The Barbeque Pit in San Jose, California

The Burger Pit may have closed, but new owners have taken over and turned it into a barbecue place (1349 Blossom Hill Road, 408-440-2968). It was pretty good too, with not just tender, fatty, and smoky cuts of meat, but also decent sides and condiments, including a gigantic baked potato and some potent chili pepper slices. They even had an array of taps featuring local breweries. That was much better than that commercialized Armadillo Willy's place.

Burger Bar in San Jose, California

I've probably driven past this stand on the corner of Keyes Street a million times yet am only trying it now (1101 South First Street, 408-293-0900). They have big signage talking about their bag of five burgers for $10.99, but the burgers were the most forgettable part of the meal, as they weren't that different from the basic McDonald's burger with a thin patty, dry bun, and sweet garnish. The thing that *was* impressive were the fries, which were wonderfully potato-ey like Five Guys or Phat Burger Bro., albeit sliced shoestring style instead. I'd come back without hesitation for the fries alone, although maybe I'll end up pairing that with their tacos and chili instead.

The Normal Cascabella Peppers at In-N-Out

I didn't realize it until I looked it up just now that In-N-Out swapped out their usual stubby chili peppers for a milder one last year due to a supply shortage. Fortunately, supplies of their normal (spicier) peppers are back, and they had big tubs of them at the condiment counter for you to grab. I also had them shove some into my Double Double today along with my usual sliced raw onions and cold cheese. The spicy chili peppers inside brought the entire equation home for me.

Frank & Furter's in Northern California

Last year, I noticed a small chain of hot dog shops in the South Bay called Umai Savory Hot Dogs, whose name alone got me curious. But they seem to have rebranded to Frank & Furter's, and we were able to sneak in a quite bite this afternoon as a snack.

They had a bazillion pre-configured dogs on the menu like a Chicago-style one, a Coney Island one, a Sonoran one, a New York one, and a bacon-wrapped one. But the cheapskate in me went for the cheapest Build Your Own version, opting out of anything that would cost me extra but leveraging what was included at that price, like mustard, mayo, onion, tomato, and jalapeno. And it worked out nicely, especially thanks to the potent yet thin slices of chili peppers in there.

The wiener itself was decently moist with a decent bite. I liked my configuration enough that I am just going to stick to it next time. But I won't bother with their boring fries again (crispy but lacking the greasy potato taste that I love) nor their michelada, as it was just a syrupy tamarind-based coating around the rim.

Canter's Deli in Los Angeles, California

This is a very old school institution here in LA (419 North Fairfax Avenue, 323-651-2030). Indeed, the last time I was here was maybe 25 years ago, and I'm not sure if much has changed. Either way, there is a huuuuge but dimly lit dining area with lots of booths and old photos on the wall, as well as a big laminated menu featuring everything from pastrami sandwiches to three-egg omelettes.

I wanted a fish plate, and went for that cheapest whitefish above. In retrospect, I should have paid more for the sable instead, as the flesh in this one was so mild that it was forgettable aside from the thick skin. It was still cool to come to this place though; I loved how the corned beef came with a gigantic head of tenderly stewed cabbage. The pickles were decent too, even if I still prefer delis in New York.

Hopdoddy Burger Bar from Austin, Texas

I know that doesn't look like a burger above, but it was the keto version of one of the chicken burgers at this chain from Austin. The chicken itself was a bit dry and salty, but the chargrilled aroma of their beef patties came through in their original burger at least. Perhaps what was more memorable was their "Loaded Brussels," which were baked nice and crispy and were all scorched to just the right degree. I can't help but think about how they were able to separate all of the sprout leaves individually though if it had to be done manually.

Red 99 Grill Bistro in Temple City, California

I am not entirely sure what the history is of this place (I think they did hotpot under a previous owner or something?) but whatever they finally landed on was pretty darned good (5557 Rosemead Boulevard, 626-237-0001). The seafood was all very fresh and delicately prepared, including not just those lightly truffled yet delicate shrimp above, but also a savory lobster noodle as well as delightfully bright clam soup. These guys knew what they were doing and were quite differentiated, despite outwardly looking not that different from many stateside Chinese restaurants. Maybe that's why they commanded such big crowds tonight.

I Still Can't Get Into Chick-fil-A

This is maybe my fourth or fifth time trying Chick-fil-A, and I am still not a fan. My original sandwich above was dry and salty without much else to make it interesting. To be sure, they have a huge array of sauces available to address that, and their namesake sauce was better than I was expecting, as it was nowhere near as syrupy as I feared it would be. But even then, I just ended up tasting the sauce over everything else. At least their little chicken nuggets were interesting in that they were based on actual cuts of chicken rather than the mysteriously synthesized ones at the Golden Arches.

Broiled Jalapeños y Cebollas at Chavez in San Jose

We needed both food and a run to the grocery store after getting into San Jose and thus went to Chavez where we could take care of both in one go. It was too bad that they didn't have any carne asada available when we arrived today, even though I could see some cuts being thrown on the grill. But it was cool to see that the tortillas for the tacos came fresh from the press upon ordering, while they also had a sign featuring a big platter of grilled jalapenos and onions. We grabbed a couple of them individually to go with our selections.

Shusai Soba Shodai in Tokyo, Japan

A soba shop in Ebisu has gotten some attention for that creamy bowl above, and we were able to stop by one of their outlets today. It wasn't a sweet whipped cream dessert like it looks though; instead, it was a savory potato-based cream, garnished with potent red peppercorns. And despite the shop specializing in soba, there was udon underneath that white layer, wading in a dark yet thin curry broth with the karauchi option providing just the right amount of edginess to it. And yes, their soba was good too, featuring firm and fragrant noodles. Their kamo seiro was nice and smoky as well, making this place worth a repeat visit.

Gino Sorbillo Artista Pizza Napoletana in Tokyo

We stumbled through the Kanda neighborhood tonight trying to get our hands on Japanese pizza tonight, but without any luck. It was only after we gave up did we pass by COREDO Muromachi Terrace and noticed this shop from a Michelin-listed guy from Naples that could seat us (Nihonbashimuromachi 3 Chome−2−1, 03-6910-3553). Granted, that made this more of an Italian pizza rather than Japanese, but it was nonetheless good with a chewy crust and rich cheese, and I was happy with the youtiao-like taste and texture their folded-over pizza fritta too. It was also nice that it was super affordable yet with a full service staff.

An Outlet of Kaneko Hannosuke in Japan

I'm normally not a big fan of tendon, mainly because that sauce makes it both soggy and sweet. This shop, on the other hand, somehow was able to manage it such that neither condition got too extreme. The sauce here was only mildly sweet, and was rather fragrant with a strong sesame oil aroma, all while letting the batter retain some of its texture. Indeed, I liked it enough that I ate the entire bowl before realizing that I didn't even use any of their potent shichimi.