With pork, shrimp and black ginger vinegar. $11.50
Betelnut Restaurant, San Francisco
This was described by our waittress as a soup dumpling (xiao long bao), but they weren’t very soupy. I guess it’s trying to be an upscale version, but it just didn’t work. The filling was super heavy, the wrapper was too thick, and there wasn’t enough soup inside! I’ll pass on this next time.
Black ginger vinegar (and another random dipping sauce).
Superior Farms lamb with chilies, raita, cilantro and warm sesame buns. $9.88
Betelnut Restaurant, San Francisco
There are many variations to Xinjian style lamb but they usually include chilies, cumin, and Szechuan peppercorns. This was my favortie dish of the night. The lamb was SO tasty! Add the warm, buttery bun and the raita and you have a total winner! Noms! It was also fun to fill your own bun and stuff your face with it. 🙂
With shrimp, grapefruit, herbs, and “nuoc cham”, topped with chopped peanuts. $9.95
Betelnut Restaurant, San Francisco
Nuoc cham is a Vietnamese sauce usually made with chilies, garlic, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. It’s salty-sweet and so yummy. This green papaya salad was good, but I think it was too watery. I loved the addtional of grapefruit though.
Project 365: Day 40
It’s been an uneventful day thus far, besides it sporadically being super windy and rainy outside. I was on the highway earlier and I swear that the car was occasionally being blown into the other lane, scary! I’m looking forward to a great gym workout after work. I gotta work off all that fried Southern food from this weekend and I don’t want to feel bloated for Valentine’s Day tomorrow!
Purple yam flavored ice cream. Junior size $2.20
Mitchell’s Ice Cream, San Francisco
I love all the tropical flavors at Mitchell’s! I’d say that Halo Halo is my favorite, but Ube is also delicious. I love that it has chunks of purple yam in the ice cream and I think the color is particularly pretty.
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2011, 2012
With black mushrooms, lup cheong (Chinese sausage), green onions, pine nuts, and iceberg lettuce cups. $11.88
Betelnut Restaurant, San Francisco
This was pretty tasty but I expected it to be so much better. It didn’t come off as very special, but I did like the flavors and how the lettuce cups were trimmed and stacked.
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010, 2011
This was a random choice for a Christmas eve dinner, but I’m not traditional in many ways, lol! The food was hit or miss, but the drinks were very good overall. I loved the creativity!
Betelnut Restaurant, San Francisco
Betelnut’s famous mai tai. Myers’s rum, orgeat and the “cabin sink”. $9.25
Sweet and delicious! Makes me wanna be poolside.
Mao-jito. Betelnut’s take on the classic mojito. $9
A little too sour for my taste.
Phuket gimlet. Hendrick’s gin with lemongrass and thai basil. $8.50
The lemongrass and thai basil combo makes this drink very refreshing.
Burma sour. The classic sour made with Bulleit bourbon, fresh orange and lemon juice. $8.75
All you need is a warm beach and a beautiful sunset!
Project 365: Day 39
Drove down to San Jose today to have brunch with a couple of Silverfox’s friends. I was super excited to go since I never go there and I’d get to try new restaurants, but the place we went to totally bombed. The service was horrific (SO slow) and the food was mediocre. We shopped around Santana Row and Westfield Mall afterward and I was able to buy a few t-shirts so the trip wasn’t a complete bust!
Omg, can’t wait for the Grammy’s tonight! Actually I have to head into work but I’m recording it on DVR. I still am a little in shock that Whitney Houston died yesterday! I know she was a complete mess at the end, but she was SO beautiful and SO talented. What happened to her was an utter tragedy. We watched her sing the national anthem on Youtube a couple times this morning and she was spectacular. She hit every perfect note SO effortlessly and she looked fresh and full of life. I’m saddened by her loss. I told Silverfox that this hits me more than the loss of Michael Jackson (or Heath Ledger actually). I grew up with her songs and enjoyed listening to her amazing voice. She was a bright light in the lives of so many people and she will be missed.
Cornmeal crusted, fried catfish with macaroni and cheese and a biscuit. $13
Roux Louisiana Kitchen, San Jose CA
The catfish fillet was really large, but it wasn’t all that good. The crust was a little greasy and it didn’t have a lot of flavor. I had to drown in it Crystal’s hot sauce! The biscuit was also dense and lackluster. It was a disappointment after the cornbread. I liked the macaroni and cheese but it was also very greasy. I know that mac ‘n cheese can sometimes be greasy, but this was out of control. You could see the bread crumb topping just dripping with it, gross!
Cornbread with honey butter. Complimentary. This was one of few yummy items and it was quite large!
Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Blanc Brut, Napa, 2006. $8 per glass
Hog Island Oyster Bar, San Francisco
I love weekend brunch at the San Francisco Ferry Building. I know that it’s super touristy but there’s a lot of great food there too. You just have to ignore the crowds and enjoy the food. On a bright, sunny day it’s hard not to enjoy yourself.
Had a light brunch here with Silverfox. We really only had this sparkling wine, bread and oysters but that seemed to satisfy us! I’ve always liked Gloria Ferrer sparkling wine. I’ve been to their Napa winery a couple times and it’s absolutely beautiful. Their sparkling wines are reasonable priced and are delicious!
Bread and butter. Complimentary. This was yummy!
Estancia ground sirloin, golden raisins, pimiento stuffed olives. $3
Pisco Latin Lounge, San Francisco
I think I like the chicken empanada better, but this was also tasty! I somehow liked the powdered sugar on top. It was a nice flavor contrast to the ground beef and olives inside the empanada. I need to learn how to make their super buttery, flaky empanada crust! It’s SO good!
Project 365: Day 38
Had a slow and lazy morning – perfect! Went down to the Ferry Building to get some food and peruse the Farmers’ Market. Ended up at Gott’s for a heavier-than-I-wanted-but-sinfully-delicious lunch. I hit the gym afterward and it felt good after eating burgers. Now doing laundry and general cleaning before meeting friends for drinks and dinner later. My life is SO difficult, lol!
Fresh ground Niman Ranch beef patty cooked medium well, a little pink inside when served with American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and a secret sauce on a toasted egg bun. $7.99
Chili spice-dusted sweet potato fires served with house-made ranch sauce. $3.99
Gott’s Roadside, San Francisco
This was SO good! The burger was tender and juicy and I love their secret sauce. It kinda tastes like a nicer version of Thousand Island. Some people don’t like egg buns because it has a propensity to soak up too much juice and get soggy, but I like them! I think the soak-age helps concentrate the flavors, lol! The sweet potato fries are thinner than most, but very crispy and flavorful. The house-made ranch is pretty delicious which is dangerous because I end up eating the whole thing!
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010
Jerked red snapper, Brazilian mango, cabbage, serrano-tomatillo salsa. Garnished iwth arugula and lime wedge. $8
Pisco Latin Lounge, San Francisco
Another tasty bite from Pisco Lounge. They know how to make delicious snack food for when you’re hanging out with friends and having drinks. The fish was nicely cooked and the salsa was bright and fresh. They were a on the small side so if you’re super hungry, I’d order the empanadas instead.
Grilled chicken, queso fresco, aji huacatay. $3
Pisco Latin Lounge, San Francisco
This tasted amazing and I loved the aji dipping sauce. The empanada was nice and crispy/chewy on the outside and the chicken and queso were so flavorful. And for only $3 each, you can’t go wrong!
Vittle Monster 