restaurant

Sunday, October 19, 2014. . To mark our 13th Wedding Anniversary, Inna and I decided to visit the well-regarded Evvia Restaurant in Palo Alto, CA.. . . We checked both Yelp and Michelin ratings and decided this was a fine restaurant. . . . We arrived in Palo Alto early and walked around, enjoying the shops. We arrived at Evvia right at the opening time…

October 7, 2014 . I have been using Yelp for many years and have posted many reviews. However, one story on slashdot.org intrigued me.. . A restaurant in Richmond, CA - Botto Italian Bistro - asked customers to give them 1-star reviews on Yelp.com.. . I knew Yelp had a reputation for extorting small businesses (not proven in court, but widely known). If a business…

As we were in Campbell looking at some tiles for our Kitchen's backsplash, we stopped by for lunch at Mo's The Breakfast and Burger Joint.. . We sat outside and ordered some burgers, not expecting much. We were surprised by the fast, friendly service and the high-quality burgers we got.. . Inna ordered the Mushacado Burger with Avocado, and it was delicious.. . . .…

Before enjoying our scheduled performance of "The Book of Mormon" Musical at San Francisco's Orpheum Theater, we stopped by for dinner at Bluestem Brasserie.. . . . . The dinner at Bluestem was fantastic, and we especially enjoyed the "Pan-Seared Black Truffle Pierogi" for our appetizer. The service at Bluestem was super fast and friendly. I don't recall the last time I had such fast…

After exploring the new Exploratorium on Pier 15 in San Francisco, we drove to Tartine Bakery on 600 Guerro Street for a quick lunch. When we finally arrived, around 4:30pm, the line to the bakery looked like a scene from old Soviet Russia. We decided we could not wait this long, no matter how delicious the bread and pastries looked. . . We decided to…

After seeing "Tristan & Yseult" at Berkeley Repertory Theater, we stopped by for a late lunch at Angeline's Louisiana Kitchen in Berkeley.. . Many years ago, after graduating from Georgia Tech in Atlanta, I moved to Houston, Texas, to work for Compaq Computer. While living in Houston, I came to love and appreciate spicy Cajun cooking, especially at restaurants like Pappadeaux. Living in California, I…

Today, we decided to have our 12th Wedding Anniversary dinner at the Plumed Horse in Saratoga.. We usually prefer to go to Manresa, but it was unavailable for our special day.. . . . . We ordered the "Chef's Autumn Tasting Menu," which was delicious! This is now Inna's favorite restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area.. . . . . . . . This…

May 17, 2013. . After work, we decided to grab a quick bite at the Wine Cellar Restaurant in Los Gatos.. . . . Inna ordered the Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad. It looked and tasted beautiful.. . . . I ordered a Vermont Waldorf Salad. Both salads were very well prepared, but nothing special. The service was quick and attentive.. . . .…

After looking at Yelp reviews, Inna decided to try the Chow Restaurant in San Francisco. Chow is supposed to offer many organic, local dishes and has plenty of salads on the menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . Inna ordered a Cobb Salad, and I ordered Thai-style noodles with Steak and Chicken. Inna's Cobb Salad looked good. However, my…

I scheduled Valentine's Day dinner at Manresa Restaurant on February 13 - the day before Valentine's Day (as February 14 is impossible to book).. . . . . . . . Manresa is one of the few Michelin 2-star restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area. Chef David Kinch prepares some beautiful dishes and cocktails.. . . . We arrived at 7:00 p.m. for our…

We decided to stop by Gather Restaurant in Berkeley after seeing the 7:00 p.m. performance of The Wild Bride at the Berkeley Repertory Theater.. . . . . . Inna and I ordered the Kale Salad (Rugosa Verde squash, root vegetables, nuts & seeds, citrus). The marinated kale was delicious, and we enjoyed the salad very much.. . . . . . We ordered the…

Today, we decided to have dinner at Steamer's Grillhouse in Los Gatos.. . . . . . For an appetizer, Inna ordered the Crispy Prawns (deep-fried coconut prawns with sunomono salad of julienned carrots & squash noodles). The prawns were well-cooked and delicious.. . . . I had the Tortilla Soup, which was good but nothing special.. . . . Inna ordered the Pan-Seared Scallops…

After walking around the Legion of Honor Museum and the nearby Lands End Coastal Trail, we decided to stop by somewhere nearby for dinner. We looked at Yelp and found that Pagan Restaurant served Thai and Burmese cuisine and was nearby.. . Pagan is pronounced "Bagan" and is named after a famous ancient Burmese city home to thousands of Pagodas.. . The restaurant opened at…

Before enjoying our scheduled Anything Goes Musical performance (revival) playing in San Francisco's Golden Gate Theater, we stopped by for lunch at Bluestem Brasserie. We parked at the Jesse Street Garage, conveniently located close to Bluestem and Golden Gate Theater. . . . . The Bluestem lunch was fantastic. We especially enjoyed the Baby Beet Terrine, the Dutch Baby Pancake, and the Farmer's Market Quiche.…