by Terrance Mc Arthur
Our roving food critic Terrance Mc Arthur continues his search for great food in Sanger and the surrounding communities. Check out more Great Food Search here!
2020—I can see clearly, now…as I look back at The Great Food Search 2019. Over thirty-five different places where I’ve eaten over the year. Which were the best? My top five?
Golden Restaurant makes Chinese food look good!
This venerable culinary institution in the Tower District has been dishing out Chinese fare for decades. With a triple appearance on my 2019 articles, it’s my shelter from storms during the Rogue Festival, a favorite before Good Company shows, and great take-out to feed under-the-weather family members. The basic soup is loaded with chunks of chicken, the pan-fried noodles still has some spring to it, and the after-dinner vanilla ice cream or sherbet make a delightful treat (The sherbet is my favorite!). The Complete Dinners also include Won Ton, a truncated cone of Pork-Fried Rice, and an entrée (Any of the ones with “Golden” in the name are good bets).
Chicken and Beef Kebabs from Uncle George Kebab in Sanger. Note the cup of sauce. Ooooooh!
A double-dipper for 2019, George and Stella’s Chicken Salad topped my Summer Salad list (So much chicken! What a great dressing: I buy it, put it in a bottle, and tell friends it’s a secret family recipe!), and it led my Kabab feature. It doesn’t hurt that it’s less than a half-mile from my home, but the kababs, the ribs (the Thursday-night delight), and the Friday fish brings us back time and again. (The fact that they usually tune in “Jeopardy” on the TV in the evening is another reason I go.)
Alaska Roll at Yolo Sushi and Karaoke, not to be confused with Baked Alaska.
My Sushi Search took me to Sanger, Reedley, and Fresno, and the biggest surprise was Yolo, a sushi bar that features karaoke. Any place that could get my daughter to step up to a mike has to be special! It’s a place that made me feel adventurous and expand my horizons in the raw-fish world—Monkey Brains, anyone? (No simians were harmed in the making of this dish.)
Yay for Beignets at Huckleberry’s
Carrow’s may have left Clovis, but the building remains, and it’s gone Cajun! Okra, beignets, fried green tomatoes, biscuits and gravy, catfish—the only bad thing about the place is that they only do breakfast and lunch. There are three branches in the Fresno-Clovis area, and the bayou atmosphere leans toward gators and tin roofs. Laissez les bon temps roulez!
Roll Me Some in Clovis, where making ice cream is a spectator sport.
I’m a connoisseur (My father used to say a “common sewer”) when it comes to ice cream, but I had never seen anything like Roll Me Some. Ingredients get splashed across a super-cooled griddle, mixed and mashed, then spatula-ed into rolls that look like miniature carpets, and stuffed into a cup, looking like a landlocked sea anemone waving its fronds to get your attention.
These are my top five for the year, but there are other places I visited that are worth mentioning—DiCicco’s Sanger, Reedley Sandwich Shop, Yosemite Falls Grill (Fresno & Clovis), Red Caboose (north of Sanger, east of Clovis), Ampersand (Fresno), Sansei Sushi (Reedley), and the Frosted Cakery (Fresno’s Tower District). You can find all of them and more here!
Happy eating!
Check out more food articles and more of Terrance’s Great Food Search column in our Food Fun section. And check out a KRL staff profile this week on Terrance!
Terrance V. Mc Arthur is a Librarian in Fresno County, California. He is also a storyteller, puppeteer, magician, and maker of pine needle baskets. On top of that he writes stories that range from rhymed children’s tales to splatterpunk horror. He’s an odd bird, but he’s nice to have around.
Related
0 Comments