mmm-yoso!!!

Scenes From the North Park Thursday Market (Right after Covid reopening)

I had spent the day working from home and both the Missus and I were bored stiff after dinner. The Missus suggested a taking a drive. We hadn't been to the North Park area in a while and the Missus was missing Tribute Pizza, so we decided to head on up to 30th Street to see what was up.

Well, what was up was the North Park Thursday Market.......and wouldn't you know....there was an open parking spot a few steps away.

After 15 months of various stages of lockdown........this was quite an interesting experience.

I don't recall the last time I saw so many smiling people. But of course I wouldn't have since we were all wearing masks for the last 15 months! I could overhear conversations.....folks who hadn't seen each other in over a year.

While the reopening declaration does not mean the pandemic is over, this was an outdoor setting and it was really gratifying to see folks enjoying themselves. 

I truly hope that folks can be responsible not only for themselves, but for the care of others as well. And that we won't have to backtrack.

And then we can go grab a Spam Musubi and be on our way....with a smile on our faces.

North Park Thursday Market
3000 North Park Way
San Diego, CA 92104
Thursdays 3pm - 730pm

As for Tribute, we stopped by and took a look at the current menu. One of the guys working popped his head out (with a mask on) and I asked if they'd be open for dining in soon. He told me if all goes well they'll open for dining in in July.

We did drive down to South Park and were astounded at the crowds of folks at Fernside and Kindred........too crowded for us right now. 

Prime Grill

Well, after a rough 15 months we here in California are on the cusp of reopening, yes, tomorrow the capacity limits for businesses ends and mask requirements will be modified for those vaccinated....though I truly doubt that many businesses will be asking for proof of vaccination. Does this mean things get back to normal? I really don't know how to answer that one....I mean 3700+ deaths and 280,000 cases later, a fifteen month lockdown, politicization of what should have been a public health emergency......what is normal?

As for rushing out to grab a meal at restaurants.......I think we're in "wait and see mode". As a whole we're not big on crowds anyway......so we may just lie low until after Father's Day. But who knows. I will say we had our first indoor dining experience last week as San Diego entered the Yellow Tier allowing for 50% indoor capacity. It's been getting kinda hot...in fact, I think tomorrow we may have record temperatures. I was working from home and the Missus finished work early. I was craving some Bi Bim Naengmyun and the Missus, a Dolsot Bi Bim Bap. And after I tried and failed to order Bi Bim Naengmyun to go from Prime Grill and since they were open straight through from 11am, we decided to give the place a shot. Prime Grill had stopped doing outdoor seating a while back, so indoors was the only choice. It was however, only 430pm when we arrived and we didn't expect the place to have customers.....but we were wrong and the place was about 1/3 full.....we requested and got a table in the far corner.

The Missus of course wanted Her Bi Bim Bap and I went for the Bi Bim Naengmyun....the Missus asked me to order some Dak Bulgogi as well. So, the older Korean woman came over to take my order.....and when I tried to place my order, she shook her head, "no...no....better for you to order the combination....you save money." I suddenly recognized her voice; she was the one who told me not to order the Bi Bim Naengmyun to go the last time! Well, I pointed out that the menu said "Naengmyun" and I wanted Bi Bim Naengmyun.

To which she answered "no worry, we make bi bim naengmyun for combo." You gotta love it!

And while it looked like the gyeran jjim (the steamed egg) had pretty much collapsed due to over work, the rest of the panchan was quite good....the baechu kimchi looked like it wasn't fermented enough, but it was good.

And the Missus got Her Dolsot Bi Bim Bap.

Which She let "rest" to develop the rice crust from the hot stone bowl, while devouring the gyeran jjim and also the Dak Bulgogi, which was much better eating here as it got some nice caramelization....use the takeout photo to compare. In fact, She ended up taking half of the Bi Bim Bap home to eat the next day.

As for me....well this was just what I wanted...heck, needed after 15 months. The stretchy naengmyun, cut to an edible length with scissors, the spicy sauce.....

A shot of sweet-spicy cho-jang, a squirt of vinegar to get those salivary glands to pucker up. The Asian Pear brings a bit of sweetness and helps cut through all that spiciness. Aaahhhh.....

Just what the doctor ordered......

And even though we felt a bit out of sorts eating indoors after so long, just for a few minutes; there was no pandemic in sight....we were having a nice meal......what would be a "normal" warm weather meal for us, and all seemed right in the world. During these times it's a feeling I've come to treasure.

Prime Grill
4620 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 11am - 10pm

So, here's a question for all our "FOYs" (Friends of Yoso). With the reopening happening tomorrow are you making plans to go out? To eat, to a movie, your favorite watering hole, perhaps the gym...a museum? Or are you going to adopt a "wait and see" position? 

Sunday Sandwiches - Barrio Donas Revisited

I was working from home one morning and had calls scheduled thru lunch until the early afternoon. It was 9am and I was already hungry. I had been wondering how Barrio Donas was doing since my last visits had been right before the pandemic started. I went to their website to check on the hours and found that they now do online ordering so I decided to go for it. I placed an order and headed right on over.

I arrived right at the indicated time; though I had to wait for a bit. It was obvious that this online ordering thing was kinda new to them. The configuration of the bakery had been changed a bit to accommodate social distancing.

I was kinda hungry so I ordered the Pierna ($9.50). The first thing I noticed when I opened up the container was that the bolillo roll seemed different.

 It was a lot lighter, both in color and heft than what I'd had here previously. But it was also much more yeasty than what I recall, though it hadn't handled the less than 15 minute drive home quite well.

But, this torta had twice the amount of filling than what I'd had before as well. The pork had been marinated and cooked well as it was so very tender. There was a slight heat and smokiness from what I assume is an adobo based sauce. I actually could have used more beans, onions, and tomato to balance things out....but I couldn't complain about the amount of filling in this sandwich.

About a week later, I was starving and had a break between calls; I decided to do the online ordering thing again and went with what has pretty much been my usual item at Barrio Donas; the A la Mexicana ($7.50). This time; maybe because it was 7am in the morning, my sandwich was waiting when I arrived.

   The bread was the same as on my previous visit. Like the pierna, this had a bit more filling than what I'd had previously, though it wasn't super stuffed. This time the bread handled the trip home. And the yeastiness, combined with the mild acidic heat from the salsa, slight milkiness from the cheese, and the smear of beans just went well with the scrambled eggs.

Barrio Donas was doing good business during my visits and I'm happy to know that. In thinking back from the days when it was Best Donuts, the renovation to a more modern, sort of hipster Barrio Donas, and now with online ordering! They've sure have come quite a way! Derek Ray, I'm wondering if you've visited recently and noticed that Barrio Donas is now a bit more generous in terms of portion?

Barrio Donas
4714 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92117
Current Hours
Mon - Fri 6am - 6pm
Saturday 6am - 3pm
Sunday 7am - 3pm

Roadtrip (During Covid-19) - The Alchemist Garden Revisited (Paso Robles) and Montana de Oro State Park

*** Not much food in this one.

After our wonderful dinner at Les Petites Canailles we walked over for our "liquid dessert" at a place we loved on our last visit here, the Alchemist Garden. We'd enjoyed our selves so much the last time that we requested sitting at the bar again.

The Missus ordered the Alchemist Gold - basically a smoked Old Fashioned.

 Which included quite a show. She loved Her cocktail. 

As for me; like the last time, I left it to the Mixologist to create something for me based on my tastes on this evening. And boy did he deliver. This was amazing!

Smokey notes, a slight "bite", herbal notes, light bitterness....amazing......

Unlike the last time, we didn't need to order any food.

 I asked about the cocktail and was told it used Laphroig 10 and he proceeded to get out several small shot glasses and gave the Missus and I small tastes of the Laphroig and how it compared to the Macallan, the Nikka, and a Rye Whiskey. The Missus is sold on peaty Scotch's it seems.

Places like this and Les Petites Canailles will keep us coming back to Paso Robles!

The Alchemists' Garden
1144 Pine St.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

The next morning; just as had done on our previous road trip to Paso Robles, we made a stop at Spearhead Coffee.....an Americano for me, the pour over for the Missus.

Spearhead Coffee
619 12th St.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

After which, we headed on out. On our last road trip, we had really enjoyed Fiscalini Ranch, so I did a bit of research trying to find a nice scenic trail for walking/hiking. Since we were headed back to Cambria, I came up with Montana de Oro State Park, south of Los Osos and Morro Bay. 

We would end up loving our time here......hiking the easy Bluff Trail.

 From the rugged shoreline to the beautiful blue sky.......I just loved the ocean views. While the Missus was absolutely taken by the patches of poppies along the way.

Much like Fiscalini Ranch much of the state park was once owned as dairy and produce ranches. The state of California purchased the property and it became a state park in 1965.

The Bluff Trail displays wonderful vistas, rugged coastline, tidepools, and amazing views.

Can you see the Morro Rock in the background of this photo?

At Corallina Cove, you can actually take the stairs down to the beach and explore the tidepools and the wonderful rock formations.

There's a ravine where wildflowers were blooming......

And of course our little friends all over the place.

Past Corallina Cove is Quarry Cove, with its own set of amazing geology.

And the very photogenic Grotto Rock.

This was a fun way to spend the morning; rugged shorelines with patches of color sprinkled about.

We really enjoyed the Bluff Trail at Montana de Oro State Park.

Montaña de Oro State Park
3550 Pecho Valley Rd.
Los Osos, CA 93402

It's well worth the time spent.....

And of course, we loved Paso Robles.

Thanks for stopping by!

Midweek Meanderings - Sushi Yorimichi replaces Thai Papaya, Matoi replaces Shirahama, El Viejon Seafood opening soon, and Pho UTC and Grill has Closed

Here's a collection of what I've seen over the last few weeks.

Sushi Yorimichi replaces Thai Papaya:

This one was first mentioned to me by our "FOY" Junichi, who noticed it was replacing a favorite of ours Thai Papaya.

My photo was before our recent road trip and my understanding is that they have recently opened. A "FOY" actually visited and told me they do everything from sushi to ramen to yakitori.......

I'll reserve the rest of what was written until I (maybe) will visit in the near future.

Sushi Yorimichi
2405 Ulric St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Matoi replaces Shirahama:

Which I just noticed on one of my trips to Nijiya.

Shirahama has been replaced by yet another "omakase" place, this one run by the folks from Hane Sushi. I do have quite a story about Shirahama....perhaps one day I'll share it with you.

Matoi
4212 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

El Viejon Seafood replacing Chungchun Ssal Hot Dog:

This one really popped out at me when driving North on Convoy.

If I recall, this was the location of Chungchun Ssal Hot Dog.........

Anyway, I understand this is a project from the folks that own Lupe's.

4619 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Pho UTC and Grill has Closed:

On a recent visit to Chicago Fire Grill I noticed a slew of "for lease" signs. One of which was for Pho UTC.

8915 Towne Centre Dr
San Diego, CA 92122

Clairemont Coffee - Soon to be under new ownership

Funny that I've never posted on Clairemont Coffee before, much like TK Donuts next door, they fill a niche for the neighborhood. Yes, there are other coffee places nearby that I go to; Bird Rock on Morena is a favorite of the Missus....it's for the really good stuff and I will often drop a pour over off for the Missus when She works weekends. Bay Park Coffee is for breakfasts and because they don't open until 730 or 8, it's for those days when I'm working from home and need my break. Clairemont Coffee though, is the place I drop by more often, especially when I go to the office as they open at 6am. Plus, the owner Bee-Oh-Bee Bob is quite a character. I've been going there on my way to work on a regular basis (except during the real crazy early days of Covid when I was going to work before five AM) since they first opened in 2013. I used to know all the folks that worked there and really liked everyone; especially Hannah who is from the Big Island. Of course time passes and Hannah eventually left when she had her child and went back to school.

The interior is fairly....well, eclectic? Artsy? Funky? Clairemonty????

    The coffees are organic; very straight forward, and just like the folks who work here, unfussy. It's also cheaper and better than Starbucks a block away. There are only two things I get......during the colder months it's an Americano....when things warm up; it's a Cold Brew. Right now we're in that transition period..... It's always great talking to Bob......there's always some interesting topic or fun banter. And for the past couple months Hannah is back! Though she only works one day a week it's nice to see a familiar face and smile. 

A few months back, when my schedule stabilized a bit, I managed to drop by and Bob told me that he and his wife were retiring. To the Big Island! I was quite happy for him, though a bit sad at the same time. After all, much the like the neighborhood donut shop, the coffee shop is another thread in the fabric of a neighborhood to me. You need the sandwich shop, the bakery/donut shop, and a place to get your caffeine fix. It doesn't need to be fancy; just dependable and the people nice.

I dropped by on my way to work this morning and Bob had just opened up the shop....I'm usually the first customer in the morning. We had some time to chat and I asked him who he was selling the shop to. And was overjoyed to learn it was Hannah and I believe her sister-in-law! I believe they'll be taking over sometime in July.

So, I guess I'll still be getting my morning cup o' Joe from Clairemont Coffee during the week for the foreseeable future.

Oh these threads that make up the fabric of a neighborhood!

Clairemont Coffee
3095 Clairemont Dr.
San Diego, CA 92117
Hours:
Mon - Fri 6am - 8pm
Sat - Sun 7am - 8pm

Fried Ahi Belly from the Market at HFS

I'm sure you all know that The Market at HFS is on our rotation by now. I know the place has been doing lunches, but I usually want to beat the crowds and go at 10am. On one of my visits, the manager, Hope, who is from Aiea told me that I needed to try the "Ahi Belly Bomb" ($16)........"you know how good ahi belly is and for sure you won't be able to get that around here."

And since I'm quite good at taking direction, I decided to check it out. But, I called in my order at 1045 and drove over to pick it up. If you place a phone order you can skip the line and walk right in. Which is what I did. 

Returning to the office I opened the container up.......

Whoa, that was quite a bit of food.

Truthfully, I wasn't expecting this.

Which was from Keeaumoku Seafood.

 I would have preferred the belly intact as you can really dig into the buttery-rich ahi belly and also a bit more fried for good textural contrast, but this was not bad. The flavor did seem a bit on the stronger side....closed to aku than ahi to me and I'm sure the Missus would not have cared for it much. The unagi sauce went well with this, but if I have it again, I'll ask that they put the mayo on the side.....it made things a bit too rich for me.

I enjoyed the mac salad....I thought it was going to be a bit "overdressed" but this was quite good....even with vinegar to liven things up. Straight forward and good.

The rice looked dry, but was nicely done.

This was good, but unlike the poke here is a great fix when I'm missing home, this doesn't quite do it for me. I'm glad I tried it though. And it's so nice that Hope recognizes and thinks of me; letting me know when there's something I should try! That's bringing the Aloha!

The Market at HFS
6491 Weathers Place
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 282-0591
Current Hours:
Daily 10am - 4pm
Plate lunches served from 11am.

Roadtrip (During Covid-19) - New Frontiers Natural Marketplace (Solvang) and Les Petites Canailles (Paso Robles)

We had enjoyed our time in Solvang and this was the view we awakened to at the Hotel Corque.

It was quite charming in some ways.....during the night before we saw an older couple sitting on the patio having a Dominos Pizza, just enjoying themselves....later during this morning I spied them sitting outside once again having their morning coffee....it's all good, different strokes for different folks and all that.

We saw a market on the way into town; called New Frontiers Natural Marketplace that we decided to stop into before heading on our way. It's really somewhat "Whole Foods" like, but perhaps even better focused on snacks...

They even had Ojai Pixie Tangerines which had just come into season.

However, unlike the watermelon and cherries we were already lugging along the Missus wasn't too interested.

So, I just grabbed some light snacks while the Missus went and got us coffee.....

I'm not quite sure what "Bird Friendly" coffee is, but this was not bad.

And the rest of the "snacks" I had held me over until dinner.....

The folks here were so very friendly.......that I'd gladly come back here again.....after all, who doesn't want to be "bird friendly".

New Frontiers Natural Marketplace
1984 Old Mission Dr.
Solvang, CA 93463

Solvang seems to have changed a bit since we last visited.

We made the hour-and-half drive up to Paso Robles with no problem. Our hotel wasn't quite ready for an early check-in, but that wasn't an issue as the Missus had really enjoyed Paso Robles the last time we visited. As on the last visit, we were staying at the Oxford Suites a couple of blocks from downtown. We parked our car and headed up to downtown.....

All the while enjoying all those familiar sites from our previous visit.

Once arriving in the charming downtown area around the city park, the Missus immediately headed to the General Store.....where one could spend a good amount of time (and money).

Yes, it touristy, but the folks working here are so nice.....and it's full of things you never knew you needed......

It's a fun stop, at least for us......we ended up visiting twice! It's just a nice place to stop and visit.

General Store Paso Robles
841 12th St.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

Our friends love the cookies from the Brown Butter Cookie Company, though we've never actually bought them for ourselves....so that was an obvious stop for us as well.

And on this trip, the Missus wandered in and out of various shops....it gave me the chance to take a look at the Downtown City Park.

I wondered about the statue next to the Paso Robles History Museum of Ignacy Jan Padereweski, wondering why this Polish musician and composer is featured here in Paso Robles. It's quite the story, Paderewski was born in Poland in 1860, while in his late 20's he became well known in places like Vienna, Paris, and London. His talents were in high demand and over work resulted in problems with his hands. His friends in San Francisco recommended a stay in Paso Robles, with treatments from the hot springs to bring relief to his pain. He eventually bought property in Paso Robles on which he planted Zinfandel and started a winery, York Mountain Winery. His wine and music are celebrated in Paso Robles each November at the Paderewski Festival.

After making one last stop, to restock on olive oil from Pasoilvo Olive Oil, we headed back to the hotel and our room was ready. We took a nice breather before dinner.

As for dinner; well, after our last experience, I spent a bit more time looking over menus and such and decided on a fairly modern French restaurant named Les Petites Canailles. We opted for outdoor seating and this being a Monday didn't expect the place to be very busy. Well, we were quite surprised when we arrived for our reservations and seeing the place almost full! Tables were nice spread out and we sat outside the tent area for more circulation.

The staff to customer ratio was amazing as was our Server, "Ally" who knew all the dishes, preparations, wine, by heart. She told me that she often eats here on her days off....that says something. The other thing we quickly noticed was that all the customers knew each other and the staff by name. I guess Monday is the local's night to eat out.

Even though it seemed like we were part way into the parking lot, we loved our table. In fact, one of the women on the other table told me, "you have the best outdoor seats"! It was interesting to watch the flow of customers.......

And by the time we placed our order, the place was full.

We had pretty much decided on our dishes for the evening, we'd be sharing four appetizers and a "side". Ally took our order and said, "wonderful, it's a five course meal"! And we left it to her and the kitchen to decide the order of the dishes. One note, just to give you a hint on the service here....our plates and silverware were changed with every course!

We started with the Jaune et Rouge (Yellow and Red) Endive Salad ($17).

This was very refreshing, the endive had been nicely prepared, crisp, cold, the bitterness smoothed out and went quite well with the classical pairing of a blue cheese, in this case Fourme d'Ambert.

The next dish was superb; the Rabbit Terrine ($17).

Served with wonderfully crisp and smoky toasts; the terrine was surprisingly light in texture, it had a mild gamey-sweetness.....this was so good!

The Octopus "a la Basquiase" ($22) was solid in preparation.

Served over chorizo veggies, with tapioca chips, the texture was perfect.....the highlite of this dish was the wonderful sweet-pungent black garlic oil paired with a nice parsley oil. It just went so well with this dish.

Hands down; my favorite dish of the night was the Beef Tartare ($24).

 Served at the perfect temperature; made in a fairly classic style, capers, shallots, and with the perfect amount of pungency from horseradish. The acidity helped cut the richness of the dish. The beef had a tender and almost creamy texture.....and of course that confit egg yolk just added more creaminess to the dish.....this was just a decadent version of steak tartare.

We had also wanted to try the Grilled Asparagus ($14) with Confit Egg Yolk.

This is on the menu as a side dish. It fell kind of short as the asparagus sorely needed more acidity to bring out the sweetness in the asparagus.

This was my favorite meal of the trip. From the service to the presentation, to the wonderful flavors, an excellent meal overall. When Ally asked us about dessert we told her we'd be going to the Alchemist Garden for liquid refreshment, she laughed and said "perfect. If you're there long enough you might even see me there!" Like I mentioned before, there's something about the vibe and people in Paso Robles that we love.

Les Petites Canailles
1215 Spring St.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

And I'm pretty sure we'll return here.