Tag Archives: lemon

Cocktails – AQ Restaurant

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Bison Rose cocktail - AQ Restaurant

Bison Rose: Zubrowka bison grass vodka, cocchi americano, meyer lemon rosemary shrub. $13
AQ Restaurant, San Francisco CA

Ugh! We were SO excited to go to this restaurant and it was a major FAIL! The service was cold and robotic. The only person who asked us about our dinner was the busser when he cleared our entree plates. There was absolutely no joy in this restaurant. These cocktail were ok, but each a little off. I enjoyed the glassware and the stirrer/straw for the bison rose cocktail , but the flavor tasted somehow dull despite the promising ingredients. The old fashioned was the complete opposite where they probably swabbed the entire glass with citrus and pummeled the lemon twist against the sides to produced the overpowering citrus odor emanating from the this cocktail. It made me nauseous. That’s the first time I’ve ever reacted like that to an old fashioned – gross!

Old Fashioned cocktail - AQ Restaurant
Old Fashioned: Eagle rare bourbon, winter bitter, sugar, twist of lemon. $12

Tutto mare – Boulevard Cafe

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Tutto mare - Boulevard Cafe
Spaghetti, prawns, clams, mussels, fish, garlic, basil, white wine, red sauce. $15.95
Boulevard Cafe, Daly City CA

This restaurant is one of those places where the menu is gigantic and appears to contain food from all cuisines. Usually the food at these places are sorely lacking, but the things I ordered were actually pretty good. The tutto mare had plenty of seafood which I was surprised about since most places will skimp of the more expensive proteins. It had bold flavors and the pasta was perfectly al dente.

Avgolemono soup - Boulevard Cafe
Avgolemono soup. Traditional Greek soup with chicken, rice, lemon and egg. $2.95
This was OK. It was mostly broth.

Chocolate mousse napoleon – Maven

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Chocolate mousse napoleon - Maven
Creme fraiche and lemon ice cream, malt, brandy. Bloomspot 4-course chef’s tasting menu with cocktail pairings for two.
Maven, San Francisco CA

I liked this dessert because it tasted great, but it was really difficult to eat. The cookies were a bit too hard to break through so the chocolate mousse just kept oozing out every time you tried to cut into it. Hmm…

Maven's Milk Punch cocktail - Maven
Maven’s Milk Punch Cocktail: rum, Maven’s bourbon, vanilla, milk, hazelnut.

Autumn chestnut ravioli – Maven

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Autumn chestnut ravioli - Maven
Golden apple, sage, maitake, sherry. Bloomspot 4-course chef’s tasting menu with cocktail pairings for two.
Maven, San Francisco CA

I purchased a Bloomspot dining certificate for this restaurant because I wanted to try it out for the first time. Overall, the food and cocktails were good and the certificate proved to be a great value (unlike some others I’ve purchased). All the food were shared plates, and we were pleasantly surprised at the generous portions we received especially with this pasta course. There were plenty of ravioli to share between us and the dish tasted amazing!

Fireside Cocktail - Maven
Fireside Cocktail: rye, chestnut, apple, cinnamon, lemon, egg white.

The cocktails ended up being smaller portions than normal, but I didn’t mind since we were served different cocktails with each course. I didn’t want to get too drunk, hehe. I enjoyed the Fireside cocktail and thought it paired wonderfully with the chestnut ravioli.

Place setting - Maven
Place setting.

Hula’s sangria – Hula’s Bar & Lei Stand

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Hula's sangria - Hula's Bar & Lei Stand

Cabernet du jour, fresh pressed lime, fresh pressed lemon, fresh pressed orange, pineapple juice, orgeat syrup.
Hula’s Bar and Lei Stand, Honolulu HI

Mmm, I love sangrias! They serve this in a pretty large glass so you can take your time to enjoy. Thanks Hula’s!

Mokoli'i (Chinaman's Hat) Island
Mokoli’i (Chinaman’s Hat) Island, Kane’ohe Bay.

Local beet salad – Salt Kitchen & Tasting Bar

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Local beet salad - Salt Kitchen & Tasting Bar
Goat cheese mousse, grapefruit, lemon citronette, pepitas. $11
Salt Kitchen and Tasting Bar, Honolulu HI

I’m a big fan of beet salads, and this versions was REALLY tasty! I loved the combination of ingredients with the peppery greens piled on top. Noms!

Red hibiscus flower
Red hibiscus flower (Malvaceae), Ainahau Triangle Park.

Crispy calamari – Wipeout Bar and Grill

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Crispy calamari - Wipeout Bar and Grill
Dusted with flour, lightly fried and seasoned with lemon, served with a lemon aioli. $7.95
Wipeout Bar and Grill, Greenbrae CA

We stopped by Wipeout to grab a snack and drinks before heading to an event. I wish we hadn’t. These calamari were horrible! They were super greasy, hard and over-fried. Ew! There were plenty of them, which made them more difficult to eat – lame.

Brunch cocktails – Twenty Five Lusk

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S.F. Yacht Club cocktail - Twenty Five Lusk

S.F. Yacht Club: vodka, grapefruit, cucumber, lemon, lime, mint. Gilt City brunch menu
Twenty Five Lusk, San Francisco CA

I thought this cocktail would be more refreshing and would knock my socks off, but it didn’t. It was pretty to look at, but fell flat in the taste department which is surprising considering the great combination of ingredients.

Lusk Bloody Mary - Twenty Five Lusk

Lusk Bloody Mary: vodka, roasted tomatoes, lemon, roasted garlic, thai chili paste, aged balsamic vinegar.

Mmm, this bloddy mary delicious! I sometimes buy the daily deal certificates for restaurants I haven’t tried, and I have to say that I was really impressed with this Gilt buy for Twentry Five Lusk. We had a great time, the food was delicious (for the most part), and the service was friendly and professional. I’d definitely got back for more!

Construction stencil artwork
Construction stencil artwork, 16th Street.

Work bbq at Marina Park

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Marinated chicken on the grill

Marinated chicken on the grill (with Maggie girl in the background)!

Our work group decided to have another weekend bbq to celebrate a birthday/last day of work. We decided to switch it up and have it in the East Bay this time around. It was a little cold and windy, but we had a great time eating, drinking, playing volleyball, and just hanging out.
Marina Park, San Leandro CA

Lighting the charchoal grill
It took a bit of effort and lot of lighter fluid to get this baby going!

Kalbi spareribs and more meat
Kalbi spareribs, fried chicken wings, more meat and corn on the cob wrapped in foil.

Cheese and fruit plate
Cheese and fruit plate.

Lemon cheesecake
I made a lemon cheesecake!