Breakfast for Two - [Crazies]

Is there anything better on a Saturday morning than sleeping in, followed by a relaxed breakfast for two? Tea, eggs, magazines, and light conversation. That's the sweet stuff.



For Cat, scrambled eggs, a sausage, rye toast, Canadian breakfast tea, and an apple.



For me, eggs over easy (I used very little oil), grilled Spam, grilled zucchini and squash, steamed white rice, and Japanese green tea.



A little later in the day, we stopped by the Mitsuwa in Costa Mesa for a yaki imo to share.

A really relaxing and wonderful weekend so far, which is good since there will be few of those this month. Working through next weekend again.

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Shinsengumi Robata Yakitori - Fountain Valley, CA [Eating]

Catalyzed by Commodore Matthew Perry's forced opening of Japan to Western contact, the bakumatsu period between 1853 and 1867 saw great unrest in Japan. Modernizing forces led by lower caste samurai fought against the Tokugawa bakufu (lit. "military government") to restore the Japanese Imperial family to power. Disgruntled by the social caste hierarchy established by kanpaku (Imperial Regent) Toyotomi Hideyoshi, which restricted them from upper echelon posts regardless of their abilities, the Ishin Shishi rebels believed that the Emperor would give them the positions and influence necessary in order to modernize the nation and force out the Western barbarians once he was restored to political power.



Groups of loyalist samurai also formed, dedicated to preserving the Tokugawa bakufu and the traditional social order. Among the most prominent of these groups was the Shinsengumi, a bakufu sanctioned militia over two hundred master swordsmen. Nicknamed the "Wolves of Mibu", the Shinsengumi acted as both a peacekeeping force and as assassins. Their steadfast devotion to the Shogun, even as their cause became more and more helpless, has made them cult heroes in modern Japan, and is epitomized by the popular tale of deputy leader Hijikata Toshizo's last days. Before riding off to a battle against revolutionary forces that he knew he could not win, Hijikata reputedly said, "I am not going to battle to win. With the Tokugawa government about to collapse, it would be a disgrace if no one is willing to go down with it. That is why I must go. I will fight the best battle of my life to die for the country." As he lay dying on the battlefield, Hijikata penned the following death poem, an old Japanese custom stretching back to their earliest recorded history:

Though my body may decay on the island of Ezo, my spirit guards my lord in the east.



According to their website, the modern day Shinsengumi Restaurant Group chose their name after deciding to adopt the original Shinsengumi's philosophy towards dedicated service, and to apply that philosophy towards serving the restaurant group's customers. Centered in Southern California, the group owns a number of traditional Japanese restaurants in Torrance, Gardena, and Fountain Valley. Shinsengumi Robata Yakitori in Fountain Valley is one of their most popular offerings, right around the corner from Shinsengumi Hakata Ramen, another of their popular locations.



A number of articles have already been written about the Shinsengumi Robata Yakitori dinner experience, including this one by my buddy Elmomonster. The food is consistently excellent and somewhat expensive. The atmosphere is raucously authentic, exactly like similar establishments in Japan. Step inside and you'll feel as if you've been whisked away to Tokyo.



What fewer people have covered is Shinsengumi's lunch service, which is a far cry from their dinner service. Lunching at Shinsengumi is like eating at an entirely different restaurant. Instead of the usual chaos, shouting, and rushing about, the wait staff is calm and welcoming. Since the robatayaki selections are limited to set items during lunch, the chefs are friendlier, and have more time to chat with customers as they cook.



Like any self-respecting salaryman, I'm always on the lookout for a good lunchtime bargain. The massive lunch sets at Shinsengumi Robata Yakitori offer considerable bang for the buck, and give the restaurant a much higher ROI during the day. This magnificent feast set me back $9.25, and is the most expensive of their lunch sets because it includes the Tenpura Udon. Most of their lunch sets run in the $6-8 range. You can also order ramen from their sister restaurant next door, since the two share a connecting walkway. This gives you a stunning variety of inexpensive and filling lunch options to choose from.



For me, one of the main lunchtime draws at Shinsengumi is their Tenpura Udon, which is amusing given that the restaurant specializes in grilled meat. The udon is classically prepared in a clear, light broth and served with two slices of kamaboko fish cake and a scattering of sliced green onions. The flavors are subtle, so I always kick them up a little with a generous dash of shichimi togarashi.



The real appeal of the Tenpura Udon lies in the fried food portion of the equation. Two large prawns and an assortment of sliced vegetables are dipped in a batter made with rice flour before being skillfully fried to a golden crisp. A quick dip in the tentsuyu sauce and grated daikon mixture provided, and you have a supremely Zen juxtaposition of salty, sweet, savory, and crunchy.



With such a large portion of excellent Tenpura Udon, the inclusion of a similarly large serving of Gyudon is gluttonously sinful. A large bowl of steamed rice is topped with a heaping helping of thinly sliced beef and onions, which have been simmered in a sweet, soy-based sauce. A garnish of Beni Shoga (pickled ginger) is the standard accompaniment, used to cut the sweetness of the sauce and the richness of the meat. It's deliciously simple and simply sublime, although too much sauce may be included for some.



You'd think that this lineup of power hitters would be enough to quell the rumblings of my appetite, but I fell victim to dumpling envy during my last visit and ended up ordering this half portion of gyoza. These dumplings were excellently done, with crispy skins, and juicy interiors. Unfortunately, I'd forgotten that I'm not particularly fond of Japanese gyoza. I find their pork, cabbage, celery, and carrot fillings to be too finely minced and lightly flavored for my tastes. I guess I'm just too used to the meatier, more flavorful Chinese versions. Gyoza lovers would be ecstatic over this offering. I, on the other hand, was mildly disappointed.


Shinsengumi Robata Yakitori - For a serene lunch in peaceful surroundings, come judge for yourself whether their commitment to service does justice to their legendary forbears. The food is good, the prices are excellent, and the helpings boggle the mind.


Bill (for one):

Tenpura Udon & Gyudon Set - 9.25
Gyoza (half order) - 3.25


Tax - 0.97
Tip - 2.00

Total - 15.47



Flavor: A-
Ambience: B+
Service: B+
ROI: A+

Overall: A-



Shinsengumi Robata Yakitori
18315 Brookhurst St., #1
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
1-714-962-8952
1-714-962-8971
http://www.shinsengumiusa.com


Other Locations:
For a complete list of the Shinsengumi Restaurant Group's other offerings, click here.

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Curried Fish and Noodles - [Cooking]

Apologies for my silence of late, but 10-12 hour days and working through the weekend have really taken their toll on both my health and my spare time. Still, with a weekend that I don't have to work through coming up, I hope to have time to both rest and post my latest set of articles.

***Edit 11/11/2006 - 7:30am***

Leftovers are the bane of every cook and foodie's existence. On one hand, they add additional value to the meals we purchase or prepare. 90% of my lunches are bento boxes assembled using leftovers from dinner the night before. On the other hand, they often result in the need for resource management, balancing calories against refrigerator space and projected storage time prior to spoiling. Every time I think about having something to eat, I consider what leftovers need to be eaten first, not what foods I actually want to eat. I suppose I could always be like some of my friends and throw out those leftovers. But, in a country where there are still homeless people and children who don't get enough to eat, that gluttonously wasteful act seems eminently shameful to my Taiwanese-Chinese cultural sensibilities. It's like I can hear my mother in the back of my head saying, "Tsk! That's like throwing away money. How did I raise such a wasteful son? The gods will punish you."

In order to silence the demons of my conscience, and because I'm not exactly swimming in so much money that I can afford to waste perfectly good food, I've adopted the quintessential skill of the American housewife; making meals from leftovers. Monday's Japanese hamburger steak becomes Thursday's Italian meatballs and pasta. Tuesday's Hot Dogs become Wednesday's Hot Dog Fried Rice. Friday's Mashed Potatoes are used in Saturday's Whole Wheat Potato Bread or Potato Leek Soup. Sunday, Cat and I eat out.



After our last trip to Peruvian Kitchen, Cat and I brought home a small tub of the Ceviche de Snapper. The plate was so big that there just wasn't any way for us to finish it all. Now, I don't know about you guys, but I'm always leery of eating any raw fish product on the second day. While I know that the strong acid used in making ceviche sterilizes and "cooks" the fish, I also know that when I ate it, I introduced several strains of bacteria present in my saliva, along with enzymes that aid in predigestion and speed the decomposition of food. (Like all little Asian boys, I had parents dreamed that I would grow up to be a doctor someday, which is why I'm a walking repository of useless biology trivia.) So, to play it safe, I always cook ceviche leftovers before I eat them.



What's in a ceviche? Along with fish, it contains onions, lemon or lime juice, chili peppers, coriander, and garlic. Sound familiar? Yep. Those are the basic building blocks for a number of popular Southeast Asian curries and spiced soups. The possibilities abound.


Gear:

1 medium saucepan or wok
1 large mixing bowl


Ingredients:

2 cups of leftover ceviche (Peruvian Ceviche Recipe, Classic Ceviche Recipe)
1 tbsp of thinly sliced lemongrass
1 tbsp of minced ginger
2 tbsp of thinly sliced Thai bird chilies (optional)
2 tbsp of cooking oil (flavorless)
1 tbsp of fish sauce (optional)
2 tbsp of yellow curry powder (feel free to use your favorite)
1 cup of coconut cream
2 cups of water
1 package of rice noodles (enough for roughly four servings)
Thai basil leaves
Salt to taste


Instructions:

This is a very quick and easy recipe. To prepare the curry, heat the oil in your wok on high heat until slightly smoking. Add the lemongrass, ginger, and chilies, and stir-fry quickly for 10-12 seconds to season the oil. Add the curry powder and fry the resulting paste for a few seconds to release the aroma of the curry spices. Add the two cups of water and the fish sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil before adding the coconut cream. Bring to a boil again, then turn the heat down to medium and allow to simmer for 20 minutes, or until a third of the liquid has evaporated. Occasional stirring is required to avoid burning the sauce. Once the curry has reached the desired consistency, gently stir in the ceviche, allow the mixture to come up to a slow boil, then turn the heat down to low or medium-low and let simmer for a few minutes. Remove from heat, then add salt to taste.

To prepare the noodles, let them soak in a bowl of cold water until they reach the desired level of softness, then strain, rinse, and divide into four soup bowls for serving. This step is best done during the last ten minutes of the curry cooking process.

Ladle your curry soup or sauce (depending on how thick you made it) over the rice noodles and garnish with Thai basil.

Makes four servings.

Total prep + cooking time = 30 minutes or less

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Election Day 2006 - [Crazies]

VOTE

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Peruvian Kitchen - Fountain Valley, CA [CLOSED

(Edit 08/25/2013: Peruvian Kitchen has closed. A different Peruvian restaurant is now operating from the same location.)

"Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."

- John Quincy Adams (6th President of the United States of America)

(Pictures for this review taken with my Canon PowerShot SD100.

Once again, a hearty "thank you" to everyone who voted in my "What should Chubbypanda blog next?" poll. As promised, here's your moment of sweet reflection.)

While I'm not a great traveler, I am an ardent explorer. To me, there's nothing quite as fun as tromping through the concrete jungle of a new city with a map and digicam in my pocket, Rough Guide my pack, and trusty GPS clipped to my belt. I love discretely doing the whole tourist thing; hitting all the museums, shopping malls, and scenic points of interest, while staying nicely camouflaged as a blue-collar Joe. (Trust me, getting mugged once was enough.) As long as there's a decent hotel for me to crash in at night, I'm a happy camper. (I like camping too, but that's a different kind of exploration.)

Much like the difficulty Gastronomy 101's KT has had in taking her lunch break, I've found that as my ability to pay for trips increases, the time I have to make them decreases proportionally. At this point in my career, I've hit the homeostatically unhappy medium of not having either enough disposable income or free time to conquer another great city. So, I've found other places to explore, such as new restaurants, cities closer to home, and even home itself (Irvine or Saratoga, depending of if I'm in SoCal or NorCal). My favorite form of exploration, and the most economical in terms of time, is hunting down and trying regional variations of some of my favorite ethnic cuisines, which is how I stumbled across Peruvian Kitchen in Fountain Valley.



A mid-sized, family run establishment, Peruvian Kitchen is located in an economic dead zone, sharing a tiny strip mall with the likes of a vacuum cleaner repair shop and a pan-martial arts dojo. Blink while you're driving by and you'll miss the shopping center entirely. If you're on the other side of the road, you won't even notice it. Unless you know exactly where the restaurant is, you'll have a hell of a time finding it.

A normal restaurant would have problems staying in business under these conditions. However, Peruvian Kitchen has attracted such a loyal following of locals and regulars with its stellar food that it's reasonably busy on most nights. Lunch time is the best time to visit, since the bulk of the restaurant's business occurs at night. During the day, the pace is much slower, and both the service and food are better. Regardless of when you go, you won't be disappointed.



The decor is an oddly pleasing casual jungle kitsch, full of golden tones, light woods, and hanging rushes. Plastic fish, the odd net, pictures of Peru, and a few native tchotchkes add a fanciful touch of whimsy to the experience. My favorites are the tiles with cute little fish outlines mounted above the bar and open kitchen. At night, the restaurant's muted lighting and candles make you feel like you're really dining in a small Peruvian village. ... Well, ok. Maybe more like you're dining in a classier rendition of Disney's Jungle Cruise. But, it's fun!

Service tends to be a hit or miss proposition, depending on the time of day and the number of other customers. It's consistently high if you go during lunch. If you go during a crowded night, you might have to wait a bit for your order to be taken or your check to arrive. However, at its worst, on a night when Cat swore that she thought our waiter was stoned, I would still have given the service a B. Just be prepared for slower service based on customer density.


(Inca Cola)

For your tasty beverage, I recommend one of three specialty items; Maracuya, Chicha Morada, or Inca Kola. You can also go with any of their standard beers, wines, soft drinks, or mixed cocktails, but where's fun in that?

The only mildly adventurous should stick with the Maracuya, a high-quality passion fruit juice. It's tasty, but familiar and not terribly exciting.

The moderately adventurous should sample a frosty glass of Inca Kola, a Peruvian soft drink made from plantains that is practically the national beverage of Peru. It has a wonderfully mild taste that brings to mind the result of a sexy rendezvous between bananas and Coke. I'll bet you thought Mountain Dew was the true Mellow Yellow. Guess again.


(Chicha Morada)

Truly adventurous diners who want to make their waiter smile with approval should order the darkly mysterious Chicha Morada. This rich, sweet, and complex beverage is made by boiling Peruvian purple corn and adding sugar, pineapple, and ice. Once the mixture has cooled, it's strained, chilled, and is usually served without ice, since the nuanced flavors shouldn't be diluted any further. I can't really describe it. While you can certainly taste the constituent components, the whole is infinitely more wonderful.



Along with your drink selections, your waiter will also bring one of these heaping baskets of nummy garlic bread with a small container of dipping sauce on the side. The bread is freshly toasted and anointed with olive oil, garlic, and herbs. The dipping sauce is mildly spicy, made with cilantro, garlic, chilies, and olive oil. I usually only use the dipping sauce if I'm feeling like a little heat. Both the sauce and bread are quite good, but there's only so much seasoned oil on oily bread action I can take before the guilt kicks in.

Peruvian Kitchen focuses primarily on cuisine from Lima, Peru's capital and largest city, as well as on the cuisine of Peru's central coast, where Lima is located. The native food in this region is heavily influenced by the Chinese, Japanese, Italian, African, Spanish, Basque, and German immigrants who flooded into Peru during the 19th and early 20th centuries. As such, the dishes are both reassuringly familiar and intriguingly exotic.


(Ceviche de Snapper)

One example of this natural fusion is this Ceviche de Snapper, which boasts Peruvian influences in a Spanish-style dish. Generous strips of raw snapper are marinated with thinly sliced red onions in mouth-puckering ambrosia of lemon juice, lime juice, chili peppers, coriander, and garlic. It's served here with Wedges of boiled sweet potato and large kernels of fresh hominy.

While ceviche is one of the most popular dishes in the central coastal area of Peru, I would hesitate to recommend the version offered by Peruvian Kitchen as an appetizer. Although the fish is undoubtedly very fresh, the pieces are too large, making them hard to chew. The marinade, which goes by the fanciful name leche de tigre or "tiger's milk", is very strong. However, with a big bowl of rice to thin out the sourness, it would make a fine dinner all by itself. The portions are huge. Most of what looks like a heaping mound of red onion in the picture above is actually tasty snapper. I was only able to finish half by myself.


(Tiradito al Aji)

More to my taste is the Tiradito al Aji, which boasts much thinner slices of fish marinated in lime juice, pureed yellow Peruvian chili peppers, and ginger. Sources are unclear as to whether the thinner slices of fish should be attributed to Japanese or Italian influences. However, with the use of the Peruvian chili peppers, traditionally aji limo, the Andean flavors in the dish are more pronounced. Unlike ceviche, onion and sweet potato are not served, although hominy is included.

This is an excellent appetizer. The thinner slices of fish translate to a finer texture, and the marinade for the tiradito is more subtle than the one used for the ceviche. It also works wonderfully as an entree, where it goes under the name Tiradito Mancora, and is served with white rice, fried yucca, and hominy.


(Anticuchos de Corazon)

Of course, not everyone is a fish lover. For those people, I recommend this appetizer of Anticuchos de Corazon, which should make Eddie Lin from Deep End Dining quite happy. Thin slices of tender beef hearts are marinated in a spicy blend of vinegar, garlic, and chili peppers. The pieces are then threaded onto wooden skewers and grilled to perfection before being served with broiled potato.

The flavor is very well controlled. The marinade is delicious, and only the faintest hint of the gaminess that characterizes all organ meats is left behind. The texture is very similar to beef filet, although more tender and crunchy. Peruvian Kitchen also offers anticuchos made with beef, chicken heart, or seafood.


(Yucca al la Huancaina)

For vegetarians, or anyone who likes cheese sauce, I suggest the Yucca a la Huancaina, which should also make Eddie happy. Yucca, also known as cassava or manioc, is a starchy root vegetable common in South America and Southeast Asia. In its raw state it contains two compounds, linamarase and cyanogenic glucosides, which combine to release cyanide when ingested. Thorough rinsing and processing, or cooking under extremely high heat, are required in order to neutralize the toxins. Although it is quite deadly if improperly treated, its ability to proliferate has made it the major starch source in a number of countries. Still, accidents involving improperly treated yucca have resulted in deaths as recently as last year.

Yucca a la Huancaina originated in the Huancayo, the capital of the central highlands region of Junin. Before the Spanish moved their stronghold to Lima, Huancayo held the dubious honor of being Peru's provisional capital during Francisco Pizarro's occupation. Huancaina, the Huancayo-style of serving boiled starch with a sauce made from cream, mustard, chili peppers, garlic, flour, olives, eggs, cheese, and huacatay, is a meld of Spanish and Peruvian. In Yucca a la Huancaina, balls of mashed yucca are stuffed with cheese before being boiled and covered with the spicy cheese sauce. The texture of the yucca is similar to very dense potato, and the sauce is reminiscent of both nacho cheese sauce and Béchamel sauce, with an additional degree of refinement; delicious. For the less adventurous, Peruvian Kitchen also offers Papa a la Huancaina, or Huancayo-style potatoes, which are almost as good.

Appetizers aside, let's move on to the entrees.


(Lomo Saltado)

One of the most interesting facets of Peruvian cuisine is the genre of fusion food called "Chifa". A derivation of the Mandarin Chinese words "chi fan", meaning "eat rice" or "mealtime", Chifa is the Peruvian term for both traditional Chinese food and the fusion between Chinese cuisine and Peruvian cuisine. Lomo Saltado, made by stir frying strips of tender beef, French fries, tomato, onion, vinegar, and chilies, is a popular member of the Chifa family and another of my favorite dishes at Peruvian Kitchen. The starch on starch action between the lightly salted white rice and beef gravy coated fries blows me away each time. The fries will get soggy from the gravy very quickly, but I like them that way.


(Arroz con Pollo)

More traditionally Spanish is this Arroz con Pollo. Tender chunks of chicken are braised with rice, garlic, onion, chicken stock, peas, tomatoes, chili peppers, saffron, paprika, olives, red bell peppers, and enough chopped cilantro to choke a cow. Did I mention that you can really taste the cilantro?

Each bite of the delightfully moist and fluffy rice fills your mouth with chickeny goodness. In some ways, those large chunks of chicken on top are merely garnish, as their delicious flavor has already seeped in to every grain of rice. This is Cat's favorite dish. She gets it practically every time. Now, count up all the dishes I've shown you so far, factor in that little tidbit of information and the fact that I'm on a diet, and figure out how many times I've been to this restaurant conducting research for this article. It's a strenuous task, but someone has to do it.


(Tacu-Tacu)

The last stop on our tasty tour of Peru is Tacu-Tacu. I have no idea how many cuisines contributed to this dish, but it's something else entirely. Remember how much I like starch on starch action? Here's a platter that's just disturbingly sexy in a drunken, one-night-stand-with-someone-you-know-is-never-going-to-call-you-back sort of way. At the base is a mound of refried beans and white rice, which have been stir-fried together. That's right. Together. In a sinfully hedonistic, crispy on the outside, creamy with al dente bits on the inside, patty of delectable, heart-clogging delight. On top of that, a perfectly seasoned and grilled county steak full of juicy and flavorful beefy goodness. To either side, long halves of fried plantain with their rich, crunchy sweetness. Add one egg, sunny-side up, so that when your fork pieces the delicate yolk, the golden nectar within runs out and over the entire, sensually voluptuous experience.

Is it just me, or is it hot in here?


Peruvian Kitchen - A bit taste of Peru. Tour the central coast with your tongue and taste fusion at its finest.


Bill:

Inca Kola - 2.10



Chicha Morada - 2.10
Ceviche de Snapper - 13.95
Tiradito al Aji - 13.95
Anticuchos de Corazon - 7.50
Yucca Huancaina - 7.00
Lomo Saltado - 10.95
Arroz con Pollo - 10.95
Tacu-Tacu - 12.50


Flavor: A
Ambience: B+
Service: B+
ROI: A-

Overall: B+


Peruvian Kitchen
8610 Warner Ave.
Fountain Valley, CA 92708-3132
1-714-847-7555
http://www.peruviankitchen.com

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Indecision 2006 (October) - [Crazies]

I'm lost, torn, undecided, completely confused. I have no idea what I should blog about next. Oh sure, I've got plenty of material. But, work has got me down, and I don't have the drive or passion to transform my notes and photos into an article. So, I've decided to put the question to a vote. The ingredients are ready. The choice is your's.

This poll will be valid until Saturday night, when the winning selection will be written up as my next super post. You get to decide what you'll read next. Allez voting!

***Edit 10/28/2006 - 9:00pm***

The polls have closed. A hearty thank you to all those who voted. Remember, your vote counted tonight, and (for those of you registered to vote in the States) will count even more on November 7th. Participation in the Democratic Process is fun!

Without further ado, let's unveil the winner! Docchi no Ryouri desu ka!?!



Peruvian Kitchen is the peoples' choice, edging ahead of my Chocolate Caramel Butter Cookie recipe by just one vote!

Click here to view the poll results.

Never fear, sports fans. I'm not like the evil makers of the Docchi no Ryouri Show. I won't make those of you who voted for my cookie stand by while you watch the winners chow down on their visual feast. You'll get your cookie recipe. Oh yes, you will...

Here's a little teaser.



But you guys who voted for Peruvian Kitchen will get your reward first. My Peruvian Kitchen super post will be up sometime tomorrow! (Assuming Blogger gets its act together so I can actually post.)

Mmmm... Democracy tastes good...

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Pho 99 - Irvine, CA [CLOSED]

(Edit 08/25/2013: Pho 99 has closed. It was replaced by a different pho chain, which was in turn replaced by a beef noodle soup restaurant.)

Good Vietnamese food should sizzle. It should reach down your throat and grab your tongue and tonsils with that snap, crackle, and pop feeling that hurts - Mmmmm! - so good... I'm talking passion! Spontaneous weekends in Vegas. Sex in the rain. You know you want it. Jennifer Beals cutting loose and going wild in Flashdance, never mind her insipid romance with Michael Nouri or the lackluster plot. Sexy, vibrant, frenzied, alive; oh what a feeling!

But, it should also be balanced. I'm talking that delicate ying-yang interplay of flavors, textures, and colors that twines itself around your mouth in a dance of delight. Good Vietnamese food should flow like Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire on the best night of their lives in satin slippers with Teflon soles. Classy. Smoooooooth...

Good Vietnamese food leaves you full and fulfilled - Content, yet hungry for more.

Yet, why oh why, after my last meal at Pho 99 was I left wondering where Fred and Ginger had gone, and why Yo Yo Ma was sitting on a packing crate with a banjo in the abandoned depths of my soul playing Moon River to a full hall of nothing? Good Vietnamese food should not leave you lacking, should not leave you wanting... Something... Frustrated.

Overwrought? My prose and I.



Pho 99 is a bit is a mystery to me. While I know it's a Southern Californian chain with locations in City of Industry, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Lake Forest, Los Angeles, and Orange, extensive online research as been unable to shed any light on how extensive that chain may actually be. There seem to be Pho 99 locations in major metropolitan cities across the US, as well as in other countries. Without the ability to compare menus, I can't say if they're part of the same organization. Similarly, not a single restaurant or holding company has a website, save a chain in British Columbia and Washington state whose website isn't fully functional. The local Pho 99 chain is held by Pho 99 Restaurants Inc., which is registered in Orange. One of the partners, Mr. Lang D. Pham, makes regular contributions of $500 to the National Republican Congressional Committee. So, other than the fact the company is registered locally and is politically active, I got nothing. Usually I can at least give you guys a website or concrete listing of branches to go on for chains.

In any case, the Pho 99 branch in Irvine is stylishly decorated in the soulless way I've come to expect from casual dining chains in Southern California. With wood tones, pseudo-artsy lighting, a fake fountain, and mass manufactured paintings on the walls, it's easily duplicated and completely forgettable.

The clientele tends to be a younger set of high school and college students. I rarely see families at this Pho 99, particularly Asian families. I imagine they all have better places to get their pho.

When Cat and I were in college, we went to Irvine's Pho 99 every so often. Our visits tapered off as the years passed and we found greener pastures in which to feed. However, since we were feeling a bit nostalgic earlier last month, we decided to stop by one sunny Sunday afternoon for a reminiscent lunch.



Cat started off with her old favorite; the Lemon Soda. A generous spoonful of granulated sugar was placed in a glass, followed by the juice of one lemon, and topped off with club soda. It was served with a straw and a long handled spoon for stirring. I've always found this soda to be too gritty for my taste, since the low temperature of the liquid inhibits the complete dissolution of the sugar crystals. Plus, I can make it in my kitchen in about five minutes for a lot less than the $2.25 asking price. However, Cat really likes the flavor and texture. Truth be told, I rarely have all the ingredients on hand to make the drink, so I don't mind if she orders it now and then.



Since I had a craving for goi cuon, I got myself some as an appetizer. Goi cuon are Vietnamese summer rolls usually filled with some form of poached protein, rice noodles, herbs, and greens, and wrapped in a soft rice skin. In a good goi cuon, the rice skin is soft and springy, with just a little bit of resistance before it gives. The protein has been lightly poached in salted water, so it's gently flavorful. The filler is equal parts shredded greens, like Romaine, and softened rice vermicelli. The rice vermicelli has been reconstituted in lightly salted water as well. There's a strong but tempered herbal presence from either cilantro or Thai basil. It should not be overpowering. The overall effect should be a mild yet flavorful harmony. A summer roll, in short, should taste like summer.

Like a lot of Asian cuisines, Vietnamese food is all about the balance between salty, sweet, spicy, sour, bitter, and astringent. The flavors don't need to be in-your-face, but they should be present and they should play together nicely. That's what I look for when I eat goi cuon. The goi cuon at Pho 99 tasted half finished. They had the mild saltiness with the chewy and crunchy textural components I was looking for. What they were missing was the floral astringency from the herbs. Instead, I got what tasted like a shrimp salad in a wrapper. It made a good conveyor for their very tasty peanut sauce, but I wanted to eat goi cuon that day, not shrimp salad with peanut dressing. Amazing how the lack of balance with one ingredient can throw the whole culinary experience out of kilter.



Cat was in a nibbling mood, so she ordered the Khai Vi Dac Biet appetizer platter for herself. It came with four pieces of goi cuon, four shrimp rolls, and four pieces of nem ran. I've already covered my impression of the goi cuon above. Just to be sure I hadn't gotten a bad batch, Cat and I swapped a piece. The flavors were the same; disappointing. Cat liked the goi cuon just fine. She wasn't particularly impressed, but she also wasn't dissatisfied with them the way I was.

The shrimp rolls were pretty good. Shelled shrimp had been tossed in soy sauce, wrapped in flour-based wrappers, and deep fried. The wrappers were light and crunchy, separating into distinct layers like filo. The shrimp were juicy with just the right amount of salt.

Nem ran are Vietnamese spring rolls. They are traditionally made with some form of ground protein and wrapped in rice skin and deep fried. However, most modern nem ran take a page from Chinese cun juan and use the same flour-based wrappers that are used for the shrimp rolls. A good nem ran is crisp and crunchy on the outside without being greasy. The filling is cooked through, juicy, and the flavors meld well. Properly fried nem ran can be left on a plate for hours with little degradation in flavor or texture.

The nem ran at Pho 99 were excellent. The filling was predominantly well-seasoned ground pork, with shredded carrot and wood ear mushrooms. The outside was crunchy, the filling was moist, and when Cat offered me her last piece at the end of the meal, it tasted almost as good as the bite I stole when the platter arrived.



My overall experience with Pho 99 was unfortunately less rosy than Cat's. While I was growing up, my father used to take me out for pho all the time in Northern California. Big events, major victories, minor triumphs, and the occasional defeats or disappointments were all celebrated or commiserated over big bowls of steaming pho. My father is as much a foodie as I am, so we probably ate our way through at least half the pho shops in Milpitas, San Jose, Cupertino, Saratoga, Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, Los Gatos, and Mountain View. My father would always scout out a location first. If it met with his approval, the family could expect to eat there at least once every weekend for a month or so before moving on to his latest discovery. My father, who is a noodle fiend, is the one I credit for instilling in me a love for pho.

So, whenever I was feeling particularly homesick, Cat and I would end up at Pho 99 in Irvine. I remember the pho at Pho 99 as passable, but not particularly distinguished. What I didn't remember it being was bad.

Good pho consists of al dente rice noodles that remain separate from one another while sitting in the bowl. The protein is either tender or firm, depending on the type. The broth is a complex and robust brew delicately flavored with anise and the appropriate amount of salt. The herbs in the garnish plate are plentiful, and add the floral bitterness, spiciness, sourness, and astringency required to give the entire dish the proper finish.

Being a hungry guy, I ordered a large Pho Dac Biet, which came with rare and well cooked beef, brisket, tendon, and tripe. I also had them throw in three wontons for good measure. Look at the picture of my pho above. What do you see? Or, more precisely, what don't you see? You don't see the noodles. They were all stuck together in a lump at the bottom of my bowl. You don't see much protein. There were about two small pieces of each item at most. You don't see the thinly sliced onion usually placed on top for a little hint of sweetness. They left it out completely. You don't see any rare beef. There was a bit of pink here and there, but for the most part the rare beef was cooked just like the cooked beef. Huh. Go figure.

Now, let's talk texture and taste. The wontons were overcooked, with mushy wrappers, powdery filling, and large chunks of gristle. The beef? Tasted ok, but was tough, dry, and overcooked. I found it difficult to distinguish between cooked and rare. The few bits of brisket I found were mostly gristle and resisted chewing. The one piece of tendon in there was hard and crunchy. Tendon should be melt-in-your-mouth tender, not crunchy! The few wisps of tripe were impossible to chew. I might as well have tried to eat strips of surgical glove. The real blow was the broth. I've had bad broth before, but the broth in this bowl didn't even register as bad. It barely registered at all. Other than a faint, dishwater-like twang, I was in Flavor Country's Death Valley. Maybe what I was actually served was the broth of phos past. Who knows.



Adding insult to injury was this paltry plate of garnish. Half a cup of bean sprouts, one sprig of thyme, and a lime wedge were what I had to work with. Not a slice of chili to be seen. But, I was still grateful, because with the hot water they were trying to pass off as crappy broth, I needed every bit of help I could get. I added all of the garnish, tasted the broth, then added hoisin and sambal because it was still lacking. I even flagged down a waiter and asked for mam ruoc (a pungent and highly flavorful Vietnamese fermented shrimp paste), something I almost never do. They didn't have any. What I ended up with wasn't Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire dancing in my bowl, it was that creepy Six Flags guy tap-dancing to the tinkling sound of my falling hopes.



Unable to finish my highly disappointing bowl of pho, I decided to order one of their grilled pork bahn mi to quell the last bits of hunger in my churning stomach. Now, a proper bahn mi- Screw it. I'm out of patience. You see that? That's about half the size of the one at Lee's Sandwiches at close to double the price. Those carrots? Barely pickled. Chiles? Not in there.

Here's the kicker.



Where's the meat? Somebody tell me where the @#$%-ing meat is. I took two bites and asked for my check.


Pho 99 - If you prefer a kick in the balls to sex, this is the place for you. Soulless style over substance designed to extract your hard earned cash in return for pale imitations of the real thing. If you do wind up there, order the appetizer platter and lemon soda. Everything else was a wash. It's not horrible, but it's not good Vietnamese food.



Bill (for two):

Khai Vi Dac Biet (Appetizer Sampler) - 8.95
Goi Cuon (Summer Rolls) - 3.95
Large Pho Dac Biet (Northern #1) - 6.95
+ Extra Wontons (3) - 1.50
Bahn Mi w/ Grilled Pork (Sammich) - 3.50
Lemon Soda - 2.25

Tax - 2.10
Tip - 4.00

Total - 33.20



Flavor: C+
Ambience: B
Service: B-
ROI: D+

Overall: C+



Pho 99
5414 Walnut Ave
Irvine, CA 92604
1-949-551-1655

Other Locations:
City of Industry, Costa Mesa, Lake Forest, Los Angeles, and Orange
(They may actually be a far larger chain, since there are Pho 99s in almost every major metropolitan area in the US. However, extensive research hasn't turned up any conclusive evidence. The Southern California locations listed are guaranteed to be part of the same chain as the one in Irvine I reviewed.)


Pho 99 Reviews by Food Blogger Friends:

• Sarah from the Delicious Life


• Foodie Universe

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Diho Bakery - Irvine, CA [Supplying]

A South African braai is a combination potluck and BBQ where friends come together to share food and good times. Back when my friend Kung Fu Monkey still held massive quarterly LAN video gaming parties at his house, we would always have a braai in the middle of the second day. Having been hooked on that tradition, I decided to hold my own "Samurai Braai" today. A number of friends were invited to my house to watch martial arts movies, share tasty side dishes, and grill meat. With the guidance of two of the South African attendees, Grafalgar and Vektuz, Maniacal Penguin made potjie, a South African meat stew cooked in a cast iron Dutch oven we placed over a fire built in a second grill. We also watched the following two movies: House of Fury and Azumi.

Thirteen people: Grafalgar, Ms. E, Shire Nomad, Maniacal Penguin, Vektuz, Mama Bear, Single Malt, Alpha Narf, Elewhen, Nahoko, Stitch, Cat, and myself.

We started around 1:30pm and finished around 9:30pm. We made and consumed: Japanese Chicken Curry, African Chicken Curry, Beef & Beer Potjie, Rice, Grilled Pork Chops Marinated in Cinnamon and Honey, Grilled Lemon Chicken, Grilled Lamb Chops with Chocolate Sauce, BBQ Pulled Pork. Grilled Italian Sausages, Grilled Steaks, Dirty Water Hot Dogs, Garlic and Sage Foccacia with Garlic Butter, Macaroni Salad, Potato Salad, Hummus & Pita Chips, and Deviled Eggs. We also consumed a whole lot of Asahi and Newcastle beers.

So, you ask, "Where are the pictures? Why is the title of this post 'Diho Bakery' and not 'Samurai Braai'?" The answer is, I was so busy cooking and having a good time, I forgot to take any pictures. I have failed you. However, since I'm Taiwanese and not Japanese, there will be no seppuku-panda-belly-slicing here. Instead, I'll try to distract you with pretty pictures and hope that you forget all about my Samurai Braai until I can have another one and actually take pictures. No panda bacons for you. Muwahahahahahaha!

Ahem! On with the show.



Tucked away in the side of Irvine's Persian center is, of all things, one of my favorite Taiwanese bakeries. A genuine mom & pop operation, Diho Bakery has the single goal of getting fresh, tasty, Taiwanese pastries into your belly for a nominal fee. If I've gained any weight from carbs lately, my Diho addiction is the main suspect.

Since Diho's focus is primarily on the food, you'll find few of the fripperies or amenities here that you might at many other Asian bakeries. Three shelving units for displaying baked goods, two freezer units for displaying frozen buns and dumpling, and a cake case are all you'll find. That's it. No boba, no meal sets, nothing. Just buns, dumplings, and cakes. However, it's the quality of those goods that keeps me coming back for more.



The Diho baked goods selection is varied and creative. Freshly baked every morning, each bun is helpfully labeled in both Chinese and English, with a very handy English description of the ingredients. If you don't read Chinese and are intimidated by the language barrier, Diho is the place to go. Their product cards are so descriptive, you won't feel the need to ask any questions.



One of Cat's favorite's from the baked goods section is this football-shaped Raisin Bread. With a soft crust and a thick, fluffy, and chewy crumb, this mildly sweet bread is studded throughout with plump, juicy raisins. The consistency is like a cross between pain de mie and brioche.



I, on the other hand, tend to prefer more savory breads like this Pickled Mustard Green Bun. The standard lighter, softer, brioche-like dough preferred by the Taiwanese and Chinese envelopes a delectable mixture of minced Chinese Pickled Mustard Greens and sautéed ground beef. The resulting combination of sweet, salty, beefy, and bready flavors takes me back to childhood visits to Taiwan. To me, pickled mustard greens and ground beef taste like memories. If Taiwan has a signature flavor, this might be it.



For those who like variety without extra calories, there's always this Four-in-One Bun. Four miniature buns with different fillings are allowed to proof close to one another so that they meld into one easily separated bun when baked. Diho's version offers Green Onion & Shredded Pork Sung, Cha Shao (Cha Siu), Custard, and Sweet Red Bean fillings. It's a four course bun tasting for the price of one.



As splendiferous as Diho's baked bread is, their real draw is their steamed buns (bao/nikuman). Made fresh every morning, the bao are at their best right out of the steamer. Although they reheat very well in the microwave if wrapped in a slightly damp paper towel, steamer-fresh is the way to go, which explains the large crowds that tend to gather in the bakery on weekend mornings. Diho's selection is massive, although availability depends on what's in the steamer when you walk in. When Cat and I stopped by on Saturday morning, we managed to score four of their most popular bao.



Diho's top selling bao is this Cai Rou Bao (Pork & Vegetable Steamed Bun), which contains seasoned ground pork, leeks, ginger, and rice noodles. One bite and it's easy to see why these outsell almost every other bun two to one. The pork is juicy without being greasy, the seasonings are well balanced and bold, and the rice noodles add a very pleasant textural component.



Always popular are these Cha Shao Bao (BBQ Pork Steamed Buns). Diho's is probably the best rendition I've had in a long time. The pork is perfectly seasoned, not too sweet, and juicy instead of dry. The bun-to-pork ratio is excellent. Most telling is how masterfully the bun has been shaped. You see the thickness differential between the top and bottom layers of the crumb? Diho is following the 60-40 rule in baking sandwich rolls, which states that 60% of the bulk should be in the top layer and 40% in the bottom. Since the human jaw exerts pressure from the top and supports from the bottom, baking at this ratio allows for the easiest consumption. It also prevents the bottom layer of the bun from being too thin and tearing when eaten. If I have to flip a bun over when eating it to keep the insides from spilling out, someone screwed up.



A big fan of mushrooms, I never pass by the opportunity to snag one of these Xiang Gu Bao (Mushroom Steamed Buns). Containing a flavorful mixture of sautéed Shitake mushrooms, ground beef, and onions, these buns are remarkably similar to one of my favorite Taiwanese noodle dishes, Ma Yi Pa Su (Ants Climbing Trees), with a strong mushroom component. It's like noodles in bun form. Brilliant!



The last bun in my lineup is this Su Cai Bao (Vegetable Steamed Bun). I tried this bun for the first time on Saturday, and it was a revelation. Think of the best egg roll you've ever had. Now make it a bun. Stuffed with the standard egg roll filling of stir-fried Shitake mushrooms, cabbage, carrot, garlic, and seasonings, this light and refreshing bun even tastes healthy. But, healthy in a flavorful way. If I was a vegetarian, which I try to be during weekdays, I wouldn't feel in any way meat-deprived with this bun as a snacking option.

I hope this lineup of tasty buns from Diho Bakery has atoned for my grievous error. I violated the first rule of food blogging and forgot to take pictures of my Samurai Braai. Deeply ashamed, I offer this sacrifice in the hope that you will be distracted by the pretties and overlook my transgression.

As a side note, I had an awesome time at the braai. (^_^)


Diho Bakery - For the freshest, tastiest, Taiwanese steamed buns in all of Orange County at a great price. Oooh! Look at the shinies! The entire lineup cost less than $10.


Diho Bakery
14130 Culver Dr # J
Irvine, CA 92604
1-949-857-6415

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Waters - Irvine, CA [CLOSED]

(Apologies for the quality of the pictures this time around. The lighting was dim and, for several reasons, I had to take them using the camera in my work cell.

Edit 08/25/2013: Waters has closed, and been replaced by Arirang Korean BBQ.)

Cat's birthday was on Friday the 13th this year. As spookily amusing as the date was, we ended up celebrating it this Friday instead for two entirely unrelated reasons; I had to work late last Friday and Cat decided to spend the weekend with her parents. I've always felt that when it comes to birthdays, the desires of the fine ladies who spent hours of their lives in labor trump any other considerations.


Cat blowing out the candle on her birthday dessert.

Normally, Cat and I celebrate special occasions at the Irvine Hyatt's 6ix Park Grill. However, since our engagement anniversary is on Guy Fawkes Day (Remember, remember, the fifth of November...) next month, we decided to try something new for her birthday. I made a Chowhound post requesting recommendations. Luckily for us, one of the members suggested Waters in Irvine.



Perched on the shores of a beautiful artificial lake in Irvine's Woodbridge community, Waters offers a tempered selection of West Coast dishes designed to appeal to the area's affluent residents. With a classy interior heavy on wood paneling and muted, warm lighting, the restaurant provides good food in a cozy atmosphere. Live musicians frequently play during evening service, adding to the cheerful ambience. While we were there tonight, an incredibly skilled acoustic guitarist and singer named "Paul" rocked with house with an amazing medley of popular and classic tunes. According to the bartender, he's there one Friday every month, so if you decide to go, call ahead and see what night he's playing.



The restaurant's biggest draw is its view. Bordered on two sides by a long veranda, and surrounded on all sides by large windows, Waters creates the illusion of fine dining while floating over the mirror-like lake surface. Regardless of the weather, the tables on the veranda are almost always full. At night, lights from the houses ringing the lake reflect off the dark water like captured constellations.



The restaurant was about half full when we arrived, although the bar was packed to the gills with people enjoying Paul's music and the drinks served by the pretty blonde bartender. We were seated immediately by a solicitous hostess, who took the time to help us locate a table that was exactly right; far enough from the veranda to avoid the chill night air, but close enough to the windows to see the gorgeous view.

Our server was a charmingly handsome young man who looked like he'd walked straight off the set for the OC. He presented us with our menus and a plate of warm sourdough bread, and gave us a few minutes to look the menu over before returning to take our order. The bread was pretty good, with a crisp, chewy crust and light, fluffy crumb. I thought the crust was a little tough, but the bread was otherwise decent.

The service provided by all of the restaurant's staff remained universally stellar throughout our entire dining experience. While we perused the menu, a cheerful Mexican gentleman with a water pitcher filled both of our glasses and kept them full during the whole evening. Our server was always close at hand, checking back with us frequently to see if we needed anything. He managed to always be there when we needed him without being intrusive. Overall, I was very impressed with our treatment, particularly since I'd ended up going in jeans and a Yahoo Developer's Network t-shirt that read "Mashup or Shutup". Despite the fact that I wasn't dressed as nicely as the majority of the clientele, Cat included, we were still given the four star treatment.



Since Woodbridge is a family-oriented community, the Waters menu is priced to appeal to parents out for a night away from the munchkins. Portions are large and affordable without being ridiculously huge. Cat and I decided to take advantage of the savings and explore the menu by ordering both appetizers and entrees.

Cat opted for an order of their Lobster Taquitos. Chunks of lobster meat were sautéed with celery, onion, breadcrumbs, and spices before being rolled up in red tortillas and deep fried. The taquitos were then cut on a bias and served with black bean salsa, fresh guacamole, sliced red cabbage, and a drizzle of sour cream. Light and crispy on the outside and meaty on the inside, the taquitos were excellently prepared with only one fatal flaw; the filling was overcooked and much too salty.

The sea salt used when sautéing the lobster and vegetables had been further concentrated during the deep frying process. As a result, all we tasted was celery and the sickly-sweet twang of over salted and overcooked lobster. The natural flavor of the lobster was entirely overpowered.

The guacamole was decent, but the black bean salsa failed to impress entirely. It tasted as if canned beans had been rinsed and mixed with storebought tomato salsa; entirely unremarkable save for its blandness.



I ordered a bowl of Steamed "Manilla" Clams (The quotes are there because I maintain that the correct spelling is "Manila".) This was a massive helping of fresh clams steamed in a broth made from onion, garlic, basil, white wine, lemon juice, and rough-chopped fresh tomatoes. It was spectacular. The clams were served in a large bowl brimming with their steaming liquid. While the clams were plump and juicy, the broth was the true star of the show. Rich and perfectly seasoned, I finished it with the help of a soup spoon after I'd polished off the clams.

At this point, the only sour note in our service occurred. Our server had made a mistake with the timing of our dishes. As a result, our entrees arrived while we were in the middle of our appetizers. The server immediately apologized for his mistake. I wouldn't have noticed right away if he hadn't pointed it out. Even though I said it wasn't a problem, Bob Kinney, one of the restaurant's proprietors, stopped by our table a few minutes later to give us his personal apology and offered to either have our entrees kept warm while we finished our appetizers or completely remade if we so chose. I thanked him for his consideration and told him it wasn't necessary.



For her entree, Cat ordered the Angel Hair with Lobster. Generous chunks of lobster and tomato were tossed with angel hair pasta and served in a delicate cream sauce made from olive oil, shallots, capers, and white wine. The gentle flavors of the dish were brought together by the rich cream sauce, which soothed the palate without being too heavy. Cat fell in love at first bite.



My entree selection was the Mushroom Dijon Chicken, which I enjoyed very much. A double breast of chicken was marinated in Dijon mustard, grilled, covered with sautéed mushrooms and a Dijon cream sauce, and served with a tasty rice pilaf, sautéed carrot strips, and blanched yellow and green haricot verts. Although it was juicy and perfectly grilled, the chicken by itself lacked the flavor a long marinating process would have given it. However, it was excellent with the tangy Dijon cream sauce and earthy sautéed mushrooms. The vegetables and rice were delicious. The rice had completely absorbed the flavors of the butter and chicken stock in which it was cooked. The vegetables were fresh, with just the right crunch and amount of salt.

The real highlight of the evening came toward the end of the meal. Having discovered we were celebrating Cat's birthday, our server produced a warm chocolate souffle topped with a scoup of vanilla ice cream and a lit birthday candle. The smell seized us by the nostrils and, before we knew it, we'd already finished it. Soft, sweet, and delectable, the contrast between the cold, melting ice cream and warm, steaming souffle was exquisite. It was a nice touch, and earned our server a hefty tip.


Waters - A friendly neighborhood restaurant offering affordable, fine dining in a relaxing atmosphere. While the food I sampled tonight wasn't the best I've ever tried, it was definitely quite good, and the prices were very reasonable. What will probably keep me coming back is the excellent service, the great view, and the cozy ambience.



Bill (for two):

Lobster Taquitos - 10.00
Steamed "Manilla" Clams - 11.00
Angel Hair with Lobster - 19.00
Mushroom Dijon Chicken - 16.00

Tax - 4.34
Tip - 15.00

Total - 75.34



Flavor: B
Ambience: A
Service: A-
ROI: B

Overall: B+



Waters
4615 Barranca Pkwy
Irvine, CA 92604
1-949-733-9503
http://www.watersrestaurant.com/

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