Cat Chow's Profile
Batali vs Oliver
SPOILER:
Both looked great but I honestly would have chosen Oliver over Batali. Mario's dishes all seemed to be a variation of the same thing over and over or seemed to be a bite of fish hiding amongst something else. e.g. That involutini got hidden between the chickpea fritters and the squash blossom.
High-quality butcher near Burlingame/San Mateo?
I wanted to add another fine butcher counter to this list. After years of driving by it, last week after coming home on BART I finally decided to go into Lunardi's to get some Porterhouse steaks for dinner (for bistecca fiorentina, more specifically). For starters, they have a very long butcher counter, no packaged cuts in plastic trays. The butcher who helped me was young but well informed and very happy to help me...for a moment I felt like I was one of those 50's housewives getting blue ribbon service "back in the day"!
I must say the family raved over the quality of the meat (once I cooked it). It is a little on the pricier side, but it was well worth it!!
Check Please! Bay Area.
That and also that they have basically stopped showing a lot of cooking shows. You have to go to some other KQED channel to watch Jacques Pepin!!
Incredible Food Facts
We do have a local coffee shop that has the kopi luwak for sale when its available. They have a waiting list. Kid you not. They sell as soon as it arrives. They got some in Sept/Oct and just as i was working up the gumption to do a shot ($16) but by the time I did (one week later) they sold out.
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Bean Street Coffee
359 S B St, San Mateo, CA
"Great" Restaurant Names
Mr. Cat Chow remembered that in Van Nuys there is a hot dog place called "Law Dogs" and on a certain day of the week you could go get a hot dog and free legal advice or something like that. I googled it and yep, there it is!
Law Dogs
Free legal advice Wednesday nights 7 p.m.
14114 Sherman Way, Van Nuys, CA 91405
Dined alone. Tip added to bill!
Fair enough Sam, I respectfully defer to you ;) I have not lived continuously in Guatemala since '87, have not been south of Costa Rica since the mid-90's...and when I do travel outside of the U.S., I travel as an American...so I do tend to tip as I would here in the U.S. unless it is quite obvious from either prior reading or just observing once in situ that tipping is not accepted/welcomed ;) Props!
Dined alone. Tip added to bill!
Not when I was in Ecuador! Granted that was 12 years ago! I'm guilty of generalization, tho, Sam. that being said, don't they add it as "servicio" automatically vs. leaving a space for "propina"? That is what I recall from Colombia, although again, I could be wrong...last time I was there was 1994.
No tipping in Guatemala or Costa Rica...the exception would be places frequented by americans...then they expect it! But at a comedor? That would be something!
Servers who ask if you need change...
Don't a lot of dining/eating places in Austria have servers running around with little change belts for this purpose, lol? :D
Servers who ask if you need change...
I don't think its okay.
When I want the server to keep the change, I tell them as they pick up the folio with the tab/money.
When I need the server to make change for me, I tell them exactly that.
I don't like being asked "Do you need change?". I don't know if its a misguided attempt to sound "proactive" or what but I don't like it. Thankfully it is more of an exception than the norm.
Dined alone. Tip added to bill!
that was my point earlier (if I understood you right). We as U.S. travelers are expected to KNOW everyone's customs when we travel and god forbid if you don't, but the folks coming to the U.S. from other lands don't seem to reciprocate...
Dined alone. Tip added to bill!
It's not just the Europeans, but the Latinos coming in from Central/South America. In a lot of these countries, there is no tipping.
Dined alone. Tip added to bill!
Well, to be fair to the international clientele, tipping is neither a custom or expected in a lot of countries. In fact, some people will be offended in some countries.
That being said, shame on tourists who expect people from the U.S. to be up to speed on their customs and get all discombobulated when you don't follow them, then come here and don't follow some of our customs...namely, TIPPING
"Great" Restaurant Names
There is a coffee/cafe house of sorts in San Francisco called "Jitters and Shakes"
"Great" Restaurant Names
In South San Francisco, there is a famous italian-american bakery, Galli's Sanitary Bakery. It's been on Grand Aveneue since 1909.
I guess when they opened up they had to convince people that it was clean, because the stereotype was that Italians were not clean (not true of course!). The cakes are great, but wouldn't you think given the history and the times, they would opt for Galli's Bakery or Galli's Italian Bakery and do away with the "Sanitary"?
He's a total pig - What should I have done?
I'll give the OP the benefit of the doubt here, it seems that they had sussed out
the restaurant/bar as somewhat kid friendly, as evidenced by previous visits with said child. I'm sure they would have not brought the 5 year old to a place that:
a) where children diners are not expected or not appropriate
b) despite the bar area, did not seem to be a bar that attracted a certain type of patron, as evidenced by previous visits
He's a total pig - What should I have done?
Well, PDXpat, yes and no. I personally think we have become too willing as a society to look the other way when things are clearly inappropriate.
Sure, I manage my expectations wherever I go, because yes, it would be unreasonable to try to impose my own developed sense of public behavior on others. So, if I am in a dive bar, I'll expect to hear some rough language, loud guffaws, drunken displays and possibly some lewd looking over. If I'm in a nicer bar I would expect to see some preening folks on their cell phones. If I'm in a family restaurant, I'll expect to hear annoying crying/whining from kids (including my own, alhough I'm trying my best to raise them). If I'm in a 5 star restaurant, I'll expect a level of decorum from the patrons who are there to enjoy a wonderfully prepared meal. Why should I have to put up with something that is clearly out of place and not in the right context? Yes, my own m.o. would be to remove myself from the situation AND let the management know my discontent if I objectively believe whatever forced me to leave was out of line with the environment the locale is selling. Again, I'm not going to complain about loud, crass frat boy drunkards when I'm in a bar that has $1.00 all you can drink beer Fridays.
What the OP described (unless I'm not reading correctly) was a situation where the drunk patron was clearly out of line in a place of certain level of experience and she from past experience at this locale not expecting to find this behavior. So why should she have to put up with it, just because drunkard wanted to show off his F-word skills?
He's a total pig - What should I have done?
especially (since I'm sure, the OP wasn't the only party offended by the loud, boorish behavior) that the restaurant management for whatever reason condoned the loudness of the language of three louses at the expense of the dining experience of their patrons. I wouldn't go back.
He's a total pig - What should I have done?
amen to that...even those of us who have mastered a dirty look or a firm NO. Some jerks don't understand the meaning of a firm NO, with or without alcohol in them.
He's a total pig - What should I have done?
the thing is, unless I'm misreading the OP's post, they were in the RESTAURANT section, not the bar. The dweeb was already three sheets to the wind by calling the restaurant section "the bar".
Tipping BEFORE the meal - what would you have done?
tubman: "I suspect the restaurant's charge slip printer is incapable of printing a receipt without a gratuity line"
Then I would say whoever printed it should put a line through it or X it out. that would be the proper thing to do. However, most places I know won't do that, in the hopes you are not paying attention and add a tip there when you have already done so. Cheesy. Especially cheesy when as far as I understand it, something like a service charge is a flat percentage to ensure the smooth, attentive handling of a large group by the locale and making it easier on the patron. I also presume service charge is basically tip money that will be split amongst those who served the party.
Case in point: My 85 year old M-I-L hosted a holiday dinner in a private room two weeks ago, and she caught something interesting on her bill:
Food Charges
Beverage charges
Service charge (it was over 6 people, and of course you expect this)
Tax
A TIP LINE WITH A BLANK SPACE FOR ENTRY
Total
She "automatically" had put in a tip and was adding up the total when she had a "wait a minute" moment. She of course crossed the tip amount she had entered out.
However, as she usually does, she did slip our wonderful server a nice crisp bill in a large amount because she felt she had been extra attentive and she personally wanted her to have it and not have to share it.
High-quality butcher near Burlingame/San Mateo?
Actually, I have been to both Mollie Stone's (they are equal distance to me) and the one on 42nd is actually bigger and better stocked overall. So if Ihad to choose between the two, I go to 42nd
High-quality butcher near Burlingame/San Mateo?
I saw that the other day I picked up a cake at Dianda's...how do you like them, Joy?
I must admit, that since Whole Foods carries Kumamoto oysters which they will shuck for me and dry sack scallops, I've been spoiled to look elsewhere!
High-quality butcher near Burlingame/San Mateo?
I must also mention that the whole foods in San mateo has a dry aged case and the display looks very tantatlizing...I just haven't really gotten around to trying any of it...but I should!
High-quality butcher near Burlingame/San Mateo?
Hi Will Z, what are you looking for?
For example, for meats (beef, lamb), if I need something really high quality, I go to Draegers on 4th in San Mateo, my fallback would be Mollie Stones on 42nd in San Mateo.
I've gotten my holiday turkeys at said Mollie Stones and they have been wonderful
For whole pork legs to roast, I go to Fiesta Latina on Cary Street in San Mateo
FYI since I'm at it, for Fish/Shellfish, its the Seafood department at Whole Foods.
What menu items need to be retired?
I'm with you on the coffee (I think jfood also mentioned it). It's an abomination for coffee to be laced with other stuff, especially fruity flavored stuff. G-R-O-S-S. Even a bigger abomination if you make some sort of "coffee" drink
that sounds like a holiday dessert: egg nog latte, pumpkin spice whatever, peppermint frostachini....etc.
What menu items need to be retired?
I'm with you on salmon mousse...I want salmon, not cat food...however this preparation may be one of those things a self-respecting cat would never touch!
What menu items need to be retired?
Crab Rangoon and the pu-pu platter are Trader Vic's inventions! As well as the bongo-bongo soup and the polynesian snowball are also Trader Vic concoctions. If a person is of a certain age, they will probably crave these from the era gone by when Trader Vic's was the rage.
Personally, the only place where these belong is at a Trader Vic's restaurant, and if I want to get my kitsch-tiki fix, I'll go to Trader Vic's.
