Food Adventure

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Song by Mason VanValin

Study Break: Franks Famous Hot Dogs

A gruesome Friday devoted to homework and studying left me with a late night lust for a sinful snack that did not require me to drive very far, for I had to continue with my academic endeavor before the night was through. As I was brainstorming my next food adventure some dorm mates knocked on my door and invited me to go eat at Franks Famous Hot Dogs, known for their succulent franks and juicy burgers. I initially declined their offer because I did not want to write about a dish that was already well known in SLO. Upon second evaluation of the reasons I started writing about local dishes I realized that not only am I attempting to find dishes that are hidden gems on menus, but also ones that are affordable and delicious. I then realized that I am also working to find dishes that I enjoy. I want to satisfy my stomach along with the stomachs of the people who take my advice on where to eat. As far as I am concerned my stomach comes first, and I am not about to allow the premise of this blog restrict my satisfaction.

I accepted the invitation to go eat at Franks, with the impression that I would still attempt to order a dish that was not a mainstay on its menu.

When we arrived at Franks I knew I would not be sticking to my plan of finding a dish that was less commonly ordered. Polaroid pictures, displaying locals who had conquered an eating challenge made famous by this establishment, covered the walls. The challenge? Eat ten of Frank’s Mini Burgers and get a free t-shirt and your photo placed on the wall. I had heard of several fellow Cal Poly students successfully completing this challenge, but I was lacking the confidence to successfully consume the equivalence of five normal sized burgers.

I quickly grew fascinated with these mini burgers, wondering what ingredients were put into them that would make them delicious enough to drive a person beyond fullness to complete the challenge. These burgers must have been prepared with some reputable ingredient in the burger business in order to make them more than welcome into a stomach that was already filled to maximum capacity.

I knew there was something special about these burgers and I had to find out what. Knowing the impossibility of eating ten mini burgers, I ordered four. The seating setting of the restaurant reminded me of a fast food establishment, but the time it took to receive the food after ordering was not too fast and not too slow. Franks reminded me of an In-N-Out that was crossbred with a Denny’s. It was simple, fast and delicious with a hint of tradition.

The four mini burgers were brought to my table. They sat on the plate huddling together for warmth as the shredded cheddar cheese sweated and melted between them. They looked almost too good to eat. Upon initial sight there was nothing that distinguished these burgers apart from any other burger besides their miniature size. It was when I took my first bite that I realized these were no ordinary burgers, these were steak house quality burgers, and they happened to be made famous in a fast food style restaurant. The texture of the beef was the outstanding feature, for the patties were asymmetrical and did not yield to my bite like a patty from McDonalds. I could tell that the beef was freshly ground with a restaurant style course grind, making it a little tougher than a frozen patty thrown on the griddle. It reminded me of the burgers I used to make at home.

A large bite towards the center of the burger revealed its second outstanding feature. The sauce. This was the sole reason that so many people could complete the mini burger challenge. Flavor is the only thing that helps people keep eating, and this sauce was the elemental reason these burgers can be so easily devoured.

I inhaled the first three burgers at an alarming rate, and savored the fourth and final one. I was full but was left with a craving for more. These miniature morsels are a dangerous food to reckon with because of their flavor. They have the power to allure the stomach into feeling an endless hunger and an endless craving for more.  The burgers left me with a full stomach, but an underlying craving for another bite.

I fought my desire for more mini burgers and headed back to the dorms. I sat in my room and happily continued my homework, knowing that I had escaped the hypnotizing call of the mini burger challenge.

Reviews of Franks

Chino’s: A full stomach and a healthy wallet

An insipid rendition of tamales from the VG Café last night left me with a desire to venture off the beaten path once again to find a deliciously cultured plate. My Mexican food aspirations were quickly halted when I realized my wallet was home to a mere five dollars. The possibility of finding a place to eat at my miniscule price range was slim, but with the security of a debit card to back me up if I ran into trouble, I set my course towards the colony of restaurants sitting in the centerfold of the downtown scene. I disappointed myself a little bit by sticking to my comfort zone and venturing to a location I was familiar with, but I had not yet explored every inch of this area so I let myself off the hook, for now.

I found myself at the 800 block of Higuera Street where I had discovered Mondéo Pronto and its fusion wrap. I was overcome by a slight feeling of nostalgia, for this plaza had given me fond memories of successful outings. Now I know why it is so hard for you foodies to break out of your shell. It is just so comfortable to stick to what we know.

My warm comfort from this familiar area was converted to uneasiness, because I was still searching for a place to eat. I was lost. My stomach was yearning for satisfaction and it was letting me know just how impatient it was with its rumbles. I walked around the corner next to Mondéo Pronto where I met with a line of massive proportions. I had not seen a line this big since the premier of “Avatar” at the Fremont Theater. This line did not lead into a concert or movie, it led into Chino’s Rock and Tacos.

The monstrous line winded through the plaza and fed through the doors of Chino’s, that somehow managed to artfully blend rock and roll with Mexican food. Good music and a lively group of customers made for a social and inviting spot. I looked at the menu to discover that it was “Taco Tuesday”, a night dedicated to one-dollar tacos and two dollar beers. This combination would be hard to pass up if I was 21, but thankfully I could still enjoy the tacos.

I ordered four tacos: two shredded chicken and two shredded beef, along with chips, salsa and a drink all for under five dollars. I had found the perfect place for my emaciated wallet and my craving for Mexican food.

My first bite revealed a layering of fresh ingredients. Crispy lettuce, tomatoes and Mexican cheese topped the steaming shredded meat and poultry. The only word I could use to describe this dish by is refreshing. It was one of those dishes that make you close your eyes and love everything about the moment you are currently in. It is Food for the Soul. I loved everything about this dish. The price. The taste. The environment it was consumed in.  It is times like these when realize how important a good meal is. It allows us to escape our boring and bland lives and imagine we are eating something that not everyone can have. It gives us comfort to know that amongst the chaos of our lives, we can find a way to treat your body to something great, just as we treat our minds to a movie or a book. Food is the final link to keeping our mental and physical sanity. Fuel the engine not only with fuel, but also with good fuel.

Price Range: $1-$10

Map of my dining adventure

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The Natural Café: The Chicken-Stuffed Spud?

My ever-thickening food journey has led me down the wrong course, slowly pressuring me into trying less and less illustrious dishes, and leading me to encounter what I had always dreaded to face since my adventure began. Today was the day that I found the fluke, the dish that I would be compromised to write the truth about, in its entirety.

Ever since I began this food adventure I would constantly wonder if one day I might find a dish that I did not like, and would be forced to write about it anyway.  I am currently at a crossroad, standing face to face with the dish that has haunted my list of potential dining disasters. However, my journalistic ethics have taught me to be objective, and report the facts, so that is what I shall do today.

From the moment I awoke this morning I knew where my dining destination was going to be, a restaurant that I had wanted to try since I had arrived in SLO, The Natural Café. It was not an unfamiliar place, for I had eaten at one of its other locations in Santa Barbara. This establishment has remained faithful to its nutritious and healthy premise “We turn good health into good taste, and good taste into good health”, as stated on their menu. But today, due to an unwise decision, I chose to order something that did not stand up to their alimental motto.

Each time I am planning on profiling a dish, I make sure I have a game plan, an attack strategy of what type of dish I will order. I usually chart my dining course along the lines of ordering a dish that does not primarily look like a featured dish, or one that does not seem popular to a majority of customers. That would just be too easy. I try to find a dish on the menu that jumps at me and is definitely not surrounded by a colorful squiggly line, or denoted by an asterisk, symbolizing that it is a popular dish. My strategy today was to find a dish that was trying not to be seen.

I quick glance at the menu revealed several familiar dishes that I knew to be delicious, but I had to order something that did not jump out at me, I had to order a skittish and antisocial dish.

After about four or five minutes of staring aimlessly at the menu, along with holding up the line, I landed on a dish with an interesting title that appeared incredibly simple in ingredients, but had potential to enliven my taste buds. It was called the Chicken-Stuffed Spud and it comprised of a “Baked potato stuffed with chicken in ranchero sauce topped with sour cream and guacamole”, along with a romaine salad with gluten-free lemon herb dressing. I also ordered a little insurance, a Strawberry Fields smoothie, to help coax my taste buds out of a possible flavor coma in case the dish was flavorless.

When I got my meal it looked very appetizing. The salad was tantalizing. The lemon herb dressing artfully crowned the lettuce, sprouts, julienned carrots, tomato and red onion with a golden arrangement of glimmering gluten free dressing. It reflected the light with tiny shimmering fragments of golden olive oil. The potato on the other hand reminded me of a side dish, and did not merit an eight-dollar price tag. It was merely a baked potato, which was however perfectly cooked, topped with shredded chicken, guacamole and sour cream. It looked appetizing but with my first bite, my opinions turned awry.

Not only did it look like a baked potato, it was a baked potato, no more and no less. For the centerpiece of a dish it was certainly lacking flavor as well as appearance. I cleaned my plate only because I had paid for it. But how can I expect a full flavored dish by ordering something that I had assumed to lack in popularity as well as taste.

I cannot complain for two reasons, one is because I know The Natural Café is a delicious restaurant; I just ordered something that was not very popular.  And the second reason is because I ordered a dish that was very simplistic and not as popular. What would be the effectiveness of a food blog that talks about dishes that everyone has already heard of? I have been working to profile individual dishes, not restaurants. If I were to profile The Natural Café I would thank them with the entirety of my stomach for being one of the few restaurants that are keeping America from becoming the eighth fattest country in the world as opposed to the ninth. I think every restaurant should work to becoming a little bit more like The Natural Café, without sacrificing flavor (in their top dishes), as they have done for years.

Price range: $6.50-$10

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Petra Audio Interview with Samir Aburashed

I sat down with Samir Aburashed, Manager and Chef of Petra, a Mediterranean Restaurant in San Luis Obispo.

Assignment Edit

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Full Version

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Café Roma: Clam, Tomato and Italian Chile Linguini

(I apologize for the low quality photo. A journalist needs to remember to keep his camera with him at all times)

After a grueling week of on-campus dining, I was treated to lunch today by my Mom’s boyfriend Gabe, who chose to eat Italian for his love of the culture as well as the garlic. He told me about a restaurant directly across the street from the train station in SLO called Café Roma, “a restaurant that features great food, genuine hospitality, and a setting with its own story to tell” as their website details.

I walked into the little Café and met with Gabe who had already gotten a table. A steel tray sat in the middle of the table, presenting fresh Italian bread to snack on while waiting to order. A traditional pair of olive oil and balsamic vinegar sat on each table to be enjoyed with the bread.

The whole place smelled like a mixture of wine and steaming Italian favorites being freshly prepared in the kitchen. A friendly waitress came to our table to introduce the daily specials and take our orders. Gabe ordered a special entrée of breaded pork loin with roasted carrots, mushrooms and garlic mashed potatoes. I ordered a menu staple, the Linguini with freshly steamed clams, roasted Tomatoes and Italian red Chiles.

Some bread with oil and a good conversation in this quiet Italian environment made for an easy wait for our food to be prepared. After much anticipation the waitress brought out a classic Caesar salad for me along with asparagus soup for Gabe. The salad was coated with homemade Caesar dressing and a generous topping of thick sliced Parmesan cheese, finished up with crispy seasoned croutons. The “Parma” cheese added a complimenting tang to the salad along with the satisfying crunch of the croutons, which made this a simple salad that left an ambrosial impression on my taste buds.

By this point in my meal I was in a state of utter comfort, and the main course had not even made it to my table yet. I was starting to get excited.

The server then brought our entrées to the table, and that is when I saw it. A large white bowl was filled to the brim with a generous helping of freshly prepared Linguini pasta, which sat, angelically intertwining a dozen steaming hot clams. It was all soaking in an amber red broth of fresh garlic, Italian Chiles and regional spices. My mouth was watering with the anticipation of eating a delicious meal after a week straight of on-campus food, which just cannot compare to a dish that was artfully prepared by Café Roma.

I like to consider myself to be quite good with my words, but today I cannot find the words to describe how this dish makes me feel, for it has enlivened my taste buds that have chosen to go dormant as of last week. My palette is alive again. It has been reincarnated and has now reacquired its dexterity that was lost amidst the eating of hundreds of flavorless dishes. I can once again break down a dish to its every seasoning and additive, and I have the Linguini from Café Roma to thank.

It is common for someone to lose the precision of their taste buds, because they can so easily go dormant and hibernate during “food winter” when they are not being tempted and challenged with every dish we eat. So I leave you with a word of knowledge that I have learned about eating. It is that our taste buds are like dogs, and if we do not keep them engaged and interested with everything we do, they will grow apathetic and lazy, and they will forget a life of excitement. Do not allow this to happen. Keep your tastes alive and thriving with rich and soulful foods. Life gets too boring if there is no flavor.

Menu Price Range: $8-$25

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