F is for Fish Tacos, Fish Pirrs, and French Fries

Before I moved to San Diego, I didn’t know much about fish tacos. I’d had all variations of fish and of tacos in Latin American and Spanish food, but I’d never been presented with a “fish taco” before. I was “hooked” the first time I bit into one! Turns out fish tacos are a southern California/Baja coastal cuisine thing. And what a delightful thing it is!!!

You can get fried or grilled fish, and it can be halibut, mahi mahi, or sometimes cod. Some kind of a cool, shredded cabbage mix is sprinkled on the fish. Every place has their special version of the “white” sauce as well. I like mine spicier. The fish taco is a Baja style taco. Baja style tacos use FRESH, FRESH, FRESH ingredients as toppings. It’s not unusual to see a taco cart with giant bins full of plump quartered limes, 3 or 4 different kinds of salsas, ripe avocadoes, juicy chopped onions & tomatoes, you name it. The hot, delicious fish and all its toppings are wrapped in piping hot tortillas right off the grill. It is so colorful, and SO delicious.

Many local places have what’s called “Taco Tuesdays” where fish tacos are $1 and there are wonderful beer & margarita specials. If you ask 100 San Diegans which place has the best fish tacos, you’ll get 100 different answers. Folks are incredibly loyal to “their” fish tacos. I am a HUGE fan of Longboard’s fish tacos in Pacific Beach. Due to the turndown in the economy, Longboard’s Taco Tuesdays feature $1.50 tacos now, but that is still a steal considering they are anywhere from $3 to $4.50 each normally.
http://longboardgrill.com/

Fish tacos were even featured on an episode of Bobby Flay’s Throwdown on the Food Network. It was kind of neat seeing a local food featured on a national show.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/throwdown-with-bobby-flay/fish-tacos/index.html

For the Olden Goldens, F is for Fish Oil

Milo, Laverne & Shirley: “Mama gives us fish too! Sometimes, when she cooks up yummy fish, she’ll mix it in with our kibble. But, all the time she gives us a fish pill! We get one every night with dinner. When we get ours, she & papa have one also. We bark amongst ourselves because it’s funny to watch Mama singing the fish pill song, “One for me, one for papa, one for Milo, one for Laverne, one for Shirley, and NONE for Captain Morgan!” BOL!!!

Milo: “I’m an Olden Golden. Mama says something called Omega 3 oils are good for my luxurious coat of fur, my “vital organs”, and my achy joints. Mama is right. I feel pretty good. And look darned handsome too!”

Laverne: “When Mama first brought me home, I didn’t have much fur on my back and around my neck. Like any girl, I wanted to have soft, pretty fur. After 8 months of Mama’s fish pills, I have stunning Golden tresses now. Aren’t I a doll?”

Shirley: “I like watching Mama chase after our Papa, trying to get him to take his fish pirr. He's not into taking his fish pirr all the time. That’s how I say it. Fish pirr. BOL!”

For our “F”eathered “F”riend, F is for French Fry

Captain Morgan: “Blech. Fish pills are for the beasts. Every once in while, the humans get take-out and the aroma of French fries fills the house. I do so love that aroma. Then that mama lady dusts off the salt from a little fry and I’m allowed to indulge. (She’s kind of stingy. I may have mentioned that before.) I wish she’d let me have a basket o’ fries. Oh boy, wouldn’t that be nice!”

That’s it for our letter “F” in A to Z Mondays “f”olks! I just got a hot new camera, so I’ll be posting more pictures, but couldn’t get many for today’s post. If you’re in San Diego, drop me a line and I’ll show you to our favorite fish taco joint!

To see what other Bloggin’ Buddies are doing with the letter “F”, check out Jen’s blog at http://unglazed.blogspot.com.