Aaaaaaaargh!
I'm wishing that I could still be on vacation!
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Monday, August 27, 2007
Getting older
Today our daughter turns 7.
And it seemed like only yesterday we were over at Lotus and Shogun's having the "lemon themed" dinner: Indian (or was it Moroccan) chicken with lemony rice, green beans and a really delicious lemon cake. We watched (of all movies), "Varsity Blues"----ha ha! James Van der Beek whining, "Ah don't want yer life!!!" to his jock dad. Earlier that day my nephew (bro's kid) was born and we had Vietnamese food for lunch at the now defunct Rice Jones (original location near Kaiser Zion).
Time sure flies by when you have a kid. I don't even want to contemplate the junior high school years!
We're having our families over for dinner. My mom is going to make all of the food:
1) pancit bihon (noodles for long life)
2) pinakbet
3) rotisserie chicken (okay, this is store bought, not made)
4) shrimp
5) grilled flank steak (or 'flapmeat' as she calls it)
+ lumpia that we ordered from JNC Pinoy Foodmart and salad from (mixed spring greens with dried cranberries and candied walnuts).
Dessert - sliced cantaloupe.
Cake - mango layer cake from an old high school friend who used to work for Kona Kakes. Cool - she comped me for this! Yess!
Sigh...she's seven now.
And it seemed like only yesterday we were over at Lotus and Shogun's having the "lemon themed" dinner: Indian (or was it Moroccan) chicken with lemony rice, green beans and a really delicious lemon cake. We watched (of all movies), "Varsity Blues"----ha ha! James Van der Beek whining, "Ah don't want yer life!!!" to his jock dad. Earlier that day my nephew (bro's kid) was born and we had Vietnamese food for lunch at the now defunct Rice Jones (original location near Kaiser Zion).
Time sure flies by when you have a kid. I don't even want to contemplate the junior high school years!
We're having our families over for dinner. My mom is going to make all of the food:
1) pancit bihon (noodles for long life)
2) pinakbet
3) rotisserie chicken (okay, this is store bought, not made)
4) shrimp
5) grilled flank steak (or 'flapmeat' as she calls it)
+ lumpia that we ordered from JNC Pinoy Foodmart and salad from (mixed spring greens with dried cranberries and candied walnuts).
Dessert - sliced cantaloupe.
Cake - mango layer cake from an old high school friend who used to work for Kona Kakes. Cool - she comped me for this! Yess!
Sigh...she's seven now.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
And you are?
Funny thing happened to me sometime last week. I took TC shoe shopping at the Vans store. The cashier at the counter was looking at me intensely(which kind of freaked me out) before she said, "I knoooowww you - I was at your house for your birthday party!". She said this with great conviction, as if she had just been at my house recently.
I was wracking my brain trying to think of who the hell she was. I asked her for her name, which I vaguely recognized as my younger sister's classmate from FIRST GRADE! So, I told her that had mistaken me for her. Then she said in a spaced out voice, "Yeahhhh, I was at your house a looong time ago for her birthday!" Yeah, no shit. It must have been some event for her to even remember it two decades later! This chick has some memory! I called my sis later that day and she confirmed that she knew her and she did remember inviting her to our house. They knew each other up until high school then lost track of each other but it's not like they were close or hung out together. Huhhh.
I get that occasionally, being mistaken for my sis. The last time it happened was a couple of years ago. I was in line getting the meatball plate at Ikea and the server said, "Hey, I know you! You went to (mentions our high school)!" while I try to figure out who he is. It floors me because my sister and I don't even resemble each other.
I was wracking my brain trying to think of who the hell she was. I asked her for her name, which I vaguely recognized as my younger sister's classmate from FIRST GRADE! So, I told her that had mistaken me for her. Then she said in a spaced out voice, "Yeahhhh, I was at your house a looong time ago for her birthday!" Yeah, no shit. It must have been some event for her to even remember it two decades later! This chick has some memory! I called my sis later that day and she confirmed that she knew her and she did remember inviting her to our house. They knew each other up until high school then lost track of each other but it's not like they were close or hung out together. Huhhh.
I get that occasionally, being mistaken for my sis. The last time it happened was a couple of years ago. I was in line getting the meatball plate at Ikea and the server said, "Hey, I know you! You went to (mentions our high school)!" while I try to figure out who he is. It floors me because my sister and I don't even resemble each other.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Ono's
Today my co-workers and I went out to lunch at Ono's Cafe in Bonita. Here's another review here and Yelp's here. I hadn't been here in two years and from what I remember, I wasn't too impressed because all they served were "wraps" or sandwiches, which I don't like. They didn't even offer beef items - just pork, boring ass chicken and dried out salmon. One of my Anglo co-workers really liked it there so we went because she raved about their wraps and their "smoothies" with boba. She was pretty vanilla and I'm pretty sure she had never been to any Asian eatery on Convoy Street! Different strokes for different folks. I went another time with a friend during dinner out of curiosity and we ended up ordering from the appetizer menu because the entrees didn't really excite us.
Recently, I remember seeing a tiny blurb in the paper that the owner revamped the place - expanding into the neighboring space, building the fixtures and furniture himself and blah blah blah. This is located on Bonita Road in an old 70's era looking strip mall. It's right behind the stand alone Wells Fargo building, and right next to the House of Nine Dragons Chinese restaurant. An interesting side note - in the same stripmall, on the side of the road, there are two fake "dinosaurs" (one yellow and one blue) on the right hand side (if you head east from 805). The yellow dinosaur was vandalized several years ago - it's head was bashed in. The community chipped in to help fix it. The blue dinosaur is relatively new. In the late 60's or early 70's, there was a boy who made these dinosaurs. Sadly this boy ended up dying young as a teenager. There are only a few of these dinosaur sculptures left in old Bonita. Anyhow...I digress...ME WANT GUM GUM! LET MY DUM DUM SPEAK!
So, because I heard about the recent renovation and the expansion of their menu items, I wanted to go there and drag my co-workers along...
Ironically, we ending up sitting on the front patio which was nice and shaded, instead of inside. I was more interested in seeing the revamp. I felt uneasy whipping out my camera in the presence of my co-workers, so I refrained from taking any photos inside the establishment. I did check it out when I went to the bathroom. It had a tropical feel - dare I say island kitsch? I think the owner did a great job with the decor, especially with the new upholstered booths. They looked pretty comfortable. 
They had a regular menu - I noticed they were a bit pricy ($5.95 for a plain old California roll, $6.95 for lumpia appetizer), but they probably have to jack up prices to pay for their rent. Bonita's not a cheap place to have a restaurant I guess. Their slim lunch menus were mounted on a thin wooden board with bamboo backing. Most of the entrees were either $7.99 or $8.99. 
One of my co-workers ordered a drink called the "Candy Bar" (don't remember the price). Although it's meant to be served hot, she ordered it iced. It's coffee with macadamia nut flavoring, caramel and chocolate syrup and whipped cream. Looks and sounds fattening. 
My co-worker's Kalua Pig ($8.99) - Slow roasted shredded pork with mixed cabbage, jasmine rice and cucumber salad with wasabi mirin dressing. Actually two of my co-workers got this and really liked their entree. The mound of shredded pork was topped with a Green Giant like pubic tangle of alfalfa sprouts while the rice had a garnish of spicy radish sprouts. 
The Kalbi Ribs lunch special($8.99) - Grilled marinated short ribs served with jasmine rice and kimchee salad. I asked for a substition on the kimchee salad - I got the cucumber salad with the wasabi mirin dressing instead. These had some sort of rice noodle garnish on top. I liked the salad dressing - tart with a tiny bit of a kick. By the way, I asked for a substitute because I don't really like kimchee. Even though our server said they do not serve actual kimchee, it's more of a regular salad with kimchee flavored dressing. Either way, not a kimchee fan. Their cucumber salad was julienned - different than Yokozuna's cucumber salad which is cored cucumber which is then cut into thin half moons. 
My thinly sliced kalbi ribs - the lunch portion has 4 pieces while the dinner has 6. These were pretty good but a bit thin. Some pieces had a lot of fat too, not good unless you want to clog up your arteries. One thing I didn't like was that the plate, although an attractive oval, was way too small, making it inconvenient while cutting the meat. It sucked cutting meat on top of meat. No empty space on the plate to do this. I made a suggestion to our server for larger plates in the future.
Recently, I remember seeing a tiny blurb in the paper that the owner revamped the place - expanding into the neighboring space, building the fixtures and furniture himself and blah blah blah. This is located on Bonita Road in an old 70's era looking strip mall. It's right behind the stand alone Wells Fargo building, and right next to the House of Nine Dragons Chinese restaurant. An interesting side note - in the same stripmall, on the side of the road, there are two fake "dinosaurs" (one yellow and one blue) on the right hand side (if you head east from 805). The yellow dinosaur was vandalized several years ago - it's head was bashed in. The community chipped in to help fix it. The blue dinosaur is relatively new. In the late 60's or early 70's, there was a boy who made these dinosaurs. Sadly this boy ended up dying young as a teenager. There are only a few of these dinosaur sculptures left in old Bonita. Anyhow...I digress...ME WANT GUM GUM! LET MY DUM DUM SPEAK!
So, because I heard about the recent renovation and the expansion of their menu items, I wanted to go there and drag my co-workers along...
Ironically, we ending up sitting on the front patio which was nice and shaded, instead of inside. I was more interested in seeing the revamp. I felt uneasy whipping out my camera in the presence of my co-workers, so I refrained from taking any photos inside the establishment. I did check it out when I went to the bathroom. It had a tropical feel - dare I say island kitsch? I think the owner did a great job with the decor, especially with the new upholstered booths. They looked pretty comfortable. 
They had a regular menu - I noticed they were a bit pricy ($5.95 for a plain old California roll, $6.95 for lumpia appetizer), but they probably have to jack up prices to pay for their rent. Bonita's not a cheap place to have a restaurant I guess. Their slim lunch menus were mounted on a thin wooden board with bamboo backing. Most of the entrees were either $7.99 or $8.99. 
One of my co-workers ordered a drink called the "Candy Bar" (don't remember the price). Although it's meant to be served hot, she ordered it iced. It's coffee with macadamia nut flavoring, caramel and chocolate syrup and whipped cream. Looks and sounds fattening. 
My co-worker's Kalua Pig ($8.99) - Slow roasted shredded pork with mixed cabbage, jasmine rice and cucumber salad with wasabi mirin dressing. Actually two of my co-workers got this and really liked their entree. The mound of shredded pork was topped with a Green Giant like pubic tangle of alfalfa sprouts while the rice had a garnish of spicy radish sprouts. 
The Kalbi Ribs lunch special($8.99) - Grilled marinated short ribs served with jasmine rice and kimchee salad. I asked for a substition on the kimchee salad - I got the cucumber salad with the wasabi mirin dressing instead. These had some sort of rice noodle garnish on top. I liked the salad dressing - tart with a tiny bit of a kick. By the way, I asked for a substitute because I don't really like kimchee. Even though our server said they do not serve actual kimchee, it's more of a regular salad with kimchee flavored dressing. Either way, not a kimchee fan. Their cucumber salad was julienned - different than Yokozuna's cucumber salad which is cored cucumber which is then cut into thin half moons. 
My thinly sliced kalbi ribs - the lunch portion has 4 pieces while the dinner has 6. These were pretty good but a bit thin. Some pieces had a lot of fat too, not good unless you want to clog up your arteries. One thing I didn't like was that the plate, although an attractive oval, was way too small, making it inconvenient while cutting the meat. It sucked cutting meat on top of meat. No empty space on the plate to do this. I made a suggestion to our server for larger plates in the future. The portion sizes were just right. It wasn't an overwhelming amount of food, nor was it a tiny starvation portion either. I thought my plate was alright, but the rice scoop was a bit small. Hey, I'm Filipino and I eat rice dammit. One other thing, this was priced at $8.99. I could have got kalbi ribs with rice and 4 or 5 types of panchan at that take out place in Zion for $5. I was paying for the hi-falutin' area I'm telling you.
Our new co-worker had the Teriyaki Chicken lunch special ($7.99) - Grilled marinated chicken breast served with jasmine rice and Asian slaw (hmmm, what made it Asian???):
We all liked our entrees, but I know of better places to get this kind of food. It was still worth a look see. Our server was very nice and explained all of our questions in a friendly manner - but later, she ended up giving us the wrong receipt (which was fixed later - damn, the first receipt had a lower bill too! Shouldn't have said anything! Kidding). I didn't get to see everything on their menu but they had some interesting items on there plus your standard items - sushi rolls and teriyaki sauced meats. I noticed they had malasadas on their dessert menu!
Monday, August 20, 2007
My Harry Potter Alter Ego
You scored as Sirius Black, You are a gifted wizard and very loyal to your allegiance. Whilst you have a big heart and care very much about those around you, you can be a little arrogant and reckless at times.
Your Harry Potter Alter Ego Is...? created with QuizFarm.com |
At least I wasn't Crabbe and Goyle! But those Slytherins DO have cool school colors (Black and Silver)! I'm contemplating on going as a Slytherin for Halloween. Either that or Angus Young from AC/DC. I can rock a school boy uniform!
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Costa Brava part 2
After my first experience at Costa Brava last week with my friend, I went again for Sunday Brunch with Bert (below), and TC. 
Since I sat outside last time, we decided to sit inside since it was hot out anyways. I really liked how bright it was inside due to several skylights. We were in the back by the metal sun wall hanging. There was only one other couple there, a different waiter and a different cook from last time. The cook, I found out later, was from the Basque region, as was a waitress (who arrived a bit later).
For Costa Brava's brunch, you can get one tapa plus paella, flan and one sangria for $19.50. We got two of those which we shared with our daughter. For our tapas, we chose the Tortilla Espagnola (not pictured) and the Patatas Alioli (see below)...This wasn't as crisp as a few days ago, but was still very tasty with the heavily garlicked up aioli.
Our "full sized" sangria (refer to previous post to get the joke). TC asked if she could have our fruit. We both said 'no'. Don't want to give alcohol infused fruit to a minor!
Our Paella Mixto which included chicken, Spanish chorizo, shrimp, clams, mussels and thin strips of squid.
Our flan...
Verdict - it was all right, but I think the paella was kind of 'wet' (sounds like a Prince song title). It was also kind of salty (with all that chorizo in there). Perhaps it's supposed to be saucy but I'll need to try other versions to make up my mind. There's a Filipino version of this paella called Arroz Valenciana. It's pretty similar - my mom rarely makes it because it's labor intensive. I believe she used chorizo de Bilbao (a type of Spanish sausage).
Since I sat outside last time, we decided to sit inside since it was hot out anyways. I really liked how bright it was inside due to several skylights. We were in the back by the metal sun wall hanging. There was only one other couple there, a different waiter and a different cook from last time. The cook, I found out later, was from the Basque region, as was a waitress (who arrived a bit later).
For Costa Brava's brunch, you can get one tapa plus paella, flan and one sangria for $19.50. We got two of those which we shared with our daughter. For our tapas, we chose the Tortilla Espagnola (not pictured) and the Patatas Alioli (see below)...This wasn't as crisp as a few days ago, but was still very tasty with the heavily garlicked up aioli.
Our "full sized" sangria (refer to previous post to get the joke). TC asked if she could have our fruit. We both said 'no'. Don't want to give alcohol infused fruit to a minor!
Our Paella Mixto which included chicken, Spanish chorizo, shrimp, clams, mussels and thin strips of squid.
Our flan...
Verdict - it was all right, but I think the paella was kind of 'wet' (sounds like a Prince song title). It was also kind of salty (with all that chorizo in there). Perhaps it's supposed to be saucy but I'll need to try other versions to make up my mind. There's a Filipino version of this paella called Arroz Valenciana. It's pretty similar - my mom rarely makes it because it's labor intensive. I believe she used chorizo de Bilbao (a type of Spanish sausage). Saturday, August 18, 2007
The Rutles vs. The Beatles
Who can resist the charms of Ron Nasty (John)! Dirk McQuickly (Paul)! Stig O'Hara (George, played by an Indian)! and...sorry girls, he's taken - Barry Wom (Ringo)???
One of the best parody bands EVER! Beside Spinal Tap, of course, which I'm sure got their idea from the Rutles' mockumentary "All You Need is Cash!"
Sadly, the Off the Record in El Cajon closed, turning into a skate shop, then closed altogether. They later opened up another location in Hillcrest on 5th but have since relocated to University Avenue. I loved looking through the racks to find a long lost gem. Blue Meannie in El Cajon was another store that my friend N and I would make the long drive to find records. Man, that was redneck country out there! I haven't been to Blue Meannie since I bought the colored disks of Guns 'n Roses "Use Your Illusion 1 & 2". I pretty much dated myself there. That was probably the last record I bought too. Don't know if Blue Meannie is still around, but they had a lot of Beatles memorabilia (including the notorious Beatles Butcher cover) and metal stuff.
One of the best parody bands EVER! Beside Spinal Tap, of course, which I'm sure got their idea from the Rutles' mockumentary "All You Need is Cash!"For more info - A History of the Rutles
I first heard their music back in college at Off the Record on El Cajon Blvd (near the corner of College Ave). The vocals and music sounded uncannily like the early Beatles sound, but I knew it wasn't them. Their songs had tongue in cheek lyrics such as "Ouch!" which parodied "Help!" and "With a Girl Like You" ("If I Fell"). The record store clerk was happy I gave a shit and proudly showed me the album whichI bought it. Gatefold sleeve too!
This was when actual records used to be sold in stores! I later bought the CD back in '92, at the "new" Off the Record in Hillcrest. They had to special order it (it cost $13 which I thought was a lot back then) and I got a damn parking ticket that day because I was a few minutes late when the meter expired. I remember running back to my car to put in more change and the cop had just put the ticket on my windshield. This was in full view of the patrons from David's Place (a coffee shop), right next to the Brass Rail gay bar. I was so embarassed. I ended up paying the ticket.
Sadly, the Off the Record in El Cajon closed, turning into a skate shop, then closed altogether. They later opened up another location in Hillcrest on 5th but have since relocated to University Avenue. I loved looking through the racks to find a long lost gem. Blue Meannie in El Cajon was another store that my friend N and I would make the long drive to find records. Man, that was redneck country out there! I haven't been to Blue Meannie since I bought the colored disks of Guns 'n Roses "Use Your Illusion 1 & 2". I pretty much dated myself there. That was probably the last record I bought too. Don't know if Blue Meannie is still around, but they had a lot of Beatles memorabilia (including the notorious Beatles Butcher cover) and metal stuff.
Friday, August 17, 2007
Bleu Boheme
Yay! Bert had the day off to spend with me. We just watched "The Simpsons"(which is destined to become a classic) that morning. It was pretty funny, especially all of the "inside" jokes and a shot of Bart's bits and pieces. Every character is in there. I wish they had given Apu more face time though. After the movie, we decided to check out this new French restaurant on Adams Avenue in the cute neighborhood of Kensington...
My co worker had just eaten there when it opened three weeks ago, Bleu Boheme is the newest restaurant venture by Philippe Beltran (La Vache, Vagabond), Bleu Boheme took over the former site of the Green Tomato across the street from the Ken Theatre. If you want to know other opinions, check out Chowhound review here and yelp's here. The reviews are mixed. By the way, here's a disclaimer, although I do post a lot of entries about food, restaurants, etc, I don't consider my blog to be a "total" food blog. I do post other entries about other topics like music, pop culture and my boring ass life. 
Once you step in, there are two seating areas. In the middle is the bar. 
To the right is a large seating area with lots of tables. Our waiter told us this side gets pretty "happening" at night. There's also a huge chalkboard with the menus (same as the one online). The decor is a mixture of industrial and country French.
There is also a cool lounge area near the bar with banquettes, square tables and suede ottomans.
Here's that menu again. Sucky photo.
Their lunch menu was presented on a blue wooden board and was affixed by a clothespin on top (not seen):
We were seated in the other dining area (it would be to your left if you came in through the door). Thick brown paper covered the white table cloths. The utensils in the mason jars were a nice touch. This dining area also had a huge stone wall (not pictured).
The bread and butter came first. I thought the way the served this was inconsistent. The first time, the slices were hard and toasted. For the second serving, the bread was warm and soft. I preferred the latter. Nothing's worse than cutting the roof of your mouth with a hard bread crust. 
For his appetizer, Bert ordered the Soupe A L'Oignon Gratinee ($7.50), aka French Onion Soup. The menu describes it as caramelized sweet onions and fresh herbs, simmered in a beef consomme, topped with croutons and melted Gruyere". He really liked the soup's rich onion flavor - along with the creamy cheese and crouton topping. However, we both agreed that it was waaaaay too salty. First strike.
Look at those onions! So gooood!
I ordered the Calamars Frits avec Rouille et Sauce Tartare Maison ($7.50), aka Fried Squid. Let's not kid ourselves by calling it the lovely name of calamari. It's squid folks. It's "flash fried calamari servied with Provencal Rouille and homemade tartar sauce. The squid was tender and the breading was just right. It wasn't too thick and overly dipped in batter like some places serve it. I also liked that they had the tentacles in there along with the more popular and safe looking squid ring pieces. My only beef is that there wasn't enough sauce to go with the squid - they were served in microscopic ramekins. 
Bert's entree was the Nicoise salad with seared ahi tuna. Sorry I don't have the fancy French title or description (and it's not on their website either). You can see the salad has Bibb lettuce, potatoes, sliced boiled egg, radish, green beans, and cucumbers. Bert's only complaint about this was that they overdressed the salad. It was a bit too oily for my tastes. He had quite a lot of his plate - at least my husband chose a somewhat healthy entree. Maybe next time (if there is one), get the dressing on the side.
Here is my dish - the Moules Marinieres avec Pommes Frites ($12.50) aka Mussels with Fries. This was "black mussels steamed in a white wine broth with shallots, garlic and chopped parsley and served with Bleu Boheme French Fries". When I used the bread to soak up the broth, my taste buds went into shock. I would have liked this dish better if it wasn't so damn salty!!! Two strikes. This dish was similar to the one I had at Vagabond last year but Vagabond's was better. More recently, I had a version of this at Bite last month which I also liked (sans the fries).
Mmm, plump mussels. 
The pommes frites...
I asked our waiter if a dipping sauce came with the fries. He said he would bring us the sauces that they serve with their steak. Clockwise, this trio of sauces include curry (top right), port truffle and peppercorn. However, when I came home and looked it up on their online menu, their steak sauces are described as Bordelaise, curry and truffle. Perhaps the peppercorn is the Bordelaise? I thought it was a bit odd for fries to come with these sauces, which I'm sure, would taste great with meat, but fries? So I asked for the rouille. I was expecting an aioli or some sort of mayo-based sauce. He also brought out a bottle of ketchup! Gasp.
Here's a interesting design detail - there's this transparent insert in the floor just as you step into the dining room (left hand side once you enter). 
Our lunch experience was a mixed bag. We really liked the calamari but the soup was too salty. So was my broth in my mussels dish. The service was good although I overhead one of the waitresses admitting she couldn't pronounce a lot of the items on the menu. Our waiter (I forgot his name) was a nice guy who thought it was amusing that I was taking photos. I'd try this place again but for dinner next time just to see the ambiance and also because the dinner menu is a lot different. During lunch, it was pretty empty. There were only four other tables that were occupied so it wasn't noisy.
My co worker had just eaten there when it opened three weeks ago, Bleu Boheme is the newest restaurant venture by Philippe Beltran (La Vache, Vagabond), Bleu Boheme took over the former site of the Green Tomato across the street from the Ken Theatre. If you want to know other opinions, check out Chowhound review here and yelp's here. The reviews are mixed. By the way, here's a disclaimer, although I do post a lot of entries about food, restaurants, etc, I don't consider my blog to be a "total" food blog. I do post other entries about other topics like music, pop culture and my boring ass life. 
Once you step in, there are two seating areas. In the middle is the bar. 
To the right is a large seating area with lots of tables. Our waiter told us this side gets pretty "happening" at night. There's also a huge chalkboard with the menus (same as the one online). The decor is a mixture of industrial and country French.
There is also a cool lounge area near the bar with banquettes, square tables and suede ottomans.
Here's that menu again. Sucky photo.
Their lunch menu was presented on a blue wooden board and was affixed by a clothespin on top (not seen):
We were seated in the other dining area (it would be to your left if you came in through the door). Thick brown paper covered the white table cloths. The utensils in the mason jars were a nice touch. This dining area also had a huge stone wall (not pictured).
The bread and butter came first. I thought the way the served this was inconsistent. The first time, the slices were hard and toasted. For the second serving, the bread was warm and soft. I preferred the latter. Nothing's worse than cutting the roof of your mouth with a hard bread crust. 
For his appetizer, Bert ordered the Soupe A L'Oignon Gratinee ($7.50), aka French Onion Soup. The menu describes it as caramelized sweet onions and fresh herbs, simmered in a beef consomme, topped with croutons and melted Gruyere". He really liked the soup's rich onion flavor - along with the creamy cheese and crouton topping. However, we both agreed that it was waaaaay too salty. First strike.
Look at those onions! So gooood!
I ordered the Calamars Frits avec Rouille et Sauce Tartare Maison ($7.50), aka Fried Squid. Let's not kid ourselves by calling it the lovely name of calamari. It's squid folks. It's "flash fried calamari servied with Provencal Rouille and homemade tartar sauce. The squid was tender and the breading was just right. It wasn't too thick and overly dipped in batter like some places serve it. I also liked that they had the tentacles in there along with the more popular and safe looking squid ring pieces. My only beef is that there wasn't enough sauce to go with the squid - they were served in microscopic ramekins. 
Bert's entree was the Nicoise salad with seared ahi tuna. Sorry I don't have the fancy French title or description (and it's not on their website either). You can see the salad has Bibb lettuce, potatoes, sliced boiled egg, radish, green beans, and cucumbers. Bert's only complaint about this was that they overdressed the salad. It was a bit too oily for my tastes. He had quite a lot of his plate - at least my husband chose a somewhat healthy entree. Maybe next time (if there is one), get the dressing on the side.
Here is my dish - the Moules Marinieres avec Pommes Frites ($12.50) aka Mussels with Fries. This was "black mussels steamed in a white wine broth with shallots, garlic and chopped parsley and served with Bleu Boheme French Fries". When I used the bread to soak up the broth, my taste buds went into shock. I would have liked this dish better if it wasn't so damn salty!!! Two strikes. This dish was similar to the one I had at Vagabond last year but Vagabond's was better. More recently, I had a version of this at Bite last month which I also liked (sans the fries).
Mmm, plump mussels. 
The pommes frites...
I asked our waiter if a dipping sauce came with the fries. He said he would bring us the sauces that they serve with their steak. Clockwise, this trio of sauces include curry (top right), port truffle and peppercorn. However, when I came home and looked it up on their online menu, their steak sauces are described as Bordelaise, curry and truffle. Perhaps the peppercorn is the Bordelaise? I thought it was a bit odd for fries to come with these sauces, which I'm sure, would taste great with meat, but fries? So I asked for the rouille. I was expecting an aioli or some sort of mayo-based sauce. He also brought out a bottle of ketchup! Gasp.
Here's a interesting design detail - there's this transparent insert in the floor just as you step into the dining room (left hand side once you enter). 
Our lunch experience was a mixed bag. We really liked the calamari but the soup was too salty. So was my broth in my mussels dish. The service was good although I overhead one of the waitresses admitting she couldn't pronounce a lot of the items on the menu. Our waiter (I forgot his name) was a nice guy who thought it was amusing that I was taking photos. I'd try this place again but for dinner next time just to see the ambiance and also because the dinner menu is a lot different. During lunch, it was pretty empty. There were only four other tables that were occupied so it wasn't noisy. Pappalecco revisited
After our lunch at Bleu Boheme, we took the surface streets from Kensington all the way to Little Italy. To Pappalecco on the corner of State and Cedar downtown. Here's Chowhound's review and yelp's review here. [8/19/07 - update - here's another review from a new food blog which also includes a post on Opera Patisserie] I was just here last month with my friend and had been longing to go again. That guy who flirted with my friend wasn't here. There was only one worker, a woman, who was very friendly. She gaves us several samples - the pear, the chocolate chip and the melon. Here's Bert at the gelato counter:
We wanted to enjoy the fresh air outside. It was stuffy in there.
My pear and banana gelato (medium size). You can kind of see the banana seeds in the gelato (left half). This was bursting with flavor - especially the pear. They make all of their gelatos fresh everyday. This tasted exactly like a fresh pear! I normally get chocolate, but today's heat and humidity made eating chocolate gelato unappealing. I needed something lighter, something fruity. Something summery and tropical...
Bert's coffee with dark chocolate and whipped froth on top:
Bert's pistachio gelato. This is the small size:
I love the description for "La Dolce Vita"! What the hell does the description for Bizzarro mean?
Sidewalk seating:
Our view from our table:
Wow, even the fire engines have the neighborhood logo.
This was part of a driveway on Cedar Street. Cute little grass mounds:
We wanted to enjoy the fresh air outside. It was stuffy in there.
My pear and banana gelato (medium size). You can kind of see the banana seeds in the gelato (left half). This was bursting with flavor - especially the pear. They make all of their gelatos fresh everyday. This tasted exactly like a fresh pear! I normally get chocolate, but today's heat and humidity made eating chocolate gelato unappealing. I needed something lighter, something fruity. Something summery and tropical...
Bert's coffee with dark chocolate and whipped froth on top:
Bert's pistachio gelato. This is the small size:
I love the description for "La Dolce Vita"! What the hell does the description for Bizzarro mean?
Sidewalk seating:
Our view from our table:
Wow, even the fire engines have the neighborhood logo.
This was part of a driveway on Cedar Street. Cute little grass mounds:
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Costa Brava
I once asked our school's resident Spaniard (and Spanish teacher) which restaurant served the best paella. He cited Costa Brava in Pacific Beach as the best and most authentic (well, at least to his standards). So, with this in mind, my summer lunch buddy and I went to check it out. She had the great opportunity to study abroad in Spain so she was familiar with the cuisine and gave me a mini lesson in Spanish dining and the joys of tapas.
We found parking right on the street. I was amazed because Garnet is usually crowded as hell. But then again, it wasn't near the busy part of Garnet and it was a Tuesday morning. According to our waiter, Ernesto, the place is usually crowded from Wednesday on - especially for dinner.
After a tiny flight of steps, we chose to sit on the tree shaded front patio.
The restaurant interior had a lot of natural light and just oozed "charm" with its rustic chairs, whitewashed walls and colorful artwork (which you can't see from this photo). This looks like a nice place to have a romantic meal. The kitchen is in the back behind the arched wall window. 
The bar area (obscured by the curtain). 
We ordered about five different tapas. Ernesto our waiter (who hails from Mexico City) brought out warm bread rolls with a fantastic garlic aioli:
Within less than a few minutes, he brought out our plate of Queso Mancheso or Manchego cheese ($6.95). I wasn't sure if I'd like this type of cheese, however, I ended up really liking the flavor. One thing, it was a hard cheese with no mold! Okay, that's a plus. The flavor was a bit salty and mild. I also liked the dry texture. Moldy, runny, and stanky cheeses are not my thing! I think I would rather listen to Yanni, Air Supply or Kenny G while getting my teeth drilled with a rusty nail. Okay.................................... not Kenny G!
Next came the Jamon Serrano ($12.50) which is similar to Italian prosciutto. There were about 5 big slices here. This was really good! We ended up doing this (see next picture):
Making mini Spanish ham and cheese sandwiches with our bread and aioli:
Let the Tapas feast begin! Next up were the Patatas alioli ($4.75):
This was so gooood! The potatoes were slathered in garlicky aioli sauce - the outsides were browned and crisp yet they were very tender inside...Oh my gosh, we liked these so much! Too bad that we got full easily and had to leave several lonely pieces on the plate at the restaurant. We didn't want to take it to go because we wanted to do food shopping after lunch; it would have gone bad in the car. Bert would have loved these.
Tortilla espagnola ($6.75) :
The tortilla was also very tasty. Bits of tender potato with onions and parsley in an egg omelet...I ended up taking half of it home, where a few hours later, it became part of Bert and TC's supper:
Croquetas de bacalao ($6.95). Bacalao (or bacalhau in Portuguese) is dried salted codfish. These tapas have the dried fish which are rehydrated, formed into balls and fried up to crisp goodness on the outside! Quite delectable with the garlic aioli (which the menu spells as 'alioli' - research on the internet indicates that this is the Catalan spelling).
Oh yeahh.....fish balls!
At the end of our meal, Ernesto gave us two tiny (but complimentary) glasses of sangria. The cup was the same size as a votive holder - I noticed that the toothpicks were also in a cup that looked just like our mini sangria "glass". No matter! I drank it anyways! 
Ernesto offered to take photos of us, which was quite nice. He took one photo of us in the bar and insisted on taking us to the back patio for another shot. There is a beautiful courtyard in the back, complete with overhanging vines with colored paper lanterns and a trickling fountain. I think next time I visit, I would like to sit back here! It seems like you are in another world in this gorgeous and peaceful setting. My photos don't do real justice since it was hazy and my camera skills are shaky at best. Ernesto took a couple photos of us here but also wanted to make sure we weren't blocking the fountain. It was funny because he kept making shooing motions with his hand and we kept going the wrong way!
Although we came for paella, we ended up with some great tapas. On Sundays, they offer a brunch for $19.50 which includes your choice of one tapa (from a list), paella, flan and sangria. Not bad. We'll have to go check that out. Once again, a fun time was had during lunch with a great friend! After lunch we went next door to (see post below):
We found parking right on the street. I was amazed because Garnet is usually crowded as hell. But then again, it wasn't near the busy part of Garnet and it was a Tuesday morning. According to our waiter, Ernesto, the place is usually crowded from Wednesday on - especially for dinner.
After a tiny flight of steps, we chose to sit on the tree shaded front patio.
The restaurant interior had a lot of natural light and just oozed "charm" with its rustic chairs, whitewashed walls and colorful artwork (which you can't see from this photo). This looks like a nice place to have a romantic meal. The kitchen is in the back behind the arched wall window. 
The bar area (obscured by the curtain). 
We ordered about five different tapas. Ernesto our waiter (who hails from Mexico City) brought out warm bread rolls with a fantastic garlic aioli:
Within less than a few minutes, he brought out our plate of Queso Mancheso or Manchego cheese ($6.95). I wasn't sure if I'd like this type of cheese, however, I ended up really liking the flavor. One thing, it was a hard cheese with no mold! Okay, that's a plus. The flavor was a bit salty and mild. I also liked the dry texture. Moldy, runny, and stanky cheeses are not my thing! I think I would rather listen to Yanni, Air Supply or Kenny G while getting my teeth drilled with a rusty nail. Okay.................................... not Kenny G!
Next came the Jamon Serrano ($12.50) which is similar to Italian prosciutto. There were about 5 big slices here. This was really good! We ended up doing this (see next picture):
Making mini Spanish ham and cheese sandwiches with our bread and aioli:
Let the Tapas feast begin! Next up were the Patatas alioli ($4.75):
This was so gooood! The potatoes were slathered in garlicky aioli sauce - the outsides were browned and crisp yet they were very tender inside...Oh my gosh, we liked these so much! Too bad that we got full easily and had to leave several lonely pieces on the plate at the restaurant. We didn't want to take it to go because we wanted to do food shopping after lunch; it would have gone bad in the car. Bert would have loved these.
Tortilla espagnola ($6.75) :
The tortilla was also very tasty. Bits of tender potato with onions and parsley in an egg omelet...I ended up taking half of it home, where a few hours later, it became part of Bert and TC's supper:
Croquetas de bacalao ($6.95). Bacalao (or bacalhau in Portuguese) is dried salted codfish. These tapas have the dried fish which are rehydrated, formed into balls and fried up to crisp goodness on the outside! Quite delectable with the garlic aioli (which the menu spells as 'alioli' - research on the internet indicates that this is the Catalan spelling).
Oh yeahh.....fish balls!
At the end of our meal, Ernesto gave us two tiny (but complimentary) glasses of sangria. The cup was the same size as a votive holder - I noticed that the toothpicks were also in a cup that looked just like our mini sangria "glass". No matter! I drank it anyways! 
Ernesto offered to take photos of us, which was quite nice. He took one photo of us in the bar and insisted on taking us to the back patio for another shot. There is a beautiful courtyard in the back, complete with overhanging vines with colored paper lanterns and a trickling fountain. I think next time I visit, I would like to sit back here! It seems like you are in another world in this gorgeous and peaceful setting. My photos don't do real justice since it was hazy and my camera skills are shaky at best. Ernesto took a couple photos of us here but also wanted to make sure we weren't blocking the fountain. It was funny because he kept making shooing motions with his hand and we kept going the wrong way!
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