mmm-yoso – Page 564 – 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.

At the SDAFF: My Girl (Fan Chan) and Sneakin’ Stuff….

October 4, 2005 mmm-yoso Burgers, Movies, yoso-silly

On Friday we viewed a charming Thai coming of age film, My Girl, titled Fan Chan in Thailand:

The basic plot is that a Young Man, Jeab finds out that the best friend from childhood whom he hasn’t seen in 13 years, Noi Nah, is getting married, and that he’s received an invitation. As a child Jeab wasn’t allowed to cross a busy street and play with the other boys, so he spends his time playing with Noi Nah. Through a flashback we see Jeab and Noi Nah as children, and eventually the event that leads to the end of the friendship. There’s alot of fun, laughter, music, and pretty good acting. It would seem that this film is directed at Thais’ raised in the 70’s and 80’s, as it features the music, television, and other "nostalgic" events of that era. But I soon found that laughter and love are universal. My Girl, is a warm and funny movie that explores universal themes associated with growing up.

One of the really fun parts of the movie was the amount attention brought to the "games" played by the children in this rural Buddhist community. Even though we may or may not have played any of these games, we all have those games of our childhood, like marbles or paper-football, which brought on all those nostalgic feelings. Another thing I remembered as a youth were the movies, as well as another thing about going to movies as a kid in the 70’s and 80’s in Hawaii, sneakin’ in food!

I mean, especially in a week long film festival; how much popcorn and hot dogs can you eat? As a kid we used to sneak in Spam Musubis, arare, or something similar. Mom wouldn’t let me bring anything that the theater served, in her words, "they have to make money, and a living too". In my early twenties, we all brought our jackets when we went to the movies, even when it was almost 90 degrees, and 100% humidity. Why? Well, we’d tie up the sleeves and you could fit 3 bottles of beer in each sleeve…..hehehe! Better watch when you stand though, you might knock those bottles down; and you’d be soooo busted! Careful when you open those bottles too! Psssst…..

Nowadays, after we burn out from the popcorn and hot dogs, we’re more apt to go with maybe the arare, or maybe roasted chestnuts or mochi, for the Missus. And no, we don’t do the dried cuttlefish, or other snacks that smell, or make alot of noise…..

Also, can’t forget those Haw Flakes for the Missus:

Though we have an all time favorite sneak in. All you need to see is this:

So we’ll drive through and pick up a couple of burgers from In-N-Out, and seal the bag well, and stash it in the Missus purse. Better than those cheese whiz nacho’s, no? We don’t bring them to movies that are too crowded though. A few movies ago, we opened up our burgers, and heard a whisper from above go; "Hey, who’s eating A Double-Double?" I never knew the smell was so distinctive! Hehehehe – giggle….. And no we still don’t sneak in anything the theatre will have, think I’ll have some Kappa-maki tomorrow…..

Open wide:

So what do you sneak in? I know you do it………

Shanghai City Restaurant

October 2, 2005 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants, Niu Rou Mian, Xiao Long Bao

*** Update: Shanghai City has closed.

*** Updated posts on Shanghai City can be found here and here.

When I mention to people that I enjoy eating at Shanghai City, I get some weird stares. I guess it's because most think of the American Chinese Food on the menu, or the $5.99 Lunch Buffet. Not necessarily great Chinese Food, though I do enjoy the Buffet once in a while.

There are some "hidden treasures" on the menu, but the days to go to Shanghai City are between 10am and 3pm on weekends, where there's a menu with Chinese "specials" available:

Today we decided to order the Wine Marinated Chicken ($3.75):

In the most basic form, this cold dish is prepared by rubbing a chicken with salt and letting stand and drain for 6 hours or so. The chicken is then steamed, and cooled, and cut into large pieces which are marinated in a combination of chicken stock and Shao-sing wine overnight. This gives the meat a dense, brined texture, with a taste reminiscent of ham. Because of the wine, the first bite of this mild looking dish can really catch you off guard, but you'll soon be munching away at piece after piece of this dish.

The main reason we visit Shanghai City is the Niu Rou Mein ($4.25):

I'm positively addicted to Chinese Beef Noodle soup, there are several versions, but my favorite is the numbing-spicy Sichuan style soup. Unlike pho' this is a dark, beef broth, flavored with star anise, soy sauce, sugar, wine, chili pepper, garlic, among other things. The meat is usually a stewing cut like beef shank with some tendon and fat. When cooked well, the meat is tender and holds it's flavor. The soup is usually garnished with cilantro, green onions, and a green vegetable, in this case bok choy, though I use spinach in my homemade version. The broth here at Shanghai City can vary wildly, but the noodles are superb. The noodles have a great "handmade" texture, doughy with elasticity. A large portion of noodles is always included at Shanghai City. Today, the soup was good, not great, but mildly rich and beefy, really spicy, but the noodles were great as always. On a great day this dish is really delici-yoso!!!

We also usually order the Xiao Long Bao ($5.95), those ever popular "soup-dumplings".

Shanghai City is one of the few places where you can get XLB in San Diego. These dumplings are filled with a pork based filling, along with alot of "juice", thus the name soup dumplings. The way to eat them are to place some sauce in the spoon, then place the dumpling in the spoon (do not break the dumpling) and eat in one perfect bite. Today the wrappers on these were a bit on the "dry" side, though filled with delish slightly sweet, salty, "soup".

Shanghai City does a decent rendition of many dishes, like Smoked Fish (Su Shih Hsun Yuu – $4.75), not really smoked, but actually a fried than marinated dish, that gives the fish a smoked look, The Tea Smoked Duck here has also been good on occaision ($7.95). Most dishes are are between $4.75 to $8.95, so the prices here are not too bad.

Shanghai City
3860 Convoy St
San Diego,CA 92111
619-278-5883

Closed Tuesdays

We've done a revisit post on Shanghai City on 12/17/06, it can be found here.

At the SDAFF: 20:30:40, Saving Face, and Dumplings

October 1, 2005 mmm-yoso Cooking, Movies, Recipes, yoso-silly

Ah yes, another wonderful day at the San Diego Film Festival. Today we went early and saw Alice Wu’s fantastic film; Saving Face. Alice Wu’s Directorial debut is a wonderfully funny, yet an a amazingly perceptive and complex tale, one that is both light, and yet reveals very deep social and cultural issues that are put at the forefront.

At the heart of the movie is the question; at what length and what price is one willing to pay to "save face". Saving Face is of the best most polished Asian American Films I’ve ever seen. After the film, Director Alice Wu, and the three lovely Leading Ladies, Joan Chen, Michelle Krusiec, and Lynn Chen were very generous with their time during a Q&A session. What I was really amazed to find out was that the film was completed in 27 days, all single takes! If I’m being a bit vague with the plot details, it is with good reason. The film takes some really fun twists and turns, and keeps you guessing til the end. If you’re interested in a movie that’s like a cross between The Wedding Banquet and My Big Fat Greek Wedding, this is for you. By the way, I never knew Joan Chen could be so funny!

On Thursday Night we saw 20:30:40, a funny, yet very interesting and revealing Taiwanese/Chinese film Directed by, and starring Sylvia Chang. 20:30:40 portrays the life of 3 Women. Xiao Jie (Lee Sin-Jie), is a 20 year old, who has come to Taipei to become a pop star. Suddenly free, and learning about life with no responsibility, she starts learning and experimenting in her journey to find out about life and who she is. Xiang (Rene Liu), is a thirty-something Flight Attendant, attempting to find love by juggling two men, a married Dentist, and a possessive somewhat unstable Music Producer. Forty-something Lily (Sylvia Chang) is the owner of a Flower Shop. Her world is turned upside down when she finds out that her Husband has a second family.

Though the women never actually meet, they pass each other, and their lives are intertwined through associations with other characters in the film. Featuring some very funny moments, this is a showcase for the actresses and in the end a very honest and entertaining effort.

What about the food? Among the many food scenes in these two films were two that got our attention; in 20:30:40, Lily (Sylvia Chang) is having dinner with would be "Romeo", Jeff (Tony Leung Ka-Fai), as he teaches her to eat her dumplings by first eating an entire clove of garlic, he tells her; "what do you care, we’re both sleeping alone tonight…", one of the funniest lines in the film. In Saving Face, Joan Chen is making dumplings for a "mah-jong party".

So this evening, the Missus decided to end her self imposed Dumpling retirement, by saying, "hey, let’s make some shrimp and chive dumplings…" So even though it was after 6pm, I jumped into action and ran up to 99 Ranch Market to pick-up some shrimp and chive, while the Missus made the dough for the wrappers:

Sorry that there is no set recipe for this. I will go through the ingredients, though. Dumplings have been a way of life for the Missus. She was raised in Qingdao in the Shandong province in China. Dumplings, handmade noodles, and various breads are a way of life. This dough was made with flour and room temperature water. While kneading she knows at what point the dough is "ready". My job is easy; shell and devein 1 1/2 lbs of shrimp, which is then chopped to desired texture.

The chives are chopped to desired texture. Here’s a very "rough" recipe for the filling for these dumplings:

1 1/2 lbs shrimp chopped
1 bunch chives chopped
2-4 Tbs Sesame Oil
2 tsp salt
2 tsp Shao-Tsing Wine
2 eggs
Ginger Juice(everybody wonders what the garlic press is for)
Mix together and start filling them dumplings:

Here’s a hint; before mixing the dumpling filling, start boiling a small pot of water. When the mix is ready make a "test dumpling" and cook – it’ll be pretty quick since the dough is fresh. You can taste the filling and make adjustments. For me, the only way to eat these freshly made dumplings is to boil them. You get the full range of flavor and most of all the wonderful slightly doughy wrapper, that should have a bit of pull. Of course you can pan fry if you must:

This is one of the things that I am able to contribute to the whole process! Also making the sauce:

Chinkiang Vinegar
Soy Sauce
Garlic
Green Onions
Optional – Chili Paste, Sugar, etc….

The belief is that boiled dumplings are the true test, fried dumplings are for later. Even though she declared a "second retirement" after making these, I still love and appreciate the fact that she knew after watching all these "dumplings on film", that I’d be wanting some. Also, I know we’ve now got a few dozen in the freezer! he-he-he….. Need to find more dumpling movies!

At the SDAFF: Marathon and Bibim Naengmyun

September 30, 2005 mmm-yoso Korean Restaurants, Movies, yoso-silly

The Opening Night film at the San Diego Asian Film Festival was the Korean film, Marathon. This heart-warming drama tells the story of an autistic Young Man, Cho Won whose doting, driven Mother pushes him to succeed at running marathons. Cho Won is 20 years old, but has only a child-like understanding of the world, and loves Zebra’s and anything resembling a Zebra, Choco-pies, noodles, and The Wild Kingdom television show. But Cho Won, is unable to express his emotions, and lacks any concept of the workings of the " real world". Enter into the equation a has-been former Marathon Champion, Yun, working off his community service for a DUI at Cho Won’s school. Cho Won’s Mother attempts to get him to train him. We go through this journey along with Cho Won, and in the end there is of course, a Marathon.

Marathon succeeds in rising above the formula"underdog drama" by utilizing great acting, lot’s of humor, not stooping to "cheap" manipulative tricks, and showing the impact of the social realities of being "stigmatized" by being handicapped in South Korean society, not only to Cho Won, but to his Family as well. Though the ending is predictable, it’s the journey to that end that makes this film worth watching. I’m thinking of buying this one! A great start to the SDAFF.

A quick note, this movie is a semi-biopic, Director Jeong Yun-Cheol interviewed Bae Hyeong-Jin,on whom the story was based, over the course of two years to develop this film. Amazingly this is Jeong Yun-Cheol’s Directorial debut.

Where’s the food? In Marathon, food plays a major role. I stopped counting at 12 the number scenes where food plays a role. Choco-pies play a very important role in two pivotal scenes in the movie, and plums in one. And of course Cho Won loves noodles. Most of the noodles shown looked alot like Jajang Myeon, a Chinese based, Korean noodles dish. Here’s an example of a sad "instant" Jajang Myeon:

But I didn’t have Jajang Myeon, I ended up at Buga and had the Bibim Naengmyun ($9.95):

These somewhat chewy-elastic buckwheat noodles, are served cold, with a spicy sauce. Add to it vinegar and mustard, and you have a wonderful refreshing, spicy dish! Have the Server cut the noodles with a scissors, though, otherwise you’ll be "pulling" for quite a long while! With all of the chewing and "reeling in" of the noodles going on, this dish may take a while to eat. It almost seems as if; if I may quote the Missus; "The more you eat, the more there is…"

Notice the panchan in the middle of the picture below, there’s a funny story about this:

So I’m having lunch, and a quite distinguished looking Gentleman siting on the table in front of me calls the waitress over, holds up the little plate with the "konnyaku" (I apologize I can’t for the life of me remember the Korean name), and tells her "I thought I told you no fish!", She tries in vain to explain to him that it’s not "fish", but made from "potato", but he insists that "No potato can ever make anything like this!" So after the Waitress looks at me with a pleading look, I tell the Gentleman that it’s made from a specific potato. I get the response, "Humph, don’t tell me what this is, I know fish when I see it!" I truly hopes he chokes on his Bulgogi….."humph"

Oh, what did I have for dessert?

Choco-pies of course!

In Case You’re Wondering Where I Am….

September 29, 2005 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

Every year around this time the San Diego Asian Film Foundation presents the San Diego Asian Film Festival. This year the 6th annual Festival has been expanded from the usual 4 days to 7 whole days at UltraStar Mission Valley Cinemas.

This is a wonderful event and we always make sure to get All Festival Passes so that we can come and go as we please. You also go to the front of the line for all events – but of course that has nothing to do with it, right?

For a listing of films and schedules – go here.

If there’s one thing that many Asian films have – its alot of food! So I may have a fun post or two up my sleeve.

The 6th Annual San Diego Film Festival – Sept 29th thru Oct6th.

So where’s the food? I found the comments to the Loco Moco Post to be very interesting. Rachel, was of course worried about my dental hygiene. Clare was worried that I wasn’t getting enough "green stuff" and also started searching for a Loco in Oz. Reid was concerned that I couldn’t find a good Loco. And of course Jo, wanted to make sure that she got the Hamburger right, while Mealcentric was worried about the gravy, while Pam immediately went searching for one! Aren’t Bloggers the best!

Just to make sure that you all know that I do eat veggies, once in a while at least:

I actually had 2 plates of salad tonight:

From our local Soupplantation. The Missus had 3. I of course went into immediate cardiac arrest, and had to be revived with a Spam Musubi. Rachel and Clare, I’m still alive and kicking!

See you at the Film Festival!

Mediterranean Cafe

September 28, 2005 mmm-yoso Greek Food

Sometimes you just want really good dependable food, you know what I mean? And maybe you had a tough day, and just need to get outside for a bit, not to eat, but just to do take-out….

As you notice the Mediterranean Cafe is located right next to El Cuervo in Hillcrest. But where El Cuervo is chaos Med Cafe is peaceful tranquility. I never see very many people eating here, but there’s always a constant flow of "Take-out".

Actually, the one thing that makes me laugh on the "lunch special" menu is the "1/3 Burger", I’m sure that everyone knows that it’s a 1/3lb burger…but still I picture a plate with 1/3 of a burger. I usually get the Gyro’s in Pita plate ($5.95):

Very simple, a toasted pita with gyros meat, tomato, onion, and tzatiziki, nothing outstanding; but in some way comforting. Everything is routine, the salad, is dressed with red wine vinegar, a bit of feta and usually a single olive. There’s always a nice container of ketchup with the middle of the road fries; not too thick not too thin. Tastes fine, no muss, no fuss.

On maybe an odd day I’ll order a combination plate($7.95). You know, just to live on the edge….

And maybe the Gyros meat is a bit dry, and the tzatziki is a bit watery…the chicken kabob is moist, though short on herbs, there are really nice crusty bits, and most of all the service is oh, so friendly and nice!

Sometimes that’s all you want…..

Mediterranean Cafe
112 W Washington St
San Diego, CA 92103

Are You Loco?: The Great LocoMoco Shootout

September 27, 2005 mmm-yoso Local Kine Stuffs in San Diego, Loco Mocos, Plate Lunch

Me:"My name is Kirk, and I'm a Loco-holic"
Group: "Hel-lo Kirk"
Me:"I've been secretly munching on Moco's over the last four months, and have almost been caught with gravy on my breath several times….."

Actually, the Loco Moco, along with Portuguese Sausage, Eggs, and Rice are my breakfasts of choice. I really don't usually eat a very large breakfast, but when I decide to have a hearty breakfast (usually breakfast and lunch), the Loco or PCE&R are what I choose. For those who don't know what a Loco Moco is; in it's most basic form a Loco Moco is Rice, Hamburger Patties, Easy-over, or Sunny Side up Eggs, covered in gravy. Tabasco, or some other hot sauce is used to complete the dish. It's origins are much debated, but is believed to have originated in Hilo around 1949.

One day while sitting to get a haircut, I was reading one of those Car Magazines, you know the ones; they compare exotic cars that we could never afford, 500 horse power with a sticker price in 6 digits….. When it came to me. Instead of the great Porsche versus Ferrari Shoot-out, I'll do the Great Loco Shoot-out! Instead of torque and horsepower, I'd do gravy and rice! The ideas that come to you when you're waiting to get dead cells trimmed off your body! So I decided to compare 5 Loco's; 4 Domestic, and one imported, and even two of the same "model".

Of course I needed a way to measure the Loco's. So I decided on the "Modified Rubio Scale", originally developed by James "Da' Lord of Loco" of Big Island Grinds. The original Rubio Scale measured each item on the Loco, I decided to take the "base" items, the Burger, Gravy, Egg, and Rice. To this I added "Stuffs", that include macaroni salad, Spam, or any other item that comes with the Loco. All items are graded on a scale between 1 through 5, with 2.5 being average.

So before I have to donate my arteries to Medical Science, let's get started:

LOCO#1: HAWAIIAN ISLAND BARBECUE

*** HIB has closed

BURGER: Standard pre-formed mass produced patty, not dry though – 2.0
EGGS: Cooked almost perfectly, edges crisp, yolks intact, not seasoned – 4.0
RICE: Average, slightly mushy, but ok – 2.5
GRAVY: Nice color and texture, but no taste, not seasoned – 2.5
STUFFS: Macaroni Salad, too much mayo and no salt – blah – 2.0

TOTAL: 13 points for what I consider to be a below average Loco($6.39), luckily I had alot of Tabasco! Also shows how one really good item, in this case the egg, can bring the Loco rating up.

LOCO#2: RUTT'S CAFE – LOS ANGELES *** Update, Rutt's Cafe has closed

BURGER: Handmade, well seasoned, onions and green onions, make a good burger – 4.0
EGGS: Cooked perfect, crisp edges, nice runny yolk, I'd even say soft in texture. – 4.5
RICE: Well cooked – 3.0
GRAVY: Lumpy and too light, taste was ok – 2.0
STUFFS: Macaroni salad, good mayo, but flavored with relish, yuck. Didn't know what to do with the dinner roll – 1.0

TOTAL: 15 points for an above average Loco($6.35) for our one "import" model (from Los Angeles) previously posted on July 18th. A good example of how one or two weak links can bring a "good" Loco down.

LOCO#3: L & L HAWAIIAN BARBECUE – COLLEGE AREA

BURGER: Premade, but actually seasoned, not dry, doesn't taste like cardboard for a change – 2.5
EGGS: Totally average, no crisp edges – mediocre – 2.5
RICE: Average – 2.5
GRAVY: Pretty good flavor, I know it's packaged, or whatever, but savory – 3.5
STUFFS: Somebody remembered their salt shaker today! Nice amount of Mayo, I thought it was pretty good – 3.0

TOTAL: 14 points is about as good as I think a Loco($6.39) can be at one of these Hawaiian Barbecue places, maybe another point if the eggs were done better!

LOCO#4: DA KINE'S

*** Da Kine's has closed

BURGER: Grilled nicely, but tasteless, and dry, dry, dry – 2.0
EGGS: Yolks overcooked and solid, otherwise average – 2.0
RICE: This was a shocker, Dakine's always has mushy rice, except this time – well cooked – 3.0
GRAVY: Nice and dark, but tasteless, and not enough of it – 2.5
STUFFS: Macaroni salad; you'd think with all the carrots and celery, this salad would have some taste – but noooo, very bland. Why is everybody afraid of salt? 2.5

TOTAL: 11.5 What a disappointment. When I first opened the take-out container, my first thought was, "where's the rest of my Loco($5.75)?". Almost looks like 1/3 of the Loco is missing!

LOCO#5: L&L HAWAIIAN BARBECUE – SPORTS ARENA LOCATION

BURGER: Well seasoned, pre-formed burger, moist – 2.5
EGGS: I don't know if you can see it, but there are brown bits all over the egg. The main cause of this is that the frying surface was not cleaned or scraped after the last item was cooked. Threw off the taste of the eggs, and who likes biting into "mystery bits"? – 1.0
RICE: Actually very well cooked, you could count the grains of rice – 3.0
GRAVY: Too light, and not well flavored – 2.0
STUFFS: Somebody forgot the salt shaker when they made the macaroni salad, and too much mayo – 2.0

TOTAL: 10.5 Just goes to show, that all of these L&L's are not created equal. Funny thing is that this location is right next to a Starbucks, which I thought was so appropriate, being that L&L's are taking over the world!

Just in case you're not tired of Loco Moco's yet! Here's a menu with my Fantasy Loco Moco, would it be a 25 pointer? Who knows, I'll let you know when I go back home for vacation. Reid's got a few Loco Moco posts on Ono Kine Grindz. Want to see a nice homegrown Loco? Santos has one on his fine site The Scent of Green Bananas.

Alright, time to go, I'm feeling like an unemployed Sumo Wrestler after writing this. What did I have for dinner tonight? Cold Tofu! Man, I need a shower…….

Mandarin Canton – Is this Cake Noodle?

September 26, 2005 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Chinese Restaurants

*** 04/03/2011 You can find an update here.

Tucked in a strip mall on Telegraph Canyon Road in Chula Vista is Mandarin Canton, like Golden Chopstick, a Chinese-American-Filipino restaurant.

One night about a year ago, the Missus called from work and told me she thinks she found that "noodle dish" I'd been looking for. What I'd been looking for is called "Cake Noodle" in Hawaii, and I've never seen it anywhere on the Mainland. I've had some dishes that used pan fried noodles, but they were not even close.

Cake Noodles are usually thin egg noodles that are fried until crispy in a pan (thus the cake), cut into squares, and topped with a thick stir fried "gravy" and various meats and veggies. I knew this was a Filipino-American Chinese restaurant when I noticed that no chopsticks are provided and we are served what we jokingly call Chinese Tortilla Chips! Actually these won ton pi chips are very sneaky, served with sweet and sour sauce, you end up eating one after the other….

On this visit I was really surprised that lunch specials were being served on a Sunday! The specials come with soup and either Fried Rice or Steamed Rice and range between $3.75-$4.75. One quick tip – stay with the steamed rice! We ordered one item off the lunch menu, and two off of the regular menu:

We received the Shrimp with Lobster Sauce ($4.75) that the Missus ordered off the specials menu:

I was pretty surprised to find that we got a whole order of Shrimp with Lobster Sauce. Shrimp with Lobster sauce is not my favorite dish, I call it "egg drop soup with shrimp", but the Missus enjoys it. This version was very mild, though the shrimp were large and tasty, ditto with the water chestnuts. It also started congealing as soon as it hit the table.

The Salted and Deep Fried Shrimp with No Shell ($11.00) came up next:

So fried, salty, garlicky, slightly spicy, and crunchy…..I don't think you need to say anything else about this dish. It's probably the most expensive dish on the menu, but it's alot of really large shrimp. I once saw a Young Lady order this with a side of the garlic/green onion/chili pepper topping, and eat a spoonful of the garlic with each shrimp, and loving it! Make sure you order them without shell.

Than came the dish I came here for – the Upside Down Pan Fried Noodles ($6.50). Yes, it's actually called that on the menu:

The noodles are fried to a crisp than topped with veggies and meats in a brown sauce. The sauce is nice and salty, sweet, and gooey, and slowly softens the noodles. My only complaint is that there is not enough brown sauce. The Missus ended up spooning her rice into the empty plate to sop up the remaining sauce. There are large shrimp, beef, and chicken, along with broccoli and snow peas.

So is it Cake Noodle? Well not really, but it's close enough for me.

Some notes on Mandarin Canton: Like many of these places Your Mileage May Vary, there are some really terrible dishes here, so pick and choose based on what you see others eating. There are only ten tables, and a constant flow of people in and out, but the turnaround is pretty quick. Mandarin Canton is a "Player" in the "Best Salt and Pepper Wings" battle going on, but is not as good as Golden Chopstick, though Golden Chopstick's Upside Down Pan Fried Noodles (yes, they have them there as well), is not as good as Mandarin Canton's. I've actually swung by both restaurants on a single take-out trip. Don't eat here if you are afraid of salt and MSG, though I've never had any problems or reactions from the food, I'm pretty sure it's there.

Mandarin Canton Chinese Restaurant
543 Telegraph Canyon Rd
Chula Vista, CA 91910
Open Daily 11am – 10pm

Da Kine’s

September 25, 2005 mmm-yoso Local Kine Stuffs in San Diego, Plate Lunch

**** The La Mesa location has closed and Nelson is currently only doing catering

*** As of June 2022, Da Kine's has reopened in La Mesa – you can find a post here

*** Update – Da Kine's in Pacific Beach has closed, you can find a short update here, near the bottom of the page. The Mira Mesa and National City locations are still open, and a new location in Point Loma is coming soon.

Warning: Pidgin English has Been Liberally Used in the Creation of this Post

When I first started coming to San Diego on a regular basis back in the late 90's, Da Kine's was pretty much the "only show in town". Partially because of that reason, Nelson Ishii has carved himself a pretty loyal customer base. In addition, I've found that DaKines' plate lunches are a bit lighter, with items such as Grilled Fish and the Teriyaki Chicken here is skinless. I visit DaKine's usually only the Autumn and Winter months because of the crowds and traffic in Pacific Beach.

DaKines has their own share of detractors, especially from some of the Ex-Pat Kama'ainas' that I know. A recent phone conversation went like this:

"Eh, you wanna go Dakines"
"Dakines, nah, laita's"
"Why not?"
"First, too many make-pretend, wanna be surfa's, two, they are tight with the portions, and three, they dip the chicken"
"They dip the chicken?"
"Yeah, they precook the chicken, put em' in a pan, and when there's an order they put the chicken on a plate and squirt sauce over it!"
"Oooh-kay, next time then?"

One of the things I do like about DaKines is that they have some "classic" plate lunches that the plethora of Hawaiian BBQ places in San Diego don't(and no it's not the grilled Mahi), like Beef Stew. Also, many of the employees at DaKines speak pidgin, and I'm almost sure of a "pidgin" conversation there.

Two items on the menu at DaKines gives me a problem; it's the attempt at humor in using pidgin for the "mixed plates" there. The 2 item(2 entree) plate is called "Da Bugga" and the 3 item plate is called "Wop Yo Jaws". Which can lead you to interesting little exchanges like:

"What you like?"
"I like Wop Ya Jaws"
and
"Can I help you"
"Yeah, I like Da Buggah"

For those interested in a translation you can go here: to a Pidgin English Dictionary.

Today; looking over the menu, I noticed that the Beef Stew had been covered over; the Counter Person told me that it was due to lack of demand. Bumma! So I ended up ordering a " Two item Mixed Plate" (sorry still can't make myself say "I want Da Buggah"). With Chicken Katsu and Grilled Teriyaki Chicken ($7.00):

While waiting, I noticed that I was the only customer in the whole restaurant wearing slacks; everybody else were wearing shorts! Took my plate lunch home and got ready to eat. A couple of first impressions, the portions are on the smaller side, but this didn't bother me. All this meant was no "Kanak-attack" (food coma) after eating. The chicken katsu was very good, nice and crunchy and not oily, and best of all, good old Hawaiian style Katsu sauce was provided – ketchup based, not a watery sweet sour icky L&L sauce. Though not even close to say, Grace's in portion size and taste, this was good. The Teriyaki chicken consisted of two skinless pieces; one small thigh, and one smaller thigh, or knee, or maybe ankle – it was a really small piece of chicken! Though the chicken was obviously grilled, it was very bland, and flavorless. DaKines has a bad habit of serving mushy rice, though this time it was fine. Even though the macaroni salad had celery, carrots, the one item it needed was some "umph", it was very boring.

On my last visit, I just got the Chicken Katsu plate($5.75):

This time the Katsu was okay though a bit burnt, with some bitter pieces. The rice was cooked with too much water and mushy, and the macaroni salad was still bland. I think I'll wait a while before my next visit!

Some notes on DaKine's. There are two locations of DaKine's, one in the Promenade Mall located in Pacific Beach, right above Tony Roma's. There is validated underground parking. The other location is on Sweetwater Road in National City. Everybody at DaKine's is very nice and friendly. The PB location has a nice "patio" where you can have a plate lunch and check out the beach. There are daily specials; Laulau is served on Sunday. The usual suspects like, Kalua Pork and Cabbage, Saimin, and Spam Musubi, are on the menu.

DaKine's
4120 Mission Blvd. #208
San Diego, CA 92108
858-274-8494

Jin Patisserie

September 24, 2005 mmm-yoso Chocolate, Desserts

On Friday afternoon I received a call:

"Hello"
"Oh my God"
"Hello"
"Oh my God"
"Whats wrong?"
"It’s so beautiful!"

It turned out the Missus had gotten this in the mail:

A pretty silk box. So what was in it?

I had heard of Jin Patisserie from Kristy’s wonderful blog Best of LA, and in this case she’s right! I had ordered the 15 pieces of Chocolate in a Silk Box, but received 20, and I’m not complaining!

My photo’s really don’t do these chocolates justice, they really are works of art:

The flavors included in this box are: Lemon Grass, Sea Salt Caramel, Jasmine, Black Roasted Sesame, Lychee, Earl Grey Feuilletine, Mango Kalamansi, Passionfruit, The des Concubine, Red Caramel Clove, Mango Basil, Cinnamon, The du Hammum, Lavender, and Ginger.

The price? $42, not cheap, but oh, so beautiful to look at!

I think I’d better let the Missus eat her candy now. It’ll take a while, she’s just a nibbler with these types of candies, and really knows how to appreciate them.

So if you want your own little 1×1 piece of heavenly rich and subtly flavored chocolate; you can order from the Jin Patisserie website, or visit them at:

Jin Patisserie
1202 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
Venice, Ca. 90291

Ain’t it amazing what we learn from Blogs?

Thanks Kristy!