Penne bolognese – Firewood Cafe

Posted on February 28, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 54

I felt really tired this morning, so it was a nice surprise to arrive at work and find out that I’ll be in a training class for the next three days. It’s a nice break from the usually daily grind. I leave for Ohio on Friday so I’m looking forward to that. I just have to keep thinking to myself, “Just 3 more work days after today!”

I’m totally feeling like a gigantic fatty after this weekend. And I didn’t go to the gym this evening because I had to run some clothes to the dry cleaners, and also do some laundry at home. I’m gonna have to work really hard at the gym the next few days.

Penne pasta with a meat sauce of mild Italian sausage, ground beef, tomatoes, basil, fresh garlic, and grated parmesan cheese. Served with bread. $11.25
Firewood Cafe, SFO San Francisco

This was pretty standard, but it totally hit the spot. I was craving carbs for lunch and the meat sauce was nice and hearty. The portion was also generous and I ended up taking half of it to-go.

Bottomless brunch buffet – Ironside

Posted on February 28, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 53

This was NOT the best weekend for me. I drank and ate WAY too much, lol! Sunday morning, I was still feeling the effects of the previous night’s merriment. We went to brunch at Ironside for MB2’s extended 40th birthday celebration. They have an all you can eat brunch buffet and bottomless mimosas. Need I say more? It was great to celebrate with MB2 and some of his friends – they were all really great guys. So we pretty much close the place down and drink way too many mimosas, and decide that we should continue drinking in the Castro. Smart, right? LOL! We have a great time, and Silverfox and I are smart enough to cut out early before things get too messy. We grab a small bite at Cafe Flore then head home to turn in early. I was exhausted, fell asleep and totally missed The Emmy Awards broadcast. Oh well.

Round 1 plate with scrambled eggs with cheese, chipotle-garlic breakfast potatoes, bacon, house made spicy sausage, fried sweet plantains, ceviche, biscuits and gravy. They also have a bunch of other options! All you can eat, $16
Ironside, San Francisco

Bottomless peach mimosas. $10
Trouble, trouble, trouble! We drank A LOT!!!

We closed this place down! Besides one small table downstairs, we pretty much drank all their mimosas and were the last people to leave. Oh dear!

Deoji bulgogi – Jang Su Jang

Posted on February 26, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 52

So we had an early start today and went to the Gilroy Outlets to do some shopping for the cruise. I don’t even want to add up all my charges but I ended up with 3 pairs shoes, 6 pairs of socks, 2 polo shirts, 1 tank top, 1 belt, 1 pair of swim trunks, and 2 pairs of underwear. Omg, I got a little out of hand. Then we stopped by Jang Su Jang on the way back home. Papa Chang recommended this restaurant and I’m glad that we went because it was SO good! It’s in the middle of a shopping area on El Camino Real, but it’s actually really nice inside. The service was friendly, the prices are great, and the food is of great quality. Go try it!

Spicy marinated pork with sliced onions and green onions, served with rice and broth. $13.99
Jang Su Jang, Santa Clara CA

Omg, this was so good! I love spicy pork bulgogi and this was a amazing, sizzling plate of it. This version was fancier because they also served you a big bowl of crusted rice with peas and a bowl of soup broth. I’ve never been served the broth with bulgogi before so I wasn’t sure how to eat the whole thing.

We ended up just piling on spicy pork on top of the rice and pouring some of the broth over everything. Don’t know if that’s the right way, but we didn’t worry too much about it. We just stuffed our faces, lol!

This broth was very flavorful, and it had slices of cooked radishes.

When the check arrived, it came with these cute bottled drinks. I’m not sure what they were, but they tasted great. It had a kind of citrus, fruity, flowery flavor. It says “Frozen Dessert” on the outside but it’s some kind of juice.

The damage! We were SO full!

Eggwich with ham – Posh Bagel

Posted on February 24, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 51

It’s Friday, Friday! Walked to Bart from Silverfox’s this morning. I like that walk. It takes about 30 minutes to complete but it’s a nice way to wake up and get the blood flowing in the morning. The only bad thing is that 16th Street in the Mission can smelled awfully funky in the morning, lol! It’s gonna be a good day today, I can feel it. It’s sunny and will get moderately warm, it’s Friday, and I’m feeling good. I just hope the work day doesn’t kill my positive mood.

Everything bagel sandwich with “scrambled” eggs, ham, and cheddar cheese. $4.59
Posh Bagel, San Francisco

This was pretty good and large, but I think that it’s priced too high. I don’t think anyone else charges almost $5 for a bagel sandwich. I always think that the microwaved eggs have a weird texture, but I kinda like it.

Salt cod fried rice – Mission Chinese Food

Posted on February 22, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 49

Wow, it’s finally warming up outside! I didn’t have to wear a vest or jacket while out during the day today. Heck yeah! Now I’m totally motivated to kill it at the gym and to bike to work tomorrow morning. Papa Chang, Rapunzel and I are also gonna bike during lunch. I will get that cruise bod yet!

Salt cod fried rice Mission Chinese Food

With escolar confit, Chinese sausage, egg, scallion. $10
Mission Chinese Food, San Francisco

Yum! But then again I like most things from Mission Chinese Food. I love the saltiness of this dish and the fatty sausage. It’s kinda hard to find the fish (escolar, Lepidocybium flavobrunneum) among all the other ingredients but you can definitely taste it.

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

Dry cherry ice cream – Xanath Ice Cream

Posted on February 21, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 48

Boring day today so far. Not much planned, just WGL. Ok, maybe not laundry. I gotta really focus on my eating habits from now until the cruise. I’d love to lose at least some of my belly fat. I guess eating ice cream isn’t helping, lol!

Organic dry cherry ice cream. I finally made it to Xanath! It’s a super small ice cream shop on Valencia, next to Dosa. They have a nice selection of flavors and the service is friendly. It’s not too busy in there so you don’t feel guilty trying out different flavors. They have a couple benches in front of the store and its also next to a dinosaur parklet. Heck yeah! The ice cream was good, but little on the dense side. I do appreciate that they use organic ingredients. I’d return and support this neighborhood shop. Child scoop $1.99
Xanath Ice Cream, San Francisco

Smoked salmon scramble – Chloe’s Cafe

Posted on February 20, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 47

Silverfox got back from Palms Springs today, yay! So I hit the gym this morning then grabbed brunch with him around noon. We both have Presidents Day off work so we’ve hung out, done a little shopping, and we might go to happy hour later.

OMG, I almost lost my iPhone again today! I left it at the store and realized that it was missing when I got outside. Thank god it was found and turned in. Customer Service had it when we got back inside, phew! This current iPhone is the 3rd one I’ve owned since May 2011! I lost the first one and the second one was stolen. Argh! I’m really bad with phones – maybe there’s a support group I can join.

Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, served with a cup of fresh fruit (strawberry, banana, orange, cantaloupe, honeydew melon), 2 slices whole wheat walnut bread, Darigold butter, and raspberry jam. $10.50
Chloe’s Cafe, San Francisco

This was actually very tasty and a great value. You get a lot of scramble, a generous portion of fruit, and bread! I couldn’t finish the entire thing even though I was hungry. The eggs were cooked a little on the well side, but they were still good. I loved the whole wheat walnut bread, SO good! The service is also very friendly. I’ve always wondered why this place always has a line in front of it. Answers: there’s not a lot of brunch options in Noe Valley, there’s limited seating, the food is yummy, the service is great, the prices can’t be beat. A winner!

Coffee. $2.50

Pad eggplant – Siam Saigon

Posted on February 20, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 46

It’s a long 3-day weekend for me and I don’t feel motivated to really do much. I haven’t just relaxed at home for a while and I’m enjoying it. I did have to go into work for a couple hours of OT but that wasn’t too bad. Besides that I’ve just been going to the gym, catching up on DVR, cleaning, cooking, and playing games on my iPhone. I think that’s some quality relaxation time if you ask me!

Sliced chicken breast, eggplant, basil, bell peppers, and bamboo shoots in a mild curry sauce. $9
Siam Saigon, San Francisco

This is a new one for me. Siam Saigon serves both Thai and Vietnamese cuisine, nice! I was on my way to the Mission Safeway and I was starving so I ducked into this place because I had never noticed it before. I think it’s new. It’s a small space but the service is friendly and efficient (when they’re paying attention). This dish was pretty good. I liked the large slices of tender chicken, and all the vegetables were also large and chunky. The curry sauce seemed too timid at first, but after a few more bites the flavor came through.

Saturday oyster outing – Tomales Bay Oyster Company

Posted on February 19, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 45

I finally made it to Tomales Bay for a weekend oyster social with some co-workers. My Babygirl sidekick and I arrived shortly after 10 am to find that Huff and his bf had snagged a perfectly located picnic table near the oyster stand. It was a nice relaxing day hanging out with friends and eating delicious oysters and clams. Although the weather was a bit chilly at times, the sun eventually came out and warmed us all up. Ah, this is why we live in the Bay Area, folks!

Tomales Bay Oyster Company, Marshall CA

Papa Chang brought fixins’ to make these delicious oyster shooters using the TBOC “small” oysters. The oysters are topped with a quail egg, tobiko, and ponzu with green onions.

TBOC oysters are Pacific oysters farmed at Preston Point in Tomales Bay. The “small” oysters cost $15 per dozen or $50 for a bag of 50.

Quail eggs are so cute! But you need a steady hand to peel away the inner layer, which is tricky when you have wet, oyster fingers. 🙂

Kelly and Brent brought these delicious sushi snacks! And I’m told that they’re super easy to make. It’s a sheet of crispy nori (seaweed), topped with broiled imitation crab mixed with sour cream and mayonnaise, rice, avocado, tobiko, and sriracha sauce. The perfect bite between oysters. NOMS!

There seemed to be about 4 different picnic areas, but I liked our location (on the bottom left of the pic). It was close to the oyster stand and we weren’t completely surrounded by other picnic tables.

This is a bag of the owner’s special reserve “Golden Nuggets” oysters which are $20 per dozen. These oysters were even smaller than the “small” TBOC oysters, and SO delicious!

This was the first time I’ve ever shucked an oyster, lol! I bought a random (but decent) oyster knife that I found in the seafood department at Whole Foods the night before. The guys had to coach me to start, but I got the hang of it. Look how clean I got my Golden Nugget!

I brought a mignonette made with champagne vinegar, shallots, lemon peel, parsley, salt, pepper, and sugar. It tasted great on the oysters!

Our table became quickly covered with oysters, clams, condiments and drinks.

We went through a LOT of bivalves! And this was only halfway through our day.

We were situated next to the pier. It’s great that they provide each picnic table with a small grill. We used ours to grill oysters, steam clams, and toast bread.

Orecchiette with wild boar ragu – Uva Enoteca

Posted on February 18, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 44

OMG! Today I was invited to a birthday dinner at French Laundry next month! I’m SO excited! The timing is a little off since I’m also going to Ohio and on a Caribbean cruise in March and I’m projecting that I’ll be spending quite a bit of money as it is. Oh well, what can you do!? I can’t turn down an invitation to French Laundry, can I? LOL!

Wow, I’m so fortunate! I’ve been to a number of exciting restaurants this past year and I’m looking forward to those I’ll visit this new year. As much as I complain about my “horrible” life sometimes (lol), I actually really love it!

Orecchiette with wild boar ragu Uva Enoteca

Pasta with tomato, sweet onions, and parmigiano. $15
Uva Enoteca, San Francisco

I like the wild boar ragu, but they charred the crap out of the top! The whole thing had a gross burned flavor, even inside. That’s a shame because the meat sauce was very tasty. My other complaint is that the orecchiette was overcooked. Unfortunate…

This would have been delicious if it didn’t smell and taste like embers.

Macchiato – Blue Bottle Coffee Mobile Kiosk

Posted on February 17, 2012 by vicentesf

Project 365: Day 43

Today was pretty uneventful. WGL – work, gym, laundry. I worked another 12 hour day yesterday so I was feeling a bit tired all day. I also felt guilty for missing out on the gym yesterday. It’s less than a month until the cruise and I could afford to lose a little extra around the belly, lol! Maybe I should stop eating SO much. Well, that’s not gonna happen…

Macchiato Blue Bottle Coffee Mobile Kiosk

I’ve decided that I do like Blue Bottle coffee but only if there’s some dairy added, so this macchiato was pretty good. They only serve it “for here” at the Mobile Kiosk, but it’s nice to sit on their high stools, relax, and watch the Castro crowd walk by. $3
Blue Bottle Coffee Mobile Kiosk, San Francisco

Vittle Monster

Feed me!

Category Archives: Project 365