Puffed squid with pickled serrano pepper slices, serrano chili powder, micro cilantro leaves, dollops of garlic sauce, and diced pieces of squid. Pre fixe dinner $180
Benu, San Francisco
This was really fun to eat. At first, I didn’t realize that the black portion was also squid that had been puffed. I loved the flavors and all the different textures.
Chinese soy beans, wokked in a garlic, soy sauce. $6
Wang’s in the Desert, Palm Springs CA
Wow, this was SO salty! It was kind of disgusting. I would try to quickly eat one then have to chug some water to combat the saltiness. Ew!
Pickled cucumber with white and black sesame seeds. Complimentary.
Thank goodness these were good. Wish the rest of their dishes we the same. 😦
Project 365: Day 87
And the rain has come back to the Bay Area! Wow, it was raining cats and dogs this morning. Silverfox and I went to Toast Eatery for breakfast. I accidentally left my cell phone at home and missed Kryan’s international phone call, oops! I’ll have to catch up with him next weekend while I’m in Charleston. Gotsta go into work for a couple of hours today then finish packing for tomorrow. We’re gonna try Jake’s, the new restaurant on Market Street, for dinner tonight. Not looking forward to my early flight tomorrow. 😦
Lamb and rosemary – ground lamb with chopped rosemary, garlic and onion. Shichimi spiced beef – Angus beef, water chestnuts, napa cabbage and onion. Curried chicken – ground white meat chicken, mushrooms, onions and ginger (2 pieces each). $10
Wang’s in the Desert, Palm Springs CA
Ugh! These dumplings were SO dry and the wrappers were kinda rubbery. Don’t the descriptions look great though? Too bad the kitchen couldn’t execute them properly.
Project 365: Day 86
Omg, this is my last day of work before all my trips in April when I’ll only be back in the office for 2 days! Work was on the slow side today. I’m gonna hit the gym after work then get my hair cut before my work trip. I’ve got to remember to buy more deodorant on my way home, hehe.
Calamari steak medallions seasoned with garlic, jalapenos, scallions, lemon juice, salt and pepper. $9
Wang’s in the Desert, Palm Springs CA
The thick squid medallions were squishy and had a funky texture – not a fan. I also thought these were gonna be hot and spicy, but they had almost no heat. Very disappointing.
Project 365: Day 71
Omg, guess who was in Old San Juan today on the campaign trail? Rick Santorum! Yup! We were waiting for a lunch restaurant to open so we went to hang out at a random plaza to kill time. Then quite suddenly, a procession began and Rick Santorum and his family were walking through the crowd shaking hands. He shook my hand and winked at me, lol! I don’t even like the guy but it was easy to get caught up in the hoopla. I snapped over a dozen pics (see one below, hehe). We later saw him eating lunch outside at a nearby restaurant. It was hard to miss him since there were plenty of bodyguards in black suits everyhwere.
Lunch was better today at St. Germain Bistro and so were drinks at Restaurante Triana, but snacks/drinks at the Sheraton Old San Juan and dinner at Dragonfly were a bust!
Indian bread with fresh ground garlic and parsley, yum! $1.99
Curry Boyzz, San Francisco
Rick Santorum and family in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Served with Sriracha garlic aioli and lemon. $11 ($5.50 for Sunday happy hour)
Hubbard Grille, Columbus OH
These were really tasty. I loved the Sriracha garlic aioli. Some of the squid pieces were kinda greasy so I had to leave them in the bowl – I think they were cooked at too low a temperature. Other than that, I enjoyed these and I’m glad that they included plenty of the tentacles.
Fresh cut potato ribbons, crunchy fried, roasted garlic aioli and sriracha ketchup. $5
T. Murray’s Bar and Kitchen, Columbus OH
What can I say? These were fun to eat and share. I like the combination of the garlic aioli and sriracha ketchup. This bar snack is not the healthiest thing for you, but I’d still recommend it. The potato ribbons weren’t too greasy and there’s plenty of them!
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.
Sauteed eggplants with green onion in a garlic chili sauce. Includes daily soup and steamed rice. Lunch special $6.50
Xiao Long Bao Kitchen, South San Francisco CA
I keep repeating this, but I love saucy eggplant dishes from Chinese restaurants. I love the texture and the flavor of this dish. The eggplants were large and chunky and the garlic chili sauce was salty and sweet. Yes please!
With orange zest, garlic, shallots, parsley, olive oil, arugula and frisee. $12
Fish & Farm, San Francisco
This was SUPER good! When I read the menu item, I thought it was going to be more like calamari a la planxa – something whole and more dry. I was pleasantly surprised when this more salad-y dish arrived! I will say that there was A LOT of dressing on the squid, but I really didn’t mind because it was so good. It’s some of my favorite flavors and I’m gonna admit that I even used some bread to soak of the leftover dressing at the end, lol! The squid had a nice texture that wasn’t rubbery and the dish was quite large for an appetizer portion, heck yeah! I would definitely order this again.
Bread and butter. Complimentary. Crusty bread with real butter = happy me!
With smoked cheese and tomatoes. $14
Uva Enoteca, San Francisco
I wasn’t a huge fan of this pizza. I enjoyed the flavors but the whole thing was heavy and clunky. The crust had an odd, dense texture which was surprising since it was thin. It’s all about the crust, right?! The pizza was also on the small side. Don’t think I’ll be ordering pizzas from Uva Enoteca again.
This looks better than it tasted.
Red wines.
Marzemino, Terre Gioia, Trentino, 2009. $10 for 8oz
Merlot, Chopris, Friuli, 2004. $9 for 8oz
They have a nice selection! These are sold by 2oz or 8oz. I like that the 8oz is served in a small, cute carafe.
Braised chicken in soy sauce, vinegar and garlic with fried plantains. $11.95
Patio Filipino, San Bruno CA
I loved this version of chicken adobo! It tasted rich and flavorful and I love the additional of the fried plantains. SO yummy! The chicken was super tender and you have to spoon all that delicious sauce over your rice. Noms!
Steamed rice. $1.75 per person
Vittle Monster 