5 Generations

My wife Aimee, Ophelia, in her arms, Lisa (Aimee's Mom), Grandma Hudson, Great Grandma Cummings, and Aimee's sister, Stacie. (Post Script: My baby is making a peace sign.)

Luigi's - AKA City Grinders

City Grinders, aka Luigi's. My wife raved about this place for years before I got to taste the Luigi's Grinder. Normally, I would pass this place by. I don't really care for grinders and meat heavy sandwichs (Any NY deli), but Aimee talked and talked about it. An unassuming store front with a delightful interior. The owners, John and Jackie, are ex-LA restauratuer's who bought this place from it's previous owners and really stepped it up a notch.

This is their board. I recommend the Original or, my favorite, the Hawiian. Stay away from their Cheesesteak, it is less than satisfactory. (The only one of their sandwichs I don't like.) Extra onions really make the sandwich.


The dinning room.


"The Original." Ham, Turkey, Pepperoni, Pickles, Green Pepper, Onion, 2 Cheeses and a special oil sauce.

The "Hawiian," Close up. Ham, Turkey, Green Pepper, Pickle, Onion, 2 Cheeses and their special oil sauce. The way to eat a Luigi's grinder is to let the oil and juices of one half drip onto the other half. 

A wide shot of the "Hawiian."

Photos by Gustavno Rivera

City Grinders

2375 Antelope Rd.

White City, OR

826-2588

HOURS

Mon-Sun

10 AM - 7 PM

Yeong's Place - Northbend, OR

Yeong's Place is an odd name for a burger joint, but I guess Yeong likes burgers.



I went for the Jalapeno Bacon Cheeseburger, while Aimee opted for the regular Cheeseburger. The Western and the Guacamole Bacon Cheeseburger sounded interesting too. Maybe next time.

Beef, Bacon, Cheese, Jalapenos, Purple Onion, Lettuce, Tomato, Mayo and Thousand Island. They make their chicken and fries in house too.

The inside of the Jalapeno Bacon Cheeseburger. Aimee's Cheeseburger was constructed like a bigger In-N-Out burger. I'm heading back tonight and tomorrow to try as many as possible.

Yeong's Place

1120 Virginia Ave

North Bend, OR 97459

(541) 756-1914

Photos by Gustavno Rivera

Fresher than Fresh Crab Cakes - Coos Bay, OR

Our "catch," bought at the Fisherman's Wharf.

Aimee helps crack open one of our five large, fresh crabs.

The pile begins.



Scrappin out the meat.



The cakes cooking at 400 for about 20 minutes.


Ophelia seems to enjoy the company of crabs.


The cakes as the go in the oven.

I guess she likes seafood.


Mayo, Sour Cream, Butter, Salt and Pepper, Extra Hot Horseradish, Worcesterhires Sauce, Cracker Crumbs, Stone Ground Mustard and Lemon tossed together. Formed into about 1 inch patties. They seemed a little too wet for me, but Aimee said they were perfect.(!) Wish I could have put them under a broiler for about 5 minutes to really crisp the outside.


The finished crab cake served in a pool of butter and lemon with lemon pepper and a side of sliced lemons.

Photos by Gustavno Rivera

Crabbing in Charelston, OR

Aimee's mom, Lisa, loads up the nets for what can only be a great day for crabbing.

Other crabbers refill their bait boxes.

Tons of cool sea life, like these little jellyfish (about 1 in long) and sea lions roam the docks for food.

We walked up to the corner store, Davey Jonses' Locker, for some lunch. Aimee had a slice of pizza (made in house) and some cheesey potato poppers. I had their Chili Dog Special.

The Chili Dog Special. Hot Dog on a bun with chili, onions and cheese, served with a side of onion rings. Surprisingly decent.

Our crabbing efforts resulted in zero crabs. (We missed high tide by around four hours) Thank God for the fishermen. We bought some crab and had it cleaned for crab cakes.

Store sign. Super nice guys that work there. One of the fishermen designed their T-Shirts in Illustrator, and did a great job. Fisherman, Designer and Crab Cleaner. What a man.

Photos by Gustavno Rivera

Mayas Tacqueria - Portland, OR

Stopped in walking by (without my camera, of couse) and ordered the Brazilian Burrito. Stuffed with strips of steak, rice, bean, chipotle chilies, lettuce and topped with guacamole, sour cream and a fruit salsa. The chipotle's added a nice spice with the sweetness of the fruit and spices really sent this off the deep end. I love food with a twist, especially when it really compliments the rest of the meal. 

Mayas Tacqueria

1000 SW Morrison St

Portland, OR 97205

(503) 226-1946

Aybla Gyro - Portland, OR

Aybla Gyro's on SW Alder in Portland, Oregon in a weird food square consisting of a couple dozen trailers re-made into little kitchens. Peruvian, Thai, Chineese, Japanees, Russian, Greek, Mexican, German and brown bag american lunches make up this crazy little melting pot of food just one block up from the Culinary school. 

This beauty was make of spiced lamb, feta, tzatziki, tomato and chopped parsley in a fresh grilled pita. One of the best gyros I've ever had outside of Europe.

Loyal customers admire my child as we wait for our food. I was thinking of going to the Peruivian trailer, but he sold me on the gyro and it was worth it.

Four months old and she is getting interesed in our food. REALLY interested in everything we eat. My mom says she's going to have a very sophisicated palate. 


Their menu. I recomend the Super Lamb Gryo with extra Feta.

Photos by Gustavno Rivera, Canon G9, but, goddammit, I want a G10!!!!

Dick's - Spokane, WA

Dicks Hamburgers By The Bagfull. I had read about this place online and the comparisons to the other Dick's Drive In,  mainly not so kind, but I was in Spokane for the night and felt like a  burger. Aimee headed over there with me, as driving and sitting in the car all day can make one hungry. Dicks was what I expected, a burger shack. We caught it at a good time so it only took a minute to get our food. The cab driver said this place can get fairly crazy, they stay open till midnight so the bar crowd hits it up regularly. 


The sickly glow was kind of weird, but watching them work, you could tell that they do A TON of burgers. 87 cents for a hamburger, 97 cents for a cheseburger, $1.20 for a large fries, $1.69 for a Wammy and a $1.45 for a shake. Not bad. I think our total was a little over $8.


This is the Wammy. One the menu it says "Two Meats, Two Cheeses," but it's pretty much their version of the In-N-Out Double Double. This was tasty, like what a Big Mac SHOULD taste like. For a buck sixty-nine, it's a hell of a deal. No wonder it's called Hamburgers by the bagfull.

This is the 97 cent cheeseburger. Pickle, onion, thin patty burger, cheese and a special sauce. If you're in Spokane and want some cheap eats, check out Dick's. 

10 E 3rd Ave

Spokane, WA 99202

(509) 747-2481

photos by Gustavno Rivera

Sandwiches You Will Like

"Sandwiches You Will Like" is a 2002 PBS documentary by Rick Sebak. I'm not sure if he narrates it, but whomever did sounds like Michael Moore's brother. The film features 23 different sandwiches from around the states, most I've heard of, some like the St. Paul from St. Louis, I've never heard of. It seems like a cross between a Foodnetwork show and a PBS show. Solid information, but sometimes quite superfluous. My favorite part was Thelma's Barbecue in Houston, Texas. Thelma is an ex-truck driver who now owns her own Barbecue joint and has a great sense of humor. She has a deep southern accent with a hint of a lisp. Her grand-daughter now helps her in the kitchen. A really nice little film for someone who loves food, especially sandwiches. They cover a lot of the obvious (Philly Cheese, etc.), I wish they spent a little more time finding some really hole-in-the-wall, locals only, crazy ass sandwich shops, but hey, they can save that for the sequel. (Does PBS make sequels? Oh, and I'm free to re-design that horrible cover....)

The Salt Flat

The Salt Flat Sandwich. I named it that because it's salty and flat. So the Salt Flat it is.


We've got pepperoni, salami and roast beef between two slices of generously buttered bread, frying in bacon.

Flipped it over, covered with cheese.


When the cheese was melted on the out side, I took out of pan, topped with bacon and ate!

Well, I could only eat half of it. Salty salty salty. We're going on vacation soon, so I was trying to clean out the fridge a bit. I think I'll let this one go. It's a bit much for me, but it was fun to make.

Aimee's Beef Greenbeard

Bread, Avocado Creme, Beef with Chipotle Powder, Horseradish Cheddar, Sauteed Onions and Cabbage, Tomato, Pepperoncinis and Bacon with a bith of mayo. 

Greenbeard

My wife stays at home with our newborn baby all day and does one hell of a job being a mom. So when she needs a little time for herself (girls night out, going to get a movie, dinner with her lady friends, whatever...) I don't mind. Tonight I came home after work and she wanted a cheeseburger with an avocado creme. Yeah, creme. So this is her creation via me, the "Greenbeard." (She likes naming her creations, plus, she's good at it)


Cracked Wheat Bread, Sautieed onions and cabbage, pork burger with pepperoncinis and horseradish cheddar, fresh tomato and avocado creme.

Avocado Creme: Half avodaco (for one sandwich) mashed with salt, pepper and a splash of whipping cream whisked together.

photos by Gustavno Rivera