J, K and V.













[img]http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n29/birddown/IMG_4077_zps6986b4b8.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n29/birddown/IMG_4030_zpsc17988a2.jpg[/img]

I'm coming back for that!

You have made me hungry...thanks KG

GFY!!!!!!!!

Going to add a little bit of hot sauce or soy sauce and eat the pics.

I knew better than to open this...

Nice pics, KG.

Drooling here.....

I'll be right back. Gotta go get a bib...

Ed

save some for me!

I'd like to try eating at restaurants like these, but living in Northern Lower Michigan, it's a looong ways to salt and cultural areas like these.

I've tried local cuisine from Alaska to Mexico and Maine, but never this.
I worked in Boston for 6 months in 1983? traveling from suburban Detroit.
Three buddies and me stayed a couple of their dad's in a furnished apartment across what was then a demolished building lot from the "Combat Zone" and "Chinatown"? Never ate in one though. Looks like I missed some good eats.

that's no restaurant, that's casa de honda

WOW Leighton - nice work - salivatin' here. What's the scene?

dang that look delicious. Jealous here in Oklahoma!

Good food is where you find it. KG clearly has a particular knack for such an endeavor. I put on weight just reading his posts.

But if I'm in Grayling, I'm going to the Lone Pine for the best Canadian bacon anywhere. Then maybe to the restaurant downtown with all the commemorative Winchester levers on the wall for the best chicken noodle soup in the north. Might hit the eats place in the hotel south of town for their Bloody Mary - it's like its own meal and then of course, Spike's Keg O Nails for a burger and a beer.

Head west to TC for real deal foody experience. It's becoming nationally known for their diverse cuisine. Even Mario Batale (sp?) has a place near there. Or the Rowe Inn in Ellsworth. They should be doing some very cool things with Morels right about now. It's out there brother, you just got to search it out.

L, tell us about the bottom pic in your second post.

looks like Pho

Hi lads. Thanks for the comments. OK, in the top pics are shots from a tiny mom and pop Korean joint we found by happenstance. Sundubu chige is the red soupy dish. The noodles and seafood stew is just that. The side dishes are gratis and come with the Korean entrees. Pickled cukes, daikon, eggplant, tofu, onion, kim chi, etc. There's also a scallion pancake and a dish called lajoki, which is a lightly floured chicken fried with assorted veggies in a spicy red chili sauce.

There is also broiled and raw squid (Denny, the pic you asked about are ika nigiri [squid sushi] that my wife made for me and my brother from the guys I caught the other day in Nantucket Sound.

The last is a Vietnamese pho; 'Xe Lua', with extra tendon. Just outstanding stuff, and we found that place, Pho 88, the other day in a nearby town. A great spot a 25 minute drive away. There have been times where I have been so desperate for a big bowl of pho that I've slogged back into town just to get a fix. Now that we have a place of comparable quality than the place in Boston that I've been going for 20 years, I am a happy, happy chappie.

Jcubed, you know where we are.

Thanks for the kind comments, gents.

Is the 88 for good luck ?

Chinese place in Pa. was named 88 thus the question.

I realize that the reference below is to the link between Chinese and 88, but keep in mind there are plenty of ethnic Chinese that wound up in Vietnam as their adopted country. Just ask Digital Dan...


Note the pronunciation of the number 8 is 'fa'.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/88_%28number%29#Cultural_significance

Cultural significance
In Chinese culture
Further information: numbers in Chinese culture

Number 88 symbolizes fortune and good luck in Chinese culture, since the word 8 sounds similar to the word Fā (发, which implies 发财, or wealth, in Mandarin or Cantonese). The number 8 is considered to be the luckiest number in Chinese culture, and prices in Chinese supermarkets often contain many 8s. The shape of the Chinese character for 8 (八) implies that a person will have a great, wide future as the character starts narrow and gets wider toward the bottom. The Chinese government has been auctioning auto license plates containing many 8s for tens of thousands of dollars. The 2008 Beijing Olympics opened on 8/8/08 at 8 p.m.[1]

Gonna write 88 all over my mailbox.

Hoping to hear from publishers cleaning house,............

I was still a hellion back in those days, and the 'Zone was still alive, but on its way to its deserved death. Chinatown expanded and some smart entrepreneurs recognized that the real estate in what was Boston's red light district could both be put to better, more profitable use, but also rid the area of the seediest, dirtiest and scummiest part of Boston. I've not a single good memory from the days was the Combat Zone was still a reality. Well, maybe a couple. A buddy of mine used to bounce at a place called the Glass Slipper. A fine establishment it wasn't, but the, uh, ladies were plentiful and remarkably friendly, even to strangers. But then you know how *that* goes...

lol

As always, fantastic pictures. More and more, I think that (with guidance) I could break free from my traditional reticence.

So you're a "mo pho" kind of guy?



Okay, that was cheesy. I'm here nightly, two shows on Saturday, and don't forget to tip your waitress.


Extra tendon? Seriously? Who knows to order that?! I am such a rookie at this.

Pho' sho'!



In your standard beef Pho (actually pronounced 'fah', or 'fuh') there are several different cuts/types of beef. Flank, brisket, tripe, ground/meatball, and connective tissues (my that sounds appetizing! ) such as tendon. The tendon is not for everyone, but I LOVE the stuff. Sort of like the rich stuff one finds on oxtail, or on the bone on ossobucco. Funny, but my brother remembers the first time I ever tried pho, in a place in Allston back in the early 90s. I ordered the 'Xe Lua', which is basically the large size beef rice noodle soup with everything. When I got to the piece of tendon, I picked it up, trying to puzzle out what it was. My brother and I both were stumped, and one of us said, 'wait a sec; is that a fuggin' EAR?' After we regained our composure I then shrugged and ate it. I order extra now.

To make the tendon tender enough to eat it has to be cooked for many hours. The consistency is very slightly chewy, but oh so rich and tasty. Every pho place is different, but good ones are must haves for anyone, IMO. I can think of 7 or eight rogues I met here who I've taken to try it. Not a single complaint to date...



In the third pic there is a piece of tendon visible, but all of them have it.

NOTHING! and I mean NOTHING! like that around here.

Well then, be a problem solver, my man.

http://www.inspiredtaste.net/4307/vietnamese-soup-pho/

If you get the gumption to give it a whirl, but have trouble finding any ingredients (spices, rice noodles, sprouts or whatever), just hit me. I'd be happy to two day anything you can't find. All I need in return is a couple of pics and a report of how you made out. Serious offer.

Thanks KG,saved the video on my computer.

You bet.

You ever this far West,I'll take you coyote calling and eat some mexican food.

I had a Mexican GF for almost a decade. She had family and homes in Oaxaca and Baja, and lord, the food in both places was wonderful. I appreciate the offer, but be careful: I'm known to actually follow through on such things...

Ken we have a place called Pho Saigon in Casper but bring your appetite even for a small bowl.

Yep. Most places here have 3 sizes: small, large and gluttons 'R' us, which is the one I always get. Seriously though, the XL has damn near a half gallon of broth and all the other goodies in it. Impossible to beat, especially considering most places offer the XL for between 7 and 9 bucks.

Hmmmmmmm,we have meatloaf and if ya wnna drve 2-1/2 hrs. there's a hot dog place,.......

i just ran off some sour mash and my daughter is bringing me a bowl of Pho.

So,... you're ASKING to be put on ignore ?

Going into PHO withdrawl here and I've never had a bowl

Might be able to pull it off if I can get some beef bones. I will ask.

http://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2008/10/pho-beef-noodle-soup.html

Yes/No ??????

Phooey

I got yer Pho right here, dude
Really gotta rub it in don't ya?

Looks and likely smells like the slew of places just down the road here in Okpo.

Don't forget your camo clothing.

Great pics. I recognized some of the Korean dishes from my mum's cooking. Lord I miss Her.

88 is also Nazi skinhead code for "heil hitler".prominent display of it will probably make some new friends for you.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=88

No higher praise than that. Kamsamnida.

That's nice and thanks for the 'warning', but that particular flavor of vermin doesn't exist in this neck of t'woods.

'81' here has some significance, and strong membership in some places, however...

and too think I was bisching about labor intense pot stickers.

Just amazing food art Leighton! Amazing!!!!

Glad, and sorry as well for that a memory trigger, friend Mac.

I bet that tendon is good. I always order my menudo con pata. I love those pigs feet in the broth.

can't stand bones

I love them. Especially when they're wearing lots of tasty meat!

Kind thanks, bud.

Yes.