mmm-yoso!!!

Yuk Dae Jang Revisited

We've seemed to hit that "transition" period with regards to weather.......it's May Gray...or is it June Gloom in the mornings, sometimes a bit humid; the sun might peek out later in the day. Some days are hot-humid, on others we get a nice breeze, with a bit of overcast skies, JJ's kind of weather it seems. Speaking of JJ, we've been able to get some time free to shop and grab lunch these days, by giving him a morning full of walks, runs, and activities.

Which is what we did on this morning. Leaving our "pooped pup" in need of a break away from the "terrible" 70 degree sunshine! Upon which, the subject of lunch came up. For some reason, the Missus wanted to return to Yuk Dae Jang! Based on my last visit, we for sure weren't going to do takeout. 

We arrived right at opening and the place was empty, but filled up quickly as the clock struck closer to noon. The same two really nice young ladies were working. One thing we noticed was that prices hasn't seemed to have changed since we first visited in October of 2023, which seemed to be quite an different from what we've noticed at other restaurants. With all the price increases over the last year, this seemed like quite a departure from the norm.

As I mentioned, the weather had been up and down. What we ordered kind of reflected this posture.

The Missus wanted some Seolleongtang and for some reason, so mandu as well. So we got the Ox Bone Soup with Mandu ($19.99). I also wanted to get the Bossam again, which we had enjoyed on a previous visit. So we also ordered the Premium Bossam in House Special Sauce ($39.99).

As I noticed with my takeout order, the baechu kimchi does not seem to be fermented, more like pickled, and not quite up to what we enjoy. I do like the eomuk bokkeum, the fishcake panchan, which has more spice and sour notes than other versions, but the Missus is not a fan of that type of panchan as a whole.

The Purple Rice (heukmi bap) was nicely cooked this time around. 

The Ox Bone Soup with Mandu was better than expected.

  The soup was nice and beefy. Unlike the usual Seolleongtang, this had a perfect amount of salt...usually you need to season to your taste. The Tteokguk, the flat rice cake like Nian Gao still had a nice chew to it. 

Most surprising were the mandu. The wrapper while slightly on the brittle side was of nice thickness; the filling, pork and chive was much more tender than what we'd had before and nicely seasoned as well.

The standard accoutrements were provided. The radish bossam panchan was especially tasty; the pickled garlic quite astringently pungent.

As for the bossam, well...it delivered. We find the sweet-soy based sauce to be quite refreshing.

The generous amount of slightly porky, mildly chewy pork belly was pleasant to eat. For some reason, we really enjoy the onions in this dish. I'm certain they presoak the onions before serving as it is only mildly pungent, but quite sweet. You might say I enjoy the onions even more than the pork at times! Especially when having leftovers the next day.

Overall, an enjoyable meal. I'm sure we'll return soon. That bossam will be nice as the weather gets warmer.

Yuk Dae Jang
7307 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Wed - Mon 11am - 9pm
Closed on Tuesday

Circling Back to Song Hak

A few weeks back, I did a "circling back" post on Tanuki. I'd been meaning to return after doing an abbreviated post back during the pandemic. Well, there was one other restaurant on that post that we'd been meaning to return to. Song Hak. And just to really set that reminder, "Sami" of the wonderful blog Things I Tried did a post on the place a while back.

The Missus was wanting a Dolsot Bi Bim Bap and really wanted something different from Her usual choice, so this was a great opportunity. We decided to head on over for lunch, because like many of the places on Convoy, that parking lot is horrible. And now that all the street parking is gone, well that just makes things more difficult.

On weekends, Song Hak opens right before 11am, which is when we arrived, encountering no issue with parking in the lot.

The woman working was so nice.....very kind, warm, very much an "Imo"... Auntie. Because the Missus was getting the dolsot, we wouldn't be doing BBQ, so no Gopchang for us. Though we still get a kick remembering when that young girl ate the Gopchang and said to her dad: "Did I just eat POOP.....it really looked like POOP!"

I went thru the lunch specials and the woman steered me to the LA Kalbi lunch. Now, I'm not the biggest fan of LA Kalbi, the cross-cut ribs. I prefer the more traditional So-Kalbi, even when making Kalbi at home. But, I decided to take her word for it.

The panchan arrived.

Not too impressive, except for the baechu kimchi which had a nice slight fermented sourness to it.

I must say; the Kalbi was quite good. A thicker cut than what I'm used to, but surprisingly tender, beefy, though the marinade was a bit on the sweeter side. The Missus sampled some and enjoyed it! It was a good recommendation. The rice was decent as well.

The Sundubu was not very good however.

Thin, salty, lacking in savory tones.....not a favorite.

As for the Dolsot Bi Bim Bap.....

Man, this was quite hefty. The Missus enjoyed the bulgogi, which did skew to the sweeter side of things....but of course that egg with crisp edges. She (we) waited as the rice crust developed and also poured the juice from the kimchi onto the bowl. The namul added some nutty and textural contrast. This might just be the Missus's current favorite Dolsot Bi Bimbap.......

Which is kind of a dilemma....because I want to return and get the gopchang and similar dishes again......

Still, the woman working was so nice; we enjoyed our meal, so I'm thinking we'll return again soon.

And maybe get some, ahem, "poop shoot".......looking forward to having some gopchang here.....

Song Hak Korean BBQ
4681 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Mon - Thurs 1130am - 11pm
Friday            1130am - Midnight
Sat - Sun       1050am - 1130pm

Takeout from The Curry Club and Yuk Dae Jang

Way back when I revisited Zen Curry under its new iteration, Curry Club I had noticed a "Curry Moco" on the menu. I was tempted to order it; but I just really wanted to compare dishes I'd had when the place was Zen Curry, to the new, revised menu. I did make a note to return to try out the Curry Moco. On a recent weekday, the time seemed right to try a Curry Moco, so I headed on over. 

Well, call it a senior moment, it was on a Wednesday and the Curry Club only opens from 5pm - 9pm on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, duh.....

So, what to do? Well, I thought about Katsu Cafe since it had been a while since my last visit. But, as I walked on over, I passed....

Yuk Dae Jang:

And took a look at the menu.

Well, since it was just me, I wasn't going to be ordering the Bossam nor the YukDae Jang with shredded beef. But, with the cold weather, I thought the Yuk Dae Jang with Soft Tofu ($17.99) might be just the thing. I went in and placed my order and then went across the street and did some quick shopping at 99 Ranch Market. When I returned my takeout order was ready.

It was quite a bit of food.

   This was a bit different than what we'd had before. The baechu kimchi didn't taster fermented this time around; though the Eomuk Bokkeum, the fishcake panchan had a bit of spice and sour tones and was much better. The heukmi bap was on the mushy side.

The YukDaeJang.....in this case basically Soondubu was pretty one dimensional in flavor; good spice, but in need of salt and more savory components. It also had a greasy mouthfeel. This of course ensured that it was hot as heck the entire meal.

The soft tofu was quite nice, beany and creamy.

I think I'll wait on ordering takeout again. The next time, I'll get the Missus to join me and we can get the bossam which I think they do rather well.

Yuk Dae Jang
7307 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Wed - Mon 11am - 9pm
Closed on Tuesday

Well, I was now more determined than ever to try that Curry Moco. So, that Saturday, having completed all my errands and "JJ duties" I headed on over to the Curry Club, which now has a nice new sign.

The Curry Club:

I walked on in and placed my order choosing the Cayenne Pepper Spice, which I had enjoyed the most on my previous visit.

Here's what the Curry Moco ($16.50) looked like when I unpacked it.

 The cayenne did bring some decent heat to the dish, but I also did the "typical" loco moco move.....I added a touch of Tabasco; the acidity-spice bumped things up even more. Old "loco" habits die hard I guess?

The egg yolk was starting to congeal, but was still slightly runny. I'll attribute this to the 15 minute drive home. The edges were slightly crisp.

   The hamburger patty was quite lean and chewy, but the beefiness did come thru and completed the dish well.

The curry was creamy, with the typical savory-sweet flavor profile, with just a hint of spice.

There was a ton of rice in this. I think the dish could have used a bit more curry.

I did enjoy this and would gladly have it again. I'm wondering why no one else has done this? Or perhaps I just wasn't paying attention to menus? Makes me wonder what else I've been missing??

The Curry Club
7309 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Tues - Wed  5pm - 9pm
Thurs - Sun 11am - 3pm, 5pm - 9pm
Closed on Monday

Lunches with JJ - Cross Street Chicken and Beer (Convoy)

These days I want to spend as much time with JJ as possible...he'll only be a puppy once! So, I'm continuously scoping out dog friendly places. I've quickly noticed that as a whole, Asian restaurants are not dog friendly, and in places like City Heights and Convoy District places are few and far between. And some of them; like Woomiok have simple tables set-up on the sidewalk, and places that do have outdoor tables like Okan do not allow dogs. So, after looking around a bit, I noticed that Cross Street Chicken and Beer on Convoy pop-up several times. I also remembered that they had a fairly spacious patio. So JJ and I were off. We arrived a few minutes before opening time. When the open sign went on, I peeked in a inquired about dining with a pooch and was told just head on over to the gate for the patio.

I instantly realized that I had never eaten on the patio here before. I also did a quick check and noted that the last time I had dined in at Cross Street was back in 2019, though I did takeout during Covid, but that was over 4 1/2 years ago! My how time flies.

The young lady who served us was so sweet and wonderful; she instantly brought JJ some water without me asking!

And JJ seemed to enjoy her as well. When she went to serve another table he started barking jealously! When I apologized for that, she laughed and told me "no worries, my boyfriend has a schnauzer. I know they have an opinion about everything!" So true!

I decided to retry the Soy Garlic Wings again (5 piece - $12.95), could you have imagined that wings would be priced at over $2.50 each back in the "oughts"? I was somewhat hungry so I also got the Kimchi Fried Rice $14.85.

 The wings weren't overly sticky as before, though it was still more sweet, than savory and I really couldn't make out any garlic. The wings were again much more moist and tender than the drumettes which were on the tough and dry side. 

The chicken seemed a bit over fried with dark patches and was rather unevenly coated as well. The areas not battered were on the rubbery side. I will say that it was not overly crunchy as before.

As for the Kimchi Fried Rice.

The egg was quite nice, the yolk on the edge of being too cooked, but still runny, the edges crisp, with no off flavors. But it pretty much ended there as the rice was really mushy, with not enough fermented-spicy-savory kimchi flavors. I liked the Spam, but there was more frozen peas and carrots in this than I would care for. I was hoping for something along the lines of what I had got at Kuljem, but that was not to be had here.

Lovely service, quite dog friendly, as for the food, well, not so much on this visit. Though JJ did enjoy the attention, if anything that might get me to return again soon. And when we got home, he got his weekly "newspaper" delivered. And of course since it said "Open Me for Deals & Steals" he was more than happy to oblige.

Cross Street Chicken and Beer
4403 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 1130am - 945pm

Sot BBQ

I first noticed that yet another Korean BBQ Restaurant was opening in the spot where Olleh Sushi was back in July of last year. Of course, the location has basically been a revolving door of places from back when Szechuan Taste occupied the spot. The name of the place is Sot BBQ and I really didn't give it much thought until I started reading about the style and the quality of the KBBQ. "Sot" is short for Sot Ddu Kung ("sotttukeong"), basically the cast iron cauldron lid, which is used to sear various cuts of meat. These days, we're really not into AYCE KBBQ, we're looking more for quality. So, after taking a look at various posts and being aware of the prices, we decided to head on over. We also liked the fact that Sot opens at 4pm from Mondays to Thursdays (noon other days). We're into eating dinner rather early these days.

We arrived to see the place rather full, even at 430pm! 

We were shown to a table and handed a menu.

As the sot stood in all its cast iron glory.

Our first interaction with one of the young folks serving us was so very friendly. We were looking at the Wagyu Sampler ($175), but she quickly informed us that it's quite a lot of meat as was the Prime Sampler ($129)...like for 4 people amount of meat! She recommended that since it was our first visit, that we start with the Sot Sampler, which was much more reasonably (it's all relative) priced at $89.  We also got the fried rice ($9) since I had read that it's made on the sot to finish the meal. The fried rice was one of our favorite items when we ate at Song Hak.

Soon enough all the "tools" arrived.

Surgery was soon to be in session! Gladly, we noticed that the folks working took charge of cooking everything. They worked so very hard and were so sweet about it. Key item were the scissors and the rack on which you could stack your meat once cooked.

And then all the sides and panchan started arriving; chili sauce, two types of salt, Yangpa Jjangachi; the pickled onions.

Bean paste and a pretty good and refreshing Oi Kimchi (Cucumber kimchi).

We quickly noticed that the panchan here was pretty good; that baechu kimchi had a nice fermented touch, the kkakdugi was sour-spicy-refreshing, the various radish kimchi were quite pickle-y and flavorful.

Soon enough even more kimchi was brought out; this time the baechu kimchi looked very "old style" and it was placed on the sot along with what looked like kongnamul muchim, bean sprout kimchi.

I had a taste while the young lady sliced it; and yes, it was nicely fermented and almost savory. The young lady told us that the flavor would get even more intense on the sot....which it did as it caramelized.

As the meat was brought out, the king oyster mushrooms were placed on the cast iron.....I don't know if you've noticed; but thus far, we really hadn't done any cooking!

We surprised at how much meat there was.

 Now, I believe that you're going to think I'm strange, but for us, the meat was the weakest part of the meal. The beef belly was tough as was the short rib; the pork belly did well, but again wasn't anything special; the rib eye was supposedly prime, and was adequately tender, but nothing special. At a point in time, I took over the cooking duties as the wonderful young folks, whom I'm sure were doing their best and working on their experience with other customers...can you imagine; they were doing the cooking on all the tables! Well, things were turning out overcooked.

The gyeran jjim (steamed egg) arrived, but it was sort of "deflated" and on the drier side.

And yet, the highlight of the meal was yet to come. At then end fried rice was made on the Sot, using all the drippings, the hot cast iron....

The nor, the kimchi......the heat...it all made for a nice kimchi fried rice...especially if you let it sit and develop a bit of a crust.

So yes, we came for the KBBQ and left enjoying the fried rice! Which left me wondering, this was so close, yet so far......... We were wondering about the actual wagyu and I had an idea about the fried rice! Which meant we decided to return.

It was a different day, same story. The panchan was just as good. 

This time around, we went for some Wagyu Rib Eye - 6 ounces, $79 and also some ribeye bulgogi $35, and of course the fried rice!

And things started off as before; except this little fatty bugger joined us at the table. Along with a cube of fat, and a "crown" of wasabi.

Strangely, this looked just like the wagyu you can get at Tokyo Central or sometimes at Nijiya. It was quite thin and cooked quickly; in fact, I again had to take over.

It was quite tender, but the rendered fat made everything else on the sot wonderful.

So, this might sound a bit strange, but we had enjoyed the fried rice so much during our last visit. But I thought it would be even better with more savory sweet tones. And heck, I did want to try the marinated meat here as well, so we got the bulgogi. 

Now to be perfectly honest, I was really disappointed when this arrived as I was wondering, "where's the marinated beef"? So, this was sliced beef on top of a pool of marinade. Hmmm.......

Once mixed together and put on the sot, it wasn't too bad....still a bit more chewy than I expected, but not bad. We placed most of the bulgogi on the side rack.

Now the reason I ordered the bulgogi was actually for the fried rice. I thought that having the soy-sweet-savory base would make the fried rice even better.

And in combination with the fat from the wagyu and the crust from the sot...oh my......

And yet, one would have to pause at this point and think; "did I just spend over a hundred bucks for awesome fried rice"? Hmmm........

To put things into perspective; we weren't overly impressed with the meats....it is perhaps a step above the norm but heck, I can get better quality wagyu at Tokyo Central. The panchan is very good and that fried rice..... The service is awesome, though I'm still wondering if the meat is worth it?

Sot BBQ
8199 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Mon - Thurs  4pm - 10pm
Fri - Sunday   12pm - 10pm

Paik's Noodle

A few months back; "FOY" Elle asked me if I'd been to the new location of Paik's Noodle, which had moved from the Zion Market Food Court, where it was known as Hong Kong BanJum, to a location next to the Hive in the same strip mall as CoCo Ichibanya and Da Nang Corner. I felt a bit hesitant about checking them out. You see, I tried Hong Kong BanJum way back at the end of 2013 when they first opened and I really didn't care for the Jajangmyeon. It was greasy and much too sweet, so I never went back. Those were the days when I used to make sure to visit at least twice before doing a post, so those photos ended up in the recycle bin. I thought about returning once or twice, especially since Cathy seemed to enjoy her visit, but I just never made it back.

So finally, about two weeks ago, I decided to head on over and check the place out.

The location is shared with the Hive. Go right, it's the Hive, go left it's Paik's.

The space is elongated and quite spartan.

The two folks working here were so very nice. This was especially admirable when I watched them deal with the very rude, demanding, and entitled young men that came in a bit later on.

Ordering here is done off a tablet like display.

I knew I had to give the JaJangmyeon another try. I saw an option I thought I might enjoy; I ordered the JaJang Rice ($14.95), which came with an omelete and a side of the Jjampong. Also, based on my previous experience, I asked for the JaJang, the black bean based sauce on the side, so I could control flavors and texture.

Soon enough, some Takuan Danmuji arrived. 

Accompanying the JaJangmyeon, which according to several sources derives its existence from Chinese workers in Incheon in the late 19th, early 20th century. I've always found it kind of interesting that the Missus does not care for this dish, since it's origins have been traced to Shandong Province, where She is from!

    I'm glad I ordered my dish in this fashion as it was a heck of a lot of JaJang! While it still has a bit of that greasy mouthfeel, this wasn't overly sweet, had some decent umami tones, and some interesting pungency. It was definitely better than what I had experienced at Hong Kong BanJum in the Zion Food Court.

The rice was moist, there was also a good amount of fairly fluffy egg, which I guess because of the JaJang didn't seem to be seasoned at all.

While definitely not a "go to" dish for me, this was not bad. The portion size was quite generous.

I was glad that the Jjampong was included as it was my favorite of the meal.

Another dish which claims an interesting history, this was comfortingly spicy, with good savory - pungent - umami tones. I'm thinking I'll order the Meat Jjampong if I return.

Overall, quite a hearty meal, generous portion for the price. And while not claiming a place among Korean (or Korean-Chinese) eateries on my rotation, I'm glad I visited under the auspices Paik's which I think is better than the former iteration of Hong Kong BanJum. I also enjoyed reading about the history of these dishes while doing this post as well.

Paik's Noodle
4428 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Sun - Thurs 11am - 9pm
Fri - Sat        11am - 10pm

Thanks for the reminder for Paik's Elle!

Honolulu - Kim Chee II, Hanauma Bay, and Musubi Cafe Iyasume

After our wonderful dinner at Izakaya Uosan and our walk along Ala Moana Park, we took a stroll thru Ala Moana Center up to Kapiolani and proceeded to head back to the hotel. I had a moment of nostalgia when we passed the corner of Kapiolani and Ke’eaumoku. And no, it wasn't because there used to be a KFC on this corner forever. Close to the corner was a favorite stop of mine; Tower Records. And even before that was a place near that corner that in my mind changed the music scene in Hawaii. A club named Toppe Ada Shoppe.

Of course, locals from my generation will either quickly say C&K or Kalapana, whom we saw there. But, on one of the times my friend's brother sneaked us in, I saw a certain band. I still remember the lyrics - "I wish upon a Summer moonbeam....."

Oh-kay.......that got to me. I had to play the song. I still have the CD in one of my boxes too!

Just in case you like listen:

Anyway, the Missus noticed that it was almost 615...so She said we needed to head to the Lanai in Ala Moana Center. You see, around 630-645 Musubi Cafe Iyasume in the Lanai which I've posted on before will sometimes have discounts on their musubi, which I'll have for breakfast. And on this evening....

Yep, 50% off....so I had breakfast for the next morning!

Ah yes, breakfast with a view.....

Musubi Cafe Iyasume (In the Lanai - Ala Moana Center)
1450 Ala Moana Blvd.
Honolulu, HI 96814

We'd be heading back to Ewa Beach on this day, but the Missus told me She wanted to go to Hanauma Bay first in the morning. Sigh. I don't know what it is, but on the last couple trips, the Missus has been wanting to do some tourist kind of stuffs. And like many of those "activities", I hadn't been to Hanauma Bay in like 30 years? Back in those days we used to take frozen peas to feed the parrotfish! Of course things have changed a lot since then; nowadays if you don't have a local or military ID, you need to make reservations, there's an admission fee of $25 per person and $3 parking for the small lot. The reservations are actually for the 9 minute orientation video which you need to view before heading down to the beach.

We found some good parking and got into the line at our appointed time for the video before heading down to the beach.

It still looks quite pretty on the walk down.

We had brought our own snorkeling gear. Once in the water....well, it was kinda sad, while there were fish in abundance, the coral looked bleached. The coral must really be under stress. I immediately wanted to leave to not contribute to this.

Seeing this made me glad that there are limited hours and visitors for Hanauma Bay..... I remember it being so beautiful.

On the way back, we decided to stop for lunch. It seems that the Missus is starting to take to more local kine places these days. So, I asked if She wanted to try Meat Jun? She asked "Meat Jun, what's that?" Well, I explained that it is basically a take on Jeon (seen it spelled jyun as well) in which marinated beef is dredged in an egg and flour batter before frying. Much like Soegogi-Jeon which I've had before. You can find a nice recipe on Maangchi's blog. I'm not sure of the exact history origins of Meat Jun in the islands and was shocked when I first moved away and couldn't find the dish at Korean restaurants in SoCal. I did see it at different plate lunch places, I think Homestyle Hawaiian might still serve it. I tried it twice after moving to the mainland and it was terrible, so I just gave up. But now, driving back to town on Kalanianaʻole Highway opportunity struck as the Missus said "ok, let's try it!" This meant an instant detour to Waialae Avenue and a place that I had gone to when growing up in Kaimuki. I know ex-pat Kama'aina's and longtime "FOYs" Kyle, James, and Alan are smiling and nodding their heads now. Of course it's Kim Chee II, which has been around since...like the sign says 1977! Ho' am I old or what?

We parked in the back lot. There's a back entrance to the restaurant, but I just wanted to thru the front of the place. It was just after 11 and the place was already pretty busy with a lot of hungry "bruddah's" waiting to eat!

Of course I went with the "lunch special"; heck at $14.90 it's cheaper than a sandwich I had here last week!

I told the Missus that I think the portion might be pretty big so She decided just to get some tofu. I also told Her that "KC2" is really a local kine Korean place, so set your sights low with regards to any panchan. Which ended up being regular cabbage slightly pickled, not fermented. It actually goes ok with the BBQ.

The Tofu with "veggies" was fine; though the shoyu sauce tasted kinda watered down.

But of course, I was just waiting for what I had ordered. Which was enough for the Missus and I to share for lunch

 Ok, the beef in the meat jun was nicely marinated, if a bit on the chewier side; sweet-salty-hint of garlic, very bulgogi-ish, the batter was a bit thicker and gritty than I prefer and it had been over-fried a bit. But, the Missus enjoyed the mild eggy-ness and the combination of flavors. She liked the meat jun dipping sauce which also had a hint of vinegar, some spice, balanced sweetness.

She also enjoyed the chicken, nice soy-sweet and hint of pungency. She told me "this is like the chicken you make...way better than the terrible 'Hawaiian BBQ' stuff in San Diego!"

The rice was fine. The mandu wrapper was a bit thicker and chewier than I recalled; though the filling was nicely flavored.

And so, based on this meal we have a Meat Jun convert! Of course, the Missus now wants me to make this at home!!! 

Kim Chee II Restaurant
3569 Waialae Ave.
Honolulu, HI 96816

This was a nice blast from the past for me! I also recalled a Korean restaurant that used to be near Monsarrat that I used to go to. Perhaps my "FOYs" will remember that place?

Speaking of "FOYs", I'd like to thank Kyle, James, and Alan for keeping Kim Chee II on my mind all these years!

And thanks so much to all of you for dropping by and allowing me to share a place from my hanabuddah days with you!

Egglet (Regents Road/UTC)

While reading thru Eater's post on new restaurants in San Diego, I came across a mention of a Korean Egg Sandwich place that opened in the UTC area. So, I took a quick look online and man, unless I've been missing something it seems like Korean Egg Drop Sandwiches had finally made it to San Diego? Not that I'm really into those fads and such; but the location was quite convenient as were the hours, so I thought I'd drop by and check the place out for a "brunchy" kind of meal.

I find the location to be quite interesting, in the same strip mall off Regents that houses Leucadia Pizza, Von's, the "ABCDE" (American-Born-Chinese-Dining-Establishment) where I had ok Chicken Wings a zillion years ago. I really hadn't been to this mall in ages; the last time was when I needed some cash from the ATM probably before Covid. The name of the place sounded familiar....then it came to me; Egglettes are those silicon boiled egg cooking cups. Also, the location, wasn't this something like Yakimono Restaurant and then a ramen place and then a sushi restaurant in previous lives?

Taking a look at the interior, you can kinda see where a sushi bar used to be and a flat top in the back, all blocked by nicely lined up boxes.

There are a couple of smaller tables out front, some seating indoors, and what looks like an outdoor dining space.

The prices looked to be quite reasonable by today's standards. It's one of these modern you can use the QR code and they'll give you a buzzer for your food. I went with the Egg Double Cheese Egglet ($8) and was curious about the Truffle Hash Brown ($4.50). Soon enough the little bugger buzzer went off.

    Wasn't sure what to expect with the hash browns....there were three to an order, more than I could consume. This was typical Sysco quality, fast-foodish hash browns dusted with a truffle-Parmesan powder. It had a sweet tinge to it, I later found out that it is also dusted with black garlic. Not sure what hash browns are going for these days at your local fast-food joint, but I'm guessing that it's pretty reasonable for $4.50. Not that I would order it again though.

Speaking of not ordering again; the Egg Double Cheese Egglet was quite large for eight bucks; but the brioche, while decently toasted was way too sweet for my taste.

   Just having the mix of cheddar-mozzarella which made things nice and gooey and the under-seasoned egg was not enough to overcome the brioche toast. There was a lack of savory flavors to me. I'm sure that some folks might really take to this, but it was just not my kind of thing.

Still, at these prices, I was more than willing to give them another try. This time I went with something from the "sandwich" menu, rather than the egglet like I had earlier. I was told that the sandwich rolls are not as sweet as the toast by the really nice woman. I wasn't feeling like having a burger though, so I thought I'd "hedge my bets" by getting the Smoked Bacon Sandwich ($9.75) in hopes that the bun wouldn't be too sweet for my taste.

   This was a pretty messy sandwich. The bacon, which almost reminded me of "Canadian Bacon" hadn't been crisped up enough and was quite rubbery. Still, the savory-saltiness...it didn't seem smoky to me, really added balance to the sandwich.

Also, I'm thinking the roll, which was nicely toasted wasn't quite as sweet as the toast, though the caramelized onions, something I would usually enjoy on a savory sandwich/burger was a bit too much for this. Also, the egg was folded over to one corner of the sandwich. I had to open it up. The cheese, once again a mozzarella blend had a nice stringiness, but really lacked milky-savory-sharpness and other than texture, didn't bring much in terms of flavor to this.

In the end, Egglet is an interesting fast-casual concept, which I think a certain demographic (which I'm not part of) might enjoy. I also think the prices are good for the location, especially in this day and age. And the prices give you a chance to try them out yourself!

Egglet
7728 Regents Road Suite 501
San Diego, CA 92122
Current Hours:
Daily 7am - 2pm

KZ Mori (Inside of H Mart - Balboa)

Recently, I had to deal with parking at H Mart on Balboa at 1030. Well, finding a space wasn't bad, though things filled up quickly and it was kinda crazy as I was about to leave. Since it was just about lunchtime, I decided to head on back into H Mart and peruse the ever changing food court. The last time I had taken a look at the food court was when Bann had closed. Of course, no sooner than had Bann closed that they were replaced with another "concept". One place that I thought wasn't too bad in the Food Court was Katzya, though my last visit there was not too satisying. They eventually closed as well. I had heard that they had been replaced by a Katsu shop, named KZ Mori. For some reason, the name sounded familiar. When I saw the logo, it hit home. I had read about a katsu shop in the H Mart food court in Arcadia named "Kazu Mori". And I think it's related somehow? 

   I walked up to the counter, the place had just opened, but there seemed to be a couple of folks waiting for their orders already. The young man working was really nice, though he looked a bit overwhelmed. I took a look at the menu....even though the portions looked pretty large, I went and ordered the Mix Katsu Combo ($19.99), which included both pork and chicken katsu and curry. 

There was one other guy working and I saw him take out a huge batch of katsu and start chopping away. Oh my. After watching the first couple of orders go out, I was wondering how he knew which was the chicken and which was the pork. My plate was made from that "pile".

Instead of getting my order to dine in; I got it in a take out box, which was a good move since it was pretty darn hefty.

Opening things up on the table revealed "blotchy" katsu to the left and "blotchy" katsu to the right, a huge pile of shredded cabbage, and some nicely cooked rice.

 The katsu had not been fried evenly and there were some darkly colored spots, the texture of the panko was kind of mealy, at least the breading wasn't separating from the proteins, but it was easy to tell which was the pork and chicken. The pork was on the left; it was thicker, had a more spongy texture, but was fairly tender, if a bit on the dry side. The seasoning was one dimensional being quite salty. The chicken on the right side was thinner, dry, and chewy. It was also quite salty. I'd take the pork any day of the week.

 I'm pretty sure the curry had been made with "cubes", it had a nice spice, but was barely lukewarm....and I was eating in the food court. It was quite gloppy and was also on the salty side. Dipping the katsu in this was just too much sodium for me.

There was standard issue Japanese Sesame Dressing for the huge pile of cabbage, which was fine. The Katsu sauce was too sour and thin for me to enjoy.

To be honest, I wasn't expecting, say EE Nami, but there seems to be a lack of QC here as I think Homestyle Hawaiian and if we're looking at food court katsu even Musashiya (though it's been a while - I need to revisit) is better. Though, if you're really hungry, perhaps this would fill the bill? I think it's more about portion size here, the place seems quite popular - I ended up taking about half the food home with me. 

I mean, take a look at the katsu.......

KZ Mori (In the H Mart Food Court)
7725 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA 92111
Current Hours:
Daily 11am - 8pm

Midweek Meanderings - Champs Korean BBQ Replacing Seoul Korean Tofu House and Chicken Karaage from Tokyo Central (Marukai)

Just two quick things for a "heat wave Wednesday"!

Champs Korean BBQ Replacing Seoul Korean Tofu House:

I saw this while driving back from shopping at Nijiya.

I know that this used to be Convoy Tofu House, then it became Seoul Korean Tofu House. Now it looks like it's going to be yet another AYCE Korean BBQ. Because well, like KFC and Hot Pot we can never have enough AYCE KBBQ, right?

4229 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Chicken Karaage from Tokyo Central:

I started seeing these signs posted when entering Tokyo Central (aka Marukai).

Hmmmm.......Ever since Nijiya went and changed the recipe for their karaage I've been looking for a replacement. And the price at $10.99 a pound isn't too bad. After all, the regular price on the frozen Ajinomoto Karaage is $10.99 if I recall.

So, after about the fourth or fifth time seeing the signs I decided to go for it. I walked over to the warmer and bought me a small portion.

Once home I opened it up and had a taste. I liked the flavor, decent soy tones, without being too salty. I did find that it was on the more soggy side.

So, I ended up putting it in the air fryer for like 6 minutes and it was like a whole different dish!

Nice and crisp/crunchy. Heck, even the Missus liked it! So, even though this won't stop me from getting my Tenkatori "fix", it's a good option when heating in the air fryer.

Tokyo Central
8125 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA 92111

I hope everyone is keeping cool and comfortable during this heatwave!