Famous Famiglia

Last week, my husband and I spent a few days in San Diego.  If you read my blog post about St Tropez Express, you know that when we visit San Diego, we always stay on a Navy Base.  That’s a great perk my husband has since he used to be in the military.  We loved St Tropez Express for lunch before going to the San Diego Zoo, but one of the restaurants in the food court on base caught our eye for dinner. 

Famous Famiglia was the only restaurant in the food court that we didn’t have back home in L.A.  My husband looked it up later, and the only other location in Southern California is at Six Flags.

My husband was drawn to the pizza.  He ordered one slice that was topped with mushrooms, spinach and mozzerella, and he ordered another slice that was topped with olives, tomatoes, scallions, black beans, cheddar, and mozzarella.  

 

I was drawn to the Stromboli, so I decided to order the Chicken Parmesan Stromboli.

We also ordered 5 garlic knots, which are pieces of pizza crust tied in a knot and covered with garlic butter.

The guy working there asked if we wanted marinara sauce or spicy sauce with our food, and we decided to try both since it didn’t cost any extra.

I found a table in the food court while my husband waited for our food to be warmed up in the pizza oven.

The pizza was okay.  I tasted the one with spinach and mushrooms.  It’s a winning combination, but the pizza itself wasn’t amazing.  It was just okay.  I didn’t taste the other pizza because I don’t like olives, and because after tasting the Stromboli, my husband declared that the Stromboli was far better than the pizza.  I agreed.  It was oozing with cheese, and had nice large chunks of grilled chicken stuffed inside.

The garlic knots were good.  They tasted exactly the way you’d expect.  I think the Crazy Bread at Little Caesar’s is better though.

The marinara sauce was a nice addition.  I dipped pieces of my Stromboli in it as well as the garlic knots.  The spicy sauce wasn’t as good.  It was more like salsa.  It was a little chunky, and it wasn’t warm.  Next time I’d just get the marinara sauce and add some crushed red pepper to it. 

Next time we’re in San Diego, we’ll probably eat here again, but we’ll probably both order the Stromboli.  Besides Chicken Parmesan, you can also get it stuffed with pepperoni, sausage or spinach.  Eventually, I’ll have to try them all!

Happy eating!

St Tropez Express

Last week, my husband and I spent a few days in San Diego.  He used to be in the Air Force, and he’s still able to visit military bases and stay at the Inns and Lodges there.  San Digeo has several Navy bases.  We usually stay in the Beach Cottages at the North Island Naval Air Station on Coronado, but this trip we decided to stay at the Navy Lodge on the San Diego Naval Base

On Friday, we went shopping at the Navy Exchange, and then we decided to grab something for lunch before heading to the San Diego Zoo.  We were just planning on going to the IHOP Express in the food court, but as we were walking down the sidewalk to the food court, a sign in the middle of the sidewalk caught my attention.

 

There was a little sidewalk café-type restaurant called St Tropez Express, and they advertised a lunch special where you get either a Croque Monsieur or a Croque Hawaiian with chips, a drink and a Belgium Waffle.  Yum!  My husband and I decided to share the combo special.  We ordered the Croque Monsieur, which came with ham, cheese and onion grilled on bread.  We decided to try the plain waffle instead of the chocolate waffle (we had our choice), and my husband chose A&W 10 for the beverage.  I had a water bottle with me, so I didn’t need a beverage.

The lady working there was nice enough to cut the sandwich and the waffle in half for us.  She freshly assembled and grilled the sandwich, and the dusted powdered sugar on top of the waffle before warming it up.

There were several little tables on the sidewalk.  We chose one near the counter that had a small orange tree nearby.  French music was playing from the speakers.  My husband mentioned that he felt like we were in Europe or somewhere more special than a Navy base in San Diego.  I agreed.  It felt like we had escaped far from home for that brief moment in time.  It was really pleasant, and the food was delicious. 

The Croque Monsier was filling, and the flavors were great together.  I’d never had onion on a ham and cheese sandwich before, but I’d make it that way again. 

The waffle was very sweet.  It almost tasted like a cake doughnut.  It was a little too sweet for me, so my husband ended up eating most of that and let me eat most of the sandwich. 

It was a very pleasant lunch.  Next time we’re in San Diego, we will make a point of eating here.

Happy eating!           

Thorntree Terrace

There’s nothing I love more than visiting the San Diego Zoo and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.  My husband and I are members at the zoo, and we try to visit at least a handful of times each year.   

Last week, we stopped at the Safari Park on our way down to San Diego.  It was around 1:30pm on a Thursday when we arrived, and a lot of people, particularly large groups from schools, were leaving at that time.  Which was perfect for us.  Our mission was to go to the opposite end of the park, go on the tram safari and head out.  My husband picked up a map and saw a posting saying that there were lion cubs available to view.  There’s nothing cuter than baby big cats, so we decided to check that out as well.  We asked a worker where the lions cubs were, and she pointed us in the right direction.  They were currently out for exercise, and the sign said to come back at 2pm.  Perfect.  We were hungry from the 2 hour drive down from L.A. anyway, so this was the perfect opportunity to grab something for lunch.

I saw a sign advertising a Farmer’s Market salad at Thorntree Terrace.  We looked at the map and realized that were standing about right next to that restaurant, so we wandered over and looked at the menu.  I had been craving pizza, so we decided to order a Margarita Panini as well as the Farmer’s Market Salad.  We were given a buzzer that would go off when our order was ready.

In the meantime, we found a table outside on the terrace.  It was a very pleasant, tropical setting with thatched hut umbrellas, heaters (if it were cold out, which it wasn’t) and tropical plants.  My husband said it reminded him of Hawaii.  I think that most of the Safari Park is an African theme, so I think it was supposed to be more African than Polynesian, but regardless, it was tropical and pleasant.

It didn’t take long for our food to be ready.  I was impressed with the size of the salad.  It had fingerling potatoes, cherry tomatoes, dried cranberries, candied walnuts, shredded cheddar cheese and avocado on it.  There was honey mustard dressing on the side.  I wasn’t impressed with the taste.  Somehow I expected the potatoes to be warm, but they were cold.  It was weird eating cold potatoes.  The dressing was almost gluishly thick.  The flavor was okay, but I think there was too much honey and not enough mustard in it.  I liked the cherry tomatoes dipped in the dressing though. 

My husband and I both liked the Panini better than the salad.  It came on ciabatta bread and was topped with fresh basil, sliced tomatoes, and marinated mozzarella cheese accented with sun-dried tomato garlic pesto. It was served grilled and came with a side of chips.  It definitely satisfied the pizza craving.  If I’m hungry the next time I’m at the Safari Park, I will definitely order the Margarita Panini.

My husband and I shared the salad and the Panini.  That was plenty of food for two hungry people.  Even though we liked the Panini better than the salad, I think it was a more balanced meal eating some lettuce with our meal and not just loading up on carbs.

It was a really pleasant lunch.  Even though the prices are on the high side for what you’d get, it’s not as bad as if you’re eating at a park like Disneyland.  I was impressed with the serving sizes, considering where we were.

After lunch, we went on to see the lion cubs, go on the tram safari, watch the full grown lions, and see the cheetah run.  All that, and we were back on the road by 4pm.  It was a great afternoon at the Safari Park!

Happy eating!

Miguel's - more food to review!

If you read my first post about Miguel's, you know that this is my favorite restaurant in Coronado, CA.  I love the atmosphere, the food and especially the jalapeno white sauce they give you with the complimentary baskets of tortilla chips.  Yes, I love Miguel's.  My husband and I were recently in Coronado for a few days, and we ate at Miguel's twice.  We tried a few different things this trip, so I thought I'd share my thoughts.

I mentioned in my previous review that if I were going to have dessert at Miguel's, I'd want to try the Mini Chimis.  During our first visit to Miguel's this visit, we made sure to save room for dessert.  The Dulce de Leche Mini Chimis are described on the menu as follows: "crispy flour tortilla filled with ripe bananas and caramel sauce, rolling in cinnamon and sugar, topped with vanilla ice cream." I guess they are as described, but the serving was definitely smaller than I expected.  The cooked bananas in the chimis were sweet and delicious, but it was wrapped too tightly in the tortilla.  When I hear "chimi" I think "chimichanga."  That's burrito-sized.  I know this said "mini," but they were more like taquitos than chimis.  I would have preferred two slightly bigger chimis more the shape of small burritos instead of the four little pieces we were given.  I wouldn't order them again, although I do love the taste of cooked bananas.  (Remind me to share my recipe for easy and delicious cooked bananas sometime.)

During our second visit, we arrived during happy hour and decided to try their margaritas.  I ordered a Mango Margarita, and my husband ordered a Strawberry Margarita.  They were both really sweet, well-blended and delicious.  The happy hour size is only 8 oz, but that was enough.

I tend to get a "usual" at restaurants, and my current "usual" at Miguel's is the Fiesta Salad, which I mentioned in my previous review.  The menu indicates that the salad comes with chicken, but I recommend asking the waiter for steak instead of chicken.  I tried it with chicken once, and it was a little dry and overcooked.  The steak tastes much better and adds more flavor to the salad.  I think the thing is that if steak is overcooked it's just well done, but if chicken is overcooked it's dry.  I also mentioned in my previous review that I thought the tortilla shell was too greasy.  It is greasy, but this time it actually reminded me of an elephant ear or funnel cake.  It's not that sweet, but it almost has a hint of sweetness to it. 

My husband always orders something different, usually a combo.  During our first visit, I think he ordered Combo #1.  It includes one taco (either beef, chicken or fish...he chose fish) and a cheese enchilada.  All the combos also come with rice and beans.  I didn't take a picture of that combo, but I didn't take a picture of what he ordered during our second visit, which was similar.  He ordered Combo #7 which came with 2 enchiladas (either beef, chicken or cheese...he chose one beef and one chicken).  Then, from the happy hour menu, he added a fish taco.

Basically, there's no bad choice when it comes to the food at Miguel's, but I like the beef better than the chicken.

Happy eating!

Il Fornaio

If you're looking for an Italian restaurant with a great view of the San Diego skyline, you can't beat Il Fornaio, located across the bay in Coronado, CA.

This afternoon, my husband and I decided to enjoy an early lunch/late dinner at Il Fornaio since he was craving Italian food, and I always love a restaurant with a view.  We arrived around 4pm, and the restaurant was almost empty.  We were seated at a table by the windows which offered a great view of the bay and the San Diego skyline.  At lunch time probably until about 6pm, you can get a table pretty much anywhere you want, but if you're coming here for dinner, especially on the weekend, I would recommend making a reservation and requesting a table by the windows.  The view is what makes this restaurant worth coming back to.

While we looked over the menu, we were given water and a basket of bread which included Italian bread, a grainy roll with raisins in it and an olive loaf.  The waiter also poured olive oil and vinegar in a plate for dipping.  Personally, I like the taste of balsamic vinegar much more than olive oil, so I would've preferred if the proportions had been opposite.  All I could taste was olive oil.  I don't like olives, so I didn't try the olive loaf.  The grainy rolls were okay, but I think I'd prefer multi-grain bread.  The Italian bread even tasted a little bland, and I'm a girl who loves her bread.  Maybe it would've been better if it were warm?

We looked over our menus and placed our order.  The waiter asked if we wanted a salad, and originally we said no.  After talking it over, we decided to see if we could share a salad.  We didn't really want to eat an entree size salad before our entree, but we figured it wouldn't be too much food if we shared.  My husband tracked down someone who worked there (not our waiter) and requested to add the Insalata di Spinaci to our order.  He also asked if it could be split for us, and it sounded like that was no problem.

While we waited for our food, we enjoyed watching the sailboats and kayaks float down the bay.  I also glanced around the restaurant (took pictures for this blog) and noticed that you can clearly see the kitchen from the restaurant.  That's a nice touch.  I watched the chickens going around on the rotisserie.  I also noticed that they used pasta for decoration.  I love when restaurants use food in their decor.

While we waited (and actually the entire time we were there) the people at the table behind us were talking in a foreign language really loudly.  That was not the restaurant's fault, but it was really annoying.  I kept wishing they'd leave soon.  It was hard to hold a conversation with my husband because they were being so loud.  I've noticed that some restaurants turn their music up a little louder (not head-banging loud) so that it drowns out some of the noise.  A baby could cry or people could laugh loudly, and you'd still hear it, but it'd be muffled and not nearly as annoying as if the music were softer.  Miguel's (our favorite restaurant in Coronado) does this well. 

Our waiter came over with our salad.  He seemed slightly confused, which I suppose is understandable considering we changed our minds and decided to order a salad after telling him that we didn't want one.  We were also slightly confused because the salad wasn't split in half for us as we had requested.  The waiter set the salad in the center of the table and gave us each a small plate for sharing.  I scooped half of the salad onto one plate, and my husband ate the rest from the plate it came on.

The Insalata di Spinaci consisted of organic baby spinach salad with aged ricotta, red onions, applewood-smoked bacon, tomatoes, champignon mushrooms and toasted walnuts with a warm vinaigrette.  The walnuts were interesting.  I don't know that I would choose to put walnuts in a salad; almonds probably would've tasted better.  The vinaigrette gave the salad an excellent flavor.  I would totally order it again based on the flavor, but it seemed a little overpriced for the size.

Then our entrees came out.  I ordered the Petto di Pollo al Peperoncino which consisted of a grilled free-range chicken breast marinated with sage, rosemary, thyme, crushed red pepper, white wine, Dijon mustard and lemon and served with spicy peperoncino sauce, sautéed organic spinach and roasted Yukon Gold potatoes.  I chose this entree because the description sounded so delicious.  I mean, the marinade alone sounded incredible.  I was expecting some amazingly seasoned food, but I was disappointed.

Watch out for garlic in the spinach!

The presentation of the butterflied chicken breast was nice because it seemed to resemble a heart.  The chicken was tender and well cooked; however, I didn't taste any of those delicious herbs that were supposedly in the marinade.  If it weren't for the spicy peperoncino sauce, I would've needed a lot of salt and pepper to eat that chicken.  The sauce was delicious, but it kinda just reminded me of wing sauce.  

I was impressed with the serving size of the spinach; however, it had no flavor.  I kept dipping it in the peperoncino sauce.  That helped.  The spinach also had slivers of garlic cooked in with it.  That could be scary if you're on a date.  I tried to be careful to pick out the garlic so that I didn't eat it, but I apologized to my husband anyway just in case I ended up with garlic breath.

The potatoes also had no flavor, unless grease is considered a flavor.  I love potatoes, and really, how hard is it to make roasted potatoes delicious?  Not very.  I was disappointed. 

My husband ordered the Cannelloni al Forno which consisted of large fresh pasta tubes filled with free-range rotisserie chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, ricotta, pecorino, smoked mozzarella and organic spinach and topped with béchamel, marinara and mushrooms.  I only had two bites of his entree, but I liked it better than mine.  I had never had cannelloni before, but I totally want to make it now.  It's like the Italian version of enchiladas.  The flavors of everything inside the pasta tubes melded together, and the sun-dried tomatoes gave it all a nice kick.  We used the sauce to had flavor to the bread in the bread basket and my entree's chicken and potatoes.  My husband thought the sauce was a little soupy.  I agree, but it was great for dipping.

We were too full for dessert, but we asked to see a dessert menu.  This is one of those restaurants that brings out a tray of desserts for you to look at instead of a dessert menu.  If I had been hungrier, it could've been fun to try the dessert trio.

In short, the main reason to go to this restaurant is the view.  You want to sit by the windows, so if you're going for dinner, make a reservation to make sure you get a window seat.  Otherwise, you shouldn't have a problem sitting wherever you want.  The food is okay.  Some things are better than others, and everything's over-priced.  If it weren't for the bay view, I wouldn't come back, but we had a perfectly lovely meal.  I'm sure we'll eat here again but not nearly as often as we'll eat at Miguel's.

Happy eating!

Miguel's - Just Can't Get Enough!

My husband and I bookended our trip to Coronado, CA by eating at Miguel's.  It was the only restaurant where we ate while we were there.  It's just that good!  To read about the visit to Miguel's when we first arrived, you can click here.

Of course the chips and jalapeno white sauce were incredible.  We tried not to overdo it on those since we wanted to be hungry enough for our food.  We had considered going there and just ordering drinks and dessert.  We figured that along with the chips and white sauce, that'd be all we need.  However, once we got there, we wanted to order entrees.

We started with our drink order.  My husband ordered Miguel's Mango-Mint Tea.  It was iced tea with mango syrup and fresh mint.  It had a light mango flavor, but we both decided that we liked the Passion Fruit Iced Tea (which my husband had ordered last time) better.

I decided to try the Pacific Breeze Cooler which contained raspberry vodka, lemonade, a splash of soda and raspberry garnish.  I was worried that it was going to be too sweet or too strong, but I really liked it.  Some people would probably call it watered down (it came in a glass with a lot of ice), but I thought it was refreshing and a nice light drink for a summer lunch.  I liked it better than the Sangria (which I had last time), and I would definitely order it again.

On to our entrees.  My husband ordered Combo #4 which comes with a chicken burrito and your choice of either a chicken, beef or fish taco.  He went with the fish taco.  It usually comes with a corn tortilla, but he requested a flour tortilla instead, and they granted that request no problem.  We both prefer flour tortillas unless the tortilla is fried.  The fish was fried.  I didn't taste it, but it looked really good.  The burrito looked like a large enchilada, so it was smaller than if you just ordered a burrito.  It was covered with cheese and ranchero sauce.  The meal also came with rice and beans.  One thing I particularly like about the burritos at Miguel's is that they only contain meat.  Some restaurants use rice and beans for filler and hardly include any meat.  My husband's only comment for improvement was that he'd like cheese inside the burrito instead of just on top of it.

I ordered the Fiesta Salad.  If you read my post about eating at Miguel's earlier in the week (which you can read by clicking here), you know how much I liked the Seafood Fiesta Salad.  That special was no longer available this time, so I went with the regular Fiesta Salad with carne asada.  I also requested to have the chipotle ranch dressing on the side.  The salad came in a huge tostada shell, which I hardly touched.  I prefer the salty chips to the greasy shell, but the shell is nice for presentation.  It was loaded with mixed greens, black beans, and roasted corn.  It was topped with carne asada, salsa fresca and guacamole.  I gave most of the guac to my husband.  I think guac's okay.  He thinks it's great.  I loved how the juice from the meat added flavor to the entire salad.  I didn't even use the dressing.  I tasted it, and it's good, but the salad didn't need any additional flavor.  It tasted so fresh and delicious.  I think this salad is going to be my new usual.  You can call it getting stuck in a rut if you want to, but once I find something I love at a restaurant, I tend to stick with it.

We were too full for dessert.  The Mini Chimis will have to wait until the next time we visit Coronado, which will be in about a month.  I can't wait!

Happy eating!

Miguel's

My favorite place to visit within driving distance of L.A. is San Diego, or more specifically, Coronado Island.  My husband and I come down here at least once a year.  Thanks to my husband's Reserve status in the Air Force, we always stay on the North Island Naval Base.

On our first trip down here (many years ago), we didn't know where to go for dinner, so we ended up driving down the main drag towards the Hotel Del Coronado.  We found a parking spot a couple blocks away and started looking at restaurant menus as we walked.  We ended up at Miguel's, and our tradition ever since is that we eat at Miguel's the day we arrive on Coronado Island.

I love Miguel's.  They have indoor seating, but we always sit on the patio, no matter what time of year it is.  Gotta love Southern California's weather.  If it's chilly, they turn on the heat lamps.  We've been there many times for dinner on a weekend and had to wait for a table, but they have chips and salsa for you to snack on while you wait for your table.  We also enjoy peeking in the gift shops while we wait.

Today, we arrived on Coronado Island around 1pm, and we couldn't check into our room until 3pm.  It was perfect timing to have lunch at Miguel's!  A car was leaving a parking spot right next to the restaurant at just the right time for us to take their spot.  What luck!  I fed the meter a quarter, which gave us an hour.  Cheapest meter ever!  We gave it another 10 cents, which gave us 20some more minutes.  There wasn't a wait.  We were seated right away on the patio.

It had been a long car ride, so I headed over to the Ladies' room before looking at the menu.  I had never been inside their Ladies' room before, and it was nice and clean.  The sinks and faucets were pretty cool.  I don't have a picture, but I'd never seen a faucet like those before.  The door also opens out, which I always like.  Then you don't need to use a paper towel to keep your hands clean when exiting; just push it open with your foot.

By the time I returned to the table, chips and salsa were waiting for us, and the jalapeno white sauce arrived shortly thereafter.  I really can't say enough about this jalapeno white sauce.  It's the reason my husband and I love Miguel's so much.  I've never had anything like it anywhere else.  I'm sure it's filled with cream and butter, but it's so delicious.

While we looked over the menu, the waiter took our drink order.  My husband had Passion Fruit Iced Tea.  Ever since Maui, we've been a little obsessed with passion fruit.  The tea came in a glass with the passion fruit on the bottom and the tea on top.  There was a spoon inside to stir it together.  My husband drank his first glass without stirring.  He stirred the refill and announced that it was even better.  I tasted both.  It was really good.  I don't like tea.  I usually only drink tea when I'm sick, but I could drink this.  In fact, I actually liked it.  That's saying a lot.

I ordered Miguel's White Peach Sangria which consisted of white zinfandel with peach brandy, pineapple juice and a splash of soda.  It had a really nice, light peach flavor.  I'd order it again.  Miguel's had 3 types of sangria on their menu, and they all sounded really good.  I tend to like white wine more than red wine, and the other two sangrias contained red wine.  That's why I chose the white peach sangria.  I may have to try the others sometime soon.

Usually, my husband and I share a meal when we eat at Miguel's because we get pretty full from eating chips and white sauce, but today, we decided to order two meals.  Our hotel has a kitchen, so we could totally handle leftovers.

One of the specials caught my eye, the Seafood Fiesta Salad.  It's shrimp, swordfish and scallops sauteed with bell peppers, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes over Miguel's classic fiesta salad, which consists of mixed greens, black beans and roasted corn.  It's served in a crispy flour tortilla shell and topped with salsa fresca and guacamole.  It came with chipotle ranch dressing, which I requested on the side.


I loved the salad.  When visiting San Digeo, I usually want to eat seafood and Mexican food.  This meal accomplished both.  The seafood had a wonderful smokey flavor.  I tried eating it with the dressing, and I tried eating it with the white sauce, but in the end, I ate it without either one.  It's rare to find a salad that's so good it actually tastes better without dressing, and if you don't eat the dressing or the tortilla shell, it's actually healthy.  I didn't think I'd be able to finish it, but it was good to the last piece of lettuce.  I only ate one small piece of the shell and decided that I actually like the tortilla chips better.  The shell was pretty greasy, but if you like greasy shells, this is for you.  If not (like me), it's still worth ordering this salad.  It's so delicious! Unfortunately, it's not on their main menu (it was just a special), but I wish it were!  I'm sure their classic Fiesta Salad (which is on the menu) is really good as well.  It's topped with grilled pollo asada instead of seafood.  That's probably what I'll order when the seafood version isn't available.

My husband ordered the Carne Asada Burrito which consisted of grilled marinated steak sauteed with salsa fresca and rolled into a flour tortilla.  It was topped with enchilada sauce, cheese and guacamole.  It was served with rice and beans.  He ordered the burrito "chimi-style," which basically means the burrito is fried and crispy.  There's a chimichanga on the menu, so I asked my husband what the difference was between ordering the chimichanga or ordering the burrito chimi-style.  Basically, it has to do with fillings.  This burrito was filled with steak, but the chimichanga is filled with either shredded beef or chicken.  My husband didn't think it was the best burrito he'd ever had, but he did enjoy it and would order it again.  All I know is that I was only half-way finished eating my salad, my my husband's plate with practically licked clean.  I think he liked it.  Then he moved back to eating chips and white sauce.

We asked to see a dessert menu just to know what was available.  We were too full to be able to handle dessert.  If we did order dessert, I thought the Dulce Del Leche Mini Chimis sounded the most unique.  The menu description was: a crispy flour tortilla filled with ripe bananas and caramel sauce, rolled in cinnamon and sugar and topped with vanilla ice-cream.  Yum!  No picture, because, like I said, we weren't hungry enough to order dessert.  We may stop back and try it in the next couple days though.

When we were driving down to Coronado Island, I asked my husband what he wanted to do while we were here, and he said, "eat at Miguel's at least once."  I'm glad we ate their this afternoon, as is tradition.  It's been awhile since I had such an amazing meal at a restaurant.  I usually don't like to order things at restaurants that I think I can make (better/cheaper) at home.  Oh, the negative side of knowing how to cook.  Well, everything we had to eat (and drink) today was something we've never made at home, and it was all delicious.

Happy eating!