shnigglebob's Profile
Wedding Reception Recs on a Budget??
I'm having a difficult time locating a reception for my wedding this fall!!
I'm trying to locate a reception (and possibly a ceremony) site in San Francisco, Napa or Sonoma that can fit up to 150 guests. A yummy catering option would be fabulous! And something within our budget (which is tight, aiming to stay around $15,000 for site & F&B). Is this even possible in the Bay Area? Most of the places I love are pretty expensive just for the location. I'm hoping to reserve a more classic, elegant space rather than contemporary. Does anyone have suggestions or recommendations? Anything would be appreciate!
Thank you!
Taxi Cab Recs: Salvadoran Food
Sounds delicious! I've only been to Balompie on (i think) 19th and Capp Street in the Mission for El Salvadorean food. Their pupusas are delicious!
Third time to SF-new ground to cover
Blue Bottle Coffee stand at the Farmer's Market on Saturday for dripped to order coffee
Chloe's in Noe Valley for yummy breakfast (tiny spot and usually a wait)
Saigon Sandwiches in Tendorlion for vietnamese (cheap and delicious, but definitely a take it to go and get the hell out of the neighborhood type deal)
R and G Lounge for Cantonese and ANY of their dungeness crab dishes
(On a slightly different note) Why not visit Anchor Steam beer's brewery in Potrero Hill?
Oh, and maybe one night slurge and go "old world" style to the Big 4 restaurant in the Huntington hotel. Definitely a historic San Francisco experience!
Suggestions for nice Sunday lunch in Napa Valley?
I absolutely love Cindy's Back Street Kitchen. It feels like you're dining in a converted home. Simple and homey, yet contemporary enough. The menu is excellent too with a lot of choices. You can never go wrong with the Wood oven Duck dish... absolutely perfect! And it's conveniently located one block behind Main Street in Downtown St. Helena, so you can shop and walk around a bit before or after!
Ginger Green Tea and Ujikintoki Shaved Ice
OOOOh! Cynsa thanks for sharing... I've been to Japantown so many times, but have never discovered this place! I'll be sure to check it out... I'm always trying to find a quality shave ice spot in the Bay Area. Normally, it's the crunchy and disappointing snow cone.. but I'll keep my eye out for this one!
How is Taylor's Refresher, REALLY?
It would NOT be on my top 10 San Francisco burger (or American fare) list. I like going to the one in St. Helena for it's location and ambiance (simple, outdoors, very nostalgic drive-up joint).. but the San Francisco location really lacks that same feel and the food is mediocre. Plus, with the San Francisco one being so close to other quality food spots, it's easy to pass up.
groceries and cheap (meaning *cheap*) eats in hayes valley/lower haight?
Check out:
Courtney's on 15th Street and Castro (Divisadero) for fresh produce, homemade fruit juices and sandwiches.
Estela's on Fillmore near Haight for great deli sandwiches, soups and salads. My favorite is the General Sherman.
El Castillito on Church near Market Street for cheap taqueria grub. (it's ok, but maybe the better in the neighborhood)
Woodhouse Fish Co on Market near Church for slightly pricer but damn good seafood and one hell of a Crab Louie Roll.
Lilly's BBQ on Divisadero at Fulton Streets for yummy sauced BBQ ribs, brisket, and more.
Memphis Minnie's on Haight near Steiner for a dry rub BBQ (I hear their weekend brunch is good too)
Mission Pie, SF report w/ pics. It's good!
Mission Pie is very cute inside and easy to miss! I'm glad that I tried the pies at this place! The girl working that afternoon was very nice and patient and we decided on what to order.
We ended up with a slice of the banana cream pie, one small strawberry galette, and two Mystie Pies (one Pepper Steak and one Chicken Mushroom). We ordered everything to go. My favorites were actually their savory Mystie Pies. You can pop them right into the Oven for only 25 minutes and they are flaky (very crossaint-like) with a delicious filling. Only $5.75 each.
I wasn't too keen on either the banana cream nor the strawberry galette. I prefer more of a crunchy and super flaky crust, while Mission Pies was a more dense and cakier crust. Although their pudding for the banana cream was very yummy and I enjoyed seeing (and tasting) the fresh vanilla bean specks.
Need SF restaurant with private room for biz meeting for 25
Here's a great website to help you with your search:
http://www.sfpdv.com
It has a bunch of information on restaurants with private dining rooms or buy-out options. Of course, it only lists a handful of places and there are many more. But it's a great starting point.
Best Italian Resturants in SF
One of my favorites is still Venticello up in Nob Hill. It's on the corner of Washington and Taylor. Great friendly staff and cozy interior. They have great gnocchi!
Green Chile Kitchen - Thumbs Down
Oh Green Chile Kitchen.. I wanted to like you so bad, but you let me down. I'm afraid that I won't be visiting you again.
I stopped by for lunch today and the place is really cute. Tiny but with just enough seating and the staff seemed nice. I ordered the Breakfast burrito with steak (I originally wanted it with bacon but they were out). The guy at the counter asked if I wanted salsa and red or green. I had read about their salsa online, so I opted for a little bit of both. How can you eat a burrito without salsa??? My boyfriend ordered the taco plate with one of each, steak, chicken and pork.
Our order was delivered to our table quickly. Upon looking at the plates, we were both a bit disappointed. My breakfast burrito was actually a "wet" burrito with the red and green salsa smoothered on top including sour cream (or crema?). Had I known that ordering the burrito with salsa would've made it a wet burrito, I would've opted for it on the side. Also, the taco plate was similar: all three tacos were coated in red salsa and sour cream, which didn't allow you to completely savor the meat. A bit less would've been nicer (or maybe on the side). The zucchini and corn mix on the side was nice, but the rice was overcooked and pastey.
I also noticed after a few bites that my burrito didn't have any steak in it at all! I looked at our receipt and they charged my $1.95 to add meat. They also added $1.00 for the christmas salsa mix! I thought this was a bit poor up-selling by the cashier. He didn't mention that it would be extra for the salsa!
Also, they didn't give us some chips. My boyfriend saw a bin of blue corn chips, but no free chips were offered. I know this is a small gesture, but I do enjoy free chips and salsa with my Mexican food.
Although the quality of ingredients may be better than the average taqueria, I don't think that it's worth the experience. I would rather go to La Corneta and enjoy their food for half the price and not feel like I'm being ripped off. Plus they have agua frescas and horchata and free chips.
Sunday Brunch with Mom in SF
What about a dim sum brunch at Ton Kiang on Geary blvd between 22nd and 23rd Avenues? Then you could still visit the Legion of Honor, the De Young Museum or the Japanese Tea garden in Golden Gate Park.
Wedding Cake Bakery - O.C. area
I need help finding a good bakery that will deliver a Wedding Cake to the Mission Viejo area. My sister is getting married in November, but she's having a tough time locating a good bakery within her price range. We're looking for a cake to feed 250 people and priced at about $500+/-. That price can include sheet cakes or not. We're open to possibilities depending on how good the cake is.
We were trying to find a great Chinese bakery in the area, because she loves their light and airy cakes with the whipped frosting. But we've run into difficulties due to language barriers.
Any suggestions? Please...
Cordon Bleu.. what happened?
I used to live in the neighborhood of Cordon Bleu about 3 years ago and it was fantastic. I had just moved to the neighborhood and my new roommate took me there for our first dinner together. I wondered how so many people knew about this tiny mom and pop joint. But it wasn't just the tiny Vietnamese lady with the rosy cheeks and round face, nor the lanky gentleman working at the grill that got me... it was the delicious slightly charred but tender sliced pork, the extra light but super crunchy imperial rolls, and the mounds of rice covered with ladles of their signature meat sauce (almost like their version of chili). Not to mention their five-spice chicken and bun salads.
Just last week, I finally went back to satisfy my craving. Has Cordon Bleu gotten new owners over the past few years? It was totally different! I was heart broken... seriously!! The cute asian lady and skinny man were replaced by different a different set of asian folk, who I'm pretty sure were speaking Cantonese or some form of Chinese dialec. Also the pork was sliced so thin that once they were grilled, it tasted like crispy pork jerky. Also, the meat sauce was completely different. It wasn't the thick, hearty and slightly spiced meat sauce, but it was a thinned out, gravy-like meat sauce.
Don't get me wrong, had I never been there before, the food was good. But since I know what it was like before, I'm so disappointed that I don't think I'll be going back. I went craving for the meat sauce and I got meat gravy. :o(
Has anyone else experience this?
Moderate Brunch/lunch caterer?
Looking for suggestions for a moderately priced brunch or lunch caterer in the LA or Orange county area (location will be Cerritos). I'm hosting about 20 ladies and would like something fairly simple and priced around $15 per person. Is this do-able? Any suggestions? I'm open to all types of food. We don't need any servers, just good food.
Also, if anyone knows of a decent cupcake or cake spot.. that would also be greatly appreciated!
Thank you so much!
Gold Mountain dim sum :-(
What about New Asia? My friends say that they have good dim sum, but not too much else to offer.
Bridal Shower & Pancakes.. Where?
I'm planning a bridal shower and hoping that a restaurant in the Orange County area with excellent pancakes might be able to host a party of 18-20 ladies... Have any ideas? The bride loves her some hotcakes and I thought it might be fun to do a casual brunch. Originally I was thinking The Griddle Cafe in LA, but it's a little far and their back room can only fit up to 17ppl (almost perfect!). Can you offer suggestions? Thank you!
seeking NOT trendy but tasty, in SF
One Market
Kokkari
Perbacco (ask for a quieter table upstairs)
Ame
The Cosmopolitan
Roadside BBQ - YUCK!
I'm sorry, but Roadside BBQ is a sad sad example of BBQ. Maybe I went on the wrong day, but their food is just NOT good BBQ. We ordered to-go and maybe that was our first mistake. We ordered:
Brisket - cold, flavorless and dry. I like dry rub BBQ too, but their brisket just didn't have any flavor.
Full Slab of Ribs - cold (again), tender on the inside but still no flavor. The ends were tough and pretty much inedible. We had to slather on BBQ sauce, wrap in foil and reheat in our oven. Still just ok.
Baked Beans - flavorless. Tasted like sweetened beans, but no pork or molasses flavor. I think that Bush's would've been better.
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy - Mashed potatoes were fine, but they only gave a small 3oz container of gravy (for 4ppl) and the gravy tasted like the sauce for the baked beans?!?! Sweet and thin... weird.
Corn Muffins - dry and almost wax-like.
Needless to say, I won't be going back. I think I was jaded by Brother in Laws (I have yet to try their new replacement). Memphis Minnie's is a close 2nd.
San Francisco Takeout/Delivery Menus
How exactly does that work? Do you just email that address or do they provide you with menus? I'm curious!
Best Gyro in SF?
I love Goood Frikin Chicken out in the Mission at 10 29th Street. The menu is Jordanian and they have delicious chicken and lamb shawermas, falafel and mosakhan. They have probably some of the best hummus I've tasted in the city so far and if you're in the mood to get your hands dirty, their rotisserie chickens are scrumptious!
Rec's for Szechuan or Hunan in SF?
Looking for best recommendations for spicy Szechuan or Hunan cuisine restaurants in San Francisco. Nothing fancy, just good food. Read a little about Hunan Homes and Szechuan Trenz... but what are your opinions?
A Gourmet Basket/Meal for a New Mom?
The new Bi-Rite Creamery had little brochures advertising their gourmet gift baskets available through the original Bi-Rite Grocery. Their website also has more information. http://www.biritemarket.com
Also, Yum on Market Street can create great little gift baskets as well. http://www.yumfoods.com
Looking for American-ized Chinese Food
What about Eliza's on California Street near Broderick in San Francisco? When I ate there last, it seemed pretty Americanized. I think they also have a 2nd location in Potrero Hill.
Genki Ramen - Thumbs Up!
Ok, call us crazy, but we went back AGAIN last night! This time there were a few more tables filled around the restaurant. We tried items from the robatayaki... OH MY GOODNESS.. the lamb chop with the mint dipping sauce was cooked perfectly!! $3.25 for a single grilled lamb chop seemed reasonable. Especially for these delicious morsel! We also tried the shitake which was yummy too. They use fresh shitake so they are plump and soak up all of the flavor. The beef and onion was also very tasty. The sliced beef is wrapped around the green onion stalk and has lots of flavor. My least favorite was the salmon which was a good size filet (crispy skin on) which was cooked perfectly, but it still had bones in. We are definitely going to go back to try more of the robata items.
cheap and good in san francisco
Mastrelli's Deli - Cozy Italian Deli with excellent sandwiches including a killer hot pressed meatball sandwich in the Ferry Building.
Goood Frikin Chickken - Juicy Rotisserie chicken meals and a full Jordanian menu. Casual sit down or to-go in the Mission.
Bi-Rite Creamery - Delicious ice cream flavors in the Mission.
Yee's - Casual and CHEAP chinese food in Chinatown. Mostly elderly Chinese, but then you know the food is good!
Genki Ramen - Thumbs Up!
Went over to Genki last night and had a yummy meal for under $25 for two!
It was pretty empty by 12am, but there were two servers (both I recognized from Genki Crepes). They were both really nice and welcoming. The sat us promptly and we were given hot tea and ice water quickly. The decor is contemporary: dark wood tables and chairs with green cushions, flat screen tvs around the perimeter, and cool little cardboard chopstick presenters.
The menu ranges from gyoza, hiyayakko, edamame, housemade char siu and more appetizers. Okonomiyaki, yakisoba, tempura, ramen, and a page full of various robatayaki skewers. NO SUSHI or SASHIMI.
We tried:
- Gyoza - crunchy on the top and soft and delicate on the bottom. Pork filling with mild. Dipping sauce a bit sweeter than normal (i like it more vinegar-y)
- Housemade Char Siu - very VERY different, but yummy. Thin slices of tender and slightly fatty pork with a sweet and salty marinade.
- Wakame Salad - average but yummy. Not too much to say about this dish.
- Mabo Tofu Ramen - YUMMY!!! Lots of mabo tofu and lots of spice. The ramen noodles were al dente and one bowl was enough to share between the two of us. (They will give you small bowls for sharing)
I will definitely be back and I love how they are open late. I want to try some of their robata and their desserts look yummy too. I'm happy because now I don't have to trek all the way to downtown Katana-ya for good ramen.
House of Prime Rib?
I love the House of Prime Rib!!! Everytime I've been there, I thought that the service was great. The spinning salad tableside with the cherry vinegarette dressing is so yummy. I'm literally scrapping the beets off my plate!! The beef has always been tender and juicy (I ask for medium rare) and they always are willing to give more! More potatoes, more creamed spinach, more baked potato toppings, etc. I like to see the tiny owner walking around and greeting tables. Michael Bauer was right, though, in his review where he said that sometimes when the dining room is filled, the carving stations can't be right in front of your table. It's a bummer, but the meat is still delicious, and I almost enjoy having the meat carver waive his big knife back at me from across the room to say hello! ;o)
