adamclyde's Profile
Regional mexican dishes/restaurants in SF & Berkeley/Oakland
that's right. Definitely need to add Haltun to the list. I prefer Poc Chuc, particularly since they are so close to each other, but Haltun is good too.
Regional mexican dishes/restaurants in SF & Berkeley/Oakland
FWIW, La Oaxaquena no longer sells grasshopper tacos, or grasshopper anything. But good stuff otherwise. Their champurrado with guajillo is awesome. oaxaqueno tamal pretty good...
Excellent pastrami and/or corned beef sandwich in OC?
or, a purveyor problem again. Because, put Langers or Katz's in Costa Mesa and no one would sing praises for chains like Tommy Pastrami. Chicken and egg I guess...
OC Steak House like Peter Lugar
better convo for a different board, but I've been to them all and would still stand by Luger's in NYC. But that's for the outer boroughs board conversation...
Regardless of where you place it in the world-class steakhouse hierarchy, anything remotely like it here in OC would be a wonderful thing.
Excellent pastrami and/or corned beef sandwich in OC?
I don't really think OC folks think pastrami is supposed to be "dry, peppery, salty and otherwise tasteless" I think we are simply devoid of good purveyors of decent pastrami. As is 99% of the country.
OC Steak House like Peter Lugar
It is, indeed, everything it is cracked up to be. Luger's porterhouse is rightly legendary.
Vietnamese in Orange County (specific dishes)
There's a vegetarian Vietnamese place (I haven't been to btw) on Bolsa... I think it's Zen Vietnamese? Again, not sure if it is good or not.
Pupuserias closed - where to get pupusas in Westchester?
That place on the corner near los gemelos is called, (if I remember correctly) la pupusa loca. Pupusas there were pretty good, but hit and miss. Perhaps rinconcito Salvadoreno is still there? It's just a stone's throw from there and had good pupusas.
El Tesoro II did have decent pupusas, though I'm a little suspect of places that can't figure out if they are guatemalan or salvadoran. Distinctly different food. But pupusas there were definitely passable.
Another place I found pretty good pupusas (though not as good as migueleno, was the salvadoran place on the main drag in Mt Kisco. Can't remember the name or address, but it was the opposite side of the street from Lefteris, and not far from there.
Basic point though is that if you walked around Port Chester for more than a block, you'd likely find 2-3 places that have pupusas.
Good luck!
Pupuserias closed - where to get pupusas in Westchester?
Migueleno closed? What a bummer... it was fantastic. If I remember, that place was originally called los paisanos and was mexican (good goat tacos), then became a brazilian place (cant remember the name), then went to salvadoran with Migueleno. All of that was within, like 18 months. Migueleno seemed to be more stable. Wonder what is there now. Given the latin american tour the place has gone through, I'm guessing peruvian next? :)
Recommendations for a late night meal in the Mission?
Just wanted to thank everyone. I ended up going to La Oaxaquena. I'd had it on my list for a while, so it was a great excuse to visit since they were open late.
Nice handmade tortillas. The tlayuda (I got cecina) was very nice too, though standard (for a tlayuda that is). tamale with mole negro was quite good, though going so late probably contributed to masa that wasn't quite as deliciously soft and tender as I like in a oaxaqueno. But good nonetheless. Jamaica agua fresca was as you'd expect.
Their champurrado/hot chocolate was fantastic, BTW. Perhaps the best part of the meal. Especially with the guajillo chile inflected flavor. Very nice.
El Charrito: Taco truck in Stamford. We have arrived!
Neil, no, I never knew about the Burrito guy. Sounds interesting! Unfortunately, I moved back home to Southern California from Connecticut a bit over a year ago, so I don't have much of a connection or ear to the ground with regard to mexican food in CT any longer. But here's hoping to your success as CT is always in the need for more quality Mexican food!
Recommendations for a late night meal in the Mission?
I'm hoping you can help me. I'm looking for a good Mexican meal that can be found late at night on a weekday. I am hoping to meet some friends tomorrow night (our excuse is a slightly belated day of the dead meal) but we can't meet until closer to 10. I know some of the taquerias like El Farolito are open really late... But anything more on regular sit down end? I originally wanted El Chilango, but they are closed by 10. I frequently go to Poc Chuc too, but it too is closed by 10. Same goes for Haltun. Outside of some of those, I am not terribly familiarly with the Mission's sit down restaurants. Any late nighters in the Mission or slightly beyond?
And if no sit down late night restaurants... What about the late night taquerias? Any you recommend in particular beyond Farolito? (which I've actually never tried, shame on me).
Macau style food in Los Angeles
I just got back from Macau two days ago... the egg tarts are definitely central, but most of everything else seemed like anything else I could get in HK. I didn't notice too much portuguese influence in any of the restaurants I ate at. Pretty standard (some very good) Cantonese/HK-style food. Apparently I needed to do more research before I went! Shrimp and okra curry sounds great...
Those Portuguege egg tarts were fantastic though (called pastel de nata in portuguese). Wondering where they can be found in the southland?
Update: Breads at Au Coeur de Paris in Westminster
Will do. And adding place details for Christopher Garren's...
Update: Breads at Au Coeur de Paris in Westminster
Man, that reminds me that I still need to get to the Cream Pan for bread. Shame on me.
I liked grampy pat's, though I didn't really like his crust. I bought it from him (or someone who works for him) at the Orange farmers market saturday morning though so it could have suffered from sitting for too long. I need au coeur de paris's and Grampy Pat's breads to have a love child resulting in the former's crust and the latter's crumb.
Croissants. My problem is exactly that... I have to choose between crisp, delicate crust and wonderful buttery flavor. I want both, dangit!! (haven't tried picket lane's, but I get some of their stuff at the Irvine farmers market. Will have to try their croissant). FWIW, my benchmark for a great croissant is Tartine's in SF. Perhaps an unrealistic benchmark, but still (a picture for reference: http://www.foodnut.com/i/Tartine-Bakery-San-Francisco/Tartine-Bakery-San-Francisco-croissant.jpg). Man, those are amazing...
Update: Breads at Au Coeur de Paris in Westminster
when I first came here mid year last year (http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/772839) I was impressed by their macarons and pate chaud. But I was mixed about their baguette. It was better than most of the places in Westminster... a little more like a french baguette, but not quite. I liked the chocolate and almond croissants as well (though was really disappointed in a subsequent visit).
I went again today and it was better than it had ever been before. The pate chaud was great, the pistachio macaron was really, really good and the croissants were better than before. Not great, but I am yet to find a great croissant in the southland (admitting though that I haven't traversed LA for them).
But today they had a bread I hadn't seen there before. Shaped like a baguette, but deep, dark brown, like a real european bread. I asked about it... (they still claim that their normal baguette has no rice flour), but they said it's a "traditional bread." Whatever they call it, it has the best crust I've had for any bread in Orange County by far. This bread was still a little warm, so it was clearly fresh. But the crust was cracklingly crisp without being overly chewy. I was totally impressed. (See the attached pictures).
Now for the bad part. The interior of the bread was uninspiring. The crumb was a little too uniform and dense, without much character, which means they aren't giving the dough time to develop the needed character. Which is a total bummer, because the crust is just so, so good. At any rate, it beats the pants off of any bread you can get regularly in the area.
Oh, and they had a really nice pain d'epi there too for your next dinner party.
I don't know their bread schedule (and failed to ask) but I had their "traditional" loaf at 8 a.m. on a saturday morning. Hoping it's a daily thing.
Smoking Pork Butt BBQ and Time Management
If you are using a decent smoker, you don't even need to soak chunks. I never do. chips, yes, chunks, no. In a smoker you don't have as much oxygen as you do in a grill, so chunks won't flame up and burn freely like you would see in a grill. Instead they'll smoke nicely, without any soaking at all. All that said, it's not a problem at all that you did soak it,... it just won't really do much to benefit the bbq. And don't worry about mold either. It won't be a problem given what you stated in your post.
Help me rock a work pot-luck in Sunnyvale...
hah. Generally I am overly cautious of infamous food. :)
Help me rock a work pot-luck in Sunnyvale...
that soulds great too. I'm doubting Dish Dash a bit because it's right by work and its a favorite for folks at work already... so something like King Egg Roll might be something more unique.
Speaking of Milpitas... I noticed driving through there once there seems to be a big Vietnamese presence there? Maybe some great nem nuong or cha gio (along the egg roll line of thinking). thoughts on good sources in Milpitas?
Help me rock a work pot-luck in Sunnyvale...
thanks. I've been reading the local sunnyvale recs for the past few months. a few things intriguing...
Help me rock a work pot-luck in Sunnyvale...
So while I work up in Sunnyvale now, I live in Southern California, so I don't really know the food well yet around the South Bay. But I'm supposed to participate in a work Pot Luck in Sunnyvale in a few weeks and am trying to think of what to bring. Being a newbie at work and being hotel-bound, making something myself is not an option. So I'd love to bring something good from a nearby restaurant or food purveyor. While it needs to be somewhat accessible for non chow types, I don't want to eliminate some great interesting options either.
So, I would need it to fit into the following parameters:
* Can get it take out or to go.
* Travels reasonably well.
* Is easy for self service (finger food or easy to serve portions)
* Tastes awesome.
* somewhat close proximity to Sunnyvale, though I could potentially go as far as Palo Alto or San Jose if it's something worthwhile.
Thoughts? Ideas? I'll be forever in your debt.
Dat Thanh – Revelatory Nem Nuong (Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patty Spring Rolls) and Great Com Tam (Broken Rice) in Little Saigon
OK, but for the sake of the Chowhound community, let's put it here:
Dat Thanh
10032 Mcfadden Ave
Westminster, CA 92683
(714) 650-0910
Give Khanh Hoa a try. Very good.
Great Artisan Bakery in OC?
Not really. Not yet. I do like Picket Lane, and I'm at the Irvine farmers market every saturday, so that's good. I also tried Grampy Pat's. I like the regular sourdough boule there, but wasn't hugely drawn to the baguette though. I unfortunately have yet to try the baguette from Cream Pan, but need to because it's on my list. Just seeing this thread now though, I'll have to give Il Fornaio a try.
All that said, because I now work in San Fran (but still live in HB), I have almost daily access to Acme Bread and Tartine and other world-class bakeries so I haven't been as motivated to find a suitable replacement here in OC. Shame on me for that!
Dat Thanh – Revelatory Nem Nuong (Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patty Spring Rolls) and Great Com Tam (Broken Rice) in Little Saigon
Where is this place? Google isn't assisting me.
BTW, ever tried the Nem Nuong at Nem Nuong Khanh Hoa on Westminster Blvd (not far from Brookhurst). Amazing. I liked it better than Brodard's, and I like Brodard's quite a bit.
Sit Down Mexican in Santa Ana, or other Orange County cities?
Excellent suggestions. It wasn't clear to me from the OP's question whether (s)he was looking for a nicer sit down, or just simply any good mexican where she can sit down. The comment about El Toro Bravo being more taqueria style seems to mean maybe (s)he is looking for a slightly more upscale place?
So to reiterate your point, the first four you recommend aren't high on decor at all (with El Rincon being the lowest in the ambiance department, and a bit more taqueria style as it focuses a lot on the antojitos). But good food all around. I like La Cocina de mi abuelita's tacos al vapor. Plus, eating tacos next to an Elvis statue is pretty cool. Chilango's quesadillas with huitlacoche are very good. Better than their tortas, I think, which had been previous recommended to me.
Along the same lines of hole-in-the-wall-but-able-to-sit-down places is El Moctezuma #2 on Harbor Blvd in Garden Grove, just a stone's throw from Disneyland. Not a lot of seating, but pretty good oaxacan food. The tlayuda's I had were really good.
For more of the nicer-ish sit down, Enrique's in Long Beach is quite good. I realize that's not close to Santa Ana, but you mentioned going to the beach... depending on which beach you go to (seal or even Sunset/HB) it's not too far.
Huntington Beach Rec: Trejo's Mexican
I've wondered about that place... I pass it all the time. I'll give it a go soon. Thanks for the tips.
Casa Villa in Stamford: Best Tacos I know
Glad I stumbled on this one while reminiscing over the old hood...
Ahh, Casa Villa. I probably went there 50 times in my years in Stamford. Can't remember what it was called when I first went back in 2000, then they changed the name to Favi's then finally to Casa Villa in 2004-ish. For me it always bordered on very good to great, but was so wildly inconsistent that I just never knew which taco I'd get on a particular night. For a while they were overshadowed by a fantastic place just up the road (can't remember the name, but it is in the place that (I think) is now Omar's Peruvian next door to panaderia chapinas). But after that place closed Casa Villa got a bit better. At least by relative measures.
I hope it's gotten more consistent. Seems it has. Their menu changes every year too it seems (though since they reopened after a car went through their front window, it seemed to stabilize). Seems I'll have to give it another go if I ever get back there.
How long has the east side location been around? I don't remember it from before I left last year.
Lump Charcoal in OC
have you found any Wicked Good lump out here? I used to get it when I was on the East Coast... I haven't really tried to source it here yet. But it was amazing lump.
Lump Charcoal in OC
I grabbed one of those at Smart and Final. Hilarious. There was literally a tree trunk in it. I had to take an axe to it to get it to fit in my 21 inch Weber kettle.
