Here's another H(anging) i(n) t(he) 'H(ood) post.
Sometimes things work in rather mysterious ways. For some reason, I was feeling like taking a nice walk and I hadn't been to Dan Diegos since before Covid. So I figured it would be a good walk, about two-thirds of a mile and I headed on down. "ST" had sent me a recent email recommending the Lamb Sandwich at Dan Diegos so that was the purpose of my visit. But when I arrived, I was waylaid by the special of the day.
The sign said "Bobby Burns Night – Dinner: Haggis with Neeps and Tatties". Shades of Scotland! I consider DDs to be sort of an Irish pub, so the last thing I would expect would be a Burns supper, which celebrates Scottish Poet Robert Burns, author of such works as Address to a Haggis. But here it was…and here I was.
The folks here have always been quite friendly and all the folks sitting at the bar seemed to be regulars. And they were quite curious to see me order the Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties. The woman working the bar told me that the chef had been working weeks trying to get the Haggis "right". And I was more than happy to be the first to order it.
So, how was it? Well, it nicely seared, this had a ton of oatmeal in it. I'm not sure if it had much offal as the flavor was quite mild….no, this was definitely not like what we had at Drover Inn along Loch Lomond. It was nicely seasoned, with some earthy tones, and quite filling. Sort of like "Haggis not to Harm"? The neeps (mashed turnips) were good as were the "tatties" (mashed potatoes), though I wasn't a fan of the gluey-bland gravy. I didn't need the mustard or horseradish sauce at all.
To be perfectly honest, I'd have this again. Perhaps I'll call before going to see if they have it. Or maybe I'll have to try the Lamb Sandwich.
This was a fun, serendipitous meal, surrounded by nice folks.
"Auld Scotland wants nae stinkin ware,
That jups in luggies;
But if ye wish her gratefu' pray'r.
Gie her a Haggis!"
Address to a Haggis – Robert Burns
Dan Diegos Pub
2415 Morena Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92110
And I do have a question for you. In terms of distances, what do you consider "your 'hood"? Is it a few blocks, a half mile, a mile, or (god forbid) over a mile?
Walk up and you can read the menu in the front window. The weekly specials are on the White Board at the bottom; each is $1 less than the menu price. Walk in, order, pay and find a seat. Beverages will be brought to your table. 
Bento A ($13.50)-Baked salmon, chicken teriyaki, fried seafood, California roll. Rice, salad and
this really wonderful miso soup are included. (You can order a bowl for $1.75 if it's not included with your meal; worth it) 
The Ginger Seafood Bento ($11.25). One salmon piece, one squid piece, two fish
and two shrimp. All cooked well and coated in a really refreshing ginger sauce. Edamame, chilled noodles, rice and salad are included.
I have found myself ordering the Vegetable Delight Bento ($11.50) quite often. Eight pieces of tempura, eight pieces of Garden Roll, edamame, salad and rice. Of course, everything is properly fried and so very fresh.
Hot tea ($1) is a good quality green and the cup is kept refilled. 
The chicken katsu salad ($8.50) can be a meal. The chicken is plump and juicy with a crunchy-light fried coating.
The fried calamari ($7.50) serving is now only four pieces, but each is quite large. Again, expertly fried crunch batter and the squid is so tender.
The vegetable tempura appetizer (or side order, as the case may be) ($7.50) has eight pieces and light, non-greasy fry.
I can't believe we had never tried the mix yakisoba ($10.50) until 2022! Shrimp, chicken, beef, veggies and quality eggy noodles. This is served with rice or salad. A really nice meal. 
Walking the door, the area to the left is where you order To-Go; the original 'footprint' of Lucky. The restaurant expanded to having Sit-Down in 2014.
Wonton crisps along with house-made sweet and sour sauce are brought out while you peruse the menu. A pot of hot tea (choice of jasmine, oolong or green) is $4.50.
The one item we always ordered to-go are these lettuce cups ($10.79). Minced chicken, water chestnuts, carrot, white and green onion, toasted almonds served with a half head of lettuce, hot mustard and hoisin sauce. This appetizer can stay in the refrigerator and still tastes good later in the day. It was our Covid-19 staple.
The wonton soup ($9.99) has a rich, deep flavored, chicken-pork broth and is filled with chicken, shrimp, vegetables and large pork filled wontons. As you can see, more fillings than broth- a meal all by itself.
Spicy pork ($14.79). The pork is stir-fried with bell pepper, bamboo shoots, zucchini, carrot, celery and onions in a house-made Kung Pao sauce. The pork is tender, the vegetables are still crisp; this is such a perfect melding of flavors and texture. (Entrees are served with a choice of steamed rice, brown rice, chow mein or (as above) Singapore noodle).
Sesame chicken ($15.79) is properly fried so the batter remains light and crisp even on the bottom pieces of the serving dish. The sweet and spicy sauce has a bit of heat (not too much; you can taste the batter as well as the chicken with each bite).
The 2023 Tournament of Roses with the theme "Turning The Corner" has concluded. The Rose Parade was held on January 2 (the Parade is never on a Sunday; the first parades in the 1800s had floats that were horses pulling carriages and horses were needed for church on Sunday; the tradition stands). Following the Parade, the floats line up at the end of the five mile Parade route, end to end, and are displayed after the Parade and the next day. This year, I drove up with my friend, 
The Sweepstakes Award, for the most beautiful entry encompassing float design, floral presentation and entertainment, went to the float sponsored by Donate Life, "Lifting Each Other Up". A spectacular asian street dragon is the centerpiece of the float. There were 44 memorial floragraphs representing those who had given the gift of life. Those were removed before the rain, so the families could have a memory. 
You can see the empty circles, where the floragraphs had been, in this photo. 
Trader Joe's entry, "Onward" won the Wrigley Legacy Award for most outstanding display of floral presentation, float design and entertainment. The three piece float was magnificent and whimsical. 
Walking along the floats: an alligator, a shark and crested birds were some of the many details not seen during the television broadcast. 
The Kiwanis entry, "Catching the Wave of Service" was so beautiful.
The City of Alhambra entry, "Together We Rise" received the Tournament Volunteer award. 
Elks U.S.A entered "Elks Investing in Our Communities"- a magnificent float. 
More details- hummingbirds, snails and bees might have gone unnoticed during the quick TV viewing. Yet so much work was put into the design and decoration of each and every one of the 39 floats in the 2023 Parade. (I have photos of all the floats if you want any specific pictures).
"Celebrating a World of Music: The Universal Language". The float designs are being submitted and construction will begin. As an aside, each float always has recorded music while it drives down the Parade Route. This theme will have the floats designed and coordinated with the music. It should be fun. 
cc was looking forward to going to Portos after our morning of walking. 
She and I needed lunch. A cubano sandwich, cuban style black bean soup, turkey and cheese croissant and (to go, for The Mister) a rustic chopped chicken salad (which includes house candied bacon-yum!). There were, of course a few bakery items. However, we were here on January 3-just before Epiphany, the 12th night after Christmas and the 'end' of the holiday season. 
Traditional celebratory sweets to celebrate Three Kings Day were for sale; however the Rosca de Reyes was already sold out. We each purchased a Galette des Rois.
Puff pastry filled with a layer of almond frangipane cream as well as a touch of guava jam (for a Cuban twist). The 'baby' could be hidden into a slice by us (if there were more than two of us sharing this tart) and whoever found it could wear the crown. The Mister and I shared wearing the crown. 
There were no Roscas, but the seasonal Rosquitas, a sweet bread topped with dried, candied fruits made some nice bites for us this year. 
Honda is a Sponsor of the Tournament and their float is not judged; that's why it is not completely covered in organic materials.
The former movie theater, now a Vietnamese Market, with the Cantonese restaurant in the former lobby has survived Covid-19. 
From the small Dim Sum menu, we ordered XLB-soup dumplings ($6.38). A nice bite and, as you can see, not quite perfect, but no soup was actually lost because of the creative steaming system.
From the 'appetizer' portion of the menu, we ordered the 'Double Delicacy' ($19.95) because we couldn't decide on roasted pork or roasted duck and this was a way to get both (there were leftovers) (both of these meats are really good; tender meat, crisp skin, not too salty.).
Lately, Chow Fun fulfills the craving I've been having for noodles. The wide, flat, rice noodles, stir fried to get that smoky 'wok hei' flavor always seems perfect. (This order was shredded pork with preserved vegetable chow fun ($14.95). I enjoy the briny 'pickle-ness' of preserved vegetables in any dish and combined with the smoked noodles, each bite was delightful).
Hot tea is always free. We did have to ask for chopsticks.
In the far corner, the former Sinjeon Food Sys (prior it was CDD Tofu and Grill) has turned into Krab Bros- a boiled seafood restaurant. 
A simple menu is always appreciated. 
The lunch shrimp platter ($14.99) with chosen flavors of original butter, garlic parmesan and Bros Cajun was an excellent choice. This platter has ten shrimp, a boiled egg, sausage, corn and tiny whole potatoes, all coated in the chosen flavors. The shrimp were quite large, very plump and had good flavor when I tasted a bit without any flavor coating. I liked the sausage, egg and corn and especially the small, skin-on potatoes; it was a well balanced meal and quite enough to share.
I walked over to Boba Bar and ordered a mango slush ($5) for us to share. We had already shopped inside the Zion Grocery store.
Now, the piano as well as the teddy bear are gone from the Food Court platform. Damn Covid-19!
In reality, The Mister and I shop here quite often and try to have a bite to eat before walking down the aisles. 
There is almost always some sort of sale/display in the center entrance area. The two main restaurants are to your left.
Hokkaido Ramen Santuoka is a favorite stop, especially on these chilly, rainy days. 
The display of the menu -in plastic form-is mesmerizing. All bowls are available in small, regular and large sizes. 
Shio, soy sauce as well as the miso broths (non-spicy; I like to taste ingredients) are each milky, rich and strong flavored. The thin, fresh noodles are slightly firm. Each ingredient is fresh and perfect together. (This is a small size basic miso ramen ($11) you can order char siu, tonkatsu as well as a variety of sides or sets).
The other restaurant, Musashiya, has an even larger display of Shokuhin Sampuru; an overwhelming menu and choice of items. Musashiya is owned by Mitsuwa. 
The #24, Chicken Katsu Set (the small food model photo is only 'off' by the color of the chicken breading) ($15) is large enough to share for a light lunch. Miso soup, potato salad, cabbage, pickles and omelet (tamago) along with a good portion of rice are each a compliment to the large piece of crispy chicken cutlet.
The tempura zaru soba ($12.80) has been a choice ever since I realized that soba noodles do not seem to affect my blood sugar level the way udon does. The two fritters (kakiage) of tempura vegetables with shrimp were very light and crisp.
The Sanzai soba ($12) is a bowl ordered when I don't want meat for a meal. The vegetables are Japanese parsley, bamboo shoots and mushrooms. Really tasty, filling and a bit different.
When you walk in the front door of Mitsuwa, to the right is J Crepes & Cafe.
Which, of course, has its own display of plastic food models. 
Strawberry crepe ($7.50) add vanilla ice cream ($1)
Man, this was really good! Crisp, moist wings, perfectly fried and seasoned. Glazed with an umami-sweet salted egg yolk sauce. This as just heavenly to eat. It's also a great diversion from all of those "KFC" places that have opened up in the area.
We managed to get a high-top for two. And along with the standard menu, the menu del-dia was presented. There was a nice, easy going, yet joyous vibe here. Folks were having fun. There was a group of folks, it seemed like employees from a company having a "very" happy hour. They asked me to take a photo of them. Of course, being American, I told them to say "cheese"….perhaps I should have had them say "fromage"?
