I initially thought that this margarita was lame and weak, but I actually got a good buzz off of it, lol! I was fooled because it tasted kind of bland, but it was a decent value overall. Glass $6.95
Casa Azteca, Milpitas CA
Chips and salsa. Complimentary
Roasted pork, fried whole garlic, kikurage mushroom, fresh green chives, quail egg, and chicken gravy (cooked ground chicken, chopped shiitake mushroom, chopped ginger, sesame oil, shredded red pepper). Ordered with extra pork and regular spicy. $11.25
Ramen Dojo, San Mateo CA
Wow, this was some of the best ramen I’ve had in a while! The broth was delicious and the “regular spicy” level was perfect. I think “extra spicy” would have been too much and the additional heat would have detracted from the flavor of the broth. You’d spend all your time sweating rather than enjoying the ramen. The “regular spicy” level was actually pretty spicy already! The pork was very flavorful and had a good amount of fat on it. Yum!
Cha gio. Crispy fried rolls with ground pork, taro, carrots, and silver noodles. Served with lettuce, mint leaves and cucumber with nuoc mam. $6.75
PPQ Beef Noodle House, San Francisco CA
We don’t order the fried Imperial rolls very often because they’re less healthy than the fresh spring rolls. They’re so much tastier and fun to eat (since you get to wrap them in all the greens) though! I’ve always like how the wrapper gets super crispy and hard and blistered. Noms!
Tea. Complimenatry
Quaking grass/rattlesnake grass (Briza sp., Poaceae), Bon Tempe Lake. I was surprised that I was able to get a clear shot of this tiny subject with my iPhone especially in the wind!
Spinach, onion, mushroom, melted cheddar cheese Served with hash browns, 2 eggs scrambled, and toast. $6.35
Art’s Cafe, San Francisco CA
OK, this was kinda sad. I get that the prices here are super cheap especially for San Francisco, but I would pay a little more to get a plate of food that would actually fill me up. The skimpily thin layer of corned beef hash (which is mostly potato anyway) placed atop another thin layer of hash browns isn’t gonna cut it! Like I said, I think this place is cute but they might want to reevaluate their portions.
Coffee.
The Embarcadero.
Chicken breast filet deep fried with a crispy batter served with a spicy orange sauce. $10
Makli Chinese Cuisine, San Francisco CA
Mmm, I love deep fried chicken dishes at Chinese restaurants. I know they’re not authentic and they tend to be super greasy and bad for you, but I still crave them. This orange chicken was executed pretty well. The batter was actually crispy (not soggy like most) and not greasy. The orange sauce was tasty, but not very spicy as advertised.
Beauty and the beast mural, SOMA.
Sweet yellow corn crepe stuffed with grilled chicken, black bean spread, tomato, queso fresco, Guasacaca sauce, served with ensalada Caracas and black beans. $15
Pica Pica, San Francisco CA
The cachapa was pretty large and I couldn’t finish it all, but I had fun trying. The corn crepe was interesting – I thought it would be thinner. The grilled chicken was good, but I wish that they had melted the cheese. I think the different house sauces that they have at the table were delicious and ended up dousing the cachapa in them. Noms!
La Chiffonniere statue, 1978, Jean Dubuffet, Justin Herman Plaza.
We were on our way down to the South Bay one weekend morning and found ourselves in San Mateo with a hankering for caffeine so we ducked into Mini Coffee. This place is small, no frills, and slightly sad feeling. I really wasn’t impressed, but at least the coffee was ok. Small $1.75
Mini Coffee, San Mateo CA
Pho ga xe phay. Hand pulled chicken in chicken broth with flat noodles. Accompanied by sprouts, lemon, jalapeno, basil, onions and cilantro. Medium $7.75
PPQ Beef Noodle House, San Francisco CA
This place was packed when we ate here and I could see why. The food is pretty good and the prices are great. The service is friendly enough but sometimes a little confused because the large volume of tables constantly turning. It’s all about the broth for me when eating pho, and this place has good broth. The flavor could have been a little deeper, but that’s easily compensated for by adding some spicy condiments. Yum!
Soup add-ons.
Thread agave (Agave filifera, Asparagaceae), West Field Road.
Spinach, onion, mushroom, melted cheddar cheese on hash browns, 2 eggs over-medium, and wheat toast. $7
Art’s Cafe, San Francisco CA
Ugh, I was not impressed by this hashbrown sandwich. Yes, I thought this small diner was super cute and neighborhood-y, and the family running it was sweet and efficient, but the food left much to be desired. My eggs were overcooked, and the hashbrowns were super thin and pretty greasy. Because it was so thin, it really didn’t hold up to the filling which there was little of anyway.
7×7 Magazine’s The Big Eat San Francisco: 100 Things to Eat + Drink Before You Die – 2013
Wheat toast with grape jelly.
Orange pansies (Viola tricolor subsp. hortensis, Violaceae), Noe Valley.
Thick broth cooked with tiny pieces of chicken, corn, egg. Cup $2
Makli Chinese Cuisine, San Francisco CA
This is a standard soup served in most Chinese restaurants. For me, it’s the consistency of the broth that either makes or breaks the soup. Too runny, and it is unsatisfying. Too thick, and it becomes a chore to it. Makli’s soup was just right in terms of consistency. It was also pretty flavorful and nice and warm. I prefer more egg though.
San Francisco Ferry Building Terminal.
Grilled sweet yellow corn pocket stuffed with slow cooked pulled pork, avocado, tomato, pica’pun, ajo aioli. Served with Pica slaw and taro chips. $10.75
Pica Pica, San Francisco CA
This was really tasty and very filling. The texture of the grilled corn arepa was fantastic and I liked that there were whole kernels mixed in too. The pulled pork was flavorful, and the crisp fresh Pica slaw was a great accompaniment.
Sangria. Red wine, passion fruit, apple, and Adriana’s special spices. Glass $7
This is how people decorate their trees in Noe Vally, lol! Ok, maybe just this house.
Wok fried premium flank steak with basil, bell peppers and black pepper in lava sauce. $12.95
Sweet Basil Thai Cuisine, San Francisco CA
Hmm, I wasn’t a fan of this dish. The “premium” beef was really tough and it didn’t have much flavor. The lava sauce wasn’t lava-ish at all. I guess I should have requested it extra hot, but you would think that something called “lava sauce” would already have some heat to it.
Good morning San Francisco!
Vittle Monster 