mmm-yoso!!!

Fat Tony's Pizza

At the end of March I received an email telling me about a new pizza shop opening in Clairemont. I glaced through it, but didn't really take note, for two reasons; first, I didn't know the sender, second the sender's "name" was "Tony", and the name of the shop was Fat Tony's. Just the way the email went, and the fact that I never got a response from the sender, sent instant S-H-I-L-L alarms. Those folks who have blogs will understand what I mean. In this case however, I was mistaken. After returning home from Guatemala, during my bi-weekly check of Chowhound, I read this thread, which instantly got my attention. Maybe "Tony" knew a thing or two.

In fact, I really had no reason not to check out Fat Tony's. The location on Diane Avenue, is right next to Ba Ren!

  

I love this sign.......you know who the gang at Fat Tony's is taking a shot at, don't you?

 

The interior is spotless, though pretty generic, with two plasma televisions going.

 

There's a refrigerator with the usual suspects, and four beers on tap.

 

From what I read on the CH post, it sounded like the thinner crust option was the way to go. So I went with the Tomato Garlic with Fresh Mozzarella ($18.00). I noticed that this pizza was cooked in a pan. Anthony, the really friendly namesake of the place, was nice and friendly, and apologized for the "pizza taking a bit longer because of the way we make it". Which really didn't seem that long!

Here's a view of the pizza that hit the table at home:

 

I enjoyed this pizza a bit more than the Missus, who thought it bland, and saying that the crust was indeed thin, but too much like a brittle cracker. The mozzarella added a nice mild semi-milky flavor to the pie, though I thought that more flavor could have been extracted from the tomato by roasting a bit longer. Of course, I'm not the pizza pro, and doing that may have been detrimental to the rest of the pie. Being a garlic head, I could have used a bit more garlic.

 

At this point, I realized I had it all wrong. I needed to start at the beginning, with the basics, just like I usually do with NY style pizza.

I returned recently, and decided to just get two cheese slices and a soda, which is priced right at 5 bucks. When my slices arrived, I took a good look at it. The first thing I noticed was that these weren't quite as greasy as those from Bronx. And though a friend of mine from "Jersey" tells me, "it ain't New Yauk style unless the oil is dripping down your arms", I thought this a good thing.

 

The pizza was well cheesed, which didn't overpower the pie.

I did find this crust to still be a bit too brittle. It snapped in half when I attempted "the fold". Personally, I enjoy a bit of pull (not sog, there's a difference) in my crust.

 

I found the sauce to be very mild. I enjoy a bit of tang, though the oregano flavor came through, it was the only thing that made this sauce distinctive. I tend toward the sauce at Luigi's.....mild spice, tanginess, and some sweetness.

 

Overall, I thought it to be a decent pie. It was nothing I'd really go out of my way for, but it is a great addition to the area.

I was recently having a conversation with a good FOY, when the subject of Fat Tony's came up. This FOY thought the pizza to be okay, but really didn't care for the crust, which made sense since he was a fan of Hoboken Pizza in Pacific Beach. However, when I asked the question, "name one pizza shop in the area that's better" he couldn't come up with a single one (though I used to like La Trattoria Firenze's sauce).  Which in the end makes a great point. The sign in the front of Fat Tony's say "Your Neighborhood Pizzeria", which it does very well!

Fat Tony's Pizza
4973 Diane Avenue
San Diego, CA 92117
858-268-7700

Open 11am - 930 pm Daily

For more pizza insanity, please read Howie's San Diego NY Style Pizza Showdown!

From the wouldn't you know it department. On my post on Big Fish Sea Grill, I mentioned how things around the intersection of Diane Avenue and Clairemont Mesa Boulevard are looking up. Wouldn't you know that the very next day, I read about this happening at that very intersection! Geeez...... Even more funny, when I mentioned this to Cathy, her response was, "at least they weren't using guns!" Huh? So I go home, and mention this to the Missus. Her response? "Hey, could be worse, they could have guns!" Okay......I guess I really don't get it.   
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Jeonbokjuk - Abalone Porridge

After being married for a while, you kind of develop a sixth sense when talking to your spouse. When you take a step back, and take time to think about it, sometimes it just doesn't make sense. I can understand deciphering that when the Missus said "Leo-hay-mans" She means Loehmann's, and of course there are times when I (thankfully) have no clue.  But often, things just kinda click. Like when the Missus told me, out of the blue, "I want the porridge........." I don't know how I knew She was referring to Jeonbokjuk, but I just knew. It must have been fate, live abalone was on sale at Zion Market for $4.99 each.

   

I once asked someone how to make this, and was given the basic outline of a recipe. I also checked online, and one of my cookbooks. The recipe you see below is a mish-mash of what I gleaned. Like many recipes, there are more than few variations on the recipe. I'll list some of them in case your thinking about making this. Some recipes include chopped carrots, in the basic recipe I was given, I was told to blend the soaked rice with 5 cups of water for 10 seconds to "break the rice". One variation of Jeonbokjuk is green in color and includes the abalone innards. What's with the fish sauce, etc? I was kinda wondering the same thing when I saw the inclusion of fish sauce in a few of the recipes online. But after tasting the porridge, I knew. Farm raised Abalone, like the type I purchased is pretty mild in flavor, and need just a bit of "help". The meat has good flavor, but it just didn't impart enough of it to the porridge. Instead of fish sauce, I added a teaspoon of Dashi-no-moto to the porridge at the end. I know this is akin to adding MSG to a dish, but it really added a nice umami to the dish. If I had White Tamari, I would have tried that instead. I also used a good quality Sesame Oil, and would suggest putting that ubiquitous bottle of Kagoya away for this. Remember to scrub the abalone well, to remove all the black pigment and slimy "stuff".

 

Jeonbokjuk

1 - 1 1/2 Cup Fresh Abalone(approx 2) washed, cleaned, and diced
2 Cups Short Grain Rice
7 Cups water
2-3 Tb Sesame Oil
1/2 Tsp Sea Salt
3 cloves garlic minced

Fish Sauce, White Tamari, or Hondashi (optional)

Nori cut into thin strips
Scallions, green part only sliced

- Place rice in a bowl and cover with 3-4 cups water, and soak for 30 minutes.
- Drain rice in a colander
- In a pot or wok, heat sesame oil over medium-low heat. Saute garlic and abalone for about a minute.
- Add drained rice and mix with abalone for a minute or two.
- Add water, and turn heat to high, stirring occasionally.
- Bring porridge to a boil, uncovered for about 5 minutes, or until the porridge starts to thicken.
- Turn heat to low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the desired thickness is reached. About 15 to 30 minutes.
- Taste the porridge, and add sea salt, and other flavorings if desired.
- Serve topped with Nori Strips and scallions.

It's a nice luxurious dish.....

Of course one doesn't live on Jeonbokjuk alone, do they?

Santiago Atitlan and some Ceviche

Early during our first morning on Lake Atitlan, the Missus was looking out from the balcony and decided on what She wanted to do.

 

Looking off to the left, She turned and said, "let's head to Santiago". At first we were going to head down the 400 steps to the Lomas de Tzununa pier, but in the end we decided to head out of the side gate and walk to the village of La Tzununa, and the pier there.

 

The downhill walk, and the cooler morning air made this 1 kilometer walk pleasant.

 

Walking down the hill we passed many of the young men and women who work at the hotel walking up the hill. We could just imagine having to make that walk everyday, rain or shine, in the summer heat! Everyone we passed gave us a pleasant "Buenos Dias". We passed two gentlemen, and asked directions to "La Tzununa muelle".......after giving us directions, one of the gentlemen asked us, "Ha-pon-nese?" I pointed to myself, and told him "si, Ha-pon-nese"....I pointed at the Missus and said, "Chee-na....uno, uno". Which for some reason cracked him up.....

Following their instructions we found our way to La Tzununa pier, and soaked up the morning sun while waiting for what the gentleman called the "barco blanco".....

 

And wouldn't you know it, the first boat of the day was a "white boat".

A short 10 minutes later we arrived at the San Pedro pier. To get to the boats headed to Santiago we had to walk to the pier to the Southeast of town, about a kilometer away. Not a far walk, but there's a "little" hill between the piers. The street is lined with all the gift shops, tourist restaurants, and hotels.

 

They don't tell you about the "little hill" in the guidebooks. Lucky for us, there was a strategically placed orange juice stand right at the top of the hill.

 

Ahhh, "Jugo de Naranja"......the pause that refreshes. Freshly squeezed, and the woman running the stand even filtered out the pulp (3 Quetzal - 45 cents):

 

Kinda sour, but it sure woke me up. From that point on, it was all down hill, literally.

 

While waiting for our boat to leave, another large boat arrived. It was packed with passengers....

 

 

And a ton of cargo.......

 

All of it was unloaded manually. This guy made at least five trips up and down the pier.

 

Arriving at Santiago Atitlan, we walked up the dock, past the craft stands and into Santiago. It turned out to be market day.

 

 

We were told by more than a few folks that Santiago Atitlan is considered the captial of the Tz'utujil MayanNation. In Santiago, folks still wear the traditional "Traje" (dress) with pride. The men still wear "calzoncillos" (short pants).

 

I'm guessing that these pants are very practical for folk who live around the water.

The women wear a colorful "Huipil" sometimes with wonderful embroidery, often featuring birds and flowers. You can read even more about the traditional dress here.

  

Out first stop was the Catholic Church.

 

If you walk up these stairs, and quietly take a seat inside, you'll notice a monument to the right rear of the church.

 

Father Stanley Rother was a priest who was assigned to the mission of Santiago Atitlan in 1968. The late 70's through the 80's were turbulent times for Central America, and Santiago was not spared. Because of his work, Father Rother's name appeared on the list of the "Death Squad". Upon hearing that his name appeared on this list, the Parish staff urged Rother to return to his home of Oklahoma City, which he did. Only to ask for permission to, and return to Santiago a few months later. On July 28th, 1981, he was killed in the rectory of the church by gunmen. Father Rother was flown back and buried in his home town in Oklahoma, however, at the request of his parishioners in Atitlan, his heart was brought back to Santiago Stitlan and buried under the floor of the church. This was not the end as things eventually reached a critical mass on the morning of December 2nd, 1990, you can follow the link, or read even more about it here.  

Escaping from the persistent kids outside the church, we made our way back to the main intersection. I noticed groups of women walking up the stairs of one of the corner buildings. Our curiosity piqued the Missus and I walked up the stairs to find a pretty active market area.

 

The items I found the most interesting were the freshwater crabs, with the legs wrapped in strips of leaves to keep them from walking away.

 

This, of course, left me hungry. The Missus and I walked around a bit trying to decide were to eat. I finally decided based on one of my main eating rules; "when in doubt, eat where the police eat." And in this case, it was a tiny, very clean looking Cevicheria. We sat at one of the three tiny tables, on plastic stools, Vietnam style. Two police, or maybe security officers with shotguns were having an early lunch at on of the other tables. One of the officers was of particular interest to me, he had two bandoliers of shotgun shells criss-crossing his torso, just like the movies!

 

This was a two man operation with one doing the prep, the other putting together the ceviche.

 

Three items were served, Ceviche Camarones(shrimp), Pulpo (Octopus), or Mixto (mixed). and though the shrimp and octopus were "Pacifico" (from the Pacific), we thought the ingredients looked very fresh. The Missus ordered a Grande Mixto, easy on the pulpo. 30 Quetzales ($3.75). While we were waiting, the Missus decided some tortillas would go well with the Ceviche, instead of the usual crackers. So She headed across the street........and to the laies making tortillas in front of (what else) one of the Pollo Frito (Fried Chicken) joints.

 

The tortillas being sold were "yellow" tortillas, corn-y goodness, and the best we had on the entire trip. It was also the most expensive at 3 for 1 Quetzal (12 cents).

 

We ended up eating a dozen with our ceviche.

And what about that Ceviche? Well, it delicious, but very different from any Ceviche I've ever had.

 

The marinade was very dark, but wonderful, with a nice savory flavor as a counter-point to the refreshing citrus flavor. The tomatoes were sweet, the white onion was mild and on the sweeter side, and I could taste a light touch of mint as well. When we asked about the sauce (I thought I tasted some soy as well), I thought the very nice young man said "salsa Iglesia" and I was somewhat puzzled,"Church Sauce" just didn't make much sense. But later on I purchased a small cookbook, "Favorite Recipes from Guatemala" in the airport, I found a recipe for Ceviche de Camaron. And it became quite clear, it wasn't Salsa Iglesia, it was "Salsa Ingles", Wocestershire Sauce, along with Soy Sauce that flavored the Ceviche!

I was satisfied after the Ceviche, but the Missus couldn't resist buying a tamal from the young lady wearing the coloful huipil pictured above. It was a funny thing as, the Missus kept asking "Tamale", and kept getting negative nods, "no...no tamale". She kept pointing at the corn husk wrapped tamals, going, "tamale?" And the response would be a "no-no chuchito, chuchito, no tamale!"

 

Chuchitos are small masa tamal, and unlike the tamals we are used to, Guatemalan tamals are dense and waxy, and tend toward the dry side. This Chuchito, at least by our tastes and preferences, was the best we had, moist, with a nice sweet-tangy-mildly spicy sauce.

 

The pork was very tough, but the rest was pretty good.

 

We had the Chuchito and some Agua Pura, while sitting on one of the raised sidewalks.....it was perfect for people.....

 

And pet watching.

 

It was starting to get crowded, which we took as a sign to get moving along. But I just wasn't ready to leave without getting a little "something small to eat".........

Big Fish Sea Grill

One day while driving past Diane Village Shopping Center, on the way back from one of my many trips to Ba Ren for take-out, I noticed a sign that said "Big Fish". Big Fish......"what kind of big fish"? was the first thing that went through my head. So the next day I set out to hook myself a "Big Fish".

 

If I recall, this was a sushi bar of some sort in a previous life.

 

The menu is what I'll call classic "SoCal Fish joint"; grilled fish dishes, fried seafood, sandwiches, fish n' chips, with ceviche and fish tacos thrown in.

I didn't realize what a huge patio area this place had.

 

On my first visit, I decided to try out the fish n' chips. According to the menu, you can get them two ways, beer battered or panko crusted. I ordered the beer battered option, but for some reason, it wasn't available, maybe due to the fact that the place hadn't even been open for a week? So I went with the Panko Crusted Fish n Chips. According to the menu, the fish used for the fish n' chips was Cod, not Haddock or Pollock.

As I had a seat, the rather large gentleman dropped off some chips and salsa:

 

And soon enough my plate of Panko Crusted Fish n' Chips ($8.75), arrived. For some reason "panko crusted", and "fish n' chips" really doesn't click in my head. Undoubtedly a personal issue.

 

The pieces of fish were a good 3 inches in circumference, and looked bigger in real life than in photos. The panko had soaked up a bit of oil, so I'm thinking that the cooking temperature was a bit off. The flesh had a nice opaque look, and if not super moist, was decent. With regards to being able to tell the difference between cod and haddock, for me, it's mostly an appearance issue. Cod, in my opinion is much more dense, whiter in color when cooked, as this was, and has a bit more of that "fish flavor". Haddock, in my mind is a bit more delicate and perhaps a bit sweeter, with smaller flakes. I'm sure someone out there is an expert in such matters and can perhaps educate me a bit further. The quality of the fish was prefectly acceptable.

 

Lacking a great batter, this was fairly bland. The saving grace was the malt vinegar.

 

The waffle cut fries looked really pale, but stood up for the entire meal. The coleslaw was tasteless.

 

Overall, not great, not bad.....

A few days later, I was pretty tired, and wanted some Ceviche to perk me up. But for some reason, La Playita was closed. I decided to give the ceviche($8.95) at Big Fish a whirl. 

 

This version came with those multi-colored mass produced tortilla chips instead of the usual crackers or tostadas. The bowl was pretty hefty in weight, but man this was bland. The shrimp seemed like they were blanched in water, and the pieces of fish though well "cooked" in texture and color, had very little flavor. As you can see, it was also pretty dry...... This was obviously no La Playita.

For some reason, a week later I found myself back at the counter of Big Fish wondering what I was doing here. I decided to march forward and ordered the fish tacos($8.75):

Geeez, it had everything but the kitchen sink on it. Again the panko crust was a bit greasy, but one thing for sure, with panko you can't hide a little pinkie sized sliver of fish in batter. The "creamy chipotle sauce" was more like a slightly, very slightly spicy, thousand island dressing, and the usual cabbage was replaced by salsa fresca. I used up the two limes and ended up going through two little cups of the salsa. Again the waffle cut fries seemed a bit pale, but held up rather well.

 

In the end, Big Fish provides on several levels; it is "gringo safe", un-offending food. Perhaps a bit bland to my palate, but may be perfectly fine for yours. The seafood seems to be of decent quality, and the portion sizes and prices are good. The service is unabashedly male, and ranged from friendly, to grunts and nods.

Big Fish Sea Grill
4706 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard (In the Diane Village Shopping Center)
San Diego, CA 92117

Open 10am to 9pm daily
858-490-2205

Postscript: It seems like the Clairemont Mesa, Diane Avenue area, has a few new additions:

 

A post is coming soon.......

Has it been four years already?

For some reason, I always think that May 27th is our Blogga-versary.......and luckily, every year I check, to find that "gasp!!!" it's actually May 26th. So yes, it's Spam Musubi time again:

 

Yes, another year, with great food, great fun, and wonderful FOYs (friends of yoso)! Hard to believe. In a world where things change so quickly, I think that for better or worse, we've kinda stayed the same. What started as a way for the Missus and I to keep track of, and share what we ate, our little food-diary of sorts has grown a bit, with FOYs like Cathy and Ed from Yuma providing much more food and color. And posts listing places ranging far and wide, not only San Diego, Yuma, and SoCal...but from Detroit and Madison, to Seattle and Portland, to Peru and Laos. But it's still a bunch of folks just eating and writing about it. It has been a great four years. I'm hoping that the next year will be a great one as well. I'd like to keep going until I run out of candle space on the musubi!!!

I'm a bit curious...... if you've been reading regularly; I'm wondering how long have you been an FOY?

A most humble thank you for reading, commenting.... and especially for taking the time out to check us out!

    

Ba Ren's Yie-Shi (Night Market) Special

I realize you all are probably pretty tired of my posts on Ba Ren, but I thought this one was interesting. For the Missus's "second" Birthday dinner, She, of course, chose Ba Ren. When we arrived, Wendy spoke to the Missus, and told Her of their latest special (it seems that they always have some new wrinkle), the "Yie-Shi" (night market special).

This latest special features ordering a "ma-la" base, which comes in three heat levels, the "spicy" is a bit thicker, spicier, and more vicious than Ba Ren's Huo Guo. Once you order this, you can than choose some noodles and snacks off the special menu for between $2.99 - $4.99. Tsingtao Beer is $1.50 a bottle, soda is 50 cents. You can only take advantage of this menu by ordering the hot pot.

 

The best, and most fun part is that after getting your hot pot($3/per person), you're given a basket, and access to the large refrigerator, and pick out skewers at your choosing. Each skewer is 25 cents a piece, you also grab your own soda and beer. At the end of the evening, they count your bottles, cans, and skewers, add your noodles, and tally your bill.

 

So if you ever wanted to raid a restaurant's fridge....here's your chance.

 

Our favorites were the beef, intestine, quail egg, mushroom, and potato. We ordered 3 noodle bowls, which are about two-third of the usual portion, and some Crossing the Bridge Won Tons. We ended up taking two of the noodle dishes home, since we ended up eating forty five skewers! When I asked "Roy" how we did, he said, "this is about average, and big eater will eat forty, fifty skewers. In Qingdao, I personally eat over fifty skewers, some noodles, and a few beers." Yikes! So you can eat your noodles while waiting for your skewers to cook in the hot pot.

Well, since I've done a zillion posts on Ba Ren already, I'll keep the rest of the narrative to the minimum.

The Hot Stuff....

   

The sesame oil-garlic dipping sauce....really"smooths out" the heat.

 

The remainder of our Cold Sichuan Noodles ($2.99). Sorry, but I was still deciding whether I should take photos.

 

Spicy Sour Bean Thread ($3.99):

 

My favorite, the Pork with Preserved Vegetable Noodle Soup ($3.99):

 

The Crossing the Bridge Won Tons, personally, I enjoy the Hot Sauce Won Tons more.

 

And of course, there's the "hot stuff"!

 

 

All topped off with Sesame Balls in Fermented Sweet Rice Soup:

 

Sheesh.......we were stuffed! The tab came out just over thirty bucks with beer.

Some details: The menu says served only between 8pm and midnight, but we had this at 6pm, so you may want to ask. To take advantage of the special noodle and snack prices, you're entire table will need to go the "Yie-Shi" route, though you can still order off the regular menu to supplement.

Ba Ren
4957 Diane Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Not to worry, it's not rerun season, I'll have a post on a "new" restaurant tomorrow!

Sunday Stuffs

Just a few Sunday Stuffs.......

Thanks Dennis!

I recently had the opportunity of grabbing some lunch with fellow food blogger Dennis, who does the wonderful food blog, A Radiused Corner. Dennis, being the generous soul that he is, brought me a gift:

  

It was a fabulous, and apparently well known Raayu (Rayu), chili oil,  from Ishigaki-jima, one of the Islands in Okinawa prefecture. And to even make it more special, this raayu was bought from the actual restaurant that produces it.Geeez, so what can I say, except a humble thanks!

And one more thing Dennis, you've made a life-long fan in the Missus, who loves this stuff on everything, from Banh Mi, to Her bowl of Shio Ramen from Santouka. 

  

She loves the sweet-nutty-slightly spicy flavor of this chili oil. As we would say "back home", She believes this would make Her "rubbah zori" taste good!

I have had to request permission to get a few precious, delicious drops of this ambrosia for my personal use.

  

It's going to be a sad day in the mmm-yoso household when the raayu runs out......

Just as I've found over the years.....food bloggers are some of the most generous folks! So please read Dennis's food blog when you have a chance. 

Thanks again Dennis!

Sushi Deli returns (again):

While driving to Mitsuwa, I noticed some construction taking place at the old Rosie & Joe's Grill and Cantina site on Armour Street. And much to my surprise, it looks like Sushi Deli is being resurrected.

I guess they figure that the closer they get to Mitsuwa, the better business will be? This side street doesn't generate much traffic, but at least I guess there will be ample parking? Frankly, I'd eat the pre-packaged sushi from Mitsuwa or Nijiya before I'd eat at Sushi Deli again....but if it floats your boat....

 

Adovo Anyone?:

So said the sign at Sizzler, in of all places National City:

 

I'm sure that Sizzler is doing this to attract more Filipino customers. But wouldn't it help to spell what many consider to be the Filipino National Dish correctly?

 

This leads to so many questions; such as, did they lose all their "B's", and maybe couldn't afford replacements? I'm sure you all can come up with some interesting questions. The biggest question in my mind is, what kind of "adovo".....vhicken or vork?

What is the correct thing to do when someone's groceries makes a break for it?

We were having dinner at Pho Lucky, when I heard a "swish-swish-swish", and noticed that the plastic shopping bag on the seat across from us was twisting, turning, and bouncing up and down. The lady sitting next to the bag was totally oblivious. Soon enough the bag flopped off the chair, and hit the ground. The lady kept eating her Pho, and just ignored it......

  

Talk about distracting! Soon enough, the bag started making its way down the aisle. Finally, one of the Servers picked it up, and returned it to the chair, and the woman didn't even blink an eye! I'm still wondering what was in that bag???? Must be fish, since I didn't see any live frogs for sale at Lucky Seafood. The Missus and I were mesmerized by that plastic shopping bag........

I hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend!

Yummy Yummy Cantonese in Yuma

Kirk has his rotation, and Cathy has her favorites, but today, ed (from Yuma) wants to share info about his #1.

I guess I should begin this post by being completely honest.  Yummy Yummy is my favorite restaurant on earth.  Don't misunderstand me.  It is far from the best restaurant I've been to or even the best that I have eaten at recently.  It is far from unique.  I suspect that there is a similar restaurant in many cities with a Cantonese community.

It also is not my favorite restaurant because of  its sticky tables, minimal decor, or downscale location nearly hidden in a corner of Palm Plaza on Avenue A: Instead, it is the food that brings me back to this place again and again.  So I want to share with all of you a guide to my favorite spot - so that you can enjoy the place almost as much as I do. Warning, this post is LONG.

 To take one example, the kitchen shows itself to be excellent at deep frying.  These two fried chicken entrées are among our favorites. In neither case is the chicken breaded because the chicken is fried so well that its exterior becomes fully crunchy: The yummy yummy chicken, the top picture, is chunks of boneless fried chicken topped with vegetables and crushed peanuts.  I actually prefer the second of these dishes, simply called fried chicken and vegetables. Here the back half of a chicken is chopped into pieces, deep-fried on the bone, and topped with vegetables and a standard Chinese sauce. Like fried chicken and gravy -- only better.

The frying technique even enlivens old standards.  For years, I resisted ordering such an "ordinary" dish as sweet and sour pork, but when a friend wanted it, I got to taste it -- and enjoyed it thoroughly.  While the sauce breaks no new ground, the pork chunks are perfectly cooked -- crispy crisp with no residual grease, each bite beginning with a crunch: This skill at the deep fryer also shows up in the tofu dishes, which will always be served fried unless you specify steamed tofu: I still remember dragging a colleague in here one evening and ordering a tofu dish to share as he was moaning and complaining that he hated tofu.  Two bites only and his attitude shifted 180°. Why? The fried tofu has a perfect combination of creamy soft interior and thin skin with just the right bite to it.

Of course, discussing the find tofu dishes here brings up another aspect of the food at Yummy Yummy that makes the place a winner -- they know how to use spicy chilies.  Look at these two tofu dishes: The plate at the top is tofu and beef, cooked spicy, and the bottom one is tofu and vegetables, also prepared spicy. The family that owns the restaurant was born in Guangdong, but lived for several years in Mexicali, where Mary, the owner/manager/waitstaff, had an uncle who owned a Chinese restaurant.  There the family learned Spanish and how to cook with dried red chilies.

The kitchen will also prepare spicy steamed tofu dishes. Recently, I ordered spicy steamed tofu with bbqed pork and received this: Wonderful spicy sauce and creamy tofu. Adding to the textural contrasts of the tofu, shiitakes, and chewy pork was the crunch of strips of pickled veggie (huh? never had that here before). But the slight sour tangy crunch was perfect in this item. Not as good as Kirk's mapo tofu, but about the best spicy soft tofu dish I've ever had at a restaurant.

In fact, most of the dishes on the menu, such as those spicy tofu dishes, can be prepared picante, even if that option is not listed as  on the menu.  I prefer the seafood combination plate made spicy: While the sliced fish balls and squid pieces are always perfect, sometimes the small shrimp and fish pieces need the added flavor of the chili peppers.  I also think the krab here, the type that tends to be pasty rather than stringy, tastes better spiced as well.

The kung pao squid (also known as squid in spicy sauce) is almost always excellent, the tender chewy squid contrasting nicely with the crunch of onion and celery, the mild seafood flavor lit up by the picante chilies: Another favorite is the Kung pao chicken.  Usually the tender chicken is highlighted by crunchy celery, water chestnut, baby corn, carrot, and onions: This dish is always a winner and shows off the deep intensity of the chili flavor that the restaurant is capable of.

Another of my favorite items is pork ribs in black bean sauce. On the old menu, it was listed as pork ribs with chilies in black bean sauce, and that is how I always order it. This entree brings together chunks of pork ribs, fresh yellow chilies, and outstanding black beans: Until Kirk provided me with a detailed description of which black beans to purchase at the Ranch 99 market, I was never aware that there was a wide variation from one type to another.  Now I understand why the dishes at Yummy Yummy that feature black beans are always so good.  Their beans are deeply flavored, soft in texture, and rich with dark chocolate flavor notes.

The black bean chicken with chilies is also outstanding: Another dish that uses black beans here is their version of shrimp in lobster sauce:
Unlike the bland and goopy versions often served, this preparation focuses on the flavor of the shrimp and vegetables, lightly highlighted by the eggy black bean sauce. Note, this dish is found nowhere on the current menu.  When the menu was redesigned five years ago or so, shrimp and lobster sauce was left off.  But it is still available.

Which leads me to another point about Yummy Yummy. If possible, the kitchen will cook off menu, and the menu does not reflect all of the items that are usually available.  For example, the menu simply lists Chinese vegetables as an option.  Occasionally, they have none, but sometimes Chinese vegetables can be baby bok choy in a ginger and garlic sauce: Or baby bok choy with barbecued pork (or with Chinese sausage or with beef or with chicken -- however you want): Or bitter melon prepared with beef and black beans:
Or Chinese greens (Mary usually calls them choi sum) in foo-yee sauce:
Or green beans (or long beans, when available) in foo yee: This was an especially great dish. So good that I had to take a picture after I had already eaten some of it. These veggie preparations are such a treat for me that I almost always ask what is available that day.

Mary is also willing to prepare vegetables that I bring from supermarkets, from San Diego, or from the Asian market in town.  In February and March, which is our local asparagus season, I will often bring in asparagus for the kitchen to prepare.  Once recently, I had brought in some special dried Chinese mushrooms, and I was served this: Although I have ordered many dishes from the kitchen using steamed tofu (remember that fried tofu is the default option here), I have usually asked for the steamed tofu in a spicy sauce as shown earlier.  This creation, however, focused on the silken smoothness of the tofu, which played against the chewiness of the mushrooms.  The delicate and woodsy flavor of the shrooms added a rich subtlety to the tofu. This was another dish that I had never eaten before.

I just want to end this long post with pictures of a few other standard dishes that most of us enjoy at Yummy Yummy.  For example, the garlic shrimp (this is at least a triple order)-- marinated in garlic and Worcestershire sauce -- make a good appetizer: While the chicken chow mein here is boring, the special chow mein is highlighted by a mixture of vegetables and meat:
Similarly, the chicken chop suey (one of the best choices on the $4.25 specials menu) is not as good as the fancier special chop suey:
 Wonderfully tasty sprouts, and I particularly like the anise flavored Chinese sausage in the "special" dishes.

If you like beef, the Mongolian beef (no scallions, oddly enough) and the sweeter pineapple beef (pictured here) are both good choices: Beef, chicken, and shrimp are all available with the standard vegetables (usually with alot of broccoli) and are good and reasonably healthy: While not a favorite of most of my friends, the chicken and abalone is one I like because of the subtle blending of the chicken flavor with that of the canned abalone strips: As with the sweet and sour pork, I had never tried egg foo yung here until friends at one of our Yummy Yummy feasts suggested it.  It is quite good also: Perhaps now, if you have read through this long post, you begin to understand why Yummy Yummy is my favorite restaurant. All the basic Cantonese standards are done well here. I get my Asian food Jones taken care of, my addiction assuaged. The kitchen is willing to work with customers and vary dishes on occasion. Virtually all items are less than $10, and the menu has specials for less than $5. Even though I have eaten at Yummy Yummy or taken food to go  around 400 times, I still look forward to eating there again. If anything  happened to this restaurant, my life would be impacted severely.  I would not eat nearly as well, nor party as hearty.

Which brings up one last point.  As I have become more familiar with the restaurant and Mary has become more familiar with me and my friends, she has been allowing us to bring wine and wine glasses for parties (in fact, my only previous YY post was about a meatless feast here back in 2007). I like to let Mary know in advance if a large group is coming and about any special requests we might have.  So now, about once a month, a varied group of us will get together and feast; this lets us all taste a range of interesting dishes (and wine and friendship are good things too).  Yummy Yummy is also about the cheapest wining and dining experience in town. And one of the best -- at any price.

Yummy Yummy, 2241 S. Ave A, Ste 23, Palm Plaza, Yuma AZ 85364, 928-376-0419. Open 10:30-8:30 Daily

Some quick and easy (and inexpensive) recipes to make for a picnic or snack at home

mmm-yoso!!! is a food blog and a few us just write about what we eat.  Today, it's Cathy writing.  Because Kirk and ed (from Yuma) are getting ready for the three day vacation, Memorial Day, formerly observed as Remembrance Day. 

{correction- formerly known as Decoration Day.  Remembrance Day was observed on what we now know as Veterans Day, November 11}

Hi.  I was walking through Vons and saw the Brand Name (Pillsbury) of pie crusts were on sale this week-$2 for a pack of two.  I like these because they are made with partially hydrogenated lard(not shortening) and come out not only tasty, but also flaky.  Sometimes I just cut a pie crust into shapes and put sugar on top and bake-just enough of a snack for me. 

Down another aisle, the canned cranberry sauce was also on sale for $1.  Apples were on sale.  I had a meal.  Well, something to eat for breakfast anyhow. 

I took the crust from the box, rolled up the edges, sliced the apples and poured the cranberry sauce over the top.  Then into the oven at 375 for about 25 minutes-until the crust was browned.

 

     

The crust is brown and crispy and layered and the apples and cranberry sauce are nice.  This 

tastes good warm or cold.

Potato Egg Salad

Use as much eggs as potatoes. (Potatoes are on sale at Henry's for 97 cents for 5 pounds)  You can't have too many eggs, but half potatoes and half eggs are ideal.

The other ingredients are mayonnaise, dill, salt and white pepper.

Boil and slice the eggs. Boil the chopped potatoes(chop in uniform size so that the potatoes will all be cooked at the same time.

              

Lightly fold in mayonnaise, salt, white pepper and the chopped dill.

 

I like to serve right away-This tastes good right away without chilling, but also tastes good after being chilled overnight.  The dill permeates with flavor.



 

Watermelon Treat:

Watermelon is on sale for maybe ~$3, limeade concentrate might be $1.50 and a bunch of mint.

Chop the mint. 

Chop the melon.

Add the thawed lime concentrate. 

Chill.

If there are leftovers, you can blend for a delightful beverage the next day.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend and enjoys the beauty of these United States. Thanks to all of our Veterans -past and present- for protecting all of us. 

  

(These are some photos I took while driving around San Diego working for the Registrar of Voters this past Tuesday.)

Just for the Hal-i-but (sort of): The Live Halibut Dinner at Wal Mi Do in photos

I was a bit surprised when I asked the Missus what She wanted for Her Birthday dinner....She told me She wanted the Live Halibut Sashimi dinner from Wal Mi Do! We've had this a few times already, usually with friends so I've stowed the camera. There are several "sizes" of Halibut Sashimi, this one is the "small" and is "recommended for two people". Tell me what you think........

So without further ado, it's just photos from this point on. I don't think you'll need much narrative on this one. Yes, we finished just about everything.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I just realized I forgot to take photos of one item, the rice! But I think you get the picture. FOYs (Friends of Yoso) Ed from Yuma, Howie, and Candice have shared this meal with us in the past, so maybe they'll be able to "fill" you in. Naturally some items (on this day the Abalone Rice Porridge, and the Missus loved the snails) are better than the others (I could only manage a small nibble of the deep fried sushi roll)......... And the halibut was wonderful as always. It would've taken me the better part of a week to do a post, so I hoped you enjoyed the photos.

I really do need a nap right now.

Wal Mi Do
4367 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111 

I hope everyone's having a great week!