Chapeau!

A couple weekends ago, Porgy and I went to Chapeau! - a French restaurant in the Richmond District in San Francisco - for a date night. I've been wanting to go there for the past few years but somehow it just never happened... so I was super excited that we finally went. We loved our experience there - Chef Philippe greeted us, the server was attentive and the food was delicious (the Seared Scallop and Basil Risotto in Lobster Sauce was the best dish for the night!). I opted for the 4-course tasting menu while Porgy had the 3-course early bird special.

Kir Royale to start the dinner...


Blue Cheese Puff Pastry with Pear and Salad


Escargot in Butter, Garlic and Parsley


Seared Scallop and Basil Risotto in a Lobster Sauce


Duck Breast and Duck Leg Confit with Polenta and Bok Choy in Orange Sauce


Cassoulet de Toulouse - Canellini Beans, Shredded Braised Lamb Shoulder, Duck Leg Confit, Garlic & Toulouse sausage


Tahitian Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee


Apple Tart with Hazelnut Ice Cream

Napa Valley

A couple weeks ago, Porgy and I took an impromptu day-off from work and went to Napa Valley for some delicious wine and food loving.


We first stopped at the Bouchon Bakery in Yountville for yummy pastries – I had the bacon cheddar scone and Porgy had the cross bun. Heavenly!


then off to Frog’s Leap Winery to sample their wine flight...


more wine flight at Grgich Hills Estate ...


and finally we had a couple glasses of smooth Cabernet Sauvignon tasting at Silver Oaks.


On the way back we stopped by at BarbersQ to fuel ourselves for the drive home. I got the full rack of baby back ribs while Porgy had the lamb sliders. Their ribs are definitely one of the better ones that I have had since I moved to the SF Bay Area a decade ago. It is annoying that I cannot find a good American-style BBQ restaurant in San Francisco. Do you know a good BBQ restaurant in San Francisco that I should check out?


PS: Since I was the designated driver, I only sipped, swirled and spit the wine. It’s hard for me but it’s the responsible thing to do.

Date Night at Chotto

Today was one of those days that we both were very blah at the end of the day and we felt that we needed something to cheer us up. We were supposed to go to Tsunami swimming practice tonight but we just did not have it in us to do it and we decided that, instead of going there and do a bad swim session, we would do an impromptu date night at Chotto - a new Japanese Izakaya restaurant in the Marina district.

We started our dinner with a carafe of hot Hakutsuru sake, Imo Age (garlic french fries with spicy miso aioli) and Tori Age (crispy chicken wings, shichimi buffalo sauce).


Bacon Mochi (applewood smoked bacon, mochi, nori) - Very interesting combination, I kind of liked it.


Tsukune (chicken meatball, eggyolk, homemade teriyaki) - I can eat multiple orders of this. Delicious!!!


Tontoro (pork cheek, sea salt, shichimi chili) - Yum yum...


Miso Tonkotsu (pork & chicken broth, miso, chashu) - I think they gave us the Karamiso Tonkotsu (the spicy miso ramen) since it had a nice spiciness to it.


After dinner, we decided to stop by at the La Folie Lounge for some night caps on the way home. Porgy got Dark and Stormy (Goslings dark rum, ginger beer, lime, canton ginger cognac) and I Rye Manhattan (Rittenhouse rye, carpano antica sweet vermouth, bitters).


So did I feel guilty for skipping swimming practice? Eh... kind of but not really. I think it's nice to be able to do this impromptu date nights to keep ourselves sane. We promised ourselves we would go to the practice on Wednesday and Thursday but we'll see how that goes.

Lunch at Il Cane Rosso

Taking advantage of the long 4th of July weekend, Porgy and I went to Il Cane Rosso at the Ferry Building for lunch. It was a beautiful sunny day so I was somewhat surprised that we were able to get a table outside overlooking the bay (not that I'm complaining...).


I had the Marin Sun Farm Meatloaf with Pancetta-Onion Gravy and Roasted Potatoes ($12.50) and a glass of Boony Doon Rose. I really loved the meatloaf flavor as it was not too ketchup-y or BBQ-y, it's my kind of meatloaf - savory with a hint of tomato sauce.


and Porgy had the Marin Sun Farm Roast Beef Sandwich with lemon aioli, spicy pickled red onions ($9).


PS: These pictures were taken using the new iPhone 4. Not bad huh?

Canteen

Last week Porgy and I celebrated our quasi anniversary by having dinner at Canteen. We used to go there for brunch regularly a few years ago but we had not been there in awhile, in fact the last time I went there was more than a year ago! Our friend, Jeremy, was kind of enough to babysit Arthur so we were able to enjoy dinner without having to worry about him. Things haven't changed much there - the food is deliciously well executed and the atmosphere is wonderfully casual.


Cherry with Blue Cheese and Cracked Pepper


Bigeye Tuna with green tomato, avocado, coriander and chili


Rabbit Salad - Crispy rabbit leg with fresh chickpeas, fava beans, mustard


Sea Bass with sweet corn, peppers, spring onion and scallions


Pork Shoulder Confit with lentils, braised bitter greens, paprika, bacon


Hazelnut Cake with fresh figs


Chocolate Croquettes with espresso sauce

Ike's Place

After hearing the positive raves about Ike's Place in the Castro and its ongoing legal battle with the landlord for the past few months, we decided to check it out a couple weeks ago. To avoid the long line and wait time, we called in the order first and picked it up 30 minutes later. I got the Name of Girl I'm Dating (Halal Chicken Breast, Honey Mustard, Avocado, PepperJack) on Dutch Crunch bread while Porgy got the Al Bundy (Salami, Ham, French Dressing, Avocado, Smoked Gouda) on Sourdough bread.


After eating the sandwich, we both were not sure whether we liked them or not. Yes, they were tasty and the breads (specially the Dutch Crunch one) were perfectly baked ... but at $9.99 per sandwich, I'd prefer the $3.50 Vietnamese BBQ Pork sandwich from Little Paris Coffee Shop in Chinatown.

Slanted Door

Last Friday, my "best friends" at work took me to Slanted Door, Charles Phan's Vietnamese restaurant at the Ferry Building, for lunch to celebrate my birthday the day before. It has been awhile since the last time I went there.

We started our lunch by sharing Daikon Rice Cakes with shiitake mushrooms and shallots and Spring Rolls with shrimp, pork, mint and peanut sauce. I really enjoyed the flavor and texture of the Daikon rice cakes, it's not like the typical daikon rice cake that I usually find at dim sum restaurants. And the sauce... I couldn't tell what in the sauce but it totally complimented the rice cake well.


Interestingly enough, all of us ordered noodles for our main courses: Crispy Egg Noodles with prawns, scallops, squid, carrots, broccoli, and shiitake mushrooms, Stir-fried Rice Noodle with chicken, shiitake mushrooms, brocolli, bean sprouts and egg, and Grilled Chicken Breast over rice noodle with imperial rool, cucumber and mint. Since Crispy Egg Noodle and Grilled Chicken Breast are staple Chinese Vietnamese food, they are good as usual. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the Stir-fried Rice Noodle. Although it looked bland (color-wise), we all agreed that it was really delicious and tasty. I guess the saying "we should not judge a book by its cover" also applies for food.


When we got back at the office, we enjoyed some yummy Sprinkles cupcakes (red velvet, chocolate, vanilla and carrot cake). I was super stuffed by the end of the day because all these goodies. Thank you my "best friends at work" for a wonderful and scrumptious birthday lunch.

Frances

Tonight for my birthday, Porgy took me to Frances, a two-month old restaurant in Castro serving modern and seasonal California cuisine from Melissa Perello. I was so excited because I had been wanting to try it out ever since I heard that she's opening her own restaurant.

Frances has an interesting concept with the custom-blended house wine served in marked carafe where it costs $1 per oz.


We started by sharing Applewood Smoked Bacon Beignets with Creme Fraiche & Chive Sauce and Roasted Chestnut Soup with Boccalone Pancetta and Cipollini Onion. I think the soup is super delicious... creamy yet somehow light and nicely balanced of saltiness and sweetness, it's perfect for a cold winter evening.


We had Caramelized Atlantic Scallops with Artichoke and Wild Mushroom Barigoule, Petaluma Chicken with Savory Bread Pudding, Sultana Raisin and Apple Relish and shared the Butter Bean Ragout with Parmesan and Porcini Butter. It's been a while since I had a scallop dish and these were cooked perfectly, crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside and they rested on a refreshing broth.


We shared the Valrhona Ganache Tart with McEvoy Olive Oil Ice Cream by Humphry Slocombe. The tart is super rich but it's nicely balanced by the lemony olive oil ice cream. I think I'm going to stop by at Humphry Slocombe store soon to get a gallon of that yummy ice cream.