Ledford House

Ledford House is located on Highway 1 in Albion, just south of Mendocino. They have a $30 3-course Bistro dinner. For a light dinner, I get oysters and fish soup.

Baked Oysters--6 for $16. It's a bread crumb and bacon topping and it's delicious.

Soupe d'Poisson--$12. This fish soup is very flavorful and reminiscent of the soup we had in Corsica. The aioli on top is delicious.

2019 08 09

Kitanoya

Kitanoya is a Japanese ramen place in Oxnard. It's located at 1651 Victoria Avenue.

Miso Ramen--$9.50. It comes with 1 piece of chasu pork & bamboo shoots. The noodles are toothy and the broth is good.

Add 4-pieces of Gyoza for $2.50.

We sat outdoors and had a nice view of the marina.

2019 07 27

Moqueca

Moqueca is a Brazilian restaurant in Oxnard. It's located at 3550 S. Harbor Blvd.

It's not your typical Brazilian Churrascaria.

Tapenade--$3. This is a vinegary eggplant & olive tapenade that is delicious.

Shellfish Moquequinha--$13 during lunch, served Tue-Fri 11:30-2:30 & Sat 12-3pm. This has such a nice flavor. I've tried to duplicate it but have not been successful. Alas, I have to wait until I can get to Oxnard to indulge.

I also tried Beef Stroganoff--$14. Beef cooked in a cream sauce with tomatoes, mushrooms, olives, and onions. It's topped with shoestring potatoes. Served with rice or fettucine pasta. This had a nice flavor but if I had to choose, I'd go with the moquequinha.

Salada de Camarao do Chef--sauteed large shrimp over mixed greens, sun dried tomatoes, roasted almonds, fresh mozzarella cheese served with balsamic vinegar dressing--$13.

2019 07 26 & 08 31

Embassy Suites Mandalay Bay

The Embassy Suites in Mandalay Bay is right on the ocean.

There is a large pool and the chaise lounges get taken early in the day.

There are 2-room suites. The living room has a pull-out sofa, a mini fridge and a microwave oven.

Full bathroom in the living room.

We were in Building 2 and had a room overlooking the lawn & beach.

You have a choice of 1 King bed or 2 Queens.

2nd bathroom in the bedroom.

Breakfast is served 6:30-9am Mon-Fri and 7-10am Sat-Sun.

You can get made-to-order eggs. I ask for mine with sausage, tomatoes, mushrooms and spinach (spinach isn't listed but you can ask for it). I tried green peppers once and it was too strong.

The hotel has an Evening Reception from 5:30-7:30 daily. You can get alcoholic drinks, non-alcoholic drinks and snacks--chips & salsa, veges with ranch sauce and pretzels.

2019 07 25

Splash Cafe

My favorite clam chowder is at Splash Cafe. It is so creamy and delicious. Just clams, potatoes, celery and onions. I'm a purist. Carrots do not belong in clam chowder.

They have a location in San Luis Obispo and in Pismo Beach.

The Pismo Beach location is the original one. It's located at 197 Pomeroy Ave. It gets very busy. When we arrived at 11 am on a weekday, the line was out the door.

You're greeted at the door with a surfer.

Pint of Clam Chowder--$7.50. You can get a 4-pack of frozen chowder for $19.95.

Grilled Sourdough--$2.75.

If you can't get to either location, here's their recipe:

New England Clam Chowder Recipe

3 8 oz bottles of clam juice 
1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and diced 
3 Tbsp of butter 
2 cups onions, chopped 
1 ¼ cups celery, chopped w/ leaves 
½ cup of parsley, chopped 
2 garlic cloves, minced 
1 bay leaf 
¼ cup flour 
6 6 ½ oz cans chopped clams, drained w/ juice reserved 
1 ¼ cup heavy cream 
Salt, pepper & hot sauce to taste

Bring bottled clam juice and potatoes to boil in heavy large saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. 

Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onions, celery, parsley, garlic and bay leaf and sauté until vegetables soften, about 6 minutes. Stir in flour and cook 2 minutes (do not allow flour to brown). Gradually whisk in reserved juices from clams. Add potato mixture, clams,& cream. Simmer chowder 5 minutes to blend flavors, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt, pepper & hot sauce.

2019 07 25

Battle of the Burgers--Superburger vs Habit Burger

I don't usually eat hamburgers but I tried it at a couple of new places.

Superburgers started in 1978 and has several locations in Sonoma County. This one is located at 9238 Old Redwood Highway.

Superburger--$8.25. This was a 7-oz patty with lettuce, tomatoes and pickles. It also comes with onions but if you want it grilled, it's extra. No steak sauce available. The burger had a nice flavor but it's not worth $8.

Sweet Potato Fries--$4.50 for regular. I had asked if the fries were crispy and I was told it could be prepared that way. Unfortunately, the fries were limp.

The other burger I tried was at Habit Burger. It was started in 1969 and has locations all over the US and even in China. I visited the location at 2350 Vineyard Drive in Oxnard. 

Their burger comes with lettuce, tomato, pickles and grilled onions--$3.75. Steak sauce is available for free.  This had good flavor and I liked it better than Superburger.

The Tempura Green Beans--$3.15 were excellent. Crisp and delicious!

My husband got the Caesar Salad--$4.60 & Onion Rings--$2.70. He liked both as well.

2019 07 24 & 07 25

Gerard's Paella

Gerard's Paella is located at 701 4th Street. Happy Hour is Mon-Fri 3-6 pm.

Tortilla Espinola on the Happy Hour Menu. It was cold and not very eggy. 3 small pieces for $4.00

Calamari--$13

Huevos al Plato--$8. Slow roasted tomatoes, garlic & onions, egg served with toasted baguette. This had a nice taste although some in my group didn't care for it.

Rosa Paella--$16. Marinated chicken, chorizo bilbao, arugula, fennel and onion. This was really good. The rice was perfect and there was a nice crust.

Pescador Paella--$18. Sea clams, mussels, prawns, squid, sweet peas, arroz negro, peppers and aioli. The rice was too wet.

On Mondays, there's a neighborhood dinner for $30. It includes a festival paella. Tonight it was Cajun Paella. This had a nice spicy kick and it was so good. Just wish it had more of a socarrat (crust on the bottom).

Paella Croquette came with the dinner.

So did 2 small salads and a bottle of white or red wine. The white wine tonight was a Longboard Sauvignon Blanc.

Another Monday night special and the appetizer was Avocado Toast.

Festival Paella was Shrimp & Jamon with a drizzle of Balsamic Vinegar.

The white tonight was a Trecini Sauv Blanc.

2019 07 19, 08 19 & 08 26

Sushiko

Sushiko is a Japanese restaurant located at 6265 Commerce Blvd in Rohnert Park.

Agedashi Tofu--$5.95. This was not impressive.

Garlic Edamame--$5.95. This was good but it was a small portion.

Spider Roll--$10.95 & Salmon Skin Roll--$5.95. Both were okay.

California Roll--$5.95. Again, just okay.

I didn't get a picture of the Miso Soup--$1.95

Miso Salmon Kama--$7.50. This didn't have much miso flavor.

Overall, it was okay but not impressive. I wouldn't drive all the way to Rohnert Park to eat here again.

2019 07 17

Jhanthong Banbua

Jhanthong Banbua is located at 2400 Mendocino Avenue in Santa Rosa. It's the purple building.

Crispy Tofu with Sweet & Sour Chili Sauce--$8. The tofu was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Crispy Yellow Bean Balls with Sweet & Sour Chili Sauce--$8. This was bland and really needed the sauce.

Lab Thai Salad--$10. Salad with Spicy Lime Dressing with Thai Herbs, served with Lettuce.

Eggplant with Green Curry Sauce--$10.75. I didn't like this. The sauce was too watery.

Pad Thai--$10.75. This was okay.

2019 07 16

Kong Tofu

Kong Tofu is located at 19626 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino.

Complimentary banchans. My favorites are the fish cakes, chap chae and seaweed.

My favorite dish is the Clam Soft Tofu Soup--$13.49. I get it mild and with purple rice (for additional $0.49).

2019 07 15

Walter Hansel Wine & Bistro

Walter Hansel Wine & Bistro is located at 3535 Guerneville Road in Santa Rosa.

Amuse bouche of Tomato Shooter with Zatar Spices.

Confit Duck Gizzard Salad--$16. Frisee, bacon lardons, sauteed wild mushrooms, bacon vinaigrette, coddled egg. Always one of my favorites but tonight's dish had too much black pepper. I'll have to remember to ask them to tone it down next time.

Grilled Hanger Steak Au Poivre--$30. Brandy green peppercorn sauce, haricots verts--$30. The steak was delicious. So flavorful and tender. The haricots verts could have used a little salt.

The steak was served with Pommes Frites with ketchup and curry aioli on the side. I didn't care for the curry flavor in the aioli. It was a good portion.

You're also served an after-dinner drink. I chose a shot of Port--Fonseca bin 27.

2019 07 13