No Name Deli - Columbia, SC

Columbia has a plethora of "hole in the walls" that all the locals know about, but you would never find or even casually run across unless you talk to one of them. No Name Deli, on the corner of Marion and Elmwood, definitely falls into this category. Even though it's on Elmwood, which is an exit of I-126, I drove past it probably a dozen times while on the way to somewhere else without noticing it. And yet, it is one of the most popular delis in the downtown Columbia area, and, for good reason, because it offers a great variety of deli sandwiches, soups, and specials, including a Greek salad the restaurant claims is the best in the Carolinas (a claim that I can't really verify, because I haven't ordered it yet, and I don't like Greek salads enough to try every one in North and South Carolina, so I'll take their word on it).

A couple of random notes about the place so you look like a local when you walk in =): first, the place only takes cash, no credit cards. Second, if the place gets busy (which it does, often by 11:40 during lunch), on the floor, there is a yellow brick path that snakes around, so the line doesn't extend out the door, and remains in the restaurant. Third, you order at the counter and they go fast, so be ready to know what you want to eat before you reach there, so you won't hold up the line.

Because this is a deli in the South, why not offer five flavors of sweet tea? =) Their wide variety of sweet tea is pretty amazing to me (although sometimes, it is a bit too sweet for me); the sheer number of flavors of sweet tea beats everywhere else I've been to in the South so far. As you can see, they have a pretty wide menu of sandwiches with deli meats and hot cooked meats, soups of the day, and a whole bunch of specials on the right side, including my favorite, the Monterey Chicken sandwich...
Although this chicken sandwich isn't quite as good as Drake's in my opinion (another local place in downtown Columbia, I have a short post for there, if you're interested), it is quite good anyway, as well as a bit different. The Monterey chicken sandwich consists of a breaded fried chicken filet (usually decently juicy), bacon, swiss cheese, and some shredded lettuce and tomato on the side. It comes with a side of either fries (which are usually extra crispy and fresh, quite delicious), or mayo or vinegar pasta salad (the mayo is pictured above) . They are really generous with their portions, so it makes for a great, if filling, lunch meal.

Quick Eats - Vietnamese sandwiches a plenty

One of my favorite foods for lunch is a good sandwich, and one of my favorite sandwiches (other than a good chicken salad sandwich) is a Vietnamese french bread sandwich (aka bahn mi, in Vietnamese). The foodie in me loves bahn mi because when it is done well, there are a lot of different aspects to enjoy - from the warm outer texture of a freshly baked french baguette to the sweet crunchy pickled carrots and daikon inside, cilantro, pate spread, and various Vietnamese sliced meats (and for those that love spicy foods, the sliced chili peppers, which I take out!). And the part of me that enjoys a cheap meal (which started in Berkeley during college; I appreciated anything cheap, good, and filling that makes a good meal) loves bahn mi because a sandwich is no more than $2.25 a sandwich, and that is on the expensive end...normally, they are between $1.50 and $2.00.

Here are a couple of my favorite bahn mi places in Los Angeles and Orange County, introduced to me by different Viet friends of mine over the years:

This first one is a photo of Bahn Mi Che Cali - although there are not as many of these as the ubiquitous Lee's Sandwiches, they are expanding from the Little Saigon area in Orange County to parts of the SGV in Los Angeles, and the sandwiches here are MUCH better than Lee's Sandwiches - kind of like comparing McDonald's to In-N-Out. One of the greatest things about Bahn Mi Che Cali is their "Buy 2, get 1 free" special (just when you thought it couldn't get cheaper!!)

This particular store is the one closest to me that I often drive to - on the southern part of Brookhurst in Fountain Valley. A random note - I heard from my friend David that the best Bahn Mi Che Cali is somewhere north of here (I think on Bolsa?), because there are Viet grandmothers making it at that location, which makes it better! =) I never personally confirmed it, but amusing nevertheless.



A photo of the sandwich itself. The bread here is usually soft, with a slightly crunchy outside - although the bread quality does up and down depending on the location - I heard some of the newer places in the SGV may be having some quality control problems. =(. It is a good size - one can definitely constitute a whole meal, and they are also very liberal with the sandwich filling - lots of pickled vegetables, etc.

A close-up photo of the bahn mi, for those who are a bit more unfamiliar with bahn mi. Here is Vietnamese Sandwich making 101: every bahn mi comes with the long, skinny pieces of orange and white are the pickled carrot and daikon, cilantro, and tot viewable is a mayo/pate spread that they often put in Vietnamese bahn mi. What varies in each bahn mi is the meat filling - in this one, the pink and white sliced meats are various Vietnamese meats (ham, etc.).

Mr. Baguette is on Valley Blvd. (btw. Walnut Grove and Rosemead Blvd) right on the border of Rosemead/San Gabriel, and it is one of my favorite places in the San Gabriel Valley for a bahn mi because they offer it with a different type of french bread than the regular places.



Mr. Baguette offers a french baguette with sesame, which makes for an interesting change on the standard taste and texture of the bahn mi. You can get either the sesame baguette or the regular baguette (see below).

A photo of a bahn mi without sesame: the baguette here is very fresh, but is more on the thin and crunchy side than Bahn Mi Che Cali, which might appeal to those who don't like the soft, chewy texture of other baguettes.
Mr. Baguette separates out the pickled vegetables and the chili peppers, so it doesn't make the sandwich soggy, and keeps the ingredients fresher in case the bahn mi is taken to go; it is a small touch, but something which I appreciate greatly! =) (especially since I usually have to go hunting for the chili peppers to take them out of the sandwich, since I don't like to have it spicy).

Here is my favorite banh mi place in Los Angeles/Orange County: a place named "Tan Hoang Huong Bakery"; it is in a small plaza on the corner of Edinger and Ward in Fountain Valley.

Here's why it's my favorite: the baguette is thick, slightly crunchy on the outside, with a soft and chewy texture in the middle. Also, they are liberal with the pickled vegetables, they add cucumber, and there is no mayo, just a pate spread. For me, this banh mi is incredibly delicious!
A type of Vietnamese spring roll with Vietnamese pork from Tan Hoang Huong Bakery with a dipping sauce; any good bahn mi place will offer other small dishes to order with the bahn mi like spring rolls, etc. (something which Bahn Mi Che cali does as well).

Quick Eats - Jerry's Wood Fired Hot Dogs

I stumbled onto this place while searching for good lunch places in the Santa Ana area (as anyone who is friends with me knows, one of the primary things I think about in the morning is where I am going to eat for lunch). It is a bit of a drive from downtown Santa Ana, but well worth it! (A note for anyone eating at this place…DON’T do take out for these hot dogs…they are freshly grilled, and I discovered that everything gets really soggy extremely fast if it sits in a bag for too long! =P ). To avoid that this time, I went with my friend Huong, and we ate at the restaurant. Incredibly busy, though!

As the name of this place implies, they grill their hot dogs (and sausages) over a wood fired grill. What a great idea…brilliant in its simplicity. They need to spread these restaurants to more places!

They take their hot dogs and sausages seriously here…there are tons of different toppings that you can put on your dog. It is really tempting to load up on everything that you like…but your hot dog ends up being impossible to eat in the end (this, I learned from my first unfortunate experience, where I asked them to put on seven toppings, including cole slaw…it tasted good, but there was too much going on at the same time, and it made for a ridiculously impossible hot dog to eat!)

I ordered a Baja Dog, with ketchup, grilled onions, relish, and mushrooms.

Huong ordered a Bavarian bratwurst with ketchup, spicy brown mustard, saukraut, relish, mushrooms, grilled onions, and tomatoies. We both completed the meal with some french fries. Sometimes, the flavor of a well-grilled hot dog is impossible to beat! Go Jerry!

Quick Eats - Bento Boxes at Bentoss

The other day, I heard from my friend David about a new good Japanese take-out restaurant that opened up, named Bentoss. It is right near the Mitsuwa market off Paularino, in that 7-11 plaza. I ended up thinking about bento box meals throughout con law, and by the time class ended, I was starving for one, so I sped over to Bentoss, in hopes that it didn't close before I got there. I was lucky that it was still open (closes at 8:30 pm, I believe), and here are the results of my drive...


A photo of the inside of the restaurant; they have a whole bunch of bento box meals which you can choose from...tasty! And although the photo doesn't show it very well, there are two small tables in the restaurant - don't plan to sit there, because it is really more of a take-out place.


So, I took a photo of the take-out menu because I was amused by it - they advertised Bentoss as a healthy take-out alternative, so I guess that is why they included a painting of green fields and yellow flowers, to evoke a feeling of natural ingredients and healthy living...ah, I feel better already.


Along with the main meal I ordered (below), I bought a spam musubi (or a spam onigiri/rice ball.) The one thing that was a little different about this was that the seaweed came separately, and had to be wrapped onto the rice ball, which turned out not so well for me =P.



So here is the bento box I ordered: the "Bentoss Makunouchi", with (starting from the upper left, going clockwise) fried pork and fried shrimp, beef (it was cold, but it tasted good), potato salad, mixed vegetables, and a piece of fish on a bed of rice (normally salmon, but evidently they ran out, and gave me saba instead). They are right - this is a lot healthier than getting other fast food (except for the fried foods)- thank god for options in the OC! =)

Quick Eats - Downtown L.A. lunch eats with my LBBS Friends

Here are a couple of places that I love to eat lunch at in downtown Los Angeles while at work (and beyond). There are two notable favorite places of mine that are missing, which I hope to get photos of someday: Papa Christo's (greek) and Phillipe's:


Langer's is one of my favorite places to eat lunch at, but only if I have a lot of time - they don't really go fast at this deli. Langer's is one of the classic downtown places that I think everyone should try at least once!




Here is the sandwich that I love from there - they make a killer pastrami and coleslaw on rye, with russian dressing. The combination is absolutely great for me - especially the saltiness of their pastrami with the cole slaw. And of course, no deli sandwich is complete without a pickle.


If you order fries at Langer's, you get the classic krinkle-cut french fries - it personally reminds me of memories from my elementary school cafeteria!


Next place on the list - a vietnamese sandwich (banh mi) place named Buu Dien - the only one I know of in downtown Los Angeles. It is in Chinatown, and is really kind of hard to find - the official address is 642 broadway, but it is a definite hole in the wall.

Funny note: "Buu Dien" literally means "post office" in Vietnamese. The restaurant is named after a very famous banh mi restaurant in Vietnam that is actually next to a post office (although the one here isn't, as far as I know).


So, this is what they offer - for all us non-vietnamese, it doesn't help very much, lol. And no english spoken. I always order the #1, which I think is the special? A new note: So, my Vietnamese friend Huong took a look at this post, and pointed out to me that the menu is in three different languages - vietnamese (on the left), english (center), and chinese (right), but it is all the same kinds of banh mi. Ah!


Anyway, so it has all the normal stuff for a special combo vietnamese sandwich - pate, various meats that I am never able to identify, pickled vegetables, and cilantro. When the french bread is fresh, this is one of the tastiest vietnamese sandwiches I have ever eaten. When it isn't, it is only ok =P. But, still better than driving out to the San Gabriel Valley just to get a banh mi.


The next place on my list of favorite lunch places in downtown LA is Angelique Cafe. It is a cute little french cafe in the Fashion district, and has lots of great french dishes, as well as salads and sandwiches. The photo above is of my favorite sandwich - a chicken salad sandwich, for those of you that know me well. Their fries are excellent for those that like thin crunchier fries ( as opposed to the thick, soft steak fries).


Here is another sandwich from Angelique Cafe that my friend Chris likes to order - a pate sandwich.




Ok, so these two last photos aren't from a place in downtown LA, but since my work friend Chris first introduced me to this place, I figure this is as good place as any for the posting.

There is a sushi place in Beverly Hills that is a favorite of Chris's named Mako - it is Japanese/Mediterranean fusion cuisine. It is very good, and I suggest going there if you have the opportunity. The first time I went there, I had an excellent meal, and one of the best desserts I have ever had - it was a dessert bento box, with 5 different desserts that I could eat. What a great idea!!! Anyway, so we went back this past summer.

The photo above is of their special lunch bento box. Sorry, I didn't write down what the various dishes were - although I can tell you that I personally thought that the first lunch bento box I had was better, because it had less meat, and more fish. This bento box seemed geared towards a more americanized palate this time - two different kinds of meat and noodles - the kobe meatballs were good, and the other one was ok. I didn't really like the noodles - they were completely ordinary, and not something I would expect from Mako, because he is a really good sushi chef - maybe the cook who made this messed up? Anyway, it was still a good bento box overall.


And here is our desserts. Not as great as the first dessert bento box I got (I think probably because my friend Chris knows Mako well), but it still had a lot of delicious desserts to choose from. We ordered two desserts, and they provided two more - the ice cream with fruit, and the cookies. They have really great desserts here, especially for a Japanese place, which is why I like coming here.

Quick Eats - Barney's Gourmet Hamburgers to go - San Francisco Trip

While I lived in Berkeley for college, one of every student's favorite places to go (other than Top Dog & Zachary's Chicago Pizza) was Barney's Gourmet Hamburgers, a local chain in the Bay Area. They put a lot of non-traditional ingredients in their burgers, but it makes it sooo good! When I went up to SF, I had to at least get some of these burgers to go - hence, the to go packaging in the photos... Jen ordered a North Beach burger - with sauteed mushrooms and artichoke hearts.
I ordered a "Sunshine Burger", with sprouts, aged cheddar cheese, and avocado on a whole wheat bun. Yes, you burger purists may scream in fury, but I think this burger tastes great with sprouts. Unfortunately, it seems that only in the Bay Area do they consistently offer sprouts as a choice in sandwiches and other foods, like burgers.
Some of Barney's curly fries - a perfect combination with the burgers. *drool*.

Quick Eats - Best In-N-Out in the World - Kettleman City

In-N'-Outs across the western U.S. are all good, to varying degrees - still better than any other burger out there, of course - but in my opinion, the In-N'-Out in Kettleman City - rather, off the Kettleman City exit of the I-5 up to San Francisco (or down to Los Angeles, whichever way you are heading), is always the best one for me. And it is not because I am hungry after a two/three hour drive from whichever place I left from - I have been full, but still tried eating a burger and it was still as good as always.
So why is this In'N'Out so good? I think that since it is in the California Central Valley, surrounded by fresh produce and a cow farm just north of there, it just tastes better. And it does - the ingredients are always fresh at that one, and for some reason, they always toast their hamburger buns just right. So, the burger comes out perfectly. And the fries are always fried just right - not too soft, not too crunchy. Just enough for the perfect texture.

I ordered my usual - two cheeseburgers, with grilled onions and extra tomatoes, and Jen ordered her burger - grilled onions and extra tomatoes. Jen is the one who introduced me to this particular combination - it is perfect, and especially perfect at this In-N'-Out. This is the one place I will always stop at on the drive, it is the best place to eat on the road by far!

Quick Eats - Yummy Sandwiches at Le Diplomate

So, here is one of my favorite hot sandwich places in the OC - Le Diplomate, in the University Center plaza (I think - the one with the In and Out) across from UC Irvine.

Note for Jerry: To get there from WLS, you can take the 405 South to the 73 south, and exit Campus Dr. Take Campus all the way to the plaza. Alternatively, take the 405 South, exit Jamboree. Hang a right at the exit and head south on Jamboree, then make a left onto Campus, all the way to the plaza.
Here's the menu...my friends and I usually order a chicken, broccoli mushroom sandwiches and eggplant sandwiches (with or without feta cheese, depending on the person), always with garlic sauce! =)

And two close-up shots of my favorite sandwich - a chicken, broccoli, mushroom sandwich, with garlic sauce - the photos don't do the sandwiches justice. The garlic sauce is a great invention of mankind - it makes any one of their sandwiches great. And they use a panini grill on their sandwiches, which makes them warm, crunchy, and soft on the inside. Eat it fresh, and it is ultra delicious.