Alchemy (South Park): How Many Ways Do I Love Thee?

When last we left FoodGirl's favorite restaurants, the current list was:

1.  Grant Grill
2.  Searsucker
3.  Alchemy
4.  Charisma

I think I may be ready to swap #2 and #3.  Brian Malarkey madhouse restaurants are becoming a dime a dozen (really, a fabric metaphor would be better but I can't think of one).  And a quiet, neighborhood restaurant with daring food in this city is a much greater rarity. So maybe I'm ready to swap them.

Either way, Ricardo Heredia is still my #1 favorite chef in SD. He's so creative and loves to reinvent his menu and he's always doing inventive and exciting combinations with great produce.  And he shows a lot of love to vegetarians.

Tonight I finally made to Alchemy for Wed. night prix-fixe vegetarian meal night! (have been tantalized by the prospect for months).

Was every bit as delish as I hoped.

"Indian" theme. I might have been scared off (I can have real Indian anytime), but I hoped a Heredia twist on Indian would not be "less than authentic" but would be its own delicious and original Indian-inspired self.

Sure enough: it was!

WINE: Got an albarino (Algareiro).  Kind of a boring flabby albarino. On the plus side, it was only $7.

FIRST COURSE: Chickpea salad.  Totally original take on an Indian chickpea salad. Delicious chutney, plus peaches mixed in with the chickpeas, and lettuce wraps. Yum and double yum.

SECOND COURSE: Veggie pakora. This is more fried than I would have liked. And they weren't true pakora but more like Indian-inflected tempura.  They were whole sliced vegetables, not fritters. But they were tasty (local eggplant, cauliflower and baby zucchini) with a nice tamarind chutney.

THIRD COURSE: Malai kofta, with fresh nan and a pilaf. Yum. Not at all like "real" Indian malai kofta, but very delicious and rich in its own right.  Tomato was the base of the sauce, I think.

ATMOSPHERE: Totally chill and not too busy on a Wed., but not cavernous. Still fun. Could hear my friend ("BorderGirl") talk.

SERVICE: Always friendly and efficient.

LOVE Alchemy!!!!

Noodles and Co.: Oy! I should have known better + Subway and Urban Plates with Super Boy

I eat bad food very infrequently. Meals out are too sparing to waste! Really I should have known better than to eat at Noodles & Co. during a recent quick trip to UTC. Fast-food chain Asian-American-medit fusion?  How could that possibly have been promising? But a lot of people say they like it so I figured I would try.

Ordered the Japanese pan-fried noodles; was sucked in by the promise of "carmelized" noodles, veggies and tofu.

First taste: BLECH - nothing but sugar!  Lunch is supposed to be savory. This was nothing but sugary sweet sauce all over the noodles.  And way more noodles than tofu and veggies.  Had no choice but to keep eating it cuz I was out of time before preschool pickup.  Had a carb/sugar rush for the rest of the afternoon. Blechy!  I would have been much better off at Rubio's.

In contrast, recently took SuperBoy to SUBWAY for the first time.  Proud mama says: my son....the veggie eater.  Got him a Veggie Max (the veggie patty) on multigrain oat/honey. Curiously enough, he wanted no lettuce or tomato or peppers or cucumbers. Just cheddar cheese and olives.  Would you believe the thing he loved most about his sandwich was the olives? Crazy for the olives.  Ate enough of the bread and patty to be healthy (and to leave me some too :)), but ate every last olive in his sandwich.  Taste is a strange thing!

And on our recent visit to URBAN PLATES let me note a few things:
--SB couldn't stand their mac & cheese. Thought it was disgusting and wouldn't eat it. I liked it. But I should just have gotten him the grilled cheese, which he and I both love. The m&c was too gourmet even for my food-loving boy.
--I tried a salad there for the first time. Grilled ono niçoise. Very tasty in fact, very generous portion of ono. But I should have asked for dressing on the side or not too much -it was quite oily! But SB loved it. He was happier eating my salad (including the OLIVES!!!) than his m&c.
--Oh, and CH did not like the Israeli couscous salad at all.
--Otherwise a good meal there, our first eat-in experience there in many months. Still chaos at the door, but once we got orders in the food came very quickly.

Nobody Loves You: Globe Review

Reviewed dinner below. But wanted to put in a plug for this super-cute show by Itamar Moses and Gaby Alter, with adorable choreography from Mandy Moore of SYTYCD.  We laughed our heads off. It's a musical spoofing/asking deeper questions about reality TV and romantic ideals. Very clever and entertaining and sweet!

Cucina Urbana Review #3: yum!

Since my initial haterdom of CU, I've been won over. It's a super-fun restaurant, which an interesting, changing menu. Not every dish is a winner, but it's absolutely worth returning to.

Wine:
Tonight, to avoid the ridiculous per-glass charge v. bottle gap, I ordered a whole bottle and took the rest home.  Broc Paso Robles rhone-style white. Yum! I had seen it on the menu online, thought it looked like a great value - then got there and it wasn't on the menu! Lovely waitress told me they had run low so took it off, but she found the last bottle for me! Very nice value for $23 + no corkage on a Sun night.

Apps:
CH started with humus and toasts.  Very tasty toasts.

I got kale/hearts of romaine caesar. Was coveting the ricotta gnudi but thought this would be healthier. Oops! It was certainly tasty, but it was loaded with hi-cal dressing and grated cheese. Enjoyed it but didn't want to finish it and wouldn't order again.

Entrees:
I got the honey eggplant and goat cheese pizza, which I had seen someone go nuts on at Yelp (someone else said it was tasteless).  CH got the ribeye w/gorgonzola potato croquette.  Eggplant pizza was good - they are great at doing woodfired crusts - but I wouldn't order it again. (still, it was a nice dish to try).  CH really liked his ribeye (and I l-o-v-e-d the not-healthy cheese croquette....sinfully yummy).

Too full for dessert. But as usual they packed up the leftovers (including the wine) and left in the fridge til we saw our play. We picked up the leftovers on the way home.  Love CU! 

Egyptian Delights: Delightful! (CV farmers' market)

Foodie Mom has had a banner day - snuck in a glorious meal from a food truck at lunch, and got some delicious takehome from the farmers' market in CV with SuperBoy.

Egyptian Delight is a food stand at the CV market (Thurs 3:30 - 7). They're based in Sorrento Valley.

Ridiculously tasty hummus (had a char like roasted baba ghanoush but was definitely humus).  Very respectable rice. And what yummy falafels!! Not at all Greek falafels. Very nicely Egyptian spiced.  What a find - rival for best Mideast in the county. Yum!!!! (and fast and easy!).

Tabe BBQ Truck Review: Food, Glorious Food!

Got a chance to hit Tabe BBQ for the first time today, at 12554 High Bluff in CV.

I think I'm in love!

This may be the best food truck experience I've had yet (sorry, MIHO!).

#1: no line just before noon!

#2:  I told the "front of the truck" guy that I had been wanting to try their truck for a while, that they have a good rep. He said, "and our food is glorious."

I figured I'd be the judge of that.

.............................................. [wait for food to be prepared]

Well, the food is glorious!!

Got a grilled tillapia taco and a portabello mushroom taco.

Both beautifully presented with a cute scoop of different fresh salsas on top.

Grilled tillapia taco: scrumptious, fresh, OMG.

Portabello mushroom taco: scrumptious, fresh, OMG too (yummy combo of sauce, salsa, carmelized onions and mushroom).

Only thing that could be better: the tortillas were a little flimsy and I ended up needing a fork to finish as the tortillas fell apart from the liquid.  Also, I was still a little hungry after the two tacos ($7).

Otherwise, I'll be back for more whenever I can swing it on a Thurs. in CV. Oh my - how scrumptious!!!

Three cheers for an Asian BBQ place that has veggie and non-fried fish options!! (they also have a fried cod taco and lots of meat (http://twitter.com/#!/tabebbq), but these were a-ok with me!)

Food truck adjustment (Carmel Valley)

Was going to try Tabe BBQ truck today but I see they've changed their schedule. Their day is now Thurs. in CV not Tues.

Thai 1 On comes some Tuesdays but apparently not today!  (http://www.ohiii.com/)

New food truck in Carmel Valley (God Save the Cuisine)

Saw God Save the Cuisine truck parked in NY on Rye's usual spot today on High Bluff just east of DM Heights (Mon).

http://www.godsavethecuisine.com/#!home|mainPage

CPGirl was just talking about it - was parked at Lux (I think!) for an event, and she said it was pretty good. Will have to give it a try one of these Mons.! Looks like they have some veggie options.

Greek from North to South: Odyssey Restaurant (San Marcos) and Harbor Greek Cafe (Liberty Station)

Greek twice in one week.

Odyssey (San Marcos):  What is there to say about this place, really, but:
--better than Daphne's
--Not to be mentioned in the same breath as Cafe Athena

It's San Marcos - a person can't ask for too much.

Harbor Greek Cafe (Liberty Station/Point Loma)

Not too bad actually! Doesn't have stellar reviews on Yelp. But my new pal (she is in need of a nickname - let's dub her CPGirl) likes it, so we checked it out for a picnic with the preschoolers.  She is a fan of the "Greek pizza," which is a fresh veggie concoction on a pita.  I was hankering for eggplant, and got the grilled eggplant sandwich. (though the grilled salmon sounded tempting too).  It was quite delicious - this is a dish they don't have at Cafe Athena or Appolonia.  Got SB a falafel plate.  He didn't want the falafels, so I ate a few (not like kebab shop or sultan schwarma, but a cut above typical greek falafels).  He liked the humus, pita and was scarfing up the greek salad, before he started coveting the goldfish crackers CentralParkGirl's son was enjoying. We wouldn't drive here just to eat. But we would pick up from them for a picnic again if we were visiting CPGirl, and it's a reasonable choice for anyone in the neighborhood. (Maybe their veggie options are better than the meat - on yelp they say the food is nondescript and nothing to write home about). But the veggie food was tasty and respectable!

A recommendation worth following up on: Spirito's in Oceanside/Carlsbad

I would just add this to my block of restaurants to consider on the right.

But a Brooklyn boy told me tonight I need to try Spirito's in Carlsbad...that they have great NY pizza and that their other cooked Italian food is fantastic.

Checked on Yelp. No haters. Everyone says it's delicious...and it's actually New Jersey pizza. (FoodGirl will be the judge of that).

Must try sometime soon!

New Farmer's Market in Carmel Valley!

Thurs. nights, Canyon Crest Academy, 3:30 - 7 pm.

SuperBoy and I hit it around 6 pm.  VERY crowded. Hopefully it wasn't just the buzz of the first week. Report:

--mostly prepared foods, with a usable supply of vegetables

--one flower vendor
--one vendor with strawberries
--one with tomatoes
--one with apples, etc. (Smit Farms, which I always like at all of the markets)

--a few competing stands with lettuce, zucchini, broccoli

--lots of bakeries
--various speciality products (oil, vegan cheesecake, etc.)
--lots of hot food stands; one food truck apparently had a 45 min. backup. We did the fish tacos, which were deep fried, but pretty tasty. SB now officially likes fish tacos.

Definitely worth a return visit even if it doesn't have the vastest competition in the fruit/veggie arena - convenient and a good time of the week!

Needs customers so it doesn't close like the late one on Sat. at Flower Hill!

Kotija Jr. Taco Shop (Del Mar): Revisit: Still good, but some kinks

Reordered takeout from Kotija Jr. Last time they were super vegetarian-friendly and delicious. Loved the pan-fried fish taco.

First on phone, they thought veg. burrito couldn't really be veg - that it had to come with lardy refried beans. But I insisted they had done it before, and the guy checked with the kitchen and said they were making the whole pintos.

Took it home....veg burrito was still delicious, and they did use the whole pintos.  But they sent us home with a side of non-veg refried beans instead of the whole pintos I asked for (oh well), and also the fish taco was totally different tonight - deep fried. Still tasty, but not as unique or yummy as last time, and definitely not worth being considered best fish taco in SD.

I called and they did say they would credit me on the beans...we'll see.  Meanwhile, it remains a mystery which is the correct recipe there for the fish tacos!

But we'll give them another try - the guac and veg burrito are still yummy.

Scottsboro Boys (Old Globe)

Separating out the theater part of the evening from Brooklyn Girl. Scottsboro Boys is a terribly moving and brilliant piece of theater.  Absolute must see.....

Brooklyn Girl Restaurant Review (Mission Hills): BROOKLYN IS NOT IN THE HOUSE!

Tried the much-hyped brand-new Brooklyn Girl tonight. Wanted to like it!  Sadly, Brooklyn is not in the house....

(Or as CH summed up his meal, with apologies to the late Adam Yauch and the Beasties:
GO.....
BACK....
TO BROOKLYN!!!)

Ok, end of musical introduction, onto the scene and food

SCENE: Holy crap, how is this enormous place so full and loud at 6 pm on a Sat.?  My doc. said he went last week at 7:30 pm and it was crazy - how early are the crowds getting here?  (and this in a place that only posted its menu online today!!). 

Place is trying to be Cucina Urbana trying to be Searsucker (someone said Urban Solace too but I see that less, since this is bright and airy, at least at 6, and Urban Solace is darker and more urban).  Loud social dining, see and be scene, shared plates.  Except - sorry, this Brooklyn wannabe ain't going to cut it!

(Now let me be real for a moment: this place is full of people - the table next to me were return customers.  So our not liking the meal and my announcing it here is not going to break the place.  But if you're thinking of going and are on the fence, let me fill you in on our experience).

STARTER: They bring parmesan popcorn in lieu of bread.  Pro:  it's salty, buttery and reasonably tasty. Con: on the real side, it's stale and half-popped. I was hungry: I kept eating it anyway (esp. the more I drank).

SERVICE: It was fine - server got our courses in time to go to the Globe. But really, it was not super warm. How could it be? This enormous operation must be a pressure-cooker to work. You have a gazillion tables, it's super-loud, the kitchen is behind.  We got our food more quickly than other tables, since we said we needed to go to the theater.  Hostesses are friendly and without attitude.

FOOD/DRINK PROS:
--delectable cornbread with honey (side dish, $6)
--delectable oven roasted caulifower (side dish, $6-ish); it looks like this http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/MF1ZY1IVIHsdU-eWfhHjCQ?select=nm_1E9aUy1L5akRzvOgsuQ#toiUOobfu5hwtlIcAo-6bQ (picture via a Yelper)
--CH's brick cooked chicken looked decent; the woman next to us was ordering it for the second time in a week
--wines are $7, 8 or 9 a glass; wines by bottle look decently priced (Cucina Urbana style), and they also have wines by the carafe, which is a nice touch

FOOD/DRINK CONS:
--on top of the stale popcorn, CH's humus came with stale pita chips (the plaintain chips were pretty decent; I liked the humus, but it had an unusual taste and CH did not like it at all)

--my pizza was a BIG...HOT....MESS.  Seriously - if they served this in Brooklyn and called it pizza, they'd get beat up.  Totally undercooked dough, big gooey mess of cheese. Really, I don't expect every high-class joint to make pizza as beautifully as Sicilian Thing - I'm not expecting real NY perfection even in a place called Brooklyn Girl - but this pizza was just plain embarrassing. And it's one of the things people were hyping on Yelp as one of the better dishes! And no - I didn't just have bad luck - the pizza they brought out to my neighbors was the same hot mess of cheese goo, with the same white undercooked Pillsbury-dough-boy crust (it should be charred and crispy and have some bubbles if they're advertising wood oven pizza!).

--bar looks seriously understaffed for an operation this size.  There were complaints on Yelp about length of time for drinks. Asked waiter if I should get cocktail or wine if we were on a schedule....quick as can be he said I should get the wine.  The $8 Chehalem Inox chard was ok; ditto the $9 Propietary Blend red (can't remember the vineyard and they don't have the wine list posted).  I'm happy I didn't pay $12-14 for these glasses, but they weren't fab wines for the price.

Don't think we need to return.  (It's so damn hard to get into Cucina Urbana - one month ahead I could not reserve for anytime after 5:15 or before 9 pm for tonight!). But I'm glad to have tried it, so I don't feel like I'm missing out, and the atmosphere was kind of fun (a poor man's out-in-the-neighborhoods Searsucker).

Oh, and my review is not idiosyncratic.  Almost cancelled the reservation after my doc. told me not to believe the hype (said it was much too loud and the service terribly slow even though the food was decent). And MuseumGirl, who lives in the 'hood, really really really wanted to like it, but reported that the food they got was not very good:  she said the barley risotto was gross, and ditto the veggie bolognese dish (which disappeared from the menu between its being posted this morning and our hitting the restaurant tonight).  She's still willing to try it for brunch (esp. since the cornbread is in fact yummy).

Kotija Jr. Taco Shop (Del Mar): Yum! + Alborz (Del Mar)

Kotija is a great addition to the Del Mar/CV dining scene. It replaces Mucho Gusto - and is much yummier and cheaper (though maybe not healthier).  It is located far away from the craziness of the Del Mar Highlands Shopping Center, in the lovely and relaxed Del Mar Heights Shopping Center just west of the 5 (where Golden Spoon, Alborz, and Von's are).

Super Boy and I did takeout from there this evening, while CH was working late.
We got:
--vegetarian burrito (delish! it's really a fajita burrito: yummy sauteed green peppers and onions, along with veg. whole pinto beans, and rice - I didn't ask if the rice was really veg. though): ENORMOUS, flavorful and under $4; I ate only half and there's plenty left

--fish taco: they claim the have the best in SD. It's not a grilled kind, but it's pan-fried rather than deep-fried, and I found it very yummy.  SB tried it too - first time he tried a fish taco. He liked it. There was lots of slaw, some kind of sauce, and a tasty corn tortilla.  Not sure if it's the absolute best, but they are certainly not off-base in hyping it this way.

--his quesadilla was very tasty

--we also got sides of whole pintos and rice, each was $1.50ish and very large. Ditto the guacamole - enormous side portion for about $1.75

Definitely happy we tried it. It will go into the regular takeout rotation!!

(I should also give some love to Alborz, which we eat from so often I don't bother to blog. LOVE the gheimeh bademjan and the eggplant stew both....Must haves every few weeks or so! And they're super friendly there, and the boys love the chicken-lemon soup)