mmm-yoso!!!

By Request: Kimlan's "Chinese Spaghetti Sauce"

You all are always full of surprises, that's probably why we love you all so much. On any given post, I never know what might catch the fancy of the wonderful folks who read mmm-yoso!!! This little bottle to my right is a good example. I happened to have mentioned it in one of my shopping posts, and was asked several times if I bought it. Of course this aroused my curiosity. After all, just what is "Chinese Spaghetti Sauce?"

And so I bought a bottle on one of my trips to 99 Ranch Market. I wasn't paying attention, and didn't realize that it was $3.09 a bottle!

I was surprised at the Missus's reaction when I returned home and displayed the bottle. Instead of the expected "what are you wasting money on now", I received a "hey, you might like this". I guess you all aren't the only ones full of surprises.

Speaking of surprises....about a week later I decided to finally try out the sauce. And when I grabbed the bottle it was almost empty!! The Missus had been using it to top Her jook, and as a topping for rice. Realizing that my window of opportunity had suddenly gotten much smaller, I dug through our cabinets looking for some pasta...and found some capellini. Which I cooked up, and topped with a conservative amount of the sauce (I heeded a warning from the Missus, "a little will go a long way....") along with some green onions and cilantro.

From the first bite I understood why the Missus enjoyed this. The flavor was 5 spice and bean paste heavy, and most of all, S-A-L-T-Y. The mystery meat consisted of five spice tofu and "Kaufu", which is wheat gluten. The flavor is very Chinese, and you'd never mistake his for your good old bottle of Ragu. A little does go a long way.......

I thought it was okay.....but I think a little phrase the Missus uttered to me the other day is much more telling. "Don't forget to buy a bottle of the Chinese Spaghetti Sauce the next time you go to 99 Ranch Market!"

Take that, Ragu!

Lightning Jack's BBQ - Clairemont

**** Lightning Jack's has closed

I'm sure you've felt this way.....totally pooped, half-way wiped out, hungry, and looking for something close to home. Which is why I ended up at Lightning Jack's, in the "food court" area of Clairemont Town Square.

I'm not quite sure why I decided to pick up dinner here...in the words of Captain Jack when I told him I bought BBQ from Lightning Jack's; "what the hell were you thinking?" Yeah, what was I thinking? I walked into the tiny restaurant, looked around, and almost decided to turn around.....but something kept me there.

And the gentleman running the place was very friendly...so I made a decision to just go for it. Looking over the menu, I noticed that the ribs were "St Louis Style", which made me understand that the type of ribs used were Spareribs. But I wondered if the sauce was St Louis style, a basic spicy-sweet tomato based sauce....sort of like what Phil's uses(more of that in a future post). A friend once gave me a bottle of Maull's which is supposed to represent that style of sauce. So I asked the Gentleman behind the counter what style of BBQ Lightning Jack's serves. His response? "Ummm...uhhh(blank look), we use a lot of liquid smoke!" Not very promising, but I ordered a  half-rack($10.49), which came with a roll, and a side. I chose Baked Beans, which the Missus loves.

The ribs were dry and tough, and the only smoke I could detect was from the super liquid smoked sauce(the Guy wasn't kidding).

 

My eyesight is getting pretty bad, but I couldn't detect a "smoke ring". Which kinda goes against what the menu says:

  I think I need to see the "pit smoker" if I ever eat there again.

The Missus enjoyed the beans, which I thought was very bland. I also ordered some Steak Cut Fries ($1.80), which was a very generous portion of thick cut fries which was probably the best thing about the meal.

I also ordered the Pulled Pork Sandwich ($5.99), which came with 1 side. I asked the Guy if I could just get some Hushpuppies with it, and being the amicable Gentleman, he said, "no problem".

Before the big sandwich reveal, let's read what the menu says:

For me that says a Hickory Smoked Pork Butt....... I haven't had North Carolina BBQ in North Carolina, but have had said style at Mike and Ed's and Country's in Columbus, Georgia, and Dusty's in Decatur, Georgia (near Emory University - Brunswick Stew....). And I can honestly tell you, this wasn't it. The pork was on the tough side, and you really could only taste the sauce......same sauce as the ribs. And no "pile of coleslaw"......

The Missus thought the Hushpuppies were okay. Since the Gentleman was nice enough to give us this instead of some other side, I'll give it a pass. I will say that I'm glad I still have my teeth after eating them.

In retrospect, perhaps I'm being a bit too harsh. But I try to be consistent....if you say you make Sichuan food, I'll expect Sichuan Peppercorns or at least something that is representative of the basic 23 flavors of Sichuan cuisine. Likewise, if you say something is North Carolina style BBQ..... If I didn't know better, perhaps my opinion would be very different.

I really don't even qualify as a novice when it comes to BBQ, and I've only eaten in 1 of those hallowed BBQ havens. I had lunch at Arthur Bryant's in Kansas City in 1997. I did have decent BBQ at a couple of places in Fort Smith, Arkansas (the only one whose name I can remember is Jerry Neel's), a couple places in Atlanta (i.e Dusty's and Fat Matt's Rib Shack), Columbus, Georgia, and one really good shack in Fayetteville, Arkansas. So take my opinion with a grain of salt. Still, I think I've come far from the kid who only had Tony Roma's while growing up in Hawaii.

As for Lightning Jack's, the service was nice and friendly, and the prices are relatively reasonable.

Lightning Jack's BBQ
4705 Clairemont Drive (In the Clairemont Town Center)
San Diego, CA 92117

Another Inexpensive Meal-London Broil

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about food written by Kirk and friends.  Today, Cathy is writing about cooking at home with stuff she bought on sale this week. Again.

Hi. Back again, showing you a meal (actually two meals )I made for two for $5, buying stuff that is on sale this week in San Diego.

London Broil. That is how it is labeled at Henry's this week.  $2.59/lb. A tough cut of meat that is sometimes labeled that way- how it should be cooked.  Actually, the cut of meat is more often (correctly) labeled flank or top or round steak.  It has muscle fibers that run through the entire cut and needs to be massaged or pounded and NEVER scored or stabbed or otherwise mutilated-the few juices in the meat will run out.  It is best when marinated and then...broiled... as the way of cooking it.  Then you cut against the grain and the meat is tender and juicy when hot or cold. Simple.

The marinade I usually make for roasts and red meat is pretty simple: Olive oil, red wine, garlic, basil, oregano, parsley, black pepper. You really can't put in too much of any of the ingredients, except maybe the black pepper.  Just make sure everything is coated and let it marinate for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight, in the refrigerator.

I saw this cool hanging planter thing at the County Fair last year and found it on line and, as you can see, I have a lot of fresh herbs (mostly different basils) at my fingertips. (They sell something similar to this at Home Depot now)

Broil about 3 minutes on each side.  No more than that, unless the meat is more than 1.5 inches thick. (broil about two minutes per side if the meat is an inch thick or less)

WHEN YOU TAKE THE MEAT FROM THE BROILER, LET IT REST FOR ABOUT TEN MINUTES. If you cut it right away, the juices run out and the meat will get tough when it cools down.

When you slice it-against the grain-  it will slice thin easily and be pink in the center.

I served it hot with some noodles with a simple cheesy cream sauce.

and the next day we each had the chilled meat on top of a salad, made with red and green peppers, slices of mushrooms and radishes and some celery on some mixed lettuces. (Along with some tomatoes from my garden.)

I do buy the 'by the pound' lettuce  and mushrooms  from Henry's and find those to be more economical -less waste-. A large bag filled with enough mixed lettuces for two salads was 80¢.  A large handful of mushrooms was 92¢.  All the other veggies were on sale this week at Henry's.

Cathy's London Broil Marinade

For one lb meat: 1 C Olive oil, 1 C red wine, 1/2C chopped garlic, 1/4 C each chopped fresh basil, oregano and parsley.  Black pepper to taste.

If you are using dried instead of fresh herbs, use less-the flavor is way more concentrated in the dry stuff.

Cathy's Cheesy Cream Sauce for pasta

melt 1 stick butter

Heat 1 C milk in sauce pan. Add melted butter.

Add 2 Tbs wine vinegar-(this will turn the milk to cheese)

Simmer for about 15 min until the sauce cooks smooth.

Cook pasta to al dente. Drain and immediately toss in two whipped eggs, the above sauce and 1/3 C fresh grated Parmesan or Romano, salt and pepper.  Toss and serve.

(if you cook 1/4 lb bacon (cut in little cubes) until clear with the butter in the above recipe and then pour the bacon with the melted butter/bacon fat mix into the milk, then follow the rest of the recipe, that *is* pasta carbonara)

Cathy's Salad Dressing

1/2 C oil, 1/4 C vinegar, dash Tabasco, salt and pepper

Lately.......

"I have had the strangest feeling....." Not to imitate the style of one of my favorite bloggers Penny, who often finds just the right lyric or quote for her various posts....

But lately I've been finding myself fading away at certain times, just "wool gathering". I'll be doing a post....you really can't call what I do writing or composing....it's really just "doing". And my mind just sort of wanders. Maybe off to the cobblestone streets of Cusco. Perhaps I've just been working too hard. But I'm starting to get that feeling again. I think we need to head off, to where, I'm not quite sure yet....

It's a funny thing, some of the nicest, most memorable meals we've had on trips, have ended up on the "PWTSDS" ("putdz" - Places Where the Sun Don't Shine) list. That would be the mmm-yoso photo scrap heap. And yet, these were meals we really enjoyed. So without further ado, I think maybe it's time for those "ugly duckling" photos to shine.....so if you'd just put up with me!

Anticuchos in Cusco (Peru):

I believe this was right after our dinner at the Chicharroneria. We were walking down Avenida del Sol, when we spied a crowd on the corner of Avenida del Sol and Ayacucho. A woman was making Anticuchos, and if the crowd was any indication, it was very good Anticuchos indeed!

Seeing the crowd, and breathing in the scent of grilling meat restimulated our appetites, and suddenly we just had to have some Anticuchos. But how to deal with the mass of humanity? Just as in all of our travels, whether in a confused state in a train station in Hanoi, or getting Anticuchos, we met our Guardian Angel. This time, an older gentleman saw the Missus trying to edge Her way forward. He immediately took control of the situation, and waved the Missus next to him. He quickly yelled out for some Anticuchos for the Missus, and even looked them over.....just to make sure.

The Missus said these were the best Anticuchos She ever tasted, and at Un Sol (about 33 cents), it was more than a bargain.

I'm sure the kindness of the Gentleman made them taste even better!

Pardo's - Miraflores (Peru):

As we noted, we stayed at the huge Marriott in Miraflores before returning home. Right across the street is a mall, Larcomar, which is built into the cliffs overlooking the ocean. And in the mall is a location of Pardo's Chicken, the largest Pollo a la Brasa (rotisserie chicken) chain in Peru. There seemed to be a Pollo a la Brasa shop on every street corner in Lima. People here are crazy about it.

We were headed home the next day, and were bushed, and Pardo's seemed to fit the bill. As good as the chicken was....

It was the Papas Fritas (French Fries) which we enjoyed the best. The potatoes were a nice yellow in color (Papas Amarillas - like Yukon Gold), which tasted like the soul of a potato. I can still taste them.......

And with a dip in the Aji Sauce...sort of like an Aji Aioli....man was this good. There's something to be said for having just the right food, at the right time.

Which takes us to Siem Reap and...

Maharajah Royal Indian Cuisine (Siem Reap):

After a day of hiking among ruins, and tired of Fish Amok, we wanted something different. An acquaintance of mine had mentioned that the Indian Food in Siem Reap is not half bad. And we just stumbled into Maharajah.

Gotta love the "spicy scale" provided on the menu....

The unfortunate thing about the restaurant was the lighting, it was a horrible "bug killer green", which made everything look pretty unappetizing.

The Missus enjoyed Her Special Vegetarian Thali (meal set - $3/US), which was an absolute bargain!

I got the most expensive item on the menu; the Mutton Thali ($6/US). And yes, it was indeed mutton, very gamy, and pretty tough. But the Dal was very good.

It was just the right meal at the right time. In fact, the Missus wanted Indian the following night as well.

It's funny how these meals stuck in our mind. Just the right thing, at the right time. Our memories of these places are quite varied as well. For all of the photos of Inca Treasures....

And the magnificent temples of Angkor.....

It's the photos of things like this dog "scratching an itch" in the fresh grass in Calca,

or the children learning traditional dances at school in Cusco,

And the children in Siem Reap.....

With smiles that are priceless..... that we remember the most.

Funny thing, it's the people, and our experiences with those people that the Missus and I discuss the most. The kindnesses of strangers, the stories of the folks we encounter, the understanding that we are all more alike than different.

Yes, I think soon it'll be time to get on a plane and go somewhere....not quite sure where yet, but we'll be sure to let you know. And hopefully I'll finish all those Cambodia posts before I head off on another vacation.

You know, my week has suddenly gotten better. I hope you have a great one! If you've hang around till the end I thank you.

Junz Teriyaki & BBQ

**** Junz has closed

This one is for TanyaS who is always nice enough to let me know when She sees something "new".

It looks like North Park now has a plate lunch shop. Junz Teriyaki & BBQ opened in the beginning of July, and all it took was the mention of the word "Loco Moco" courtesy of an email from Tanya to get me in the front door of Junz.

If I recall, this was a Gyros & Fried Chicken Shop. But man, it's sure been "prettied up"(is there such a phrase?).

And, if you really need it, you can still get a Gyros or Falafel Sandwich...with a side order of Spam Musubi.

So what did I get? Well, being the consistent (a nice way of saying predictable) guy I am, I got the Loco Moco ($5.95). On the menu it's the "Loco Moco Hawaiian" which I think is kinda, well insulting...perhaps it should be the Hawaiian Style Loco Moco? This was the first of many signs that perhaps this was just another attempt at cashing in on "Hawaiian BBQ". The next indicator was when the Loco Moco arrived:

What the heck? I had not read the part that said, "Gravy Teriyaki Sauce".....actually it was just teriyaki sauce. I did enjoy the egg, which was a very Bi-Bim-Bap-ish perfect, and for the price expected the preformed hamburger patty, which was unexpectedly cut into 4 pieces. But the rest of this was a train wreck. From the teriyaki sauce to the mixed peas, corn, and carrots mixed into the rice...to the soggy iceberg lettuce, to the mushy rice, this wasn't very good.

At least the Teriyaki Sauce wasn't overly sweet. This was just a bit strange. Just one more thing, on the menu it says "Hamburger Patties" and "Eggs". Last time I checked, those are plurals, as in "more than one".

Not that I need to do any additional damage to my cholesterol level......but perhaps this should be fixed in future editions of the menu? I'm still trying to figure out which "Island" this "Style" of Loco Moco is from. And here I thought that the Loco Moco that Kat posted about was a bit odd!

Still, that egg was mighty good, and in some very strange way I really wanted to like this place. I liked the decor, and the ladies are very nice. So I decided to give it another go. This time, because of the that egg, I thought perhaps there was some Korean roots to the food, and thought that perhaps the Spicy Chicken Teriyaki($6.95) would be a good item to try. I mean, a nice Dak Bulgogi style chicken with Kochujang for a tad of heat.

It was not to be, it was just "spiked" teriyaki sauce, on top of fast-foodish, food courtish, chicken. The 1 scoop of rice, was cooked perfectly this time, and the macaroni salad was a bit too runny, but tasted fine.

There was very little to separate this stuff from what you'd get at generic shopping mall food court...you know, the "same chicken, different sauce" syndrome. Perhaps I should have had a Spam Onigiri (Falafel Sandwich?).

It's kind of a bummer. Like I said, the ladies working here are really nice, and the place is sparkling clean and bright. As I looked at the take-out menu, I noticed that this place is run by the folks who own North Park Sushi & Grill across the street, and Hanaoka Japanese Restaurant, which I understand has been in National City forever. The menu has items like Saimin, Gyoza, Hummus(!), and Teriyaki in several forms. Maybe someone can tell me what I need to order from Junz!

Junz Teriyaki & BBQ
3010 University Ave
San Diego, CA 92104

Hours: Mon-Sat 11am - 9pm

Thanks for letting me know when you see something you think I'd be interested in Tanya!

Roadtrip: Be Thui from Cho Ben Thanh Market - Westminster (Orange County)

A funny thing has happened since I've started this little ol' food blog. Among the emails I receive, there's always bound to be one naming some dish I've never heard of before. And it usually goes something like this: "Kirk, have you ever tried xxxxxx? I don't eat it myself, but my (fill in the blank - Father, Mother, Uncle, Grandfather) just loves the stuff." I guess it's just a sign of old age, I'm getting lumped in with what "Dad" eats. However, this one came from a good "FOY" (friend of yoso!!!), TammyC. The basic gist of the email was that her Dad loves what she called "almost raw baby cow meat dip" from Cho Ben Thanh Market in Westminster. Not quite the most appetizing of descriptions, but TammyC knows my "tastes" pretty well, and recommended I try it out. I understood that I was a bit out of my depth here, and perhaps needed a bit of help. This, of course, was a job for the man we simply call "Beach"! Of course he knew exactly what I was describing. Always generous with his time, Beach agreed to meet me, and in fact took me on a whirlwind little tour of some of Little Saigon's little shops and eateries. It was a wonderful 2 hours, and will be the subject of a future post.

Our fourth (yes fourth) stop on the tour was Cho Ben Thanh Market.....and a plastic vat of pinkish meat covered with a powdery substance..... Be Thui. Beach explained that this version is roasted veal, dusted with rice powder, and is eaten with a ginger based dipping sauce and basil. The market itself is fairly busy, and the shoppers (mostly women) are pretty aggressive.

You haven't lived until you've seen an anxious group of women with tongs (not thongs) attack a steaming vat of intestines. The gentleman manning the register seemed to grow 2 extra pairs of arms as he deftly handled all of the transactions coming at him. Beach made sure I got what I came for, the gentleman covered his hand with a plastic bag, grabbed a handful of the meat, folded the bag over, and that was it. I paid, and fearful of what damage ladies with tongs could do, beat a hasty retreat.

After I arrived home, I opened up my little package and checked out my Be Thui.

Slices of very pink meat along with fat and skin, coated in rice powder and sesame seeds. I tried some straight out of the bag, and the meat had a chewy texture almost like that of cured meat. Being veal, the flavor was very mild, and though the fragrance had a bit of a "metallic" edge to it, it was not reflected in the meat, as the rice powder had absorbed much of the moisture of the meat, and provided a bit of a nutty flavor to the whole thing. The pieces of skin were on the crunchy side.

And so I made myself a plate.

The real star of the show was the dipping sauce, made with what Beach said was Tuong Cu Da, a fermented bean sauce. According to Wikipedia the sauce is made in a town in the Hà Tây Province, which as of 2008 is now a part of Hanoi. It was the ginger in the fairly salty sauce that really shown through. Though the Missus wouldn't touch the Be Thui, she kept tasting the sauce. The combination of the dipping sauce and the basil gave the dish a very clean and refreshing flavor.

As Beach pointed out, this would be pretty good with a "cold one". Should you want to brave the "women with tongs" you can get Be Thui, and a whole range of Offal at Cho Ben Thanh Market.

Cho Ben Thanh Market
9172 Bolsa Avenue
Westminster, CA 92683

I'd never had thought to try this without that wonderful email from TammyC, and Beach's(who should do food tours of Little Saigon) help. So thanks again to both of you!

Saturday Stuffs: No Moa Da' Kine's National City, What's this about Drive-thru Banh Mi, A Surprise at Sammy's, and other "stuffs"

Just some Miscellanea for the weekend:

No Moa Da Kine's National City, La Dat:

I've been thinking about doing another plate lunch week, and it seems that I always do at least one post on Da' Kine's. After all, they've been around over a decade. So, back in July I had a plate lunch at Da' Kine's, and decided to drop by one more time a few weeks ago. And to my surprise, this facade:

Was replaced with this:

Wow, so this is the third Da Kine's to close. Only the new Liberty Station location is still open. Oh, I did have lunch here, but you'll have to wait for that post. This is what I had at Da' Kine's in July:

I'm still contemplating plate lunch week....but all the Teriyaki - Hawaiian BBQ, blah, blah, blah, gets to be the same after a while. Maybe I should just intermingle them.....what do you think?

Nani Moku Hawaiian BBQ
1635 Sweetwater Road
National City, CA 91950

What's this about drive-thru Banh Mi?:

A few weeks ago, "22cards" (thanks for letting me know), reported that Cali Baguette Express's long awaited Banh Mi Drive-thru was open. And not only that, but they were now open 24 hours a day! So that very Friday, the Missus and I headed out to Cali Baguette Express, at about 930pm, and found the place completely dark, totally closed, not a creature was stirring. We were so disappointed, we headed straight to Golden City and had Peking Duck...talk about depressed.

Determined to get to the bottom of the "drive-thru" mystery, I took a serious detour, and hit up CBE at 630 am a recent morning. and indeed all the "signs" were in full display. It does say Open 24 Hours, looks like the Drive-thru is from 9pm to 6am, which would have been right in the ballpark. So I ordered a Banh Mi Trung ($2.59), and asked the young lady about the drive-thru. I had a bit of a problem understanding, but I believe the gist of it was, the store closes at 9pm, with only drive-thru service from 9-midnight Sunday-Thursday, and 9pm thru 6am Fridays and Saturdays.....I think. Maybe someone else will have more info.

  As for the Banh Mi, the bread was better on this occasion than my previous visits. Warm, decently crusty, with some chew. The egg wasn't dredged in Maggi, which is what I've gotten at a few places. It was not bad....of course it could have just been that I love Banh Mi Trung...especially when I'm starving.

Sure beats one of those egg mc-something's any day of the week.

Cali Baguette Express
5215 El Cajon Boulevard
San Diego CA 92115

A Sammy Surprise:

I haven't been to Sammy's in a while, but on my last visit, not being too hungry, I just had a few pieces of Nigiri.

No big deal, right? Except for one thing; knowing that I don't really use the usual rehydrated-dry-wasabi-powder-that-is-Coleman's-mustard-in-disguise, Sam told me to try what he placed on my plate. It was real wasabi.....actually wasabi paste, probably from Pacific Farms. It's still not as good as fresh ground wasabi...but it's much better than the "other stuff". I'm not sure if Sam was just trying it out, or if he's going to carry it from now on.......so it'll be interesting to see.

Sieu Sieu BBQ Reopens:

I dropped by Barbecue's Galore, and noticed that Sieu Sieu BBQ had opened in the  former Maui Maui Hawaiian BBQ location on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard. I'm not quite sure if this is something to be very happy about. When we first moved to San Diego, we visited Sieu Sieu at it's old location on Linda Vista Road a few times.....and had some of the worst Chinese BBQ I've ever experienced.

Dry roast pork and Char Siu, and some of the most bland Roast Duck I've ever had. But as I was walking past the place, I noticed how busy they were.....full of Chinese! It could be that they were all just checking things out. But maybe we should be too!

Sieu Sieu BBQ
7420 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111

I hope everyone's having a great weekend!

Beer can chicken-Cooking on the cheap, week 3

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog about food.  Food we eat out and food we eat at home and food we think about eating.

Hi.  Well, this is the third "$5 Friday" meal I am showing you.  It is what I prepare when I find stuff on sale at local grocery stores and do the cooking.  Everything here is kind of simple, tasty and what was available when I went shopping, save for a few "staples" I have around the house.

So, whole chickens are 99¢ a pound at Henry's this week.  I did get a 5 pounder, which is the whole budget, but this will make more than food for at least two meals for two people.

You also need a can of beer- any kind will do.  Even soda pop, sweetened (not with that artificial stuff in it), some  seasoned salt and a bunch of rosemary. I have a Rosemary plant, apparently the Chernobyl variety, that grew from a 50¢ garage sale  mini pot into a 3 foot by 3 foot monster of a bush.

It also helps if you have one of these contraptions placed in a pan.  It holds a can.  It cost 88¢ at WalMart years ago.  You can get one for about $15 if you want to shop elsewhere. All of them work the same way.  It  holds a can. It also will keep the chicken upright.

Drink half the can of the beer or sugared soda pop. (Just so you all know, somebody left this beer at our house: I buy dark beer for myself). 

Stuff the can with rosemary.  Put can into contraption. Put seasoned salt on the chicken. All sides.

Mount the chicken over the can. 

Place the chicken in the center of the grill.

Our grill has three burners and I put the sides on low and leave the center one off.

Cover.

Cook until juice runs clear when you put a knife in near the thigh.  About an hour in this case of a 5 pounder.

The basic premise is that the inside beverage boils and therefore steam cooks from the inside and the outside cooks, skin burns and gets crispy.

I served it with Stouffer's Spinach Souffle (on sale at Albertsons last week for $2 each).  The extra chicken will be moist and taste wonderful on a salad tomorrow.

Cathy's Beer Can Chicken

One chicken;Seasoned salt; Rosemary; One can of beer or regular (sugared)  soda

Drink half the can of beverage.  Stuff can with fresh rosemary. Mount chicken upright with can inside cavity.  Place on pan. Heat gas grill on low so there is radiant heat from all sides.  Cook until juices run clear.

Bud's Louisiana Cafe

After what seemed like a very long wait, Bud's Louisiana Food Shoppe has reopened in, of all places, Tierrasanta. You may have to look carefully, but you'll find it, right there past the Roundtable Pizza.

Like the previous incarnation of Bud's, this is a fairly tiny restaurant, and even though the tables are crammed in fairly close together, I think this location is much more relaxed.

The menu is pretty much the same, from the Cup'a-Cup'a-Cup'a (a cup each of Gumbo, Red Beans & Rice, and Jambalaya) to the various Po Boy sandwiches. The prices for the sandwiches are about a buck more, but the entree prices have remained the same.

Since I just finished watching Memento for umpteenth time, I think we'll work a little reverse chronological thing here, and start with my latest meal. It was a Fried Oyster Po Boy($9.95):

A good amount of cornflour battered oysters, fried to perfection, crisp, and mildly "gritty", with a nice soft, molten center. The baguette was good, crusty with a bit of "chew". I'm not a big fan of the "Jalapeno tartar sauce" at Bud's, I find it a bit too runny, but in this case it did no harm. This is probably my favorite sandwich at Bud's.

Man, did I enjoy this, even at close to ten bucks. And I was glad to have eaten at Bud's on that particular day. Why? Well, because the Missus And I had lunch at Bud's a week earlier......

On that day, I started with a cup of the Seafood Gumbo ($4.95):

There was a good amount of seafood in the gumbo, though the flavor was a bit "flat".....I added a bit of Crystal Hot Sauce, which pumped up the flavor a bit. All good except the okra which was too slimy.

I had thought about the Oyster Po Boy, but with the Missus's "encouragement" went with the Fried Catfish Po Boy ($9.95):

The perfectly fried catfish was quite good, moist, with a nice, crisp crust. And with none of that muddy flavor which I'm not fond of. Everything else was not so good. There was too much of the runny tartar sauce, which ran out of the sandwich creating a little pool in the bottom of the paper liner. The bread was hard, and, well, hard....it seemed to be a bit past its "due date".

The Missus went with the Crawfish Etouffe ($11.95), which looked marvelous:

  The dish had a ton of crawfish tails, and was quite rich. In fact, I'm sure that this version used a good amount of butter. It would have been a wonderful dish except for the disturbing starchy flavor that left a rather unpleasant aftertaste.

If this had been our first visit I may have never returned. But we'd been to Bud's several times at their old location, and I thought I'd give it another go. Or maybe, like the main character in Memento, I suffered from a case of Anterograde Amnesia? If that was the case, I'm glad I did.

Bud's Louisiana Cafe
10425 Tierrasanta Blvd
San Diego, CA 92124

Lunch:  Tues, Wed, Thurs - 11am - 3pm

Dinner: Thurs, Fri, Sat - 5pm - 9pm

H-Ind-Talian food, Himalayan Cuisine

mmm-yoso!!! is the blog about food and Cathy is here again today. I have been having strange food cravings this summer. I vacillate between Indian and Mediterranean food.  Some days I want both. Little did I know that this new restaurant was opening... Special thanks to Kirk for the title.  It is descriptive.

Hi.  So, anyhow, it's Thursday at 4 a.m. 

I go outside to get the paper.        

Say good morning to Fricassee, the cottontail who seems to be living in my front yard, and start to read.

I get to the "East County Dining" section.

"Himalayan Cuisine.

Indian and Italian Food."

huh??!!?

You know, the coffee wasn't ready yet.  I started thinking to myself "so this is why you can't win at Jeopardy or Trivial Pursuit...you know nothing of geography"...

There I was thinking Italy and India were, like, two continents apart.  How can these two types of food and cooking possibly be served in the same restaurant?

We had to. Oh, yes we had to.  The place smells heavenly when you walk in the door.

Meat samosa ($1.62).

Crust was excellent. Meat and fillings (celery, peas, carrots)fresh.  Not very spicy.  Unfortunately my least favorite item, but not bad.

The three item combo - choose from what was on the steam tray ($7.99) Chicken tikka masala-excellent.  Spicy chicken curry-nice heat and still the ability to taste all flavors. Turmeric, cumin, onion, cinnamon and ginger stood out, but there were more.

A lot of chicken meat in both. Excellent basmati rice.

The third item was meat lasagna-excellent.  Cheesy as well as meaty with a good tomato sauce.  There is a photo of the intact samosa.

The three item combination comes with rice and fresh made naan. Fresh made.

Cheese calzone ($5.99)

Whatever oven they use to make the naan, they use for the pizza and calzone.  The crust is sweet, crunchy and chewy.  The fillings are cheeses (Mozzarella, ricotta and parmesan) fresh made, tomato-y sauce. There is a meat lover and pepperoni calzone available as well-same price.

Chicken biyrani ($6.99).

Really really good, fresh made (not on the steam tray).  Buttery (with ghee) rice, nice heat level, at least three chicken thighs. 

Shown with the naan and raita (yogurt sauce-with cucumbers and carrots).

The owners are very nice, friendly, efficient and professional.  The seating area is small (6 booths, 3 tables).  They make both cuisines quite well.   The website states they are trying to make healthy foods and touts the benefits of the Indian spices, as well as the healthy aspects of the Italian foods and the many vegetarian products available.

The food is extremely fresh and high quality and plentiful.  It's in East County-close to home and my cravings!

Himalayan Cuisine-Indian and Italian food 7918 El Cajon Boulevard, #P (between the 99cent Only store and Burlington Coat Factory) La Mesa 91941 (619)461-2503 M-Sat 11-9, Sun 11-7

website  The website has coupons!