Again, I am indebted to you, Woodburner, for your sauce recommendations!
We go to Pinehurst almost every year and, every time, stop at this random solitary little side of the road diner on the way to Raleigh/Durham Airport & take away some pulled pork sandwiches, and now, we'll be able to do our own! Life is good!

Thanks everyone for all this valuable info.! I am learning so much from this thread and, especially Woodburner, you are AWESOME! I have always wanted to do pulled pork but it seemed complicated and treacherous and the domino fuse, oven finish and paper bag wrap/towel wrap in cooler have given me the confidence to give it a go! He-e-e-e-re, Piggy, Piggy, Piggy!

Poor House Bistro in San Jose is definitely worth the trip! My husband, also Tulane Alum. endorses their beignets & their roast beef po' boys. They have NOLA beers & sodas & live music on the patio...Laissez les bon temps roullez!

Poor House Bistro
www.poorhousebistro.com
91 South Autumn Street, San Jose, CA

Re: Moonshadows:
I had to laugh when I read,"The secret is the deck...the lights on the ocean attract all the seagulls."

Might not be just the lights--Consider:

One day, I had a late lunch on their deck with one other diner.

I had a beautiful salad with some grilled seafood on top & a glass of wine. Out of nowhere, came dive-bombing this gull, exploding my meal and sending my wine flying all over me! Very Alfred Hitchcock!
The staff was nice & replaced everything & I gather that it's an ongoing problem there.
Other than the occasional aerial attack, everything else was lovely...

Me too...We were in LA area in June & I wanted to try Philippe's.
We were staying in Santa Monica and it was a drive to get there & had other stops. I mention this because my husband was moaning the whole way,"Do you really want to do this?" He went in & got my sandwich & ate his inside while I stayed in the car since our dogs were with us. When he came with my sandwich, he let fly a few expletives and said,"That was one of the top ten BEST things I've ever had in my mouth! The meat was tender (we had the beef), moist & deliciously seasoned. We had the"Double Dipped" and it was just the right mix of crunchy bun & saturated bun, so I don't understand the "soggy" comment above, unless they ordered theirs "Wet". I am usually "all about the dip" too and, I have to say, I didn't miss the side bowl of dip. For me, that says a lot. Also, we both found their potato salad & cole slaw to be fresh as a daisy & a delicious foil to the sandwich. My husband also enjoyed the old-fashioned ambience. Our son is starting his first job out of college and he'll be working in Santa Monica, so I gave him a Philippe's gift card. He acted as our "scout" and tried P.'s when he was interning last summer. He also raved...I'll tell him about the Westside Tavern...

No...it most certainly wasn't just you! I feel so validated by reading these posts! Christmas 2011, I had The. Stupidest. Meal. Ever. at that place, and at a king's ransom. It was really obscene, and we were all (5 of us) in vigorous agreement. We had the same experience mentioned above with the badly times service and the dopey waiter chat. The food was just bizarre, and, bottom line, did not get the "nom, nom" going at all. And don't think I didn't "get" the food and what they were trying to "do". I am plenty food adventurous/experienced and that food? Was just annoying and overly precious and to quote Bourdain, "Lethally self-serious."
The sad part is, I was at the Restaurant in the early 90's and had one of the best meals I've ever eaten.
I wish I had the menu (we had the tasting menu and, thanks to that abomination of a meal, I am so totally OVER the tasting menu experience.) to share with you but I am currently out of town.
I also wouldn't give that place one Michelin star, let alone three...I know this is an old post, but I felt it was important to corroborate the others' experiences.

Good to know...yeah, agree, hella spendy place but, like I said, if you wanted to impress & pull out all the stops...I also enjoyed the people-watching. BTW: Was there treating our mom to a Mother's Day spa weekend. The food and ambience was great I thought but, besides the wait staff, I found a pervasive institutional snottiness in the personnel there (at the spa, front desk, and podium at the restaurant.) and they, honestly, had difficulty getting anything straight, almost as if they hadn't been properly trained for their job. Very off-putting. So, though in some moment of fiscal impropriety I might dine there again, I doubt I would ever stay or use their spa, given our experience, especially when one has Napa or Carmel or any number of resort areas whose staff are congenial & down to earth. I don't mean to hate on the hotel portion but by the time we left, I was very annoyed by what should have been a relaxing and care-free weekend.

Sorry to hear that...Last time I was there was probably 2-3 years ago, come to think of it, on a recommendation from Sunset Magazine (California's Riviera) & we took the Surfliner from San Diego up the coast to SJ (I live in the Bay Area) hitting San Clemente & Santa Barbara & all the places suggested were good.

Breakfast: Neal's Coffee Shop Burlingame, has a good, solid menu, great bacon, omelettes, the Swedish Pancakes w/Lingonberry butter are just like my Swedish Nana used to make and my mouth waters just thinking of them...After a trip out of town, they're always the first thing I head for. Also, they have outdoor dining, albeit they could use some planters w/flowers.
Other Burlingame: For Thai: Coconut Bay; La Boulange opened an offshoot of their SF location recently on B'game Ave.
Ecco, off B'game Ave. is a long open staple of French/Continental and is uniquely good, fastidiously prepared menu. Sake Sushi & Yuzu are amazing & the guy who runs it is a gem.I'm always impressed at what he presents and, yes, the quality of his product does cost a bit more.

In San Carlos, Piacere for Italian, I concur with the others re: Refuge, Town is good, Rumi, towards the south end of the street is wonderful (good biz mtg. place), excellent, high quality burgers at hole in the wall -- Klutch, which has good beef, uses Acme Bread buns, good chili, paninis, craft beers, wine, Mitchell's Ice Cream (Mexican Chocolate Shakes!) and even has a few outdoor tables for good days. Kabul good food & value-for-money, very good service. The Office also good tavern food.
Chantilly in Menlo Park on El Camino, Bistro Vida, fun authentic, lovely food, Cedro's in the Kepler's complex is great & a good biz mtg. venue, Cafe Renzo on University is fantastic & a great place to watch the world go by. For breakfast or lunch, Tootsie's at the Stanford Barn has great rustic Ital. breakfast sandwiches, paninis & salads for lunch, and a serene outside dining patio. Iberia has been around forever, for a reason: authentic, delicious, beautiful large outdoor dining and adorable waiters:-) Mike's Cafe (2 locations but the one in Portola Valley is being remodelled right now), Hotel Dining: Stanford Park Hotel on El Camino has a great eat-in bar lounge with fireplace that is cozy in winter, as well as a restaurant; Sheraton Palo Alto has poolside dining any time of day that makes you feel like you're on vacation...good brunch too; Soleil at the Westin next door sophisticated, quiet, good food & service; and, if you're pulling out all the stops, Madera in the Rosewood , another oasis, has spectacular food and view, make sure you call for reservations though because it is very popular w/the techies & VC's...
California Avenue in PA has several good places & Peking Duck on El Camino as well as Mandarin Gourmet on Ramona. Also, I don't remember what your northern boundry was but, Koi Palace on Gellert in Daly City, and Boulevard in Daly City are good for everyday food.

Have had excellent meals at both Minetta Tavern & Le Bernardin.
Nice Matin at 201 W. 79th has been awesome & I thought well-priced for the quality of food it delivers, but I haven't been there in awhile. Aquavit on E. 55th in midtown is great for a change of pace, as is Pravda on Lafayette,(sort of near the Bubble Lounge?) with its Kookie/Edgy Commie Era Russian decor but the chicken kiev and, of course the caviar, were impeccable...

I Forgot: There's a great breakfast at "The Cottage" in La Jolla. They have inside or outside dining, really nice food, all the locals go there, get there by 9:30 to avoid the line. And the Colonial Hotel has 1/2 price food at Happy Hour. We went in and had great burgers, short rib sandwiches and smoked salmon salad & they do their own house made potato chips that come with the drinks. Good luck in B school!

Just returned from there! Had a beautiful meal at "Flavor Del Mar" in nearby Del Mar. The chef trained at Le Bernardin in NYC. You can get dinner items from $ 10 & the venue is chic & hip & looks out over the ocean. Also has outside dining: www.flavordelmar.com
Bondi is a fun Australian cuisine restaurant & club--very modern interior, hanging basket/chairs & light & airy. The Australian owner is behind the bar a lot & very funny...
Barbarella's has great Italian. The owner is a kinda kookie lady who is a local institution. Very good food in an informal atmosphere & reasonably priced. Also in the Gaslamp is Anthology, a jazz & other music too club that serves nice food & we just sat at the bar part & had great appetizers & the music also stellar. Lastly, in La Jolla is Hotel La Valencia (locals call it "La Vee" which has half price tapas & drinks at Happy Hour & a classical Spanish guitar combo that also ays contemporary & jazz. The room is vintage 1920's Mediterranean & beautiful, with a picture window overlooking palm trees and the ocean. Sink into a sofa and watch the sun set while you're serenaded. Tell any women in the group that they MUST not miss the ladies' room, the far end of which opens out to a spectacular view of the cove! Also, in Gaslight, Little Italy area has many great cheap Mexican or other breakfast places. There's a really interesting hotel, The Keaton, in the Gaslamp--owned by the same company who owns Ferrari Motors, so everything is super-modern and res & black. Even if you don't stay there, they have a cool club in the lower level.

Try any of these & FYI: Philippe's is AWESOME!

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