katya's Profile
"Restaurants" Database To Be Eliminated
Midlife, funny I always tell people review on Chowhound are 20 times more trustworthy than those on Yelp.
I am really disappointed about this move by Chow.com. They will be losing a lot of traffic to the site - there are many people who don't post that just go to read reviews. I definitely think a Chowhound database is worth preserving.
Wrap n' Roll--Berkeley sandwiches and wraps--EXCELLENT
I don't get to go to Berkeley much these days so I'd hate to forego a Kathi kabob roll at Vik's for one here unless it was really worth it. Any word on which is better from someone who's been to both?
A Slice of NY - Now Open 2nd location in Sunnyvale
It's funny you should mention A Slice of New York since we just got dinner from there (yes again!) tonight. While I haven't tried the stromboli, I was also disappointed by the garlic knots. I find that the best thing there is the cheese pizza and that deviating from that plan is futile. The owner is super nice by the way.
Another good pizza place to try near here is 212 Pizza in Cupertino which opened several months ago. Great crust. Errs slightly on the side of too cheesy. Fun counter staff.
These places aren't as good as Pie in the Sky (I just discovered it closed!) in Berkeley or Speederia in San Carlos, but for NY traditional pies, they're the best in the South Bay.
Indian cooking/simmer sauces
For years I've gone to Indian restaurants, ordered something like chicken tikka masala or chicken makhani, and been asked when I was done if I wanted to take the sauce (no chicken left) to go. (This always puzzled me - sauce to go?) Last time I did, and let me tell you it was a revelation! I heated it up, put some precooked chicken in there, and got three more meals out of it.
Lovely Wedding Spot in Wine Country
I don't know how the food is but a really pretty and unique place to get married appears to be Calistoga Ranch. I knew a wedding planner that got married there.
Afternoon Tea in the City?
I love Lovejoy's. My bachelorette party started there. (In addition to baby showers, the place has been taken over by bridal showers.)
Anyway, I've had tea at probably 4 places (though not in SF), including The Empress in Victoria, B.C. I thought Lovejoy's just edged out The Empress and edged out an exceptional one in La Mesa (near San Diego). Plus, it's the cheapest one of the places I've been to.
A friend was raving about Samovar the other day, but it's a much more contemporary tea place.
Arizona/So-Cal style flour tortilla in SF
I have to say that I interpreted "fatty" in the original post as "thick." It's possible that more calories/fat content make a thicker tortilla, but that wasn't my intent.
I'm not sure if the fat content is key or just the mass. If you had a larger very "translucent" tortilla it could in theory match Chevys and Tortillaland's tortilla in calories/fat just by the virtue of being larger.
Arizona/So-Cal style flour tortilla in SF
I may get massacred here for saying the "c" word, but I'll say it. Chevys.
Flour tortillas made hot fresh. They're (usually) thick and good to snack on by themselves. They come with fajitas or do what I do and walk over to El Machino and grab a bag.
What's your favorite way, way out of the way food obsession (Bay Area)?
I also regularly drive halfway up the peninsula from San Jose for Speederia (great New York style pizza) in San Carlos and New Kapadokia (best Turkish food ever - lentil soup is a must try) in Redwood City.
We also drive to Berkeley basically just to eat at Pie in the Sky (great cheese slices) and plan the rest of our day around that.
When I lived in Berkeley, I regularly drove to Walnut Creek for the sublime spag 'n balls (made with sausage) at Mary's Pizza Shack.
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Speederia Pizzeria
711 Laurel St, San Carlos, CA 94070
Pie In The Sky
2124 Center St, Berkeley, CA 94704
New Kapadokia Restaurant
2399 Broadway Street, Redwood City, CA 94063
Mary's Pizza Shack
2246 Oak Grove Rd, Walnut Creek, CA 94598
Where to go for Rosh hashanah and Yom Kippur meals aka Jewish New Year
Firefly has a Rosh Hashana menu up now.
Where to go for Rosh hashanah and Yom Kippur meals aka Jewish New Year
I would check with Kitchen Table in Mountain View.
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The Kitchen Table
142 Castro Street, Mountain View, CA 94041
What's your favorite way, way out of the way food obsession (Bay Area)?
Pizza at Little Star in SF from where we live in San Jose. They have the best pizza in the Bay Area. Simply great Chicago style deep dish with an amazing crust.
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Little Star Pizza
846 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA 94117
Little Star Pizza Valencia
400 Valencia St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Trader Joe's newbie
At a Chowhound picnic several years back there was a chocolate expert who said that she believed the Trader Joes dark chocolate bars (72%) was the best commercially available chocolate. Problem is, it can be hard to find.
Best Hummus and fresh pita bread in bay area?
I ate at Gourmet Express again today. I asked the honor about their hummus, and she proudly told me how they made it in-house, and that she hoped to one day sell it at local markets.
In fact their website includes their hummus recipe:
http://falafelland.homestead.com/Recipe2.html
Real Biryani in the Bay Area
I think this is the third time I've recommended Gulzaar on this board today, but I can't help it. The food is so good!
Here's my take on their chicken tikka... which is better biryani than their actual biryani.
Amazing and Cheap Middle Eastern/Pakistani Food at Gulzaar Halal Restaurant in San Jose: For the Best Biryani Ever Don’t Order the Biryani
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/593487
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Gulzaar
1880 W San Carlos St, San Jose, CA
Berkeley/East Bay's best--please share!
Pizza:
-Pie in the Sky - best thin crust in the Bay Area
-Zachary's - I'm guessing you've already been here; source of contentious debate on this board but their stuffed pies are excellent (and their pepperoni is way underrated)
Vietnamese
-Le Regal only for their BBQ beef bun (Center between Oxford and Shattuck)
Ice Cream:
-Tara's (get the orange cardamom)
Chinese:
Shen Hua (hit or miss upscale style, but their Andy's Chicken is a definite hit)
Indian:
-Vik's (for chaat; weekend have great kathi kabob special)
-Priya (great buffet but haven't been back in a long time)
Breakfast:
-Homemade Cafe (pecans baked into the waffles)
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Vik's Chaat House
2390 Fourth Street, Berkeley, CA 94710
Shen Hua
2914 College Ave, Berkeley, CA 94705
Priya Indian Cuisine
2072 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, CA 94702
Pie In The Sky
2124 Center St, Berkeley, CA 94704
Zachary's Chicago Pizza
1853 Solano Ave, Berkeley, CA 94707
Zachary's Chicago Pizza
5801 College Ave, Oakland, CA 94618
Tara's Organic Ice Cream
3173 College Ave, Berkeley, CA 94705
Lunch in San Jose
The crust (flatbread-style) at Antica is not to my taste but I adore their gnocchi.
If you want burgers, The Counter can't be beat. You pick your meat and how you want it cooked, plus 4 toppings, a cheese, and a sauce. Next door is Pluto's, a great casual option for salads. They make tri tip and sandwiches, but their salads are the best around in my opinion.
Need affordable dinner spot - SOMA/Downtown Thursday night
Sai's for Vietnamese. I particularly like their green beans in black bean sauce and other vegetarian items. $10/pp.
I don't know what you consider walkable but the Ferry Building is not too far away.
I second:
Pazzia (nicer)
Chaat Cafe (very casual - you order at the counter and they bring you food. $10/pp)
Personally I could do Scala's for $20$25/pp, but I don't do drinks, and I'd even be able to share an app or dessert. Mixed reviews for it here. The Bostontini dessert (Boston cream pie in a glass) is great.
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Scala's Bistro
432 Powell St., San Francisco, CA 94102
Sai's
505 Washington St, San Francisco, CA 94111
Trader Joe's newbie
Some Anti-Oxidant blueberry/almond/walnut/cranberry trail mix for snacking on the plane?
Best Hummus and fresh pita bread in bay area?
Gulzaar's is excellent. A little garlicky, slightly lemony. Comes with a plate of pita they're happy to refill for free.
They do a lot of to-go business so it'd be easy to pick up.
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Gulzaar
1880 W San Carlos St, San Jose, CA
NY Slices @ Pizzeria Avellino in SF (Lombard Gate)
Hmmm... Pizza-making career in Spanish Harlem? I wonder if he trained at my favorite pizza place, Patsy's...
Classic Fine Dining in SF for Honeymoon
I haven't eaten there but I was about to say the same. Michael Bauer (SF Chronicle critic) wrote once about how he gave his niece a wedding present of a meal there during her SF honeymoon.
If you watched Top Chef Masters, you may remember Hubert Keller is the chef.
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Fleur De Lys
777 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA 94109
Where do you get your Samosa fix?
The samosa at Turmeric looks, and more importantly tastes, like a work of art.
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Turmeric Restaurant
141 S Murphy Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94086
Healthy Dinner in Sunnyvale Saturday Night - Need Recommendations
Next time, consider Turmeric. Stellar buffet and great off-the-menu items (especially their Manchurian Cauliflower and samosa - not healthy but done in an interesting way).
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Turmeric Restaurant
141 S Murphy Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94086
visiting friend in Berkeley... need recommendations!
Orange cardamom ice cream at Tara's. (And walk around cute Rockridge afterwards).
Stuffed pizza at Zachary's (Rockridge/Oakland and Solano/Berkeley locations). I think it's only second to Little Star in the Bay Area.
Gregoire is known for their potato puffs. I think they're overrated, but do make a nice snack, especially if you're noshing around the Gourmet Ghetto.
La Note has good breakfasts in a cute French cafe environment.
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La Note Restaurant Provencal
2377 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704
Gregoire
2109 Cedar St, Berkeley, CA 94709
Zachary's Chicago Pizza
1853 Solano Ave, Berkeley, CA 94707
Zachary's Chicago Pizza
5801 College Ave, Oakland, CA 94618
Tara's Organic Ice Cream
3173 College Ave, Berkeley, CA 94705
Question: Must try bakeries in San Fran - staying at SF Marriot on 4th St
Cafe Madeleine is probably the closest place to you. It's a cafe with pretty cakes (pastries too I think) as well as sandwiches and savory items like pot pie. I had one of their cakes once - it was pretty good.
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Cafe Madeleine
43 Ofarrell St, San Francisco, CA 94108
Need a new Ethiopian Restaurant
I'd say Addis or Finfine.
Of course if you're in the South Bay definitely check out Zeni. When I lived in the East Bay I was on a mission to try every East Bay Ethiopian restaurant. I tried about 7 or 8, went to Zeni (which yes, was outside the geographical boundary), and then stopped my quest because I'd found my grail.
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Zeni Ethiopian Restaurant
1320 Saratoga Ave, San Jose, CA 95129
Finfine
2556 Telegraph Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704
Amok at Cambodian Restaurant, Chez Sovan in Campbell, Can Lead to MURDER...
I'll make a tamale exception.
He loves Taco Bell... I'm hoping for a bit more
Best salsa's at Papalote. (Sadly the place is too packed for regular dining and there are better places anyway.) Take some of that and some chips back to your hotel for snacking.
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Papalote Mexican Grill
3409 24th St, San Francisco, CA 94110
Brand new in Silicon Valley: where should I eat?
In SF I've only been to A La Turca. But New Kap is better than any other Turkish restaurant I've tried. Much better I think than Sultana. My parents request a trip when they visit me in San Jose, and some friends of mine visiting SF met us there and thought the place was a gem.
All their entrees are good. They bring a plate of mezes to each table to choose from. I LOVE their lentil soup. It's a charming place.
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New Kapadokia Restaurant
2399 Broadway Street, Redwood City, CA 94063
