mmm-yoso!!!

Chirashi-zushi To Go From Kokoro

A few weeks back I was thinking how hard the pandemic has been on those mom-and-pop places that I'd visit on occasion. You know, places not in the standard rotation, but one's I enjoy for a nice lunch or dinner and Kokoro came to mind. Akio-san and his wife are getting on in years, which had me wondering how things were going for them. I went ahead and checked their website and along with outdoor lunches and dinners, they were doing takeout. It had been a while since my last visit and I'm sure that the late Ed from Yuma, who loved Kokoro would be wanting me to check in and see how things were going. Kokoro is quite "old school" and though they have their lunch and dinner takeout menus on the website; you'll still have to call in your order. Also, please note that even if you call in your order at 1030, the place doesn't really open up until 1130.

Of all the lunch items I'd had at Kokoro, I had enjoyed the Chirashi the most; so I decided to go with that.

I arrived at around 1135 tp pick up my lunch. The place had blacked out the doors and windows and for all the world looked closed. Looking closer, I noticed the door was ajar, so I walked on in.

And wouldn't you know it; my lunch was ready and waiting for me....such efficiency.

Once back at the office, I unpacked my lunch eagerly.....I really wanted to see how different this was from the very good chirashi I'd had for lunch before. Especially since the lack of business can mean supply chain issues and limits flexibility with stock, as in you'll probably only get the "usual suspects"....especially in the case of fresh seafood for sushi restaurants.

The one thing that I enjoyed right off hand was the miso soup. It wasn't watered down and was full of flavor.

The selection of fish was decent; though the shiromi (whitefish) that I'd had before in the chirashi was not present this time around. The anago was quite good, light, mildly sweet, I wish there was more of it. The maguro was of good quality, no "sugi" (connective tissue), moist and tender. The tako tender as well....the saba did well with bites of ginger before and after to help prep, then cleanse the palate of the richness. The hamachi was decently fatty.

 The salmon was fine, the shrimp and kanpachi were my least favorite items both were tough and the kanpachi had a bit more fishiness to it then I enjoy.

The rice was moist and fluffy. And as expected based on previous visits, the sushi meshi here is quite bracing at times; they do like their vinegar.

I like the tamago as it was light and not too sweet; a perfect way for me to end my meal.

It was good to know that Kokoro is still in business and I did enjoy my lunch; I'll definitely be back once we're in a better position in terms of dining in. I'm sure Ed from Yuma would be happy to know that Kokoro is still in business.

Kokoro Restaurant
3298 Greyling Dr
San Diego, CA 92123
(858) 565-4113

An Update on Sam and Sushi Yaro.......and I Dine In For the First Time in Nearly 400 Days

If you follow our little blog; you'll know that back in January, Sam, owner and Itamae of Sushi Yaro suffered a stroke. Of course my good friends kept me appraised of how Sam was doing, when he was discharged, when the restaurant was reopening, and such. I tried not to bother Sam much since he obviously had a lot going on....though the Medical Professional in the family always had a battery of questions for Sam. Once Sushi Yaro was reopened, I still waited......mainly because I wasn't ready to dine outdoors yet.....though finally, two months after I'd received my second shot, I decided I needed to see how Sam was doing and show some support. The Missus was working a night shift, so I decided to head on over to Engineer Road, and dine al fresco at the outdoor dining area I'd seen set-up in the parking lot. Except when I arrived, shortly before opening time......I really didn't want to be around too many people, this is what I saw.

The outdoor dining area for Sushi Yaro was gone! And the reason for that soon became clear. So, now there was a decision to make....yes, we're in the "Red Tier" which means indoor dining can operate at 25% capacity, yes I've had both vaccines, yes the restaurant was just opening so there were no other customers in the place, and yes, Sam called out my name when he saw me and waved me over to the sushi bar. And so it came to pass, 380 days since I last dined indoors I decided to have dinner at Sushi Yaro. After all, I really wanted to support Sam and see how he was doing.

The reason that the outdoor area is gone, besides San Diego being in the Red Tier is that Sam is running a one man show. And with all residual effects of the stroke, well, he just isn't able to handle too many customers. In fact, he told me about 8 people max.

As for what I ordered....well, Sam knows me, and after a short wait....he's moving pretty well considering, but there's obviously some motor deficits and such.....he had my dinner for me.

I'm not really going to go into the food this time around, I'll do that in a future post....except to say, it did hit the spot. Especially the sashimi which was perfect on a day when temps were hitting the low 80's....so much for spring, eh?

We spent most of the time talking about how things are going for Sam...residual effects and accommodations he's had to make after the stroke, his family and such. After all, I've known Sam for 20 years.

Soon enough, a couple of other couples arrived, when Sam hits his max, he'll ask folks if they want to do takeout and return a bit later. It's probably a good idea to make reservations if you plan on arriving after 530. There are also times when Sam's therapy and such runs late, or if he's really tired that he'll close early, so definitely, call.

Honestly, it was kind of tough seeing Sam run back and forth to the kitchen......to deep fry rolls for folks, to get ingredients, to get customers their drinks (I decided to forgo my usual Sapporo on this visit). But Sam seems to be handling it fairly well....he's a bit slower than before, but seems to be making progress, and I'm happy for that.

Soon enough there were eight folks in the restaurant; it was making me a bit uncomfortable....oh my how Covid has changed us. It was time for me to leave. I was glad to see Sam and said I'll be back soon.

As I left I told him, "take care of yourself; I'll like to be seeing you still in good health 20 years from now."

Sushi Yaro
7905 Engineer Road
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 560-1782

The "Special Bento" to go From Izakaya Sakura

 You might be wondering why there was no post on the place that probably has the most posts on out little blog was during the pandemic. Well, to be perfectly honest, the items I enjoy the most from Sakura really wouldn't hold up that well for takeout. Add to that the rather surly and sometimes plain rude service I've gotten in recent years along with the food not being up to par at times.....well, I just didn't want to deal with that.

But my recent visit to Hogetsu had me thinking about all those days of yore, all the wonderful meals and memories...I thought, what the heck and dropped by to see what was going on.

Sakura has quite the outdoor set-up going on (this was before the recent red tier change). I took a look at the menu on the table in the doorway and saw that those dishes I really liked weren't available...but the "Special Bento", which I hadn't had in years was....and would you believe it's still $12......13 years later?

I went to Nijiya to pick up a few things and my bento was ready when I returned.

The bento did look similar to what I had back in 2007. Not as much meat based items perhaps; but overall this was still quite a bit of food.

The miso soup was even decent!

My favorite items was the chicken karaage. I was surprised it was still crisp when I got home. As I mentioned way back in 2015 when I did a karaage comparison; the version at Sakura is on the lighter side; which made me doubt that it would hold up to takeout, but this was still pretty crisp when I ate it at home.

The menchi katsu, basically a deep fried meatball had also held up pretty well; still crisp, nice seasoning, loved the katsu sauce. I wasn't as enamored with the glazed salmon which was on the fishy side and the aji kushiage, which almost looked like a shrimp was lacking in flavor. The tamago here is always a decent bet and the pasta....well, that was filler.

In the side compartment was a Japanese version of "pot-au-feu" which uses sausage and chicken instead of beef like the French version does. It's also made in dashi, which actually went well with the whole thing.

The rice was perfect; moist with just enough lightness.

While I'm fairly certain that I'll wait until I feel comfortable dining al fresco or indoors before returning, it was nice to revisit one of our "golden oldies". After all, we've lost a good number of these places during the pandemic. And still at $12....well, you can't even get a sandwich for that these days.

Izakaya Sakura
3904 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 569-6151

Our Pandemic Takeout Rotation

I was recently pondering what our Pandemic Takeout Rotation is....that is, the places we've done a bunch of takeout from over the last year......I'm guessing that this post is somewhat timely since (not a great thing) the WHO declared Covid-19 to be a pandemic on this day a year ago.

What I did notice is that things like weather, work, cravings, or indecision kind of drove the decision process. So I've categorized places by that process

So here goes.....

For cold weather - Menya Ultra and Woomiok:

Like I mentioned before, I'm not if it's because we're spending more time at home; but this fall and winter seems to be much colder then I recall.

So, of course Menya Ultra's Stay at Home Kit...….so well and thoughtfully put together; love the fresh noodles (i.e. fresh made and uncooked) is our rotation.

It's basically at least two meals......there often is too much noodle; so I'll often use it for another dish.

Menya Ultra Ramen
8199 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
858-571-2010

When the Missus or I feel somewhat tired......we enjoy the Emporer's Soup along with an extra side of bone broth from Woomiok.

We enjoy the restorative effects of the bone broth....even if it might be "all in our heads".

This was especially nice after the Missus or I felt some of the side effects from our vaccines.

Woomiok
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 737-4599

And then when we're experiences unseasonal warm weather - it's the Market at HFS:

That's an easy one, right? It's also a handy fix when I'm missing "home".

Of course, you know the Missus right? Eating poke just ain't the straightforward for Her......there's a bit of prep involved. Can you imagine when I actually deliver this for Her lunch at work?

And I blew this one because one thing was missing....shiso leaves...sigh....

Hawaiian Fresh Seafood Fish Market
6491 Weathers Place
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 282-0591

For that "special" takeout dinner - it's Tadokoro:

I guess this one should be pretty obvious based on some of my previous posts.

Sushi Tadokoro
2244 San Diego Ave
San Diego, CA 92110
(619) 297-0298

And when we can't make our mind up? Well, it's probably Noble Chef or Sizzling Pot King:

For those times when we don't really know what to get.

The Noble Chef
6159 Balboa Avenue
San Diego, CA 92111

Though I think we've been getting Sizzling Pot King weekly now.

It's usually two meals for us.....and heck, if you're wondering what I do with those leftover noodles form Menya Ultra.....

 I save all the drippings from the dry pot and use it as a sauce for the noodles....I know, kinda weird, but I like this strange version of Liang Mian…..

Sizzling Pot King
8058 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 279-0088

The Missus's weekend coffee fix from Birdrock:

I'll usually drop off pour over from Birdrock on Morena.

She loves the fruity acidity of African beans and of course when there's Geisha (caution - over $12 a cup for pour over)…..

The folks there already know me by name and make an awesome pour over......even though their spelling can be a bit iffy......

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters
1270 Morena Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92110

And then, there's my weekly reward for working from home - Zgara Greek Grill:

Another pretty obvious pick. I'm not the biggest fan of all this WFH stuff; but Frankie needs and deserves the attention and care. So, once a week I'll reward myself.

Zgara Greek Grill
1229 Morena Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92110

You know looking at this list makes me wonder why other places from my usual rotation like Mien Trung aren't here.....there are some obvious reasons for others; like Yakitori, Yakiniku, Korean BBQ, and some of my regular Japanese restaurants....well, I just think takeout wouldn't do justice to the food.....though maybe EE Nami might make this list soon.

Anyway; here's looking to brighter days....I'm hoping the light at the end of the tunnel is coming into view.

And of course, I want to know, what has your takeout rotation been?

Midweek Meanderings: Ichiro's Closes and Ramen Ryoma (Kearny Mesa) Closes.

Just a quick post for today.

Ichiro's Closes:

In my last post on Tadokoro, "FOY" Junichi mentioned that Ichiro has closed and their last day of business was January 30th. So, I decided to drop by during regular business hours and while there was no indication of a sale or change of business, the place was closed.

Thanks to "FOY" Sage for sending me the link to Ichiro's Facebook closing announcement.

The restaurant has a long history here in San Diego, I believe of 36 years! It's the end of an era.

4344 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Ramen Ryoma (Clairemont Mesa) is closed:

I saw this one a while back.....seeing no signage on the place I made a real quick turn into the parking lot.

While the other locations in Hillcrest and Pacific Beach are still open; it seems that this location couldn't make a go of it. I believe they closed back in November, another casualty of Covid.

9119 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92123

You don't mind if I indulge myself tonight, do you?

Just a quick post....man, so far it's been a pretty intense 2021 and both the Missus; who has been putting in 6 day weeks and I wanted to indulge ourselves. I hope you don't mind. You know where this is from, right?

Man, this was the best takeout we've had during the pandemic......well, perhaps it was just what we wanted?

What's your favorite takeout place?

Hope you're staying safe and having the best week possible!

Take care!

Travelling With My Tastebuds, Remembering Asahikawa - Shoyu Toroniku To Go from Santouka

Well, it's definitely ramen weather right now.....at least San Diego's version of it.  Since She'd had a rather substantial and late lunch, the Missus asked if we could just go ahead and split a bowl of the toroniku ramen from Santouka, which sounded fine to me as I wasn't super hungry. So, we headed off to the Mitsuwa Food Court and wouldn't you know it, Santouka was out of shio broth, just like when I last did takeout in April. Oh well, the Missus went shopping for snacks while I waited for our large shoyu toroniku.

I gotta say; the broth wasn't as salty as the last time I had this.

And that pork cheek....while not as fatty as on previous visits, was so nicely flavored......welcome to shoyu-porkiness!

But, unfortunately, like my last takeout visit, the noodles just didn't hold up and were mushy, lacking in that nice al dente pull and chew. So I guess it really doesn't travel well. The Missus agreed; I think She know believes that Menya Ultra is better; at least for takeout.

As we were both enjoying ourselves at the dinner table, we had one of those "moments". And we both blurted out; "remember going to Asahikawa and finding the original Santouka?"

Yes, we were in Hokkaido at the end of November in 2015, and went to Asahikawa, the city where the coldest temperature in the history of Japan (-42F) was recorded.....I was in search of Otokoyama Brewery; the Missus, the  flagship location of Santouka, which turned out to be a humble little shop (photo to the right). We both shared our memories and had a couple of laughs; there were actual snow flurries while we were on the train; we then caught a bus to Otokoyama Brewery, me having to ask the driver if the but went to the brewery....the wonderful bus driver made sure to let us know when our stop came up and when got out and headed in the wrong direction stopped and pointed the way for us! We miss Japan so much. Even though we had to cancel our planned trip last fall; these memories make sure that we'll return when we're able.

Here's hoping it's soon.

Funny how a bowl of ramen can transport you to a place 5,000 miles away and what seems a lifetime ago. Well, it's all we have for now; so it'll have to do....for now.....

Santouka Ramen
4240 Kearny Mesa Rd(In the Mitsuwa Marketplace)
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Takeout Hours
Daily 11am - 630pm

We hope everyone had a warm, dry, and safe weekend!

News About Sam and Sushi Yaro

Well, as if things couldn't get bad enough. On Tuesday my good friends sent me a bunch of text messages telling me that Sam, owner of Sushi Yaro had a stroke. Which was really hard to believe since he's fairly young. I don't do Facebook, so I quickly went to the Sushi Yaro's Facebook and found that it was true.

Good lord, 2021 isn't turning out to be so great so far.....

I've known Sam for almost 20 years now, from his time working at Katzra, to when he opened Sammy Sushi, to Sushi Yaro. While not fancy......it's always been what I've envisioned as the neighborhood sushi bar, unpretentious, all are welcome, and regardless if you wanted rolls or sashimi, there was something for you.

I've always harped on the importance of the relationship between the Itamae and the customer and no where else was it so true then at Sushi Yaro. I could always waltz in and just order "some sashimi" and get a nice plate of well cut, fresh fish.....the best that was available. And, I've actually met some "FOYs" at Yaro!

I usually don't do this, but times are different right now. I have been alerted to a GoFundMe to help Sam. Especially with rent to keep him afloat. So, if you've been to Sushi Yaro and enjoyed yourself...….well......

Here's hoping Sam recovers....though having a stroke can't be great for the motor skill you need making sushi....but I'm hoping for the best.

Get well Sam!

From Winter to Summer in a Week! Revisits to Menya Ultra and The Market At HFS

Well, so far the first couple of weeks of the New Year has been quite hectic....not only work, but sadly, Frankie had a seizure on New Year's Day. He's doing fine now, eating, drinking, pooping....going on walks. He's been blind for a while and has dementia, but hanging in there. We've set-up sort of a "senior living" area for him, with an indoor/outdoor rug, several beds, indoor dog gates, and one of those indoor wifi cams with pet motioned detector, and such. He's doing as well as possible considering the circumstances.

And like I said, we take a couple of walks during each day and I'm surprised that there are places within two blocks of home that I had never discovered before.

And then of course; there's been the weather! From the mid-40's around New Year to record breaking highs in the 80's this past week.

Our eating definitely reflects that.

We started with our usual takeout from Menya, during the first week of January with temps dipping into the high 40's and low 50's; adding in a "ahem" snack for me, some Negipon; which the Missus also enjoyed.

I've gone thru "my drill" with the stay at home kit before; so I won't beat that dead horse. I will say that I used the leftover noodles to make a nice Japanese curry noodles for one of my lunches.

Menya Ultra Ramen
8199 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
858-571-2010
Current Hours:
Mon - Thurs 1030am - 2pm, 4pm - 8pm
Fri - Sun   1030am - 8pm

And then this past week happened....man, I don't recall having the mercury hit the mid-80's where we live in January. So the Missus was wanted Her "fix" from HFS.

I had to work a couple of hours during the weekend anyway and then headed off at around 935, getting to HFS right before 10.....and there were already 3 parties ahead of me in line!

Regardless, things went quite quickly. I hadn't been here since winter hit.....now HFS has two registers and things go a bit faster.

The Missus got Her fix....though one of these days I'll go through "the drill"....as the Missus has Her poke "done" a certain way.

In my opinion, still the closest I can get to "home". Though "FOY" ChrisR, who is from Hilo told me things can be slim pickins' around closing time at HFS......which makes sense; we wouldn't go to our poke places near closing as all you going get is da leftova's….

Anyway, we're hoping you're hanging in there. My true hope is that we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

The Market At HFS
6491 Weathers Place
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 282-0591
Current Hours:
Daily 10am - 4pm

Take care and be safe!

Our Last Meal of 2020 - Sushi Tadokoro

It's an understatement to say that 2020 has been a difficult year; a year like none I've experienced in my lifetime and hope no one ever has to experience again. And yes, this year has been different; though I always try to be optimistic as we turn the page on each year....this one though, I can't wait to flip over.

Still, even though things are different, the Missus and I decided that we needed to at least celebrate the fact that we made it through.....so far...there's still a couple of hours left.

And so, we ordered our NYE takeout from Tadokoro a few days ahead, which turned out to be a good move since when I arrived to pick our food up; folks ordering takeout were out of luck.

Things were buzzing; but there were no shortcuts to be found on what we had for dinner.

It was a delicious meal, one which I hope is repeated many times in the future. Heck....maybe even next week? After all, we need to start 2021 on the right foot, correct?

Sushi Tadokoro
2244 San Diego Ave
San Diego, CA 92110
(619) 297-0298

Anyway, thank you all so much for taking time out to read our humble little blog during these tough times. We wish everyone a safe, healthy, and prosperous New Year.

Take Care!