Monthly Archives: October 2013

Shanghai dumplings – Mama Ji’s

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Shanghai dumplings - Mama Ji's
Xiao long bao soup dumplings served with sweet soy sauce and ginger. $3.75
Mama Ji’s, San Francisco CA

I love XLB partly because they’re SO fun to eat. People have always warned me of the ones served in aluminum containers though because the dumpling wrapper tends to stick and break, and I’ve learned first hand that this is certainly true. So when these arrived to the table, I was already skeptical. Low and behold, they did break and not because of my amateur chopsticks-handling. What I could eat in one bite was good, but I would have loved for them to stay intact.

Fried eggs with oxtails – Bar Jules

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Fried eggs with oxtails - Bar Jules
Shelling beans, cherry tomato, eggplant, tomatillo salsa, toast. $16
Bar Jules, San Francisco CA

Mmm, the eggs and oxtails were delicious! I loved the rich flavor of the fatty oxtail and who doesn’t love runny sunny-side-up eggs?! I did feel that the shelling beans were random as were the undercooked eggplant slices underneath.

Loco moco – L&L Hawaiian Barbecue

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Loco moco - L&L Hawaiian Barbecue
Savory hamburger patty placed over rice, covered with brown gravy and topped with 1 egg over easy. Served with macaroni salad. Mini $5.75
L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, Millbrae CA

OMG, I love loco moco! I justify ordering this by saying that at least I only buy the mini size instead of the regular, lol. L&L’s version is great and comforting. I also love their macaroni salad so it’s a win-win!

Macaroni salad - L&L Hawaiian Barbecue
Macaroni salad.

Cheesecake with blueberry swirl ice cream – Bi-Rite Creamery

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Cheesecake with blueberry swirl ice cream - Bi-Rite Creamery
Oh Bi-Rite Creamery, how I still love you! You have never failed me on delicious flavors or served weird waxy ice cream. I will say that the blueberry swirl was verging on being too sweet, but the whole thing was still delicious! Kid size $2.50
Bi-Rite Creamery, San Francisco CA

7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die

Chongqing chicken – Mama Ji’s

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Chongqing chicken - Mama Ji's
Pieces of chicken are fried first then cooked with chilies and Sichuan peppercorns. $10.95
Mama Ji’s, San Francisco CA

This small Castro restaurant is really quirky. It was opened by a husband/wife combo (Belgian? and Chinese) and the food is pretty good. I hear the Belgian beers are also really good. The service, however, was random and there were long stretches of unneeded waiting – NOT COOL!

This chicken dish was nice and spicy and I appreciated that the chicken pieces were large and recognizable as chicken instead of the heavily breaded alternatives. Some of the pieces were a little hard, dry and overcooked though. And please get those waitresses to move with purpose!

Pork belly steamed bun – Chairman Bao Truck

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Pork belly steamed bun - Chairman Bao Truck
Tender pork belly, turmeric pickled daikon, green shiso. $3.75
Chairman Bao Truck, San Francisco CA

Noms! This is still by favorite item from the Chairman Truck! The glaze on the pork belly is absolutely amazing – it’s salty and caramel-y and SO yummy. I love the turmeric pickled daikon and the steamed bun is always pillowy soft.

7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2011, 2012, 2014

Wood grilled scallops – Bar Jules

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Wood grilled scallops - Bar Jules
With braised lentils and breadcrumbs. $17
Bar Jules, San Francisco CA

This was definitely more of a Fall dish and not a Summer one when we had it in late July. When we ordered it, I somehow imagined something a little lighter that was seasonally appropriate. The flavors were deep and earthy, and the scallops were cooked well and had beautiful sear marks. The dish tasted fine, but it was not what we were hoping for.

Renzo special sandwich – Molinari Delicatessen

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Renzo special sandwich - Molinari Delicatessen
Prosciutto, coppa, fresh mozzarella, and sun dried tomato. $9.75
Molinari Delicatessen, San Francisco CA

Ew, I was not a fan! The prosciutto had so much fat and tough connective tissue that I couldn’t even gnaw through the sandwich! I had to keep spitting out balls of fat that I couldn’t eat, and lord knows that I can usually chew through anything. The meats were subpar and the bread wasn’t even fresh. The sundried toamtoes also had a weird aftertaste. This was a total letdown!

7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2013

Steamed fish with “flower” bean curd – Mama Ji’s

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Steamed fish with flower bean curd - Mama Ji's
In Hunan chili sauce and Sichuan spicy oil. $11.95
Mama Ji’s, San Francisco CA

I can appreciate how Mama Ji’s is NOT afraid of keeping their dishes spicy. I do, however, have a hard time eating an entire bowl of chili oil! Sheesh, that is A LOT of oil for one dish! The fish, if you drained it a little from the oil, was tender and well-cooked though.

Wild mushroom and gorgonzola pizza – The Tropicale

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Wild mushroom and gorgonzola pizza - The Tropicale
Roasted garlic, diced tomatoes and fresh thyme. $13
The Tropicale, Palm Springs CA

The flavor combinations in this pizza were to die for! The wild mushrooms were earthy and the gorgonzola was sharp and pungent. The roasted tomatoes and garlic were delicious and the crust was pretty good too. I generally prefer a thinner, more airy crust but this thicker crust was needed to handle all those great toppings.