Tacos Mexico

Another one of those places where you drive by almost all your life and never even notice its existence.  Behold, Tacos Mexico and its $.075 taco Tuesday/Wednesdays:

Six asada tacos spread on a plate.  Photo taken w/ friend's iPhone.

Typically when I want to satisfy my after-dinner Mexican fast-food cravings, I go to Taco Del Rio on Azuza in La Puente.  $6 gets you a monster burrito with all the fixings.  Their tacos are also generously portioned and priced at just over a buck.  What we ate as UCSD students can't even compare to TDR.

...fucking Sergios, Cotixan, Robertos, Rigobertos....ugggh I'm not gonna continue listing them.

Then I was told about Tacos Mexico in Hacienda Hts who are open 24/7.  $0.99 gets you a taco that tastes just like a street taco.  So effin' satisfying.  To hell with my East LA taco crawls.  I'll save myself the drive and just come here.  You'll finish a taco in 3-5 bites (2 if you're a pig) so order a lot of 'em at once if you're hungry.

They serve other stuff too like sopes, gordidas, and breakfast items.  Combo plates also available.  I think I'll keep it simple and just stick with the tacos.  Their meats are pretty decent--well seasoned and juicy.  But, Taco Del Rio meats taste better.  You'll just have to decide whether you want  a street taco from Tacos Mexico or a more meat-oriented Taco Del Rio.

I've read the Yelp reviews on this place and I have to disagree with some of them.  Jason K and Neil's reviews are pretty spot on though.  Yes, this won't be a mind-blowing, life-altering gastronomic experience, but at these prices and their 24/7 business hours, the value is pretty goddamn good for what you get.  The place is clean, tacos aren't soggy with oil, & the meat tastes good. Just make sure you come early enough while it's still freshly cooked.  I'd say a 3 star rating.  My second choice after TDR, which closes at 10:30ish.




Tacos Mexico
1133 Hacienda Blvd
Hacienda Heights, CA 91745

Fresh Donuts

No this is not a post about my home cooking adventures.  The donut shop is called Fresh Donuts.  In my opinion, three of their donuts are wickedly good.  The best in their category that I've had to date.

So uh...I actually planned on higher stacks of donuts for the photo-shoot, but I ate too many on the drive back home...

From the top: Devil's Food, Honey Oat, Blueberry.  

What sets Fresh Donuts apart from other shops is that their donuts feel light and clean on the palate because they are less sweet and oily than most.  It also tastes like they change the frying oil frequently.  (Fry enough donuts at home and you'll know what I mean.) Crumb structure is also pretty good, although I've had some inconsistencies with the traditional buttermilk in the past.

The Devil's Food has a strong cocoa presence and doesn't feel bogged down by oil and sugar when its in your mouth.  It is very common to see this type of donut suck up mindblowing amounts of oil as it cooks.  Another common mistake is to overload it with sugar like all creations from Krispy Kreme.  BTW, KK makes bad donuts.  Sorry if you're a fan, but it's true.

Honey Oat is something I don't see very often in donut shops.  Maybe they sell out when I get there or something.  I don't know.  Fresh Donuts achieves a perfect balance of sweetness and nuttiness that keeps me coming back every week for more.

Blueberry is also particularly noteworthy.  They don't skimp when it comes to ingredients.  Each donut contains a generous handful of berries so your mouth and nose will be filled with blueberry aroma with every bite.  Freakin' amazing.

I have a larger version of the following photo as my wallpaper.  Always brightens my spirits when I look at it.

I've also had the chance to try all their yeast-raised donuts (ie. OG glazed, sugar coated, bear claw, apple fritter, etc).  These are merely average.  There has not been a single donut shop whose yeast-raised dough can compete with mine.  I even find popular ones like Cafe Dulce's to be lackluster, if not slightly below average--especially given their high prices.

Restaurants, however, are a different story.  Mariah Swan (former pastry chef at Grace and currently at BLD) always impresses me.



Fresh Donuts  (next to Trader Joe's)
409 Avenida De Los Arboles
Thousand Oaks, CA 91360
805.492-0566

Ching Guang Market, Taipei

Yesssss!  Found more of my photos.  A few of these are from Ching Guang Market (晴光市場) in Taipei.  I have family who live just a five minutes walk away.  A lot of the vendors have been here for decades and super duper nice to the residents who are regulars.  They'll only be very nice to you, however.  For some reason, Taiwanese are so much more genuinely friendly and welcoming compared to Americans.  This is especially true in the South or in smaller cities.

 Chicken sausage.  Crispy skin 'cuz nothing is better than frying a sausage.

 Fried tofu.  Crispy outside, silky and delicate on the inside.  Fun contrast in your mouth.  The quality of tofu used was excellent.  Very rich.  You could actually taste the soybeans and their subtle sweetness.

My aunt loves this vendor's goose.  I don't know how to describe the taste...its like...duck-but-not-really?Tender yet still has enough chew.  Taiwanese don't like mushy meat.  We want some toothiness and spring to the texture.  But of course, the oh so "Q" skin is the best part.  Very lightly salted and seasoned but it'll make your mouth water all the same.


*sniff*  *sniff sniff*  HEY.  THAT SMELL.  I KNOW IT!  I WANT IT!

baboom. Fried stinky tofu.  Fried of the left, boiled in a ma-la (literally: numbingly hot) base on the right.  My favorite Taiwanese dish.  The more pungent, the better.

Some people (foreigners, usually) are put off by the smell.  But, I want to help spread the word that this is the equivalent of a "fragrant" cheese.  I think Zimmerman (Bizarre Foods) did an episode in Taiwan and was pleasantly surprised at how the smell in no way reflected the taste.  Not sure, but I think his tofu was grilled in that episode...  IMO, fried is the only way to go.  It'll taste nuttier.  Try it.  You might like it.  The fried preparations usually come with spicy picked cabbage and hot sauce.  A big plus.

On a related note, I find it funny that the Taiwanese love stinky tofu but are hesitant about trying stinky cheeses...


I'll update this post after I find and process more photos.  I don't know how my portfolio got out of sync.  In the meantime, check out Jin's post on this very same market.  Damn I miss Taiwan and its good eats...if you want comfort food, look no further than Taiwanese cuisine.  So much rich, satisfying, fried, carby goodness.

Beijing

About the same time I went AWOL from food blogging and Fb, I worked in Beijing for awhile.  The experience opened my eyes and showed me how different life is across the strait.  I lived most of my childhood in Taiwan and head over there twice a year (sometimes more) since I moved back to the States.  Figured life in China wouldn't be so different from Taiwan since both countries speak Mandarin Chinese and are so geographically close that I swear you could swim from one shore to the other.

Nope.  So very very wrong.  What a culture shock.  The only thing I could reasonably relate to was Mandarin Chinese, but even then Beijing residents speak in the northeastern accent....which to me is the equivalent of Californian vs a heavy fake Cockney accent.  You know they're speaking the same language, but sometimes you just don't know wtf they're saying.

Yeah okay this isn't a travel blog.  On to the food!

Beef noodle soup is actually a pretty common dish for both Chinese and Taiwanese.  The restaurant was fairly well known for theirs, so I gave it a shot because I was curious to compare it to all the Taiwanese ones I've had.  The broth here was heartier and deeper in flavor than what I usually have.  Good stuff.

Supplemented my noodles with an order of cumin lamb skewers that were grilled over charcoal.  You'll see meat skewers at a lot of restaurants, especially during summer.  They have a big grill outside using wood charcoal to impart a wonderful smokey flavor.  They also do beef and chicken with a variety of seasonings.  I particularly like the spicy Schezwan peppercorns and crushed chiles.  Spicy even by my standards.

Here's some mediocre Zhajiang mian.  My mother makes a better sauce.  Those house noodles were terrific though.  Good tooth and flavor.  FYI, you're supposed to mix all of that together.

Okay so this is what a typical casual restaurant's decor might look like.  Pretty damn cool huh?

Now an example from fine dining:

NEATO!

Calamari from a stone pot @ one of the pricier restaurants.  One thing I've noticed is that many low to mid-end restaurants in Beijing will typically use a noticeably superfluous amount of oil to prepare each dish.  Nice n fancy establishments use just the right amount.

Rack of lamb Frenched and fried with chili peppers and peanuts.  Best. Freaking. Dish. EVAR!!  Dramatic presentation to match its equally impressive taste.  So many intense and complex flavors here.  Texture of the lamb was just out of this world too--crisp on the outside and oh so very very tender and juicy inside.  To mix things up a bit, you can crunch on the peppers too.  Might be hard to tell from the photo, but the ribs are pretty darn big.

Hey check out this out of place, uninspiring photo.  What gives?  Well I was too excited and eager to dig in, so I snapped one shot without any thought to composition.  One does not go to Beijing and not eat Peking Duck.  My god I ate so much duck.  From the very best at Quan Ju De (and its equivalents) to the "oh hey this is still good!" at neighborhood restaurants.  What we have in SoCal doesn't even compare.

I think it was around this time when I stopped taking food photos in Beijing.  It was a lot easier (and more enjoyable) to just sit back in a restaurant, take it all in, and enjoy the new experiences.


Oh! And for some giggles, here is a Starbucks located across from Tienanmen Square:

Cracked me up when I saw it.  It's located in a super touristy shopping attraction.  They pretty much built a whole shopping district in the historical Chinese style.  Worth a look if you're in the area.


Makes me sad to think all the good eats I had in Beijing can't be had here.