Cafe Med, Bakersfield

I haven’t ventured about in Bako much, despite a regular commute to LA for nearly two years. I’d stop at the gas station on Panama Lane right off the 99 Freeway and pick up a taco. However, I was on several appointments recently in this south valley town and had a chance to wander into Cafe Med.

 

The Turkey and cheese sandwich was fresh and made in about 3 minutes flat. Damn good for a sandwich. My standard bearer over time for super-great sandwiches is the long-gone Fat Paulie’s in Fresno and this was quite good. A thousand island style mayonnaise spread, lettuce, tomato, freshly sliced turkey and cheese and a hearty roll, makes for a quality sandwich. I have no idea what the main restaurant is like (I got a take-out sandwich and ate it in the car), but the wine list is top notch.

Sonic Burger, Ripon

Welcome to Freshville? Really?

I have never been to Sonic Burger, but here’s my basic impression. If the legendary King (Burger King) and the iconic McDonald’s had a mythical burger-child, this is what it would look like. A thin greyish patty and spongy bun were obviously from its Mother, McD. The pickles, onion, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese with mayo, mustard, and ketchup, from The King. Wrap it all up and you’ve got a burger that was good enough to eat at a gas station during a hypoglycemic episode and cheap fill-up. Oh, the coffee at the Love’s Gas Station next door at Jack Tone Road is only 0.99 cents when you bring in your own cup. The burger was $3.55.

Las Dos Hermanas Taco Truck, Merced CA

The random stop with no plan in Merced, one exit before my usual Tacos Sinloa. I ordered three tacos, Cabeza, Pastor, and Carnitas.

I think I’ve given up on finding good asada tacos, they’re usually too dry, hence my rotation to cabeza. Cabeza, is not brain tacos, it’s usually beef cheeks.

Dos Hermanas uses a small taqueria size taco; automatically raising the respect bar. I love small tortillas. Each of the meats is quickly seared on the flat-top and a bit of garnish is placed on each taco. Green salsa is used for all the tacos. Of the three, the Cabeza was the best, followed by Carnitas, and the Pastor a distant third (Sinloa has fabulous Pastor. I seriously considered driving down the block to buy one in order to redeem my belief in Pastor)

This truck is parked in the Smart and Final parking lot in Merced, just off Highway 99 and it's worth a stop for the Cabeza taco.

Trujillo's Meat Market and Taqueria, Madera

I believe in randomness and a stumble upon lifestyle when it comes to food. I'm not saying I live my culinary exploration by randomness, far from it, I usual scope out restaurants to try and make a point to schedule a dining experience.

But when it comes to tacos, sandwiches, ice cream, and Chinese food in Chinatown, I'm willing to simply "pop-in" and see what's cooking.

I recently popped-in to Trujillo's in Madera at 16736 Road 26. It's not far off Highway 99 and easy to find. It's a full-service grocery store and meat market. The amount of chicharones that are sitting on top of the deli cases is the most I'd seen since I was in Tlachichuca, Mexico, which to me is a positive sign that some fried goodness is going on here.

Based upon what I saw in the case, I went with two pastor tacos, rather than my usual carnitas and Pastor (I was also in a pastor mood, not because the carnitas looked bad). These tacos were tasty, albeit, not as refined as I might like to acheive that delicate balance I always speak of among the various elements, meat, lettuce/cabbage, tortilla, salsa, and lime/lemon. As you can see, the iceberg lettuce is a bit rough and large chopped. The meat itself is very tasty, but the corn tortillas are a bit thick. That pickled jalapeno is fantastic. Yes, I'm real critical. And it's also true that I wolfed down these two tacos in under a minute (it was near 2pm and I was starving), so how unbalanced can they be?

These were good and I'm glad I randomly stopped by to try them. I'm just wondering if I should have purchased some chicharones for the road?

Taqueria Truck Sinaloa, Merced

The taco truck Sinaloa in Merced just off Highway 99 is a new stop for me on the road from Fresno back to the Bay Area. Let me say that this is one of the best trucks I've been to. The pastor was fabulous, a hint of what I would describe as almost a mole, rather than the more typical sweet spicy flavor of pineapple and chiles, offered a flavor profile that was unexpected and fabulous. I seriously had to consider ordering another round simply because they were so good. This 'mole-esque' seasoning gives a hue of chocolate brown and richer flavor than normal pastor. My other taco of carnitas was flavorful, but totally out-gunned by this version of pastor. The carnitas were good, juicy and full of meat, but Pastor seized the title.

Nice condiment of pickled jalapeno and the tiny limes more typical of Mexico. The hot salsa on top of each along with the cilantro made this taco stop one of the best in recent memory. Just remember this one is in Merced off Highway 99 parked next to a Texaco.

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