mmm-yoso!!!

Ba Le French Sandwich Shop (City Heights) 17 Years Later

As has happens several times over the last few years, a conversation I overheard keyed a revisit to a place I hadn't been to in years. In this case the discussion was on "Vietnamese Sandwiches" and wondering how those sandwiches were at "Bail".....yes, that's the way they pronounced it "Bail". Which had me wondering where this was....and all of a sudden it hit me...no, the spirit of the late "King" Stahlman wasn't resurrected in the form of a sandwich shop (are you humming "that tune" now?)...nope, I'm certain they were talking about Ba Le. And in retrospect, it had been a while since I'd been to Ba Le, especially the "OG" City Heights location....17 years! Yikes!

So, 17 years later I set out to finally revisit the University Avenue location of Ba Le and the horrendous parking....well, it's not really a "lot", but a couple of designated, very tight spaces. I actually parked on Winona and walked over. 

Upon entering, I noticed that not much has changed over the years....it does look quite worse for wear, but the "double sign" with the available banh mi in Vietnamese on one side and the English translation on the other is still in place. Along with the prices written in black marker.

The Banh Mi Pate Cha is now $7.25, it was $2.75 the last time I visited. The older gentleman took my order, I paid (it's cash only) and I headed on back to my car and then homeward.

    The bread was much better than I recalled, crusty, though still a bit under toasted and on the chewy side. It used to be a lot worse before. 

Two crosswise slices of cucumber...well, at least there was cucumber in this, two long strands of cilantro, and some pickled carrots and daikon. And yes, the pickled veggies are still on the sweeter side for my taste. 

A bit too much mayo for my taste, thin slices of cha lua. But one of the main reasons for my returning was that the pate here was super earthy-funky-sweet. I recall "FOY" TFD telling me that it was made inhouse. Not sure if that's still true....but there was a certain bass line playing in my head after taking a few bites. I'm sure "FOY" and fellow food blogger/musician Denver would be most happy to translate it for you!

This was a pretty good Banh Mi overall...perhaps time and many Banh Mi has given me a bit more appreciation for it. Another thing is that Ba Le, the location that opened in Honolulu back in the early 80's in Chinatown was the first place I remember having a Banh Mi, so there's some history. I recall getting Banh Mi from the ever moving Ba Le locations in Linda Vista over the years, until they finally left for good. Though I've never had much luck at the Mira Mesa locations.

Don't know if it would be my first choice for banh mi these days; but it was a nice little blast from the past!

Ba Le French Sandwich Shop
4879 University Ave.
San Diego, CA 92105
Current Hours:
Daily 8am - 5pm

Happy Monday everyone!

Sunday Stuffs - L&L Coming to Clairemont Town Square and Lucky Lane in North Park

Just a couple of things for a relaxing Sunday.

L&L Coming to Clairemont Town Square:

So, I had to get something from Ace Hardware in Clairemont Town Square when I noticed a familiar sign.....

I had to crack up. I sent a text to "FOY" Jack who quickly noted that this was the former location of  The Butcher N Cheese. The reason I found this somewhat interesting is that, at least to me....much like Beard Papa coming to Convoy, this is like 15 years late?

The only other place I can recall in the area would be when Maui Maui Hawaiian BBQ was in the location where Sieu Sieu BBQ is now.

4705 Clairemont Dr.
San Diego, CA 92117

And Yes, It Is Lucky Lane in North Park:

This has been on the news and stuff. But, thanks to Matt the owner of Tribute Pizza and others, the 3800 block of Grim Avenue has been renamed "Lucky Lane" to honor the one and only Lucky Wong who passed on December 30th. I did miss the unveiling of the street sign and celebration which took place on June 28th, but recently had a chance to drive on over and take a look.

I parked and walked over. I noticed the "available" sign in the window of Lucky's. Sigh...if the entity that takes over the property can bring just a fraction of the kindness and joy to the folks of the neighborhood has Lucky did.....

Here's the sign.

Lucky; I'm sure you're bringing joy and laughs to folks wherever you may be.......making sure that the older women aren't drinking too much coffee because "You too young for coffee, it will stunt your growth!" And ensuring we get butter on our toast because  "you need to butter your toast, it's good for your complexion!"

We miss you! Rest well sir!

Road Trip - Silver Lake, Silver Lake Resort Cafe, and Hiking the Reversed Peak Loop (June Lake)

Since I've posted on these places before, I'll just mostly do photos for this one.

After a pretty busy evening, we both slept well. The next morning the Missus was ready to get Her paddleboard out. I had suggested Silver Lake, which always looked quite nice in the morning...plus, well, I knew I could get a decent breakfast nearby while She was out on the lake.

After getting our caffeine fix at The Lift, we headed on out. This time we parked in the Silver Lake parking near the boat ramp and the Missus headed on out. It was as usual during our visits, a lovely day.

Once the Missus was out on the water, I headed across the street to the Silver Lake Resort, which is the oldest "resort" in the Easter Sierra's; formerly known as Carson's Camp it was established in 1916. It's basically a bunch of cabins and RV parking, but it has a shop and most importantly, Silver Lake Resort Cafe, all of which I've posted on before.

Quaint and charming, it's a great place for an old school breakfast.

A bit busy on this morning, I found a spot at the counter. Deciding what to get was easy......

Nice, hearty breakfast...and heck, that slice of watermelon helps suppress the guilt from enjoying that sausage gravy.

Looking at this photo makes me miss Perry's. I guess I need to get back to Rudford's one of the days!

Silver Lake Resort Cafe
6957 Hwy 158
June Lake, CA 93529

After my filling breakfast I sidled back to the boat ramp to see what was up with the Missus. Lot's of folks fishing and pooches splashing!

I could see the Missus make a turn and head back to shore.

While I waited for the Missus a boat was being winched up the ramp. One of the guys was really friendly and he'd done quite well fishing, don't you think?

Once the Missus got to shore, we stowed Her paddleboard and headed back to our room where we freshened up, before heading right back out to our next stop; the Reversed Peak Loop Trail and 4 Lakes Loop.

The beginning was pretty steep with a 600 foot climb, but things flatten out after that.

You do see a couple of lakes/ponds.

Though some had already dried up.

I enjoyed the rock formations and the view of the mountains.

And I learned a new term on this trip. I've been fascinated with the dead trees I've seen on hikes, I found out that they are called "Snags".

The hike was a bit over 3 1/2 miles, with an 800 foot elevation gain. We finished in about 2 hours, not bad. But at this altitude the sun does get to you and there's no shade on the trail.

I'm glad I had my hearty breakfast. And the Missus had gone paddleboarding, plus we'd gone on a hike....and it wasn't even lunch time yet!

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip - Alabama Hills Cafe & Bakery (Lone Pine) and Returning to June Lake

Just a couple of weeks after returning from June Lake and Tahoma, the Missus had me back on the road again with a return trip to June Lake. This time the Missus wanted me to cook for Her coworkers who regularly camp at June Lake. Yeeesh, talk about having to do a bunch of prep and then organize and pack!

So, off we were again. We decided to make a lunch stop in Lone Pine again, though not at Lone Star Bistro. Instead, I'd read that Alabama Hills Cafe seemed like a good stop, with diner-ish breakfasts and sandwiches. It's located right off the 395 and on this September early afternoon, the weather wasn't scalding hot yet.

So we walked in and looked over the menu.....

Placed our order and took a seat outside. We had a lovely view of Mount Whitney from our table.

And things started with some ice tea for the both of us.

The sandwiches looked huge, so we decided to share a California Club. And yes, that sandwich was quite large.

We subbed onion rings instead of fries which was a $2 upcharge. The onion rings were incinerated which kinda killed the flavor.

I've mentioned my nostalgic love for club sandwiches in various posts over the years. It brings back memories of having lunch with my mom....you know a "clubhouse sandwich". Anyway, this one was pretty good. The sourdough bread was fine and the Missus enjoyed the addition of some creamy avocado.

I know folks that balk at the addition of cheese on a clubhouse, but the provolone added a nice milkiness, and this was overly slathered in mayo. The turkey was standard issue stuff and there wasn't enough smoky-salty bacon for the Missus so She poached all of mine. I think we'll order extra bacon if we get this again.

Anyway, no muss, no fuss...we'd end up back here for breakfast on the way back from June Lake.

Alabama Hills Cafe & Bakery
111 West Post St.
Lone Pine, CA 93545

From here, it was a 2 hour drive to June Lake. And as before we stayed at the June Lake Villager. Our room had a full kitchen which made my prep for dinner easy.

After prepping for the campsite dinner, we took a stroll down to Gull Lake.

On this day the June Lake Jam Fest was going on! Even so, it wasn't overly crowded.

And the attack cats, remember them, where busy patrolling the grounds.

We took a look at relaxing and serene Gull Lake.

Then headed back to the room...packed up and drove to the campsite where I made dinner for everyone; which they enjoyed! Whew....

Spicy Lao Kitchen Revisited

The recent warm spell had the Missus and I craving some Lao and Thai food. So, we decided to head on back to what had become our favorite Lao Restaurant in the area, Spicy Lao Kitchen. I had heard that there had been some changes in terms of the management and kitchen, so I was interested to see if our favorite dishes still held out.

The one young man working the front of house was so very nice. Strangely, there was only one other table during our entire meal.

And sadly, the food didn't measure up. We actually ordered three of our favorite dishes! Which had enjoyed back in February. 

Since these were dishes we'd had several times during our visits over the last couple of years, and that we had ordered the same three dishes during our last visit, I thought it would be interesting to post first, the dish from this visit; than a photo of what the dish looked like during our February visit.

Things came out of the kitchen fairly quickly; starting with the Moo Tod, the "usually" crispy pork belly.

First off, this more thickly sliced and unevenly fried; some parts really hard, not crisp, other parts barely fried. It was on the bland side and missing the dusting of chili powder it used to have....like back in February.

Never was the difference more evident than in the Goong Nam Pla, which had been a favorite dish of ours since our first visit.

The shrimp itself was fine; but was sorely lacking in spice....we ordered medium spice like we always do and this was just plain overly sour. Also missing was that herbaceous-spicy-savory - fish sauce forward topping and sauce which I swear....I could dip my rubba' slippahs in and enjoy.

Less than five months ago, this is what it looked like. Look at the mint and other herbs on this version. All of this was MIA!

And of course the Nem Khao. Whenever that Missus and I would get a decent version of Nem Khao, we'd always talk about that wonderful meal we had on the banks of the Mekong all those years ago. Food can do that, spur memories, feelings, return you to a special time and place. And then to have it taken away.....

The charred rice wasn't crisp enough and on the chewy side. The dish lacked a sufficient amount of sour sausage, though it was super sour. It lacked seasoning and spice. This was truly a disappointing dish.

Especially compared to what we'd had in February.

I'm not sure what happened here. I know that business had been up for sale, but I thought it had been resolved. Though I've heard from sources that one of the owners is no longer involved and has moved out of state.

This was so disappointing, since Spicy Lao had become our favorite Lao restaurant in San Diego. I guess it's time to get back out there trying other Lao style places. 

Spicy Lao Kitchen
5375 Kearney Villa Rd.
San Diego, CA 92123

I know that "FOY" Junichi has also been a regular at Spicy Lao; I'm wondering if he's visited recently and if so, what his experience was like?

 

Tasty House Opens on Clairemont Mesa - Three Grand Opening Visits

Back in April, I noticed that a restaurant named Tasty House was replacing Tealightful Cafe in that strip mall on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard that houses EE Nami and Village Kitchen among others. I was interesting in what they would be serving. One day, while driving past, I noticed that the open sign was lit. It was around lunch time, so I decided to dive on in and visit.

The place was completely empty when I visited.

There was a really nice woman working. She pointed me to a seat and brought me a menu.

The nice lady didn't speak much English, but I saw the older woman behind the counter making jiaozi. Looking at the menu, it seemed like Northern style cuisine. There are even suan cai ("Sauerkraut") dishes on the menu. 

The prices seemed quite reasonable, so I ordered three items. I think there was a communication mix-up, as to my surprise I was brought a takeout order! Perhaps because I ordered so many items she thought it was to go? I had ordered three dishes so I could take the leftovers home to have the Missus sample. I just had to crack up and took my order to go.

The Red Oil Pig ears were cut too thick, making it hard rather than crunchy. It was also served hot....which was a bit strange as I thought it would be a cold dish.

It wasn't particularly spicy and cold have used more seasoning.

Of course I got some jiaozi. I had pointed to the menu and asked in my terrible Mandarin "jiaozi???" and the woman laughed and said "SanXian" (三鲜 - three delicacies). 

    It came with some chili oil and the appropriate (for the region) black vinegar.

The wrappers on several of the dumplings were broken, thus H2O had leaked in during the boiling process nullifying a lot of flavor.

The wrappers were too thick (I still think Dongbei style jiaozi has thicker wrappers) and on the hard side.

   As was the filling. Really chewy and tough. 

I saved two for the Missus, who took one bite and said "you can have it....."

The best item was the Suan Cai with Glass Noodles. Which also came with pork.

The main feature of this was the very sour-fermented tones of the suan cai. This was definitely not a "shrinking violet"! The glass noodles were overcooked and mushy and the pork on the chewy side. But man, that sourness....whoa! 

Well, this was interesting. The Missus was even a bit interested....so much so, that while driving past the place She determined that we should stop in, take a look at the menu and perhaps order some takeout.

By this time, the Grand Opening sign was in place.

While talking to the very nice woman, the Missus determined that their from Dongbei and She proceeded to order two very typical Dongbei Cai dishes that are quite hard to find on menus here in San Diego.

First was the Dōngběi Luàn Dùn which is on the menu as One Pot Out of the Farm ($15.90). It's basically whatever veggies you have stewed with pork.

A large portion size, very home style, potatoes as the base........quite a bit of pork.

This was kinda bland...versions I've had before also used Doubanjiang or something similar to add a nice savory component, this was very plain. A very generous portion though.

The other dish was Páigǔ Dùn Dòujia on the menu as Pork Ribs Stewed with Beans ($15.90).

Man, as if things couldn't get more bland......

Very much simple country cuisine. The beans were still crisp; the pork tender, but the dish was really in need of flavor.

All in all very much like home cooked, simple, country dishes.

The Missus was done with the place...and I was kinda not impressed. But, I thought the folks working here was so nice, that I decided to do one more visit and to actually try to dine in.

It was quite charming; the woman saw me parking my car and actually waved at me....you know I had to give the place one more try, right?

On my previous visit, I saw this sign. A quick Google translate and it said "noodles".....

Which, along with the dumplings, they make inhouse.

So, okay.......this time, I did have a seat and actually dined in.

I really enjoy Zi Ran Yang Rou - Cumin Lamb, so I decided to try the version here. I noticed that the price on the menu had been reduced by a dollar.

This was by far, my favorite dish that I've had here.

While on the salty side; the lamb was decently tender, there was a good amount of earthy-savory cumin. This was by far my favorite dish.

And of course I wanted to try a noodle dish and saw this.

No, it's not the savsage, ahem, probably sausage noodle....but what the heck was Spam Fried Noodle? Well, I was really interested to find out!

Well, this was another "interesting" dish. The noodles were a bit too mushy for my taste. The simple seasoning, soy sauce based, was just like home cooking. As for the "Spam"...well, it was this.

It was beef! I sent the Missus a photo of the menu and She said it said beef in Chinese.....I'm guessing that whatever translation tool was used for the menu....like the "savsage", was perhaps a bit off? The beef was on the chewy side and could have been a bit more "velveted". It lacked the wok hay that I expect with restaurant level food.

In the end; well, to repeat things once again, this is like home cooking and lacks the attributes that separates what one makes at home with what one expects when dining out. It's kind of a bummer since the folks that work here are so nice and the prices are quite reasonable...but really, I'm not going to spend that amount for something I can make at home!

Tasty House
4726 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92117
Current Hours:
Wed - Mon 11am - 930pm
Closed on Tuesday

Ahi Poke from Makai Sushi (Hillcrest)

A couple of months back, I saw this "sushi" shop while driving down Fifth Avenue.

It wasn't the "sushi" sign that caught my eye, but the name, "Makai"....hmmm, in Hawaiian it means "toward the sea"....versus "Mauka" which means "toward the mountains". At least that's what struck me when I saw that sign. So, I got back home and did that Google thingy and read that the owner is originally from Kauai. And then he opened a shop in Hillcrest? Kinda interesting.

I've mentioned hating the parking in Hillcrest in other posts and even though I'm quite "niele", seeing a menu with all kinds of "rolls", and poke bowls, etc.....the only thing that I was curious about was the ahi poke. And since the place opens at noon and is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays....well, I just wasn't that motivated to deal with the parking situation and the crowds. Until.....I recently had an appointment in Hillcrest which would be finished just before noon. Seemed like the perfect opportunity to check the place out. I walked on over arriving just after the clock struck twelve.

And like I said...taking a look at the menu, there was really only one thing I was interested in.

I walked on into the tiny restaurant and the counter and placed an order for the Ahi Bowl ($20) with the sweet and very nice young lady that was working.

The owner, Matt, came on over and he spoke major pidgin! So, we wen talk story. He's from Poipu on Kauai! I asked him what brought him to San Diego and he told me that he one local kine sushi place in a market in Poipu (I found this in the online HAL guide) with the same name. And then Covid happened and his business was gone. He decided to move to San Diego and open up the same kind of place. But why Hillcrest? Well, he told me that he wasn't looking in the area, but Hillcrest found him! And he's doing good business here. Good for him!

I got my poke bowl, thanked the both of them, and den wen hele.......

I really liked the folks at Makai, so I truly hoped this wasn't going to be one of those mainland "Chi-poke" kinda bowls, you know, 2 ounces of fish, and then all kinds of "stuffs".

Well, upon opening, even though there was avocado, some greens, sort of kimchi like cucumber, it was mostly fish. Though there seemed to be a bit more "sauce" than I usually like.

    There was a good amount of decently cooked rice. I could have done without the "wasabi aioli" and the overly sweet unagi sauce. I guess I just wanted some good shoyu poke? The fish danced close to the edge of being over-sauced, but avoided falling off that cliff. I did enjoy the creaminess of the avocado and the mild sour-spice of the cucumber.

The fish was of decent quality, not the best, but tender, and most importantly, without all the "sugi"; the chewy connective tissue.

I enjoyed the addition of tobiko as it added another layer of textural contrast and some good, mild saltiness to the poke.

While not quite as good as It's Raw or HFS in my opinion....though I gotta return to HFS soon. I prefer this to 8th and B or Poke Etc, and definitely over all those "chi-poke" places.

If it were in my 'hood, I'd probably visit periodically. Especially since the folks here are so welcoming.....Matt does display that "Aloha Spirit"!

As it is; if I'm passing thru and hit the parking lot-tery, I'll stop by again.

Makai Sushi
3968 5th Ave.
San Diego, CA 92103
Current Hours:
Thurs - Mon 12pm - 7pm
Closed Tues - Wed

Road Trip - Erick Schat's Bakkerÿ (Bishop)

On the way back from Lake Tahoe, I wanted to make a stop at an iconic Bakery in Bishop. I had been reading about Erick Schat's Bakkerÿ for ages. Originally working at the Bishop Bakery established in 1903 by the Schoch family, Jacob "Jack" Schat an immigrant from Utrecht, who's family has a long history in baking came to Bishop in 1950 and found work at the Bishop Bakery, eventually buying the business and naming it after his son. The bakery has become an institution. It is said that it has over 2 million visitors a year! Atlas Obscura mentions that the bakery produces 25,000 loaves of bread a day. Considering that the population of Bishop is around 4,000, that would be 6 loaves per person....that's a lot of carbs!

We headed on thru Bishop and stopped entered the crowded parking lot, and voila! A car was just leaving a space! Must have been fate, right?

We had decided to stop in for an early lunch. The place was bustling, even in the middle of the week! The shop is packed with loaves of bread, cookies, and a sandwich section. The Missus decided to go bread and cookie shopping.

While I decided to get a sandwich for us to share. Calvin had told me his favorite was the turkey on the special bread of the house Basque Sheepherders Bread which has been trademarked since 1938.

I stood in the queue, placed my order, and picked it up when ready. The Missus was still shopping so I found us a table outside.

It was a nice morning, the heat hadn't settled in yet.

As for the sandwich....well, the bread lives up to the hype. The crust had a mild chew to it; the bread was so soft and almost fluffy, with a light yeasty-sweetness.

Loved the sprouts and tomatoes, but that turkey was so try and tasteless......

I'll pass on sandwiches from here in the future.

And the Missus went with a sourdough loaf instead of the Sheepherders bread! Though we'd get that on our next trip thru Bishop.

And the Missus really enjoys the cookies from here.

Just the bread and the cookies makes this a regular stop for us when we're in the area.

Erick Schat's Bakkerÿ
763 N Main St.
Bishop, CA 93514