stockton?

[russ parsons]

anybody got any good tips?

[Stone]

If you go there, the answer to your question will be obvious. Because.

I once had a client in Stockton, which required me to spend more than my fair allotment of nights at the Days Inn. I recall one morning when they started construction on the room next to mine at 6 a.m. I called down to the front desk to ask them to stop, to which they said "no."

As for food, on my first night at DI, I asked where I could go to grab a burger. Two places were suggested to me. One ended up being a Chinese take-out place where the entirety of the establishment was behind thick bullet-proof glass. The other was a dark bar which no-doubt should have been behind thick bullet-proof glass.

There is a good supply of fast food just off the highway. I recommend it.

[FoodZealot]

There are actually quite a few reasons why not [i kid! I kid the Stockton!]. I haven't been there in a few years (I also went to college there), but here are a few things:

• Genghis Khan Mongolian BBQ - still the best Mongolian BBQ that I've found, as discussed in your

Hidden Pleasures thread.
Podesto's - quality groceries and a good deli
Manny's - decent burgers and whatnot, but they usually have steamed artichokes available
Al the Wop's (sorry, but this is the common name of the place)- about 40 min away in China Camp, not great food, but pretty interesting atmosphere nonetheless. Steak and spaghetti.

I didn't get out much back then, plus many places have closed down or changed hands. Russ, by chance are you going for the Asparagus Festival?

~Tad

[Lois]

I have visited Stockton frequently all my life (my grandfather lives there). If you find anything worth seeking out, please, please let me know.

Because of the large immigrant population there, I'm convinced that there must be good Vietnamese or Thai food somewhere, plus good taquerias, but haven't had time to really check things out thoroughly on short family visits. I went to a place in Sacramento recently called Pho Bac Hoa Viet, which is a small Vietnamese chain of which there is an outpost in Stockton. It's at 7945 N. West Lane. I thought the pho was pretty good, didn't try anything else (and haven't been to the Stockton branch). In Stockton I have tried a place called Saigon, I think, where the food was OK, not fantastic. There must be more, though--I would suspect that the really good authentic Southeast Asian places are on the south side of town.

There used to be decent Chinese-American food at On Lock Sam's (or is my nostalgia for going there as a kid with my grandparents clouding my vision of the food? The fried asparagus at least was very tasty) but it closed down last year. In Lincoln Village, there is Podesto's market (mentioned above) and a serviceable Japanese place (called Sho-Mi, I think), plus a Japanese market with a pretty good selection.

Is the Alder Market still around? I used to go there with my grandmother about ten years ago. It was a very ladies-who-lunch crowd but pretty good food. That's much more upscale. A place called Le Bistro is often cited as Stockton's best restaurant, but I would advise against it. I don't like the food, the atmosphere, or the service.

Some of the best food I've had in Stockton was at a Greek festival at the church there--surely there must be some good Greek food around somewhere (again, there's a big Greek population).

And, if you end up starving, there's always an In & Out Burger.

Edited March 9, 2004 by Lois (log)

[Mudpuppie]

Al the Wop's (sorry, but this is the common name of the place)- about 40 min away in China Camp, not great food, but pretty interesting atmosphere nonetheless. Steak and spaghetti.

Al the Wop's is in Locke, the only surviving rural chinatown in the US. China Camp is a state park in Marin County.

Sorry.

I think there's an Applebee's in Stockton.

[FoodZealot]

Thanks for the correction!

[KelMH]

If in Stockton, I would put in the extra time and effort to drive half an hour or so north to Sacramento to get a good meal. I think you'll find it much more rewarding.

[jschyun]

That's not fair to Stockton! I'll have you know Stockton has a very decent El Pollo Loco.

[merle]

I think there's an Applebee's in Stockton.

Yup, and a Marie Callender's. (I've only been out there once, and that's where I ate)

[cmvnapa]

Stockton has an El Pollo Loco??? Where?

And if somebody is going to recommend a drive to Locke to Al's Place, why not any of the marina joints? I like the prime rib at Wimpy's but it's only available on weekends.

[merle]

Two recs were made recently elsewhere.

Chowhound Posting

Not mine, so linked rather than pasted.

[merle]

I was just in Stockton on Thursday for business, and was taken to a spot named China Palace. It was pretty good. Not amazing, but I wouldn't mind returning.

We did the "six person" meal on the back of the menus: six courses plus house soup for $68. The soup was eggdrop (whee); the courses we chose were:

salt'n'pepper prawns: okay, but it was prawns with legs and tail and all, deep fried and then seasoned.

honey'n'walnut prawns: pretty good, if a very simple taste

deep fried sole: hard to eat, but nicely done

(some sort of beef ribs): probably the best in my mind, with a mildly spicy red bbq glaze

(beef with bok choi): the veggies were good, the beef seems to have given all its flavor to the sauce, so was only so-so

ginger and onion crab: not too bad, although this was the dish least consumed (probably because nobody wanted to be greedy and take the main section)

Not phenomenal, but after this thread I was prepared to just claim I wasn't hungry and hit a fast food joint on the way home. A pleasantly good surprise.

China Palace

5052 West Lane 4C-F (in a plaza)

209/955-0888

[alanamoana]

i wish i had seen this thread a few weeks earlier...a good friend of mine took over his dad's restaurant "yoneda's family restaurant" or something like that. home style japanese food. from what i understand, very good quality. my friend did his externship at union pacific in nyc (before rocco became a joke). then worked in sf. he's a great cook/chef. but he wasn't making money, so he just sold the place.

i think it is still open, but is being run by a korean family now.