Sushi in the Golden State

This week has been strangely reversed.  When my weeks normally start headed downhill, hit the bottom at Wednesday, then slowly climb back up towards the end, this week started off fantastically well, then slowly fizzled to a lack-luster Friday afternoon.  I'm attending a concert tonight that should be promising, so hopefully some Schoenberg & Chamber Music will turn things around for me.

On Wednesday, I ended up dining solo, and decided nothing would be more comforting than my favorite cuisine: Japanese.  Since I am a quarter Japanese and grew up on the food, I am extremely hard to please.  There wasn't much time so I went to O-Toro Sushi, which is literally about 4 minutes walking distance from my school, and I was surprised to be blown away by the deliciousness! 

O-Toro Sushi

205 Oak Street

(between Gough & Octavia)

San Francisco, 94102

The only way to eat alone is to really pig out, so I ordered a hot Nabeyaki Udon to counter the cold wintery weather we've been having, and also ordered a Golden State Roll to satisfy the sashimi-lover in me.  Of course while I waited I was sipping on my hot Green Tea.  

Story:  My mother has been feeding me tea since I was a wee lass.  When I was a baby, mother's American friends would ask if I was drinking apple juice, looking at the color of the liquid in my bottle, which was clearly not milk.  And my mother would reply, "Nope, she's drinking tea!"  As a result, to this day I still guzzle tea like a camel.  In fact, in one day I could probably easily consume double the amount of tea than I could water.

Anyway, back to the food.  What initially caught my eye about the Golden State Roll was - I'm not going to lie - the name.  I guess you could say this whole lockout business has got me missing our Warriors, so I'll take any Golden State I could get at this point, even if it comes on my food.  Of course, I also love salmon sashimi so this was a double delight.  

I was completely impressed with how fresh the fish was, and the fact that the *real* snow crab inside the roll tasted great.

  

Then came the Nabeyaki Udon, which was also great.  I appreciated the fact that my egg actually came raw, which was nice because a) that means the soup is actually as hot as it's supposed to be, and b) I could take care of the egg the way I wanted to.  I hate it when the soup comes out in this impressive looking clay pot but is only moderately hot.  What's the point?!  The tempura was also delicious, and there was more chicken on the bottom than I could finish.

All in all, a great experience, and I will definitely be back!  Don't let the small front and simple menu fool you, this place is great.

A Little Piece of South

I'm really quite in love with Angeline's Louisiana Kitchen, in Berkeley, and was thrilled to have another opportunity to go again recently.  I'm not from the south, nor have I ever been there, but a friend of mine who was born and raised in the ATL vouched for the authenticity and wonders of the food here - including the sweet tea.  That's got to be a good sign right?!  Here's a little sampling of some of their amazingness...

Angeline's Louisiana Kitchen

2261 Shattuck Avenue

(between Bancroft and Kittredge)

Berkeley 94704

Buttermilk Fried Chicken with beans, mashed potatoes and some special sauce

Fried catfish with Hushpuppies and the most amazing potato salad...it was super spicy and I loved it!

One of my two most favorite mac and cheese's of all time.

Not pictured:  the sweet tea and sparkling house lemonade, both of which are amazing.  Also, last time I went in the winter and they had some crab soup special that was unbelievable.  Still have yet to remember to leave room for beignets.  Next time!

Food Review: Sri Thai Cuisine

The other day I had a slightly longer break so we tried Sri Thai in Outer Sunset.

Sri Thai Cuisine

4621 Lincoln Way

San Francisco 94122

Cute wine holder. Cute decor throughout. Probably the biggest selling point of this place.

I'm a HUGE Thai cuisine fan so you've got to be pretty darn awesome to stand out at this point.

We ordered the Thai Samosas, deep fried "thai-style wontons" as I call them, stuffed with pumpkin and yams.  They were ok.

The "Spicy Noodle" dish is pretty much Pad Kee-Mao at any other restaurant, but for some reason they take out the name here and just call it "Spicy Noodle." It was good, but again, nothing that blew my mind.

There was also a fried banana ice cream dessert, but sadly I forgot to take a picture.  That was okay as well. 

All in all, an interesting experiences, by no means bad, better than many other thai places, but nothing on my two favorites.

My Favorite Thai 1

While in Fremont over the weekend, I had the opportunity to dine at one of my favorite Thai spots (I have two!) with my dear friend J.

Banh Thai

39060 Fremont Blvd.

(x Mowry Ave.)

Fremont, CA 94538

There are two things I always get while I'm at Banh Thai, one is of course, the Pad Thai (you can always tell if a Thai place is good by their Pad Thai), and the other is the Pad Kee Mao.  This time I ordered the Pad Thai.

Though we didn't have room for dessert this time (for dessert we went to Ulta instead...har har har), Banh Thai makes the BEST mango and sweet sticky rice I've ever had!! It's not always available since mangoes are seasonal and temperamental - but if you stop in, be sure to ask if they've got it!  If they do, you won't regret saving some room for it, I promise!

Since the weather has gotten cooler, I know I'll be hitting up my other Thai spot for some Tom Kha soup soon!

Local spot: Stacks!

This is a quick nod to Stacks - a breakfast and brunch restaurant located really close to my school, so when I'm looking for some American brunch, it's really easy to just pop on over and pop back without being late to any classes or rehearsals!  Even though they are famous for their pancakes, I'm not a huge pancake girl so I'm happy to discover that their other selectiosn are great as well!  Here are two options that I frequently turn to:

Stacks

501 Hayes Street

San Francisco, CA 94117

This is their grilled chicken sandwich.  Served with my favorite potatoes, a nice salad and fresh fruit. Great for a lighter option that'll still fill you up for a long time!

This is my other favorite dish, their fresh fruit crepe.  I always sweetly ask if it's okay that I have whipped cream only instead of whipped cream + Greek yogurt on top...and they always say yes! And it's perfect that way!

One thing I love a lot about Stacks is, their food is always so colorful and pretty! It makes it taste even better, and even looking at the pictures makes me smile!

Hayes and Kebab

Today I FINALLY went and tried Kayes and Kebab!  (It only took me 6 years to get there...)  I'd never once been to the old location, but I know that for the very brief time they were closed, a lot of my friends were really upset by their lack-of-kebab, so...today I finally discovered why.

Hayes and Kebab

582 Hayes Street

San Francisco, CA 94102

I ordered the "Lamb Shish Kebab Plate"

and it was delicious!

I'm kind of a food monster so when I first saw the two kebabs I worried that it wouldn't fill me up (ha ha ha)  Turns out, after slicing you get about 24-30 slices of medium-cooked lamb, and it was not only delicious, but completely filling as well.  I even had to share a few slices to get through it...

The flavor is excellent.  The salad was delicious, and the rice was great.  I was really surprised to find the white "fried rice" on my plate as well - I swear it's the exact same thing as the Chinese version!! No difference whatsoever!

They also gift you with a generous basket of freshly made bread, and it is super soft and delicious.  It tastes especially yummy with the white sauce! (Sorry, totally unauthentic I know, I can never remember what that amazing sauce is called).

Verdict:  Pretty good!  I'll definitely be back, next time I'll try the Gyro Pita!

Lettuce

Attended a work seminar yesterday morning with my business partner/partner in crime, X, and afterwards we hopped into this little place I've been eager to try!

LETTUCE

1632 Locust Street

Walnut Creek

I ordered a half salad (C.E.O.) half pasta lunch:

I chose the C.E.O. because I have a serious soft spot for capers...and salmon...and capers and salmon together makes for a pairing I simply cannot resist.  In fact, I've decided I love it so much I'm going to start using it as my own personal analogy when someone is truly amazing to me.  "You're the capers to my smoked salmon." Ding!! Do I hear a winner???

X ordered the same thing, except with a chicken caesar salad, which looked amazing:

And even though we got the same pasta, hers looks better because she said "yes" to cheese.  I had a strange moment of "oh no must watch calories and keep off the weight I lost in china" and said "no" to cheese, but really?! Who am I kidding?! Who in their right mind is crazy enough to reject fresh grated parmesan cheese with their pasta?! Me, apparently, but take note that I never make the same mistakes twice.

Anyway I was really impressed with Lettuce.  Their menu is extensive, though the concept is simple.  Their portions are enough to really make you full, and the produce is so obviously fresh and delicious with each and every bite.  My favorite part was, they had two glass jars of free iced water, one was with mint and the other with citrus fruits, and boy...I could sit there and just drink their water all day!

Verdict: lives up to the hype, definitely will return.  Go check it out!