Archives – October, 2009
The Taco Shop At Underdog’s | 1824 Irving St, San Francisco, CA 94122 | 415.566.8700
My buddy lives just down the street from where I’m staying and insisted that we meet up for a beer to catch up. There wasn’t very many places open so late at night so we ducked into Underdog’s for a brewski.
I tried to order a snakebite, but unfortunately the bar only had cider in the bottle. Not wanting to have to buy both beers and building my own, I opted for just the cider. As expected, it was as good as you would expect, a feat that the bar itself had nothing to do with. While we didn’t order any food, we were served some warm chips and salsa with our beers. I liked that the chips were warm, but didn’t like that the waitress had dumped the salsa on top of the chips and making them soggy to eat.
As a place to kick back and enjoy a beer, Underdog’s is pretty good. It’s definitely a dive, but if you want to go to a place that’s unpretentious and gets the job done, this place is as good as any.
Food: 6/10
Service: 6/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 6/10
October 30, 2009
Mediterranean Wraps | 209 University Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301 | 650.289.0866
After sipping on some great hot chocolate jut across the street, my superlative speaking friend pointed me in the direction of what he claimed to be the best shawermas on the west coast. A little skeptical of his claim, I first phoned in only to find them closing in a few minutes. However, the very kind owner insisted that I drop by and even kept the shop open as he waited for our little party.
I ordered the lamb shawerma over the phone and it was ready for me when I arrived. At $8, it was a little pricier than I expected but was extremely delicious. The lamb was tender and the whole wrap was juicy and flavorful. I’m not sure if it was the best shawerma, but it was pretty damn good.
To cure an empty stomach that was full of liquor and liquids, the lamb wrap really hit the spot. The restaurant was beautiful and it’s no wonder the place is a popular student spot for a quick, albeit relatively expensive bite to eat. If I’m ever in the area again, I’m definitely picking one of these up after some cocktails! Best pre-hangover cure ever.
Food: 8/10
Service: 10/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 8/10
October 30, 2009
Coupa Café | 538 Ramona St, Palo Alto, CA 94301 | 650.322.6872
After attending my first Bay Area Yelp Elite party in Palo Alto, my buddy met up with my fries and I and took us around to some of the hot spots around the area. He insisted to take us to one of the best cafes in the area for their famous Venezuelan hot chocolate, and needing some caffeine in my system, decided to drop into Coupa Cafe.
Even late at night, the place was completely packed with Stanford students and it was clear that it was a hugely popular place to hang out. I ordered their popular Abuela hot chocolate. It was very tasty and had just a hint of bitterness that comes with good dark chocolate. It was clear why it was so popular and the venue for enjoying it over good tech conversation with great friends was awesome.
Judging from the packed house alone, it’s easy to see why the Coupa Cafe is one of the most popular off campus places for Stanford students to hang out, study, or even nap. There’s a special energy there that somehow makes you feel smarter just being amongst it. If I were a student there, the Coupa Cafe is definitely where you would find me!
Food: 8/10
Service: 7/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 9/10
October 30, 2009
Lollicup Tea Zone | 14805 Jeffrey Road Ste A, Irvine, CA 92618 | 949.559.9436
Knowing that I would have a long drive back to San Diego ahead of me after a trip to Disneyland, I needed to get some caffeine coursing through my veins. Not wanting the jitters of a Red Bull, I decided to track down some boba. I wasn’t familiar with the area but there was nothing but Asian shops in the center so I knew that there must be a place nearby that served some mill tea. I only had to walk outside and around the corner to find what I was looking for…a quaint little Lollicup.
I ordered a large almond milk tea for the ride home and it was delivered lickity split. The boba was pretty good and had just the right consistency and had the faintest coffee flavor. The tea itself wasn’t anything special, but it definitely did the trick of keeping me alert on the road home.
It seems like you can find a boba shop on just about every corner these days, but not all of them are created equally. Besides the overpriced stuff at Tea Station, most of the milk teas are pretty much the same. The boba itself is sort of hit and miss and it’s really hard to find something really consistent. Being that this was my first, and probably only, visit to this location, I was pretty happy with my boba and would definitely recommend it to anybody that goes to UCI. It also seems like a great place to study!
Food: 7/10
Service: 7/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 8/10
October 28, 2009
A & J Restaurant | 14805 Jeffrey Rd Ste D, Irvine, CA 92618 | 949.786.3585
After walking around Downtown Disney for an hour or so, my friend and I worked up a pretty gnarly appetite. Unable to decide on which mediocre upscale place to dine, we did a quick Yelp search on the trusty iPhone and found a popular Chinese restaurant just down the way and decided to check it out.
My friend was familiar with A & J since they had a location up in the Bay Area that she had been to before and recommended that we try their famous beef noodle soup. With that, we ordered the green onion pancake, soup dumplings, and beef buns. This was exactly what I needed in a great meal during this trip out of San Diego. As I suspected, the beef noodles were fresh and delicious. The beef was extremely tender and the soup had just the right amount of spice. The other dishes were also excellent and I especially enjoyed the beef buns. There was a great deal of soup in them that really gave them that extra something and really mad them extraordinary.
While the restaurant may have been a bit of a hole-in-the-wall, the all Asian customers told us that we were definitely going to enjoy some authentic food. While UCSD students have the Convoy area, UCI students have their fair share of solid Asian dining, and on my first try, I must say that I am very impressed with the results.
Food: 9/10
Service: 7/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 7/10
October 28, 2009
Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port | 1313 S Harbor Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92802 | 714.781.4000
The stage was set for an awesome day in the Magic Kingdom to celebrate a close friend’s birthday and I was really excited to check out the Halloween decorations throughout the park. As food goes, there’s not a lot to eat that isn’t near double digit prices for a basic meal and to make matters worse, the park was closing 3 hours early for a private party, thereby reducing the time to really enjoy the attractions. To save time, my friend and I decided to bite the bullet and just grab something to eat in the park and see how far our limited food funds would take us.
Pizza Port is another one of the overpriced cafeterias that serve the same expensive fare that exists across the park. My friend and I were starving so we decided to share a chicken Caesar salad and some pasta with chicken and Alfredo. Despite the price, the food was actually pretty decent. The chicken in both was tender and the Alfredo was rich and creamy. The salad greens were a little saturated, but they still had a bit of crunch left in them yet. It may have been pricey, but at least it was tasty.
For what it was, the food at Pizza Port was actually pretty good. Next time, however, I will definitely be leaving the park grounds for my grub. The savings would be astronomical and both my wallet and my stomach will thank me.
Food: 7/10
Service: 7/10
Price: $$
Atmosphere: 6/10
October 28, 2009
McDonald’s | 9440 Scranton Rd, San Diego, CA 92121 | 858.452.3013
After an evening of nearly no sleep in preparation for a day trip to Disneyland, my mind and body needed a pick me up in the form of a McCafe coffee from McDonald’s. The one nearest was next to the highway so we decided to stop by for some coffee and grub to get ourselves going on the day.
There was a special on sausage McMuffins with egg so we got a pair of those with our coffee. There wasn’t anything particularly wrong with the sandwiches and try really hit the spot. However, both of our coffees were terrible. My friend’s cappuccino was horribly watery and my hazelnut iced coffee was so under filled that there was nearly an inch of lip on the untouched cup. I found it too much of a hassle to complain about it there since we were on a very tight time table, so we took off and headed toward happier places. In fact, it would be toward the “happiest place on Earth”.
My only other experience with this McDonald’s was having to sue them over an accident where a ceiling tile fell on me and dumped a half gallon of water on my laptop, essentially destroying it. While the staff was helpful back then, this particular visit was less than satisfactory. Fool me twice, shame on me. I definitely won’t be back.
Food: 5/10
Service: 4/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 5/10
October 28, 2009
Chipotle | 8657 Villa La Jolla Dr, La Jolla, CA 92037 | 858.554.1866
This is my second day in a row of having some Chipotle for lunch, but this experience was definitely not as good as the one in Mira Mesa. For starters, I could barely understand the woman behind the counter because her accent was so thick and her voice was so small. It took several tries and a hold up in the line to finally get across the line, but finally managed to get there.
I went with the chicken tacos this time with the black beans, fresh tomato and corn salsas, sour cream, cheese, and lettuce. The beans were extremely wet and made it very messy to eat the tacos without spilling all over the place. Likewise, the tacos were carelessly slopped together and I was forced to finish the lot with a fork. I was definitely unable to differentiate the flavors like I could at the Mira Mesa location and the ingredients didn’t seem as fresh.
I’m not sure if it was the food quality, service, or location, but this Chipotle was definitely not as pleasant to eat at. Despite being fairly slow, many of the tables were left dirty and nobody seemed to care to wipe them down as they did at the other location. From the expectation of a good experience alone, I don’t think I would return.
Food: 6/10
Service: 4/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 4/10
October 26, 2009
Chipotle | 8250 Mira Mesa Blvd, San Diego, CA 92126 | 858.586.2147
I’m normally not a regular customer of Chipotle due to their comparably expensive burritos but a BOGO coupon in the mail lured me into my local shop to sample their famously fresh fare.
I decided to try their carnitas burrito with the fresh tomato and corn salsas, lettuce, cheese, and sour cream. Guacamole adds nearly $2 so I opted out, but I’m told that it too is extremely fresh. I was pleasantly surprised after taking my first bite of my burrito and found that I could actually taste each individual flavor! I usually find that the burritos from lesser taquerias are usually filled with soggy, overly saturated flavors that really muddle the flavor of a fine burrito. While Subway claims that you “eat fresh” there, I’ve never quite had that same experience as I did with the Chipotle offering. While it didn’t come with a side or drink, the extra cost definitely translated into far superior value.
There really is no surprise that Chipotle is the fast food Cinderella story of the century. Their combination of great, fresh flavors and fast, courteous service have propelled it to the top of the fast food chain. If I had to choose between a burrito or a burger, I think I would have to go with In-N-Out every time. However, Chipotle went a long way toward making an impression and I will definitely be back soon…with my other BOGO coupon!
Food: 8/10
Service: 8/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 8/10
October 26, 2009
In-N-Out Burger | 2005 Camino Del Este, Mission Valley, CA 92108
Between films at the San Diego Asian Film Festival, my friends and I had a hankering for a quick and tasty meal, and In-N-Out immediately came to mind. When we arrived, we were a little discouraged by the perpetually long line, but knowing of their legendarily fast fulfillment times, that anxiety quickly faded away.
I ordered my usual Double-Double meal “animal style”. The combination of the secret sauce (let’s face it, it’s Thousand Island dressing) and grilled onions is amazing and makes my mouth water just thinking about it. In the fast food category, there really is nothing that comes close at any price. There’s also something about the fries that are awesome too. I’m guessing it’s the oil they use to fry them, but those as always excellent as well.
When I have a craving for a great burger at any time in the day, there’s always an In-N-Out nearby to satiate me. While I’m told that the east coast has a few options that come close, nothing can ever touch the incredible Double-Double. It’s just not happening.
Food: 10/10
Service: 9/10
Price: $
Atmosphere: 8/10
October 26, 2009
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