Tag: tacos

Mary, Cheap Eats, San Diego County

free birthday food in san diego, ca / 2012 edition

I turned 34 this year. It’s not a significant number. I can still say I’m in my early 30’s but I think I’m just shy of being bumped up to the next demographic group. I sure don’t feel like 34, not that I can really imagine what it should feel like. In my 34th year I can say that I’m happy. I’m content. I have a job that I enjoy, a boyfriend I adore, and I don’t feel like I’m lacking anything. I’m hoping for good karma and continued happy times.

As I do every year, I look forward to my birthday instead of shunning it away. I drag out the celebration by getting a bunch of free, delicious food into my belly. Or maybe I like hearing strangers wish me a happy birthday when I present my coupons? (Truth: It is definitely the former.)

I kicked off the year by getting lunch at Rubio’s.

[Rubio’s Street Taco Plate – $6.59 value]

Rubio’s Beach Club sends you email offers as well as a coupon good for 1 item up to $7.99.

This is the Rubio’s Street Tacos plate ($6.59) with one chicken, one beef and one carnitas taco, plus beans and chips. Of the three, I liked the beef the best, though really, I probably should have stuck to seafood here since that is their namesake. The chips were warm (a plus that has not always been the case) with a decent side of beans.

Coupon notes: Sent two weeks before birthday. Expires on birthday. Can use your phone to show coupon or you can print it out. Rubio’s Beach Club signup.

Panera Bread also treats you for your birthday by loading a “special offer” onto your My Panera card.

They don’t tell you what the offer is though, but let me spill the secret for you – it’s good for one bakery item.

When I found out what it was, I think I gave a little bit of a pouty face because I said, “Aw, I really wanted a bagel.” The guy serving me though instantly said, “What kind of bagel would you like?” and I told him I wanted the pumpkin bagel. He went ahead and rang up a chocolate pastry in it’s place, letting me get my pined for pumpkin bagel. How sweet!

Coupon notes: Free offer is loaded onto your My Panera card. Expires 60 days after your birthday. I got an email notice about my special offer 4 days before my birthday. Can pick up a card in store or join My Panera online.

I have skipped El Torito in the past but I decided it was high time to try out this deal. I haven’t been to El Torito in ages, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. The nice thing about this one – the free chips and salsa!

[Tableside Fajitas Salad – $12.99 value]

Signing up for El Torito’s Email Club yields you a birthday coupon that’s good for one item up to $12.99 – no other purchase necessary. I opted to get the Tableside Fajitas Salad with chicken which clocks in perfectly at $12.99. The salad and the sizzling fajitas are brought tableside and tossed together right before you – you have the option to get the dressing on the side, too, if you fear too much dressing. I walked on the wild side and let them do it for me. The onions and other fajita goodies are also tossed in with cojita cheese, chunks of avocado, roasted pepitas, pico de gallo, tortilla strips and a serrano-grape vinaigrette. Overall very delicious and fresh. I was surprised at how tasty it was!

My waiter also brought me a mini flan! Probably the cutest mini flan ever.

Coupon notes: Sent about 1 week before birthday. Expires 1 week after birthday. Doesn’t specify, but I printed this one out. El Torito Email Club signup. No other purchase required. Good up to $12.99.

[Mini Club Supreme with roast beef, turkey, swiss, bacon done “Mike’s Way”]

This is another one of the deals I haven’t used in years past because I thought I didn’t really like Jersey Mike’s. I went a couple of times when they first started popping up in San Diego and I tried their hot sandwiches – which I didn’t like. This time around I went for a cold sandwich and found it to be a much better experience.

The meats and cheeses are sliced fresh when you order your sandwich. I got the Club Supreme (roast beef, turkey, swiss, bacon) and I got it “Mike’s Way” – which is with lettuce, tomatoes, onion, mayo, olive oil and vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper. The cold sandwiches are way better than the hot ones with the fresh slices of meat and cheese. The bacon was also surprising good – very crisp and it tasted like real bacon, not like those flimsy pieces of “bacon” found in fast food restaurants. Glad I finally decided to drop in and get this deal!

I actually got the “mini” sub because I didn’t want to eat a regular sized, but this deal is good for the regular sized sub.

Coupon notes: Coupon emailed about 1 week before your birthday. Can only be used on your birthday with the printout and photo ID. Good for any regular sized sub and a drink. Jersey Mike’s Email Club signup. No other purchase required. Continue reading “free birthday food in san diego, ca / 2012 edition”

Multiple Locations, Chula Vista, Cheap Eats, Otay, San Diego County, Mary

tacos el gordo de tijuana / chula vista, ca

You like Mexican food? Of course you do! What’s not to like about delicious tacos piled with meats and cheeses? Tacos El Gordo de Tijuana is one place that really does it right. This little taco shop is originally from Tijuana and they have ported themselves over the border to San Diego with three locations in town, plus one in Vegas.

[menu at tacos el gordo in chula vista]

As soon as you walk in, you can tell this place is just a little bit different from the other taco shops in town. The menu is well lit above you and there are stations. Each station specializes in a particular kind of meat. There’s a carne asada guy, an adobada guy and a guy who kind of serves up “everything else” (tripe, cabeza, legnua, etc.)

You pick the kind of meat you want and order from that station. Jake and I always go to the adobada station for the spicy pork that’s turned on a spit.

[adobada slowly turning on the spit]

Mmm, meat on a spit.

[slicing pieces of adobada]

I always make Jake order because he does know enough conversational Spanish to get by. I’d rather not break out my rusty old high school Spanish.

God, I’m such an American.

I’m sure they’ll understand you even if you speak English, but I still make Jake do all of the ordering. What a good boyfriend.

The guy starts slicing meat off for our assortment of treats and prepares our tortillas by dipping them in the drippings from the pork and then grilling them. Holy heart attack on a plate! Probably why it tastes so darn good…

They’re fast and efficient and get your order ready in no time. There’s a line behind you, they gotta be quick with this stuff. Once you have all of your treats you go over to pay then try to find a seat so you can devour your meal.

[juicy, freshly made adobada taco – $2.00]

Jake usually gets the tacos with everything – salsa, onions and cilantro and some avocado looking dressing tucked on top of two corn tortillas.

Continue reading “tacos el gordo de tijuana / chula vista, ca”

San Diego County, Mary, La Jolla

puesto mexican street food / la jolla – san diego, ca

Puesto Mexican Street Food is a new taco shop located in the heart of Downtown La Jolla. The concept is fun and simple – you get to chose what you want on your tacos, selecting from a variety of fresh, healthy choices as toppings for your tacos. In addition to tacos, you can get a guisado bowl or a salad as well as a variety of sides and drinks. I was recently invited to come in and check it out for myself – bringing Jake along to help me sample all that Puesto has to offer.

We were greeted by one of the owners – Eric – who showed us the ropes. You start by grabbing a laminated card that shows you all of the possible options – meat choices, toppings, salsas and more. He helped us decide on a few combinations and then we leaned the cards up against the glass divider so the chefs could start making our creations.

[My tacos on the grill]

One of my favorite toppings was the crispy grilled cheese that you can have added to your tacos. They just layer down a good amount of cheese right onto the grill and put your main ingredients onto the cheese. Above  I have the huitlacoche and zucchini flowers on one taco (I decided to try an all veggie one), pork on the other and shrimp on the non-cheesy taco.

[taco fixings]

Toppings and fixings galore!

[Making my salad]

Oodles of salad toppings (including nuts and cranberries and the like). I was surprised to see nuts and cranberries, actually. Especially at a taco shop.

[Mango salsa, Jamaica salsa, and Pistache salsa]

Puesto also offers up some interesting salsas for topping your tacos. I asked for all of the on the side so I could try them before deciding which tacos to put them on. The mango salsa is more like a salsa fresca, with mango, habanero, tomato and cilantro. The Jamaica salsa has hibiscus flowers and chiptole and the Pistache salsa (my favorite) has pistachio and jalapeno in the mix.

These are my creations – all topped with a beautiful slice of avocado. Oh yes!
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Mary, San Diego County, Mira Mesa

fuze restaurant and lounge / mira mesa – san diego, ca

Mira Mesa has gotten a new addition to the neighborhood: Fuze, a Korean restaurant located where “Mr. Wasabi” used to be. They haven’t changed the name on the signage yet, but you still spot the restaurant when you’re driving west on Mira Mesa Blvd. I was invited to come in and try out the restaurant not too long ago. I actually went in early to do a “sneak peek” on one of my lunch breaks before I came in. For this trip, my cohort was my dad.

We there about 5PM on a Wednesday evening. No other guests to speak of. Our hostess/waitress showed us to a table and we sat and started to peruse the menu. Sadly she wasn’t totally well versed on the menu so I felt it was a little lacking there since she gave us half-hearted suggestions. No matter, we ordered a few things and were off!

[pajun – korean style scallion pancake]

I’m not well versed in Korean food at all. This was described to us as sort of a “seafood pancake”.

It’s a large pancake-like appetizer with lots of scallions and little shrimps. The outer edge was a bit crisp (though not too crunchy) and the inside was very doughy. Our waitress said “it’s supposed to be like that” but it sort of tasted like the inside wasn’t cooked all of the way. I did not really like the consistency of the inside of the pajun and mostly just nibbled on the outer edges and a few pieces of the shrimp.

[fried calamari with wasabi ranch and house tarter sauce]

The fried calamari was a more familiar dish that we tried – I was mostly curious to see what kind of twist (if any) they would put on one of my favorite dishes. The calamari are cut into rings and then fried in a coating of batter, resulting in a light, crispy calamari. I love that they’re served on those noodle things (I can’t remember what they are called! argh) giving them a fun, visual appearance. The wasabi ranch wasn’t too god-awful hot and the tarter sauce was just okay. I kept nibbling on these babies sans sauce, cause that’s how I roll. They were tender with a very slight chew and a nice, crisp outer texture.

[bulgogi – sauteed sliced rib eye, onion, asparagus, bell pepper, mushroom and basil]

My dad ordered the bulgogi – or Korean barbequed beef – for his meal. I tried this previously for lunch and my dad and I both agree that this is a very good dish. My dad said that this reminded him of “something your mom would make” – a meat and mostly veggie dish in a nice sauce with some rice on the side. The bulgogi has a nice seasoned flavor and I love the veggies that come with it (especially the mushrooms – I lub you, mushrooms). The bulgogi is tender and the marinade/sauce is slightly sweet and delicious. They also serve bulgogi philly cheese steaks and bulgogi sliders, two items I surely want to come back and try in the future.

Continue reading “fuze restaurant and lounge / mira mesa – san diego, ca”

Hillcrest, San Diego County, Mary

urban eats / hillcrest – san diego, ca

Urban Eats is a new little restaurant in Hillcrest that’s been open for about three months now under the helm of Chef Christopher B. Sayre. The spot started out earlier this year as Taco Banh before Sayre decided to switch gears and instead open up Urban Eats, a locally sourced restaurant serving up a mix of American dishes. My cohorts and I had noticed on the bottom of our bill it has said “Taco Banh” and curiosity got me to Google searching. It seems Taco Banh didn’t quite work out and Urban Eats was able to rise up out of that. Jake and I are certainly glad that it came to this as we dined here twice within one week – once as a guest and another time on our own with our friend, Laura.

The space is small, but cozy. The bar is the first thing to catch your eye with its colorful Asian lanterns. The simple seats are all set up with place settings and menus and your greeted in a most friendly manner to “sit anywhere you’d like!”

Kyle, our host, server, and waiter extraordinaire, was there to take care of us on both visits. His warm and friendly personalities just exudes charm. I loved him immediately, especially when he recognized us on our second visit and already knew we were going to order the macaroni and cheese again.

More on that later.

At Urban Eats you get cucumber water, which I love. Jake puts his cucumbers into my glass because he’s weird and doesn’t like cucumbers.

*eye roll*

[cheesy baguette slices with honey butter]

All customers get this complimentary appetizer to start. It’s a little more doled up than just “bread and butter” so I call it an appetizer. Baguette slices with cheese and a little cup of honey butter greet you shortly after you take a seat, luring you in. The butter has drizzles of honey on it, so the honey is still distinct as you slather it onto a slice and devour it. It’s a yummy way to start any meal.

[mini grilled cheese – swiss + cheddar + brie + tomato bisque – $6]

On our first visit, I decided I had to try the Mini Grilled Cheese. The grooves on this appetizer are serious. Super panini pressing was going on to create this sandwich. The size reminded me of those weird French Toast sticks. I could tell it was basically a sandwich cut into fours, but I didn’t really care. Oozing cheese on grilled bread makes me happy and these were pretty tasty dunked in the cup of tomato bisque that accompanied them. My only complaint would be that I thought it was cooked a little too long and I tasted more bread than cheese.

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San Diego County, Mary, Rolando, Cheap Eats

carnitas las michoacanas / rolando – san diego, ca

One day I was hungry.

For carnitas.

I was at Jake’s and started looking on Yelp and found this one place called Carnitas Las Michoacanas. Carnitas was right in the name! It had like three reviews, all good. The place was also very, very close to Jake’s house. We had unknowingly passed it so many times without ever noticing it.

No more!

On our first visit, Jake, T and I sort of stood awkwardly outside the shop, watching people go up and get carnitas. There was this nice gentleman outside, rapidly chopping meat like nobody’s business.

[the carnitas man]

Everyone was speaking super fast Spanish and I just looked at Jake and said, “Uhhh, what do we do?”

He shrugged at me. He was being so helpful.

I tried to get him to go up there but he shook his head and refused. My usually talkative boyfriend suddenly clammed up on me when facing native Spanish speakers.

Damn him.

I walked up and asked what was up. We found out you can buy carnitas by the pound, with all of the fixings. Then they gave us samples.

[three sample carnitas – just plain meat and fresh tortilla]

Well, one sample was all we needed to be convinced. We got a pound to go that first visit. We’ve visited since – they moved a few blocks down the road closer to La Mesa, pretty close to the Kroc Center.

We were again greeted with free sample tacos! Man, I love this place.

[their full menu with a bunch of other stuff I’ve never tried]

The carnitas are still sold the same way at $10.99lb. They had just run out when we stopped by so we had to wait for a bit. You can ask for a “mixture” of carnitas or get only belly meat. Your choice.

Continue reading “carnitas las michoacanas / rolando – san diego, ca”