irisblu1981

went w/ abby & the pleasure palate meet-up group as part of a menuism-sponsored tasting. overall, food, ambiance, & service were all good (about 4 stars).

would recommend (in this order):
(1) Kathmandu Sekuwa: Chicken breast marinated overnight with mint, cilantro and Himalayan spices. very savory. tasted like skewered meat. even though it’s a giant chicken ball, the flavor is in every bite, not just on the surface. sprinkle of lemon enhances flavor.

(2) Gaunle Khasi: Fresh goat meat cooked with onion, tomatoes, ginger, & Himalayan spices. meat was tender. a mild dish but the flavor lingers even after the meal.

(3) Mt. Everest in a Blanket: Ice cream rolled in crepes, topped with chocolate sauce. not particularly ethnic, but very good.

(4) Kheer: House-made rice pudding topped with almonds, walnuts, and raisins.

(5) Yak Mo-Mo: Ground yak meat seasoned and stuffed dumpling. flavorful. i like yak meat prepared ground rather than as stir-fried cubes (the way it was prepared in our other dish, in which the yak meat was a little too tough & hard to chew).

(6) Cheese Pakora: Deep-Fried Cheese, Battered with Chickpeas Flour. the cheese was like paneer, a little tofu-like. actually not heavy, like i thought it would be. good w/ the mint chutney.

these dishes didn’t stand out for me because they were kinda bland:
(1) Tse Mo-Mo: Mixed Vegetable Dumpling.

(2) Goondruk: A typical Nepali dish of preserved mustard green leaves and cabbage, and tomato, cooked with Nepali spices

(3) Sherpa Stew: Simmered chicken with rice, vegetables, and Himalayan spices. Sherpa Stew is often served on trekking routes

(4) Tibetan Bread: Deep-fried whole-wheat flour bread

(5) Chyamtange Dhopzi: Stone ground whole-wheat fine flour flat-leavened bread baked in clay oven

this dish was flavorful but the yak meat was too tough:
(1) Annapurnayak: Yak meat sautéed with green chili, Bell pepper, Onions, & Himalayan spices

i would go back again, esp since i’ve heard they have good, cheap lunch buffets.

no idea about the price range of this place, coz our dinner was free. fyi park at parson’s off walnut – you get validated.

Come here often in the winter for Mongolian hot pot. I really like their broth/soup base – it’s got an herbal, rustic sort of taste to it that’s one of a kind and very good. The meats are good enough quality for me. Would also recommend their glass noodles for the pot. Not cheap, I think about $20-25 per person.

A popular place for a special occasion (there were a lot of people there for their birthday when we went), I think mainly because of the entertainment of having your food cooked in front of you. Not sure if all the chefs do this, but our chef was very entertaining, at one point he made a picture of a chicken from egg mix and a heart from a mound of rice. Not impressed by the food, though. Jointly between us, we had the chicken, teriyaki chicken, shrimp, and deluxe (filet mignon + lobster tail). The food was bland. And expensive – each dish at least $20.

Cute, creatively-decorated breakfast joint in Escondido. Seems to be a favorite with locals. I got the popular Greek eggs (scrambled eggs with feta, tomato, basil) on the waitress’s recommendation, which would’ve tasted better if it was piping hot rather than luke warm. Also, the bagel was hard – I don’t know if it was toasted too long or what. Breakfast about $5-10.

Specializing in European meats, roasts, & sausages, the restaurant is actually contiguous with an European meats & cheeses grocery. On recommendation of reviewers on yelp, I tried the European sausage platter – consisting of fresh German Bratwurst and choice of Hungarian or Polish sausage, served with hot German potato salad, sauerkraut, and a dinner roll. It place looks like it serves up pretty authentic fare. But I think European or at least German meats just don’t really suit my palate.

Upscale chain. The location in Coronado boasts an awesome view of the ocean – although if you’re going for dinner, it’s all dark outside anyway and you don’t get much of a view. The food wasn’t impressive. I shared the rock fish stuffed with crab meat and crawlfish linguine with a friend and neither dish was particularly memorable. Also, pricey. Expect about $25-30 per person.

Good ambiance. Between us, we had the pan seared scallops (with tomatoes, garlic, nicoise olives, capers, green beans & roasted potatoes in a white wine lemon sauce), the mussels (steamed in white wine, fresh garlic, parsley, butter and served with a baguette), & black truffle risotto (with wild mushrooms, black truffle shavings, and mascarpone cheese finished with white truffle oil). Food was tasty, but expensive & not really filling.

This place is a little hole-in-the-wall that has gained a lot of attention. Serving up Southern Thai specialties, which is different from most Thai restaurants in the US which serve up more Northern Thai dishes, Jazz the owner has a huge – almost overwhelming –menu to choose from. On Jazz’s recommendation, we had chicken legs with mango, a pork belly dish, the popular coco mango salad, a pumpkin and lamb dish, giant prawns, jungle curry with pork, and sticky rice with mango for dessert. I actually didn’t enjoy my dishes all that much – in large part I think because I probably should have had the dishes “gringo spicy” rather than “thai spicy”. I will give the restaurant another try because it is such a favorite of locals, zagat, and apparently the Hollywood celebrity crowd.

Just a note, the place, when I went, was packed. Expect to wait a long time for your food. The price is reaaaaaaaally good. For 6 dishes then dessert (family-style) plus a drink, I paid $25 and was realllly stuffed.

Came here during Restaurant Week in spring of 2008 and had their prix fixe menu. I don’t remember exactly what I had, and it is different from their prix fixe menu this year for Restaurant Week. Anyway, I went with about 8 friends and none of us were particularly impressed, and we all got a variety of dishes off the prix fixe menu. Especially not impressed for what we were paying – including tax & tip, it ended up being about $40.

This is the dessert place to go in San Diego for any special occasions – birthdays, romantic dates, friends visiting from out of town. They have a huge variety & Karen Krane is definitely creative with a lot of different ingredients. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend all the dishes – some of the chocolate ones are too sweet and you tire of the taste after a few bites.

However, there are some great desserts. I would highly recommend: Ivoire Royale (torte of vanilla-flavored pound cake layered with white chocolate mousse, topped with strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, and covered in white chocolate shavings); Passion Fruit Ricotta Torte (ricotta soaked in passion fruit juice layered with passion fruit whipped cream, kiwi, strawberry, banana).

Drawbacks: pricey. Also, they have two locations with very different ambience. The 5th Avenue location (in Little Italy) is a small, cozy, I think romantic (think vine-weaved white fence and vintage-art decorations) venue. The Union St location is huge sit-down place where the servers come get your orders and goes for a more polished and modern look.