This taco ship is highly rated on Yelp, and indeed it was good.
I got one beef tack and one chicken taco. The chicken taco was really really good. The beef was meh.
PB Pho and Grill
As per usual, I did not get a pho dish at this Vietnamese restaurant. Instead I got this stir fried rice noodle dish, which tasted great (they called it the combination rice noodle dish, which has beef, chicken, shrimp, and assorted vegetables). It tastes great, and almost like a Mongolian dish.
Fogo de Chao
This Brazilian steakhouse had great food. The only one thing I will complain about is they definitely try to sneak in serving you alcohol (they handed us mimosas, which many people accepted because they thought it was part of the meal). They also handed us jumbo shrimp cocktail, where people also thought it was included.
For the meal itself, most of it was great (can’t remember which one I liked the best). One type of meat we did end up ordering was the dry aged tomahawk, which I remember tasted amazing.
We ended up pairing the dinner with some merlot, which was a great compliment.
Also, the salad bar had a good selection.
Lastly, since it was our birthday, they did give us a complimentary dessert (but definitely doesn’t cancel out all the other non-free things mentioned above).
Cheesecake Factory
I’ve been here many times, but here’s the first post about it (and will likely get updated later).
This time around I got a “calorie-wise” dish, which was the “chicken pot pie”. Obviously, as you can see, it’s not a really chicken pot pie. However, it was pretty light, which is what I wanted.
Usually when I’m here I get the chicken marsala. The portion size is wayyy to large, so I usually eat half of it. (fyi, the San Jose sauce is better than the Palo Alto version).
And of course, As the name implies, I usually get a cheesecake. My go to is the chocolate chip cookie dough.
Paella Bar
We grabbed lunch in this place that is in St Josep Mercat.
Had a couple of appetizers and of course, a paella. For the apps we got the lobster and duck croquet, and an octopus dish. Both were great. For paella, it was the Catalana Paella, which had sausage, chicken, prawn and mussels. It was also really good.
Koja Kitchen (Cupertino)
I checked out Koja in Cupertino to see how different it would be from SF. And indeed there were differences.
I got the chicken bowl, and it was actually one dollar cheaper than SF. Also, the sauce that comes with the bowl is more spicy and thicker. They also gave a lot more meat.
And one thing to call out is the vibe. It’s sort of like a cafe, and they do serve beer. Will probably go back and do some work there.
New Mongolian BBQ
Walking on Castro street in Mountain view, we decided to try this place.
For the price ($16 for dinner), I think this place was worth it. They had the standard meat selection (beef, chicken, pork, and lamb). I thought the pork was a bit too fatty, but I guess most people would like that.
For the vegetables I thought the selection was decent (peppers, baby corn, mushrooms, carrots). For the carbs, they only had one noodle selection (I kinda wish they had a variety l, not just the thick noodles). They also had tofu, which I definitely enjoyed!
For the sauce, you want to do the house special mix (the original mix was ok, but not as good as the special).
It is also worth noting this place does not serve alcohol 🙁
Ten Foot Henry
Found this place on the internet, which claimed it is one of the 10 best restaurants in Calgary. I would have to agree.
I sat at the bar, and the hostess did inform me usually things are family style, but they could do half portions for some dishes for people who come alone.
For a drink, I got the ___ Apple. It was quite refreshing, and not super sweet.
For a starter, I got what the waitress recommended, which was the tomatoes with whipped feta and sour dough bread (basically you mix the feta and tomatoes together to form a spread, as pictured below). It was quite tasted.
For my main, I also got what the waitress recommended, which was the chicken (half portioned). I gotta say it was cooked perfectly (not too dry, and the skin was the right amount of crispy).
Also, the ambiance and setting of the restaurant reminded me of a very modern, hipster, it classy vibe. Something you would definitely see in SF.
Sino
I’ve probably been to this place over 15 times, a and it usually does not disappoint (although it isn’t super cheap).
To start, I got a lychee martini (which they make really good at this place).
For the mains, we got the dimsum collection (and although it is slightly Americanized, I’m a fan), garlic noodles with chicken (getting it with beef is much better from previous experience), and chow fun with beef. With the exception of the chicken comment, I would get everything again.
La Mar
We went to this restaurant for a friend’s birthday. I would come back to this place, and probably order a couple of the same dishes (given that when I went there, I didn’t have that much of an appetite).
For appetizer’s we had the beef and chicken empanada’s. I was expecting the beef to be better, but the chicken one was really good.
For a drink, I got a mimosa and lychee martini (I was surprised they had lychee). I will say, I wish the lychee martini was a bit sweeter.
For my main, I got the Ariz con Pollo (roasted chicken). It was good. I remember being a really big fan of the rice underneath it (and the chicken wasn’t too dry).
One thing I will get next time (although it is a bit pricey) is the adobo. A friend had it, and it was better than the dish I got.
