Closed – Page 31

Tokyo Deli

June 28, 2016 mmm-yoso Japanese Restaurants, Poke

**** Tokyo Deli has closed

I gotta say; as years have passed, the longer I live in San Diego, my reception of what's going on over "the coconut wireless" gets more and more faint. I think most folks use the four lettered word site to get their info these days. But here's one I got a day after posting on San Diego Poke Company. Anyway, he who wants to remain silent told me the poke at this tiny little, mostly take-out shop in the East Village was worth a try for the poke. I was warned off the nigiri and he knew I don't do the rolls thing. Which is how I ended up at Tokyo Deli.

Loved the shop which was sparkling white; the crew all Japanese, there are a few brands of soy sauce and other Japanese items for sale in a small retail area.

The drill is basic order at the counter and get your food. The folks are professional.

The poke bowls can be made on rice, as a salad, or half and half. They start at $9.80 with two toppings gratis and an upcharge extra items or even more for avocado and/or cream cheese…..cream cheese….on a poke bowl. So, no Flamin' Cheetos toppings or any of that stuff here, after all, did you want all kinds of "stuff" or fish, eh?

There's a glass display of items from the menu…..no, it's not plastic food.

Wanting something basic to determine how good the fish was; I went with the rice bowl, with tuna (of course), the sesame soy sounded closest to shoyu poke, with onions and cucumber.

It was delivered to me in a little plastic bowl, with a couple of butter lettuce leaves and shredded purple cabbage. This is not a big eater portion size, but it was enough for me. First things first, the fish was good quality, nice meatiness, no tough or mushy pieces. This wasn't too salty, decent balance in salty-sesame oil, but there was a wasabi kick to the sauce; but it wasn't a gooey-watery mess either. The rice was excellent, cooked perfectly. The onions and cucumbers did the job; pungency with a nice clean palate cleansing. The really nice woman who brought me my bowl also dropped off a cup of water; a nice touch.

Which if course, meant I went back; this time for take-out.

This time I went for the half and half; half rice half salad with tuna, the ponzu sauce, avocado ($1 upcharge), onion, and cucumbers.

There was a nice generous portion of avocado; but this bowl seemed a bit lightweight with all the greens; which by the way, wasn't dressed, and that sauce for the poke really didn't extend to all that kale. Also, the fish just didn't seem as good in quality this time around; low in fat and oil, and quite a bit of "that pink" bled onto the rice. The ponzu was ok, it could have had a bit more zip and I thought the fish needed to be dressed a bit better.

Now the really nice guy who recommended Tokyo Deli also asked me to try the Sushi Burrito……something I usually wouldn't go for. He also instructed me to get a whole one ($10.80) since half really would only do for a small snack. So, I went with the tuna sushi burrito (yeeesh) and since I was going to defy that little voice inside of me going "wtf", I chose the spicy aioli as the sauce. Man, this fish was dark, the texture was still good, but it was just getting to the edge of shelf life for me as I could make out a mild "smell". Still, it wasn't bad.

As before, the rice was prepared well. This was basically an uncut makizushi with poke as a filling, which wasn't too strange to me. It was kind of light on the fish; they piled everything in the middle before rolling, so the ends were tapered, with hardly any fish. The spicy aioli; was more aioli than spicy. At least to me. At least you'll get some greens and a nice portion of avocado. I did get full; but mostly on rice.

So, what do I think? This place is decent and would stretch to good if they can get consistently good fish. The place is clean and spotless and service reserved, thoughtful (remember the cup of water?), professional, with a certain dignified, understated approach that seems so Japanese. I like that. The portions aren't very large, but as a whole ok for me. They also serve Edomae nigiri sushi; which looks a bit better than what you'd get at a Japanese market. Sorry, I don't eat it there other than kappa maki and natto maki, so you'll have to try it yourself. There are also various rice bowls and the inevitable California and Philadelphia rolls on the menu as well.

I'll eat here again.

Tokyo Deli
871 G St
San Diego, CA 92101
Open Daily
11am – 7pm

What’s My Craving? The Blairsteak from Monkey Paw

June 25, 2016 mmm-yoso Beer, Cheesesteaks, Pubs and Pub Grub, Sandwiches

**** Monkey Paw has closed

It was about time for my Cheesesteak fix and the Missus wanted some waffle cut fries, so it was back to Monkey Paw.

The Missus loves waffle cut fries; I'm not such a big fan….so here She can get the "Stoner Fries with waffle cut fries"….basically waffle cut fries topped with cheesesteak fillings; beef, in this case provolone, peppers, onions, and mushrooms.

There's a reason they call it Stoner Fries…sheesh. She can never finish this, so we always tell them to drop off a box when they bring the food. The Missus will use the leftovers to make a hash the next day with eggs and some kale from the yard.

Of course I got the Blairsteak…..and got it with waffle cut fries for the Missus.

For years the Missus has told me how gross cheesesteaks were….but this one has made Her change Her tune. I think it's the combination of the soft Amoroso that has a bit of a gritty finish, combined with the milky provolone, the earthy mushrooms and the sautéed onions. I think She wouldn't even need any beef in this….but of course, I'd miss it. She now shares half the sandwich with me. This ain't cheap at about $16 with the upcharge for the waffle cut fries….but it's a nice treat every so often.

And then of course; there's the beer. On one of our visits I got a chance to taste the Ashes from The Grave, a smoked brown that won a Gold Medal at the 2016 World Cup of Beer.

Nutty Chocolate flavors, mild sweetness, and a good smokiness that gets you at the end.

The Missus's favorite here is the Monkey Gose Bananas with Tart and Black Cherry.

We've come to enjoy Monkey Paw as a guilty pleasure. Love the divey feel, friendly staff, and the temperature of the beer is always good. The neighborhood might be kind of terminally "in transition", but it kind of helps with the vibe, which we prefer to Hamilton's which was just way too "hipster" and quite unfriendly the three times we've tried the place.

Monkey Paw
805 16th St
San Diego, CA 92101

San Diego Poke Company

June 20, 2016 mmm-yoso Poke, Seafood

**** San Diego Poke Company has closed

I know, it’s kind of rough doing a post on one of these fast-casual poke concept places right after doing one on the great, inexpensive seafood on rice in Hokkaido. But that’s the breaks. I’ve got really mixed feelings about the recent poke boom on the mainland. On one hand, it’s great that something I’ve eaten since “small kid time”, we’re talking almost half a century here, has gained general acceptance and popularity. On the other hand, much of it looks more style and hype over substance, jumping on the latest bandwagon, remember cronuts? Or maybe fro-yo? Or maybe (fill in the blanks). I’m not one who follows fads and I’ve always said, I’d never get poke from a place where I wouldn’t eat the fish without all the sauces or what not, but there I was in front of San Diego Poke Company. Mainly because one of their regular customers from their Farmer’s Market stall emailed me saying it was quite good.

I’d kind of made up my approach to trying these places on the way to this shop. Because I always like to experience the food at any eating establishment at its best, I’d never go on Sundays and Mondays (since I don’t know when their fish is picked up/delivered). Because, to me, poke is traditionally ahi/aku, Ala’e/sea salt, limu, inamona, and because of my background, shoyu, and onions, though I guess these days I make it all kinds of ways, I’m going to stick with fish from the tuna family at first.

The drill here is ordering perhaps a “specialty bowl”, or doing the fast-casual, have it your way thing, a base of starch plus seafood item, sauce, then any variety of toppings. Like Kirbie mentioned in her post, the world is your oyster, you can get anything from avocado to Flaming Hot Cheetos (whatever…) if you make it your own way.

Nice group of folks here, quite friendly. On my first visit, I went with the large OG SD ($11.95), which looked like a modification of shoyu poke. I thought the amount of fish used was much more generous than what I had at Poke Go back in August of last year. It also had a ton of rice.

The fish seemed to be better quality than what I had at Poke Go, though obviously not top grade. There were a couple of pieces that had quite a bit of “suji” (connective tissue) and a few pieces smelled a bit off, so I didn’t eat those. The sauce was a simple shoyu – teriyaki-ish based sauce which didn’t mess too much with the fish. Love onions in my poke, though this was a bit too much. The avocado added a nice creamy component to things. Way too much rice for me though, so I made note to just get a regular bowl the next time.

I like a good Poisson Cru and had two somewhat similar versions of it in Hanga Roa recently, so I thought trying the Koko Loko (regular – build your own bowl $9.95), a coconut, citrus, and sweet chili sauce base would be nice. Though when I asked the guy at the counter if this was similar to Poisson Cru or ‘Ota’ika, he looked at me weird and said, “no, this is koko loko….” Okay……shame on me for expecting he would actually know a bit more about something very similar. Food nerd malfunction.

The sauce was a bit too heavy in coconut for me, also a bit too sweet, and I thought it needed a bit more citrus. Cucumbers are a must for this type of poke/ceviche and I wish tomatoes were available. The fish was actually even better this time around, though I noticed that it looked like two different batches thrown together as there were some mushy pieces. For me, avocado always adds a bit of creaminess, even with the coconut based sauce, the masago adds a nice crunch as does the seaweed salad, though this “bled” all over the rice making it green. I stopped the guy after one scoop of rice in my bowl, that was enough for my carb needs.

In the end, while it wouldn’t make me forget places like Ono Seafood, Tanioka’s, or any number of places back home, this was better than other versions I’ve had in San Diego. Think of it as “Poke Chipotle”, which I guess is better than “Poke Micky D’s”. It’s worth a stop if you want something a bit more healthy and are in the area.

San Diego Poke Co
10387 Friars Rd
San Diego, CA 92120
Open Daily 11am – 9pm

Banh Mi Bakery & Cafe

June 13, 2016 mmm-yoso Banh Mi, Sandwiches, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Banh Mi Bakery & Cafe is now Phuong Nga Bakery and Cafe

Back in March I mentioned seeing a place named Banh Mi Bakery & Café that looked like it was ready to open. A couple of weeks back, I drove by and noticed that the place had opened.

I decided to drop by and grab a bite. The shop is fairly small, with a few tables off to one side and stacks of pastry receptacles lining the path to the counter.

Even though most of the containers were empty, that these were for grabbing take-out items like spring rolls, croissants, and various salad dishes. There was also a decent selection of VN coffee, boba, and smoothies as well. There was a stack of banh mi and baguettes in a basket to the side.

I gotta say, the folks working here were really friendly, though the turnaround for orders were a bit slow. The great thing I found out was that they bake their own bread here! Nice! Competition for Cali Baguette Express?

I decided to try the Dac Biet, the "special".

Priced a bit more expensive than other Banh Mi shops at $4.49, I was immediately aware that the sandwich was a bit more "hefty". Returning to the office, I noticed that there was a bit more meat in this. First things first, the bread here is more crusty than flakey and is on the chewy side. It also doesn't keep very long, getting almost rubbery after a short time….I'd find out that for myself when I bought a baguette during another visit. Paris Bakery currently makes my favorite bread for Banh Mi and even to have with cheese in San Diego.

And while I've always said that it's about proportion rather than fillings when it comes to Banh Mi, I really liked how this was put together; the amount of pate was perfect and the meats' especially the cha lua, which can be rather rubbery when sliced too thick was excellent. I thought the carrots and daikon weren't pickled enough to cut the richness of the meat and pate, though the jalapeno was nice and sneakily spicy. Typical stringy cilantro.

Pretty good sandwich overall, so a couple of days later I decided to return. Calvin was interested and decided to join me.

I love eggs in my Banh Mi and the menu said they make Banh Mi Op La ($3.49), typically fried eggs, but here they told me it was easy over. And when I opened the sandwich, you could tell by the mess it was!

Egg yolk oozed all over my paperwork, but that's ok. Initially, I thought they hadn't sliced the sandwich, but then I noticed it had been sliced 2/3 way through. I realize a lot of people are freaked out over runny egg yolk, but this was pretty good, if a bit messy. As a bonus, there was a nice thin slice of ham and a good smear of pate as well. As I ate this rather quickly, the bread held up pretty well.

Calvin ordered the Xiu Mai, the meatball, which, after many bad versions, I'm leery of, but he told it was better than average.

Having to work on a recent Sunday and wondering if three time's a charm , I decided to head over and get the Banh Mi Cha Lua ($3.99).

Nicely set-up sandwich, though the bread was a bit chewy and perhaps because it was Sunday seemed to be a bit on the stale side. Pickles were still a bit too mild for me, but like how thin they slice the cha lua and the amount of pate on the sandwich. The cilantro (I know folks tell me I'm kind of weird about that) had more leaves than stems this time around.

Overall, my three visits were satisfying. It's good to have another decent banh mi option in the area that makes their own bread. While I prefer the bread at Cali Express, I prefer the egg banh mi here. Also to note; if you order egg on a banh mi as an extra, it'll be fried well done, but you can tell them you want the egg easy over they'll do it for you. Be forewarned, it'll be quite messy. I think I'll check out the beef jerky papaya salad and perhaps some of the other dishes in the near future.

Banh Mi Bakery & Cafe
9353 Clairemont Mesa Blvd. Suite H1
San Diego, CA 92123

Sunday Sandwiches: Garlic Shack

June 5, 2016 mmm-yoso Asian Fusion/Pacific Rim/Hawaii Style Fusion, Sandwiches

**** Garlic Shack has closed

Back in February, I was just driving around and exploring one sunny weekend day when I noticed this place.

I'm pretty sure this place was fairly new……I recall it being pretty much a revolving door of eating places in the last couple of years. I am, of course, a garlic lover, so I just had to try the place out. I will say they really went with the "shack" theme here.

Nice and tight selection of craft beers and an even more interesting selection of craft sodas……looks lie Diet Coke is persona non grata here.

I was greeted by a bright smiling face when I entered; the folks here seemed very cheerful and helpful. The drill is order at the register; pay and have a seat. I really can't say the view was great, though there was a nice breeze blowing through the place and I counted two ambulances and one fire truck rushing through the neighborhood during my meal.

You know; this place IS named the Garlic Shack, so I had to try the Garlic Fires, right? It wasn't quite what I picture as garlic fries.

The fries were really nice and crisp, very hot….I really didn't care for the garlic seasoning which seemed like a bunch of granulated garlic dumped on the fries, which made the flavor somewhat bitter to my palate. That spicy ketchup was quite nice though….not super spicy, the tangy-sweet with a slight kick.

I ordered the "Spicy Porkaholic".

It was quite a hefty sandwich….which was appropriately wrapped in butcher paper. It should have had a "contents under pressure" label since it basically bursts at the seams. The bread didn't hold up for very long, the pork had a very strong paprika flavor and really didn't have a smoked flavor, at least to me. The bean sprouts were an interesting choice, which added some texture, along with the lettuce. The menu said grilled onion, but I didn't detect any of that.

There was no way that I could finish all of this….though it did seem more about portion over quality. I did enjoy the South Bay Seltzer; which wasn't overly carbonated and quite refreshing after all of this rich and hefty food.

And so things stood pat….but of course I really wouldn't have felt comfortable doing a post without another visit. Which I did a few months later.

Different folks, but the same very friendly and helpful service.

This time around I decided to stick with just a sandwich and went with the Korean Beefaholic. Which of course was quite hefty.

This was, as before, quite a messy sandwich as the bread didn't hold up for long. The generous portion of meat was kind of mushy in texture and a bit too sweet for me…..the milky flavor of the cheese just seemed to clash with the other flavors as well. The romaine lettuce saves the sandwich, but I think this needs a bit of pungency (onions) and acid (tomatoes) as this was pretty mundane in terms of flavor….but that's just me.

Perhaps if you weren't raised on teri beef sandwiches or W&M Burgers, this might seem really good. For me; not so much. Still, I enjoyed the variety of sodas, the folks who worked here are so very nice. You might want to give it a try yourself to see if it's a good fit.

Garlic Shack
549 25th St
San Diego, CA 92102

Manila Sunset Grille (Mira Mesa)

May 25, 2016 Cathy Filipino Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks you for stopping by to see what and where mmm-yoso!!! is writing about today. Kirk is still having difficulty going online, Ed (from Yuma) is busy writing another post and Cathy has this post about some meals.

Everyone should have a handful (five or less) of true, close friends. One of mine is cc, who writes a most interesting blog about food with bits as well as posts of information (I'm always learning something from her) and is very involved in the Filipino Community in San Diego. She and I went on an epic one day road trip culminating in a book signing of "The Adobo Road", by Marvin Gapultos. The Adobo Road is one of my more used cookbooks.

I'm always wondering if I am cooking Filipino food correctly and will stop at one of many Filipino markets, food stands and restaurants when able. The closest to our home is in Mira Mesa.

The South East corner of the 15 at the Mira Mesa Boulevard; that mall was rebuilt/modernized in 2012. Manila Sunset is in the first part of the mall as you turn in off of Mira Mesa Boulevard (Trader Joe's anchors the second part).

Walk up, order and pay. You'll receive a table marker with simply the name of a colonial town (Vigan) or location ( Intramuros is the original Manila -a walled city- and you get there via a Rotonda - a roundabout): Something you can research on your phone while waiting for your order to be brought to you.

The interior is both beautiful with art and quirky, with shoes hanging off of an overhead electric wire just above a small 'hut' table area.

Many people think of lumpia as only being a fried item. There is such a thing as "Fresh Lumpia"– it's not fried, but a light crepe, wrapping sautéed mixed vegetables, topped with chopped hard boiled eggs and peanuts and covered in a slightly sweet (not crazy sweet) sauce ($3.25). I have had other versions, but like the Manila Sunset version best.

Here is what the 'Shanghai' Lumpia ($2.65 for six pieces) looks like. Each piece, approximately the size of your little finger, is freshly fried, filled with pork and vegetables finely minced. These are a good option if you want some protein (the larger fried lumpia are like the fresh-all vegetable filled). A longaniza and fried egg plate ($6.95). The longaniza here is unique (as are all Filipino longanizas, which vary the spices by region) and nicely garlic-y. Three large pieces, two scoops of rice and a bowl of vegetable soup accompanied the hard fried egg.

The pork inihaw plate ($6.45) also came with rice and soup. Charbroiled pork slices which were marinated in vinegar and garlic are the primary component- good tasting and tender. There is a grill in the back with a glass window where you can watch the char grilling happen; photos came out cloudy.

You can buy individual skewers of BBQ meat (beef, pork or chicken) for $2.05 each, or a plate which includes three skewers, rice and soup for $6.45. I do like the vegetable soup here. Every part of it, from broth to the leafy vegetables is just so flavorful.

A simple, dish, Pancit Malabon ( a rice noodle dish from originating in the City of Malabon) is known for its crab fat/fish sauce sauce ($4.15). This isn't a large dish, doesn't come with soup and those three shrimp you see are only half shrimp, but it is filled with flavor and just enough food. I wrote about Bibingka, a traditional filipino dessert, in a 2013 post (and probably in a few other posts) because I try it whenever I can find this traditional Christmas dessert. The version of Bibingka ($3.25) here is 'Royal' Bibingka- topped with cheese (which accounts for the dark colored top). A bit of savory in addition to the sweetness of the traditional rice flour, eggs, sugar and coconut milk baked in a banana leaf. This was served warm with raw coconut shavings on the side. So good.

CC says almost everything here is a comfort food for her and it is for me, too.

Manila Sunset Grille 9837 Mira Mesa Blvd San Diego 92131 (858) 578-6200 open 10 am-8 pm daily Website

Other bloggers have been to Manila Sunset Grille too! Faye had a recent post and Kirbie visited in 2013.

Revisits: Myung In Dumplings (Though no Dumplings) and Gala Chicken in Zion Market

May 16, 2016 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Korean Restaurants

In the Shan Xi Magic Kitchen post, I mentioned that Myung In Dumplings had moved to the Zion Market Food Court. The reason I knew this is because I went in looking for a quick lunch, and there it was, almost sharing space with Spotted Cow.

I was quite surprised since I had just been there a few weeks before. I thought why not have some Mandu Guk, since in my opinion, that was the best item I'd had at Myung In. Strangely, it wasn't on the menu. Neither was any kind of mandu or dumplings! What the heck? ?I even asked and was told they are not currently making those dishes, but perhaps in the future?

Anyway, it's either a stir-fry, fried rice, or seafood soup…….

I went with the japchae, which was fairly reasonable at $7.99 and strangely, at least for me, came with rice.

In terms of being straight-up food court food, it registered as decent. The soup was insipid and the baechu kimchi and takuan were obviously bought form the market. The rice was on the dry side. The japchae itself was okay, the chicken was dry and chewy, though the dish as a whole had a decent soy-sesame oil flavor. I really didn't appreciate all the inedible dried chilies on the dish, though.

You know; I'm not sure it's still the same owners. Man, from being the "chain made famous by being on Anthony Bourdain's show" to the Zion Foodcourt, without serving your namesake dishes in one year!

**** Myung In Dumplings is no more

Myung In Dumplings (in the Zion Market Food Court)
7655 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111

A couple of weeks after returning from Seoul, I was wondering how Gala Chicken was doing. I decided to drop by and grab some chicken. I got the extra crispy, which is still priced at $7.99.

I was glad to see that unlike my previous two visits, that chicken hadn't been cut into during the cooking process. It did taste a bit off, sort of in a rancid oil kind of way, though the chicken was very moist. This time around, the coating was more like my first visit, really crumbly, than crisp like my second visit.

I can see the potential here and the guy working here is very nice, but the place just can't seem to get all the planets lined up. Though I don't get the grumbling from some folks I know about having to wait 15-20 minutes for the chicken. Hey, at least they are making it fresh and to order……

**** Zion Market has moved and Gala did not make the move with the market

Gala Chicken
7655 Clairemont Mesa Blvd (Inside of Zion Market)
San Diego, CA 92111

Tacos Perla

April 20, 2016 mmm-yoso Taco Shops

**** This location of Tacos Perla has closed

Our third stop in the Hipster Taco tour. Over the last few months, I made a couple of stops at Tacos Perla. I'm kind of late to the show here, so you may want to just check out Kirbie's or CC's posts instead. Located near the hipster ramen haven, Underbelly, Tacos Perla occupies a nice spot on the corner of 30th and Upas.

Being an old fart, I love the black and white movies projected on the rear of the small dining room.

On one of my visits they were showing Fun in Acapulco….my late Mom was a big Elvis fan, though not as big as my best friends mother who went To Elvis's Aloha from Hawaii concert in 1973. I still kid that tough talking cigarette smoking "Tita" about going all goo-goo and gaga and crying because she loved Elvis so much. Anyway, I grew up listening to Elvis, and "No Room to Rhumba in a Sports Car" was a big favorite along with Wooden Heart. Which I got to sing when I was in a oldies band waaaay back when…..waaaay back when. But that's another story.

One of the draws to Tacos Perla is the short, but quite interesting collection of salsas. It's nice that they have a pairing list as well.

On my first visit I went with three tacos that interested me. At that time it was a pretty pricy proposition, $4.95 for "non-traditional" tacos and $3.95 for "traditional" style tacos. Not a huge list of items to choose from, but that's not important if everything is well prepared and flavors to match.

As you can tell, I also added a side of Chapulines (crickets) for 75 cents. It had been a while since I'd had chapulines, which really have little flavor (when prepped well), but adds a nice crunch to things.

I really enjoy a good Al Pastor/Adobada, so I started with that.

I found the adobada to be a bit gummy and tough. So I decided to add the crickets to this. Not my favorite version of adobada as I found the flavors lacking, especially in sweet and savory tones.

The tortillas struck me as well. Liked the rather rustic homemade feel, but it was a bit too crumbly and there was a tad of sweetness that I could detect as well.

The Ocho ($4.95) was no-brainer for me since I love most edible Cephalopods.

Loved the texture of the octopus, was less enamored with the rather weak flavorings, which did just enough to mask any brininess provided by the octopus, but didn't bring much else to the table. I've had everything from sannakji to pulpo zarandeado, to wonderful versions in Greece and smoked tako back home in Hawaii. This was a bit of a disappointment in the "what could have been" kind of way.

The best of the bunch was the Del Mar (Shrimp).

The achiote based seasoning didn't interfere with the pure flavor of the shrimp. The jack cheese added just the right amount of milkiness and salt to this for me. The recommended "pico de gallo" was a perfect match, good acid-tangy-pungent flavors that didn't mess about with this.

I did return two more times, I'll spare you the second visit, which was kind of basically the same to see if I held the same opinion, with the addition of a carne asada taco, which ended up having quite a bit more gristle that I anticipated. That Del Mar still came out on top.

I decided to drop by one more time after I heard that Tacos Perla had dropped their prices……great news since I thought almost fifteen bucks for three tacos was kind of pushing it for this type of ingredients put together in this manner, with this portion size.

So, I dropped by once again. This time things were a bit cheaper.

The Missus really enjoys the Portobello con Vegetales at City Tacos. So I thought I'd try the version here.

This left a bit to be desired in terms of flavor as it was very bland. Too many underseasoned components. The salsa, advertised as fire roasted pepper and papaya really lacked smokiness, heat, or even enough sweetness to really matter. Strange thing, the main thing I recall with this is how much I could mainly taste the tortilla…..

I tried the Carne Asada yet again. In terms of flavor it was much better; I swear, there's some soy sauce here?

It was still a bit to "gristlely" for my taste.

The surprise was the Taco de Pescado. Folks who've read this blog long enough know because of having to deal with quite a bit of mahimahi in a previous life, I'm a bit hesitant about ordering it as it attains a rather "sour" taste beyond 48 hours.

This was quite decent, perhaps edging on a bit too salty, but tempered by the mango salsa. I do prefer a more crisp batter for my fish tacos though.

So, in the end, I think the Missus is going to stick with City Tacos, though I'll keep tabs on Tacos Perla….I'm sure I'll visit again the future.

Tacos Perla
3000 Upas St
San Diego, CA 92104

Char House Saigon Grill & Pho

April 12, 2016 mmm-yoso Chicken Wings, Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Char House has closed

This place sure took its time opening. I first noticed the place back in September of last year. Since the build out was taking so long, I got into the routine of passing the place without taking notice. Unttil one afternoon, seemingly overnight, the Grand opening sign was up.

I visited soon after….finding the place….. well, quite bright, in a very Green China Grill kind of way.

I guess orange and green is replacing wood paneling as a design preference? I do like the old style Vietnamese black and white photos on the wall though.

The menu was quite interesting. True to the name, Char House was serving up grilled items, and there were items like Banh Khot of the menu as well.

I was curious about the Fish Sauce Chicken Wings ($6.95), so I started with that.

Man, those were some pretty hefty wings. Personally, I'm more about smaller wings with a nice skin to meat ratio, but these were quite moist, and the glaze wasn't too sweet or salty. This was obviously deep fried, then sautéed, a bit too long in my opinion, which caused two of the drumettes to burn, thus making it a bit bitter….another product of taking a bit too long was that the crispness of the wings suffered a bit as well. Not bad though….I should get around to trying the butter wings in the future.

I saw Pho Filet on the menu, but went with the Dac Biet, not cheap at $8.25 for a small….we're starting to head into ramen pricing here.

The bowl was quite fragrant and the flavor of the broth was very, very, familiar. There was some nice anise, with a sweet edge to it, so I had to ask…..yep, same owners as Pho Fifth Avenue. This was actually the best pho broth I've had in Kearny Mesa in ages! Perhaps a bit too defatted; but very clear, bright flavors, and not too much MSG.

As you can see; like Pho Fifth Avenue, things were kind of light in the Sprouts and Basil area……I will say, because of the flavor of the broth, I didn't need to add any lime.

The proteins were really good; even the rare steak, while a bit overdone by the time the bowl reached the tableswas still fairly tender. The tripe was clean tasting and crunchy, the tendon adequate….nice beefy flavors from the flank and brisket as well.

There was one rather humorous instance. My bowl arrived with a regular metal spoon! I thought this was kind of odd……the thing is, it's just not the right tool for the job. So I walked on up to the counter and asked for a soup spoon. Grand opening hiccups and all that, right?

One other thing….I went to pick-up some noodles, which were in the typical clump at the bottom of the bowl and the entire bunch of noodles, in the shape of the bottom of the bowl arose! The noodles were well prepared, but it seems to have been sitting around in that bowl for a while because it wasn't very hot.

Yes, a few hiccups, and while I've been called "too picky" by some other Food Bloggers, I really did enjoy my bowl of pho as a whole. In fact, I actually took to Twitter and sent out a tweet, "The best pho in Kearny Mesa may just be at the newly opened Char House on Balboa". It seems that Sage Olson, who is nice enough to comment on our blog every so often went on over to Char House and basically agreed! Nice.

A few days later, I took two of my crew, Calvin and JohnF to lunch and thought it would be nice to try Char House again.

On my previous visit, I saw the grill set-up, so we decided to order some skewers. The nice gentleman, who I believe kind of manages the place told us that some of the items weren't quite ready for prime time. He told us since they didn't quite have what we wanted; he'd give us three filet mignon, three octopus, and four shrimp for $8! How could we say no?

The filet was tender and reminded me of Bo Luc Lac, though it was very mild in flavor. It came with a nice salty-sweet-savory dipping sauce that was a good accompaniment.

For JohnF, it didn't get much better than the grilled shrimp. It was prepped simply, but was very tasty, moist, head-sucking goodness. Very pure shrimp flavor.

Both Calvin and I enjoyed the Octopus; which were baby octopus a lot more.

Nicely grilled, great flavor, especially if you like baby octopus, toothsome without being tough. Make no mistake about it; this ain't refined and grilled over bincho like Taisho, but it's simple and good, street-side fare.

We also decided to try the Banh Xeo ($8.25).

More hard and lacquer than light and crisp, this could have used a bit more color. Not enough pork and shrimp and the bean sprouts were still slightly cold as well. Not even close to the version at Pho Ban Mai that we enjoy, though I've heard things have changed there recently. We did like the Nouc Mam Cham as it wasn't too watered down and not overly sweet.

There is the option to create your own bowl of pho here ($7.25), where you can add three proteins; so I chose Brisket, Flank, and Tendon.

This being the sister restaurant to Pho Fifth Avenue, I decided to add a plate of the filet ($5) as well. The broth was even better this time around, still quite sweet, but a bit more beefy. More sprouts and basil and the noodles, while still in a clump wasn't sticking all together.

The one nitpicky thing I experienced on this visit was that the temperature wasn't hot enough as it took quite a while to lightly "cook" the filet…which caused some scum and cloudied up my broth. Still, the beef was very tender.

I noticed something quite interesting….most of the customers were older Vietnamese folks. I guess they were trying out the new place in the 'hood. Also, we recognized the guy working the grill as formerly working at Pho T Cali. And no "pho-pas" with the spoons this time either.

The Boys enjoyed Char House so much that the both took their wives here that same weekend!

Meanwhile, I returned for lunch during the week to try the Cơm 7 Món ($12.95). My favorite part of the whole meal was the broth, which was quite flavorful.

The rice was really good, nice and fragrant, the shrimp plump and tasty, the "cha" (Steamed egg "meatloaf") moist, but quite mild in flavor, lacking the "porkiness" I enjoy. There wasn't much grilled pork or grilled chicken which were fine but nothing special, the "bi" (shredded pork skin") was under represented and bland as well, not enough rice powder and a bit dry. Was not a big fan off the shrimp paste in egg roll wrapper; I prefer the versions that use bean curd skin.

I can't really give this my seal of approval….it's kind of on the fence.

On my last two visits, I'd noticed a lot of folks getting the Banh Khot. I wasn't sure if I should check out the Banh Khot ($7.25), but what the heck. Plus the folks here are so darned nice. I decided to hedge my bets with a bowl of the Pho Filet (small – $8.95).

This really wasn't ready for prime time. And while the shrimp were really delicious, the "mini pancake cups" weren't crisp enough and the centers still doughy and gummy. I prefer versions that are more like what you get at Brodard:

Also, I think they need a bit more perilla and mint as well. The nuoc mam cham is pretty good. Nice try, but no cigar….yet it was still better than the last version of the dish I had in San Diego, which was terrifyingly bad.

The Pho Filet however, was quite good.

The broth had a bit more fat this time around; was less sweet, more anise and beef flavor. And most of all, perfectly hot…..you want just enough of a boil as to not agitate the broth making it cloudy. It got the tender beef to the desired doneness in perfect time.

So after almost 1480 words, it comes down to a simple, "I'm glad to finally have some decent pho in Kearny Mesa".

It's been really nice to see a lot of older folks checking this place out. I'm sure they're going through some growing pains here, but hope they keep getting better. I have a feeling the broth might be a tad too sweet for some. Really nice people working here, friendly and accommodating. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Char House Saigon Grill & Pho
7765 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

What’s My Craving? Kwai Fei Ji from Golden City

April 10, 2016 mmm-yoso Chinese Restaurants

**** Golden City has closed

It had been a really long day and there was no way I’d be making dinner. So what to pick up on the way home? Village Kitchen and Thai Papaya come to mind, but since by the time I’d be getting home, the Missus would be off to work this one was for me….and I was craving Kwai Fei Chicken. It’s been over ten years since I mentioned getting this dish from Golden City and I still crave it a couple of times a year. And I usually get it from Golden City….even when they were located on Convoy way back when. Over the years, I’ve posted on the place 15-16 times, you can find all those posts on the Big List.

I ended up doing take-out and ordering more than I should have.

Over the years, the chicken’s gotten to be a bit drier and tougher. Still, topped with that ginger-scallion-sesame oil sauce, what I call my “cold ginger chicken sauce”, because that’s what we call the version of Kwai Fei Chicken we eat back home in Hawaii….this is comfort food to me. Especially when the weather gets warmer……savory – herbaceous flavors, with a slight pungency….I can just eat the sauce over rice!

I decided to get some Roast Duck.

Which, on this visit wasn’t very good. It wasn’t overly salty like many versions in San Diego and it was fairly tender…..it was truly lacking the beany paste and mild five spice flavors I enjoy. Overall, quite bland.

What was really delicious; I’d say even better than the Kwai Fei Chicken on this day was the Pork Intestines with Preserved Vegetable….for some reason, this isn’t on the dinner menu, but they were nice enough to make it for me.

The intestines were prepped quite well……I guess it would be even better if it were fried and crisp, but the earthy-musty flavors were nice without being too much. The salty-sour preserved vegetables, which also had just a touch of sweetness kept things in check as did the onions, which added a nice pungency to the dish. Man this was good.

With all the new places opening left and right, it’s easy to over-look the rather worn Golden City. I’m glad I didn’t on this evening.

Golden City Restaurant
5375 Kearny Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123