Just wondering, I am not that fond of Plum, but it seems to stand out of the list to me as the one I'd not want to exclude. But if your friends have been then that makes sense.
Funnily my most memorable dinner at Plum was when Kim Alter did these preview dinners for Haven there.

Places in Oakland that I keep going back to -
Camino, Vientian Cafe, Miss Ollies', and maybe Mua.

Why the list of exclusions by the way, specifically Plum?

Marlon! You covered pretty much everything I had to say... However I think the red dates was with the pork shoulder, not the duck. The duck was braised with the hot sauce. Both these were really good, and I would find myself stealing bits from these two dishes as they went past on the lazy susan.
Also would like to add that the sesame pancake was much nicer than ones I have had before as it was beautifully crispy on the outside. Apparently they are pan fried after being baked. I think the one on our table was a little extra singed, and I really enjoyed that!
The handmade noodles was unusually doughy and flavorless. Maybe the noodles guy was away? Strangely this particular dish was whited out on my menu only and not the others'.
It was also very good to see old faces from China Village working here.

I went around 6:45 and the place was hopping with live music and families with kids. There were 20-30 people in queue at pretty much every truck. I think at open (5 PM) it may have been too early to get the crowds in.
Foodwise - nothing much new to report. Chairman's bao's were as good as ever. Oh, except there was some interesting individual drip coffee (and Tcho hot chocolate) served at the "Blue Oak Cafe" inside.

The alcohol diversification is probably because they have an alcohol license to go with the location. You never give one of those up!!
The other way in which they differ from the mother ship is that they are open later though only a little bit, right? That would be a good way to distinguish themselves, imagine cheeseboard pizza and drinks until 11 or even midnight! A chowhound can hope, right?

I've been to a Greek place on Grand called Ikaros a few times and its always been relatively quiet and the food has been pretty good. I think they could deal with a large group too.

Thanks for the review Mark. Do they only serve the fried chicken on Tuesdays as a special?

A friend and I tried this place last night and loved the food as well as the lovely people there. I had the sliders plate which was three (not small at all) sandwiches with chicken, brisket and pulled pork. Delicious and to be honest such a large portion I could finish only 2 of the sandwiches at dinner. I got the creamed corn as side and it was pretty good too. My friend got the pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw on it and the fried okra side. He pretty much inhaled it. The fried okra was darned good to. Everything felt very freshly made. I am no bbq expert but the meat quality was very high and my favorite was the pork. I also really enjoyed the bread which was properly toasted and stood up to the meat inside.
We also got to taste a sample of the gooey butter cake and oh my god it was amazing! We were too full to get dessert last evening but next time for sure.
The service was great - a few phone orders came by while we were there and two cops stopped by as well. The word is out it seems. Do try it especially if you are in the area.

Can't think of anything offhand, except the South Indian thalis that you mentioned. Oh and shammi kababs traditionally have ground meat and soaked chana dal processed together.

I use the Vik's house brand but thats just convenience. It should not stay hard at the center. I always forget to soak it but typically cook it simmering for 45-60 minutes - honestly never look at the time, just see if its cooked. I don't add salt and sugar until after its cooked.

I typically just use a heavy dutch oven or other heavy bottomed pan on medium - medium low to cook the dal. Also cook it covered on low for a while.

Please don't do that! Chana dal is one of my favorites.
In Bengali cooking you'd boil chana dal with a touch of asafoetida, and turmeric until its cooked.
Add some torn up or chopped green chillis towards the end.
Separately, in a frying pan, heat a little ghee or ghee oil mixture and temper some cumin seeds,and chopped up fresh coconut flesh (I use the frozen grated coconut if I am lazy) and garam masala (I use toasted and ground cardamom, clove and cinnamon). Once it smells delicious (less than a minute) add the whole thing to the boiling dal.
Use salt (and sugar) to taste and boil / simmer for a bit until the whole thing looks a harmonious whole! Serve with rice or chapati with simple fried eggplants.

They had a short list of sandwiches/salads (6 the day I was there) including a vegan reuben but possibly no actual pastrami based sandwich that day. I had a pulled chicken sandwich which was delicious (spicy jalapeno cole slaw) served with a small side salad for $8. However the bread did not stand up very well to the filling, though it was tasty. They also had some pastries (from outside sources) including Starter Bakery Kouign Amans.
It reminds me a little bit of Farley's probably because one of the guys at the counter used to be at the Farley's on Grand. Good new option for lunch, wish there were a few more tables for 1-2 people rather than for 4, or had a more communal feel.

I'd had a similar contemporaneously filled doughnut called naughty doughnut at Local 123 about 6 months or so back. Was that her?

I don't know if you could fit 16 people into Mission Chinese?

I asked them when I went with PSB et al., and they said (though not with too much conviction) that the chef used to cook at the original Vile Parle Gajalee. Note that they did not claim any official link.

If East Bay / Berkeley is okay, I think Gather fits the bill perfectly.

There is a Thai take-out and grocery store int he Pacific East Mall in Richmond/Albany (where Ranch 99 is). Its called Ran Khanom Thai if I am not mistaken. The owner Nut makes and sells her own green and red curry pastes as well as some sauces for Pad Thai etc. Her take-out food is delicious as well. Closest to homemade you can find. Its all organic as well.

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Pacific East
3288 Pierce St # M126, Richmond, CA

Sadly the last couple times i have been to Chai Thai (within the last 3-4 months), have been absolute disappointments.

The food has been oily, and shockingly tasteless (not talking of spice levels). When we asked for Thai spicy Som Tum, we got sweet with red pepper flakes :-( The menu looks different although it still has the khao ka moo. I will probably avoid it until I read some uphill reports.

As for other places near Berkeley for Thai - if take-out is an option, I would highly recommend Ran Khanom Thai in the Pacific East Mall in Richmond. Homecooked meals that are truly spicy, funky, balanced whatever you are looking for. I have enjoyed the Kao Man Gai (Thai equivalent of Hainanese Chicken rice), couple of curries with rice and some excellent coconut desserts.

See recent link at http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/799284

OMG, I actually emailed them a couple years back and asked them to open a bay area branch after eating in a couple of their other branches! The mutton sukka is indeed a kickass dish, at least the versions I have had in their Singapore and Bangalore branches. Funnily the Singapore branch was way superior to the one in Bangalore that I had been to. I seem to remember that they had a good prawn fry or masala type dish as well.
(Does a happy dance and plans a trip to the south bay)

Don't they have decent kachoris? I think I have had them pre-ordered in large quantities at a friend's party.

Aside re Bengali pronounciations: Though bengalis pronounce A's as O's, we still spell em as A's. So Rajat in bong is still spelled as Rajat albeit pronounced "Raw-Jot". And Gobi in bengali is Kopi or Phulkopi, not "ghubi." The one dead giveaway for Bangladeshi restaurants (there are typically rarely ever Indian-Bengali restaurants) is "motor" for matar in Matar Paneer or Keema Matar :-)

Marlon gives me too much credit - all I did was tag along and stuff my face at a pre-dinner dinner a few weeks back and check out the menu with him.

My favorites from the dinner were definitely the custard that everyone has mentioned, the uni was fresh and plump and the clams were delicious. I loved the gingery sauce that came with the poached chicken and made for a lovely combination. The dried oyster / scallops with the chinese sea weed that I enjoyed for its "sea" and "fishy" yet sweet clean flavors. The ginseng soup started bitter but had mellow chicken broth below. I am not much for the medicinal soups, but this I liked. By the way, is it safe to eat the ginseng roots in the soup?

I have to admit this was one of the best Chinese banquets I have attended, made more so by the company which was truly delightful, lots of old and new faces. My table-mates brought some excellent wine to the table - thank you Bryan, Nick and Terese (I am probably misspelling your name, I am sorry!). PSB, Felix, Cece, as well as David & Betsy who came late to the table :) Thanks yimster for ordering the uni custard, now I am going to crave it whenever I go to Saigon harbor! Of course marlon, for organizing such an awesome dinner and missing half of it. I hope you guys had fun too cause it was lovely sharing a table with all of you.

Last but not least, the sesame cookies and the mango pudding were pretty good, especially compared to the red bean soup that they typically provide us, which I am afraid is very much an acquired taste.

So, when's the next chowdown???

-- Urmi (aka jhinky)

Also try Bay Fung Tong - you can call in your order and pick it up - they are fast and cheap but pretty good Cantonese fare. The lobsters / crabs are excellent too if you want to bring a group for sit-down.

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Bay Fung Tong Tea House
1916 Franklin St, Oakland, CA 94612

Zaki Kabob house has a spheeha on its menu. Although I have never tried it - I have pretty much loved most things I have eaten there.

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Zaki Kabob House
1101 San Pablo Ave, Albany, CA 94706

We arrived late and missed the samosas. The fried shrimp were tasty with their heads on. I liked how spicy the Baya Kyaw and Samosa salad was. All three salads were fresh yet spicy and intricate. My friend S really loved the Tea Leaf Salad which neither of us have had before - so we can't really compare it to BSS or the other places in the city. My other favorite was the curry catfish which had a gingery soupy gravy that was great with rice. [It tasted a lot like a kalia if anybody is familiar with bengali food]. The Mohinga and the Kauk Swe had similar broths but the Khauk Swe was lighter tasting and the one I preferred. The paratha was pretty well-made and flaky probably through the use of hydrogenated vegetable oil or lard.

I also rather liked the desserts, which I had had pretty low expectations about from other reviewers online.

Overall nothing so amazing that folks need to run down to a rather seedy neighborhood but definitely worth keeping in mind along with the usual places in the tenderloin for reasonably priced and different asian food.

My personal favorites were the cucumber with tofu skin and the bright and flavorful veggies - the pea shoots and the green beans. Oh and the fish-fragrant eggplant is one of my favorite dishes that didnot disappoint us here. I also really liked using the green onion pancakes to sop up the red oil sauce from the appetizers. I agree that there was not enough ma la to the sauces except for the chicken with taro - that lovely numbing flavor under the tongue that is addictive. The spare ribs were also a personal favorite - the texture of the soybean with the thick dry gravy and the fall-off the bone meat was excellent with the scallion pancakes again. But then again I am afraid I had some scallion pancakes with all of the gravy dishes!! The dan dan noodles were also good - but I prefer the ones with more of the sauce/ground meat.

The soup of death had great flavor to the broth - (roasted chillis?) and Heidiepie did a masterful job of portioning it out to the hungry hordes at our table. There was also another noodle dish (chow ma noodles?) which was soupy - but I was too full to eat much more than some of the veggies and shrimp from it. There was very sweet and crunchy cabbage in it that I liked.

Linda brought lovely fruits - including bing cherries, apricots and lychees. I am afraid I was rude enough to snag the last lychee in the bowl. A lovely end to a very good meal. Finally I am glad to say we had enormous amounts of food without that unpleasant heaviness that the amount of red oil based sauces would lead one to expect.

Thanks Marlon and yimster for organizing :)

Thanks for the tip!! The place is called San Xi Lou but the business listing calls it San Xi Lou Man Jiang Hong and is on the 7th floor of Coda Plaza. It also happened to be across the street from where I was staying. We went and had lunch there once - they have an extensive menu - including Sichuan classics on their dinner menu, dim sum and hot pot separately (Interesting column in the hot pot menu called Other meats that included frog and tripe etc). The food tasted excellent, fresh and well flavored. I could not do a through chowish exploration as I went with my brother who was not hungry and a 5-year and an 8-year old.

We ordered a whole bunch of shrimp and pork dumplings (including the rice flour rolls but with a crispy fried layer and then shrimp inside, spare ribs in black bean sauce and some har gao), some soup with pork dumplings, congee for my brother and I managed to get a one person hot pot for myself. I ordered the non-spicy one which was probably a mistake but then found some sichuan chillis in oil to eat with the oyster mushrooms, crown vegetables and lamb slices and mian noodles (asked if they were hand cut and not sure if i was understood) that i ordered for the hot pot. The broth had apples and celery and lots of other veggies as far as I could make out.

Very tasty but wish I knew what to order as I have only had hot pot once before with knowledgeable hounds who helped out that time. The best part was the noodles at the end like a soup.

It was quite busy and lots of the sichuan classics headed for the other tables. Sigh. Next time!

Oh and there seemed to be an interesting place called "The Folks" on the 22nd Floor of the same building which had a lot of very interesting meats on the menu. They did not have a menu to go and the sign said it was Members Only but were very willing to seat us and show us the menu. Any ideas as to what that was about?

Thanks Ernie for starting off the topic and thanks to Melanie for organizing. We also had the opportunity to meet the lovely Mrs. Wong, Melanie's mother.

This is a place that I have gone to many times, mostly because its the closest and most convenient dim sum place for lazy weekend mornings. It also has a fabulous view and is pretty easy to park either in its lot or the lot for the park down the street.

As for the food, I tend to get a few of my tried and tested favorites, including the jumbo shrimp dumplings, the clams in broth, the rice noodles with shrimp, and the mango pudding. These are all very well made (to my taste) and freshly prepared because of the paper and pencil approach to ordering.

I did find a few of the dishes that were new to me today to be excellent and that I would like to add to my regular rotation here, including the spare ribs which had preserved olives and black beans but also tasted of black pepper there somewhere. I also really really liked the excellent texture (crispy outside and melting inside) and flavor of the pan fried daikon cake, a rather boring sounding dish that I enjoyed very much. The octopus in the seaweed with octopus fascinated me as they were perfectly shaped and yet not chewy and a rather bright orange/red color. Interesting and tasty for a big group but I would not get it for only two diners.

The one dish I did not really care for was the salt and pepper calamari(?) - it was greasy and not very good.

The service was a little scattered, but helpful when around. Total with tips came to $20 per head. I can't remember if they charged for corkage? Thanks for the lovely wine, Nick!

Went with three other friends to Aziza for DAT and were bowled over by how great it was. Firstly they had a great menu of about a dozen appetizers, seven entrees and four desserts to choose from.

For appetizers we had the spreads with flatbread (hummus, yoghurt and gypsy pepper - the last two were outstanding), wild mushrooms in phyllo pastry, canelloni beans in a cheesey tomatoey baked dish (reminded us of really good lasagna except the beans were not mushy but crisp yet tender!!) and the cardoons salad-y dish (not particularly memorable)

For the main course, three of us had the couscous (two non-vegetarian and one veggie version) and the fourth had the lamb shank. We shared bits of everything and I have to say the couscous was a great blend of flavors and textures (raisins and almonds(?) and beautiful plump prawns, juicy cubes of chicken breast, mildly spicy sausage and a yummy lamb stew over fine couscous that soaked up all the flavors!!) The lamb shank was falling off the bone, no need for a knife, yet substantial and flavorful - with prunes and an excellent side of barley which was almost like lentils in consistency.

The desserts were amazing as well - although we were very very full by then. We tried one of each of the desserts, chocolate custard with sesame cookie, a fruit plate (beautiful dates and almonds and mandarin oranges?), cardamom ice cream with a pear galette and an absolutely delicious honey mousse with tiny cubes of a prosecco-chili gelee in it.

We were quite delighted with everything we ordered, not to forget the drinks at the beginning, including a ginger drink with gin, a tomato drink with vodka, a lavender drink and a tarragon drink with cachaca! All in all it was an absolutely great meal for $32 each before taxes and tips or drinks. The service was gracious, they read our minds by bringing us some harissa to add some more spice to the couscous (it didnt need it - we just like heat :)) and best of all were the absolutely amazing choices that were available for the DAT menu unlike the usual choice between chicken breast and short ribs or salmon... Please go!!

Wow - thats suspiciously like what my Indian Bengali grandmother told me - if you sing while eating you will marry a crazy man... I never sang while eating but I cant vouch for the sanity of a man who would marry me.