They fail to mention the most reliable item at OAK, which is the Pancetta, Brie, and Fig sandwich at Vino Volo. Better than not half bad.

It's been a couple of years, but the Nam Kao Tod at Lone Tree Thai was pretty good when I had it. The bulk of the menu looks pretty standard, but Nam Kao Tod is unusual enough that its presence may point to a better than the usual suburban Thai restaurant. http://www.lonetreethai.com/

My guess is that Zuni may be on his list because he's heard about the burger. If so, he needs to be okay with a $15 burger, not including fries. Add cheese, grilled onions, and a side of fries and you're looking at a $25 burger lunch for one, before tax and tip.

If the plan is to go for dinner, the burger is not an option. Most entrees will be in the $25-30 range. Certainly fair for San Francisco, but possibly not what your husband thinks of as cheap.

Most (or at least many) CHers will happily eat at Great Eastern and Z & Y in Chinatown. In fact, I'd call them both very good choices to meet the OP's needs. Location is convenient to Union Square.

Richmond has Spicy Yuba Strips, Five Spice Tofu Nuggets, and blocks of Firm Tofu. Bought some recently. I think that the plain tofu was $5.25 or so for 2.25 lbs., and the flavored stuff was around $6ish for 1 lb.

Location? Date? Any dietary restrictions or preferences?

Mandarin Meatballs: Woo hoo! They're still really tasty. Next time I'll ask to pay extra to have them served with a green veg (an option back in the day). The bed of bean spouts didn't do much for them, but the meatballs are so yummy that I couldn't care less.

Double Skin: Very nice. Main difference from the Great China rendition is that Wing added the mustard and sauce to the dish separately, rather than mixing them together first. Ultimate result was nearly identical.

Honey Walnut Prawns: Despite the Great China chef, this dish is a pretty typical version with a thick, rich, mayo dense sauce. The Great China version was very unusual, with a thinner sauce that was orange scented.

Happy to report that the stuffed eggplant is still very tasty. The string beans w/ a bit of shredded pork were solid. The filling on the pot stickers had good flavor and texture (I don't like it too homogeneous). The salt and pepper calamari was less successful. Not enough salt or pepper, and served with a dark sweet/vinegar based sauce on the side for dipping. Will return soon for further exploration.

I don't recall any alcohol. This is, basically, a take-away place. As casual as it gets, but very tasty. There is an Oddbins wine shop just down the street and a couple of convenience stores right by the Tube station if you want to try the DIY approach. Consider it an urban picnic.

Spicy, but not deadly. Get at least a bit of it because the flavor is so good. The bread and veggies will help cool you down.

We have not been to Mandarin Garden in several years, but it used to be a family favorite. The owners were (and I assume are) brothers (Wing and Bob, if I recall). For a short moment, they re-named the restaurant after their mother (Yu Ying Garden, I seem to recall), but soon reverted to the Mandarin Garden name. Food was especially good when Bob cooked, but could be variable (though always well above the norm).

The menu looks much the same (not including Great China additions like Double Skin), and I do not remember kimchi in the past. The menu linked above is, I believe, pretty old. A newer online menu exists here: http://www.allmenus.com/ca/berkeley/5... This new menu includes Double Skin, so I assume it is quite recent.

Favorites for us back in the day included:

Mandarin Meatballs w/ Vegetable - small and loosely packed, served in a strongly star anise scented sauce, really lovely when served with spinach.

Crispy Whole Chicken - served in a thin soy based sauce with green onion.

Lemon Chicken - I kid you not. I HATE lemon chicken, but this was different. Ten to twenty years ago the sauce at Mandarin Garden was not a bilious yellow and not overly viscous. It had actual pieces of lemon in it. And it was a bit tart.

Stuffed Eggplant - I've never had it like this anywhere else. Eggplant slices stuffed with pork and shrimp, battered and deep fried, served in a thin soy based sauce with ginger and garlic.

Losses from the past:

Shredded Pork with Bean Paste - we really liked this dish, which does not appear on the current online menu.

Stewed Cabbage or Chinese Greens w/ Chicken Oil

The "Saute" section of the menu, which never made any sense. It was a disjointed collection of dishes, some of which have made their way to other areas of the menu. For example, Shredded Pork w/ Dried Bean Curd is now in the Pork section, where it probably should always have been. Braised Sea Cucumber has properly migrated to the Seafood section, as has Stewed Sea Cucumber with Shrimp Egg. The great Stuffed Eggplant now hangs out in the Pork section.

The organ meat dishes have, however, disappeared entirely. Farewell to:

Pork Tripe & Chicken Gizzard with Ginger Garlic
Pork Kidney & Chicken Gizzard with Chinese Parsley
Braised Pork Kidney
Sauteed Shrimps & Pork Kidney

Though not offal, Egg White Blended with Chicken & Fresh Seafood also appears to be a thing of the past.

All of this leaves me both nostalgic and hopeful. We'll give Mandarin Garden a try tonight, and see how its current incarnation stacks up to our memories.

Yes! I was ruined for kebabs because Bosphorus was the first place I had them, back when I was a college student visiting London on an extremely limited budget. South Kensington is usually quite out of the way for us when we're staying in London these days, but we make the trek because I have not found any place else that can touch Bosphorus.

Just over a block from the South Kensington station is Bosphorus Kebabs, my favorite kebab shop in London. It is not really a sit down restaurant, but it has a few cramped tables inside, and two tables outside. We've been eating there for nearly thirty years, and I am always disappointed any time we go to London and do not get there. The food is excellent and very cheap. Last summer, our family of three ate a filling lunch at Bosphorus for under 20 GBP.

Unlike the stereotype, this food is very fresh and there is no mystery meat involved. The hot sauce is especially tasty, so do not skip it. Kebabs are nearly as central to the British take-away experience as fish and chips, so don't miss this. There is a good chance it will be your favorite meal of your visit.

http://www.bosphoruskebabs.co.uk/

The Olympics has managed to throw off our usual summer London plans, so we're staying at a hotel in an area we've never really frequented (the Marriott Park Lane, which I feel very lucky to have booked on points). We're certain to return to some of our favorites and standbys from past visits, but could use advice on the area in the vicinity of our hotel. I'd appreciate tips on the following:

1)Places for an excellent, memorable, special dinner out. Caveats: no jacket required, comfortable with an 18-year-old who enjoys good food, but has an aversion for the precious. Pollen Street Social was a highlight for us last August.

2)Places for reliable, high quality, low stress dinners and lunches at fair prices. Asian suggestions especially welcome.

3)Places to grab a quick bite to go that are more interesting than Pret.

4)Specialties of the neighborhood. Are there any bakeries or other food focused shops in the area that it would be criminal for us to miss?

Bongo Burger. Three locations near Cal in Berkeley. Northside, Southside, and Downtown.

Champa Garden

Chai Thai

Vientian Cafe

All in Oakland. None are quite as crispy as the version at Lotus. I like them all.

Bingo! Thank you.

Will try them. Berkeley Bowl said, "They only send us that stuff in November."

I know it's not really the season, but I need them ASAP for a baking project. Tried Piedmont Grocery, which usually stocks them, but they're out. Any ideas? Does Berkeley Bowl have them?

The caviar service is outstanding and a good value. The blini are to die for.

The roast lobster is always excellent. I am not a fan of the horseradish crusted salmon, but do like most of their seafood. the risotto is good and quite large. I am usually happy with the Guinea hen.

The creme brulee trio is really too generous.

I usually skip dessert and end with the cheese course. This allows me to double up on either appetizer or seafood. As to the cheese cart, it is no longer cutting edge. Though it has good variety, there is nothing all that unusual or hard to source on it. That said, I enjoy it because the cheeses, though not very obscure, are always in lovely condition.

Do you know what's up with Tajine? Disconnected phone seems like a bad sign. The menu at Cafe Zitouna probably will not work for us, but Aicha may. How does it compare to Tajine? Of course that's moot if Tajine is not open.

You could rent one of those goofy cable cars on wheels to get you there, adding a little more San Francisco flavor. A friend used one for her wedding and folks got a kick out of it.

Have most things in hand for the spring class I am leading on the Spice Route, but I'm having trouble booking a good Morrocan lunch. Tajine's phone appears to be disconnected and emails are bouncing back. What's the best I can do, anywhere in the Bay Area?

I think that our other lunches will be at Ajanta, Mateo's Cocina Latina, Hawker Fare, and Sichuan Fortune House.

Current menu is available here: http://sanfrancisco.menupages.com/res...

Banquet menus at the bottom.

Correct.

Mermaid (long since closed in Berkeley) used to do a lovely version that used spinach. Soi 4 has it on their current dinner menu:

miang kum Fresh cut mustard leaf wrap with roasted coconut, prawns, pomelo, fresh herbs, and sweet palm

http://www.berkeleyside.com/2012/01/25/fire-at-berkeleys-great-china-restaurant-on-kitteridge/

http://www.dailycal.org/2012/01/25/be...

:-(

Just heard from one of my students that Great China was just evacuated due to a fire in the building. I hope that everyone is okay.

And the galbi jim at Sura is awesome!

BBQ items are not Sahn Maru's strength. They are best for stews, especially the black goat stew, and the pork stew w/ potatoes, dates, etc.