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SubscriptionsSites I Read
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| Uncle Frank's BBQ
2135 Old Middlefield Way
Mountain View, 94043
Bestaurants Rating:
Price: $$
Ambiance: 7
Service: 9
Taste: 9.5
Pat:
The very first time I managed to get myself down to Uncle Frank's, the
waitress that works there told me they had run out of food. I
think this is the first time anything like this has happened to
me. Apparently getting your restaurant reviewed in the San Jose
Mercury can do that just that....make you run out of food. And
Uncle Frank ran out fast. Didn't even have a bite left for the
dinner crowd. This time we were not to be denied. We headed
over there around 6pm and sure enough they were open and ready for
us. The same waitress we saw the first time was there, and she
was really nice. Ambience of the place had a sort of divebar/old
lounge quality to it. But that really didn't matter, I would eat
at Uncle Frank's even if he were serving food in a shack with no
running water. We decided to order the 4 meat combo, and boy were
we in for a treat.
First the side dishes...Spicy Cajun Creamed Corn and Collared Greens:
Cornbread:
Quad Meat Combo: BBQ Chicken, BBQ ribs, Beef Brisket, and Hot Links!!!
Everything was served in styrofoam!!! I love it!!! Who the
heck needs real plates it was all about the food. Let me tell
you, I've never had chicken that fell off the bone quite like
this. Let's just say my drumstick didn't quite make it to my
plate due to the bone completely sliding off the piece of meat I
managed to stab with my fork. I then had some hot links.
Good amount of spice, and boy the smoky flavor was filling my
mouth. The good stuff, was up next. Nothing beats beef
brisket and ribs, and Uncle Franks delivers. He uses a 30 hour
slow cooking method that makes the otherwise tough brisket turn into
the softest tasty meat. The ribs were falling right off the bone
as well. No need for cleaning of the bone with a couple of
cleaning rounds. We all know what thats like, especially when you
eat subpar ribs. You have this craving to clean off the bones,
even though the meat clings onto it like a winning lotto ticket in
hand. Did I mention the portions??? Uhhh let's just say we
had enough for 2 more meals, and I kid you not. I had some for
lunch, and I still recall having more than half of what we ate
left. Ridiculous portions. Great Service. Uncle
Frank's can't be beat!!!
Coming Soon: Chou-Chou
(French - SF), Guadelajara Taqueria (Mexican - San Leandro), Monsoon Cuisine of India (Indian
- Mountain View), Tri-Valley Seafood (Chinese - Pleasanton), China
Delight (Chinese - Dublin), Dasaprakash (Indian - Santa Clara), Osha (Thai - San Francisco), Sonoma Chicken Coop (Various - San Jose, Campbell), Rajjot (Indian - Sunnyvale)
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| Ding's Garden
18922 Gale Ave # A
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
Bestaurants Rating:
Price: $
Ambiance: 7
Service: 8
Taste: 9
Steve:
The chinese food in the Bay Area hardly compares to the authentic chinese restaurants in Southern California. It's even more difficult to find a great Shanghai style food place in the Bay Area. However, they seem to be available in abundance in LA.
Ding's Garden does not disappoint at all. The Nien Gao, Dan Dan Noodles, 4 meat dish and Shao Long Bao were extremely good! They were served promptly and had such an authentic home cooked taste that I almost swore off chinese food in the Bay Area altogether. The owner came to talk to us at the table and she topped off our meal with free Boba. I'm not a huge fan of Boba drinks, but it's such a kind gesture for the owner to keep up a good relationship her guests.
If ever in the area, stop and visit this restaurant. On the outside it looks like an ordinary shop, but the inside packs huge taste and satisfies. All 4 of us at the table were fed for $25, so it's also easy on the wallet.
Coming Soon: Chou-Chou
(French - SF), Guadelajara Taqueria (Mexican - San Leandro), Uncle
Franks BBQ (American - Mountain View), Monsoon Cuisine of India (Indian
- Mountain View), Tri-Valley Seafood (Chinese - Pleasanton), China
Delight (Chinese - Dublin), Dasaprakash (Indian - Santa Clara), Osha (Thai - San Francisco), Sonoma Chicken Coop (Various - San Jose, Campbell), Rajjot (Indian - Sunnyvale) | | |
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London Best Fish & Chips
1216 C Broadway Street
Placerville, CA 95667
(Located in Hangtown Village Square)
530-642-0777 Bestaurants Rating:
Price: $
Ambiance: 6
Taste: 7.5
Service: 8
If
ever you stop by Placerville, let's say on a weekend getaway to South
Lake Tahoe, and you find yourself craving something fried and
fishy...then London Best Fish & Chips just might hit the
spot. You can't miss the staple Fish n' Chips decor, 4 Monks malt
vinegar, cocktail sauce, tartar sauce, and of course the plastic
baskets with paper lining. This place pretty much had it
all. I quickly glanced at the menu, and was a bit surprised to
find they had sandwiches as well. The crab sandwich sounded
pretty good to me, but Stef wanted the sandwich and I decided to get
the special of the day. Fish n' Shrimp combo. The fried
oysters sounded pretty good as well, but I decided to get the
special. For some reason I didn't satisfy my craving for fried
zucchini, which I later on regretted after hearing someone after me
order it. Not to worry, I will satisfy my craving some day, maybe
at Sneakers (Sports Bar located in San Mateo and future bestaurants
entry).
The portions of fries were generous, especially with the sandwich. We were surprised to find
that
the sandwich actually featured crab cakes instead of some mayo
dominated crab mixture. It was quite tasty, but could had used
maybe a bit more crab cake and a little less veggies. The fish n
shrimp combo was an excellent choice. The batter was very light
with no residual oiliness that usually happens to ruin fried
foods. I created my own dipping sauce of cocktail, ketchup,
pepper, and tartar sauce. It complimented the fried goodness very
well.
Overall this place does a good job with
fish n chips, I wouldn't rate it on top of my choices for fried
goodness, but if you happen to be in Placerville and need cheap eats
then this is the place for you.
Fried Shrimp and Fish on top of a layer of golden fries.
Crab Cake Sandwich with golden fries.
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| Café Mums
1800 Sutter Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
415-931-6986
Bestaurants Rating:
Price: $$
Ambiance: 7
Taste: 8
Service: 8
Steve:
Right across the street from Japantown is a Best Western Miyako Inn that has "Cafe Mums" on the canvas overhang. The exterior looks like a diner that doesn't really belong along the border of Japantown. The windows are all steamed up so it's a bit difficult to see what's inside, but once stepping inside, there is a realization that this place houses authentic Shabu Shabu - a meal that requires cooking your own food in a pot of broth.
It's pretty easy to remember how much it will cost to eat here. It's $20 for all you can eat meat and veggies and an extra $10 for all you can drink beer and sake. I didn't know about the all you can drink special, so I made a mistake and went to the bar and paid for my beer there. The bartender was good. She saw us leave for a second to go talk to some friends, and she kindly put some napkins over our drinks so nobody else would take them or move them out of the way. She also was drinking happily with the other customers.
It took us awhile to get seated, but when we finally got to our tables, out came plates of meat and vegetables. The broth was just water so I was skeptical about the taste, but the cooked meat still tasted good. The plates of meat are huge too - about the size of a large pizza:
We only finished one meat plate per person, but if we wanted more, we could have gotten it. Unfortunately, the restaurant uses gas cans to light their shabu shabu, but after about 30 minutes, the cans run out of gas. The waiters were a little hard to flag down to get the heat back on but it wasn't too bad. The servers were good about consistently bringing us our refills of meat, veggies, sake and beer, so that worked out well.
I definitely recommend this place for any type of party. It provides a good atmosphere and people leave full of great food and good drinks.
Coming Soon: Chou-Chou (French - SF), Guadelajara Taqueria (Mexican - San Leandro), Uncle Franks BBQ (American - Mountain View), Monsoon Cuisine of India (Indian - Mountain View), Tri-Valley Seafood (Chinese - Pleasanton), China Delight (Chinese - Dublin), Dasaprakash (Indian - Santa Clara), Osha (Thai - San Francisco), Sonoma Chicken Coop (Various - San Jose, Campbell), Rajjot (Indian - Sunnyvale) | | |
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Indian Aroma Restaurant (formerly Scenic India)
1653 Polk Street
San Francisco, CA
Bestaurants Rating:
Price: $$
Ambiance: 8.5
Taste: 9
Service: 10
Polk Street, where you will find transvestites and great Indian food. What a way to start out a review. My serious appetite however needed some loving, and Stef and I were trying to choose a place to eat. With our entertainment coupons in one hand, we wanted to try out a place called Rendevous, but after seeing it all boarded up and out of business, we decided to eat at Indian Aroma. I really liked the decore of the place, somewhat modern yet cozy. It felt like an SF place to eat, but without all the noise. We were the only people in the restaurant, but decided to risk it. We were in for a surprise.
I will be the first to tell you that I am not versed in Indian cuisine, so I had to ask about the menu. The owner came out and answered a lot of our questions that we had about various items. Stef wanted something with just a hint of spiciness, nothing that sends you off into H2O consumption overload. I didn't want anything too mild but with a lot of flavor. Stef decided on the Chicken Tikka Masala and it turned out to be a real winner. I kept tasting some kind of squash or yam that was in the base of the sauce, but upon asking the owner, he noted that it was actually pistachio and almonds. A pleasant surprise indeed. I decided to get the Chicken Curry and boy was it tasty. This was no Curry from a packet, this was truly the real deal. It looked like it was from scratch, and also had that pureed texture to it. The spiciness was just right, not too hot, not too bland. The hottest item was actually the yogurt based dipping sauce that came with the roti and onion rava dosa which might I add was one of the highlights of the evening. I regret not trying the special that evening which was seabass on a grilled plate as the owners are from Bangladesh which is known for their fish dishes. The owner seemed to recommend it, and I trust his judgement. The service might I add was excellent. We got a complimentary dish of garbanzo beans in a curry sauce which was really tasty. Other items that I wanted to try were the multiple grilled plates as well as the Tandoori chicken. Future meal perhaps?
I enjoyed this meal very much. It is probably the best Indian cuisine I've had so far, but my young Indian food tastebuds will continue to search.
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