San & Wolves - Long Beach

Witchcraft! How else can one explain a vibrant and whimsical, all-vegan bakery of Filipino pastries that taste even better their butter-lard counterparts?

Classics like this Cinnamon Roll are fluffy with a soft and chewy core, beautifully balanced with aromatic vanilla-leaf notes, and the sweet icing has a little salt. 

Ube Coconut Pan de Coco is best kept simple, a firm-crust bread-roll and a crumb with air like an island. 

Most creative is the Everything Bagel Donut, the most exciting thing I've eaten this year. It's innovative and unique, an astounding direction for savory pastry that I could not have foreseen. The seedy seasoning salts the crust, and combined with a few fresh scallions, it's an ultimate flavor-bomb. I do wish the cream was even less sweet, but it's a reminder that this is a donut after all.

Blueberry Babinka is basically a cornbread but a bit more oily-moist and sweet. 

Much citrus concentrates a Calamansi Loaf, much less boring than your lemon pound cake. 

A beautiful vegan bakery, with all fantastic pastries. All perfectly-balanced, dense and light, practicing sweet restraint. Butter could not make this better, and I would undoubtedly double back for another donut. 

Lalibela UPDATE - Los Angeles

Omg they showed up on Doordash. 

It's a small long distance fee for a hell of a drive, but LA and maybe the world's best Doro Wot is worth it. Theirs is a depth which no others can approximate, and I don't know if I truly understood the hype behind this Ethiopian essential until I tried Lalibela. The chicken is so tender, but nothing beats the egg. The sauce is dark and buttery, earthy and profound, savory and rich. It's long and it lingers, a melange of sweet and savory notes that make it move. It soaks into the airy crevices of the spongy injera, and sweet meets sour for an elemental balance that's second to none. 

It can never be said that Lalibela lacks versatility as this wildly different dish of Yebeg Tibs is something that sings. Cubes of lamb sit in a sea of spicy butter, flavors heightened with herbs that enhance the meat and aromatics. 

The Veggie Combo is best for balancing out the meats, and the special one with Fish just caught my eye. 

A whole grilled trout is too good not to take, but I won't be getting that again. This previously fresh fish is drydryDRY, overcooked to the point of jerky, a shameful waste of something special. 

The rest of the veggies are great, highlights include a punchy sauce for the lentils in the miser wot and fantastically fresh collards in the gomen.

Fish-fail aside, Lalibela is still lovely. The doro wot has flavors that transcend all reason, and that they retain my favor. 

Pete's BBQ - Ramona, CA

The only non-chain we tried was Pete's, and at first it looked like my kind of place. Super-local, super small-scale, the counter sits inside a liquor store, where you can purchase your libations with which to wash down whatever you order.

The portions will give you plenty of food, but the quality is inconsistent. 

Brisket Plate has tender pieces, good smoke, better than I expected, especially out of Texas. Dinner rolls are buttery and beautifully toasted, highly recommended for making a sandwich.

Little loaves of Cornbread looked prettier than they tasted. Not bad but a bit bland. 

Other sides were whatever, sweet but watery baked beans, lackluster mac n' cheese, generic coleslaw with more sauce than slaw. 

Half a rack of Ribs has good smoke and tender meat, just-right red inside and almost falls off the bone. They did this one right.

They didn't include any sauces in my pick-up order, and I didn't think to check. Most of the meat was seasoned well and didn't really need it, the Pulled Pork being a glaring exception. I come from North Carolina so this drier, watery-in-the-middle mess had me unimpressed. The fries are fine, and the onion rings crunch. 

I do think the barbecue would have been better earlier, but we picked it up during dinner time (5-6 PM) so it shouldn't have looked and tasted like it sat out all day. I wish I could love this place, but I can only say it was mostly okay given the not-too-fresh and sat-out-to-dry nature of the meat. 

Ramona, CA - Travel

A SoCal Thanksgiving with extended family, and this time we made it a trip. Vista's where the dinner's at, and the food is fantastic, but we spend more time feeding than we do eating while we're at this Airbnb. 

There's a farm in the middle of Ramona, a rustic little house with no central heat or air, that sits between a field of cows, an enclosure of goats, and a side of chickens and cute little pigs. It's idyllic and easy to pretend you're in the middle of nowhere between the cow pasture and duck pond, but look too hard into the horizon and you'll see the shiny strip malls of downtown Ramona all within a shorter walk. 

All the animals are friendly, definitely pets, not sources of milk and meat. Big girl loved feeding them despite the copious amounts of goat spit, and even the cows will eat out of your hand, which I didn't realize was my lifelong dream.  

Check out those substantial sheep - I've never seen this breed up close. 

There's a baby cow with its parents, and yes, my life is complete. 

It's a short 23-minute drive from the San Diego Safari Park as well, where the in-laws got annual passes, and we went for some animals and a ride on the tram. 

Legoland then straight home, and we're celebrating Thanksgiving in peace at our house two days later. The duration is short but the days are full. The farmhouse is cold at night so it's better for fairer weather, but the fridge is full of fram-fresh eggs, and it's a fantastic four days between the very central location and ample entertainment.

Aristo Cafe - Torrance

It's tucked away but it's a worthy find if you're willing to put in the effort. It's a cozy little family-run restaurant, Mediterranean on the menu.

The lunch special is an excellent deal, starting with hummus on the house. 

A side salad has plenty of veggies dressed simply with oil and vinegar, fresh and refreshing. 

More hummus, a bit of rice, and plenty of pita go with the Gyros, 4 slices of incredibly juicy spit-meat. 

A lovely lunch, lots of food for an affordable price. Come hungry, leave happy.

Pho Redbo - Palos Verdes

This pho is fancy, make no mistake. It's hot, it's savory, and tastes amazing in this setting, a spacious former diner surrounded by a skating rink. 

Cut through the cold by crunching into an Eggroll so crispy you can hear the skin break in your brain. The beef is extra good, and the shrimp softens the stronger meat. 

Watch the skaters zoom by or listen to the rhythm of hockey blades slice through the ambient music as a chimney of beef broth fills your nose and soaks your senses. Sip the soup and ask for the wide noodles instead of thin for a different texture. The Pho Combo will do nicely as the rare steak is great, the brisket fatty and tender, and the rib cubes melt in your mouth. The meatballs have the rubber chew you'd expect. 

Fight the urge to upgrade - that premium pho with the Wagyu Oxtail is more like a downgrade and definitely not worth the upcharge. There's nothing wagyu about it, and I wag my finger at whoever doesn't know how to cook oxtail. This meat should fall of the bone, but I had to take it home and ugly-gnaw at this mess. 

Similarly bland is the Shaken Beef, with barely-cooked peppers, not too many cubes of actual beef, and very little seasoning to speak of. The spicy dipping sauce can help, but it makes a most unsatisfying meal.  

Wagyu Beef Stew is supposed to give comfort, but only some of the beef chunks are tender, depending on the amount of marbled fat. It's alright, but I prefer the pho. 

I would come back but only for the pho. Their classic pho is marvelous, and the meats are mostly marble-lous, but don't be distracted by the other noise. 

Juicy Dumpling Factory - Redondo Beach

New dumplings? Who dis?

Right on the corner of Artesia and Aviation, and a new location of a handmade dumpling house is here to stay. 

There aren't a lot of options for real soup dumplings in the South Bay, but the Juicy Pork Dumplings add a convenient option for those who don't want to drive to Del Amo. I think Tasty China does it better, but the ones here also have a nice, chewy wrapper and juicy, savory pork inside. 

The Shrimp Spicy Wontons are super meh and better skipped. The filling is a bit bulky and hard, and I didn't know chili oil could be bland. 

A must-have is the Chive, Shrimp, and Pork Pan Fried Dumplings. There's a legit lattice circle-skirt around every juicy-filling flavor-pocket, and the chives perk up the pork and sweeten the shrimp.

Dumplings not for you? Try the Beef Roll - it's one of the better ones I've had in the South Bay. The beef inside is tender and soy-sauced just enough, with a crispy pancake wrapped around. 

There's always room for good Chinese food, and dumplings are a big step in the right direction. Juicy Dumpling House comes ready to compete with solid soup dumplings and the best potstickers in town, all in a casual location that's convenient for several beach cities. Great for adults, good for kids, perfect for everyone.