Dosan - A Social Eatery, Clovis, California Review

Just a posted review on Yelp! and Google Maps.  I thought I’d share it here too.

This was our first time at Dosan, and heard they were moving from a buffet restaurant (we hadn’t tried) and pivoting to a more upscale format.  Overall, it was good, yet in our humble opinion, the sauces need some serious tweaking.  Presentation of all the food was very good.

We ordered two appetizers to start.  One was a posted special of steak bites, and the other was a menu item Boule Stuffed Bread.  For the bread, think of a buttery garlic paste maybe injected into the center of a large roll of bread.  It’s certainly a different way of preparing it, and it worked for us.  We really liked it.

The steak bites were a split decision between us. My wife didn’t like them, I did, with a caveat.  I was impressed when asked how we wanted them, medium rare, of course.  There were 10-12 bites of steak, presented nicely with a dipping sauce in the middle.  The bites were cooked as requested, and I thought tasted good.  The sauce needs some help.  I dipped about a third of my bites.  The sauce had a very strong sense of Worcestershire sauce.  I grew up with parents who used Worcestershire sauce on steaks and hamburgers, so it was a bit of a reminiscent journey for me.  On the other hand, it’s probably not a sauce appropriate for a kitchen pivoting to be upscale.

My wife ordered the grilled salmon.  Instead of the rice posted online menu, it was served on a large bed of garlic pasta.  That change in itself is nothing to be concerned about.

The salmon was delicious!  It was a good size serving, and well prepared.  The garlic pasta needs its sauce refreshed.  We are garlic people.  Love it.  But the garlic on the pasta was so overpowering it took away from the pasta far more than it gave.  My wife saved the pasta to take home, where she tamed it down a bit to serve with a home dinner later.

I ordered the 14 oz ribeye steak.  It was served with a sweetcorn & hash, chili risoto and charred chamoy glazed vegetables.  The risotto was good, not phenomenal.  It might be because I’ve never had risotto with those ingredients before.  Don’t get me wrong, I liked it, it just was a new experience for me.  The glazed vegetables were another new experience.  At a lot of restaurants, they serve roasted/grilled mixed vegetables—and served pretty much the same, butter and garlic.  I applaud Dosan for going with a different route.  Again, I wasn’t overwhelmed, but I also enjoyed it.

The steak is a personal preference thing. I love a great steak, and a 14 ounce ribeye is something I needed to try.  Steaks of that weight can be thick with a smaller diameter, or thin and larger.  My preference is thick.  Dosan’s style is thin and large.  When it came out, I was worried about how it was cooked and the taste.  It was prepared perfectly to my medium rare request, and seasoned perfectly for me.  I really enjoyed it.  I asked them to pair a glass of Cabernet with it, and received a wonderful Mondavi that was a great compliment to it. Thanks to the steak bites appetizer, I wasn’t able to finish the ribeye, so I took about half of it home for a future steak sandwich.

We skipped dessert because we were full.

This was the first time in the building, regardless of prior owners/operations here.  We have a group of a dozen friends who we go out to dinner once a month.  We’re always looking for a new place to try.  It’s our turn to pick next month, so this was a test run.  The layout looks great for our needs as they have areas that could easily accommodate us.  The service staff were great too. Yet, because of the sauces, we’re hesitant to bring the group here just yet.  We’re hoping that as Dosan’s continues its pivot to fine dining and the sauces get worked out.  When it’s our turn to pick a place next time, we’ll test here again, but that will be in about a year.  Hopefully they are still in business and have completed their pivot.  I want to see them succeed.

For now, I’d encourage you to try this place and decide on your own.  We saw other dishes being served, including sandwiches, that looked really good.

Zero hero

Memories come back with a tease.  

Out on my own for just a couple days, I was waiting to turn left at an intersection of two primary streets during a busy evening commute time (S/B Blackstone/Ashlan—if you must know).   

When the left turn pocket light turned green, the car in front of me didn’t move.  Dead.  Being the new brave hero on patrol, I turned on my noisy chain-driven bubblegum overhead lights, alighted from my M.O.P. (Mobile Observation Platform, per Buck Savage) and since we didn’t have push bars, offered my recent academy enhanced strength to push the dead car across the intersection.  

The beautiful damsel in distress was euphoric after I accomplished the task on my own.  (I was certain I was quite dashing in her eyes too.)  I received a very nice hug.  While I finished my chat with her before returning to my patrol car flashing away by itself in the twilight, I rested my hands on my hips.   

NO GUN!  

Casually, yet panicky, I looked around and noticed it, passing headlights glinting off of it—dead center of the intersection.  

Dodging traffic like a video game character before some poor driver ran over it, I scooped it up and retreated to my patrol car.  I tossed it on the bench seat and took off.  

Now instead of being filled with pride of a job well done, the beat up almost due to be retired brown Pontiac LeMans patrol car with two white doors with peeling Sheriff stars was filled with embarrassment.  I scooted away and stopped on a side road a number of blocks away, and was relieved to discover no significant damage to the gun.  

I didn’t drive through that intersection again for weeks.  I didn’t want to be recognized.  Forty years later, I still think of it when I drive through it.  😂

38th Anniversary

We enjoyed an awesome 3-week anniversary trip.  Over two weeks in Cayucos and a five day test stay in Avila Beach, primarily because we didn’t want to be in hot Clovis for our anniversary.

July 4th was in Cayucos.  They hold a very creative sand sculpture contest on the beach, and a fun and quirky small town parade that was very entertaining.  We had a great view of the fireworks off the pier from our first RV space.  Of course I had to support the Cayucos Rotary Club buying raffle tickets for their fundraiser of giving away a small utility/golf cart.  After the 4th, we were able to move into the premium space that has an unobstructed view of the ocean and a large grass area.  It’s hard to get a reservation for it, and we were blessed to get the timing right for most of our stay there.  We were able to regularly see whales breaching   

Good friends were visiting the area too, so hanging out with them is always a blast, and getting more tips about delicious places to try.  

Avila Beach was next and very good.  We’re just learning it.  The park is fairly new and the plants haven’t matured much, but they have some very nice amenities.  It definitely has a different vibe than Cayucos.  Not worse, just more So. Cal. feel than Cayucos.  We’ll certainly try it again.  

We had our anniversary dinner at Blue Moon Over Avila.  It’s a cute French style restaurant with wonderful food, boardwalk seating, and wonderful live music.  

Small world encounter.  One of the RVs next to us were a retired couple from Carlsbad (San Diego area) who had owned a company that among other products, sold a variety of mugs and steins to public safety related organizations (the mugs with ornate badges that were ubiquitous in the LE/Fire communities for many years).  Kari and they knew each other.  And, they had also sold a lot of mugs to both Delaware North and Aramark through my former coworker working as a buyer (K. Wright).  

Avila Beach trivia:  There are no gas stations in Avila.  Thanks to friends for recommending Avila Valley Barn just off US-101.  It’s a must stop for lunch, produce, and sweets.  The best/closest grocery shopping is California Fresh Market in Pismo Beach.  A superb store.  

Parfait loved “the long walks on the beach” and doing zoomies in both locations.  She got (had) to wear her Independence Day outfit on the 4th.

During our time on the coast we got to see two SpaceX rocket launches from Vandenburg.  The space nerd in me was thrilled.  

Back into the Clovis heat a couple days ago.  Getting home took a bit longer.  The Cotton Fire had Hwy 41 closed for a couple days between Cholame and Hwy 33.  We were prepared for it.  The first alternate route had a new fire start just as we approached it, the Bay Fire.  I didn’t see any resources on site except Air Attack above sizing it up.  It was along a two lane road that fortunately we were able to avoid turning onto with our trailer in tow.  As a result, we did a long scenic tour through the center of the valley.  

Regardless of what you think about the project (not looking for opinions), we saw huge swaths of the High Speed Rail project.   It’s amazing to see the land prepared for the rails and the large number of bridges they have constructed or currently under construction.  It’s easy to say nothing is being done on it.  Evidence to the contrary is overwhelming.   Yeah, the project should have been completed by now.  

I hit my third month anniversary with the new knee and it held up pretty well.  All my physical therapy was geared with this trip as my goal.  Yet I found myself overdoing things and then needing some downtime at our campsite.  Abuse one day, rest the next seemed to work.  Overall, it feels stronger though.  

Happy trails!

Where was your favorite to work in Yosemite?

Someone on Facebook posed that question.   My response:

There is, or at least was, a number of awesome places to work in the park.  Of course, my favorite was Area 5!  

Every day was different.  Throughout the year, 24/7/365, each day held the real opportunity to learn something new, do something new, work with any other internal department at any level or outside organization, meet and work with new people, or go someplace unexpected inside or outside the park.  It didn’t matter what your position or role you held.  You might help guests one minute due to an injury or other issue, reuniting lost ones or items, then helping employees that are locked out, injured, or in a crisis of some type.  Then there were the natural disasters and human caused catastrophes.  We were there.  

And yes, sometimes we had to be firm.  

The time of day didn’t matter, if someone didn’t know who to call for help, they called us.  We strived to be there for them in every way we could.  

Were we perfect?  Of course not.  Yet that remained our goal.  Our motto was based on our priorities, “Safety, Security, and Service.”  It might sound odd to have a hospitality operation putting customer service last, but if you can’t provide the first two, the last one suffers.

You could start a shift in the valley, and end up going to Tuolumne Meadows, Wawona, or beyond.   We’ve had officers and staff unexpectedly go to Lone Pine, Sacramento, San Francisco, the coast, Fresno, Bakersfield, and points in between.  When absolutely critical, we were faster than FedEx for guest and company needs.  

Investigations grew to be a key resource and asset for employees, guests, the company, and NPS.  Not to mention the variety of training we provided onsite and in our Briefing Room.

Firefighters were practiced, prepared, and ready.  They prided themselves at beating NPS Fire to calls the vast majority of the time, including years ago, one above their firehouse.  The Engine 7 crew trained far more often than NPS, and knew the inside of our facilities and what they contained extremely well.   

Yet, thanks to the combined “insight and wisdom” of both Aramark and NPS leadership, the 80+ year old department was gutted, then dissolved.

“Fare thee well.”   

Chief of Security & Fire

2000-2018

We’re In The Money Now!

 

On a weekend we spent thousands of dollars replacing a fence at our rental in Old Fig Garden, and spending almost another $1,000 replacing a refrigerator, we were blessed to have this refund from AAA after they cancelled the property insurance on our rental.  It’s a huge help.  🤦‍♂️😂😉

Passing of Ted Turner

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/06/us/ted-turner-death?cid=ios_app

RIP Ted.  I liked your style.  

I briefly met him at one of the national cable TV conventions in Las Vegas.  

My father owned Western Cable Services/Enterprises out of Ventura, Calif.  (I kinda grew up in the company, at times working full time.) He did a lot of cable TV construction work on the west coast and owned a handful of small systems.  

I usually tagged along to the National and Western Show conventions.  I can’t remember who was hosting the party, but it was probably HBO or Showtime because it was huge with the drinks flowing and the music jumping.  You know the type.  

I was mingling and went to find my dad.  He was with a small group of guys and gals, and standing next to Ted chatting away with him.  I walked up and was quickly introduced to him.  

A few moments later, a very attractive woman in the group asked me if I wanted to dance.  Like her, I wasn’t not involved in the group conversation and being sufficiently supplied from the bar, I said sure.  We danced some fast and slow dances.  I didn’t think anything of it, just having fun.  I’d glance over to the group occasionally to see if my dad was still there.  I started to notice Ted kinda occasionally staring at me.  

I was told later that it was his second wife (Jane Smith) who was dancing with me.

Valentine’s Day 2026

Valentine’s Day 2026 included flowers, well, a drive through parts of Fresno’s Blossom Trail.   

A beautiful day. Six cards between us, blossoms on the trees and snow capped mountains in the background.

No photos of dinner.  Starter was an arugula beet salad.  The main dish was pan fried sea bass with a brown butter sauce, accompanied by medium sized yellow potatoes with their skins on that were parboiled until just soft, smashed, then with a garlic butter sauce, baked at a high temperature until just crunchy on the outside. Everything was phenomenal!

Kari’s getting into baking mode for an upcoming Rotary event, so dessert was a test chocolate cake.  Yum!

The 13ths of February 1986, 1996, 2001

February 13, 2026

 

Much like a prior post, “The 27ths of November 1984, 1986, and 1987,” February 13 is another date that three significant events for me

 

In 2001, twenty-five years ago today, one of the best pastors I’ve known passed away.  Buffe Karraker who founded Northwest Church in Fresno.  He was a no-nonsense preacher who knew the Bible and knew how you fit into it. His style was southern, lowkey, yet unyieldingly strong and forceful.  Ann amazing man of God. I was fortunate to get oldest son Jason to experience him a number of times both in services and during a handful of Northwest’s annual men’s retreat.  Unfortunately, Joseph only experienced one of the retreats and none of the Sunday services.

 

Thirty years ago tonight, my father, Raymond Willard Stone passed away.  He was born on June 5, 1923, in a dirt floor house in Holland, Missouri.  The house was along a dirt road, now known as E2, a dividing line between Arkansas and Missouri, just west of the Mississippi River. It’s now a field.  He grew up there for many years. I remember him sharing when we visited the site in 1993, that he played in the fields and would walk down to the Muddy Mississippi to play and fish.  I’m guessing a bit, but I think he was about 10-12 years old when his mother placed him and younger brother Ira in a VFW orphanage in Eaton Rapids, Michigan.  They stayed there through high school.  

 

Forty years ago tonight, Jeannette, my first wife, and I split up for the last time.  We had separated twice before.  The first time while we living in Madera, she moved out. Later, during our one year in Ventura while I was working for my father, I moved out for a couple months.  I knew, and tried to impress on her, a third time by either one of us would be the final time for me.  The separations created an insurmountable amount of unnecessary emotional and financial burdens. 

 

I thought we were doing pretty good.  In fact, when my parents visited us at our East Palo Alto Ave home during Christmas time in December 1985, I remember talking with my dad in the garage about several things. During the discussion, we talked about how Jeannette and I were getting along.  I told him I was feeling really good about things, and thought we were finally over the hump in determining how to manage our relationship.  Funny how things sneak up on you. 

 

On Thursday, February 13, 1986, Jeanette informed me that she had rented an apartment, and had already started to move, buying some furniture and having it delivered there.  I reminded her that this would be the final time. She was committed.  I wasn’t angry, I was just finished. 

I was done with arguing about issues, and I certainly wasn’t going to argue about who gets what. 

We had two vehicles.  One was a 1984 two tone brown Volkswagen Vanagon.  We bought it new on December 31, 1984 while Jeanette was self employed doing daycare at our home.  The other was a bright red 1984 Toyota Corolla that had been a rental car that Jeanette bought for me for Valentines Day, 1985.  For much of our marriage, my primary car was a 1968 Volkswagen Bug. The Toyota was for me to commute to work in, now with decent radio, heating, and air conditioning.

I asked Jeanette which car she wanted.  She wanted the Toyota.  Fine. 

I told her that I would leave the next day, Friday, Valentine’s Day, by the time she got off work.  I would return Sunday evening, and by then, she should take anything and everything she might ever want, because after that, the window closes. 

When I returned home, I didn’t know what to expect.  Maybe I did.  I still didn’t care what was or wasn’t there. No much was there.  She had taken our bedroom set, which was fine with me since she got it during her first marriage.  The boys bunk beds and furniture were still there because she had already bought new sets for them.  The washer and dryer were gone, yet left the refrigerator.  Most of the family room furniture was gone.  Art work and wall photos were gone. Cabinets emptied.  The large heavy console style TV was still there.  Almost all the kitchen dishes, utensils, pot and pans, and cutlery were gone.

There it was. The baseline.  Everything got better from there.  Some things improved quickly, others took longer.

Three thirteens.  All hard to deal with over the years.  Nonetheless, I learned and grew from all of them.  

I miss my father the most.  I always will. 

Arvin Abbott

On Friday, October 17, 2025, I did a solo run back to the park yesterday for a memorial service for a really great person.  Arvin Abbott was a long time fixture in the Retail Division.  You won’t find a better person or guy.  

While it seems memorial services are the primary reason for going back these past years, it’s still awesome to revisit the old haunts.  The other nice thing is that they serve as mini reunions.  Lots of hugs and catchup stories.  

Sad to hear from NPS and company folks alike that the operations are still messed up, some saying they can’t believe it’s actually worse now than a couple years ago.  

Not a lot of photos on this trip.  I had to make it quick to get back to Clovis for a fundraiser dinner. 

Sold!

I can’t believe it.  It sold in one day, actually less.  Jonathan, another Yosemite acquaintance, and his wife purchased it.  Jonathan and his wife live in Mariposa, and he frequents the park for work, so the FJ will feel at home.

They also own another FJ, a manual transmission Sandstorm, that they keep at their home in Mexico.

2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser for sale

For Sale

2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser, Sun Fusion, Automatic Transmission, Four Wheel Drive

One owner, purchased new on Dec 6, 2008 with 28 miles when we bought two new Toyotas, one for me and the other for my wife.  Currently, just under 148,000 miles.  Non-smoker.  Located near Fresno, Calif.  Based in California the entire time, so no east coast frame rust issues.  The FJ has been gently off-roaded with NO rock crawling (not my thing) and no beach sand.

Toyota dealer maintained (usually Toyota of Selma) including the last service on July 31, 2025 where it received a great inspection report with no issues.  In preparation to sell, it had a successful smog test on August 30, 2025.  

Some gentle modifications.   

External:

A Toytec 3” lift was installed in 2015, that has been awesome.  Due to purchasing a small travel trailer in the fall of 2022, the very competent Nestor Angeles replaced the rear springs with an Icon Vehicle Dynamic 52800, 3" Lift Dual Rate Coil Spring Kit. 

Total Chaos Upper Control Arms.  

Dual 4-pin and 7-pin trailer plug installed, along with a dashboard mounted Redarc Tow-Pro Elite electric trailer brake controller.   

Five new BFG K03 285/70R/17 tires on March 11, 2025.  5-tire rotation on September 3, 2025.  

Califabrication rear links and body mount chop (BMC).

Chitown4x4 Rotopax gas can mounts with two 4-gallon Rotopax plastic gas cans and storage pod with a locking bracket.  Includes a drop in bracket for an “off-road” flag mount (flag included).

Rigid brand roof lights also installed by regional craftsman Nestor Angeles.  The side lights are floods and work.  The center light does not work, and was a combined beam and flood, but was damaged in a car wash several years ago.  That light pod currently sells for about a $1,000.  I could have replaced it, but I would have had to raise the price of the FJ.  Since purchasing the off-road lights, newer curved and more efficient lights are available, so you can choose your own options if needed.   Wiring for it runs through the roof with the Toyota installed plug for the original air dam and roof lights.  

Tru-Cool LPD Transmission Oil Cooler 4454 18,000 GVW, (auxiliary transmission cooler) installed by Nestor Angeles.  

Toyota branded brush guard and bumper mounted driving lights.  

Baja Rack drop-in roof basket.

All Pro APEX rock sliders with filler plates.

RCI skid plates (with extra mounting bolts package).  

Fumoto engine oil drain valve.  

Toyota TRD door sill protectors added.  

LED backup/reverse lights.

Hi-Lift jack and accessories.

2-Maxtrax traction boards and assorted recovery gear.

Viair air compressor.

Interior:

Console mounted CB radio with a classic “Bandi” mount with a quick disconnect antenna originally installed by Red Monkey in Fresno.  Tuned and balanced about a year ago by Airtime Communications in Merced. Two different antennas included, a long metal whip antenna and a shorter Firestick. 

Overhead VisorShelf.

Garmin Dash Cam 47 (front facing).  

Bulletpoint Mounting Solutions dash mount Phone and Device Holder with assorted arms and phone charger.

Dashboard mounted Panavise device bracket with phone charging cradle.

Orangeboxx molle rack on driver’s side of the back compartment.  A 10-lb ABC fire extinguisher is mounted on it with room for other things.  Why a 10-lb extinguisher?  Because those little auto parts store extinguishers are a joke when it comes to actually trying to extinguish a fire.  

Original Toyota FJ floor mats and original Toyota “FJ” driving light covers.  

Audio head unit Sony XAV-AX6000 and backup camera installed by Audio Innovations, Fresno.

Fuse box cover replaced with coin holder.  

LED interior lights.

Tuffy security console/armrest.

Several other goodies included some purchased but not yet installed.

Two FOB keys with extra batteries and a Valet key.  And, (gasp!) both original cup holder inserts!  

It’s 17 years old, so of course there is some normal FJ wear and tear on the driver’s seat, the windshield has a couple chips that were patched well by Safelite, and it has a couple badge of honor trail “pinstripes” that are hardly visible.  

The roof has no leaks. 

Excel spreadsheet sheet with mileage and expenses (except for a dead hard drive issue about ten years ago).

I truly thought I would never sell the FJ.  The only reason we are selling the FJ is because we recently bought a travel trailer that is heavier than our last one and it’s just too much for the FJ to pull.  

The FJ was purchased while working and living in Yosemite National Park, hence the plates YOSE FJ.  If you want to keep the plates, fine.  If not, I’ll hang them in my garage.  I’ll also turn over the Facebook page to you if you want.  

Off road adventures include multiple meetings with the Las Vegas FJ Cruiser crowd for touring ghost towns and mines.  I explored the “east side” of the Sierra Nevada on my own and with the Nor Cal. FJ Cruiser forum group, and we attended the 2015 FJ Cruiser Summit in Ouray, Colorado.  

Buy it in the morning, do the DMV, and be at Bald Mountain for sunset—if it’s open (local joke).

$16,000.

Eight Days in Cayucos

Nope, not a movie title   

Eight days in Cayucos isn’t enough. 

We found a new place for a lunch stop along the way, a wonderful park in Avenal.  

Numerous walks on the beach.

A fun excursion to Ragged Point.

Lunch with friends from Prescott, AZ at Linn’s in Cambria.

A birthday dinner at Lunada’s in Cayucos.

Some great weather and rain storms, then tucked in at night by the sound of the surf.  What a great way to start another orbit around the sun.   

When it was time to leave, I agreed with Parfait's attitude.  

Home now.  Back on the road in June.