I tried The Cravery for the first time today and I’ll definitely be going back. It’s a very casual restaurant (order and pay at the counter, seat yourself) and the prices are very good for downtown Los Altos. Their specialty is pot pies and they have lots of different types. I decided to try the Spinach Quiche though and I was very happy with my choice. They also have some breakfast pies, salads, soups, and desserts such as brownies and gelato.

I’m looking forward to going back to try some of their other pies or breakfast pies.

Happy Cafe is a TINY hole in the wall place…it’s pretty easy to miss this place if you’re not looking for it. They don’t have many tables, so you may have to wait before getting seated.

I went there for lunch today and ordered the boiled chicken lunch special…the chicken is served cold and was quite tender and good. It came with soup, rice, some lettuce & cabbage, and an egg. Not bad for under $5!

We also got an order of xiao lung bao…these were definitely the highlight of our meal. They were steaming hot when they came out and there was just the right combo of soup and meat inside. I plan on going back and ordering these again!

This is a good place for a quick lunch with a small group…you’ll probably be waiting for a while if you try to go with more than 5 people. Their hours are a little weird…they’re only open for dinner one day a week (Wednesday), but this is a great place if you’re craving xiao lung bao.

I had dinner here last night and they were fairly busy for a Tuesday night, but were able to seat us right away.

I ordered the lamb shanks (same as in John’s reviews) and they were delicious and the portion was huge! I was full after eating just one of the lamb shanks and took the rest home with me. The description on the menu said something about “meat falling off the bone” and they were right! It came with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables.

The service here was also good…our waiter was very nice and we didn’t have to wait very long for our food.

Jeffrey’s definitely has an old fashioned diner feel…shiny red booths, hamburgers, and milkshakes! The menu’s pretty standard diner food: hamburgers, fries, sandwiches, and a couple salads. The kitchen is open and you can watch the cooks as you eat your lunch.

I’m not a huge fan of hamburgers in general, so this isn’t my favorite place….but the milkshakes (vanilla, strawberry, or chocolate) are really good. The last time I was there, two of us shared a milkshake and they gave us two full glasses each with whipped cream and a cherry on top. Yum!

Masu is one of the best all you can eat sushi places around San Mateo…this is mostly because they actually make the sushi when you order it instead of making it in mass quantities and leaving it out until people eat it.

Each person orders two items when they are first seated and then the waitress will return once in a while to take additional orders (one item at a time). They usually take their time getting back to your table to take additional orders…I think slow service is restaurant policy so people will have time to get full before trying to order too much food.

To take full advantage of the all you can eat deal, I recommend coming here if you have a good two hours for lunch. Also if you really want “all you can eat”, you should flag down any waitress who looks at your table.

The all you can eat menu has a pretty big selection including Spider Roll, Super California Roll (it’s a deep fried CA roll), Philadelphia Roll, Tekka Maki, Sake Maki, Hamachi Maki, Unagi Roll, Shrimp Tempura Roll, Chicken Teriyaki, Salmon Teriyaki, Tempura, AND various udons. This place is definitely a good deal if you have lots of time and a big appetite.

I’ve only been to Citizen Cake once and it was a couple years ago, but I still remember the terrible service we received. Hopefully they’ve improved since then, but I won’t be going back to find out.

A group of us were looking for a place to grab dessert and coffee in the city and found Citizen Cake…we assumed they’d specialize in serving desserts because of the restaurant name. However, when we got there the waiter assumed we were ordering dinners and was visibly displeased when we ordered desserts instead. (I’m pretty sure we arrived around 9 so it was after peak dinner hours anyway). Our waiter was unfriendly the entire time we were there.

The desserts were interesting…I don’t think they had any traditional desserts or cakes on the menu. Again, the name confused us as we expected a big selection of cakes. I remember my friends ordering milkshakes that had popcorn in them. I decided to order the 3 cheese dish instead of dessert…the cheese were quite tasty, but the portions were small (just 3 small pieces of cheese for $12).

I don’t think this is the place to go for sit down desserts with friends. They did have a separate bakery-type area where people could pick up desserts.

King Chopstix is one of the small restaurants in the Bayhill Shopping Center in San Bruno. It’s run by a very very nice Chinese couple…I think they’re the only ones who ever work there. If you go there a few times, they’ll probably recognize you when you walk in.

The food they have for their combo plates is pretty typical…orange chicken, lemon chicken, curry chicken, etc. You get a lot of food for the price (less than $6 for a 3 item combo).

However, I keep coming back here for their Wonton Soup…they make the wontons from scratch and don’t cook them until you order. The broth is tasty and you get some veggies (bok choy & carrot bits) in the soup. Their potstickers are also very good.

Hawaiian restaurants seem to be popping up everywhere, but this one is still one of my favorites. The restaurant is small and easy to miss on busy El Camino, but it’s worth trying. They serve all of the food in takeout containers, so it’s perfect for take out. They also have about 10 tables if you want to eat at the restaurant. I recommend getting a mini plate if you’re not starving…they each come with an entree, macaroni salad, and a scoop of rice. I ordered the bbq chicken today and it was delicious…and less than $4! If you’re really hungry, they also have regular plates with more meat, macaroni salad, and TWO scoops of rice.

My first trip to Pluto’s reminded me a little of the soup Nazi on Seinfeld…there’s a method to ordering here. First, grab a menu…there are two separate lines, one for salads and one for sides & sandwiches. I highly recommend the salad with steak…once you order, they make the salad in front of you and let you choose which ingredients and dressing you want. Choices include tomatoes, cucumber, green apples, croutons, broccoli, mushrooms, peppers, grapes, cheese, and many more. Once you get your food, take the menu and food to the cash register to pay. Then find a table and dig in!

This is one of the cheaper places to eat in downtown Palo Alto. The food is simple, healthy, and the portions are pretty big.

Jersey Joe’s is a great casual lunch place if you want cheesesteaks, hoagies, or burgers. It’s a pretty popular place and it can get crowded, especially on Fridays. I’ve never actually tried their cheesesteaks, but everyone I was with really enjoyed them. They have a couple big tvs there so you can watch a game or news while you eat.