Category Archives: Restaurant

Barbacoa burrito bowl – Chipotle Mexican Grill

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Project 365: Day 12

Omg! It was SO hard waking up this morning. We were on the road by 4:50 AM and I drove the entire way. It took almost 7 hours! Silverfox was feeling sick so I took on the driving duties. He deserved to sleep during the car ride. The toughest part of the drive was the 210. It was so dark and foggy. It took a lot of concentration not to fall asleep behind the wheel. Once we passed Santa Clarita, it got brighter so it was a breeze from there on. We made one stop at Kettleman City for gas and a Starbucks run. I also grabbed this burrito bowl at Chipotle in Millbrae before Silverfox dropped me off at work.

It’s a holiday, but the workload seemed normal. I guess we have a lot of work that hasn’t been assigned yet (not gonna name names, argh!) so this coming week is gonna be fun! Not. I am excited to hit the gym tomorrow morning!

Barbacoa burrito bowl Chipotle Mexican Grill

Spicy, shredded beef, slowly braised for hours in a blend of chipotle pepper adobo, cumin, cloves, garlic and oregano until tender and moist. With cilantro-lime brown rice, black beans, hot salsa, corn salsa, cheese, sour cream and lettuce. $6.50
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Millbrae CA

Standard Chipotle fare – barbacoa is my favorite here. Didn’t quite hit the spot but the large Diet Coke helped. Oh well, it was quick and on the way to work so I’m not gonna complain.

Chilaquiles with scrambled eggs – Cheeky’s

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Project 365: Day 11

Ok, so I’ve failed! I didn’t get this post out yesterday, but you know what? I’m still gonna move forward with my Project 365. We ended up partying a little too hard at Toucan’s last night so I completely forgot to post this, but I’ve noticed that some people post on a weekly basis. At least I’m only a day late.

We had a pretty full day yesterday. Had brunch at Cheeky’s, then went shopping at the Cabazon outlets (bought a couple cute t-shirts), had tacos at Crazy Coyote tacos, then happy hour drinks and food at The Tropicale, then more drinks and played trivia at Toucan’s. The last couple times I’ve been at Toucan’s, I’ve run into old friends. Previously it was old Seattle friends who now live in Los Angeles, and last night I ran into MT from San Francisco. Fun! He seemed very happy!

Palm Springs weekends always fly by way too quickly!  😦

Chilaquiles with scrambled eggs Cheeky's

Fried tortilla chips in a sauce made with homemade chorizo, tomatillo, sliced red onions, queso fresco and cilantro. $10. Scrambled eggs $2 extra.
Cheeky’s, Palm Springs CA

Cheeky’s is currently my favorite brunch spot in Palm Springs. Next time we’re down, we’re gonna try Jake’s next door. I must say that I’m not very impressed with the overall food scene in Palm Springs, but the food at Cheeky’s is consistently good. The service is friendly and there’s always great people watching. And I LOVE their bacon flight (post to come). The chilaquiles were pretty good. I liked the chorizo and the tomatillo was a nice surprise. I’m used to chilaquiles having a red sauce. Overall, the plate was bright and fresh. Just want I needed after the previous day’s debacle at Pinocchio. My only complaint is that some of the tortilla chips were very over-fried.

Water Cheeky's

Water.

Hawaiian burger – Pinocchio In The Desert

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Project 365: Day 10

I had a hard time sleeping last night, not sure why. I even had a nightmare where a snake tried biting me. Odd, huh?

Silverfox and I had a late brunch at one of our usual Palm Springs breakfast joints, Pinocchio In The Desert. Unfortunately, we were SO disappointed. Maybe it was the overcast weather, but everything at this place seemed off.  I’ve always known that you don’t really go to Pinocchio for the food, but the atmosphere is usually really fun so you don’t notice that the food isn’t all that great.

Today, we both noticed that the food was really crappy. That and the bottomless mimosas gave me a headache and knocked me out for the afternoon.

We did have a great dinner at Johannes though. You can read my diatribe about dark restaurants in my previous entry. I HATE DARK RESTAURANTS! So annoying.

Otherwise, had a lazy day. Did some clothes shopping and ran some errands. A nice vacay day if you ask me. Just wish the food had been better.

Hawaiian burger Pinocchio In The Desert

Half pound burger on a whole wheat bun, pineapple, teriyaki sauce, lettuce, sliced tomato, pickles, caramalized onions, swiss cheese and cole slaw. $10.95
Pinocchio In The Desert, Palm Springs CA

I guess this tasted ok, but how can you really go wrong with a burger drenched in teriyaki sauce with pineapples! Hawaiian burgers have always been a favorite of mine, but the beef patty on this burger was a bit of a throw away. Sad.

Bottomless mimosas

Bottomless champagne $3.95 per glass, orange juice carafe $3.95. This gave me a headache this time around.

Unfortunate Helen Keller dinner – Johannes Restaurant

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Johannes Restaurant, Palm Springs CA

Ok, the title of this blog entry is a little unfair, but I wanted to vent a little bit. I actually had a very good experience at Johannes. The service was excellent as was the food.

But I’m just gonna go out and say it – I hate super dark restaurants!

For me, part of an amazing dining experience is being able to actually see what I’m eating. For instance, my duck appetizer tasted great and I’m sure it looked amazing – BUT I COULDN’T SEE IT! I really wanted to see the amazing roasted duck against the dark lentils and the beautifully drizzled raspberry vinaigrette. BUT everything looked just like a dark lump. I tried positioning the candle to get better shots to no avail. What you see on this blog is WAY better than what I actually saw in person!

How does a dimly lit room improve my dining experience!? I can’t see my food. I can’t see my dining my guest. I CAN’T SEE ANYTHING!!!

This is becoming such a pet peeve for me that I’m tempted to decline my next reservation if I enter a restaurant and see that it’s lit like a Paleozoic cave! Just wait, I’m gonna do it! This is ridiculous!

So in conclusion, I enjoyed my dinner but it was a little overpriced considering that I couldn’t FULLY enjoy my meal.

Lillet blonde Johannes Restaurant

Lillet blonde. Over ice, orange zest. $9

Vodka martini Johannes Restaurant

Grey Goose vodka martini up with olives. $11

Pimm's cup Johannes Restaurant

Pimm’s cup, lemon juice, over ice. $9

Brussels sprouts salad Johannes Restaurant

Brussels sprouts salad (special). Lemon juice, olive oil, pecorino cheese and walnuts. $12
Very bright and refreshing. This was a simple salad that you can easily make at home. I think the hardest part would be leafing the brussels sprouts, probably very labor intensive.

Honey and soy glazed duck breast Johannes Restaurant

Honey and soy glazed duck breast. Sliced roasted duck breast, Beluga lentil salad, tiny greens and raspberry vinaigrette. $11
My favorite dish of the night. It was served cold and tasted amazing. I’m sure it was beautifully composed, but I really couldn’t see much of it. The dark duck on the dark lentils looked like a black blob in the restaurant. The flavor were great and the textures were fun.

Australian grass fed kangaroo loin Johannes Restaurant

Australian grass fed kangaroo loin. Glazed bosc pear, veal bacon, walnuts, orange, cranberries, broccolini, juniper merlot reduction. $29
The kangaroo didn’t taste as crazy as I thought it would. I guess the chef recommends it served medium rare, but this came out pretty rare. I wish I would have ordered it medium instead. It was very tender and the reduction tasted great. The bosc pear came out super hot and delicious, and I loved the mixed topping.

New Zealand grass fed young lamb rack Johannes Restaurant

New Zealand grass fed young lamb rack. White beans, zucchini, tomatoes, grilled green onions, triple Dijon mustard sauce. $36
Wow, you get a LOT of lamb – 6 ribs of it! This was very delicious and super tender. I wish the grilled green onions weren’t on the plate though. They seemed too clunky for an otherwise beautiful plate.

Bread and butter Johannes Restaurant

Baguette and pesto butter.

Combo enchilada platter – Taqueria San Jose

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Combo enchilada platter Taqueria San Jose

One carne asada (grilled beef) and one pollo (grilled chicken) wrapped in corn tortillas and topped with enchilada sauce and white cheese. Served Mexican rice, refried beans, lettuce, sour cream and guacamole.
Taqueria San Jose, San Francisco

Omg, SO good! This plate totally hit the spot and it was pretty big! I also loved their refried beans, nice and rich and flavorful. You can definitely taste the fatty goodness in them. I would order this again in a heartbeat!

Sangria Taqueria San Jose

Sangria. I’ve never had sangria in a paper cup, but the nice girl at the counter told us that you get way more sangria in the paper cups versus their wine glasses and you get charged the same price. Score! And they tasted pretty good, too!

Pollo adobo tacos – Taqueria San Jose

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Pollo adobo tacos Taqueria San Jose

Grilled chicken tacos topped with spicy salsa, chopped onions and cilantro, on corn tortillas.
Taqueria San Jose, San Francisco

I’ve walked by this place SO many times and I’ve never given it a second thought. Finally went during a holiday since every other restaurant was closed – I’m glad I did. The food was great and the prices made them all that much better. I assumed these tacos would be super spicy, but they really werent. They had great flavor though and that’s what counts. You can always add spicier salsa from the salsa bar.

Chips and salsa Taqueria San Jose

Chips and salsa. Gotta love these! These were on the thicker end as tortilla chips go, but very good and filling. Yes please!

Mongolian beef – E Plus Studio Karaoke And Cafe

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Mongolian beef E Plus Studio Karaoke And Cafe

Sliced beef with onions and scallions in a spicy Mongolian sauce served over rice. Like I’ve said previously, the food here was NOT good. It was super low quality and not that tasty. I guess that’s what we get for ordering from a karaoke joint.
E Plus Studio Karaoke And Cafe, South San Francisco

General Tso’s chicken – Tung Sing Restaurant

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Project 365: Day 8

I was walking home from the gym and was SO frickin’ hungry! Actually, I was hungry the entire afternoon. I think I’ve been working out too much and not eating enough calories, which is surprising since I eat like a pig! That’s why I ducked into Tung Sing on the way home and grabbed a small order of General Tso’s chicken and a BBQ pork baked bun.

Now it’s time to do some laundry, clean my room, and pack for a road trip to Palm Springs with Silverfox! We leave early tomorrow morning and I can’t wait! It’ll be nice to be in warmer weather and do absolutely nothing. Just a lot of relaxing and drinking poolside. Ahhhh!

General Tso's chicken Tung Sing Restaurant

Breaded and deep fried chicken pieces in a special garlicky sauce with chopped onions and green bell peppers. Small $2.99
Tung Sing Restaurant, San Francisco

I was actually disappointed by this dish – a bit of a surprise considering how much I love General Tso’s chicken. I liked that it was super saucy, sticky and sweet but I think the quality of the food has gone downhill at Tung Sing. Even the pork bun was blah. I’ll admit that it helped ease my hungry, but I wish the chicken wasn’t so hard and over fried.

Popcorn chicken – E Plus Studio Karaoke And Cafe

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Popcorn chicken E Plus Studio Karaoke And Cafe

I don’t know how good the karaoke is over here, but the food is NOT good! We had some takeout at work and I don’t think anybody liked what they ordered. I had already eaten lunch, but I ordered the popcorn chicken just to try it out and I was SO disappointed. The chicken was super greasy and MSG-sy, even for me! I think I got a little bit sick from this, too.  😦
E Plus Studio Karaoke And Cafe, South San Francisco

Mexican root beer float – The Little Chihuahua

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Mexican root beer float The Little Chihuahua

All natural root beer poured over a scoop of Humphry Slocombe’s tequila ice cream. $4.25
The Little Chihuahua, San Francisco

I was craving a yummy, sweet treat this particular night so I decided to pop into The Little Chihuahua and try their Mexican root beer float. It was SO nommy! I think the tequila ice cream put it over the top. Not too sweet and you can definitely taste the tequila. It’s a great treat for any night of the week!

Mongolian beef – Eric’s Restaurant

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Mongolian beef Eric's Restaurant

Sauteed beef slices with onions and dried chilies in a special sauce. $9
Eric’s Restaurant, San Francisco

I love Eric’s Mongolian beef! It has a rich, deep salty umami flavor that I’m partial to. The dish is primarily beef with just a few sliced onions and dried chilies. And I can’t complain about that! Just serve on top of rice and be happy.  🙂

Governor’s chicken kew – Eric’s Restaurant

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Governor's chicken kew Eric's Restaurant

Sauteed boneless chicken with broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, baby corn, and peas in a spicy garlic sauce. $8.75
Eric’s Restaurant, San Francisco

This was the first time I’ve tried this dish and it tasted pretty good! The chicken was tender and there was a lot vegetables to balance out the rich garlic sauce. I’ve never actually eaten at the restaurant, but I’ve had plenty of to-go orders since it’s SO close to my house. They don’t deliver, but the walk over helps to get me hungry, hehe!