Field notes & longer reads
A closer look at Roger’s photographic archive, the meaning of a recommendation, and the dates behind the notes.
From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFood History · Reviews · San Diego
A dozen years of written reviews — the wings he calls the juiciest anywhere, the $3 skewer platter that wasn’t, a truffle nobody ordered and the coffee you should never add milk to.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFood History · Reviews
A celebrity burger that disappointed, a dessert flight seven people didn’t love, a sandwich that flipped the verdict and a salad mistake handled so well it earned a toast.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFood History · San Diego · Craft beer
Roger’s camera roll from the height of San Diego’s craft beer boom: brewery flights from Mission Brewery to Belching Beaver, a house IPA in Normal Heights and the cocktail bars in between.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · China · Food History
A family weekend across the border from Hong Kong — a Teochew dinner Roger called his people’s cuisine, full Cantonese tables in Guangzhou, Yunnan food in Shenzhen and a decades-old bargaining ritual in Luohu.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Hong Kong · Food History
Before the September diary there was a summer: a Tokyo stopover, Michelin dim sum that lived up to it, a ramen queue finally beaten, yum cha during a Signal No. 8 and the breakfast spot Roger called a favorite.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · New York City · Food History
A winter trip that mixed famous names — Doughnut Plant, Carmine’s, Max Brenner — with fishball noodles in Chinatown, a French bistro in the Village and a Cuban dinner uptown.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Pacific Northwest · Food History
A week in the Pacific Northwest, eaten in order: a Brussels waffle, a bison burger with a local IPA, smoked salmon Benedict, Laotian curry, Pike Place classics and the Vancouver hot dog Roger never skipped.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · San Francisco · Food History
A cha chaan teng breakfast, late-night boat noodles, carbonara on a Sausalito bike ride, oysters from four regions and a crème brûlée cart on Market Street.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Southern California · Food History
The $3.95 late-night steak at South Point, a 40-something-ounce ribeye at Pechanga, Northern Thai in Las Vegas, Roscoe’s in Long Beach and a Gordon Ramsay burger that did not deliver.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Cambodia · Food History
Roadside noodles in Phnom Penh, a bánh mì chased down on a bicycle and three meals picked by the locals who drove them — plus one very San Diego taco test.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Shanghai · Food History
Wood-fired Peking duck, a local craft brewery, a late dessert stop and back-to-back queues for soup dumplings — plus a first bowl of Lanzhou noodles in Guangzhou.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Hong Kong · Food History
After the September travel posts, Roger’s Hong Kong camera roll turns local: a Michelin-starred dim sum line, a spicy chicken pot, a dai pai dong under tarps and the roast-meat shop his grandmother used to buy from.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFood History · San Diego · Regulars
One post is a meal. Two posts about the same place is a habit. Here are the San Diego spots that show up again and again in Roger’s photo archive.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFood History · San Diego
Hodad’s, cơm tấm, claypot rice, a Societe return trip and one blunt dessert review — a month of everyday eating from Roger’s camera roll.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveTravel Eats · Hong Kong · Food History
Soup dumplings twice, dark beer and peanuts, a 118th-floor nightcap and a side trip to Phnom Penh — one month of Roger’s travel eating, in the order the photos were taken.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveRoger’s Picks · San Diego · Status check
In 2022 Roger named nine San Diego places he would send a visiting friend. Here is what the public record says about each one in September 2026.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFoursquare · Food History · San Diego
Short notes from Roger’s older check-in history—kept in their original time labels instead of being turned into invented exact dates.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFood History · San Diego
What thousands of photos, ratings, and check-ins can reveal about a city that never stops changing.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveFrom the editor · Food History
A photo posted in 2013 and a restaurant note from 2026 answer different questions. Here’s how to read both.
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From Roger’s 2012–2014 photo archiveEditorial standards · Roger’s Picks
A short list should make choosing easier. The order notes, context and history still matter.
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