretti($7.00):

Other then the over chewy Amaretti(macaroons), I enjoyed this dessert. I'm not a fan of the overly sweet and rich, so this filled the bill.

The damage? $57. Not bad for a splurge dinner. I'd recommend Park Kitchen for the adventurous eater, who is willing to take chances, just as Park Kitchen does, with the realization that not everything will be a "hit". But when it's good, it's very good! I'd also advise to go early for Dinner, and hopefully you'll find someone as knowledgeable and professional as Kevin to help guide you. Sometimes it's good to trust your Chef!

Park Kitchen
422 Nw 8th Ave
Portland, OR 97209

(503) 223-7275

Lunch: Mon-Fri 1130am-230pm
Dinner: Mon-Sat 500pm-"Close"

Still not quite adjusted to the efficiency of mass transit(when trimet says 4 minutes, it won't go past 8 minutes), and how small the blocks are; I arrived at my destination very early. Like 1 hour early! Fine with me. I was able to walk around the "North Park Blocks", and even got some shopping done for Da' Boyz here:

A combination Pet Boutique, Doggie Daycare, and Groomer; Urban Fauna had a nice selection of toys and treats for Sammy and Frankie. I also had the chance to relax and take a walk around the park blocks and admire the artwork:

Oh, and by the way, Powell's Technical Books is located here as well.

While I was reading, waiting for Park Kitchen to open, the most interesting thing happened:

A Fire Engine drove on up, and the Ladder Truck proceeded to extend it's ladder to one of the Lofts.

And two Firefighters scurried up the ladder.

I don't know if someone was locked in, or locked out….but it sure beats a Locksmith. Can you imagine this happening in San Diego, or Los Angeles?

After dinner I took a walk around the Pearl District. Once a Warehouse and Industrial area, it has now become Portland's SoHo. Antique Shops, Furniture Stores, and Trendy Restaurants abound. Upscale Lofts and Townhouses now share the block with auto-repair and bearing shops. Here's some really interesting street art from Jamison Square Park:

It's called Tikitotmoniki, looks sort of like a cross between Tiki and Totems.

Funny thing happened to me in The Pearl. By this time, I had assimilated to Pedestrian and other rules in Portland. I had also gotten a bit too complacent…..after all pedestrians were looked after and cared for in Portland. So while being a total bozo and entering the street to take that photo, a sportscar drove up, horn blaring, the two male passengers yelling at me and giving me the "finger", and then driving off……..sorry to say, the car had California plates. Sigh………

Portland: Breakfast at Mother’s Bistro & Bar

June 20, 2006 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, Portland, Oregon, Travel

It started drizzling off and on during my first morning in Portland. This put my plans for a trip to Washington Park on the back-burner. So I decided to walk a few blocks and have breakfast at Mother's Bistro & Bar.

Mother's specializes in "Comfort Food", just like Mom used to make….well not my Mom, no Miso Soup, Sukiyaki, or Nishime here, but someones Mom. The menu features such comfort items as Matzo Ball Soup, Chopped Liver, House-Cured Lox, Chicken & Dumplings, Pot Roast, and Meatloaf & Gravy. Mother's also seems to have cornered the market on "shabby chic" furniture. I arrived at about 10 after 7 on a Friday morning, and several tables were already going strong.

I found that there are two items that Oregonians are really passionate about; beer and coffee. I ordered a cup of coffee, and went through the same drill several times; brewed or French Press, Organic, Dark roast……….and I thought those Vietnamese Restaurant menus were confusing!

To be perfectly honest, I loved the coffee(Holler Mountain Organic Blend – French Press – $2.95), provided by Stumptown Coffee Roasters. The very friendly and helpful Server; I believe Her name was Michelle, gave me directions to Stumptown.

As for the food; I decided to order "Mike's Special Scramble"($8.95):

A scramble of Prosciutto Ham, roasted garlic, fresh tomatoes, basil, and provolone cheese. Nothing wrong with the scramble, though I thought that perhaps a bit more tomato would help cut the richness of the scramble a bit, I'm really not used to such a "heavy" breakfast. The honey whole wheat toast was fine, but the breakfast potatoes were lousy. Some of the potatoes were cold, some molten hot, some pieces over slated, some not salted at all. The edges of several pieces of potato were dry and hard as rock.

The prices at Mother's are fairly reasonable, with breakfast running from Two Eggs any style at $5.95 to $10.95 for Wild Salmon Hash. Mother's also flies in H&H Bagels from New York. Most Lunch entrees run from $8.95 to $10.95, so prices for lunch seem to be fairly reasonable as well.

Mother's Bistro & Bar
409 Sw 2nd Ave

Is now at – 121 SW 3rd Ave, Portland, OR 97204
Portland, OR 97204

Breakfast: Tues-Fri 7am-230pm
Sat-Sun 9am-230pm
Lunch: Tues-Sun 1130am-230pm
Dinner: Tues-Thurs 530pm-9pm
Fri-Sat 5pm-10pm

After eating this, I was ready to go right back to my room. But since I was armed with my umbrella, I decided to take a walk up to Chinatown(5 Portland-sized blocks North). Here's a photo of the Chinatown Gateway:

In contrast to Chinatowns in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Toronto, Boston, and Honolulu, Portland Chinatown was very quite and sedate at this time of the morning. I later read that for a 30 year period between 1880 and 1910, Portland had the second largest Chinese community in the West.

This building for this restaurant; the House of Louie was built in 1922.

As with several "Chinatowns" in the US, like the Chinatown in Washington DC, there's not really much that is truly Chinese about "Chinatown". There was one destination, that I really did want to visit in the area…..

The Classical Chinese Garden.

This garden was completed in September of 2000, by workmen from Portland's Sister city of Suzhou.

According to what I read, from between 1000AD, and through the Ming Dynasty(1368-1644AD), Suzhou was the city where Imperial Court Officials retired to. In retirement, these officials built housing compounds that featured beautiful and opulent gardens.

These gardens take up a whole city block.

A nice relaxing break.

Portland Classical Chinese Garden
239 Northwest Everett St
Portland, OR 97209
November 1 – March 31: 10:00am – 5:00pm
April 1 – October 31: 9:00am – 6:00pm

Admission: $7 for adults, $6 for seniors, $5.50 for students

Portland: Restaurant Murata

June 19, 2006 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Portland, Oregon, Sushi and Sashimi, Travel

In need of a short break, the Missus and I decided that yours truly should take a short vacation to recharge. The last real trip I took was a week long trip to Washington D.C. over two years ago, and other than short road trips to Mountain View, Yuma, and many trips to LA, I’ve been at home. I decided to visit a city that I’ve always wanted to visit; Portland(the Oregon version). This trip was mainly for pleasure, and I really didn’t do too much research. I did come up with a short list of places to eat, and a rather long list of places to visit. I’ll do a non-food post on those a bit later.

I arrived at the Marriott City Center at almost 3 pm, checked in, took a quick shower, and was on my way. The first thing I noticed was how very kind all the drivers were; pedestrians are treated with a great deal of respect; cars almost always stop in drive ways to let pedestrians cross. And no honking!

After reading a short description in the Willamette Week, I decided on Restaurant Murata.

Even though I was advised to take the Portland Streetcar down to SW Market Street, I decided to walk. Though the walk was about 15 blocks, the distance was only about a mile, and took a leisurely half hour. Next observation about Downtown Portland; the "blocks" are small, and Portland is a great walking town. Along with the small blocks, there are no steep hills to tax you.

When Murata opened, I entered and seated at the small(about 8-10 seats) sushi bar, by the traditionally dressed Server. The restaurant is quite small, and there are 3 Tatami Rooms located to one side of the restaurant. I haven’t seen one of those in years. As I sat Murata-san was very busy doing prep work.

As I sat I looked over the grease board "specials".

To my surprise, I was handed a sushi order sheet, even though I was seated at the bar.

So I placed my sushi order, got a Sapporo, sat back and watched Murata-san work. Murata-san did his thing with methodical speed, quick, measured, and precise. Soon, I figured the reason for the order sheet; Murata-san didn’t seem to speak much English.

On to the fish. First off the Maguro(tuna) and Hamachi(yellowtail):

The Hamachi was good, with a nice texture and good flavor. The Maguro was way too cold, a trend I’ve noticed recently. Not too bad overall, but not great. I’d also started to notice that Murata-san is sometimes very heavy-handed with the wasabi, which kills much of the flavor. If I don’t know an Itamae, I usually just use the slightest touch of shoyu with my Nigiri. Depending on initial tastes, I may end up not using any shoyu at all. I’ll use fresh wasabi, but am really not into the wasabi slurry. On the positive side; I enjoyed the way the Nigiri was put together, a nice balance of fish to rice.

The Toro:

Obviously a piece of Chu-Toro(the portion towards the rear of the tuna belly). Frankly, not a great piece of fish. The texture of the Toro was much the same as the Maguro, not velvety, melt in your mouth smooth.

When I had been seated, I had noticed Murata-san working on some good looking Aji(Spanish Mackeral), so I made sure to to order some.

Topped with some grated ginger and green onions, each piece had an entire fillet of Aji on it. Murata-san turned to me and spoke for the first time, "ponzu?", I shook my head. No, these wonderful pieces of fish needed nothing. The flavor(no wasabi this time), was a perfect balance of oceany fishiness, provided by the pieces of skin left behind, along with the oily richness of the flesh. Delici-yoso!!!

Mirugai.

I’m not sure if this was "local" Mirugai(Geoduck, Giant Clam), but it sure was good. Slightly sweet, and crunchy, but not hard. Very good.

Amaebi:

The Shrimp were fresh, both tender and sweet, though one of the pieces of Nigiri had a ton of wasabi on it. Note to self; next time order everything with no wasabi…….

The Atama(heads) arrived a few minutes later:

Nicely fried up, and crunchy. Nice way to end my meal.

The tab? All the sushi and 2 Sapporo for $57, not cheap by any means, but a pretty nice meal.

Some notes on Murata: The restaurant is very small, but the menu is interesting, it’s too bad that everyone was ordering smoked salmon, California and Rainbow Rolls. I’ve also heard that if you call in advance, you can order Kaiseki-ryori meals. I arrived right when Murata opened, when I left all the tables were filling up.

Restaurant Murata
200 SW Market St
Portland, OR 97201

I had arrived to the area where Murata is located about a half hour early(see earlier note on the size of the city blocks), so I was able to take in some of the sights, such as the Ira Keller Memorial Fountain:

And a walk in Pettygrove Park. Did you know that Portland was named based on a coin-toss?

So I could’ve easily been visiting Boston, Oregon, instead of Portland. In peaceful Pettygrove Park is an interesting sculpture called The Dreamer:

Someone told me it’s filled with urethane foam, so that when it rains, the drops don’t make much noise.

After my meal, I walked on over to the Streetcar stop on the campus of Portland State University. Here’s an earlier photo I took before dinner.

As I was sitting waiting for a Streetcar, a Gentleman came up to me and told me that the electricity was out down the line, and the Streetcars weren’t stopping at this and other nearby stops. Here’s where I come into contact with the wonderful Portland hospitality, he asked me if I’m from around here. When I replied "No, just visiting", He told me to follow Him, and we walked a few blocks to SW Clay Street and SW 10th Avenue, and caught the Streetcar there. As we were riding the Streetcar, he pointed out all the landmarks like the Portland Art Museum, and the Main Library. He also informed me of my stop, one of the main reasons I came to Portland:

And yes, it’s all true; the bookstore takes up an entire city block. And yes, you do need a map to get around. And yes…..used books are mixed in with the new. And yes, I think there are people living in Powell’s, that may have not left in years. I managed to tear myself away after 3 hours, and only spent about $50. The variety and quantity of books at Powell’s is amazing, truly a book lover’s mecca. And by the way, did you know that Ferrets have their own magazine!

Powell’s City of Books
1005 W Burnside
Portland, OR 97209 USA

What I Did for My Summer Vacation……

June 18, 2006 mmm-yoso Travel, yoso-silly

Did you ever have to stand in front of class during your first week back in school, and have to do a report on, "What I during my Summer vacation?" I dreaded this, most of the time it was summer school, and not much of anything else. So when my classmates were going to Disneyland and whatnot, I really had nothing to report on. As I got older, the kids were going to Japan, or doing exciting things during summer….but I was doing something like working or picking pineapples on Lanai! But this summer, I went on a nice short trip….but I’m not telling you right away. I just got home, so I’ll try to complete my previous post, and start doing my vacation posts.

So where did I go? Well these "guys" aren’t talking…but may give you some clues:

Maybe this guy can help you:

The city has something to do with these:

I’ll throw in a food pic, just so I can still feel I’m doing a food blog.

I know I’ve made it much too easy for you all…….

A Tale of Two Comals Part Deux – El Comal Chula Vista

June 17, 2006 mmm-yoso Mexican Restaurants

The day after our visit to El Comal on Imperial avenue, we found ourselves in Chula Vista. Since the Missus really enjoyed the food, on our visit to the Imperial Ave location we decided to try a few more items here.

The exterior of El Comal on Broadway looked alot more like a representation of a typical San Diego Tex-Mex style Restaurant, but happily for us, the menus of both locations are the same.

The interior of the restaurant is very large, and there is a cavernous bar and dance floor in the rear of the restaurant. We were seated immediately and given our menus, after few minutes we placed our orders, and the parade of food began.

We started with Huarache Azteca, with Carne Asada and Nopal($6.00):

This version had thin very flavorful Carne Asada and perfectly prepared Nopal.

Unlike our previous Huarache, this one was perfectly grilled. Slightly charred and crisp on the edges, and slightly chewy in the center. The nopal was also well seasoned, and needed no lime or any other flavor enhancers.

I ordered the Torta de Adobada, and as in our visit to the Imperial avenue location the Adobada was beef($5.00):

In my previous experience with the Adobada at El Comal, the beef was well seasoned slightly spicy and cut into thin slices. The meat was quite dark, as if well marinated, and well caramelized. This version was a more standard version of Adobada, not as well marinated, the marinade was came right off of the meat and had a slightly grainy texture. Also, the bolillo was slathered with mayo, which I thought ruined the whole sandwich.

The Missus ordered the Caldo Tlalpeno($7.50), a spicy chicken soup:

Basically a chicken soup, with shredded vegetables, garbanzo beans, one delici-yoso whole chipotle pepper, and almost a half chicken. The garnishes provided were the usual cilantro, onion, and lime, and also a slice of avocado. The rice for the soup was provided on the side, and when the Missus tasted the rice, she insisted I have a sample. And darn if it didn’t taste like Filipino Garlic rice! There was a good amount of garlic in the rice.

The soup had an interesting flavor, slightly spicy, but quite sour(without any added lime). I thought it tasted pretty close to Tom Yum, without the fishiness. Very odd.

The chicken had alot of flavor, it was obviously a stewing hen.

We finished off with Tres Leche Cake($2.50):

So sweet it hurt my teeth.

And we did order the Albondigas($7.50) to go, and it did not resemble the version we had earlier in the least bit:

No green beans or chayote in the soup. The broth was thinner yet more oily, and the meatballs were dry and tough.

Two restaurants, same name, same menu, but the difference is the two very different kitchens.

El Comal
534 Broadway
Chula Vista, CA 91910

A Short Trip

June 15, 2006 mmm-yoso Blog

Well, I’ll be taking a short vacation. Be gone for a few days, not really a food destination, but hey, I’ve got to eat.

No laptop, so I’ll have very intermittent Internet access.

I’ll be back with a new post on either Sunday or Monday. Along with my vacation destination. First real "airplane" trip in two years, so it’ll be fun!

Best wishes from us at mmm-yoso!!!

Kirk

Road Trip: SF Supermarket – Rowland Heights(LA), and also a quick question…..

June 13, 2006 mmm-yoso Los Angeles County, Markets & Grocers, Road Trip

*** SF Supermarket is now GW Supermarket

On a recent trip back to Rowland Heights, I was unable to suppress a laugh when I saw this branch of Shun Fat Supermarket(aka SF Supermarket). I'm sure if you take a look at this photo, you'd have no clue as to why I find humor just staring at the front of one, of many Asian Supermarkets in the area.

Well let me explain. When we lived two blocks from here, this used to be a Vons Supermarket. Aside from the Produce Guys, this branch of Vons used to have some of the ruddest employees I have ever experienced. So rude, that we used to avoid shopping here, and would take the time to drive several miles away and shop at the Albertson's on Azusa instead. I'm sure those cashiers could now be gainfully employed at Hong Kong Market across the street, home of the ruddest(yes now that Vons is gone there has to be a #1) cashiers. So I guess I enjoyed, and savored the irony and "Karma-tic" moment.

As I entered, I passed the Tea and Boba stand, the dried and preserved snacks stand, and the bakery, and made sure to stop in…..Produce, of course!

And all the usual suspects were there, from the Celery-Lettuce(Celtuce):

I have some smoked Hunan Pork at home that would cook up real well with this.

The Chinese Celery looked really fresh:

If you've never had Chinese Celery, you'd be in for a surprise. Chinese celery, though much thinner then the varieties we are used to in the U.S., is very resilient and fibrous, and the celery flavor is much more intense then regular celery.

I thought the Pea Shoots made a nice photo-op.

As I was leaving produce, I noticed these jumbo packs of Boba. They probably should sell them at Costco….

In keeping with the standard configuration of Supermarkets, the meat and seafood section took up the entire rear of the market.

Overall, very clean, with a minimal pungency level. The selection was good, for example the selection of every part of the pig except the oink.

And what would a trip to that market be without an interesting sign.

This one was right above the "basins" that held clams and other shellfish. Can you imagine what prompted the posting of this sign???? Of course it could be that no one could understand what the phrase "plesa don't wash your hang" meant.

As I was walking along the chiller, something caught my eye:

I couldn't believe my eyes. Kohala brand kimchee, from Hawaii. Unbelievable, I can't even remember the last time I saw a bottle of this stuff.

Right across the Kimchee and milk(what a combo), was a nice collection of dried fish:

Good stuff, though I don't think I'll be bringing it to the company potluck.

There was one area in which SF Supermarket was lacking.

It was in the snack isle. Pretty unimpressive. The largest display was for this:

Well maybe tastes really are changing……

Shun Fat Supermarket
18475 Colima Road
Rowland Heights, CA 91748

After driving around a bit, we found an interesting restaurant that I really don't remember seeing before. It was on Hacienda, right next to Malan Noodle House:

The English name is Boiling Point, but the Chinese name is something along the lines of "Boiling Point, Stinky-Stinky Pot". Anyone eat here? I'd be very interested.

5 Days of Feasting Day 5 – Asia Cafe

June 12, 2006 mmm-yoso Lao Restaurants, What Ed Eats -You too can be like Ed!

Asia Cafe has slowly made it’s way onto our "rotation". Apparently it has become a favorite of Ed from Yuma as well. You can read about His latest experience on Chowhound. On my previous posts on Asia Cafe, I noted the location, and ambiance.

Asia Cafe is really about good Laotian Home Cooking, and for Her fifth day of feasting, after the visits to China Max, Izakaya Sakura, Sushi Komasa in Los Angeles, and Ba Ren, the Missus was in the mood for some good home cooking.

We started with the Missus’s favorite, the Nem Khao.

With this wonderful rice crust – sour sausage dish, you experience the best of both worlds. When wrapped in a lettuce leaf, and garnished with cilantro and mint, you have wonderful flavors along with a crunchy texture.

The Missus also went with the Yum Asia.

This seafood "salad", is served with a refreshing sweet, fish sauce based dressing. We always order ours with "clear noodles". Yum is right…..

Asia Cafe also makes very good sticky rice. One order is usually enough for the both of us.

One of my favorite dishes at Asia Cafe is the See Nam Tok:

A very simple sirloin or similar cut of beef, marinated, and pan fried, and served with a fish sauce based dipping sauce.

Today we ordered something a bit different. We asked about the whole fried fish we had seen on a previous visit. Though like the Nem Khao, it’s not on the menu, the Fried Fish was available today.

Simply salted and deep fried to crisp perfection, the item that made this dish was the dipping sauce, consisting of (what else!) fish sauce, garlic, some chilies, and green onions. Very nice!

When we entered, the "Chef", the Wife of the Husband and wife team that along with their two sons make Asia Cafe "tick", greeted me with a "Hi, I haven’t seen you in a while!" And while we were eating, Johnny, one of the sons brought a plate of noodles over, and said "We’re doing some catering tonight, so my Mom wanted make sure you tasted some of this."

He called it Mee Lao, very tasty simple noodles stir fried with soy sauce and bean sprouts and topped with fried egg.

The damage? All of the dishes above with a pot of tea(Jasmine) for $27. Needless to say, we had a ton of leftovers.

I once asked a friend of a friend why there weren’t more Laotian Restaurants, and he told me that everyone believed that their Mother made the best Laotian food, so why eat out? Well, since I can’t call on a Laotian Mom to make great home cooked dishes for me, I’ll have to rely on Asia Cafe, my little gem of a restaurant on the corner of 47th street and Market street for great home style cooking.

Asia Cafe
4710 Market St
San Diego, CA 92102

Habana Restaurant & Bar

June 11, 2006 mmm-yoso Cuban Restaurants

I'd recently heard about a new Cuban Restaurant that recently opened in La Mesa, from reader and frequent commenter Reynila and My good friend and frequent contributor to Chowhound, Gayla. During a quick call to Habana I found out that during Happy Hour(between 4-6 pm) all appetizers are half price, and specialty drinks are $2 off! A good deal. Needless to say, we had a bunch of appetizers. All appetizer prices in the post, are the "menu" prices. To calculate Happy Hour prices, divide by '2'.

We arrived at approximately 430pm, and found Habana empty. The large dining area goes for a tropical feel.

After looking over the "Tropical" drink menu……

The Missus tried a Habanatini($7 – $5 Happy Hour). Kind of on the weak side, but ok overall.

We looked over the menu and started ordering. We decided on 5 appetizers, and ordered one entree to share.

The first appetizer to arrive were the Chicken Croquetas($3.95):

The croquettes were moist and fairly light, though I really could not taste any chicken. As a whole fairly unremarkable.

Beef Empanada ($3.95).

The empananda was quite large, and the exterior was nicely fried and crisp. The filling was pretty dry and the flavor was on the mild side.

The Maduros (Fried Plantains – $4.25), fried well, with a nice sweetness that wasn't cloying. Overall, quite nicely done.

Yuca Frita (Fried yuca), served with a "mojo" ($4.50). The Yuca was crisp on the outside, and moist on the inside. There was a mild sweet flavor to go with the slightly dense stachy interior. The "mojo" was a flavorful concoction. The menu said the yuca was served with a garlic sauce, but we were sure that there was some meat in the sauce. Our suspicions were confirmed when we asked what was in the sauce, and the word "pork" was mentioned. No wonder it was so tasty!

The Yuca con Mojo – the best dish of the night ($3.95). The boiled Yuca was served with a lemon-olive oil-garlic sauce that bordered on addictive. The sauteed onions added an almost sweet flavor to the dish.

We also ordered one entree to share. The classic Cuban Dish, Ropa Vieja($11.50), we ordered Arroz Morro and Papa Dulce Roja(Yams) as our "sides".

The dish was a disappointment. The Arroz Morro, supposedly black beans and rice simmered in wine was flavorless. The black beans were also very hard. The yams were nothing special either. The Ropa Vieja was dry and tough, and very mild in flavor. Of the four version of Ropa Vieja I've had so far, this is ranked at a solid "number 4".

Would I recommend Habana? I'd say if you want to go for Happy Hour, I would say that the food is a fairly good value. How can you argue with $2 appetizers? We probably be back to Habana for the Yuca con Mojo, and maybe try another Entree. Out total bill for the evening, for 5 appetizers, two specialty drinks, and one entree was $37. Habana also offers a Sunday Brunch:

I forwarded the photos of the menu to Jim the Brunchmaster.

One last item, our Server, Amy, was excellent. So nice and efficient.

Habana Restaurant & Bar
7777 University Ave.
La Mesa, CA 91941
619-713-2011

St. Spyridon’s Greek Festival 2006

June 10, 2006 mmm-yoso Festivals & Events, Greek Food

Since we moved to San Diego in 2001, we’ve been to the Greek Festival at St. Spyridon’s Greek Orthodox Church every year except one. Though we had a pretty full schedule this year, we wanted to make sure to drop by, and get a few of our "favorites".

The Greek Festival at St. Spyridon’s on Park Boulevard has got to be one of the most well organized festivals in San Diego. Everything from parking with a free shuttle service (At Roosevelt Jr HS – Upas and Richmond St), to traffic control and crosswalk safety officers are covered. I guess it’s the experience garnered from many years(this is the 37th annual festival). The $2 admission is a mere pittance to pay for attending such an organized festival.

Arriving at 1115 this morning, my mouth was watering, as I checked out the lamb roasting.

If you checked out my post on last year’s festival, you’d know that I adore the Leg of Lamb Plate($6.00). Unfortunately, all the planets were not aligned this year, and we found that the lamb was not ready and that it would be an hour wait for it. Due to scheduling conflicts we wouldn’t be able to wait around for it. Bummer!

But at least I got my "flaming cheese" dish, the Saganaki($5.00):

Slices of cheese(the name of which escapes me….), are fried, and placed upon a fried pita. At that point brandy is added and the cheese is set on fire. Along with a joyous "Opa" from all the occupants of the booth:

The Saganaki booth is by far the festive at the festival. The cheese concoction is gooey, milky, and a bit on the salty side.

Good stuff!

I also made a quick trip to the Gyros Booth, for what else….a Gyros Pita($6.00):

This booth got very busy, very quickly.

Not a bad Gyros Pita.

While I was stuffing my face, the Missus made a quick trip to the pastry section.

And got Her Baklava, Katalfi, and other pastries:

For those desiring a more refined dining experience, the Dining Room opens at 1130, with such items as Greek Chicken, Lamb Chops, Moussaka, Spanakopita, and other yummy items.

Don’t forget to stop by the Deli area as well.

In case you weren’t able to drop by today, you’ll still have another chance tomorrow, Sunday, June 11th(from 11am – 9pm). The only strange incident that happened on our visit(other then the lamb not being ready), was a Husky Guy wearing a Pink T-Shirt peddling Mary Kay cosmetics, with Two other Women. They accosted the Missus twice, very strange.

St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church
3655 Park Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92103