Man, it seems like I've been going pretty much non-stop since getting back from our trip. Today is my first day off and after like twelve hours of sleep last night, a nice lunch (road trip style), and a afternoon nap, I'm finally starting to feel somewhat in-synch. There really hasn't been much eating out since we got back, but here's a place I stopped at a couple of times in the last week.
We got in late Saturday evening and I had to go in for a few hours on Sunday. I got up, got dressed and headed off to work, but was kind of hungry. I recalled seeing that Best Donuts had been going thru a facelift before we left on our vacation so decided to see if they had reopened. And they had; so I stopped and walked in.
Man, they've really done quite the job on the place.
Best Donuts had reshuffled the lay-out several times during my visits over the years. I don't think they'll be moving stuff around much after this renovation.
I recognized the young lady working the register, who told me that the ownership of the shop remains the same. One thing that has changed are the prices, the breakfast tortas are now in the $5.50 - $7.50 range and the regular tortas will run you from $8.50 - $9.50. Wow, I remember getting the A la Mexicana here for $4.99 on my last visit. Well, someone has to help pay for the freshinging up, right?
Instead of ordering my usual, the A la Mexicana; I went with the La Nortena ($6.50).
The bread was still nice and warm when I got to the office. It had held up well for the 15 minute drive. It was quite yeasty and just as good as ever. I had never been a fan of the machaca here; but this time it was beefy, moist, and rather tender. The sauce had a mild spice and smokiness to it and was delicious with the eggs. The pickled jalapenos added a nice zip; though I think using something like queso asadero or cotija would improve the sandwich. The mozzarella used is gooey, but in this framework you can't really taste the cheese.
Still, it seemed that the sandwiches here had taken a step up. So, I decided to drop by on my way to work a few days later. Which is when I found out the place doesn't open at 5-530 am anymore. Rather they open at 6 during the week. Luckily, the nice young lady quickly turned on the "Open" sign when she saw me....it was 558 am.
This time, I went with my usual at Best Donuts, the A la Mexicana ($6.50).
The bread was as before; warm, yeasty, and quite good. Not quite as much eggs or beans as I recall, but with the jalapenos and salsa, this is my kind of breakfast. In this case, the light milkiness of the cheese comes thru. Would have liked a bigger smear of beans though.
On one of my days back, I had meetings thru lunch. Barrio Donas starts serving their tortas at 10am, which meant I could stop by in between meetings to grab a torta. Man, they were pretty busy at 10, with a line and several customers waiting.
I went with the Chilanga ($9.50).
When I opened my sandwich back at the office; I was pleasantly surprised to see that the sandwich had been nicely pressed. Based on the melted cheese in the breakfast sandwiches; I figure that they do some kind of heating, but this really add a pleasant crustiness to the sandwich.
I really enjoyed the beans, chorizo, onions, jalapenos, and tomatoes, all of which added layers of savory, pungent, tangy, and piquant tones. There was a thin slice of ham....more protein I guess. The milanesa, pounded breaded beef was on the tough side for my taste.
Not bad, though I'm not sure it's worth almost ten bucks.
I think I'll stick with the breakfast offerings, which are quite satisfying. It's nice to see an old favorite rebooted and doing so well. The young lady who works mornings here is so friendly as well.
Barrio Donas
4714 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92117
Hours
Mon - Sat 6am - 9pm
Sunday 7am - 6pm
nice but pricey.
Posted by: kat | Sunday, 09 June 2019 at 08:22 PM
Glad to see it's the same owners. I saw the new sign the other day & was concerned about a drop in quality/options. Will have to drop in for a Mexicana.
Posted by: Derek Ray | Monday, 10 June 2019 at 12:03 AM
Yeah, prices sure have gone up over the years Kat!
Yes, still the same owners Derek. And that young lady working during the mornings is so nice.
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 10 June 2019 at 06:37 AM
Nice looking spot. How are the donuts!
Posted by: Soo | Monday, 10 June 2019 at 08:28 AM
Not sure Soo......I'm not much of a sweets kind of guy. They do look a lot better than they did before.
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 10 June 2019 at 08:40 AM
Tasty looking tortas!
Posted by: Junichi | Monday, 10 June 2019 at 11:47 AM
These were pretty good Junichi.
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 10 June 2019 at 12:52 PM
I went twice this week to give them a retest. Similar to what you said, the Mexicana was good as usual but the fillings were scant + a much higher price (I remember when these were $4!). The second time I tried a Preparado ($3.50) - basically a bolillo with beans, cheese, jalapeño, mayo, & chorizo. It was good & filling but too much bread not enough stuff. Hopefully their fillings increase...
The Doughnuts were remarkably good though, I'd say they compete with the best Doughnuts in San Diego.
Posted by: Derek R | Saturday, 15 June 2019 at 12:05 PM
The prices sure have gone up quite a bit Derek and the amount of filling has gone down......
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 17 June 2019 at 06:49 AM
=(
Posted by: Derek R | Monday, 17 June 2019 at 09:32 AM