With green onion, fresh dungeness crab meat, and garnished with cilantro. $19
The Slanted Door, San Francisco
This has got to be one of The Slanted Door’s most popular dishes. It’s absolutely delicious and the flavors are amazing. Even the noodles have absorbed a great seafood/crab flavor. There are large chunks of dungeness crab hidden throughout the pile of clear, al dente noodles.
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010, 2011, 2012
I’m not a big Bloody Mary fan, but this one was absolutely beautiful! I love the purple cauliflower made the entire cocktail. It was unexpected and pretty. The drink had a nice kick, but it took forever to reach out table. I think we had eaten a course or two before it finally arrived – not cool! $10
The Slanted Door, San Francisco
Slanted Door spring rolls (foreground): shrimp, pork, mint, lettuce, vermicelli noodles.
Vegetarian spring rolls (background): tofu, shiitakes, cabbage, mint, lettuce, vermicelli noodles.
Served with peanut sauce. $10 for a half and half order
The Slanted Door, San Francisco
These were so good and refreshing. When we were ordering I only wanted the Slanted Door spring rolls, but the waiter suggested that we get half and half. I’m so glad we did because the Vegetarian spring rolls were amazing. I actually liked them better, hehe. The Vegetarian rolls had more flavor, mostly from the shiitake mushrooms. I did like how there was a thin slice of pork rolled throughout the Slanted Door rolls. The peanut sauce was different from others I’ve tried. It almost had mayo texture and flavor in it, very creamy. I wasn’t a fan at first, but it grew on me.
Spinach blended with ricotta and feta, mushroom, onion and garlic on a deep dish cornmeal crust. $24 for large 12″
Little Star Pizza, San Francisco
This is my first Little Star Pizza blog entry, but I’ve been eating at this place and ordering pick-ups for a while! I love their pizzas! They are still my favorite deep dish pizza in The City. I love their thick, buttery cornmeal crust. YUM! All their toppings always taste fresh and flavorful, and I enjoy their chunky tomato sauce. I’m not a big eater so one slice is usually enough for a meal, they’re kinda large.
I cheated and added anchovies to half the pizza. That’s the Filipino in me, lol!
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010, 2011, 2012
I decided to have a hot Vietnamese coffee during this meal, foregoing the iced version. This was definitely a swankier version from the ones you get at your corner Pho shop. The metal filter wasn’t beat up and they provide a pottery dish to place it on. What I didn’t like was that the coffee had already finished dripping through the filter before it got to my table. Part of the fun is watching it drip down. The expeditor also stirred in the condense milk for me! I appreciated the service but I would have preferred to do it myself. 😦 These are minor complaints though since the coffee was delicious! $4
The Slanted Door, San Francisco
Served with roasted peanuts, rau ram (Vietnamese coriander), fresh lime juice and rice crackers with black sesame. $12
The Slanted Door, San Francisco
This dish was tasty and very fun to eat! The large rice crackers were great to break apart and eat with the beef. They provided a nice crunch and didn’t take away from the carpaccio flavor. I loved how they dressed the beef. I don’t think I’ve ever had rau ram in this way. I couldn’t quite tell what it was while I was eating it. It didn’t have a lot of flavor, maybe a slight bitterness, but it was a pretty sturdy leaf. I loved the texture combined with the roasted peanuts. The color of the carpaccio was a little off-putting because the lime juice had begun to cook the beef and made it a weird grey flesh color. Regardless, it tasted amazing! Noms!
Rau rum (Persicaria odorata) is commonly called Vietnamese coriander, Vietnamese mint, Vietnamese cilantro, Cambodian mint, and hot mint.
Grilled pork patty and sliced pork with sliced carrots and fennel bulb(?), vermicelli noodles, lettuce, mint, and cilantro. $8.20
Turtle Tower Restaurant, San Francisco
I’ve never had this before, but it was really good! I think this was the only non-pho dish ordered in the entire restaurant. Seriously, lol! I wanted to try something new and this fit the bill. The grilled pork slices were yummy. These were cut thicker than at other Vietnamese places. The pork patties were flavorful, but way too fatty for my taste. They left that gross fatty film in your mouth. The sweet, fish saucey liquid that it came in was delicious. The fresh herbs were great and really made the Vietnamese flavor. I wasn’t really sure how to eat this so I made things up! I first wrapped everything in some of the lettuce, but that proved too messy. I ended up using a small bowl to mix everything in small batches, poured some sauce over it and enjoyed!
Chicken and rice noodles in a rich broth with cilantro, chopped green onions, and accompanied with sliced jalapeno peppers and lemon wedges. $6.20 small
Turtle Tower Restaurant, San Francisco
This chicken pho was really different from others I’ve tried. The most obvious difference was the wide, thick noodles they use. It also wasn’t served with a side of sprouts and sprigs of thai basil. That said, I think it was absolutely delicious! The broth was frickin’ amazing – so rich and complex. I actually enjoyed that they kept the skin on the chicken pieces. It seemed more authentic and definitely added more flavor.
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
Tsing Tao beer. $3.45
I totally forgot aobut Tsing Tao beer! I’ve been spending too much time at sushi joints so I needed a good Vietnamese fix. 🙂
Filtered coffee with condensed milk. $2.95
Turtle Tower Restaurant, San Francisco
I love Vietnamese iced coffee! I can’t have it often because I feel so guilty consuming that much condensed milk, but it’s a nice treat when I do. Turtle Tower does it right! They bring it out to your table to drip through a dented filter while you eat your meal. Afterward, all the coffee has dripped through and you can stir to mix in the condensed milk. Pour it over the ice and you have the perfect after-meal sweet treat! The coffee is dark and rich, nicely balanced by the sweet milk, and its slight bitterness is diluted by the partially melted ice cubes – lol!
2 more delicious macarons from La Boulange! In a little bit, I’ll have tried all the flavors. I’m a huge fan of pistachio macarons, but the cherry macaron was also very good. I thought the lil’ pink sugary bits were a cute touch. The pistachio macaron had a beautiful light green color and it tasted amazing. Noms! $1.50 each
La Boulange de Noe, San Francisco
Cherry macaron.
Pistachio macaron.
Sliced salami and cornichons on a plain baguette. $4.50
La Boulange de Noe, San Francisco
How can you go wrong with sliced hard salami on a baguette!? Add some cornichons and you’ve got a winner! This sandwich doesn’t need the help of any condiments, it’s perfect in its simplicity. My only gripe was that the baguette was a little chewy and stale. I think it’s because these “Grab & Go” sandwiches are premade and kept in a plastic sleeve. They’re easy and tasty regardless.
Wow, this was a whole lotta donut goodness! And I loved the beautiful, large cubes of sweet apple hidden inside. The apple fritter was larger than most and had a beautifully crunchy sugar glaze. Perfect! $1.75
Bob’s Donut & Pastry Shop, San Francisco
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010, 2011
Vittle Monster 