Went to a bunch o' restaurants this week and one last week.
Briefly, without links:
Baghdad Nights in Lower Haight - Iraqi food. Completely empty when we walked in (on a Friday night!), but right after we walked in a few couples and groups came in. Food was similar in description in many items to the Afghani food at Helmand Palace. Kebabs and biryani and the like. I got a lamb shank with okra in tomato sauce that was ok. Lamb was tender and not too gamy but it wasn't very interesting tasting dish. My bf got a minced lamb with other stuff dish that also wasn't that interesting. Nice service though not very quick (at least to get our check) b/c it was only the one guy seating everyone and taking their orders with one other underling who brought out food and cleared stuff. We probably won't go back - the Helmand's food is so much tastier.
Gamine in Marina - French food. Fairly empty but cute little place. Super-nice and friendly waiter - honestly, nicest and most genuinely smiling French waiter I've ever had. Food was ok. I got tilapia on a bed of garlic spinach - the tilapia was very generously salted and peppered, and the spinach was quite salty too. Not *too* much to the point where it was unpleasant but definitely very strong. Nothing subtle about the flavors there! The tilapia was fine - not as delicate/flaky in texture as I had hoped but I have no idea if tilapia actually is supposed to be that flaky. My bf got the flat iron steak (which was very thick and he said was quite like flank steak) with a heap of very thin fries which were apparently very salty and delicious and he polished them off (which he *never* does with fries). He said the steak was fine. We also split a banana nutella crepe for dessert which was what you would expect for a banana nutella crepe =).
Conduit in Mission - American food. Tries to be swanky or cool or something with their menu, which apparently is printed new every day and doesn't bother with descriptions, just a list of nouns of what's in each dish (more or less - doesn't bother to describe sauces or cooking style or anything). As a result we may have missed out on some good pork (sounded good as described by the waiter to the table next to us, after we'd ordered). I got a fish & chips appetizer, which I do not recommend - not very tasty, not very interesting, overly fried and overpriced ($11 for 3 sticks of fish and 2 wedges of potato). I also got a half-portion of the butternut squash ravioli which was delicious - butternut squash and ricotta with brown sage butter in ravioli with brown sage butter sauce. Unfortunately a half portion ($11 or $10, I forget which) only comes with 3 pieces. I should have just gotten the full portion and forgone the fish and chips. My bf got a beef carpaccio appetizer with truffles on top (quite yummy) and the pappardelle - homemade pasta (long wide noodles, or thin sheets, depending how you look at it) with pork sugo - that was pretty tasty. We ran out of there and biked home before the rain, so no dessert there or anywhere else.
Pauline's Pizza in Mission - actually right on the same block as Conduit. Apparently they use fresh organic ingredients, and have specialty pizzas and more interesting ingredients. We split a medium Louisiana Andouille Pizza, which was just the right size for the two of us (8 slices, 12" - the small is 8 slices, 10"). Fairly thin crust that was just a bit crispy and not the least bit soggy or doughy. Yummy Andouille sausage though not enough of it. Fontina cheese (I like cheesier pizzas so I could have used more of it as well). Bell peppers. Green onions (way too many - I don't like green onions much and only want them in moderation). My bf was all "mmmm, this is great pizza, great choice!" I liked it a bit less but mostly b/c of the green onions. Overall pretty tasty pizza that is very minimally greasy. They weren't very fast, though, I must say, and there was always a wait since it seems fairly popular.
And of course, since it wasn't raining last night, we polished it off with some more Bi-Rite Creamery ice cream. Bi-Rite rocks. This time I got the single scoop two flavors - the salted caramel (which I always do) with chocolate-coconut (vegan option that uses coconut instead of dairy..ie, lactose-intolerant-friendly option) and homemade graham crackers sprinkled on top. Sooooo good. And soooo cold since it was pretty chilly out last night and it was too crowded in the Bi-Rite to eat inside. My bf got the Meyer lemon with pistachio which he says was odd and he wouldn't get again, and which didn't go along with his coffee toffee at all. Which is just to say he picked badly, not that bi-rite is bad =).
Want to try Candybar, a dessert/wine place with board games at Fulton between Divis and Broderick sometime. Found it on the Yelp app on my iPhone. Going slightly nuts installing free apps on my iPhone. Fun!
To work...
Friday, February 27, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
Northstar rocks
This has been an unusually dry (and warm) winter, so when the forecast finally showed snow for Lake Tahoe, we decided to seize the opportunity and do a ski trip (*not* on President's Day weekend, though the snow may be even better then since it's supposed to snow on and off all week). This was a very last minute trip - I think we decided to actually go up maybe 3 or 4pm on Friday. And it was a very deciding-on-the-fly trip since when we left, we weren't sure if we were going to stay for Sunday or not.
Since Sugar Bowl got the most snow of North Tahoe in the forecast (and actually, at the time, more than South Tahoe), we picked up a couple lift tickets from Sports Basement (my gym 10% discount did not apply) on our way out of the city. We stayed the night at the Holiday Inn Express in Roseville (about an hour out of Truckee), which was quite nice. They've done a good job with a lot of these Holiday Inn Express hotels - comfy beds, nice towels, clean, new looking rooms, free breakfast... The next morning, we were up and out of there by around 7:30 and got to Sugar Bowl's Village Gondola lot and up onto the mountain by 9AM, when they opened.
I keep forgetting, and I keep re-discovering, that I'm really a very limited range skier. There are a particular set of conditions I really like - long, wide, fairly steep groomed runs - and then there is everything else. Sugar Bowl quickly made an enemy of me because it truly is bowl shaped - long flat base at the bottom of every run before you get to the lift, and long flat rim which you have to pole yourself over from the top of the lift before you get to the top of the run. Plus, they converted our favorite blue warm-up area - the Mt Judah Express - to a terrain park. It was also super-windy, quite chilly, and the visibility at the summit was horrible due to the wind whipping up snow nonstop. After doing basically the same run several times over off the Mt. Lincoln Express (mostly b/c I don't like moguls or bumps), trying Christmas Tree only to realize that with a race set up there, there were only a couple blue runs off of it, and eating a godawful meal at the lodge (my bf's pizza was terrible, my chili was typical ski resort chili), we finally made our way over to the Disney Express. This was better, especially after we figured out the higher way to make our way back to the lift, which gave us a better opportunity to accumulate speed that would get us almost all the way to the lift line. I still wasn't a particularly happy camper, especially because Sugar Bowl doesn't seem to really groom runs and it really doesn't let you know which were groomed. I'm usually the type of skier to try to squeeze in that last run before the lift closes, but I was checking my watch from 1pm onwards, and finally we just stopped at 3pm, a good hour before the lifts closed. I went to get my skis waxed and edged ($20, kind of overpriced) and after some discussion, we decided to try Northstar on Sunday, if only to make me like skiing again.
We decided to spend the night in Reno, since Northstar is the closest resort to the NV border, and Reno had some very cheap hotels (unlike Truckee). My bf turned up "The Summit at the Grand Sierra Resort" in his searches, which looked like it could be very nice, and for (relatively) not very much. Since he likes to stay in nicer places, we decided to give it a shot. Turns out the Grand Sierra Resort has been around for ages and their standard rooms are $69/night, but the Summit is their condo hotel, much newer (I think everything had been renovated in the last 3 years?) and much nicer, for only $100/night. So we went for that. Good choice - it was definitely by far the nicest hotel room I've ever stayed at for $100. Big king bed with a soft-top on the mattress, cushioned headboard, and feather pillows. Big nice sofa and desk with a big LCD TV on the wall (though with pretty bad signal), little kitchenette area with good-sized mini-fridge and microwave. Very nice modern bathroom (with a little TV in it) though without a towel rack or hook for the bath towels (a common failing in nicer bathrooms for some reason). Modern, darkish decor that made it feel much nicer than a hotel room. So we were happy with that decision. We met up with some friends who had been skiing at Squaw Valley for dinner at the Sterling's Steak and Seafood restaurant in the Silver Legacy. Very expensive entrees (more than most of the nicer SF restaurants we've eaten at) with very large portions, but quite tasty at least. We spent some time playing games on the midway at Circus Circus (where I won two stuffed animals, which I've never done before, so I got quite excited) before heading back to our hotel and going to sleep.
The next morning, we took our time getting up and getting out, but finally got some discount Northstar tickets at the hotel ($69 vs $79 on the mountain) and got to Northstar around 10:45-11. We went directly to Lookout Mountain (via the gondola to Tahoe Zephyr Express, which is a 6-chair with occasional gondola cars (??) to the tow rope), where we did two runs (Washoe and Prosser?), discovered conditions were quite icy, and headed over to backside via Back Door. We got really lucky b/c lines were incredibly short (as they had been at Sugar Bowl the night before), so aside from the lift periodically stopping, we spent very little time waiting for the lifts. Northstar is, typical lines aside, my idea of ski nirvana. Backside in particular. Long, wide, steep-ish groomed runs, clearly marked, where I can just go swish, swish, swish with some speed, but have plenty of room to steer around people or slow down if I start getting out of control. High speed quads. The best food of any ski resort I ever tried (which is a bit pricey, admittedly, but so much better) - I got a huge smoked turkey leg that was quite delicious, while my bf got a smoked bbq ribs platter with fall-off-the-bone tender meat. I was much, much happier on Sunday, especially when we stopped to get Belgian waffles and hot cocoa on the way down, finally leaving after most people had gone, so we hit very little traffic before reaching Sacramento. I was especially happy that we found a Panera Bread in Vacaville for dinner.
I don't know why I keep bothering with other ski resorts. (Ok, ok, Northstar usually has huge lines and the least snow of any resort) Northstar fits all my criteria and makes my ski day very pleasant, whereas I usually am not nearly as happy at other resorts. I think it should be Northstar or nothing for me from now on, at least in the Tahoe area...
Since Sugar Bowl got the most snow of North Tahoe in the forecast (and actually, at the time, more than South Tahoe), we picked up a couple lift tickets from Sports Basement (my gym 10% discount did not apply) on our way out of the city. We stayed the night at the Holiday Inn Express in Roseville (about an hour out of Truckee), which was quite nice. They've done a good job with a lot of these Holiday Inn Express hotels - comfy beds, nice towels, clean, new looking rooms, free breakfast... The next morning, we were up and out of there by around 7:30 and got to Sugar Bowl's Village Gondola lot and up onto the mountain by 9AM, when they opened.
I keep forgetting, and I keep re-discovering, that I'm really a very limited range skier. There are a particular set of conditions I really like - long, wide, fairly steep groomed runs - and then there is everything else. Sugar Bowl quickly made an enemy of me because it truly is bowl shaped - long flat base at the bottom of every run before you get to the lift, and long flat rim which you have to pole yourself over from the top of the lift before you get to the top of the run. Plus, they converted our favorite blue warm-up area - the Mt Judah Express - to a terrain park. It was also super-windy, quite chilly, and the visibility at the summit was horrible due to the wind whipping up snow nonstop. After doing basically the same run several times over off the Mt. Lincoln Express (mostly b/c I don't like moguls or bumps), trying Christmas Tree only to realize that with a race set up there, there were only a couple blue runs off of it, and eating a godawful meal at the lodge (my bf's pizza was terrible, my chili was typical ski resort chili), we finally made our way over to the Disney Express. This was better, especially after we figured out the higher way to make our way back to the lift, which gave us a better opportunity to accumulate speed that would get us almost all the way to the lift line. I still wasn't a particularly happy camper, especially because Sugar Bowl doesn't seem to really groom runs and it really doesn't let you know which were groomed. I'm usually the type of skier to try to squeeze in that last run before the lift closes, but I was checking my watch from 1pm onwards, and finally we just stopped at 3pm, a good hour before the lifts closed. I went to get my skis waxed and edged ($20, kind of overpriced) and after some discussion, we decided to try Northstar on Sunday, if only to make me like skiing again.
We decided to spend the night in Reno, since Northstar is the closest resort to the NV border, and Reno had some very cheap hotels (unlike Truckee). My bf turned up "The Summit at the Grand Sierra Resort" in his searches, which looked like it could be very nice, and for (relatively) not very much. Since he likes to stay in nicer places, we decided to give it a shot. Turns out the Grand Sierra Resort has been around for ages and their standard rooms are $69/night, but the Summit is their condo hotel, much newer (I think everything had been renovated in the last 3 years?) and much nicer, for only $100/night. So we went for that. Good choice - it was definitely by far the nicest hotel room I've ever stayed at for $100. Big king bed with a soft-top on the mattress, cushioned headboard, and feather pillows. Big nice sofa and desk with a big LCD TV on the wall (though with pretty bad signal), little kitchenette area with good-sized mini-fridge and microwave. Very nice modern bathroom (with a little TV in it) though without a towel rack or hook for the bath towels (a common failing in nicer bathrooms for some reason). Modern, darkish decor that made it feel much nicer than a hotel room. So we were happy with that decision. We met up with some friends who had been skiing at Squaw Valley for dinner at the Sterling's Steak and Seafood restaurant in the Silver Legacy. Very expensive entrees (more than most of the nicer SF restaurants we've eaten at) with very large portions, but quite tasty at least. We spent some time playing games on the midway at Circus Circus (where I won two stuffed animals, which I've never done before, so I got quite excited) before heading back to our hotel and going to sleep.
The next morning, we took our time getting up and getting out, but finally got some discount Northstar tickets at the hotel ($69 vs $79 on the mountain) and got to Northstar around 10:45-11. We went directly to Lookout Mountain (via the gondola to Tahoe Zephyr Express, which is a 6-chair with occasional gondola cars (??) to the tow rope), where we did two runs (Washoe and Prosser?), discovered conditions were quite icy, and headed over to backside via Back Door. We got really lucky b/c lines were incredibly short (as they had been at Sugar Bowl the night before), so aside from the lift periodically stopping, we spent very little time waiting for the lifts. Northstar is, typical lines aside, my idea of ski nirvana. Backside in particular. Long, wide, steep-ish groomed runs, clearly marked, where I can just go swish, swish, swish with some speed, but have plenty of room to steer around people or slow down if I start getting out of control. High speed quads. The best food of any ski resort I ever tried (which is a bit pricey, admittedly, but so much better) - I got a huge smoked turkey leg that was quite delicious, while my bf got a smoked bbq ribs platter with fall-off-the-bone tender meat. I was much, much happier on Sunday, especially when we stopped to get Belgian waffles and hot cocoa on the way down, finally leaving after most people had gone, so we hit very little traffic before reaching Sacramento. I was especially happy that we found a Panera Bread in Vacaville for dinner.
I don't know why I keep bothering with other ski resorts. (Ok, ok, Northstar usually has huge lines and the least snow of any resort) Northstar fits all my criteria and makes my ski day very pleasant, whereas I usually am not nearly as happy at other resorts. I think it should be Northstar or nothing for me from now on, at least in the Tahoe area...
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Firefly!
Finally got out to Firefly (4288 24th St, btwn Douglass and Diamond) last night with my family (my parents were in town). I've been wanting to go here for a while since I read the menu online, and it looked delicious. Helps that my sister is a big fan. I was not disappointed - my food was super-yummy and I was very happy. My sister got the prix fixe menu ($35 for any appetizer, entree and dessert Monday-Thursday, which is a reasonably good deal that saves you maybe $4-8) and for her appetizer, ordered us brussel sprouts in parmesan-ruggiano and truffle oil. That was delicious - I think the truffle oil made all the difference, though the parmesan helped as well. The brussel sprouts were roasted to be slightly crispy and they were just about the best I've ever had. For the entree, I got the duck breast with spaetzel, braised red cabbage, and blood oranges and it was one of the best duck breasts I've had - tender and really, really tasty, down to the last bite. Everyone with me ordered a different entree, so I got to try a bite of each. My dad's goat leg brochette I found less than inspiring - the last goat I had was the super tender stuff in Jamaica, while this stuff was a bit more tough and not quite as flavorful (though the mashed yams it came with were very sweet and tasty). My mom's pan roasted striped bass wasn't what I expected either - a flatter, drier piece with a crispy skin-on top that was reasonably tasty but not the moist thick slab I've been used to getting with bass (she was initially disappointed but after she dug into it more, said the fish was actually quite moist and good). My bf's grilled rare tombo tuna I think I would have liked a lot better if I liked olives (it comes with a picholine olive & meyer lemon salsa) but the fish itself was nice and rare and good. My sister's beef short ribs were my next favorite after my duck - super-tender and tasty (my bf thought it tasted too much like wine, so clearly we have different tastes when it comes to short ribs). It is possible I was as happy as I was because I ordered well (my tastes of my mom and dad's dishes were less than inspiring) but it's also possible I would have liked the other dishes more if I had had more than one bite. For dessert, I got the warm chocolate cashew tart with vietnamese coffee ice cream which was like a very chocolatey molten cake with very strong coffee ice cream - gooey and yummy and delicious. My sister got an interesting lime with coconut cream parfait with pieces of grapefruit and oranges in it which was tastily tart and sweet. My bf got I think an almond sherbert and blood orange?? sorbet with honey citrus madelines which was fine, but not the one to eat third, b/c relative to the first two, it was quite bland. I think it was good by itself, but hard to tell after the intense sweet chocolate taste of my dessert and the tart sweet taste of my sister's.
I liked the ambiance too, since it was nice in a very casual way, and the server was friendly and helpful. Just wish the restaurant wasn't so far out!
For the record, the flattest way from SOMA to Firefly is to do Mission to 15th to Valencia to 22nd to Chatanooga to 24th. The last two blocks from Castro to Douglass are distinctly uphill, though not as bad as taking Diamond from Elizabeth to like 22nd! On the other hand, taking Diamond from 22nd to 18th was a lot of downhill zoom!
I liked the ambiance too, since it was nice in a very casual way, and the server was friendly and helpful. Just wish the restaurant wasn't so far out!
For the record, the flattest way from SOMA to Firefly is to do Mission to 15th to Valencia to 22nd to Chatanooga to 24th. The last two blocks from Castro to Douglass are distinctly uphill, though not as bad as taking Diamond from Elizabeth to like 22nd! On the other hand, taking Diamond from 22nd to 18th was a lot of downhill zoom!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Biking about town
We're planning on a trip to Machu Picchu in June, so I've been trying to come up ways to get in shape and train for it. One of my ideas is to do something long each weekend - long bike ride, long hike, long walk around the city, or at the very least, an hour on the elliptical (which is not that long but you try to run in place for longer than that). This weekend we were thinking of doing like a 15-20 mile bike ride around the city on Sunday but we ended up doing a more broken up 19-20 miles worth of biking yesterday instead.
First up was a 6.5 mile bike ride through GG Park, down the Great Highway, to the SF Zoo, where we met up with a couple of friends and their 19-month old. The ride took about 35 minutes and wasn't so bad, especially since there was a lot of coasting through the park, though at some point along the Great Highway I was thinking to myself that this bike riding was a whole lot of work and didn't leave me that much time to look at the scenery. Too busy steering around joggers, walkers, and other bikers. Of course, I was also not going at a leisurely pace...
We first picnicked in the zoo (on the lawn by the playground), eating Acme baguettes with Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam triple cream cheese and good French strawberry jam, Acme onion bread (also with cheese), salami from the Ferry Building, and other random snacks, which was quite enjoyable. We then strolled around the zoo for a few hours, unfortunately missing the baby giraffe (5 days old - we put it off until last and it already went indoors by the time we got there), but checking out the various other animals and closed exhibits =P they had. The zoo isn't the hugest place in the world but it's got a decent amount of stuff to look at. The 19-month old was initially quite fascinated in the children's zoo by the turtles and the sheep and getting to feed the goats, and got really excited about the penguins (they'd come swimming around by where we were, and then zooming away again, at which point he excitedly signed "more! more!"), dancing around while we watched them get fed. I think he had less of an ability to connect to the large animals that were rather far away in the bit enclosures, losing interest quickly in the lions, tigers, and gorilla, and more interested in the lights, rivets, and drains in his immediate vicinity. I was rather amused because there were some very aggressive seagulls at the zoo who hovered around the cafes and practically would dive bomb you for the food you were carrying in your hand. Evidently the seagulls were an issue at the penguin feeding as well (Magellanic penguins like the ones we saw in Argentina) so the zoo people had developed some methods to deal with it. First, the feeder kept a hose at hand to spray seagulls with. Then, they rigged up a net over part of the water so some of the penguins could go under there and safely eat their fish without being bothered by seagulls. And lastly, they brought out the bald eagle to both raise awareness of bald eagles and to keep the seagulls away, since the gulls feared the eagle. And right they were to, I think - the eagle was quite imposing and seemed to keep an eye on the skies above, ready to pounce on any interlopers. The penguins were adorable as they came to get their food, I must say. Overall it was a nice trip and a quite nice day (sunny though it started getting cooler over the course of the day).
Then it was a 6.5 mile ride back, which was less fun b/c of the gradual but unrelenting uphill through the park for a good 2/3 of the park on our way home (we appear to live more or less on top of a hill so all paths home require some uphill =P). I figured we were done with biking for the day but when it came time for dinner, we decided to get Korean bbq at Pine Restaurant at 20th and Noriega, followed by dessert at Golden Island Cafe a couple doors down, and my bf suddenly decided it'd be stupid to bus or drive there, and said I could do whatever I wanted but he was biking there. So of course, it seemed even stupider for me to drive while he biked, so back on the bike we went. 2.8 miles or so each way this time, with a steady and steeper uphill for a good 5 blocks from Irving to Noriega on 20th. I wasn't liking my bf all that much by the end of it, but we made it. The trip back, of course, though, was very quick, coasting downhill for 5 blocks and basically not pedaling (though we did make a stop at Andronico's to get some milk, thus breaking up the trip), some uphill for maybe 3 blocks on Irving, and then an easy ride through a quite deserted park on the more or less flat part of the ride home.
It's funny how much the last part of the ride influences your opinion. If we had just stopped after the zoo ride, or after the first part of the dinner ride, I'd be all grumbly about how tiring biking was. But the coasting and the easy ride through the park and panhandle were nice, so I instead ended the evening thinking biking was fun and plotting the next bike ride.
We're probably going to take a break from the riding today, though, and I'll do the elliptical instead. Which is just as well - I haven't used the elliptical at home for a few weeks now!
First up was a 6.5 mile bike ride through GG Park, down the Great Highway, to the SF Zoo, where we met up with a couple of friends and their 19-month old. The ride took about 35 minutes and wasn't so bad, especially since there was a lot of coasting through the park, though at some point along the Great Highway I was thinking to myself that this bike riding was a whole lot of work and didn't leave me that much time to look at the scenery. Too busy steering around joggers, walkers, and other bikers. Of course, I was also not going at a leisurely pace...
We first picnicked in the zoo (on the lawn by the playground), eating Acme baguettes with Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam triple cream cheese and good French strawberry jam, Acme onion bread (also with cheese), salami from the Ferry Building, and other random snacks, which was quite enjoyable. We then strolled around the zoo for a few hours, unfortunately missing the baby giraffe (5 days old - we put it off until last and it already went indoors by the time we got there), but checking out the various other animals and closed exhibits =P they had. The zoo isn't the hugest place in the world but it's got a decent amount of stuff to look at. The 19-month old was initially quite fascinated in the children's zoo by the turtles and the sheep and getting to feed the goats, and got really excited about the penguins (they'd come swimming around by where we were, and then zooming away again, at which point he excitedly signed "more! more!"), dancing around while we watched them get fed. I think he had less of an ability to connect to the large animals that were rather far away in the bit enclosures, losing interest quickly in the lions, tigers, and gorilla, and more interested in the lights, rivets, and drains in his immediate vicinity. I was rather amused because there were some very aggressive seagulls at the zoo who hovered around the cafes and practically would dive bomb you for the food you were carrying in your hand. Evidently the seagulls were an issue at the penguin feeding as well (Magellanic penguins like the ones we saw in Argentina) so the zoo people had developed some methods to deal with it. First, the feeder kept a hose at hand to spray seagulls with. Then, they rigged up a net over part of the water so some of the penguins could go under there and safely eat their fish without being bothered by seagulls. And lastly, they brought out the bald eagle to both raise awareness of bald eagles and to keep the seagulls away, since the gulls feared the eagle. And right they were to, I think - the eagle was quite imposing and seemed to keep an eye on the skies above, ready to pounce on any interlopers. The penguins were adorable as they came to get their food, I must say. Overall it was a nice trip and a quite nice day (sunny though it started getting cooler over the course of the day).
Then it was a 6.5 mile ride back, which was less fun b/c of the gradual but unrelenting uphill through the park for a good 2/3 of the park on our way home (we appear to live more or less on top of a hill so all paths home require some uphill =P). I figured we were done with biking for the day but when it came time for dinner, we decided to get Korean bbq at Pine Restaurant at 20th and Noriega, followed by dessert at Golden Island Cafe a couple doors down, and my bf suddenly decided it'd be stupid to bus or drive there, and said I could do whatever I wanted but he was biking there. So of course, it seemed even stupider for me to drive while he biked, so back on the bike we went. 2.8 miles or so each way this time, with a steady and steeper uphill for a good 5 blocks from Irving to Noriega on 20th. I wasn't liking my bf all that much by the end of it, but we made it. The trip back, of course, though, was very quick, coasting downhill for 5 blocks and basically not pedaling (though we did make a stop at Andronico's to get some milk, thus breaking up the trip), some uphill for maybe 3 blocks on Irving, and then an easy ride through a quite deserted park on the more or less flat part of the ride home.
It's funny how much the last part of the ride influences your opinion. If we had just stopped after the zoo ride, or after the first part of the dinner ride, I'd be all grumbly about how tiring biking was. But the coasting and the easy ride through the park and panhandle were nice, so I instead ended the evening thinking biking was fun and plotting the next bike ride.
We're probably going to take a break from the riding today, though, and I'll do the elliptical instead. Which is just as well - I haven't used the elliptical at home for a few weeks now!
Dining about town
I think my bf and I are just about the least favorite DAT customers a restaurant might have - we come in carrying our bike gear, dressed in jeans and a polo (for him) or a slightly nicer than t-shirt long-sleeve shirt (for me). We order off the DAT menu and get nothing extra, besides a coke for him. No alcohol, no coffee... And we may never revisit the restaurant again to pay full price. Ah well.
We hit three DAT restaurants in a row this week.
Tuesday, we went to Le Colonial (20 Cosmo Pl, btwn Sutter and Post/Taylor and Jones). It's an upscale Vietnamese place located in a bit of an alley (with a parking lot in the alley) which evidently turns into a dance club at night, though we didn't see that part of it. Looking at the menu, I have the feeling the place is rather overpriced ($30+ entrees) so the DAT was definitely a deal for the place. My bf and I both got the DAT - I got the Kurobuta pork belly (with a savory caramel sauce, white truffle oil, Hosui pear, pickled bok choy and quail egg) and he got the um..I think the spring rolls? (The DAT menu on the website is not what we had to choose from so I'm going on memory). The pork belly was very yummy, IMO, the spring rolls were fine but nothing special. Then we both got the beef short ribs (braised Niman Ranch beef short ribs with leek, shiitake mushrooms, and wild rice served with a star anise broth). This was very tender and nicely textured - I thought it was too bland, my bf appreciated its "subtle" flavor and really liked it. For dessert, they had the pineapple upside down cake with coconut ice cream, which was very yummy (of course, those are some of my favorite flavor combos). The service was nice and prompt, the ambiance nice (we were definitely the least well dressed in there), and the food fine. I personally still think it was overpriced but my bf quite liked it.
Wednesday we hit Chaya Brasserie (132 The Embarcadero, btwn Mission and Howard), a French-Japanese type place, which basically seemed to mean they served both sushi and steak. Also not a cheap place. We both got the DAT again but this time got totally different stuff. My bf got the hamachi carpaccio for appetizer (quite yummy), I got the shrimp tempura roll (totally not a $12 roll, I've definitely had better shrimp tempura rolls for less elsewhere). For dinner, he got the prime beef done two different ways (a NY steak and a short rib) while I got the petrale sole. He said his beef was fine (I think he preferred le Colonial's), my sole was fine but nothing outstanding. Reasonably tasty and fairly well presented, but it just didn't stand out. Then again, my standards when I go to more expensive places tend to get pretty high. For dessert, he got the Meyer lemon sorbet which he really enjoyed, and I got the chocolate croissant bread pudding which I thought was absolutely delicious. The croissant aspect of it lent it an interesting texture in places and that kind of buttery croissant taste that I really enjoyed. So I guess I'd say dessert was my highlight in both places.
Thursday, we went to Maverick (3316 17th St btwn Hoff and Mission) with one of my bf's coworkers and his girlfriend. The prices here were lower, so DAT was just about worth it (basically you saved $4). The DAT menu had no choices, but we thought it looked good and went for it - "Little Gem Salad" to open (pretty basic blue cheese, pears, lettuce salad), fried chicken ($21 on the regular menu) with yellow grits, collard greens, some other stuff, and walnut chocolate chip cookies with milk to dip them in. The salad was fine, nothing special, nothing bad. The fried chicken was good, but not $21 good. The chicken meat itself was very tender and juicy (though the breast still wasn't very tasty), the fried part was a fairly thin crisp dark brown layer that tasted fine but nothing special. Wasn't the super-greasy type of chicken you get from KFC or Popeye's, that's for sure, and the chicken was good quality, but somehow it just wasn't that exciting. The cookies, no matter how good they might be (and they were yummy though not the best ever) were not worth $8 for two cookies (which is what they were on the regular menu, though maybe they give you more than 2 if you order it regularly - our salads were smaller than the one someone in our party got as her main meal, even though she ordered the same salad). I think the milk they gave us was whole milk - I only did a bit of dipping but no drinking due to lactose-intolerance - and the cookies were the crisp texture kind. Yummy, as I said, but not so exceptional I'd go to Maverick just to have them - or pay that much to have them again. I guess basically overall, we found Maverick a bit disappointing and probably wouldn't go back. Which is funny, b/c of the three, it's the highest rated on Yelp...
And that was our DAT experience for January 2009.
We hit three DAT restaurants in a row this week.
Tuesday, we went to Le Colonial (20 Cosmo Pl, btwn Sutter and Post/Taylor and Jones). It's an upscale Vietnamese place located in a bit of an alley (with a parking lot in the alley) which evidently turns into a dance club at night, though we didn't see that part of it. Looking at the menu, I have the feeling the place is rather overpriced ($30+ entrees) so the DAT was definitely a deal for the place. My bf and I both got the DAT - I got the Kurobuta pork belly (with a savory caramel sauce, white truffle oil, Hosui pear, pickled bok choy and quail egg) and he got the um..I think the spring rolls? (The DAT menu on the website is not what we had to choose from so I'm going on memory). The pork belly was very yummy, IMO, the spring rolls were fine but nothing special. Then we both got the beef short ribs (braised Niman Ranch beef short ribs with leek, shiitake mushrooms, and wild rice served with a star anise broth). This was very tender and nicely textured - I thought it was too bland, my bf appreciated its "subtle" flavor and really liked it. For dessert, they had the pineapple upside down cake with coconut ice cream, which was very yummy (of course, those are some of my favorite flavor combos). The service was nice and prompt, the ambiance nice (we were definitely the least well dressed in there), and the food fine. I personally still think it was overpriced but my bf quite liked it.
Wednesday we hit Chaya Brasserie (132 The Embarcadero, btwn Mission and Howard), a French-Japanese type place, which basically seemed to mean they served both sushi and steak. Also not a cheap place. We both got the DAT again but this time got totally different stuff. My bf got the hamachi carpaccio for appetizer (quite yummy), I got the shrimp tempura roll (totally not a $12 roll, I've definitely had better shrimp tempura rolls for less elsewhere). For dinner, he got the prime beef done two different ways (a NY steak and a short rib) while I got the petrale sole. He said his beef was fine (I think he preferred le Colonial's), my sole was fine but nothing outstanding. Reasonably tasty and fairly well presented, but it just didn't stand out. Then again, my standards when I go to more expensive places tend to get pretty high. For dessert, he got the Meyer lemon sorbet which he really enjoyed, and I got the chocolate croissant bread pudding which I thought was absolutely delicious. The croissant aspect of it lent it an interesting texture in places and that kind of buttery croissant taste that I really enjoyed. So I guess I'd say dessert was my highlight in both places.
Thursday, we went to Maverick (3316 17th St btwn Hoff and Mission) with one of my bf's coworkers and his girlfriend. The prices here were lower, so DAT was just about worth it (basically you saved $4). The DAT menu had no choices, but we thought it looked good and went for it - "Little Gem Salad" to open (pretty basic blue cheese, pears, lettuce salad), fried chicken ($21 on the regular menu) with yellow grits, collard greens, some other stuff, and walnut chocolate chip cookies with milk to dip them in. The salad was fine, nothing special, nothing bad. The fried chicken was good, but not $21 good. The chicken meat itself was very tender and juicy (though the breast still wasn't very tasty), the fried part was a fairly thin crisp dark brown layer that tasted fine but nothing special. Wasn't the super-greasy type of chicken you get from KFC or Popeye's, that's for sure, and the chicken was good quality, but somehow it just wasn't that exciting. The cookies, no matter how good they might be (and they were yummy though not the best ever) were not worth $8 for two cookies (which is what they were on the regular menu, though maybe they give you more than 2 if you order it regularly - our salads were smaller than the one someone in our party got as her main meal, even though she ordered the same salad). I think the milk they gave us was whole milk - I only did a bit of dipping but no drinking due to lactose-intolerance - and the cookies were the crisp texture kind. Yummy, as I said, but not so exceptional I'd go to Maverick just to have them - or pay that much to have them again. I guess basically overall, we found Maverick a bit disappointing and probably wouldn't go back. Which is funny, b/c of the three, it's the highest rated on Yelp...
And that was our DAT experience for January 2009.
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