ryowa

mountain view, ca

link to yelp

i really miss all of the fantastic ramen shops we used to eat at in nyc (and the ones we tried in tokyo, of course). the south bay is seriously lacking in the ramen department. derek managed to find a spot on castro street in mountain view. it was pretty crowded when we went on a saturday afternoon. we had to wait a while before we could grab a stool. the shop reminds me of the ramen bars we visited in tokyo - simple layout, condiments on the bar, stool, wait until a spot opens before you sit and slurp.

i ordered the tsukumen, dipping noodles - while it was good and satisfied my craving, it wasn't nearly as good as the tsukumen with fatty crispy pork at setagaya. it's also missing the dense chewy noodles. but ryowa has buttered corn, good broth, decent noodles, it will do just fine. i'm hoping the crowd of eager ramen eaters indicates a growing interest in this japanese specialty and we'll see more ramen shops open up in the area.

mom-dipity cooks!

made a trip home to see the parents. i only blog restaurant vists or the rare occasions when i cook something photogenic enough to post. but i think i'll make an exception for mom-dipity's cooking.


no one can beat my mom's dumplings.


steamed sea bass, snow pea shoots, and lion's head meatballs.


the best mi fun in the world.

burger bar

san francisco, ca

website

derek and i are huge fans of top chef masters competition, where hubert keller was a finalist. when i found out that he had a burger restaurant in san francisco, derek and i had to go. i was slightly worried when i discovered that the burger bar is located above macy's in union square, which is extremely touristy (which usually suggests bad food). but we forged ahead.

the burger bar is not what we expected. it clearly caters to tourists. the floor is sticky with what i assume was the result of tourists spilling sugary cocktails and beer everywhere. the burgers are overpriced and while they were decent, it wasn't the quality that we were looking for. for me, the highlight was the zucchini fries, which were crispy and crunchy on the outside, but soft on the inside. but even the zucchini fries aren't worth a repeat visit here. lesson learned - gotta trust my instincts and not be blinded by the names of famous chefs.

citizen cake

san francisco, ca

CLOSED

after fresca, a+ma took us across the street to citizen cake, a cute little shop devoted to desserts. love the name, love the decor, love the desserts. apparently the menu also includes pizzas and sandwiches, but for me, the focus is on the display case full of cakes, brownies, and other desserts. i ordered the s'mores brownie, topped with a gooey toasted marshmallow. rich, decadent, and delicious.

fresca

san francisco, ca

website

a+ma took derek and me to a peruvian restaurant on fillmore. they serve fancy california versions of traditional peruvian food. i took a picture of the paella i ordered. i can't remember what else we ordered, except for the fact that alcohol was involved. which might explain why i can't remember what else we ordered. but i do remember that the food was fantastic, along with the company.

alice's restaurant

woodside, ca

website

this may be one of the few restaurant raves where i will probably not be going back. at least not without some dramamine. as i mentioned in the la toque post, we got a new car on the way to napa. in fact, we are now leasing a 2011 bmw m3. apparently this car loves to go fast, especially on winding roads. the roads in the hills just northwest of palo alto are quiet and twisty - the perfect combination to test the limits of sports cars, motorcycles, and your inner ear equilibrium. derek had taken the car on these roads (alone) a few times and saw a cool restaurant he wanted to take me to.

alice's restaurant is located at the crossroads between two highways in these hills and it's clearly a biker hangout. the parking lot in front of the restaurant is filled with huge motorcycles and a handful of expensive sports cars. there's even a booth advertising the services of attorneys specializing in representing bikers (??). inside, the atmosphere is perfectly casual and cool. the burgers are amazing - the meaty and juicy patties are the highlight here. i ordered an omelette - delicious, served with excellent hash browns and a biscuit. the only problem is that i was woozy all day from the trek. sigh.

village bistro

san jose, ca

website

santana row is a massive outdoor shopping complex located in san jose, california. in addition to the shopping (standard mall fare), there are hotels, spas, restaurants, and even apartment complexes. although derek remarked that living above a shopping mall would be like living in disneyland, removed from reality. palo alto gets pretty sleepy at night, but santana row is always buzzing. village bistro, which refers to itself as a "california bistro" did not look inviting. it looked fancy and stuffy. but once inside, the atmosphere was fun, light, and vibrant.

too bad the picture is terrible, because the food was amazing, some of the best that we've had since we moved to california. fantastic cocktails. in typical california style, all of the ingredients are local and sustainable. i had wild salmon - perfectly cooked, buttery and delicious. the sauce was spectacular. derek ordered the burger (of course) - he loved it. we went back again and ate outside on a sunny day and had fantastic make-it-yourself bruschetta. they serve crunchy grilled crostini with a selection of housemade ricotta, roasted garlic, tomato marmalade, and candied olives. mmmm.

gott's roadside

napa, ca

website

we love burgers, diners, and roadside stands, so when y+a recommended gott's roadside for burgers in napa, we knew we had to go. especially after a disappointing meal at la toque, we weren't going to take any chances with lunch the next day. napa has a very cute and very walkable downtown area and we explored the market and walked through a few shops before heading to gott's.

i ordered mini corn-dogs (yes, i'm a 10-year-old at heart) and a bowl of chili. fantastic chili, made a delicious dip for my corn dogs. derek had the burger and fries. also excellent. solid american food done well. y+a know how to find great food.

la toque

napa, ca

website

sorry for the lapse in blogging, things have been very busy, but now the big event is over and i will try to catch up with the backlog so that my new posts will be more timely. the lag has caused me to forget many details about prior meals. i'll skip the meals where i can't even remember which restaurant we ate at. hopefully moving forward i'll be able to post right after the meal rather than months later and give my devoted reader(s) more accurate information.

derek and i decided to take advantage of our new norcal locale and venture up to napa valley to check out what the fuss is about. unfortunately we also decided to stop by the car dealership while we were up there and ended up spending most of the weekend getting a new car rather than touring wineries. we did make it to la toque, however, which is a michelin star restaurant. derek and i were missing the fancy new york food scene and thought we could relive the experience at la toque. unfortunately, the only thing amazing at la toque were the desserts. the panna cotta was incredibly light - somehow floral and fruity all at once. the food was good, but not worth the price. the sommelier was engaging and gave us intriguing backstories on each of the wine pairings, but one of the wines was undrinkable. overall, not worth the trek but perhaps it was an off-night.