An Average Joe in San Antonio

Nestled away in a shopping center that has a throwback non supersized HEB grocery store, is an Asian fusion restaurant that really brings the goods called Pacific Moon. A stay at home mom started this restaurant 10 years ago as her children left the house to go to college; she coped with the empty nest syndrome and lack of teenagers coming over to eat by opening up shop.

Although the family is of Korean descent, the menu boasts an eclectic assortment of Asian fusion fare.  I even spotted loco moco on the menu which contrary to thought has nothing to do with being Spanish for crazy, but rather an offering that is commonly found in Hawai’i that is composed of a bowl of rice, hamburger patty on top with brown gravy, and a fried egg.

For a drink, be sure to get the tea as it is infused with ginger that gives it a nice finish.  If you are looking for something a little more stout, they do have a full bar with some liquor that is not offered everywhere (I saw some Partida tequila from the distance) and happy hour specials throughout the week.

I ordered the Honey Walnut Shrimp which came with brown rice and a side salad.  The shrimp was in a light batter, and the sweet went nice with the sesame/soy/ginger sauce  that was available to dip it in.  The salad was made of fresh romaine lettuce with a little bit of spinach that had a nice crisp to it.  The dressing was really light and had a ginger taste with a little bit of a bite to it.

The staff was incredibly friendly, and I got to talk a lot with the lady who started the restaurant and her daughter.  The owner told me to come back on Wednesday nights as she makes several pots of soup and gives it out for free with each entree ordered.  She was an incredibly friendly person, and with her personality I can see why the food tastes so good!

Value: 8/10 (there were some reasonably priced meals at $10-12, but some of the others can get in the $25 range pretty quick; Wednesday is complimentary soup night)
Atmosphere: 7/10 (I like how the inside felt, however, I thought that the TV  above the bar was a little loud (granted, we did dine at an off time and this might not be the case))
Service: 10/10 (always great to meet the owner of the restaurant and to understand the passion that comes with the food)
Taste: 10/10 (the food was a real delight to eat)

Please note that the restaurant moved from its 1604/281 location is now currently located off of Brookhollow/281 regardless if Google Maps states “Place closed”.

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To all the ladies,

I just want to say that I finally understand your pain of a bad haircut. For most of my life, when a woman complained about a bad haircut I was not very sympathetic. I did not understand your pain, your anger, your sorrow. I think this was due to two reasons: (1) I have never had long hair and did not know the time it takes to get long and (2) I don’t have style so I genuinely would not have realized that your haircut was bad.

Recently I have grown out my hair; my colleagues were complaining that I looked like I was homeless so I decided to go get it shaped up this past week. Now, I had never been to a salon so I thought I would try it out. I was unsure of what I wanted (seeing that I had never been to a salon before), but did answer all the ladies questions. Yes, I liked it longer. No, I was not planning on growing it out more. Yes, I would like for it to be shaped. No, I did not like looking like I was homeless.

She then proceeded to cut my hair; when she was done, it was wet and I didn’t know exactly what it looked like, but the back looked a little short.

I went home and it dried; I thought it might not look the best, however, as I mentioned above I don’t really have style so I couldn’t tell for sure. My roommates (one guy and one gal) came home and immediately laughed at me. At this moment I knew I had a bad cut. In fact, it is like I had two styles on one head: short in the back and long on the sides/front. As one colleague put it, I had a mullet in reverse – I affectionately called it a “Tell um”; thanks Soulja Boy.

Thankfully, I have a good friend who took it upon herself to make an appointment for me to get it fixed.  Her words were, “I can’t let you go on looking like that.”  Had it not been for her, I would have probably just continued to rock it out because, as I have said, I have no style.

Upon going into the salon and explaining the situation to the stylist, he looked at me and was like, “Oh no, oh no.  You look like Johnny Depp from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.”  Although I have a respect for Mr. Depp and his craft, that was one role that I did not like being compared to.  Thankfully the stylist was able to get me squared away and shaped up.

Anyway, I want to let all of the women know that if you ever need true sympathy from a man when you get a bad haircut, I will be there for you. I now know your pain and if anything, you can find solace in the fact that you don’t look like Willie Wonka!

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