Foreign Cinema

March 7, 2005

A few days after I got back from Vancouver, Geoff came down to SF to visit for the first time in a long time. Our first dinner was at Foreign Cinema, a place in the Mission. The place is themed around, you guessed it, a cinema. After entering, you walk through a long corridor before entering a large, open room. Usually, they'll have a movie being projected onto a massive wall while you eat. There is also an upstairs section which I didn't get to check out. It's a very interesting setting and hard to describe - you should go check it out yourself if you can! I'm sure the film buffs love this place.

baked fromage d'Affinois, finnish potato and roasted garlic - $10

beef carpaccio, dijon sauce, waffle chips, fried herbs & capers, cress - $10

sea scallops & mussels, saffron-fennel broth, romesco, aioli, arugula, chapons - $22 The food is a vague mix of French, Italian, and some Mediterranean... I it's guess best described as Californian, like so many restaurants nowadays. The fromage, under the heading "Urban Picnic (unleash the appetite!) is delicious. It was just a simple presentation of cheese, potatoes, and garlic, but the three ingredients went together extremely well. The baked fromage was extremely smooth and creamy, with a fairly mild flavor - a great complement to garlic and potatoes. I loved the dijon sauce on the carpaccio; I'm always glad to see something more than olive oil. After trying the original carpaccio at Harry's Bar in Venice, I really feel that carpaccio deserves some type of aioli/mayo sauce, and this dijon fit the bill. The waffle chips were a bit too salty though. The scallops and mussels were a nice twist on bouillabaisse, using seared scallops which I thought was a great idea. The saffron lended some color without overpowering the dish, and the broth was delicious. I also loved the romesco (like a red version of rouille using some nuts and red peppers) which can be seen on the big crouton. Foreign Cinema is definitely worth a visit. It's also a great option for bringing guests or out of towners - the place has a unique character to it. The whole them is interesting and a lot of fun.

Myth

March 2, 2005

My dad really beat the rush in spotting Myth, the new restaurant featuring Sean O'Brien, former sous-chef of Gary Danko. It occupies the space that was formerly MC Squared, and is just a minute from the apartment. We went just after the new year, and the place was still quite empty and quiet. The space is absolutely gorgeous - clean, modern, refined, and comfortable, all without being at all tacky or cold. I personally thought that MC Square's design was very cool, but many people thought it felt a bit soul-less. Myth certainly isn't guilty of the same. To be honest, I think Myth has one of the nicest designs of any restaurant I can remember going to for a long time. The aesthetic is at once simple and beautiful. There's also a nice bar at the entrance that seems like a great place to get a drink. Anyway, like I said, my dad was keen enough to spot this place before a lot of others. It looks like Michael Bauer at the Chronicle put out a glowing review a few weeks after we went, and the place has since been very hot.

garganelli pasta with foie gras cream and marsala - $8 The menu offers a commendable amount of flexibility. Basically, the pasta and the seafood dishes are both offered in appetizer or entree sizes. There are also a variety of other appetizers, as well as numerous meat entrees. I chose the garganelli as an app and the salmon as an entree. The garganelli is, without a doubt, one of the best and most interesting pastas I have had in a while. The description made it an immediate decision as soon as I saw it (foie gras cream? marsala? heaven?), and I was not disappointed. Garganelli, a sort of imperfectly-shaped tube pasta, is paired with a cream sauce that contains no big pieces or chunks of foie gras, yet bursts with foie gras flavor. Then again, as any who have cooked foie gras can attest too, the stuff tends to sort of melt into ooze after you cook it for a while. Mmm, foie gras ooze. The pomegranate seeds you see on top add an interesting sweet twist. This dish is just excellent in every way: it inventively uses ingredients both common and unusual to create a whole that is simply delicious.

citrus glazed salmon with lobster lemongrass sauce, king eryngiis, and basmati rice - $17

pear upside down cake with cr�me fraiche ice cream - $8 After such a great starter, I already knew there was little chance that my salmon would be able to keep up. As I soaked up the last bit of sauce in the pasta with my bread, I kinda just wished I'd ordered an app from the app list and gotten a bigger portion of the pasta. Luckily, the salmon dish was also great - skillfully-cooked, tasty, and well-matched with the buttery rice. It wasn't as good as the garganelli, but it was still good, and I happily enjoyed every last bite on my plate. My pear cake was decent but unspectacular - I'd probably order something else next time. All in all, I am happy to have Myth as a nearby option. Hopefully, its recent successes don't do anything to harm the quality of the food. The space is really wonderful and it's a great, comfortable place to eat. The garganelli is heavenly indeed, and, at $8 as an app or $14 as an entree, an absolute steal. Most of the entrees come in at around $20 or under, with just lamb chops and steak at $26. I'm sort of expecting the prices to go up though...

Houston's

February 27, 2005

One of my first meals in SF was with my mom and Uncle Calvin at nearby Houston's, which serves pretty good standard American fare. I really liked the crab cakes I had there last time, and my mom was happy with their varying vegetarian plate. I didn't realize it was such a big chain until just now when I checked out their website, but despite the numerous locations Houston's seems pretty reliable. At least the one near the Embarcadero - haven't tried (or seen, for that matter) any of the others.

"knife and fork" baby back ribs, cole slaw & french fries - $22 I'm not sure if I took down the price right, but it's somewhere in the low 20s. These ribs were very good, and amazingly, they were actually "knife and fork" tender. The meat came right off the bone, and I didn't even have to use my hands. And the portion was just right - there was plenty of meat without being overwhelming. I finished the whole plate and was very full, but not stuffed. The cole slaw is great too - refreshing and crisp, a good rest from the ribs. The fries were crispy and just the right thickness. Houston's continues to satisfy...

Edouard Artzner

February 26, 2005

Sitting at home in SF was a jar of goose rillettes from Edouard Artzner, courtesy of I believe Auntie Margie. Actually, I feel horrible that I don't remember for sure who gave it to us - if you happen to be the one who gave this to my mom a while ago, please do remind me! Anyway, rillettes are shredded dried meat slowly cooked with fat. It's sort of like a meaty p�t�, if that makes any sense. And as you might imagine, this type of thing sits all by its lonesome in the fridge until I get home, since my vegetarian mom doesn't give it quite the love it deserves.

Edouard Artzner goose rillettes

rillettes on sliced baguette from Il Fornaio Baguette from Il Fornaio, you ask. Well, I was kind of desperate and Il Fornaio was close by. I actually wasn't very confident going in that they even made a baguette, but it turns out they do. It was mediocre, but alright. The rillettes, on the other hand, were delicious! Probably a little too oily and fatty for a lot of people out there, but this stuff is right up my alley. It has just the right combination of saltiness, meat, and fat to turn a piece of bread into a nice little meal. Apparently, you can actually order the stuff off of their website. Rillettes are usually not very expensive.

La Suite

December 29, 2004

Only had one real dinner in SF before I went to Vancouver, and it was at a new place called La Suite. It took over the old Slanted Door location (the middle one along Embarcadero, not the Mission one), and serves brasserie-style French Provencal cuisine. The space is very large, with a dark wood interior.

kobe beef tartare with mustard, piment d'espelette, and croutons - $12

wood-grilled niman ranch entrecote au herbes de provence, with bearnaise sauce and pomme frites - $28 The beef tartare was great. They bring the various ingredients (beef, egg, mustard, capers, onions, etc.) and mix it tableside. The croutons (not pictured) were garlicky and crisp. Kobe beef works well with tartare, as you might expect. The marbled fattiness adds a wonderful soft texture to the dish. I ate a lot of beef at this meal. The entrecote (bearnaise sauce not pictured) was also very well done. I consider the steak frites a barometer for any bistro or brasserie and La Suite executes it well. The beef was very tender and flavorful, and nice and fatty like it should be. It was grilled just enough to give it a hint of that hot charred taste, but still very medium rare. The fries were well-seasoned and crispy. La Suite has a huge and interesting menu. There were probably over 10 dishes in the appetizer list that I'd like to try. Certainly not the cheapest place for bistro-type fare, but I think I'll probably go back in the future. Let me also note that the service was very friendly. I went with Keith and my dad - Keith had a flight to catch, and we were late because of traffic, leaving us very little time to eat (less than an hour). The service was very quick and accommodating, and we got out of there quick.

Cortez

December 4, 2004

Finally, my last set of photos from San Francisco! Cortez is the new small plates restaurant (the small plates thing sure is really really huge now) from the great people at Bay Bread. I really hope that Bay Bread doesn't get too big for its own good - I'd hate to see the quality decline. I like a lot of their places, such as Chez Nous and even more importantly Galette. Let's hope they can keep up their success. Val was in SF for as a stopover between Taiwan and Boston, so she joined my mom, Keith, and myself for dinner. Cortez came strongly recommended by Auntie Raphaela. The restaurant has a nice, modern and decidedly hip decor (though it doesn't come close to Frisson). I actually recognized that they were playing Thievery Corporation as we sat down, giving the place a cool loungey feel.

"today's crudo" - marinated hamachi

warm summer salad of sweet corn raviolinis, cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas & herbed zucchini pur�e - $9

fries with harissa & zaatar spiced aioli - $6 A solid set of appetizers. There are a lot of interesting sounding things on the menu, so it was hard to choose. The hamachi was good - fish was high quality, though nothing special compared to a good sushi joint. It did have a markedly different taste than what you'd expect eating sashimi thanks to the aioli dressing/marinade on it, so it had its own unique twist. The raviolinis were excellent - every ingredient was fresh and bursting with flavor. The peas were particularly crisp and refreshing. Everyone (my mom especially) loved this one. The fries were very good, and are definitely inspired by (probably copied from) the fries over at Chez Nous. The harissa aioli (which they also use at Chez Nous) was the better of the two sauces.

slow baked wild salmon with manila clams, roasted chiodini mushrooms & garlic clam foam - $14

prawns a la plancha with basque pimentos, lemon garlic butter & creamy crab rice - $11

slow cooked chicken breast with gnocchi & chanterell ragu, parsnip pur�e & creamed scallions - $14 Again, good stuff overall. I liked that the salmon was cooked quite rare, giving it a smooth and fatty texture. I think the dish overdoes it a little though on the clams, and the two different flavors end up clashing a bit. The prawns were huge and meaty - a real plus in my book, and matched well with the lemony sauce. The crab rice tasted good, but was slightly too al dente for my taste. The chicken with gnocchi was the class of this group. The chicken was unbelievably tender (it's all breast meat!) and the gnocchi were the perfect starchy complement. Although, I'd have been happy eating either just the chicken or the gnocchi too - both parts of this dish would be strong enough to stand on their own. Really a great combination.

chocolate ginger milkshake shots - $4 for 2

sugar & spice beignets, vahlrona chocolate fondue - $9 The milkshake shots were hard to resist. They're literally shot glasses (okay, maybe double shots), and the flavor changes every day. It's gimmicky, no doubt about it, but fun I guess. I think I would have liked them better if they were just chocolate... I guess I'm a purist like that. The beignets were good but not as good as Piperade's. In retrospect it was a mistake ordering two "spicy" desserts. I've realized I don't really like ginger and whatnot in desserts very much. Overall, I enjoyed the meal. The raviolinis and the chicken were very memorable, and there's a lot of other stuff I want to try on the menu. Not to mention it was my last meal in SF before another long Boston semester...

Piperade

December 2, 2004

This is Piperade, a fairly new Basque place literally 3 blocks from my building in SF. Keith was in town for a couple of days between coming back from the Philippines and going back to school, so he came along with my dad and I for lunch. I got really excited about the place after seeing rave reviews for it just about everywhere, and especially after reading about Anthony Bourdain's experiences in San Sebastian in his book A Cook's Tour. That really gave me a craving for some Basque food. Piperade did not disappoint.

bacalao fritters with piment�n aioli - $9

artisan foie gras sauteed with monterey squid, grapes and verjus - $17

garlic soup with rock shrimp, bacon, bread and egg - $8.5 We ate everything family style. Let me say, each of these dishes were excellent. Bacalao is salt cod, one of the staple items in Basque cuisine. These were little balls of heaven... perfectly fried with a delicious "filling" if you could call it that. The aioli was addictive and a wonderful complement to the fish. I think I could eat a whole plate of these myself. The foie gras and squid was superb. Foie gras and squid - sounds like a strange combination doesn't it? We thought so too, so of course we had to give it a try. I'm usually the type that prefers my squid fried, but in this case it was different. Simply put, this is one of the best squid dishes I've ever had. The squid was amazingly tender and bursting with flavor. A big chunk of foie gras is buried underneath there - not like a tiny appetizer foie gras as is commonly found, but a real slab of the stuff that you have to cut like a piece of meat. Taking a bite of everything at once creates a delicious combination. The taste of the foie gras mixed with the sweetness of the grapes and the sauce plus the texture of the squid... it was absolutely fabulous. I really think this is one of the must try dishes in SF. Do not sleep on this. The garlic soup also definitely held its own with a very robust and earthy flavor, much moreso than you expect when ordering "garlic soup." Simply fantastic.

pip�rade with saut�ed serrano ham and poached egg - $15

atlantic cod 'a la plancha' with potatoes riojanas, chorizo, thyme and onion jus - $17

roasted niman ranch pork chop with braised cabbage and apple & onion marmalada - $18

orange blossom beignets - $7 Piperade, the restaurant's namesake, is another typical Basque dish, a stew-like mixture of tomatoes, onions, and peppers. Very good as expected. A nice mixture of different flavors, and heartier than I thought it would be. The cod was less exciting, but did have a lot of ingredients going on as you can tell. The fish was very nicely cooked and the treasure trove of potatoes, chorizo and onions underneath was yummy. We ordered the pork chops per our waiter's recommendation and it came out very nice. Very tender pork (which is getting harder to find I think) accompanied by a pleasant but not overwhelming sweetness. Unfortunately the three of us were getting pretty full. The mains were all very good, but really it was the appetizers that made this place as memorable for me as it was. Anyway, we did want to try a bite of dessert, and the word "beignet" triggers a natural reflex in my system. It doesn't matter what the word before beignet is; I have to order it whatever the situation. I'm glad we tried them. They were hot, fluffy, not overly sweet (despite the sugar you can see), and slightly orange-y. All in all, it was a killer meal! I really want to go to San Sebastian.

Zuni Cafe

November 30, 2004

My mom and I had a quick lunch at Zuni Cafe, one of San Francisco's staples. I hadn't been in a year or two. They're famous for their chicken (which is for two, so I can't get it with my vegetarian mom), and their burger. I've tried both in the past... The chicken is damn good, no doubt about it. The Zuni burger uses focaccia and errs on the fancier side. I don't like it as much as I like the ones at Mo's. So here's lunch at Zuni's, minus their two most famous items...

zuni caesar salad - $9

grilled hanger steak sandwich with roasted gypsy peppers, balsamic mayo, and watercress, green bean salad - $13.5

shoestring potatoes - $6 The caesar salad came out great. Crispy romaine with just the right kick in the dressing. Most importantly to me, they had big crunchy delicious croutons. Croutons just make or break a caesar if you ask me, and these were wonderful. The steak sandwich was a little odd. You may be asking yourself, where in between those two slices of bread is the steak? Well, it's there, it's just a really thinly-sliced layer. I wondered the same thing when the waiter dropped the plate in front of me. I'm the last person you'll find that would order a roasted peppers and watercress sandwich. So it is unfortunate that there isn't very much steak in the thing, because the sandwich was actually really good. The combo of the mayo, peppers, and watercress actually went really well with the steak. Double the amount of meat and it would have been a truly great sandwich. The green bean salad was also excellent... tender beans and tasty dressing. Sort of like what the Fog City Diner one was trying to be. The shoestring potatoes were huge. Nothing spectacular about em though; they taste the same as the ones you've all tried at a bunch of other places. Not bad, not good. I've made a few updates to the navigation bar... I added a little box to update you guys about where I am, as people have been getting confused about why I'm posting stuff from San Francisco when I'm in Boston right now. The short answer is that I've been lazy and have let enough photos pile up for me to be late almost an entire semester. The bright side is that I've taken a sparse amount of photos since I've been back at school, mostly due to the fact that my diet has been consisting mostly of Cookin' Cafe delivery, Nud Pob, and other stuff that would be a bit repetitive to photograph. I should be caught up completely by Christmas. Also, I updated the list of links I've got up there.

Frisson

November 28, 2004

Here is Frisson, a relatively new place also near my new home in SF. The chef is Daniel Patterson, formerly of the now defunct Elisabeth Daniel. The place has probably some of the most jaw-dropping decor you'll see in a while: orange ambient light, a dome-like ceiling, and some very wacky furniture. It's actually pretty interesting to see in person, but you can get an idea at their website (warning, there's music too which you can turn off). The bar area looks pretty cool too. Apparently they feature DJs, but there wasn't one there when I went with my dad. Anyway, here's the food.

cornmeal crusted foie gras, lavender, balsamico tradizionale - $15

seared sea scallops, bouillabaisse granit�, saffron oil - $12

black bass, braised lettuce, pork belly, litsea cubeba

sweetbread ravioli, black truffle - $16 These were the first and second courses... like at Quince, the menu is divided into 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, sorta pressuring you into getting something from each category. Though looking at the menu now on the website, things may have changed to Large vs Small plates. The foie gras was very interesting. It was like a normal seared foie gras, but with a crunchy crust on the outside. I actually liked the concept a lot, but unfortunately it was just too salty. Fix that and it would be a great foie gras preparation. The scallops were also very interesting - the bouillabaisse granit� was literally granit�. In other words it was icy cold, and slowly melted on the hot scallops while I got through the dish. By the end it was a liquid sauce. Very tasty too; I liked this dish a lot. The bass was my dad's so I only had a bite, and it wasn't particularly memorable. The sweetbread ravioli was by far the best dish of the night. Can't see too much, but there's a few fairly large ravioli buried in that cappucino-like broth. The ravioli were plump and tasty, and the sauce had just enough truffle to give it that delicious truffle aroma.

coriander scented duck breast, escarole, huckleberry-olive emulsion - $17

venison loin, yuzu kosho, onion-pear pur�e, chinese broccoli - $18

roasted blood peach, lime sorbet, vanilla, fromage blanc - $10 Main dishes were just alright. Duck breast was okay, but again nothing particularly memorable. Venison isn't on too many menus, so I took the opportunity to order it... I like all things gamey. I liked it better than the duck. Very lean, but quite tender and juicy. We opted to share the blood peach dessert because it just sounded so interesting. It was pretty good, but to be honest, I don't even know which part of the dish was what. Overall I think the place had too high of a "ingredients I don't understand" quotient. What's litsea cubeba or yuzu kosho? I ate them and I still don't know. The servings were on the small side (except for the ravioli), and the place ends up being pretty pricey. Although, let me mention that I had a really good and refreshing fancy juice/tea thing from the bar. All the drinks are really expensive too though. Still, probably worth checking out the room and maybe grabbing a quick bite while enjoying the atmosphere. I'll let you decide if the place is trying too hard to be hip. Not the best place to go if you're looking for a big serious meal.

Fog City Diner

November 25, 2004

It's definitely interesting moving to a new home. Suddenly, all the old neighborhood joints are on the other side of town, and you get a whole slew of new neighborhood joints to try out. I didn't have much time in SF, but I did my best to scour all the places that were within walking distance. One of the closest restaurants is the Fog City Diner. The place is one of those "landmark" restaurants (whatever that means), and I've read warnings of its tourist trap potential. It does feel a little odd having a tourist place a 2 minute walk away.

cayenne battered onion rings with housemade chili sauce - $6.5

sweet corn quesadilla with poblano chilis, huitlacoche and roasted tomato salsa - $7.95

chicken schnitzel with scalloped potatoes, blue lake beans and lemon caper butter - $15.95 The place hardly seems like a diner with the dark wood interior and plush booths. Then again I don't seem to know much about diners according to people I've met from NY/NJ and the rest of the east coast. In any case, the place definitely has a much more elegant feel to it than you'd expect from a diner. The food was not bad. Not specatacular, but I wouldn't condemn it as tourist garbage. The menu is pretty huge and there was lots of stuff I'd be willing to try. The onion rings were big, hot and crispy, but slightly on the greasy side. The quesadilla was a bit heavy on the cheese and a little light on the corn (especially for my mom's taste), but still pretty good. The chicken schnitzel was alright - good, but it sort of confirmed for me that veal really is the better meat for this type of dish. The chicken was relatively tender and juicy, especially considering it was all white meat. The beans tasted like wannabe haricot verts, except big and not tender enough. The potatoes were okay, but perhaps baked ever so slightly too long. The french fries that the people next to us were eating looked very good, but I didn't get a chance to try them. Overall, the place is a solid choice for a wide menu with most things being at least pretty good. I thought Houston's was better (though more expensive) for a similar type of food. Fog City is worthy of a stop if you're nearby and want to grab a bite, but I wouldn't call it a landmark or a destination...

Quince

November 24, 2004

Happy Turkey Day everyone. I'm staying in Boston during this break, so I probably won't be eating any Thanksgiving type stuff. I'm not a big turkey fan anyway. Continuing on with my archive of pictures from the summer... Here is Quince in SF, a relatively new place. The chef, Michael Tusk, won the "Rising Star" award from San Francisco Magazine in August. It replaced the Meetinghouse, which I thought was a very good brunch joint, and had the best biscuits I think I've ever had. I heard that bad business wasn't the cause of its closing, which doesn't surprise me. Too bad it's gone though. Anyway, Quince supposedly has some of the best pasta in the city.

local halibut tartare with lemon mustard dressing - $12.5

pappardelle with rabbit - $16

alaskan black cod with chanterelles and prosecco sauce - $25

scharffen berger cacao nib panna cotta with toasted pecans and chocolate wafers - $8.5 Very good meal. Did a good job considering how much hype this place has. This was another meal with my mom, Auntie Margie, Auntie Cathy, and the Chus. The Chus were able to book chef's table (sort of) - none of the regular tables can fit 8 people. We sat in the back in an area sort of between the dining room and the kitchen. We saw a lot of desserts being prepared next to us. Anyway, the food was really good. The tartare was one of the best tartare preparations I've had in recent memory. A hint of lemon and fresh fish made it a simple delight. The goldfish-shaped toast was a funny touch. The pappardelle was really excellent. There's just not enough to be said about freshly made pasta, and I don't see why they don't just do it in every Italian restaurant. It doesn't seem to take that much more work considering the reward. I had a bite of several different pastas on the menu and all of them were just great. All of them were simple preparations using simple sauces and not too many ingredients, which allows for the fresh pasta to really shine. The pappardelle I had was probably on the more elaborate side already. It was just a delicious simple ragu with very good pasta (it's all about the texture!). The cod was just alright. Not bad at all, but a little underwhelming after the pasta. It was like many other fish dishes that you could get at a lot of places. The menu sort of pressures you into ordering 3 courses by dividing itself by using the headers "First Course Selections", "Second Course Selections", and, you guessed it, "Third Course Selections" (rather than Apps/Pastas/Mains or something like that). To be honest, when I return, I'll order an appetizer followed by 2 pastas. The place isn't cheap, and this would be more cost effective and probably result in a better meal. Oh yeah - I forgot to talk about the panna cotta, which was very good. The long cocoa name is I guess a fancy way of saying chocolate, which is fine by me... It had a very chocolatey flavor without being too sugary sweet, which to me should be the ultimate goal of any chocolate dessert. Nice, firm texture, and chilled to just the right temperature for it to even be a little refreshing. Great dessert.

Il Fornaio

November 22, 2004

I went to check out Il Fornaio at the Levi Strauss Plaza. It's officially the closest restaurant to our new place I think. It's been there forever but I hadn't been in a pretty long time.

fiori di zucchine - crispy baby zucchini and zucchini flowers, lightly breaded, spicy tomato-basil and balsamic parsley sauces - $8.95

tagliolini granchio e chiodini - housemade pasta, crab, chiodini mushrooms, trebbiano wine, garlic - $16.95 To be honest I was pretty disappointed overall. I got really excited when I saw zucchini flower on the menu, but these were just so so. I think the fact that they didn't have cheese inside like they usually do made them worse. They were on the greasy side and didn't have too much substance. The pasta was also so-so at best. The pasta was undercooked and the crab/mushroom didn't have enough flavor. The service was a bit slow too.

In-N-Out Burger

November 16, 2004

Here is another fond memory of summer in San Francisco: In-N-Out Burger, which has somehow never made it onto my site before (despite the mass quantities I've consumed in my lifetime). This is from the Fisherman's Wharf one... we used to go to the ones in Marin and DC a lot too.

double double animal style (minus pickles), fries - $5 I'm blanking on the final price of the double double meal - the burger, fries, and drink, but it's $5 something. In high school this is something I knew to exact change. Animal style just means sauteed onions rather than raw, extra sauce, and pickles (but I hate pickles). So really I just do it for the onions. In-N-Out still holds the undisputed fast food burger crown, and there's no one even in the same ballpark. Can a puma challenge a lion for the throne of the jungle? The answer is no. I wish they had one on Comm Ave.

Baker Street Bistro

November 14, 2004

Ahrie visited the bay area for a little bit during the weeks before school, and I met up with her and Danielle for a day. Here's a dinner at Baker Street Bistro.

potato leek soup

beef cheek with parsnip puree

chocolate mousse I hadn't been to this place for probably a couple years (before I went to college). Baker Street Bistro is the definition of a small neighborhood French joint: friendly, laid-back, reliable, and consistent. It's been around for a long time, and I must say it is probably one of the best values in the city. The 3 items I had were part of a prix fixe special for a mere $14.50. For a good proper 3 course dinner and excellent food, that kind of price is hard to beat. The soup was very solid, and I pretty much licked the bowl clean using some bread. The beef cheek was amazingly tender and flavorful, and the parsnip definitely added some kick. I kinda forgot what a parsnip was when I saw it. It must have been a long time since I've had it, but the horseradishy taste was a nice complement to the beef. The chocolate mousse was okay, but a little too sweet for my taste. Do note that the place is a great deal even when you order a la carte - most of the mains are around $11 or $12. For lunch, it's an even more amazing deal.

The Slanted Door

November 12, 2004

Well, it has officially started snowing here in the soon to be frozen tundra of Boston. But what better to make one think of sunny California than food pictures? Well, at least the food eaten during that sunny California weather... Here's another trip to the new Slanted Door, this time with my mom, Auntie Cathy, Auntie Margie and the Chus.

green papaya salad - $7

barbecued willis ranch pork ribs with honey-hoisin sauce - $10.50

spicy japanese eggplant - $9

pan-seared alaskan halibut with spicy ginger fish sauce - $19.50

grilled australian free range lamb rack with crispy potatoes and tamarind sauce - $26.50

mesquite-grilled porkchops with ginger-soy-shallot sauce and crispy potatoes - $18.50 Got to try a lot more different stuff on the menu this time, and it was pretty good. The papaya salad was very refreshing and tasty. Pork ribs were alright, but honestly didn't taste much different than your average bbq rib (which I guess isn't a bad thing). The eggplant was great - I think this place is really quite good at making use of seasonal fresh vegetables. All of the vegetable sides I've had have been wonderful. The halibut was good but not that memorable. The two meat dishes were massive. Personally, I preferred the porkchops. They were moist and tender, which is often a problem with huge porkchop dishes. I won't lie though - if I go back again, I'll get the shaking beef.

Mo's

November 7, 2004

I wasn't in SF for too long, but I of course had to make the requisite trip to Mo's.

alpine burger - sauteed mushrooms and gruyere - $7.75 Excellent as usual. This is truly one of the places you must hit if you go to San Francisco. I really have yet to have a burger anywhere that can beat Mo's. They grind their own meat and grill it perfectly. When you order it medium rare it actually comes bloody. And, to my complete surprise, the prices have actually gone down since the last time I went. The alpine burger used to be over $8. I also highly recommend the belly buster burger.

Curbside Cafe

November 5, 2004

Here's the first meal I had in SF after getting back from Asia. I went to Curbside Cafe on California with my mom for brunch.

chorizo and eggs - $9 This place is pretty reliable for a decent breakfast. Chorizo and eggs is one of my favorite combos... it's the ideal sausage/egg since it has a slight hint of spice. The tortillas are corn but not totally fresh. Still, very addictive to go with the dish.

Chaya Brasserie

August 28, 2004

Last dinner in SF before my trip to Asia was at Chaya Brasserie, a fusion Japanese/Western place originally from So Cal. They have a full sushi bar which is pretty good.

crispy dungeness crab cake, chiffonade salad, red bell pepper coulis & chili olive oil

filet mignon with sonoma foie gras, potato filled soba crepes, sauce perigeux Don't have the exact prices, but I remember the crab cake was in the mid-high teens and the steak was in the mid 30s. This place is expensive at dinnertime. Food was all good though... Crab cake wasn't quite as good as the one I had at Houston's a while ago, but still tasty in its own right. Less crab in it, but a nice crunch. The steak was good. Piece of foie gras was interesting... a little crispy on the outside. The potato soba thing was really good. Interesting twist on the potato side dish required for all steaks I guess. This place is a much better deal during lunch time.

Kappa

August 27, 2004

Second to last meal before my trip to Asia was at Kappa, a little gem in Japantown.

sashimi - toro, hamachi, tai, uni

marinated sea snails

grilled cod

crab croquette

blackskin pork tonkatsu

yuba tofu with daikon I think this place mostly serves Japanese people. It's a tiny place above the Denny's in Japantown. Sorry - no prices; there's no English menu or anything, but it's pretty expensive. Anyway, the food is great. Probably the best Japanese food in the city. The sashimi is always good stuff. The menu constantly changes and they always have something new/interesting. The sea snails were a first for me - interesting rubbery texture (more chewy than a typical escargot), but pretty good. The black cod was simple but well done. The fried items are excellent. The crab croquette is searing hot and delicious inside - creamy and crabby. The tonkatsu is made using blackskin pigs. Extremely moist and tender, which is a problem for most pork served nowadays it seems. Yuba with daikon was very refreshing and cleansing, if that makes any sense. Anyway, give it a try if you can... If you know someone that speaks Japanese, that would probably make it easier, but don't be scared. :P

LuLu

August 25, 2004

Went to LuLu for a nice lunch.

antipasti - roasted beets with walnut and ricotta salata, country pate with stone ground mustard and crostini, corn, fava beans and arugula with pecorino fiore sardo - $14.50

iron skillet roasted mussels with drawn butter - $12.50

grilled salmon with chopped eggs, capers and watercress on ciabatta - $10.95

lemon thyme gnocchi with red torpedo onions, snap peas, chanterelles and parmesan - $15.95 Place is still good overall. The way the appetizer plate works is that they have a big list of different ones and you get to pick three. We consistently pick the beet salad and it is always great. The mussels were good as usual; simply prepared but delicious. The salmon sandwich and gnocchi were both okay, but a little boring... I think LuLu does much better with its appetizers and small plates. Better entrees can be found elsewhere.