Lemon, cucumber, fresh olives, herbs, red wine vinegar, olive oil. $13
Workshop Kitchen + Bar, Palm Springs CA
I enjoyed the firm texture of this salad at first. It was refreshing and different since I rarely eat farro, but it quickly got boring and my jaw began to tire from chewing the farro. I did like the flavors in the salad however. The bright citrus and herbs helped to balance the dull farro.
Morgan McMichaels as Pink at Toucans.
Topped with scallions, served with cocktail sauce and tartar sauce. $12.75
Yankee Pier, San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
Ew, why do I torture myself with bad airport food?! The calamari was super dry and chewy and none of the pieces were any bigger than popcorn. I must have gotten the bottom of the frozen bag or something.
The service was also horrendous and annoying. He was SO frickin’ pushy and he could barely speak English. He was so rude that I wanted to strangle him. Ugh, I miss Terminal 2!
Lightly seasoned and breaded, served with zesty chipotle remoulade and Don’s citrus cocktail sauce. $12.95
Don the Beachcomber, Kailua-Kona HI
I enjoyed these! They were pretty tender and not overly fried. I also liked that they weren’t covered in a thick shell of breading and that they included plenty of tentacle pieces. The sauce were also creative and tasty! I’m kinda bored of the typical citrus aioli that’s usually served with fried calamari.
Stacked rocks, Kailua Bay.
Topped with shrimp, squid, fishcake, and vegetables. $9.75
Ezogiku, Honolulu HI
I’ve never had champon before, and it was REALLY good! I find it difficult to describe the flavor. It was definitely seafood-y but it also had an almost creamy quality. I’ll definitely have to try it again to fully appreciate the complexity of flavors. Sorry for the messy bowl, we had started eating it before I remember to snap a pic, oops!
Combo with gyoza. $2.25
View of downtown Honolulu from the timeshare, Royal Garden Waikiki.
White bean and endive salad, salsa verde aioli. $14
Lot 7, San Francisco CA
Noms, this was my favorite item of the night! The squid were beautifully cooked and all the components on the plate were delicious. More please!
Rainbow flag, Castro and Market.
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.
Salt and pepper calamari. Calamari deep fried with a salt and pepper coating, sauteed with jalapenos and scallions. Served with a cilantro lime dipping sauce. $11
Zadin, San Francisco CA
Finally made it to this neighborhood restaurant, and I liked it! We had four people in our party so it was great to try a lot of different items. This dish was really tasty, but maybe a bit over-fried. I loved the jalapenos and the cilantro lime sauce was different and yummy.
Pink Triangle Park, Castro and Market.
With spicy Asian red chili sauce. $9
The Tropicale, Palm Springs CA
Yuck, this was gross! The calamari was super dry, overcooked, rubbery, tough to chew, and lacked flavor. It definitely tasted like poor quality frozen calamari that was abused by the fry cook. And the chili sauce was really an Asian-inspired salsa, just sayin’.
Ocotillo, desert coral, vine cactus, etc. (Fouquieria splendens, Fouquieriaceae) in the yard. Can’t wait to catch it blooming.
Seafood noodle soup with prawns, fish balls, and squid, accompanied with a plate of bean sprouts, basil leaves, lime wedge, and sliced jalapenos. Large $7.95
Hometown Noodle 2, San Bruno CA
This tasted pretty good, but they were definitely skimpy with the seafood. You got two pieces of each if you count that the fish balls were cut in half. Meh.
Purple blazing star or prairie gay feather flowers (Liatris spicata, Asteraceae), West Field Road. It’s always interesting to post flower pics on this blog because that’s usually when I find out what the actual names are. I can usually get them to at least the family level before I have to do additional research, but there are just way too many ornamentals out there! 🙂
Sauteed shrimp, squid, and scallop with onions, chili, carrot, bell pepper and basil leaves. A la carte $13.95
Thai House Express, San Francisco CA
I like the flavors in there, but the squid was a bit overcooked so it was tough to chew. The service also tends to be inconsistent. It ranges from the most attentive service to having to flag down the waiter depending on the night.
Salvia “Hot Lips” (Salvia microphylla, Lamiaceae). I love the vibrant red and white flowers of this plant (Baby sage, Graham’s sage, Blackcurrant sage).
Montery baby squid tempura with sriracha aioli. Happy hour $5
Barracuda Sushi, San Francisco CA
These were good – perhaps a little greasy, but they had a nice flavor from the batter. And I like the taste and slight heat of the sriracha aioli.
A-OK hand signal sidewalk stencil, Guerrero Street. It always amazes me how many different stencils there are in this city!
Deep fried calamari with jalapenos, lime, aioli. $11
Farley Bar, Sausalito CA
I have to say that calamari is one of my favorite appetizers ever! Who doesn’t love fried squid with aioli, right?! These were delicious and I loved the crispy batter and fried pepper slices. Everything was cooked perfectly and had a wonderful texture.
Long wooden patio table at Farley Bar. I really liked the outdoor seating at Farley Bar. The tables are really narrow so everyone faces one direction, towards the Bay with a great view of the Bridge.
Vittle Monster 