I'm still high off my long weekend in NYC/BOS. I catch myself looking at the pictures I took there and pretending I was still there. Yesterday while on Columbus in North Beach after leaving Steph's housewarming, I watched a double-decker tourist bus and a Ride the Ducks bus pass by. It kind of "dawned" on me that people from all over come to SF the same way I went to the East Coast. I mean, duh, I know SF is a destination place, but I do take it for granted a lot. I've never been to Alcatraz. I've never done a tour of any kind here. But why not?!
One of these days, I'm going to pretend I'm from Toronto or Nebraska or somewhere and play tourist. I was honestly very scared to venture out on my own in Boston, but SF is going to be a piece of cake since I'm already familiar with the lay of the land. Who knows, maybe on one of the tours, I'll probably learn something new.
Anyway, Steph's housewarming was awesome. I got there later than planned because I was in bed all morning with a migraine and by the time we were leaving, I started feeling it again. Nonetheless, it was great to see Team Lick My Spoon and Team Inuyaki and talk over a table of cheese and apps.
Leave it up to Steph and Hua to create a deliciously amazing spread for their guests. They got porchetta from Roli Roti!!
I heart their new spot and the location is perfect! It's always a pleasure to visit and catch up with foodie friends! Speaking of which, Keat and I went to the Glen Park Festival today and met up with Chip and Lara. The most notable bites for me were the coconut soda ube ice cream float from Hapa SF and the buttermilk pie from the Rib Whip. Omg, Becky!
No pix. We ate too fast. Ha! Couldn't wait to eat!
Ok. Time for a nap. I have a cupcake class at Mission Minis tonight! Keat bought me a ticket for my birthday. Is that a hint for me to start up baking again?! Hmmm...haha. Whatever the reason, thanks Bubz!
Purple Yam - Ditmas Park, Brooklyn - 1314 Courtelyou Road - Honestly, Purple Yam deserved its own blog post, so I migrated this content from my original post: NYC Part Deux.
I was somewhat starstruck coming to Purple Yam. The owners of the restaurant, Amy and Chef Romy, are spearheads in the Filipino food movement. Every Filipino cooking class I have attended, their cookbook is present. Every conversation I have about preserving Filipino food in our country, Amy and Romy's names are mentioned. So every time I corresponded with Amy on FB, my stomach fluttered a bit. They are IT when it comes to promoting Filipino food in NY.
After walking through the wet weather again, we found ourselves at Purple Yam. The restaurant I looked most forward to on this trip. Our work here in SF is done out of passion and it is always a pleasure and often times an honor to be around those who have the same goal as we do. Amy and Romy started their business a long long time ago. If you have heard of Cendrillon, that was their restaurant. While us the kapaMEALya krew started our events less than a year ago, Amy and Romy are true veterans and their drive and love for Filipino cuisine has been around way longer. You can call them mentors to us.
We were seated at the rear of the restaurant near the back door to the patio. Amy and Chef Romy arrived a little while after us and to our surprise talked and ate with us throughout the entire meal. I was not expecting this at all...and I mean that in the most positive way...meaning while most restaurant owners talk and chat with their patrons, majority of them do NOT eat with them. This just made this meal so special. To share a meal and to talk about Filipino food and our love for it was incredible...especially when the ones you are eating are so influential in the Filipino food community.
Our first dish was "okoy" - a fried shrimp fritter almost that was served with spicy vinegar. I love fried things with suka! Next came "Cua Pao" clam shell bao filled with pork belly and cilantro. Two pork belly baos in one weekend? Score! No words to describe how good these two dishes were.
Next came mustard green wraps and they were filled with a spicy ground beef concoction, pickles, and fried taro root. These are a fun take on your usual lettuce wraps. So much robust flavor! The "Pa Jun" was special - it is a Korean onion pancake, but here, Chef Romy used ramps! Ramps are available for a very limited time during the year!
The next two entrees were out of this world. Check it. Confit duck adobo and shortrib adobo with burnt coconut cream. Talk about extravagant. I never had duck adobo before, but I absolutely loved it. I love duck. I love adobo. Perfect. The shortrib blew our minds away. Lara did the honors and served all of us. The meat was so tender and the bone was clean as a whistle when she was done portioning out the meat. So incredibly tender and flavorful. Adobo CAN be beautiful. Look at those plates!
As if we weren't already wow'ed by everything that was put in front of us. Chef Romy did a table side presentation of sinigang soured with green nectarines and topped with leek crusted fish. The use of the green nectarines was genius. I bit into one and the tart fruit was still a bit crisp even in the soup. Sinigang doesn't have to have tamarind. Nectarines, guava, and calamansi can be used to sour your soup. Gorgeous.
We had to have some classics, so the kare kare and sisig were must haves.
The kare kare was accomanpied by a nice serving of bagoong which is a shrimp paste to add another dimension of flavor. Amy saw that we had a bowl of plain steamed rice and asked me if I wanted to make it bagoong rice. Um, if you are at Purple Yam, please do the same. It was the perfect pair. The vegetables and oxtail were tender and the peanut butter based sauce was amazing.
Let's talk sisig.
I have had many different types of sisig in my life. This version is one of the best by far. They used pig cheeks, ears and snout and seasoned it with lime and chilies. This is just MY opinion, but I don't think sisig should just be all muscle meat. It has to have some sort of face part in it. Sisig has a distinct aftertaste from the melange of fat, meat, and cartilage and it can be found here. Sisig is also supposed to be easy to spoon and eat. There shouldn't be huge chunks of meat and cartilage. The mix should have a nice uniform dice and have good flavor.
THIS is how sisig is SUPPOSED to taste like.
Dessert! We were so full by the time we reached dessert, but we couldn't resist. Starting at the top left corner going clockwise: kalamani meringue pie with guava sorbet, buko pie with macapuno ice cream, bibingka made with two cheeses, trio of ice creams: chocolate truffle, avocado, and purple yam (can't leave without having purple yam at Purple Yam!) and mango tart with mango ice cream.
Every dish here was phenomenal. My top two were the bibingka and the purple yam ice cream. I loved how the cheese in the bibingka added nice richness to it. I am also happy to report that they make all their ice cream in-house. The purple yam ice cream was to die for!
Talk about an EPIC meal. Here I am pictured with Yahaira of Tweets Cakery, Lara, Amy, Chef Romy and Chip. I was smiling to myself on the train back to Manhattan.
I can only be grateful to Amy and Chef Romy for being so hospitable and generous to us. Chef Romy is an incredible chef and Amy is an awesome storyteller. I am so happy to have met them both and to have the honor of eating their food. Their cookbook is next to my bed and sometimes I just peruse through the pages. I have never seen a book that makes Filipino food look so amazing.
Thank you again Amy and Chef Romy! You are the BEST! Bar none!
Yes, yes, I am back from my vacation! Since I was away from a real computer all that time, I did not get a chance to great my beloved blog a happy 5th birthday!
I remember when I first started this blog. I was a 23-year-old student learning about medical accounting. I was working on HIPAA, patient care, superbills, spreadsheets, ledgers, and ten-key calculations.
Right after I left school everyday, I would find a new spot in San Francisco to eat and document my findings. It all started very small and simple, yet the blessings I have received from being a food blogger are immense.
I can only be grateful for the life I have lived in the last 5 years. I hope this continues for a long time. God knows my passion for food is not going to go away anytime soon. To all the people I have met, cooked, and ate with since April 2007: thank you from the bottom of my...stomach. You truly make life delicious.
I don't have time to write up a complete recap, but here are our pictures. I'll recap with a full report when I get back from vacay! The sad part was that we rode in a limo, but no one took pictures while we were in it! lol! Here are the stops we took:
1) addendum 2) Bouchon Bakery 3) R. Mondavi 4) Silver Oak 5) V. Sattui 6) Chandon (no pix - we've been there too many times)
Thank you to my friends who made the trip a great one!
Meanwhile, I am getting ready to head off to NYC. OMG. I am so not packed LOL! See you when I see you!
I finally got my taste back!! Thank you to my friends for the well wishes and suggestions on how to get better. Now that my tastebuds are in order, my appetite is also back. It was so painful to eat delicious food and not being able to experience the flavors! I stopped less than mid-way my dinner last night! Today a combination of DayQuil, Sudafed, Afrin, and hot pork sinigang did the trick!
So today I'm taking it easy and staying in bed. What do I do in bed? Play on my phone, watch YouTube, mess around on my iPad, look at pix...now the latter kills me because majority of the pix on my cam and iPad are of food.
I came across the one my girl Romeeta took on Saturday during our lunch at addendum in Yountville! Buttermilk fried chicken with Swiss chard, potato salad, and honey corn bread. Oh lord, that corn bread...heaven...
Chef Keller, you do no wrong. This was some of the best fried chicken ever! What I would do for that plate right this moment...uh, that's a cue for someone to start inventing a teleporter lol! For you carnivores, the BBQ is awesome there too.
I got this nasty sinus infection/cold/allergy/congestion late last week. I attempted to fight it with lots of Vitamin C and fluids on Friday. I managed to somehow ignore it over the weekend by taking DayQuil, Claritin, and Aleve, but it became worse last night. It's the combination of the weather and my already poor immune system.
This evening, I attempted to "sweat" out the bug by eating Pho with sriracha. It worked for a little while, but I'm back to feeling miserable. So far I've taken 4 daytime cold pills, 4 sudafeds, 6-10 squirts of Afrin, and 2 nighttime pills. I'm not feeling any better.
Can't smell nor taste.
I made a grilled cheese. Can't taste.
I made caesar salad. Can't taste.
I reheated an al pastor burrito. Can't taste.
I baked chocolate cake. Couldn't smell it baking.
This is horrible.
I swear this better go away before my flight to NYC on Thursday or I'll be very upset.
So kawawa.
Goodnight,
Jo
PS: I was locked out of house tonight. I broke my key. My sister came home and she lost her key. Mom was at work. Bubz was at work. Let's just say it took a ladder, teamwork, and Jayla holding up a cell phone flashlight to find our way in...all the while being cold in the dark.
Restaurant: Local Mission Eatery Address: 3111 24th Street at Folsom, Mission District, SF Phone Number: (415) 655-3422 Cuisine: Local Dining Partner: Keaton Date Last Visited: March 25, 2012
I had this gift certificate in my wallet for the past 4 months. It actually wasn't mine. It was Keaton's. He received it from his Godparents J and B for his birthday. It was a generous $$ amount for dinner. Because Keat now works the night shift, we don't venture out for dinner in SF like before. It's something to get used to, but at least we have the [guaranteed] weekends together. It didn't hurt to ask if we could use it for Sunday brunch and luckily for us, they accepted it. Score.
This would be our first time eating at Local Mission Eatery. Knead Bakery is located at the rear of the restaurant. We have visited Knead a few times before (the pomme d'amour is that dreams are made of), but never sat for a meal. What I noticed right away were the communal table, the counter lining the length of their wall, as well as the counter seats directly by the kitchen. Then I saw the bookcases filled with cookbooks and food literature. I loved it. If you have not noticed already the name of the restaurant is "LOCAL" Mission Eatery. Their goal is to only use fresh ingredients and products from purveyors close to the Bay Area - from their teas, cheese, and produce. Among them: Marin Roots Farm, Sutton Cellers, Fully Belly Farms, and many many more.
Now the hard part was what to order. After snatching some fresh out-of-the oven twists and pomme d'amour at Knead, we approached the cashier with wide eyes and salivating mouths. The chefs were directly behind her working in an organized/chaotic dance which was mesmerizing to watch. When choosing where to sit, it was a given to sit at the counter facing the chefs.
Cheese Trio Goat Gouda - Paso Robles, Central Coast Creamery, Goat Big Rock Blue - Paso Robles, Central Coast Creamery, Cow Red Hawk - Point Reyes, Cowgirl Creamery, Cow Nectarine-Thyme Preserve (below) - this was a perfect accompaniment with the cheese. I am not too much of a blue cheese girl, but the fruit from the preserve cut the funkiness. Loved it. Unfortunately, I neglected to ask where this awesome condiment came from or if they made it in-house. If I find out, I'll let you know.
When it comes to getting your dishes, the chef actually comes out of the kitchen and delivers the food to you. Ours in particular said we were getting the "pork trifecta."
He was right about that.
Pork Patty Sandwich with Chicories
Keaton devoured this sandwich. What I liked was that the pork patty was very tender and went deliciously with the lightly dressed and slightly bitter greens. I appreciate there is always a balance when they think up their dishes. Not one quality overrides others on the plate.
Scrapple. This is my first time having this Dutch dish. It's basically a mush of pork, flour, etc. atbp. Doesn't sound too appetizing right? The texture of the scrapple is very soft, but pair it with the refreshing shaved asparagus salad and it's a melange of richness with a bit of crispness.
My dish was divine. When I have something with pancetta with it, it's usually in small dice or cubes. I have never eaten a piece this big. Pancetta is essentially Italian bacon without the smokey quality. The pork belly is cured and then dried. This reconstituted version still lets the spices from the cure come through. It almost reminded me of a corned beef brisket. I needed something to distract me from the lovely yet rich fat so the braised greens were perfect lending a nice kick to every mouthful. The poached eggs which were nestled on top of the creamy grits were decadent but were neutral enough to not weight down the plate.
I wish Local Mission Eatery was closer to my home. The menu will constantly change with every new season and inspiration. Not only are dishes lovely on the palate, but they are wholesome with quality ingredients created by good vendors. The flavors burst at you and often times I thought, "oh, THIS is how (fill in the blank) is supposed to taste like." Often times the processed foods clouds our taste and makes us forget what fresh food tastes like. I am glad that we have a restaurant in our community that makes it a goal to support our local purveyors and economy. In addition to that, I thoroughly enjoyed watching the chefs do their craft. It looks hectic behind the counter, but they come out with fantastic plates that look too good to eat.
I love this festival. It's full of art, culture, music, and FOOD! This year, 2012, it will occur on two weekends - April 14 & 15 and April 21 & 22 in San Francisco's historic Japantown. We had a lot of fun last year - there was a car show, a section dedicated to all things Sanrio, and of course all the shops and restaurants located inside the shopping centers.
You cannot go to a festival without trying out the food made out in the open air. I think that is what I love about festivals - getting in line, getting your food, and then searching for a spot to eat. We surely got our fill of festival food:
We were spoiled. There was udon, yakisoba, SPAM musubi, taiyaki (those cute little filled fishies), and so much more. Japanese cuisine is one of my favorites. I don't think I would ever get tired of it.
Last year, Keaton and I volunteered with the beautiful people of Boobs4Food (Jess, cofounder, is pictured with us), and we made the famous Teriburgers for festival go-ers. I will never forget it! We got sticky and hot and dirty from making them, but it was so much fun. I would do it again in a heartbeat!
Of course the Cherry Blossom Festival should not be the only time of year you come to Japantown! I work literally 5 minutes away and I will be honest, I take it for granted also because it is so close. However, whenever I do come here, I never find myself hungry at the end. Here are just a few of my finds in JTown. BTW: the pictures above were taken at Kintetsu Mall - the samurai cut out is usually found near the Sanrio store and my friends and I took those booth pix at Pika Pika.
One of my favorite spots in On the Bridge restaurant which is located (you guessed it) on the bridge over Webster Street that connects the two buildings on Webster and Fillmore. The first time I came here was over 10 years ago and it hits the spot each time with their kare raisu or curry rice.
For ramen, hit up Suzu. I love their ramen and rice combinations. I usually get ramen with pork and their unagi over rice. This was one of my first encounters with ramen that did not come out of a plastic bag. It's legit.
For udon and soba noodles (and more kare raisu), head to Mifune. I love going to JTown and trying different types of Japanese cuisine. I never had cold noodles before, but they were kind enough to show how to eat it with the sauce it comes with. Very refreshing and light. I like the contrast of the hot fried tempura with the cold bouncy noodles.
If you are into donburi (rice bowls) and getting different types, go to Izumiya and try their combination menus. You can choose from teriyaki, tempura, curry, etc. You can create your own combinations in case you want to sample a lot - you get two donburi for about $10.
I think sushi boat restaurants are so much fun! Isobune is my favorite. What I love is that you can stop in, have a bite or two or twelve and go. Easy peasy. Each dish has a different price point, and is it a surprise I always manage to rack up a healthy bill here? My favorites are the ungai hand rolls and the beef tataki. Yes, it is rare beef, but I adore it. Be sure to grab the takoyaki (octopus balls) if you see them!
Some places I just stop in for a quickie and go. Case in point, the kare raisu (can you tell I am in love with kare raisu?) from Osakaya, the brown rice onigiri from Onigilly at the cafe located in New People, and lychee soju cocktails from Playground.
For something sweet to cap off your night, you will always find something good. Something belly good. Uh-huh. At Belly Good Cafe. Get a crepe with fruit and whipped cream. If you are nice, they will make one with a cute face on it. Not entirely Japanese, but the blueberry cupcake from Cako is awesome. Or you can go to the various shops around JTown to pick up some fresh mochi. My favorite ones are filled with sweet bean paste or black sesame. Okay, if you REALLY like crepes, head to Sophie's Crepes and grab my fave: vanilla ice cream, Nutella, strawberries, and whipped cream. You're welcome.
I love Japantown. It's such a delicious part of the City and it doesn't get the credit it deserves. BUT! So many new additions have arrived or are coming. I have heard rave reviews of State Bird Provisions and Roostertail. Hapa Ramen is coming also. Since I DO work by there, anyone want to meet me there for dinner?! Arigoto for reading and take care!
Restaurant:Parallel 37 Address: 600 Stockton Street at California, Nob Hill, San Francisco Phone Number: (415) 773-6168 Cuisine: Californian Dining Partners: Mom, Hubby Bubz, Sis, Niecey-Poo Jayla
I love my mom.
That's a given, right?
March is our birthmonth and we always find a way to make it delicious. She called me one night and said she made reservations for us and our family at the newly opened Parallel 37. I can always count on my mom to find a great place for dinner. Parallel 37 and the Ritz Carlton have a special place in our hearts. Before there was Parallel 37, there was The Dining Room. It was known as THE place for fine dining in San Francisco thanks to Chef Ron Siegel. I went to The Dining Room back in 2008 with Cuzzin Star. It was simply amazing.
Well, we all know the economy went downhill...so did the volume of people eating out. Long story short, The Dining Room went bye-bye and Parallel 37 took its place - thankfully with Chef Siegel still in command. What IS Parallel 37? It is the line of latitude that goes through Northern California. Nice.
But! That's not the reason why the Ritz Carlton has a special place in our hearts. My mom was hired at the RC back on March 16, 1991. Yup, on my 7th birthday. She has been employed by them since then...so not only were we celebrating mom's birthday and my birthday, we were also celebrating mom's 21st anniversary at the hotel.
I have been familiar with the place since it's opening. I used to run through the hallways, sneak into the gym/spa, ate until I couldn't eat anymore at the holiday parties held at the grand ballroom, and hid in the showers in the women's lockeroom. I don't do that anymore, but imagine a 7-year-old being a introduced to a spectacular place like the RC.
Well, here we were once again, this time in a new environment. The faces are familiar and the service is still impeccable, but the vibe is noticeably different. How so? Well, let's see what we ate first!
From the moment we stepped in, we were greeted with smiles. We were seated at the far end of the restaurant along the lit tree-decorated wall. The tables are without tablecloths...maybe to let diners see the natural beauty of the wood. Our first taste from the restaurant was a glass of Etoile rose. And yes, the wine list comes via iPad.
There is no tasting menu as there was at The Dining Room. There are 4 sections on the dinner menu: small bites, appetizers, entrees, and sides. Dessert menu comes at the end of the meal. I neglected to save a copy of their menu the day of the dinner, so these are just descriptions from memory.
For our first course, we had a plethora of apps and small bites to try. We only ordered 3 or 4, but more came out. HBD, mom!
1. Polenta Fries with chanterelle relish 2. Bay Scallops with green tea gelee 3. Shortrib Ravioli 4. Carrot Ravioli 5. Spreadable Braised Chicken
FOIE GRAS - they had two preparations that evening - 1 hot and 1 cold. The warm version had brioche and huckleberries. Don't you just love fruit and foie? The cold version was spreadable and was surrounded by a piece of kombu. Keat and I had a field day - eating as much as we could in one sitting. We had to. *shakes fist as stupid ban* Hurry folks, 6/30/2012 is the last day you can have it in California.
Our entrees were simple - I had the young chicken with mushroom risotto and everyone else had the beef ribeye and asparagus. My picture of the beef is really bad, but trust that it was tender as can be. Keaton's plate was wiped clean by his many pieces of bread. Oh, their bread is great too. Honestly, if I could go back, I would ask for the mushroom risotto. It was perfect.
Then it was TIME!!!
We were treated with some amazing sweets from a peanut butter and jelly macaron, green tea cake, canelle, and of course the chocolate cake complete with a greeting for mom. The ice creams were delightful as well. I finished off the meal with a nice cappuccino and smiled to see my family enjoying themselves.
I swear, Jayla Nicole is spoiled. Everyone smiled and said hello. Foodie in the making. She stole my broccoli from my plate! What a joy she has been to our family and I could see it in my mom's eyes that she was happy with dinner especially since her family was with her to celebrate another year of life...so thank you to everyone at Parallel 37 for making my mommy feel special.
Parallel 37 has a different feel from The Dining Room. When Cuzzin Star and I dined there years ago, we felt we weren't worthy to even step foot inside. The vibe at the new restaurant is more casual. The first thing you see when you walk in is the bar and several television broadcasting sports shows. It is a little louder than the former restaurant, but then again, it probably makes those with families and small children feel a bit more comfortable. If you were there on March 10 and saw a little girl running from the hostess table passed the bread station all the way to the back wall, that was Jayla. The ambiance is a bit more approachable and you are not obligated to stay for a 10-course tasting menu. Small bites at the bar? Fine! Dessert only? Cool!
While I will miss the finer touches the Ritz Carlton used to have, I suppose the only constant thing is change. Everything from weather, money, and food change. I can't expect a business to stay the same after 21 years, right?
RC, you know I love you and MOM - I hope you enjoyed. Love you!
