Pernicano's Italian Restaurant in El Cajon
Pernicano's is a locally owned small chain with maybe half a dozen locations. The original one is in Hillcrest and has sat vacant for over 10 years now, since the founder retired (he's in his 90's now). He hasn't done anything with the building (it's a great location) other than keep it up to code and repair the damage when it gets vandalized (repeatedly) as he says all of his memories are there, such as visits from many Hollywood types, like Frank Sinatra...
The original one was started in 1946 but the one here in El Cajon is nowhere near that old. I'd never eaten there before although the Boy had as it's right across the street from the local Ford dealership and when we first got here, we had to have the dealer reconnect the Ford Ranger's U-joint at the rear axle, which was removed to tow it from Squarefield. As dealerships generally move at the speed of a glacier, he found himself waiting around through lunch time and popped across the street for a bite.
He wasn't impressed and neither am I although the wife enjoyed her torpedo sandwich with side salad. I had a small pepperoni pizza and an iced tea.
Our total was $24.48 and the server's name was Bri (your guess is as good as mine; is it Brittany, Bridget, Brianna or maybe even Brian?). Even after putting my empty tea glass on the very edge of the table, then asking for more tea when she didn't get the hint, another server finally came around with a pitcher of tea, no ice, so I had to ask for that too, and the check...
Number 148
Dakota Grill & Spirits
901 Fifth Ave
San Diego, Ca.
(619) 234-5554
16 ounce ribeye steak with sherry demi glaze (L), chipotle butter for corn (R)
We've been meaning to check this place out for some time as Robbin, one of the wife's co-workers from La Jolla Country Club has been there forever.
The bread basket was fairly amusing with a nice, crunchy crust on the warm white bread, dark bread similar to the squaw bread at Outback Steak House, with a taste of honey and multiple grains and their own whipped butter.
Our appetizers were bacon wrapped sea scallops with sauteed mushrooms and a balsamic reduction (absolutely superb) and the 5 onion soup (I love French Onion Soup and have eaten it virtually everywhere we've had the chance and I have to admit that this is one of the best we've ever tasted).
We ordered the 16 ounce ribeye, medium well, as per the wife's instructions and split it (it was huge, with enough left over for Dog Boy's dinner).
I had the grilled corn on the cob with chipotle lime butter for $4.95 (yeah, I know, $5 for an ear of corn) and the Darla had garlic mashed potatoes.
And, as usual, I had an iced tea and the wife ordered a pot of hot tea.
They "comped" the appetizers, everything was great, service was impeccable (of course) so we left Robbin a fairly nice tip. Parking wasn't so reasonable: $10 for just over an hour, but at least it was right around the corner
And I should probably also mention the piano bar...
The web site: www.cohnrestaurants.com/cohn/cohnrestaurants/dakota.php
UPDATE: 2 February 2008
We took the Boy with us for our second visit last night and had essentially the same meal except the wife ordered the halibut with a Parmesan / Potato crust. It was all excellent, of course. Fries were mediocre and $5 a pop...
901 Fifth Ave
San Diego, Ca.
(619) 234-5554
16 ounce ribeye steak with sherry demi glaze (L), chipotle butter for corn (R)
We've been meaning to check this place out for some time as Robbin, one of the wife's co-workers from La Jolla Country Club has been there forever.
The bread basket was fairly amusing with a nice, crunchy crust on the warm white bread, dark bread similar to the squaw bread at Outback Steak House, with a taste of honey and multiple grains and their own whipped butter.
Our appetizers were bacon wrapped sea scallops with sauteed mushrooms and a balsamic reduction (absolutely superb) and the 5 onion soup (I love French Onion Soup and have eaten it virtually everywhere we've had the chance and I have to admit that this is one of the best we've ever tasted).
We ordered the 16 ounce ribeye, medium well, as per the wife's instructions and split it (it was huge, with enough left over for Dog Boy's dinner).
I had the grilled corn on the cob with chipotle lime butter for $4.95 (yeah, I know, $5 for an ear of corn) and the Darla had garlic mashed potatoes.
And, as usual, I had an iced tea and the wife ordered a pot of hot tea.
They "comped" the appetizers, everything was great, service was impeccable (of course) so we left Robbin a fairly nice tip. Parking wasn't so reasonable: $10 for just over an hour, but at least it was right around the corner
And I should probably also mention the piano bar...
The web site: www.cohnrestaurants.com/cohn/cohnrestaurants/dakota.php
UPDATE: 2 February 2008
We took the Boy with us for our second visit last night and had essentially the same meal except the wife ordered the halibut with a Parmesan / Potato crust. It was all excellent, of course. Fries were mediocre and $5 a pop...
Number 147:
Los Panchos:
Not to be confused with other Los Panchos across the state, Dos Panchos, Aiberto's, Alberto's, Adalberto's, Berto's, Ramberto's, Roberto's, etc).
This unit, on Broadway in El Cajon, is one of at least 10 local outlets and was an Arby's until a couple of years ago.
And I was pleasantly surprised by my visit as we have one very close to the house and yet we've never bothered to check it out before...
Their specialty seems to be some serious Mexican soups and I'll be taking the wife there soon to do the research as she's a serious soup freak. The best appears to be the Siete Mares (7 Seas) and features 7 different seafoods.
There's also the Mexican equivalent of a jumbo shrimp cocktail, only with octopus as well as the prawns.
I was there for lunch however and had the standard Gringo Combinacion # 1: a beef taco, cheese enchilada, beans and rice ($6.25). The taco was as good as any I've ever had although the beans were not quite hot enough for me.
I'm not a big fan of the cheese enchilada and can offer no real comment here.
With a soda and tax, the total was $8.23 and I tossed the coin in the tip jar...
Update: Later that afternoon, the wife and I stopped by for the 7 Seas Soup.
It was a bit spicy (red pepper flakes), the octopus tentacles were a bit chewy, there was a lot of shrimp and the crab leg was almost rubber (boiling caused the shell to go soft) so we couldn't crack it open. The total was just over $10, it was a huge bowl (she didn't finish it) but she says she'll be back for more...
Not to be confused with other Los Panchos across the state, Dos Panchos, Aiberto's, Alberto's, Adalberto's, Berto's, Ramberto's, Roberto's, etc).
This unit, on Broadway in El Cajon, is one of at least 10 local outlets and was an Arby's until a couple of years ago.
And I was pleasantly surprised by my visit as we have one very close to the house and yet we've never bothered to check it out before...
Their specialty seems to be some serious Mexican soups and I'll be taking the wife there soon to do the research as she's a serious soup freak. The best appears to be the Siete Mares (7 Seas) and features 7 different seafoods.
There's also the Mexican equivalent of a jumbo shrimp cocktail, only with octopus as well as the prawns.
I was there for lunch however and had the standard Gringo Combinacion # 1: a beef taco, cheese enchilada, beans and rice ($6.25). The taco was as good as any I've ever had although the beans were not quite hot enough for me.
I'm not a big fan of the cheese enchilada and can offer no real comment here.
With a soda and tax, the total was $8.23 and I tossed the coin in the tip jar...
Update: Later that afternoon, the wife and I stopped by for the 7 Seas Soup.
It was a bit spicy (red pepper flakes), the octopus tentacles were a bit chewy, there was a lot of shrimp and the crab leg was almost rubber (boiling caused the shell to go soft) so we couldn't crack it open. The total was just over $10, it was a huge bowl (she didn't finish it) but she says she'll be back for more...
Number 146:
Westcoaster BBQ & Catering:
I recently read about this place and finally got a chance to check it out.
Evidently, the principals had been caterers before retiring, did the permanent travel thing, got bored with it and decided to get back into the rib game.
They advertise themselves as West Coast Style so I emailed to ask what kind of wood they use, a trick question because a few places we've checked out here calling themselves "west coast style" used no wood of any kind.
Olga emailed back this afternoon to say they use oak and that yes, I can get the meat with no sauce or on the side.
After I dropped the wife off at her Tuesday evening class, I stopped by. The customers appeared to be stacked out the front door and onto the patio so I slid past them to ask if they had a single seat for me (yes).
I ordered a combo platter ($15.99) with baby back ribs, a nice slab of beef brisket and the pulled pork. For side orders, I had the beans and wedge cut fries. And, of course, there was the mandatory iced tea.
When they brought my tea (and before I had placed my order), they also brought a warm roll with sesame seeds, poppy seeds and butter.
The food arrived quickly and it was kind of a mixed bag as the beef was great and the sauce is easily the best I've had in years but the ribs weren't cooked near enough and bordered on tough, the beans and wedge cuts were both under done and the pulled pork wasn't really pulled so much as it had been worked over with the meat cleaver. I could smell the smoke the minute I walked into the front door but the only place I tasted it was in the ribs.
They also included a BBQ house specialty; several burnt ends, the best part of the meal.
I recently read about this place and finally got a chance to check it out.
Evidently, the principals had been caterers before retiring, did the permanent travel thing, got bored with it and decided to get back into the rib game.
They advertise themselves as West Coast Style so I emailed to ask what kind of wood they use, a trick question because a few places we've checked out here calling themselves "west coast style" used no wood of any kind.
Olga emailed back this afternoon to say they use oak and that yes, I can get the meat with no sauce or on the side.
After I dropped the wife off at her Tuesday evening class, I stopped by. The customers appeared to be stacked out the front door and onto the patio so I slid past them to ask if they had a single seat for me (yes).
I ordered a combo platter ($15.99) with baby back ribs, a nice slab of beef brisket and the pulled pork. For side orders, I had the beans and wedge cut fries. And, of course, there was the mandatory iced tea.
When they brought my tea (and before I had placed my order), they also brought a warm roll with sesame seeds, poppy seeds and butter.
The food arrived quickly and it was kind of a mixed bag as the beef was great and the sauce is easily the best I've had in years but the ribs weren't cooked near enough and bordered on tough, the beans and wedge cuts were both under done and the pulled pork wasn't really pulled so much as it had been worked over with the meat cleaver. I could smell the smoke the minute I walked into the front door but the only place I tasted it was in the ribs.
They also included a BBQ house specialty; several burnt ends, the best part of the meal.
Our favorite baby back rib recipe:
Salt & pepper rub
At least an hour of indirect hickory smoking (two hours would be better)
Low & slow the rest of the afternoon, 225 to 250 degrees in the oven
Kick it up to 350 degrees for the last hour
It's that simple!
It makes the meat so tender it really does just fall off of the bone and they'd be almost perfect with their sauce recipe (on the side, of course)...
Although the sign says maximum occupation is 42.9 people (I have to ask: exactly how does a supposedly intelligent fire inspector come up with that number?), there are 50 seats inside, a small room with mostly 2 top tables and mirrors on the end wall to make it look much larger than it really is...
There are also enough seats outside to fit maybe a dozen more people.
And I should mention that most of their clientele are in their 60's on up...
Service was quick and efficient although the waitress took forever to refill my iced tea glass. The total was just over $20 so I left the change and a couple of bucks more for the tip and brought the rest back here for the wife's lunch (and a second opinion) tomorrow.
Their web site: www.westcoastcater.com
UPDATE: The wife liked the sauce but says it's just a little too sweet for her. We used it and the "pulled" pork to make a sandwich on a generic hot dog bun and it was quite good. She (and Dog Boy) both loved the beef brisket and she agreed with me that the ribs really need to be cooked low & slow...
There are also enough seats outside to fit maybe a dozen more people.
And I should mention that most of their clientele are in their 60's on up...
Service was quick and efficient although the waitress took forever to refill my iced tea glass. The total was just over $20 so I left the change and a couple of bucks more for the tip and brought the rest back here for the wife's lunch (and a second opinion) tomorrow.
Their web site: www.westcoastcater.com
UPDATE: The wife liked the sauce but says it's just a little too sweet for her. We used it and the "pulled" pork to make a sandwich on a generic hot dog bun and it was quite good. She (and Dog Boy) both loved the beef brisket and she agreed with me that the ribs really need to be cooked low & slow...
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