hawaii_4me's Profile
Breakfast w/ good coffee in Sunnyvale area?
Here' the dilemma: My husband and I like to go to breakfast on the weekends but we cannot find restaurants with good coffee. We have tried to eat at coffee shops but I am not fond of the empty calories of eating a pastry so we decided to eat a more savory breakfast (i.e. eggs etc.). The places we have tried: Country Gourmet (misses on the coffee), Palace Cafe (misses on the coffee), Cafe Brioche (misses on the coffee), Bean Cafe (ok on both, but not great at either). Our current solution: buy coffee at Peets in Palo Alto and walk to Whole Foods (misses on the food). Isn't there a perfect combination? Help!
SF: Nua -- No thanks
My husband and I went to Nua last weekend. We ordered the octopus appetizer, pork chop and stuffed quail. We had the same pork chop experience. The waiter asked my husband how he would like the pork chop cooked. The answer: medium. The pork chop came to us well done (no pinkness at all). My quail dish was amazingly small. I left the restaurant very hungry. We went off and had a pastry at Stella's after the dinner. I haven't been this dissatisfied with a meal in a long time.
Thank you for writing. I am wondering why it is getting such great reviews on another restaurant review site.
Loose/Bulk Spices in Santa Clara co. / Sunnyvale area?
Maybe the best best bet would be to order through the internet:
http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeyspeppercorns.html
It maybe more efficient than driving to all these stores looking for specific spices. Hopefully they will be fresher also.
I have never ordered from this company. I have seen their ads in food magazines. I have learned a lot about different black peppers by reading their catalog!
Loose/Bulk Spices in Santa Clara co. / Sunnyvale area?
I get my bulk spices at Whole Foods in Palo Alto. They have jars of spices and a decent selection. Whole Foods in Palo Alto is on Homer (between Emerson and Alma). I know that they have nutmeg and star anise. They have black pepper, but I am not sure what tellecherry is.
If you find another source of bulk spices in our area, please let me know!
Cask-conditioned ales in Berkeley or Bay area?
Steelhead Brewery in Burlingame has at least one cast conditioned ale:
http://www.steelheadbrewery.com/howcaskinfo.htm
Pluto's
I believe that the focaccia that comes with the salad (and that is also used for the sandwiches) is the "Herb Slab" made by Acme Bread. I also am a fan of Pluto's (I have been to both the Palo Alto and the Irving Ave locations). I like the salads (candied walnuts and fennel area must). The sandwiches are ok. And their garlic fries are great (they are curly fries)!
HP Pavilion, San Jose
Hi milltowngirl,
I would not recommend Sonoma Chicken Coop (unless you are running really late for the performance and just need food in your stomach). They are pretty quick at serving food. Read my review:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/28177?user_name=&query=sonoma+chicken+coop
Sonoma Chicken Coop in San Jose?
My husband and I just ate at Sonoma Chicken Coop last weekend after reading the recommendations on Chowhound. We were looking for a restaurant close to HP pavilion for dinner before the Cirque du Soliel performance. The food is terrible! I had the 1/4 roasted chicken with a side of grilled artichokes. He had the BBQ chicken sandwich. We also ordered a side of the mashed potatoes with leeks. SCC serves glorified cafeteria food. The roasted chicken was dry. The aioli sauce served with the artichokes is a bright orange (resembling french dressing). My husband’s BBQ chicken was too sweet and was served with tortillas chips with commercially made salsa. The mashed potatoes looked liked it was served with an ice cream scoop and it was VERY salty. It was a Saturday night and very crowded (people running into each other) and the PA system (for calling the order numbers) was blaring. Don't go there if you are trying to have a special evening. Both my husband don't usually have completely negative reviews on restaurants, but having both worked in school cafeteria's during college...we know cafeteria-style food when we see it (and we NEVER want to eat it again)! Don't be fooled by the menu descriptions on their website. Someone is a very creative writer.
