Pho 79 - Garden Grove

There’s been a lot of fake news lately, and you can’t believe everything you hear. Read responsibly and check your sources, and when it comes to food, confirm it yourself when you can. 

Pho 79 makes some of the best pho in the country. Source: James Beard. Confirmation: YES. 

I don't have much for comparison, but I’ve never had anything like this. The broth is fatty and thick, sweet, meaty, and rich to a depth I’ve never seen. I got the Pho Tai Nam Gan (#24) with tender rare steak, melty slices of well cooked beef with so much marbled fat, and gooey bits of tendon. 

Get the “side” of oxtail (Xi Quach Duoi Bo, #39) before they sell out, and you'll find the secret to the pho. The meat slides off the bone in shreds and it's this incredible mesh of meat and sweet that melts in your mouth and lingers on your tongue.

The main attraction is the pho, but the other stuff is decent too. 

The Goi Cuon (#2) are good because when are spring rolls not good? It's not Broddard, but it's good. 

I can never resist a Bun Bo Hue (#45), but this one isn't their best. The broth is thin and not spicy, unnecessary compared to the pho. 

A few other selections like the (#87) Bun Tom Thit Nuong Cha Gio and (#92) Bun Cha will nab a noodle craving, and I loved trying the (#97) Banh Mi Bo Kho with tender stewed beef with a tomato tang.

Come for the pho, leave with the oxtail. Come with some skepticism, leave completely floored. The pho is phabulous, and even James Beard agrees! 

Sugarfish - Manhattan Beach

 

Man, I really want to love Sugarfish. LA loves it to the point of madness, and the South Bay has followed suit, but I truly do not understand.

The Don’t Think Just Eat is a deluxe combo for only $50, and for the quality of fish it’s supposed to be quite a deal. 

It is and it isn’t. It’s packed up real pretty and the fish tastes good, but I’ve just had so much better for less or the same. The standard salmons and snappers are good, and the Amebi was great. The rolls are fine, and I'm a sucker for mayo with blue crab, and the sashimi is a nice little extra. But the Toro was fishy; slick and fatty, but the flavor had more fish than fat, and I would have rather had Mitsuwa (their toro is very good, btw). 

What really bothers me is the way the rice fell apart. On Every. Single. Piece. I get that travel time affects the quality, but I've never had chunks of rice just fall out of a nigiri when I pick it up.

I’m guessing Sugarfish was something to write home about before they became a sellout. Even the highest end chains don’t deliver like a local mom and pop, and I'm guessing Sugarfish is Ruth’s Chris to The Arthur J. So choose Sugarfish if you want. You’ll get good quality at a fair price, and it will be pretty enjoyable, but it will never blow your mind.  . Do think and don't just eat because you might eat better from a local place instead.

The Growler Guys - Reno, NV

You had me at beer. 60 rotating taps of beer and a few fancy sodas, many local and most from not too far, someone had their priorities straight when they built this taproom. 

A tasting flight is the best way to try, though they're happy to let you taste before you buy. I tried the Deschutes Squeezy Rider IPA to start, and it was love. This bright bash of citrus from Bend, Oregon is one of the freshest, most memorable IPA's I've had to date. 

Imbib is in the Reno scene, and their Cutthroat Cream Ale should be in every scene. It's a cream soda but beer, and it's brilliant. 

High Water makes a Cucumber Kolsch so refreshing you could put it on your eyelids at the spa. It's ice-cold and cuke-loaded all the way from Lodi. 

Save some beer to wash down dinner. They're all about the bar bites, and you'd do well to order their wings. Both the Sweet Chili and Classic Buffalo have some zing to them, but neither is too hot to handle, and they'd almost make you lick your fingers but maybe don't because covid.

Great service. The guys at the bar are passionate about their beer, and they care about the product they sell. The outdoor area lets you seat and eat in the sunset, though I can't say the strip mall has the best view. Still, this place is everything you'd want from a casual watering hole with a serious selection. 

Land Ocean - Reno, NV

Sooo...I guess I found my other favorite lunch spot. 

It's only a weekday lunch but they don't hold back the heavy hitters. That Macadamia Nut Crusted Chilean Sea Bass melts in my mouth like magic, and they do a nice job on the bed of rice and broccolini. I'm wary of soy-ginger glazes from any place that isn't Asian, but this one is okay. Its presence doesn't overpower all the others, and I can honestly say I don't hate it. 

They make a good burger too. The Mushroom Burger is covered with mushrooms and caramelized onion. Gruyere gets all over those burger bits as it melts.

Getting a dessert with lunch is pretty over the top, but so is the Banana Cream Pie. It's served in a skillet, and it's almost an entire sliced banana over a crazy-good custard on an oreo crust.

Way to make a first impression. Reno is a bit too inland to be known for its seafood, but Land Ocean seems to do well with both. Great food, pretty place, definitely worth another visit. 

Twisted Fork UPDATE - Reno, NV

THIS is my favorite local lunch spot. Always was, always will be when a visit to the grandparents is in order.

No meal and no Reno visit is complete without a Tiger Shrimp Tamal: soft, sweet corn all around, topped tender shrimp covered in garlic cream crack.  

The Kale and Beets Salad: the only time I don't hate kale. It's baby kale so it's only a little bit waxy, and the salad itself is full of good stuff besides. Sweet beets in vivid color, oranges for acid, cranberry and candied walnuts for texture, goat cheese to add a little extra, and a smooth vinaigrette to pull it all together. 

Can't just eat a salad? Pick Pastor Pork Tacos. You get steaming-warm corn tortillas to wrap around these flavorful pieces of pork. Chopped on the smaller side for more sauce-clinging surface area and a marinade that soaks all the way through, the flavor cuts real deep. Dig deeper and you'll see the bits of pineapple too. They add the sweet n' juicy.

There is something special about Twisted Fork. They have a creativity, a quality, a polish and attention to detail that keeps you coming back. I love you, Twisted Fork, you are forever on my Reno radar!

The Grill at Quail Corners UPDATE - Reno, NV

A favorite of the grandparents because they treat you like family here. They know all the servers by name, and they love that menu to pieces. 

I feel the warmth, and I love the family feel, but I can't say I feel the food. 

The Louie-Louie became the Louie-Louie-Louie. Love the idea, love the extra crab mixed into the ball of extra crab, and they're generous on the shrimp, but it's so full of water because it's fresh...from the defroster.

The Special is an open-face prime rib au jus. Good job on the medium rare, good job on the grill marks, love the mushroom and onions on top. The side of Chicken & Rice Soup has a lot more lemon than I'm used to. 

The Black Angus New York Sandwich is similar, an alright slab of steak. A little on the thin side but goes good with gorgonzola and it's tender enough that it can be eaten without a knife and fork. 

I'm the one who stays seated in the theatre until the credits are over, and so far, that's paid off for every Marvel movie...and at The Grill. Because they give you a cute little plate of cookies at the end, whatever they felt like making that day. These are oatmeal raisin, and they're just so perfectly chewy and soft. 

A cute little neighborhood place, frequented by many, loved by all. The food is okay - you're mostly here for the people. But the people are pretty great so enjoy your lunch!