San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — In a city teeming with Vietnamese noodle shops specializing in the very fragrant beef noodle soup known as pho, one of them has to be getting it right. In San Diego, Pho Hoa might just be it. They do one thing here, […]
Read MoreMeaty Goodness
Meaty goodness posts on The Joy of Food blog.
Ramen Danbo
Vancouver, Canada (The Joy of Food) — Ramen Danbo is that place that makes you question life and determine that, until now, all the other ramen you’ve been eating is swill. Here, it is a special kind of ramen that exists perfectly in the moment, and then it disappears. The […]
Read MoreSteve’s Prince of Steaks
Philadelphia, PA (The Joy of Food) — In the lexicon of great American sandwiches, Chicago has the Italian beef, New Orleans has the muffaletta, and Philadelphia has the cheesesteak. These are American icons that are often imitated, but never duplicated. When the secret history of cheesesteak greatness is finally written, […]
Read MoreBolton’s Spicy Chicken & Fish
Nashville, TN (The Joy of Food) — Nashville is famous for the twang of its country music, the neon lights of its honky-tonk bars, and its hot chicken, the city’s potentially fatal (or, at least, not for the faint of heart) spicy fried specialty. It hurts, but it is oh […]
Read MoreMyung In Dumplings
Los Angeles, CA (The Joy of Food) — I first heard about Myung In Dumplings in a Koreatown episode of Parts Unknown, where guest buddy David Choe describes the wang mandu (king dumplings) here as ‘prolapsed buttholes.’ This is exactly the image you want in your head during dinner. On […]
Read MoreAu Pied de Cochon
Montreal, Canada (The Joy of Food) — Montreal may be home to one of the richest, most decadent food scenes in the world, one where things like cheese curds, duck fat, and red wine flow through veins, where sophistication and rustic commingle on the same plate, and where gluttony is […]
Read MoreJoe Beef
Montreal, Canada (The Joy of Food) — When I saw two jolly guys on television traveling with their own stash of truffles on a train jaunt through the Québécois countryside, I knew I needed to visit whatever restaurant they were hawking on the show. Those jolly guys were chef-owners David […]
Read MoreBestia
Los Angeles, CA (The Joy of Food) — To understand Bestia, you should look at the gnocchi al pomodoro, a dish with just a handful of ingredients. Their version comes closest to how you’d find it in Italy. I would eat my weight in these little pillows of heaven if […]
Read MoreEl Borrego Restaurant
San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — On University Avenue, slightly east of the gentrified North Park area, stands El Borrego, a gem hiding in plain sight. It’s an eccentric operation, this one, with a screaming orange exterior paint job and bright, colorful interior that gives way to equally […]
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