Llama Inn Visited 3/19/2016 4 Forks

Llama Inn  50 Withers St. Williamsburg, NY 11211

While I have never been to Peru before, I have been a fan of their food for a while, starting with ceviche and obviously their roast chicken.  But you actually don't see a lot of Peruvian restaurants around town - so I was intrigued when I read about this place which was a  <10 -="" and="" apt.="" decor="" from="" gorgeous="" huge="" in.="" is="" light="" lots="" min="" modern="" my="" nbsp="" of="" pouring="" space="" span="" the="" very="" walk="" windows="" with="">

It is one of the hotter restaurants on the scene now, so it took me over 2 weeks to get a reservation on a weekend that was at a decent time - ok, it was 6pm on a Saturday but that's better than 10pm or 5pm.   Even though I knew it was hard to get a reservation, I was still shocked by how incredibly crowded it was at 6pm - almost every table was taken already.   The menu is all shareable and is broken out veggies, fish, meat and large format dishes (there were only 2 options, either the whole roasted chicken or the beef tenderloin) as well as some anticucho which are basically skewers.  Paige and I opted to get the pork belly anticucho ($5), the ceviche ($18) and the large format beef tenderloin ($48).  As you can see from the prices, they are a wee bit high for what they are.  The pork belly skewers were as what you would expect - fatty, meaty and juicy.  There were 3 skewers that came with pickled chilis and spicy mayo.  They were a nice start to the meal.  The ceviche was a corvina fish (similar to a croaker or mild white fish) served thin with plantains, habanero, red onion and cilantro.  There was tons of acid and sourness to this dish, which I actually don't mind but it was very prominent.  I usually like my ceviche with cubes of fish - these were sliced very thin and was more like a carpaccio dish then ceviche but not a real deal breaker to the overall dish.  

As for the star attraction - the beef tenderloin dish came out and Paige and I were both like WTF did we just order?  I had read about it on The Infatuation, so I was prepared that it would be this crazy dish but it didn't really prepare me for it when I saw it in person.  It is basically a heaping sizzling plate full of cuts of beef tenderloin marinated in soy sauce topped with freakin FRENCH FRIES and covered in a spicy mayo type sauce and then served with scallion pancakes on the side so that you can wrap them all into a mini taco of sorts.  They they also serve fresh sliced avocado and pickled chilis for you to garnish the dish with.  It was all sorts of crazy - who tops a dish with french fries?  But you know what? It was heart stoppingly deliciousness and apparently it's some kind of national dish in Peru.  I mean, you feel terrible afterwards when you've realized what you've eaten but the combination of sizzling beef, french fries with spicy sauce wrapped in a scallion pancake is kind genius.  I was really pushing it at the end, but you can get 3 tacos each per person out of this and you'll still be left with french fries on the plate. 

Despite this monstrosity of food, Paige and I still managed to order bread pudding for dessert and it was a very solid moist bread pudding.   The only reason why I didn't give this place a higher review is that the service was super super slow.  We waited forever on every aspect of our meal - getting our drinks ordered, ordering our main meal, to getting more drinks and getting the bill.  The waiter was very nice but the meal just took way longer than it needed to.  It's definitely a lovely addition to the Williamsburg neighborhood, hopefully they can get their service in check a bit!  Total bill: $100/pp with tax, tip and lots of wine

Photo Credit:  Yelp

Akiko's Restaurant 3/16/2016 5 Forks

Akiko's Restaurant  431 Bush St., San Francisco, CA 94108

Fuck me.  This place is seared in my brain as one of the best sushi experiences I've had in a while.  It might be because I went on a super casual Wednesday for lunch, so it wasn't crowded at all and the weather in SF was absolutely perfect, so I was in an unusually good mood.  I had read about this place based on the review in The Infatuation (they almost never steer me wrong) and it was luckily a 7 min walk from my hotel.  Perfect!  The place is a bit hard to find - it has literally no sign on the outside.  It's right on the corner of Bush Street and this cute alley way that has an Irish pub in it.  I got there right when it opened and got an excellent seat at the sushi bar.  The decor was simple but still upscale with full floor to ceiling windows and the sun shining right through. 

I was a bit nervous at first when I noticed that all the sushi chefs were not Japanese but as soon as they started talking to me about sushi, I knew they were legit.  Soon this guy sits next to me at the bar and he clearly knew the chef and I found out he was a sushi chef at another restaurant and it was just his off day.  He started shooting the shit with the chef here and it was like nothing I had ever heard before.  The intense passion they had for the culture and food was very inspiring and it was literally all they talked about for 1 1/2 hours.  Their knowledge and love for sushi had me very enamored with both of them and made me kind of sad to not have a job that I felt that strongly about (although they both claimed to be making no money).  The chef here told me that making salmon avocado roll is his worst nightmare, so you can imagine the level of food here.  It's all stripped down, basic, authentic sushi.  No California rolls or Philly rolls in sight.  I was dying to get the omakase but I restrained myself.  Instead I got uni sushi to start ($12 for 2 pieces) and the sashimi/tempura lunch ($19).  I saw the uni come out of the box and the chef told me it was Santa Barbara uni - amazing!!  This is the kind of stuff I live for and since it was from right down the coast, it just seemed fresher than ever.   The sashimi/tempura lunch comes with a very small but elegant sashimi starter - basic cuts of yellowtail, salmon, tuna, and white tuna. They were all melt in your mouth high quality fish. Incredible.  

The tempura came out next and it's a VERY large serving of veggies and shrimp.  The tempura batter was a bit on the thick side but nothing too terrible.  While it was a very good and filling tempura meal, I couldn't help but wish that I had stuck to just fish instead.  Everything the chef was making for other people looked mind blowing.  I watched him serve up all sorts of unique types of fish to his friend, using the blow torch and other tools to really do it up.  I ended up striking up a nice conversation with the guy sitting next to me and asked what he liked best (he had about 10 pieces of sushi).  He had said that the monkfish liver was really good and I was a bit skeptical, so the chef kindly gave me a free tasting.  It was creamy and quite smooth - I can absolutely see why they call it froie gras of the sea  - totally spot on description of what it was.  I was torn between getting scallop or sweet shrimp sushi but the chef swayed me on to barracuda.  I couldn't remember if I had it or not before but it was a really lovely smooth mild fish.  It was gorgeous in presentation and I loved that I tried a few different things that I normally wouldn't get.  I could have literally sat there for 3 more hours talking to that guy and trying different types of fish and been happy as a clam. 

By the time I left, I was full and happy.  I don't know if it was the sun or the intense passion that the 2 chefs (ok, it can border on being a bit snobby but I was ok with it) had but it was all around such a joyful meal for me.  My only big regret is not going full on sushi/sashimi and not splurging more (even if it meant paying out of pocket for it).  This will definitely be my go-to sushi place whenever I am in town again.  Trust me, sit at the bar and do the omakase.  Your mouth and soul will thank you for it.  Tip:  Don't mix this up with Akiko Sushi which is around the corner from it.  I don't know what it's like there but definitely make sure to make a reservation at the right place.  Total bill:  $50 with tax and tip

Photo Credit:  Yelp

Hog Island Oyster Co Visited 3/15/2016 4.5 Forks

Hog Island Oyster Co  1 Ferry Bldg, San Francisco, CA 94111

Oh, Hog Island, how I love thee.  I've been here a few times before and I'm not sure why I've never blogged about it before.  While I know the Ferry Building is a bit touristy, it's still very popular with locals and it's still one of my go-to spots when I'm in SF.  It's just such a calming place for me and it's right by the water with gorgeous views of the Bay.  Hog Island might be my 2nd favorite oyster place behind Maison Premiere and it's a very close second.  

I stopped by the restaurant after the conference was over on Tuesday and got there right before the crowds really started to settle in.  I got a nice seat at the bar and was immediately torn about what to order.  I wasn't super hungry even though I could have easily eaten everything on the menu.  Even though I was on a corporate card, I couldn't really bring myself to go too crazy with the ordering.  I settled on 1/2 dozen bar mix of oysters ($20) and the steamers ($15).  I've always preferred West Coast oysters over East Coast oysters and this definitely confirmed my love for them.  I don't remember the exact types but they were all amazing - hearty, briny and delicious.  If they weren't so expensive here, I would have ordered another 2 dozen of them.  I was a bit surprised that they didn't have a Happy Hour special but I guess they get such great business that they don't really need it to bring in a crowd.  If you are in to oysters, definitely get the bar mix so that you can try a little bit of everything.  The steamers were also great - piled high with Manila clams, corona beans, fennel sausage, and leeks in a buttery white wine broth.   I was pleased with the amount of food in it given that I had opted not to get it with pasta.  The broth was such buttery goodness that I was sopping it all up with the crusty delicious bread that I was trying to stay away from but couldn't (it comes from next door - Acme Bread). 

Overall, this is the kind of place that has a spot place in my heart because it's super casual but serves amazingly fresh seafood at a price that isn't too hard to swallow.  Everyone there was super friendly and tourist place, be damned, it's totally worth it no matter if you are a local or a visitor.  Total bill:  $45 with tax and tip

Photo Credit:  Yelp 

Sushiritto Visited 3/15/2016 3 Forks

Sushiritto  388 Market St., Ste 107, San Francisco, CA 94111

I stumbled upon Sushiritto totally by accident.  I was walking around downtown SF on my way to another poke stand when I noticed a long line of people on Market Street.  Now I am a total sucker for long lines and peered around the line to see what everyone was waiting for and the sign said Sushiritto.  I had vague recollections of reading about this place and I thought to myself "Why Not?" - I'm only in SF for a limited amount of time and I had already had delicious poke the day before at Bowl'd Acai, so why not try something unexpected.  I had gathered from the name of the place that it was a sushi + burrito.  Honestly, it did sound kind of gross but a long line 10 people deep couldn't be wrong right? 

The menu is actually mostly cooked fish burritos with the exception of the Satori and the Geisha's Kiss.  All the other burritos had either cooked fish, tempura or some other kind of warm food in it, so it's actually not all a combination of sushi and burrito. I had wanted to try the Santori because it was yellowtail focused but by the time I got up to the counter around 12:30, they were already sold out of it!  Bummer.  So I opted for the Geisha's Kiss which was made with raw tuna, tamago (Japanese omelette), piquillo peppers, lotus chips, cucumber, lettuce, ginger guac, yuzu tobkiko and sesame white soya all wrapped in rice and seaweed.  

At first glance, I was relieved that it wasn't full of rice.  I was afraid that it would be super rice heavy with not much else.  But I was bummed that it wasn't also big on the tuna but instead full of the other ingredients.  It was definitely not as weird of a dish as it sounded - in fact, it tasted exactly like what you would think - a giant tuna hand roll.  The seaweed needed a bit of re-enforcement since as soon as I took a bite of it, it completely fell apart in my hands.  I will say that it was a pretty filling meal and was probably not all that terrible for you since it was light on the white rice.  It was definitely a fun SF novelty (although I heard there is a place in NYC that has it now too) which I'm glad to cross off my list but I'm not sure if it's something I really need to do again.  Total bill:  $15 with tax and drink 

Bowl'd Acai Visited 3/14/2016 4.5 Forks

Bowl'd Acai  14 Mint Plaza, San Francisco, CA 94103

Oh my, this is the kind of stuff I LOVE about California.  It's so freaking hippie dippie but so awesome at the same time.  I totally stumbled upon this place by accident.  I was having breakfast at one of my other favorite places in SF, Blue Bottle, when I saw this acai food truck pull up into Mint Plaza.  I've had acai a few times in Brazil and while I didn't love it, I am still fascinated by it's super food status.  I quickly googled this truck and discovered that they also have a poke bowl option too! Perfect.  I made a beeline for this place during lunch time and was pleasantly happy to see that there were only a few people in line.  

The acai bowls all sounded great and looked delicious but I was here for one thing and one thing only, poke.  They only have 1 poke option which is brown rice with fresh cubes of tuna (marinated in what tasted like a soy/sesame oil/ginger mixture), macadamia nuts, scallions and black sesame.  You can also add hot sauce to it - I got it medium which was the right amount of heat for me.  The guy who ran the truck was super friendly and nice and he reminded me why CA can be so great sometimes.  He was just really happy and positive to all the customers who came to the truck.  I didn't wait too long for my food and when I got it, it was a beautiful sight - lots of fresh fish piled high on a bed of brown rice.  It just reeks of healthiness and it was delicious to boot.  It's such a simple and easy dish and a great nutritious lunch time option.  I was super tempted to come back the next day and get an acai bowl for breakfast but there were so many other places to try in SF that I didn't come back but I would most definitely come back here in a heart beat and if they ever need a NYC extension, I'm totally here to help!  My only complaint about it was that there isn't a whole lot of seating in the plaza and the outdoor seating that did have tables were for customers of those cafes and restaurants, so if you wan to sit, they have a few chairs but you might be better off taking it to go and sitting somewhere else. Total bill:  $15 with tax and tip

Dojima Ann Visited 3/13/2016 3 Forks

Dojima Ann  219 O'Farrell St., San Francisco, CA 94102

I was staying downtown in the Union Square area which was great because the area is full of Japanese restaurants (unsurprising given that it's SF).  I was exhausted from the day and ducked into this place not too far from my hotel. This seemed like it would be a good place judging from the crowdedness and homey feel to it.  It had a similar waiting model to Ramen Parlor where you put your name on a list by the door and wait to get seated.  Luckily, since I was only 1, so I got seated right away.  I sat at the very small sushi "bar" - it was really just a ledge that had 3 small stools and it didn't face a sushi bar but the bustling kitchen instead.  The menu is HUGE and had a bunch of Japanese comfort food like donburi, udon, soba, bento boxes, and of course sushi - they also had a lot of specials written on the walls as well.  I wasn't starving so I wanted to get some sashimi and ended up getting the sashimi platter, which came with soup and salad. 

The miso soup came with fried bit of tofu instead of the usual silken kind.  While I know that almost all miso soup from a restaurant is usually made from a powder or mix - this kind of too real for me because it just looked too packaged.  The salad was your standard salad except it wasn't a carrot ginger dressing but some other kind of vinaigrette which was totally fine.  Then I waited for my sashimi...it was a bit weird to be sitting at a sushi bar and not see the fish they use for the sushi. The sashimi came out and it was quite a large portion.  Similar to Yama in NYC, the cuts of fish were enormous - multi-bite pieces.  They were definitely not your delicate fine cuts that you see in more traditional places or even like at Yuba.  The salmon, tuna and yellowtail were all fine but my true test if the fish is really spot on is when I eat the mackerel or octopus.  Unfortunately, neither of these cuts of fish were very good here - it's kind of what makes people not want to eat raw fish.  The mackerel pieces were also huge and super super fishy tasting.  It didn't taste like I was eating something that was made with care or high quality.  I ate 1 piece and couldn't eat the 2nd one.  Same with the octopus.  I've had good octopus before and I could just tell from looking at it that it would be super chewy and not pleasant on the tongue.  Again, I ate the 1st one but not the 2nd piece.

The guy next to me got a donburi dish that looked pretty good - so maybe this is the kind of place where you should stick to the non-sushi (or at least non-sashimi) stuff?  The cuts of "normal" fish were totally edible and fine, if not, just cut too large.  This place is totally passable if you are tired and in a pinch but I will review another sushi place not too far from it that was fucking out of this world in term of quality, presentation, authenticity and well, price too.  Total bill:  $30/pp with tax, tip and hot tea

Photo Credit:  Yelp

Farmer Brown Visited 3/13/2016 3.5 Forks

Farmer Brown  25 Mason St, San Francisco, CA 94102

Ahhh, San Francisco.  I have such a love/hate relationship with this city.  It's a great city with the views of the water and a great food scene but slowly the city has become a total cliche right out of the show Silicon Valley.  Literally the city is full of socially awkward, hoodie/back pack wearing engineers who only want to start about the start-up or app they are working on.  It's a bit overwhelming.  But there are still pockets of hippie bohemians still flocking around the city.  The hippie Southern rockers all seemed to be hanging out at Farmer Brown - a soul food place in the middle of the Tenderloin area, which is quite unique as SF is generally filled with either Mexican or Japanese food.  

Louise had gotten us a reservation for 1:30 for brunch which sounded great.  The place was packed when we got there.  While they have a full brunch menu, the star of the show is their Southern-Soul food packed buffet ($25.95).  It's got fried chicken, waffles, biscuit, gravy, scrambled eggs, bacon, grits, catfish, cajun potatoes, succotash veggies, brownies, banana bread, fruit salad and house salad. But when we sat down the waiter told us that they would stop filling the buffet at 2pm, which was 15 mins from when we sat down.  WTF?! Who stops brunch smack in the middle of the afternoon - especially on a lazy Sunday?  So we rushed over to the buffet to pile on everything that we could on our plate.  They still had a little bit of everything but you could tell that it was definitely down to it's last bits.  We were also disappointed that they were out of the biscuits and gravy - how can you have soul food with no biscuits and gravy?!  Luckily, the waiter was nice enough to sneak into the kitchen and get us a few extra.  The food was all pretty filling and I was a big fan of the cornmeal catfish - it was flakey and not too heavy on the cornmeal.  The fried chicken was nice and crispy although I would have liked to have gotten a few thigh or drumsticks, as by the time we got there, all they had left were the wings which was a bit thin on meat.  

Our friend May got there 45 mins late, so we asked to move to a larger table but it took forever for the waitstaff to figure out what to do with us and when they did find us a table it was smack in front of the live band that was there.  Maybe I am just an old lady and despite the guys being kind of cute, I was so not in the mood to have an electric guitar blaring in my right ear during brunch.  We quickly packed up our things and asked for the check but apparently that was a pain for them and that took forever too.  While I like the idea of live music, it just wasn't what I was in the mood for.  If you do want to come here for the buffet, definitely come here early so that you aren't eating the dregs of the pan and/or forced to sit next to the band.  Total bill:  $30/pp with tax and tip

Photo Credit:  Yelp