El Chevere's Profile
Isola Pizza Bar--Little Italy
By charring are you referring to the crust?...hardly any...they could give me a pizza for free and I'd pass. Sorry, I'll stick with Basic, Luigi's, and even a chain like Il Fornaio when I am in the mood for pizza....heck, Merk in the Gaslamp charges a lot for a tiny pizza but at least it tastes good....as for authentic, it may be but honestly--serving blue cheese crumbs with a meat platter is the best they can do???--what's next, Kraft Velveeta?
Best Steak in SD
JRDN has always been one of my favorite places for a long time.Very good, very good ambience, and extensive wine list. Love the sides as well.
I also enjoy Cowboy Star and Grant Grill inside the US Grant.
You are correct--you won't find a Luger on the West Coast (though they do have a Wolfgang's in Beverly Hills).
Isola Pizza Bar--Little Italy
non-memorable. Checked out this new spot in Little Italy and was undwerwhelmed--blends in with many of the faux-Italian places here. They pride themselves on their wood burning oven pizzas, which had very little flavor. The crust was not charred and the cheese and sauce have very, very little flavor. Had a meat and cheese platter--unlike Bencotto which actually uses good Regianno cheese, Isola's meat platter contained crumbs of blue cheese and nothing else. They did pass out complimentary flatbread which y was quite good and set up my expectations for the pizza and the olive oil was good. However, I left disappointed and the place is not cheap. They've got a long way to go to ever get me to come back.
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
If the steak is not good, I could care less about service and ambience. Can't put lipstick on a pig. Fortunately, Chicago Cut had inner beauty (steak) to go with outer beauty.
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
Just back from Chicago Cut--pretty damn amazing....had the yellow fin tuna appetizer--very good--along with the combo shrimp/lobster/crab leg cocktail--amazing...along with the porterhouse--outstanding. Very good service, food, and ambience..4 stars....this place blows aways Gibsons--not even close.
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
I am the OP and did ask about Chicago...I referenced Luger because it is the standard by which I judge all steakhouses (from a steak flavor perspective) and I'm generally not a fan of chains (that would include Mortons). The general comments in this thread (and others) were that G&G and Chicago Chop House were tourist traps and overrated...I could care less whether the waiters get down on their knees on a pillow when addressing me, I'm going there for the food first and ambience second. So let me try and be more specific...which has the BEST steak in town? Is it the newcomers (Chicago Cut and David Burke or the old reliables)....As mentioned earlier, Gibsons did not cut it for me from a pure steak standpoint. Great place to socialize but I am searching for another place to try and to take advantage of my expense account. Maybe it would be great if I get input from a former NY'er who lives in Chicago now or travels there frequently as we might have similar perspectives.
Thanks
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
To point out the obvious, In n Out is a hamburger/hamburger chain, Luger is neither. In n Out doesn't rate anywhere close to my top of the list when I am in the mood for a hamburger (in fact, I would argue they need to add many ingredients to what they call a burger to add flavor to an otherwise hamburger patty you can find at thousands of other places) so I am not sure why or where that analogy came from.
Luger is amazing-- unless you happen to be from Califonia and base a restaurant on calories over flavor. Luger dry-ages (yes, I realize they are not alone) their hand picked choice beef (only 5% of the beef produced in this country falls into this category) for up to 8 weeks (not 30 or 45 days). In addition their choice of seasoning and age old ovens impart a rather unique flavor to their meats.
In all fairness, one does not need to schlep to Brooklyn or Great Neck to get a great steak at Luger in NY (Wolfgangs--a Luger spinoff and now a small chain-- does a good job) but Luger remains the standard by which others should be judged. If you want to argue about service or their wine list, that is definitely up for discussion, BTW, I also happen to be a fan of Metropolitan Grill in Seattle and La Cabrera in Buenos Aires...tried Mastro's once (in Beverly Hills) and thought it was good, though it did have an interesting aftertaste (little like microwaved butter popcorn).
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
Never eaten at G & G, but I have at Gibson's and it's not in the same class as a Peter Luger or Wolfgang's in my opinion....sounds like Chicago Cut and David Burke are the way to go and will give those a shot instead.
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
Thanks for the other tips...ate at Gibson's once and as a Luger snob thought the steak there was OK but nothing spectacular.
Gene & Georgetti's v. Chi Chop House for Business Dinner
Greetings:
Entertaining a group of 12-18 next week and looking for a sure bet within relatively close proximity (short cab ride) to Hyatt Regency where we are all staying. Looking at above two solid choices that also offer something to those who do not eat meat.....if you had to pick between these 2, does one stand heads and shoulders above the other and I assume both meet my short distance criteria. It won't be a stuffy business dinner either.
Thanks
Gabardine--Pt.Loma Open Yet
Greetings:
Curious if the new Malarky venture in Pt Loma, Gabardine, has opened yet...if not, when?
Thanks
Craft & Commerce in Little Italy
Got voted as one of the top 50 bars in the US by Food and Wine Magazine.
Romesco's--what should I not miss?
I ate there again last night and had a chance to sample some new dishes...had the chorizo and serrano ham but the star of the night was the grilled octopus--had an amazing charbroiled taste and chewed like a steak...absolutley phenomenal...for desert, splt the flan and apple cobbler crepe with vanilla ice cream
Wolfgang's Steakhouse--Beverly Hills, Any ex-NY'er Opinions?
Greetings:
May be making a trip up to LA in the near future and was wondering if any ex-NY'ers have frequented the Wolfgang's in Beverly Hills or any NY'ers in from out of town have eaten here....how does it compare to the Wolfgang's in NY--is the porterhouse as good or not the same?....I've been to one of the NY midtown locations (Park Avenue) and found it very comparable to Luger...I'm asking NY'ers (or Jersey or Connecticut) to reply as I am an ex-NY'er myself and am seeking responses from those with similar tastes...not trying to offend anyone who is not from there and/or might be hypersensitive to my informational request. Thanks.
Best Mexican in Hillcrest or Anywhere
In Bonita section of Chula Vista, can't go wrong with Los Arcos or Romesco's.
A tree grows in Herringbone...
Interesting...if the tree will be inside the restaurant, reminds me of a restuarant in NY, Rayuela's.
http://www.rayuelanyc.com
Italain Rainbow Cookies--SD
What is the difference between Italian rainbow cookies and the rainbow cookies you'll find at a Jewish deli such as Miltons?
San Diego Gaslamp
And you have access to seafood such as flounder and non- deformed lobster ( i.e. lobster that has claws)..... Anyhoo, as a fellow ex-East coaster, you might like Dobsons and Salvatores of you are confined to downtown. Just my two cents.
Authentic or not authentic gets thrown around quite a bit around here.
+1. hit the nail on the head again Steve.
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
Agreed....was being generous with the term OK
Romesco's vs Urban Solace for noise level
BTW, you must get their Caesar salad--same original recipe as the one in TJ. Make sure to get a full order....highly recommend a couple of appetizers--ahi tostada and gobernadores tacos....they also carry some outstanding Baja wines, Santo Tomas in particular that I find consistently good. From here you're on your own.
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
Love the Mission District....besides those you mentioned Foreign Cinema, Farina, and Garcon are worth trying....I had pizza and appetizers last month with a friend at Beretta--was OK. There's a Cuban theme restaurant I cannot recall the name of that I have to try and during the warmer months, there's nothing like a cocktail on the rooftop of Medjool (thankfully, they saved that place from closing down)....funny, when I lived in the Bay Area 25+ years ago, you couldn't get me near the Mission; good thing I'm the opposite of most and have become more liberal as I get older.
Will give the place you recommended above a shot...you should definitely check out Caffe Sport--amazing pasta (and especially if you love garlic). Cash only, though rumor has it they might finally accept plastic (best to call in advance to confirm).
Romesco's vs Urban Solace for noise level
As long as you eat in the main dining area you will be fine. Keep in mind they do have live music in the dining area on at least Thursday nights ( a bolero band) but nothing too loud, You would most definitely want to avoid the back room area which does have tables but more resembles a bar.
Do real bagels (boiled) exist in San Diego County?
Brooklyn Bagel, in the East Village section of downtown at 10th Avenue and Island, uses an oven and kettle boiler that was brought over from the East Coast. It is a traditional bagel, not one that comes from a pizza oven. Big fan of their onion bagels. They sell bialys as well.
http://ordermybagel.com/
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
Next time you are up in SF and want to try (if you have not done so already) great Southern Italian (Sicilian) cuisine that has withstood the test of time, I still am a big fan of the food served at Caffe Sport....now here's a place that goes against my stated desire for great bread (very basic, though it does have crust) and they do not have the greatest wine list in the city, but their penne con pesto and penne pizzaiola is phenomenal. Others love their shrimp in white sauce....nothing fancy, though the decor is unique...I used to eat here once a week when I lived in the Bay Area many years ago, am glad to see it is still around, and try to get back there every once in awhile when I visit the city.
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
I was underwhelmed by the dishes I have sampled at Davanti and I have been underwhelmed by their Mia Francesca restaurants in the Chicago area. Underwhelming is underwhelming...if I could rephrase title of this thread, I would probably refer to their cuisine as designer Italian rather than Iowa Italian.
I love Delfina--did you eat at the full service restaurant or their pizzeria?...the one thing I will say about eating at a restaurant in SF (and Portland, for that matter...does not necessarily have to be Italian cuisine) is that you are almost guaranteed to get great bread and have an excellent selection of wine by the glass at a good restaurant. I am blown away and love the bread served at Delfina (baked at Tartine) as well as their wine by the glass selection....in Portland, love the bread and wine selection at Caffe Mingo and Serratto (I know Ken's Artisan bread supplies Serratto. not sure where Mingo gets their bread from but it is wonderful).....I travel on business and dine solo many times and truly appreciate a great--not mediocre--wine by the glass selection since I cannot drink a full bottle by myself and be functional the next day....I am challenged, here in San Diego, to find restaurants that offer great bread and/or great wine by the glass selections outside of the chain steakhouses.
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
While the term 'authentic' did come up in this thread, I--for one--also mentioned Delfina in SF which does not meet the definition (more Cal-Italian)...I am not hung up on authentic (though that is my first preference) and could give 2 craps if it is authentic or not as long as the dishes are good...in the case of Delfina, not only are the entrees good but so are the salads (any salad there blows away the vast majority of salads you'll find in San Diego), they serve great artisan, pugliese style bread that actually has crust on it (from next door at Tartine--a phenomenal bakery), and their wine by the glass selection is outstanding--as tends to be the case at the majority of Bay Area restaurants (the opposite seems to be more the norm here in San Diego where I consistently find too many non-memorable and mediocre selections by the glass). Of course that's just one example and I've also been hugely disappointed by many over-hyped SF restaurants as well which gets back to my point of as long as the food is good.
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
Someone from Davanti also stopped by Salvatores recently and raved abour their sauces.I'm a fan of the food of Salvatores, though the ambience is not my style.
Davanti Bringing its Iowa Italian to Del Mar
I like the ambience and will go for cocktails.
