You have to train your friends to help you out in life. Thus, practically everyone I know is under a mandate to deliver impressions of their dining experiences to me. Sometimes, there’s a wonderful little story that emerges that I believe will enhance our readers’ possibilities at the table. Such is the case with Roger Bloom’s happy experience when he recently visited Rosarito in Baja with his family. This is such a popular destination, and so easy to get to, that this tidbit will, I am sure, be most useful when you are hanging around down there.
We could call Roger my real boss, since as managing editor of the Business Journal my articles go to him, and he makes them fit into an allotted space. He’s also the one who entertains you weekly with the clever and sometimes pithy headlines that crown my words. Here’s what he shared with me.
They came upon a restaurant called Cazuela de Mole. Roger enhanced my education by telling me that a cazuela is a large, open earthenware pot, something I did not know.
“Mole, of course, is the wonderful, dusky, complex sauce that is one of the great achievements of Mexican cuisine, and they do it to perfection at the restaurant,” says Roger. “I don’t have a street address, but it’s directly across the main drag from the police station.”
Well, that’s a pop-up marker for us.
He also says, “it’s next to a business that flies an enormous Modelo beer can balloon. It is painted a striking green but it is set back a bit from the street, so you don’t see it until you’re close.”
So now, we’ve got a name and perfect directions.
Obviously I would not be sharing this if they didn’t love the food.
“We had their chicken soup,” Roger says, “which ranks with the best you’ll get anywhere.” When you invoke the name of mom, you know you’re on serious ground and he added that “Vicki’s mom calls it the best chicken soup in Mexico, and she’s well traveled down there. Vicki” you’ve guessed this is Roger’s lovely wife “had a chicken tostada, which was extremely tasty with a nice mix of spices. I had chorizo and eggs, which also was nicely spiced and surprisingly free of the grease you expect in a chorizo dish.”
About this time in the story, I was wondering why I wasn’t sending Roger out on my beat here in Orange County. He had details. He mentioned that “instead of the industry-standard tomato-onion-pepper salsa, we were served a small dish of dry ground spices that included chilies and peanuts, among others. I was so surprised that my first impulse was to ask for salsa. But I quickly recovered my wits and tried the spice mix. It was marvelous.”
Finishing our conversation, he added that “next door to the Cazuela de Mole is an ice cream shop that has the best pistachio you’ll ever eat. And two doors down is a sweets shop that has a wide array of treats and, hanging outside, a dozen or so fully loaded pi & #324;atas for sale.”
I’m sold. I’m hungry and too busy to take a day or a few right now to drive down there, but you can bet I’ve put this in my travel itinerary for the near future.
Golden Truffle Wine Dinner Set
There are wine dinners that are downright embraceable. One such food- and wine-matching takes place this Thursday, Sept. 27, at 6:30 p.m. at the Golden Truffle in Costa Mesa. Owner and chef Alan Greeley has come up with a menu that’s certainly gotten my attention,but that’s par for the course with him,and the wines of Fife and Laetitia are on the “must taste” list if you do not know them.
The evening’s reception begins with the 1997 Laetitia Cuv & #233;e “M” sparkling wine. The Laetitia wines continue with the next two courses of food. First the 1998 Laetitia Estate Pinot Blanc is poured, then the Laetitia ’98 Estate Pinot Noir. As the wines change to Fife, you’ll relish the 1999 Fife Latitude, followed by the ’99 Fife Max Cuv & #233;e and the darling of collectors, the 1999 Fife Old Vines Zinfandel.
Here’s the menu:
Naked “Last Haul” Gulf shrimp salad followed by warm halibut salad with Pinot-preserved shimigi. Next course is confit of quail with apple tamale. The entr & #233;e is kiewe-smoked rack of lamb with chilaquiles. Dessert’s a surprise!
In case you are not familiar with these wines, Laetitia used to be Maison Deutz in San Luis Obispo. Words such as “scintillating,” “supple” and “triumphant” have been used by big-time wine writers to describe these delicately structured wines. Fife is situated in the Redwood Valley AVA of Mendocino County. Fife is known for deliberate unfolding layers of aroma beyond which the wines are concentrated in taste with long, svelte finishes. The style has become its trademark.
The cost of the dinner is $85, plus tax and gratuity. Seating is limited, so call (949) 645-9970 for reservations. The Golden Truffle is at 1767 Newport Blvd.
