Which 'wich Review (Carmel Valley)

Last Monday, SuperBoy and I saw that there was a training session in the space where Which 'Wich was about to open in the Del Mar Highlands Shopping Center.  We read the sign on the door and saw that the restaurant would open on Wed.

On Wed. morning, SuperBoy said, "Mommy, that new restaurant is opening today - can we try it out tonight?" Ah! I am raising a food-forward boy! Love the use of "try it out." How could I say no?

When Cute Husband came home, we headed over there.  It was very busy for opening night.  But we loved it!

a. You can really customize your sandwich in a lot of interesting ways.  I got a whole wheat baguette with tomato, cheese, spinach, and sauerkraut.  (hmm....sauerkraut).  CH got a reuben and liked it.

b.  For kids, you can doodle on your sandwich bag and then post it on the wall.  SB loved this. He wrote an ode to the cashier and showed it to him. What is cooler to a little kid who loves to draw than being able to draw and post your work in a restaurant?

c. Place was highly staffed and staff was super friendly. 

d. Prices are very reasonable.

e. CH loved the idea of a pizzawich (a pizza sandwich! he said).

We didn't try shakes but SB wants to next time.  Great option in the neighborhood.

More yumminess at Davanti Enoteca Del Mar

There is a definite science to ordering at Davanti Del Mar, which is fast becoming one of my go-to favorite restaurants (especially for a get-together with a girlfriend). Some items are reasonably priced, delicious, and copious (any of the pizzas, about $12). Others are tiny and astronomical (that one ravioli for $10).  So when I go with a friend, I always try to do one of the following shared plans:

--appetizer ($8-10)
--salad (8-10ish)
--Pizza DOC or Pizza con Funghi e Taleggio ($12 or $13)

OR

--appetizer ($8-10)
--Salad ($8-10ish)
--pasta ($15ish)
--fish ($19ish)

You get to try a lot of different tastes and it leaves you from spending lots of money and still being hungry.  My friend was avoiding dairy so we did the second plan.  Very successful and delectable evening as usual at DDM

App: we had the roasted cauliflower, this time with lemon, olives and lots of other yummy things. Everytime I go the roasted cauli preparation is different, but it's always delicious and a very healthy and filling and reasonable - not to mention very tasty - way to start the meal

Salad: we got the peaches with pickled apricots, bibb lettuce, nuts (hazel?) and honey citrus vinaigrette. This salad was SICK, aka CRAZY.  The pickled apricots were crazy good, and the whole salad was yummy. This is an epic salad dish.

Pasta: got the cavatelli with fresh vegetables and ricotta salata.  If you were just ordering this, you would think it was tiny and a ripoff. But after our cauliflower and salad courses, this was just the right amount of pasta for each of us to have. Light and tasty. My second time ordering this and I would get again.

Fish:  Very nice seabass special.  On top of zucchini spaghetti. I was finally full at this point and finally didn't clean my plate.

And WINE is always a highlight here, and I appreciate that they let me try a few sips before deciding.  Wasn't sure whether I wanted a medium-bodied white or red.  Tried the barbera (boring, not for me, at least this night), and also the $12 special white of Manincor Riserva Della Contessa. Blend of pinot blanc, chard and sauvignon, if I remember. Crazy delicious. LOVED IT!

Quick takes: Katana, Urban Pi, Native Foods Cafe

Some quick reports:

Katana: we are going more and more. It's super kid-friendly. SuperBoy loves the little flashlights they give you with your soft drink, and he also loves their miso soup (with extra seaweed), plus edamame, rice and cubed tofu.  I like the ex-boyfriend roll when it's on special. I am exploring their winelist. Had one bad Chard, but the La Crema chard is very good, and the Greg Norman pinot is super delish and not super expensive.

Native Foods: LOVE this place. Want to eat my way through the menu. Last time tried: Moroccan bowl, seitan sub, macrobiotic bowl (super yum, I could eat this often).

Urban Pi:  Went successfully with a big group recently. I still believe in staying away from the nasty tomato sauce,but the other food there is good.  Mom got a yummy white pizza. I got the delish beet and arugula salad with a yumm vegan corn soup-of-the day.  I also like their pomegranate drink.

Want to take SuperBoy to Native Foods so can eat there more!

Great night at Davanti Enoteca (Carmel Valley/Del Mar): Review

Third or fourth time at Davanti. One has to be careful with the menu. The giant ravioli dish is literally one ravioli for $10.  But we did very well tonight - delicious and copious and not too expensive.

JustLikeMeTwentyYearsAgo came along and we each had some of the following:
--Tenuta Luisa Pinot Grigio (researched the wine list beforehand, and found sites saying it was much better than your avg. pinot; I'd still like something fuller bodied but this was very good; better than the sips of falanghina and frascati that the server kindly brought for me to sample first)

--tomato/burrato/pesto salad with grilled bread: very delicious, nice portion; tomatoes were actually whole roasted golf-ball size tomatoes, rather than slices of cold heirlooms.

--roasted cauliflower: I had delicious roasted cauliflower the first time I went there, but this was a totally different preparation. Still, it was excellent and substantial.

--cavatelli: very light, and a perfect size for two people to share as a 3rd course. Tasty. Great crispy vegetables as a counterpart to the soft pasta.

--Salmon special. Well-cooked with some nice cubed salsa-style veggies and possibly fruit underneath (by this part of the meal I didn't notice what they were. They weren't astonishing in that I noticed each flavor, but they were tasty in a salsa kind of way.)

Walked around the mall afterwards to work some off and got a free cookie for Towne Bakery's 1st anniversary, along with a frosting shot for $1.25 (tasty). The outdoor seating is great too now at the mall. Who needs a different "main street" in Carmel Valley? (No to One Paseo!)

Got parking pretty easily too, at 7:30 on a Sat. night in the crazy Ralph's shopping center. Bonus!

Davanti is super-fun and delicious.  Love it on girls' nights!

Rimel's Review (Carmel Valley/Del Mar Highlands)

Nice choice for dining with CH and SuperBoy.

Drink: Enjoyed my skinny coconut mojito.

Salad: Surprisingly good - nice salad mix, good sesame dressing.

Fish sandwich: very fresh and tasty (wahoo), good sweet potato fries

CH enjoyed his ribeye.  SB enjoyed his grilled cheese sandwich (nice sourdough bread).

Service: not exceptional, but fine.

Atmosphere: noisy (in fact, SB pronounced it "too loud" for a mellow kid like himself) - but it makes the place kid friendly - lots of kids among the couples out on dates

Some of the pricing is a little much ($8.95 for a side salad?), but otherwise it's a decent value for a family-friendly tasty place in the 92130. And Swirls is nearby for a post-dinner treat for a well-behaved B.

We enjoyed and will return. (not a must visit from other neighborhoods, necessarily)

Katana Takeout (Carmel Valley)

Ordered takeout tonight. Better than it has been in a while. The katana roll is one of the best rolls there. It's not drenched in sauce. Healthy, fresh and light.

Royal India (Del Mar/CV): A nice surprise!

So I was a little bummed when I saw Star of India in Carmel Valley Piazza had closed. A sign said it would reopen as Royal India, but since those folks are responsible for the mess that was the UTC food court Royal India Express, that didn't seem promising.

Went in today during the "soft opening."

Happy surprise!

First, they've kept the existing staff. I've been probably one of their longest-time customers, and so I've seen a number of these waiters working since they were youngsters.  Glad to see they were kept on!


DECOR:  Much updated from the old place. Fancier, nice stone elements, more open.

BUFFET: Bigger than before! They had a very refreshing chaat salad (I think that's what you call it - cold marinated chickpeas with onions and herbs), plus samosas. And they have mango chutney in addition to tamarind sauce and mint chutney.  Seemed to have a few more curries too. Veg ones today were: dal, navrattan korma, palak paneer and a dry zucchini curry. They were all fine - nothing spectacular city-wide, but perfectly tasty and serviceable.

KITCHEN: I think it is in fact the same folks, and same recipes for now.  The waiter told me that it's a new owner, and that there will be more changes, but the owner is in the same family as the old owner.  In fact, the new owner and/or manager is someone I recognize from about 10 yrs ago - he used to be the host/manager at this location.  Maybe he grew up and bought the place from his family.

Bigger selection, same quality, same convenience.  I'm happy to have the new Royal India (that is, the revamped Star of India) back in the neighborhood!

Taste of Italy (Torrey Hills/"Del Mar") takeout: okay....

We used to do takeout from them a lot when SuperBoy was a baby. Hadn't gone for a while. I had a craving for eggplant parm, and they're one of the only places in the DM/CV area that does it at all, let alone decently (the pizza place by Golden Spoon does not belong in that category).

RESULTS....

Minestrone: not as good as it used to be: at least it's still vegetarian

Garlic bread: ok, fine, nothing special

Eggplant parm: nothing special, but perfectly edible. I was sorry when I ate the last bite, as I was enjoying it and wanted more. (if it had more competition, it wouldn't rate at all, but this was fine for satisfying an eggplant parm craving)

CH thought his veal parm was ok also, nothing special.

Marinara sauce wasn't terribly good. But SuperBoy enjoyed the garlic bread and some of my spaghetti.

Atmosphere in there while I was waiting for takeout was pleasant enough for a stripmall neighborhood restaurant. Nice lighting. Playing Ella/Satchmo Dancing Cheek to Cheek. If I lived in that hood and could walk with a buddy to the full bar and walk home, I'd probably like it more. otherwise, no need for us to eat in there.  And we'll probably eat takeout from them again in another year or so....

Am meaning to go to Kealani's in Encinitas soon.  Had a Hawaiian vacation recently with SB, and want to take him for a little plate-lunch slice of the islands here in SD.  We need to remember to go!

Davanti Enoteca (Carmel Valley): Super-Yum!

Was not expecting Davanti Enoteca to be so good. It's in the infamous Ralph's Shopping Center in the 92130 that has become Beverly-Hills-wanna-be central (Burlap, Mia Francesca, Urban Plates, etc.).  Had some last-minute babysitting, so gave it a try.

ATMOSPHERE: Well, it's that same we're-in-the-strip-mall-but-we're-trying-to-feel-like-hip-main-street feel.  They mean well.

but the star is the

FOOD!!

Wine: loved my $13 Gavi. They let me try a taste first - wouldn't have ordered it at that price if it wasn't super-yum. Had a disappointing :( meal at my fave Charisma recently.  Would rather pay $13 for a super glass of wine than $7.50 at Charisma for a so-so one.

Appetizers: CH got this super-yum truffle egg toast asparagus. I got two of the anti-pasti of the night on a platter: zucchini "spaghetti" with pine nuts and parmesan, and charred cauliflower with some other yummies mixed with it. Happy Foodie Mom.

Entree:  L-O-V-E-D my pizza with funghi, taleggio and leeks.  WAY YUMMIER EVEN THAN THE CUCINA URBANA pizza.  If this place wasn't in the strip mall, it would move higher on my list. CH thought his rigatoni with sausage was ok.

He didn't love it as much as me, but it was a super fun and yummy night. This is probably the best restaurant in the strip mall (leaving aside Rachel King's desserts at Burlap). Can't wait to try it again!

Smoked sea bass tacos from MIHO Gastrotruck

Yum. Fun!

(waiting for the truck to find a spot: not as fun!). Poor guys couldn't get a spot today and then tried to fit on High Bluff. Line kept following them up the street!

Was a tasty lunch to scarf down while waiting outside his class for pickup.
Would have liked to bring along something small for SB to snack on when I got him, but wasn't going to bring him a bacon chip cookie (yuk) and they didn't have chips or anything similar. Was afraid he wouldn't like the fried green tomato sandwich. So got him a brioche which he enjoyed to tide him over, til I could take him home and make his lunch!

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!).

Mia Francesca (Carmel Valley) Takeout Review: not quite as successful as our visit + Sprinkles (La Jolla) review

Tried takeout from Mia Francesca last night. Not as superlative as our visit.

--Boys wanted rigatoni bolognese. They didn't have bolognese last night. CH got spaghetti and meatballs, thought it was ok. Grandpa got rigatoni sardi (with sausage, hold the mushrooms). He really liked his dish. (SB got this too but wasn't wild about it - he just is not a huge noodle fan even though he said he wanted it).

--Grandma and I split rigatoni alla siciliana (with eggplant, still very tasty) and a ravioli with a mushroom-tomato sauce. It was gummy and inedible - would not order again.

--Wanted spinach with garlic and olive oil. It was my favorite dish last time. They forgot it.

--Got the insalata francesca. Didn't really like it - boring lettuce and unmemorable blue cheese.

Dessert was much better. Sprinkles cupcakes reviews:

--Coconut chocolate: very delicious.

--Lemon: I didn't eat it but SB gobbled it up.

--Peanut Butter chip: not crazy about this, wouldn't get it again.

--Milk Chocolate: the G'parents and CH got this and everyone liked it.

More Urban Plates takeout (Carmel Valley)

UP was so good last weekend for takeout that we got it again tonight. SB preferred to eat "house food." (foodgirl makes a mean quesadilla)

CH got the turkey sandwich, which has roasted tomatoes on it, and chips on the side, plus one side (he picked a salad). He said it was "fine."

I got ono again + beets again + sauteed mushrooms. Very delicious and very filling.

Tasted the carrot + ginger soup while I was there for pickup. Was fine, much better than the inedible roasted red pepper soup they had in fall. Tastes pretty much like the Whole Foods version. Still, ginger is not my favorite thing in carrot soup, so I'd order those only if I was cold and wanted something healthy and filling.

Still tasty - and I'm glad they're experimenting with different seasonal items.

MIHO Gastrotruck (Carmel Valley): Drowning in aioli!

Went to MIHO today on High Bluff (got there super-early - only way to beat the line!). Was going to try the deviled egg sammy special, but decided the bello would be healthier (wanted lots of veggies).

Well, my sandwich was tasty, but healthy it was not. The whole thing was absolutely drowning in the "roasted local fennel pesto aioli." I know farm-to-table doesn't mean lowfat, but I would have preferred a lot more "farm" (veggies) to fat ratio. I wiped most of it off, and still had oodles of aioli on the sandwich.

Wouldn't get that sandwich again unless I asked for the aioli on the side. Still like MIHO, but that was not as impressive a meal as some others.

(I did pick up a "Suzie's farm Strawberry shortcake," which I'll give to SB when he returns from preschool. That is also WAY more cream than berry, but I think he'll like it).

Asian Persuasion Food Truck Review (Fridays in CV)

Decided to give this truck a try today for the first time. Showed up at 11:25 (supposed to open at 11:30) in case there was a line. Took until 11:40 for them to get there, and I almost left, but then I was first in what became a 15-person line within minutes.

Fish tacos were not dietetic at all (panko-fried, slaw, tangy Asian dressing), but very delicious. On Yelp some people say they're bland, but I think it's important to eat them right away and not let them sit. My first bite was extremely very delicious - by the time I was finished the last bite was a little soggier. Huge portion - am very full.

Not sure I'll leap to go back to this one, but it was great to try, and the fish tacos were yummy. That's pretty much the only veg or fish option there (there's also a fish burrito that has rice in it).

And the food is a Filipino-Mexican-Asian hybrid.

Mia Francesca Review (Carmel Valley): Yum in the 92130!

Mia Francesca opened last night in the now-famous Ralph's shopping center in Carmel Valley, the new gourmet gulch of San Diego. I found that it was open last night on facebook, and CH passed by today and got the menu. We made reservations for tonight at 6:15, with SB in tow.

ATMOSPHERE: The place is totally happening on day #2 of being opened. They have lots of staff, with many coming in from Chicago (where their flagship restaurants are) to make sure it's at their level of quality. Motown music, fun and lively.

SERVICE: Lots of busboys, though the waitress had a bunch of tables to do. Speed: slower than we'd ideally like with SB, but still reasonable. We had a nice meal and were done in 45 mins.

BREAD: Delicious, very hot and crusty from the oven. Not a huge fan of the rosemary in their olive oil. Could eat it plain, or ask for plain olive oil in the future.

WATER: Fantastic! They put a nice chilled, iceless bottle of water on the table. You can refill your glass, or they come by. Me like.

KIDS' MENU: Placemats just for them, with crayons. SB got lemonade right away in a cute cup. The value of the kids' meal is very good. $5.99 includes the drink (including refills), pizza or pasta, and gelato. The pizza was enormous - looked like a grownup size. Only downside: SB didn't like it that much, and to me it didn't taste that great (not like the kids' pizza I got him at Cucina Italiana). But SB was nutso for the bread and lemonade and the atmosphere, and he wasn't disappointed about the pizza - he just didn't want to eat it (but he was full up on the yummy bread!).

WINE: Here's a slight misstep. $7 for a pinot grigio that wasn't offensive, but tasted like nothing. It was drinkable, but I'd never get it again. The waitress said they had a great sommelier so I couldn't go wrong. I'll still try other things on the wine list, like the Sicilian chardonnay, but that was a disappointment after my fab wine experience at The Shores. Still, it was a generous pour.

APPETIZER: I got spinaci with oil and garlic. DELISH and totally cravable. Really, I could make this myself (though I'd probably get freaked out by the amount of olive oil needed to make it taste like this). But I'd come back just for this dish. Yum - as cravable as spanki lemonato at Athena (though that spinach is healthier!).

ENTREES: I got the rigatoni alla siciliana (eggplant, tomato sauce, fresh grated parm); CH got rigatoni bolognese. We both thought they were delicious. The folks around us at other tables were raving about everything they got, and everything that passed us looked spectacular. I thought the salmon at the next table looked fab. The nice people there said, though it was very good, it happened to be less exciting than the other dishes they got, which they called spectacular, esp.: roasted chicken, lemon chicken, and rosemary chicken.

DESSERT: Included in SB's $5.99 kids meal (including the drink and enormous pizza) was gelato. But not just a scoop - a trio! He could choose any flavors he wanted. SB tried: lemon sorbet, strawberry sorbet, vanilla gelato. He was in HEAVEN, and scarfed them all up.

SB has announced that the restaurant is great, even though he didn't like the pizza. He is excited to try pasta with butter next time (he is not a big pasta eater at home, but he'll try it there). If he's hungry, I also want to get him a salad next time. The choices look great - things like green beans and tomatoes with lemon and olive oil, which would be right up his alley.

ULTIMATE VERDICT: I wouldn't choose this for date night. It's too family-friendly and 92130-seeming to feel for me like a big night out. I'd still put Charisma ahead of it as my fave Italian restaurant in SD - that place is more intimate and the food to me is more spectacular. And it's more fun to get out of the 'burbs and hit Hillcrest or the Gaslamp for a date. But this place is much more buzzy, and is just right for a special night out with a well-behaved SB. Poseidon and Mia Francesca now promise to be our best recommendations for fine dining with a toddler!

Mia Francesca and Davanti Enoteca Del Mar: OPEN!

Haven't heard any reports yet, but their facebook page says they opened tonight. Reports welcomed! We want to try it, but probably should not venture in with Super Boy while they are working out the kinks! (on the other hand, if they are good as the Chicago hype suggests, they will be very busy very soon!).

MIHO Gastrotruck (Carmel Valley): this week's special

LOVED the yellowtail melt, MIHO's special of the week. Would go weekly for it if they put it on the menu!

Delectable flavors, perfect artisan bread, delicious onions (I'm not sure how to describe them - not carmelized, but not deep-fried - super yummy though - more like dry fresh onion chips).

Flavor explosion!

(and going early is the only way to go!)

Food Farm SD Truck Review: Yum!

Skipped MIHO today and gave Food Farm SD a try (12225 El Camino, CV, on Weds.).

Delicious grilled cheese sandwich on a yummy whole wheat, with a yummy pesto (is it basil or broccoli pesto?). $6.50.

Side of coco rice (sweet little dessert rice pudding with fresh coconut: $1).

No line at 11:30, much more mellow than MIHO.

Next time I might try the veg kung pao fried rice or the veg tzatziki. They also have soy chorizo fries, but it's not the best health option! Or the salad - but today it was grapefruit which is not my thing.

They list all the farms they source from (Suzie's etc.).

Nice truck!

One other food truck in CV: Asian Persuasion

I haven't eaten there yet, but I saw the Asian Persuasion truck on DM Heights Road this morning. So there is at least one Food Truck in CV in Friday's.

http://asianpersuasionftc.com/menu/, at 12544 High Bluff, 11:30 - 1:30

I have to check it out!