While slurping is considered bad table manners in the West, it’s quite the opposite in Japan. To express appreciation for a delicious bowl of noodles, slurping is perfectly acceptable, in fact complimentary to the hosts. Continue reading
I’m sitting in the cutest coffee shop on the Upper East Side as I write this. Everything in this place spells comfort – from the fabulous aromas of fresh Java to the woodsy, country, rustic look of the Café that makes it feel like home. Continue reading
I was intrigued by this little restaurant that was dedicated to my two favorite foods of all time – chilies and chocolate.
So of-course I had to trek over to Park Slope to check out this charming joint, that has carved out a niche of its own. This tiny restaurant can only seat about 16 people at a time. Its very informal and the server was very friendly. Continue reading
MY RATINGS FOR THIS MEAL
Food: ☆☆☆1/2
Service: ☆☆☆
Ambiance: ☆☆☆
Cost: $$$
I recommend: Sweet Pea Soup, Shrimp Salad, Salmon with Poblano Peppers
At Naya, traditional Lebanese cuisine meets designer chic!
The sleek, modern space consists of a narrow passageway lined with cool glass and white leather cubicles. It opens up to a bright back room which is suitable for group seating.
The food at Naya is outstanding and so well priced. You could just eat their Mezze and be full! Continue reading
Hidden amongst a grove of green, the understated Chez Panisse gently reveals itself in all its glory.
It’s famed owner, Alice Waters is one of the pioneers of California cuisine. She is the original advocate of sourcing fresh, organic, seasonal produce from farm and bringing it to the table. Alice Waters also created the now famous Slow Food Movement and the Edible School Yard concept.
Influenced greatly by French countryside cooking, the menu at Chez Panisse Café changes daily depending on locally available, fresh produce. Many of the dishes on the menu are named after the local farms or suppliers of their fresh meats or cheeses – such as Baked Andante Dairy Goat Cheese or Riverdog Farm Artichoke salad or Soul Food Farm Chicken and so on.
Chez Panisse has an upstairs café area, which is more informal and less expensive, which serves lunch and dinner. The more formal and expensive downstairs section serves a prefix dinner only.
Eating at Chez Panisse Café is truly a delight. Its art is in the simplicity of the dishes. The emphasis is really on the freshness and flavor of the ingredients themselves. You wont find very complex sauces or crazy gourmet dishes here. Everything is simple simple simple. That is the charm of their food.
Here is some of what we ate:
LITTLE GEMS LETTUCE SALAD
This crispy lettuce leaves were lightly flavored with anchovy, garlic and egg.
CITRUS AND AVOCADO SALAD
The combination of different kinds of citrus fruits with ripened avocado in this salad, topped with a ginger vingeratte was just fantastic. There was a burst of tangy flavor with every bite.
RIVERDOG FARM ARTICHOKE SALAD
These tender artichokes were paired with crisp arugala with lemon, crunch black pepper and thinly sliced pecorino. Delicious!
HAND CUT GREEN NOODLES
These fresh green noodles came with morel mushrooms, crème fraiche, thyme and peas. I loved how the emphasis was on the vegetables and the noodles, though fabulous, only provided the backdrop for the dish as the vegetables were the stars.
KING SALMON COOKED IN A FIG LEAF
This is one of the most delicious salmons I have ever had. It was cooked to perfection – so delicate – it melted in my mouth. It was served with asparagus, chervil and beet relish.
SOUL FOOD FARM CHICKEN A LA MILANESE
This tender chicken was cooked to a crisp and served with rocket and fennel salad and lemon.
MONTEREY BAY SQUID AND CLAMS
These tiny clams just melted in my mouth. The squid and clams were just divine. It was served on a bed of chickpeas, leeks and aioli. I didn’t care much for the flavor or the chickpeas but the seafood was just pure bliss.
MAGRUDER RANCH PORK LEG
This perfectly cooked pork was topped of with a fresh tapenade and served with airy fried spring onions and delicious wilted greens.
DESSERTS AND TEA
The desserts were all exquisite. You could really taste the freshness of the ingredients. I loved the both the tarts. The crusts for both were fresh and made all the difference to the tarts.
CRIMSON RHUBARB TART
This tart was served with a vanilla bean ice-cream.
BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TART
This tart was served with fresh caramel cream and hazelnuts.
STRAWBERRY SHERBET
This was served with vanilla ice-cream and a coconut tuille.
MY RATINGS FOR THIS MEAL
Food: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2
Service: ☆☆☆ 1/2
Ambiance: ☆☆☆
Cost: $$$
I recommend: Everything!
|
|
* Restaurant Name |
|---|---|
| Chez Panisse Cafe | |
| * Overall | |
| ★★★☆☆ | |
| * Neighborhood / Cuisine | |
| American New / French | |
| * Street Address | |
| 1517 Shattuck Ave ((between Cedar St & Vine St) ), Berkeley, CA 94709 | |
| * Phone | |
| (510) 548-5049 |
Just a few minutes away from San Francisco, across the Golden Gate Bridge, lies the picturesque waterfront community of Sausalito. It’s in this charming area that Yoshi Tome opened his highly acclaimed Sushi Ran.
Having received a prestigious Michelin star, the chefs at Sushi Ran work hard at the ever-changing menu that combines traditional Japanese and Pacific cuisine.
The fish here is very fresh and the cuisine is inventive. The service was friendly and efficient.
The restaurant has a sushi bar and main dinning room and an adjacent sake bar too.
Here is some of what we ate:
CALIFORNIA SALAD
This was a true California cuisine salad. It had fresh crab, cucumbers, avocado, tofu and crisp mixed greens with delicious sesame dressing. Everything was just fresh fresh fresh! Outstanding!
CRUNCH ROLL
This roll was highly recommended by our server and he was right on the money with this one. It was the best roll we had. The eel, spicy crab, shrimp and avocado melded beautifully with each other while the tempura flakes added a perfect bite of crunch to it.
SALMON & AVOCADO ROLLS
These were very good. The salmon was fresh and melted with the avocado in this roll.
NEGITORO
These rolls made with fatty tuna, grilled green onions and fresh scallions were really interesting. I loved the play of the grilled and fresh scallions with the fish.
SPICY TUNA ROLL
This was a different take on the traditional spicy tuna roll. Served with chunks of tuna, miso aioli and togarashi – it was rather unique – not exquisite but interesting.
SOFT SHELL CRAB ROLL & EBI TEMPURA ROLLS
I wasn’t very impressed with their soft shell crab and tempura roll.
SALMON & TUNA SUSHI
Their sushi was not as impressive as their rolls.
MY RATINGS FOR THIS MEAL
Food: ☆☆☆ ½
Service: ☆☆☆ ½
Ambiance: ☆☆ ½
Cost: $$$
I recommend: California Salad, Crunch Roll, Salmon and Avocado Rolls
|
|
* Restaurant Name |
|---|---|
| Sushi Ran | |
| * Overall | |
| ★★★☆☆ | |
| * Neighborhood / Cuisine | |
| Japanese | |
| * Street Address | |
| 107 Caledonia St , Sausalito, CA 94965 | |
| * Phone | |
| (415) 332-3620 |
I hate going hungry to any kind of museums, zoos or theme parks because I just cant stand the standard pizza, hot dog, chicken nuggets fare that is served up, all across America.
So imagine my surprise when I walked into this:
Asmara, (named after the capital of Eritrea) has been serving up Eritrean/ Ethiopian delights in North Oakland since 1985.
What begins with a rather mediocre facade opens into a roomy, inviting space with cute touches of ethnic décor.
The food is pretty good overall though in certain dishes I felt like there was something missing – perhaps something in the spices they use. Their injeras were very good and we were given plenty of them.
The service is a little slow but overwhelmingly warm and friendly.
All in all – Asmara is a really good bet!
Here is some of what we ate:
POTATOES & CARROTS AND SALAD
The potato and carrots combo and salad are usually served on the shared plate with an injera at the bottom. I thought the potato dish was very bland and devoid of spice and flavor. The salad was nice and crunchy and went very well with the rest of the meal.
TEMTMO/ YEMISSIR
This red lentil stew marinated in berbere sauce was very good. It really had great depth of spices and flavor.
DORO AND GOMEN
This boneless chicken cooked with mustard greens was outstanding. The chicken was cooked down to a perfect tenderness, which melded really well with the cooked greens.
SHIRO
This roasted grounds peas cooked in berbere sauce is one of my favorite Ethiopian dishes. I found Asmara’s shiro very lacking. It was disappointing.
TEBSY
This dish had pan-roasted strips of beef, simmered with onion, butter, and mild spices.
MY RATINGS FOR THIS MEAL
Food: ☆☆☆
Service: ☆☆☆
Ambiance: ☆☆
Cost: $$
I recommend: Temtmo/ Yemissir, Doro and Gomen
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|
* Restaurant Name |
|---|---|
| Asmara Restaurant | |
| * Overall | |
| ★★★☆☆ | |
| * Neighborhood / Cuisine | |
| Ethiopian | |
| * Street Address | |
| 5020 Telegraph Ave ((between 49th St & 51st St) ), Oakland, CA 94609 | |
| * Phone | |
| (510) 547-5100 |
Miette is french for “little crumbs”. What a perfect little name for a perfect little place. Housed in the Ferry Building in San Francisco, Miette is just as adorable as it sounds. Continue reading
This is my new favorite “hang out with your best buddy”, local spot.
Panorama Café is the most unlikely find, in this neck of the woods. It’s an artsy, warm café with a whole lot of soul.
Yes, that really is the Taj Mahal!
Imagine soaking in the beauty of one of the world’s most beautiful monuments as you are dinning.
The experience is indescribable…….. Continue reading
DUMBO was alive with the festive smells and tastes of Asia, as the Lucky Rice Festival 2010 held it’s Night-Market event under the archway of the Manhattan bridge.
There were Asian food vendors galore, dishing out yummy samples of their tasty treats to foodies who flooded the event. A lot of the samplings were of street foods that are available at the popular night markets in Asia.
I really enjoyed this event. It was well organized and intimate. Continue reading
MY RATINGS FOR THIS MEAL
Food: ☆☆☆☆
Service: ☆☆
Cost: $
“The Best Halal. Delicious Chicken and Gyro – We are different!” scream the yellow shirts worn by “The Gyros Guys” on 53rd and 6th avenue.
They have no official name and are known as anything from the Halal Cart to Chicken and Rice to Platter!
There are many Halal Carts around that block but this one in particular is in a class by itself. They are known by their distinctive yellow sweatshirts and plastic bags that read ” The Best Halal……….”
They are only open at night from 7:30 PM to 4:00 AM. It doesn’t matter what time of night you go – they always have a long line of eager night owls waiting to get their fix.
This was the line we found when we got there at 2:30 AM on a Saturday night!!
But here’s the BIG secret. They usually charge $6 for a chicken rice platter but for $10 – you get to cut the line!!!
So, if you dont want to wait and are willing to pull out the big bucks……. all you have to do is go up to the guys directly and tell them that you want the ten dollar deal!!
Needless to say their food is fabulous. There is no better way to wind down the New York night scene.
They have two options on their menu – the chicken and rice platter or the chicken gyro sandwich. Their sauces are to die for!
Apparently the recipe for their white sauce is top secret – that’s where all the flavor is and they have a kick-ass hot sauce. I’m a spice hound but you really have to take it easy on this one – its is SMOKING hot!
So delicious!!
So if you ever get those late night munchies and need a hit of something cheap and fabulous……53rd and 6th is the place to go!
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|
* Restaurant Name |
|---|---|
| The Halal Guys | |
| * Overall | |
| ★★★☆☆ | |
| * Neighborhood / Cuisine | |
| Brooklyn / Middle Eastern other | |
| * Street Address | |
| 6th Ave & W 53rd St, New York, NY 10019 | |
| * Phone | |
| (347) 527-1505 |
Three Sixty at the Oberoi Hotel is one of the poshest eateries in New Delhi, India. It’s a great spot for people watching as it is frequented by the Delhi elite and celebrity crowd. The impressive space is huge and bathed in natural light. The decor is modern and extremely chic. All of this makes for a great place to hang out at …..(with a pretty price to pay for it of course!) Continue reading
Food: ☆☆
Service: ☆☆
Ambiance: ☆ 1/2
Cost: $
I recommend: Wonton with Spicy Sauce, Sesame Pancake Sandwich.
Strolling around Chinatown one day, my interest was piqued by the hustle bustle at a neat looking dumpling house. That’s how I discovered Vanessa’s Dumpling House on Eldridge Street. Vanessa’s works like a well-oiled machine and is run by an all women crew – love that! Continue reading
Food: ☆☆☆ 1/2 Ambiance:☆☆☆ Service:☆☆☆ Price:$$$ I recommend: Tuna & Salmon Tartare, Pretzel Crusted Crab-cake, Grilled River Trout Almondine, Cheesecake Lollipop Tree
Bittersweet
Bittersweet – The Chocolate Café, on Fillmore street in San Francisco, is an ideal place that really hits a chocoholic and bond-aholics spot! This is the kind of place that every street corner in the world should have. A delightful little café that serves up perfectly sized choco-filled desserts to go with all kinds of yummy drinks hot or cold. Bittersweet is a definite must do if you are in and around the Fillmore area in SFO. Grab your best buddy and be prepared to spend a day of true decadence that will be so worth your while. Continue reading
MY RATINGS FOR THIS MEAL Food: ☆ ☆ Service: ☆☆☆1/2 Ambiance: ☆ Cost:$$ Overall:☆☆ I recommend: Brick Lane Kebab Rolls, Bombay Aloo
Take a trip to Southeast Asia by eating at Jean-George Vongerichten’s Spice Market. The cuisine here is inspired by regional street food combined with Vongerichten’s distinctive touch. The interiors are resplendent and definitely make you feel like you are in some exotic locale of Asia. There are decorative pagodas and arches that adorn the enormous space and a grand staircase that leads to the hopping bar area downstairs. All of this makes for a really great spot to hang out at where one is stylishly served by waiters and scantily clad waitresses, dressed in bright orange hues. Continue reading
“Tired” is the word that comes to mind when I think about my evening spent at Le Perigord, which is nestled in the heart of Sutton Place. Every thing about the evening was just so pathetically dreary and tiring.
There was no real “welcome” when we entered the restaurant. We were ushered to our table and just kind of left there for quite some time with the menus till we asked for someone to come and take our order. The general air of all the servers was brusque. And even the little charm that I thought the place had in its simple table setting wore off by the time the appetizers were done. For the rest of the meal – I just kept hearing the “tick-tock” of a clock….when will this be done? Continue reading
Yummalicious……..
We reached around 6:15PM for the event which began at 6:30 PM for the Non-VIP ticket holders (that’s me!!). The line was wrapped around an entire Manhattan city block!!!! It took us almost an hour to reach the entrance! Of-Course I spent the entire hour worrying that there would be no food left for me……Boy was I wrong!
Once we were in……….the ultimate fest in gluttony began! Continue reading
Food: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2 Ambiance: ☆ Service: ☆☆☆ Price: $ Overall experience: ☆☆☆ I recommend: Crispy Watercress Salad, Soft Shell Crab with Curry Powder, Steamed Whole Fish with Lime Juice.
Chao Thai is one of Elmhurst’s food treasures. It’s the kind of place that really makes Queens famous for having some of the best ethnic eats in New York City. This tiny eatery couldn’t be more than 200 sq. ft, but they sure have packed in some flavor into that small space. Continue reading
