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A show of hands, please: Who remembers where all the old local taverns/bars/dives were? Better yet, who actually patronized them? Anyone?

Possibly the most infamous was the Oak Grove, which one night became an ungodly flaming cocktail and is now a grassy lot under an oak tree. But there was also 2-Me’s on Hilltop (run by a man named Twomey) where a Subway now stands. Urban renewal took out the Old Crow Club on California, US Bank rises above the old Ricardo’s location at Placer and Pine, and all that remains of Jomar’s is a width of dirt on Railroad Avenue where you can pull over and park. There are still plenty of the old watering holes around, but they are somewhat of an endangered species as they are slowly replaced with wine bars, microbrew taprooms, and upscale bars serving 16 varieties of Pacific Northwest gin and imported ice.

A more recent addition to the local bar scene is a space on Hartnell across from the Hen House. Bubba Thrasher’s was there first, then closed and made room for 21 Taps. Jr’s Across the Way followed in 2012 with a kitchen in addition to the bar (apparently Jr’s served pretty good burgers).

A few months ago, Fusion Lounge Bar & Grill opened in Jr’s place. The premise is a new one for Redding: fusing elements of Asian cuisines (Lao, Thai, Vietnamese, etc.) with American and Mexican dishes to create such hybrids as the Pho-rito, Pho-nudo, and the Senganator Burger, while also functioning as a neighborhood bar.

Despite their new sign, it’s easy to drive right past as you toodle east on Hartnell, lost in a sea of metal auto repair and machine shop prefab buildings. The parking lot is one of those long narrow ones that passes by a long row of metal doors behind Fusion, makes a U-turn, and sneaks back out to Hartnell.

Fusion’s black and blood-red concrete block walls, easy-clean tables and floors, and a truly goth restroom took a note from the punk club playbook circa 1976, but the clientele was a mixture of locals, auto shop employees, hipsters, and families. (Note: family-friendly until 9:00 PM.) There’s a pool table near the back and a smoker’s patio out the side door. Sit at the bar or one of the tables and waitstaff will come take your order. Service was friendly and fairly fast; servers are knowledgeable about the food. Specials are on a backlit writing board at the end of the bar.

Baller Bowl, $10.99

This was an interesting mixture of a taco salad (deep-fried flour tortilla bowl) with crunchy mixed cabbage salad, deep-fried shrimp, and tataki of tuna, Sriracha and wasabi drizzle, and a soy dressing on the side. The tataki (seared ahi with sesame crust, thinly sliced) was so very much like fine filet mignon that only its tendency to melt delicately on the tongue belied its origins. Alongside were crunchy fried shrimp that made a nice contrast to the ethereal tuna. The soy dressing, however, proved to be very salty, and toward the bottom of the cabbage salad M. de Joie regretted pouring the dressing over. Sriracha and wasabi were nice to smear the shrimp in, but mixed on the plate they tended to look septic.

Fusion fries, $7.50

Femme de Joie ordered Fusion Shrimp but what was delivered was Fusion Fries, as she discovered when she couldn’t find anything but chicken in the toppings. This could be a variation on nachos or potato skins: Jo-jos – seasoned crunchy potato wedges – were topped with melted cheese, shredded chicken, cilantro, diced tomatoes, Jalapenos, and Fusion sauce. Fusion sauce is a somewhat spicy, smoky red sauce with hints of Thai curry – think of it as an exotic fry sauce. It was quite good when first delivered but after fifteen minutes or so, the potatoes got pretty soggy (there was a lot of sauce). This was plenty to share among two or three people.

Calamari, $8.00

Calamari is a popular appetizer in restaurants but it is almost always straight out of a frozen box, already breaded and ready to deep-fry and serve up with “our own garlic aioli.” Fusion’s salt-baked calamari was wonderful: thick bite-sized morsels with a dusting of tart tamarind and garnished with fried green onions and Jalapeno slices, this was addictive and original.

Kaliang Fin, $3.00

M. de Joie had never heard of Kaliang Fin and cannot find any reference to it elsewhere, so it may be an original specialty. Korean flour made from mung beans is cooked with water, cooled to produce a gelatin-like block, then cut into small pieces and served in a cold and slightly sour broth. The gelatin cubes had the texture and taste of hard-boiled egg white, slightly sulphuric and bouncy. The broth didn’t have much personality other than tartness and seemed to be mostly a vehicle to support the mung bean jelly. On the side was a small amount of house-made fermented bean & chili paste to mix into the soup – the paste was spicy-hot and delicious, though M. de Joie didn’t really think it helped the soup much. KF (as it’s called on the menu) did have a refreshing quality that might be appealing if one had overindulged in too much rich food and drink, but overall M. de Joie felt she probably wouldn’t order this again.

Fusion Burger, $9.99 with garlic fries ($1.00 extra) and pepper jack cheese

This towering burger, piled high with lettuce, tomato, onion, bacon, roasted eggplant, Fusion sauce, and a fried egg, was in no way reminiscent of a franchise burger. Goopy and drippy, the thick burger fell apart as the egg yolk and Fusion sauce disintegrated the bun, and was overall luscious, juicy, and a wildly delicious messy mixture of tastes. Garlic fries on the side were on the greasy and slightly limp side, but Femme de Joie loved the plentiful garlic bits.

In an unlikely location far from the main hubs of Redding, Fusion is trying out new and exciting ideas, and for the most part they work. The menu is wisely kept small and manageable, with weekly specials thrown in. Prices are more than fair for the amount and quality of food. Though there were a few missteps, overall Femme de Joie loved the intent and direction of the kitchen. If you’re looking for something new to try, drive out to Fusion and sample their innovative dishes.

Fusion Lounge Bar & Grill, 2704 Hartnell Avenue, Redding, CA 96002. 530-768-1360. Open Monday through Thursday, 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM, Friday 11:00 AM – midnight, Saturday 3:00 PM to midnight. Closed Sunday. No minors after 9:00 PM. Cards and cash; no checks. Full bar. Vegetarian and vegan options. Parking lot. Follow them on Facebook.

Until very recently, Femme de Joie’s only visit to 970 Hartnell was about seven years ago when a vintage furniture store was there; she and Amico del Signore picked out a leather couch which went from “this great oxblood sofa” to “that Godawful purple couch” in just a few short years. The sofa found a new home about the same time Kanya Market replaced the furniture store.

Femme de Joie had originally planned to write about another Asian restaurant (which shall go nameless); unfortunately, the beef pho she ordered turned out to be Ptomaine Pho. After a dreadful night on the bathroom floor, she elected to not make a second visit to that establishment. But then Amico del Signore discovered that Kanya Market not only sells Asian groceries but also has a small cafe and persuaded her that this might be worth checking out. And so it was. In addition to a wide variety of the usual items – soy and fish sauces, sesame oil, canned lychees, curry powder, teas (including “Sliming Tea” and no, that is not a typo), gigantic bags of rice – Kanya also carries some fresh greens, fresh noodles, and the delightfully-named Snake Brand Prickly Heat and Baby Face with Aha.

Due to the dark window tint film, it’s impossible to see inside; instead, look for the neon “open” sign on the front. When you walk in, you are entering the grocery side of Kanya. Walk straight ahead toward the cash register, then turn right into the restaurant. You can order to-go at the counter, pick up some already prepared food from the refrigerators or the racks nearby, or sit down at one of the snappy black and white tables to dine in. Each table is stocked with a roll of paper towels, a stack of deep bowl spoons, and containers of forks and chop sticks. Service is friendly and helpful.

Bahn mi, $3.00

Bahn mi – Vietnamese sandwiches – are available on the to-go rack to the right of the cash register. They include pork, “meatloaf” (more like pâté), pickled daikon and carrots, and cilantro on a sliced, mayonnaise-spread French roll. It wasn’t bad but it would have been fabulous if it hadn’t been so flabby in texture; more crunchy vegetables and a crustier roll would make it sing.

Mango drink out of the refrigerator, $1.25. Not quite as mango-y as the name suggests, but a very good foil for the spicy food to come.

Fresh spring rolls, $5.50

M. de Joie was surprised at the generous serving of spring rolls – there was surely enough to share. Accompanied by tiny cups of sweetish peanut sauce and bottled Thai sweet chili sauce, the rolls were like small portable salads. Filled with lettuce, rice noodles, cilantro, and shrimp, these were wonderfully refreshing and crisp.

Papaya salad Lao style, $5.00

Most shoppers have seen the giant overripe papayas in supermarkets here; their musky scent and perfumy taste is loved by some and reviled by others. But in places where it grows freely, green papaya is treated like a vegetable and made into salads. Kanya’s papaya salad is offered in Thai style or Lao. Both use fish sauce in the dressing but the Lao version uses fermented fish sauce (padaek) which has a more pungent aroma and taste. Green papaya was shredded and tossed with peanuts, tomatoes, green onions, and the padaek-infused dressing, served with a wedge of raw cabbage and plain rice noodles.

Femme de Joie ordered the salad with “medium” heat but either she was misunderstood or Kanya has a wicked idea of what medium heat is. It was fiery. She does enjoy hot food, but this was a challenge. The raw cabbage and noodles helped tame it, as did that mango drink. Still, she’s unsure if she actually liked the salad or not, since she was mostly concerned with not spontaneously combusting.

Yellow curry with pork, $8.00

This smooth curry with potatoes, onions, carrots, and cubed pork also carried its own measure of heat, though not as pervasive as the papaya salad. The creamy texture and warm spiced sauce were delicious eaten as a soup or poured over steamed rice. This would be excellent comfort food on a cold day.

Yum Nam, $6.00

If there was a Thai version of a chef’s salad, this would be it. It contains sour pork, AKA naem, a fermented Thai sausage, which explains the somewhat earthy smell of the dish.. Mixed with “meat loaf” (again, strips of pâté), celery, cilantro, green and red onion, and roasted rice seasoning powder, peanuts on the side, this was wonderfully crunchy with soft porky bites, hot and sour – one of the most interesting and exciting dishes M. de Joie has come across in recent memory.

Khao Soy, $5.00 for small bowl

This might be the Thai version of grandma’s chicken soup – broth filled with Ho-fun noodles (made from rice and looking like a wide egg noodle), a very generous amount of white meat chicken, bean sprouts, shards of cabbage, and fermented bean and ground pork. It might remind you slightly of pho but has its own savory taste and textures in a rich chicken-y broth.

M. de Joie likes Kanya very much. The portions for the price are excellent value, service is fairly fast and friendly, and the cooking is usually spot-on and high quality. She also enjoys prowling around in the market, picking up various jars and bottles of condiments to try out, and suggests that if you stop in to have lunch, that you also look through the grocery and maybe pick up some chile-garlic sauce (which Amico del Signore and Femme de Joie love more than Sriracha) or some pork buns to go. It won’t cost much and it’s a good introduction to Thai cuisine.

Kanya Market and Thai Video, 970 Hartnell Avenue at Churn Creek Road (across from the fire hall), Redding, CA 96002. 530-222-7609. Open daily, 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Cards and cash; no checks. No alcohol. Vegan and vegetarian options. Parking lot.

If you’re whipping along Hartnell Avenue, perhaps heading west toward Four Corners and planning your congested intersection strategy (You think it’s bad now? You should have tried navigating it before traffic lights were installed), or traveling east to pick up some eggs at the Hen House, you might well never notice the long cinder-block building just to the right of the gigantic Cash and Carry parking lot.

Maybe the ’50s-style space-age-retro sign atop the laundromat caught your eye, but other than that, it was just part of the landscape. Femme de Joie used to get her flivver repaired at the old Chevron station nearby and remembers that building was once home to a diner called Watson’s; it also housed Indognito and a Jiffy Burger, but she never set foot inside any of those places, feeling that she was probably spending enough to get the engine’s hamster wheel greased (she has since upgraded to a better line of hamsters).

Rita’s Kitchen has occupied the diner end of that building for 10 years now, the front door with the red canopy facing Hartnell. If you’re expecting the polished chrome, snappy black-and-white checkerboard tile, red Naugahyde booths, and flashing neon of a faux-retro luncheonette with American Graffiti waitresses, you will be expecting a long time. This ain’t no Streamline Moderne railway car restaurant: white enameled cinder blocks line the wall with reproduction Coca-Cola ephemera scattered about. The ceiling heat vent sports a fresh coat of duct tape and there are a few random dings and marks here and there. Four smallish tables, three or four seats at the counter: it seats no more than 20.

Owner Rita Fore cooks while her niece Ashley Hazelwood waits tables. They’ve got a smooth system to get your food out fast.

Corned beef hash and eggs, $10.50

Canned corned beef hash is what you get in the vast majority of breakfast cafes; its resemblance to Alpo is hard to ignore. Rita’s makes theirs from actual corned beef and it’s absolutely worth eating, with shredded corned beef mixed with hash brown potatoes and fried crisp, along with a serving of hash browns (likewise crisp) and eggs.

This is what Rita’s calls mini-cakes (an option to go with breakfast main courses instead of toast). It was more like a short stack of regular-sized pancakes, light, fluffy, and tender.

Chicken fried steak, $11.50

A schmear of house-made sausage gravy was all this crisp-outside-medium-inside steak needed. Sometimes chicken fried steak is tough with a lot of gristle but the one served at Rita’s was gristle-free and not overcooked.

Pastrami Reuben with potato salad, $8.50

M. de Joie loved the creamy homemade potato salad with tiny crunchy bits. She was much less crazy about the pastrami Reuben – a good grilled sandwich was spoiled with unpleasantly salty pastrami. Femme de Joie enjoys salty food but this was too, too salty even for her.

Joe’s Special, $9.95

The story goes that Joe’s Special was developed by a San Francisco restaurant in the 1920s – it may have been Joe’s or Original Joe’s or New Joe’s. Anyone who knows the real story is long gone and it probably doesn’t matter any more, but the recipe survives: eggs scrambled with spinach and hamburger. Rita’s version was heavy on spinach and short on eggs – fine for M. de Joie, who is a spinach fiend, but it was more like a mass of spinach and hamburger with a teeny bit of egg thrown in rather than a scramble per se. The thin-sliced country potatoes made up for it with their crunchy edges and fall-apart interiors.

Side of gravy ($1.00) with biscuit

Creamy, peppery sausage gravy deserved better company than the refrigerator-cold, slightly gummy biscuit it came with. M. de Joie did appreciate that jam was served in a little plastic bowl rather than the inevitable peel-back-top tubs of Smucker’s.

There were a couple of glitches but overall, Femme de Joie likes Rita’s Kitchen. Too far from Hotel Row and Interstate 5 to be of interest to tourists, this is a locals’ place. Simple, tasty food in a very unpretentious diner atmosphere at fair prices – while not a place to linger for a long lunch and too tiny to bring your entire tribe, it’s worth a stop, especially for breakfast.

But watch that step in and out the door – Rita says the City of Redding won’t let her make it safer since the surrounding sidewalk belongs to them. Anyone at City Hall want to explain how that’s business-friendly?

Rita’s Kitchen & Catering, 1154 Hartnell Avenue, Redding CA 96002. 530-223-4214. Open Monday through Friday, 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM, Saturday 7:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Closed Sundays. Cards and cash, no checks. No alcohol. Vegan and vegetarian options. Parking lot. Follow them on Facebook.

It might surprise some folks to learn that the Redding strip mall known as Cypress Colony was once a Southern Baptist Church. When that congregation upped sticks and moved elsewhere, developers turned the Sunday school classrooms into shops and offices; the former sanctuary became a restaurant. It seemed like a promising plan – after all, Cypress has plenty of traffic and plenty of nearby businesses with employees who presumably need lunch and dinner. Perhaps it’s the intense traffic flow (if you’re not already in the turn lane, you’ll never get into the parking lot) or the lack of neon signs to grab your attention that has caused previous businesses to go under. Femme de Joie remembers a Mexican restaurant in that spot where she grabbed a burrito one very busy day a few years ago; after that Umstead’s BBQ lasted a couple of years.

Jim and Laurie Harris operated a “gourmet sandwich shop” in Washington but have restaurant history in Redding: the old Perry’s Pizza on Lake Boulevard (which introduced us to square pizza in the 1970s) was run by Harris’s father. The Harrises opened Jaimitos Tacos about a year ago.

The menu is on a board behind the counter; order and pay, then wait for your food to be brought out to you.

Chips and salsa, $2.50 ($3.00 to go)

The chips were freshly fried and unsalted, but the salsa was very thin, like V-8 juice that had a few minced onions and cilantro tossed in, inoffensive and indifferent as well as difficult to scoop up on a chip.

Taco al carbon, $3.00

Though not really al carbon (cooked over charcoal), this grilled-and-sauced taco was deliciously messy with a light sprinkling of cheese and cilantro leaves to oomph up the flavor.

Bean and cheese burrito, $3.99

The menu board read, “Bean and cheese (only) burrito,” and they weren’t kidding. Other than a smear of mild red sauce, this was nothing but beans and cheese, no onion or other garnish. Truth in advertising to be sure, but a bit on the bland side.

Steak torta, $6.99

On a soft fresh bun, steak torta had plenty of colorful fresh toppings and was a filling meal, but the steak turned out to be very soft shredded beef, cooked long enough to be easily consumed by someone who had forgotten to put their teeth in. While it wasn’t bad, it was unmemorable other than for the squashy texture.

Top row: two fish tacos. Bottom row: steak taco and pork taco, $2.25 each.

M. de Joie loves fish tacos, but not these. Thin fried parallelograms of an unknown fish were very dry and required a lot of salsa; there was a surfeit of chopped cabbage and onions. Eventually we were presented with a thimble of sauce that tasted very much like cole slaw dressing, which helped, but it should have been on the tacos in the first place.

Femme de Joie and Amico del Signore had a brief debate over which was the steak taco and which was the pork, finally deciding on the basis of the color of the meat, since they tasted the same and both were as pulpy as the filling for the torta. We did appreciate that two corn tortillas were used on each taco.

While the food is inexpensive and the service fast and friendly, nothing Femme de Joie tasted at Jaimitos Tacos had that addictive gotta-have-it quality that brings people back in. Meat fillings were overcooked to flabbiness with unexciting seasonings, the salsas bland and without personality. It wasn’t bad but neither was it particularly good. And there was an unfortunate incident on one of her visits where M. de Joie could very clearly hear a loud, deep masculine voice emitting from the back, chewing someone out in a sarcastic manner. “You thought you were being helpful by doing it this way, but do us all a favor….” Whoever it was doing the berating, be advised: No customer wants to hear that kind of thing and no employee should be talked to like that.

While she wouldn’t strenuously object to being taken there by someone who was paying, Femme de Joie probably wouldn’t stop in there on her own and wouldn’t make a special trip there.

Jaimitos Tacos, 916 East Cypress Avenue at Larkspur, Redding, CA 96002. 530-768-1047 (not the number on their receipts, which belongs to some poor guy who constantly deals with phone calls meant for Jaimitos). Open Monday through Saturday, 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Closed Sunday. Cash, cards; no checks. vegetarian and vegan options. No alcohol. Parking lot.

Some 20-odd years ago, Femme de Joie had a close gal pal who lived near the Perko’s in Westwood Village. If we were out and about doing Girl Stuff, she’d often say, “Let’s grab a bite at Perko’s.” The options in that area being severely limited, M. de Joie went along with this, but was invariably underwhelmed. The food wasn’t inedible; it was indifferent and inoffensively tasteless and bland. The scrambled eggs stick in Femme de Joie’s mind as resembling the powdered eggs served in her college cafeteria. It was food as fuel – nothing more or less. After her friend moved away, M. de Joie moved Perko’s to her list of places she would never again have to darken the door.

Recently, friends TC&C recommended the Humble Joe’s on Hartnell Avenue to Amico del Signore. These are not people who patronize the House of Carrot Sticks or Fanny’s Flophouse & Pizzeria; they enjoy a good meal in clean, comfortable surroundings. Femme de Joie was highly skeptical, but TC&C had never given bad advice yet, so we headed off to breakfast. It was good enough that we returned and ordered the exact same breakfasts a week later.

In the interim between breakfasts, M. de Joie learned that Humble Joe’s owner Tom Lachuassee had been the operator of Perko’s but had grown disenchanted with the direction the company was going, so struck out on his own nearly three years ago. Perko’s soldiers on elsewhere, but the two Redding and one Anderson locations are now local.

Masterpiece Omelet with Cheddar cheese, red onions, green onions, and bacon plus hash browns, $10.48

Biscuits and gravy (included with omelet)

The Masterpiece Omelet is one of those build-your-own concepts: start with the basic cheese omelet at $8.99 and add ingredients to taste. Sometimes those are a rip-off to an unsuspecting or distracted diner, but in this case was a good value, with a surprisingly abundant amount of crisp bacon plus sauteed red onions and green scallions. Likewise, a lavish serving of hash browns on the side with melting interior and crackling exterior was twice the amount of potatoes normally served up in most breakfast houses. A peppery, creamy gravy topped the biscuit.

Oaxacan pileup, $11.49

Not the most elegant of names, but this interesting variation on huevos rancheros makes you forget the semantics. A stack of hash browns, crunchy corn tortilla, shredded pork verde, a tomatillo cream sauce, and eggs made a delicious and unusual one-dish breakfast. Again, portions were generous.

Reuben with potato salad, $11.99

M. de Joie liked the Reuben sandwich with plenty of sauerkraut and pastrami plus rather good potato salad (did not appear to be out of a deli carton), though she thought this was not as good a value as some of the other dishes on the menu.

Fish tacos and chips, $12.49

Generally speaking, Femme de Joie likes fish tacos very much. She would describe this as fish tacos for people who don’t like fish or tacos. She cannot claim to be an expert on fish sticks because she has never knowingly eaten one, but that is what appeared to be the center of attention: fish sticks carefully cut into rectangles and placed carefully on top of cubes of avocado and iceberg lettuce which was on top of slightly warmed corn tortillas with minced red onion and tomato, ranch dressing and bottled salsa on the side. It was an impressively large amount of very bland food. The fries on the side were not bad.

Femme de Joie did not visit the Anderson location so can’t comment on that, but the Westside Humble Joe’s suffered from lack of upkeep – in particular the fabric booth covers showed dismaying amounts of built-up grime where many hands and feet had made their unsightly impression over time. However, the Hartnell location is well-kept and cheerful. They cater to seniors – even though Femme de Joie and Amico del Signore are what might be termed Extremely Advanced Youth, they found themselves the youngest people in the place, which lead to being able to overhear very loud conversations from other patrons whether we wanted to or not. We now know everything there is to know about renting a car in Spain, and M. de Joie wonders if the lady in another booth will let her family know how much they hurt her feelings (she certainly repeated it often enough that everyone within earshot knows it).

However, overall M. de Joie liked Humble Joe’s. Service was fast and friendly and the food, while not haute cuisine, was better-than-average coffee shop quality. Stop in and give it a try.

Humble Joe’s Chophouse and Grill, 10 Hartnell Avenue, Redding CA 96002, 530-221-1144. Also 2631 Balls Ferry Road, Anderson CA 96007, 530-365-3308, and 6400 Westside Road, Redding CA 96001, 530-244-0738. Open Sunday through Thursday, 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM; Friday and Saturday, 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM. Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Cash and cards. No alcohol. Parking lot. Very confusing website at http://www.humblejoes.com/

What defines barbecue? And what is the difference between barbecue and grilling? Though the terms are frequently used interchangeably and the results (usually) delectable, they mean very different procedures and end results. As Chris Schlesinger explains in his 1990 book The Thrill of the Grill, grilling is placing food near a heat source and cooking by conduction, searing the exterior and concentrating juices on the interior while browning the outside (the Maillard effect). Barbecuing, on the other hand, means placing a large quantity of food (usually meat) within a pit or other closed chamber and letting it cook very slowly by indirect heat and smoke from a hardwood fire.

Grilling is fun, fast, and convenient. Barbecuing is not fast, easy, or cheap, but it is an obsession. Barbecue masters – nearly all men – might not sneer at a grilled steaks, but they won’t give you quarter if you try to usurp their title and skill. Writer Calvin Trillin noted that Henry Perry, who began the business that evolved into the legendary Arthur Bryant’s Barbecue in Kansas City, enjoyed seeing customers suffer when they sampled his incendiary sauce. Trillin explained that a man who spent all night tending a hardwood fire could be excused for developing some dark and malevolent tendencies. (Arthur Bryant himself later tamed the sauce down since he appreciated the sight of a returning customer more than a screaming customer.)

All this to say: most barbecue is not barbecue. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t taste good, or isn’t fun to share with all the family and college buddies, but don’t confuse it with the real deal. If in doubt, New Orleans-based food writer/barbecue cookbook author Colleen Rush helpfully compiled a list of 7 Foolproof Ways to Spot a Fake BBQ Joint.

For a couple of years, barbecue restaurants popped up all over the greater Redding area – Palo Cedro, Cypress Avenue, Shasta Lake – and one by one they disappeared into the gloaming. Fat Daddy’s Gourmet BBQ is one of, if not the, longest running barbecue restaurants in Redding. Located in an old A&W Stand (who else remembers those frosty mugs of root beer with the ice shards that slid into the drink?), Fat Daddy’s has been serving for over ten years and seems to still be going strong. Inside are easy-clean Formica tables and easy-mop flooring, with dollar bills tacked to the ceiling. Order at the counter and they’ll call your name when your food is ready. There’s a small condiment table stocked with extra sauce, pickles, and small semi-hot pickled peppers.

Tri-tip sandwich with macaroni salad, $8.25

Tri-tip is a notoriously tough but flavorful cut of meat that is popular with barbecue enthusiasts. It’s been Femme de Joie’s experience that barbecued tri-tip is nearly always dried out and exceedingly chewy, not unlike chewing on a baseball mitt or a pit bull’s tail. Since this tri-tip had never seen a barbecue, it didn’t suffer from toughness, though it was a bit fibrous. The meat itself was on the bland unseasoned side, but was slathered with copious amounts of barbecue sauce, as is all the meat served at Fat Daddy’s. The sauce was not as sweet as some commercial sauces, which Femme de Joie appreciates, and owed some of its flavor to molasses (as opposed to tomato and/or ketchup). The sandwiches came on rolls that were a bit better than the average roll and did not fall apart into a soggy mess. To be sure it was a generous serving and fair for the price. Macaroni salad was a deli standard with little to distinguish it.

Pulled beef sandwich with potato salad, $8.25

A variation on pulled pork, shredded beef was doused heavily with barbecue sauce. The meat itself was more tender than the tri-tip – not too surprising – and maybe more flavorful, though it was hard to tell since all Femme de Joie could really taste was the sauce. Potato salad on the side seemed to have come from the same place as the macaroni salad: nothing bad about it but neither was there anything special.

Chicken meal with cole slaw and Caesar salad, $10.25

Femme de Joie could not fault the tenderness and moistness of the chicken. Three pieces (a leg and two thighs) were fall-apart tender and juicy, but again, these were not cooked on a barbecue or a grill since the skin was flabby without any crust, and again, absolutely soaked in sauce. Caesar salad (Caesar salad at a BBQ place?) was deliciously crunchy and tart. Cole slaw was fresh and likewise crunchy. Both salads were big improvements over the very average potato and macaroni salads.

Obviously Fat Daddy’s knows their target audience since they’ve been in business eleven years (an eternity in the restaurant industry and especially in Redding). Portions are fair for the money and customers seem to love the barbecue sauce (for sale on site). It isn’t real barbecue, but then they don’t claim to be (despite the giant portable grill chained outside). Femme de Joie doesn’t crave sweet goopy barbecue sauces much – a little goes a very long way in her estimation – so while she wouldn’t make a special trip to Four Corners for Fat Daddy’s, if she wound up dining there she wouldn’t kick too much. But she would definitely ask for sauce on the side.

Fat Daddy’s Gourmet BBQ, 942 Hartnell Avenue, Redding CA 96002. 530-221-8270. Open Monday through Friday, 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Closed weekends. No checks. Parking lot. Not much for vegetarians to see here except salad. Website at http://www.fatdaddysredding.com/
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Not everyone loved the old Hatch Cover Restaurant, but it held a warm place in Femme de Joie’s heart from many get-togethers with family and friends over the years. She loved the retro-70s vibe with the piped-in Pablo Cruise-y music, the cozy sofa nook in the lounge, that weird painting of the man in black heading down the stairs in the lighthouse, the cute waiters in Hawaiian shirts, even the cherry-scented liquid soap in the ladies’ room. The food wasn’t haute cuisine, to be sure, but it was competently prepared and great value for money. (There was a Chico branch of the Hatch Cover too, set so far back from the Esplanade that it was barely noticeable under the trees.) It just about broke M. de Joie’s heart ten years ago when she drove past the old Hatch Cover and saw all that lovely wood from the interior broken and tossed into dumpsters like worn-out holey socks. After a series of unfortunate and untoward events, the late Rivers opened and closed two years later; in 2012, Redding restaurant empresario Joe Wong opened View 202 on that spot.

Clearie’s, Moonstone Bistro, Nello’s Place, Cafe Paradisio, Market Street Steakhouse, Peter Chu’s, Gironda’s, and View 202, among others, all compete for the diner looking for that special occasion restaurant. What is that special something, that je ne sais quoi, that makes the consumer choose one place over another? Is it the buzz, the bartender who knows your special drink, the dark corner where a discreet affair can be carried out, the salad dressing? With the demographics and population of Redding, a place like View 202 needs to set itself apart from the others, to court consumers seeking white-tablecloth occasion dining. But are they getting their money’s worth?

Femme de Joie enjoys a well-appointed restaurant interior as well as a kitschy one, but she can’t figure out what’s going on at View 202. It was as if three or four decorators were each given a section to work on – a white wall splashed with big blowsy flowers befitting a ladies’ tearoom; the patio’s mishmash of black wicker chairs, white plastic chairs, and red and purple sofas; an ultra-modern exterior; plain faux-granite tabletops, concrete floors, and Ikea-inspired hanging lights. It appears to have been inspired by Carnival Cruise Line ships, not to dis Carnival.

Ahi avocado burger and cup of Pismo Beach clam chowder, $15.00

When Femme de Joie orders a burger, she expects to get, you know, a burger. She would not have described this as a burger. Four thin slices of ahi – a meaty-textured fish – were seared rare and placed on a rather good brioche bun along with an extremely small fan of thin avocado slices. The wasabi-lime slaw was overwhelmingly bitter; a couple of black soy beans does not an aioli make. Other than the bitter slaw and the buttery brioche, this was one bland sandwich.

Femme de Joie doesn’t know what distinguishes Pismo Beach clam chowder from any other creamy clam chowder, though perhaps it was the lump of melted cheese she found glommed onto the bottom of the soup cup. The soup was on the thin side but the cheese was on the thick side, so it balanced out.

Cherry Tart, $5.00

On a visit for dinner, M. de Joie asked if she could sit and have a drink before dinner. The hostess offered her “the couch.” Where couch? Outside, inside? It turned out to be on the patio, as there were Happy Hour specials “on the couch,” though it wasn’t clear if those specials could be had not on the couch. The hostess seemed determined that the couch should be occupied.

Once M. de Joie had her Cherry Tart, described as a whiskey sour with fresh cherries (the Maraschino cherry didn’t qualify as fresh and there weren’t any other cherries in the glass), she became invisible for an hour. Other than one waitress asking if she would like to order a bar snack, M. de Joie was completely ignored. While Femme de Joie is of that age where she is passed over in favor of younger and hotter women, it seemed a bit remarkable how completely she was forgotten. Eventually she had to get up and go find the hostess to ask to be seated for dinner, who began preparing a place for her on the by-then chilly patio- which M. de Joie demurred in favor of a table indoors.

Warm bread came with herb olive oil made with celery, basil, parsley, and capers as described by the female waitstaff who filled water glasses- she said she made it. The oil was delicious, the bread average.

Maseca calamari, $13

Spicy Fresno chilies and the medium-hot sauce were the best things about this appetizer. While the breading was evenly cooked, the calamari strips were floppy, not crisp, and on the oily side.

Steak frites, $19.00

When food processors became popular in the late 1970s, purees suddenly appeared on every plate. Purees of turnips and zucchini, carrot and beet, potatoes and apple. It was part of the nouvelle cuisine movement, which happily disappeared quickly as diners realized they didn’t particularly care for baby food on their plates. Remember Nora Ephron’s great line, “Pesto is the quiche of the ’80’s”? Sous-vide appears to be the food processor of the 2010s. Sous-vide is translated as “under vacuum” but might be better described as “in a boiling bag.” It’s the darling of certain modernist chefs but to Femme de Joie, it’s an annoying fad that will eventually wind up on garage sale tables alongside Bacon Bowl makers, Taco Salad Shell makers, and Salad Shooters.

So: The steak did not appear to be grilled; it appeared to be cooked sous-vide with grill marks added later. While sous-vide ensures an extremely tender steak, it also eliminates the flavorful crisp and seasoned browned exterior – the Maillard reaction. The interior is one uniform color – here, pink (M. de Joie ordered it cooked rare) – and one uniform mouthfeel (soft). However, with the fatty, enveloping coat of butter – not just a melting pat, but a cold cream-like swath – any exterior browning was completely smothered. Limp shoestring potatoes were so salty with Parmesan and bacon that even a salty-food addict such as M. de Joie couldn’t get through them. Described on the menu as “grilled bistro fillet, crispy pancetta and brown butter sauce atop a mountain of Parmesan shoestring fries,” this was a far cry from the simple and superb steak frites served in even the meanest French bistro.

Smoked corned beef sandwich with chopped starter salad, $13.00

House-smoked corned beef was smoky but also very dry and fibrous. Combined with bacon-braised sauerkraut and aged white cheddar, it made for an unpleasantly salty sandwich. A very small chopped starter salad served in an even smaller bowl was awkward to stab with a fork but freshly made and crisp.

Side of macaroni and cheese, $6.00

M. de Joie liked the intense Cheddar taste of the macaroni and cheese; though it was a little watery when first served, the sauce thickened upon standing to cling to al dente pasta.

What to say about View 202? The view is nice from the patio. Waitstaff was mostly helpful and friendly (though it bugs M. de Joie when she asks a question and gets, “Uhhhh, I’m not really sure….” Just say you don’t know, then go find out). But the food misses the mark – so much and so often so that she felt it was a waste of good ingredients as well as overpriced for the end result.

Speaking of overpriced: an uninspired glass of Markham Sauvignon Blanc (year unknown; why isn’t the year on the wine list?) cost $9/ $32 for a bottle, yet BevMo sells it for $10.99. Alexander Valley’s Redemption Zinfandel was a much better wine but View 202 priced it the same as the Markham; Wine.com sells the 2012 for $12.99. Even more shocking, $14 a glass for Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling, available at BevMo for $6.99 a bottle. If you want to bring your own wine, View 202 charges $18 corkage (compared to $12 at Nello’s Place and $15 at Clearie’s and Moonstone Bistro). Femme de Joie has nothing against restaurants making a profit – that is why they’re in business – but she does object to blatant gouging.

Obviously Femme de Joie is missing whatever View 202’s fans see in it. She has no problem with spending money in high-end restaurants if the product is worth the price, but she doesn’t see that value at View 202. She might have a glass of iced tea on the patio, but she’ll eat elsewhere.

View 202, 202 Hemsted Drive, Redding, CA 96002. 530-226-8439. Serving lunch, dinner, and Sunday brunch. Open Monday through Thursday, 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM, Friday and Saturday, 11:00 AM to midnight, Sunday 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM. Cash and cards. Parking lot. Vegetarian and vegan options. Full bar. Website at http://view202redding.com/

Pity the poor cilantro hater. Genetically disposed to loathe the pungent herb ubiquitous to Latin and Asian cooking, they find themselves the object of disbelief, mockery, and repeated attempts to recruit them to the legions of cilantro lovers. There are online support groups via Facebook,
communities such as I Hate Cilantro (“The most offensive food known to man”), blog posts (“I just thought somebody had emptied a bottle of Old Spice on my pizza”), and haikus (“Evil leaf from hell/ go back to where you came from/ you are not wanted”). Julia Child claimed she would pick cilantro out of any dish and throw it on the floor.

Femme de Joie has to admit that her first encounter with cilantro was not a pleasant one. Inspired as a teenager by Elena Zelayeta’s cookbook “Elena’s Secrets of Mexican Cooking,” she optimistically planted some and was horrified at the stinky, nasty herb that resulted; she had thought it would be more like parsley. A few years later at the dearly departed Sam Wo’s Restaurant in San Francisco, she encountered some cilantro in a bowl of won ton soup and had to pick it out carefully (she had already encountered the legendary Edsel Ford Fung and did not wish to draw any more attention to herself).

M. de Joie can’t remember when she eventually succumbed to the charms of this lovely herb, but she thinks it must have been a gradual adjustment similar to what Dr. Jay Gottfried of Northwestern University suggests. A life without cilantro would certainly limit one’s ability to enjoy certain cuisines. And that brings us to Thai Hut in Redding. It surely would be hell on earth for someone who hates cilantro but a tiny slice of heaven for everyone else. Situated in the old Wall Street Pizza building, there are perhaps eight tables inside and half a dozen outside in front. Cheerful and helpful waitresses do their best to keep up with the lunchtime crowd – and it does get crowded.

Nam Koaw, fried crispy rice salad, $8.49

This dish goes by half a dozen other names and spellings.Similar to the minced duck lettuce wraps served in Chinese restaurants, this version is so much more complex. A fine mince of crispy rice, preserved pork, coconut flakes, green onions, cilantro, and peanuts, you scoop it onto a lettuce leaf, wrap it up as best you can, and attempt to pop it into your mouth without spilling any; if that fails, just use a fork. This was wildly delicious. Listed as an appetizer, it was enough for lunch.

Lunch specials all come with a salad with a sweet mustardy dressing, light and refreshing.

Curry of your day, $7.99 as lunch special

During an extremely busy lunch hour M. de Joie ordered pork in yellow curry and got chicken instead. Since it had taken 50 minutes to get that, she didn’t feel up to returning it. However, it was not a disappointment: chicken breast strips with assorted strips of vegetables in medium heat yellow curry were all cooked perfectly. The savory sauce was good enough to lick the bowl clean. She was less crazy about the sweet and sour sauce that accompanied the egg roll, as it was overwhelmingly vinegary.

Bean sprouts, Jalapenos, cilantro, basil

Small beef pho, $6.75

It wasn’t that many years ago that pho was an unknown in Redding’s Asian restaurants; fortunately it’s now served in at least half a dozen places. Thai Hut’s version used a lighter beef broth than M. de Joie has tasted elsewhere, and there didn’t seem to be as much beef in the bowl in other places, which is probably a reflection of the bargain price. Plenty of noodles, though, and a generous plate of the standard fresh add-ons helped make up for that.

Chicken wings, $7.49

These were by far the best chicken wings Femme de Joie has ever had in a restaurant: very flavorful, crisp, non-greasy, and a generous serving. They were wonderful eaten as is, though she mixed some incendiary chili-garlic paste into the sweet and sour sauce to pour over, and that was delightful too.

M. de Joie likes Thai Hut very much and will definitely return. The prices are low ($7.99 lunch specials) and the generous servings of well-prepared food have produced a loyal fan base. It can be agonizingly slow at lunchtime, so try to schedule a visit outside of peak hours. Be advised: cilantro is served.

Thai Hut, 1165 Hartnell Avenue, Redding CA 96002. 530-222-8405. Open Tuesday through Saturday, 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM, Sunday 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Closed Monday. Cash and cards; no checks. Beer and wine. Small parking lot. Vegan and vegetarian options.

Okay, a show of hands, please: who remembers the Cypress Street Bridge construction? Whoa! A LOT of you. Wasn’t that fun? Trying to figure out where the stop lights were, which lane was which, and God help you if you had to cross the bridge during the noon hour. It’s been completed for a few years now, though when Femme de Joie crosses it she can’t help but wonder when they’re going to replace those concrete pouring tubes with some actual street lights.

What you might not remember is that the construction and accompanying traffic jams were enough to contribute to the demise of at least two restaurants – Pellegrini’s Brazilian Steakhouse and Taj Mahal. It would seem that Pellegrini’s, that bastion of all things meat, is gone for good. However, Taj Mahal has risen from the ashes and reopened in the strip mall by PetCo just off Hilltop Drive.

The space is much smaller than the old restaurant, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Anchored with a sleek bar in the center, the dining room features tomato red walls and simple polished wood tables. Five televisions near the ceiling are always on but not obnoxiously loud, tuned to either CNN or a Bollywood movie.

Taj Mahal serves a buffet lunch for a bargain price of $9.99. It’s a good way to find out if you like Indian food.

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Clockwise from top: aloo gobi, samosa, pakora, saag paneer, navratan korma, (in center) gheera rice.

Aloo gobi (potatoes and cauliflower) wasn’t M. de Joie’s favorite item – though the spicing was pleasing, the textures seemed to be identical and it was hard to say if one had a bite of aloo or gobi. The samosa and pakora were better; there was a nice crunchy coating on the potato-filled samosa pastry and the herby pakoras (fritters) would make a nice snack with a cold beer.

Saag paneer (spinach with homemade cheese), was like an Indian creamed spinach with mild heat level, a mineral-grassy spinach taste smoothed out with cheese. It contrasted on the plate with the tomato cream sauce of navratan korma, making a wonderful vegetarian pairing. Centering the plate was gheera rice – basmati rice cooked with cumin seeds, which makes a great variation from plain steamed rice.

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Mango lassi, $2.99

If you don’t want beer to go with Indian food, a sweet, creamy mango lassi (made with yogurt, mangoes and water) is a great alternative. Not sticky-sweet like a milkshake, the fruity-tart drink is refreshing and cooling if the heat level seems to be too much.

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Naan – a fluffy, tender bread – comes with the buffet as well as most menu items. Tear it apart to eat, or use it to scoop up chutneys.

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Clockwise from top: chicken curry, beef curry, tandoori chicken.

Femme de Joie preferred the spicier beef curry over the somewhat blander chicken curry; the chicken itself seemed spongy and unappealing. However, the tandoori chicken was a winner. It’s one of those dishes that looks good and smells good but is nearly always dried out and tough. Here it was juicy with good smoky flavor and aromas.

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Lamb biriyani, $13.99

This was just amazingly, wildly delicious. Spiced, tender lamb chunks were scattered throughout perfectly cooked basmati rice, skillfully seasoned and garnished with cilantro and coconut. M. de Joie ordered medium heat, but thinks she could have taken it up a notch, as the heat was not overwhelming or burning – just a pleasant level of warmth.

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Bhindi masala, $10.99

You don’t see okra on many North State menus and more’s the pity, as it is delicious and adaptable to a variety of cuisines. Here it was browned first, then combined with onions and peppers and a generous amount of ginger. A sour tang came through now and then – M. de Joie thinks that was aamchur (dry mango powder). Not at all slimy as many people think, this had a much firmer texture than stewed okra and made an unusual vegetarian meal.

While Femme de Joie enjoyed the food and the surroundings at Taj Mahal, she does have one complaint. There is a difference between attentive service and annoying service. Waitstaff went rapidly from friendly and helpful to creepily invasive and ridiculously servile. In one 50-minute lunch, M. de Joie was asked no fewer than fourteen times if everything was all right or if she needed anything else. At one point she looked up to see the waitress staring at her – presumably to detect any signs of distress. M. de Joie started to wonder if perhaps she had something in her teeth or if one of her eyebrows had suddenly and without warning rearranged itself onto her forehead. Of course this overeagerness to serve comes from management’s orders, so Femme de Joie will take it upon herself right now to instruct Taj Mahal’s management: leave the diners alone and let them eat.

Other than that, the food at Taj Mahal is delicious and worth trying.

P.S. You can put your hands down now.

Taj Mahal, 1619 Hilltop Drive, Suite C, Redding, CA 96002. 530-722-9551, fax 530-722-9553. Open daily, 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM, Friday and Saturdays open until 11:00 PM. Lunch buffet, $9.99. Full bar. Parking lot. Vegetarian and vegan options. Cash and cards. Website at tajmahalredding.com

Long ago - long ago being relative, of course - there was a Mexican restaurant in Hamilton City which was apparently the bee's knees to Hamilton City diners. The exact name of it escapes Femme de Joie just now, and after doing a brief search on the internet, apparently no one else remembers it either. But what M. de Joie does recall is that there was a fever upon the land when the word came down that this restaurant was going to expand to Redding. And so it came to pass; said restaurant built on East Cypress Avenue, not far from where the fabled and infamous El-Bo Room lived out its days. It opened and after a certain amount of time, shut the doors; M. de Joie seems to remember at least one other Mexican restaurant opened and closed in turn in the same location. For about the last 14 years, Guadalajara has held down the spot where others came and went.

Approaching Guadalajara is easiest if you're heading east on Cypress and can just swing right into the parking lot. It's trickier to slide in there from the westbound lanes, especially during the noon hour and around 5 PM, when the traffic is unforgiving and unrelenting. The interior is spacious and colorful with what appear to be large tin stars hanging from the ceiling and brightly painted chairs. Service is generally friendly and speedy.

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House salad, $5.29

The basic house salad was one of the better menu items at Guadalajara. Expecting just a bowl of iceberg lettuce, we were pleasantly surprised to get fresh Romaine with grated cheese, olives, tomatoes, avocados and onions, a definite step up from the side salad at most restaurants.

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Lunch special, enchilada and tamale, $8.29

A chicken tamale was quite doughy with a ponderosity of heavyweight masa corseting an shredded chicken filling. It was slow going through the doughy masa to get to the oily filling - the oil had already spread to the cornhusks, so it had plenty to spare - and the filling itself was surprisingly bland considering the oil was vividly red, presumably from chili powder. Sharing the plate was a chicken enchilada that was likewise bland and tired, like it had been up since 2 AM and just couldn't muster any enthusiasm. Refried beans were creamy but not especially flavorful; rice had odd crispy bits here and there, like it had been sitting uncovered and part had dried out while what lay beneath remained moist. It was salty.

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Cup of albondigas soup, $3.50

Though not stated on the menu, the soups can be ordered as a cup instead of a bowl (which is a quite large serving). Albondigas soup was apparently cooked to order and it was a winner. A more-than-generous cup with two large tender meatballs, freshly cooked carrots, zucchini, and potatoes in a really delicious savory tomato-tinged broth came with a dish of cilantro, chopped onion, and one very dry lime half on the side. Whoever is making the soup knows what they're doing in terms of seasoning and timing the doneness of each ingredient.

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Lunch special, chile verde burrito, $7.49

This lunch special was everything the others were not. Chile verde - tender pork cubes in a tart green tomatillo sauce - wrapped in a flour tortilla with a moderate amount of cheese melted on top was piquant and lively, as well as a bargain for the price.

Femme de Joie is of two minds about Guadalajara. Clearly it's quite popular, both with locals and with Interstate 5 travelers who rave about it in online reviews. You do get generous portions, the salsa is fresh and tasty, and it's a family-friendly place with a kiddie menu of under-$2 items. But they're missing the mark on preparations for some standard Mexican restaurant dishes. The care taken with the soup and the chile verde indicates the kitchen can deliver; M. de Joie hopes they can raise the bar and take steps to increase quality across the board.

Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant, 435 East Cypress Avenue, Redding, 96002. 530-223-2540. Open Monday-Thursday, 11:00 AM - 9:00 PM, Friday-Saturday 11:00 AM - 10:00 PM, Sunday 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM. Vegetarian and vegan options. Children's menu. No checks. Full bar. Parking lot. Website at http://www.guadalajararestaurant.net/

Up on North Market Street just at the western foot of Sulphur Creek Hill stands a now-empty building. For years it housed El Papagayo, then another restaurant that escapes Femme de Joie's memory just now, followed by Catanio's. M. de Joie only visited Catanio's once; she remembers it fondly as an upscale Italian restaurant that provided a musical interlude during dinner by Joe Catanio. After it closed, Catanio moved on to run the cafe at Turtle Bay until The Powers That Be closed it pending the construction of a Sheraton Hotel. Not idle for long, Catanio paired with Scott Rawson to open Smoked BBQ on Airport Road.

Fitted inside what appears to have been a drive-through coffee kiosk (and located next to Dutch Brothers), the restaurant has just three small tables. The meat is smoked on the premises and sides are house-made. The menu is short and sweet and quite reasonably priced. Each item comes with a choice of sides.

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Hot pastrami sandwich, $7.99

M. de Joie has long been a pastrami fan - Amico del SIgnore, not so much; he always found it greasy, salty, and fatty. This sandwich converted him; plenty of very lean, mildly spiced pastrami with a pleasant smokiness didn't have that off-putting greasiness. The sauce was served on the side instead of glopped on, which we approve heartily of - and this sauce is a far cry from the dark brownish-purple sauces that fall off the Sysco Truck by the gallon. A tomato base made tangy with apple cider vinegar and slightly sweet, it complimented the pastrami rather than smothered it. We liked the macaroni salad too - not sweet but slightly mustardy with tiny bits of celery.

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Pulled pork sandwich, $7.50

The pulled pork was likewise non-greasy, little niblets of tender smoked pork piled on a bun. Moist and tender, it didn't need sauce, but we poured it on anyway. The smoked sweet potatoes were wonderful: though they look like plain sliced white potatoes, they are made from yellow sweet potatoes rather than red Garnet yams. M. de Joie has never cared much for yellow sweet potatoes, finding them dry and chalky, but this was delightful, especially when we scraped the bottom of the container to scoop up the caramelized juices that had puddled there.

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Combo meal, four pork ribs and sliced tri-tip, $8.99

Tri-tip isn't an easy cut to cook. Tough sinews and connective tissue riddle it; though it's flavorful, it can necessitate a yard or two of dental floss afterwards. But at Smoked BBQ the tri-tip was meltingly tender and smoky, luscious and juicy. Pork ribs had a crackly crust and were fall-off-the-bone tender. Alongside, potato salad was not overcooked and mushy (as often happens) and slightly on the tart side. The only disappointment was that the combo meal was not as generous a serving as the sandwiches, so not really a great value.

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Smoked Stack (tri-tip. pastrami, pulled pork), $8.99

A terrific combo of the best of Smoked BBQ, this was a most satisfying sandwich. Even though it was heavy on the protein, the smoked meats were trimmed of excess fat so it didn't have a soporific effect, Scott's slaw was a winner too: freshly made with, cubes of apple teamed with dried cranberries and thin-sliced cabbage in a light vinegary dressing. If a diner was so inclined, they could certainly pile the slaw on the sandwich.

Even though it's all the way out on Airport Road. Smoked BBQ is worth a drive. Now that Thanksgiving has been ticked off the list for another year, there may be a few turkey tidbits lurking in the far reaches of the refrigerator. There may well be people who are pointedly ignoring those leftovers, crying for surcease, for something that isn't turkey, isn't covering in gravy and cranberry sauce. For them, a trip to Smoked BBQ may be in order. For those still happily snarfing up the ends of that bird, head on out there anyway.

Smoked BBQ, 8540 Airport Road at Rancho Road, Redding, CA 96002. 530-364-2085. Open Monday-Saturday, 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM. Closed Sundays. Very small dining area; better to order take-out. Parking lot. No alcohol. Cards, no checks. Not much for vegetarians to see here except side orders. Follow them on Facebook.

The phrase “tote-bag hell” was first coined during the 1970s for those interminable weeks when public television programming was interrupted every six minutes to beg the viewers to pledge money. In exchange, the pledger received a “token of appreciation” – a tote bag or a coffee mug. Tote bags and coffee mugs are now apparently passe – instead, the lucky donor gets a CD/DVD of Live from the Andorra Opera House, Peter Lemongello Salutes Allan Sherman! Even a die-hard Peter Lemongello fan must surely be aware that no matter how shiny and new that DVD may be, it’s just an enticement to get you to send money for the greater good.

There’s been a restaurant of some kind in the courtyard of the Hartnell Castle for many years. Femme de Joie knows she dined there a few times, but it was so unmemorable she cannot recall now if it was Mexican, Chinese, or what. Savory Spoon opened in that oft-abandoned spot in late 2011. M. de Joie immediately filed it away in her soon-to-close-due-to-bad-location file cabinet. But it didn’t close; it prospered and grew from being open three days a week to six days. Good things were heard about the food and the pay-what-you-can Mondays. It was time to drive east on Hartnell to visit.

The dining room features perhaps 20 small tables (no booths) topped with butcher paper; a cup of crayons is provided. Also on the tables are small pepper grinders and salt grinders – a very nice touch. Collections of vintage menus and kitchen tools make more interesting wall decor than the usual starving-artist paintings found in small cafes. It was perhaps half-full and not crowded on any of our visits.

M. de Joie was surprised at how varied Savory Spoon’s menu is. There are numerous vegan options (including seitan) as well as gluten-free dishes (though Femme de Joie did not ask whether cross-contamination measures are taken).

VLAT (Vegetarian bacon, lettuce, tomato & avocado) potato salad, $11.00

When vegetarian meat substitutes were first widely available, most of them were on the disgusting side. M. de Joie remembers a booth at the Shasta District Fair circa 1970 that was handing out fake steak bites. She has blocked out exactly how nasty that bite was. There’s been a lot of progress since then, and this sandwich was a good example. Crisp and smoky veg bacon stood in for the real porker product. Matched with local tomatoes and buttery avocados, this was a healthier take on the classic with a strong resemblance to the real thing. On the side, potato salad was good enough to be compared to homemade – this definitely did not come off the Sysco truck. However good the food was, we did expect more food for $11.00.

Monte Meat Burger (brown rice, legumes, mushrooms & vegetables) with chipotle sauce, side of cod chowder, $12.00

It’s easy for most restaurants to offer a veggie burger by just defrosting a Boca or Garden burger, but kudos go to anyone who makes their own. The Monte Meat burger had a meat-like texture (it held together rather than falling into sorry lumps like many veggie burgers do) and taste (though again, it isn’t going to be mistaken for ground chuck). Femme de Joie was rather taken aback at the size, reminiscent of a kiddie burger at a fast-food place, though the homegrown yellow tomato soothed some of the disappointment. Chipotle sauce was very mild and bland. Cod chowder was full of vegetables but a bit short on actual cod, though it had the fishy taste of a cod swimming in the cauldron.

Strawhouse Morning Blend coffee, $2.50

Savory Spoon uses a lot of local food purveyors, including coffee from Strawhouse on Highway 299 at Big Flat. Why would you get coffee from a wide spot in the road on your way to the coast? Because this is exceptionally good coffee and worth the extra trouble.

California omelet (bacon, tomato, avocado, blue cheese) with red house potatoes and rye toast, $9.00

It isn’t that easy to find a really good breakfast in Redding, but Savory Spoon does them right. A tender omelet with a harmonious combination of fillings (blue cheese on an omelet? Yes, please) was the centerpiece. Red house potatoes were a delight – not burned or underdone or out of a freezer bag, seasoned lightly, they made the plate complete. Rye bread from The Oven Bakery in Mount Shasta was a surprise – toast is often just on the side to take up room, but fine rye bread is actually worth eating. A nice touch was jam served in tiny bowls rather than the peel-away plastic tubs.

Biscuits and gravy, $8.00/$5.00

House-made sausage gravy isn’t on the dieter’s list, but this gravy was worth at least a taste or two. Not overly salty or greasy, creamy gravy had plenty of sausage bits (unfortunately, a bit of gristle too). It would have been nice to have the gravy served on the side rather than poured over the biscuit so the biscuit could have remained unsoggy.

Tofu scramble with potato, red bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, with hash browns and rye toast, $9.00

Scrambled tofu? It’s been a staple of vegetarian & vegan breakfasts for years, and is worth exploring if you’re looking for a low-fat alternative to eggs. Colored with turmeric to look like eggs, tofu takes on the taste of whatever it’s cooked with. This was a pleasing mix of vegetables with soft tofu curds. It’s been a mission of Amico del Signore to find really great hash browns, and these were pretty close to potato Nirvana: very crisp, nongreasy house-made shreds of browned potatoes.

The food is delicious with so many nice touches, and the undertaking of the Savory Spoon is noble and in line with everything M. de Joie agrees with. It is located in an underserved area for restaurants and also attempts to serve the disenfranchised population. Savory Spoon has so many good things about it – ingredients sourced from local purveyors, dedication to high-quality organic foods, gluten-free and vegan options, a pay-what-you-can day on Monday for the poor & indigent. Having said all of that, Femme de Joie found this to be by far the most difficult review she has ever written.She walked out of Savory Spoon feeling uneasy, unsettled about some niggling little discrepancy, something that just wasn’t sitting well with her. It finally came to her, not in an enlightening moment of shimmering clarity, but after hours of boring Amico del Signore with existential questions and general angst. It’s the pricing.

Take the coffee, Morning Blend, retailing at Strawhouse for $13.00/pound. It is very good coffee and a very good deal at $2.50. But Cheesecakes Unlimited in Redding serves coffee for $2.79, Clearie’s for $4.00, a French press of coffee (2-3 cups) at Moonstone costs $5.95. Wines: Savory Spoon has a nice selection of primarily local wines. A bottle of Burnsini 2009 Tehama Red sells for $24.00 at Vintage Wine Bar but $18.00 at Savory Spoon. The food pricing seems askew: a large spaghetti lunch (including garlic bread but not soup or salad) costs $15.00 but a 1/3 pound Prather Ranch bacon cheeseburger (including a choice of sides) is priced at $12.50. Chicken and dumplings at dinner is $15.00, more than meatloaf ($14.50). And at breakfast, a bowl of cream of wheat or oatmeal seems sky-high at $7.00, compared to an English muffin with meat, Cheddar, and a fried egg for $5.00. Should a seitan sandwich cost more than a Reuben? Why do inexpensive pasta and chicken cost more than beef? Why is a simple bowl of hot cereal more than a ham-egg-cheese breakfast sandwich?

M. de Joie wondered what’s wrong with the chicken if the pasta costs more? Why do pancakes cost more than an omelet? There must be something she is missing here. It would seem logical to her that a nonprofit restaurant capitalize on the same things that for-profit restaurants make money on – i.e. the huge markup in beverages – so that the other menu items are not so far out of line with other restaurant menu pricing. Does getting a cup of coffee for $2.50 make up for a seven dollar bowl of oatmeal? At what point does “It’s for a good cause” trump actual value? Like the DVD sent out by PBS in exchange for a donation of $120, is it enough to keep people coming back for more, or will it eventually dissuade consumers?

These are questions M. de Joie does not have a satisfactory answer to, but thus far the customer base seems quite happy with the food at Savory Spoon – and in the end, that is what will keep it alive.

Savory Spoon, 1647 Hartnell Avenue #1, Redding, CA 96002. 530-222-7200. Open Tuesday-Saturday, 9 AM – 8:00 PM. Sunday brunch from 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM. Community Monday, 12:00 noon to 4:00 PM; pay what you can. Cash and cards. Beer and wine. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free options. Parking lot. Website at www.SavorySpoon.org

Bruciante, adj, Italian, m/f. .che brucia, accesa, acceso, brillante. English: Burning, fired, lit up, blazing, on fire. Verb, to scorch, to sear, to burn, to burn up

Though there have been ovens as long as people have been cooking (any covered vessel or firepit containing food and heated from an external source may be said to work on the same principle as an oven), it was not until tribes stopped wandering and settled into stable non-nomadic groups that ovens began to be developed past the rudimentary stage. (Interestingly, ovens were apparently developed worldwide independently by peoples who had no knowledge of the folks 6000 miles away.)Flues were added as was insulation to prevent fires from escaping and to ensure a continuous heat. As these little villages moved from hunting food to growing it, grains and grasses were harvested, dried, ground, and made into breads. Likewise, yeast has captured and used in cookery since 4000 BC (give or take a few years), making leavened bread possible. It probably wasn't great bread, but provender is provender. When your main objective in life is to escape the plague, the Barbarians at the gate, and Things That Go Bump In The Night, seeking out the perfect baguette is low on your priority list.

For the next several millennia, cooks dealt with the imperfections and fluctuations of ovens heated with wood, coal, oil, kerosene, peat, and dung (yes). Given the guesswork involved in gauging oven temperatures as well as the laughably vague recipes passed down from previous generations of cooks, there must have been an enormous failure rate for baked grain products. It wasn't until the first quarter of the 20th Century that ovens with temperature regulation became widely available, coinciding with a brief mania for a "scientific" approach to food preparation. As modern kitchen equipment & techniques evolved with precise temperatures and measurements spelled out, perfection seemed virtually guaranteed. Nowadays the plague, Barbarians, and ghoulies & ghosties & long-legged beasties aren't as worrisome as they once were, so we have the luxury of enjoying perfectly-baked bread and related foods for more than just their life-sustaining properties.

It may seem a few giant steps backwards, then, that purveyors of bread products are now embracing a return to wood-fired ovens. Why would anyone in their right mind willingly give up the convenience of gas- or electric-fired ovens to stand over a huge primitive oven, feeding it handfuls of wood, just to bake? You can talk all you want about the purity of such foods, the creation of artisan breads & pizzas, exploring ancient methods of food production, but the only answer that matters: it's better.

Bruciante Wood Fired Pizza opened on Hilltop Drive late last year in a kiosk formerly occupied by a drive-through coffee flogger. Pizzas are made to order and baked on a portable wood-fired oven hauled around on a trailer. It takes no longer and costs no more to get a 10-inch pizza than it does to go into a cafe and get a sandwich - and this is truly wonderful pizza.

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House salad, $6.00

Just because there's always someone who says, "Oooh, I'm on a diet," Bruciante makes a colorful, delicious house salad, and it's worth ordering whether you're on a diet or not. Mixed organic greens with dried cranberries, candied pecans, a choice of blue cheese or feta, and a perfect blend of Lucero olive oil and balsamic vinegar - this is one of the very best salads in Redding, and at a bargain price. We picked the last tiny leaves out of the container and squabbled over the last of the balsamic-soaked cranberries.

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Blue moo, $9.00 plus $1.00 for tomato addition

Blue cheese on a pizza? Yes, please. This tangy pizza combined bits of top sirloin, blue and mozzarella cheeses on red sauce, Femme de Joie requested cooked tomatoes to be added for an acid bite to contrast with the rich cheeses. This was the first pizza we tried at Bruciante, and how very fine it was. M. de Joie and Amico del Signore exulted over the tender crust that still supported the ingredients without collapsing, the quality of ingredients, and the smoky edge of wood-fired flavor.

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Smokey basil, $8.00 plus $1.00 for tomato addition

A variation of the classic margherita pizza, smoked mozzarella substitutes for plain and gives the impression that you're eating a pizza with meaty flavors. A thin drizzle of basil olive oil set off the raw cherry tomatoes (added by request) beautifully. Think of bruschetta - this was a like a cheesy baked bruschetta, though not overwhelmed with so much cheese that it was a fatty globule atop a crust.

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Caesar salad, $6.00

In addition to the house salad, Bruciante makes a special salad every day. Caesar was the traditional Romaine lettuce with a lemony-tart creamy dressing, croutons, and mizithra cheese in place of the usual Parmesan. Femme de Joie practically requires anchovies on her Caesar but recognizes that most people run screaming from the room if faced with one of those salty, oily little fillets, so she will let this matter slide for now. The mizithra cheese almost made up for it. Not familiar with mizithra? Well, if Parmesan is subtle, earthy and aged, the essence of umami of cheeses, then mizithra is sharp, snappy, and in-your-face.

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Blazin' Buffalo, $9.00

Chicken on pizza has never appealed to M. de Joie. It just seems so wrong. But here the chicken breast is shredded into a spicy Buffalo-wing sauce to keep it moist - none of those odd little moon rock-like pellets of desiccated chicken here - and topped with mozzarella, blue cheese, and more of that delectable mizithra cheese. For full enjoyment: have cold bottles of beer in refrigerator. Put beer mug in freezer. Call Bruciante and order Blazin' Buffalo (maybe two). Go pick up pizza and bring home. Pop open beer, pour into frozen mug. Stuff face. You'll thank us later.

Let us be clear: this is not pizza as most Americans think of pizza. No pile-it-all-on combinations. No extra-gargantuan-stuffed-crust pizza to feed six people. You don't have a choice of twenty-five toppings. No, this is the Mies van de Rohe of pizza. The ingredients are sourced locally and organic if possible - you can get an additional veggie (say, zucchini or bell peppers) from the farmer's market added to your pizza for one measly buck; sometimes Sweetie's Barbecue is called up to provide smoked meats for specialty pizzas. Dough and sauces are house-made. It's too bad that beer isn't served because this pizza really deserves a cold one with it, but that problem is solved by taking it home and enjoying it there. M. de Joie wasn't expecting to see top-quality pizza in Redding anytime soon, so the appearance of Bruciante has made her - and A. del Signore - very, very happy. This place deserves to succeed.

Bruciante Wood Fired Pizza, 2491 Hilltop Drive #C, at the corner of Commerce (north of IHOP in a parking lot by Remax), Redding. 530-242-6128. Open Monday-Friday, 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM. Cash, cards. Closed weekends. Drive-though or eat at one of the tables. No alcohol. Vegetarian & vegan options. Small parking lot on-site. Follow them on Facebook here.

Longtime Redding residents will remember the old Italian Cottage on Hilltop Drive, pre-dating even the Mount Shasta Mall. Sawdust was piled high enough on the floor to get in your shoes, they put an olive in your beer, and the minestrone had hard vegetables mixed with squashy ones. Femme de Joie has fond memories of trying to fit a small group of friends into one of those corner booths without getting jabbed by the sharp table corner; she remembers even more fondly the pastrami sandwich. Italian Cottage morphed into Corina's; when that closed, the building lay vacant and unloved for years, increasing amounts of trash gathering in the dead landscaping, until a Mexican restaurant-cum-tequila bar opened a few years ago and closed again last year.

Now Mazatlan Grill lives in the old Italian Cottage spot. There are a lot of restaurants named Mazatlan Grill in the US but this one is independently owned and operated. Spacious and airy inside, the decor is bright, fresh and cheerful, with patio seating available. M. de Joie's first visit was after the lunch hour, where she pretty much had the entire place to herself. Staff - who are efficient and friendly in a perfunctory way - greeted her immediately. The menu is lengthy and not easy to read, with one of those cutesy fonts that make you squint.

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Femme de Joie ordered a margarita, which came within 30 seconds of the waiter taking the order. Is there a giant margarita truck in back with a hose hooked up to the bar? It had to have come from a bucket or hose to be delivered that fast. It was quite sweet. The standard chips-in-a-basket plus salsa were put on the table. While the salsa was adequate, the chips seemed to have been around since the first "Star Wars" movie came out.

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Shrimp enchiladas ($14.99, though the menu read $13.49)

When the shrimp enchiladas were placed on the table, a waiter made a point of smiling broadly and saying, "Senorita, I am so jealous of you!" which confused Femme de Joie. "That looks so good!" It was at that moment that M. de Joie had a flashback to Papa de Joie, who suffered no fools gladly and would snap, "Ya wanna bite?" when dealing with a fatuous remark like that However, she restrained herself from doing the same.

The menu description of the shrimp enchiladas read that they were covered in "creamy sauce made with tomatillos." There may have been a tomatillo present in the kitchen when the sauce was made, but none made it into the cheesy creamy sauce. If the tortilla chips had been around since the first Star Wars movie, the shrimp in the enchiladas had been languishing in the freezer since the first "Star Trek" television series.

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Chimichanga, $8.99

M.de Joie's second visit was during the lunch hour proper, and once again there was a shortage of other customers. It's hard to tell from the photo, but under that sour cream and guacamole is a chile verde chimichanga. It was on her table precisely four minutes after she ordered it. The bottom of the chimichanga had a little crispness from a very brief encounter with a frying surface, but the top - beneath that blanket of goo - was unfried tortilla. Inside was a lot of shredded pork and no verde. Well, that isn't quite true - after prodding around, Femme de Joie spotted a thin, thin layer of something green in a fold of tortilla, but it didn't seem to have any taste. There was certainly none of the green sauce that one associates with chile verde. In fact, there was nothing inside the tortilla - excusez-moi, the chimichanga - except plain unseasoned shredded pork.

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Burrito Panchito Deluxe, $8.99

Femme de Joie was a bit surprised on her third visit to actually be among other customers. Where had they been before? No matter. She ordered Burrito Panchito Deluxe with chicken. Unlike her previous meals delivered at the speed of sound, it took a good ten minutes to arrive. She isn't sure what was Deluxe about it. The filling was a lot of shredded chicken with nothing else, no sauce, no seasonings, though as with the chimichanga there was a surplus of sour cream and guacamole. The guacamole worried her a little, as it had that color she associates with guacamole seen in the freezer section of supermarkets.

What to conclude about Mazatlan? It's all over the place. Those elderly shrimp shouldn't have been served at all. Pork and chicken fillings were tender and moist but utterly without any taste. Sides of rice and beans were just taking up space on the plate - nothing to recommend them or not recommend them; the diner eats them because they come with the meal, not because they're delicious. Waitstaff is efficient and polite. Some people may love getting their food so fast, but M. de Joie wonders what is going on in the kitchen that one meal takes four minutes and a virtually identical one takes ten. While Mazatlan Grill is inoffensive, she thinks there is better Mexican food for your dollar elsewhere.

Mazatlan Grill, 1630 Hilltop Drive, Redding, CA 96002. 530-223-2454. Open Sunday-Thursday 11 AM - 10 PM; Friday & Saturday 11 AM - 11 PM. Cards, cash; no checks. Full bar. Children's menu. Patio dining. Vegetarian options. Parking lot.

Femme de Joie misses the old Omelet House, up there on North Hilltop.

No, it wasn't a transcendental experience, but it was a pretty good place to get breakfast in a town where decent breakfasts are thin on the ground. Behind the counter was a menu signed by Ron Howard, who stopped in one morning for provender. Whatever happened to that menu?

About 20 years ago Country Kitchen opened next door to, then moved into, that old Omelet House space. They've made a successful go of it, dishing up breakfasts and lunch for some years now - they were even mentioned in the New York Times "36 Hours in Redding" (http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/07/07/travel/escapes/07hours.html ). It's the kind of place where you pick up The Nickel outside to peruse while you wait for your food, in case you were in the market for eustachian equipment, a dowsing class, or Pearl Harbor pups.

Country Kitchen is known mostly for their generous servings of breakfast, though they do lunch too, as well as sell bread and cinnamon rolls from their bakery. Generally customers are shuffled first into the smaller dining room, mostly booths with a couple of tables in the center. But if it's busy, the larger Omelet House area handles the overflow. Customers are a mix of retirees, families, working men, and an aging hippie or two. Service is friendly, if occasionally somewhat scattered - the person who brings the coffee may be quick to tell you she isn't your waitress.

Scrapple with hash browns, a biscuit, and eggs, $9.55; side of gravy, $1.99.

Oh, it did gladden M. de Joie's heart to see scrapple on the menu. If you're not familiar with this delicious dish, it's what was made with the remainder of the pig once the chops, ribs, roasts, and so on were removed - the small, flavorful scraps were boiled with cornmeal to make a thick pudding, which was fried until crisp. This version is topped with bacon to reiterate the porky goodness, and served with potatoes and eggs. Lovely crisp scrapple cakes were tender on the inside with a crunch on the outside. You wouldn't want to eat this every day unless you carry a defibrillator in your back pocket, but it's a treat once in a while.

Special of the day, sourdough pancakes with peaches, sour cream and brown sugar cinnamon sauce, sausage, $8,25.

When this plate was first set before M. de Joie, it truly looked like fried eggs on top. Nope - it was canned peaches. The pancakes were delicious, but M. de Joie could not bring herself to appreciate the oddly bitter creamy cinnamon syrup. Too bad - the pancakes and peaches (out of a can) would have been better served with plain (imitation) maple or fruit syrup.

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Chinese chicken salad, $9.75, served with house-made cornbread.

You wouldn't expect a salad so blatantly healthy and colorful to come out of the kitchen of a mainly-breakfast cafe, but there is was. This was excellent - freshly-grilled chicken on top of a beautiful array of crisp vegetables. If there was any complaint, it was that the dressing was so thin, it didn't stick to the salad and puddled underneath. Other than that, Chinese chicken salad was a winner, as was the crunchy cornbread served alongside.

The only item Femme de Joie tasted at Country Kitchen that was a misfire was chicken fried steak (not pictured) - the doughy, undercooked crust was unappetizing and the steak was very salty. as was the gravy that day.

Though there are some misses on the execution, M. de Joie likes Country Kitchen and could be persuaded to go back. It does get crazy busy at times, especially Sunday mornings, so call ahead if you're with a group. There's something for everyone on the menu and the prices are fair for the large portions. If you're out on Hilltop waiting for the mall to open, stop by.

Country Kitchen, Town and Country Plaza, 1099 Hilltop Drive, Redding, CA 96002. 530-223- 5438. Open daily from 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Breakfast and lunch, bakery. No alcohol. No checks accepted; cards, cash. On-site parking. Vegetarian options. Website at http://www.countrykitchenredding.com/

Did you ever see “Eat Drink Man Woman”?

The story revolves around a gifted, skilled chef who has lost his sense of taste. (It's the same exact plot as “Tortilla Soup,” where the characters are Mexican-American instead of Chinese.)

Or how about the Food Network show, “Restaurant: Impossible” in which beefy Robert Irvine, on a mission to save failing restaurants, berates chefs who don't use any seasonings? “I don't use salt in case we have a customer who can't have salt,” says one clueless chef, to which Irvine snorts, “You don't have any customers.”

Which brings us to Golden Lantern. Occupying a prime spot of real estate on Churn Creek at Four Corners near Hartnell since 2007, this restaurant ought to be packing them in. It's on a busy corner with plenty of parking and lots of seating. The interior is well-lighted, clean, and attractive; service is unfailingly friendly and helpful; the generous servings are bargain-priced. But on each of three visits during peak lunch dining hours, M. de Joie observed that no more than five tables were occupied. So why isn't Golden Lantern busy?

Seafood tofu soup (medium $62.5, large $7.50) was very long on tofu and very short of seafood. There was what seemed like an entire cake of diced firm tofu in a bowl of hot but flavorless broth, bobbing along with diced carrots and some peas. After a few drops of soy sauce yielded only minor improvement, M. de Joie requested some chili paste: a driblet or two finally added some much-needed savor. As for the seafood, about 10 cocktail shrimp had sunk to the bottom of the bowl, where they nestled among an infinitesimally-small dice of an unknown sea creature.

Amico del Signore ordered almond chicken ($5.95 lunch special with steamed or fried rice and chow mein or sweet and sour pork). It looked good, it smelled good, and the zucchini and chicken were perfectly cut and cooked. But there was no flavor – as the dish cooled it seemed to become blander. Garlic and ginger are usually stir-fried together as a preliminary seasoning for most Cantonese dishes, but there was no evidence of either. The only seasonings were some chicken broth and perhaps a teeny amount of soy sauce. Fried rice was freshly prepared but likewise bland. Pork cubes had a lovely crisp coating but the sweet and sour sauce was neither. "The more you eat it," he sighed, "the less you like it."

Beef with broccoli ($5.95 lunch special) suffered the same fate as the almond chicken: great care had been taken in the prep and actual cooking, but there was no discernable flavor other than a very small amount of soy sauce. And here the two dishes collided and crawled all over each other - not the most appetizing presentation. Chow mein noodles were very overcooked and the entire dish was unfortunately quite oily.

Note: M. de Joie took the leftovers home and stir-fried them together the next with a shot of Sriracha, and that flavoring alone made them spectacular. Too bad they couldn't have been so tasty when first served.

In contrast, someone took pride in the hot and sour soup. This was a winner, with an almost creamy texture and good balance of neither too hot or too sour. Amico del Signore had never tasted hot and sour soup before, but he declared this a winner. Though there could have been a little more heat for M. de Joie's taste, it was still the best dish of the day.

Chinese chicken salad ($5.95 as an appetizer) was sloppily thrown together. Normally shredded chicken breast is used in this salad, both for aesthetics and for its ability to absorb flavorful dressings, but here some random pieces of lukewarm dark meat was scattered around the platter with large leaves of iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, peanuts, and a few none-too-crispy rice noodles. Plain rice vinegar was the only dressing. This could have been so much better with a careful presentation and a creative dressing - perhaps with sesame oil, ginger, sugar, and garlic to cut the tartness of the vinegar. As it was, the vinegar puddled on the bottom of the plate and didn't provide a cohesive element to bring the dish together.

When M. de Joie ordered beef pho ($5.50 medium, $6.50 large), the waitress asked her if she wanted the bean sprouts and Sriracha, which seemed an odd question. The accompaniments are as much a part of that warming bowl of soup as are the rice noodles. It's like asking if you want ketchup with your fries.

Right away M. de Joie noticed the thinly-sliced beef: it looked unusually white. Plucking out one slice and tasting it alone, it proved to be not beef but pork. A broth that smelled enticingly of star anise turned out to be miserably weak and thin – watery chicken and pork with little beef taste. Usually a mouthful of the rice noodles comes dripping with beefy goodness, but here they only tasted of unseasoned rice: there was no flavor to absorb. Adding a minced slice of Jalapeno, some hoisin, Sriracha, and soy helped somewhat, but still: this was a huge disappointment.

When M. de Joie had eaten about half of the pho, the waitress came by and asked if she was done with the condiment tray. Upon receiving an affimative answer, the waitress took the tray to another table – the only other occupied table. Do they only have one set of Thai condiments?

Obviously the owners of Golden Lantern are invested in this restaurant. The place is spotless, service is good, and the prices are rock-bottom. It should be successful. But there are some decided issues with the food. The chef obviously has cutting and cooking technique down pat, but isn't using the flavor card to his advantage - in fact, the flavor card seems to have been put back in the pack. And taking the time and care to present dishes appetizingly costs nothing, but seems to be getting short shrift.

Some corners are being cut – pork instead of beef, a real dearth of seafood in a seafood soup, no one in the kitchen taking time to turn out broths and sauces with exciting flavors. This may save money in the short term, but as a long term practice is ultimately destructive. Femme de Joie hopes the chef & owners of Golden Lantern will honestly evaluate the dishes coming out of the kitchen. If prices are too low to afford filling a beef dish with beef or a seafood dish with seafood, then possibly the dish needs to come off the menu, or the prices raised. Both of those are painful choices, but the restaurant should be full during the lunch hour and it's not - and that seems more painful.

Golden Lantern, 2990 Churn Creek Road, Redding, CA 96002. 530-222-1166, fax 530-222-0918. Open Tuesday through Thursday, 11:00 AM - 9:30 PM, Friday and Saturday 11:00 AM - 10:00 PM, Sunday 12:00 PM - 9:30 PM. Closed Monday. Cards, cash, no checks. Beer and wine. Vegetarian and vegan options. On-site parking. Website at http://goldenlanterncalifornia.com/

It was financial necessity of one Yoshiaki Shiraishi that morphed the traditonal sushi bar from a tiny space with few seats into a novelty production that coincidentally involves food. The owner of a sushi restuarant on the outskirts of Osaka in the 1950s, Shiraishi was going broke paying master sushi chefs during times of slow business, as well as trying to please a customer base who demanded high-quality food. After visiting the Asahi brewery and observing the efficiency of conveyor belts moving beer bottles, he thought he could keep costs down by slowly moving plates of sushi past customers, allowing them to quickly choose and eat without ordering via waitstaff. (At first, Shiraishi also eliminated tables and chairs - an unpopular move he had to rescind.) If the sushi chefs were in the center of the conveyor belt, they could keep an eye on which dishes were most popular and make them up as needed. During slack times, the chefs could make up some of the most popular dishes in advance and be prepared for the next rush.

Fast forward to 1991, when Len-Sun Lai of Milpitas was issued a patent for "Interlinked watercourses for sushi boats," and the sushi floating boat theme restaurant boom was on. It's been good for the sushi business - but how good is it for the food?

Yama Sushi opened in 2008 in the space vacated by Pellegrini's Brazilian Steakhouse (a victim of the Cypress Street Bridge construction). Though there is table service available, there's no doubt that the floating sushi boats attract most of the attention. There are photo charts around the bar to guide diners through the offerings, as well as pricing guides (match the design of the little plate to the picture on the chart to see what it costs).

Rather than keep careful watch on the chart, it's more interesting to just grab a likely-looking dish from the boat and see if you like it. Though M. de Joie made an attempt to catch the names of these little plates, she was not near a chart and so just grabbed a few plates to try a variety of dishes.

Those little orange dots: tobiko, or flying fish roe. Not too salty or "fishy," they offer a nice little pop on the tongue. However, the sweet sauce drizzled on the plate tended to mask the delicate taste.

This vegetable egg roll was not quite as delightful as it could have been, as some of the ingredients had been mixed too far in advance and were on the mushy side.

M. de Joie enjoyed the surprise of a hot and spicy dish amongst the sushi and sashimi, but her dining companion was put off by the heat packed in these little meatballs. It appeared there was an attempt to add some sort of cooling sauce on the plate (see squiggles of mayonnaise-like goop on plate) but the it didn't disguise the heat.

This was a generous portion of teriyaki chicken for the price, but the bits were on their way to drying out by the time the boat came by. A last-minute light brushing of sauce before plating could have preserved the moisture.

After dining at the sushi bar, M. de Joie came back to try an off-the-menu item. Donburi is a lesser-seen dish around Redding, but one worth seeking out. Katsu don - breaded pork strips, mixed with egg and onion and made into an "omelet" on top of rice and topped with shredded carrot and scallion - made a surprisingly light lunch. It was accompanied by excellent miso soup with seaweed and a very good salad of spring mix with delicate miso-ginger dressing.

The floating sushi boats are an interesting way for sushi novices to see if they like it. There are some delicious dishes drifting around, but very often they are covered in honey sauce or a mango sauce. They're visually appealing and the sauce keeps rolls from drying out - but that extra sweetness obliterates the delicate taste of fresh fish. It's as if Disneyland had invented sushi.

It's fun to sit at the sushi bar with a friend and take guesses at what each morsel might be. Most of the food is tasty, and it can be a meal that doesn't break the bank if you order carefully. M. de Joie's one meal ordered off the menu was a delight. But with brightly-colored sauces and over-the-top tastes that resemble the subtle textures and flavors of raw fish about as much as Cheez Whiz resembles Stilton, this is not sushi for the purist. And unless you personally witness the chef slice and roll your sushi, it wasn't made to order. If you get there toward the end of a serving period, that lonely little plate could have been floating around and around for a while. It's tarted up to appeal to a wide audience.

Femme de Joie wouldn't complain if she was cajoled into eating at Yama Sushi, but there are more authentic sushi bars in town.

Yama Sushi, 40 Hartnell Avenue, Redding, CA 96002. Phone 530-223-6868, fax 530-223-6888. Cash & cards; no checks. Open daily 11:30 - 2:30 for lunch, 5:00 PM - 10:00 PM for dinner. Beer, wine, sake. Vegetarian and vegan options. Ample onsite parking. Website at www.yamasushi.net

We are still a nation of meat-and-potatoes men and fish-and-salad women... I can't even tell you how many women have told me that the one thing they'd like to change about their man's eating habits is to get him to put down the hamburger just once and take her to a seafood joint. So guys, there it is: a really easy way to get on her good side. You're welcome. - Ted Allen

Fish afficianados may find Redding a barren desert when it comes to seafood restaurants. There's mega-chain Rosy Crustacean out in Big Boxland, the special occasion place downtown, and the fish-n-chipperie discussed previously in this space. Unless you drive out Hartnell often, you might not be aware of the unassuming little Lighthouse Restaurant at the edge of a strip mall, near a union hall and pet groomers.

The Lighthouse is well-kept with a bright, clean interior, colorful murals on the walls, and comfortable, if utilitarian, tables. While this isn't really a spot you'd spend all day hanging out with your BFFs, it's a good place to enjoy lunch or dinner and not break the bank. Order at the counter; they'll bring the food out to you.

Small cup of clam chowder, $3.29

When the waitress brought the clam chowder, she issued a warning: "It's really hot, about 160 degrees," and she wasn't kidding. M. de Joie first learned to appreciate clam chowder at the gone-but-not-forgotten Weatherbee's in Eureka, and still holds that as the standard. Chowder at The Lighthouse meets that standard - creamy white, thick with potatoes, clams, and minced vegetables. Wait a minute or two before you dig in or you'll burn the roof of your mouth.

1-piece fish and chips, $5.79

When Femme de Joie ordered a 2-piece fish and chips, the woman at the counter asked, "Is this for you? How about if we downsize this to a one-piece? It's really a big piece of fish and if you're still hungry, we can get you more." It turns out that they always give you an extra piece of fish. That's just how they roll here. The waitress said they use pollock, a member of the cod family. It's mild but not bland, and lends itself well to deep-frying - here, the batter was thin, crisp, and not at all doughy or oily. The fish was cooked through and not dry or overcooked. French fries were definitely above average, cooked to order and not sitting under a heat lamp. Cole slaw was forgettable - the cabbage had lost some crunch and the sweetish runny dressing slid off the slaw back into the cup.
When the fish arrived, the waitress asked, "Do you want any Tabasco or anything?" When M. de Joie demurred, she added, "OK, if you do, you know where the tartar bar is." Tartar bar? "Oh, you don't know about our tartar bar? Welcome to the Lighthouse. It's through that opening and on the left." The tartar bar was a self-serve table with (of course) tartar sauce, ketchup, cocktail sauce, Tabasco, malt vinegar, and lemons, "everything except horseradish and ranch, we have that at the register."

Oysters and chips, $8.19

Uniformity in size and shape indicated these oysters came in a frozen box, but were still quite good - better than some that are breaded by hand to order, with a tender crust (they'll ask if you want them fried extra-cruncy) and briny, juicy interior.

Charbroiled salmon meal, $14.49

Charbroiled meals (swordfish, halibut, mahi mahi, etc.) come with a dinner salad and a dizzying array of choice of sides - onion rings, hush puppies, and fries are the only ones M. de Joie can remember. The waitress making the salad made sure M. de Joie was OK with the toppings being added (hard-boiled egg, mushrooms, tomatoes, shredded cheese, croutons) before she prepared it.

A six-ounce portion of salmon was unfortunately dry and tough, and without a lot of taste. It may have been in the freezer too long and then dried out further with too much heat. However, the hush puppies - crunchy spheres of deep-fried cornbread batter with a few flecks of parsley - were addictive.

The Lighthouse staff is very friendly and accomodating, they're family-friendly, and the prices are right. The menu is focused on just a few standard items, so you aren't going to find Calamari Stroganoff or Flaming Shrimp Diablo there. Most of the food is well-prepared; a little attention to details like the freshness of the coleslaw would bring all the items up in quality. Overall, Femme de Joie likes the Lighthouse and would definitely go there again the next time she's craving fish and chips.

The Lighthouse, 1109 Hartnell Avenue, Redding, CA 96002. 530-223-9200, fax 530-223-9264. Open Saturday-Thursday, 11:00 AM - 9:00 PM, Friday 11:00 AM - 10:00 PM. Closed Sunday. Credit cards, no checks. No alcohol. On-site parking. Children's menu.

Entrepreneur Jeff Garrett started small: at a tender age he invested his money in the In-Dog-Nito on Hartnell (now Rita's). From there he learned what local folks want: a clean, well-lighted space in which to enjoy well-prepared, classic American dishes with a country and/or western flair. To that end, he's the man responsible for the success of mini-chain Lumberjack's, Cool Hand Luke's, and Jeff's California Cattle Company.

The Cattle Company took over the space vacated years ago by Arby's on Cypress Avenue. Open daily for breakfast and lunch, it's more of a coffee shop than steakhouse, with a variety of well-prepared familiar dishes to appeal to most tastes. Situated a couple of blocks from the I-5 exit, and thus not really on the traveler's radar, Garrett has to appeal to local repeat customers to make a go of it, and he's done well in that respect. Fair prices and portions, combined with prompt but not rushed service, keep 'em coming back.

Femme de Joie had avoided visiting for a long time because she feared Jeff's was piggybacking on Arby's, but this was not the case. This is not at all a fast-food joint. Everything is cooked to order and mostly made in-house. There's no rush to get your food and get out: it's comfortable and friendly inside.

Decor is in a mixed bag with mauve paint and some western-themed knicknacks and photos in the standard booth-and table interior. There are three televisions tuned to the country music video channel (sound turned down).

There's always someone in your party who's on a diet, so there's a nice selection of salads available at the Cattle Company, as well as a salad bar. This Southwestern chicken salad wasn't just thrown together as an afterthought: the greens were fresh and crisp and the chicken was tender and moist, with plenty of avocado and tomato as well. No one would feel deprived ordering this instead of a burger.

Breakfast is a big draw and the chicken fried steak is a good example of why. Chicken fried steak isn't diet food under the best of circumstances, but some versions are greasier than others. This wasn't like that: Not at all gristle-y or greasy, a good-sized portion of breaded steak came with potatoes, eggs, and toast - the usual accompaniments.

The standard bearer at Jeff's: a 1/2 pound cheeseburger with potato salad on the side, a coffee shop staple. Jeff's version isn't breaking any new ground, but that isn't what this place is about: simple food done right. The mild-flavored potato salad was house-made and the burger was cooked exactly to order.

Jeff's lunch menu includes a fair selection of sandwiches, and this was a good one: thin-sliced beef with pepper jack cheese and Ortega chilies on grilled sourdough. The sweetish barbecued beans on the side were made in-house.

Jeff's California Cattle Company isn't a hipster joint or white-linen dining. This is simple coffee-shop standards served by cordial waitstaff at a good price. Come here for breakfast or bring your out-of-town guests here for lunch. You won't be disappointed.

Jeff's California Cattle Company, 400 E. Cypress Avenue (at Grove), Redding 96002. 530-221-3572. Open 7 AM to 3 PM daily for breakfast and lunch. No alcohol. On-site parking. Vegetarian options. Cards, no checks.

Long-time Reddingites will remember Shakey's Pizza used to occupy the space on Churn Creek Road where Nipa's is now. (By the way, Shakey's is still in business. Just not here.) After it closed, a string of faux pubs and eateries came and went – M. de Joie dimly recalls one called the British Pub. Nipa's seems to have found the long-term success the others lacked.

You'd never know now that the interior was a pizzeria with a vaguely ragtimey feel. Though there's a bit of schizophrenic decor – the brick fireplace seems incongruous with the gold statues – it feels cool and comfortable inside. Out in the parking lot by a tree is a display of live birds in cages. This somehow always makes M. de Joie feel a little uneasy, though the birds seem to be well cared for and their cages kept clean.

Service is invariably friendly, smiling, cheerful and helpful.

Calamari ($7.95)

Calamari as an appetizer ($7.95) wasn't anything out of the ordinary; it was like calamari you might get at any number of restaurants. Simply breaded and deep-fried, it was a tad floppy and a little greasy. The accompanying sauce was sugar, vinegar, and nuoc mam - not really anything to write home about.

Tom yum kung ($10.95)

A large serving of tom yum kung ($10.95), the Thai treatment of hot and sour soup, was presented in a metal hot pot with space for a candle or other warming device, only there was no candle or heater underneath. The rich broth was flavorful with lime, thai basil, cilantro, mint, lemongrass, plenty of large shrimp, button mushrooms and tomatoes. However, there was also a minefield of inedible lemongrass stalks, galangal, tough leaves, etc., which the unwary diner will spoon up and discover too late. Be warned.

Chicken satay

This amuse-buche of chicken satay on a stick was brought out covered in peanut sauce. It was neither hot nor cold, but was room temperature. Where had it been sitting prior to being brought out? The peanut sauce was a bit bland but the chicken was moist and flavorful.

Pad rahm with rice ($7.95)

Pad rahm with rice ($7.95) was a melange of mixed vegetables and chicken in peanut sauce, served at medium heat as requested. The thin sauce didn't have much flavor other than a rare burst of heat or taste of peanut butter at random intervals, and the sauce refused to cling to any of the other components. Small twists of chicken were tossed in with a random assortment of vegetables. Some of the vegetables were cooked very thoroughly; others, like an unusually large chunk of yellow crookneck squash, were barely heated through.

Green papaya salad ($7.95)

Green papaya salad ($7.95) was wonderful, a colorful toss of julienned green papaya, carrots, and green beans mixed with chopped peanuts clinging all over, along with chopped tomatoes, two prawns, and Thai basil. The only problem was that it was ordered medium heat but didn't seem to have any heat at all.

Green curry ($7.95)

The tofu in this green curry ($7.95) was delicious, fried until browned and tender inside. Green curry sauce didn't have much taste other than a little heat. Again, the vegetables were mixed - green beans were apparently the veg of the day because they were also featured in the green papaya salad. They were mixed in along with some not-quite cooked pumpkin, red bell pepper, and not-cooked zucchini.

Nipa's is a bit of a mixed bag. When the cooking is spot-on, it's delightful, colorful, and exciting. Many of the dishes are budget-priced and healthy. But there's a bit of carelessness in the kitchen with prep and execution, so it's anyone's guess if the dish you order will be a winner or a bit of a letdown. Still, it's worth a visit if you're in the area and looking for a quiet meal that's a little different from the same-old same-old of chain restaurants in Enterprise.

Nipa's Thai Cuisine, 2600 Churn Creek Road, Redding CA 96002. (530) 221-0966. Open daily, 11 a.m. - 9 p.m. Cards, no checks. Beer and wine. Vegetarian and vegan options. Parking lot.

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Page Summary

Fusion Lounge Breaks New Ground with Original Cuisine
Lao Meets Thai at Kanya Market
Rita’s Kitchen Does Diner Food Right
Jaimitos Tacos – Where’s the Zsa Zsa Zsu?
Humble Joe’s is a Senior Favorite
Sauce Is King at Fat Daddy’s Gourmet Bbq
View 202 – All That Glitters is not Gold
Delicious Bargains at Tiny Thai Hut
Taj Mahal – Delicious Food, Incessant Service
Popular Guadalajara – No hay milpa sin cuitlacoche
Head to Airport Road for Smoked BBQ
Savory Spoon – the Price of Nonprofit
Bruciante’s Stole a Pizza My Heart
Mazatlan Grill – Well, cover me with guacamole and call me Sally
Country Kitchen – Something for Everyone
Golden Lantern – Have Wok, Need Flavor
Yama Sushi – Slow Boat or Pleasure Cruise?
The Lighthouse Serves Up Fine Fish
Jeff’s California Cattle Company Keeps ‘em Coming Back for More
Nipa’s Is a Taste of Thai in Redding

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Where to Eat in Redding and Shasta County, California

Entries tagged with enterprise

Fusion Lounge Breaks New Ground with Original Cuisine

Lao Meets Thai at Kanya Market

Rita’s Kitchen Does Diner Food Right

Jaimitos Tacos – Where’s the Zsa Zsa Zsu?

Humble Joe’s is a Senior Favorite

Sauce Is King at Fat Daddy’s Gourmet Bbq

View 202 – All That Glitters is not Gold

Delicious Bargains at Tiny Thai Hut

Taj Mahal – Delicious Food, Incessant Service

Popular Guadalajara – No hay milpa sin cuitlacoche

Head to Airport Road for Smoked BBQ

Savory Spoon – the Price of Nonprofit

Bruciante’s Stole a Pizza My Heart

Mazatlan Grill – Well, cover me with guacamole and call me Sally

Country Kitchen – Something for Everyone

Golden Lantern – Have Wok, Need Flavor

Yama Sushi – Slow Boat or Pleasure Cruise?

The Lighthouse Serves Up Fine Fish

Jeff’s California Cattle Company Keeps ‘em Coming Back for More

Nipa’s Is a Taste of Thai in Redding