San Diego Eating

Muzita is an Abyssinian (Eritrean/Ethiopian) bistro in University Heights. It was a nice neighborhood, plenty to do and see, and lots of pedestrians enjoying the streets. It was raining pretty heartily that night, but outdoor seating was still extremely pleasant. Jason and I thoroughly enjoyed this place. The atmosphere was cozy and the food was delicious. The servers and hosts were extremely friendly and would often stop to chat with every patron.

First dish: Birsn Korosh - spicy lentil spread with crispy injera (crispy oily bread).

I kept wiping my greasy fingers on my napkin, but I couldn’t stop eating this creamy, spicy dip. It was beany and spicy and tangy all at once. It was a great dish to share.

All right, what makes it difficult to label these pictures is that if you’re familiar with Ethiopian food, you know that everything you order is combined onto one plate, and often you’re not sure which dish you’re eating at any point in time. I can tell you that everything, and I mean, EVERYTHING was delicious and a little spicy and very filling.

I don’t remember what everything was. I think there was a type of curry, a lamb dish, some salad, and shredded meat of some sort on the other side. This was all served with the traditional spongy bread/tortilla typical of the region.

Here’s another angle:

Close-up of one of the entrees: hamli - braised spinach and collard greens (very spicy and yum!).

Close-up of the other entree: Zigini Beggie - berbere braised leg of lamb, stewed onion and tomato.

Also remember that you eat with your hands; there are no utensils here. They passed us wet washcloths to scrub our hands with before eating, so don’t worry about eating too many germs off your dirty hands.

Come here for a hearty, spicy meal. We managed to finish about half of our plate and took the rest home to eat the next day for lunch. It made us very sluggish and heavy. I would love to come here again, and for anyone who can appreciate Abyssinian food, I would highly recommend this place. Be prepared for a wait, as every dish is made to order.

Muzita

4561 Park Blvd

San Diego, CA 92116

619.546.7900

Luc’s Bistro is the less-expensive, bistro version of Cavaillon. One of the highlights is that you can order Cavaillon’s mushroom raviolis here as an appetizer. I really wish they would offer it as an entree. I could eat those all day. Well, not really. They’re very filling.

Mushroom ravioli with basil cream sauce:

The flash blotted out how deeply and beautifully green the sauce was. I’ve said it before: these are the best mushroom raviolis I have ever had. I was telling the hostess how good they were and she confided that they were the same ones that are served at Cavaillon.

I ordered braised beef short ribs with mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables (spinach, carrot, potato). It was a good dish - the beef wasn’t particularly juicy, but it was still very soft and came apart with a touch of the fork and didn’t come across as dry. I don’t know how to describe the lack of juiciness in terms that don’t convey a sense of dryness, but it was that: not juicy, but I wouldn’t call it dry. Basically, I think what this place touts itself as is a bistro that offers decent French food at very affordable, non-French-restaurant prices. The quality is better than the prices would indicate, basically.

If you’re craving decent French food but don’t have the budget for a French restaurant, then come to Luc’s Bistro - a French bistro. It’s difficult to find affordable gems like this, especially in the United States. I could come to this place over and over again for the ravioli alone.

The service was outstanding and several people came over to chat and see how we liked Luc’s. I think one was the manager and one was the owner.

We finished with a red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting, which is one of my favorite sweets, but I think my love and familiarity with outstanding versions of this dessert turned me off a little from Luc’s version. It was all right, but I prefer red velvet from Magnolia (NYC) and Sprinkles Cupcakes (Beverly Hills). My sister also makes a mean version (using a recipe book from Magnolia, haha).

4/23: Having trouble locating address for Luc’s Bistro (formerly the building was Yume Cafe) in Poway. I will add the address once I find it.

This is one of my favorite French restaurants in San Diego, if not my very favorite. I blogged about it before, but couldn’t include pictures because it gets too dark in the restaurant at night for quality photos, but they make the best mushroom ravioli I have ever tasted. Jason took me to Cavaillon for Sunday brunch, and I would highly recommend it. We sat outside, because southern California weather was pretty much made for outdoor dining.

First, Cafe du Monde beignets with powdered sugar and served with home-made berry preserves:

Hot, doughy in the center without being undercooked, light crispiness on the outside. They were cooked perfectly, with a light dusting of powdered sugar that had been added late enough so that the beignets were hot, but not greasy so they didn’t melt the sugar. I almost burned my fingertips trying to rip open the beignets - this is the perfect temperature. Highly recommended with coffee.

Two Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon and Spinach:

The name and picture say it all. I hope the picture makes it look delicious because it was delicious. Egg was poached the perfect amount, and when my fork broke into it, the yolk ran out and soaked the bread, spinach, and salmon. Every bite was amazing and my only regret was that I got too full to finish it. The home fries were good, nice and caramelized and crispy on the sides.

Smoked Salmon Scramble Eggs with Scallions and Cream Cheese:

This was Jason’s dish. It was a little rich for me, but I think this was one of Jason’s favorite egg dishes of all time. The name of the dish was perfect, because the salmon flavor was the most prevalent (and the tastiest). I am biased, though, because I generally don’t like my eggs scrambled or as an omelette. The cream cheese made the eggs very creamy and it had the tiniest sour aftertaste, which was really quite good.

The final call: We are eager to come back for any meal, be it breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner. In true European fashion, you are encouraged to relax and enjoy your meal at a leisurely pace (with an endless cycle of coffee and water refills) until you decide you want to leave and ask for the bill. We also noticed that this place was pet-friendly for outdoor diners.

Cavaillon

14701 Via Bettona, Suite 200

San Diego, CA 92127

Hours of Operation
Dinner Tuesday-Sunday 5:00pm-9:30pm
Breakfast/Brunch Sunday 9:00am-2:00pm

Phone: 858.433.0483
Email: info@cavaillonrestaurant.com

I know that Season Five is over, but I am still an unabashed Top Chef stalking fan. Jason managed to find an event that featured both Richard and Jamie from Season Five, and we got to meet them!

I was very excited because Jamie was always one of my favorite chefs and she was definitely good enough to have made it to the final four, although she was fairly eliminated during the Le Bernardin challenge. Anyway, I was deliriously happy because I got to tell her how much I loved her and was rooting for her to win and she was very nice. Also, I want to thank the event people for Flawles, because they let me sneak in amongst the raffle winners to take pictures with Jamie and Richard - such nice people.

I should have pretended that the picture came out badly so that we could have taken more, haha. Sorry for not noticing your sleepy eyes, J.

Jason and I have been to this place multiple times now. It’s a nice place to grab a casual bite but enjoy quality food. We stopped by again recently to grab a couple of quick bites.

Pork tongue with spaetzle:

Soooo good. Creamy sauce that wasn’t overpoweringly rich and didn’t drown out the taste of the tongue. The meat was tender, very thinly sliced, and had a nice texture to it. It had a type of chewiness to it that I feel only those of you who have had tongue would understand.

Country ham & quail egg flatbread: House cured country ham (B&B Farms), quail egg (Wingshadows Hacienda), jalapenos, mozzarella, marinara sauce

Good, but it was such a cold day that the pizza cooled and hardened very quickly. I avoided the jalapenos, but they left a nice kick to each mouthful.

Sorry that this post is so brief, but it was a while ago and I am trying to catch up so that I can blog about my SF trip!

Jason and I finally managed to catch a night when Reina was free for a few hours. We took her to Cowboy Star for her “birthday” dinner (her birthday was in November, but our schedules were that hectic). The food was well-seasoned, but Lou & Mickey’s is way better. Both in terms of sides and quality of cut. Anyway, we still enjoyed our food (comparing something to Lou & Mickey’s is like saying Thrify’s ice cream isn’t as good as Haagen-Dazs - the quality isn’t as great, but it’s still a damn tasty cone!) and had a great time. I was also delighted with the amuse-bouche:

Faro with chanterelle mushrooms? I forgot, but I ate every single grain. I loved it. The grains were plump, round, and chewy.

Jason began with a potato bisque:

Creamy, rich, and smoky. Delicious.

Here is the rib eye that we all ordered:

Mmmm! Isn’t it beautiful? The roasted veggies were so juicy and flavorful; the mashed potatoes were cheesy, if I remember correctly. Lots of buttery flavor everywhere. The steak was juicy, buttery and well salted and peppered. The meat was tender and juicy. My only complaint was that the steaks at Lou & Mickey’s contain juicy, tender, melt-in-your-mouth fat on the ends. The Cowboy Star steak’s fat was gristled and tough to chew. I ended up cutting out the fat bits because I couldn’t eat them.

Anyway, after dinner, we all went to Lappert’s and had Hawaiian ice cream. I ordered date ice cream with caramel ribbons, I think. I LOVED it. Not overly sweet, no strange residues, simple ice cream with simple ingredients.

Fun night, but I wish Reina had let me take her picture, too. She has a fantastic smile and we were out to celebrate the fact that she was born.

This place is only open for lunch, and most fortunately, Jason and I found ourselves in the area while we were very hungry. I would highly recommend this place - the food was delicious and the cafe was lovely.

Jason ordered a croque monsieur:

I had a few bites, because it was very, very good. Peppered turkey with smoked gouda. Mmmm… Both of our dishes came with house salads.

This is my roasted veggie crepe:

Don’t be fooled by the photo. When it arrived, I was dismayed to see so much sauce, but it didn’t overpower the dish. The filling was asparagus, spinach, cheddar cheese, and sauteed mushrooms. It was coated with a white wine sauce that complemented the filling well. I would order this again in a snap.

I wish it was closer so that we could hit up this place more often.

Opera Patisserie

9254 Scranton Road

San Diego, CA 92121

858.458.9050

Jason and I celebrated our 3-year anniversary by enjoying a chef’s 6 course tasting menu at Addison. It was 4 courses with a cheese course and a dessert course.

Our first amuse-bouche: Grated apple gazpacho with curry cream

It had really strong flavors. The apple was extremely tart, and acidic. The cream was light and the curry flavor was very evident. Interesting, but overwhelming. I think the point was to cleanse the tongue with the apple, using the cream to temper it down. My tongue was almost in pain from the acidity of the apple, and the curry was more interesting than delicious.

Canape course: Cheese puff pastry with gruyere cream center. No picture, because the exterior just looked like any puff pastry, but it was delicious. Fluffy and cheesy.

First course: Alaskan king crab legs on a saffron emulsion

Delicious! We had to eat it quickly, though, before the foam liquefied. Such mild flavors, but so good! It was buttery, with a light saffron scent.

Second course: Baby scallops on a black truffle reduction

Fresh scallops, and I have no idea how they were prepared, but they were delicious. I don’t know if I have ever had a black truffle reduction until this night, but it is delicious, and highly recommended. It was inky and dyed the scallops black when I rolled them around in it. This course disappeared much too quickly.

Third course: Seared foie gras and a puff pastry with a mushroom in the middle

This foie gras was just as heavenly as any other that I have had. Simple, but luxuriously rich and flavorful. The dough for the pastry reminded me of Korean bakery donuts, the kind that are usually filled with red bean paste.

Fourth course: Veal sweetbreads with smoked mashed potatoes, gouda, arugula and candied crushed pistachios

This was the main course of the night, and it was delicious. Alas, it followed the foie gras, and while this did not diminish the flavor in any way, foie gras and sweetbreads are extremely rich foods. I had had the richness of the foie gras in my stomach still, so I was able to finish less than half of my sweetbread plate. Also, gouda mashed potatoes are not what I would call, “light.” Add the candied pistachios to that, which tasted like pistachio nut butter (yum!!), and you could not take a bite of anything that wasn’t rich and filling. The only relief from the richness of the plate was my Dr. Goosen’s Riesling (one of the best Rieslings I have ever tasted). So while I loved this dish, I wished it hadn’t immediately followed the foie gras, because I couldn’t handle so much richness and flavor in such a short amount of time. It KILLED me to leave anything so delicious on the plate.

Cheese course with 5 cheeses (I don’t recall which ones there were, but one was a type of mild Cheddar, and one was a goat’s cheese)

All were actually pretty tasty, but I was still stuffed from the previous courses and I only nibbled at each one. It was a very pleasant way to transition into dessert.

Palate-cleanser: Shaved Yuzu sorbet with mango cream and champagne

I love palate-cleansers. This was the answer to canceling out the richness, savor, and heaviness of the preceding dishes. It also wasn’t cold enough to give me brain-freeze.

Dessert course: Rum raisin ice cream on top of chocolate walnut torte

The top layer of the torte was crispy and flaky; the inside and bottom were soft and moist. I was still too full to finish it, but I enjoyed this dessert. It’s difficult for me to rave about “fancy” desserts, since I tend to be someone who is thoroughly pleased with a scoop of Baskin Robbins atop a sugar cone.

Finisher: Trio of desserts: passion fruit jelly; French coffee macaroon with mango cream (I wasn’t impressed - I need to have Jason try the real deal in France); mini peanut butter chocolate torte

It was a fun and tasty way to finish our meal. All were delicious, but as mentioned above, I was not impressed with the macaroon. I am picky about French macaroons ever since tasting some my sister brought from a famous bakery in Paris. The most important element about Parisian macaroons to me is the consistency. They need to be chewy. This macaroon was chewy, but almost taffy-like, and the outside edges crumbled and flaked like a wafer, which I didn’t like.

Jason’s finisher:

The Addison Experience: delicious food, excellent service, incredible wine selection (apparently only French Laundry rivals their wine selection), and comfortable atmosphere. There were not many diners present, and I liked that when we arrived, the hostess came out from behind the stand and greeted Jason by name (as Mr. Wang), even before we had opened our mouths. We got to sit in a spacious booth (with throw pillows! I used one to support my back), and for ladies, I noticed that at the dining tables, small footstools were present for either resting your feet or your purse. I loved that. My water glass was always full (the sommelier informed us that bottled water was complimentary and would we like it flat or sparkling?) and I was delighted that there was no ice in the glass. I got lost in the thick bible they called their wine list, so I asked the sommelier to pick a white wine for me. She asked whether I liked my whites dry, and whether I liked them sweet, then assured me that she knew exactly what wine I would love. She was on the money.

The bathrooms were nice, and the staff was both friendly and courteous. When we had finished our meal, the sommelier led us to the hostess, who had our coats ready and she, in turn, led us outside, where the valet had our car waiting. As we passed by the bar, we bumped into the head chef (sharing a drink with the bartender), who greeted us, introduced himself, and chatted with us for a few minutes until we felt guilty about leaving the hostess waiting for us.

It was a fun and delicious night, and my only regret is that this place is too pricey for us to visit more than once a year.

Addison

5200 Grand Del Mar Way

San Diego, CA 92130

858.314.1900

Jason sent me the following link: 50 Things to Eat in San Diego Before You Die

There are a few items that make me raise my eyebrow, but I’ll share with you my thoughts on the items that I have been fortunate enough to try.

3) Stone Bowl Bibimbap: Chon Ju Jip in Kearny Mesa

I love Korean food, and I love stone bowl bibimbap, but being raised in Los Angeles only a stone’s throw away from Korea Town, I have been too wary of trying Korean food in San Diego. I guess we should check it out. How many Korean people even live in San Diego?

17) Pork Ribs: Phil’s BBQ in Point Loma

I couldn’t agree more. These are the best pork ribs that I have ever had in my life. And I am picky about my BBQ. I can barely choke down Lucille’s BBQ anymore. I love Phil’s pork ribs so much that I still haven’t even tasted their beef ribs, which I’m sure are heavenly as well. Reina, eating the beef ribs 5 hours after they’ve been served doesn’t count! Give them another chance!

18) The Starlight Mule: Starlight Dining and Cocktails in Middletown

This is one delicious drink. After the delicious cocktails at Hatfield’s, I was craving more drinks containing ginger beer. Jason took me to the Starlight Lounge where I ordered the Starlight Mule. It was delicious and we have been itching to return to this place ever since. Have I become a cocktail lover?

20) Scones: Rebecca’s Coffeehouse in North Park

I am sure that I’ve blogged about the scones at this delightful cafe. They’re fresh-baked, warm, fluffy, with a great firm “shell.” Possibly the best scones I’ve ever had. You must try them with Rebecca’s home-made preserves.

21) Fish tacos: Rubio’s, multiple locations

Okay, this one is a little strange to me. How does a fast-food joint make it onto an “eat-before-you-die” list? I will say that I have unabashedly admitted several times throughout the years to love Rubio’s fish tacos. But I also love their lobster and shrimp burritos. What can I say? We all have our guilty pleasures, only I don’t feel that guilty about this one.

25) Grilled Mahi Mahi Taco: South Beach Bar and Grille in Ocean Beach

I have definitely blogged about this place. Jason and I happened upon this place by accident and it turned out to be extremely fortunate. We had the tacos, which I loved, but I don’t recall if any of them were mahi mahi. This does not really matter to me, because I am not a fan of mahi mahi, although Jason is.

26) Cinnamon Rolls: Bread et Cie in Hillcrest

I have never tried these, and now I HAVE to! I’ve had their chocolate croissants, to which I’ve been addicted so much that I haven’t tried much else. They have amazing mochas, pastries, paninis, and Kat’s tried their soup, which she loved. I miss this place. Jason and I were addicted to this place on Sundays for a few weekends, but then we got older and lazier.

Happily, it looks like Jason and I have several new places to try and new things to eat. It’s nice to have achievable goals in life.

Ahhh, Restaurant Week. Although Jason and I celebrated Restaurant Week, we took advantage of only one restaurant’s RW menu. This was at Kitchen 1540, a place we had heard relatively little about. We don’t personally know anyone who has eaten there, but we read enough good reviews on Chowhound to merit a try. This is what Restaurant Week is for: to test-drive a restaurant whose menu is pricier than you care to risk a bad meal on, and whose RW menu appears to be a good reflection of their regular one.

Very fortunately, Kitchen 1540 was delicious. It was on the beach, in the newly remodeled L’Auberge Hotel. The place was beautiful and clean. Our server reminded me of Blake Lively (very pretty and very cute, bubbly personality without being annoying). But enough about the “other”, I want to rave about the food.

Jason’s first course: Hiramasa sashimi - compressed fennel, lemon jam, sorel

Delicious! It preserved the taste of the fish without tasting “fishy.” Very delicate flavor that was nicely complimented by the fennel and sorel. I would have gladly shared this dish with him, had I not been busy devouring my first course, which was:

Seared scallops - leeks, butternut squash, tangerine brown butter

The scallops were seared perfectly: caramelized on the tops and bottoms, cooked all the way through without being overdone. I love scallops. The leeks and butternut squash were soft and blended with the tangerine butter as though pureed, but just solid enough to retain their own flavors.

My second course: Natural beef Tenderloin - Manchego croquettes, Berberé reduction

This picture really does not do my beef justice. I had originally ordered the Kurobuta pork shoulder - herb gnocchi, napa cabbage, smoked bacon, pickled onions, but a few minutes later, the server returned and apologized profusely for running out. I was distressed, because I did not want to order the same dish as Jason (the Scottish salmon), but I was very hesitant to order beef. During Restaurant Week, I don’t want to get steak, short ribs, chicken, or pasta, unless they sound truly unique and inspired - these dishes are too familiar to me and so anything less than spectacular is a disappointment. The server recommended the beef tenderloin, telling me that the Berbere reduction made the dish unique. I followed her recommendation and as an added precaution, ordered the beef to be prepared rare.

I was not disappointed. Wow - I did not think beef tenderloin could impress me, but it did. First of all, it was prepared exactly as I had ordered: rare, but not raw, and not bloody. It was moist, tender, and full of the natural flavor of quality beef. The Berbere reduction blew me away. I had never had it before, and the flavor was amazing: I scraped any trace of it off my plate and licked it clean. The blackish greens you see on the plate is kelp (I am guessing, but I eat kelp fairly often and it tasted like kelp as well as had the texture of kelp) with mushrooms. Delicious, and Jason’s favorite part of my dish, I believe. The Manchego croquettes were fluffy, not overdone, and very creamy, but extremely rich and filling. Every bit of food on the plate complemented each other, and I was in an extremely good mood.

Here is Jason’s Scottish salmon, with preserved lemon spaetzle, sweet and sour pomegranate, fennel salad:

Isn’t it pretty? It tasted great, too, but I didn’t eat too much of it because the flavors clashed with my own dish. Jason can blog about it (I know full well that Jason never blogs about his food, but if I keep mentioning that he’ll blog about it, maybe enough of you will bug him to make him start blogging again).

Dessert: Red Velvet Cake - cream cheese, candied beets, cocoa nib streusel and Valrhona Chocolate Panna Cotta - salted peanuts, peanut butter crumble, caramel ice cream:

The names of the desserts say it all, really. I really enjoyed eating both desserts, and I think I consumed an equal amount of both. I love panna cotta, and the addition of chocolate was a pleasant change to an already delicious dessert. I love red velvet cake, and it came with the traditional cream cheese frosting, which is one of my favorites, and it was covered in sugared rose petals, which were fun to crunch/chew on. I didn’t take a picture of the pot, but I loved the coffee that we ordered with our desserts.

Kitchen 1540 served up delicious meals during Restaurant Week. Jason and I want to return to try their regular menu as well, as we enjoyed ourselves greatly. I need to add that it could have been the good food; it could have been the friendly, warm atmosphere; it could have been that the clientele was mostly composed of people our own age; but I was extremely happy throughout our evening there - I could not stop smiling. I am not sure what it was; I do derive no small amount of pleasure from eating good food, but I think it was more than that. I can think of few things that are better than eating delicious and innovative dishes with the one you love in a warm relaxed atmosphere with friendly servers in a small hotel on the beach. We spent such a wonderful evening there that I cannot wait to go back.

Kitchen 1540

1540 Camino Del Mar

Del Mar, CA 92104

858.793.646

We finally took advantage of the Better Half’s Blue Plate Special. We wanted to cheer ourselves up after the dismal Chargers’ loss to the Steelers, so we headed down to SD to make it in time. It was the perfect pick-me-up.

I started with a salad. It was a good salad, with just the right amount of dressing, but I didn’t take a picture and I won’t go into much detail, because I’m never interested in reading reviews of salads.

My second course was a Cornish game hen. I loved how tender and juicy it was - it wasn’t dry or overcooked. It was also huge - almost the size of a chicken. It was dusted with red rose petals and served on a bed of wild rice pilaf - chewy and not soggy. It was an aromatic dish, and I loved the seasoning. It wasn’t salty, but it was full of herby flavor that wasn’t overpowering.

I don’t remember what Jason ordered, but looking at the picture, I think it’s a seafood risotto:

He loved it. It was good, but I was too busy wolfing down my own food to really think about the flavors of his.

Here is Jason’s dessert:

He won’t tell me what it was, so I’m going to guess it was pistachio ice cream. It was good, although I can’t think of any pistachio ice cream I’ve had that ever disappointed me.

Here is my dessert:

You will hate me for this, but I cannot recall exactly what it was. I liked it, and I almost finished it. The top is cream cheese, and underneath is either gingerbread or pumpkin gingerbread. There were chunks of crystallized ginger in it, which I like.

We enjoyed our meals with a half bottle of wine again, and I cannot express to you how lovely it is to enjoy a delicious 3 course meal at a bistro for only $15/person. I love bistros. Please go to the Better Half - your wallet and palate demand to be satisfied!

Yes, Jason and I have been celebrating Restaurant Week San Diego. However, I was an idiot and while I did remember to take pictures, I left the computer adapter at home so I won’t be able to actually upload the pictures until next week.

Day One: The Better Half. We took advantage of their Blue Plate Special: $15 for 3 courses. Delicious. Blog entry to follow.

Day Two: Kitchen 1540. Restaurant Week Special: $40 for 3 courses. We selected this place because we had checked out their menu and it looked good. As this place was also relatively new (2005), we hadn’t heard much of anything about this place and scarcely knew it existed. When we entered, I had a slight sinking feeling because it looked very yuppie-ish. However, we had a wonderful time, and I think it was because we enjoyed the food so much. I was disappointed that I couldn’t try the Kurobota pork shoulder (they had run out), and I was extremely reluctant to order the Beef Tenderloin instead, but I had no choice. I was very very pleasantly surprised by the meat. It was prepared rare, as I had requested, but it wasn’t bloody. It came with an amazing sauce that I wiped completely off the plate. Pictures and blog entry to follow.

Tomorrow will be Day 3, and tomorrow also marks Jason and my 3 year anniversary.

I have bad news. In February, I blogged about a fantastic Hawaiian eatery named Mo’s Island Grinds. I love their food and often crave their Korean Fried Chicken. Jason and I headed over there for lunch today and saw to our dismay that the restaurant has closed. They provide catering services now, but there is no more facility there - the place was empty: no equipment or anything. I am sad because I don’t know where else to get their Korean fried chicken. So if anyone is interested in throwing a party, please hire them as caterers and then invite me! I will miss their food greatly.

On the upside, as we were craving Hawaiian, Jason and I tried the L&L in the Mira Mesa Mall, and it was pretty good. I thought I hated L&L because the one in Cerritos is terrible, but I liked the MMM location L&L.

Jason took me to a place in Hillcrest called the Better Half. The name comes from their practice of carrying half bottles of wine. This makes it possible for you to drink a (half) bottle of white with your appetizers and a (half) bottle of red with your entrees. I love buying half bottles; when I’m with a group of people, I feel selfish for selecting my choice of wine if we’re sharing a bottle, because I still can only appreciate a few types, and very rarely will I order red wine (which is usually what I assume other people prefer to drink). Thus, the few times I feel truly free to select a bottle of wine is when I’m having dinner with Jason, and during those times, a full bottle is much too much.

The Better Half has a Blue Plate Special, a 3 course prix-fixe meal for only $15, that they serve on week days from 5 - 7 PM. Jason and I raced to get there in time, but for some strange reason, the freeway outside his house was a parking lot for about 30 minutes. Then Google maps directed us to the wrong intersection, which meant that after searching for a parking spot for 20 minutes, we walked up and down the wrong streets for another 10. We arrived at The Better Half at 7:10. Bummer. We decided to get wine with our meal anyway, as it had been such an ordeal to get there, and the wait staff was extremely nice. The place was relatively empty, except for a few tables of people who had definitely taken advantage of the Blue Plate Special, so we had our choice of where to sit. They had a very nice enclosed patio that offered a limited street view while still feeling intimate and private.

I ordered a half bottle of a German wine that was similar to a Riesling - fresh, fruity and crisp.

This is the appetizer we shared. It was seared pork belly, topped with a salad. Everything about it was delicious - we all but licked the plate clean. I have been craving pork for the past month or so, and this hit the spot. Soft, tender, fatty, juicy… It wasn’t greasy. The salad had a nice vinaigrette that complimented the saltiness of the meat well.

This is my stuffed quail. The quail itself was great, roasted perfectly, meat still tender and juicy, but I was not such a fan of the stuffing. I think it just threw me off to be tasting sausage when I was staring at a tiny game bird. There were pistacchios in the stuffing that were delicious, though. The entree was served on a bed of risotto that was my favorite part of the dish. I would recommend any risotto dish if you come here to dine, and the bird itself was good - I just wasn’t prepared for the stuffing.

This is Jason’s wild game meatloaf (hahaha, I just realized that if you speak this phrase aloud, you would expect to see a photograph of Johann):

Jason had better start blogging again. I didn’t really ask him about his entree, because I was busy wolfing down mine and talking a mile a minute. I’m sure his dish was good, though, because he promised that we would come back several times. The place had a great atmosphere. It was quiet without being intimidating and you didn’t feel as though you had to keep your voice down, and the staff was friendly and helpful when I asked several questions about the wine list.

This is another place I hope to bring you folks. When I came back from using the rest room, I found Jason chatting with the head chef. Apparently this chef had been a sous chef under Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller at their respective restaurants (French Laundry ring a bell?). This chef was also rightly proud of being one of the few chefs to make their own sausages. Jason told the chef about our love of foie gras and the chef gave Jason his card and told him that the next time we decide to dine there, to call a day in advance so that the chef could make the necessary arrangements to provide us with foie gras options (I’ll be in heaven!).

127 University Ave
San Diego, CA
(619) 543-9340

www.thebetterhalfbistro.com

Jason and I had been wanting to try this place for a while because several San Diego food bloggers have given The Ritual Tavern very good reviews. All I knew was that it was a tavern (love taverns and pubs - drinking beer in dark quiet places is one of my favorite things to do) and that foodies loved the food here. Jason had read about the sustainability and reliance on local slow foods. It was a win-win situation.

We began with a charcuterie plate.

Three different types of meat, feta cheese, olives soaked in wine, and sun-dried tomatoes. There was a mustard dip as well, which I didn’t touch. I only eat mustard on hot dogs.

I don’t remember the names of the meats, and they weren’t on the menu, because I believe they changed daily and were served according to the waiter’s choice. They were very good, though, and the sundry pairings matched perfectly. I would LOVE to come back to this place with a bunch of friends, order beers and several charcuterie plates, and just nibble, drink, and chat all evening.

Here’s a close-up of the meats:

Look at the marbling of the middle one!!

I wasn’t very hungry (it was getting late), so I ordered an appetizer plate of mussels as my meal:

They tasted so fresh. I love mussels, but at some dodgy places, the mussels will either: a) disintegrate into a billion grainy pieces as soon as you take a bite; or b) be rubbery and chewy and take forever to break down enough to swallow. These mussels were perfectly fresh. Later, the owner came by and explained that she especially loved mussels and oysters, so she made sure to buy them fresh, daily, in Carlsbad. I need to come back and get some oysters. These mussels were swimming in garlicky buttery broth, perhaps seafood stock? I was dipping the bread into the broth; it was so good.

I don’t remember what Jason ordered, but here is what it looked like:

I’m guessing that it’s some type of Shepherd’s Pie. He gave me a bite, and it was good. He also scraped his bowl clean.

Would I come back to this place? I am coming to this place over and over again, and bringing you with me. This place was meant to be shared. It was relatively empty when we arrived, and it was a week night, between 9 and 10. It was nice to chat with the owner; she mentioned that all of the restaurant chefs and owners in San Diego knew each other and had worked together at some point, such as the owner of Cafe Chloe.

Ritual Tavern

4095 30th Street

San Diego, CA 92104

www.ritualtavern.com

I was craving a cheeseburger, so Jason did some research and took me to the Burger Lounge, in Kensington. The wait staff was very young and friendly, and the girl at the register made sure that we had clean glasses for our water. One of the Coke fountains had dripped syrup onto the paper cups. We said we didn’t mind the cups with Coke stuck to the edges, but she insisted on finding us clean glasses. We ordered cheeseburgers with onions (raw for me, grilled for Jason) and a side order of half onion rings, half french fries.

We ordered at a counter, but took a number and had a server bring our food to our table. It was a beautiful day, so we sat outside, and didn’t wait very long for our order to arrive.

That is Jason’s burger. Mmm… The onion rings were very good, but I wasn’t very impressed with the fries. They were sprinkled with parsley or something, so they looked very pretty, but I prefer Inn-Out fries to these.

There’s my burger. I ordered the sauce on the side because I don’t like Thousand Island, even if it is their own recipe. I don’t like horseradish or mayo. The burger was very good. Basically, it tasted like an enormous Inn-Out burger. The difference was that the beef patty was huge and a bit bloody (just the way I like it), and it was made with grass-fed cows.

Mmmm, onion rings. I don’t know what to say as my final verdict, though. I loved the burger, but couldn’t really taste a big difference between these gourmet burgers and In-N-Out burgers. If you take price into account, you may as well hit up the fast food one. I didn’t try the milkshakes, though, or their other entrees and sides, so maybe those would make this place more worthwhile to visit than a drive-thru. I did like the location, the service, and the decor. There was a great atmosphere. I enjoyed my meal, but I can’t say that it tastes much better than In-N-Out. However, despite the difference in size, I was able to finish all of my burger. I usually leave a few bites of In-N-Out burgers (which are significantly smaller), so maybe I unconsciously noticed a sizable difference in quality.

There are several locations, so check out their website for more information:

www.burgerlounge.com

Jason and I tried out a Northern Thai restaurant in San Diego. It was the best Thai food I have ever had in San Diego, but I can’t compare it to Renu Nakorn because the dishes were very different. We didn’t try the curry (I am pretty sure that Renu Nakorn has the best Thai curry in the world, but I will try Sab E lee’s some day), but we did order some dishes I have never seen before. One was Grilled B.B.Q. Pork (Neck).

You all know that for me, it tends to be about fat, and I loved this dish. I am craving it right now. So fatty, juicy, and tender. It was cooked to the perfect consistency, maintaining the natural salty pork flavor with a little added spice. I usually eschew the dipping sauces at Asian restaurants in favor of tasting the food as it is and “untainted”, but I tried the pork dipping sauce, and it went perfectly with the pork. It reminded me of a peppery Korean dipping sauce used for thick-cut bacon.

We ordered Phad-See-Ewe, partly because I was craving Thai noodles, and partly because we needed a point of comparison. These may be some of my favorite Phad-See-Ewe noodles. The sauce had that signature slightly-sweet taste, without being overwhelming or too salty. The noodles were soft and fresh. The only drawback was that the dish was all noodle, and I like there to be more than one sprig of Chinese broccoli when I eat Asian noodles.

The last dish we ordered was called Spicy Mint Leaves Steamed Pork Leg.

It was spicy, indeed, but delicious, nonetheless. It wasn’t the type of spicy that made you taste smoke on your tongue. Again, the meat was tender, juicy, and fatty. The dishes were all very flavorful and Jason and I swore to return, bringing more friends with us so that we could try more dishes. The prices were typical of Thai restaurants: $6.95 for the pork dishes and $5.95 for the Phad-See-Ewe.

Verdict: Best Thai food in San Diego, and it rivals Renu Nakorn. We’ll have to try the panang next time we’re there. The restaurant is TINY, though: I suspect the maximum capacity is about 15 people. The “dining area” is roughly the size of my bedroom. There is a wide sidewalk where the owner could probably set up tables, though. The neighborhood is not the type of area in which you would normally find yourself (that appears to be the case with all good Thai restaurants), but the food is well worth the drive.

2405 Ulric Street

San Diego, CA 92111

858-650-6868

Monday - Sunday: 9:30 AM - 9:30 PM

Jason took me to North Park to try out The Linkery. We had been wanting to try it for a while, and we finally summoned up the energy to drive down to check it out. We had a great time! We arrived, and the place was packed. We put our names down and were seated almost immediately (we noticed that the tables tended to turn pretty quickly, so don’t be put off if you see a line).

We ordered beers from their enormous drink menu and began with a choucroute plate with 2 links: boerewors (Vande Rose pork, grass-fed beef, pastured lamb, house-cured bacon) and what they called a chicken sausage, which was actually pork. We wanted the Kasekrainer, which was described as Vande Rose pork with gouda, SPICY, but they were out. They ran out of several items throughout the night, which goes to show that they get all of their food fresh, no freezers and that they have many many customers each day.

The links came with sauerkraut (their own recipe, and the best sauerkraut I have EVER tasted, without a doubt), spicy mustard, and thickly sliced bread. The bread tasted cinnamony and was doughy, and if I hadn’t been so full, I would have finished my half. I couldn’t tell which link was which, but they were delicious, very smoky. I will say that, although these links were delicious, my favorite dogs are still Top Dog’s. I know Top Dogs are frozen, but there’s just something special about them. I think they’ll always be my favorite, and specifically, the ones served on Durant Ave., in Berkeley. But to get back to the Linkery, these links had great snap to them and combined with the sauerkraut, we were in sausage heaven. I really can’t get over how delicious the sauerkraut was. The kraut was braised in Alsatian wine and topped with melted Winchester gouda cheese. Mmmmm….

See this delicious pasta?

This is hand-cut tagliatelle, heirloom tomatoes, Grana Padano cheese, and house-cured Hampshire pork belly. This pasta was plenty delicious (such a great chewy texture and tart tomatoes, along with melt-in-your-mouth pork fat) at the time, but the following night when I ate the rest of it in lieu of finishing Sublime Pizza’s mac and cheese, it was the best pasta in the world. I realized how amazing the pasta was when I was able to compare it to another restaurant’s. I had originally ordered the pastured lamb, but they had run out.

This is Jason’s dish: wild caught local swordfish, green beans, cherry tomatoes, banana fingerling potatoes.

I do not usually like swordfish, but Jason insisted that I try a bite, and I was pleasantly surprised at how tender and juicy it was. I like fish to be delicate and flakey, and this was the closest that a swordfish has ever come to that. I was quite impressed. I need to let Jason blog about it, though, since it was his dish. I can show you his plate, if he forgets to blog (the plate reveals a lot, actually):

We enjoyed our food so much that we figured the dessert would be tasty here, too. This dish spoke to both of us:

Oaxacan chocolate fig ice cream. Tasted velvety and rich, not overly sweet. Strong cacao flavor without too much sugar added. Went very well with the fig ice cream. We enjoyed it with French pressed coffee, roasted in San Diego:

They had provided us with a timer so that we would know precisely when to press the coffee.

Verdict: GO HERE. I forgot to mention that they left a carafe of water on the table the entire time, so that I was never thirsty, and it was infused with white sage. We were served by about 5 different people, and they were all extremely sweet and friendly. From what I could tell, the entire wait staff was helpful and caring. The prices were reasonable (not that expensive, especially for what you get). I saw that on Yelp! some people had complained about having to pay an 18% gratuity. I, for one, really liked that they had that calculated out on the receipt and refused tips. It meant I didn’t have to estimate (I would have probably tipped 20%, anyway) what to leave as tip and made the paying process more efficient. Even if the service hadn’t been amazing, 18% is pretty standard, so to all the Yelping complainers: you are really cheap, stingy bastards.

full kitchen every day till 11:30pm
weekends open at noon
weekdays open at 5:30pm

3794 30th St
at North Park Way in North Park
San Diego CA USA

619 255 8778

http://www.thelinkery.com/

In case you couldn’t tell, Jason and I are constantly trying to find new places to eat in San Diego. We’ve been relying on Chowhound for the most part, and usually we like what is recommended there. But I don’t like using message boards and forums like Chowhound for finding places. I also find that many Chowhounders are so bent on finding something unique and off-the-beaten path that they will soundly abuse any establishment that serves anything resembling something recognizable. They will also praise eateries for the sole reason that it’s non-chain or serves something unique, even if it doesn’t taste good.

I was looking at one of the blogs on my blogroll, well aware that it hasn’t been updated for over a year, but I am reluctant to pull it because it has some interesting recipes that I wouldn’t necessarily find easily anywhere else. I noticed that she had several blogs listed on the side, and she was brilliant enough to indicate from which areas these blogs originated. Of course, my next course of action was to troll the San Diego links and in turn, their San Diego links. I have listed a few of them below.

Zen Foodism : This blog has not been updated for a while, and I’m not sure how much I would agree with this blogger’s opinions concerning food, but she loves food, and she loves finding food in San Diego. That’s enough for me. I’m willing to check out some of the places she likes.

Slow Food San Diego: This is an interesting organization. They are basically anti-fast food, thus the term, “slow food.” What with all the talk about how supporting local farms is good for the environment and all, I’m glad this site exists.

Foodieview: I haven’t really tried out this site yet. The link I provided leads you to their San Diego restaurant guide search engine. I hope it’s a good one, although it may depend on the users who post reviews, which can pose the same problem as Chowhound. I will say that I like that Phil’s BBQ is listed as the #1 place for BBQ, which shows sound judgment.

My Very Own Eating San Diego Blog: The name says it all, really. I skimmed it, and thumbs-up to this guy for raving about Brett’s BBQ, although he slams 4S Ranch, which is my second home. He just slammed the name, really.

San Diego Restaurant Reviews: Exactly what I’m looking for! Can I trust this blogger? We’ll see.

Mmm - yoso! I don’t know much about this blog or what it’s about, but the first entry I read dealt with eating a beating cobra heart, so I’m sold.

Three Dog Kitchen: I like the name of this blog, and some of the entries are reviews on places I was interested in trying, like Capri Blu at 4S Ranch. She’s pretty descriptive, so the reviews are helpful, but I do not like that the font is so tiny for such long entries. It hurts my eyes.

Oh So Yummy: This blog appears to be dedicated to finding unusual eats in San Diego. Sounds like a good resource to have.

So there we have it. Hopefully I’ll be reporting soon on some place we read about in a blog and tried, and enjoyed.

I have blogged about this place before. Jason and I had a hankering for non-fried seafood, so we came back for our favorite fresh fish ceviche. As before, huge chunks of fish, but this time the citrus juices were a little strong. I still loved it, though. Here is a picture:

Jason ordered 2 fish tacos: one swordfish and one wahoo. I liked both, even though I’m not a fan of swordfish. The tacos are huge and instead of hunks of swordfish meat, they simply place a grilled swordfish steak on top of the tortilla. It makes it difficult to fold up the taco to bite into, but it tastes great.

The wahoo taco is the closer one in the picture. I am craving this place again, and with summer upon us, I think we’ll be going there quite often in the near future. There was a long wait, because they make everything to order, and this place appears to be quite popular, but the food is well worth it. The wait also ensures that there will always be an open table for you once you order.

Blue Water Seafood Market and Grill

3667 India Street (Mission Hills, next door to El Indio and a few feet away from Shakespeare’s)

San Diego, CA 92103

(619) 497-0914

The weather this weekend was hot and dry. I loved it. First, Mamta arrived Friday night and we took her to Tajima for some ramen noodles, cucumbers with bean dip, and rice balls wrapped in seaweed. On Saturday, we took her to Beach Grass Cafe in Solana Beach for breakfast before dropping her off at La Costa Spa and Resort for a wedding.

Here is my vegetable ratatouille omelet:

Jason took me to Ocean Beach to walk around and explore Dog Beach and the shops. We tried to eat at Hodad’s, but the line was massive, unmoving, and in the blazing sun. Instead, we ate at a bar called South Beach. The food wasn’t cheap, but it was very good. Cold light beers on a hot day will work wonders as well.

We started off with fried baby octopus:

Then we followed it with fresh ceviche:

Jason ordered a fried fish taco:

I may have forgotten to take a picture of the lobster taco I ordered:

On Easter Sunday, I was craving dim sum, so Jason took me to Pearl Restaurant where we gorged. I love Chinese.

So far, this is my favorite French restaurant in San Diego. Jason took me here for our 2 year anniversary, and although I took pictures of our delicious meal, I won’t post them because the pictures won’t do the food or the restaurant justice. The restaurant was pretty dark, so the pictures came out grainy and blurry. I had a braised lamb shoulder, I think, and it came with a huge bone, and a tiny spoon to scoop out the marrow. This was the first time I had ever tasted marrow by digging it out of the bone, and ever since, I have been trying to order dishes with the bone, so that I can dig out the marrow. I am addicted to marrow. It also came with one mushroom ravioli, and it was the best ravioli I have ever tasted.

I started my meal with a seared foie gras, and like always, it was delicious. I love foie gras, not as the pate (although that is good as well), but seared like a tiny filet. For the uninitiated, foie gras is the duck liver, and it has the consistency of buttery fat. It melts on your tongue. Some people don’t like the taste, and it is definitely not for everyone (especially if you hate slippery, slimy or fatty-textured foods). There is talk of outlawing foie gras - it has already been outlawed in a few states, and although foie gras is one of my favorite foods in the world, I won’t complain if it becomes outlawed everywhere in the U.S. Cultivating a good foie gras is a very cruel practice, and since I don’t have the cajones to stop eating it, outlawing it would force me to stop. That being said, anytime that I traveled outside the U.S., I’d probably order foie gras somewhere if I knew it would be good.

All right, I think the best way to understand the caliber of food that Cavaillon serves is to look at their menus. Their Black Truffle Festival is about to end, so check out their menu before it disappears! They also provide 3-course prix fixe menus every Monday for $32, which is a bargain. The neighborhood they’re located in is suburban, so parking and navigating here is easier than any other French restaurant I know.

Cavaillon Restaurant

14701 Via Bettona, Suite 200

San Diego, CA 92127

Jason took me to an Afghani restaurant in Poway. Like most places we try, we went on the recommendation of Chowhounders. This place is delicious. Afghani cuisine is very similar to Indian cuisine. It’s a bit lighter, less spicy, less oily, but more “aromatic” (that is, the herbs are stronger). The nan differs from naan greatly. I am assuming everyone who reads my blog is familiar with Indian naan.

Here is Afghani nan:

Much drier, right? The consistency is exactly as it looks. Not unlike crispy pita bread. It is doughy in the center, and the stiffness makes this very good for dipping.

Here is the dip we got with it. I forgot the name of it, but it’s basically a garlicky baba ganouj (and I love baba ganouj):

Here is the combo plate that I ordered:

At 12:00, we’ve got spinach rice. I think 1:00 and 2:00 it’s lamb in a tomato-based sauce. At 3:00, it’s rice flavored with cinnamon, currants, and carrots. 4:00 is a dish similar to palak panir, only without the cheese. At 5:00 was fried plaintains with - dangit, I forgot. But it was 3 layers of distinct flavors, all of them combining for a tasty, tart, sweet, and delightful treat. 6:00 was rice flavored with beans, I believe. 7:00 was potatoes with an aloo gobi-type sauce. 8:00 was peas with tomato-based sauce. 9:00 is jasmine rice. 10:00 and 11:00 is chicken curry. The meatball in the center of the plate was delicious, but I don’t remember what type of meat it was. Everything on the plate was tasty and delicious. There was way too much food to finish, and Jason and I both shared the leftovers the next day.

I am highly recommending this place, but some cautionary words: you will be burping Afghani spices for HOURS afterward.

Pamir Kabob House

12378 Poway Road

Poway, CA 92074

(858) 670-7073

* 7/1/09: I don’t recall updating this, but Pamir has since gone out of business, highly unfortunately.

Jason took me and Johann to Mo’s Island Grinds on President’s Day. It was Hawaiian food, in case you couldn’t tell from the name, and it was delicious. I finally got to try the famous Korean fried chicken, and I was very impressed. I really, really like it.

For those of you familiar with Korean BBQ, this was chicken BBQ, but instead of grilling it, it was deep fried. Very juicy, tender, moist… with a crispy, slightly sweet outer shell. Greasy and filling.

I usually don’t like white rice, but this rice was so fluffy and sticky, which I love. The salad was also good, mainly because they use a poppyseed dressing and don’t overdo it. The chicken also came with a sweet dipping sauce, teriyaki sauce-ish in terms of consistency. Very good, and 2 meals later, when I was finishing my leftovers, I poured it over my rice.

As if we didn’t already have more than enough food, I ordered ahi tuna poke.

This was seasoned with sesame oil and had a slightly salty flavor to it. Very, very good. I love poke. Johann’s dish came with a salmon poke-type side, and that was good and refreshing as well.

Johann ordered a combo plate: pork lau-lau, kahlua pork, and I completely forgot what the third dish was. Hopefully Johann will read my blog and make corrections in the comments section. Again, very tender and juicy meat, which was surprising, bc I think shredded pork tends to be dry. If I hadn’t been so stuffed with my own food, I would have snuck quite a few bites off of Johann’s plate.

Here’s Jason’s combo plate:

It looks like kahlua pork, pork katsu, and macaroni salad. I snuck bites off of Jason’s plate.

All in all, I want to go back here. I am craving their food right this minute, and considering that the food lasted me through 2 more meals, it’s a bargain. My korean fried chicken was $7.95 and the poke was $3.85. The service was excellent - Hawaiians are so happy and laidback. You order at a register, but they bring your food to you. They also know that you can’t possibly finish it all in one sitting, so they save you the trouble of asking for takeout containers by serving your meals in them. Please note that the takeout containers will not close until you finish a substantial portion of your meal. I stuffed myself so much during lunch that I couldn’t eat again until lunchtime the following day.

Awww, look how happy my eating companions are:

Mo’s Island Grinds

9823 Carroll Canyon Road

San Diego, CA 92123

(858) 271-8268

Jason and I stuck to French restaurants during Restaurant Week. The week previous, we had enjoyed dinner at a French restaurant called Cavaillon, in Santaluz, which was excellent. So I am both happy and sad to say that Cavaillon is my new favorite French restaurant in San Diego. I was hoping that Mille Fleurs and Tapenade would be rivals, since I would be happier, struggling to choose between several favorite French places, rather than saying, “This one is definitely my favorite.”

This does not mean that Mille Fleurs and Tapenade are lacking- far from it. I love these restaurants. I just mean that Cavaillon is that good. The parking is also amazingly easy at Cavaillon.

Here is a little photo display of our Tapenade experience.

My first course was: mesclun a l’huile d’olive, fromage de chevre et betteraves. This is the famed red and gold beet salad with artisanal goat cheese. I am not a fan of goat cheese, but I suspect that if I were some sort of goat cheese connoisseur, I would extol the virtues of this cheese. I did finish it. I love beet salad, and I think they went a bit heavy on the dressing, but other than that, it was a good salad. The purple-colored beets did stain my lips bluish-purple, though. It looked like I had been sucking on blue ink pellets when I finished my entire meal.

This was the famed olive tapenade for which the restaurant was named. It was good. I don’t know what else to say about it, because I am no expert of tapenade. It did cause me to consume an uncomfortably large amount of bread.

My entree: House made Wild Mushroom Raviolis, Port Wine Sauce, with Parmesan Reggiano. It looked a bit small when it came out, but I could barely finish it, even with Jason helping me. It was so rich and delicious. I really enjoyed it, but I would have enjoyed it even more if I hadn’t had one of Cavaillon’s mushroom raviolis the week before, which was even better. I need to order ravioli more often.

I had to include Jason’s entree because I would have ordered it if I had had the luxury of ordering 2 entrees. He had the slowly braised lamb shoulder with winter vegetables couscous. The lamb was so tender and juicy, and I love the chewy quality of couscous. It also looked very pretty on the plate.

Here is my dessert:

Meyers Lemon Tartelette, Raspberry Coulis. The tartlet was chilled, and reminded me of key lime pie. It tasted like a very good summer treat.

Dark Chocolate “Marquise”, Pistacchio crème Anglaise. Now, I love chocolate, don’t get me wrong, but I tend to not order chocolate desserts. I like cobblers, pies, tarts, puddings… This was described as a rich chocolate dish, and it didn’t appeal to me when I saw it on the menu. I’m glad Jason ordered it because it was very good. It wasn’t overpowering or sickeningly sweet. I also really liked the pistachio cream; pistachio goes well with cocoa. I think this may have been my favorite dessert.

The service was outstanding and the atmosphere was surprisingly casual. It wasn’t dark and dimly lit like most French places (surprisingly bright), and you didn’t feel like you had to whisper your conversation. The party at the table beside us was very friendly and kind, too. Jason and I stayed a bit late, and as we were leaving, we bumped into the chef as he emerged from the kitchen. He chatted briefly with us, asking how we enjoyed our meal and if we liked the food. We told him it was very good and he joked that we should return the next day if we liked it so much. Jason grumbled a bit at the chef’s charming accent and looks (imagine a French Ryan Getzlaf), but I think he appreciated the gesture as well.

Anyway, if you like French food and want to enjoy it in a casual atmosphere, this is a good place to do it.

www.tapenaderestaurant.com

TEL: (858) 551-7500 • FAX: (858) 551-9913 • 7612 Fay Avenue • La Jolla, CA 92037

Jason took me to a Oaxacan kitchen at the Escondido swap meet. I don’t remember much of what anything was called (nothing was in English), so enjoy the pictures. I enjoyed everything except for 2 of the mini tacos, which were made of what tasted like super-spicy squishy pork rinds.

Tamales:

Mini tacos (the ones I didn’t like so much are the ones in back):

So the food was very very good! It cost about $1 to get into the swap meet.

Jason and I have been craving European food for quite a while. We really loved the food in Praha, and one of the foods I’ve been craving is Czech pizza. I think all Eastern European pizzas are made pretty similarly, but we have not been able to find anything like it in the States. Jason found a place through Chowhound called Kashtan European Market and Bistro that’s in his neighborhood, fortunately. We decided to try it out, and we had an amazing time.

First of all, the bar/bistro is very small and cozy, and connected to a small market that has a selection that you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere in the U.S. Second, the place was packed to the gills, due to a wine-tasting they had that day. Their wine tastings have a prix fixe menu and come with several courses. We missed the tasting, but the food smelled so good. We were willing to wait for a table to open up. As we waited, we checked out the market and sat on some chairs that were available next to the bar.

Here are the things that we ordered:

Russian and Polish beer. The Russian lager was light, crisp, cold, and refreshing. I would probably get it during the summer. The Polish beer was smoother with a warmer taste. Both were good and very large (0.6L, if I remember correctly). They were also only $3 each. What a deal!

Not quite Czech pizza, but damn close and very good. It’s a bit crispier (what I had liked about Czech pizzas was that the slices draped in your hands, from having a soft, thin crust that was never soggy), so it didn’t have that sag I was craving, but the cheese was gooey and the sauce was sweet with a tangy, peppery, spicy kick to it. I love that sauce. Apparently it’s a special recipe that took a year to perfect. It came with garlic and smoked bacon.

This was a sampler trio of 3 original calzones with inspiration from Czech Republic, Italy, and Great Britain. The pocket on the left was the Czech kolache. It was filled with sliced ham and gooey cheese. The middle pocket was the Italian calzone, which you are probably familiar with. Cheese and sauce oozed out the middle when we sliced into it. The pocket on the right was a Cornish pasty. It had a surprisingly peppery taste to it, and a flaky, buttery crust. It reminded me of a dry beef pot pie. These pockets were enormous, and Jason and I finished about half of each pocket before saving the rest for breakfast the next morning. Remember that this place serves hearty portions when you order.

Last was our honey cake. It is already one of Jason’s favorite desserts. It was layers of dry sponge cake alternated with thick marshmallow fluff spreads. Then they drizzled it with melted caramel, I believe. It would have gone perfectly with tea.

When we were finished, the owner, Tom, came by to chew the fat with us. Very personable and made us feel right at home. This restaurant, aside from having good European comfort food, is charming for the ambience. The waitress was friendly and sweet, and the lighting was dim without making you feel like you were perpetually squinting. You could talk to your date without having to compete with loud music or drunk customers. This place makes you want to come back over and over again so you could reach that coveted status of being a “regular.” Tom was sincerely interested in whether we enjoyed not only our food, but our experience. He loves cooking and making new friends, and had his daughter open up a bottle of wine and treat us to a couple of glasses of a smooth white wine to thank us for waiting for our table. Mind you, before we decided to wait, his daughter had warned us that there could be a considerable wait, so we knew that we would have to sit around for awhile. Their gesture was extremely thoughtful and made us feel as though we were dining at a friend’s house. Jason and I are definitely returning to this place, and hopefully we’ll have one of you in tow.

Kashtan European Market and Bistro

12125 Alta Carmel Court, San Diego CA 92128
(858) 485-5856

Anyone who knows me knows that this is my favorite rib joint in the world. I have never had better baby back ribs anywhere else. There is a surprisingly large amount of juicy meat on the bones, and the tender chunks slide right off the bone. The quality of the meat is different as well, not all shredded and dry. Diho described it as a lean meat, and I’m not sure exactly what he means, because I’m not too well-versed in meats, so I’ll take his word for it.

The only thing I don’t like about Phil’s is their choice of sides with the half order of ribs. I love their baked beans, but it’s also the only side that I can eat there. I hate cole slaw, potato salad, and macaroni salad. I hate anything with mayo in it, too.

The service is incredible, and recently I went there with my high school girlfriends and Jason’s high school pals.

A waitress came to check and see that we were happy, and when Ju Yon asked about the onion rings, she brought them to our table instead of letting us wait in line again.

Here is the order that I always get. Half order of baby back ribs, and 2 small sides of baked beans:

Phil’s BBQ

3750 Sports Arena Blvd
San Diego, CA 92110
Phone: 619.226.6333

I love this place. I don’t think you can go wrong when you order here. This time, Jason and I went with Reina, Doug, Johann, Justin, Dale, and Val. Most of us ordered the Rib-Eye “Cowboy” (bone-in steak) medium rare.

This is what mine looked like when it first came out. I cut into it, and was dismayed to see that it was well-done and a bit dry. I didn’t like the flavor and checked to see if my steak simply had a well-done outer rim. I cut into the middle, and it was well-done throughout the steak. When our server came by to check on us, I let her know that there had been a mistake. She apologized, took it away, and had the chef prepare a new one. Then she had the chef himself bring it to the table so that they could watch me cut into it and make sure that it had been done right this time. That gesture was very thoughtful and the second steak was red throughout the center, juicy, and delicious. Their service is great.

We divided our table into two halves and had each half order their own 2 sides. My half chose macaroni and cheese and scalloped potatoes. At first, I was disappointed that Jason chose to order the potatoes, but after tasting them, they’re my new favorite side at Lou & Mickey’s. I like them even more than the mac’n cheese!

Macaroni and cheese:

Scalloped potatoes, absolutely drenched in cheese and cream:

We were much too full to get dessert, and I could only finish about half of my delicious steak. Hopefully Jason will enjoy the leftovers as a steak n’ eggs breakfast soon.

Reina ordered the sweet potato as her side, and it was good, too! It was enormous and came with little dishes filled with sour cream, butter, and a brown sugar/cinnamon blend.

Lou & Mickey’s

224 5th Ave
San Diego, CA 92101
(619) 237-4900

Here is a photo of my favorite mini tacos ever:

Los Primos, of course!

I was craving soup on a sunny day, so I figured that I could combine sunny day food (Mexican food) with it and order posole. Unfortunately, Los Primos doesn’t offer posole, so I ordered their Albondigas sopa.

It’s basically chicken soup with meatballs and a kick. The meatballs are huge, so huge that the hearts are cold. It’s chicken broth-based, with some spices added. There is a lot of white rice at the bottom, and it’s got huge carrot and potato chunks resting on the rice. The meatballs also have rice in them, and the dish comes with your choice of corn or flour tortillas. I like posole better, but this stuff was quite good. It also tastes like something that your mother would serve you if you were sick and she were Mexican.

I ordered the pollo asado rice bowl, too, in case I didn’t like the albondigas. It was very good! It had seasoned arborio rice, guacamole, pico de gallo, beans, sour cream, and was topped with pollo asado. The pollo asado was very juicy and tender. I scooped out most of the sour cream (I am not a huge fan of the taste of sour cream, so I only like a very small amount of it, and I also try to cut down on it because of the high fat content).

Again, the strength of the food at Los Primos lies in the quality of its ingredients. They use fresh ingredients and make their food after you order it, which sets it apart from other fast food joints. I also think it’s unfair to label Los Primos as a Mexican fast food place when the term is usually applied to places like Taco Bell or Del Taco, which are not Mexican by comparison.

Los Primos is also quite cheap for what you get. I ate about a third of each dish. I don’t think the pictures convey how huge these bowls were. The diameter of each bowl was not much smaller than that of an LP.

So here I go: Los Primos offers more than awesome mini tacos. Go there, already!

Jason already wrote a glowing review and it was so good that I cannot do the restaurant justice by blogging about it again. Check out Jason’s blog and go there, already! The pics that I took there are below. You can SEE the tasty goodness.

What we ate while waiting for our food:

My camarones rancheros was kind of expensive, but mios dios, look at it!! It tasted even better than it looks! The shrimp part was pretty spicy.

Here’s how to recognize the place if you’re driving down the street; you’ll see this sign:

December Nights is back!!

http://www.balboapark.org/decembernights/

You all know why I love this event so much. This time we’re hoping to catch both nights; that way, we can eat our way through everything and take back twice as much baklava.

Museums are offering free admission from 5 - 9 PM both nights. I would highly recommend getting paella, empanadas, and baklava. I would also discourage the mead, mulled wine, and Lion’s Milk. Unless you like sour wine or alcoholic Good N’ Plenty’s.

I don’t know why I haven’t written about this place earlier. I’ve only been to one of their locations (yes, this is a chain), which is on Dove Canyon Road. I haven’t ordered many dishes from this place. The first time I ever went, Jason made me order a California Burrito, which I had never heard of before. I believe it is strictly a San Diego phenomenon. For those of you non-San Diegans, a California Burrito is just like a regular burrito - with the addition of french fries. Quite unique and ingenious, but I will readily admit that I am no fan of this anomaly. It makes the burrito extra-starchy and dilutes the spiciness and color of the other ingredients. I just know that native San Diegans will want to crucify me for saying this, but I don’t think anyone outside of San Diego would find those burritos appetizing.

BUT. BUT. BUT. One day I was craving street tacos. Jason suggested that we hit up Los Primos for their mini tacos. I ordered 4 carne asada mini tacos ($5.49). They were the best street tacos I have ever had (with the possible exception of the tacos served out of a camping tent manned by Mexicans at the Fallbrook Avocado Festival - but that will occupy another entry), and I have been returning almost every weekend for more. Sometimes I mix it up and order the mini tacos with pollo asado instead, but I tend to stick with carne asada. One reason is that this is one of the few places that doesn’t overcook their carne asada. It’s juicy and tender (not tough, stringy and black). They use hot corn tortillas (they double them up, too - 2 per taco), packed to bursting with juicy carne, raw chopped onions, fresh chopped cilantro, and fresh homemade guacamole. I enjoy adding a twist of lime, some salsa verde, and some pico de gallo, but the mini tacos are more than delicious on their own.

There are many ways to spend sunny afternoons in Southern California, but sitting under an umbrella with a Negro Modelo and 4 Los Primos carne asada mini tacos is definitely a fav.

Caveat: I hear that the other Los Primos locations are not so consistent with the quality of their food. If you’re going to try Los Primos, do it right. The address is below.

Los Primos Mexican Food

16621 Dove Canyon Rd
San Diego, CA 92127

(858) 592-0960

On Friday night, Kevan, Rachel, Jason and I went to Thai House in what I consider San Diego’s Asiantown. We ordered 4 dishes, 2 of which I liked. I ordered a Thai House Chicken, which I thought was dry and somewhat tough. Apparently I had been picking out bad pieces, because Jason insisted the pieces he ate were soft, juicy, and tender.

Kevan ordered spicy noodles. They probably tasted exactly what they were supposed to taste like, but I prefer gravy or greasy noodles. These had a chili paste rubbed on them, which set my mouth on fire and wasn’t salty enough for my taste.

Rachel and Jason came to a compromise on their orders and ordered Garlic Pepper Pork and Panang Curry with chicken. I loved those 2 dishes. The pork was drowning in peas, carrots, and a thin brothy sauce (that was garlicky and peppery, of course!) and just delicious. The sauce tasted really good soaking through rice as well. I don’t really know how to describe the panang, other than it being creamy and spicy and panang-y, with green beans.

Rachel and I saw that the Thai Iced Teas were only $1.95, so we ordered them. They were good, but served in really skinny glasses. I wish all Asian restaurants served pots of hot tea with meals, like at Chinese, Vietnamese or Korean restaurants, so whenever Asian restaurants don’t, I get a little grumpy. I don’t know if Thai places in general serve tea, though.

Final verdict: possibly the best panang I’ve ever had in San Diego. I am still waiting for Renu Nakorn to reopen. I also want to go back to Thai House and try their Pad Seeuw and Rad Nar.

Thai House Cuisine

4225 Convoy St.

San Diego , CA 92111

858-278-1800

Mon-Sat 11 am-3 pm
Mon-Sat 5-10 pm

Okay, so first I have to get this out of the way: it’s not a fine Italian restaurant. That being said, I really enjoyed their food. I was in the mood for cheap, homey Italian, with round spaghetti noodles and marina sauce. You know, eggplant parmigiana with those bread crumbs and covered in melted mozzarella and more marina sauce. I told Jason I had a monster craving for these items and he took me to Mama Cella’s ( 16707 Bernardo Center Dr., San Diego, CA 92128). I ordered the eggplant parmigiana and it came with a side of spaghetti with tomato sauce, thankfully, and also a crusty piece of buttery, salty, garlic bread. I really liked the food (the eggplant was almost caramelized, giving it a slightly sweet aftertaste), and it was exactly what I had been craving. These 3 items plus one lemonade, tax, and tip, set me back $15. Not bad at all. I also could only finish half of my plate, so this took care of my brunch the next morning/afternoon as well.

Sorry I have no pictures. I think I should take a cue from real food bloggers and try to make my entries more interesting by adding photos.

I was looking up a restaurant called Whist in Santa Monica, which is located in the Viceroy Hotel. I was browsing their downloadable menu and weighing the cost of the entrees against how tasty they sounded, when I came across their entry for ceviche. This reminded me of some great ceviche I had with Jason in San Diego, at a place called Blue Water Seafood Market and Grill. This place does not grab your attention from the outside. It’s a few doors down from Shakespeare’s, a favorite haunt of Jason and his friends. It just looks like a small fish market, really: it’s got fish packed in ice and a menu on the wall behind the counter.

The menu is pretty simple, with items like fish tacos and ceviche. Jason and I each ordered a small portion of the ceviche, and it was delicious. It was also big and filling - we really should have just shared one. It came with crunchy corn tortillas and when sprinkled with some tapatillo sauce - it was seafood heaven. Huge chunks of fresh fish with the right amount of lime, cilantro and onions. This was also not so acidic or spicy that your tongue felt like it was burning off - my sensitive mouth was fine.

Jason and I also ordered fish tacos to round off our meal - very delicious as well. Fresh ingredients just bursting out of the tortillas. If I had thought to update my blog immediately following our visit, I would have been able to provide a better review of the place. It’s been at least a month since we went - but I am craving some of their ceviche right now. Another selling point of this place? Everything is cheap, cheap, cheap. There are very few places in the US that allow you to stuff yourself with quality seafood for under $5.

Have I written about this place before? If I have, I’ll just write about it again; it’s that good. I love this place. Jason and I went there every Sunday morning for awhile. I am very attached to their brie and honey panini. It’s got brie, honey, walnuts, and bacon in it, and I love it. It’s one of those simple dishes that relies on quality ingredients. I also always get a mocha there - it’s got a great proportion of cocoa to espresso, and they always heap a dollop of whipped cream on it and decorate the top with chocolate syrup. I am a big fan of their chocolate croissants - the fluffiest croissants you’ve ever seen! So flaky and doughy, too. Their chocolate croissants are really popular and sell out fast, so you can’t always get them. Jason is very partial to their muffaleta (spelling?) panini, which is basically pizza in panini form. I ordered it once, and while it’s very good, it’s very hearty, and since I like to order at least 2 different plates there, I stopped ordering it.

With eateries, it’s not just the food that matters to me, but the atmosphere of the place. Bread et Cie is on University, in Hillcrest, right next to all these great boutiques and thrift shops, so it’s always packed with regulars stopping in for a bite while shopping, exercising, or walking their dog (very dog-friendly, with a canine water cooler). ALL of the employees there are incredibly friendly and nice and make you feel at home. The lines are long and busy, but these people are fast, so you don’t end up waiting very long. The walls and furniture are covered with local art and look as though they’ve been purchased at a Berkeley garage sale. This is one of my favorite places to breakfast in Southern California.

Con: Jason and I went there on a Saturday last weekend (our first time visiting on a Saturday). The chocolate croissant looked and tasted very different from usual - definitely not as good as their usual. Everything else was fine: the employees were super-efficient and unbelievably quick with their service, but I would recommend going there on Sundays, when I suspect all of the pastries are baked fresh.

Bread et Cie

350 University Ave

At Fourth St, Hillcrest, Hillcrest/Uptown

619/683-9322

Mon-Fri 7am-7pm; Sat 7am-6pm; Sun 8am-6pm

Well, I’ll tell you: It’s not quite Phil’s, but it comes pretty close. I was very pleasantly surprised. Brett’s BBQ is this small joint on Rancho Bernardo Road. It looked like some shitty chain, and it looked a lot like a place my friends and I tried in Huntington Beach that was not very good. I had to try the ribs, though - I had to! Anyway, the meat slid right off the bones, which is the first mark of a great rib. It was also juicy and tender, which is basically all I’m looking for. The sauce was a little caramelized and chewy on the outside, which I’m not into, but some people really like (Jason, for instance).

I will also say that in terms of sides, Brett’s has Phil’s beaten solid. One thing I don’t like about Phil’s is that while the bbq baked beans are really, really good, they happen to be the only side that I can eat there. I hate macaroni salad, cole slaw… basically everything on Phil’s menu of sides. At Brett’s, they’ve got really good sweet potato fries, really good bbq baked beans (with many chunks of fatty bacon, at least one in every spoonful), and there were several other sides that I may have been willing to try - I forget.

Kevan and Rachel had pulled pork sandwiches, which looked really good and were really thick. Fletch had a steak burger or something - it was a slab of thick steak on a bun, basically, and it looked really good. Fletch is a very particular eater (there are only a few things he will eat), and he said it was a good burger, so I’ll take his word for it.

Final word? I do like Phil’s fattier meats and less dry sauces, but if I’m too lazy to make the trek to the Sports Arena, Brett’s is a very, very good substitute. Sam, I’ll have to treat you to Brett’s sometime for you to compare as well.

Here’s their site: www.brettsbbq.com.

So Jason and I stopped by the Stone Brewery beer garden (spelling?) to see Dale, Fletch, Johann, and Justin. We went some time ago, but Dale and Justin got hold of my camera and took so many damn pictures that it took me a long time to upload them.

Stone Brewery was basically a spa for beer lovers. You pamper yourself with beer. The place had some great architectural designs and you were never squeezing past people or being jostled. The bathrooms were decent as well. My favorite part was outside. Ponds with frogs and koi and a huge flame. Please enjoy the pictures.

Let me first point out that this is probably my favorite picture of Johann ever:

What makes it great is that when you first glance at it, you think that Justin is the funny-looking one, right? But the longer that I stare at it, the funnier Johann looks.

Oh God, Dale, what are you doing?

Oh yeah, and thanks, guys, for wimping out after yelling, “Make a funny face!” I think you can see my brain through my nostrils.

Reina planned an outing for us (Jason, Johann, Justin, Dale) at the Hillcrest Hot Spot, known as Sushi Deli. This place was so happening that we waited for over an hour and a half for our table. The food was so worth it. The prices were really reasonable, too. I wanted to order pretty much everything on the menu. As it was, I couldn’t finish what I did order, which was chicken udon, Chef’s Delight Roll (spicy tuna, avocado, salmon, crab, tempura - I don’t remember what else was crammed into that huge roll), and Tuna Mexican Roll (awesome cilantro kick to it). The udon wasn’t good, but everything else was.

Here are the pictures:

I know, I know. You’re thinking, “But your photos are always peppered with funny and unusual links!” Well, I thought it would be best to leave well enough alone, because looking at the pictures, I realized we’re funny-looking enough as it is. Except for Jason, of course. OFCOURSE.

I added pictures to “Happy Birthday, Fletch!” The mysterious guy whose face cannot be seen? That’s my friend Fletch. And Johann, I apologize for posting a picture of you blinking. I thought it was funny.

Jason and I went to the Ritz Carlton Huntington (in Pasadena) on Saturday night to celebrate the birthday of my sister’s mother in law. I had a tomato salad, and it was all right (the paper-thin slices of cheese were the best part). The main course was good, I mean, you can’t really go wrong with lobster. It came with pasta that was covered in what appeared to be melted butter and pure cream. I ate 2 noodles and 3 small pieces of the lobster, and was done for the night - the food was that rich and satisfying. I tasted Jason’s pheasant and immediately wished I had had the foresight to order that myself. It was easily the best thing I had all night.

I was disappointed with all of the desserts. My sister wants to call up the Ritz Carlton and tell them to fire their pastry chef. I guess because it was the Ritz, I expected something a bit better, too. Also, before our desserts came out, they had a little dessert-teaser, with pistachio ice cream and lemon tarts, which were very delicious - tart, creamy, with a bit of crisp to it… We were filled with high hopes. Then my blackberry tart came out, and it was basically 6 blackberries sunken into a Saltine cracker with a side of cream cheese. My mom ordered a poached pear, but it was only a slice of the pear, not a half-pear, like we all expected.
One of the best things about the Ritz was the company at the table behind us. I noticed Jason talking to a couple sitting at the table behind us, and assumed he was making small talk with strangers. I glanced at their table, then did a double-take. It was Albert and Wendy, Johann’s friends from Cal! They were celebrating Wendy’s birthday. Man, what a small world.

Last thing, before I forget: at Millefleurs, we were served an amuse-bouche, which was a slice of smoked salmon, with a dill cream sauce, capers, and cucumber slivers, drizzled with olive oil. Who would have thought cucumber slivers and smoked salmon with a dab of dill cream cheese could be so good?

Jason and I went to this restaurant twice. The first time was for Restaurant Week, and it was a great experience, although my duck confit was a little dry in some parts. The cauliflower soup with shrimp quenelles was very good (never had shrimp that tender and rare, yet without a fishy taste), and Jason had a great ahi salad. The second course took awhile to arrive (very crowded and busy night), so the waiter brought us complimentary drinks (merlot and a proper Old Fashioned). Jason had lamb, and I admit I liked his dish better than mine.

We had dessert that looked beautiful, and it was delicate and refreshing and tasty, but I didn’t really know what I was eating. I also realized that while sometimes I do like fancy desserts, my favorite desserts tend to be simple fare, like BJ’s Pizookies, home-made banana pudding, and old-fashioned peach cobblers. I am very particular about my peach cobblers, but when they’re done right, they’re my favorite dessert in the world. And I have to add this: anything with a crumbled cinnamon-sugar top or “crisp” is NOT a cobbler. Hot, buttery, flaky pastry crusts are a MUST for a proper cobbler. A close friend of mine has a great post about the differences between cobblers, crisps, and crumbles, and if you want to read it, she’s Stella on my blogroll. She also makes the best facial expressions in pictures.

Jason and I went to Millefleurs again last night, in honor of his dad’s birthday. This time I ordered the roast squab with foie gras, and GLORYGLORYITWASGOOD, although the richness killed off any desire I might have had for additional fare, like dessert. Jason ordered antelope, and I must say, it tastes good. I kind of expected to see antlers draped over a plate, but in retrospect, to expect that was just stupid. Although it would have had quite an effect. I think restaurants that serve game should consider adding touches like that.

I would have posted pictures from last night, but Jason ruined them all by blinking. I am beginning to suspect that he does this on purpose to keep me from posting.

How can I describe this place? I can’t, really. The words fatty, bone, juicy, tender, and meat come to mind, but do those words conjure up a steakhouse or some other house? Good food, good drinks, good company. One of the best evenings I’ve ever spent. Thank you Reina, Doug, Scott, Johann, Brandon, Brady, Albert, Wendy, Justin, and Jason for making me laugh so hard all evening my face felt like it was on fire.
I couldn’t resist snapping some shots of the guys wearing lobster bibs, and when I uploaded the photos, I must say that Albert wins for Most Photogenic:

Nick Lachey appears to be doing a good job of impressing the ladies… no, wait, that’s Scott’s hand.

Jason actually didn’t finish his blackened cowboy steak, so this was my tasty treat the next morning:

The steak’n egg scramble was good, too.