Closed – mmm-yoso

Lunches from Rising Sun Collective (Pre-Grand Opening)

December 16, 2024 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Japanese Restaurants

**** Rising Sun is now Common Table. You can find a post here.

During the middle of last month I headed up to North Park to grab a late breakfast from a place I hadn’t been to in a year or so. Sadly, the place was closed….I’m not sure what’s going on but will do an update once I get all the info.

Anyway, it was about 1030 am and I decided to just go ahead and take a stroll on 30th Street. As I was crossing University, I thought that it was perhaps time for me to finally revisit Shank & Bone, but another place caught my attention.

Rising Sun 01

In the location of what used to be Sipz was something named “Rising Sun Collective”? I decided to cross the street and take a look. Well, I took a gander of the menus and quickly figured out that this was a conglomeration of various businesses (thus the “Collective”, duh…) with drinks from Cafe Maiko, bread and pastries from Salt & Butter by Okayama Kobo, which used to do pop-ups in Sorrento Valley. Okayama Kobo is the chain which has outlets in Little Tokyo and Honolulu, Sipz, and “Rising Sun”.

Rising Sun 02

Needless to say, it caught my interest. So, I decided to return at 11 and check the place out. I returned and was kindly greeted by a gentleman, who was quite friendly. The space is quite large and of course, Japanese themed.

Rising Sun 03

There were separate menus for lunch and dinner. I decided to do the Tonkatsu Panini, which came with fries, which was nicely priced at $9. I went for another stroll and returned to pick up my sandwich which was cheerfully handed to me and I headed home.

Rising Sun 04 Rising Sun 06 I will say upfront that my favorite item were the fries, which had been dusted and were perfectly seasoned and still crisp after the 15 minutes drive home.

As for the Panini….this was a “Salt & Butter” roll that had been stuffed with some really tough and chewy tonkatsu and cheese and pressed. The breading of the tonkatsu hadn’t handled the trip home well. The roll was dry, doughy, though I liked the balance of flavors; lightly buttery, decent salt, and not overly sweet.

The katsu sauce was very good, super flavorful; almost too strong.

Rising Sun 05

Overall, not terrible, and at these prices I could easily return for a follow-up.

A couple of weeks later I decided to return.

Rising Sun 07

Things looked like they were really in grand opening mode. It was again lunch time and I decided to order the Salt and Pepper Chicken. ($14). I’m guessing they were in Sipz mode because I had to make sure to order “chicken”, not tofu which seems to be the default.

The gentleman working the front was very nice and told me they had starting serving a variety of breads from Salt & Butter and even brought on over a plate of samples.

Rising Sun 08

They had really started selling the breads from Salt & Butter.

Rising Sun 09b

I had a sample and it’s really not my kind of thing. Too doughy and sweet for my taste. But I’m sure there are folks who will like this.

Rising Sun 09

My Salt and Pepper Chicken really looked like a “classic” Sipz dish, except that it had chicken.

Rising Sun 10 Rising Sun 12 The rice was on the drier, harder end of the scale. I was asked if I wanted “spicy” sauce with my lunch and I said yes, but I think they forgot it. It’s ok, I’ll leave that to the “soft” opening.

Lot’s of broccoli, which wasn’t bad. It still had a bit of crunch to it. There was a good amount of spicy jalapeno as well. Not too much garlic tones and such; very basic and straight forward.

The chicken seemed to have been fried, sliced, and then incorporated into the the dish. It still had a nice crunch to it, salty-sweet-spice. Think a level above Panda Express.

Rising Sun 14 Rising Sun 13 The “pot stickers” were like a very bland, chewy, fried mandu. This was not terrible; very fast-casual in nature, though not my kind of thing.

So, if you’re into that style of food.

One interesting thing to note, I made sure to indicate that my visits were before the grand opening. What I found strange was that the place just had their grand opening last weekend. Which I found kind of disturbing….a place named Rising Sun had their grand opening on December 7th? Really, do they know what happened on December 7th, 1941?

Rising Sun 15

When I mentioned this to some folks I was told by a good friend, “well, the owners are not Japanese and I don’t think they know”. I was told by another person that I’m “just woke and overly sensitive”! Hmmm…… I told him that there’s a difference between being “respectful and woke”.

Rising Sun Collective
3914 30th St.
San Diego, CA 92104

Sunday Sandwiches – Grab & Go Subs (Mission Gorge)

June 16, 2024 mmm-yoso Sandwiches

**** This location of Grab & Go has closed

I recently had to take my vehicle in for scheduled service. I will usually get an early appointment time and wait at the dealership. I’ve been impressed at how quickly everything is completed these days. In at 8 out by 930! On the other hand, I had been planning to check out some places for lunch, but I won’t complain about a quick turnaround.

Thus, I needed to grab something for an early….very early lunch. As I drove North on Mission Gorge Road, I saw Grab & Go! Well, it had been ages since I’d been to this location of G&G. The Convoy Court location used to be a regular stop for me when we had offices close by; but heck I hadn’t been to that location in over 7 years as well!

I guess it was time for a revisit.

G and Go Rev 01

I walked on in; the place looks almost the same as those days “BC” (before Covid).

G and Go Rev 03b

Of course the prices are not.

G and Go Rev 02

My favorite at G&G the Hot Spicy Capocolla is now $13.49. I believe the last time I had that sandwich it was under seven bucks!

I decided to eat al fresco and found a nice quiet spot at Heritage Park.

G and Go Rev 04 G and Go Rev 05 Opening the sandwich up, the first thing I noticed was how much shredded lettuce there was. So much iceberg that it could have sunk the Titanic. Also, I remember Grab & Go as having some of the messiest, sloppiest sandwiches and this definitely lived up to that rep. One of the reasons I enjoy this sandwich is that it’s toasted, the bread was yeasty-crackley-crusty goodness. Also appreciated that the Provolone was melted. The jalapenos added some heat though not a huge amount. The oil and vinegar dressing is perfect for this sandwich; mayo would be overkill in my opinion.

G and Go Rev 06

While the huge amount of lettuce kinda threw the flavors off; it was just too much, this was quite a hefty sandwich. I guess I’ll need to return again soon.

Grab & Go Subs
6435 Mission Gorge Rd.
San Diego, CA 92120
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 8am – 3pm
Closed on Sundays

Mad For Cheesecake (National City)

August 25, 2023 mmm-yoso Desserts

**** This location of Mad for Cheesecake has closed

Recently, the Missus had an appointment in National City and wanted me to drive and wait for Her. Sigh…… Her appointment was in the South Bay Plaza Shopping Center, you know, where Seafood City is located. Her appointment was going to be for at least an hour so I thought I’d find myself a place to sit and have some…..

Well, perhaps another day.

I just wanted some tea and saw this shop next to Seafood City.

Mad 01

I walked on up to the counter and ordered some Oolong unsweetened and heck, since the Missus really enjoys Japanese Cheesecake, I decided to get one for Her. The folks working the counter were so friendly and told me they had just opened a little over a month ago.

Mad 02

Well, when we got home the Missus tucked right into the cheesecake, She cut a slice and wouldn’t you know….it actually jiggled! Just like what we’d had in Japan. I was allowed a taste and the cake was light, fluffy, and not overly sweet! The Missus thought it was better than where I was commanded to we currently get the Missus’s cheesecake, Uncle Tetsu.

So, of course I’ve now been back a couple of times to get the Cheesecake ($13) here.

Mad 03

The Missus loves the texture and flavors in this. Slightly “cheesy” with a clean, almost lightly citrus finish, without being overly sweet.

Mad 04

You’ll notice that the logo on the cheesecake says Cheese Garden. Well, according to this post in Eater, the owner who also owns the Bonchon franchise in San Diego, brought and runs the Toronto based Cheese Garden in Carmel Valley, which will soon be changing its name to Mad For Cheesecake as well.

There’s a whole list of desserts and drinks listed, including a Baked Cheese Tart, Double Fromage Cheesecakes, and so on. It’ll be interesting to see how the Missus’s taste evolves with this one.

The folks running the place are very friendly.

And Uncle Tetsu is now a distant #2 on the Missus’s “list”.

And so you could say that at this moment, the Missus is “mad for cheesecake”.

Mad For Cheesecake
1420 E Plaza Blvd Suite B-5
National City, CA 91950
Current Hours:
Sun – Thurs 11am – 9pm
Fri – Sat 11am – 10pm

Mad 05

Bun Bo Hue From Da Nang Corner

February 9, 2023 mmm-yoso Bun Bo Hue, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Da Nang Corner has closed

The Missus wanted me to do an Uncle Tetsu run. So, I decided to grab some lunch to go in the process. I recalled thinking the Bun Bo Hue from Da Nang Corner wasn’t too bad when I last had it….oh my, a year ago! So, I parked on a side street, walked over to Da Nang Corner and placed my takeout order, then went over to grab the Missus’s cheesecake.

Danang Corner 01

My order was ready when I returned and I headed home.

I immediately unpacked things when I got home.

Danang Corner 02 Danang Corner 03 I set about reheating the broth and moving the noodles and proteins to a proper bowl. One thing I noticed was that the broth really didn’t have that wonderful lemongrass-beefy fragrance of typical bun bo hue broth. Though I was prepared for the lack of banana blossom and such this time.

Danang Corner 04

Once things were ready, I had lunch.

Danang Corner 05 Danang Corner 07 Well, that decent bowl of Bun Bo Hue I got from here might have been a fluke as this broth had no lemongrass flavor…..in fact, other than being terribly salty, it really lacked spice and beefiness. I used the whole container of mam tom and it was still bland.

I wish there were more veggies as the portion size seemed quite small.

The meatballs were tender and the rustic cut beef was fine, the beef shank was just bone and the tendon was way too rubbery this time around.

The Noodles had been cooked too much and were mushy. I only pour boiling water quickly over noodles to revive so I don’t think it was that action making the noodles mushy.

Danang Corner 06

Bummer. Maybe I hit the lottery the last time as I thought the BBH was not bad. Or maybe that’s the norm and this was a “one-off”. I guess we’ll need to add possible consistency issues to the list as well.

Danang Corner 08

The state of Vietnamese food in the area has really nose dived the last couple of years.

Da Nang Corner
4428 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Takeout From Da Nang Corner

February 2, 2021 mmm-yoso Bun Bo Hue, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Da Nang Corner has closed

Back in August; I noticed a shop named Da Nang Corner was opening up on Convoy and was quite happy to see the possibility of more regional Vietnamese cuisine being represented in the Convoy area. The shop opened during November and since around the middle of that month, I’ve managed three visits. I was really excited to try what I consider DaNang’s signature dish to be; Mi Quang. To be honest; I’ve never had a decent version of Mi Quang in San Diego. The now closed Mi Quang Mien Trung was a disappointment and other versions just weren’t very satisfying.

Da Nang Corner has an online ordering system, which I used on all three visits. Or at least tried to use. The first two times, they actually called me to confirm my order and I still had to wait for it when I arrived for pick-up. On the third visit, I got no confirmation call and no one had a clue about it when I arrived….the very nice young lady walked over and pulled my ticket out of the POS machine, so I just had to wait. I know grand opening jitters; but remember, this was over the space of almost 80 days.

Still, nice young ladies, the dining area is very clean and well set-up. I’ll definitely eat in when everything settles down…..whenever that may be.

Of course I ordered the Mi Quang Ga ($11.50).

Things were nicely packed, the veggies and herbs were sparkling fresh, I loved that there was a good amount of shredded banana blossom as I really enjoy the texture it adds to various soups and it tends to absorb flavors quite well.

There was more soup than I’m used to for Mi Quang, which while on the salty side had a nice tongue coating finish to it. It wasn’t deeply complex, but pretty darn good….with nice savory tones and a hint of sweetness.

The rest of the dish was somewhat problematic. The noodles were unevenly prepared and many of the noodles were broken into small pieces. Some of the pieces were mushy, some were super hard, barely cooked, just not good eats.

The chicken was strangely bland and also on the dry side, like all the flavor had been boiled out of it even though it was dark meat, go figure. The boiled egg was overcooked with that purple ring around the yolk….a true sign it had been boiled too long.

Now, once we’re over the pandemic, I’m going to order this to dine in and am hoping all of these issues will be remedied.

I took a gander at the menu at Da Nang Corner to figure out what to try next……and two items got my attention; and no, it wasn’t the pho……perhaps someday, but not in my top ten of items to try at a place with Danang in the name. I decided to try the Com Ga Hoi An ($10.50)….Hoi An’s famous chicken and rice dish.

This was during the time before the last lockdown when outdoor dining was allowed….but of course I got my order to go. Ordered online, got a call back during my drive over to the restaurant and there was another ten minute wait after I arrived to get my food.

Now in typical Hoi An Chicken Rice the rice is cooked with turmeric; giving the rice, much like the mi quang a vibrant yellow color. It should also be cooked with chicken broth and fat……but in this case, there was barely any chicken flavor and the rice was really hard as well. The chicken was a bit chewy but that’s to be expected, the sauce was a bit too sweet, I prefer mine to have a bit more acidity, but it wasn’t bad, though there was a distinct shortage of chicken. Loved the herbs in the dish though. The nuoc mam cham was way too sweet as well.

This isn’t something I’ll order again.

During this visit; I asked the young lady working what I should order and was told that the Bun Bo Hue was really good. I asked her if it was as good as Mien Trung and her expression changed, she gave me a shrug; not exactly the seal of approval, but I decided to try the Bun Bo Hue ($12.75). This was after all outdoor dining had been shutdown, I placed an online order, though this time I didn’t receive a confirmation phone call. When I arrived, I walked to the counter and said I had placed an online order receiving a blank stare…..the young lady then walked to the printer and guess what? There was my order….oh well; it’s still “grand opening”, right?

Once my order was ready, I took my package to the car and returned home, not thinking this was going to be any good……though I would be proven wrong.

I did reheat the broth for this and once put together it looked, and smelled quite good.

First off, while I wished there were more veggies and herbs (especially banana blossom), what was provided was fine.

Second, the noodles were perfectly prepared, good texture, nice and slippery.

Third, the broth was good, perhaps a bit too much MSG, but heck, even Mien Trung goes a bit far at times. But the broth had a mild beefiness, decent spice, and while I think it could have used more lemongrass, that was still acceptable….there was a nice mild spice as well. The cilantro and onions added just a touch of pungency to help move the flavors forward.

In addition to the well prepared beef shank and tendon (better than MT I think), there was a nice and tender meatball like you’d find in Bun Rieu. The only item that was not prepared well was the pork hock which was too tough and rubbery and needed more cooking time. Other than that, I’d say this was way better than typical “pho shop Bun Bo Hue” you’ll find in the area and not a bad alternative to Mien Trung in my opinion.

I’ll definitely have this again….hopefully this wasn’t just a day I hit the lottery.

I’m hoping Da Nang Corner does well and keeps improving. Time will tell…..as I’m not just happy “to have something” available, my hope is that the next bowl of Mi Quang will be much better and that Bun Bo Hue wasn’t just a visit on a “good day”.

Da Nang Corner
4428 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 737-4919
Current Hours:
Tues – Sun 11am – 7pm
Closed on Mondays

Circling Back to Sab E Lee (Santee)

January 5, 2020 mmm-yoso Thai Restaurants

**** This location of Sab E Lee has closed

We’ve just torn the last page out of the 2019 calendar….it’s 2020. 2020……man, can you believe that if we’re still posting in May of this year; it will make 15 years? Sheesh….. I was recently wool gathering and looking at some older posts and I realize that there are tons of places that I haven’t revisited in years.

Some of them used to be favorites of ours…….Sab E Lee was one of them right from they opened in 2008. Over the years, they’ve opened a location in PQ, moved the original shop to a larger location down the street, and opened another, more Thai comfort food based restaurant in the old location. And of course, there’s the Sab E Lee location in Santee, which I used to call SEL2. The original owner of TOSEL sold the place to the cooks and opened up a location in Santee back in 2009. The food wasn’t truly Issan like TOSEL, but some of the dishes were quite good. I looked at my post from 2012 and realized I hadn’t been back there in over 7 years! Also, the Missus has been wanting Salted Fish Fried Rice; something that TOSEL and Thai Papaya took off their menu a few years back. Looking at the online menu for the place; I noticed that they still had it on the menu…..in Santee! I hoped.

So, this past weekend, I made the drive out to Santee to see what was going on at that location of SEL.

The place looks pretty much the same as I recalled…..though for some reason, it just seemed much darker inside.

Two really nice young ladies were working…so friendly. And yes, there it was….the salted fish fried rice on he menu. When I ordered it; the nice young lady made sure to let me know that they use fermented fish….not “fresh” fish, which made me laugh…..I’m guessing perhaps there have been some folks surprised when they actually caught a whiff of that fried rice?

Anyway; it was the first dish to arrive.

Nicely stir-fried; some wok hay going on….not as much salted fish as I recalled…the dish was not very pungent. Enjoyed the texture and this wasn’t overly salty. Most of went home for the Missus who said it was “kind of bland”……She’d expected something much more pungent. Still, not bad.

I also ordered the Duck Larb…..and was shocked when it arrived at the table hot.

The temperature really dulled the sharp flavors and the dish tasted better after spending some time in the fridge. At heat level 7, this was quite wimpy……..just not enough heat…..the duck was pretty gamey though. This was just mediocre, not made with any real finesse.

I also ordered the Khai Jeaw; a classic Thai street food dish. Basically eggs with ground pork and fish sauce.

The eggs were pretty well done; nice and fluffy, savory, and while not quite as good as what I’d had here in the past; this was my favorite dish. This did better with Nam Pla Prik – the savory fish sauce with chilies than the Sriracha that was served with the dish. Still, I missed the version they used to make here.

For your reference….from back in 2009, when SEL2 really tried stepping up their game.

I understand the economics of things….the prices here are very reasonable and I’m fairly certain that concessions have to be made for the area. This did seem like a totally different restaurant than the version of Sab E Lee I ate at in 2012. And I can’t help but wonder what Kobey; the former owner of SEL would think if he shared this meal with me.

Sab E Lee
9159 Mission Gorge Road
Santee, CA 92071

Sunday Sandwiches – Breakfasts from The WestBean Coffee Roasters (Morena)

July 14, 2019 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Caffeine Fix, Sandwiches

**** WestBean Coffee Roasters is now Talitha Coffee Roasters

I’m quite a creature of habit; I get into work at around the same time each day, I do things on specific days, like for instance, just about every Sunday, I head off to Costco to fill up my tank. The Missus finds it quite interesting that I’ve got all these habits and rituals; but it doesn’t affect me when we travel.

Anyway, a couple of weeks back, I passed the rather newish location of West Bean Coffee Roasters. The sign mentioned “breakfast” and I recalled CC’s post on the Banker Hill location from a couple of years ago. So, I decided to drop by for a cup of coffee and after reading the menu a breakfast sandwich.

The spot used to be Red Card Café which closed at the end of October back in 2017.

The seating area is spacious and the outdoor seating from the days of RCC is still in place.

I decided on the Breakfast Sandwich #2 on the menu and feeling a bit hungry added on the sausage patty. I did ask to see if they’d make the eggs easy over; but I guess it’s just too much to ask a Barista to make runny eggs.

This was serviceable sandwich; I enjoyed the brioche roll as it wasn’t too sweet and almost fluffy. The sausage patty was standard issue; for some reason the cheddar cheese seemed really mild. I really would have enjoyed a nice, runny egg on this.

Not terrible; somewhat corporate in appearance; but I’d rather spend my money here than at one of the chains in the area.

So, today was of course Sunday. And I headed off to fill up my tank.

On the way down South on Morena, headed to start all of my Sunday shopping, I felt in need of some caffeine and perhaps some breakfast. So, I stopped by West Bean again.

I went with the cold brew; which seemed a bit light and non-descript. I certainly prefer the cold brew from Birdrock.

This time I went with “Breakfast Sandwich #1”. Without adding any other protein to the sandwich.

I actually enjoyed this.

The Chipotle mayo added a nice bit of “zip”, the peppery and slightly bitter arugula did well with the mayo, the mild sweetness of the roll, and the acidity of the tomato. And yes; I’d prefer a runny egg…..but I didn’t dwell on that too much.

Pretty good sandwich. Very nice folks. And while this won’t become a “ritual”; I’ll probably stop by again since I drive past the place every week.

The WestBean Coffee Roasters
4140 Morena Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92117
Hours:
Daily 7am – 2pm
Breakfast served 7am – 1pm

Pho 87 Noodle House

July 6, 2017 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Pho 87 has closed

I mentioned this revolving door of a location back in March. It had been Van Hoa for over a decade and Cathy and I had done mulitple posts on the place. And then overnight, they were gone; first replaced by Pho & Banh Cuon Ha Long Restaurant, which was gone in a few months, to be replaced by "Pho Huong Viet"….I saw a sign go up, but don't think the place actually opened. And now, it's Pho 87.

The name sounded familiar. After doing a quick search, I found there's a Pho 87 in LA Chinatown and Las Vegas. So perhaps?

As for this location, they've moved some things around and the place looks even more odd than before. Big gaps between tables and front register with one table on each side….at least you can't complain about things being crowded together, right?

I'm not sure what it is, but I really didn't feel comfortable eating here….and I've eaten in some pretty strange places over the years!

The menu is very straight forward; spring rolls, egg rolls, rice, hieu tieu, bun….and pho of course. Just about all the combinations had rare steak, no combination featuring both tendon and tripe, though I'm sure I could have asked….but why be a pain in a place I'd never been to before?

So, I went with the combination; in these days, $6.50 for a small bowl of pho is cheap these days. Soon enough, my basil, sprouts, and lime arrived.

At first glance, this looked fairly sparse and the sprouts were starting to brown. Then I noticed something and turned the basil over.

This was definitely not going to be used.

My bowl arrived soon after.

The broth looked low in fat; which it was, and had quite a bit of onions. And in fact, the broth had a strong, rather pungent onion flavor…not overly sweet as many bowls seem to be these days; but somewhat on the bitter side. It was scalding hot though. As for the meats; well, the tendon was decent, a bit on the hard side but not bad. The rare steak was far from "rare" by the time the bowl hit the table and it looked like beef that had scum on it that congeals when cooked; not the most appetizing looking thing. I hesitated in trying it; but as is not the norm, it was pretty tender and not dried out. It did have a bit of a metallic taste to it though.

The noodles were in a giant clump in the bottom and terribly overcooked and mushy. The worst I've had in a while.

The young man serving me was very nice as was the young lady…..but I really didn't think I'd be back or even do a post on this place.

However, a few weeks later, I went to check out a new restaurant in the area, but it was closed. After pondering my options, I recalled seeing an interesting fried rice dish as I left Pho 87. I asked the young man what it was. He told me Bo Luc Lac Fried Rice. So, I decided to give it another go.

And got the Com Chien Bo Luc Lac; a bargain at $8.95.

That's a good portion of beef for the price. The beef was surprisingly tender, though very salty and lacking in any sweet or even sour tones….very one dimensional as a whole. The stir fried vegetables looked nice, but were too raw, and not stir-fried properly. The fried rice was somewhat old school; the rice nicely separated. I didn't expect much and got just that, with the peas and carrots from the frozen food isle. The fried rice was also quite salty and I ended up chugging a good amount of water after I got home.

So what to say about Pho 87? Well, it's very inexpensive. Do you get what you pay for? Perhaps. The folks here are on the quite side but nice enough. Me, well, I think I need to move on.

Pho 87 Noodle House
4016 54th St
San Diego, CA 92105
Hours:
Mon – Sat 8am – 8pm

Emily’s Taco Shop & Birrieria (Spring Valley)

July 5, 2017 mmm-yoso Mexican Restaurants, Taco Shops

**** Emily's is no longer at this location and does catering only

I've gotten some great recommendations over the years. In fact, I don't think we'd still be around and heading toward 3600 posts of not for all the recommendations I receive. This one, is from "KenB" who always sends me interesting emails a couple of times a year. Last week, he shot me an email after saying: "Excellent food. Birria de chivo was fantastic." Birria de Chivo? Man, there are places I enjoy for Birria de Res; but Birria de Chivo. So, even though I needed to go into the office this past weekend…..I kinda took….the long way…yeah…that's what I did….take the long way….

To this little shop on the corner of Grand, where Jamacha Road becomes Apple Street. Cathy's done a post on the place on that corner, La Sinaloense. This one is named Emily's Taco Shop & Birrieria.

A very humble looking shop, in what looks like an apartment conversion, which shares a tiny parking lot with a laundromat. This is the kind of place you'd miss if you blinked.

And yet, it seems there's a steady flow of regulars, couples, and families. This is a real mom-and-pop operation; the nice young gentleman is named Christian and I'm assuming the very friendly young lady is his wife. I was told by the young lady that Emily is her daughter, who was busy watching a movie on one of the tables.

This is one of those order at the counter and have a seat kind of places. I pretty much knew what I wanted….birria and consommé of course, so ordering was a breeze.

I got a taco de birria de res and de chivo (beef and goat $4.25 each). Which took a while but when it arrived, I knew it was worth the wait.

The wonderful, sturdy, corn-y tortillas, were up to the task, soaked and griddled (dorado), they held up and had so much flavor. The birria de res, was tender, with a decent amount of seasoning, but seemed a bit too mild to stand up to the thick, smokey, salsa….a nice slow back of the throat burn. I think Fernandez does better. But the birria de chivo was excellent….just a perfect balance of that distinctive "flavor of the pasture" and seasonings. The texture was tender. A squeeze of lime and bit of that salsa and I could eat this everyday.

As much as I enjoyed the tacos; it was the consommé de chivo ($2) that really got my attention. First off, it was served in a wonderful cup.

The cup had both form and function as it kept the broth molten hot for the entire meal. I took a couple of sips that burned a path down my esophagus. Deep flavors, nice gamey up front, comforting, very balanced…you know you were drinking broth that came from goat….but it wasn't screaming that fact to your taste buds. Lime did a great job of smoothing out the edges. This was delici-yoso…..

There's and interesting crowd here. An older guy came in and ordered in Spanish and took a seat. I was surprised to see that he ordered Carne Asada Fries! And he looked like he was enjoying them. KenB also recommended the carnitas.

So there you go. You might find it interesting that I'm doing a post on a newer place with one single visit. Well, I know I need to take the Missus here soon or She'll kill me. So, I can't visit again without Her. I'm sure this will be soon enough. Here's hoping that consommé is just as good.

Emily's Taco Shop & Birrieria
1015 Grand Ave
Spring Valley, CA 91977
Hours:
Tues – Sat 10am – 7pm
Sunday 10am – 3pm

Thanks for the recommendation KenB!

It’s been a while week-Sima’s Grill and Deli

June 30, 2017 Cathy American Restaurants, Greek Food, Salads, Sandwiches, What Cathy Eats!

Here you are, on a lovely Friday 'cool down' day, reading this food blog, mmm-yoso!!! Kirk and Ed(from Yuma) are preparing to enjoy the Holiday weekend and Cathy is writing.

The last time I posted about Sima's was in 2013. The Mister and I haven't driven on Miramar Road unless avoiding traffic. There has been a three week period in the last month when we had to be at daily appointments West of here and taking various routes to get lunch on the way home became a priority. When Kirk mentioned he was writing 'It's Been a While Week', I knew what my contribution would be.

This unassuming end building in a mall anchored by a McDonald's, across from Miramar Marine Corps Air Station has been here since 1984, providing breakfast and lunch six days a week. Run by a husband, wife and their daughter, it's another 'local' place that has withstood the test of time.

The interior has remained the same, the menu has also, although there have, of course, been price increases.
The gyros salad ($9.95) is served with warm, fluffy pita bread with house made tzatziki. The wonderful house made, herby salad dressing is so fresh and perfect with the crispy fresh Romaine, cucumber, tomato, onion and olives. The grilled gyros is just crisped on the edges and there is plenty of it on this salad.

The hot pastrami sandwich ($8.75) is toasted and served with plenty of grilled, smoky, peppery, flavorful (it is Boars Head brand) meat topped with Swiss. The fries are quite good. The char-grilled cheeseburger is still my favorite (window special #1- $9.95, 1/2 lb, includes fries and a drink) burger. It is made from fresh (not frozen) Angus Pride beef and…well..that char grilling is what makes it for me. I was alone one day and decided to stop in again, opting for a cold/deli sandwich (roast beef) ($7.95) on an onion roll (light toasted). It's served simply, with lettuce, tomato, a smear of mustard and of mayonnaise…and plenty of the Boars Head roast beef as well as a very good dill pickle. Just right on a hot day.

Have a great Independence Day weekend!

Sima's Grill & Deli 7160 Miramar Road San Diego 92121 (858) 578-2582 M-F 7:30-4:30, Sat 10-4 Closed Sunday