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hungrytraveller
is currently eating Fish and Chicken Tacos"I like to travel, I like to eat well, I like to travel to places where I can eat well"
- Cuisines:
- American, Steakhouse, French, Japanese
- Locations:
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| Reviews | 21 |
| Helpfulness | 100% |
| Friends | 12 |
| Fans | 12 |
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My Reviews (21) rss feed
1 - 10 of 21
O Chame
Jul 30, 2007
Fusion dining the way it's supposed to be
Had dinner here a few weeks ago and was really impressed with the clean flavors that presented themselves quite well. Twists and turns on the typical Japanese dishes were well-received. The service at the bar was well-timed and we never felt looked down upon because we opted to go for the bar instead of the sit-down tables. The one complaint we did have was that the restaurant seemed abnormally warm to the point where lots of cold sake was drunk to combat the higher temperatures (not that I’m one to object to drinking more, hehe). If you’re ever in the ‘hood, by all means, check this place out. You will NOT be disappointed for some different takes on traditional Japanese food.
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Seared Tuna Sashimi
Great study in contrasts. Usually done one style or the other, this presentation was different but familiar all at the same time.
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Crimini Mushroom and Green Onion Pancake
One of the best dishes of the night. Made to order, this dish has a dipping sauce of ground sesame and one other flavor I couldn’t put my finger on. DELICIOUS!!
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Blanched Spinach with Sesame Dressing
Decent dish. We only ordered it b/c we needed some type of veg and b/c the restaurant was so hot, the cold spinach helped cool things down a little.
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Udon Noodles in Clear Fish Broth with
Smoked Trout, Spinach and Enoki Mushrooms. Definitely a different take on udon since you don’t really see smoked trout in there. But also definitely delicious too!
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Grilled sturgeon with green beans
Another candidate for dish of the night. Sturgeon was grilled but still moist and succulent.
- I came here for
- a romantic date
- My meal cost
- between $10 and $25
- I tipped
- more than 18%
Plouf
Jun 18, 2007
If you order the bucket of mussels or clams, be sure to a...
If you order the bucket of mussels or clams, be sure to ask for extra bread as the broth at the bottom should be savored and enjoyed!
Bouchon at The Venetian
Jun 18, 2007
Was forced to wait about 25 minutes after my reservation ...
Was forced to wait about 25 minutes after my reservation time but during the entire wait, no one asked to get us a drink or even make room at the bar! The food itself wasn’t anything great either. The foie gras appetizer I had was woefully inadequate and poorly prepared (lots of veins = not enough care during prep work).
Fonda
Apr 17, 2007
Great place but you may have to wait
This is a great find on Solana across the street from the Safeway. It’s actually quite a large space with 2 different levels and if the weather’s right, the patio.
I went around 7:00pm and was able to sit immediately at the bar overlooking the open kitchen. It was a great spot to see what everyone was ordering and it definitely drove the menu choices.
When we left though, the line was pretty long but luckily they have a great bar that is well-stocked. Their cocktail menu was quite delicious and very Latin-influenced with the various tequilas. Definitely a great place to go if you want to sit and chat with friends and just order small plates and drinks all night long.
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scallop ceviche with cilantro, serrano, lime and avocado
Great dish with plenty of bay scallops and avocado. Perfect amount of citrus to balance out the serrano chiles.
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oysters on the half shell with Fonda mignonette
$12 for a half dozen, what really took the oysters to the next level was the Fonda mignonette sauce. Great combination of flavors that didn’t overwhelm the oyster but perfectly accented it.
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pescado a la plancha
Local halibut with recado rojo, chili macho, and served with hand-made tortillas. Great dish with sauce that got sopped up with every last drop. The fish was perfectly flaky and moist and the sauce did a great job of adding a little heat and sweetness.
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duck tacos with guacamole and arbol salsa (2)
Interesting dish as you don’t normally find duck being served as a taco filling. The shredded duck was well-cooked and the arbol salsa was the perfect topping, almost a little reminiscent of the plum sauce they serve with Peking Duck at Chinese restaurants.
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chicken tamale with mole poblano
Yet another solid dish. The masa from the tamale was not dried out like it can be if made incorrectly. The chicken was also super moist and the mole was super delicious.
- I came here for
- a romantic date
- My meal cost
- between $25 and $50
- I tipped
- more than 18%
Pearl Oyster Bar & Restaurant
Feb 12, 2007
Awesome place if you can get a seat!
Went there on a rainy Saturday evening so the wait was not long at all (maybe 5 minutes at the bar?). The bartenders there pour some pretty stiff drinks and the vibe of the place makes time pass pretty quickly.
The restaurant itself is not large and the tables themselves are not too big. Considering this is a small plates establishment, they serve their food on larger platters which becomes an issue when the timing of delivery isn’t there. Luckily, our waitstaff was excellent and did their best to squeeze every available inch and the second a wine glass was empty, it was removed.
All in all, the food was really amazing, the wine and liquor very fine to boot (their wine flights are a bargain!) and the service was attentive but not overbearing. A really great find and heartily recommended by this diner!
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Sweet potato fries with aioli
Wasn’t ordered at first but after realizing that the other dishes we ordered were all seafood, we asked for this great side. The fries were not greasy in the least and the perfect accompaniment to the food.
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Wine flight
Pearl has 3 different wine flights (Spanish, electic Reds, eclectic whites) where you get 3 different wines in each flight. The eclectic whites were well balanced and did the food very well.
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Oysters
6 different oysters on the half shell (Malpeque, Hama Hama, Kumamoto, Mimi Miyagi, Discovery Bay and one other one). If you wanted 2 of each, the price is $20!
- I came here for
- a romantic date
- My meal cost
- between $25 and $50
- I tipped
- more than 18%
Izzy's Steaks & Chops
Jan 22, 2007
A Great Time Out (if you get the right waitstaff)
Ask someone to list a great steakhouse in SF and they’ll usually cite House of Prime Rib or Ruth’s Chris. Izzy’s should be added to the list as the prices are definitely more than reasonable compared to what you’d pay at the two aforementioned establishments and the food is just as good.
When you step into Izzy’s, it’s usually quite busy and waits may be a while since Izzy’s doesn’t really take reservations unless they’re early (before 6pm) or late (after 8pm). Luckily, their bar has whatever libations you could think of and plenty of televisions broadcasting sporting events so you can pass the time.
Once seated, it comes down to the waitstaff you have. I would have downgraded Izzy’s a star because our initial waitress was really high and mighty and was probably on the tail end of a bad shift and she made sure that we knew about it.
Nonetheless, the food definitely was the shining moment of the evening. Izzy’s potatoes are a heavenly mix of scalloped potatoes that comes as one of your two sides for any entree. Their steaks, chops and even seafood really did live up to the hype and considering that it’s about 10-15 bucks less than anything at House or Ruth’s Chris, it’s a place worth dining.
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New York Strip Steak (Aged 21 days)
Can’t go wrong with a steak that’s aged 21 days but I would have hoped that the portion size was a little bit bigger, but that’s just me being gluttonous.
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Drunken Shrimp
Cooked in beer and spices, this dish was a heaping portion of shrimp (none of that 3 shrimp nonsense) and tasty broth. If someone doesn’t eat red meat, this dish won’t disappoint!
- I came here for
- fun with friends
- My meal cost
- between $25 and $50
- I tipped
- between 15% to 18%
Garibaldi's
Jan 16, 2007
Great buzz and food to boot!
Went here for a group dinner and had a great time. My group was a little late on a Friday night but the front of the house was very cordial and accommodating. Considering the size of our group and the fact that we were keeping them from turning the table once more after us, they did not give us any indication that it was an issue.
Once we sat down, the buzz around the restaurant didn’t require us to raise our voices to be heard but also didn’t make us feel like we had to talk in hushed tones. Our waiter was very knowledgeable about the menu and was quick to whisk things away when drink orders got mixed up or more of anything was needed.
All in all, this is a great place for outings. I would recommend that folks dress up a little bit (button down shirt and khakis/slacks for guys) as the place does have tablecloths and the clientele ranges from mid-20s to upper 50s. So rolling in in cargo shorts and flip-flops may not be the way to go.
If you like cocktails with dinner, the bartenders there will pour your drinks just the way you want them!
-
shoestring potatoes
HEAPING portion of crispy fries. I always love the fried herbs as they give a bit of a different bite of flavor than just typical spuds.
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salt and pepper calamari
This dish would have gotten another star on quality but the glaring lack of quantity got it downgraded. I understand that it’s an appetizer, but places like Delfina serve at least 33% more for similar-priced items.
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hummus
Solid fare. Nothing too spectacular but nothing to send back to the kitchen either. It did the job to whet the appetite.
-
chopped vegetable salad
Oversized portion of side salad with great mustard vinaigrette that complemented the mixed assortment of lettuces and biting feta cheese perfectly.
-
braised kurobota pork shank
Easily the hands-down star dish of the evening according to this palate. Again, oversized portion but the pork was fork tender and falling off the shank bone. Great flavor throughout every muscle fiber!
- I came here for
- fun with friends
- My meal cost
- between $25 and $50
- I tipped
- more than 18%
Citron
Jan 14, 2007
Good date environment but service needs work
I was there for a large family celebration (10 people) and you’d think that a table ordering 4 bottles of wine, a healthy order of sides, appetizers and tasting menus would get some service. One would think anyways…
The environment there is very friendly and the waitstaff were very attentive when it came to placing additional orders of wine or dessert but when it came to clearing dishes once finished or filling empty drink glasses, the waitstaff just wasn’t up to par. For essentially a 3-course meal for 10, we were there for over 3.5 hours! I noticed that our waiter was doing more sampling of wines at the bar then he was checking out the tables.
Food-wise, the place was decent but none of the dishes that I tasted there were mind-blowing, special or even memorable (at least good, memorable).
All in all, if you live in the neighborhood and you can’t get a seat at A Cote next door and want a quiet, uninterrupted meal, this may be the place for you. But I do think that you’d have better luck with food and service with Oliveto or Zachary’s down the street.
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Pommes Frites with Sauce Bearnaise
Great portions of crispy fries. Though a bit more sauce bearnaise would have been appreciated instead of the tablespoon of sauce that came with.
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Mushroom Fritters with Red Pepper Aioli
Hands-down the worst dish of the night. The mushrooms were just mealy and tasteless. It got to the point where no one would finish the appetizer b/c it tasted so bad.
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Dungeness Crab Salad
A good mix of crab well-sauced with vegetables.
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Pancetta Wrapped Trout
Stuffed with Raisins, Pine Nuts and Spinach, Root Vegetable Puree and Red Wine Sauce. Decently-cooked considering we were a table of 10, but it was lukewarm and the raisins were the highlight.
-
Citron Bouillabaisse
with Red Snapper, Shrimp, Mussels and Clams In a Saffron Leek Broth with Rouille. Great seafood portions though the broth was more leek than saffron.
- I came here for
- a family meal
- My meal cost
- more than $50
- I tipped
- between 15% to 18%
Coyote Cafe
Dec 28, 2006
Great dining experience in the Land of Enchantment!
Going for a family member’s birthday dinner, the staff at Coyote Cafe was exceedingly pleasant and helpful. The ambience in the restaurant was nicely set with the right amount of lighting and impressive lighting fixtures (each fixture was the shape of a flowing bird and the entire restaurant was decked out with them). The food itself lived up to the ambience for the most part. While I wasn’t necessarily wowed by any particular dish, all of my expectations were met and the execution of the meal was just what was needed for a celebratory meal.
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Butternut Squash & Pear Soup
A little bit too thin but according to the taster it got better as the bowl wore on.
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3 Tastes of Creme Brulee
Great dish by the pastry chef. Three shot glasses filled with three distinct tastes of creme brulee (eggnog, cinnamon and maple)
- I came here for
- a family meal
- My meal cost
- between $25 and $50
- I tipped
- more than 18%
Myth Restaurant & Lounge
Nov 13, 2006
This is the place you want to go to make a good impression
The menu is a bit eclectic as certain things share similar billings that wouldn’t normally appear together on a menu. But the food definitely works and when you factor in the very reasonably priced wines (they have a lengthy list of wines that are all under $20), you’ve got a winning combination.
Service neither stood out nor made me want to walk out the door but it did its job. I think they’re more into letting your party focus on each other instead of standing over your table and monitoring your progress every step of the way.
All in all, a great place to go if you want to impress a date as I observed at least 4 other tables one night on at least first or second dates.
-
Braised Short Ribs
A very solid dish as it seems that most restaurants are putting braised short ribs on the menu. They do a good job of mixing in some Asian flavors with this though so it’s not your standard fare.
- I came here for
- fun with friends
- My meal cost
- between $25 and $50
- I tipped
- between 15% to 18%


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