mmm-yoso!!!

XO Restaurant (Honolulu)

During our last stay back "home", while staying in town we wanted to have a nice meal. I had really enjoyed spending time in my old neighborhood. Having grown up in Kaimuki, it was crazy to see all of the changes. The place is kinda "hipster" now.

I made reservations at a place I'd heard good things about. I was really interested because growing up, this was the location of Kwok's Chop Suey. I actually went to school with one of owner's sons whom my my old friend from "small kid" time that I ran into at Ala Moana Park told me still lives in the old family home in Kaimuki!

The shop is now home to XO Restaurant.

Having grown up here, being exposed to the blending of cuisines, and then the heyday of Hawaii Regional Cuisine, I'm a bit cautious about the food being more "con-fusion" than fusion at these places. And yet, we'd had good meals at at Senia and more recently at Merriman's in Kamuela. So, I thought it would fun checking out XO.

We easily found parking in the tiny lot, but that was probably because we had early reservations. Upon entering I cracked up as I had the mental image of old Kwok's Chop Suey floating thru my head. Of course it no longer looks like that place.....

Our Server was very friendly (of course) and we ended up getting the Tasting menu along with extra "shooters".

Things started out with the Hamachi & Fake Crab Cannoli.

 Not sure why a place of this caliber would be serving surimi in one of their dishes. But whatever. We enjoyed the crisp "scorza", but the filling was too sour and salty. We really couldn't make out much. So, I guess having fake crab in this really didn't matter, eh?

Next up was the Hamachi Crudo.

The fish was of decent quality, but all the "stuffs" really didn't elevate the dish. That's shishito, not a serrano, so no spice, the dollops of aioli had no flavor...the slices of orange added just a slight hint of citrus and there was a sour flavor to this that we didn't enjoy. We would have enjoyed a nice savory touch, a bit of pungency, or decent acidity. 

The Thai Beef Larb Salad was mostly iceberg lettuce and mayo.

It was like having a few pieces of bulgogi on lettuce squirted with Kewpie mayo.

The Buttermilk Fried Chicken was more on the crunchy side, than crisp. The sauces, especially the sourish tzatziki really detracted from the overall flavor of the chicken.

The Shrimp and Calamari Seafood Pancake, obviously a take on Pajeon was texturally nice.

 The exterior was nice and crisp, but the calamari was super tough, the glaze salty which over-powered the entire dish.

The Grilled Pork Belly Ssam was one of the better dishes of the evening.

The pork was nicely grilled, good seasoning, the Gochujang sauce was on the salty side, but not too bad as the lettuce could calm things down.

One "shooter" per person was included in the meal. You could add shooter for $11 each. Since there was A-5 Wagyu and Foie Gras on the list, how could we just get one each? We both got an additional "shooter". Which was basically said protein item on slightly seasoned rice.

 The A-5 Wagyu was fine, if a bit overcooked, quite beefy in flavor. And you know me, if there's foie gras on the menu...... The foie gras was also a bit overcooked, but at least it wasn't what we call "dog food". It was pleasantly livery and sweet. I'm thinking it could have been elevated even higher with a nice glaze.

The desserts presented a funny moment, the Missus did enjoy the "Bunny Butter Mochi".

It's the Wagyu Fat Caramels that kind of freaked Her out; She got flashbacks to beef tallow butter and other versions in the past. Actually, it was perfectly fine.

As for the meal? Well, it was quite disappointing. More "con-fusion" than fusion. Kind of sad since we were looking forward to this dinner, especially since the location has a special place in my heart. Oh well, you can't win 'em all. 

XO Restaurant
3434 Waialae Ave.
Honolulu, HI 96816

Guadalajara - Dinner at Restaurante Allium and Antojitos Sanchez (at Tianguis del Parque Rojo)

Our flight from Mexico City to Guadalajara International Airport was right on time. Our driver was on time and the drive to our hotel; the Hotel Portobelo took about 30 minutes and was uneventful. The hotel is large, modern, and close to Zona Centro and all the historical sights. It is also right across the street from Parque Revolucion, which I found out is more commonly known as Parque Rojo, the Red Park to locals. Our flight had arrived at 1130 and it was just after noon when we arrived at the hotel. Check-in time was 3pm, so we decided to stow our luggage and go for a stroll. Lucky for us; there's a huge flea market, called Tianguis del Parque Rojo that occurs on Saturday.

And we spent a good amount of time exploring.

There was just about everything under the sun available here.

Something we soon noticed. Folks were quite friendly here, people would smile at us, wave us forward, we were the only Asians in sight, so I'm sure we stood out.

Soon we came across a food stall named Antojitos Sanchez. Folks seemed to be enjoying their meal, so we decided to give it a try.

One of the young men eating spoke perfect English and told us to sit next to him....folks actually moved over for us, in case we needed some help. Like I said, great people.

The Missus got a coconut agua fresca, which She loved so much and chugged down in like a minute! We ordered a second one!

We ordered tacos. The chicharron....the young man was surprised we ordered that, was so tender and full of flavor.

The fatty portions and meat basically melted in your mouth! Such porky goodness, we didn't want to spoil the flavors by adding anything....we just wanted to "pig out" if you know what I mean.

We got the quesabirria tacos. The tortillas were very good and the cheese had been expertly melted and were so crisp!

The birria was fairly mild in flavor, though quite tender. For us, this was mostly about the wonderful texture.

The folks working were just plain wonderful; as was the young man who volunteered to help us! This was such a nice start to our visit here!

Antojitos Sanchez (at Tianguis del Parque Rojo)
Americana, 44160 Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Market on Saturdays

We headed back across the street to the hotel. It was getting pretty hot and we thought we'd just wait in the air conditioned lobby of the hotel. Luckily, our room was ready early and we settled in.

As for dinner; well, it was going to be the total opposite of lunch. I had made reservations at Restaurante Allium which I had read about being a champion of local products and possibly the best restaurant in the city. To make things interesting, the restaurant was 5 kilometers (like 3 miles) away from Hotel Portobelo and we decided to walk, which was quite interesting.

Anyway, we made it to the location, which seemed to be an upscale business district with many high rises.

The restaurant is set-up in a modern, somewhat minimalistic style, with a visible kitchen. The service is warm and professional, it seems to be the place where the business elites come to eat.

Things started with an amuse sort of a aguachile bite, which was nice and refreshing.

There's only three wines by the glass, none of it from Mx, but the Missus though it fine.

And various salsas and butter are kindly provided.

We ended up ordering two appetizers and two entrees.

First to arrive was the Octopus Carpaccio.

As we would find with the other dishes, there's a lot going on here. From "tomato overload", both fresh and sun dried tomatoes, to an interesting flavor that seemed like dashi, which I later found was Katsuobushi, there was nice acidity, the avocado was nice and buttery, and the octopus very tender. The sourdough bread was a bit over-toasted, but still retained a nice balance.

The other appetizer we ordered was the Seabass Ceviche.

There was a bit too much going on here, though the texture of the fish was wonderful, it was overshadowed by all the acidity in the dish.

The Missus ordered the Lamb as Her main.

My goodness, those asparagus tips were amazing, so sweet and tender. The lamb shoulder was fine, a bit tough, we wished it was a bit more gamey, the dish gravitated to the sweeter end of the flavor spectrum.

I got the Pork Belly.

Once again, the produce was so good, those green beans had a nice, slightly sweet-chlrophyllic flavor. The frisee added a much needed balance to the sweet sauce. The pork belly was tender, but I wish there was more porcine flavor and less sweetness to the dish.

In the end, this was an interesting dining experience, the staff were so professional, yet warm and friendly.

Restaurante Allium
Avenida Providencia 2411, Plaza Leben Providencia
Guadalajara, Jalisco, México

We decided to catch an Uber back to the hotel. It had been an interesting day. Such diversity between our first two meals in the city. And yet there was one thing that seemed universal; the kindness and smiles of the folks here!

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip - Array 36 (Temple City)

Way back in March, the Missus had requested a specific road trip. We'd be taking our time to our destination. We first stayed in Carlsbad and had a fine dinner at Jeune et Jolie, after our morning coffee and some breakfast we headed to the SGV. As usual, we stayed the night at the Courtyard at Monterey Park and had made reservations for a restaurant in Temple City. I know what you're thinking, "sigh, is Kirk going to do yet another post on Bistro Na's?" Well FOYs, I'll give you a break from that for now, ok? I had read about a restaurant that opened in Temple City in October of last year. The place had Shanghainese influenced dishes along with an $98 Roast Duck dish carved tableside, which had to be ordered ahead of time. I'd read that the renovation of the restaurant, named Array 36 cost over 3 million dollars, with the goal of setting a new level of fine dining for Chinese cuisine in Los Angeles. So, of course we had to try things out.

I made reservations for 5pm, right when the place opened. 

As we entered, the haunting moodiness of the restaurant engulfed us. 

There's a huge hologram of a whale projected on the wall. It's quite a trippy scene.

We looked over the menu and placed our order. Soon enough, a serving of Kai Wei Cai, those little before meal snacks that are supposed to "open up the stomach" arrived.

The beans were quite nice; but it was the pungent-sour-mildly spicy laba garlic that we enjoyed. This was a great start to the meal.

Of course we needed to try the duck. There as no way we'd be able to finish a whole duck, so no "flaming fowl", the tableside torched and carved duck. No we went with the half roast duck ($68).

 
Which came with all the standard accessories. The fat had been rendered nicely, but the skin was not as crisp and delicate as we like. The flavor was quite mild and the meat tough and dry.

The dan bing, those "pancakes" one enrobes the duck and  accoutrements with were large, thicker then we like and on the chewy side for our taste.

There's a version of Dragon Well Shrimp on the menu, something we really love. We still talk about the wonderful version we had all those years ago at Jiangnan Restaurant in Beijing. It's called Stir Fried River Shrimp on the English menu. We got a small order which was $58.

Man, this was bad. The shrimp was overcooked and tough, was too salty, and lacked depth of flavor. 

We also ordered the House Special Smoked Plank Pork ($28).

The pork was on the chewier side of the scale, a bit too sweet for our taste, but heck, this was Shangainese influenced so that makes sense. Mild smokiness, decent pork tones. Not bad.

The last dish would prove to be a winnah! The Beef Fried Rice with Black Truffle ($22).

This was quite possibly the best fried rice I'd had in a while. While there was just a wisp of black truffle flavor; the rice was perfectly cooked and coated, the seasoning a nice balance of salt and savory. 

At least the meal ended on a high note. The service as excellent, the interior a world of it's own. But in the end, it's about the food, and sorry to say, in spite of watching that hologram whale swimming on the wall across us, I don't think the dinner was worth the $200 price tag.

Array 36
5449 Rosemead Blvd.
San Gabriel, CA 91776

Taipei - Mountain and Sea House Restaurant

While planning our trip to Taiwan, I came across a Michelin listing for a place called Mountain & Sea House, which had one Michelin Star. But what really got my attention was the restaurant served Taiwanese dishes that harkened back to the 1930's. In addition, the restaurant sourced their ingredients from their own farm, their swine from a ranch that raises indigenous breeds and so forth. Honestly, I could've spent the entire trip eating Lu Rou Fan (and of course pork chops), but that wouldn't be any fan fun, would it? A big plus is that Mountain & Sea House did online reservations, which I took advantage of.

The walk from our hotel was about 25 minutes where we ended up on Ren'ai Road and a lovely looking structure. The really knowledgeable staff told the Missus that the building is in the style of the Japanese Meiji Taisho period, which coincides with the time period of Japanese rule in the country and what is considered the heyday of Taiwanese banquet cuisine by many.

The interior is austere yet classy.

Of course, it was only the Missus and I, so ordering huge banquet dishes was not a possibility, but there is a huge "family menu" for 8 people that needs to be ordered in advance; a bunch of set menus, whole suckling pig, chicken cooked in pork stomach, and a bevy of seafood offerings as well.

We just ordered a couple of interesting items off the a la carte menu.

What was interesting is the the restaurant had it's own beer, barrel aged in wine barrels.

This had some nice tart-fruitiness to it; but wasn't as strong as say, a Belgian (of which I've had a few).

The Missus started with a Rose from Weightstone and winery in Taichung.

Which She really enjoyed. She would have a glass of white from the same winery, which was exclusive to the restaurant later during the meal.

After our tea service....

Our food started arriving. First up, was the eye catching "White Flowered Mountain Gourd".

The zucchini and carrot laced parcel was filled with a concoction of dried scallops, black pork, and several different type of mushrooms. It was a bit milder in flavor than we had anticipated, but man, the velvety chicken stock, seasoned perfectly, studded with sweet-earthy mushrooms was fantastic.

Next up were the Oyster Fritters.

It was the two types of greens; bitter-vegetal-crunchy that made this dish. The oysters and pork were quite mild in flavor and the fritter batter not as crisp as we would like.

My favorite dish of the evening was the Three Cup Pig Tail Stew. What seems like a bajillion years ago, I had my first taste of Taiwanese food in a restaurant in the SGV. One of the dishes was Three Cup Chicken. It was love at first bite! It was strange for us to not come across that dish in restaurants we visited in Taiwan? Regardless, this was amazing.

At first glance, the pork looked really dark, but it wasn't overly salty, loved the whole cloves of sweet-pungent garlic, a hint of ginger wafted through the air. The earthy mushrooms added another "meaty" dimension to the meal. The pig tail was swiny, the skin soft, the pieces of cartilage perfect for gnawing. The fragrant basil added the necessary herbaceous-anise tones to the dish.

The "Maqaw" Roast Pork was fine if a bit underwhelming.

Love the tender - porkiness; but the pork seemed to have not been marinated long enough for our taste.

I had our wonderful, friendly Server order me a glass of local Whiskey, he told me it was Lychee Flavored. It was quite nice.

This was a fun meal. We enjoyed the service and watching the families, many multi-generational enjoying their meals here. While we could have easily stuck with smaller restaurants, night markets, and street food; I'm glad we made time for places like this!

Mountain and Sea House Restaurant
No. 94, Section 2, Ren'ai Rd.
Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan

Road Trip - Sazon (Santa Fe, NM)

One of the main reasons we headed back to Santa Fe for another road trip was to dine at Sazon. We had really wanted to have dinner at Sazon during our last stay (Sept 2022), but the Chef, Fernando Olea who hails from CDMX had recently won the James Beard Award for Best Chef Southwest and reservations were impossible to come by. So, instead we ended having a nice meal at Geronimo. This time, I managed to get reservations for an early dinner. The restaurant located in one of those classic Santa Fe Adobes one block from our hotel.

The place was already buzzing when we were seated. The dining area is divided in different rooms, each adorned with colorful artwork.

The service was professional, but warm and not stuffy. There is a tasting menu available during two specific seatings, but we just wanted to try items we saw on the regular menu.

The Missus started with some Champagne, I was looking forward to our upcoming (at that time) trip to Tequila in the upcoming month and had a Tres Generaciones Anejo. We were also provided with a Mole sampler, some of which was too sweet for the Missus, so we were glad to have just gone with ordering off the menu. You'll also soon see why.....

As things started with the Tuetano - Bone Marrow. You know how much I like bone marrow, right?

The salsa rojo on the bone marrow had a nice kick and really blended well with the buttery richness of the marrow. It went so well with the maizey tortillas. This was a nice start.

Next up; the Higado de Ganzo - Foie Gras with a raspberry-coconut sauce on crostini.

The sweetness of the sauces and the resiny flavor of the pine nuts overwhelmed the small slices of foie gras in this dish. It was just a bit too much stuff, which made it a "foie faux" to us.

Next up were these.

The Xochimilco - Huitlacoche, with queso fresco was so delici-yoso.

Oh my, the earthy-mushroomy-sweet huitlacoche paired so well with the slightly milky queso fresco, which added a melty-buttery texture. The corn tortillas added heft and the salsa a bit of heat, with a mild sweetness. 

We also enjoyed the Oaxaquenos - Chapulines, which was served over mashed avocado. 

Just by themselves, the light and crunchy grasshoppers had a really nice savory-grassy-mild spice that was so nice. Our Server told us that it had been infused with garlic and olive oil and chili de arbol. The corn tortilla was a perfect match as was the avocado.

There was one last dish I really wanted to try; the Cholula, which is the Chef's take on the Chile en Nogada. this was served in a tower format, rather than the usual stuffed chile poblano.

Well, this had a lot going on; the meat here was a combination of ground lamb, pork, and beef; which was seriously overshadowed by a very tasty, not overly sweet and creamy-rich walnut sauce. The balsamic vinegar sauce added another level of sweet-acidity, with a touch of heat from jalapenos. We'd have enjoyed more of the bitter-sweetness provided by the pomegranate seeds. The poblanos added a nice mild green bell pepper flavor to things. That walnut sauce is what made the dish in our opinion.

Overall, this was a memorable meal, the service was excellent, the dishes interesting with such a range of flavors! I'm glad we were able to finally have dinner here!

Sazón
221 Shelby St.
Santa Fe, NM 87501

After dinner, we took a nice stroll. This is the Bell Tower Bar, where we had drinks earlier in the day.

We passed those places we visited on our last trip here.

The Loretto Chapel.

The San Miguel Chapel.

Santa Fe Plaza.

And all the enjoyable public art.

It made for a very relaxing time!

Thanks for stopping by!

Valle (Oceanside)

After our wonderful dinner at Jeune et Jolie we were looking forward to our meal the next evening in Oceanside at the Michelin starred Valle restaurant. The samples of the tasting menu we'd seen really enticed us, and the Missus really wanted to sample the wines of the Valle de Guadalupe. So, after heading to Garden Grove to have Lao food for lunch, we headed back to Oceanside and checked in at the Springhill Suites. Man, I hadn't been in this area for ages and it had changed a lot.

It was much more developed and commercial. We actually enjoyed staying in Carlsbad a lot more. Though, we did have a wonderful time at Frankie's, cause you know why!

We strolled down the Oceanside Pier and then walked on over to the location of Valle. It was quite a modern setting, it's all tasting menu here, we got the Tierra Y Mar (Land and Sea) which was $180 per person and shared a single wine pairing which was $150. The staff was friendly and professional, though not as knowledgeable and enthusiastic as the folks at JeJ.

Though the one cocktail that was recommended was outstanding; the "Maggie" ($20). Now, the Missus isn't a big fan of Margaritas, but She loved this.

It has so clean, so crisp, and yet had that hint of agave. I asked about this cocktail and was told it was made with Cristalino, which folks really disparaged when we visited Tequila and I can understand why. And yet, this was so good, it used the Milk punch method to clarify the components of the drink. It was lovely; we had two....  We got a single pairing with our meal, which was excellent.

Things started with the Botanas.

We loved the chicharron foam/broth, it was so porky, light, and comforting.

The little mini fish "tacos" were also quite tasty; nice maize flavor.

Then things really started out with the Charred Onion Tarte with Kaluga Hybrid Caviar.

As with many of the dishes, quite an interesting presentation...charred black. Good sweet-almost caramelized onion tones. The caviar seemed strangely muted as we expected more of salty-savory counterpoint. Great texture though.

The eye catching Betabel (beet) was next. It was interesting that both JeJ and Valle had beet dishes as components of the meal.

This dish featured Humboldt Fog, which, since you know how we enjoy cheese excited us. But the dish was overwhelmingly sweet, though we loved the anise-mint flavor of the shiso, the flavor of rosemary kind of overpowered things.

Next up was the Trucha, Nopal y Tuna. We love Nopal and this was described as an aguachile.

It lacked a nice citrusy acidity and the trout was really tough in texture. 

The one saving grace was the Chardonnay paired with this dish was a favorite of the Missus.

In fact, I've hunted this down once we returned.

The Chancla con corte de wagyu was good.

If I recall in my really horrible Spanish, "chancla" means slipper. This was an decadent slice of what I consider wagyu "lardo" topping....well who cares really.....

Good lord, the avocado crema....the earthy-maize chancla!!!

In total contrast, the Tetela de Birria was quite mild.

Perhaps it was because we were in Jalisco recently (I'll get those posts done soon!), but even the Missus said, "this doesn't taste like birria, where's the bold flavors!"

I enjoy Pescado Zarandeano, I even make a version at home. This was an interesting version as it featured, a tasty "pico de gallo terrine". Which actually tasted much better than the fish!

Which was dry and fairly bland.

At this point, there was an interesting move, the Missus got the Cornejo Alegre, the poached and roasted rabbit.

I thought the Missus would enjoy this. Remember how hard I worked to find that the Missus enjoyed Mole Segueza in Oaxaca. But for Her it was overly sweet and it seemed that the gamy tones of the rabbit was meant to be muted.

I did order the A5 Drunken Wagyu Strip which was an extra $50....let me tell you, this was amazing, even better than what we had at JeJ!

So beefy, with an amazing texture....that was at first firm, that gave way.....good lord, can I say I tasted the soul of beef? Perfectly cooked and seasoned. For me; this was a once in a lifetime kind of thing.

If I were to return...cause the "Maggie" calls to me; I'd sit at the bar and have a couple of dishes. Still, this was a fun experience, though we enjoyed JeJ much more.

Valle
222 N Pacific St.
Oceanside, CA 92054

And after dinner, well, the Oceanside Pier is right there.....

And if you're of my generation; this is called the "Top Gun House".

In case you want to check it out.

Thanks as always for stopping by!

Jeune et Jolie (Carlsbad)

Like I had mentioned in my post on Frankie's, we had enjoyed our staycation at the Lafayette so much, that we decided to finally hit up a couple of places we had always meant to visit. We stayed in Carlsbad at the Best Western. I don't think we'll stay there again, it was noisy and dated, though the location right across from Carlsbad State Beach was great. This was of course between two "visits" from the Pineapple Express. Somehow we lucked out and dodged the storms. Though you could tell by the clouds off Carlsbad State Beach that something was amiss.

We enjoyed taking a short stroll in the area before heading off to dinner. This being during the week, things seemed really relaxed and very small town like, which we enjoyed. 

This is the Alley Art Wall.

We headed back to the room to change before heading off to dinner; which was just a few blocks away. 

Compared to how quiet the rest of the town seemed Jeune et Jolie was very busy. We got a small table in the middle of the dining room.

As crazy busy as JeJ was, the service was top notch. Our main Server; Joe was amazing! Plus, he had lived in Japan, and we even managed to have a chat with him. We were asked if we were right or left handed for the place settings, all dishes were explained well. Watching the kitchen work was incredible as well.

The menu is four courses at $115 per person. We (I) got the Wagyu which was a $55 supplement. We also got one pairing, which the Missus said should be based on the dishes I ordered. We also started with a Champagne for the Missus and since I was feeling "French-Diegan" I got a Kir Royale.

Things started with a nice Amuse Bouche; eggplant puree in a semolina shell.

Crisp exterior, which cracked away to a creamy-earthy-slightly sweet filling. This was a nice start.

Of course I had to get the Veal Tartare which was fabulous.

The veal was chopped exactly the way I like it; it was very tender. There were Asian touches in this; wasabi which added a wonderful pungency and really complimented the dish as did the white soy! The radishes added an additional peppery crunch to the dish. This might now be in my top 2 versions of tartare!

The Missus ordered the "Poireau" as Her first course.

Wonderful, almost sweet-oniony leek, with a potato potage hid the Missus's favorite part of the dish; an creamy and delici-yoso sous vide egg yolk. The Missus loves Her eggs; so it was love at first bite! There was some very mild caviar on this, but it was all about the egg yolk for the Missus.

Some brioche arrived as we finished our starters...the Missus wished that it had come earlier.

The Missus's Scallop course was quite good.

The scallop was a perfect rare and sweet, the sauce which contained grapes added a nice sweet-acidity to things. The scallop was crowned with the cap of a king trumpet mushroom which added a wonderful, meaty, sweet-earthiness.

Thinking that with all the meat I'd ordered that it would be best to get some veggies, I ordered the "Betterave".

The beets had been I believe dehydrated and had the texture of meat. The bone marrow vinaigrette was rich, but I felt was kind of lost in this dish. I loved the bitter-crunch of the chicory and the nutty-slightly sweet hazelnuts really complimented this dish. The Missus is not a fan of beets, but She even enjoyed this!

The most mundane dish of the evening was the Partridge.

The partridge was nicely cooked and seasoned, the jus was a bit on the acidic side; the morel mushroom stuffed with partridge was a bit dry but tasty. Don't get me wrong, this was a nice dish, but compared to what we'd had so far for dinner.....

And then there was the Wagyu ($55 supplement),which was A5 Miyazaki Ribeye. Good lord, I think I died and went to bovine heaven!

Just the decadent beefiness of the meat was amazing! The texture luxurious. The jus had just the right balance of beefy-acidity to compliment the meat. The lightly fried sweetbreads were creamy and had no off metallic flavors. My goodness!

The Missus got the Lavande; which She enjoyed as it wasn't too sweet and had nice lemony tones from yuzu.

I got the Automne, which was made with parsnip and was delicious as well.

Like I mentioned earlier; we loved the service and the food. We didn't care for the wine pairing much and will work around that next time.

The place was quite loud, so perhaps we'll even return earlier in the week, or perhaps sit outside during a warmer time of the year. And yes, we are definitely returning!

Jeune Et Jolie
2659 State St.
Carlsbad, CA 92008
(760) 637-5266
Current Hours:
Wed - Sun 5pm - 10pm

Paris - Dinner at Automne

Our time in Paris was winding down. We had two more evenings left. The Missus had enjoyed dining at a Boullion on the last night of our previous stay, so we thought we'd do that again. So, on the second to the last night, I thought we'd go with a fancier meal. I mentioned having made reservations at the Michelin Star Automne in an earlier post and then having it cancelled. On the bright side, we ended up having dinner at Les Enfants Rouge that evening, which has become a favorite of ours. I did still want to dine at Automne and on this visit I made a reservation for this evening. The restaurant is in the 11th Arrondissement, about a kilometer and a half from our apartment. We had a nice stroll on over. Like many of our preferred fine dining restaurants in Paris, the restaurant was helmed by a Japanese Chef.

We we greeted upon arrival and escorted to a nice quiet corner table. For dinner we selected the 7 course tasting menu and shared a wine tasting.

The pacing was relaxed, very low keyed. Of course things started with the amuse bouche.

Which I recall being delicious, but I got seriously distracted.

By what, you might say. Well, we had one of those wonderful "Paris moments". You know us and pooches. We saw the cutest furry pooch walking down the street. He looked like he was smiling and there was something about he and his owner that caught my eye. I brought out my camera to take a photo and wouldn't you know it. The woman saw me pointing the camera their way. Now, if you would believe those Paris stereotypes, you'd think that we'd be in store for some rudeness. But, like what has happened to us many times before, we had a moment. The woman smiled and waved and brought the pooch over to take their photo.

It was such a sweet moment! When I went and downloaded the photos I realized what had caught my attention. You know that folks say people start looking like their dogs....... What do you think? It's one of those unforgettable moments. The Missus and I talk about this encounter more often than we chat about the Louvre!

Anyway, on with the meal.

First up was a terrine with Smoked Eel and Foie Gras.

I wasn't sure about this dish at first glance; but it was quite good, the rich foie gras paired nicely with the smoked-savory-eel. The balsamic glaze and beets added sweetness to really help balance things out. The radish was slightly pungent which helped to reset the palate between bites.

The Scallops with Osetra Caviar was quite decadent.

I thought the scallops could be seared a bit more, but it was perfect rare, sweet-oceany, the caviar adding an interesting layer of flavor that was almost like intense walnut? The shavings of hazelnut added another layer of earthy-nuttiness to the dish.

The next dish featured, black truffle, wild game bisque, and a salsifis timbale.

The bisque was a bit too much and overpowered the dish. But of course, we could minimize the exposure and enjoy the truffle and salsifis. This also had really earthy and savory pied blue mushrooms.

The line caught sea bass was cooked to perfection.

Crispy skin, moist and flaky, the sauces, broccoli, rapini, and one that seemed like a mild foam with hints of lime all added a different dimension to the dish.

The Roasted Venison was cooked to a perfect doneness for me.

Nice mild gaminess, the one item that was amazing in this dish were the mushrooms. I was told it's called Trompette de la Mort "trumpets of death"! Also known as black chanterelles. My goodness, the sweet-nutty-earthiness was amazing.

The Poached Pear with Cocoa Tuile was not overly sweet.

And all in all, this was a fine meal.

One of many that we've had in Paris over the years!

Automne
11 Rue Richard Lenoir
75011 Paris, France

Big Island - Dinner at Merriman's and Waimea Town Market (Kamuela/Waimea)

During our last trip to the Big Island, we decided to stay the night. As I've mentioned in a previous post from almost 10 years ago, Kamuela holds a special place in my heart. I'm glad the Missus enjoys the laid back, gentrified, farm-village vibe of the town. This time around we decided to stay for the night; something we hadn't done in years. We stayed at the Waimea Country Lodge and enjoyed strolling around town. For dinner, I had made reservations at Merriman's. We'd had dinner there over two decades ago and really didn't enjoy it much. This time, I hoped for better.

We walked on over.....

We arrived a bit earlier than our reservation; but the young man at the host stand told us "no problem" we have a table. We experienced this type of warm and accommodating service during our entire meal. It was such a pleasure dealing with folks who were efficient and professional, yet so very warm and kind.

The place was about two-thirds full at 530 pm. The Servers and staff seemed to know quite a few folks eating, so I'm guessing many were regulars from this town of about 9500. The Missus and I were so impressed by the staff....there was a young man with obvious learning/cognitive disabilities having dinner with his parents. Apparently he's a regular. All staff members dropped by to tell him hello, they knew he was wearing his "favorite shirt", they knew his favorite dishes....they embodied the "Aloha spirit". And this reminded me of why I almost took a job there back in the early 90s!

It's totally a tasting menu here two starters and desserts and a main. What we really enjoyed was that you could order 2 first courses and bypass the dessert! We ended up ordering three starters and one dessert which suited us perfectly!

Peter Merriman is considered one of the pioneers of "Hawaii Regional Cuisine", something that I have a love-hate relationship with. At its best the food represents the melting pot of people and cuisines of my home. At worse it is a cliched, soul less con-"fusion" of flavors and textures. I was hoping for the best here and the wonderful service had us off to a good start.

The amuse was Smoked Ulu (breadfruit) with Taro Chips. Basically a version of pulehu ʻulu.

I don't think the Missus has had ulu before. There were all the flavors She enjoys in this; a mild smokiness, a pleasantly sweet-rich flavor which harkens to a mix of sweet potato and roasted chestnut. She loved it.

Next up, the Shoyu Poke.

The Ahi as of excellent quality, so tender, well marinated in shoyu, though we would have appreciated more inamona and ogo. The mashed avocado kind of dulled the flavor of the poke.

The shrimp in the Grilled Wild Shrimp Bulgogi was fabulous; sweet and briny.

This really didn't need much and we were glad that the "bulgogi" flavoring did not interfere with the wonderful sweetness of the shrimp which were also cooked to perfection.

The Kalua Pork Quesadilla was our least favorite dish of the evening.

The pork was too salty, the smoke flavor too mild, the "tortilla" was more too hard and brittle; the sauce too sweet. This could have used something with a bit of "heat" to it.

The Missus ordered the "Day Boat Catch". 

The fish was mahi mahi and was quite fresh, nicely cooked, mist and tender. The prawns were the highlight of this dish; fabulously tender and sweet. 

This being cow country; I went with the Kua'Aina Beef Tenderloin. It was a great choice.

   It was cooked to a perfect medium rare, loved the beefiness. I was told this is grass fed beef, so I expected it to be more toothsome. The cauliflower was delicious; at least that's what the Missus said as She quickly poached them all from the plate. The jalapeno mashed potatoes were quite creamy and not really spicy at all.

The Missus enjoyed the "Chocolate Purse".

Overall, we enjoyed the meal and loved the service. We'll definitely return in the future.

Merriman's Big Island
65-1227 Opelo Rd.
Waimea, HI 96743

I had picked the Waimea Country Lodge for a simple reason. Right next door is the Waimea Town Market, which opens at 730am on Saturdays! In fact, I could see the market, which takes place at the Parker School from our window.

And we headed on over right after the market opened.

We enjoyed our time there.

And made some nice purchases.

Waimea Town Market at Parker School
65-1224 Lindsey Rd
Waimea, HI 96743

On a fun note; the gentleman who was working the Akaka Falls Farm stand started chatting with us. He asked us where we were from and we told him "San Diego". He asked "where in San Diego"? And we said "Bay Park". He stuck his hand out to us for handshakes and told us, "North Clairemont baby!!!!" We cracked up.

Such a small world, huh?

COMC - Memories of Meals in Provence (Before Covid)

**** This post is done by request. It's of places we visited back in 2019. I'll be back with more up to date posts tomorrow!

I was recently asked about some recommendations for Provence. The reader (who requested anonymity) sent me a fine email asking me if we'd ever been there. And yes we had! And we loved our tine in Provence and enjoyed our stay in Avignon. But why no posts you might ask? Well, we visited in the winter of 2019. I always seem to have a backlog of travel posts it seems. By the time I had gotten around to posting on our trip....well, this thing named Covid happened. For the longest time, I really didn't feel comfortable doing travel posts.....in the middle of a pandemic. And then when I restarted, well, I was so behind. I was not even going to do posts on our trip to Israel and Jordan. But thanks to "FOYs" KerriK and LaurieH, who both indicated that they wanted those posts, I did them. But by the time those were completed it was mid-spring of 2022! I did a post on our short stay in Paris before heading to Provence and then decided that with a huge backlog of travel and road trip posts to just forgo posting on Provence. I did mention our "interesting stay" at CDG, before heading home from that trip since it dovetailed into our returning to Paris in 2022. So, since this "FOY" wants to see some photos of our meals in Provence....waaaay back from 2019, here goes.

La Cuisine du Dimanche (since closed):

Was our first dinner in Avignon.

This was an interesting meal. Some of the combinations were odd and the presentations somewhat strange for some dishes.

La Cuisine du Dimanche
31 Rue de la Bonneterie
84000 Avignon, France

L'Agape:

This was a nice dinner. Modern presentation, nice flavors.

L'Agape
21 Place des Corps Saints
84000 Avignon, France

Avenio:

Our favorite dinner during our stay in Avignon.

Avenio
19 Rue Des Trois Faucons
84000 Avignon, France

Maison Ripert:

This was a nice meal. A bit too much going on, but still excellent ingredients.

Maison Ripert
28 Rue de la Bonneterie
84000 Avignon, France

L'Épicerie de Ginette:

Lest you think we were just eating in fancy restaurants. one of our favorite places was L'Épicerie de Ginette. We visited twice. After all, who wouldn't love this.

We loved the tartines here.

L'Épicerie de Ginette
25 Place des Corps Saints
84000 Avignon, France

And while I'm not sure how valuable this post will be now, I hope your meals are wonderful!