Food Touring

Trying food from all over the world, at home & abroad!

Thailand: Yum Makeua

Restaurant: Sa-By Thai null
Address: 404 S Second St
City: San Jose, California

I had dinner with a few college friends and one of our SJSU computer engineering professors to catch up! We went to the Sa-By Thai in Downtown on 2nd St; they have another location on 7th St. Yep, Sa-By Thai has two locations within 5 blocks…so double check which location you’re meeting up at!

I frequented the 7th St location when I was attending SJSU and always ordered their “BBQ Eggplant Salad”. So of course, I ordered this dish for my dinner! I love eggplants and salads, so the two combined must be good, right?!

The eggplants are grilled and mixed with shrimp, ground chicken, red onion, green onion, lime juice, and chili. You can eat the BBQ eggplant salad on its own, or with steamed rice. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Thailand

Cambodia: Samlor Korko

Restaurant: Chez Sovan null
Address: 923 Oakland Rd
City: San Jose, California

I had lunch with a coworker at a Cambodian restaurant in San Jose. Chez Sovan is literally a hole-in-wall family operated restaurant, and is only open lunch on weekdays.

We arrived at ~1pm and they had run out of amok trey! My coworker and I decided to go family-style (sharing dishes) and ordered their “fish stew” which had the following description: cube of basa fish fillet simmered with coconut milk, Cambodian spices, eggplants, green beans and garnished with sweet basil. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Cambodia

Vietnam: Bò Tái Chanh

Restaurant: Pho Saigon Noodle & Grill null
Address: 6180 Jarvis Ave, Ste T
City: Newark, California

My sister’s birthday is coming up! She was craving bò tái chanh, also known as Vietnamese beef carpaccio, and found a restaurant nearby that served it!

Pho Saigon’s bò tái chanh had thin slices of rare beef with lime, peanuts, basil, and jalapeño ($10.95 USD). Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Vietnam

Japan: Cheese Tonkatsu

Restaurant: Guru Katsu null
Address: 1711 W El Camino Real, Ste B
City: Mountain View, California

When I started working at NASA Ames Research Center as a summer intern in 2009, I noticed there was a lack of diverse restaurants in Mountain View. The restaurant scene has changed so much the past five years! I think the growth of tech employees in the area contributed to this (Google, Microsoft, NASA, LinkedIn, Tango, Symantec, and tons more).

I had lunch at a katsu restaurant that opened mid-last year that’s located on El Camino, near Shoreline. I got the cheese katsu, which was breaded pork loin (pork cutlet) stuffed with mozzarella, served with miso soup, tomato, yellow radish, horseradish, and all-you-can-eat (AYCE) cabbage. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan

Guam & Mariana Islands: Kelaguen

Restaurant: Booniepepper Islander Grill null
Address: 6180 Jarvis Ave, Suite B
City: Newark, California

My family wanted to go out for dinner and asked me for suggestions. I turned to Yelp and found a Pacific Islander restaurant that opened two months ago!

The term ‘Pacific Islander’ includes Native Hawaiians, Samoans, Chamorro, Tongans, Fijians, and more. I asked the cashier which cuisine they focused on, and he said it was more of a fusion as the main dish is Pacific Islander, with Asian and/or American side dishes. He also said their Chicken Kelaguen (#6 on their menu with two side dishes, for $9.99 USD) was Guamanian/Chamorro; the grilled chicken is marinated and served cold, and best eaten with their bacon red rice! Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Guam, Mariana Islands

Colombia: Bolitas de Yuca con Queso

Restaurant: Yam Leaf Bistro null
Address: 699 Calderon Ave
City: Mountain View, California

My coworkers and I went to a vegetarian restaurant near work, for lunch. One of my coworkers thought it was an Asian restaurant because of the name “Yam Leaf Bistro”. Turns out, the place used to be a meat-heavy Salvadoran restaurant before it was sold to a Chinese vegetarian who kept the Salvadoran chef and wait staff. The owner also changed the menu, to make it vegetarian only.

Yam Leaf Bistro is primarly a Salvadoran restaurant, but they also have other Latin American dishes. We had their “Yucca Bolitas” for appetizer, which were fried creamy yuca balls with crispy skin (fried) and mozzarella cheese filling. Salsa and guacamole were also served on the side. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Colombia

El Salvador: Horchata

Restaurant: Yam Leaf Bistro null
Address: 699 Calderon Ave
City: Mountain View, California

My coworkers and I went to a vegetarian restaurant near work, for lunch. One of my coworkers thought it was an Asian restaurant because of the name “Yam Leaf Bistro”. Turns out, the place used to be a meat-heavy Salvadoran restaurant before it was sold to a Chinese vegetarian who kept the Salvadoran chef and wait staff. The owner also changed the menu, to make it vegetarian only.

The two of us ordered horchata. Salvadoran horchata. Yam Leaf Bistro’s horchata has grounded morro seeds mixed with milk or almond milk. We went with (regular) milk. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in El Salvador

Burma: Pig Ear Salad

Restaurant: Kyain Kyain null
Address: 3649 Thornton Ave
City: Fremont, California

My family went to a Burmese restaurant for dinner with a family friend. It was actually my parents’ and sister’s first time having Burmese food!

We had pig ear salad as one of our appetizers. This dish had pig ear with fried onion, onion, cucumber, ginger, and parsley. The sauce was also sweet and sour, unlike the spicy/sweet Chinese pig ear dishes. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Burma

Jordan: Mansaf

Restaurant: Falafel Bite null
Address: 222 Barber Ct
City: Milpitas, California

I had dinner with a few college friends to celebrate a birthday! It just so happened that the girls arrived at the restaurant on time, while the boys were late because they went to the wrong location…! Falafel Bite is located in Sunnyvale and Milpitas. Also, this chain is called Falafel Bite, not Falafel Stop.

Falafel Bite is a Mediterranean restaurant, with a few Middle Eastern dishes. I browsed their website prior to coming, and noticed a lamb dish (I love lamb!) with a name I’d never seen before- mansaf. Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Jordan

Japan: Korokke (aka Croquette)

Market: Mitsuwa Marketplace null
Address: 675 Saratoga Ave
City: San Jose, California

The first time I heard about the Japanese croquette (コロッケ, korokke) was through Cooking Mama, when it was released for the Nintendo DS in September 2006. The game showed us how the croquette was made, and how simple it was.

Fastforward to February 2015! Mitsuwa was having a Customer Appreciation Event, selling a variety of popular Japanese street foods, seafood, and sweets. A relative posted the two photos below on Facebook, which made my sister and I drive down to San Jose to check it out! Continue reading →

Posted on by Mango in Japan