Friday, December 23, 2011

San Francisco Eats


Bi-Rite Creamery

Picture: White- Brown Sugar with ginger and caramel, Orange- Salted Caramel, Brown- Coffee with Toffee bits. 
Thoughts: The salted caramel was THE BEST!! But all the flavors were delicious and there were so many other flavored i wanted to try. Luckily we didn't get stuck in a line, but usually there is a long line and the prices are decent =]

Genki Crepes
Picture: Vanilla Ice cream with Strawberries & Whip Cream Crepe
Thoughts: The crepe is actually really thin! the ice cream was good...I just wish there was more fruit in it. There were so many other crepe combos that sounded delicious as well...def would go back!

Tartine Bakery
 Picture: Morning Bun
Thoughts: it was good....flakey on the outside and somewhat moist on the inside. A hint of orange flavor, but I honestly wouldn't go back just for this...
Picture: Bread Pudding
Thoughts: It was more pudding-like than other bread puddings i've had. Thought it tasted a little too mushy and the berries were very sour. 

Turtle Tower
Picture: Chicken Pho
Thoughts: A must try...not your ordinary beef pho. The broth is very clean and fresh with fat noodles! The restaurant doesn't even carry sriracha or hoisan sauce. They actually get offended if you ask for it. 

Submarine Center
(A small local spot in SF)

Picture: Pastrami Sandwich with cheese, lettuce, avacado, jalapeno, mustard, and their "special" sauce
Thoughts: seriously hands down best pastrami sandwich in Cali!! The meat, sauce, and cheese just melts everything together so well!

Ike's Place-San Francisco (castro)
Picture: I can't remember, but it had halal chicken & jalapeno poppers inside.
Thoughts: If you are in San Francisco, YOU HAVE TO GO TO IKE'S!!! This place was aired on Man Vs. Food. They have sooo many different combos of sandwiches with different things like mozzarella sticks and jalapeno popper inside your bigger and they are very LARGE sandwiches. Usually a wait and no seating inside. It's best eaten right when u get it so people stand outside on the sidewalk eating. 

 Brenda's French Soul Food

Picture: Catfish Eggs Benedict
Thoughts: Best eggs benedict I've had. The catfish is deep fried so there's a crunch, and it's on a biscuit instead of a english muffin, which makes it fluffly and flaky with every bite. 

Picture: Shrimp & Grits
Thoughts: My first time trying shrimp and grits, and boy it was GOOOOOD!!! Perfect combo of grits and cheese, and the shrimps were covered in a  cajun sauce and added flavor to each bite. 
Picture: Beignet
 Thoughts: They have plain, chocolate, and crayfish. The best one was crayfish

Cha Cha Cha- San Francisco (Haight St.)
Caribbean & Cuban Tapas

Picture: Fried New Potatoes
Thoughts: The sauce is rich and creamy with a kick to it...I really like the sauce! 



Picture: Cajun Chicken 
Thoughts: YUMMY!!! Shrimp in creamy spicy sauce...It's actually surprisingly spicy. Great for dipping bread in!

Picture: Seafood Paella
Thoughts: Sauce was good and the seafood was fresh! 

Picture: Sangria
Thoughts: Must try!! Love it! and they give you a lot of fruit.

Mama's 
(cute breakfast spot...usually a line) 

Picture: regular french toast with berries
Thoughts: original fluffy french toast with yummy fresh fruit

Picture: Crabs Benedict
Thoughts: very very gooood!

Golden Island Cafe
Picture: Fresh Fruit Sago and Coconut Milk 
Thoughts: not a lot of people know what Sago is, but it's a chinese dessert with little clear tapioca mixed with fruit and usually coconut milk. 

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

San Diego

Roberto's Taco Shop
Picture: Chorizo Breakfast Burrito with frenchfries, egg, and cheese.
Thoughts: San Diego has THE BEST MEXICAN FOOD!!!!!!!!!! And there's so many places to go too, but we randomly went to this taco shop that looks like a drive thru in PB and it was so good that we came back here twice! 

 Picture: Carne Asada Fries
Thoughts: This is how carne asada fries should be!!! None of that fake nacho cheese!!!

 Hash House A Go Go
Picture: Fried Chicken Egg Benedict
Thoughts: ok you can't tell by the picture, but this was HUGE! All their dishes are probably 3x the food of a normal dish. Their pancakes could feed like 5 people, but they charge you if your gonna share one dish, which is kind of lame. But the food was sure delicious and usually always a wait! 

Hawaii

Zippy's
Picture: Loco Moco
Thoughts: So my friend did NOT want to take me here because it's basically a fast food chain mainly for tourists, but hey u can't go wrong with loco moco!

Dole Plantation
Picture: fresh sliced coconut
Thoughts: great snack on our way to Waimea Beach

Uncle Bo's
Picture: Boca Roca- cheese breadsticks with sauteed mushrooms in a creamy sauce
Thoughts: YUUUM!!! Uncle Bo's has the best food =]

Picture: Dynamite Shrimp
Thoughts: Can't tell by the picture, but this is my favorite dish at Uncle Bo's. It's encrusted shrimp in a spicy cream sauce. 

Picture: Veggie Pizza
Thoughts: They have sucha variety and even their pizza is delishhh!

I'm biased because my friend works at Uncle Bo's, but seriously the food is amazing!!! And the service is outstanding! The owner Ho-Suk runs the best customer service in Oahu and he's very passionate about the quality and taste of the food. Great spot to grab a drink as well!

Ono Hawaiian Food

Picture: A variety of traditional hawaiian dishes
Thoughts: It was very different, but def loved the chicken lau lau and haupia 

 Picture: Chicken Lau Lau-chicken wrapped in luau leaves
Thoughts- The chicken was very soft and juicy, and was not a fan of the purple taro stuff in the background (forgot what it's called). 

 Leonard's Bakery

Picture: Malasadas
Thoughts: This place is very popular and famous. Known for their malasadas, which are like deep fried donuts coated with sugar. They come in different fillings as well like custard, chocolate, coconut, and etc. The custard one is the best!

Soul de Cuba Cafe

Picture: Appetizer plate of Samosa
Thoughts: this place was sooo delicious! I liked everything we ordered!!

Costco
Picture: After beach snack at Costco- spicy ahi sushi with a side of fresh wasabi tuna. 
Thoughts: honestly the best food I ate in hawaii has got to be the freshhhh AHI tuna!! U can basically get it at costco or even safeway by weight. And they usually have it in wasabi, shoyu (soy sauce), or plain. The tuna is super fresh and melts in your mouth! 

Hawaii

Sunday, October 23, 2011

I heart NY

Ippudo NY- East Village

 
Picture: Karaka Miso Ramen
Thoughts: The texture of the noodles were perfect...soft but yet chewy. The flavor of the soup was delicious with a slight kick, but added some more spicy powder for me =].

Picture: Pork Buns
Thoughts: Must Try!!

 Kenka- East Village

Picture: Okonomiyaki
Thoughts: Japanese style pancakes with seafood and vegetables. Fish flakes on top and a mayo kind of sauce. It was very tasty! Great to snack on with beer. This was a fun spot to drink and eat yakitori. $8 Sapporo and Kirin pitchers. 

 Picture: cotton candy after!
Thoughts: And they give you a small cup of cotton candy powder so you can make your own after your dinner!!

Joe's Shanghai- Chinatown

Picture: Pork and Crab soup dumplings 
Thoughts: OMG!!! I'm craving this right now actually....the dumplings are bigger than the soup dumplings I've had before and the meat and soup inside is so flavorful!


Prosperity Dumplings- Chinatown

Picture: 5 for $1 Pork and Chive Dumplings
Thoughts: it's only $1!! And they were sooo yummy! The place is small, but you can sit on stools to the side where they have soy sauce and sriracha. 


Grimaldi's- Brooklyn Bridge area

Picture: Basil, mozzarella, mushroom, and sun dried tomatoes.
Thoughts:  Mmm the dough was crispy, but yet chewy. The mozzarella was so fresh and perfectly melted. My friends and I agreed that we wished the sauce was a little sweeter. 

Las Ramblas- Spanish Tapas
West Village
Picture: Lamb Chops with taro mashed potatoes
Thoughts: I don't even like lamb that much, and I really liked this dish! The pork was very juicy and not too gamey. Lots of flavor!

Picture: Patatas Bravas
Thoughts: Yum!!

Picture: Stuffed Pumpkin Special 
Thoughts: This was all our favorite!! The picture quality didn't turn out so well, but it was a sweet thick kind of soup (tasted a little bit of coconut as well) and we dipped bread into it. And then you can eat the roasted pumpkin on the edge like a bread bowl. We also had sangria here and it was amazing!! Loved the restaurant!

53rd and 6th ave Halal chicken cart-Times Square


 Picture: chicken bowl 
Thoughts: I think people come to NY for this! it's so delicious, but BEWARE of the hot read sauce!! You really need only a few drops of it. Love the white sauce! And usually always a line... i think it's open from like 4 pm-5am or something like that. 

Shake Shack-Flatiron

Picture: Shack Stack
Thoughts: Ummm sooooo gooood!! The mushroom is fried and then filled with cheese and on top of that you have their delicious meat patty.

Picture: Regular Double 
Thoughts: We were told to try this as well because their beef is amazing. And even though I liked the shake stack alot...their regular beef is sooo delicious! The meat is pretty thick, but is actually soft and juicy and cooked just right!

Kuma Inn- Filipino Tapas
Lower East Village

Picture: Tuna Tartare
Thoughts: Very delicious! Just wish there was more of it!

Picture: Chinese Sausage dish
Thoughts: Wasn't too excited about ordering this dish, but SOOO glad we did because it's very tasty and different then your ordinary chinese sauce dish. The onions are caramelized so it gives the sausage a sweet flavor. A must try!

Picture: Scallops
Thoughts: cooked perfectly and the sauce was yummy. 
I really liked this restaurant! It's more like a fusion restaurant with a variety of tapas. The place is really small...maybe 6 tables or so? But food was amazing!

Tartine-West Village
Picture: Norweigen Benedict with salmon, poached egg, and hollandaise sauce
Thoughts: The salmon was not fishy and the sauce was very good. The potatoes were also cooked well and tasty!

Picture: Chicken Sandwich on Foccacia bread
Thoughts: Simple, but they made it so delicious! Everything on their menu looked amazing! I think it's also a byob place so people brought in champagne for mimosas. 

 Buttercup Bake Shop-midtown
Picture: Red Velvet Cupcake
Thoughts: Tried this bakery because it was around the corner from our friends place. It's a cute little bakery and their cakes look amazing! I really liked the frosting, but the cake part could have been a little more moist. But I still enjoyed it =]

Katz's Deli- Lower East Side
Picture: Pastrami Sandwich
Thoughts: Meat is so juicy and tender! the mustard makes it even better.