mums

san francisco, ca

website

mums is all-you-can-eat and optionally all-you-can-drink shabu shabu. which inevitably results in sake bombing by a large and boisterous crowd. show up on a saturday night and you will very likely leave full, drunk, and half-deaf. your clothes might be slightly damp from being splashed with sake, beer, and/or soup. shattered glasses are common, judging by the efficient and non-chalant manner in which derek's sake-bombing failure was cleaned up. if that sounds like your idea of a good time, i highly recommend this place.

how was the food? does it matter? the quality of the meat (we tried beef, pork, and chicken) was surprisingly good for an all-you-can-eat place. i enjoyed the ponzu-based dipping sauce (especially with the daikon added) and derek's favorite was the peanut sauce. i've had better hot pot elsewhere, but not with an all-you-can-eat-and-drink package. good food, great fun.

southland flavor cafe

cupertino, ca

website

cupertino village is a complex with a ranch 99, a few bakeries, and several excellent chinese restaurants with strange names. southland flavor cafe? it's probably a literal translation of the chinese name, but a better translation would be "southern taiwanese cuisine." i wonder if i can make a career out of fixing chinglish. derek's parents happened to be in town while val was visiting from chicago, so we made a trip out to cupertino village. managed to pull tiffany away from her studies too for a mini family reunion.

my favorite (pictured) was the pork rice bowl which can feed a small army (or me) for about $6. another favorite was the beef noodle soup, served with the wide noodles that derek likes. the only downside to this place is that every other table orders the malodorous and aptly named "stinky tofu" (that's actually the english translation). the state of california should mandate "stinky tofu only" sections for taiwanese restaurants. we always try to finish our food quickly when we hear a nearby table say "chou dou fu" because that stuff is deadly.

bon vivant

palo alto, ca

website

bon vivant is a new french restaurant that recently opened in downtown palo alto. the interior is bright and inviting, especially on a sunny day (which is about 90% of the time here in california). derek and i were in the mood for something new and different and decided to try this place. despite the fact that they stop service at 3, the kitchen graciously let us sit and order an appetizer and entrees at 3:15. yes, that's when we eat lunch.

my favorite was the appetizer that we shared - duck rillette, which includes shredded duck, wild arugula, red onion, shaved fennel, and toasted bread. the duck was deliciously fatty, but balanced well with the fresh greens. excellent. the crepes were also quite good - mine was filled with smoked salmon, but the duck rillette was definitely the highlight. overall - pricey, but tasty.