All posts in: SF Eats

Life

16 Oct 2019

SF Eats: OMA San Francisco Station

Earlier this year, I shared a quick snippet of my birthday at McDonald’s which was glorious! However, that wasn’t the only celebrating we did. Before McDonald’s, we headed to my first Omakase ever. I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of it, but never had the occasion to try it. I can get by with some simple sashimi and a few rolls usually! My birthday felt like an opportune time to try this out so I took this recommendation from an Instagram friend of mine and went to [OMA San Francisco Station.] It hadn’t been open for long, but we recommend still making a reservation. They accommodate eight seats and a few times that they serve per day so walk-ins are tough.

It was a different feeling receiving each piece of nigiri one at a time. Since the price is steep and the pieces are minimal, I was worried about being hungry afterwards. Obviously, that quickly diminished as I got to the end of the meal and realized that you can order extra when the Omakase is done. It was nice to be able to savor each piece as it was crafted by our chef and to spend these moments enjoying the meal in a way I hadn’t experienced before.

We had such a great time for my birthday that we actually went back for a second time to celebrate Kevin’s. These photos are from both occasions! It’s important to note that their menu has four different categories which include different price points and amounts of Nigiri. Each time, we chose the Nozomi, which includes 12 pieces of Nigiri and one Temaki for $85. While I haven’t tried other Omakases in the city, I have heard that this price and the quality is a great deal!

Life

10 Jul 2019

SF Eats: The Snug

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that [The Snug] is one of my favorite brunch spots. Mandi was the first person to ever introduce me to it and my first time there I ordered the pasta for a meal. I wanted to try something completely different! The only breakfast thing about it was the poached egg. If you’re up for something a little heartier, this is delicious though and you won’t regret it.

However, mine and Kevin’s go-to seems to be the same thing always. We never stray. For me, I order the Everything Naan with trout roe, cauliflower schmear and pickled red cabbage. It’s a very non-traditional choice, but the flavors from it are amazing. From the photo, it may not seem like a lot, but this fills you up quick. Kevin’s selection is the classic Breakfast Burger which he claims is better than most other places he’s tried.

These are the two things that always keep us coming back. Coincidentally, it’s the photos on Instagram that get people asking me what we’re having and where they can get it!

Life

06 Jul 2019

SF Eats: Kibatsu

Spoiler alert: our dinner with a Japanese name was just ice cream! Just kidding! We’re actually starting this post off sharing the last part of our meal – dessert. And if I’m being honest, we didn’t take too many photos from this very late planned dinner anyways. After a drive up from south bay, I was craving sushi. I had already felt like I’d exhausted every spot around me, but [Kibatsu] was relatively new. Their previous owners had a restaurant before that they closed and Kibatsu was their new and improved. We arrived just as they had opened for their first seating and snagged a spot at the bar without a wait.

I couldn’t find a flaw in any part of the meal. Truthfully, it exceeded my expectations for sushi in San Francisco. Before this meal, Kevin and I were ready to throw in the towel. We’ve always been convinced that sushi in Seattle was superior to anything in San Francisco. We still stand by this, by the way. But that might be because something is off. Here’s what we’ve discovered and it maybe it’s a controversial opinion.

For the same price at Seattle’s Umi Sake House or Wasabi Bistro, you will get lesser quality here in San Francisco. What that means is that for a place similar to those types of restaurants, you will need to pay more in San Francisco to get better quality. It doesn’t seem very fair, but that is what we’ve observed since we’ve been here. Maybe it has something to do with the cost of living or maybe it’s harder and more expensive to get better quality sushi here.

Either way, Kibatsu is going to be more expensive than my Seattle spots, but it was well worth it. We both felt very well taken care of by the staff and thoroughly enjoyed our meal the entire time. I’m already surprised that I haven’t been back in the last eight months.

Life

11 May 2019

SF Eats: Kantine

Since we returned from Taipei, I’ve been spending a little bit more time thinking about my meals. American breakfast can be so heavy at times with their pancakes, omelettes and french toast. It’s not my favorite because naturally, it makes me so sleepy! In Taipei, Angel and I got used to starting our day with a bowl of noodle soup. Occasionally, growing up, I would have that meal at home too so it wasn’t completely unfamiliar to me. Different cultures breed different kind of breakfasts though and that’s why [Kantine] was intriguing to me.

Kantine is Scandinavian inspired and allows you to create your own breakfast board. What Winny and I loved about this spot was the variety! I’m someone that gets bored of my food fast so if I order one thing that is fairly large ie) a stack of pancakes, I won’t be able to finish. Smaller portions and different flavors are my jam. For $15, you can pick five items and for $19, you get 7 items. Five felt like the perfect amount and I remember feeling pleasantly full after our meal.

Above is my order:

Latte
Soft Scrambled Organic Eggs, Herbs
Watermelon Salad
Sweet Porridge

Life

04 May 2019

SF Eats: Pearl 6101

Tonight, we’re starting with dessert! Whenever Winny is in town, our hangouts become a food tour of the city. It’s positive on both ends because she gets good food and I get to try out the new restaurants I’ve had on my list. We also both get fed! There couldn’t be more of a win-win situation for us. The Richmond area has had a number of new restaurants pop up in the last year and it’s well worth the trek to check out. I was excited to be able to arrive early for dinner at [Pearl 6101]! Between the two of us, we shared three plates, but this ice cream sundae with strawberry and black sesame ice cream scoops was the perfect combination. I never made sundaes when I was growing up because I always felt like it was too much for me. These days if I see it on a menu though, it’s my go-to-order because it’s perfect for sharing!

Yellowtail Crudo

Life

02 May 2019

SF Eats: Liholiho Yacht Club

[Liholiho Yacht Club] is the food darling of San Francisco. Even though I’ve lived in the SF Bay Area for years now, it took me nearly four years to actually eat at what most people consider their favorite restaurant in the city. The first time I had a bite here was actually in their basement bar – Louie’s Gen-Gen Room. If you’re ever in need of a spot for decent drinks and delicious snacks, make sure to make a reservation for Gen-Gen Room too. Snagging a reservation at Liholiho can be tricky. Sometimes, it can take months to grab dinner at a normal time. However, if you don’t mind an early dinner, I would recommend going on a weekend and lining up at 4:20 for the first wave when the restaurant opens at 5PM.

During our visit, Winny and I came hungry and ordered a number of plates (not all pictured here.)

Duck liver toast, jalapeno, pickled pineapple
Hopper shrimp, chicken fried broccolini, miso, satsuma mandarin, everything spice
Scallops, Misoyaki pork belly, napolitano squash, pecans, red flame grapes
Whole roasted cauliflower, bone marrow hollandaise, picked red onion, shoestring potatoes
(dessert) Baked Hawaii, caramelized pineapple ice cream, vanilla chiffon

There wasn’t anything that we didn’t love from our order. This also seems to be the same sentiment from everyone else – that you truly can’t go wrong.

Uncategorized

03 Aug 2017

SF Eats: Flour + Water

Wowowow new title because we live in San Francisco now! Truth though – Flour + Water has always been in San Francisco so that hasn’t changed. The first time I ever ate at Flour + Water, my friends had made a reservation for a late Sunday evening dinner a month in advance. I’ve pretty much been an early bird all my life and on Sundays, I like to eat dinner at 4PM! Since my first instance was a reservation so far in advance, the impression I got was – wow this is some serious San Francisco restaurant. It is, but there are ways around it so that you can at the restaurant WHEN you want.

My office is nearby and by a stroke of luck, I happened to come upon the restaurant with Leslie right when it had opened on Friday at 5:30 PM. We were seated right away at a communal table. If you’re a lover of delicious pasta, you need to make your way here. I’m convinced that I’ve never had a bad dish here and you know what? I’m convinced that eating there at 5:30 PM on a Friday tastes much better than waiting a month to eat there on a Sunday at 8PM. The menu is always changing – likely by season – so it’s fun to try all of their new dishes.