mmm-yoso – Page 98 – 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.

Takeout from Eastern Dynasty (Revisit)

January 3, 2023 mmm-yoso Chinese BBQ, Chinese Restaurants

A few months back "FOY" KennethB sent me a couple of emails regarding recent experiences at Eastern Dynasty so I was intrigued. But of course based on our previous visits, it was going to be a challenge talking the Missus into going there. In the end, we decided to do another takeout visit.

I got there just after opening and there was only one table occupied.

E Dynasty Rev 01

I placed my order and went for a walk. Upon returning, my order was ready and the place was starting to fill up.

I ordered what I considered to be the best item I had on previous visits and the Missus was craving Her "salted fish" dishes.

First off, we got the Eggplant with Salted Fish and Pork. The eggplant was wonderfully cooked, so creamy. But overall, the dish was worse than on the last visit; it lacked salted fish and hardly had any pork.

E Dynasty Rev 03

It also looked totally different from what we'd had before.

During my previous visits, I was specifically told not to order the Salted Fish and Chicken with Eggplant, and favorite of the Missus's at Noble Chef. This dish was the complete opposite of the Eggplant with Salted Fish. It had way too much salted fish…it was very salty.

E Dynasty Rev 04

It was so funky and fishy, the Missus could barely finish a bite. Add to that the saltiness and well….. It was left up to me to try and finish this up. It took a couple of days. I recall making double sure that I sealed the storage container tightly because I didn't want any of the noxious fumes permeating in the fridge. Heating this up in the microwave was also an interesting endeavor.

I had thought that even though we hadn't enjoyed the flavoring; or lack thereof of the Pork Maw with Preserved Vegetable, the Pork Maw was stir fried nicely. So, I decided to order the Pork Maw and Green Peas with XO Sauce.

E Dynasty Rev 05

Like the previous dishes; the stir fry/cooking technique was decent. The green peas had a good snap to them; though no wok hay. The pork maw had a pleasant chewiness with a good, mild, intestine-ish flavor. However, the savory-salty-aromatic-mild spice of XO sauce was missing. In fact, this dish could have used more saltiness. I guess you could say the XO was MIA?

We also got some Roast Duck and Kwai Fei Chicken.

E Dynasty Rev 06 E Dynasty Rev 07 I gotta say, that Kwai Fei Chicken was the best I've had in a while. Moist, tender meat, decently seasoned. The sauce, while still high in the oil to ginger, was much better than last time. Really good. Alas, the Missus is not a big fan of Kwai Fei Ji.

E Dynasty Rev 08

As for the Roast Duck?

E Dynasty Rev 09

Man, this really lacked any anise flavor and was quite bland. The skin was hard, not crisp, though the fat was rendered out, but the flesh was dry and really tough. I tried my toaster oven "hack", to no avail.

Kind of a bummer. I'm thinking I'll have to dine in to enjoy a meal at Eastern Dynasty. I'll probably try to talk Calvin or someone else to join me.

Eastern Dynasty
4690 Convoy St. #109
San Diego, CA 92111

Thanks for the heads-up Kenneth!

Uncle Tetsu Japanese Cheesecake

January 2, 2023 mmm-yoso Desserts

So yes, I'm actually doing a "dessert" type post. Long time readers of our blog know that I don't have much of a sweet tooth and some are a bit surprised when I do a post on sweets. It's kind of a saving grace for me at times. And while no, enjoying desserts isn't a New Year resolution, I've got to come to enjoy the concept of Le Goûter (French afternoon tea), and we've always appreciated a good Japanese style Cheesecake. During our first trip to Tokyo back in 2014, we met up with our friend Reiko for dinner and though I didn't mention it in my post, Reiko gave us a Japanese Cheesecake as an omiyage. We recall having it back at the apartment; it was light, "jiggly", just mildly sweet, with a hint of an almost lemony-citrus flavor. Since then, we've tried different versions of that style of cheesecake when we go to LA. In fact, our good friend "Alle" enjoys the version from Sunmerry, so when the Missus drops by one of the locations in LA for Her pineapple cake we pick a cheesecake for her. She is quite happy to know that it looks like Sunmerry is opening here in San Diego.

When we were in Paris last month, the Missus was craving some Japanese Cheesecake and I found a place named Takumi. The cheesecake was not bad. So, of course after returning I mentioned that we had at least 3 cheesecake places opening in Kearny Mesa and that Uncle Tetsu, which I had noticed back in October had opened. So, the Missus and I drove on over to try out the cheesecake.

Uncle Tetsu 01

This is of course one of those infamous parking lots on Convoy, but it was right at 11am and we found parking. The small shop is located between Kura and Mochinuts.

There are currently four different flavors currently available; original, pandan coconut, ube, and strawberry which costs $13. Service was friendly and quick.

Uncle Tetsu 02

As I mentioned in my previous post Uncle Tetsu originated in Hakata, Japan and according to Eater the Panda Restaurant Group (know them, right?) is managing the brand.

Uncle Tetsu 03

We've currently made two visits where we tried the "original". The cheesecake was consistent.

Uncle Tetsu 04 Uncle Tetsu 05 It's light and fluffy, but not "jiggly" like the Missus prefers. I pick up stronger cream cheese tones and strangely, I thought it could be a bit sweeter! It's also missing the slight almost citrus tanginess that we like. It is quite delicate. The Missus prefers this version slightly refrigerated.

On our second visit we bought one for "Alle" who sent me a text saying: "I like the packaging, it's so fluffy and delicate. Yes, it doesn't jiggle but it's delish."

So there you go.

Uncle Tetsu 06

Now of course, the Missus is waiting for YikoYiko and Sunmerry to open.

If you check out Uncle Tetsu, let me know what you think!

Uncle Tetsu
4609 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 11am – 7pm

Happy New Year!

December 31, 2022 mmm-yoso Cooking, yoso-silly

This year the Missus had me forgo the usual Osechi thing for New Year. And we just went with Sukiyaki instead. Which is basically all about prep.

NYE EOY 2022 01

But of course, the Missus still wanted a "special" amuse-bouche…..

NYE EOY 2022 05

NYE EOY 2022 02

And so as we approach the end to another year – our 17th here, we'd like to wish everyone a safe and prosperous New Year!

Things have surely changed over the last two years and our hope is that you have made it through in good health, both physically and mentally.

As always, we are so thankful for your visits and all the wonderful comments!

Happy New Year!

Oaxaca – Monte Alban and a Revisit to Boulenc

December 30, 2022 mmm-yoso Bakery, Mexico, Oaxaca, Sandwiches

After having done a couple of tours in Oaxaca we decided to something on our own. We had wanted to visit Monte Alban and went to a tourist bus station and used the tourist bus system to get to Monte Alban.

Which took us to the large parking lot and main entrance to Monte Alban.

Monte Alban was an amazing site to visit. This UNESCO Heritage site has a history that goes back to 500BC. What is amazing is that this mountain was manually flattened. Yes, the top of Monte Alban was flattened and leveled by the Zapotec people over 2500 years ago!

It is estimated that Monte Alban had over 100,000 occupants at its peak. And then much like another wonderous site located on top of a mountain we visited; the city was abandoned.

There's so much to see here. Right as you enter the impressive North Platform and Sunken Patio grab your attention.

And you can see the South Platform and its pyramids in the distance.

There are many distinctive structures to see.

Along with several stela some of which were used as astronomical devices.

Near the South Platform is one of the more interesting and distinctive structures, a five-sided building that looks like an arrowhead. It is noted that based on the passageway, carvings, and orientation of the building that "Building J" was probably served a purpose as an "astronomical calendar".

And the views are quite dramatic as well.

One of the most popular and intriguing locations in Monte Alban is the Galeria de los Danzantes ("dancers"). There are stone carvings of "dancers".

While initially thought to be "dancers", later study and analysis have been inconclusive. It is theorized that the carvings are of the dead, possibly representing defeated enemies.

We went up the stairs of the South Platform, here's the view.

Yes, there's a lot to see here. So many structures, a ball court, more stela, all with "stories" and theories attached to them.

But as with most of these places, we hit our limit at around the 3 hour mark. We wanted to visit the museum, but it was still closed due to Covid policies at the time of our visit. We went ahead and had some coffee in the cafeteria, then headed to the parking lot where we got a ride back to Oaxava with one of the vans heading back into the city.

I think we'll return and do a private tour one day.

Back in Oaxaca, we were famished. The Missus had enjoyed Boulenc so much that we decided to return. The place wasn't very busy so we easily got a table.

The Missus got Her Aguacate y Cilantro. Sorry, no photo, as soon as the plate arrived at the table the Missus tucked right into it!

I was interested in something I'd seen on the menu during our earlier visit and decided to order it. Yep, it's what is called the "Banh Mi" ($121/MX – $6/US – with a fried egg). And while it did seem a bit expensive, this is what it looked like!

Of course less than five minutes after the sandwich arrived, this is what it looked like. That egg just vanished in the ether!

The bread was a crusty, yet light sourdough baguette, the roasted mushrooms earthy and delicious. The pate was made with cashew and mushroom and was really tasty. The pickled veggies were actually fermented and delicious.

This was very good!

We enjoyed Boulenc on this visit as well. And we'd return one more time before leaving Oaxaca.

Boulenc
Calle Porfirio Díaz 207
68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca, Mexico

We spent the rest of the afternoon strolling around the picturesque city.

Before heading back to the hotel to relax before dinner.

Which would be another wonderful experience!

Thanks for stopping by!

Oaxaca – Casa Taviche

December 29, 2022 mmm-yoso Mexican Restaurants, Mexico, Oaxaca, Travel

We were dropped back at our hotel after our wonderful Mezcal Tour and took a short nap. Upon awakening, I peeked out the window from our little balcony to see what the weather was like. This was August and having traveled in Mexico during this time before we knew about the serious afternoon downpours that occur. And while we could see the clouds moving in; it didn't look like a major drenching was on the docket for this evening.

Having scheduled the Mezcal Experience, I hadn't made any dinner reservations for this evening. Which was probably for the better since the Missus wasn't too pleased with our previous two dinners. I chose a place that featured a small rotating menu, a bit farther away from the hustle and bustle of Centro named Casa Taviche.

The dining area is in a cute little courtyard.

We were handed the small menu and I could not believe the prices!

We basically shared our dishes.

Of course the Missus needed to start out with the Pozole Rojo.

This was slightly porky and much better than what we'd had previously. There was enough salt, though it really needed a good hit of oregano and the Missus was wishing for all the "sides" which was already in the soup. Still, not bad.

The Tostada de Guisado de Champigons was very good.

Man, this was so delici-yoso; the braised mushrooms were so earthy and tender; there was a hint of sweetness, spice from the salsa rojo. Great textural contrast from the tlayuda and sprouts. Crisp, peppery spice from the radishes. This was very good.

It was the season for Chilies en Nogada and I wanted to try one; so we ordered it.

This was quite good; the roasted chili poblano was stuffed with a pork filling that had mild spice and sweetness from fruit and pomegranate. The walnut cream sauce was very smooth; there seemed to be the essence of cinnamon floating in the air. The Missus cracked me up when She claimed that this must be a "Middle Eastern Dish"! I almost fell out of my seat! I told Her that most of the stories I've read about this dish is that it was created by Nuns in Puebla for a feast for General Agustín de Iturbide who had signed the Treaty of Cordoba granting Mexico independence from Spain. She didn't believe me until I told Her; "take a look, the dish is the colors of the Mexican flag"!

So far, the Missus hadn't found a version of Mole that She liked. There was a mole sugueza, which is a version that uses corn to thicken the sauce. The Missus loves Her maize, so I hoped She would enjoy this. Consider the Costillas de Mole Segueza as "mission accomplished".

The pork ribs, while on the chewier side were porky, nicely seasoned, and smoked! You could really taste the maize in the thick sauce, along with a hint of clove, hoja santa, cumin…..and best of all for the Missus? This wasn't overly sweet.

Service was kind of "relaxed" (slow) and a bit spacey – they forgot about our mole dish and we had to remind them, but it's hard to complain with these prices and how much we enjoyed this meal.

After two not so enjoyable dinners, this meal marked a turning point. It would get much better from here on out

Casa Taviche
Miguel Hidalgo 1111
68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax., Mexico

Oaxaca – Private Mezcal Experience at Palenque El Cornejo

December 28, 2022 mmm-yoso Distilleries, Mexico, Oaxaca, Travel

Over the last couple of years I've become a proponent of small group or private tours. I do a bunch of research ahead of time and really want to learn and experience things. Understanding your preferences is important and reading reviews imperative. Over the last few years we've become interested in Mezcal and we were finally in the Capital of Mezcal; Oaxaca, so why not try to find a guide to learn more about Mezcal. I found a company; Where Sidewalks End that featured a private Mezcal tour they call, the "Sacred Mezcal Experience". We would actually visit a Palenque and visit the agave fields, with not only a guide, but with the Mezcalero!

Our guide, Victor picked us up at our hotel and soon we were off. During the drive we were provided so much information; the difference between Artisan and Ancestral Mezcal. Ancestral Mezcal does not allow for the use of stainless steel, the agave must be hand or stone milled, and the distillation must be done in clay pots! Also, the saying "All tequila is mezcal, but not all mezcal is tequila." That is Tequila is made from agave; but only one type of agave is used.

Soon enough we arrived at Palenque el Cornejo in Santa Catarina Minas. The very rustic palenque and tasting room greeted us.

And while there were some folks in the tasting room; that's not where we were headed. Maestro Antonio Carlos Mendez, known as "Cornejo" greeted us. He is a third generation Mezcalero and his production, other than help from his young sons is a one man show.

Soon enough we were loaded into the back of a pick-up with Victor and two of the young boys to head out into the fields.

And after passing thru a gate the truck was parked and we headed up into the hills.

Along the way we were introduced to the various species of agave that were growing. There are almost 50 difference species of agave used to make Mezcal; though Espadin is the most common because it can be cultivated.

What makes other species of agave difficult is that the plant can propagate in two different ways; by seeds, which you can see in the photo to the right, Antonio waits until the right time to harvest the seeds and then they can be planted nearby; or pups, little "runners" from the mother plant which can left to grow around "mom" or carefully moved. According to Antonio, some species can take over 20 years to mature. So just think, if Antonio planted seeds from certain plants today, it might be his sons who harvest the plant!

As for the species, it was quite humorous, the various plants were named and we were tested on them. I actually got 5 of the 6 correct! Not that I can name them now. Though I distinctly remember that's a Tobala below; it's very distinctive.

Some of the agave were quite impressive….

And we loved that his sons were actively involved. In fact, Victor told us that the three boys rather work in the agave fields than go to school!

The oldest son was not able to attend on this day because of a school activity, we met him later and he was so clean cut and an amazing young man.

After our tour of the hills we headed back to the work shed. Going downhill we got a chance to appreciate the view.

Back at the work shed we were fed lunch; a nice hearty meal of tamales.

And before leaving, there was one more thing to be done. There was another reason I booked this tour. We would each get one "baby" agave to plant! So, you now what our "pups" were named, right? Also, notice the stones next to the shoots? During our walk, I noticed that the boys were placing stones next to plants and asked Victor about this. He told me this was the way to "mark" that the plants are accounted for. So, of course I got our "boys" some stones, right?

I'm hoping we can return someday to see how our "pups" are doing.

After which things were closed up and we headed back to the palenque.

We arrived back at the palenque for the next part of the tour……the production and distillation of mezcal. The heart of the agave plant is called the piña. Once harvested, these are roasted in a stone lined pit.

This is what the agave looks like when it's done. We were even given tastes of the piña.

The agave is then milled, then water is added to the fiber and juice to begin fermentation.

Then the fermented agave juice is distilled twice.

And Antonio even described the process for Mezcal Pechuga to us.

After this, we got a private tasting.

And even though we basically only do carry-on sized luggage, even bought a couple of bottles.

This was an amazing day; we learned so much, met some wonderful, warm and hard working folks, got a taste of history and culture, which was even more than we could ask for. It was such a wonderful, humbling experience that exceeded our expectations.

This is why we travel!

Takeout from Homestyle Hawaiian (Mesa College)

December 27, 2022 mmm-yoso Plate Lunch

Right before our trip to France I was wondering "what can't I get in Paris"? Over our trips it seemed that Paris has done a pretty good job of answering the call for our cravings whether it was Ramen or Chinese (we gotta work on getting some good Vietnamese in Paris….I know it's there…). In my mind it was either tacos or a plate lunch. Now, I've seen more than a few taco places and also quite a bit of poke shops; there's even one on Rue Montorgueil! But I have yet to see a plate lunch spot. There was even a place named Honolulu Arts Et Métiers less than two blocks from where we were staying in the Marais on our return trip. But a look at the menu revealed poke bowls….and jiaozi? It looked like a Chinese restaurant in disguise.

In the end, I went with my gut, and growling stomach, deciding on Homestyle Hawaiian's Mesa College location. Especially since it had been over a year-and-a-half since I last visited.

HH Rev 01

Things have been rearranged a bit since my last visit. HH is always trying different "stuffs" and now there's something called "Dirty Soda" on one side of the shop and the counter has been moved to the north end.

HH Rev 02

At the time of this visit, the 2 item combo had gone up a dollar since my previous visit to $15.95.

I got the usual, the mix of Chicken Katsu and Korean Chicken.

Unpacking the plate I knew just by the heft that the portion sizes had gone down since my last visit.

HH Rev 03 HH Rev 05 No longer would I be getting two meals out of this. Even the amount of rice was less. The sauces are provided on the side so as not to make the breading/batter soggy. The katsu was breaded nicely and still crisp, though for some reason the chicken tasted like it hadn't been seasoned and was quite bland. Even with the Hawaii style katsu sauce (ketchup based) provided.

The Korean Chicken was on the dry side though still crisp and that sauce, with a combination of sweet and salty just does the trick for me. Still, I think it used to be better before.

HH Rev 04 HH Rev 07 The rice was moist and did the trick. While the mac salad wasn't quite as good as what I'd had on previous visits; a bit too much mayo and very bland. It needed more salt and maybe some black pepper as well.

Still, not a bad lunch overall.

HH Rev 06

Man, it's hard to believe that that I've been coming here since the place opened in 2009, before Mo's kingdom of restaurants expanded to six locations. And though I haven't seen Mo in a almost a decade, I still think of him whenever I get grindz here……remembering the days of Da' Kitchen and Mo's Island Grindz.

HH Rev 08

My how time flies!

Homestyle Hawaiian Island Style Food
7524 Mesa College Drive
San Diego, CA 92111

Montpellier – Reflet d’Obione

December 26, 2022 mmm-yoso Fine Dining, France, French Restaurants, Memorable Meals, Toulouse, Montpellier, Carcassonne, and Occitania, Travel

I had a nice dinner planned for our first evening in Montpellier with reservations at the one Michelin Star Reflet d'Obione which I had read about in this post on the Edible Reading Blog. Being that we were spending an entire month in France I knew that we'd need to pick our "tasting menu" spots judiciously. We surely didn't want to burn out on these places. We both thought that having a nice dinner in Montpellier would be fun.

There was a reason we had taken our specific walking route earlier in the day. The restaurant was close to Porte du Peyrou off of Rue Foch, down a quiet side street so I wanted to have some familiarity with the area. Like many of these places, which really don't need to advertise, the entry was rather simple and discreet.

And the interior simple, but classy as was the service.

We took the larger "Horizon" menu which featured 7 courses and shared a wine pairing. All the dishes are sourced from the region and seasonal. Montpellier is located a short distance (+/- 10 kilometers) from the Mediterranean, so we were interested to sample the seafood,

The oysters were nicely presented and prepared.

Crisp and briny, with savory minced sea asparagus (salconia) and was topped with frozen, mildly tart shavings that we were told was yogurt (?!?). This was a very nice start to the meal.

The next item was a bit strange. They called it Alkaline Broth.

This was like a weak dashi with sprouted lentils in it.

The scallop dish was outstanding.

The scallop was perfectly seared, rare, sweet, and tender. The charred endive was wonderfully sweet with a pleasant bitterness, the sabayon was light, yet rich, with a very clean finish.

The Missus loved the Guinea Fowl Quenelle.

Which was light and savory; but I think it's the celeriac puree, the Missus is not a big fan of celeriac, which went so well in this dish with a light celery-sweetness. The coffee veloute was a nice and savory surprise.

The Langoustine was sweet and tender.

And one thing we had noticed with this and all of the previous items; in spite of the rather elaborate presentation and combinations, the flavor of the primary ingredient shone thru. The minced butternut squash and puree went well with this.

The local line caught fish, in this case sea bass was again seared perfectly. Tender, buttery, with a hint of sweetness.

Up to this point we had enjoyed this dinner more than what we'd had at Granite a few nights previous. The one dish that we enjoyed more at Granite was the pigeon. Here the overall flavorings of the pigeon was too sweet and tart.

We did love the beetroot Napolean, though it added yet another layer of sweetness to the dish that was not needed in our opinion.

The entrements were good, refreshing, and very restorative.

The Missus enjoyed dessert.

And heck, even non-dessert lover me, enjoyed the Chocolate Fondant, which wasn't overly sweet.

It was rich and creamy; the praline crisp with the unique nutty flavor of chicory.

This was an excellent meal. The service was well paced, efficient, polished, and professional, while still being friendly. Except for the wine pairing and the pigeon dish, we enjoyed this more than Granite in Paris.

Reflet d'Obione
29 Rue Jean Jacques Rousseau
34000 Montpellier, France

Well, Montpellier who knew…..

Merry Christmas

December 24, 2022 mmm-yoso yoso-silly

We want to wish everyone a safe, joyous, and merry Christmas. I try to do one of these posts every year, but took a look and realized that I didn't do one last year. So, I need to get back on the right track!

The last couple of years has been tough for just about everyone I know. It has affected and changed my outlook on life and how I approach things that's for sure.

But somehow, we've made it so far.

And I have learned to be grateful and appreciate things. And we here at mmm-yoso appreciate all of you! Like I always say; we would not still be here if not for you!

Thank you as always for dropping by and have a safe, happy, and merry Christmas from us here at mmm-yoso!

Montpellier – Green Lab and Place de Peyrou

December 23, 2022 mmm-yoso France, Lebanese Restaurants, Toulouse, Montpellier, Carcassonne, and Occitania, Travel, Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurants

When planning our most recent trip to France, we knew we'd be spending our final two weeks in Paris, but where to go before then? The Missus wanted to visit places She had never been before and Brittany, Normandy, and the Loire was high on Her list. But I just didn't think visiting those locales at the end of November, beginning of December would be the best time. Nice and Marseille was high on that list, but in the end we thought visiting Carcassonne would be interesting and I'd always wanted to visit Toulouse, but we needed one more "leg" of the trip. We'd already been to the main cities in Provence….those posts never got done because like I mentioned in this post; after Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, we spent a night in Paris before heading to Provence, we planned 5 nights there, but got stranded because of a rail strike and ended up flying from Marseille to CDG and staying at the airport. This was at the end of 2019. So, while I started doing posts on that trip….well, you know what happened, right? Those posts on Provence never got done. Maybe one day I'll just to a COMC thing. Anyway, while I love train travel, the Missus has a "no more than 4 – 4 1/2 hour" rule when it comes to travelling by rail, which is why I have to plan on stays in places like Stuttgart, which is perfectly fine with me as I get to explore. After doing a bit of research, I developed an interest in Montpellier. Now you really won't find much about Montpellier in those guidebooks, but the city looked interesting; from the meandering old town, to having one of the oldest Universities in the world. And I'd read that fully one-fourth of the city's population is composed of students! That contrast would make for quite an interesting visit!

In fact, we could see the contrasts from the time we arrived. The apartment we were staying in was a mere ten minute walk from the train station. We went thru a tunnel that connected the tram line to quite a modern area with a mall. The apartment was in the interesting looking building connected to the Ibis Hotel.

We had a very nice view of the city.

Just steps away to the east was a large shopping mall named Le Polygone. Just to the west is the main square of the city, Place de la Comédie. This lively and lovely square features restaurants, fast food joints ("McDo" does great business with the students), cafe's, a movie theatre, and the lovely National Opera. Because we didn't have a map of the city, we stopped by the Tourist Information center and got the "detailed" map (,50 €) which we used along with Google Maps to get around.

At the heart of the square is the Fountain of the Three Graces.

The square is nicknamed L'Oeuf ("egg") because of its oval shape. From here there are arteries heading in all directions. We decided to take one of the side streets, away from the Ecusson (the old city), down Rue de Verdun for a light lunch at a place I had on my list; Green Lab.

Because of the large student population, I thought that there would be some nice casual eateries with diverse cuisines and with just one notable "fail", these places delivered. Green Lab features Lebanese and Middle Eastern influenced vegetarian and vegan dishes in a "fast-casual" type set-up. You order at the counter and they'll bring out your food to you. The plates looked pretty large so we just ordered the Falafel and Hummus (9,99 €) which ended up being enough for the both of us.

While we didn't care much for the pita, which was too dense, hard, and "bready" for us, we thought the falafel were quite good. Crisp outside, mildy creamy interior, nice nutty herbaceousness, this was actually better than what we'd had at L'As du Fallafel in Paris! The hummus was quite rustic, the nutty – savory tones came thru quite well.

This was actually better than we expected and enough to hold us until our Michelin Starred dinner.

Green Lab Comédie
12 Rue de Verdun
34000 Montpellier, France

We headed back to the square and decided to do some exploring. We headed up Rue de la Loge, one of the main shopping/downtown streets in Montpellier. We had arrived on a Saturday and I had thought that things might be a bit crazy….but we found that Montpellier had a relaxed, fun, community loving vibe to it. We got a kick out of this band with an interesting "cast" of characters playing on Place Jean Jaurès.

And as we headed further up the street, the Missus quickly noticed these tags on the ground.

Well, I didn't know that Montpellier is on the Camino de Santiago!

We enjoyed wandering up the streets of the Ecusson.

And we arrived at this.

Yep, Montpellier has it's version of the Arc de Triomphe, the Porte du Peyrou which was completed in 1693 and is actually modeled after Porte Saint-Denis, which I mentioned in this post. Right past the Porte is Place Royale de Peyrou.

Which has a striking Water Tower designed to look like a Greek Monument.