mmm-yoso!!!

Chopstix Too, a second time

You are reading mmm-yoso!!!, a little blog about food.  Kirk and ed (from Yuma) and Cathy mostly write here about food they eat.  Since Kirk is in Thailand and ed (from Yuma) is in Yuma, Cathy is writing today.

Hello.  This place has been written about before, by Kirk and I. It was almost two years ago though, so I figure I can revisit with you.  Since The Mister seems to have the flu, his taste buds are shot and he has been wanting items with strong flavors as well as texture, so here is a sampling of two meals at Chopstix too. 

This is what the building looks like at about 7 p.m., when it is already dark out here. 

It is in the same parking lot as Mitsuwa, Staples,  the place which used to be the "Technical Bookstore" (today it was called "Book Off") and a Starbucks as well as few other businesses, across from In-N-Out in Kearny Mesa.

I always get hot tea (50¢) and it is a good, strong, brown rice based one, brewed and not made with a tea bag tossed into a pot of water.

Some of the meals include a small bowl of miso soup, with 'crunchies' (and not tofu) added. 

It is a strong, not salty miso.

Some meals include a salad, which has shredded lettuces, red cabbage and shredded carrots.  Dressing is brought to the table separately.

The mixed tempura appetizer ($7) includes three shrimp, two onion rings, shredded carrot, squash, broccoli and carrot and is accompanied by a fresh, warm tempura dipping sauce.

The breading is delicate and light and crunchy.

One night, I got a combination meal which included the salad, three pieces of a "crunchy roll"(tempura shrimp, avocado,  fake crab inside and a spicy as well as tempura sauce and crunchies on the outside), sesame chicken (breaded and fried delicately and topped with a not too sweet teriyaki sauce) $7.50

The Mister, in his quest for flavor, got the ika curry - a lightly breaded and fried squid cutlet accompanied by a medium-hot chicken curry sauce which included potatoes and carrots as well as onions. ($6.50)

One Friday (when I don't eat meat, just in case...) we went and I got the Butter Corn Miso ($6.95)- a large bowl of vegetable-miso based broth with udon noodles topped with onions, bean sprouts, carrots, corn and that hunk of  real butter seen at the top of the photo.  I was pleasantly surprised at the mix of flavors and textures as well as the filling up I felt while I tried to finish the bowl.

The Mister got his "usual" -mabo ramen ($5.95). Ramen noodles topped with a pork and tofu based medium spicy mabo sauce.

Most of the time, he walks in, sits down and pretends to look at the menu for a while.  He pretty much always ends up ordering the mabo ramen.

Chopstix Too 4380 Kearny Mesa Road San Diego 92111 (858) 565-1288 

Clearing Out the Memory Card - Revisits to, Pho King, Sab-E-Lee, Tita's Kitchenette, Okan, Ba Ren, & one more. Plus some Vien Dong Linda Vista rumors.

I can't believe how many photos I've stashed away for no good reason. It hardly ever rains here in San Diego, so if I'm saving 'em for a rainy day, these'll never see the light of day. And usually, if I return to a restaurant several times, I pretty much stop taking photos. But these are exceptions, and instead of a rainy day, we'll just have to say I saved these for one, super hot-dry, SoCal day. So hot, to prevent my fingers from melting on my keyboard, I'm going to keep the verbiage to a minimum. So let's see how many different cuisines I can hit in one post.

Pho King:

Yes, it's the Hu Tieu Mi Kho(large - $7.25), from the unfortunately named Pho King.

And even though the ingredients aren't quite the same on each visit, and the pork-soy sauce mixture is a sodium bomb, I like this. Being served "dry", also makes it a pretty good dish for a scalding day.

Just don't eat the Pho'.

Pho King Restaurant
4658 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92115

Speaking of don't eat the Pho, check out what FOY, and one of my favorite bloggers, Jelly, ate....this is what they call Pho in Ulsan. Jenn asked me not to weep, but it's hard not too....

Even more Sab-E-Lee:

The Shrimp Larb($6.95):

Man, this was the hottest thing I've had at Sab-E-Lee so far(And I've had more than a few items from the menu)...nearly burned my lips off.

A bit more toward my taste was the Nam Sohd ($6.95):

If you've ever had Nem Chua (Vietnamese fermented sausage), you'd know what the flavor of Nam Sohd was like. It is a fermented sausage, less dense than it's Vietnamese counterpart, lighter, and with whole peppers embedded in the meat. Combined with a slice of raw garlic, some galangal, and maybe a chili or two...it will surely get your attention.

What I found interesting was that this is listed under "Salads" on the menu. What was really good, but I don't have a photo of is the Larb Pet, the grilled duck larb. The Missus scarfed it all up before I had a chance to even catch a whiff of it. She did mention that it was very good, so I'll have to take Her word for it.

Sab-E-Lee Restaurant
2405 Ulric St
San Diego, CA 92111

Tita's Kitchenette:

3 years after my first post on Tita's, and I still ask myself the same question. How can 1 person finish all this?

MG was kind enough to pick up lunch for us, and in addition to the lechon kawale, was nice enough to pick up something "more healthy" (in relative terms) a Tortang Talong, what they call an "eggplant omelette". I wasn't even able to make a dent in this!

Tita's Kitchenette
2720 East Plaza Boulevard
National City, CA 91950

In case you wondering how they make this, you can find a nice YouTube-y thing here.

Wa Dining Okan:

We've dropped by Wa Dining Okan a few times since my last post. And though the Gobo Salad wasn't up to par on our last visit. I really enjoyed the Beef Tataki ($8.25):

Light, tasty, good acid, quite nice.

Wa Dining Okan
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Ba Ren:

What would one of these posts be without Ba Ren. After all these years, still our favorite. If you want to read previous posts, you can find a listing on my rotation page. Not much more to add, just a few photos:

Steamed Pumpkin stuffed with Pork (#129 - $14.99, you need to call one day ahead).

I've had this a few times before, but it was especially good on this visit! This was during dinner with Ed from Yuma & Tina. I'll let Ed comment if he desires.

And of course during other visits; the usual suspects.

Ba Ren
4957 Diane Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

And one more just for the heck of it:

This one is for FOY JeffreyC:

I know how much he enjoys Katsudon. It's a bit too hot for that right now......but this version from Kayaba was passable.

Kayaba
4240 Kearny Mesa Rd Ste 119 - In the Mitsuwa Marketplace
San Diego, CA 92111

I hope you enjoyed, this little collection.....

Recently heard about Vien Dong Market in Linda Vista:

I can't confirm this, but I recently heard from a very good FOY, that the former Owners of this location of Vien Dong has reacquired the lease. This would mean that Vien Dong would reopen after a renovation. Again, this has not been confirmed...so if anyone knows anything...let us know!

Hope you're all having a great week!

Sammy Sushi says goodbye

A few months ago, Sam, Owner, Itamae, and the namesake of Sammy Sushi, mentioned that he planned to put the restaurant up for sale. After 4 years and change, Sam had decided that the 24 hours a day demands that his restaurant had put on him had started wearing away at him, both physically and mentally. I don't blame him, the restaurant industry is a tough one. And so it came to pass, a few weeks ago, Sam mentioned that he had a buyer, and the end was in sight. So it is with a heavy heart that I announce that Sammy Sushi's last night of operation will be Saturday, October 11th.

So this week will be your last chance to drop by and enjoy the nice neighborhood vibe of Sammy Sushi. It appears that Sammy Sushi is going to become a Fresh Seafood Market.

Over the years Sam has become much more than my friendly neighborhood Itamae, he's become a friend. And as sad as I am knowing that Sammy's will be gone, I have great hopes for Sam's future endeavors.

 

Good Luck Sam!

Road Trip: Daikokuya - Costa Mesa (Orange County)

I've long been a fan of Daikokuya, though not a big enough fan to wait  1-2 hours in line....for me the return on investment was just not there. Well maybe an hour, but no longer.....except when it's kinda cold outside, but only then could I wait maybe an hour-and-a-half.....or if I'm really Jonesing  for a bowl of the super rich and fatty Kotteri broth, maybe.....

So when I read that Daikokuya was opening up in the Food Court of Marukai Costa Mesa, I was overjoyed, and quite excited. Until I read Elmomonster's post on his disappointing visit to Daikokuya Costa Mesa. Still, I thought that I needed to find out for myself.

After seeing the "menu"(written on a piece of construction paper) and the "crew", I pretty much knew that this, at the best, would be a stripped down Daikokuya experience.

Being not very hungry, the Missus and I decided to split a bowl of ramen ($8.50). We were handed one of those vibrating coaster like thing-a-majiggies.... And before you knew it, the bugger got all lit up and vibrated its way off the table. I guess my bowl of ramen was ready!

As I moved the bowl from the plastic tray to the table, I noticed that it was not very hot, which for tonkotsu (boiled pork bone) style broth is the kiss of death. It ends up being oily. The first thing the Missus went for was the boiled egg, one of Her favorites, and Daikokuya, as I remembered it was one of the few places that would make their eggs "hanjyuku" style...soft boiled. As I fished the egg out, the Missus let out a gasp:

Talk about lousy quality control; this egg had cracked during the boiling process, causing the albumen to get stiff, and the yolk would obviously be overcooked. The Missus wasn't going to take this sitting down, and marched the bowl back to the counter. What She got from the young lady was a titter, and the statement, "wow, that's an ugly looking egg". You gotta love the attention to detail. After a short discussion, we got a replacement egg. It was not soft-boiled, but acceptable.

The broth itself was a disappointment, bland, somewhat greasy, almost what we would consider "stagnant". I had expected the Chashu to be lousy as well, but it was pretty good, with a nice mildly sweet "porkiness" to it.

The noodles were as good as mass-produced standard ramen noodles could be prepared. It had a nice chew to it, and was not overcooked. The Missus's assessment? "We came all this way for this? You better get some fish from Marukai and make me Karei Karaage when we get home!" Which I did.

I should have known better and taken Elmo's word on Daikokuya....but I had to find out for myself. Still, they seemed to be doing okay business in the Bermuda Triangle that is the Marukai Costa Mesa Food Court. But to me, it is a mere shadow of the Little Tokyo location.

Daikokuya
2975 Harbor Blvd (In the Marukai Food Court)
Costa Mesa, CA 92626

I just realized that I chose what may be one of the hottest days of the year to post about ramen.....maybe I just wanted to share my pain?

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Wa Dining Okan - Part 2

As I mentioned in Part 1, Captain Jack and I had already consumed almost all of the first 5 Kozara Ryori (small plates). At this point, CJ turned to me and said; "ok, it's time for some meat!" Opening the menu, I started ordering items from the Grilled Dishes and Side Dishes potion of the menu.

The first dish to arrive was the Grilled Beef Tongue (Gyutan - $5.50):

5 slices of Grilled Beef tongue, served with a lemon wedge and a sprinkling of Shichimi Togarashi, the standard Japanese chili and spice blend. If I may digress for a brief moment; the translation of Shichimi Togarashi is basically "seven spice chili pepper". Whenever I use it around the house, I will often show the bottle to the Missus and tell Her; "your people may have 5 spice...but we have SEVEN spice!" At which time I need to duck and scamper away quickly...very quickly. I thought the slices of tongue would have been better off texturally if it were sliced a bit thinner, and grilled a bit more crisp. As served it was a bit more rubbery than what I prefer. Still, the flavor was excellent.....and a good sign of proper preparation was evident. The Gyutan was permeated with the unmistakable fragrance of Binchotan, which adds a distinct smoky flavor to whatever is being grilled.

Next up was something not on the menu. But seeing that there were a few Yakitori style items on the menu involving various cuts of chicken, I asked if they had Tori Kawa (chicken skin). Nanase pointed to the Japanese menu over the doorway to the kitchen, and said yes. So this was a no-brainer.

Served in a ponzu style sauce, and topped with a good, mildy, sweet-pungent Negi (green onion), this dish delivered as expected.

Off the side dish menu, we ordered the Spicy Chicken Karaage ($5.25):

The Karaage was decent, but nothing special. What was delici-oso good was the "spicy sauce" which was more tangy than spicy, and tasted great on the Mizuna.....they should bottle the stuff.

Grilled Chicken Wings (Tebasaki - $4.50):

Not the largest chicken wings you'll ever see, but these were grilled to perfection. And the smoky Binchotan flavor came sailing through. And even though I haven't met very many chicken wings I didn't like, I thought these were especially good.

What was called 1-Bite Deep Fried Pork on the menu($5.50).

This was basically 2 bite Tonkatsu nuggets. The pork was fried to perfection and had a good amount of fat, but was on the tough side. The katsu sauce was really good, very tangy, and I think it's made in house.

I saw a plate of tempura pass by....the color and shape caught my eye. So of course, being with CJ, I had no fear of unfinished food...we ordered the Okra Tempura, which I didn't see on the menu.

This was fried with a skilled hand; the okra still had a nice bite to it, and had not wasted away into mushiness, and the batter was light. What really caught my attention was the Tentsuyu, the dipping sauce, which had a nice dashi flavor, without being too salty.

As we were finishing the okra, CJ turned to me and said; "we need one more thing...." Which gave me the opening to order the Asparagus Wrapped with Pork ($4.25):

Under any other circumstances, this would be plain-Jane bacon wrapped asparagus. It was the addition of grilling over binchotan that added an additional layer of flavor over everything. Overall, this was a decent dish.

12 dishes, along with a small Tokkuri of Kubota Manju came out to a tad over $70. Not bad at all.

Funny thing, a day later I was craving that Gobo Salad. And knowing how much the Missus loves all those nimono (simmered) dishes, I talked Her into having a nice light dinner at Okan. Unfortunately, the Sataimo, Kabocha, and Nasubi dishes weren't "on the table". Of course the really bad tuna-daikon salad, and the strange sweet-sour chicken were.... But all was not lost, for tonight there were a couple of items the Missus enjoys.

We started with some Gobo Kinpira (sauteed than simmered gobo):

 

Man, this was good, and motivated the Missus to order some Gohan (rice). All the textures were perfect.....this was much better than anything I've tried to make at home.

The Hijiki Nimono (simmered Hijiki):

Nice and crisp, but very mild in flavor. The Missus preferred the version I make at home.

I was surprised when the Missus ordered the Simmered Saba (Simmered Blue Mackerel) from among the specials lining the counter.

Inability to handle the high oil content and the texture, Saba has never been one of the Missus's favorite fishes. And this was no exception. Saba had never been one of my favorite fishes either......but I really enjoyed this. Nice oil, fairly dense meat from the preparation, not as fishy as I had expected.

We also ordered one of the Missus's favorites, Agedashi Tofu ($4.25 - fried tofu in a broth).

 

The Missus loved the tofu, perfect in texture. The tentsuyu, the sauce for the tofu was very mild, except for the flavor of ginger, which over-powered the otherwise delicate flavors of the dish.

Along with all of those dishes, we had the wonderful Gobo Salad I had been craving, and the Okra Tempura. The Missus had a Calpico Sour, I had tea, and the meal came out to $35. Not bad at all. Many of the dishes are really home-style, and I'm sure many of us makes at least some facsimile of them at home. But some of these dishes take a good amount of time, and to make many small plates.....sheesh!

As we were driving home, we started discussing the salad. The Missus mentioned the textures and also the flavors.....in the very Chinese way She said, "suan, tian, ku, xian." Suddenly, in a moment of clarity I understood, "Okan" (Mom) was teaching us about life in this dish. Life is made up of sour(suan), tian (sweet), bitter (ku), and xian (salty) moments, and we must devour it with zeal. Of course, She may just want us to eat our greens........

Wa Dining Okan
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Hours:
Mon - Wed 530-11pm
Thurs - Sat 530pm - 12am
Sun 430pm - 9pm

Part 1, can be found here.

Wa Dining Okan - Part 1

Everyone likes a good story, one full of intrigue, right? So how about a story of riches, a far away land, some mystery, and with Mom's love thrown in to tie it all together? Well, let's give it a whirl, shall we?

There I was, minding my own business.....I know, I know, you've heard that one before. But really, there I was minding my own business on a recent Saturday night. As I left Nijiya Market, groceries in tow.....yes, such is the glamorous life I lead, grocery shopping on a Saturday night. Leaving Nijiya, I noticed that the space previously occupied by Yakitori K-1, was lit up, and as I peered through the window, the place was packed.

There was not much to identify the place, except for a sign of "specials", and several laminated photos with wording in Japanese. I was immediately hooked, but I really wanted to do a bit of research before stepping through that door. Questions danced through my head; "what kind of place would open up, flying way below the radar?" "No signs in English, what would that mean?" "Why haven't I heard of this place before?" Hence the mystery......put in simple terms, what the heck was this place? I needed to know more....so what would a good Private Eye do? Well, I started interviewing people. From 2 different cashiers at Nijiya, I learned a bit. They weren't quite sure how to explain the type of restaurant in English. Until it hit home; when I mentioned the term "Kozara Ryori", I was met with approving nods. Both of the women had never been to the restaurant, and one of them said; "I think it might be the most expensive in San Diego!" And then She whispered to me, "when you go, come back and tell me about it." For those who have never heard of Kozara Ryori dining, the term "Kozara" refers to the little plates that are used. So the term Kozara Ryori, is used for restaurants that serve "little plates".....sort of Tapas, Japanese style. (No, Izakaya is NOT a term used for Japanese little dishes). And from another source, I was told that the Owner was a rich (the riches) Japanese Businessman, who was unhappy with the Japanese food in San Diego, and decided to find and hire a Chef from Japan (the far away land). Wanting this restaurant to be his own little semi-private dining club, but also needing to make enough to keep it afloat, the place opened with no fanfare, and the sign still read "Yakitori K-1". I'm not sure if this is all true, but it makes for a heck of a story.....

Having a better understanding of the task in front of me, I knew I was out of my depth. I needed some help, an individual with deep pockets, and an even deeper stomach. There was only one man for the job, my Urasawa Partner in Crime. The man, the myth, the appetite, Captain Jack. Jack, as always, was up for anything, and met me for dinner, at the restaurant whose sign still read "Yakitori K-1"

We arrived right at opening, 530pm, so that we could deal with possible complications. Places are less crowded at that hour. As we approached, I really took a detailed look at the sign of specials.

No, I don't read Japanese; but I quickly noticed the prices....hmmmm....everything under $5.25. Looks like it won't be too bad. I'll have to tell the lady at Nijiya......

The restaurant is elegant, in the simple, and what Captain Jack calls "austere", Japanese way. As we sat at the "bar", we quickly noticed the specials are lined up around the bar in large bowls.

And there is an English version of the menu....even though there are several other specials in Japanese, you'll have no problem maneuvering here. The restaurant itself is quite small, and the fairly large menu consists of appetizers, salads, side dishes, grilled items, and the inevitable "closing dishes" (i.e. soup, soba, and udon). The prices are quite in line with other places.....

As I looked over the bowls of specials, a smile appeared on my face. Most of the items were homestyle dishes, many of which I grew up eating, and still make from time to time in my own mediocre way. And so I started ordering, and really appreciated the wonderful service that Nanase provided....She actually put up with my very bad Sansei pronunciations of the dishes.

We started with some simmered Satoimo Nimono (simmered Japanese taro):

Oh man, memories of my childhood. Nicely simmered to a perfect moist-starchiness, in a mild dashi-based broth. This was, at least for me, quite nice.

Kabocha Nimono, simmered "winter squash" also known as "Kabocha Squash" and "Japanese Pumpkin".

I dare not even attempt to cook my Kabocha to this level...it would never hold shape. Melt in your mouth, but maybe a bit too soft for me. Wonderful flavor, the mild sweetness accented by the balanced dashi.

The Daikon and Tuna Salad:

The only real clunker of the night...ugh....canned tuna...mayo...belongs at the buffet line at Todai.

Having tasted the Kabocha and Satoimo, something told me that the Miso Nasubi(Eggplant) might be pretty good.

I really enjoyed this. The miso was used with a very restrained hand, there was the hint of miso in every bite, but you could still taste the eggplant. The eggplant was simmered to perfection, just enough melt in your mouth goodness, without a hint of bitterness. A very nice home-style dish, and my favorite of the "specials".

For our salad; we ordered this:

It's the Gobo Salad ($5.25). I was a bit surprised at the portion size. The Gobo (burdock root) had been shaved and deep fried. The Gobo and the Mizuna was tied together with a Sesame-Vinaigrette, which added a nice tart-sweetness, and the wonderful earthiness of the Gobo was balanced out with the mild bitterness of the Mizuna. This was possibly my favorite dish of the night.

Would you believe that we had just gotten started? I'm bushed, so you'll have to wait for part 2 of this.....

Oh...yes, what about "Mom"?

Just read the little page to the right. There are little signs around the place, signed, "Yours Sincerely, Mom." And who doesn't love Mom? So how about adding this to the little story. A rich Japanese Businessman, misses his Mom's home cooking, and the comfort food of home. He hires a Chef from Japan to recreate those seasonal dishes he loves, and quietly opens a restaurant....... Could it be true??? I dunno........

Wa Dining Okan
3860 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Hours:
Mon - Wed 530-11pm
Thurs - Sat 530pm - 12am
Sun 430pm - 9pm

Part 2 can be found here.

Santouka Ramen - San Diego, A revisit

After my not too satisfying visit to the new Santouka in San Diego, I thought I'd wait a bit before trying it out again. But the opportunity arose a lot quicker than I'd thought. The always thoughtful Howie, proprietor of The Foodie View invited me to join his merry group for lunch. (BTW, check out his new feature, The Foodie View of the Day). On this day, the Shio Ramen was spot on, from the wonderfully tongue scortching broth, to the toothsome and elastic noodles. Unfortunately, I was enjoying the wonderful company of Michelle, Caron (of San Diego Foodstuff), and Howie so much, that I really didn't feel motivated to take photos. Great conversation will do that to me sometimes.

Recently, the Missus, needing a change of pace, wanted some ramen. Now the Missus is not a big ramen fan, though I think it is due to the fact that She's had too much "bad ramen". Being that a request for ramen occurs about as often as an appearance of Halley's comet in the mmm-yoso household, I jumped at the chance. We arrived at the Santouka "booth", and the Missus wanted something "salty", so it was a large Miso Ramen for Her, and since She has never met a boiled egg She's never liked, we got the boiled eggs(99 cents) as well. Since I wanted to do an "apple for apple" comparison, I decided on the Shio Ramen again($7.99 - large), and of course I got a side of boiled egg as well.

The shiro(broth) was excellent, tongue melting hot, rich, but not greasy, and full of porky goodness, sweet, and mildly salty. The Chashu was also very good, soft, but not falling to pieces, rich in flavor, and very moist. Even the Missus, who, ummm, "doesn't eat pork", loved it! The noodles were a bit off today, hard and brittle, instead of being chewy, with a nice elasticity. Still, this was way better than that first bowl I had.

I had a sip of The Missus's Miso Ramen, and it still strikes me a being too salty. As for the boiled eggs....the Missus loved them so much, She traded 1 piece of Chashu for my eggs. Sorry, but I wasn't going to just give away my boiled eggs. Chivalry has its limits.

So there you have it, a revisit to Santouka in San Diego, not as good as my undocumented second visit, but better than my first. Still not better than the bowls I've had in Torrance and Costa Mesa, but getting there.

Santouka Ramen
4240 Kearny Mesa Rd(In the Mitsuwa Marketplace)
San Diego, CA 92111

Banbu Sushi Bar and Grill- a restaurant inside the old Movie Theater complex in La Mesa

mmm-yoso!!! is just a humble blog.  Kirk and ed (from Yuma) are busy with life today and Cathy is just blogging about yet another meal.

Hi.  I'm back again.  Remember the old Pacific Theaters on Fletcher Parkway, down the hill from Grossmont Mall?  Well, once the theaters were built right inside the mall, those by the Trolley Station were abandoned, but the building stayed...and now look at it!

Inside and outside, it is decorated beautifully- the sushi bar has 12 chairs and could accommodate a few more...there were five sushi chefs (one of them female...) working constantly, and a couple of television sets behind them. We ordered a couple of "basics", staring with the fried calamari ($6.95)...sliced thin and with a very light batter...the flavor was good, but the calamari was a bit too chewy; maybe a bit overcooked because it was sliced so thin. Still, it was tasty and a good sized portion, accompanied by the spicy Sriracha flavored dipping sauce.

The Mister ordered a lunch special, which started with a fairly large bowl of onion soup (miso is also a choice). Very rich, not salty, not too onion-y, with thinly sliced mushrooms and fried onion bits floating in it. Very nice (and different)

The shrimp and vegetable tempura lunch plate ($9.00). The portion of rice is an excellent size and quality. The California rolls were fresh and made with *real* crab. The tempura itself was very well done, not burned, not greasy, lightly crispy. There were two shrimp and two each of some of the vegetables-mushroom, broccoli, sweet potato and one each of a fresh string bean, onion and green pepper. All of the vegetables were crispy fresh and tasty- the frying did not destroy anything. Very good.

I decided to try the seafood salad ($12.50) -opposed to the $17 Chirashi Sushi-  Don't let this photo fool you: I was trying to be non-conspicuous and this was the only photo I could get. The bottom of this salad bowl was *filled* with seafood pieces; the albacore being the best of all. I liked the salmon, hamachi, ika and tuna also.  Each piece of seafood was extremely fresh and not just some thoughtless 'endpiece' tossed in there. the salad was fresh with a light garlic ginger soy dressing. Again, this was more than enough food.  The photo looks small portion but it isn't.

Oh, the hot tea was *excellent* and free.  I also noticed free refills of soda.

Banbu Sushi Bar and Grill 8555 Fletcher Parkway (between Grossmont Center Drive and Nagel) La Mesa 91942 (619)589-0071 (Closed between lunch and dinner M-Sat) Sunday open at 1 p.m. until 9 p.m.

Santouka Ramen - San Diego

*** An updated post can be found here.

I had been hearing about the possibility of a branch of Santouka Ramen opening up in San Diego for quite a while. I had heard that Santouka would be opening in the Mitsuwa Marketplace; but after Kayaba opened it's doors; or to be more precise, drew back its curtains, there was no activity for for over a year. But soon enough, word got around that Santouka was opening on April 14th. "Finally, good ramen in San Diego" was the first thought that went through my mind. And though the first few days after opening was a bit too crazy for me, it was just a matter of time before I wanted to inhale some good ramen!

I placed my order, and watched the automated green onion slicer go to work. I dunno, they had 5 people working, do they really need a machine to cut green onions? And just the fact that the Young Man running the contraption stood and fed the scallions one by one through the machine, made it seem somewhat Goldberg-ian!

I usually will just get a Shio or Shoyu Ramen, but on this day, I decided to go for the gusto and ordered the Shio Ramen - Chashu Rice set ($9.48). Which was ready in no time.

Santouka's ramen is a favorite of many food bloggers, from The Rameniac to Miss Oishii-Eats and Daily Gluttony, who made sure to attend Santouka's grand opening in West LA. Recently, "RT" doing a guest spot on The Delicious Life, called it "liquid crack". And having had a few bowls myself, albeit at the Torrance and Costa Mesa locations, I'd be more than happy to join in, singing praises.....

I approached my bowl with eagerness, and that's where the problems started.

The shio(salt) ramen, which according to Rameniac owes it's flavor to the combination of pork bones(done in the classic "Tonkotsu" style) as well as shellfish. For me, there is one key thing about the broth I enjoy; a good oil content. The shiro at Santouka is not as rich as the "good bowls" I've encountered at Daikokuya, but it usually has a nice velvety richness that will wrap itself around your tongue. Unfortunately, this bowl of ramen was served to me lukewarm, which turned it from rich, to greasy, and not as enjoyable. In fact, halfway through my bowl, I had my own little personal Exxon Valdez disaster....which marks the only time that I've never finished a bowl of ramen at Santouka.

Still, I could live with that. Why? Well, for me, it's about the noodles at Santouka, which have a nice springy, toothsome, chew to them. These were undercooked and on the hard side. And being in lukewarm broth would not help, bummer.....

 

At least the Chashu delivered, as did the boiled soy sauce eggs, an accessory that goes with the ramen at Santouka, like Marc Jacobs with the Missus.

Disappointed with my ramen, I don't even remember what the Chashu Rice tasted like, and frankly it was just an afterthought for me anyway.

 

I've had enough good bowls of ramen at the other locations of Santouka to give the San Diego  location "a pass" for now. I'll assume that they still need to get things straightened out. I'm hoping my next visit will be more successful.

Santouka Ramen
4240 Kearny Mesa Rd(In the Mitsuwa Marketplace)
San Diego, CA 92111

Sushi Porn 2: The Sequel from Sammy

*** On October 11th 2008 Sammy called it a day.

Welcome to mmm-yoso!!!, Kirk's blog on the wonderful world of food from San Diego and beyond.  Sometimes, he lets one of his friends post here, and today, ed from Yuma will share some more salacious sushi pics.

A few weeks ago when I was preparing my first excursion into the fishy world of sushi pornography, I was surprised by how many of my favorite raw pictures were of items from Sammy Sushi, not Sakura.

After I thought about it for a while, I began to understand why. Ever since I first wandered into Katzra, where Sammy was then employed, on a rainy night many years ago, I have been impressed by Sammy's skills as an itamae. Not only is his fish usually fresh and tasty, but he creates an atmosphere of warmth and friendliness in his sushi bar. Over the last few years he has honed these skills (as well as a number of knives, I suspect) at his own place on Engineer, about a block away from Convoy.

While Sammy's kitchen does not turn out the wide range of tasty izakaya treats like Sakura, he does more than just sushi. For example, the salmon skin salad is a wonderful combination of crunchy, fishy, and smoky flavors:

In addition, Sammy's appeals to me because it is a great American neighborhood sushi bar (in the best sense of the term). The friendly atmosphere and reasonable prices attract a lot of regulars. If one wants to watch a World Cup game or a baseball playoff, Sammy has no problem turning on his television set. Similarly, Sammy's menu contains a wide range of America's favorite rolled sushi. Sometimes it's nice to tuck into something like a spider roll or rainbow roll, though in general, my taste in rolls runs to the more traditional, as in this beautiful albacore roll:

Sammy also creates pressed sushi, using the mold somewhat like a plastic ice cube tray to create oblong cubes of densely packed rice and raw fish: 

As you can tell from this close-up, this version contains maguro and some crunchy items along with the rice, presenting a mix of flavors and textures:

Sammy also does a wide range of nigiri sushi. The salmon and mirugai shown here were both excellent:

Some days, the sushi at Sammy's crosses over the line into the obscenely good. This display of naked fishflesh (hamachi) makes me want to eat my computer screen:

Similarly, I cannot imagine any connoisseur of crustaceans not being aroused by this gorgeous display of amaebi, split wide open, its pearly moist luster beckoning the viewer into serious indulgence:

Of course, in my mind, no post on such an erotic and exotic topic would be complete without a look at some fresh uni. Here the sex organs of a sea urchin lie exposed above the rest of its body:

In the tradition of fine pornography (so I am told), I feel it is completely appropriate to end with a close-up of this kinky echinoderm, a picture that leaves nothing (except the rich creamy flavor) to the imagination:

Now that is truly obscene.

Sammy Sushi, 7905 Engineer Road San Diego, CA 92111