Diners, Drive-ins and Dives (2006–…): Season 30, Episode 9 - Spinning the Globe - full transcript

Hey, everybody.

I'm Guy Fieri,
and we're rolling out

looking for America's greatest
diners, drive-ins, and dives.

This trip...
Let's go.

...we're cruising
to some crazy joints...

It's gonna get weird fast.
It could.

...spinning the globe their way.

Show me how to
shovel this correctly.

Like a culinary dojo
in Kaua'i...

Japanese flavors,
Chinese noodles,

with a Hawaiian attitude.



money meatless Mexican
in El Paso...

I'd eat 50 of those.

...and in Kansas City...

A multicultural
tortilla experience.

...a taco twist
you can't resist.

You know what that's lacking?
Nothing.

That's all right here,
right now, on "Triple D."

So, I'm here
on the North End side

of Downtown
Kansas City, Missouri,

in an area known
as River Market,

to check out a taco joint.

No, not my place.

That's over in P&L --
Power & Light District.

That's a whole nother story.



No, I'm here to check out
this place where a dude

from Newport, Rhode Island,
ended up coming to Kansas City

to open up a taco place
and do tacos his way.

This is Kansas City
Taco Company.

Two Thai chili shrimp
tacos ready to drop!

It's not your
plain-Jane tacos.

I would describe it
as multicultural.

A multicultural
tortilla experience.

There you go.

It's definitely funky.

Just like this cat,
Arthur Leduc,

who cooked all over the country

before opening a joint
that jumps out.

I went out
to get some tacos,

and a lot of it is like
traditional Mexican.

And you wanted
to do funky Mexican.

You wanted to do
funky tacos.

I wanted to funk it up.
I wanted to funk it up.

We use the tortilla
to deliver a variety

of regional flavors
and textures.

-It's gonna get weird fast.
-It could.

Cowboy Junkie burrito up!

The Cowboy Junkie is
Kansas City in a burrito.

It's just stuffed with pork.
Cheesy, delicious.

-What are we getting into first?
-Smoking our mesquite pork.

I don't even wanna know
what this is.

-A makeshift smoker.
-Very strange.

We're not gonna season
the pork at all.

-It's going on just like it is.
-Okay.

So just an hour to
perfume it with the smoke.

Then it's gonna get
a wet rub on it.

We're gonna start off
with some chipotle and adobo,

ground oregano,
ground black pepper,

garlic powder,
salt, olive oil.

Well,
I'm telling you what --

This isn't gonna be lacking
any flavor, by any means.

-Garlic?
-Red bell pepper.

This is one of
the funkier taco meats

that I have come across,
by the way.

-Julienned onions.
-Okay.

Add some cold water.

Throw it in the oven at 250
overnight -- 10, 12 hours.

Now we're gonna do
our chorizo.

We got our ground
picnic pork --

which is, like, the arm
and the shoulder --

oregano, cinnamon.
Cinaminaminaminamin.

Cloves, cayenne pepper,
coriander, cumin,

salt, pepper,

a little bit of sugar
to sweeten that up,

garlic powder,
chili powder, paprika.

I like when the seasoning
gets 50/50 on the meat.

That's where we're at
right about now.

Pureed chipotle and adobo.

-Okay.
-Apple cider vinegar.

Let it rest overnight.

What's our final step
before we build the burrito?

-Queso blanco.
-Okay.

Red onions, salt to help
those babies sweat up,

milk, our cheese.

Nothing happier than a big
bucket of processed cheese.

That is a lot of queso.

Cream here, serrano peppers
all charred up, with some milk.

So this is gonna cook down.

-Okay, let's do it.
-Let's see it.

Flour tortilla, chorizo.

We actually throw
the mesquite pork on top of that

so those juices
flow together.

Roll it up.

See those little moves
he did right there?

The little push,
pull, make?

Drop it in the fryer.

That's right. This comes
with a gym membership.

Do a nice bed of our
Spanish rice,

the Cowboy Junkie burrito
in the center of that,

queso blanco.
There we go.

Spicy bacon pinto beans,
fresh pico de gallo, cilantro.

That's your Cowboy
Junkie right there.

You know what
that's lacking?

-No.
-Nothing.

Brother, you are
the flavor man.

It's balanced.
Delicious heat.

The beans
are definitely a plus.

You got smoke in the pork.

The queso,
it's creamy-silky.

Love the pico on there.
That's a really good burrito.

Alright, when are we
rolling that Junkie?

The Cowboy burrito happens to be
my favorite thing on the menu.

Tons of flavor.

You can't come to Kansas City
without running into this guy,

my good buddy Stan from OBR,
Operation Barbecue.

And these folks
deploy barbecue rigs,

uh, anywhere
there's a disaster.

We've got about
8,000 volunteers.

It's an amazing group.

Now, let's be honest,
between you and me.

This guy built his own smoker
and put it on the flat top.

What kind of smoke are you
getting on that pulled pork?

It's great. You telling me
that it's off of the cooktop,

I wouldn't have
believed you.

The food at K.C. Taco
is unique in that

you can tell how much time was
spent into creating each dish.

Two more Korean pork tacos
going down.

The Korean pork tacos
are amazing --

very unique flavor
to Kansas City.

Spicy, sweet.
I love the kimchi over the top.

That's kind of
a nice little treat.

What are we
getting into now?

Korean pork tacos,
and we're gonna start off

with our pork loin.
Okay.

We're gonna throw it
in our Korean pork slather.

The slather.
Start it with
some whole garlic.

Chili de arbol.
A lot of ginger.

Soy sauce, plenty of onion,
rice wine vinegar, sesame oil.

This is the key
right here.

Korean chili powder.
Sugar.

-And there's your slather.
-Let it rest overnight.

And then for service?

Cook it up with some
of our homemade kimchi.

-We're making kimchi?
-Oh, yeah.

Napa cabbage cut down.

We got some non-iodized salt.
A ton of water in that.

Pull the moisture out,
wilt the cabbage.

Now we're gonna make
the "slurthy."

The slarly?
Now we're gonna
make the slurry.

Get ready, folks.
He's making the slarly next.

Some rice vinegar, lime juice.
We love the ginger.

Fried chilies.
Sliced garlic.

Cabbage is drained.
Dump that right over here.

Nice, big chunks
of ginger and garlic.

Oh, yeah.
Green onions.

Shredded daikon.
Korean chili powder.

Sugar. Then let it set
for at least three days.

-This is gonna get funky.
-This gets funky.

We're gonna make
some tacos.

We're gonna cook up our pork
that we've slathered overnight.

Here's our homemade kimchi.

Put it on top and let the juices
meld together for a minute.

-Tortillas ready.
-Baja slaw.

That's a lot of ba-ja.

Korean pork, ginger-infused
hoison drizzle,

cilantro,
toasted sesame seeds.

You got this.

That was a good bite.

-Looks good from here.
-Thank you very much, camera.

It's really good.
The pork's a nice play.

It's a good amount
of spice.

Kimchi's got the funk.
Got a little bit of heat.

Korean is what you're
trying to invoke.

You did it.
Right on.

-Korean bulgogi pork.
-Oh, they're so good.

There's just this
smoky, fire flavor.

Kimchi complements
the tender pork really well.

Ahi tuna, the best.

You really get
an amazing vibe here.

You kind of become part
of the taco family.

Awesome, awesome.

You're a real cool dude
with a cool style.

And that funk and flair,
you're pulling it off.

-Thank you very much.
-Well done.

-Appreciate it.
-Delicious.

Up next, amped-up
island specialties in Kaua'i...

Wow.
Strike hard, strike fast!

...like chili pepper chicken...

It's outstanding.
I mean, like dynamite.

...and ramen's
Hawaiian cousin.

Only problem I have is I can't
get it in my face fast enough.

Huh?

So, I'm here on
the island of Kaua'i,

not too far from the airport,

to check out a joint --
and you'll love the story.

Local boy, born and raised,
gets off the island for 12 years

to go get himself some
real-deal culinary experience.

Comes back to open up a joint

serving up
the locals' favorites.

Hey, guys.
Which way to the beach?

Awesome.
This is Saimin Dojo.

Plating the Fresh Catch Bowl.

As soon as you walk in the door,
it kicks you in the face --

amazing smells, mouthwatering.

It's a go-to spot
for local food.

Kimchi and a garlic.
Table 3. Pick up.

You're the mayor
of this great town?
Yes, sir.

On a 1-to-10,
where are these guys hitting?

Eleven.

And the mojo of this dojo

comes straight
from these cats --

Josh Tamaoka, Brandon Baptiste,
and Josh Planas,

who bring culinary cred
to their childhood favorites...

We have classic
Hawaii plate lunches,

make them
a little bit better.

Just elevate it.
Yeah.

...which includes
the island specialty

this place is named for.

Saimin's a really big thing
in Hawaii.

Local soup and noodles.

Oxtail, table 2.

I got the oxtail saimin,
which is absolutely amazing.

The flavors are super-powerful
and strong, but familiar.

What are we making today?

Today, we're gonna make
some oxtail saimin.

Why do we call it "saimin"
and we don't call it "ramen"?

So, saimin
is unique to Hawaii.

It was made
in the plantation area.

It's kind of when all
the cultures came together,

and they kind of
brought their own thing

and threw whatever they had
in a pot.

Chinese noodles, Japanese broth,
with Hawaiian flavors?

Hawaiian toppings. First,
you're gonna make the stock.

It's kind of the base
of all the broths we do.

We got roasted
chicken bones.

Into about 15 gallons
of water.

Pork bones, onions,
shiitake mushrooms,

green onions,
ginger, and garlic.

Now, how long is this
gonna simmer down now?

24 hours.

Strain it out, and then
we'll add half meat stock

and then half dashi,
which is a Japanese soup base.

We still have to add
to that the oxtails.

We braise off the oxtails
separately.

Just gonna
brown these off?

Then we're gonna deglaze
with the meat stock.

Some soy sauce,
mirin, sugar.

I didn't see that coming at all.

-A little bit of water.
-A bunch of ginger.

A bunch of garlic, black
peppercorns, star anise.

And a little bay.
And a little bay leaf.

Gonna cook this for
two and a half hours.

Then we're gonna strain it,
pull the oxtails,

and build the dish from there.
Yep. Yes, sir.

Add some braising liquid.

So just keeping the stock hot
on the line all the time?

Yeah.
What kind of noodle
are we gonna use?

-The saimin noodle.
-And where do you get that from?

Saimin noodle out of Oahu.

They're kind of like the noodle
gods around the islands, right?

-Yeah, around the country.
-Around the country?

They start off in Oahu.

-Put our oxtails in.
-Next?

Mustard cabbage.

Kamaboko -- Japanese fish cake.
Green onions.

A little fresh ginger
on it, cilantro.

Cilantro, some peanuts.

I mean, typically,
if people liked eggs,

they would get
the, uh, hard-boiled.
Yeah.

And there you go --
oxtail saimin.

Sign me in.

What is the proper way
to eat the saimin?

-Just like that -- slurp it up.
-Mm-hmm.

-Is it okay to use this?
-Oh, yeah.

I don't wanna get
kicked out of the club.

Outstanding. It's the cross
between udon noodle,

where you've got
really clear, light broth,

to the heavy ramen.

This is sitting right
in the middle of the road,

giving you real big, deep flavor
but not over-fatty.

The oxtail...

is really legit.
The noodles are delicious.

You know what I really like,
is this mustard cabbage.

Gives a little bitterness
to it,

which is a nice relief
to all the fat.

There's so much flavor coming
from that braising liquid,

it takes it
to the next level.

Only problem I have is I can't
get it in my face fast enough.

Trying to get after this,
and not really

the prettiest thing
that I've done on the show.

You know what I'm saying?

Oh, look!

Oxtail saimin.

The meat is super-tender.
It's nice and sweet.

The broth is amazing.

The noodles absorb the broth.

They don't get mushy.
-It's really good.

-They've got a black belt.
-Black belt in saimin?

Absolutely.
The Saimin Dojo.

I tell you what,
I am a connoisseur.

I can teach you
how to slurp it.

Show me how to
shovel this correctly.

You wanna show the chef...
That you really like it.

Okay, here we go.

-Mmm.
-Wow.

Strike hard, strike fast!

-Mm-hmm.
-And he's not wearing any of it.

I'd have a noodle hanging
off the beads by now.

I started off
as a white belt,

and I'm a black belt
at eating saimin, too.
Really?

They definitely brought the dojo
environment to a restaurant.

You're gonna get, like,
a martial-arts feel.

It's fun. They add their own
spin on it, their own style.

Tell me some
of the other magic

that people have
when they come down here.

The chili pepper chicken.

Chili pepper is something
that we're known for here.

This place does it right.

And that's why we'll be back,
right after this.

Go to commercial already,
would ya?

I'm busy over here.
I'm trying to clean it up.

Welcome back.
"Triple D" hanging out

on the island of Kaua'i,
and we are at Saimin Dojo.

And I gotta tell you something.
I need to go to the dojo

and work out after
that saimin oxtail.

Japanese flavors,
Chinese noodles

with a Hawaiian attitude.

That bowl
pinned me, bro.

Look at the eyes, buddy.
I'm having a sunset right now.

Smoked salmon going out.

The owners were born
and raised here in Hawaii,

so they know the traditional
Hawaiian food very well,

but they put
their own twist into it.

What's your favorite thing
on the menu?

Chili pepper chicken.

Chili pepper chicken.
Pick up.

It's super crunchy.
You definitely hear it.

It's got this great
chili pepper sauce on it

and the Hawaiian chili peppers
unique to these islands.

We're gonna make some
chili pepper chicken.

That's a Kaua'i thing.
So let's see it.

We're gonna marinate
the chicken.

Add some hot water, some sugar,
some salt, fish sauce.

And a boatload of garlic.
And what do we have here?

Boneless skin-on
chicken thighs.

How long is this chicken
gonna marinate?

24 hours. And we're
dredging it in AP flour.

-Fry that off.
-350.

What's up next?
We're gonna make
confit sofrito.

This is kind of the base
of our chili pepper puree,

which is the base
of our chili pepper sauce.

They have a little bit of heat,
a lot of heat?

-Hawaiian heat.
-Hawaiian heat.

-Little bit more mellow.
-Alright, let's see it.

Onions.
Granny Smith apples.

-Really?
-Garlic, ginger.

Cover it with a little bit
of canola oil.

How long is this
gonna go, Chef?
Two and a half hours.

Let it really break down.

Gonna take some tomato paste,
put it in the food processor.

Gonna put our sambal in.
Chipotles.

Chili pepper flake.
A lot of it.

-Salt.
-And a little black pepper.

That's delicious as it is.

-This gets turned into a sauce.
-This is not even the sauce?

No, we gotta layer
those flavors.

You're killing me,
Smalls.

So, first, we're gonna add
the soy sauce, mirin,

water, ginger, garlic.

-Ginger, Mary Ann.
-Sambal, chili pepper flake.

The fantastic paste
we made.

There's a lot going on
just for one dish.

Copious amounts of sugar.

Cornstarch slurry.

We're gonna cook
everything together

and thicken it up
just a touch.
How does this come?

Two scoops of rice, mac salad,
homemade pickles.

Chicken,
chili pepper sauce.

And this is a normal portion?
-Normal portion.

We finish it with
a little furikake

and a little green onion.
That's all she wrote.

Oh, my.
There is so much flavor.

The skin just sings.

There's a little bit of heat,
touch of sugar.

Oh. I'd buy that sauce.
You gotta bottle that, bro.

It's outstanding.
I mean, like dynamite.

Like, in the world
of fried chicken,

you did everything right.
Great job, Chef.

Chili pepper fried chicken.

It's super-crispy and tender.

The furikake gives it
a little salt taste

with the sweet and spicy.

I could share with you.

I think that's
the right thing to do.

-Go ahead.
-Mmm.

Meat on a stick. That's
what's coming next, you guys.

-We say it's onolicious.
-Onolicious.

I want a T-shirt
that says that.

-Fresh Catch, service.
-How do you explain this?

It's really good, and
it's a cool place to come.

On the way to the beach
and so forth?

Follow the locals.
Come down to Saimin Dojo.

How long were you
off the island?
12 years.

You come back, start making
the food that you love,

and you just elevate the
culinary attitude towards it.

Yep.
Hometown boy returns
and rocks the house.

Now, leave me alone
as I finish this.

Coming up, a funky
food truck in El Paso...

When you find it,
you won't forget it.

...making
minus-the-meat Mexican...

You're taking people to
another county of Flavortown.

...that adds up
to a ton of taste.

This is
a destination dish.

You gotta love dive bars.

I mean, you got all your locals
hanging out there.

Usually, the music's
pretty dynamite.

And they usually got
good beer specials,

but typically they don't have
really good food.

So when you can find a joint
like here in El Paso, Texas,

where they've got
some real-deal Mexican food

right outside of a dive bar,

and it's vegan,
you gotta check it out.

This is Lick It Up.

Adobada nachos!

Lick It Up's a Mexican
street-style taco cart.

It's 100% plant-based.

We've got mushroom
chorizo burrito!

A lot of people don't even know
it's vegan. It's delicious.

And that meatless Mexican mashup

comes from Pato Delfin's
roots in Juárez

and his personal palate.

I don't run into many
vegetarians in Mexico.

Oh, no. That was
tough here, actually.

So you got into it
and then you said,
"I'm gonna spread the word."

-Correct.
-You're an ambassador, brother!

You're taking people to
another county of Flavortown.

Two milanesa tortas.

The milanesa torta
is made out of seitan.

Breaded, fried, and it comes
with a jalapeño toreado,

and it's super good.

-What are we making?
-The seitan steak.

-What are we gonna use it for?
-Our milanesa tortas.

-So, mushroom?
-Into a vegan bullion.

Liquid aminos,
which is something

really essential
for all vegans.

-Absolutely.
-Pepper, a little salt.

A little touch of salt.
Let this cook down for how long?

30 to 45 minutes.
And it gets strained.

So we're just making
hearty mushroom broth

to work as the foundation
of flavor for the seitan loaf.

-Exactly.
-Next step?

So, this is vital wheat gluten.
Onion powder.

-Black pepper.
-Cayenne and some garlic.

And now we have
that beautiful broth.

Yeah.
It gets stretchy.

-It really looks like a brain.
-I know.

People say like,
"Ooh, that's kind of brainy."

We've got boiling water,
and we just drop for one hour

until it starts rising
a little bit.

-Once it's a floating brain.
-Yeah.

Now we're going to make the
dredge for our milanesa steak.

Pour water in there,
flaxseed meal, onion powder,

garlic powder, and flour.

-So slice it, dredge it...
-Mm-hmm.

...pack it with the panko.

-In the fryer.
-Got it.

So, we got torta bread.
Put some black beans.

You got your patty,
cabbage, some tomatoes.

Avocado crema,
vegan mayonnaise.

Put a toreado on the side.

-I see this in El Paso.
-Oh, man.

I've not seen this in
other parts of the country.

Basically, it's
a deep-fried jalapeño.

You marinate it
with soy sauce.

I'd eat 50 of those.
Dude!

You get such great texture
out of the seitan.

It's got good chew.

You definitely get
the mushroom through it.

You cut it
the right thickness.

The beans are nice and creamy
on the bottom.

Good crunch of the slaw.

The tomato adds this little
acid affect on top of it.

And then the crema.
Well done. Delicious.

Two milanesa tortas, ready!

The mushroom seitan
really stands out.

It's crunchy.
The bread's really good.

I love the avocado.
It has a ton of flavor.

When did you figure out
it was vegan?

I did right away
because I am vegan.

So this was like
the Holy Grail for you.

Oh, heck yeah.
This is my second home.

Which is actually
outside on a patio.

Lick It Up is located
behind Monarch Bar.

Did you find the bar first,
or Lick It Up?

Found the bar first.
I'm not vegan, but
good food is good food.

-Everybody can enjoy this.
-Absolutely. It's fantastic.

-Fresh flautas.
-The flautas are, like,

the best thing on the menu,
in my opinion.

They have my two favorite
things -- beans and potatoes.

They also have some green chili
and red chili sauce.

It's the perfect flavor.

Alright, what else
you got up your sleeve?

Flautas, which is
our other big seller.

We start off
with boiled beans.

-Into some boiled russet potato?
-Yeah.

What are we incorporating
into this?

A vegan bullion.

-Vegan bullion?
-Yes, sir.

It's like
vegetable demi-glace.

And margarine.

We're using flour tortillas
or corn tortillas?

Corn tortillas, and they're --
It's a rectangle.

What you talkin' about,
Willis?

Bro, I have been around,

but I have never seen
a rectangular tortilla.

So, we take this,
drop a little bit of the mix.

-Water and flour.
-Just to work as a little glue.

We'll deep-fry it
until it's crispy.

You got a salsa
that comes with this?

I got two salsas --
jalapeño tomatillo

and chili de arbol tomato.

Tomato chili de arbol?
Okay, let's see it.

Water, Roma tomatoes,
chili de arbol, onions, salt.

Then what are we gonna do?

Boil this for 40 minutes,
scoop them out,

put them
in the food processor,

combine it with oil
to emulsify it.

-And you also make a tomatillo?
-A tomatillo jalapeño.

Start out with
a pot of water.

Jalapeños, tomatillos,
some onions, garlic cloves.

Boil this 40 minutes.

You don't want
those tomatillos to pop.

If they pop, it gets
a little bitter taste to it.

Pop 'em when they're...
Hot!

Pop 'em when they're...
Hot!

Put them in the food processor,
combine it with cilantro, salt.

And just slowly
drizzle that oil.

-Next up?
-We got our three flautas.

Put the cabbage in there,
avocado sauce,

coconut sour cream,
fresh tomatoes.

Cilantro.

Cilantro on top.
A splash of vinegar.

-We got our two sauces.
-What is this?

That's a spork.

You need a tattoo
of a spork, dude.

-Hey.
-Right there. Let's go.

That's one of the crunchiest
flautas I've ever had.

It's just one layer of tortilla.
Nice and thin and crunchy.

Think about your
favorite tortilla chip,

just wrapped around some beans
and some potato.

Bro.
The chili de arbol sauce.

-Oh, yeah.
-That tomatillo? Delicious.

Because of the cabbage
and the salsas

and the coconut
sour cream...

It's really good.

Better than most
Mexican restaurants, good.

Oh, thank you.
The right amount
of beans and potato.

That vegetable base
that you put in there

really brings a lot
of flavor through.

But the salsas
take it next-level.

This is a destination dish.
You've got to try the flauta.

Delicious, man.
Fresh flautas are up.

I like the tortillas
that they use for it,

and I love black beans.

The jalapeño
tomatillo sauce --

it's delicious, just, like,
the right amount of spicy.

Nachos adobada,
ticket one!

Lick It Up
just does it perfect.

It's a fun spot to be.
It's really good food.

You're living
the American dream, buddy.

Thank you. I am.
You're very disciplined
about what you do,

you're setting
a good example for folks,

and you're giving them
a great alternative.

It's funky, bro. It's between
a parking lot and a bar.

You've gotta be
looking for this place,

but you find it,
you won't forget it.

Nicely done.
Thank you.

Spork tattoo, soon.

So, was this a great road trip
or what?

But don't you worry.
I got plenty of more joints

to find all over this country.

I'll be looking for you
next time

on "Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives."

Gotta have
the sauce to go.

Gotta have the sauce in a
bottle. Sauce in a bucket.

Sauce in a shoe.
Sauce in this cup.

Gotta have
the sauce to go.