Layang Layang
1480 S De Anza Blvd
San Jose, CA
(408) 777-8897
Cuisine:
Malaysian
August 15, 2006
Finally a winner...
This building has seen 5 restaurants in about the same number of years. Never has there been a restaurant as popular as Layang Layang, the current tenants. There fresh mix of Malaysian food is unique and delectable.
Dishes I tried:
Roti Canai
Great appetizer, eat it while its warm though!
Cocunut Prawn
Unique, incredible taste, and great presentation. Can’t miss!
By-Th'-Bucket Bar and Grill
4565 Stevens Creek Blvd
Santa Clara, CA
(408) 248-6244
Cuisine:
Italian, Seafood
January 2, 2007
Italian and seafood together
If you’re looking for a loud, fun, unpretentious restaurant for Italian food and get togethers, this is your joint.
Italian food and seafood are served in generous portions, hence the name “By th Bucket”
Dishes I tried:
Th' Bucket Baked Brie
Very unique way of preparing Brie. The brie is baked with apples, pecans, cherries, and brown sugar and served with baguette pieces.
Pho to Chau
853 Villa St
Mountain View, CA
(650) 961-8069
Cuisine:
Noodle Shop, Vietnamese, Asian
January 4, 2007
Down and out for 2 days
I’ve been to this Pho restaurant a few times and have always enjoyed it. But this last time I went, Pho won. I got food poisoning from either the raw bean sprouts or spring rolls. I spent the night hugging the ceramic bowl king while puking my dinner out. Not a pleasant experience.
With the ever increasing prices ($6.50 for a large bowl?!!?) and food poisoning experience… I don’t think I’m coming back.
Tres Agaves
130 Townsend St
San Francisco, CA
(415) 227-0500
Cuisine:
Mexican, American (New), Southwestern
January 12, 2007
Upscale Mexican
Whenever somebody mentions going to El Torito or Chevy’s or some other sit down Mexican restaurant, I get on my soap box and vehemently argue how these “fancy” Mexican places are not worth the money and how hole-in-the-wall burrito joints are 10x better in terms of taste, flavors, and variety.
Tres Agaves may be the one place that will turn my soap box over. The food and atmosphere are definitely not the same as your corner burrito shop, but, it is much better than other sit down Mexican restaurants.
Dishes I tried:
Chips
It always starts with the chips. Large, warm baskets of tortilla chips accompanied by guacomole, pico de gallo, and salsa. All homemade, all delicious.
Jaliscan Style slow-cooked beef
Tasty but would have worked better with tortillas or rice
Tomisushi Restaurant
4336 Moorpark Ave
San Jose, CA
(408) 257-4722
Cuisine:
Sushi
January 16, 2007
Premium no-nonsense sushi
This is the first sushi restaurant I’ve been to where all the sushi chefs were actually Japanese. Enough said.
A small restaurant hidden inside a mainly Japanese themed strip mall hides a nice gem. This is one of the best sushi places I’ve been to. Fresh, no-nonsense, authentic, and variety are a few of the adjectives that come to mind.
Dishes I tried:
Noname roll
Great presentation! Under a mountain of ginger, onions, sprouts, and capers hide a very unique roll comprised of thinly sliced beef, fish cake, and spicy tuna. Definitely worth trying
Maguro
My staple. The maguro was so smooth, it literally melted on my tongue!
Kalani's Restaurant
1001 Heavenly Village Way Ste 26
South Lake Tahoe, CA
N/A
March 26, 2007
Tantalizing Tahoe Fusion
South Lake Tahoe is developing so quickly, its going to rival Whistler as the premier winter retreat on the west coast soon. I came to Kalani’s for dinner with my family. This restaurant combines Asian ingredients with European standards and Hawaiian specialties to achieve a unique blend of tasty food. The hefty prices ($30+ for entrees; $9 for cocktails) gave me sticker shock, but the ambiance and quality of food was worth it. If you’re ever in South Lake Tahoe looking for a fancy meal, this may be the choice.
Dishes I tried:
Open Fired Island Opakapaka (crimson snapper)
Mango & Sweet Kahuku Corn Salsa, Garlic Wasabi Mash, Chili Lime Butter. Wonderful combination of ingredients, worked very well together.
Alaea Crusted Rib Eye
Wasabi Garlic Mash, Haricot Vert, Garlic Blue Cheese Butter. The ribeye was not of good quality – too tough. The wasabi garlic mash pototaes and blue cheese butter was excellent
House of Prime Rib
1906 Van Ness Ave
San Francisco, CA
(415) 885-4605
Cuisine:
Steakhouse, Prime Rib, Steak
April 21, 2007
HOPR
For some reason, I remember the meat being softer and juicer, but instead they were a little tough. Nonetheless, its still a good place once in a while. If you go here everyday, you’d look like the Foodha.
Dishes I tried:
House of Prime Rib Cut
A little tough, but still tasty.
The Stinking Rose
325 Columbus Ave
San Francisco, CA
(415) 781-7673
Cuisine:
Italian, Californian, American
April 21, 2007
If you love garlic, this is your place.
I am a huge fan of garlic. I scoop spoonfuls into just about anything I make that goes well with garlic. Thus, I’d been looking forward to this restaurant for weeks.
The decor reminded me of Buca di Beppos mixed with an attempt to over-decorate for tourists. As expected, garlic nets and empty chianti bottles were hanging from nearly every piece of available ceiling real estate. Fortunately we don’t come out smelling like garlic… but we may have garlic sweat for the next few days.
Dishes I tried:
Bagna Calda
Wonderfully original. Garlic bulbs oven roasted in olive oil and butter with a hint of achovies. This was wonderful for spreading on bread!
Porterhouse Pork Chop
A generous slice of pork glazed with a slight sweet sauce. A little tough, but worth getting.
Temptations Indian Chinese Fusion
288 Castro St
Mountain View, CA
(650) 625-1234
Cuisine:
Fusion, Asian fusion
May 28, 2007
Trying to hard
This new fusion restaurant needs alot of work. My list of complaints:
- Two separate waiters came to take our order (Normally I expect this only of cheap chinese or vietnamese restuarants, but not someplace where the average dish is $12)
- we ordered Naan but we had to remind the waiter to bring it after waiting 10 minutes. After our initial order, a second order came out, further proving the lack of communication between the wait staff
- the food was presented well but did not have much flavor
-
Dishes I tried:
Manchurian Gravy Sauce
Aloo Tikki
Only dish worth getting. Too bad its an appetizer
Butter Chicken
Tandoori Chicken
Boti kabab (LAMB)
Lamb was too dry
The Public Resto-Lounge (CLOSED)
1489 Folsom St
San Francisco, CA
(415) 552-3065
Cuisine:
American, Californian, Asian fusion
January 2, 2007
Trendy, industrial setting with original tasty food
I came here a while back to try out this place based on several independent recommendations. The restaurant is set is an industrial part of San Francisco in the SOMA district down the street from several dive bars and your not-so-typical clubs.
The building is an old brick building with exposed I-beams and ventilation vents. The kitchen is located right in the middle of the first floor allowing the customer to peek inside the busy happenings of the kitchen where Chef Richard is working hard to please his guests.
The food was amazing. All dishes incorporated an interesting mix of fresh vegetables, light and tasty sauces, and conventional main courses.
If you don’t want to end up smelling like your food, wear something that is washable. Since the kitchen is in the middle of the restaurant, aromas fill the air and cling to your shirts, hair, etc.
Dishes I tried:
Ahi Tuna Poke
I love ahi tuna and this was one of the best ones I’ve had.
Pan Roasted Bluenose Seabass
Delicious!


justin
01/04/2007thanks for sharing your experience. maybe i will stick to pho hoa then.