Don't trust your instincts at Costco

What I really wanted for dinner last night was some ice cream, but I kept hearing MH's voice inside my head telling me my cholesterol was too high. So I went to Costco to get some non-fat frozen yogurt instead of ice cream. I got chocolate yogurt with berry topping, instead of the more standard "Very Berry Sundae" with vanilla yogurt. Mistake. The chocolate yogurt was actually excellent, with a rich chocolate flavor, and it was completely overwhelmed by the tang of the berry topping (made from blueberries, raspberries and blackberries). I should have simply gotten vanilla yogurt (although I like chocolate much better) which goes better with berries. Sadly, I didn't enjoy it enough to finish, and put the rest of it in my freezer.

I ended up eating Maypo (Maple-flavored oatmeal originally made in Vermont). The Maypo I had was from 2002, but it tasted fine. When I was growing up, I used to eat Maypo every day during the winter. At some point (mid-1990s, I believe), they changed the recipe so that it tastes more salty now than it did when I was younger. Too bad; the original Maypo was so delicious. It's still a lot more palatable than many cereals, so I still eat it occasionally.

Julius' Castle in North Beach, SF

Continuing with the dine-about-town dinners, MH and I took out two good friends tonight to Julius' Castle. Julius' Castle is located in the North Beach area of SF, which means that parking is next to impossible. Actually, the restaurant itself is quite difficult to find; it is located on a dead-end street off of another dead-end street at the top of a hill. Thanks to MH's excellent navigational skills, we not only arrived early, but had time to find street parking instead of valet parking it for $10 (plus tax & tip)! Score!

Our friends were not as fortunate; they got stuck in traffic and were nearly an hour late for dinner. To the restaurant's credit, they not only honored our reservation, but gave us an excellent table in the corner of the larger of the two upstairs rooms, next to a window overlooking the Bay Bridge, which was lit up gorgeously. This was especially kind since while we were waiting for our friends, several other similarly-sized groups came in without reservations, and the restaurant turned them away.

Julius' Castle was a Zagat noteable restaurant of 2003, when the SF Zagat was still working out some kinks, and I can see why this accolate was not repeated. Kitsch factor was high (a full-sized statue of a knight at the entryway; the restaurant is in the shape of a castle; etc.). The food was fine, but not noteable. And there were certainly too many badly-dressed tourists milling around.

One aspect of the service was offensive: the waiter came to our table with the regular menus, the wine menu, and the dine-about-town menus. He handed out the regular menus and the wine menu, but withheld the dine-about-town menus. We had to call him back to get them. Tourists may have been fooled, but not us!

We all got the dine-about-town dinners. The appetizer was an insubstantial, but well-composed Caesar salad (the house special salad). Entree was either a filet mignon served with whipped potatoes or a salmon patty served with whipped root vegetables. And dessert was a black walnut bread pudding with vanilla gelato. Three of us got the filet mignon, and one got the salmon. The filet was cooked to my liking (medium rare), but MH wondered if the portions were smaller than portions from the regular menu. The bread, served at the outset of the dinner, was quite good, with the rustic sourdough leading the pack.


Julius' Castle
6.5/10

Why did I ever leave Ohio?

A business trip called me to Cincinnati recently, and I must say that I did my research before I went. I had heard from a family friend (and native Cincinnatian) there were three things of note:


1. Graeter's Ice Cream
2. Skyline Chili
3. La Maisonette

I only got to try one out of the three recommended items, but I made up for it in other quarters.
Let me start by saying I have tasted Graeter's and it truly is excellent ice cream. I tried three flavors: peppermint, chocolate chocolate chip, and black raspberry chocolate chip. The black raspberry chocolate chip was, by far, the winner, and it is because the raspberry flavor was clean and true. The chips are interesting; they are more like fudgy chunks than hard chips - they have a soft bite to them. I am a big fan of mint, but would have liked to try the mint chip rather than the peppermint. These folks can overnight pints anywhere in the continental US, so if you're so inclined to spent the $70-$100 it costs, by all means invite some friends over and have a party!

I was unable to get a reservation at La Maisonette due to the 72 hour notice requirement. Instead of La Maisonette, I tried The Palace at the Cincinnatian (where I stayed). The food was superb. Since I was dining alone, I did not get an appetizer, but focused my energy on the entree. I chose a stuffed walleye (a local white fish) with Maine lobster, which was served on sautéed baby spinach and shitake mushrooms with a lemon and lobster infusion. The fish was moist and flaky, and was extremely delicious. The staff sent me away with a small box of petit fours, which I was unable to consume at the table. Silly, because I immediately ate them upon returning to my room. One small gaffe: the maitre d' came up to me while I was waiting for my entree to be served, and asked, quite loudly, if I wanted something to read. Unnecessary, on his part, to draw attention to my lack of company.

I had lunch at a private club - the Banker's Club - where a colleage had a membership. The lunch was a large buffet lunch, and there was nothing noteable about it whatsoever (except for the fact that they served Graeter's Ice Cream for dessert). The room looked like a conference room. The buffet selection was large, but virtually tasteless.

Confession: I had the opportunity to try Skyline Chili, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. In Ohio, you can still smoke inside restaurants, and when I entered a Skyline Chili establishment, the smell of smoke was so strong, it completely took away my appetite for the chili. I suppose I could buy some cans, but somehow, it doesn't seem the same.

In-N-Out in Mountain View, CA

Who doesn't love an In-N-Out burger? Well, besides vegetarians/vegans/etc. who don't eat meat? They're slim and scrumptious and dressed up just the way you like them. In fact, the employees at In-N-Out are so willing to please the customer that a whole cult "secret menu" has developed around the "off-menu" ways of having a burger prepared. Example:

Double Meat: two beef patties instead of one

3x3: three beef patties and three slices of cheese

Protein Style: wrapped in a lettuce leaf instead of on a bun

Animal Style: grilled onions, and everything else scraped up from the grill

and for the vegetarians,

Grilled Cheese: everything on a bun without the meat

Let me tell you that the burgers are good if you like them thin and salty. The fries are not up to snuff, however. They're smallish and usually greasier than necessary. Salting is a must, as they are not well seasoned. The shakes are decent - thick and frosty - but stick with vanilla. The chocolate flavor isn't as good.

Ambiance is what you'd expect: Fast-food style order, wait, and sit. The one difference is the staff. In-N-Out hires young kids to run the stores, and they are always extremely polite and friendly. Another plus is that In-N-Outs are definitely cleaner than their counterparts.

Unfortunately, the only In-N-Outs are located in California, Nevada and Arizona, so you have to haul to the West Coast to find some.

The Oasis in Menlo Park, CA

If you're put-off by dirt, broken peanut shells on the floor, screaming Stanford students, sketchy men watching sports on TV, or wooden booths and tables with names carved into them, don't go to The Oasis. If you can get past the dive atmosphere (and the swinging wooden saloon entryway door), you will be treated to some of the best damn greasy-spoon food you ever ate.

Let's talk about the food first, since the decor is nothing to write home about. The "O" (as The Oasis is affectionately called) does all griddle food well - hamburgers, chicken breast "burgers," Philly cheese steak sandwiches, etc. In addition, and and all fried food is exceptional. This includes chicken tenders, onion rings (a personal favorite), fried fish sandwiches, and fries. I am serious when I tell you this is the real deal.

Now, here's where there's a surprise: their pizza and salads are excellent. Shock! I didn't believe MH until he actually ordered a whole pizza (no slices available) with veggie toppings and I consumed half of it. This was no small feat, since even a medium pizza is huge. Needless to say, it is worth the $10 it costs. It can easily feed three. I've been ordering the Asian Chicken Salad the past few times I've been there. The salad is quite large, with tons of chicken, almonds, and mandarin oranges top a bed of greens. Plum dressing on the side rounds it out nicely.

Now let's talk about the decor. Honestly, this place is a visual pit. Dim, dingy, and dirty, I really wouldn't bring my parents here. If it's a warm summer's eve, stick to the outdoor patio (if it's not filled with screaming kids). If it's disgusting outside, find a booth. You can tuck yourself inside, away from the masses, and pretend like you're in college, out on a hot, cheap date.

This place has been around for a long time (at least since the 70s - probably earlier), and it's been only in the past few years that it has caught up, technologically. Now, instead of hollering out your order number on a loudspeaker, there are buzzers that tell you when your food is ready. You still have to pick up drinks separately, but at least you can order them at the same cash register now.

Parking can be a problem, especially if there's a horde of Stanford students (each with their own car) taking up space in the parking lot. The bottom line is that for a dive sports bar, this place beats them all, food-wise. Definitely a must-try. Just don't take the parents.


The Oasis
7.5/10 (for what it is)

Seasons at the Four Seaons Hotel, SF

San Francisco has a great month-long promotion called Dine-About-Town. Dine-About-Town is similar to NYC's Restaurant Week. For the entire month of January, SF restaurants offer a three-course prix fixe lunch or dinner for $21.95 , or $32.95, respectively. The promotion started in 2002 (prices were $19.95 and $29.95 then, and the promotion only ran for 10 days), and I leapt at the chance to try some of the pricier restaurants for a more reasonable bottom line. The next year, the promotion length was increased to the entire month, and has enjoyed quite a bit of success since then. It is interesting to note that from year to year, the restaurants participating in the promotion change. Each year, MH has done a cost-benefit analysis, factoring in price alone, to determine which restaurants are "worth" visiting. In other words, if the average cost of dinner were $30 if one were to visit the restaurant on a non-dine-about-town evening, then it is not worth it to visit the restaurant for this promotion. MH effects a cut-off over $45/dinner or greater to make a visit worth our while. I then use my own discretion to determine worthy restaurants once MH has done his price cost-benefit analysis.

Starting off the new year right, MH and I took some out-of-town guests to Seasons Restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel in Downtown San Francisco. I had made reservations via Open Table about a month in advance, and had no problem securing a choice table. NB: I have a friend who had trouble getting a reservation a few days in advance for a Friday night. The room in which Seasons is located is like a long rectangle, with one wall comprised entirely of huge windows overlooking downtown. Obviously, the best tables are closer to the windows, away from the serving stations in the back. Tip: if you make a reservation on Open Table, call up afterward to secure your choice of table. This usually requires some research into the room/setup/etc., but is generally worth it.

The dine-about-town menu was printed on the regular menu. This was most appreciated, as from experience in years past, many places make you ask for the menu, immediately identifying you as low-spenders. The bread basket arrived immediately, and was a highlight of the dinner. Let's just say that the gargantuan parmesean crackers are quite addictive. We all ordered off the dine-about-town menu. I opted for the salad, to start. Nothing special. MH got split pea soup, which he enjoyed. As an entree, I got cod over wilted greens with tender fava beans. Aside from the slight saltiness of this dish, it was very well done. The beans had an appealing nuttiness to them, and the wilted greens were slightly chewy. Dessert was either creme brulée (with tiny shortbread cookies) or an apple tart. I tried both, and enjoyed the creme brulée more - it had a good, crisp sugared crust and the creme was creamy and flavorful.

The service was excellent. Not once did we feel like second-class citizens, although that may have been because some of us ordered glasses of wine. Further, we did not tarry at the table, using up available space (keeping in mind that it is a pricey hotel restaurant, and may not usually be completely filled up). An enjoyable evening with good friends and good food.


Seasons
8.5/10

Getting started

A new year, a new adventure. Thus begins my blog devoted to my eating adventues. If you're reading, you'll enjoy the acmes and the nadirs, as I explore the very best and the very worst; from high-end restaurants to holes-in-the-wall, I'll do it all. There will be an emphasis on San Francisco Bay Area restaurants, but I travel frequently, and will review all manners of epicure, from mail-order to my visits to others states/countries. Enjoy, and feel free to comment to add your own insights!