Hot Summer Soup

Yo!

     As always, I hope your day has been peachy and much appreciation for reading!  Today I'll be reviewing a place in Irvine called Boiling Point.  Mel has been raving about this place so of course, I had to come and give it a try.

     Boiling Point is a mid to high price range Taiwanese style hot soup restaurant.  The ambiance is a bit hipster with black walls and very dim lighting.  There was an abundance of staff which was great. They did serve water out of styrofoam cups which I found a bit weird but I guess as long as you get iced water and they did do a great job of making sure it was filled to the brim (for me, this is always a deciding factor as to how much I tip them).  The menu is very simple, 10 preset hot soup items made it easy to order.  It was a simple as ordering, "Number 9," which was the Japanese Hot Miso Style Soup.  After you order you get a choice of a side of rice or vermicelli (thin rice noodles), I ordered the vermicelli.  Everything is pretty standard, but something that wasn't standard was the metal stands that they bring the soups out on.  These metal stands hold the soup you order and had chipping gel that they place on fire in the bottom of the stand that held a steel wok-style soup pot on top.  Then they place it table-side keeping your soup boiling hot for a good 25 to 30 minutes.  As you eat the soup you're left with more vegetables and meat then broth so the servers will come around and refill your broth anytime you ask.  Service was prompt and we were well attended to so from that aspect this restaurant is great.

     Now on to the food!  I'll start with my soup...I ordered the Japanese Miso Style Soup with mild spiciness (you can choose how spicy you want).  The broth wasn't the best I've ever had but it was still pretty good.  In the soup they had maitake & enoki mushrooms and that alone sold me on the dish.  The mushrooms added a great light umami flavor to the broth.  Under the hot soup there were tofu cubes, fried tofu skin slices as well as thinly sliced pieces of pork.  They did add way too much cabbage for my liking as I ended up with about a quarter of a cabbage left over at the end of my meal. There was even half of a shell crab and a single Little Neck clam added to the soup which were great but so small in portion to actually enjoy so I'll call those a garnish.  All in all, I would rate the dish a 6 1/2 out of 10, maybe a flat 6 because of the price.  This dish was considered a premium item costing me $16.99 for the whole meal.  For a fair price (food cost wise), I would charge $12.99, which just happens to be their lunch price.  The biggest flaws I saw were the lack of the seafood additions and a lack of the fermented miso flavor that I love in my broths.  

     Now on to Mel's dish who ordered their House Special Soup.  Although the dish had great flavor, there was a prominent smell from the tripe and intestine that they used to make the broth.  Now Mel has no sense of smell so I can't fault her for not catching this aroma, but my son's meal was the rice with a little bit of her broth.  This boy, who is now two and a half, proceeded to review the dish himself calling it "Stinky!" haha!  Mel still said she would eat this everyday if she could, especially since you're able to add more broth to whatever you can't finish of your hot pot and take it to-go, which in itself is a full meal to eat later (she says it's like a two-for-one deal).  In addition to the soups there were an array of different sauces on the table.  There were two types of chili pastes and one sweet sesame concoction that actually complimented the soups very well.  What you would do is scoop the soup out of the hot pot into a smaller bowl where you can add your rice noodles or in Mel's case ramen noodles (which is an additional price), then if you wanted you could finish your bowl with the side sauces.  When you go to try this place do not try the soup straight out of the hot pot as you will severely burn yourself like a certain idiot I know who shall remain nameless...I would personally only go there for lunch as I feel the value is rather fair compared to dinner.  I've mentioned in earlier posts that when I review a dish or a restaurant I take food costs into account as well as service and quality.  It's really hard for me not to take the food costs into account being in the industry and knowing how much all of this costs.  Would I come here again?  Sure!  But next time I'll go for lunch.  Give it a try and let me know what you think.  Happy eating!

Boiling Point in Irvine

Japanese Miso Style Soup (closer hot pot) and the House Special Soup

Side Dish of Vermicelli (to add to your soup when it arrives)

Simple Is the Best

Good day everyone!

     Hope everyone is doing well! The purpose of this post is to review a restaurant I recently ate at.  The premise starts with a random gathering of friends that haven't seen each other for quite a while, I wonder why it's so hard to keep in touch no matter how close your friends are?  I guess it's the demands of life in general and especially a person around my age where everyone's getting married and starting to have families of their own.  Reminds me that we have a lot of weddings to attend to next year, are we all grown up now?  I start to think so but when I'm around my boys, they give me reason to second doubt myself haha.  I guess I just want to reiterate that your friends are precious and always take the time to spend time with them whenever you have the opportunity.  

     So we decided to eat at a place where a majority of my group used to work, Upper Crust Pizza in Vista.  I consider the whole group a bunch of foodies so to choose this place to eat is I guess uncommon for us.  But we were looking for something quick and simple but not too quick and simple, know what I mean?  The picture below is a dish I had a lot in high school while my friends were working there.  I decided to order my usual from many years back which was a Roast Beef Sandwich and a Garlic Cheese Pizza Bread.  Even though I noticed the staff are all a bunch of people I didn't know, I found the food to be just as good as I remember.  This place is very family friendly and all the ingredients are very high quality without that very high quality wallet breaking price.  This hot sandwich, which they make with pizza dough and your choice of meat and cheese then finish off in their pizza oven, is one of the best sandwiches I've ever had which I can say with the utmost confidence.  First of all, it comes to you warm which is very important and you can tell it was made to order.  The dome gives it a great texture having a very crispy outside and it's very soft inside which does well to soak up all the flavors from the juices of the meat.  I know not a lot of people tend to hold this in high regard but the quality of their cheese and even their vegetables are great.  Not to mention the sandwiches are a lot bigger than I remember as I was only able to finish half of the sandwich and half the pizza bread.  Better yet the cost of this meal was a whopping $11 for which I was able to split into two meals.  Now on to the pizza bread (I like to call it garlic bread on crack). They actually throw this dough to order and instead of being just bread with cheese on it like most other places, they use their high quality cheese with some delicious house made garlic butter.  Paired with their house made ranch, you got yourself a winner not only on the garlic bread but with the hot sandwiches as well.  

     The general consensus in my opinion is that this is a great place to eat as I have been coming here for years.  The only reason I don't come here more often, which is probably a good thing, is because I live about an hour away.  I know it seems like I am just reviewing a mom-and-pop pizza restaurant,  but I really feel like it's more than that.  Being in the food industry, you know how bad food costs have risen and for them to be able to stick to using the same quality ingredients is really a testament to their dedication to bringing their customers great flavor all while not breaking the bank.  If you haven't been here, and I doubt that you haven't if you've been a resident of Oceanside and Vista, let this be motivation for you to go and try the place.  When I eat, I tend to really break down what I'm tasting, like the cost and quality of the ingredients and I'll always give my two cents on my opinion of the food.  Mel really hates it because she says I ruin every meal for her haha.  But I am one of those people that if you want to charge me $12 for a burger it better be a dang good burger and if I can tell that the quality meets the price, I'd be more than willing to pay.  Do you know of any other good mom-and-pop places in the North County/San Diego/Temecula areas that I haven't heard of? I'd be more than willing to go try and compare opinions.  Also sorry for that first bite in the picture I couldn't control myself!  

Roast Beef Hot Sandwich and Garlic Cheese Pizza Bread

Down with the Kobe

Konichiwa!

     Back with another one, this time featuring family day off lunch and the infamous Kobe burger!  Mel and I decided we are going to be going back on our juicing diet soon so I decided the last supper so to say would be best spent on a great burger.  I was able to get my hands on some ground Kobe beef so why not share with you my loyal readers!
     Starting with the meat it has always been a big debate whether or not to use egg and breadcrumbs as a binder for the burger ir to just simple go with the raw natural flavor of the meat.  I think it really depends on the person. When you add seasonings and binders to the burger you tend to get a fluffy texture to the meat plus a great way to retain the juices.   Some will argue you are tainting the flavor of the meat by doing so.  My compromise was to do the meat with seasoning only and try a Kobe meatloaf coming in the near future to see the difference in taste.  

     I invite you all to taste the difference when you make your own burger from buying a frozen burger or a burger from a fast food restaurant.  This was so juicy and you just cant beat the flavor of kobe,  So try it yourself and hopefully ill be be able to stay awake after I ate myself into food hibernation!  By the way the grapes on the plate were grown in my parents back yard!  Super sweet, tempted to do my very first batch of wine with those.

Sesame Glazed Kobe Beef Burger 

(1 Serving)

6oz Ground Kobe Beef

TT Montreal Seasoning

1/4 Julienne Sweet Yellow Onion

1 Slice Gouda

1 Slice Swiss 

1 Chicken Egg

1 Brioche Bun

Sesame Glaze

1 Cup Sesame Oil

Cracked Black Pepper

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1 Cup Soy Suace

Sriracha Mayonnaise

1oz Sriracha

3oz Mayonnaise

     Make the glaze by blending all ingredients for glaze in a vitamix.  In a bowl mix sriracha and mayonnaise together reduce amount of sriracha if too spicy.  Pre heat oven to 400 degrees.  Pre heat cast iron skillet on high heat to get maximum sear.  In a bowl mix ground Kobe beef and Montreal seasoning and form 6oz patty about an inch thickness.  When skillet is smoking throw on burgers.  Sear 1 side approximately 1 minute.  Flip burger over and transfer skillet to oven.  Finish burger in 8 minutes for medium rare.  I like to grill my onions in the rendered fat from the burger but you can grill onions separate if desired.  In a small saute pan cook the egg over easy on low heat until whites are cooked.  Assemble burger and enjoy!

Finishing in the oven with grilled onions

Sunny side up egg

Open face

Chicharron Ni Manok

Greetings Travelers,

     There aren't many things that are better than a fried crispy confit piece of chicken skin.  When I was very young, I remember being in the kitchen with my Grandma while she was roasting chicken. She would always pull up a piece of the skin and laid it in the pan where all the fat was rendering.  She would tell me to wait patiently and always gave me the first piece of that delicious crispy skin.  

      It was a regular day at work this past Sunday.  My cook Monley and I were tearing it up as usual, aka working hard, as Monley was prepping the chicken for our Chicken and Dumplings dish for Tuesday evening.  While he was cleaning the half chickens, he was saving all the pieces of extra chicken skin and fat.  I didn't think much of it at the time seeing as I am trying to stay away from fatty foods because that is what I am myself at the moment, when he then throws a pot on the stove next to me which had water, the extra chicken skins, fat, and some bay leaves and peppercorns.  I wondered what he was making and asked him, to which he replied, "I am making chicharron, are you a rookie cook?"  I guess he was right because what he made was one of the coolest things I've seen in a while. 

      My usually approach making chicharron from chicken skin is to cook the skins until soft and fry them in oil.  The genius part of this cooking method is that you do these steps plus more to further intensify the chicken flavor, and this guy didn't even know how complex the way he was cooking it was.  By boiling the chicken skins with bay leaves and peppercorns you soften the skin as well as render the fat, which then picks up all the flavor in the skin itself.  As the water evaporates you essentially confit the skin, or cook it in its' own fat, all while keeping the flavor from the aromatics you added initially.  When there's no water left and the fat starts to hit the smoking point caramelizing the chicken skin,  you are then achieving the crispy chicharron texture which again has all the flavor from when you first started the process.  The only tip here is that the chicken will burn once the water is gone fairly quickly so babysitting is required toward the end.  Not only is it a genius way to make this but it's all done in one pot!  Makes clean-up a breeze.  Super simple and super delicious, tell me what you think!

Chicharron Ni Manok

Thursday Schmurzday

Happy Thursday my fellow grinderz!

     To start of this post I would like to reiterate how much I dislike the I-15 with a picture of my drive to work today at 10:00am when the morning traffic supposedly dies down.  Thanks for closing the express lanes by the way!

     On to a happier note my sister just recently embarked on a easy to west united states road trip and was kind enough to resupply my ever so important beer supply with a rare west coast find, Yeungling amber lager.  First time I had a yeungling was from on of my wolfpack kin #basicbro officer Ralph Villejo.  I would describe this beer as follows, "like a budwiser bit tastes great all the way through."  This beer is just a smooth all the way through traditional lager,  the hops are so subtle and the flavor is so crisp that it just tastes so refreshing.  As a matter of fact my sister Trina wanted me to drink one right away even though they were not properly cooled and even though I hate beer that is warm I preceeded to finish the entire beer.  It just brings to mind that this beer has been around for such a long time that you could taste all the years experience that has gone into the creation of this product.  Wish these were more excessible here in California so I could spend all the expendable income I dont have on this drink.  If you havent had the pleasure of trying it please find a way you wont regret it.  In the mean time ill find the will not to polish all six of these in one or two days.

     Continuing from yesterday's post Mel just sent me this completed art project circa 2008.  I remember in her uc riverside days when she started this project that it seemed like she would never finish.  Well I was wrong now in 2015 and it looks so good!  You can see her change in tastes through the years starting from the top left of the piece and ending with our sons name and our anniversary so cleverly inserted at the bottom right.  I do have a few lines and dots that I have to take credit for but I guess ill let Mel have the credit for this artwork!  Anyways its almost Friday so keep grinding and I believe in each and everyone of you. I dont care what anyone else says about you!  

I-15 and 78

Yuengling!

Mels 7 Year Project

Mel Thee Artiste

     Howdy!  Appreciate your support and taking the time to check out my blog!

     I've always thought myself a pretty creative and artistic person.  I am very lucky that I have an outlet to create food as well as make a living.  Which brings me to another equally if not more creative person than myself, my wife Mel!  Pictured below are some drawings she had the time to do in lieu of watching my little baby monster, Jacob. I am very excited about this because I feel that Mel doesn't get enough opportunities to express her creative side.  Ever since I can remember she has always been a great artist.  Those that know her will always say that you should see her handwriting which looks like a typewriter.  I've always encouraged her to hone her skills and just create because she is so good at it, but she's always too busy or has something preoccupying her.  I really dislike it when she says, "I'm not very good at it," but I 100% always adamantly disagree and these two drawings are no exception. 

     Of course me being the entrepreneur-minded one,  I wonder to myself if there is a market for these hand made drawings?  To me, it looked like they were just bought out of an IKEA or our favorite addiction Hobby Lobby.  I would think these would go great in a bedroom or hallway #homeownerproblems.  Would you buy these for your home?  I'd appreciate the feedback!  I have considered Etsy and Craigslist to test the waters out but we will just have to wait and see.  Always excited for new ventures and just finding ways Mel can draw a dang picture!  Maybe this will help with her clumsiness because she can get some of that pent up creativity out or just plainly be able to think about other things than poopy diapers once in a while.  I'm sure I'll get punished for this post later so I'll make this short and end it there.  Support the Mel Creativity Fund guys!

  

The Leftover Prodigy

What's up!

     So as you see in the title of the post this is going to be about leftovers and the self-proclaimed prodigy that I am!  Being a self-proclaimed prodigy is difficult and exhausting but thanks to my affinity to never wasting food, I feel I am well deserving of the title.  The age old question of, "What should I make for dinner," gave rise to what I feel like turned out to be a real winner.  When I formulate a dish I really like to make it a point to incorporate different sides of the palate and different textures as well,  mouth feel is just as important (That's what she said...) Sorry for that, but I couldn't resist... Back to the task at hand! I would like to present to you....

Lump Crab and Salmon Fried Rice Wrap

6oz Lump Crab
4oz Salmon
3 Whole Eggs
1 Ear of Fresh White Corn
3oz Peas
3oz Carrots
4 cups Cooked White Rice (not too wet)
1 cup Ponzu
1/4 cup Oyster Sauce
Salt and Pepper
1 cup Mayonnaise
1 Tbs Sriracha
12 Inch Flour Tortilla
10 slices Wonton Strips
2 Tbs Olive Oil

     In a fryer, fry wonton strips until crispy.  Set oven at 350, roast the corn for 15 minutes and cut off the cob into kernels.  Season salmon with salt and pepper and bake for 10 minutes.  In a bowl, mix mayonnaise, sriracha, sesame oil, salt and pepper and set aside.  In a wok or pan on high heat, add the olive oil and let heat.  In a bowl, beat the eggs and add to the pan and cook about 15 seconds.  Add the peas and carrots and saute for another minute.  Add cooked white rice and incorporate.  Add the lump crab and cooked salmon, break into small pieces, and incorporate as well.  While incorporating add the ponzu, oyster sauce, salt and pepper and stir fry until you get some color on the rice (about 5 minutes).  In a griddle or pan on medium heat, warm up the tortilla on both sides.  Take a tortilla and add some spicy mayonnaise mixture, crab fried rice, and wonton strips.  Wrap it up and enjoy!

    Mel says, "Why is this so good?!"  Try it out and tell me if you agree!

Fried Wonton Strips

Lump Crab and Salmon Fried Rice

Fried Rice Wrap