November 19, 2012

A16

One thing I like about living in a new city is the seemingly endless restaurants to go to. I've been enjoying trying new foods and new restaurants so much.

A friend gave me a BlackboardEats to A16, an Italian restaurant in the Marina. I've heard really good things about the food there so I made it a priority to go. I made a reservation for a Monday evening and was surprised to see how crowded it already was at 5:30 pm. I was seated at the Chef's Counter, which was really cool because I got to watch the chefs cook.

I ordered the Acorn Squash Bruschetta as an appetizer and upon the waiter's recommendation, ordered the Nettle Gnocchi for my entree. I LOVED the bruschetta but had mixed feelings about the gnocchi. The taste of nettle in the gnocchi was super strong so I won't order it again. For dessert I ordered the Fig Marsala gelato and was pleasantly surprised when the check came out and the gelato was on the house. The portions were on the small side but perfectly filling. The staff were wonderful and I definitely want to come back to try the other stuff on the menu.

Acorn Squash Bruschetta with Ricotta and Fried Sage
Nettle Gnocchi
Fig Marsala Gelato

November 18, 2012

Roam Artisan Burgers Part 1

Roam Artisan Burgers is so far my favorite burger place in the city. The first time I ate here I ordered a Bison Sunny Side burger (organic free-range egg, aged white cheddar, caramelized onions, greens, tomato, and sweet chili sauce). There was a lot going on in the burger so I couldn't really taste the difference of a Bison patty but the burger as a whole was really good. I also ordered the Sweet Potato Fries and my friend ordered the Blue Bottle Coffee shake and declared it the best thing he's ever had.

The next time I went, I got the Beef French and Fries Burger (truffle parmesan fries, gruyere, avocado, caramelized onions, watercress, and dijon mustard). French fries inside a burger? Best idea ever. Since I already had fries, I ordered the Seasonal Veggies which were Brussels Sprouts with chili flakes, lemon, parmigiano reggiano and it was DELICIOUS. It was hot, salty, crispy, lemony, and spicy. It was so good I'm going to try and recreate it at home.

French and Fries Burger; Sweet Potato Fries; Brussels Sprouts with chili flake, lemon, parmigiano reggiano

November 11, 2012

Zazie Part 1

Lucked out with a first-come, first-served outdoor table.

Scrambled Eggs with Toast and Home Fries
Challah French Toast with Orange Cinnamon Batter

November 4, 2012

Balboa Teriyaki

Came here on a whim solely because Shanghai Dumpling King had a ridiculously long wait and this restaurant was just across the street with very few people inside. The star was the Lambada Roll.

Smitten Kitchen

I completely underestimated the popularity of this event. I waited three hours in line to meet Deb Perelman from Smitten Kitchen, who's on tour for her new cookbook. I couldn't miss the opportunity to see her in person at my favorite bookstore, Omnivore Books on Food.
I had her sign the bottom of my baking pan!