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Trip Report - San Sebastian
On our recent trip to Spain, we sandwiched in a 2 day trip to San Sebastian in between 4 days in both Madrid and Barcelona. While the weather did not cooperate, I can see how San Sebastian is a destination for both beach and food lovers. It is truly a beautiful spot.
Day 1 - The San Sebastian leg of our trip started with an early morning flight from Madrid to Bilbao. From Bilbao we rented a car and drove to San Sebastian with a detour to Axpe for a memorable lunch at Asador Etxebarri. We opted against the tasting menu due to dietary restrictions and ordered off the a la carte menu starting with the smoked goat butter and a plate of jamon and chorizo. The smoked goat butter was very unique and highly enjoyable. From there we shared the lagostines, which were huge and delicious with the slightest hint of charcoal to add to their flavor, and the clams which again were cooked to perfection. Next we split the chuleton which is a large steak sliced thinly. We asked them to cook it on the medium side of medium rare, but it came out pretty rare. Regardless, it was delicious. Very tender, but with a perfect crust on the outside. Definitely a winner. For desert we shared the biscuit soaked with orange syrup and goats milk ice cream as well as an apple tarte which was delicious. All in all it was an exquisite meal. After such a large lunch, neither of us were hungry for dinner, so we decided to take a stroll around San Sebastian instead.
Day 2 - On day 2 we continued our glutinous ways with a delicious lunch at Bodegon Alejandro. This is an unassuming restaurant in the basement of an old town building that offers great basque fare at astonishingly reasonable prices. The menu del dia was 16 Euro and included three courses wine and bread, all of which were excellent. We started with a pumpkin soup with ravioli stuffed with mussels. For main courses we had braised veal cheeks in broth and a velvety fish stew with tuna, shrimp and potatoes, that was the highlight of the meal until desert came. For desert we had the apple crumble and the pain perdu, which I think may have been the best thing that I ate the entire trip. It was so custardy and delicious, that I may be forever ruined for regular french toast. I can't say enough about the value of this place. We left there with a bill less than our bill for 4 tapas and 3 drinks at Arzabal in Madrid. Despite still being full from lunch, we persevered through a tapas crawl in old town for dinner. It was a monday night and many of the places were closed, but that did not stop us from being wildly successful on our quest of glutony. We stopped at La Cucharra de San Telmo for a delicious risotto, with goat cheese and mushrooms and grilled rabbit. Next we stumbled over to Goiz Agurri for more pinxtos incuding the best shrimp we had on the entire trip.
San Sebastian is truly a remarkable place. There is food of outstanding quality every where you turn. I feel like we merely scratched the surface while we were there. I guess that just means we'll have to go back for another fact finding mission!
Trip Report - Barcelona
It was a great experience. Camp Nou is a place that every soccer fan should go, and of course, Messi is unbelievable. We were seated right below the Milan fans and they were not too happy about the second penalty kick, which I must admit was a little cheap, regardless, they were not going to win that game.
Trip Report - Barcelona
Barcelona was our last stop in Spain after being in Madrid for four days and San Sebastian for two days. We were there for four days during Holy Week. At first I was worried because a lot of the restaurants I wanted to try were closed for Semana Santa, but we were still able to eat very well. Highlights included a dinner at Hisop, eating those delicious little sandwiches everywhere and another dinner at Paco Merlago Alta Taberna. The only major disappointment was the weather, it rained every day that we were there! For those planning a trip to Barcelona, I would highly recommend Maribel's guide which can be dowloaded on the web. We used it quite a bit and all her recs were spot on.
Day 1 - We arrived in Barcelona in the afternoon and were going to the Barcelona - Milan Champions League game that night, so we went to the Boqueria and got some snacks for the game and grabbed some pregame tapas and drinks at Taller de Tapas near Las Ramblas in the Barri Gotic. Taller de Tapas is a small chain geared towards tourists, with english explanations. Standard tapas fare and cold beer. A servicable option.
Day 2 - Late lunch at a few places in the Barri Gotic and El Born areas. El Xampanyet, Irati Taberna Basca and a bakery/sandwich shop that I can't remember the name of, but was right of the Jaume metro stop. El Xampanyet was good for pan am tamaquet and some fo the canned seafood (muscles, razor clams). The bakery had great little flauta sandwiches and the Irati Taberna Basca was a good option for basque style pinxtos. We had delicious mushroom croquettes, apple and goat cheese things and other tasty treats there. Dinner was at Hisop, which was phenomenal. Because my wife is pregnant and has specific dietary restrictions, we did not do the tasting menu, but at 60 Euros it seemed like a great value. We opted instead for the a la carte. For starters we had broad beans with shrimp and bacon and something else which is currently eluding me, but it was good. For entrees we had grilled hake and I had suckling pig. Both were delicious. The only slight misses were the deserts which seemed a little forced. I had the chocolate bread and beer which consisted of chocolate cake, bread ice cream and beer foam. The only thing I really enjoyed was the cake, the rest was not memorable. Service at Hisop was also fantastic. It was one of the few places took notice of my wife's restrictions and made helpful suggestions.
Day 3 - Lunch was more sandwiches early and then Euskal Extea in the El Born which is owned by the same people that own Irati Taberna Basca. We ordered a la carte and had grilled chorizo, a chuleton (steak), potatoes and a green salad. The chorizo was spicy and plentiful and the steak was nicely prepared. Also after days of protien heavy diet meals it was nice to have a green salad! Service was also very accomodating. After a long day of sightseeing, we stopped at Tapac 24 in the l'eixample on our way back to the hotel. This is a newer tapas restuarant. When we were there it was full of tourists, and the only people speaking Spanish were the waiters. Nonetheless, we had a delicious lentils dish, lamb skewers, pa am tomaquet, and bombas (meatballs with potato).
Day 4 - This was Good Friday and a lot of restuarants were closed. We ate lunch at Restaurant Allium in the Barri Gotic. The food here was fine, but I didn't think it was anything special, in fact I can't for the life of me remember what we ate. Our final meal was quite an enjoyable tapas feast at Paco Merlago Alta Taberna in L'eixample. I would highly recommend that anyone planing a trip to Barcelona visit here. There we had delicious grilled cockles, Taloso (red bean dish), sauteed shrimp, bombas, grilled suckling goat chops, asparagus and the ubiquitous pa amb tomaquet. Dessert cosisted of Catalunyan french toast, toast with chocolate and some type of cream filled pastry. Everything was top notch and another highlight of our trip.
As I stated, the only disppointment was the fact that some of the places that we were hoping to visit were closed. Restuarants like Taktika Berri, Cal Pep and Sant Joan were high on my list and we were unable to visit them. Also, each time we went to the Boqueria, Pinxto Bar and El Quim were closed. Oh well, I guess that's just incentive to make another trip!
Trip Report - Madrid
Just got back from an 11 day trip to Madrid, San Sebastian, and Barcelona. Here is a summary of some of the places we went in Madrid. On the whole, I did not think the food in Madrid was as good as the other two places we visited, but that may have been a function of the places we visitied, and a lack of preperation on my part (I focused most of my research on the other two cities).
Day 1 - We got a did some basic sightseeing and then had lunch at Casa Mingo. The rotisserie chicken was good, but nothing too special, and the rest of the food was unspectacular. Not great, but not terrible either. Either way, I don't remember what we got. I believe the cider was the best part of the meal. In the evening we met a friend at Lateral in Plaza Santa Ana for drinks and Tapas. We got some standard tapas fare like patas bravas and some pork loin with foie and bree and croquettes. All were very good. Later on that night, we hit Mercato San Miguel and sampled the wares at many of the vendors, all were good, and I would definitely recommend a visit.
Day 2 - Lunch at Restaurante Puerto Rico (a Rick Steve recommendation). Pretty basic Spanish food. We had a veal chop in gravy and some type of pork cutlet. The veal chop was the better of the two. Dinner consisted of a few tapas bars (Arzabal and La Castela) and dinner at Casa Portal. I was pretty disappointed with Arzabal, I thought it was grossly overpriced. We got fried artichoke (15 euros!), sauteed shrimp that were mushy and overcooked a cheese plate and something else that was not memorable and the bill came to 60 Euros. Maybe we didn't order correctly, but I left feeling like there was a great disparity between quality and price, and 15 Euro for an artichoke seems absolutley absurd. Luckily, from there things got better. We had great seafood at La Castela, especially the cockles. Final stop was Casa Portal which is a small, unassuming restuarant that specializes in Asturian fare. I don't believe it gets much tourist traffic, but the Fabada (bean stew) was delicious, and potentially my highlight for Madrid.
Day 3 - Lunch, can't remember. Dinner was at Gabinoteca, a trendy tapas bar with a modern take on some of the classics. The place was packed. I would highly recommend getting there early. We arrived at 10 and had to wait an hour for two seats at the bar. We ordered asparagus, some type of shrimp fritter that was tasty, sauteed shrimp, a paella or seafood risotto and tataki version presa de iberico (pork). Everything was well executed, but nothing blew my socks off.
Day 4 - Lunch, a bakery that did pizza and empanadas in the Malasana neighborhood. Can't remember the name. It was ok. Dinner was a tapas crawl in the La Latina neighborhood centered mostly around Cava Baja. Favorites were Casa Luca, Casa Lucio, Txakolina and the gelato place at the end. Casa Lucas we ordered a variety of small plates and everything was good, although I can't remember what we got. Txakolian was a basque style pinxto bar and everything was great there as well, the highlight for me being the morcillo. Initially, I was skeptical of Cava Baja because it is touristy but we ended up eating pretty well there.
I wouldn't say that I was disappointed with the food in Madrid, but that I may have set my expectations too high, and didn't go to the right places. Admitedly, I spent the majority of my time researching Barcelona and San Sebastian, and probably should have spent some more time on Madrid. Also, my opinion of Madrid may be skewed unfairly by our visits to both San Sebastian and Barcelona which provided some of the best dining experiences of our lifetimes.
Asador Etxebarri Transportation, HELP!
I was just there on April 1st, and I second the car rental recommendation. We flew into Bilbao, rented a car and drove there for lunch, afterwards continuing on to San Sebastian. It was not too dificult, especially if you have a phone with google maps. It is about 60 kms for San Sebastian, so I would imagine a taxi would be quite expensive. Either way the food is phenomenal, so I highly recommend a visit.
Good Friday in Barcelona
Hello - My wife and I are in Barcelona and I'd love some restaurant recs for Good Friday. A lot of the restaurants that I wanted to try are closed for Semana Santa. Places like Taktika Berri, Cal Pep, El Xampanyet, Sant Joan are all closed. We went to Hisop already, and out wallet is now tapped out for the expensive places. Any ideas where we can get good authentic Cataluyan food? I ask for authentic b/c we went to Tapac 24 tonight, and while the food was great, the only people speaking spanish in the place were the waiters. we'd like to go to a place where the people of Barcelona go. Any ideas for a good menu del dia open on Good Friday would be much appreciated. Thanks so much!
Etxebarri and Barcelona questions
Thanks so much PBSF. Hisop sounds like exactly what I am looking for. I will report back after our trip!
Good spot to watch FC Barcelona play
Hello - My wife and I will be visiting Barcelona April 3rd through the 7th. FC Barcelona will be playing Milan in the Champions League quarter finals the day we arrive. We haven't decided if we are going to the game, or if we should watch it at a bar yet. What does everyone think, is it worth it to go to the game? Does anyone have any recommendations for a good place to watch the game if we don't end up going?
Etxebarri and Barcelona questions
Absolutely. With regard to food restrictions, she can't eat the following: raw eggs, uncooked unpasturized cheese, rare meat, cured meats (no jamon!) and raw seafood. I think that the a la carte menu may be the way to go in this case.
In BCN, I chose Hisop b/c I wanted to go to a restaurant the showcases the Barelona food scene, in a fun and lively environment (not a sterile stuffy one). Also, the Michelin star did not hurt. I read a post that you wrote that said that Comer 24, or perhaps Gresca may be better for environment. Is that the case?
Etxebarri and Barcelona questions
Hello - I will be in Spain next week visiting Madrid, San Sebastian and Barcelona with my wife. We were able to secure lunch reservations at Etxebarri for Sunday and are very excited about it. The only thing that I am worried about is that my wife is pregnant, and as a result has a lot of food restrictions. I'm wondering if it's worth going to Etxebarri, and paying the 120 Euros for the tasting menu, if she can't eat everything. I would appreciate feedback from anyone who has been there.
Also, when we are in Barcelona, we wanted to do at least one nice dinner that showcases the cutting edge cooking that Catalan is known for. I deliberated between Hisop, Commerc 24, and Alkemi ultimately making a reservations at Hisop. Is this a good selection, or are the others bettter? Again any feedback would be much appreciated. Thanks so muck for your help!
Veal Parmigiana in Huntington Beach [split from SF]
(Note: this thread was split from a thread on the SF Bay board at: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/835568 - The Chowhound Team)
Not to hijack the post, but given the OP's inability to find good Italian food in OC, I thought I might recommend Mangia Mangia in Huntington Beach. Mangia Mangia is an unassuming restaurant in a suburban strip mall, run by two brothers who moved from Italy in 1987 (Pietro and Giussepe). While it may not look like much, the place has been my family's spot for classic Italian dishes for the last 25 years. This is not a generic "red sauce" restaurant like Bucca Di Beppo, but rather one where each dish is individually crafted with delicious results. My Grandpa was a first generation Italian-American who grew up in New York, and this was his favorite all-time restaurant because the brothers would make his beloved shrimp fra diavolo especially for him even when it wasn't on the daily menu. I've never had the veal parm, but given the quality of some of the other dishes (the manicotti is awesome), I can't imagine it's bad. Also, be sure not to miss the tirimisu if they haven't run out, it's the best I've ever had.
Here is the link for Mangia Mangia. It may save you a trip up to San Francisco!
http://www.mangiamangiarestaurant.com/a.htm
Catering and Delivery in Financial District
I need to plan an office party in the Financial District of San Francisco. We are looking at having the party catered and would prefer that the caterer had delivery capabilities as well. We are leaning towards a mexican theme, but are not married to that idea. The biggest criteria is that the food is good, and diferent from the run-of-the-mill sandwiches that are orderd for every "working lunch". I originally called La Palma, but they don't deliver. Any suggestions that anyone has or experiences they wanted to share would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Oakland Taquerias recs for catering
Thanks for the suggestions. I think I would prefer to go with catering though so guests can eat as they choose and not have a stampede when the food truck shows up. Any one have any ideas?
Oakland Taquerias recs for catering
Hi Team - I'm looking for a taqueria to cater a large (75 people) party this weekend. I live in Oakland and would like to keep it to that area. I'm just looking for standard taqueria fare, carnitas, beans, rice, etc. Does anyone have good experiences they would like to share?
Off The Grid -- Dogs Allowed?
I'm thinking about heading to the Haight Off The Grid tonight and am wondering if they allow dogs there? Does anyone know if this is the case? Thanks in advance!
what NOT to get at Lers Ros Thai
Along these same lines, I've considered ordering delivery from Ler Ros, but never have because I was afraid the quality would suffer. If anyone has ordered delivery, what has your experience been?
Build a meat curing box
Great, I'm excited to hear how it turns out. Did you get your ideas from a website or a book?
Build a meat curing box
I'm interested in building a small meat curing box to make salumis, bacon, etc. I've done some research and there are some pretty elaborate contraptions that people have concoted using old freezerless fridges. It appears that the most viable option for me (I live in an apartment) is to use a small wine fridge. Has anyone had any luck with this. What about using one of those small beverage fridges that we all had in college? Any ideas or website links would be very much appreciated. Thanks!
Strawberries -- Help
This is helpful. Thanks. I've tried Swanton and just picked some other up at the Fillmore farmers market this weekend (but I can't remember what they were). It is early in the season still, but it sounds like I might have to make a trip down to Santa Cruz and make a detour to pick up some strawberries. Thanks fo the help.
Strawberries -- Help
You're right, I grew up in Southern California as well. I can remember those amazing u-pick strawberries. I'll have to check out Swanton's next time I'm down that way, especially if they have kinds that don't make it to market. Those are likely the ones that don't travel well, and similar to the type that I am looking for. Thanks for all your suggestions.
Strawberries -- Help
I'm looking for real strawberries, the kind I remember from my childhood. Ones that are small and juicy and sweet, like you would grow in your garden. Not the huge, firm, genetically modified ones that are built for travel, but not for taste. I've tried numerous farmer's markets, but even there the organic strawberries are still large huge without much juice or flavor. Does anybody know a good farmstand that is relatively close to San Francisco where the strawberries of my youth can be found?
Organic Produce Box Delivery
Hi - I'm looking for a company that delivers organic produce from local farms to residences in LA. I live in San Francisco and we have similar stuff up here and I thought it would make a good x-mas present. Does anyone know of a good one that I can use? I've seen other postings for some, but they are pick-up only, and they don't have all local produce (they have stuff like bananas from South America). Thanks!
100% Buckwheat Soba noodles -- Financial District
Hi - I've been reading articles expounding on the benefits of 100% buckwheat soba noodles, and started to wonder if the noodles that I've been eating are 100%. Are all soba noodles 100% buckwheat? If not, where can I find 'em in the Financial Distirct? Thanks for your help.
Best chorizo con huevos in SF?
I know it doesn't sound like the traditional place for chorizo con huevos, and I'm going to add a disclaimer that I haven't been there in a few years, but Polkers on Polk and Green used to make a really good chorizo and eggs. The thing I appreciated most about it was that they knew how to scramble an egg. I've gotten chorizo con huevos at places like Los Jarritos, and too many times the eggs are way overcooked, to the point that they are dry and hard. At Polkers the eggs were always soft and fluffy. They come in a very good sized portion with home fries or black beans and salsa fresca (and flour tortillas) The accompaniments aren't anything to write home about, but they don't detract from the meal either.
Visiting London, St. John's is booked, what else?
Alas Hereford Rd. is not open on Mondays and Magdalen is booked. I've made a reservation at Wild Honey. What are peoples thoughts on this place?
Visiting London, St. John's is booked, what else?
Hi, My wife and I will be in London for a night on our way to Croatia. We are staying near Paddington Station and are looking for a rec for dinner on Monday May 26th. I wanted to go to St. Johns, but it is booked up, does anyone have a similar rec that isn't too far from Paddington? I'm interested in the same type of traditional cuisine that you would find at St. Johns.
Where [in SF proper] should a Chowhound live?
I live in Pacific Heights, near Divisadero. It's a great area due to the fact that it's pretty central to a lot of the city. Within walking distance are the restuarants on Fillmore St. (Vivande, SPQR, Jackson-Fillmore, Fresca and Cafe Kati in addition to a Pizzeria Delfina, Dosa and Out the Door all coming soon), Mollie Stones grocery store, NOPA and Little Star Pizza, all of the restaurants on Clement St., and Spruce and Quince for upscale dinning. In addition, it's a quick cab ride down to the Mission and all that it has to offer.
Santa Cruz -- A place for food and Final Four
Thanks for the suggestions. Being a UCSB alum, I am well acquanited with Woodstocks and since I'll be there with fellow Gauchos, it might be a good spot to relive some memories. I did research 99 Bottles, on the surface it seems like a pretty good spot too. What is the backroom at Rosie McCanns like? Are there tables and stuff, or is it just a backroom? What about Seabright Brewery? That also looks like it might be a good spot! Thanks for the suggestions!
Walzwerk -- Good German Food
No, we did not try the dessert, b/c at that point we were both stuffed! I forgot to mention however that we did split an order of the latkes as a starter. Very light on the inside and nicely crispy on the outside. They are served with sour cream and apple sauce.
Walzwerk -- Good German Food
I haven't been to Schnitzelhaus yet. I've been meaning to go. I have a friend who really likes it though.
