sorabol

san francisco, ca

website

after breakfast at the ferry building i walked over to union square to do some shopping. having learned my lesson from my last visit to the westfield shopping center, i went back to tina's food court recommendation - korean food at sorabol. i'm pretty sure they cook the bulgogi in butter. according to jinny, that's how real koreans cook, anyway.

in an attempt to be healthy, i decided to add some spicy tofu, which was good but uninteresting. next time i'll just get extra bulgogi. the kimchee is free - grab a few containers when you get to the end of the line. good flavor to the kimchee, it adds the right amount of acidity to match the buttery bulgogi. there's probably better korean food in the city somewhere else, but sorabol is a great option if you get hungry while shopping.

blue bottle coffee

san francisco, ca

website

the day after the exam, i decided to wander the streets of san francisco by myself. i started the day at the ferry building for breakfast. there were so many choices - do i get a cute little cupcake from miette, a meat cone from boccalone, or a roll from acme bread company? i decided to try blue bottle coffee to see what all of the hype is about. each cup of drip coffee is individually brewed, but thankfully i ordered a rosemary-studded olive oil shortbread cookie to munch on while i waited for that process. and it really is a process - there's a contraption with a row of coffee cups and coffee filters filled with coffee just above them. a woman with a teapot of hot water pours a little bit into the filters, watches them, pours a little bit more, watches them again, repeat.

18 minutes from entering the line to getting my coffee (although the line was even longer by the time my drink was ready). it was $3.75 for a drip coffee with foamy steamed milk swirled into a pleasant design. this is special occasion coffee - making this a daily habit might dent both your wallet and your patience. but i had the time and the funds, so i enjoyed sitting at the blue-bottle-customers-only counter, sipping my exceptionally aromatic coffee while watching the comings and goings of the ferry building.

b restaurant & bar

oakland, ca

website

b restaurant had that upscale farm-to-table rustic look that usually indicates good food and good drinks. my drink was called "high hopes" (which i thought was good to have before the final day of my exam) with gin, benedictine, grapefruit, and lime. don't worry, i was still able to study after one cocktail. derek's cocktail, called "love on" tasted like a mix of cough syrup and lotion. bad.

the tables were turned when it came to the food. i ordered the fish, served on saffron risotto with squid ink and oyster buerre blanc. sounds delightfully fishy, doesn't it? it wasn't. it was bland. derek, however, really enjoyed his housemade fettucine with rainbow swiss chard, garlic, peas, cranberry beans, and pecorino. we shared the excellent caesar salad with amazing housemade croutons and white spanish anchovies. for dessert, the pecan tart with bourbon whipped cream was delicious. overall, it was kind of hit-or-miss, but the hits were very good.

cock-a-doodle cafe

oakland, ca

website

i haven't lived in the bay area for very long so all i know about oakland is what i see on the local news and it usually involves protestors and/or violence. i had to take my exam in oakland so i was stuck there for a few days. turns out, there's this very charming and hipster-ish hood called "old oakland" near downtown. that's where i found cock-a-doodle cafe.

the cafe was nearly empty at 11 am on a wednesday, it was just me and one other person who was clearly studying for the same exam. service was very friendly and it was a perfect spot for breakfast. excellent iced tea, served with giant wedges of lemon. the chicken-apple scramble was amazing - chicken-apple sausage, mushrooms, mozzarella, spinach, grilled onions, and roasted pepper. the biscuit was a little dry, but their homemade blueberry jam covered any and all imperfections. delicious.

indochine

palo alto, ca

website

derek and i like to be able to walk to restaurants. now that we no longer live on university avenue, we have fewer walkable choices. indochine is one of them. it offers thai & vietnamese cuisine. i'm always wary when a restaurant offers more than one cuisine - it usually means that they don't do either well. but we've ordered takeout from here a few times and they make a pretty good pad see ew with tofu.

one night, i was craving pho and we decided to walk over and try indochine in person. the pho was not good. the meat had clearly been cooked (and over-cooked) before it was added to the soup (real pho should have sliced raw beef placed in the soup just as you're about to dig in - the beef cooks in the hot soup). the broth was bland. very disappointing. we'll still get pad see ew here, but we'll trek over to madame tam on university when we want pho.

la bodeguita del medio

palo alto, ca

website

this is one of my favorite lunch spots on california avenue. lovely ambiance, white tablecloths, and excellent iced tea. it takes a little bit longer than some of the other spots nearby so my co-workers and i come here only if we have the time to spare. we always ask for their bread because they serve it with an amazing chili oil - so good. i get the fish sandwich - similar in appearance to a filet-o-fish, but its actually delicious. crispy flaky fish filet topped with tartar sauce in a soft bun.

so i had high expectations when i brought derek here for dinner. the prices are quite a bit higher in the evening and they don't offer the fish sandwich. sticking with the fish theme, i ordered a white fish they had on special. a little bland, unfortunately. derek's dish, however, was excellent - the ropa vieja - shredded skirt steak in a rich and buttery sauce served with delicious plantains. well, now i know what to order if i come back for dinner.

so gong dong tofu house

palo alto, ca

link to yelp

the volvo ended up requiring overnight repairs so i was stranded. derek left work to pick me up and we decided to grab a meal nearby at so gong dong tofu house. i had been there before when we first moved from new york and i remember having a very disappointing bibimbap.

well, i've either forgotten what good korean food tastes like or so gong dong tofu house just does a better job with their soon du bu (spicy tofu soup). my soup was quite tasty and derek actually enjoyed his kalbi. i need an real korean person to try this place out and let me know if my taste buds are still working.

alison bakery

palo alto, ca

website

the volvo needed a check-up, so i left the car at the volvo dealership and walked across the street to find a place to study for my exam. the giant starbucks looked like an obvious spot, but i noticed alison bakery right next to it. the glass display full of giant croissants, cakes, and cupcakes drew me in (we all know how mediocre starbucks' baked goods are). the bakery also had ample seating with a sunny interior, so it looked like an excellent place to study.

the proprietor was quite happy to see me walk in. this bakery recently opened and it must be difficult to get people out of their 'bucks habit. no espresso drinks but they have an excellent and cheap drip coffee. the proprietor mentioned that the banana muffins had just come out of the oven, so of course i ordered one of those. the muffin would have been good, but ordinary if it was cold. however, fresh out of the oven it was extraordinary -- crunchy on the outside, warm and moist on the inside. yum.

como esta taqueria

palo alto, ca

website

we were exploring our new neighborhood and were thrilled to find a taqueria hiding next to walgreen's. looked like a popular neighborhood spot with a colorful chalk menu and outdoor seating. what is interesting for this hole-in-the-wall spot is that they really care about the quality of the ingredients and they offer various healthy options (whole wheat tortilla, low carb burrito, etc.)

of course, we didn't actually choose any of the healthy options. derek ordered the tortilla soup and a carne asada burrito (both decent). i ordered what is possibly one of the best vegetarian burritos i've ever had - the chile relleno burrito. delicious - the chile was stuffed with gooey cheese and covered in an eggy batter. refried beans, rice, and lettuce were added, then wrapped in an soft, chewy tortilla. top it all off with some of their excellent housemade salsas and it is vegetarian perfection.

buck's of woodside

woodside, ca

website

we were hoping to finally try the famous burger at the village pub, which has been highly recommended by rajesh, but unfortunately it was closed on saturday. instead we went to an upscale strip mall nearby and found buck's. from the outside, it looks like a standard diner. from the inside, it looks like ye olde curiosity shop. there's all sorts of strange things hanging on the walls - like a narwhale tusk and a model ship. there's a lot to look at while you wait for your food.

derek ordered a burger, per usual, which was solid. i really enjoyed my club sandwich (although the waitress was baffled when i asked to leave out the avocado). the coleslaw on the side wasn't very good, but skipping the sides allowed me to save room for dessert. the highlight was definitely the dessert - a delicious and massive strawberry shortcake. homemade whipped cream, perfectly sweet strawberries, all sandwiched in a delicious crumbly biscuit. amazing.