R_Pheonix "I'm taking the next level out to dinner."

In 1958 ex baseball player Lefty O’Doul opened a restaurant/lounge within walking distance from San Francisco’s Union Square. The place is large and has a front and back dining areas. There are comfortable semi-private booths and tables. Food is served cafeteria style, but before you grimace, imagine. You walk in hungry, grab a tray and within minutes you’re walking to your seat with a home cooked meal that would make Mom smile (honestly). Last Friday I met some friends there for dinner. I had the roast turkey with gravy and stuffing, string beans, and a green salad. The turkey, like all meat selections, is cut in front of you as you order. The server will cut slices to your preference. My turkey was sliced 1/2 inch thick and I asked for brown gravy over the top. The turkey was moist and the brown gravy piping hot and rich. The stuffing was good, but to be honest it takes a really lame cook to screw up stuffing. String beans and green salad were fresh and crisp, full of flavor. I topped this meal off with an ice cold Newcastle pint on tap, bliss. After dinner I witnessed a server carving up a fresh apple pie, I broke down and had a slice. My father had a saying at the dinner table when I was a kid, he’d say “Nobody gets up from THIS TABLE hungry!” The same can be said for Lefty O’Doul’s. My dinner (sans drink and dessert) was about $10, and the portions are generous. As if that weren’t enough, Lefty’s has specials starting from $5 such as spaghetti and meat sauce. It’s website is also worth a visit.

One recent evening while in Mountain View I decided to give Chef Liu’s a try. It was getting late so I opted for the take-out. The restaurant is a modest size, and clean. My waitress was polite, however when I had a question about a dish it became apparent that she spoke very little English. Not a problem if you don’t have a question or can speak Chinese. After a few blank looks I decided to side step any further discussion and simply ordered the Chinese chicken salad and lemon chicken. The wait time was short and I was out the door with no problem. The portions at Chef Liu’s are very generous. I was able to make two meals out of my order. The lemon chicken was fried in a light batter. The meat would have fine if it had not been tough and chewy. The lemon sauce was not so much lemony as it was sweet and gloopy with no real hint of any distinct flavor. It reminded me of a sauce one might find at a Mr. Chau’s on a bad day. The chicken salad was overflowing in it’s to go box. The lettuce was crisp and fresh and topped with ground peanuts. The problem was that the chicken was the same that was used in the lemon chicken, tough and chewy. Instead of gnashing my teeth a second time I just threw the chicken out. The chicken salad dressing was pink and tasted like a funky thousand island dressing and came in a separate container. This too went in the bin. I’m sure there are folks who would enjoy this kind of dressing on their chicken salad, however I’m not one of them. I used some Soy Vay® Cha Cha Chinese Chicken Salad dressing instead. This was my first visit to Chef Liu’s restaurant and I might go back again, provided it’s on somebody else’s dime.

One night after an NHL game and a convention had let out, Hawg’s was one of the few places with seating available. I ordered the steak and shrimp special, with a side of garlic cheese bread. The plate had a base of steamed veggies, about 4 cups worth. Off one side of the veggie hill was a very nice potato-garlic mash; however it was in the mash that my shrimps were stuck upside down perhaps due to lack of space. Leaning on the other side of veggie hill was the steak. All of this was wading in a puddle what tasted to be watered down barbeque sauce. The steak while good screamed for either horseradish or a decent steak sauce. The broiled cheese bread was a disaster. It had what looked like a 1/2 inch thick layer of mayo with a light parmesan cheese topping and after one bite it became an orphan. On the plus side, portions were very generous. On the minus, the service was uneven, better understanding of food presentation and of what is being served would help move this restaurant into a 5 star position.

I’ve never had good luck with the Quiznos in downtown San Jose. Everytime
I eat there I check my order and 75% of the time they’ve gotten it wrong. It had
been a while since I’ve eaten there and last Friday I was on the run and needed
to grab something quick. Foolishly I decided to give them another try. I ordered
the black angus steak on rosemary parmesan with no mushrooms, and when I got
home I found I had prime rib cheesesteak with extra mushrooms. All I can figure
is it’s because the kids who work there are wishing they were somewhere else. I
even went to Quiznos website, located the downtown stores online comment
section, typed my experiences, and asked to be contacted. Nothing from
Quiznos. It’s too bad too, because I really like what I order, but in the end it’s their
service that winds up biting me. Adios Quiznos.

I remember going with my parents as a kid to this restaurant’s previous incarnation The Bold Knight Restaurant located off Monterey Highway. In 2006 the owners relocated to 840 North 1st Street directly across from the VTA Civic Center lightrail station and renamed itself The Bold Knight Bistro. The Bistro itself does not appear to be big from the outside, but inside they have a huge downstairs dining area specifically for large gatherings and is wheelchair friendly. Like Original Joe’s in San Jose, the remade Bold Knight Bistro’s staff is attentive and alert. It used to be that the previous restaurant provided a complimentary fondue hordourve prior to ordering. The Bistro does not, however it is included on the menu as a priced appetizer. I ordered the fondue which is tasty enough but not overtly special. If you took a can of Campbell’s® cheddar cheese soup and added a cup of grated sharp cheddar with a dash of Lea & Perrins® Worcestershire sauce in a saucepan over low heat, you would have a very similar fondue. It worked better as a complimentary item rather than as an overpriced appetizer. I mean honestly, the cubed French bread isn’t even toasted! Second, I ordered the spinach salad. On the whole a dismal flop. I don’t understand how anyone could so effectively ruin such a simple thing. The spinach was warm and wilted covered in insipid reddish vinaigrette and adorned on the top with a lump of finely shaved hard boiled egg. Besides its repugnant appearance, there was a profound stale taste of refrigerator I couldn’t quite put my finger on. A mystery I didn’t care to solve. Lastly, I ordered the filet mignon and Australian jumbo lobster tail. This is where the Bold Knight Bistro shined. The filet was perfect and was accompanied with a delicious horseradish sauce on the side. The lobster was in fact jumbo, I mean huge! It was fresh and sweet, by the way I recommend when ordering lobster ask your waiter to have the chef mince just a small amount of garlic in the drawn butter, trust me it makes all the difference. Overall I went with my heart set on surf and turf. I walked away happy in that regard and with a hope that they will soon fine tune the smaller items.

Sorry folks, but the wonderful and magical pizza is but a distant memory. The owners have converted the legendary Pizza Wheel into a Vietnamese restaurant. It’s nice if you like pho, however pizza on Layfayette has been reduced to Little Caesar’s just North at 4767. Good-bye Pizza Wheel, my dear old friend. May you rest in bun bo hue.