mmm-yoso!!! is primarily a food blog with sometimes interesting stories about how the food was acquired. Cathy and Her Mister took a short road trip on Saturday and here's that post.
Link to 2024 Float Road Test #1
On the last Saturday in October, we woke at 4, left home at 5 and after a quick stop at Cream Pan in Tustin, arrived at Phoenix Decorating Company in Irwindale, just in time to see three floats for the 2024 Tournament of Roses Rose Parade being tested for mechanics and maneuverability.
"Sounds of Success". presented by Coding for Veterans, a Canadian based organization. The H60 and P35 aircraft are much more recognizable now that the rebar outline is covered. This symmetric float (same on the camera and off camera sides) looks like it will have giant screens in the center. The 'keyboards' under the screens are surreal.
Unsure about this float, but the 'spotter' in front is easy to see, as is the 'driver' near the back (with the ToR safety evaluator seated next to him). You can see the slot where the Spotter looks out in the above float photo. 
Also unknown is this float, with an intricate 'skeleton' which may have some interesting mechanics attached.
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The road testing was short, the weather was windy and chilly and The Mister and I were not very hungry yet. We did drive to Porto's and got a few seasonal bakery items and a loaf of cranberry walnut bread (spent less than $11!) and started driving around, looking for 'someplace new to us' for breakfast.
Well. Of course we stopped.
The walls and ceiling are covered with nostalgia. After ordering and paying, we got our beverages and found a nice, clean table. Our food was brought to us. 
The breakfast menu is pretty simple. The complete menu at the Drive Thru has me wanting to return.
Realizing I haven't had a breakfast sandwich in a very long time, I jumped at the chance to try a sausage breakfast sandwich on rye ($8.99). flat omelet style eggs on toasted, thick slices of rye with four skin-on breakfast sausages, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise…just a wonderful sandwich.
The Breakfast plate with a hamburger patty, three eggs (over easy) and real hash browns ($9.99) was The Mister's choice. Oh, we both really appreciate the char broiling of a patty and the seasoned grill here produces a wonderful flavored burger.. The eggs were perfectly over easy and the soft boiled potatoes, crisp fried on a flat top grill were just wonderful. Of course The Mister also chose rye toast-an excellent bread, filled with rye seeds.
Bob's Burgers 14952 Valley Blvd. La Puente, CA 91746 (626) 961-2523 Open Fri-Wed 7 a.m.- 9:45 p.m. Closed Thursday Website
What caught my eye, on the counter were these Sampuru- fake food models. But it's not Japanese food (although apparently the teriyaki chicken and beef on the menu are very popular items). I've never seen Mexican or American breakfasts, much less burgers and French fries done in this wax style of advertising. Then again, look at the wall behind the fake food displays… kanji?
Same location, same way of ordering, another success story of making it through Covid-19.
Similar menu with higher prices.
Choose your items by looking and pointing while walking along the order line.
Watch your order go into the fire filled oven, pay and find a seat. Soon items will be brought to your table. 
I wanted to try the 'new' Folded dough garlic cheese bread ($5.95). Garlic herb butter, Mozzarella and Romano on freshly made dough, folded over. This was kind of a perfect bite for me. Tasty and filling…very cheesy with the garlic butter making a perfect condiment. 
The 3 Topping Signature Pizza ($11.35) on the original crust, house made red sauce, mild Italian sausage, pepperoni and mushrooms was our choice for a pizza. I gave The Mister most of my pepperoni and sausage and enjoyed the cheese and mushrooms on the crisp, chewy yet fluffy light crust.
Which was cooked perfectly in that stove. 
Ichiban Sando is on H Street just east of Broadway (across from the mall). 
There are menu boards above and menu choices taped below the ordering window as well as a convenient pocket size menu. 
The Shrimp Katsu Sando ($11.50) is served on a choice of toasted homemade milk bread or brioche bun and with cubes of pickled radish. Crispy breaded shrimp on the toasted bread- an excellent, large and filling sandwich. 
The Pork Belly Bowl ($10.50) was another choice this day. Steamed rice, pickled red cabbage and kimchee along with plenty of soft, tender pork belly topped with a Kewpie based sauce (slightly spicy; maybe sriracha, which tastes sweet and hot). Mixing the pickled vegetables with rice with bits of the fatty pork was quite a nice bite of textures and flavors.
The Fruit Sando ($8 on the wall under the cash register but $8.50 on the paper menu) was wonderful- the soft, fresh home made milk bread, fresh and thick whipped cream and fragrantly ripe strawberries and kiwi made a perfect dessert snack.
The Mister and I made the trek West, to Old Town, a few months ago, so that I could have the breakfast I was craving and He could fulfill His cravings.
His order was F10- the Italian sausage frittata ($15.99). A simple baked (in cast iron; thicker than an omelet) egg dish of Italian sausage, tomatoes and mixed cheese. A nice, mild sausage, fresh tomatoes and plenty of cheese and eggs…filling and tasty.
Instead of toast, He chose biscuits and gravy- house made, fluffy inside with a crisp crust covered by a creamy, breakfast sausage filled gravy.
Also part of the meal were hash browns. Nice and crisp.
Here's my Fish and egg meal ($16.99)-cod fish, lightly floured and pan fried, two (properly) poached eggs and crisp Home fries. The fish was served with the appropriate condiments of tartar sauce and lemon. 
Instead of bread, I chose the muffin of the day (blueberry). It's light and cake-like and filled with fresh, plump blueberries.
The Lunch Specials sign sealed the deal this day.
The regular menu is very interesting, warranting a return visit.
We each ordered a lunch special which includes miso and salad. I also ordered a hot green tea ($2)-it was a wonderful genmaicha (green tea with roasted rice) loose tea tightly packed in a filter bag. 
The Mister also wanted to try a California roll ($5.75). Made with imitation crab and cucumber, this was very nice, quite large. (Grated wasabi is $1.25; I neglected to take a photo.)
Chicken yakisoba lunch ($13.50). This had wonderful, thin noodles and was a flavorful stir fry of the chicken and vegetables (cabbage, carrot, onion and carrot). The hand roll also had imitation crab along with cucumber. 
Decades ago, this location was the first restaurant where The Mister and I had Dim Sum (carts and all). The area at the front door had a window counter display case of roast ducks and roast pork; we would stop here for some roasted treats to take home if not going to Woo Chee Chong down the street.
Fried squid appetizer ($8.99). This came out last and was freshly fried to a nice, light crunch, not oily and was an excellent version, with garlic and peppers. This could have been my meal, but we shared.
House Special Pan Fried Rice Noodle ($17.95). Beef, pork, chicken, vegetables, egg, rice noodles all stir fried with a smoky wok hey comfort flavor. A nice plate that we enjoyed.
Combination Platter-Choice of Two roasted meats from the window display at the back of the eating area ($19.95). Roast duck and roast pork belly. Juicy, fatty, crisp skin with moist, flavorful, meaty goodness. Enough left over for a nice dinner. 
Prices are in line with other Cantonese style restaurants. Quality is great. Service is excellent. We will try again.
See-the hanging ducks and pork are back in the corner display case.
The menu board has a good selection, with beverages, smoothies, fruit bowls, breakfasts (bowls and toasts), salads, sandwiches and flatbreads.
The Healthy Bowl ($8.99) was a great choice- turkey, steamed eggs, spinach, tomatoes, arugula, mozzarella, avocado and a pesto topping. The warm turkey and soft eggs were plentiful and complimented the (also warm) vegetables, cheese and pesto. Flavors, textures and deliciousness. 
The Elmisa Toast ($8.99) on an excellent 'artisan sourdough' was topped with avocado spread, hard boiled egg slices, Feta, tomato, cucumber, dry mint and extra virgin olive oil. So many flavors, wonderfully combined in each bite!
A large (20 oz) cup of coffee ($3), by Lavazza was fresh and very good.
At first blush I found the broth to have mildly porky – savory tones but was on the salty side; though it was fairly fatty – rich and nicely coated my tongue. I really couldn't make out any garlic flavor, probably because the broth was too salty.
As much as I enjoy spiciness, I didn't care for the "Nagi sauce" in this bowl of ramen as it really heightened the saltiness and distracted from the flavor of the tonkotsu style broth.
These pieces were quite large; in fact Calvin and I could only finish one piece each and ended up taking the rest back to JeffP as a "consolation prize" since he couldn't make it. The batter was quite crunchy, almost edging on hard. The meat as on the chewy-dry side. It was covered in an overly sweet sauce. I don't think I'll order these again.
The chashu this time around looked to have an almost "red" tinge to it; but was perfectly fine. I had ordered the broth to be "heavy" in terms of richness which it definitely was. So very rich, but not greasy, in fact the texture reminded me of the 
The boiled egg was every bit as good as on the previous visit….good consistency displayed here.
The shredded beef was quite tasty. The broth had some nice spice, but was quite "flat" and one-dimensional in flavor. The glass noodles were too mushy. There was a rather greasy "mouth feel" to the dish and as a whole I felt it was quite mediocre.
So, the wrappers were on the tough and brittle side. The filling for the pork and chive was bland and chewy, though the pork and kimchi had the advantage of some good savory-fermented flavor and was definitely the better of the two.