westcoaststyle's Profile
Help a vegetarian cook her first Easter ham!
Thanks for the link for the tofu pot pie recipe! Sounds delicious!
Using soy sauce (instead of salt?) in non-Asian dishes.
I just used soy sauce (instead of salt) on my omelettes yesterday!
What Did/Does Your Dad Cook Best?
My dad used to make this fish ball soup that was really good. I don't remember all of the ingredients, but I remember it had noodles and Chinese sausages in it as well.
Guanatos Ice Cream in Concord or Bay Point?
Hate to get slightly off-topic, but I just wanted to say Chopan is such a good place and definitely a gem. Their koobideh kabob is delicious; it reminds me of my Iranian uncle's version. I just heard about this place a few weeks ago, and I've probably driven past it thousands of times. I will definitely have to check out Guanatos the next time I'm in the same plaza.
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Chopan
2699 Monument Blvd Ste A, Concord, CA 94520
Five Guys Burgers opening in Fremont
Thanks for your review. I personally am not a fan of Fuddrucker's so it would be interesting to see how Five Guys compares. I do, however, like In-N-Out.
Five Guys Burgers opening in Fremont
They are also opening one up in downtown Pleasant Hill across where the Century Theater is located (formerly used to be Fatburger). I passed by yesterday, but there were some construction workers in there working on stuff. I didn't see any dates or anything.
Best Bay Area Food Trucks?
I'm gonna have to recommend AdoboHobo, for his awesome chicken adobo and recently he's been serving (pork) sisig tacos. This would be under Filipino cuisine,
http://www.twitter.com/AdoboHobo
http://adobohobo.blogspot.com/
I know you already mentioned a Korean taco truck in your post, but I like Seoul On Wheels. They serve Korean-style tacos as well as stuff like kim chi fried rice.
http://www.twitter.com/SeoulOnWheels
http://www.seoulonwheels.com
Recommended Dim Sum in the Oakland area?
I've only been to Legendary Palace, so I can't comment on any other restaurants nearby. But I did like LP a lot. When we went last year, it was a busy Father's day afternoon, but we were seated upstairs pretty quickly (honestly not even a 2-minute wait, but I'm guessing we just got lucky).
The servers' English isn't all that (as with many other dim sum places I've come across), but as long as you know what food you want you should be good.
Five Guys Burgers and Fries to open in Pleasant Hill! (Any other in Bay Area?)
Their twitter page says the Pleasant Hill location should open during mid-summer.
http://twitter.com/FIVE_Guys
99 Ranch/Seafood City: Concord Chow getting even better?
Chowking just opened up yesterday (1/7/10) inside the Seafood City supermarket. There was a long line which ended up being a long wait as well. The only thing I ordered was their king-size halo-halo and taho. I'll have to go back and try their food, but I do like their Vallejo location.
Non-Vietnamese places with good Vietnamese Iced Coffee
Ah, I understand now. Sorry for jumping on you like that.
But a little trick I like to do is bring my beverage with me to wherever I'm eating even if it's a different restaurant. If they don't allow outside beverages, I'll simply order the food to go. Then i can have my drink and my food.
Non-Vietnamese places with good Vietnamese Iced Coffee
I have to agree with Melanie on this one. That's like asking where to get the best lumpia from a non-Filipino restaurant. It doesn't make too much sense. Unless you have something against Vietnamese folks? :P
Dan Sung Sa - Oakland
It's funny, I've been here twice now (as recent as last week!) for friends' birthdays, but I haven't had any of the food. I've only gone there to drink soju while the others ate. It's a pretty chill spot, but it can get crowded if you're with a large group.
San Pablo Alert !!! Starbread Bakery Filipino holiday dishes AND fresh hot senorita bread
As rworange said, it's inside the Ling Nam restaurant. I was just there a couple of weeks ago to eat a Filipino breakfast (for lunch! haha), and on my way out I ordered 15 pieces of senorita bread. I ate like half of it on my way home to the East Bay! =P
99 Ranch/Seafood City: Concord Chow getting even better?
So Seafood City off of Diamond Blvd. in Concord (where Circuit City used to be) opened yesterday. Only the market is open for now, though. The restaurants (Chowking, Jollibee, Tokyo Tokyo) and other businesses aren't open yet.
The market itself is nice and bright, and most importantly, clean! A lot of your favorite Filipino/Asian items can be found here. I noticed a lot of the workers from the Vallejo market are also working at this new place. One of my favorite things is that you can get your fish fried for free. My friend paid $2 for a whole tilapia and had them fry it.
The parking lot is of decent size, but I'm sure it can get pretty busy. I can't wait until the restaurants open, though. I work just down the street from here, so I'm going to be visiting a lot during my lunch break. =)
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Seafood City
31840 Alvarado Blvd Union, City, CA
Halo Halo?
Kusina Na Tess off of Ellis Street has good halo-halo.
And if all else fails, there is always Jollibee.
"Chow-worthy" near Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill?
If you go to Three Brothers from China, make sure to ask for the "Chinese/special menu." They have a good deal where you can get 3 dishes for like $25.
For good Thai, go to Thai Village Restaurant on 670 Gregory Lane. It's a little hidden so you may overlook it when you pass by. But it's definitely a diamond in the rough.
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Thai Village Restaurant
670 Gregory Ln Ste F, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523
Anyone can help give me suggestion for lunch in Hayward??
I believe there is one in Daly City that just opened up recently in the Westlake shopping center. Haven't tried it yet, though.
"Chow-worthy" near Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill?
I second Sichuan Fortune House. The place is great! (Keep in mind, they're closed from 3PM-5PM).
Chef Choy is alright, but I'd rather go to Sichuan.
Los Panchos is OK, but give me any hole-in-the-wall taqueria and I'll be good.
If you like Greek food, try Yanni's Greek Cafe on Alhambra (it's a bit out of the way from DVC, though).
On Willow Pass in Concord, there's the Park N Shop area, and there's a place called The Mediterranean that has great food. The shawerma is delicious!
99 Ranch/Seafood City: Concord Chow getting even better?
Did anyone go to the grand opening of Ranch 99? They opened on Tuesday, Sept 15, 2009. Parking was ridiculous when I got there around 7-8 PM! So many people were inside! The line to everything was long. It was pretty crazy to see, actually.
Everything looked great, it was nice and clean. Let's hope they can keep it that way. The lines to the hot food were packed. The dim sum section looked good. I think this will definitely help the Park N Shop shopping strip. They really needed something to pick up businesses, and they haven't had that since Fry's opened up.
I'm still waiting for Seafood City to open, though! Concord is getting taken over by Asians! lol.
Vietnamese deli in Contra Costa County?
It's not a deli, but it's a Vietnamese restaurant located in the Park 'N Shop shopping area in Concord where Fry's is located. The place is called Saigon Bistro, and they do sell banh mi. They also serve your typical pho and rice plates. The sandwiches are pretty good, though a bit on the expensive side. But hey, it beats having to drive all the way out to Oakland for banh mi.
Vallejo: Mama Ruth’s Place – BBQ and fried turkey
Wow, this place sounds great! Corn bread, okra, greens, etc... mmmm.... I gotta go try them out. How's the pricing, btw?
Mobile Pho truck?
I wish there was a bigger picture, because I can't tell what that writing is. But thanks for the link, Melanie. They need to update more, though. I hope I can catch them if they're ever in the 925 area.
Anywhere Good for Lunch in Brentwood?
Well, what kind of food were you lookin' for?
There are a bunch of places to eat along Lone Tree Way. It just depends on what you feel like eating.
Adobong Pusit and Special Halo Halo at Hayward’s Taste of Manila
Off the top of my head are some of my favorite places to get it:
Max's (both in SSF and Vallejo)
Kuya's Asian Cuisine (San Bruno)
Also, Patio Filipino has their own version of the halo-halo served in a young coconut shell. DELICIOUS.
And, even some fast food Filipino places like Chowking and Jollibee have good halo-halo (Chowking, especially).
And that's a cute little anecdote about the Japanese tourists!
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Patio Filipino
1770 El Camino Real, San Bruno, CA 94066
Chow King
3495 Sonoma Blvd, Vallejo, CA
Max's of the Philippines Restaurant
1155 El, Camino Real S San Francisco, CA
Kuya's
460 San Mateo Ave, San Bruno, CA 94066
Max's of Manila
3555 Sonoma Blvd, Vallejo, CA
Bistro de Manila AYCE $7.99 buffet – The best Filipino food in Oakland … chicharon on Friday
Thanks for the report!
I'm guessing their ginataan includes taro/purple yam/sweet potato along with some jackfruit, tapioca/sago pearls, and plantains. It's cooked in coconut milk and glutinous rice is used for the consistency. It can be served either warm or cold.
Adobong Pusit and Special Halo Halo at Hayward’s Taste of Manila
Melanie, I've read your reviews on so many Filipino places on here the past couple of years. I Just wanted to thank you for always spreading the love as Filipino cuisine doesn't get that much attention from the general public.
I love the little anecdote towards the end about eating the halo-halo. I think it would be cute to see someone looking so confused at their dessert. But through all the times you've had Filipino food, this certainly wasn't your first time eating halo-halo, was it?
You should try making your own at home (if you have an ice shaver, even better!). They're awesome during the summer!
Chicharrones
I love chicharon bulaklak. Ongpin makes some really good ones. Also, Toppings (the one in Daly City) restaurant.
Best pork sisig?
Their sisig sounds pretty good! And I love me some grilled liempo. I'm wondering what the 25% pork dish was, though?
Korean in Berkeley: favourite dishes?
I've only been to Berkel Berkel once, and I had the kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew), and it was really good. The stew was piping hot, and all the ingredients were fresh.
But usually you'll find me at the "Asian ghetto" aka the little food court on Durant. Bear's Ramen House is my spot, and I always order the kimchi fried rice with spam. So good.
