Alice Patis's Profile
Banh Mi Thit Nuong at Thanh Huong Sandwich (Senter Road, San Jose)
Hey cool! Thanh Huong is my favorite in the area and I go pretty often since it's near my work. The grilled pork is my standby order, but sometimes I'm in the mood for siu mai and they make a very moist, flavorful version. I too usually pull out the big onion slices, but I always add-on pate.
Ironically, I like the grilled pork at Huong Lan better, since it has lemongrass and peanuts, but I like the bread at Thanh Huong better, as well as Thanh Huong's "butter" spread, and ratio of fixins to bread.
I also like some of the dishes I've gotten from Thanh Huong's steam table, since it's pretty close to home cooking and I get to have some of my childhood favorites that you don't usually find at takeout places (or even at restaurants).
Grocery Outlet April 2010
GO newbie here. I went to the SJ Monterey Hwy store. It's been recently remodeled and the parking lot seems spiffed up too.
My picks or almost-picks:
Manila mangoes, 50c each, med-small, huge bin so you can pick the good ones
Clementine Cuties, 2.99 for 3 lb bag
Soy yogurt: vanilla, strawberry, or strawberry-banana, 50c each
Avocados 50c each, small-medium, some firm and almost brown, some green
Grated cheese: mozz, mild cheddar or Colby, $4.99 for 2 lb bag
Italcheese bocconcini fresh mozzarella balls, 99c for 8 oz. tub
Carriage House frozen breaded chicken breast pieces, $3.99 for 2 lb bag. Baked up decently crisp in 450 oven, slight hint of something weird like dill in the breading
Of the wines, I got 2 to try:
Renwood Zinfandel 2005 Sierra foothills, $2.99 - hubby said good enough, about the same as a $5-6 wine
Twin Fin Cab Sauvignon 2005 California, $1.99 - not yet tasted
I saw the Scharfenberger baking chunks mentioned above. I forget the price but to me didn't seem worth it (compared to my usual, TJs pound plus dark choc).
Nha Toi (San Jose) - Vietnamese worth a detour, maybe even a special journey...
I've been a few times in the past year. It's still as strong as it was the first year. The braised mackerel tastes exactly the same, as dreamy as when I first had it. Other dishes I've had before are still good. I actually like the pho which was panned by some yelpers. They use tenderloin cut for the tai beef which makes it very tender (and it's properly rare), and the broth is northern style so it tastes of long simmered beef bones and lighter in spices than southern style. Also the broth is clear, so you can tell they still pay attention to detail.
Their strengths lie in their specials or "dac biet" board, or any of the dishes you don't find elsewhere, or any of the salads (esp. the less common salads). So you have to be somewhat adventurous; and yelpers for the most part aren't adventurous. If you search for past chowdowns here, almost everything we've ordered in the past is still great (use google to search, not the search box on this board).
Also as daveena says, the yelp reviews often slam the service. I usually get recognized so I get decent service but it can be scattered or hardly-there to the first-time goer. Also, it looks like a full-service style restaurant, but just expect pho-house style service and it won't seem that bad.
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Nha Toi Restaurant
460 E William St, San Jose, CA 95112
Santa Cruz for a romantic getaway - any worthy destination restaurants?
Hubby & I and a friend went to Aquarius for lunch today and came away really pleased. It has a modern, slightly upscale vibe, the wall-sized windows bringing in lots of light and allowing a view from every table. The patrons (including us) were mostly casually dressed (it is at the beach after all). The service was nice and not the rushing around we seem to always see Wharf restaurants like they're rushing around but not actually doing much.
On to the food. We went around 2 pm, and they were still serving the brunch menu:
http://www.aquariussantacruz.com/pdf/BrunchMenu.pdf
Two of us got the fish and chips, which today was mahi mahi. One of us opted for the house-made potato chips and the other the fries:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3868863685/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3868864145/
I got the Clam "Chowda" which struck my interest because it's broth based, not cream based, with whole clams, coins of fingerling potatoes and bits of thick-cut bacon. It does have a little cream or half&half, but definitely not the thick creamy stuff you see everywhere else:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3869646730/in/photostream/
I really enjoyed my chowder (think of it as soup not chowder), but it was a bit too salty (as if the Chef salted it normally without remembering the bacon adds a lot of salt as it cooks). I got to taste some of the fish, chips, and fries and they were expertly fried: crispy-crunchy and not greasy, with the batter the right thickness. I didn't taste the lemon-dill aioli but heard it was heavy-handed on the dill. The menu put emphasis on fresh, local, and seasonal, and with flavor combinations that are unique but still familiar. We were too full for dessert, but the dessert menu has a lot of tempting things, all housemade, that are a little strange but also strangely seem to go together, like the Devil's Food Chocolate Cake, with vahlrona chocolate mousse and pretzel-crusted guinness gelato (!!).
This place is several notches above in food, service and ambiance over the other Wharf restaurants (though technically it's on land, not on the Wharf), and yet the prices are about the same (for breakfast & lunch that is). You even get free valet parking at the hotel's driveway, or free self-parking across the street. And it's nice enough to feel romantic at night. I'm not very familiar with the rest of the restaurant scene in Santa Cruz, but I think you'll enjoy it and you don't have to drive back anywhere after dinner!
San Jose and Monterey
Nha Toi is still open and I still go once in a while as a solo diner, but its strengths are the unusual & authentic dishes you don't normally find elsewhere, that are best shared with a group. My favorites are the braised mackerel, raw beef salad, luffa & malabar spinach soup, and anything that comes with the purple fermented shrimp paste dipping sauce. That said, last time I went, their beef pho was a cut above standard: rare beef cut from tenderloin (instead of the usual beef round), fresh wide (soft & slippery) noodles, and a light broth that relies on beef bones over spice (though I detected a bit of msg last time I was there).
Another up & coming Vietnamese place giving Vung Tau a run for its money is Lemon Grass, just outside Grand Century Mall (an all Asian mall). Actually, just wondering around in GCM will be a treat for you.
While in the San Jose area, you might want to experience non-Cantonese Chinese, though these are all in the outskirts of San Jose. My favorites, though I haven't been to some of these in a while, are Chinjin Eastern House for Islamic Chinese, South Legend in Milpitas for Sichuan, Hu Chiang Dumpling House in Cupertino for Xiao Long Bao (soup dumplings), A&J in Cupertino for Taiwanese beef noodle soup.
Lastly, there's ramen (search for Melanie's ramen rankings). My fave (when I'm in the mood for salty comfort) is Ramen Halu.
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South Legend
1720 N Milpitas Blvd, Milpitas, CA 95035
Ramen Halu
375 Saratoga Ave, San Jose, CA 95129
Nha Toi Restaurant
460 E William St, San Jose, CA 95112
Hu Chiang Dumpling House (moved)
10877 N Wolfe Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014
A & J Restaurant
10893 N Wolfe Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014
Chinjin Eastern House
1530 S De Anza Blvd, San Jose, CA
Lemon Grass (formerly Viet Express)
1143 Story Rd, San Jose, CA 95122
manresa iron chef dinner?
If you have an iPod, email me, I can help. Even if you don't, email me anyway for advice off the Board. My email is in my profile.
manresa iron chef dinner?
Hubby & I went last Sunday (24th) for our anniv. We were really impressed similar to previous experiences here and I agree it was more than "just cabbage". I don't have time to do a full review, but would wholeheartedly recommend it. And I recommend watching the episode right b4 the meal so you don't have to worry about paying attention while it's described, you can just absorb the scent & sight of it (and set up your camera shot) before digging in.
Haven't had time to make captions, but my photos are here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/stevenalice/2009AnniversaryDinnerAtManresa?feat=directlink
Ramen Halu 7th Anniversary -- Lobster Ramen
Thanks for all the detailed reports, I really wished I had the chance to go taste it.
I think the clear "noodles" are cyrstal seaweed, a type of seaweed product I've seen only 1 other time, in the seaweed salad at Viet Express/Lemon Grass in SJ. They have a pleasant crunch but hardly any taste, and only if I eat them alone did I detect a slight briney fragrance/taste.
Tai Pan in San Jose - new dim sum bakery
Grand opening yesterday. A co-worker and I went today. Photos of the store and our take out stash here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/sets/72157618068849185/
This is a tiny place almost adjacent to Lion Market at Capitol Expy & McLaughlin. Open everyday 8 am – 8:30 PM. Two tiny tables next to the door seats 5 total. The store was a little crowded during the lunch hour and can seem chaotic (no system to know who’s next in line)
Paper menu touts Hong Kong Style Dim Sum. Dim sum pages list 34 varieties, ranging from $1 per dessert item, to $2 for 3 savory items.
Lunch Specials are $5.25, which include 3-4 dim sum and your choice of the Preserved (1000-yr) egg & Pork Porridge, or the Chicken, Wheat & Corn Porridge. Photo of lunch specials board in the link above.
Porridge a la carte is $2 for Small, $3 for Large.
Also listed is fung sing dumpling soup at $5.75/lb. and Shrimp wonton at $5.75/lb.
I think the turnip cake on the menu for $5.75 is a whole foil-tin cake pan (picture in the link above).
Overall, the portions (size of dumplings) are quite large here. Quality ranged from ok to excellent, mostly good.
Shimp cheung fan: Very fresh (a new tray came out right before we ordered), faint pleasant chewiness but mostly soft. Very fat shrimp, 3 or 4 to each roll.
Seafood sui mai: I think we were tempted by the really fat size of these, but the taste was just ok. Was a bit dry from sitting in the case. Pleasantly non-smelly (I sometimes find sui mai to have a unfresh smell/taste).
Hom sui gok or fried footballs. I’m a mochi-fan so I always like these even if they’re not done well. Soaking in oil and not crispy enough. Mochi still nicely chewy. Filling a bit sparse (but it always is wherever you go).
Fried shrimp balls. Very good, shatteringly crispy while the ground shrimp filling was plump & fresh. Only a bit oily.
Egg Custard Tarts, $1 each. Excellent. Very flaky slightly still buttery crust, smooth creamy eggy custard, not overly sweet. I can still taste these in my mouth mmmm. Dunno how well they keep, we ate ours about 30 minutes after purchase.
Our total for us 2 to split was a whopping $11 and enough to fill me up completely, but I think I had room for another egg tart. Or 5. Oink :O)
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Tai Pan Dim Sum Bakery
1031 E Capitol Expy, San Jose, CA 95121
Any good food near Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz?
links below
recent posts on Oswald's:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/588292
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Soif Wine Bar & Retail
105 Walnut Avenue, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Oswald Restaurants
603 Front St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Any good food near Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz?
I'm not really up on downtown Santa Cruz restaurants, but no one's replied yet so I thought I'd throw out a couple suggestions.
About 6 blocks north is the new iteration of Oswald's. I've never been but the old Oswald's got lots of good reviews and the new one seems to get decently good reviews. Cuisine is cal-med with slightly upscale vibe.
Soif is also about 6 blocks north. A wine bar + full service restaurant. Again never been, keep hearing good things about it.
What kind of food, price range etc are you looking for? I hope someone else has more or better suggestions for you.
Lemon Grass in San Jose (formerly Viet Express)
The nicer version of Viet Express, with the large seating area and bar, has changed its name to Lemon Grass (but still same owners & menu). The counter-service side is still seemingly closed. I thought I’d start a new thread rather than adding to my previous post of Viet Express, which can be found here:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/580910#4381531
I tried only 2 dishes – really gotta get a group together so I can make better leeway through the long list of specials that sound so tempting and aren’t commonly found elsewhere.
First off, the service is still somewhat abysmal – more like a pho-house than a sit-down restaurant. And not that great at suggesting unique or specialty of the house dishes (the best you can suggest is shaking beef, spring rolls, tempura fried shrimp? okayyy guess I’m on my own). My server did suggest the crystal seaweed salad, a very good salad, but I got that last time. Also they still completely disappear except to bring you food (a-ha! This time I knew to ask for a takeout box as he was setting down my 2nd dish).
The same badly photocopied, plain paper menu is still in use (just more crinkled than before):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3527134322
Specials board outside seems to be a subset of the Specials page of the menu.
Outside board: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3526325179
Specials page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3526323415
House tea ($1 for 1-2 people, $2 for more than 2) is the same pretty glass pot with green tea, chrysanthemum flowers, jujube & wolf berries. Fragrant and smooth (good luck getting a hot water refill).
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3527135322
My first dish was the snow fungus salad, #16 in the regular menu:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3527135596
I really like the salads here. They pre-dress certain parts (the thin tender pork loin and the white fungus), keep other parts undressed (the paper-thin shaved celery, cuke & carrot, and the shrimp), and together it’s a light tasting but flavorful variety of tastes and textures. Just ignore the pool of dressing underneath the large leaf lettuce. This salad has finely chopped peanuts where the crystal seaweed salad had sesame seeds, and I liked this better. I also like the texture of snow fungus better than the seaweed as it’s a childhood favorite. Again, the fried shallots seem crunchier than store-bought but not house-fried. Maybe there’s a brand of store-bought shallots I haven’t had before. Again, I wished it had more herbs (it had only mint, and not that much of it).
My 2nd dish was a server recommendation after I kept pressing for something special, the grilled beef & shrimp rolls with banh hoi (thin rice noodle “patties”), #6 in the specials menu:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3527135928
The beef rolls were tender, the shrimp cooked just right but with tails (and tails that weren’t crispy enough to eat). Not a fan of green bells I removed these from my rolls. The dressing is sweetish (not surprised) and the beef rolls needed it as they were a bit bland on their own (none of the lemongrass I was hoping for, given their name). The banh hoi are not greasy here, but are lukewarm – I’m guessing nuked. Oh, I confirmed that the banh cuon (rice noodle sheets) that I got last time are not house-made, they’re bought pre-made and nuked upon order – which explains the slip-shod high density of the sheets.
Overall, I was very pleased with the salad and thought the beef dish was just ok. Maybe I should’ve gone with my temptation to get some snails, instead of relying on the server’s recommendation. There’s always the next time!
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Lemon Grass (formerly Viet Express)
1143 Story Rd, San Jose, CA 95122
Best West/South Bay Bun Bo Hue?
Normally, I'd echo the rec for BBH An Nam on Story Road (I haven't been to the other locations), but my visit about a month ago was pretty disappointing. The beef (both the muscle & the connective tissue) was tough, ie not cooked long enough, the broth almost devoid of heat, and the noodles too soft. Also the side of julienned veggies was almost all cabbage, not much banana flower. So different from my past visits. I was hearing/reading downhill reports since they opened the 2nd location, but I didn't expect it to be such a steep downhill.
My photo below. Note lack of red oil droplets. Maybe I should've asked for extra-spicy but normally you don't have to say anything and you'd get a nice spice level. Oops, photo didn't get attached. Go to this link for photo:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3526114973/
Man v Food - San Jose
Iguana's is a favorite for a co-worker so we've gone there a few times after a meeting nearby. The orange sauce is better than La Victoria's "famous" orange sauce: creamier, spicier. But the food is americanized - not necessarily a bad thing, just not a typical taqueria. Less choice of meats, the tacos have lettuce & cheese as the default. But it's tasty enough (well anything would be, with that orange sauce). It's hugely popular with college kids (duh, given the location).
Often there's a huge line but it moves along (except when they decided to fill a call-in order for 20something burritos and everyone in the store who had ordered & paid & were kept waiting). I don't remember ever seeing the burritozilla on the menu or even as part of the restaurant's name, I wonder if that's a new gimmick.
Prime Ribeye Steaks at Costco $8.99/lb
Maybe someone should ask a Chow Editor to change the subject line to Costco Prime Ribeye $7.99/lb, because that's still the current price. Snapped a few photos at the San Jose (Almaden) location.
1st photo shows Prime Ribeye on the left in blue trays and Choice on the right.
2nd photo is a composite showing two photos of two trays of Ribeye.
3rd Photo is a composite showing two NY Steaks: Prime NY (Left) is currently $8.99/lb, Choice NY (Right) is $6.89/lb
Sorry there's some glare on the plastic wrap.
Santa Cruz to Monterey.... what's not to miss?
Forgot to add Places link:
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Sandabs
11 Camp Evers Ln, Scotts Valley, CA 95066
Santa Cruz to Monterey.... what's not to miss?
If you're coming from SF, on your way to Santa Cruz, you might consider lunch at Sandabs in Scotts Valley (10 minutes inland from Santa Cruz). You asked where to find sand dabs on the SFBay Board but I didn't reply there since Scotts Valley is in the CA Board.
Anyway, the restaurant Sandabs serves sand dabs as a regular entree on their dinner menu, but not as an entree in the lunch menu, so if you're set on dabs at lunch you should call ahead to ask if they're available. Having said that, I haven't had the dabs here (the chance to eat MSC-certified chiliean sea bass has been too good to pass up), but I've heard they are very good, and their seafood is consistently ultra-fresh. My husband & I, and those we've brought here, have had mixed experiences in the taste department - either out of this world-excellent, or just ok. So it's a gamble. It's the kind of place for decently priced, very fresh seafood, prepared simply but skillfully. And if you use the restaurant.com certificate, it can be $30 for 2 people.
I think others on the CA Board are better at suggesting places in Santa Cruz & south to Monterey, but it might help to clarify your question: You need lunch & dinner in Santa Cruz on Saturday, then breakfast in Monterey on Monday? Or you're looking for any suggestions from Santa Cruz to Monterey & in between, for both Saturday & Monday morning?
Bay Area Banh Mi Google Map
I just remembered I've been to Lan Huong, on a day I had a short lunch break during a Convention. I don't remember much except it was just ok, and that I wished I had gone a block further to Dakao. Their banh beo (steamed rice flour cakes) were a better bet and might be house made.
Tôm Hùm Xào Mì Mềm @ Viet Express in San Jose
I was in this area and had time to stop for lunch today. The original location was closed and will re-open in a few days for takeout and steam table orders. On the opposite side of the same building, the new larger space is open & serving the exact same (photocopied paper) menu, plus beer & wine.
I had a hard time deciding between all the interesting sounding salads, and settled on the crystal seaweed salad (#4). I also wanted something standard to compare to other places, so added the banh cuon ho tay (#5 on Specials back page).
I’ve never had crystal seaweed before. It has a crunchy texture and almost zero taste of the sea, but adds a refreshing and light taste & texture. The seaweed not only topped the salad, but was also mixed in among the rest of the salad: shaved-thin slices of cucumber, carrot, celery, green onion, lean pork loin, long tubular slices of (tender) squid, fried shallots, and sesame seeds (a lot of sesame seeds). A sticky sweet-tart dressing is on the side but the salad is already fully dressed with a fish-sauce based dressing with a slight aftertaste of something I can’t identify. The kitchen has a certain care to the salad prep: the lean pork and squid seemed pre-dressed in order to soak in the dressing’s flavors, but the very thin veggies were still crisp and not dressing-logged. The shallots seemed too crunchy to be house-fried, but tasted house-fried. There was a large pool of dressing under the large leaf lettuce garnish, but the salad didn’t taste overdressed.
Picture of crystal seaweed salad:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3248085787
Picture showing individual components better:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3248086159
The banh cuon arrived disappointingly only-warm, not steaming hot. But the plate was really satisfying and the banh tom (fried shrimp & sweet potato fritter) was to die for (if you like fried foods), shatteringly crispy-crunchy with a slight carby chew, the huge prawn with real flavor in its head, a meaty body and airy-crispy legs & tail. The dressing was weak, vinegar based and too sweet (but that’s just like everywhere else). I generally prefer cha (pork patty) to gio (beef “bologna”), so I was glad for it here. There were some non-standard toppings – the cha gio spring roll, crispy and non-greasy, with a packed filling of mostly pork which was yummy just by itself, and the nem chua (bright pink thing), which I usually enjoy but seemed out of place this time (especially with its occasional whole peppercorn). The sprouts were appropriately blanched (and trimmed), the lettuce & mint fresh, and the fried shallots plentiful. The banh cuon are the thanh tri type: little bunches of plain sheets, not the rolled kind with meat filling. One nitpick is that after they steamed the banh cuon, they layered a couple sheets at a time then bunched them together, instead of bunching together individual sheets, the result being the little bunches are thicker (more dense) than usual.
Picture of banh cuon:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevenalice/3248913118
Service was attentive except I had a hard time getting anyone’s attention for the check. The male owner/manager was friendly and seemed proud of their menu. He suggested the lobster noodles, banh canh, and the “french” dishes (but I had already ordered). The servers are well-dressed in stiff jackets or shirts, even the cooks are well-dressed. It seems like one of the flashy places opening these days in the toniest neighborhoods of Ho Chi Minh City: a menu more unique than the usual Slanted-Door clones, doing more (or more different) things. But it’s got the prices of a neighborhood hole-in the wall. I’m eager to return, especially if I can get a group together.
Bay Area Banh Mi Google Map
I heard the other customer request "no butter, no cucumber" in Vietnamese. He used the word beurre which the Vietnamese use as the vietnamese word for butter. The counter man and ladies in the back used the word beurre as well when they shouted it back & forth. I think they were referring to whatever the "spread" was. Actually, I've seen (& tasted) some banh mi places that use a margarine-like spread. I could hardly taste the spread in my banh mi bi so I can't tell you if it was mayo-like or margarine-like.
Bay Area Banh Mi Google Map
I can’t really recommend the Silver Creek Road Kim Huong (darn since it’s the closest to my work).
I tried the bi (shredded pork/skin) and sa siu (sliced roast pork), $2.50 each, pics below. The meat is a bit skimpy, the roll a bit soft (one roll had a faint semblance of crisp crust, the other was just chewy-soft). No pate, only 4 meats to choose from (the other 2 were cold cuts and shredded dried pork).
What I really don’t like is that the banh mi is assembled by the ladies in the back, so the counter man calls out each order (and each custom request) to them through the opening in the wall. This gets repeated while the ladies are making the banh mi to confirm any custom requests, then again when the ladies hand the banh mi to the counter man to bag up. The order before mine (no butter, no cilantro) got called out back & forth no less than 4 times (per person). I decided to keep mine simple by saying “with everything”. Which really p-ed me off when I got back to work, opened up my sa siu and saw no butter, no cilantro.
Other prepared foods on the tables, but no labels, no prices. Fridges are kind of bare. The banh gio which is their store name’s subtitle look smaller than other delis. One positive note is their banh trung (sticky rice tet cakes) look humongous, at $9 might be a good deal (no idea how they taste).
I fixed the spelling & moved the marker to the actual storefront on the Google map.
Side Dishes for Tacos
At my In-laws last weekend, we did a group effort on a Mayan pork & beans dish. I had just bought a fresh whole brussel sprout stalk so I created on a whim a side dish/topping that was a huge hit:
Thick-sliced brussel sprouts, roasted until a little charred to reduce their cabbagey taste, then dressed & slightly pickled like the curtido that accompanies pupusas - I used olive oil, lime, vinegar, salt & a little sugar, with minced onion & cilantro.
Cupertino - suggestions please?
Links:
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Hu Chiang Dumpling House (moved)
10877 N Wolfe Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014
Joy Luck Place
10911 N Wolfe Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014
Cupertino - suggestions please?
I much prefer the dim sum at Joy Luck Place over the dim sum at Dynasty. Joy Luck seems closer to your hotels (in Cupertino Village, a block north). 99 Ranch suggested by kc72 has a really great selection of asian (& nonasian) veggies & fruits.
Also in that complex, Joy Luck's more casual sister shop in the back is highly recommended for wonton noodle soup, and HC Dumpling has awesome xiao long bao (soup dumplings).
3-night business trip to Santa Clara/San Jose - suggestions please?
I'm trying to think of something for your first night, since that's the toughest - open late, not too far, hole-in wall, but good. There's not much choices near the airport or your hotel - among the non-chains, looks like they mostly close at 9 pm or earlier. Though I havent' been, Menara Moroccan sounds delightful, if you can get there by 10 pm.
One other alternative I can think of is Fantazia for thai, also open until 10 pm. Weird name but solid food, and they'll do thai-spicy if you want it. I've only gone once and I used a certificate from restaurant.com which made it great for the price paid.
A bit further but still close by, downtown SJ has more late night (up to midnight) options:
A hugely popular one is La Victoria for takeout burritos/tacos & their famous orange sauce. Iguana's, another taqueria/burrito joint that's open late, has even better orange sauce.
An old (historic) standby for comfort italian-american is Original Joe's, which often gets recs but I've never been.
Then you start getting to the hotel restaurants and restaurant-lounges, which I don't think meets your hole-in-wall standard.
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La Victoria Taqueria
140 W San Carlos St, San Jose, CA 95113
Menara
41 E Gish Rd, San Jose, CA 95112
Original Joe's Restaurant
301 S 1st St, San Jose, CA 95113
Fantazia
1100 N 1st St Ste B, San Jose, CA 95112
Iguanas Taqueria
330 S 3rd St, A San Jose, CA
Bay Area Banh Mi Google Map
This is awesome!
I added one close to my work that I like (not as good as my favorites Dakao and Huong Lan but much better than Lees:
Thanh Huong
2593 Senter Road, San Jose
I also added one that has a great Buy 2 get 1 free price, but it seems you need to be lucky to get them when the baguettes are fresh, or else the bread tends to be dry:
Saigon's Bakery
953 McLaughlin Ave, San Jose
I made them green placemarks, I hope that's correct?
Costa Rica - rosti pollo & other eats?
On a trip about 5 years ago, a colleague who lived there took us to a chain specializing in spit-roasted chicken - it might've been a chain but it really hit the spot. I'm not sure if it was called Rosti Pollo or that's just a nickname based on their specialty. If you know what I'm talking about, can you give me locations? Or alternatives in San Jose for good roast chicken?
In San Jose, we'll be in the Av 5/Calle 40 area but spending time downtown. We're also willing to cab it.
Also looking for suggestions for home-made tasting, tico style restaurants in Manuel Antonio area, and in the Dominical or Uvita area.
Best Pho Ga - South Bay?
Hi Dezzer! I'm glad you posted, you & I have similar prefs in pho bo and pho ga, so between the 2 of us we have a pretty good list! Do you remember if Kim Long uses the fresh noodles for pho ga? (they do for pho bo) And how the noodle compared to Huong Que's "ho fun" noodle?
Best Pho Ga - South Bay?
Aaargh, I wrote a long post which I lost when I started trying to add Places links, so I'll ditch the Places links this time.
My south bay pho ga ranking effort is not complete enough to say where's the best, so below are the Good places and the Also Rans. Caveats: I haven't made it up to Pho Kim Long, but their fresh noodles & northern style would make it high in my book, and some of the Also Rans weren't horrible, they might be good enough if you live or work nearby.
The Good:
Thien Long
Pros - best broth so far, white meat tender, unborn egg available, skin non-rubbery
Cons - no fresh noodles, dark meat a mixed bag
Pho Hanoi
Pros - fresh noodles, good broth flavor, unborn egg available
Cons - too salty, too many green onions
Nha Toi
Pros - good broth flavor, tender white & dark meats, unborn egg included
Cons - no fresh noodles
The Also Rans:
Pho Ga An Nam - v. good meats (free range), but I no longer like their "sweet" broth
Pho Y - good broth but overcooked meats
Pho Tau Bay - bland broth, too much msg, tender breast, free range available
Pho Lan - bland broth, dry stringy breast, tender dark meat
Super Eggroll - bland broth but a "nice n healthy" version
Pho Bang - bland broth, too much msg
Dungeness crab $/lb at your local stores?
Not in the SFBay area, but here's a report from the coast: the Gayle boat at the Santa Cruz Harbor had live crabs on 12/23, $4.99/lb. I got his last 3. Staff of Life market in Santa Cruz had live or cooked, $5.75/lb. On Christmas eve, Stagnaro's on the Wharf had cooked-upon-sale crab, $5something/lb. In Scotts Valley, Sandabs restaurant was selling just-cooked local crab (some from the Gayle boat), $4/lb. From what the Sandabs owner said, it didn't sound like the CA harvest has been dwindling; he sold 3000 lbs. on Dec. 22, all local.
