570 N Shoreline Blvd
Mountain View, CA
650-967-6166
$$
Now I'm pretty picky about my sushi, meaning that ever since I went to Tokyo, it's been really hard to top the excellent fish and presentations I experience there. Miyake's hasn't cut it at all and it's extremely painful to go to an expensive sushi restaurant in the Bay Area knowing you could be eating much better food for much less in Japan.
I think that I've found the perfect balance between price and appetite in Momoya Sushi. Located a short drive from Stanford campus, Kara and Chris had been telling me to go there for ages, but it's something that's always fallen off my radar screen. Luckily, with finals over and everyone heading home, Kara organized a group outing to Momoyas.
The food: plentiful, tasty, and reasonably price. I got some nice cuts of sashimi and shrimp tempura, along with miso soup and a salad for $15. I also got a "Dynamite" Roll, one of their many specialty rolls - this one was deep fried tuna sushi. The roll I got came with 6 pieces and they were quite large; well worth the $6. There was a mix of food in our 8 person group - from beef katsu to chicken domburi to numerous rolls. Ahh, so about those rolls. Each roll came with 6 to 8 pieces and the chefs did not hold back on using large pieces of fish, avocado, crab, etc to make them. Really fresh ingredients and presented nicely on traditional Japanese dishes.
Besides the excellent food, I found the service quick excellent. Tom jokingly said that he would storm out of the restaurant and go to Jack-n-the-Box across the street if the waitress did not greet us by saying "Konbawa." Even though she didn't, he stayed and enjoyed himself and the waitress proved to be extremely nice, filling our water consistently and also giving us some salmon skin rolls on the house. Definitely one of the best sushi restaurants I've been to around the area. You can spend $15-20 and be sufficiently full!
Saturday, December 16, 2006
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
If you ever going to NY
I've been planning for a trip to NY for this winter break. The Big Three of my main foodie sites that I've been using to plan all of my restaurant adventures:
- www.chowhound.com
- www.yelp.com
-www.menupages.com
How I find my food:
Step 1) stalk random New Yorkers' food blogs for good restaurant recommendations
Step 2) Cross-reference restaurants on Chowhound and Yelp for reviews.
Step 3) If 75% of ppl or more give the restaurants a thumbs up, then I go to the final stage of clicking on Menupages to check the prices and selections.
The site www.menupages.com is beyond awesome. It has the full menu (sometimes no lunch menu though) of 99% restaurant in New York, including some of the tiny Chinatown diners. That is comprehensive! I now know exactly how much I'm going to spend on every meal. Of course this can be sad too when you don't have any new surprises when you open that menu in the actual restaurant, but totally awesome for the obsessive foodie like me.
- www.chowhound.com
- www.yelp.com
-www.menupages.com
How I find my food:
Step 1) stalk random New Yorkers' food blogs for good restaurant recommendations
Step 2) Cross-reference restaurants on Chowhound and Yelp for reviews.
Step 3) If 75% of ppl or more give the restaurants a thumbs up, then I go to the final stage of clicking on Menupages to check the prices and selections.
The site www.menupages.com is beyond awesome. It has the full menu (sometimes no lunch menu though) of 99% restaurant in New York, including some of the tiny Chinatown diners. That is comprehensive! I now know exactly how much I'm going to spend on every meal. Of course this can be sad too when you don't have any new surprises when you open that menu in the actual restaurant, but totally awesome for the obsessive foodie like me.
Tapas Bar
Tapas Bar
Location: Palo Alto
Price: $$- $$$
So the other night, Reid strongly encouraged us to go to Tapas, a new restaurant in Palo Alto (replaced Pasta Pomerdero) next to Classico Gelato. He had gone a while back with relatives and must've quite liked it because everytime we wondered where to eat, he would throw it out there....and get thwarted, until this time when he had the final decisionmaking say. Anyhoo, my final opinion on the place is that it was pretty yummy, but I wouldn't go there more than...once every 4 months or so.
That's not a bad review. Some of the food we got was really good--the two best dishes they have are their bruschettas and their duck tacos. The duck tacos were so good we got two of them. But other than that, the other dishes weren't outstanding and there weren't many other selections. Also for a tapas place, they only had red sangria, not white, and from the way they mixed their drinks based on a martini I got, it's a little overly potent.
The ambience is typical of the higher end Palo Alto cafes, and the location is great when you want to do the triumvurate dinner, gelato, and an art house movie across the street. It's basically a typical Palo Alto restaurant where everything is decent-good but nothing will make it a favorite restaurant to frequently go back to. It's on the pricey side, but if you stick to 4 dishes or so, it's affordable for 2 ppl for a nice night out. I'd go back for more duck tapas and bruschettas, but it's one of those things you can only crave every so often.
Location: Palo Alto
Price: $$- $$$
So the other night, Reid strongly encouraged us to go to Tapas, a new restaurant in Palo Alto (replaced Pasta Pomerdero) next to Classico Gelato. He had gone a while back with relatives and must've quite liked it because everytime we wondered where to eat, he would throw it out there....and get thwarted, until this time when he had the final decisionmaking say. Anyhoo, my final opinion on the place is that it was pretty yummy, but I wouldn't go there more than...once every 4 months or so.
That's not a bad review. Some of the food we got was really good--the two best dishes they have are their bruschettas and their duck tacos. The duck tacos were so good we got two of them. But other than that, the other dishes weren't outstanding and there weren't many other selections. Also for a tapas place, they only had red sangria, not white, and from the way they mixed their drinks based on a martini I got, it's a little overly potent.
The ambience is typical of the higher end Palo Alto cafes, and the location is great when you want to do the triumvurate dinner, gelato, and an art house movie across the street. It's basically a typical Palo Alto restaurant where everything is decent-good but nothing will make it a favorite restaurant to frequently go back to. It's on the pricey side, but if you stick to 4 dishes or so, it's affordable for 2 ppl for a nice night out. I'd go back for more duck tapas and bruschettas, but it's one of those things you can only crave every so often.
Thai Cottage II
Thai Cottage II
Location: Sugar Land, TX
Price: $
Just a quick note here- if you ever go to Sugar Land, TX. Please go to Thai Cottage at lunch, my penultimate favorite restuarant of all time and get the PRINCESS CHICKEN dish. That's it, nothing else. I dream of this dish all year long. Not that the other dishes aren't good, but this is the best. Also get yummy Thai soup and 2 fantastic spring rolls for the lovely price of $5.95 including tax.
The decor is great, the ambience is fantastic, and well located next to all the stores in Sugar Land. Support Thai Cottage!
Location: Sugar Land, TX
Price: $
Just a quick note here- if you ever go to Sugar Land, TX. Please go to Thai Cottage at lunch, my penultimate favorite restuarant of all time and get the PRINCESS CHICKEN dish. That's it, nothing else. I dream of this dish all year long. Not that the other dishes aren't good, but this is the best. Also get yummy Thai soup and 2 fantastic spring rolls for the lovely price of $5.95 including tax.
The decor is great, the ambience is fantastic, and well located next to all the stores in Sugar Land. Support Thai Cottage!
Loon Wah
Loon Wah
Dim sum for 2: $25
Yuuuuuum. I've been trying to convince Reid, and anybody else to come here for the past year and ahalf. He was a little skeptical at the beginning after reading some online reviews that were not the most *glowing* but after the meal, was a big fan. I am definitely an online review believer too but it's restaurants like these that make me take pause and figure it's better to take a risk and try anything once.
Anyways, we got all the usual favorites- shrimp shu mai, bbq pork buns, shrimp rice noodles, turnip cakes, some kind of shrimp dumpling, and fried shrimp balls. The restaurant also specializes in Mandarin dim sum too. Now before you sputter that there is no such thing as that, just think of the comfort basics like hot sweet soy milk and pan-fried bread. The soy milk was FANTASTIC, better than alot of the ones I've had in Northern China, the pan fried bread was good comfort food, and everything else was in top shape. I have to give a special shout out to the bbq pork buns which are better than most of the other ones I've had in the Bay Area thus far. The only misfire was the weird shrimp dumplings which had some weird stuffing in them, guess we ordered the wrong ones.
Decor is fair to good for a Chinese dim sum restaurant, service was efficient, wish they had done the carts rather than ordering off a menu, but it was nice to get all the plates at once too so we could dig in.
Also just a 20 minute drive from Stanford, closest dim sum restaurant yet, and conveniently located across the street from a Nob Hill which has good organic higher-end food, including the best Cotswald cheese and apple sausages I've ever tasted. End Yummmmmmmmmm.
Dim sum for 2: $25
Yuuuuuum. I've been trying to convince Reid, and anybody else to come here for the past year and ahalf. He was a little skeptical at the beginning after reading some online reviews that were not the most *glowing* but after the meal, was a big fan. I am definitely an online review believer too but it's restaurants like these that make me take pause and figure it's better to take a risk and try anything once.
Anyways, we got all the usual favorites- shrimp shu mai, bbq pork buns, shrimp rice noodles, turnip cakes, some kind of shrimp dumpling, and fried shrimp balls. The restaurant also specializes in Mandarin dim sum too. Now before you sputter that there is no such thing as that, just think of the comfort basics like hot sweet soy milk and pan-fried bread. The soy milk was FANTASTIC, better than alot of the ones I've had in Northern China, the pan fried bread was good comfort food, and everything else was in top shape. I have to give a special shout out to the bbq pork buns which are better than most of the other ones I've had in the Bay Area thus far. The only misfire was the weird shrimp dumplings which had some weird stuffing in them, guess we ordered the wrong ones.
Decor is fair to good for a Chinese dim sum restaurant, service was efficient, wish they had done the carts rather than ordering off a menu, but it was nice to get all the plates at once too so we could dig in.
Also just a 20 minute drive from Stanford, closest dim sum restaurant yet, and conveniently located across the street from a Nob Hill which has good organic higher-end food, including the best Cotswald cheese and apple sausages I've ever tasted. End Yummmmmmmmmm.
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
L&L Hawaiian BBQ
3890 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, CA 94306
650-858-2878
$
L&L Hawaiian BBQ, a chain fastfood restaurant that has a niche market in the Hawaiian food business, recently opened up a small shop down the street from Stanford, and having spent many vacations in Hawaii eating so-called "Hawaiian" food, I knew I had to take Jenny there to expose her to this unique cuisine.
It did not disappoint. For those of you who haven't had Hawaiian BBQ before, let me warn you that it is not for small eaters, vegetarians, or health conscious dieters. Their menu is either meat or seafood. Highlights include chicken katsu, a breaded chicken cutlet with katsu sauce to dip in (tastes like a better version of sweet and sour sauce), or the Hawaiian BBQ mix, which includes Hawaiian beef, chicken, and shortribs. Each dish comes with white rice and macaroni salad. The dishes portions are huge, so for $4.25, the mini-plates will still sufficiently stuff one person. Be sure to also get one of the Hawaiian Sun brand juices - guava is my favorite. They go great with the food.
Bottom line: If you're hungry, come here. If you're looking for quick, cheap food, come here. If you're looking to impress a date, skip it - the styrofoam trays aren't incredibly romantic.
650-858-2878
$
L&L Hawaiian BBQ, a chain fastfood restaurant that has a niche market in the Hawaiian food business, recently opened up a small shop down the street from Stanford, and having spent many vacations in Hawaii eating so-called "Hawaiian" food, I knew I had to take Jenny there to expose her to this unique cuisine.
It did not disappoint. For those of you who haven't had Hawaiian BBQ before, let me warn you that it is not for small eaters, vegetarians, or health conscious dieters. Their menu is either meat or seafood. Highlights include chicken katsu, a breaded chicken cutlet with katsu sauce to dip in (tastes like a better version of sweet and sour sauce), or the Hawaiian BBQ mix, which includes Hawaiian beef, chicken, and shortribs. Each dish comes with white rice and macaroni salad. The dishes portions are huge, so for $4.25, the mini-plates will still sufficiently stuff one person. Be sure to also get one of the Hawaiian Sun brand juices - guava is my favorite. They go great with the food.
Bottom line: If you're hungry, come here. If you're looking for quick, cheap food, come here. If you're looking to impress a date, skip it - the styrofoam trays aren't incredibly romantic.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Il Fornaio
Yummy but not amazing. The lamb risotto that Reid got was especially flavorful, although it's rather asian in taste. My sausage ravioli was good too, rather thin, not puffy like i had been craving. maybe the best part was dessert, zambioni cream with berries and sorbet in a martini glass. Mmm.
All in all, a good restaurant with a nice atmosphere, but rather pricy. Osteria still reigns as our Italian restaurants of choice in downtown Palo Alto. But maybe we'll walk on over here for dessert.
All in all, a good restaurant with a nice atmosphere, but rather pricy. Osteria still reigns as our Italian restaurants of choice in downtown Palo Alto. But maybe we'll walk on over here for dessert.
Friday, August 11, 2006
If You're In Shanghai...
Yes, alot of these are very ex-pat-friendly but still very very good.
Things You Must Do:
1) Go to the 7th floor bar terrace of '3 On the Bund' at night and get a 60 yuan cocktail (cheapest they have) and check out the view. It's such a chill environment there, and it's quite a thrilling experience. You may have to reserve a table if you're planning to go on Friday or Saturday, since there's bound to be alot of people there. 8621-6321-0909
2) Go to Pudong Science High-Tech Park at night. You can get there on Subway Line 2, and walk around, beautiful landscaping and architecture. There's also a symphony hall if you want to buy tickets for a concert beforehand.
3) Go to the Shanghai Museum, especially the first floor sculpture exhibitions.
4) Go to Duo Lun Lu in the HongKou area, the street looks like Shanghai in the 1930's, very serene, hardly any foreigners, sells lots of arts-related things. Even an Old Film Cafe showing Chinese movies from the 1930's and such.
Best Clubs and Bars:
Face Bar- Ruijin Guest House, 118 Ruijin Er Road. Get a feel for the French Concession area where there's lots of historic houses and beautiful parks.
Fuxing Park- 3 different clubs around there, go there to see the beautiful Shanghainese girls and really ugly Shanghainese guys
Cloud 9- Jin Mao Tower in Pudong- gorgeous bar and view from the top of all of Shanghai
Hengshan Lu- a bar street. Zapata's is one of the better known around there.
Best Restaurants:
- WuJiangLu- good xiao chi street in the city, with really good shen jian at Xiao Yang Shen Jian (on a big yellow placard). You can get there on Subway Line 2, stop at Shimen Yi Lu, it's right outside exit 2.
- Prime Taste- In XuJiaHui (you can get there on subway line 1), on third floor of Metro City Mall (the big round ball looking building), really good Singaporean restaurant for pretty cheap (30 yuan per dish, definbitely fills you up, good for lunch)
- Chatea- best red bean shaved ice and cold drinks in the city, something I sorely missed in Beijing after coming to Shanghai during national week, you can find Chatea in just about every shopping area in the city.
- Din Tai Feng in XinTianDi-- its xiaolongbao are better than Nanxiang although the pricers are much steeper (like 50 yuan for 8 xiaolongbao). Beautiful restaurant. Go there with a group of people and it gets much cheaper to order alot of food and not go over 50 yuan each per person.
- Shanghainese food, go to Shanghai Uncle, pretty pricey but very worth it. They have fantastic ribs that melt in your mouth and river shrimp that's unique to Shanghai and far better than any other shrimp I've tasted. Again a place to go with a large group.
- Gintei- all you can order Japanese restaurant for 150 yuan. Probably the best thing about Shanghai are these all you can order buffets that have amazingly quality dishes and all you can drink wine, beer and sake. Very close to XinTianDi. Address is B1-A,Shanghai Times Square, 99 Huaihai Zhong Road. Definitely reserve a table first. Telephone: 63918105
- Azul is a fantastic Spanish tapas place. Located next to Hengshan Lu, the bar street. Address 18 Dongping Road. Call 6433 1172 to reserve. Recommend the calamari. Highly recommend the large pitcher of peach sangria, very light but quite potent bc you want to just keep on drinking it. Don't order too much bc this place is pricey, and the portions are huge anyway.
- Da Marco- supposedly the best Italian restaurant in town. All the Italian ex-pats love going there. There's one in Yandang Lu, which is really close to XinTianDi.
Things You Must Do:
1) Go to the 7th floor bar terrace of '3 On the Bund' at night and get a 60 yuan cocktail (cheapest they have) and check out the view. It's such a chill environment there, and it's quite a thrilling experience. You may have to reserve a table if you're planning to go on Friday or Saturday, since there's bound to be alot of people there. 8621-6321-0909
2) Go to Pudong Science High-Tech Park at night. You can get there on Subway Line 2, and walk around, beautiful landscaping and architecture. There's also a symphony hall if you want to buy tickets for a concert beforehand.
3) Go to the Shanghai Museum, especially the first floor sculpture exhibitions.
4) Go to Duo Lun Lu in the HongKou area, the street looks like Shanghai in the 1930's, very serene, hardly any foreigners, sells lots of arts-related things. Even an Old Film Cafe showing Chinese movies from the 1930's and such.
Best Clubs and Bars:
Face Bar- Ruijin Guest House, 118 Ruijin Er Road. Get a feel for the French Concession area where there's lots of historic houses and beautiful parks.
Fuxing Park- 3 different clubs around there, go there to see the beautiful Shanghainese girls and really ugly Shanghainese guys
Cloud 9- Jin Mao Tower in Pudong- gorgeous bar and view from the top of all of Shanghai
Hengshan Lu- a bar street. Zapata's is one of the better known around there.
Best Restaurants:
- WuJiangLu- good xiao chi street in the city, with really good shen jian at Xiao Yang Shen Jian (on a big yellow placard). You can get there on Subway Line 2, stop at Shimen Yi Lu, it's right outside exit 2.
- Prime Taste- In XuJiaHui (you can get there on subway line 1), on third floor of Metro City Mall (the big round ball looking building), really good Singaporean restaurant for pretty cheap (30 yuan per dish, definbitely fills you up, good for lunch)
- Chatea- best red bean shaved ice and cold drinks in the city, something I sorely missed in Beijing after coming to Shanghai during national week, you can find Chatea in just about every shopping area in the city.
- Din Tai Feng in XinTianDi-- its xiaolongbao are better than Nanxiang although the pricers are much steeper (like 50 yuan for 8 xiaolongbao). Beautiful restaurant. Go there with a group of people and it gets much cheaper to order alot of food and not go over 50 yuan each per person.
- Shanghainese food, go to Shanghai Uncle, pretty pricey but very worth it. They have fantastic ribs that melt in your mouth and river shrimp that's unique to Shanghai and far better than any other shrimp I've tasted. Again a place to go with a large group.
- Gintei- all you can order Japanese restaurant for 150 yuan. Probably the best thing about Shanghai are these all you can order buffets that have amazingly quality dishes and all you can drink wine, beer and sake. Very close to XinTianDi. Address is B1-A,Shanghai Times Square, 99 Huaihai Zhong Road. Definitely reserve a table first. Telephone: 63918105
- Azul is a fantastic Spanish tapas place. Located next to Hengshan Lu, the bar street. Address 18 Dongping Road. Call 6433 1172 to reserve. Recommend the calamari. Highly recommend the large pitcher of peach sangria, very light but quite potent bc you want to just keep on drinking it. Don't order too much bc this place is pricey, and the portions are huge anyway.
- Da Marco- supposedly the best Italian restaurant in town. All the Italian ex-pats love going there. There's one in Yandang Lu, which is really close to XinTianDi.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Stacks = Best Breakfast
Stacks - 600 Santa Cruz, Menlo Park, CA
http://www.stacksrestaurant.com/
I've been to Stacks four times, but I still feel like a novice coming here, since their menu is filled with so many options! Belgian waffles, crepes, pancakes, omelettes, etc etc etc. Arrive early or make a reservation, since there is always a crowd here, especially on weekends.
I'd personally recommend the Crab Crepe, which has fresh crab meat stuffed inside a savory crepe and topped with Hollandaise sauce. Or try any of their Belgian waffles with thick whipped creme on top. Or the applewood bacon/avocado omelette. Or the Lox Scram. I think you could close your eyes and pick something and I'd be excellent.
So go here.
http://www.stacksrestaurant.com/
I've been to Stacks four times, but I still feel like a novice coming here, since their menu is filled with so many options! Belgian waffles, crepes, pancakes, omelettes, etc etc etc. Arrive early or make a reservation, since there is always a crowd here, especially on weekends.
I'd personally recommend the Crab Crepe, which has fresh crab meat stuffed inside a savory crepe and topped with Hollandaise sauce. Or try any of their Belgian waffles with thick whipped creme on top. Or the applewood bacon/avocado omelette. Or the Lox Scram. I think you could close your eyes and pick something and I'd be excellent.
So go here.
Soused Shrimp
Shanghai Uncle
Price: $$$
Address: By the Bund, google the name :D
Everything was excellent. There were too many dishes to remember, so I'll talk about my most memorable dish: soused shrimp! It's a dish of live shrimp who get drunk off the sauce, and so they won't move around much when you pick them up and eat them. They were so fresh and yum. (granted I only had one, had a bit of trouble getting over the being alive aspect) Anyways this restaurant is awesome, highly recommended for anyone who wants one proper dinner in Shanghai.
Price: $$$
Address: By the Bund, google the name :D
Everything was excellent. There were too many dishes to remember, so I'll talk about my most memorable dish: soused shrimp! It's a dish of live shrimp who get drunk off the sauce, and so they won't move around much when you pick them up and eat them. They were so fresh and yum. (granted I only had one, had a bit of trouble getting over the being alive aspect) Anyways this restaurant is awesome, highly recommended for anyone who wants one proper dinner in Shanghai.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
$1 Boba!
It's true. Right next to the cluster of Asian restaurants on Durant, are two competing boba stores that have bargained their boba down to $.49! Ah yes, but the catch is that with tax it comes to $.64. And if you want pearl's it becomes $1.19. But, it's such a deal! You can get either the regular milk tea or Jasmine green tea. And it's good too. I guess it's not that hard to make Pearl Milk Tea in the first place, though.
Thai Basil
2519 Durant Ave, Berkeley, CA
I was at Berkeley this Saturday for a meeting and grabbed lunch in the infamous Asian ghetto (Lee calls it a Grotto) where there's a small cluster of Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and boba restaurants. Thai Basil was the one I checked out today and I was quite impressed. I ordered the Pad Thai, a traditional favorite at Thai restaurants, but for a price of $6.30 with tax and a more than ample plate of noodles, chicken, egg, bean sprouts, and prawns, it was definitely worth every cent. The food is cooked fresh and unlike most restaurants in Berkeley that take only cash, Thai Basil takes credit card! The menu is cheap but the portions and quality of food is excellent. I caught sign of a bunch of "Best of Berkeley" awards posted on the door, and the food certainly confirmed that. We ate there for lunch and it was packed by the time we left; always a sign of a good restaurant. It's not the most romantic place to eat, but if you're on a budget or looking for something quick to grab, Thai Basil is you place.
I was at Berkeley this Saturday for a meeting and grabbed lunch in the infamous Asian ghetto (Lee calls it a Grotto) where there's a small cluster of Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and boba restaurants. Thai Basil was the one I checked out today and I was quite impressed. I ordered the Pad Thai, a traditional favorite at Thai restaurants, but for a price of $6.30 with tax and a more than ample plate of noodles, chicken, egg, bean sprouts, and prawns, it was definitely worth every cent. The food is cooked fresh and unlike most restaurants in Berkeley that take only cash, Thai Basil takes credit card! The menu is cheap but the portions and quality of food is excellent. I caught sign of a bunch of "Best of Berkeley" awards posted on the door, and the food certainly confirmed that. We ate there for lunch and it was packed by the time we left; always a sign of a good restaurant. It's not the most romantic place to eat, but if you're on a budget or looking for something quick to grab, Thai Basil is you place.
Monday, July 10, 2006
1221
[exerpt from an email I wrote Reid]
I went out with Jon to dinner tonight. So first we were set on this one restaurant called 1221 that was in all the guidebooks. It's on the other side of town, and it took us both quite a bit of time to find the place. It's this very suspect spot that's in almost a back alley with a unprofessional-looking entrance, but I'm sure it was the spot we were looking for because everyone inside was either white or with someone white. Sadly we were turned away bc we hadn't made a reservation ahead of time, even though most of the tables were empty! Agh, I had no idea so many restaurants in Shanghai these days need a reservation. That seems very unchinese. Anyways, I took Jon to my favorite japanese restaurant and we stuffed ourselves silly there. By the end, we were looking at the tables on both sides of us, and one had delicious smells of shabu-shabu meating wafting at us, and the other table was happily slurping on udon noodles. Both looked incredibly tempting but by then we were on the verge of bursting. Jon was very conscientious; he ate all the chicken and steak pieces even though we had ordered too much and didn't want them anymore. Man, he's a restauranteur's dream.
Bottomline: Although we never had the chance to try it, 1221 is likely not good judging by the lack of local Chinese customers, the three customers who were there at peak dining hours, and the fact that they were all tourists who were lured there (as we were) by guide book dining suggestions.
I went out with Jon to dinner tonight. So first we were set on this one restaurant called 1221 that was in all the guidebooks. It's on the other side of town, and it took us both quite a bit of time to find the place. It's this very suspect spot that's in almost a back alley with a unprofessional-looking entrance, but I'm sure it was the spot we were looking for because everyone inside was either white or with someone white. Sadly we were turned away bc we hadn't made a reservation ahead of time, even though most of the tables were empty! Agh, I had no idea so many restaurants in Shanghai these days need a reservation. That seems very unchinese. Anyways, I took Jon to my favorite japanese restaurant and we stuffed ourselves silly there. By the end, we were looking at the tables on both sides of us, and one had delicious smells of shabu-shabu meating wafting at us, and the other table was happily slurping on udon noodles. Both looked incredibly tempting but by then we were on the verge of bursting. Jon was very conscientious; he ate all the chicken and steak pieces even though we had ordered too much and didn't want them anymore. Man, he's a restauranteur's dream.
Bottomline: Although we never had the chance to try it, 1221 is likely not good judging by the lack of local Chinese customers, the three customers who were there at peak dining hours, and the fact that they were all tourists who were lured there (as we were) by guide book dining suggestions.
Chatea
Red bean shaved ice
Address: all the trendy shopping areas
Price: 29 RMB
Chatea is a chain restaurant in Shanghai that I have mixed feelings about. I've come here once for dim sum and was not at all impressed. In addition, their service is fairly inattentive and all of their restaurants have a trend of being very dark almost to the point of feeling cavernous. However, they make fantastic cold drinks (albeit pricey ones), and featured here, the best red bean shaved ice concoction that I've had in Shanghai. This shaved ice is huge! About a foot tall. And it's incredibly flavorful compared to other ones that I've tried. Some people might wince at the 29 yuan price for a cold snack, but it's meant to be shared by two or three people. I tried to finish one by myself, and got 3/4 down before I had to admit defeat.
Address: all the trendy shopping areas
Price: 29 RMB
Chatea is a chain restaurant in Shanghai that I have mixed feelings about. I've come here once for dim sum and was not at all impressed. In addition, their service is fairly inattentive and all of their restaurants have a trend of being very dark almost to the point of feeling cavernous. However, they make fantastic cold drinks (albeit pricey ones), and featured here, the best red bean shaved ice concoction that I've had in Shanghai. This shaved ice is huge! About a foot tall. And it's incredibly flavorful compared to other ones that I've tried. Some people might wince at the 29 yuan price for a cold snack, but it's meant to be shared by two or three people. I tried to finish one by myself, and got 3/4 down before I had to admit defeat.
Home cooking!
I do miss going out to eat with Reid who not only likes food almost as much as I do but he also gets excited about writing these reviews and reminds me to do them.
After three weeks in Shanghai now, it's starting to get a little boring enjoying food by myself. That's why I'm very happy I live with a host family. They're absolutely wonderful people who invite me to dinner every night. And I do join them every now and then; it's a relief to not always ponder where I'm going to go for my next meal. It's nice to eat at a family table again. Usually my host grandma makes four dishes plus a soup. And invariably it's something delicious that I will never be able find in restaurants.
[Tomato and egg soup, green peas, bitter melon with pork, braised short ribs, a vegetable that I've never heard of before, and edamame beans with dried fish]
Hehe every night, I can always expect my host mom to come into my room and hand me a plate of fruit too. Oh I'm getting too spoiled here.
After three weeks in Shanghai now, it's starting to get a little boring enjoying food by myself. That's why I'm very happy I live with a host family. They're absolutely wonderful people who invite me to dinner every night. And I do join them every now and then; it's a relief to not always ponder where I'm going to go for my next meal. It's nice to eat at a family table again. Usually my host grandma makes four dishes plus a soup. And invariably it's something delicious that I will never be able find in restaurants.
[Tomato and egg soup, green peas, bitter melon with pork, braised short ribs, a vegetable that I've never heard of before, and edamame beans with dried fish]
Hehe every night, I can always expect my host mom to come into my room and hand me a plate of fruit too. Oh I'm getting too spoiled here.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Misc. Shanghai Yummies
Mango and Taro Ice Cream Scoops
Address: Inside Raffles Shopping Mall, Ren Min Guang Chang
Price: 5 RMB
Chocaccino
Address: TZG office
Price: 0
Bento Lunch- Pepper spareribs over rice + soup
Address: Free Delivery!
Price: 12 RMB
Banana Chocholate Crepe
Address: Basement of Trust-Mart, my neighborhood supermarket
Price: 12 RMB
Din Tai Feng
After hearing how sad Reid feels about Manz dining, I feel rather evil posting up pictures of all the food I've been eating, but since our only reader seems to want pictures, up they go! I have been getting much odd looks from neighboring diners who are wondering who is that girl eating and taking pictures by herself, so I hope the efforts are appreciated.
Din Tai Feng
Address: Xin Tian Di, the very back building, second floor
Price: ooh quite pricey- 100 rmb at the very least
This restaurant is part of a chain in Taiwan but it's been much touted in the NYTimes and other news sources as being a completely undiluted source of tasty xiao long bao. Its location in Xin Tian Di is beautiful and spotless, and the service is one of the finest I've had in China. I felt so at home and comfortable here, and best of all the xiao long bao were just as good as people said, the best I've had in Shanghai so far. However, the other foods- the meat buns, and the drunken chicken in wine sauce-- were only ok and the prices did raise my eyebrows a bit. So I had a very "jia chang fan" or a comfort food meal for a rather expenisve price in China, but again, the restaurant won me over into believing that you pay for what you get, and that includes the setting and the service.
Din Tai Feng
Address: Xin Tian Di, the very back building, second floor
Price: ooh quite pricey- 100 rmb at the very least
This restaurant is part of a chain in Taiwan but it's been much touted in the NYTimes and other news sources as being a completely undiluted source of tasty xiao long bao. Its location in Xin Tian Di is beautiful and spotless, and the service is one of the finest I've had in China. I felt so at home and comfortable here, and best of all the xiao long bao were just as good as people said, the best I've had in Shanghai so far. However, the other foods- the meat buns, and the drunken chicken in wine sauce-- were only ok and the prices did raise my eyebrows a bit. So I had a very "jia chang fan" or a comfort food meal for a rather expenisve price in China, but again, the restaurant won me over into believing that you pay for what you get, and that includes the setting and the service.
On the homefront at Stanford...
Things have been quite tame at Stanford, since I've been just saving money and twiddling my thumbs, waiting for Jenny to come home before we can go on our food adventures together. I don't know about you, but reading about Jenny's experiences in China is sure making me jealous, because Manzanita Dining is certainly not as appealing. Excitement ensued yesterday for me when we got Cinnamon Toast Crunch for cereal! Yeah, I had two bowls of that for dinner, because nothing else was good.
Sigh.
Sigh.
Independence Day Pride
MSN's Top 10 American Foods
This article makes me feel so happy to be an American. Oh I forgot how wonderful American cuisine could be! Happy Independence Day!
This article makes me feel so happy to be an American. Oh I forgot how wonderful American cuisine could be! Happy Independence Day!
Monday, July 03, 2006
Happy sushi hangover
Kisshin Restaurant
Address: 1168 Nanjing Xi Lu, 2nd floor of mall
Price: 158 yuan
Hmm I've noticed that all the recent for the past couple of weeks have been mine. Reid's been very bad, or very good however you might see it, about going out to resturants. On the Shanghai front here, I'm reeling from a sushi hangover. I got the all-you-can-order deal from Kisshin, this sushi restaurant I've been planning to go to ever since I stepped foot on Shanghai soil, and last night, I finally couldn't wait anymore for someone to go with me and charged in there myself.
It was amazing! Two hours of all the handrolls, sashimi, shrimp tempura, teppan steak, grilled unagi, egg custard, gyozas, plum wine that I could eat. They were all wonderfully prepared and I definitely had my fill of all. My bottomless capacity for salmon, unagi, and uni seems to have finally been filled. The service was also nice and fast. The place is located next to my workplace...dangerous, oh so very dangerous.
Monday, June 26, 2006
Lao Ban Zhai
Lao Ban Zhai
600 Fu Zhou Lu
When I first came to Shanghai, I had scoured Chowhound, the NYTimes, and all other websites to find the must-go-to restaurants. This one was recommended by Chowhound, and so I took a fellow Stanford CEAS friend here.
In short, it was pretty bad. We ordered the braised eel that was recommended, a small garlic-stirfry vegetable dish, and a Mongolian beef. The beef was soaked in that spring-roll dipping sauce, and both the other two dishes were nothing special at all. The restaurant also closes by 8pm, which was the strangest thing.
600 Fu Zhou Lu
When I first came to Shanghai, I had scoured Chowhound, the NYTimes, and all other websites to find the must-go-to restaurants. This one was recommended by Chowhound, and so I took a fellow Stanford CEAS friend here.
In short, it was pretty bad. We ordered the braised eel that was recommended, a small garlic-stirfry vegetable dish, and a Mongolian beef. The beef was soaked in that spring-roll dipping sauce, and both the other two dishes were nothing special at all. The restaurant also closes by 8pm, which was the strangest thing.
Haagen-Daz Cafe in Shanghai
Haagen-Daz
Addres: Nanjing Lu, every other Shanghai popular shopping area
Haagen-Daz has gotten pretty innovative in China. They have created these beautiful looking ice cream pastrie dishes that even come in dim sum themes, Japanese bento themes. Their menu is absolutely beautiful, I was tempted to photograph every page. Unfortunately that was only because their ice cream doesn't look nearly that nice in real life. I ordered an Italian ice cream concoction that should've looked like a delicate French high-end dish, but it had a glop of ice cream here and there in a pool of strawberry syrup. The fruits accompanying the ice cream were also frozen. Happily, the passion fruit sorbet and ice cream scoops were actually quite good, but I had paid 72 RMB for the presentation, not for two small scoops of Haagen-Daz ice cream.
I would only recommend coming here to get regular Haagen-Daz ice cream cones, not their creations.
Chai Ze
Chai Ze
Address: Shi Men Yi Lu, next to the Four Seasons Hotel
Price: 20-40 RMB
Chinese Dining Lesson #1) Avoid lunch crowds, bring a book just in case, and also bring a camera to capture all the pretty food.
This cafe is next to where I worked. I came here on my first day of work for lunch. I honestly didn't know where any restaurants were, and so I tried the never-fail plan of following a large crowd to wherever they were going to lunch, which happened to be here.
The first impression was how lovely the cafe looked, with western small tables covered with white linen and lounge-styled chairs, and black marble walls. And best of all, they had Chinese rather than Western pop songs playing softly in the background. The size of the menu could give the Cheesecake Factory a run for their money. Unfortunately this restaurant did the one thing that I absolutely hate- seating someone else at my table. Now eating alone in restaurants is already quite uncomfortable with other people staring at you, but it's quite another level of awkwardness altogether when you have a man across the table from you who is either staring at you or determinedly looking anywhere but you. That day, I had forgotten to bring a book so I could only sit in silence with him while I waited for my food.
I got the curry fried rice with chicken (12 RMB) and a liang feng (8 RMB), or cold rice noodle cubes dish. The rice noodle dish was good, and the curry fried rice didn't quite have the curry taste, but the portions were both huge, and I also got complimentary soups and watermelon slices. So my huge lunch kept me happily occupied from having to look up at my across-the-table lunch partner. It all cost 23 RMB, or the equivalent of $3. Pretty nice.
I also came back here for dinner the next night, around 5pm when the restaurant was happily empty, and got their Beef with Onion on Stone Sizzler (36 RMB), plus a Cold Cucumber dish (8 RMB). Both were just ok, so overall I concluded that this restaurant is good if you're in the area and want a restaurant that's not too Chinese, but it's not a can't-miss Shanghai destination.
Reporting from Shanghai
I'm in Shanghai from June 21st til August 25th, so expect many many restaurant reports as I will be eating out most of the times. Happily, Reid will still continue eating his way through Norcal.
The first thing I did when I landed in Shanghai was scour through Chowhound, the NYTimes, and other food websites that mentioned good eats. I made my little list, and have been slowly trying all of them, as well as other places that happen along my way.
Xin Ji Shi
Address: Xin Tian Di, Building 9, #2
This place was recommended by the NYTimes. And it is EXCELLENT!
Backstory: I had gone to Xin Tian Di, the most notorious expat hangout in Shanghai, because I was craving a steak and a friend of mine had mentioned finding a good deal there the other day. However I hit up every restaurant and could not find this freakin holy grail slab of meat. Discouraged, I wandered around for a drink instead. It was happy hour when I arrived and everywhere was advertising half-priced drinks, so I bounced into one place, and tried a watermelon juice. The sticker price was 40 RMB and I thought, dang, 20 RMB for a small juice, that's still pricey. Terrible choice. The watermelon wasn't sweet at all, the size of the cup was tiny, and sadly, this one bar of all the bars in the area was NOT having happy hour. 40 RMB for a drink, omg. Now left with a bitter feeling towards all the Westernized overpriced restaurants in Xin Tian Di, I looked for the one Chinese restaurant that I had heard about.
The place is very small but intimate and has an authentic Chinese feel to it, which deserves praise since it easily could've gone the tacky commercialized route to cater to expats. Another wonderful thing was that they seated me right away even though I didn't have a reservation, and they didn't seat me with another person to save tables, which Chinese restaurants have no qualms about doing.
I ordered the Hong Shao Rou, or the braised red fatty meat, that the NY Times recommended (38 RMB), and also this Nuo Mi Hong Zao, gluttonous rice in Jujube (28 RMB) that was one of their more famous dishes. The meat was VERY good, not too oily and contained a good balance of fatty to lean meat.
The Jujubes were even better, it's one of the best new dishes that I've tried in China. The restaurant also provided two small appetizer plates of peanuts covered with dried seaweed which were fantastic, and edamame beans mixed with pickles. They provided a really good balance to the two heavy dishes. Each dish was fairly small, more than enough for one person, and perhaps just enough for two people.
The service was quick and efficient. Really the first little treasure that I've found here in Shanghai.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Colonel Lee's
Type: Mongolian Buffet
Location: 304 Castro St. (between California St. and Dana St.)
Price: $$
Rating: 6/10
Jenny and I decided to check out this restaurant to try something new on Castro Street [we always go to Pho). We went right before closing, so the restaurant was pretty quiet. To be honest, this restaurant just wasn't that good, and I feel bad saying that, since the people who ran it were so nice. Getting food is easy - you grab a bowl, fill it with lamb, beef, chicken, or pork, add some noodles and veggies, and an assortment of sauces (curry, spicy bbq, soy, or ginger) and give it to the chef who cooks it in front of you on a giant grill. So if your food is bad, it's your fault. I'd recommend going with the ginger/soy if you're looking for something with flavor but not too spicy.
But, besides the bowl of food, there's not much else. The buffet means you can get unlimited trips to the Mongolian stir line, but there's not much else you get. They give you some Chinese bread (not sure what it's called but it's nothing special), tea, and a bowl of rice. However, beer is $1 off everyday and you can get a 40 oz of Tsingdao for pretty cheap. And the buffet itself isn't too bad - about $10 per person after tax for dinner. So it's a cheap eat but I wouldn't come back here unless I hear that things have drastically improved.
Location: 304 Castro St. (between California St. and Dana St.)
Price: $$
Rating: 6/10
Jenny and I decided to check out this restaurant to try something new on Castro Street [we always go to Pho). We went right before closing, so the restaurant was pretty quiet. To be honest, this restaurant just wasn't that good, and I feel bad saying that, since the people who ran it were so nice. Getting food is easy - you grab a bowl, fill it with lamb, beef, chicken, or pork, add some noodles and veggies, and an assortment of sauces (curry, spicy bbq, soy, or ginger) and give it to the chef who cooks it in front of you on a giant grill. So if your food is bad, it's your fault. I'd recommend going with the ginger/soy if you're looking for something with flavor but not too spicy.
But, besides the bowl of food, there's not much else. The buffet means you can get unlimited trips to the Mongolian stir line, but there's not much else you get. They give you some Chinese bread (not sure what it's called but it's nothing special), tea, and a bowl of rice. However, beer is $1 off everyday and you can get a 40 oz of Tsingdao for pretty cheap. And the buffet itself isn't too bad - about $10 per person after tax for dinner. So it's a cheap eat but I wouldn't come back here unless I hear that things have drastically improved.
Saturday, June 17, 2006
Darbar's Lunch Buffet
I didn't go in with the highest of expectations because I love Darbar's regular menu and didn't think their lunch buffet was going to be up to par, but it was AMAZING. So much food and variety, and just the same quality as dinner. They give complementary nan, and their rice is as good as ever. The entrees include tandoori chicken, butter cauliflower, vindaloo chicken, the green/red sauces, etc etc etc. We ate our hearts out, and I swear I declared "OMG this is so good" at least three times. So the lunch fixed price is $8.99. Quite a bargain for all that food.
Sunday, June 11, 2006
[something something] Dumpling House
Location: Cupertino Village
Price: $$
Quality: Excellent!
Jenny and I went to check out this Shanghai style Chinese restaurant in Cupertino Village this weekend. Given that we had to wait 20 minutes for a table and that there were tons of Asian people in the restaurant, I knew we had come to the right place. Their dumplings were probably the best - you know, the kind with some sauce inside that you suck out before dipping it some soy/ginger sauce and then eating. The dumplings didn't break either, so I guess that's why they're so good. Anyway, so that was our appetizer. We then got some hot chicken with peanuts, beef with onion, and some shanghai style rice. I'm no expert on Chinese food, especially since Jenny did all of the ordering in Chinese, but the food was excellent and I would definitely recommend this place for anyone with a large or small group. We actually ran into a group of about 7 Stanford kids we knew. The beef was tender, the rice was tasty, and better yet, the tea was refilled quickly.
All in all, an excellent choice restaurant. Plus, the prices aren't bad - we paid about $30 (including tip) for 4 dishes. Oh, and if you pay with cash, you get 5% off your bill!
Price: $$
Quality: Excellent!
Jenny and I went to check out this Shanghai style Chinese restaurant in Cupertino Village this weekend. Given that we had to wait 20 minutes for a table and that there were tons of Asian people in the restaurant, I knew we had come to the right place. Their dumplings were probably the best - you know, the kind with some sauce inside that you suck out before dipping it some soy/ginger sauce and then eating. The dumplings didn't break either, so I guess that's why they're so good. Anyway, so that was our appetizer. We then got some hot chicken with peanuts, beef with onion, and some shanghai style rice. I'm no expert on Chinese food, especially since Jenny did all of the ordering in Chinese, but the food was excellent and I would definitely recommend this place for anyone with a large or small group. We actually ran into a group of about 7 Stanford kids we knew. The beef was tender, the rice was tasty, and better yet, the tea was refilled quickly.
All in all, an excellent choice restaurant. Plus, the prices aren't bad - we paid about $30 (including tip) for 4 dishes. Oh, and if you pay with cash, you get 5% off your bill!
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
Doh nvrmind
I agree with Reid, but don't come to Paxti's if you're starving. The last time we came, the 30-minute wait for the pizza seemed like eternity when you're seriously in need of some sustenance. The wait can be even longer than 30 minutes if the restaurant is busy. Unfortunately, the only other thing on their menu is salad, which doesn't offer much in hunger-alleving area. However, the wait is well worth it, so tough it out!
EDIT: Ummmm I just thoroughly read Reid's update on Patxi's again and realized my 2-cents was completely redundant. Off to remedial reading!
Paxti's Pizza
Location: 441 Emerson Street, Palo Alto, CA 94301
Phone: (650) 473-9999
Website: http://www.patxispizza.com/
If you're looking for great Chicago style (deep dish) pizza, look no further than Paxti's Pizza. If you're in a rush I would not recommend coming here, since it takes 30 minutes or more for them to make a pizza. You can get anything imaginable on your pizza - a favorite of mine is pesto, pepperoni, and mushroom. The ingredients are actually under the sauce, meaning this isn't your typical Dominos pizza. Even though a 10 inch pizza might seem small, it does feed 2 people because the crust is thick and there's so much cheese in it. For you lactose intolerant folks out there, Paxti's will use Soy Cheese for $1 extra, meaning anyone can enjoy their pizzas.
The atmosphere in Paxti's is lively and friendly, so this is a great place for groups or a quick date. Jenny and I have come here a few times and we've always gotten the Special - onions, green peppers, sausage, and mushrooms. We have yet to branch out because this pizza is always so appetizing when we see it on the menu. Eating the pizza and getting it off the serving platter is always an adventure, since the cheese is stringy and will stretch to a couple of feet if you really try. The prices for the quality of their pizza is very reasonable, so expect to pay around $7-12 per person.
This is definitely the best pizza restaurant in Palo Alto.
Phone: (650) 473-9999
Website: http://www.patxispizza.com/
If you're looking for great Chicago style (deep dish) pizza, look no further than Paxti's Pizza. If you're in a rush I would not recommend coming here, since it takes 30 minutes or more for them to make a pizza. You can get anything imaginable on your pizza - a favorite of mine is pesto, pepperoni, and mushroom. The ingredients are actually under the sauce, meaning this isn't your typical Dominos pizza. Even though a 10 inch pizza might seem small, it does feed 2 people because the crust is thick and there's so much cheese in it. For you lactose intolerant folks out there, Paxti's will use Soy Cheese for $1 extra, meaning anyone can enjoy their pizzas.
The atmosphere in Paxti's is lively and friendly, so this is a great place for groups or a quick date. Jenny and I have come here a few times and we've always gotten the Special - onions, green peppers, sausage, and mushrooms. We have yet to branch out because this pizza is always so appetizing when we see it on the menu. Eating the pizza and getting it off the serving platter is always an adventure, since the cheese is stringy and will stretch to a couple of feet if you really try. The prices for the quality of their pizza is very reasonable, so expect to pay around $7-12 per person.
This is definitely the best pizza restaurant in Palo Alto.
Saturday, June 03, 2006
Sushi Tomo
Sushi Tomo (El Camino)
Price: $$
So far, the best sushi restaurant I've found in the Palo Alto vicinity. The slices of sushi that they serve are huge by any standards and fresh. It was such an awesome moment the first time coming here and seeing the size of the salmon nigiri. Bypass Miyake, Sushiya, Brown Rice Sushi, or Sushi Tomo on University for this restaurant. It's just as cheap. Yes Miyake's and Sushi Tomo are (barely) tolerable if you don't have a car, I've eaten at there too 10+ times. But if you have a car, please please please don't go to the Sushi Tomo on University just because it's closer under the assumption that you'll get the same fare. Everything about that restaurant is sad and blegh, including the fact that it still looks exactly like World Wraps.
Price: $$
So far, the best sushi restaurant I've found in the Palo Alto vicinity. The slices of sushi that they serve are huge by any standards and fresh. It was such an awesome moment the first time coming here and seeing the size of the salmon nigiri. Bypass Miyake, Sushiya, Brown Rice Sushi, or Sushi Tomo on University for this restaurant. It's just as cheap. Yes Miyake's and Sushi Tomo are (barely) tolerable if you don't have a car, I've eaten at there too 10+ times. But if you have a car, please please please don't go to the Sushi Tomo on University just because it's closer under the assumption that you'll get the same fare. Everything about that restaurant is sad and blegh, including the fact that it still looks exactly like World Wraps.
Mandarin Gourmet
Mandarin Gourmet
Price: $$-$$$
Came here for hall dinner my freshmen year of SRC. It's a bit out by the wayside, near Spago, on Emerson I believe.
Better than Jing Jing's or Windy's, but pricier and smaller portions. The inside is dark, dim, with beautiful linen. You feel like you're dining on Chinese food in a romantic Italian restaurant, which may actually be the perfect place for a date. But the lowdown is that this is still not authentic Chinese food.
Price: $$-$$$
Came here for hall dinner my freshmen year of SRC. It's a bit out by the wayside, near Spago, on Emerson I believe.
Better than Jing Jing's or Windy's, but pricier and smaller portions. The inside is dark, dim, with beautiful linen. You feel like you're dining on Chinese food in a romantic Italian restaurant, which may actually be the perfect place for a date. But the lowdown is that this is still not authentic Chinese food.
Siam Royal
Siam Royal
Price: $ (with Unofficial Guide coupon)
~Tastychickenfan
Much better than Krung Siam. I still don't understand why Krung Siam is decorated in fuschia pink and has an oddly placed front door. Regardless, I've come to Siam Royal once and it seems to be popular with Stanford students. Might be that Unofficial guide coupon giving 10% off the dinners. There wasn't any dish that stood out, but overall I enjoyed the dinner and the crowded loud atmosphere. Sorta like the Pasta? of Thai.
Price: $ (with Unofficial Guide coupon)
~Tastychickenfan
Much better than Krung Siam. I still don't understand why Krung Siam is decorated in fuschia pink and has an oddly placed front door. Regardless, I've come to Siam Royal once and it seems to be popular with Stanford students. Might be that Unofficial guide coupon giving 10% off the dinners. There wasn't any dish that stood out, but overall I enjoyed the dinner and the crowded loud atmosphere. Sorta like the Pasta? of Thai.
Korea House
Korea House:
Price: $
(unless you're eating with a group less than 4, then $$)
~tastychickenfan
Another favorite. This place is so beloved. I know where I'm taking my freshmen next year! I haven't written a full summary because...there's just too much. Basically, I like everything about it except for the two strange pieces of unchewable Kai bi ribs in the Kai bi plate. But I even like the challenge of conquering those.
Price: $
(unless you're eating with a group less than 4, then $$)
~tastychickenfan
Another favorite. This place is so beloved. I know where I'm taking my freshmen next year! I haven't written a full summary because...there's just too much. Basically, I like everything about it except for the two strange pieces of unchewable Kai bi ribs in the Kai bi plate. But I even like the challenge of conquering those.
Three Seasons
Three Seasons:
Price: $$
~tastychickenfan
Yay favorite restaurant. Ok this restaurant is not the best of the best, objectively. They have two things that I love and will keep coming back for: their spring rolls, and their lamb chops. Basically that's all we eat here, and that will always guarantee to make the dining experience orgasmic (and I stingily use that adjective). The few times I've tried other things on the menu, they either taste rather odd/bland or the portions have been too scrooge-like. Like a small dish with 3 wontons for $9, seriously?
Those spring rolls are just so good. Go go go!
Price: $$
~tastychickenfan
Yay favorite restaurant. Ok this restaurant is not the best of the best, objectively. They have two things that I love and will keep coming back for: their spring rolls, and their lamb chops. Basically that's all we eat here, and that will always guarantee to make the dining experience orgasmic (and I stingily use that adjective). The few times I've tried other things on the menu, they either taste rather odd/bland or the portions have been too scrooge-like. Like a small dish with 3 wontons for $9, seriously?
Those spring rolls are just so good. Go go go!
University Cafe
University Cafe
Price: $-$$
~tastychickenfan
Hooray for streetwatching! The first time I came here to meet my roommate Steph, I paid $3 for a bottle of Sprite, and I was like, what the hell??? Avoided it like the plague until I started noticing people looking so comfortable sipping on their pretty-pink drinks while streetwatching from one of the outside tables. So I went here with Alicia the other day to do work, and I like the place slightly more afterwards. The tables are close enough that we, whether we wanted or not, were made privy of a galpal fest next to us that was highly entertaining, and the traffic around University was fun to watch. So many cute kids. I bought a soup to earn the right to keep our table, and it was actually completely delicious. Great for a hangover too, if that helps. So do try the Roast Tomato Soup.
Price: $-$$
~tastychickenfan
Hooray for streetwatching! The first time I came here to meet my roommate Steph, I paid $3 for a bottle of Sprite, and I was like, what the hell??? Avoided it like the plague until I started noticing people looking so comfortable sipping on their pretty-pink drinks while streetwatching from one of the outside tables. So I went here with Alicia the other day to do work, and I like the place slightly more afterwards. The tables are close enough that we, whether we wanted or not, were made privy of a galpal fest next to us that was highly entertaining, and the traffic around University was fun to watch. So many cute kids. I bought a soup to earn the right to keep our table, and it was actually completely delicious. Great for a hangover too, if that helps. So do try the Roast Tomato Soup.
Pasta?
Pasta?
Price: $-$$
Soooooo not on par with Osteria. I have only eaten one pasta dish here that I really like (that sausage Penne Corcina), but in the last two years, the portions have become so small that I'm still not full afterwards-which is really saying something when the dish is pasta.
I like the name, I'm a fan of the decor, I've had good memories there of freshmen year outings, but the place is just a bit *overrated*.
Price: $-$$
Soooooo not on par with Osteria. I have only eaten one pasta dish here that I really like (that sausage Penne Corcina), but in the last two years, the portions have become so small that I'm still not full afterwards-which is really saying something when the dish is pasta.
I like the name, I'm a fan of the decor, I've had good memories there of freshmen year outings, but the place is just a bit *overrated*.
Something Healthy: Plutos
Plutos
Price: $
~Jenny
Their pieces of steak and strawberries/mandarin oranges in their salads make it excellent. But still, I'm usually not inclined to walk up that far on University just for a salad. Good place to hang out with girl friends and have a good chat reinforced by the happy thought that you're eating healthy.
Price: $
~Jenny
Their pieces of steak and strawberries/mandarin oranges in their salads make it excellent. But still, I'm usually not inclined to walk up that far on University just for a salad. Good place to hang out with girl friends and have a good chat reinforced by the happy thought that you're eating healthy.
Da Hukilau
Da Hukilau
Price: $-$$
Reid's uncle first took us here, and I keep coming back again and again. You know how most ethnic restaurants in Palo Alto are too expensive and the food is completely watered down? The Hukilau, thank god, gives you some hope that Palo Alto is not completely lost. This place is so awesome in every way. All the dishes are extremely cheap by PA standards, the portions are guaranteed to give you food coma, the food is quality, and the atmosphere is so laid back and casual. I'm especially a fan of the appetizers- ahi tuna poke (tuna sashimi mixed with a shoyu sauce), portuguese sausage, edamame, and spam musubi, my obsession! That $2 is the best I've ever spent on food. And now, with the Unofficial guide coupon, I get a free appetizer wtih an entree. I repeat, this place is awesome.
Some of the dishes that I've tried are: chicken katsu loco moco, kalua pork, teriyaki short ribs, and the saimin soup. Some of these dishes (loco moco) are more likely to make you feel like you're gaining a milllion pounds than others, but whatever, the food here is comfort food, and you're going to enjoy every mouthful.
The wait staff is extremely friendly and laid back, so sometimes you gotta wave them down to get your check because they're never in a hurry to get you out. So yea, perfect for a party, a group of friends, a night out with yourself. And it's located next to Nola and Blue Chalk if you're in the mood for the "crowded pub scene" in PA. Speaking of locations, a little hard to find, just keep walking past the Blue Chalk and don't give up, it's right there!
Price: $-$$
Reid's uncle first took us here, and I keep coming back again and again. You know how most ethnic restaurants in Palo Alto are too expensive and the food is completely watered down? The Hukilau, thank god, gives you some hope that Palo Alto is not completely lost. This place is so awesome in every way. All the dishes are extremely cheap by PA standards, the portions are guaranteed to give you food coma, the food is quality, and the atmosphere is so laid back and casual. I'm especially a fan of the appetizers- ahi tuna poke (tuna sashimi mixed with a shoyu sauce), portuguese sausage, edamame, and spam musubi, my obsession! That $2 is the best I've ever spent on food. And now, with the Unofficial guide coupon, I get a free appetizer wtih an entree. I repeat, this place is awesome.
Some of the dishes that I've tried are: chicken katsu loco moco, kalua pork, teriyaki short ribs, and the saimin soup. Some of these dishes (loco moco) are more likely to make you feel like you're gaining a milllion pounds than others, but whatever, the food here is comfort food, and you're going to enjoy every mouthful.
The wait staff is extremely friendly and laid back, so sometimes you gotta wave them down to get your check because they're never in a hurry to get you out. So yea, perfect for a party, a group of friends, a night out with yourself. And it's located next to Nola and Blue Chalk if you're in the mood for the "crowded pub scene" in PA. Speaking of locations, a little hard to find, just keep walking past the Blue Chalk and don't give up, it's right there!
Friday, June 02, 2006
Bella Luna
Restaurant: Bella Luna,
Price: $$
Review: This was a dinner to celebrate Reid’s news that he got a grant stipend for the summer and that his car was going to be shipped up in a week. It was a Thursday night when we went, so the restaurant was basically empty when we arrived at
Hog Island Oyster Company
Restaurant: Hog Island Oyster Company, Ferry Building Marketplace Shop #11-1, San Francisco, CA 94111
Price: $$$
Review:
Jenny took Reid here because she had read a review on the restaurant in the New York times a week earlier about how this place is one of the best oyster joints. It’s also located in the
Crustacean
Restaurant: Crustacean,
Price: $$$$
Review: With much anticipation, we arrived at the Crustacean hungry from a long day of walking and window shopping. Our reservation was at
Service was excellent to a certain extent. Reid definitely felt like there was more attention paid to the couple next to us, probably since we were ordering less than they did. A hostess even brought an appetizer to them instead of us. Yea, Jenny felt the service could definitely have been better. They didn’t do anything wrong specifically, but the overall vibe was not comfortable. Half the dining experience is to not feel like the waiter is hawking you for how much you’re ordering so they’ll have a bigger tip. He definitely was laying on the pressure to order a lot more than we needed.
Another downside was the proximity of the tables. Way too close. This just isn’t exactly great when diners are trying to eat crab where it’s bound to be messy and no one wants to feel self-conscious in front of others by going down and dirty by digging in with their hands. Also, the close proximity did make us realize that we were being discriminated against by the waiter. Anyways, forget all that.
No complains about the food! We started off with a salad – fresh mangos, lettuce, and tomatoes, with a half of a lobster on top. The lobster was fresh and delicious and it was a great complement to all of the salad greens. Then came the main course. A huge, 2 and ½ lb. roasted crab, for each of us! We got bibs to make sure we didn’t dirty our nice clothes and abandoned all silverware once things got messy. The crab itself was delicious. Reid’s never had so much in his life! The roasted crab meant it was softer than normal steamed crab, and smothered with buttery, peppery sauce and spices. Reid admits that the crab was probably too much for him to eat, so perhaps splitting one of these huge things might be better. He could have eaten more, but the crab did get pretty salty by the end. Reid and Jenny also got a bowl of garlic noodles to complement the crab. The garlic noodles were really really good! It definitely paired well with the crab, perhaps the best harmony of Euro-Asian cuisine Reid has experienced to date (i.e. much better than that P.F. Chang’s ho-hum). To finish the night was orange-crème sorbet. It was an excellent choice, providing a sweet taste after the salty crab. The presentation was also very cute – it came in a hollowed out orange. So all in all an excellent meal, but one Reid would caution is one you wouldn’t have every weekend. Perhaps one a year is best. So if you get the craving for crab, come here! He’s unsure if there’s anything else worth coming for (perhaps the noodles, but is that worth the trip?)
Hong Kong Flower Lounge
Restaurant: Hong Kong Flower Lounge, 51
Price: $$
Review: Excellent location for the car-less! Right across from the Millbrae Caltrain/BART station. The place is huge, so it’s likely that you’ll get seating right away. The place is filled with Chinese people, which is always a good sign that it’s good. We had all the usual dim sum dishes- shrimp dumplings, shao mai, pork short ribs, preserved egg rice porridge, Shanghainese buns, sweet pork buns, and our ultimate favorite, the long rice-noodle shrimp dumplings. They were all very good, authentically tasting and the rice noodles were all soft and fresh, an essential of good dim sum. Ooh the service is also great, speedy tea-refills and a nice waitress gave Jenny her own small portion of rice porridge. The prices were higher than that of the average dim sum restaurant, but the restaurant was much cleaner and nicely decorated than the average Chinese restaurant. More importantly, we felt very comfortable there, no weird or scary Chinese staff incidents or the hygienic issues that sometimes arises from venturing to a Chinese restaurant. We definitely felt the trip there was worth it, although if asked whether this is THE place to get dim sum, the prices could make you hesitate a bit. Jenny would still recommend Loon Wah more for its equally good but cheaper dishes, along with Northern Chinese dim sum plates that add to the variety and spices it up a bit. But is that near the Caltrain station? No, so Reid and Jenny may have to stick to Hong Kong Flower Lounge unless we find a car.
Osteria
Date:
Restaurant: Osteria,
Price: $$
Review: Our first restaurant choice after employing a lottery system for where we’re going to eat! I think it was fate that Jenny pulled Osteria, since we had been craving the Italian food after passing it twice on the way to Hukilau and seeing lots of people standing outside and people inside munching on delectable dishes. We got there at
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