Category: Food

Mijita is a Mexican place in the San Francisco Ferry Building Marketplace which is a food mall for foodies.
Lots of good stuff here if you’ve got the appetite and the (big) budget for it. Gotta get down here early though because most of the Ferry Building closes at six. How are they going to get people to stay in the City after hours if nothing of note is open? *blur look*
I was down here today during dinner time so I decided to duck in and eat. The entire menu is in espanol so brush up on your food Spanish if you ever make it here. I ordered the “3 crispy chicken taco” special and a cerveza fria. The cerveza was a dollar more than the Coke light I was going to get. Beer for a buck? Bring it on!

dinner flanked by the good things, hot sauce and beer!
But wait, you say, “those don’t look like tacos”. And you’d be right. They look like taquitos. They tasted like taquitos too. Which is to say they tasted great (with copious addition of hot sauce) but….
These weren’t tacos as we know them! The cerveza was great tho. Burp.
Mijita
1 Ferry Building
Number 44
San Francisco CA 94111
415-399-0814

Now these commercials are the reason why you drink coffee! I like the one with the “machine”.

Wahahahahaah!
Just realized that this is my 500th entry into this amateurish chronicle of food and travel. Imagine that!

Besides beans and the Red Sox, one of Bah-ston’s better known products is Samuel Adams beer. More here. It’s named after a real person who was part of the Revolution.

This sign directs you to the Brewery. Big enough?
There’s not much to say about Samuel Adams except that they brew VERY GOOD beer. And there’s several kinds to choose from, such as seasonal brews or varieties that get rotated around. Although their major breweries are in the midwest, the Boston Brewery is where Sam Adams began and is where they still make keg beer for local consumption.

This is where the magic started!! Buuuuurp.
The Boston Brewery has tours. Most of it is a video presentation followed by a walkthrough around the big tanks and some education on what and how the beer is made and its history.

Take the contents of these barrels, combine with a lot of water and process. Voila, beer!

Ever say a beer is “hoppy”? Well, this is what makes it “hoppy”. Hops! But not just ANY hops. Noble Hops!

Beeeeeg beeeeeer taaaaaank
After the “educational” part of the tour, we got to “taste” several brews. Which was what probably, oh say, EVERYONE was there for. There are two bars for the tour groups.

Like most popular pubs, there’s a queue and someone checking IDs…
We were the last tour of the day and because of that, they didn’t shoo us out after 20 minutes so the next tour could go through. So that’s a good tip. Take the last tour on a Friday! I was there for an hour drunking a LOT of beer. Thank goodness I took the T out there.

This is where beer REALLY comes from; it comes from the bar!
The staff would have us all try each brew they had on tap, like a big wine tasting. Fill up the pitchers, pass them around and then have a “taste”. Some of us “tasted” a lot…!

Full of Boston Lager (original Sam Adams brew)

All tasted out! This happened about 9 times before they kicked us out!
We had Boston Original Lager, Summer Ale and Black Lager. When about 2/3 of the crowd left, they opened up the Honey Wheat taps for us. A great time and the tasting was FREE!!! Waaaah!

Yes, I know it’s “SEA”food not “see”food, but remember the old maxim, “Got a great diet. I see food, I eat it”.
In Boston on Sunday. Met up with the DSD to play tourist in “America’s Walking City”. Duck Tour done. Walked a lot. Hungry. Time for seafood!
So off we go to Legal Sea Foods @ Prudential Center! Got lucky as we arrived just before the dinner rush. Our waiter was pleasant and patient as I’m sure he’s had to deal with hungry tourists who want to devour the entire menu all the time. Dinner selections were classics; the idea is if they can’t make these right, they can’t make any food right at all. Happily, the entire meal was fattening and delicious! I think I’ll begin that detox diet after I get back…
Started with crab cake. Mmmmmm. That plate could actually be a meal.

Whatta deal, crab cake (from real real crab!) and a salad! Ate it all we did...

Clam Chowdah. Mmmm. Really good!
I had a whole lobster (split in half)!

One half is baked. Other half is steamed. So I’ve got stoned, angry lobster halves…
DSD and I have excellent eating skills, honed from devouring shellfish at many, MANY Chinese banquets. The result?

Itsy Bitsy Lobster parts…cracked and sucked clean!
After all that, couldn’t even LOOK at the dessert menu. Walked all the way back to the Common.

Swan Boats in the Boston Public Garden

It’s Sunday in Boston! What to do, what to do? Well if you’re a complete tourist (and who isn’t when they’re visiting a strange place), you eat and do silly tours. First the silly tour! Eating later!

quack quack, whooooo!
Boston Duck Tours (apparently there are Duck Tours all over the world) is a tour of Boston’s touristy parts in a duck. Well officially a DUKW. WWII surplus that’s still in use today. And still seaworthy. But instead of crossing the Charles River to invade and liberate Cambridge from the forces of the politically correct, we just swam around in the river. Fun! The Duck Tours here are extremely popular and the weekends are usually sold out. Fortunately DSD has a concierge in her hotel who was able to swing some tickets. “the concierge is yr fren!”

A tip of the hat to a WWII phenomonon
The tour itself takes you around downtown and much of the tourist areas that are accessible by road. Of course, if you’ve got time, chances are you’ve seen much of these spots already on foot. But if you’re pressed for time, this is a fun alternative. You also get to see things that don’t have the same impact if you were to see them on foot.

The fancy cable stayed Charles River Bridge.
When we were in the Charles, we went under several bridges and learned about various buildings on the waterfront. The most fun thing was that the guide asked for volunteers (first kids then kid like adults) to steer the boat.

The approach to the river where the duck began to swim…
I didn’t step up BTW. I behaved myself. Although it looked fun…

Somehow things look nicer when seen from da water

See what I mean?

Before I continue, here’s a disclaimer:
These Cult Food postings are NOT RANKED! I’m just numbering them so you know how many there are. The fact that I write about these places is proof of their innate goodness…
Within 48 hours of my arrival at USC, I was initiated into the sacred rite of the Tommy’s Run. I think I remember how it was pitched to my virgin ears…

“It’s 0130 on a Wednesday night. Let’s go on a Tommy’s Run”
“OK”.
Yeah, like put a gun to my friggin’ head when it comes to late night eats…
Tommy’s is a family owned chain of burger stands that’s famous for good quality food and incredibly dangerous chili-cheeseburgers that melt through ordinary napkins so quickly that they provide paper towels instead. The stuff of LA legends.

“If you don’t see the Shack, Take it Back!”.
Now a word of warning. LA is the land of food knockoffs. Here you will find, Tomy’s, Big Tom’s, Tom’s and Tommy’s of Westwood. NONE of these are the original Tommy’s. Don’t eat at any of these if you want an authentic Tommyburger. I will not be held responsible for any kind of gastro-intestinal distress caused by these knockoffs. Look for the Shack and be happy.
And even though there are genuine Tommy’s restaurants all over the LA Basin, as far as I’m concerned, the only one to go to is on the corner of Beverly and Rampart in Downtown LA. It’s old school. It has two parking lots. There’s no place to sit. It’s open 24 hours. And it’s original. I’ve spent many late nights and early early mornings here raising my blood chili-cheese level. And my “big hunk o’ tomato” and “pickles” level too. Back then, I could do two at a time. Now, cant do so much anymore…
SC ROTCs would do the double time march here (it’s about 5 miles or so from SC), eat 2 or 3 apiece and then double time back (you want to be in the front of that formation). Investment bankers from Downtown, sorority girls from SC and locals just getting off from work would get indigestion together. On Saturday nights, the club and bar crowd come here after the clubs and bars closed. Gangbangers and LAPD would stand together, chowing down and shooting the breeze. Is this the beginning of whirled peas or what??

Yes, it tastes great! Mmmmm.
And if you’re really hardcore, you’ll wind up with Tommy’s fingers; the smell from the chili lingers on your hands for the rest of the night. And then you’re hungry AGAIN!
Tommy’s
2575 W. Beverly Blvd.
LA CA 90057
213-389-9060

I went back to University Park, (home of my alma mater and the Greatest Marching Band in the History of the Universe) Los Angeles during my last visit.
It’s changed a lot since I was a resident student here back in the day. For one thing, they’re building a new events center across the street from campus. Big lah! Used to have a parking lot there.
But no worries, because there’s new structures being built! But not everything is new and trendy. The old traditional stuff is still here. The 9-0. Traddie’s on campus. And Manny’s.

Um, it says Chano’s
OK, I don’t know why we always called it Manny’s when the name on the establishment, the signage, the drive thru and on our credit card bills always says “Chano’s”. I really don’t remember where the name came from. Can anyone refresh my memory as to why?
Manny’s Chano’s is a classy outdoorsy place in the vein of Tommy’s except Chano’s has outdoor seating. You walk up to the front of the shack, order, wait and then when your food is ready, take it over here to eat. There’s a good mix of people here, depending on what time of the day and year you are here.

Outdoor seating that Tommy’s dun have!
This place holds a lot of memories for Trojans of all stripes. Mostly of their “wake-up burrito” that to this day, I don’t know what it’s made of.

Nor do I WANT to know. Ever.
All I do know is that it is effective in the “hangover cure” category. I’ve been there late on weekend nights many times in the past eating here. On other days, I’m here for lunch ordering a “machaca Burrito, sour cream and mucho hot sauce“, por favor.
A machaca is spicy shredded beef, scrambled egg and beans cooked on the griddle hot and then tossed into a waiting tortilla. Then the hot sauce and sour cream (extras) are plopped on and then it’s wrapped up and handed over to you. Mmmmm. Hot mouthburning goodness!

Ready to eat lah! No other pix available cuz busy eating…
Chano’s Drive Inn
3000 S. Figueroa
LA CA 90007
213-747-3944

Let’s see…I had a McD’s Sausage McMuffin w/egg on Sat AM. Del Taco Macho Burrito and a Bahia robusto for lunch. Followed by quiche, fruit salad, ravioli and a toll house cookie for dinner.
Then the next day, fish and chips and a full Chinese banquet lovingly ordered. Then today where it was a mole burrito at a local taquiria followed by lots of beer.
Where would I eat such a melange of different kinds of cuisines? Where else but Southern California!
It’s not Asia but it IS out of San Francisco. And the only place where I’d subject my stomach to such differing food! Ha ha.

This past weekend was the quarterly open house held by Rosenblum Cellars in Alameda.

The building ain’t glam, but the wine sure is!
I wound up going despite the flakiness of two ppl I asked along (like they’re getting a wine-related invite next time!). Got comped lah! Tasting of 20+ wines, snacky foods and a Riedel wine glass. Whatta bargain!

Besides this healthy spread, there were snausages, satay and white castle type burgers. And Zinfindel ice cream!

Riedel Glasses for tasting!
The tasting was held both inside the winery and outside in the parking lot. Despite an unseasonal rain (which kept a lot of people inside, wimps!), the crowd was managable and an atmosphere of “chill” in addition to a lot of “smug” made the event a good one. There was a lot of wine!

There’s a lotta wine in those tanks & barrels…
Naturally, after tasting and eating for three hours, there was another place to visit. Hangar One, a boutique vodka label that makes its wares in a hanger in the old Alameda Naval Air Station (where they keep dee nu-clear wessels). Great vodka, even though it’s a bit pricey.

This is what they distill vodka with

And this is how they display it!
I tried some tea infused vodka called Q1. It was like the kind of tea you want at 0200 after you get kicked out of the bars for last call…
Here’s a shot of The City from Alameda in the rain. Wah!

Andrea (from the UK via Cessnock) taught me this one (she learned it from a fellow backpacker), which I found repeated in the Switzerland section of the Lonely Planet Central Europe volume.
When drinking, always wait until everyone has their drink and toast each of your companions, looking them in the eye and clinking glasses. Drinking before the toast is unforgivable and will lead to seven years of bad sex, according to the superstition.
Hmmm. That would explain a great many things…since I dun drink as much as I used to!!!