Best Restaurants Consistent with 6- and 9-year-old Children

I can't speak specifically to the restaurants you mentioned, except for Le Reminet, as I haven't been to the others. But we did start taking the kids with us on vacations to Paris when they were 10 and 11, so I do have some experience with that. But there's quite a difference in behavior, etc. between 6 and 10, so you'll have to keep that in mind.

Where we have taken our kids, all for dinners: Ze Kitchen Galerie, Jacques Cagna, Le Reminet, Mon Vieil Ami, Dominique Bouchet, Au Bon Accueil, Au Moulin a Vent “Chez Henri. Oh, for lunch, Willi's Wine Bar, Maceo, Rotisserie d'en Face. Never had a problem, they always enjoyed it.

Some are more formal and quiet and might be difficult for a 6-year-old (Jacques Cagna, Mon Vieil Ami, Dominique Bouchet, Au Bon Accueil, Maceo). Two factors to consider: how close the tables are (Le Reminet, tables quite close together, so maybe not so good a choice?) and how noisy the place is (noisy is better; Ze Kitchen Galerie and Chez Henri are noisy). Both of the latter, I think, would be good. Though Ze Kitchen Galerie is also kind of chi-chi. We went to CHez Henri because our son wanted to eat frogs legs - you might be interested to learn that not many Parisian restaurants serve them!

At that age, our kids usually just ordered a main course, and ate bites of our appetizers. If they were getting tired, or just tired of sitting, we skipped the dessert and coffee. If they still wanted a sweet after dinner, we'd stop and share a crepe from a stand. How will your grandkids handle the later dinner hour? Our daughter is a night owl, so never has a problem, but at 10 years old, our son would occasionally get pretty sleepy by the end of dinner. We usually eat dinner pretty late here at home, so eating later wasn't an issue for our kids, but you might check into that for your grandkids.

Good ideas for lighter meals: creperies (there are some good ones); picnic lunch with cheese from Androuet or the like. Make sure they get to eat at least one croque monsieur or madame!

Are your grandkids adventurous eaters? That helps. Restaurant staff seem to be particularly pleased when they see a well-behaved American child dive into a large piece of foie gras, or escargots, frogs legs, or pigeon. Just in case, though, we had a backup dish in mind that most restaurants would have - for our son, it was steak. For my daughter, I think it was foie gras!

Lexma90 in France

Sunday Night in Paris, including a Vegetarian

Trying to come up with an acceptable Sunday-night option for my family, which includes hubby (likes a variety of choices, but no offal); daughter (adventurous, but likes any type of meat more than seafood or fish); darling but frustrating 17yo vegetarian son, and me, who will eat and enjoys almost anything including offal.

We have options that include vegetarian dishes for our other nights in Paris, but Sunday has me stumped.

I was very interested in the new Semilla, based on great reviews, and we've had drinks but not dinner at Fish (their dinner menu, sans the vegetarian on those trips, didn't appeal). But high-maintenance hubby thought what he saw of the menu seemed too short. Can anyone provide any details on how many entrees and plats Semilla is currently offering on their menu on a given night?

Any suggestions for restaurants on Sunday that would have vegetarian dishes or could accommodate a vegetarian? (We've eaten at Mon Vieil Ami several times, so would rather go somewhere else this trip.)

Lexma90 in France

Caveat emptor - Hostaria Nerone

I'm now starting to check on the Italy board again, as hubby and I just booked a 25th anniverary / his 50th b-day trip to Venice and Rome. I'm fascinated by the opinions on restaurants in Italy, Rome and elsewhere, north and south, etc.

I read up a lot of food and restaurants, so we probably fall in the more-knowledgeable-but-not-expert category in terms of knowing local specialties, and all that. And while we've had some less-great meals, my memories are all of the wonderful experiences, which mostly include good exchanges with the people in the restaurant (now that I think about it). Discussing local seasonal tomatoes with a waiter at one Roman restaurant, learning about punterella at another (then discussing it with a guy at the Campo d' Fiori market), and so on.

Generally, though, I don't ask a lot of questions. My Italian is ok but not great, so incapable of a detailed discussion in Italian about which dish works best with others, or that I want to try something new to me. So I tend not to use English to ask the detailed questions - sounds like I should use English if I can't communicate well enough in Italian!

Lexma90 in Italy

Lighter lunches in Paris

There's always the down-market but still delightful option of a creperie, located all over the city though you can find specific recommendations here on Chowhound.

We've done the picnic lunch option, picking up some local cheeses, fresh bread and a half-bottle of wine. And some small dessert items from a patisserie.

Depending on the restaurant, you may be able order just a smaller meal. On our last trip to Paris, we had a very relaxing lunch at Rotisserie d'en Face; daughter and husband ordered a main course only, and I ordered a first course and a cheese plate. It was delicious and didn't take hours (we asked them to serve everything at the same time, not in courses).

Lexma90 in France

Cake you can eat with your hands?

I usually eat my breakfast in the car on the way to work. I've doctored up what probably started out as a standard coffeecake (though made a bit more nutritious with the addition of items like chopped apple pieces in the batter), but the crumble that's usually on the top, I put in as a middle layer. That way, it's easy to eat in the car but still has that crunchy crumble.

Lexma90 in Home Cooking

A Vegetarian Travelling with Omnivores - Primarily Belgium and Paris

I just now remembered to check up on this thread, sorry I didn't respond earlier!

Son eats dairy and eggs - he acknowledges that as he's still in his growing years, that it's difficult for him to get the nutrients he needs without that. Also, he loves cheese. He does eat cheese with rennet - I think he knows what the deal is there, but I've never pressed him on it.

On meat or seafood broth, he would probably say that he wouldn't eat them, though he doesn't always think of asking. And my moral line in the sand is that while I'm ok with him being vegetarian, it's his job to figure out and decide where his moral line is. So I'm not going to be his food policewoman for him. He probably wouldn't find an "almost" vegetarian dish acceptable.

In the meantime, I've come up with some good-sounding possibilities: Toucan Brasserie or Brassins (and I'm guessing we'll visit the Horta Museum, so we'll be in the area); Switch (I think they have veggie main course, though possibly only at lunch); Le Manufacture; in addition to places already mentioned above. So I'm feeling better about our options.

Lexma90 in Europe

can we really blame eating habits on parents?

My eating habits are largely pretty different from my parents. They grew up in the midwest, raised me in a different state in the Midwest, a lot of the Midwestern standards, meat every dinner, pot roast on Sundays with overcooked vegetables. Very little ethnic food in the home or outside of it, because there weren't really any ethnic or fast food restaurants around. BUT what they did bequeath to me was an interest in trying new foods. I can remember my dad always encouraging us to try new foods, especially when we were on vacation in our 3- or 4-week driving trips around the U.S. My mom, while more conservative in her food tastes, went through an interest in French cooking during my early teens, so I think I learned from that about some different foods and other cooking methods.

I never really liked meat much; I like it more now, but as an adult, we have some sort of meat for dinner only about one night a week. I think my parents gave up trying to get me to eat meat sometime late in my high school years; I just ate a lot of everything else.

Now, with teen-aged kids of my own, we eat primarily ethnic, especially if you call Italian and Mexican ethnic. Rarely meat, seafood or fish for dinner. We eat a much bigger variety of dishes and foods than my parents, and that's what we feed our kids. I do make a few of the foods I had growing up, I would think. But what comes to mind are the special Holiday desserts that my mom made, that I make as well. But other than that, there's not much similarity in what I eat now compared to what I was raised eating.

My husband's parents are Indian, and he was raised with a combination of Indian dishes and "American" food. While we occasionally make Indian food, it's not much like what his mom made, because we're too lazy (and not good enough Indian cooks) to make chapatis from scratch. He probably makes some of the American food his mom made, but only if they were dishes he likes.

Our kids primarily eat what we make, though our son's a vegetarian. Their habits are ok; they don't eat junk food, because we don't have much at home (baked chips is the junkiest); we have too many treats, primarily because our daughter hoards her candy and then doesn't eat it. And they don't like fast food, so they don't tend to eat it when out with friends. So I think their habits are more like our eating habits than mine are to my parents.

Lexma90 in Not About Food

Dishoom, Covent Garden, London

Ok, ok, so Dishoom is not southern Indian. I tend to mentally classify Indian restaurants as "northern" or "southern," just because most of what I see in the U.S. where I live as being one or the other - mostly northern, which is not my favorite. I don't think I've ever seen an Indian restaurant in the U.S. that's specifically Mumbai food, though more are including dishes from there - not that they don't exist, just that I haven't heard of them, and there are certainly none in the city where I live. My in-laws are from Mumbai which yes, I know is not in the south, but they used to spend time with relatives in Pune and Goa and the like, and I guess sometimes serve southern dishes, or dishes with ingredients more found in southern India, so short-cut my reference to the various Indian regional cuisines.

Not that we've established that it's not southern, I still like the menu, and will be looking for other great Mumbai and southern (and I guess northern) Indian restaurants. I do have Quilon on my list, as well as India Zing, but am also looking for less formal, cheaper places for variety and for lunchtime meals. And that are near the places we're likely to be visiting in central London.

Thanks

Lexma90 in U.K./Ireland

Dishoom, Covent Garden, London

Thanks for the helpful review. I've just started researching London researching, in preparation for a trip there in 2012, and I'd come across this restaurant. We like (and some of my family prefers) southern Indian, so this is a great-sounding lunch possibility in a convenient location.

Lexma90 in U.K./Ireland

Monthly healthy food grocery bill?

Your bill does seem high. We (two adults, two teens, 1 dog, 3 cats) live in the Denver area, and I'm sure we don't spend that much (hubby does most of the food shopping, so I don't keep tabs). We do eat lots of grains (and legumes), rarely eat processed food, and most importantly, we eat a mostly-vegetarian diet. That's primarily because of our preference, but it means that when we do purchase meat, we have no hesitation in spending more, because it's only once or twice a week.

Are you purchasing seasonal fruits and vegetables? If you're buying asparagus at this time of year, it wil likely be more expensive than some other vegetables (and not local, either).

And I agree on the supplements; if you're eating otherwise a healthy lifestyle, you don't need that extra stuff, especially if you and your spouse are on the younger side (as I suspect you are, if you're saving for a house). And most Americans get more protein than they need; look at some labels sometime, so really consider whether you need protein powders (whether or not it's adding significantly to your budget).

Lexma90 in Not About Food

A Vegetarian Travelling with Omnivores - Primarily Belgium and Paris

Keep in mind that the vegetarian in the Czech Republic was 13 at the time, not quite the foodie his sister is, and with a sterner stomach than some of us adults, so he liked the fried cheese! Many places also had pasta, risotto, pizza and occasionally more local items, such as a variety of dumplings (such as Bramborové šišky s mákem), garlic soup, haluska (in Slovakia), etc. Dumplings were another item possibly more pleasing to kids a main course than adults (though I had them for lunch occasionally; I've never met a carb that I don't like). And he did get to experience pizza with ketchup on top!

At Kolkovna, in Prague, he had a decent farmer's omelet, supplemented by very ordinary onion rings and some of my bread dumplings and potato dumplings. At Hergetova Cihelná, also in Prague (it was actually his birthday), he started with vegetarian goat cheese croquettes, then had linguine with butter and black truffles (looked a bit bland to me). We finished, after a black light theater, at Café Restaurant Louvre, where he had a very large piece of (birthday) chocolate cake. I much preferred my poppyseed strudel. At lunch at Klášterní Pivovar, he had potato pancakes and fried cheese. We actually ate more non-Czech food in Prague, as were headed after that for about a week in the countryside, where we knew the choice would be Czech, Slovakian in Slovakia, finishing off with Hungarian food in rural Hungary.

We tend to focus on local food when we travel, and I know that traditional Belgian does not tend to be vegetarian! Hence the dilemma. I'm somewhat reassured that we could call restaurants in advance, though it sounds like the poster on the link you provided had some less-satisfactory experiences (I guess I haven't done a CH search on this topic for a while, so hadn't seen that thread). Though our son would do just fine with a meal of a vegetarian soup (he loves onion soup), a salad, and lot of frites.

Looks like we have some options; 'T Kelderke has stoemp with eggs, which would be great for him, and a variety of more traditional items for the rest of us. Though sadly, I realized that as we'll be travelling in May, we'll miss mussels season - though be able to enjoy asparagus!

Thanks for your input.

Lexma90 in Europe

Where should we eat in Bruges?

We had one good dinner and quite a few good beers and appetizers at Bierbrasserie Cambrinus, which per its website, is open daily. A fun place to eat!

De Koetse is open on Wednesday, closed Thursday. Cozy, welcoming and more formal than Cambrinus.

Lexma90 in Europe

A Vegetarian Travelling with Omnivores - Primarily Belgium and Paris

We're (family, wife, husband, 13yo daughter, 17yo son) travelling next year to Europe. Son has been a vegetarian for a while, but on prior trips to Europe he's either not been vegetarian, or we travelled to countries where many restaurants included vegetarian items (the Czech Republic and Slovakia were quite easy, not surprising when you think about it, though the cuisine was not our favorite).

Next year will include Belgium and Paris, which I think will be more of a challenge (for dinner; lunch is always much easier). The rest of us foodies, most vocally our daughter, would rather not end up somewhere bad, dull, touristy or vegetarian-only to accomodate our son.

I actually think Paris will be easier than Belgium, as I've heard some places, such as Z Kitchen Galerie, have vegetarian mains (is that correct?); I know that Willie's Wine Bar and Mon Vieil Ami do, as we noticed them the last time we ate there, but we'd like to try other places.

But there are places that we would love to return to, such as Le Reminet in Paris, or the lovely little seafood places that we ate at in Brussels (de Koetse) and Bruges (Bij den Boer), that have very few vegetarian items listed, and I'm not sure if they'd be enough for a meal.

I have been told that European restaurants are not so accomodating to this sort of thing, but how unmannerly would it be for me to contact some restaurants beforehand, and see if they could provide enough food for a polite young vegetarian to have a reasonable dinner with his omnivore family? I wouldn't be asking for specially-prepared dishes, but whether they were serving enough vegetarian salads, side items, etc. that evening to comprise a meal, and whether that would be acceptable to the restaurant owners. If someone offered to modify a meat or seafood-based dish, or prepare an omelette, that would be even better, but not expected.

Generally, any other suggestions on this would be great. Most of the info I've found relate to vegetarian restaurants, which is not what we're looking for. I want to be understanding of his ethical choice, but also of our other family members who view travel as an excuse to eat a variety of great local dishes!

Lexma90 in Europe

Dining in your vehicle

I have workday breakfast in the car most of the time. It's either carrot-oat cake, my own version of healthful coffee cake (with the nut/cinnamon/raw sugar mixture in the middle, so it doesn't spill) or slices of homemade pumpkin bread. All not so crumbly and easy to eat without using utensils. It makes the morning commute enjoyable.

Lexma90 in General Chowhounding Topics

Your thoughts on reusable sandwich bags (Lunchskins and the like)

I have a bunch of similar items that I bought from crafty people on etsy.com; probably the same price range, but lots more colors and designs. They last quite long, and easily rinse out if you have something that gets on the inside of the bags.

I don't use them much for sandwiches, as I usually have artisan bread that's in shapes that dont fit well in the bags. And they don't hold my sandwich together enough, so that the insides of the sandwich move around too much and spill out.

But I do use them for cutup vegetables and fruits, and so does my daughter. And crackers and such. We both like them a lot!

Lexma90 in General Chowhounding Topics

Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, Cordoba, Toledo Dining/Bar Questions

Thanks for the additional information; I spent some time over the weekend looking at the food info I'd gathered so far, so I'm very much looking forward to the dining part of our trip!

Question about Restaurante de la Terraza, in the Casino de Madrid - I know it's associated with Ferran Adria. My husband will be celebrating his birthday while we're in Spain, and he didn't like Ramon Freixa (the restaurant) because it looked "too weird" (my daughter and I would love to eat there). It looks like Restaurante de la Terraza serves molecular cuisine, in which case, dear hubby will definitely not be interested in going there for his birthday dinner.

Any place a little more traditional? (Or as I might say in a moment of annoyance, a little more boring?)

Lexma90 in Spain/Portugal

Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, Cordoba, Toledo Dining/Bar Questions

Thanks for the confirmation that a tapas bar isn't considered any different from a restaurant, in terms of taking a young teen.

Any guidance on cafes that serve churros y choclate at breakfast time?

Lexma90 in Spain/Portugal

Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, Cordoba, Toledo Dining/Bar Questions

We're planning a trip in October to these destinations, and I am busily collecting restaurant and food recommendations. We're taking our almost-13yo daughter with us. She's a real foodie, and she loves the same dining experiences that we do - local cuisine, some high-end, some cheap, but mostly mid-range. And we customarily eat late here at home, about 9 pm or so, so that will work out fine.

I have some questions, though, involved our daughter that I haven't seen addressed:

After hearing of our previous trip to Barcelona (without her), she's eagerly looking forward to chocolate y churros every breakfast. I have names of places in Madrid, but not in the other cities. Is it easy to find good cafes that serve chocolate y churros for her and other Spanish breakfast items (such as a bikini sandwich, which I gather it's called a combinado in Madrid) for the grownups? Do most of them open at 9 am? That was our general experience in Barcelona.

Is it ok to take kids to tapas bars? When we were in Barcelona, with our then-12yo son, our tapas experiences were outside, so we didn't face this question. Is it like in the U.S., where (generally speaking) if a place serves food, they're technically a restaurant, and kids can go in?

Our experience in taking her to Italy and France has been that in many places, restaurants are ok with serving her some wine with dinner (which follows our family philosophy on introducing our kids to responsible drinking). In fact, at Mon Vieil Ami, in Paris, last year, they served her an entire glass (we helped her finish it) without even asking us. Will we find the same in Spain?

Thanks

Lexma90 in Spain/Portugal

Don't Goa to Goa

I agree - thanks for the info! My parents-in-law are Indian, and while they're from Mumbai, my mother-in-law spent a lot of time growing up with her grandmother, who lived near Goa. So I'm always interested in foods from that area, and southern Indian food in general.

We'll be in New York next month, and looking forward to lots of great Indian food. I've been checking out Chowhound, as well as nyindia.us, which seems to more knowledgeable, but also seems like every review is negative!

I'd appreciate any southern indian restaurant recs you could make (and I love pongal, if you can point to any good place for pongal).

Lexma90 in Manhattan

Good North Beach Lunch Ideas?

Thank you all for the suggestions - I now have some other possibilities to suggest to the husband. As for the meaning of "simple northern Italian," I think he means food that's not as complicated as most of those we're eating for dinner, and more from northern Italy in terms of the kinds of pastas and sauces. Though he mentioned pizza, too, which of course is NOT northern!

For an update on our day, i had some great pupusas at Acaxutla Restaurant; the only pupusas I'd had previously are those sold occasionally from our local Whole Foods, made on-site at lunchtime. These were better, and more importantly, the curtido and the salsa had much more spicy flavor. I also enjoyed the refreshing tamarind drink.

Husband ate at Yank Sing; I joined them for a few minutes at the end of their meal. Has this place gotten more expensive? $96 for a handful of dishes, not a big selection as the carts didn't seem to be rolling very frequently, and I think the group didn't want to bother with ordering from the menu (except for my husband, not so much into what they eat). Upscale ambience, but that's not what I'm looking for when I have dim sum.

Dinner was at the French Laundry, and was superb, of course (we've been lucky enough to eat there previously). Little touch that I appreciated: I was a little chilly in my sleeveless dress, and they had a selection of pashminas for me to drape over my shoulders during dinner.

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The French Laundry
6640 Washington Street, Yountville, CA 94599

Yank Sing
49 Stevenson St Ste Stlv, San Francisco, CA 94105

Acaxutla
2282 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

Good North Beach Lunch Ideas?

Thanks for both suggestions (we do need to pick up some Mother's Day chocolates for the MIL) - that's already in the plans. I usually go for an early-morning run along the Bay, and usually stop to pick up something in Chinatown. But one morning, I'll go to Liguria instead (or in addition). My notes say they open at 8 on weekdays, and 7 on the weekends. Is that correct?

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

Good North Beach Lunch Ideas?

Hubby and I are in S.F. right now, having a wonderful time and eating a lot of great food, most of which ideas came from CH. Here's a brief review:

Dim sum at Mayflower Seafood: Fresh shrimp, we liked pretty much everything, and the menu card allowed us to try some items that we wouldn't have known about if we were just pointing out items on a cart. (The steamed turnip cake, I wouldn't order again; I guess I've had fried turnip cake in the past.) Husband can't stop talking about this place.

Burma Super Star: I ate solo here, my first time with Burmese food. I really enjoyed it; liked the difference from Indian (which I'm very familiar with, as husband's family is Indian). I can't stop talking about the tea leaf salad.

Dinners at Farallon and Boulevard: Despite the noise levels at both places, we really liked them both. I thought Boulevard was more creative on all fronts.

Upcoming on the schedule: dinners at the French Laundry and Perbacco; I'll have lunch in the Mission of pupusas. Probably more dim sum for another lunch.

Now, to my question. One weekend lunch is undecided; husband will be done with his meetings, so it will be the two of us. He'll be coming from Moscone, I'll be coming from the Ferry Building and farmer's market. Husband is really fixated on lunch in North Beach. He says he wants "simple northern Italian food," partly because all of our dinners are and will be on the fancy side (he vetoed SPQR for lunch as too fancy and "weird"). Neither of us like red-sauce southern Italian. I'm thinking I can stop at Naked Lunch and get a fois gras sandwich, and just have an appetizer for lunch with husband. I'd like a lunch place kind of in this area, as we hope to tour the Haas-Lillienthal house in the afternoon.

Can anyone recommend any lunch restaurants in North Beach? We've been to Rose Pistola a number of times, and we both like it, but I'd like to go somewhere (anywhere) different.

I keep trying to persuade husband to eat somewhere else; anything ethnic would be fine with me (though I'm really pushing for more Burmese). But he really wants "simple Italian." Help!

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Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

The French Laundry
6640 Washington Street, Yountville, CA 94599

Farallon
450 Post Street, San Francisco, CA 94102

Rose Pistola
532 Columbus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94133-2802

SPQR
1911 Fillmore Street, San Francisco, CA 94115

Mayflower Seafood
6255 Geary Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94121

Super Star Restaurant
4919 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94112

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

how many of you really follow "nutrition science"?

Here's another on the same bandwagon of moderation generally, but also exercise, lots of fresh food, mostly plants.

I read a lot of "nutrition science" stuff, but not necessary to follow every latest thing. In fact, I don't really follow any of the fad trends, but there are always nuggets of truth, or at least information, in any new article. And if I read something that sounds interesting, I'll generally dig deeper - I never stop with an article in the popular press.

I will say that for the last 20 years or so, my diet has generally been lowish in fat, due to a genetic disposition to high cholesterol. And more carbs, due to a lack of interest in meat and being a runner. Though as I age, I'm finding both that I can't eat as much carbs (pasta and breads, primarily) without it effecting my weight, and that I'm more interested in eating more lean protein; "interested," as in, it appeals to me more than it used to.

Lexma90 in Not About Food

A week in San Fran and Wine Country in early June - Help needed finalizing itinerary

It somewhat depends on your hotel location, but using google maps from the center of Union Square to Jackson & Stockton, it's .6 mile, about a 15-minute walk. Of course, if you find something good to eat before you reach Jackson, then it's closer. It is an uphill walk, just to warn you, but not real steep (I live in Denver, so I don't notice much the ups and downs walking around S.F.). Technically, I guess, the beginning of Chinatown that's nearest Union Square is the big gateway at the intersection of Bush and Grant (about 3 blocks from Union Square), but you have to walk a couple of blocks along Grant after that intersection to get to the food places. Generally speaking, Grant has more of the touristy junk shops, but some food, and Stockton has more of the "authentic" groceries and food places.

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

A week in San Fran and Wine Country in early June - Help needed finalizing itinerary

It sounds like for breakfast near Union Square you're looking for a sit-down place, but if not (or not necessarily), then consider a stroll through Chinatown to pick up Chinese breakfast items. Stockton. I love to do this every time we visit San Francisco, and always end up with way more food than we can possibly eat (and for a very low price). There are restaurants you can sit down at, but I prefer to stop at several places (generally on Stockton, or on Jackson near Stockton/Grant) and pick up a variety. Some places also have coffee, just regular, not fancy espresso drinks.

I haven't been real good at keeping track of the names of places I tend to buy items from, but I think they include Good Mong Kok Bakery, 1039 Stockton; Yong Kee, 732 Jackson; You's Dim Sum, 675 Jackson. I usually get a combination of sweet, more pastry-type items, as well as some savory things.

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Yong Kee
732 Jackson St, San Francisco, CA 94133

You's Dim Sum
937 Stockton St, San Francisco, CA 94108

Good Mong Kok
1039 Stockton St, San Francisco, CA

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

raising a chowpup and her non-chowish friends

I'd say, keep doing what you're doing. Maybe your chowpup will want the "normal" items for a while, but at some point, she'll start developing her own tastes, and (we all hope) they won't include "chicken" nuggets.

Our daughter is now 12, and shows all signs of being a true chowhound. I took her for her first real sushi the other day (concerns re raw seafood when she was younger). I got the standard sushi lunch for her, telling her that it would have more standard sushi items, and then got some more unusual items for me. Well, they served my stuff first, and I ended up sharing them all with her, including the baby squid! She's had squid before, in risottos and pastas, but I loved that she just gobbled the squid sushi right up. Along with all the other sushi they served. For Valentine's Day, she tried telling him that he should take her (not me) to our favorite, and very, very good restaurant in town. (That did not happen.)

A number of her friends are Asian, so I think that her, there's a little more variety at school during lunchtime, though items like hummus and pita were unusual in elementary school (and I had to pack extra, so she could share). In fact, the parents of one of her Chinese friends love having her over, because she loves the Chinese meals they cook.

I think chowhounds are made AND born. If a genetic chowhound is born to a chicken nugget family, it will be a long time before that chowhound has a chance to (1) develop a taste for well-made food of any type and (2) try new and different foods. But I would hope it would happen at some point. With our kids (we also have a 15yo son, who's been a vegetarian for 3 years now), we've been serving them pretty much everything since they were little; they haven't had a huge scope for being majorly picky.

I have had some problems, also, in preparing foods for their friends. I'll admit we tend to be more traditional in those situations - especially for our son, it's usually pizza. But I have taken them and friends out for Middle Eastern, dim sum, etc.

Lexma90 in Not About Food

Ideas for Foodie Neighborhood Lunches

Oh, thank you all, this makes all the decision-making so much fun, and has helped me narrow down some of the possibilities!

No, I won't have a car, but I'm a big walker (and runner). And since I'm coming from Denver and the mountains, the San Francisco hills aren't a problem (all the better to burn off calories). I plan to take the bus to the Legion of Honor, enjoy that, and then walk over to the Richmond and wander that area. The Russian bakery sounds good; I'm happy with anywhere that might have anything that includes poppyseeds. So maybe, or maybe not, Burma Super Star.

On Great Eastern vs. Yank Sing and dim sum generally. Whatever so-so dim sum San Francisco has, I think I can safely assume that it’s generally better and more extensive than dim sum in Denver. I've probably had most of the standard items, but only by pointing. So I've found that I don't know names of different dishes, and I can’t keep the different dishes straight if I don’t know their names. So I think it will be easier to try things I haven't had yet by referring to a menu. Here are some I’d like to try: lotus wrapped sticky rice, Shanghai steamed buns (though it seems Yank Sing’s are quite good, and I have had them here in Denver), sticky rice, steamed or fried tofu. I recently tried turnip cakes, and like them a lot (I also like taro dumplings). And dim sum on our arrival day, in Chinatown, works the best because that's when the husband will be free from meetings.

Udapi Palace is the south Indian place in the Mission that I had in mind; Dosa is open at lunch (brunch) only on the weekends, Udapi Palace does have one of my favorites, dahai vada, but now that I look again at the menu, I'm not so interested, and neither it nor Dosa has pongal. Pupusas and the new suggestions, Inkas and Poc Chuc, sound more different and appealing to me.

I did know that Namu has okonomiyaki , though opinions here on the S.F. board seem to not rate them very highly. As I’ve never eaten them before, would I know the difference between good and bad? So I could do that if I didn't make it to Japantown; maybe that could be Sunday's choice (plus Korean tacos). Sounds like Naked Lunch goes higher on my list than okonomiyaki.

I'd love to have izakaya, but it's basically a dinner thing, and all of our dinners are spoken for.

I hope you locals realize what a treasure you have in the Ferry Building farmer's market, or any other similar farmer's markets. We went on our last trip to S.F., and I was dumbstruck by the quality and variety of farmstuff, and the pride of the vendors in their products. As it was, we bought too much, including some zucchini blossoms that we carefully flew home with us to saute and have with pasta.

I'm happy to add all other ideas to my already-too-long list!

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Inkas Restaurant
3299 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Great Eastern Restaurant
649 Jackson St, San Francisco, CA 94133

Yank Sing
49 Stevenson St Ste Stlv, San Francisco, CA 94105

Namu
439 Balboa Street, San Francisco, CA 94118

Poc Chuc
2886 16th St, San Francisco, CA 94103

Legion of Honor Cafe
100 34th Ave, San Francisco, CA

Super Star Restaurant
4919 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94112

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

Ideas for Foodie Neighborhood Lunches

I will be visiting San Francisco in May, with husband who will be in meetings for three of the days we'll be there. We've visited S.F. quite a few times, so this is my opportunity to wander around in and have lunches in some neighborhoods, eating ethnic cuisines that aren't found where we live (and that darling hubby doesn't like). I've already compiled a way-too-long list, but I'd love some input on my ideas, and what I might be missing. I love Asian food, Japanese, Thai, Indian (south, primarily; my husband's family is Indian); Malaysian. I don't know much about South American foods, though we seem to eat a lot of Southwestern/Mexican at home; I love Middle Eastern, like Greek, French, Italian (much prefer northern). I have no problem walking into any little place, even with a language barrier.

So much food, so little time, is my problem! I guess what I also need help with is which dishes/cuisines deserve to be tried, given the time I'll have, vs. what will have to wait until the next trip.

The first day, we'll fly in, and have dim sum lunch. I think I've persuaded husband that we can skip Yank Sing this time (once he finds a place he likes, he likes to keep going back); I'd like to take him to Great Eastern. I know that's not the best dim sum in the S.F. area, but it's convenient and will give me the chance to order from the menu some of the dim sum dishes I've researched, but never eaten.

One of my solo days: breakfast (which will be Chinatown on the other days) at Tartine Bakery. Visit murals, wander around, then lunch. Pupusas (which I've never had), or maybe south Indian. Not a big thing in San Francisco, but I love southern Indian food, and it's difficult to find anywhere, really. Maybe I'll be able to fit in some gelato. Pizzeria Delfina sounds great, but I want something more different.

Another day: Legion of Honor, then lunch and (food) browsing in Inner Richmond. Thinking I'll try Burmese food that day, but I have others on my list. I even like SOME Eastern European foods. Or would you recommend another ethnic restaurant, and suggest that if I want to have Burmese, then Burmese Kitchen (near our hotel) would provide a good-enough introduction? (I don't know what day I'd do this.)

Another day: Japantown? I've wandered through this area a bit, but I'd really like to have okonomiyaki or ramen. I've never had okonomiyaki; I've had some ramen. Another idea for if I want to have ramen is Katana-ya, which is near our hotel. Is okonomiyaki interesting enough to devote a meal, or stomach room, to? I love sushi too, but most sushi places are dinner only.

And how can I fit in Naked Lunch - the Artisan Foie Gras Torchon & Duck Prosciutto Sandwich fits so many categories of my favorite foods. Maye this is more important than okonomiyaki.

One day I will also be fitting in the Saturday farmer's market.

Our last morning, Sunday, we'll have time for a quickish lunch somewhere (maybe - our flight leaves at 2:50 pm). Maybe back to the Mission area (we're not big brunch folks)? Too bad Naked Lunch isn't open on Sunday. Any idea how well a Artisan Foie Gras Torchon & Duck Prosciutto Sandwich would keep, if I got one on Saturday for consumption on Sunday?

(I think we have dinners mostly worked out: French Laundry (!!); Boulevard; Perbacco or La Ciccia; and some low-key seafood place. Husband's a bit less adventurous than I am, and we'll have others joining us for those meals.)

Thanks - this is definitely a trip where the time in between the meals/food is merely time to use up calories until the next food.

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La Ciccia
291 30th Street, San Francisco, CA 94131

Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

Tartine Bakery
600 Guerrero St, San Francisco, CA 94110

The French Laundry
6640 Washington Street, Yountville, CA 94599

Great Eastern Restaurant
649 Jackson St, San Francisco, CA 94133

Yank Sing
49 Stevenson St Ste Stlv, San Francisco, CA 94105

Legion of Honor Cafe
100 34th Ave, San Francisco, CA

Pizzeria Delfina
2406 California St, San Francisco, CA 94115

Lexma90 in San Francisco Bay Area

As a child (under 21) did your parents give you wine or alcohol at home with meals?

I don't recall at what age my parents started (occasionally?) offering me wine, but it was definitely some time during my college years. The only thing I liked initially was very sweet German wine; I then expanded my horizons to "better" whites and reds. Their appreciation of wine probably did contribute to my appreciation of it.

I have never liked beer, so I don't know if my parents ever offered it to me. I don't remember if they ever offered mixed drinks; I never drank those much, either. I drank in college, at parties (illegally, of course), and I doubt I kept it a secret from them. But I rarely had more than one glass of anything, and I probably told them that, too, so I guess I was a responsible drinker from the first.

My husband's parents grew up in a non-drinking culture, so wine was never served at home. Interestingly enough, though, his "godparents" were European, and always had wine with meals. When he visited, he did too. He's always equated a good meal with good wine, so that must be where it came from.

We offer our kids wine with dinner, occasionally (we have wine with dinner a couple of times a week). Our 15yo will not drink wine at all (don't you just love "holier-than-thou" teens?). Our 12yo (it's legal in our state to offer our kid a drink in our house) will usually have a few sips, especially if dinner is something like steak. So I think it is adding to her appreciation of a good meal.

Lexma90 in General Chowhounding Topics