L C's Profile
Brasa - Peruvian chicken (and more) in Berkeley
I haven't tried the La Brasa yet. Just FYI, the lomo saltado sandwich is an invention from a sandwich shop in Miraflores (Peru) named La Pava. It's part of a trendy wave of shops that make "criolla style" sandwiches, in which traditional entrees are served inside bread. The Sanguchon food truck from chef Carlos Altamirano makes a good version. The truck also sells pan con chicharron (that's not criolla style).
It's not a lomo saltado without the fries. A few Peruvian restaurants in the US serve the fries on the side, that's not typical.
"Nice" Mexican in SF
Not China Basin. Further down south, the new Limon is in the Bayview district. And yes, it's already open. 5800 3rd street is a BMR project with many other merchants, including a Fresh & Easy Market.
That area now has many good eateries. Just across 3rd street, a few blocks down Carroll st. is the Smokin Warehouse BBQ takeout window. Really excellent beef or pork baby back ribs and beef brisket - open until 7pm.
Little Star Pizza, SF now has a South Bay Campbell location called Blue Line Pizza!
Yes, but it's a different partnership. A resident of Campbell wanted LSP to open a branch in downtown Campbell, so she got into a partnership with one of the co-founders. Same SF menu, all pizzas, spicy chicken wings, housemade NY cheesecake, etc. The only difference ia more salads and lunch panini. I guess Campbell residents (customers will be mostly families) wanted healthy options.
Report: Ozumo new ramen lunch [San Francisco]
Update to my report: I don't know if the restaurant read this post or not, but Ozumo has now fixed my complaints stated above.
Today, I ordered the Ozumo ramen bowl - with pork jowl, snow crab and egg in a shoyu broth. This time it had the proper ramen noodles, and it also had the fishcake and sprouts that were missing during my last visit. There was a decent amount of meat, and the broth had good flavor. Strangely the broth was not shoyu but tonkotsu. Not among the best ramen, but much improved now compared to the past.
Any good ramen in the East Bay...
Update: Don't know if the restaurant read my comments, but Ozumo has now fixed the complaints I mentioned. I tried an Ozumo bowl for lunch today and it had the proper ramen noodles. This time my bowl had the fishcake and sprouts that were missing on my last visit. There was a decent amount of meat, and the broth had good flavor. Still not among the best, but much better now.
Roli Roti roasted pig knuckle?
Yes, you're right. I had forgotten about the Oakland FM too.
Ice Cream trucks
+1 on Treatbot. But that truck is based in San Jose. Sometimes they also visit San Mateo.
Another vendor is Twirl & Dip, http://twirlanddip.com they are local.
Ben & Jerry's also has a truck. No idea how to contact them.
Any good ramen in the East Bay...
Don't know if the ramen of Ozumo in Oakland is the same as Ozumo SF's ramen. If so, then it's overpriced and disappointing. It was previously $16, but they recently replaced that with a $12-$14 lunch ramen menu. Website menus not updated. My broth was too salty and they were stingy with the toppings, could be mistakes by inexperienced kitchen during first week of menu. But my biggest complaint is that the noodles were soft like overcooked spaghetti. Looked exactly like store bought pasta (probably soba), not ramen.
Roli Roti roasted pig knuckle?
The RR truck only has roasted chicken and potatoes at the CSM FM. The porchetta and pig knuckle are exclusive to the Ferry Plaza location (Thu & Sat), and starting last year also on the first Friday of the month at Blue Bottle (300 Webster) in Oakland, 11:30am-2pm.
Custard Pie
Only tried the donuts at Pilgrim's.
Heidi's hasn't changed much, other than the pies being more expensive.
Food trucks recommendations for our wedding?
For a wedding event I'd recommend food trucks operated by professional chefs, that have the experience, skill and consistency to handle a large crowd.
+1 on 3-Sum Eats, Le Truc, and Streatery suggestions.
Chef Laurent Katgely from Spencer on the Go truck, is super nice in person. But I can spend more than $30 on his French menu of small bites, and still be hungry afterward.
The Taco Guys http://www.thetacoguys.com/ from chefs Jason Hoffman and Justin Close, is my favorite fusion tacos truck. Usually they have 8 or 10 different delicious taco varieties.
Chef Todd Middleton from Fins on the Hoof http://finsonthehoof.com/ is another truck with a lot of catering experience. He could probably design a menu to fit any budget.
Southern Sandwich Company http://www.southernsandwich.com/ truck from brothers Brett and Nathan Niebergall, serves Southern comfort food.
For BBQ, I recommend Slow Hand BBQ http://www.facebook.com/pages/Slow-Hand-BBQ/120036794696480 from Daniel Frengs. So far, his BBQ is better compared to all current local mobile BBQ vendors: Smoke BBQ SF, Good Foods Catering, Smokin’ Warehouse BBQ, and The Rib Whip.
Food trucks recommendations for our wedding?
There's a new Bay Area catering company that specializes on street food vendors. http://cater2.me/ Maybe they can arrange for multiple vendors at your price point.
Solo in Sf
Since u mentioned late arrival, my suggestions excludes places that close by 9 or 9:30pm.
Sons & Daughters (closes @10:30pm Thu-Sat) would be my top pick for best food, fine dining, but still casual. Cafe Claude (closes 10:30pm daily) is a nice French place. There's a row of 8 restaurants along an alley named Belden Place, see link: http://www.belden-place.com/ for more details. La Scene Cafe & Bar is a tiny and quiet restaurant at the Warwick hotel, decent food, open until 11pm (midnight Fri-Sat).
Scala's Bistro (432 Powell St) fits your needs well, just one block from Union Square, casual space, food by former Top Chef contestant chef Jen Biesty, and closes @11pm (until midnight Thu-Sun).
Regarding other places suggested: Barbacco (closes 10pm) is not near Union Square, and Canteen (must arrive by 9:15, closes 10pm) is in the Tenderloin.
What should I cook in North Beach
+1 Walk to Chinatown along Stockton to shop for fresh produce and meat.
There's also a tiny gourmet shop named Little Vine at 1541 Grant Ave. with salumi, cheese, wine, pastries, etc. And if u are closer to the Fisherman's Wharf area, then there's a Trader Joe's and a Safeway nearby.
How to use a roasted pig knuckle?
Unless u have a convection oven, the knuckle will lose some of its original crispyness. It's best consumed right after it's made (at the RR truck), when all of the thick skin was still perfectly crunchy. Remember the tip about asking them to cut it for u. Most of the time only the owner Thomas O. had the patience to cut it properly, into small pieces.
Thick soups seem like a good choice, I'd avoid anything than makes the crispy skin soggy. That's why most places serve the knuckle by itself, with or without side dishes.
Roli Roti roasted pig knuckle?
Make sure to ask them to cut into small pieces while still hot, because the plastic knife they provide is useless. The knuckle is burning hot (+170 degrees), so some workers do a haphazard job of cutting it. Ask for a little Sel de Provence on the side, and I just snack on it while shopping in the market. Best while still hot.
Usually the recipe advice I've heard, is to cut it into bite size pieces and tossed into a salad, or as a topping for creamy soups instead of croutons.
It's similar to the pork knuckle from Shanghai House (3641 Balboa).
Report: Ozumo new ramen lunch [San Francisco]
Ozumo's new executive chef Alejandro Morgan has created a brand new winter ramen menu, that's only available at the Lounge/bar section during lunch (11:30am - 2pm).
Previously, the restaurant already had a Sapporo ramen, but in my opinion it was subpar and very expensive for $16. So now they recently announced a new "affordable" ramen for $12-$14. There's 5 ramen choices, no extras toppings. And a soba dish with tuna tartar and wasabi dressing.
- pork jowl, snow crab, poached egg + shoyu broth - $13
- shredded chicken, poached egg + spicy miso broth - $12
- snow crab and prawns + spicy lobster broth - $14
- kimuchi, pork shoulder + tonkotsu broth (marked as "Chef favorite") - $13
- vegetarian + shoyu broth - $12
All bowls come with green onions, bean sprouts, fish cake, bamboo shoots, and a complimentary side order of edamame.
Not a good first impression, too many mistakes. Such a simple dish, soup + noodles + some toppings. How could they mess that up? I decided to try the "Chef favorite," assuming it was his best effort. The soup in my bowl looked like shoyu broth, not tonkotsu. And it was way too salty. The pork shoulder was literally 5 scraps of meat smaller than a finger nail. Also no bean sprouts, and no fish cake. Worst of all, the noodles were soft and round like overcooked spaghetti. His version of kimuchi was spicy, but no match for Korean kimchee.
Simply not worth $13. I can get much better ramen with more and better toppings from nearby Hapa Ramen in the Ferry Building. And only pay $8 to $12. Very disappointed.
Whats a good place for lunch? South of Market area?
+1 on Radius and Citizen's Band for a sit down meal. And get dessert at Pinkie's Bakery, next door.
The overstuffed sandos at Deli Board (1058 Folsom) are great. Look for the specials posted on the wall. Also like the hot subs at A K Subs (397 8th street). Any of the signature subs is good, but I specially like the pastrami.
And in case anyone in your workshop asks for a cheap lunch, there's Extreme Pizza (1062 Folsom). That one is just average pizzas and salads, but it's cheap.
-----
A K Subs
397 1/2 8th St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Pinkie's Bakery
1196 Folsom St, San Francisco, CA
Deli Board
1058 Howard St, San Francisco, CA 94103
"Nice" Mexican in SF
I think that Tropisueno is only a step above Chevy's. Chilango and Nopalito are much better choices for good food. Colibri is not your typical Mexican place. It's like a Spanish tapas bar, but the cuisine is from central Mexico. Love the complimentary handmade tortillas with 3 sauces. It's one of the few places where the guacamole is prepared tableside. Not many vegetarian options and almost everything has melted cheese. The new Tacolicious on Valencia has problems with food quality when they're swamped. I guess the new kitchen staff is not used to the fast pace yet.
"Nice" Mexican in SF
If looking for a nice Peruvian place try Limon, they have 3 locations. Their menu has some vegetarian options. The South Van Ness location specializes in roasted chicken. In my opinion, Limon makes the best version of lomo saltado.
Mochica is a cozy little Peruvian restaurant, love the beef heart anticuchos, but not many vegetarian options. Service is usually great, so maybe they could make something special for u.
Looking for good Chinese food ideas for an afternoon party. Easy to eat and tastes ok cold... help!
I'm assuming that u only need ideas, and not asking where to buy the stuff. I'd suggest snacks like baked BBQ pork buns, egg tarts, sesame balls, fried wontons filled with cream cheese aka. crab rangoon, and other baked pastries and desserts found in dim sum shops and Chinese bakeries.
Some Chinese restaurants have a cold appetizer platter made with sliced cold cuts, seaweed, roasted pork, thinly sliced beef shoulder, and pickled veggies.
Other cold dishes could be BBQ pork (cha siu), roasted chicken, Hainan chicken, asian chicken salad, cold noodle salad, fried tofu with a dipping sauce. Some steamed vegetables can be okay served cold, like Chinese broccoli with oyster sauce. Other veggie suggestions: snow peas, sliced lotus root, and Chinese pickled veggies (carrots, daikon and cucumbers).
"Restaurants" Database To Be Eliminated
I'm just adding my name to the group of users not happy that the database will be removed. Is management suggesting a replacement feature in the near future?
Since apparently there's an issue about owning the address info. Dunno why. Would they consider integrating the Urbanspoon widget? At least that'd be easy to search for a place. And it's not the evil Yelp that many like to hate.
"Restaurants" Database To Be Eliminated
Yes, I think it's new. Users cannot add or edit that field.
San Francisco breakfast.... 20 years ago
Agree with Sarah. It sounds like the Garden Court at the Palace hotel. But the food is only okay in my opinion.
Another place could be The Grand Cafe, at Hotel Monaco. It has similar decor characteristics, and a bigger reputation some time ago. Hope this helps.
-----
Grand Cafe
501 Geary St., San Francisco, CA 94109
A great lunch! [Original Joe's]
Here's the link about the reopening of Original Joe's in North Beach.
http://insidescoopsf.sfgate.com/blog/2012/01/27/original-joes-north-beach-first-look/
http://www.facebook.com/TheOriginalJoes
I'll try to update the address info on Chow. They moved from 144 Taylor to 601 Union St. The phone # remains the same. According to their Facebook account hours are: 10:30 am - 11:30 pm daily.
-----
Original Joe's Restaurant
601 Union St, San Francisco, CA
Bushi-Tei restaurant for sale
Bushi-Tei restaurant is up for sale. Chef Michael Hung left after their last Dine About Town dinner. Sous chef Lisa Aoki is now in charge of the kitchen with a simplified menu, until the restaurant is sold.
http://sf.eater.com/archives/2012/02/02/bushi_tei.php
-----
Bushi-Tei
1638 Post Street, San Francisco, CA 94115
Nombe Bull (Beef) Ramen
The DAT lunch for $17.95 includes beef ramen with all toppings, plus a mini donburi, and choice of drink. So it's a great value right now until January 31.
The owner told me that the beef ramen (and miso veggie) will be added to dinner soon, but they'll still keep his wife's tan tan men and tonkotsu ramen.
Dine About Town, SF coming Jan 15-31, 2012 - any you going to try?
Hi Ann,
the DAT website doesn't show it, but Credo is participating for dinner.
And in case u want to check out new places, there are 5 brand new restaurants on DAT:
- Trace Restaurant at the W Hotel
- Txoko (Spanish tapas)
- Cupola Pizzeria at the Westfield Centre
- Claudine
The 5th new place is Caffé Como. But that place is mediocre, so I don't recommend that one.
