Closed – Page 88

Phil-Am Kitchenette

April 12, 2007 mmm-yoso Filipino Restaurants

*** Phil-Am Kitchenette has closed. It's now Homestyle Hawaiian

I'd seen a sign similar to this one countless times while waiting for the traffic light to change at the intersection of Mesa College Drive and Linda Vista Road.

And I've probably made a mental note to check this place out just as many times, only to file it in the nether regions of my grey matter……

During a recent lunch hour, I decided to grab a bowl of Pho, only to find the restaurant closed when I arrived! Somehow, two of my lonely three remaining brains cells managed to rub against each other, and produced a memory of said sign. I arrived to a little shop that looked like a small convenience store located in a strip mall on Mesa College Drive.

With some hesitation, I entered the small and dark shop, past the shelves of Boy Bawang Cornicks and other snacks, and up to the little steam table set-up. I had also snuck up on the poor lady behind the counter and scared the crap out of her in spite of the fact that I set off the entrance "chime" when I walked in. The steam table held 8 trays of various items, some of which looked pretty good, some of which looked a a bit off….in fact the heating lamps for the steam table was turned off, doing their part to conserve energy perhaps? But when the lady saw me she smiled and turned the lamps on.

I chose a 2 item and rice combination, which went for the standard price of $5.50.

Along with the huge amount of rice, I'd ordered Longanisa(Filipino sweet sausage), since I figured that if you can't make Longanisa, you really can't make anything…

The sausages done well…no burn marks, fully cooked through. You can't really go wrong with Longanisa. I also opted for the Pork Tausi.

Now if you think this looks strangely like Pork with Black Bean, you'd be right…."Tausi" is fermented black bean…also known as "Dau See" in Cantonese. Of course the similarities in name are not coincidental. The pork was tender and had a decent, not overly salty flavor. One other thing, it was not as fatty as most versions of Tausi I've eaten. Also, even though the portion sizes were not as large (obscene) as those at Tita's Kitchenette, it was more than enough food for me, in fact I shared some of the food with our Filipino Administrative Assistant, who thought it pretty good as well.

I also grabbed a handy dandy pseudo-menu….

What I really enjoyed was the daily menu portion…."great, I can plan my lunch around what's on the menu…" Until I read the bottom portion(always read the fine print) which listed "alternate" dishes that may be substituted. I think there were 15 or 16 different dishes. To me this meant that they'll make what ever they feel like…I mean they could substitute every item on the daily menu twice over if they decided, right? This really cracked me up!

The other thing on the menu that caught our eye was the coupon, a buy 2, get 1 lunch free deal. Baaaarrgain City! Which meant a few days later we were back at Fil-Am. The problem this time was that we arrived at about 1115 am, and not everything was ready. It was a Friday, but there were only 2 items that matched the scheduled "menu". We still made the best of it….$11 for 3 plates is a bargain.

This time I got the Pork Adobo. The cubes of pork was fairly tender, and the flavoring was on the milder – black pepper side. In keeping with my previous visit, it was also less fatty, and not as salty as many versions at Turo-Turo(Point-Point) places.

The Nilaga Baka had a mild flavor, but was passable.

The meat was tender, and the veggies surprisingly were not over cooked. Best of all we got another coupon!

So, being the ravenous bargain hunters we are, we returned on another day. As before, most of the items served did not match "the list". But we did manage to find items we liked….You know I can't turn down Lechon Kawali(boiled than deep fried pork belly).

The lechon was on the "tough" side, the "skin" very hard and chewy, and the meat on the dry side. What really tasted good was the Beef Mechado(Beef Stew). (And it's not even mentioned on the menu!)

The chunks of beef were very tender, and the "sauce" was full of tomato-y goodness, nice and rich, not overly fatty. This was great with rice. No more coupons for us after this trip…I think we used up our quota!

To sum things up, the food a Fil-Am Kitchenette is a mixed bag, you never know what's on the menu for any given day(except Longanisa), but some of the dishes are prepared well, and have lots of flavor. The portion size is decent, as is the prices. I don't know if I'm the only one who noticed that the food is not as rich as most turo-turo places. For example check out this 2 item combination plate from Tita's Kitchenette:

So much food(at least 3 meals), so rich, so fatty, so good…so much guilt!

The two ladies at Fil-Am are very nice, and I'm pretty sure you'll find two items to your liking, I just wouldn't follow the listed daily menu. Fil-Am fills a void in an area filled with Pho restaurants and Taco Shops, not a bad thing necessarily, but it's nice to have choices. Fil-Am also serves breakfast, according to the menu:

So if you're in the area, and are longing for some Longsilog and Garlic Fried Rice…..

Pinnacle Peak-Meat!

April 2, 2007 Cathy Steakhouse, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso is not on vacation. Kirk apparently did not eat today and Cathy did.

Hi again. I’m out in East County. Hungry. No frills. Craving for some steak. The Mister wants ribs. Sure, we have a grill. Sure, we can cook. Heck, Pinnacle Peak is right down the road. That big ole’ cow on the roof. The dark wood siding…the huge parking lot in front.

The simple menu, printed on the

take home Bone Bag.

Although I fully appreciate the Trail Boss (22.99), a 30 ounce Porterhouse, mainly because I cannot decide between the flavor of the New York Strip combined with the tenderness of the Filet which are both present on either side of the bone of the Porterhouse…30 ounces is a *lot* of meat, no matter what the size of the bone ,so I usually say ‘Why play games?’ and get the Cowboy($18.99), a 22 ounce T-Bone (as opposed to the sissy-ish Cowgirl($14.99), a 15 ounce T-Bone. But, there is something new on the menu- the Kansas City(16.99), a 16 ounce bone-in New York Steak…labeled as New York Steak, not T-Bone…must try.

The sides that come with everything are a salad, Buttons (baked beans) and Bows (sliced of white bread and butter). Baked potato , corn on the cob, sauteed mushrooms or onions are an additional $1.99 each. Nope, not today.

NOTHING IS FANCY HERE. The plates are plastic, as are the tablecloths…the utensils, except for the steak knives, are not very high quality. If you come in wearing a necktie, it *will* be ceremoniously cut off, to the ringing of a cowbell, and then stapled to the wall or ceiling, as part of the decor.

I had my steak cooked medium rare on the open grill- it was perfect. They put a nice dry rub/seasoning on it and its just right (did not need the A-1 sauce). It is mesquite wood that is used.

The Mister ordered the full Rack-O-Ribs ($17.99). It is brought out on two plates.

…and so we ate our food.

and that ‘bone in’ part of the description of my steak was true…but, not really anything to write home about.

The Mister had far more bones left over than I did!

Website here Pinnacle Peak Steakhouse 7927 Mission Gorge Road Santee 92071 (619) 448-8882

Mon-Thurs 5-9 p.m., Fri-Sat 5-10 p.m., Sun 4-9 p.m.

VGood, Sort of a Ch-Ch-Chain, Pretty good, too!

April 1, 2007 Cathy Japanese Restaurants, Stuff, What Cathy Eats!

The Santee location of VGood has closed.

mmm-yoso is not on vacation, but Cathy is blogging now, while Kirk rests for a few days.

Hi. It's been a while. People who know what my line of work is know what has been going on with that as well as some other crises in life. The rest of you may not have even noticed I hadn't blogged. It isn't like I haven't been eating, though.

So, you all know I am the Token White Girl who lives in East County. Santee, to be exact. We are not out of the loop out here, let me tell you. The Green Trolley Line does end here, though..or maybe, it *starts* here.

There it is, right next to one of three Starbucks we have out here (OK, two are stand alone stores and there is one inside the Vons…). Across from the Starbucks is VGood, Japanese Grill and Sushi.

Kind of innocuous, but an interesting menu, and a few Law Enforcement types seem to frequent this place. (The Sheriff Substation is less than a 1/2 mile away, as is Los Colinas, the Women's Detention facility made famous on a Episode of The Real World-San Diego) (sorry, digressing…).

Anyhow, last Sunday and this Sunday, The Mister and I were once again hungry, but not wanting to cook at home, nor drive very far for food. So this is where we decided to eat.

A kind of small menu, mostly with rolls, which most people were buying, but the idea of cream cheese with rice is not appealing to me, and the menu spells crab with a 'k' instead of a 'c', so I just wasn't in the mood to waste some calories on that food. There is no sushi bar, but sushi and rolls on the menu… you just walk up and order, pay, get your own beverage and utensils and wait for your number to be called.

The interior is clean, painted a happy Home Depot Orange, along with one yellow accent wall (learned that terminology on HGTV..whoo hoo) and has 5 low tables and 6 bar height tables, plus you can walk out into the courtyard where there are tables, and the water display and eat outdoors if you want to.

Editor's note: I have been informed that the color is officially "CalTrans orange" and *not* "Home Depot orange". Sorry for any confusion.

So, we ordered. We tried the two item VGood Value Combo Plate with teriyaki beef and katsu chicken ($6.99- usually $5.99, but $1 more for the beef) which comes with a choice of miso soup or salad of the day.

The salad this Sunday (and last Sunday for that matter) was made with iceberg, jicama, chopped cucumber, chopped red pepper, parsley, mango and a nice, spicy dressing. The heat of the dressing hit when we got to the bottom. It was quite refreshing. The katsu was nice and light-crispy, came with a sweet dipping sauce that tasted different than the teriyaki sauce on the very tender, medium rare cooked beef. A good portion of rice was served with the plate. There were two layers of both the beef and the chicken. Last week we got the fried fish and teriyaki chicken and the fish was exceptionally nicely fried. However, thinking the same thing would happen this week, I ordered the fried squid.($3.99)

You can see by looking at it that it was overcooked. However, the breading was still light and though slightly crispier than I think it should have been, had some nice spices in it. It was OK but all of the other fried items I have had here have been lighter fried.

I wanted to try some soup today and the Fried Dumpling Udon Noodle Soup ($4.99) sounded good. I had wanted to try the fried dumplings anyhow and they served them on the side with the soup-perfect!

The soup broth was oily, rich tasting in one way and too salty in another way. The noodles were good and chewy. There could have been some more vegetables, but the cabbage and carrots were good. I did not finish the broth, and usually I do. The dumplings had a nice, thin skin and were fried correctly. Enough filling, but not over-filled. Very good.

However, my most favorite stumbled-upon food here is the innocuously listed on the back page under "Side Orders":'Lettuce Wrap(4 pieces) $3.99 '

That is four large pieces of iceberg lettuce rolled up in plastic wrap, a good 1/3 pound (probably more) of cooked filling and a lot of nice, light crunchy rice noodles. It is served with a spicy Teriyaki sauce on the side.

The filling is a combination of chopped chicken, sausage, leeks and mushrooms, topped with some green onions.

Both times we ordered this, the meat lasted more than the lettuce did. Here is a service I made for myself with 1/4 piece of lettuce. The flavors are excellent.

I call this 'sort of a a chain' because there are two locations. It is locally owned and They don't even have a website.

VGood Japanese Grill and Sushi

9862D Mission Gorge Road Santee 92071 (Across from the Starbucks at the Trolley Stop) (619) 258-8288

16625 Dove Canyon Road Suite 108 San Diego 92127 (858)385-1628

Both Locations Open 7 days 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Ch-Ch-Chain: Sansai Japanese Grill

March 28, 2007 mmm-yoso Chains, Japanese Restaurants

*** This location of SanSai has closed

As much as I enjoy the San Diego Asian Film Festival, I lament the lack of what I consider decent eating choices nearby (except for Trophy's right, Ron!!! LOL!)…most of Mission Valley is pretty much littered with various chain, or chain like restaurants. Because of location, right next to the Hazard Center, it's either non-stop hot dogs, Jack in the Box, Quizno's, or SanSai Japanese Grill.

SanSai is a pseudo-Japanese "concept" Fast Casual chain, and this location is always crowded. Most menu items are in the $5 to $8 range and consists of various bowls, salads, and (gasp) sushi rolls.

So let's get to food shall we?

This is called the Spicy Chicken Bowl($5.99):

The term "spicy" is used very loosely here, it wasn't quite spicy, and the chicken was pretty much food court quality and dry. The green salad with an Asian dressing was fine. Coming from a place where you get two scoops of rice, a good quantity of meat, and macaroni salad for the same price, this seemed a bit on the chintzy side. But I guess it's much more "healthy", right? 407 Calories, 12.5 grams fat, 747mg sodium.

On another occasion I ordered the Tempura and Teriyaki Chicken Plate($7.99), which comes with your choice of two salads:

The teriyaki chicken confirmed my thoughts on the chicken at SanSai…it's not for me. Weak sauces and dry chicken(this is dark meat, can you imagine chicken breast – $1 more) is the MO. The tempura, which consisted of two shrimp, and various vegetable tempura, and to be honest it was pretty good, still crisp, and rather light. I've had worse in restaurants before. I chose the Tomato Salad, dressed with a very weak vinegar based dressing and the mixed greens. The plate came with rice.

There is one item from SanSai that I do enjoy once in a while. It's the Sumi Salad($4.99):

It's a far cry from the Sumi Salad that my Mom made, which was a Rice Vinegar based "slaw", and the secret ingredient was dry broken up ramen noodles(and sometimes the dry ramen broth mix as well)! This version is very mild, and short with regards to any vinegar flavor. Still it's not bad, if a bit on the bland side, the portion size is on the large side. What I think is a bit odd, is that the salad comes with an order of rice….. go figure. Rice and Sumi Salad?

When I order the Sumi salad, I do a little embellishment….

Yep, I add a nice amount of Baby Star Crispy Noodle Snack(it just ain't right without those dry noodles), and if I feel like it, a bit more rice vinegar…and it's almost close to Sumi Salad.

I guess if I had a choice between Baja ~~Rash~~ Fresh and SanSai, I'd probably choose SanSai….don't look at the fish they use for sushi, though.

Sansai Japanese Grill, they're all over California.

Mi Ngoc So 1

March 27, 2007 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

*** Update; Mi Ngoc So 1 is gone and has been replaced by Thai by Tara

While stopped at the traffic light at the intersection of Linda Vista Road and Ulric Street a few months back, I noticed that a new business had sprung up in the little strip mall on the corner. The place was called Mi Ngoc So 1, and replaced Linda Vista Food To Go as small Vietnamese take-out joint that made what I thought was so-so Banh Mi, but pretty good spring rolls. I made a mental note, and is the norm for me, just up and forgot about the place for a few months. Finally, with the onset of some pretty chilly weather, one of those poor little brain cells of mine managed to rub up against another…and I remembered Mi Ngoc So 1.

One of the first things you’ll notice when you enter this tiny restaurant is how small it is…which will lead you to wonder how the heck they managed to actually fit 6 tables into this small space.

The menu is typical of these Vietnamese-Chinese Noodle Shops, Egg and Rice Noodle soups, Fried Rice, and Fried Noodles. As is also typical of these type of shops, the prices are very reasonable. There are three middle aged women working at Mi Ngoc So, kind of makes me feel nurtured in a way….

On this day, I decided to try the Beef Sate Egg Noodle Soup($4.75):

I find Vietnamese Sate Noodle soup interesting, no two versions are the same, and some are vastly different. The usual ingredients that I notice in most of the "sates" are chilies and garlic, it is also usually a on the salty side. In fact, once when the Missus had a bad cold, with the terrible side effect of not being to taste much, I took Her to Tan Ky Mi Gia for the Beef Sate soup, which is a bit pungent, spicy, rich, and salty. This version was not quite as salty as I’m used to, and the spice was muted as well, though the garlic flavor came through. The egg noodles were the usual thin crunchy egg noodles, just how I like ’em. The few slices of beef were too thick, and had the metallic flavor of old beef, and was not very good. Still, not a bad bowl of noodle soup, and the hot tea was free, altogether after tax was just a shade over 5 bucks.

Today, was a heck of a windy, blustery, and cold San Diego day, and since I was in the area, I thought I’d drop by again and try out something else from the menu. This time I had the Won Ton and Dumpling Egg Noodle soup ($4.50):

Okay, just so you know, the Won Tons are the round dumplings…and the dumplings are the long "dumplings". As is pretty much the status quo for this type of won ton, the filling was a dense pork meatball, and the dumpling filling was an elongated dense meatball with a piece of shrimp attached. The Won Tons had a decent pork flavor, but the dumplings were kind of flavorless. All told 4 won tons, 4 dumplings, and other than 2 pieces of Char Siu and green onions there wasn’t much else, unlike the super loaded version at Minh Ky. The scalding hot broth was on the lighter side, with a decent but not overly salty flavor, kind of in between Minh Ky and Luong Hai Ky. The egg noodles had not been cooked long enough and were still super hard, I had to leave them in the broth for a few minutes before eating.

Still, with a pot of tea(free) lunch came out to under 5 bucks, and I was out of there in less than 30 minutes and on my way, my belly full of hot soup. On some days, that’s more than enough!

Mi Ngoc So 1
2405 Ulric Street
San Diego, CA 92111

Open – Tues-Sun 8am-8pm

Fred’s…Ummm Ed’s Bistro

March 25, 2007 mmm-yoso Filipino Restaurants, Pubs and Pub Grub, Sisig

*** Ed’s Bistro has closed.

I’d heard about Ed’s Bistro in National City a while back…well I thought it was Fred’s Bistro.

Tucked on a side street between 8th Street and Plaza Boulevard in a very unassuming space next to a barber shop and laundromat, I’d say that Ed’s is in a pretty strange location. I was also told, that Ed’s (Fred’s) was well….."a bit different". I kinda got a hint about the name when I saw the Application for Ownership Change posted alongside the front door. As for a "bit different", when we entered, "Ed’s" revealed itself.

And I couldn’t stop smiling! Call it a "lounge", "bar & grill", "pub", or in this case "bistro", Ed’s was an honest to goodness "bar"! The large karaoke set-up, really cheap furniture, 3 "lounge lizards" sitting at the small makeshift bar toward the rear of the dining area gave it away. You see I grew up with what I call the "Pau Hana Time Generation"…in this context, Pau Hana means "finished with work", and Pau Hana Time means basically Happy Hour! So "back home" there would be a "phone chain" of sorts, and without fail a few(or more) times a week, the phone would ring, and the following "conversation" would take place:

"Yeah?"
"So wea?"
"xxxxx"(name of the place)
"wat time?"
"’bout 5?"
"’kay den…."

So whether your pleasure was darts, karaoke, or just having "a few" and some good "grindz"(guess which I was), we had a pretty regular rotation. And it goes without saying that we all had our favorite dishes at the various places; be it the "Fat Fat Chicken" at Fat Fat Bar and Grill(it is a real place lovingly called "8 Fat" by us, RIP Sy – we all miss you), Steak and Mushrooms at Hibiscus Club, maybe something from Anyplace Cocktail Lounge, or some really good grinds from Side Street Inn(also nice post here.) You get the picture, some of the best food was to be found in these, dark, sometimes a bit seedy, neighborhood bars…though Side Street has risen above it all when it comes to "Pupu" culture, with mentions in Savuer and Gourmet magazine.

The preferred language at Ed’s is Tagalog, and the menu is a study in Filipino Bar Food:

There was one main reason we came to Ed’s, it was for the Goat Kaldereta(Goat Stew – $13.95), we both love Kaldereta….though we often have to deal with, "you know this is goat, right?" At first the Missus was somewhat concerned with the price, but when the food arrived we realized the portion size was on the large (as in family-style eating size):

Though a bit short on the nice and gamy goat, this was some reaaal good Kaldereta, a bit salty, the tomato sauce based "gravy" was nice and tangy. The best part were the potatoes, which seemed to have been roasted before entering the stew, and the olives which added a nice briny flavor to the dish…there’s not enough rice in the world for this dish.

Not knowing how large the portion sizes where we ordered some Pancit Bihon (Stir fried noodles – $8.95):

I’ve had better pancit, but this was a nice version with lot’s of black pepper. The photo belies the size of this dish, to this day we haven’t finished all the pancit. We got our money’s worth on this.

I couldn’t leave without ordering what I consider one of the ubiquitous bar dishes(along with garlic peanuts), the Sisig(not the Pampangan Sisig, but the regular – $8.95). Just a side note…I didn’t which photo to use for this. Was it this one?

Or perhaps this one?

The Sisig was good, though I enjoy mine a bit more sour and spicy, but the Lechon Kawale used for the Sisig was plentiful and very good, I’m used to Sisig made with leftovers and lot’s of onions so this was a ncie change. At this time, Ed’s started getting filled up, and Karaoke was going full blast, and every table had a plate of Sisig on it, so I guess I made a good choice. The Sisig tasted better the next day. I also wanted a beer to have with my Sisig, and in keeping with the atmosphere, there’s no frou frou microbrew beer served at Ed’s…don’t get me wrong, I love Stone Brewery, and my trip to Portland was an education in microbrews…but the selection at Ed’s is simple, "MGD, Bud ,Bug Light, Miller Light…and the premium beer, is Heineken!" Bottles, of course……

As we left Ed’s the place was going full blast, there was a large family, with kids in tow celebrating a retirement…..a Gal had come in to help keep everybody in beers and handle the Karaoke. And I felt a twinge of homesickness…….

Some notes on Ed’s: The lady working was very, very, nice, and was the young lady who came in later, and tried to get me to sing. At heart this is a Mom and Pop Bar and Grill, so don’t expect your food to arrive at your table in a blink of an eye, there’s just one guy cooking in the back, and it’s pub grub after all. The portions are pretty large, we made the mistake of ordering waay too much food(of course we ate a lot of rice as well), though leftovers are a good thing. Even though most of the people converse in Tagalog, everyone understands English…what a nice bunch of folks, and I’ll never forget the lounge lizard who made sure to sing 2 BeeGees songs before heading home….sigh. There are times that I miss home!

Ed’s Bistro
933 S Harbison Ave
National City, CA 91950

Open Tues-Thurs 5pm – Midnight
Fri-Sat 4pm – Midnight

We’ll be back…and I think I’ll do a post on our next visit…..

Did someone say Sisig????

Pho Thanh Restaurant

March 21, 2007 mmm-yoso Pho, Vietnamese Restaurants

*** Pho Tay Do has closed, this location is now Pho DaKao and Grill

*** This location of Pho Thanh is now Pho Tay Do.

Waaaaay back in November, "NancyP" recommended the just opened Pho Thanh (it used to be Phuong Trang II), so it's about time I did a post. Sorry for taking so long, Nancy! And it might have been a bit longer if not for a conversation I had with the nice lady at the Dry Cleaners…yeah, I guess I'll talk to anybody about food.

The Dry Cleaner Lady recommended a few dishes at Pho Thanh, as well as the Pho. Both recommendations mentioned the very clean, and somewhat "stylish"(I'm quoting here) interior.

First thing we noticed were that the prices were a bit higher than what I'm used to, but on both visits the service was very nice…….

The Missus was in the mood for Banh Mi Bo Kho(Beef Stew – $5.95):

In fact, the Missus had the Beef Stew on both of our visits to Pho Thanh…which illustrated a very important point when it comes to these type of restaurants, the inconsistency, not in a bad way…but in a "life is like a box of chocolates" kind of way. On the first visit, the beef stew was full of very tender lean beef, which made the Missus quite happy, in spite of the rather mild(in a Bo Kho way) broth. On the second visit, there was a very large quantity of fat, gristle, and what made me happy, tendon! But of course this was the Missus's dish, and it seemed that the stew was on the thin side and very mild in flavor, lacking the flavor of the herbs and seasonings that we have become used to with Bo Kho. This stew was also lighter in oil content, and the portion size was on the large. To high lite both the serving size and the service, we were asked if we wanted, and got extra Banh Mi(baguette) with our stew. At no charge!

And, in what was a bite of a change(for Bo Kho), we were given a plate of "garnish" with every bowl. Overall, not the best Bo Kho we've had flavor-wise, but it sure had a lot of meat…….

The DCL (Dry Cleaners Lady) said her friend enjoys the Bun Mang Vit here, so that's what I ordered on my first visit(Bamboo and Duck Noodle Soup – $6.50):

First off, I enjoyed the way the duck meat was served, sliced and separate from the soup, covering a large pile of shredded cabbage, peanuts, and cilantro, along with a little bowl garlic nuoc mam cham. The duck was moist, and had good flavor. That is not to say that there was no duck flavor in the soup:

The neck and bony parts of the duck could be found in the broth. Also, unlike many bowls of Bun Mang Vit, the bamboo had been rehydrated, and was very tender. Still, I thought the broth to be on the weak side, and the portion of bamboo to be on the skimpy side. Still, I think it's my second favorite bowl of Bun Mang Vit so far…I still enjoy the more "rustic" version at Chinese Kitchen more. If you don't enjoy the strong flavor of bamboo, you may like this version of Bun Mang Vit.

Of course, I had to do Nancy justice and try the Pho. So on our second visit, I had the Pho Dac Biet(House Special – $6), quaintly called the "Super Bowl":

The bowl that arrived was quite large, and the garnishes had the largest amount of bean sprouts that I could recall. So let's get down to business here…. I thought the rare steak was cut too thick making it tough, and there was a severe lack of meat, other than a few meat balls, and one or two pieces of flank,(and no tripe!!!) in comparison to the huge amount of noodles in the soup.

The broth was very neutral, with no anise, cinnamon, clove or other seasoning standing out. In spite of the large amount of green onions, cilantro, and onions in the broth it was still fairly mild. If you enjoy a huge bowl of neutral, low oil broth, and a ton of noodles, this is your bowl. In fact, if you like to add "stuff" to your Pho, this is the place. On both visits we noticed groups of young people having Pho, and we watched them pour the Hoisin, Sriracha, and other "stuff" into their Pho like it was going out of style! One guy must've dumped half a squeeze bottle of Hoisin into his bowl of Pho…

And in case you think that there wasn't supposed to be any tripe in this bowl of Pho:

I will say that we had some really nice, efficient, and friendly service. Everyone was so very nice. If you're looking to have a bowl of Pho, or Bun Mang Vit, or HieuTieu, in a nice clean restaurant with friendly service, this might be your place…. maybe……

Pho Thanh
5296 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92105

Thanks for the recommendation Nancy! Sorry for taking so long!

Quoc Te 2 International Restaurant

March 18, 2007 mmm-yoso Vietnamese Restaurants

*** Quoc Te 2 has closed

You know, I haven't had anything for my "One Trick Pony's" category in a while…but then again, I hadn't been back to Quoc Te in a while.

Over the years, I've been to Quoc Te more than a few times, and have tried more than a few items on the menu. In what became a disturbing trend, I've found that the food has gotten steadily worse over the years, to the point that the Missus has given up on eating here. I'm not sure that I'm the only one who notices this. But then again, check out the cavernous dining room at 12 noon on a recent Thursday.

There is basically only one item I order here(though I've been told the fried rice is pretty good):

I order the Banh Cuon Dac Biet($5.95), which is quite a lot of food for the price.

On a bed of steamed rice flour rolls(think Cheong Fun, but more delicate) and bean sprouts, resides shredded pork(always on the dry side), Gio Lua(lean pork sausage), two slices of a sour sausage, four slices of a mung bean and shrimp cake(also usually very dry), topped with fried shallots.

It is a good amount of food….after all the Dac Biet(special) contains a little bit of everything that the other Banh Cuon dishes have.

There are up to six(I've had a few as 4, and as many as 6 – don't ask me why) rice flour rolls, on this day there were 3 types(I've had some different versions on occasion), one type with cloud ear fungus and ground pork, another with shredded pork, and the last with shredded dried shrimp.

I just realized this has sort of read like an inventory of sorts…but it's kind of how I approach this dish whenever I order it…."hmmmm, let's see what we got today…."

I pour Nuoc Mam Cham(Fish sauce based dipping sauce) all of it and devour the whole thing. It doesn't strike me as anything amazing or out of this world, but is very filling and refreshing on a hot day. Come to think of it, I've never had Banh Cuon that has knocked my socks off, but maybe "Friends of mmm-yoso" Beach or Billy can recommend somewhere, or even my good Blogger Buddy Wandering Chopsticks.

Until then, I'll just drop by Quoc Te whenever I want some Banh Cuon. Quoc Te has two locations, here's Annie's post on the University Avenue location, from Her Blog Green Beans in Writing. To the right is a photo of the listed "specials" in Vietnamese, I'm including a photo of the Chinese version below.

Quoc Te 2 International Restaurant
4344 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Time Change Brunch – European Bistro

March 11, 2007 mmm-yoso Buffets, European Restaurants

*** European Bistro has since closed. Chef Axel currently does catering only.

As is our "tradition" we had our "time change" Sunday Brunch. Only thing, this year we’re going to Daylight savings a month early, which not only caused a wave of panic within the various technology sectors, but totally discombobulated our scheduling. And so we were left at noon today, without brunch reservations. In cases like this Jim’s San Diego Sunday Brunchmaster site is a godsend. The Missus was in mood for something a bit "different", so she finally came up with European Bistro in La Mesa. And we were off.

European Bistro is in kind of a strange setting, a "store-front" strip mall, and you can park literally 3 yards from the front the door of the restaurant! Since we’d arrived late and with no reservations, the little bistro was humming, and it seemed like everyone was a "regular". Lucky for us, we didn’t feel like champagne, and so were able to sit outside, on the little table on the sidewalk. We kind of enjoyed sitting there, since it was such a warm and beautiful day…the only thing a bit disconcerting was the proximity of pedestrians walking by on the sidewalk(luckily there weren’t very many)….they could have bent over and grabbed a spoonful of spaetzle if they so desired. But let me tell you, the service was very warm and friendly, Helen and Chef Axel kept dropping by to see how we were enjoying ourselves.

The buffet itself is rather small with a dozen cooked items, a salad, a selection of sausages, cold cuts, breads. and cheeses, a soup, and several desserts. I also understand that the kitchen will whip up an omelet on request. Still, we enjoyed the selection….

For a typical listing and more info on the brunch, I’ll refer you again to Jim’s posting on His website. There were several items we enjoyed….

We both enjoyed the prosciutto, cold sausages, German potato salad, "home fries", and the green beans! Man, those home fries were really good, with onions that have been perfectly fried and caramelized. I thought the Frikadellen(ground meat patties) were very moist, but kind of low on flavor. The Missus enjoyed the Hungarian Goulash, but I thought it bland, and not full of the spice, onions, and other flavors I’m used too….. Still the meat was very tender and moist.

The Missus absolutely adored the green salad, especially the Raspberry Vinaigrette, to the extent of eating three plates of it.

As you can tell, we enjoyed the appetizers and side dishes, much more than most of the cooked main courses…but that doesn’t mean you won’t. Other main courses offered today was a tilapia, penne carbonara, and of course schnitzel(on the dry side).

The Missus also had 3 desserts, a slice of cheesecake.

And two slices of the Chocolate Cake(looked like a bundt to me), with Cherries Jubilee on it…..

As busy as they were, Helen always had time to stop and chat, and answer any questions. There is also a small "deli" case with sausages and various meats for sale.

Now here’s the "kicker", so this a champagne brunch, and you can get mimosas and the like, along with the standard orange juice and coffee(which the Missus liked)……for $15.95! Which we think is an excellent price. The restaurant is small, but very clean, and has a neighborhood bistro feel. And did I mention Helen was wonderful!

Now at that price for Champagne Brunch, combined with excellent service, can you really go wrong?

European Bistro
7097 University Ave
La Mesa, CA 91941

And don’t forget to check out the Sunday Brunchmaster!

Thanh Son Tofu – San Diego

March 1, 2007 mmm-yoso Desserts, Markets & Grocers, Vietnamese Restaurants

**** Thanh Son Tofu moved, then closed

We'd been trying to get to Thanh Son Tofu on El Cajon Boulevard for a while. First off, they are located a bit off the street with one of those psycho-free-for-all parking lots where people seem to define their own parking stalls and rules. In addition Thanh Son seems to close rather early, so I've missed the boat a few times, before we finally made it at about 1pm on a recent weekend afternoon.

We entered the large almost empty shop, and no one was around, and not much food either. There were many, many signs though!

Wow, so Thanh Son does Banh Mi? But I really didn't understand much else.

In the meantime, the Missus had struck up a conversation with a nice young man, who told us that they were out of tofu. In fact, they usually run out of fresh tofu before noon. Bummer. Meanwhile the Missus's short attention span had gotten ahold of Her and She had moved on, and was checking this stuff out.

A large variety of Che, otherwise known as "sweet soup", those very refreshing dessert drinks of which there must be hundreds of variations. These were $2.50 a piece which I thought was on the high side until I noticed a sign over the cash register.

Basically buy 2 get one free! Baaargain city….. So, the Missus hit the jackpot and selected Her Che. I'm not a dessert person, but the one She enjoyed the most had taro and slices of ginger in coconut milk, which I thought was pretty good. Unfortunately, there's no photo since it never made it home. Here are photos of the other two cups of Che the Missus had.

Come to think of it, these were 12oz cups…and were pretty large.

We also got some of the fried tofu we saw(10 pieces for $1.25):

After the Missus talked the young man into giving Her some samples(She is very useful sometimes…) we got the version on the left, it had onion, bean thread, and black fungus in it. Crunchy exterior, nice flavor, with just a touch of salt. The version on the right was a lemongrass tofu which we didn't think had as much flavor, nor the great texture. We were still a bit disappointed that we missed out on the tofu….

At this point, getting some tofu from Thanh Son had become a mission. My mantra became, "I'm going to get me some tofu…or die trying!" I got up at 630am on a recent Sunday, and made my way to Thanh Son. If there is one benefit to arriving at 7am, it's that I had my choice of parking spaces without having to worry about being blocked in. I walked into the shop and noticed three people hard at work making spring rolls and other items. Luckily the same young man who served us the other day was there; the other two people only spoke Vietnamese. I ordered two block of tofu($1.25/ea), and also an order of the noodles that looked really good.

The large container of the noodles cost $3.50, and was okay, just a bit under flavored for us.

Oh yes, and finally the tofu! Now due to communication problems, I'm not sure if Thanh Son sells a variety of Tofu. I was given two large blocks of firm tofu.

The tofu was quite dense, but short on the strong "soy bean" flavor I was expecting. The tofu is well suited for deep frying or various stir fries. I'll probably be back to see if other tofu products are sold. Till then, if you're in the mood for some fresh tofu, you know where you can get it.

Thanh Son Tofu
4616 El Cajon Blvd Ste 15
San Diego, CA 92115