Handyman's Profile
Mediterannean and/or Vegetarian near downtown
I will be visiting Seattle at end of April. Looking for suggestions or favorite Vegetarian or Mediterranean restaurants. Looking for falafel, hummus, tabouli kind of places in small hole in the wall joints as well as nicer kind of places. Not looking for high end Mediterranean with steak/chicken with Mediterranean cooking techniques.
As for Vegetarian, how about your favorites, like Thai Vegetarian, or Chinese Vegetarian, etc.? To clarify, I am not looking for places that have a regular menu plus a few Vegetarian entree's.
I like to walk visual neighborhoods so if they have restaurants with easy public transportation access if needed from the Warwick Hotel area, I am game to explore.
If you were a Vegetarian, with a carnivorous kinda wife, who also likes good Med/Veg, where would you send someone? Thanks in advance!
GOOD balsamic vinegar around San Ramon?
Have been using varying balsamic vinegars purchased from grocery stores, etc. for a while, but had occassion to try a real one purchased by family at a farmer's market by "We Olive" (from Fresno I believe) whose brochure says town names such as Walnut Creek. I assume this means farmer's markets, but not sure. The light went on for me about the HUGE difference of quality, after which I read that cheap balsamic is basically red wine vinegar with food coloring, additives, etc. added in. Also the good stuff was made for "our kids and grandkid's generation".
And since the ones I have been buying in the past have the "Modendi" (?) sticker/label on them, I figured they were decent. WRONGGGGGGGG!
So, short of generating a big discussion on the merits of each, or lack thereof, as I have seen the light so to speak, are there any good sources for good ones and brands here in the Tri-Valley? Thanks.
Vegetarian friendly in Petaluma?
Went to Real Doner today as per Melanie's suggestion. Absolutely fantastic. Met the owner, told him I found him on Chowhound, which he knew about surprisingly, and later thanked him for the superb food.
But NOT before we were given a warm welcome, and a gracious offer to help if needed. You order at the counter, but food is delivered to your table.
I ordered the fantastic appetizer plater for myself, a vegetarian. I was graciously offered a substitution for the potato salad on this platter, which he told me had a touch of mayonnaise in it, which I never eat. He was most kind in offering me a choice of eggplant salad as an alternative. It was the highlight of the plate for me. Great stuff! It also came with one dolma, a few kalmata olives, lots of hummus, bobaganoush, tabbouleh, and a ground sweet red pepper (I think) salad infused with spicy red pepper flakes or powder. It was fantastic! Served with a beautiful basket of focaccia bread slices to use for dipping. This platter was easily enough for two. Price was at or about $10.99 if memory serves correctly.
The daughter ordered a falafel, which came wrapped in a beautifully grilled lavosh bread. It was quite large I thought. Though I did not partake, it looked great, and the daughter thought it very tasty. All the foods on the other tables looked great, and most seating was outside. A cooler of soft drinks which looked quite large was in the back of the restaurant, and a complementary water dispenser was up front with cool water and cups. The spits of gyro meat looked great spinning on the back counter, even to a confirmed veg-head like me, formerly of the meat-head persuasion.
I would highly recommend this place, on a side street a few blocks from the downtown stores, and will return when possible. Not often I find a place that hits all the right notes for me, but this was it. All I can say is THANK YOU to Melanie for the suggestion, and a high five to the owner for great food and a casual place. Is there any question I liked it??????
Vegetarian friendly in Petaluma?
Looking for one or more good vegetarian friendly restaurants on par with the great Redwood Cafe in Cotati, to be near Walnut Park where the farmer's market is held for this Saturday. Attending "Petaluma Whiskerino", the beard and mustache contest. Hey, google it!!! Two of us coming from opposite directions of the Bay area? Can you help with a suggestion or two? Thanks!
Organic Produce Delivery
Lo and behold, I open my box of "Valley" assortment this morning, and on top, staring me in the face, is a truly rotten, hairy, moldy heirloom tomato. If this was just picked yesterday, that would not have happened. I am SOOOOOOOO disappointed. Sure seems like the boxes were put together earlier in the week or something. If this was picked yesterday, this would not have happened. Quality control is lacking obviously. I guess a written complaint to them is in my future.
Organic Produce Delivery
I have been using farmfreshtoyou.com for about a month. Though I am happy with their delivery, please note that they deliver in the middle of the night. If they say Tuesday delivery, like mine in San Ramon, be aware it arrives between 1130pm and 1 a.m. in my case. Sounds like they leave the farm after rush hour traffic for deliveries. Does your dog bark? Or a neighbors? They pick up your cardboard delivery box for reuse/recycle. Leave it out for them.
Please re-read the last paragraph of Robert's message above. You do have a choice to order their Capay Valley box, all of which they grow themselves, otherwise their regular service is their own stuff mixed with stuff sourced from other farms, both out of area and out of state. The salesman did not point that out to me. Easy to switch on-line, and a great website that is responsive to your needs.
I went to their open house, read as open farm, this past weekend, near Cache Creek Casino. Great people, nice hospitality, wonderful farm, and very helpful. Encouraged us to pick veggies in the field to try ourselves for sampling, plus take some home as samples. A great day in the hot weather was had by all. The heat probably kept some people away. Thaddeus, the major owner/boss/public face led our tour, one of three. He was great, and really filled you in on the details of running a farm and this business. I will say "BRAVO" to Thaddeus and his whole organization. They were top-notch. Who knew a candy stripe fig could taste like strawberry jam, warm and ripe right off the tree. Really. Simply amazing. Or 10 of them if you pleased. Can't wait for more in tonight's delivery. We brought home eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, figs, and grapes. Saw squash, the asparagus field, basil, carrots, citrus trees, and heard but did not see the pistachio tree/trees, but a visitor told us they were there. So in retrospect, it is a great place, great farm, great people. Will you like it? Don't know, but I was very happy.
My only complaint before I changed to the "Valley box" instead of the regular box, was that some of their fruits/veggies are sourced from outside their farm. A minor quibble was the few strawberries or blueberries in two different deliveries were squashed and slightly moldy, though the rest were okay due to shipping/delay from other places. It was in looking at their newsletter that I realized the blueberries were from out of state and strawberries from Watsonville, so they were showing signs of shipping/date. I did not bring it to their attention, and probably should have, but I am willing to give them a break. Tonight starts the new service, which I initiated due to being educated by a past poster if you search the chow archive for "Farm Fresh To You" for the "Valley" box which is stuff grown on their farm. Easy to switch, deal with your account, vacation hold, delivery instructions, bill payment options.
All in all, I like it. But I supplement it still by buying at farmers markets, etc as a box to feed four is not enough for my big eater, strictly vegetarian, home cook needs. But note that you can get delivery of bigger size boxes. I just choose not to.
I look foward to hearing other opinions.
Mazatlan 25th anniversary dinner
Thank you all for your suggestions. I will do some further research and take your great recommendations into account.
Quinn's Lighthouse (Oakland, on Alameda Estuary) - Review
With first hand knowledge of the situation, I can confirm that the restaurant has been sold a few months back. The railing and deck were replaced due to maintenance issues, Do not know the status of their deck operation at this point.
Mazatlan 25th anniversary dinner
Can anyone suggest a nice (read as good) restaurant to celebrate my 25th wedding anniversary on an upcoming October Wednesday night in Mazatlan please. Possibly a little upscale and special in a casual way?
My problem is that I do low fat but very vegetarian, and my bride will eat anything, especially seafood. I know a seafood locale like Mazatlan is not a great place for me, but I am easy to please under those constrictions and not too demanding.
Topolo seems to come up as a nice place, but I have no knowledge of that fact.
Mazdee, could you chime in on this with your suggestions (as I have read alot of your posts)? Or any others who might have some insights to my situation.
Regards, and thanks in advance.
Looking for authentic, low-fat falafal recipe
Forgot to add to other post, but a ton of fresh crunchy veggies under the yogurt topping.
Looking for authentic, low-fat falafal recipe
Fried? Why? Yes it tastes better, agreed, but I am on the same mission as you lovessushi. I mix up my falafel, then make it into flat patties instead of balls. I put it on parchment paper on a cookie sheet and BAKE them till you get the texture/ firmness/crunchiness you want. A little sprayed oil like "Pam" olive oil spray could help if thats what you want.
I mix up non- fat yogurt with fresh lemon juice and sugar or Splenda or honey to taste. Basically lemon yogurt.
Served on whole wheat pita, I get my fix of falafel, and add hot Vietnamese style chili/garlic paste if I want an extra kick.
The real thing? Nahhhh. But sure does the trick.
Pearl or pearled barley
So, this from Wiki-pedia:
Barley must have its fibrous outer hull removed before it can be eaten. Barley grains with their hulls still on are called covered barley or 'hulled barley". Once the grain has had the inedible hull removed, it is called dehulled barley. At this stage, the grain still has its bran and germ, which are nutritious. Dehulled barley is considered a whole grain, and is a popular health food. Pearl barley or pearled barley is hulled barley which has been processed further to remove the bran. It may be polished, a process known as "pearling". Dehulled or pearl barley may be processed into a variety of barley products, including flour, flakes similar to oatmeal, and grits.
So my question is then I guess............ Is dehulled barley readily available in most stores such as Whole Foods, and is that what I should be looking for instead of pearled barley to cook with?
Pearl or pearled barley
Have been eating pearl barley sometimes thinking it is one of the whole grains we should be eating. Then I read somewhere that pearl or pearled barley is equivalent to stripping the good stuff off a grain of rice to make white rice from say a brown rice. (Is that possiby where white rice comes from? Excuse my ignorance of the subject.)
That got me to thinking that I only ever see pearl rice. So what does one look for if one desires the whole barley (non-pearled?) for cooking and what are drawbacks of cooking one versus the other?
BBQ odor for Vegetarians
Got an odd thought that I would love Hounds to chime in on please.
First, the question.................
If you are a lifelong Vegetarian, does the smell of barbequed meat in the air such as a neighbor's yard or a restaurant cooking it's wares become a a pleasurable smell to you? Inquiring minds want to know!!!!!
I have been a Vegetarian for two years, after being a big meat eater/heart surgery patient . Though I do not miss meat, and always wanted to be a Vegetarian, I have no overwhelming desire to eat it. That said, I catch that smell on the passing wind as I leave my gym after working out. It eminates from a restaurant, or a supermarket deli counter's exhaust hood roasting chickens in the strip mall, or someone's yard. And that always get me to thinking. If you grew up without that food odor connection, is that a good smell to you? Obviously I can't be objective. So I put it out there for you to express an opinion. I look foward to the discussion. Thanks all for participating.
Veg friendly restaurants Fort Bragg and above?
Going to be in Westport above Fort Bragg last week in October. Looking for the most veg friendly menu for dinner and lunch in Fort Bragg and through the Westport area. I have read the posts on Fort Bragg, and see the pizza place as one option, but due to my trying to avoid cheese as much as possible, this would not be an option at this time. Any other choices come to mind for all of you familiar with that area?
Pumpkin Beer
Saw it in bottles at Costco in San Ramon last week. May other Costco's have it too?
Indian Food without fats?
As a vegetarian who loves ethnic food, and a heart patient, I really try to watch the oils/fats I eat. Indian food is something I haven't eaten in a year, but would love to get back into. As most things vegetarian are fried, have cheese in them, have ghee, butter, unhealthy fats, coconut or coconut milk (as in curries), or high fat yogurt, I find my list of items in Indian restaurants very limited, more by my lack of understanding of the fat content. Can you suggest to me items you might know about like curries, bean dishes, and rice dishes that would not have these fats in them that would definately fall into this category?
I know that either North or South Indian is more veggie based, so maybe you can clarify that for me too. There are plenty of Indian restaurants to choose from here in the San Fran Bay area of both, some specifically vegetarian, but the non-fats dishes that could be ordered in most restaurants have me stymied. Can you help set me in the right direction? Many thanks to all.
Veg friendly near Hall of Flowers?
Can anyone recommend a vegetarian friendly restaurant near the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, possibly within walking distance, for my elderly mom and I on Saturday? Thanks.
What do you put down the garbage disposal?
Handyman again........
The horsepower of the unit will give the blades much more power to crush things such as bones. But the part you all seem to be missing is that this debris clogs THE PIPES. One big problem is at the baffle inside the drain pipe directly under the sink, to slow down the joining of the water from two sinks as they merge together in the pipes, but this is only if you have a double sink. If you look at a cross section of the pipe, you will see the pipe is split in half inside, making the opening 3/4" high instead of 1 1/2". Now you put the potato peels, bones, etc. in there in great amounts, and you really gum things up. Same applies for a single sink, but you get the idea. So, in answer to your question, it is not the horsepower or the garbage disposal per se, but the mess you cause in your drain as the debris exits. And sometimes it jams the disposal. And then add coffee filters, tea bags, etc. (I must admit that these are all new ideas to me) and you have increased the problem potential. Yikes. I'm glad it is not my home that my wife is doing this at.
What do you put down the garbage disposal?
Hi all. Handyman again. Sounds like most of you agree with me about not putting alot down your disposal. And to all of you that insist............It just takes the bill of one plumber to make you a convert. At least I would think. So if your bread dough, potato peels, and starchy things are gonna go down the magic hole, think twice before you do it. And for those of you that don't, great. I love making money on the repair of your system. Use your system for gunky waste rinsed off plates, everything else in the trash. Otherwise, I will have my hand in your pocket eventually.
For the record, I took out long stringy vegetable stems today. Looked kinda like spinach stems/green onions/unknown object. It wasn't stuck in the garbage disposal. No, it was stuck in the drain as it exited the disposal.
Yes, citrus is a long used freshener. I have also seen some small capsules sold by hardware stores for the same purpose. Never used them or talked to anyone who did. Am I the only one who never smelled a bad smelling garbage disposal? Lots of bad smelling houses/apartments with said garbage disposals in them, but................ Again, use lots of water to flush the waste away. The "p-trap" or "J-bend" (same thing) under the sink is supposed to stop those odors from eminating from your pipes.
And for the record, the "blades" in your disposal are not blades. You might think of them as hammers. There are no sharp edges on then. Think of them as two or so hammers banging against the food at incredible speed, shattering it into tiny pieces. Kinda how junkyard recyclers process all those old cars or metal. Put them in a hammer mill that strikes at high speed/impact until everything in it's path is shattered into manageable chunks. Hence, the firmer the debris in the disposal, the easier it is to break it apart. That is why stringy things don't get chopped up. They kinda ooze thru the holes, clogging things up.
And to prove my point about ice down the disposal to sharpen the blades, have you ever heard of anyone sharpening a hammer??????????????????
BTW, grease is bad. Not on your disposal. Just in clogging up the pipes as it hardens.
Sorry to be so snide. I just love this subject. Have a clog free day!
What do you put down the garbage disposal?
As a 16 year professional General Contractor running a Handyman business, I put in and service alot of garbage disposals. I have made lots of money taking out coins, dog collars, towels, bottle caps, screws, pieces of metal such as parts of forks, spoons, etc., and these are usually from rental apartments. Of course this gets charged backed to the tenants by the owners/property managers, so I walk away looking like a knight in shining armor for rescuing them...............TILL THEY GET THE BILL from someone other than me!
The worst things, bar none, to put in a garbage disposal? Potato peels. And cooked rice. Both, but especially potato peels turn into glue in your drain, as the starch gets ground up, sitting in your pipes to harden or just cause a blockage if not enough water pushes it all the way to the water treatment plant. A little bit, a little at a time may be fine, but that Thanksgiving dinner or Xmas dinner potato preparation could cause you a large plumber's bill. Beware!!!!!!!!!! I have NEVER taken stringy blockages out of a garbage disposal or pipes, though I agree with that advice in a general sense. My general rule of thumb? Put your bones, garbage, debris in the garbage pail, and save the disposal in the sink for the crud that gets washed off the plates doing dishes. Scrape those plates into the trash can. Don't say that you haven't been warned. I love your money! There is good reason New York City banned garbage disposals. Too big a load on the waste water treatment facilities trying to remove the debris in processing the water.
Garlic noodles near Civic Center?
Thanks for the help, but by looking at a map, I would say it was on 8th Street. But if I can't find it when I go this weekend, I will take your suggestions into consideration. Thanks all for your help!!!!
Garlic noodles near Civic Center?
Can you help me locate a name of a restaurant , a hole in the wall type of place, that the missus and I had been to once before? It is a few doors down a side street near Civic Center area, between Market and Mission, close to Market. The missus still raves about their garlic noodles from at least a year ago. I do vividly remember the framed pics/letters on the wall from celebrities thanking them for their food, as supplied to them when they are in town. I thought it was Tu Lan on Sixth Street, but it was not after a recent visit. But about the same location on a street, but closer to Civic Center. My wife would be forever happy if I take her there again. Might it be a Thai restaurant instead of Vietnamese as I thought? The people at Tu Lan thought my wife was nuts when she tried hard to tell them she thought they had garlic noodles on their menu in the past, only to be rebuffed. Past memories are hard to place into exact details when you feel like you are getting older......
BTW, Tu Lan was a painful experience when we were there, though I enjoyed my meal and cheap prices. The eyes of the four of us were absolutely burning due to the air in the restaurant. Must be a bad exhaust system. One of our party left after about 15 minutes of suffering the ol' eye burn.
Dessert place in East Bay (San Leandro/Fremont)
Clancy's should not be on this list. It is a little Mom and Pop ice crean stand in a small residential neighborhood, and if I remember right from a few years ago, has maybe two or three tables where you can sit after the counterperson scoops out your cone from the display cases. A place where the neighborhood kids go after a few innings of ball at the local park. Certainly not a date night destination. Can't vouch for the ice cream as I have not lived in the neighborhood for a few years.
Asian market coming to San Ramon
Anyone familiar with the idea of a new Asian market coming to San Ramon relatively soon to the site of the defunct Ralph's grocery store on Alcosta Blvd. at Village Parkway near the Dublin border?
Supposedly the new market will be heavy on fish (tanks I assume) and produce. I think the article said the owner has about 20(?) small shops in both Oakland and San Francisco Chinatowns, and is looking to open a big one in an underserved market area.
As I went to Martinez today to get fresh uncooked crab from the tank at Country Square Market to bring to Walnut Creek, this is a market that will be welcomed by me and probably the Asian community around San Ramon area as well as all lovers of Asian/Chinese foods like me. To our Chinese friends on-line.........Gung Hay Fat Choy!
Korean Restaurant in Hayward?
Han Yang seems to be the favorite on this board over the years. I like it. Korea House is around the corner on A Street, but it is newer. Han Yang is north of A Street a few blocks.
South or Central American around Union Square?
Greetings, I have a friend from Australia coming just before Xmas to visit in San Francisco alone for four days after two weeks of a business trip to Texas. He has never been to America or San Francisco. One of his requests is to try South or Central American food while here. He is staying near Union Square, and is unfamiliar with transportation or anything San Fran style. Can you help me with a place in that general area that might work for him? I thought pupusas would fit that bill in general, but a restaurant of the Americas might be a better choice. I plan to show him Chinatown and North Beach on his first day there personally, but he is on his own after that. Thanks.
Hall of Flowers-low fat vegetarian
Going to Golden Gate Park on Saturday with elderly parents. Looking for something nearby with low fat vegetarian options for me and regular middle of the road elderly people food for them. Can you suggest something that might work for us? Thanks!
Sweet Potato Candy
I always find them at Chinese markets in the San Francisco area. Cut into long strips, and dried. Seem to be coated with a light dusting of cornstarch or such. Hope that helps.
