Cattleman's Steakhouse

I saw something on the Travel Channel about steak houses in the U.S. and they mentioned Cattleman's. I decided that I would make an effort to try it during my trip to El Paso. Cattleman's is located outside of El Paso near Faben's. It's about a 15 min. drive to get to the Faben's exit. Then you follow a two lane road to Cattleman's.

Once you arrive there, there are several gates to enter the ranch. As we entered the ranch I saw the 'petting zoo' area. They had deer, an emu, bunnies, peacocks, and other animals.

This is the entrance to the restaurant. Right inside is a some kind of mini calvary museum.

A long western themed hallway leads to the hostess station.

This was our view from the restaurant. Pretty.

As for the food....we didn't get appetizers. I ordered the 10 oz. ribeye and my companion ordered the 'Cowgirl' ( a 1 1/2 lb. T-bone steak). The dinners came with bread, pineapple coleslaw, texas beans and your choice of potato, corn, or rice.

The steaks were perfectly cooked. I loved the slaw and beans. My companion enjoyed his steak but I didn't like mine. I thought that it was over salted ( actually it tasted too salty). The bread they served was not freshly baked. They were rolls that seemed stale. It was a lot of food, which we didn't finish. I think the two dinners came to about $70 with tip. I'm glad I got to try Cattleman's, but I doubt we will return.

Whataburger

I was introduced to Whataburger about 5 years ago. I liked that it is open 24/7 and their drink cups are stryofoam (to keep drinks nice and cold in that hot Texas weather). Driving around El Paso, I noticed as many Whataburgers as Sonics.

Basically, you order your food and pay at the counter. They give you drink cups and a number to take back to your table. When your food is ready, they bring it out to your table. And there is some kid that walks around with condiments on a tray. This was my first time eating inside a Whataburger. Usually we just go in the drive thru.

What can I say about the food? Simple. I got the #1 combo (whataburger, fries, and a drink). The burger comes with lettuce, tomatoe, chopped onions, and mustard. Looks like a small patty doesn't it?

I enjoyed the food. It isn't amazing but it beats McDonald's. Everytime I see a Whataburger sign, I am reminded of the cartoon King of the Hill. I love the show because I used to watch it with my father. And the show mentions Whataburger a few times. They also mention Chico's Tacos but I didn't get to go there during this trip.

I forgot to add that they serve a breakfast menu as well. My favorite item from it is the honey chicken biscuit. It's a biscuit with honey and a fried chicken tender in it.

Bumsted's Tucson, AZ

Bumsted's

500 N. 4th Ave.

Tucson, AZ

(520)622-1413
http://www.bumstedstucson.com/

I went on a roadtrip to El Paso, TX last week. It was a short trip. On my way there I drove through Tucson. This was my first time stopping in Tuscon. I had looked up places to eat at in Tucson on Yelp. It was between Bumsted's and a place that made banh mi's. I decided that I would wait to go to Saigon Sandwiches when I returned to San Diego.

The interior of Bumsted's was not what I was expecting. When you walk in, there are booths and a long hallway. Off to the right is a big room painted in some kind of wine and purple. And chandeliers.
This is what you see when you fist walk in. That display case is filled with desserts. I think various cheesecakes, custards, and cakes.
As for the food....my companion ordered the BLT with dorito chips. And I got the Mega-Byte which is a club sandwich with sweet potato fries. We were starving after our long drive so I almost forgot to take pictures before we started eating so forgive partially eaten sandwiches. The sandwiches were HUGE. Both of us could only eat half of our sandwiches. I didn't try the BLT but was told it was great. Notice they messed up our order and served my fries with my companion's sandwich.

As for my sandwich, it was big and filling. It had ham, turkey, roast beef, lettuce, tomatoe, red onions, and mayo on it. My only complaint was the bread. It tasted 'not freshly baked'. I've had better bread elsewhere. They served their sandwiches with pickle spears and ketchup with the fries. The fries were over cooked and just not very good. I was expecting fat sweet potato fries, but these were shoestring style.

For two sandwiches, one soda, and a water came to $23. Seemed kind of high for just sandwiches. I don't know if I would recommend Bumsted's. It was okay.

Sop Tulang

(Picture taken from the site www.eatbma.blogspot.com)

My current food obssession is sop tulang after seeing it on No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain. I don't think I'll ever make it to Singapore in the near future so I will have to find a recipe online or find a restaurant around here that serves it. I'm not sure why I'm so fascinated with the dish, perhaps it's the bright, red coloring or sucking up the tasty marrow. It just looks like good, fun eating.

Pizzeria Luigi

Pizzeria Luigi

1137 25th Street

San Diego, CA

(619)233-3309

Every Saturday is 'pizza night' in my house. I haven't found a pizza place in San Diego that I 'love' yet. I love Giordano's in Chicago and Lucca Grill in Bloomington. Those two are complete opposites. Giordano's has the deep dish Chicago style crust where as Lucca's has the thin, cracker like crust. I haven't found a place in San Diego that compares to either. We've tried Lefty's. Something in the sauce was lacking. Oggi's was just 'okay'. New York Giant pizza was just 'bleh'. Da Boyz is so-so. I think Uno's is good. I really enjoy their buttery crust.

I will admit that I heard about Luigi's after watching an episode of Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. In it, the owner bragged about using bottled water in the pizza dough and that made all the difference. I had to test this out.

We called in our order and headed over to Luigi's. It was easy to get to from the 94. I think Luigi's is across the street from the Turf Supper Club (another place I want to try). Parking was ridiculous as is with everyother place in San Diego. We parked on the street and went inside. There was a long line. It's a small place with some outdoor seating. Most of the people there were getting single slices for take out or dine in. The pizza looked delicious. The toppings looked fresh and tasty, especially the Mona Lisa (it's like a supreme pizza). The wait was not long and we paid for our 2 pizzas and headed home.

I got the Donatello which is an 18" white pizza (no sauce) with 3 cheeses (ricotta, mozzerella, and romano). It was 'okay'. Nothing special. I may have liked it more if the crust had been more crispy and thin and if the ricotta had been spread out more rather than being in huge mounds on the pizza.

I didn't eat the pepperoni. I'm not a fan. I'll eat it if it's on a supreme pizza. But pepperoni alone doesn't interest me. Overall, I didn't care that much for the crust. I may have to try Bronx Pizza to do a comparison.

Shopping

I find myself drawn to certain items when I'm out grocery shopping. Even with a list, I tend to pick up that things I crave like cha lua and gio thu (I always have bahn mi on the brain).

And of course pickled carrots and daikon.

Vietnamese baguette.

More baked goods.

Summer rolls.

Tapioca desserts and steamed cakes.

I was actually on a mission today. I was looking for a special pan for something I want to cook.

I am getting closer to finding it.

I was surprised by the large selection at Vieng Dong Market.

Yay! I found the pan. Guess what it's for.

Here's a clue.

More to come. Just give me some time, Dallaslao! :)

What Have I Been Up To?

A whole year has passed since I last posted. It was a long needed break. I had been busy with school and family. I think I am now ready to start blogging again. I have to admit I was inspired after reading DallasLao's Blog http://dallaslao.wordpress.com/ . He reminded me that he blogs to share his experiences with people like myself. And I love reading blogs. I haven't been keeping up with my usual list of blogs, except perhaps Kirk's mmm-yoso http://mmm-yoso.typepad.com/ .