Sauteed eggplants with green onions, bamboo shoots, onions, black fungus, ginger and dried chilis in a garlic sauce. To go special $8.00
Grand Palace Restaurant, South San Francisco
Oh how I love eggplant! These were SO good too. I love how they were super saucy and garlicky. I was also surprised how much food they give you for their To Go Special. This didn’t come with any rice so it’s just a huge container of Szechuan eggplants, noms!
Fried fish fillet and cilantro wrapped in a sheet of rice noodle and topped with more chopped cilantro and sweet soy sauce. $3.95
Grand Palace Restaurant, South San Francisco
I really liked this dish! I was surprised that you could actually distinguish the fish fillet inside. I assumed they would chop the fish into little pieces, but the fillets were whole and intact! The rice noodles were steamed perfectly and I loved their texture. Put cilantro on anything and it’s usually good! I’ve never understood why some people can’t stand the taste of cilantro – they’re missing out.
Steamed dumplings filled with shrimp and scallops. $3.20
Grand Palace Restaurant, South San Francisco
I think these are called phoenix dumplings because it’s supposed to look like a phoenix’s eye when you look down at the dumpling from above. It’s a bit of a stretch, but I get it. I’m not sure that the stringy starchy stuff is that they put on top. Maybe some kind of then noodles? These were delicious though with large chunks of shrimp and scallops inside!
Wok sauteed clams with chopped onions, red and green bell peppers in a black been sauce. $5.85
Grand Palace Restaurant, South San Francisco
These weren’t all that good. I think they were overcooked or something. The clams were tough and chewy and the whole dish didn’t taste particularly special. It looks like a lot of food, but the clams they use have really thick shells which makes up most of the volume. Don’t think I’ll be ordering these again.
Project 365: Day 1
And so begins my attempt at daily self-discipline (or lunacy?)! My co-worker Alan mentioned Project 365 yesterday and I was intrigued. Project 365 requires you to take a photo every day for an entire year and post it online. Now that’s a challenge and there are many people who’ve apparently taken it on! My hat is now in the ring!
Starting today, I’m going to post a food pic of something that I’ve eaten the same day! I promise not to cheat and post something I’ve eaten on a previous day, and if I forget to post something I’ll considered this experiment a FAILURE!
I’m also going to write these Project 365 entries in style more of a daily journal – something more personal than my usual food posts. I’ll try to mention anything interesting (or boring or lame) going on in my day-to-day life. (I foresee a LOT of boring days, hehe!)
Tadich Grill, San Francisco
Pan fried sand dab filets served with steak fries and bok choy (vegetable of the day). $23.75
I’m kind of an obsessive person, so when random things like this (Project 365) come along, I’m not afraid to run with it. Some people think I’m crazy, but they still love me. I’ll probably get super anal and distracted by this and annoy everyone around me. Some people already think that I’m weird when I snap a pic of everything I eat, but I’m not bothered. I love food! And there are worse things to obsess about.
I’m actually home sick today, so that’s why I have enough time to take care of all my personal computer stuff. Sickness, however, can’t stop me from searching for food! After getting back home from this lunch, I was SO tired and feverish that I slept all afternoon and woke up feeling worse. I really don’t want to get the flu so I hope this is one of those short-lived colds.
I’ve never had sand dabs, but these were delicious. I didn’t even know that sand dabs were a flatfish. The name makes me think of a mollusk. These were simply prepared, just breaded and pan fried. There was a lot of butter underneath though, which I couldn’t have minded but I’m really trying to eat healthier before my Caribbean cruise this spring. I only ate one of the steak fries, but the bok choy was really good. They were a little over-cooked but I didn’t mind since that made them easier to chew. My jaw and mouth a tender from feeling under the weather.
Ramekin overflowing with homemade tartar sauce.
Speaking of that Caribbean cruise, it’s going to be challenging to keep this Project going during that trip but they MUST have internet on the ship, right?! Otherwise, this will be a short project. David and I have challenged ourselves to eat better and hit the gym more in preparation for the cruise. I think it’s good motivation to get in better shape. (Ok, I’m safe. I got distracted and check the Celebrity Cruise website to make sure that their ships have internet access – yes!)
Bread and butter.
As proof of my obsessive behavior, I’m sure you’ll notice that I have posts tagged for the 7×7 Big Eat SF 2011 list. I’ve actually had more food items checked off but I have a long backlog of posts and I’ve lost (or had stolen) 3 iPhones so some of my pics are gone (so sad!). It’s ok I guess because it’s now impossible to complete the list entirely. Some of the restaurant are now closed and others no longer serve the dishes on the list.
Iced tea. I love the San Francisco cable car stir stick! $2.95
Wow, I hope that these Project 365 entries don’t all take this much time, lol! There’s just a lot to say right now, but I’m sure I’ll run out of things after a few days.
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2010, 2011, 2012
Poached eggs with oven roasted tomatoes and mushroom ragout over homemade cornbread, topped with hollandaise and chopped chives, and served with a side of garlic fried potatoes. $10.50
Cafe Flore, San Francisco
Not a fan of this version of eggs benedict. I think it looked better on paper. The roasted tomatoes and mushroom ragout tasted odd and the cornbread made an odd combination. Everything together tasted a little too sweet which isn’t what you’re looking for when you order an eggs benedict. Even the potatoes were just ok. Too bad. The eggs were beautifully poached though.
Shell pasta baked in a creamy parmesan and white cheddar cheese sauce with cornbread crumble and chopped parsley topping. $6.50
Cafe Flore, San Francisco
Wow, this was good! Maybe it’s nostalgia, but I tend to like yellow mac and cheese the best. This version, however, made me forget about the color (hehe). It was nice and rich, and the crunchy topping added a great texture and even more flavor. The medium sized shells held a lot of the yummy cheese sauce and were fun to play with! 🙂
Hearts of romaine, avocado, parmesan, diced tomatoes and red onions, herb croutons, house-made Caesar dressing. $8.95
Cafe Flore, San Francisco
This was a fresh and delicious salad! You can see that they put a large avocado half on top – that’s a lot of avocado, noms! The salad was dressed perfectly with Caesar dressing (not too heavily), and the diced tomatoes and red onion helped to brighten the flavors. I would definitely order this again!
Yummy glass of champagne and orange juice. Brunch is always better with mimosas!
Cafe Flore, San Francisco
Latte. And a dose of caffeine isn’t bad either. 🙂
Tortilla chips topped with braised pork, black beans, cheese, salsa fresca, guacamole and sour cream.
La Tortilla, San Francisco
So the food here isn’t the best Mexican food you’re gonna eat in the city but it’s convenient, fast, affordable, and they serve large portions. Their al pastor has decent flavor and is sufficiently tender. Everything else is pretty standard, but I do like their salsa bar. I tend to drown everything in extra salsa, hehe!
Flame broiled beef patty with American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles on a toasted sesame bun. Combo for $7.99
Slider’s Diner, San Francisco
I love that Slider’s cooks their burgers to-order! Their rotating grill is at the front of the restaurant and your patty goes on as soon as you order so your burger is served hot and fresh! They have a toppings bar where you can add whatever you like to your juicy burger.
Side of french fries.
I think I’m undecided whether I truly like hand rolls or not. It’s just a lot of seawead to deal with and these were chewy and hard to chew through, making it hard to neatly eat the rolls. They do stuff quite a lot of filling in these hand rolls and you don’t have to use chopsticks, which is great for incompetent users like myself. The spicy tako temaki was my favorite!
Tenka Japanese Restaurant, San Mateo CA
Road runner – tuna, salmon, avocado and cucumber. $2.95 for happy hour
Spicy tako – octopus with spicy mayonnaise. $2.95 for happy hour
Cajun – fried oyster, avocado and cucumber with spicy mayonnaise. $2.95 for happy hour
New York – shrimp, fish eggs, avocado and cucumber. $2.95 for happy hour
Vittle Monster 