Aki's Eats

Bali Laguna

2010-11-03T12:49:00.001-07:00

Delicious Indonesian restaurant with fantastic ambiance inside of Jing'an Park.

The location is lovely, a stand alone house on a lake surrounded by trees and stone walkways. This also makes it quite difficult to find. My only advice is if you see any lion statues, walk through them, and you're probably on the right track.

We had the starter sampler with satays, crab balls, and spring rolls, as well as papaya salad. I loved the mushroom cream soup with coconut. The prawns were fantastic, as were chili crab (though messy as usual). Fried chicken in coconut soup was good as well.

They also have fantastic juices and desserty drinks -- I had a coconut (enormous).

Not inexpensive, roughly 850 RMB for three of us.

1649 Nanjing West Rd (inside Jing'an Park)
南京西路1649号（静安公园内）
+86 21 6248-6970

Nanbantei 南蛮亭

2010-10-24T10:37:00.001-07:00

Delicious new Japanese yakitori place in the great plaza next to Camel Bar. Nanbantei is a famous yakitori shop in Tokyo (Roppongi) and the feel of the place is authentically Japanese. Staff seemed to be mostly Chinese but clearly trained in Japan.

We started with some izakaya-type appetizers like shishamo, then straight for the yakitori. All of the traditional yakitori options like tsukune (ground chicken), negima (chicken and scallion), sunagimo (gizzard), and then other veg and meats like quail eggs, ginkgo (ginnan), and sirloin steak. Sausage was quite good too. We had one bottle of junmai ginjyo sake between three of us, yum.

About 150 rmb per person

1 Yueyang Road by Fenyang Lu and Taojiang Lu
岳阳路1号近汾阳路和桃江路

021-6437-5651
www.nanbantei.cn

Century Avenue

2010-10-10T05:28:00.000-07:00

I think Century Avenue is the best way to experience the World Financial Center in Pudong, Shanghai's tallest building (for now).

The restaurant and bar are on the 91st to 93rd floors of WFC in the Park Hyatt Shanghai Hotel. The observation deck is about 10 floors higher, but really at 90-100 floors above the city it doesn't really make a difference, you are still looking down on the neighboring Jin Mao Tower (#2 tallest). And for a few hundred kuai I'd rather get a bottle of wine.

Beautiful space and expensive but great food. My mom and I split the Chinese BBQ tasting plate and friends had sushi platter.

91-93 Floor, Park Hyatt Shanghai, 100 Century Avenue, Pudong New Area

+86 21 3855 1428, 3855 1429

http://www.100centuryavenue.com.cn/

Nepal

2010-09-01T03:44:00.000-07:00

Lovely little Nepalese restaurant in SoHo run by Bim, a Nepaliese guy who also owns the bar across the street.

Nepalese food is closest to Indian food with spices and curries, but also the fire of folks across the mountains in Sichuan. We had some pretty firy dishes, starting with the bread that comes out which I didn't realize had fresh diced jalapenos. Naan is super. The chicken (#25) was amazing, softest juiciest chicken I can think of ever eating. I liked the okra. We did order one prawns dish from their list of "spicy dishes" which came out a fluorescent orange hue.

G/F. 14 Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, Hong Kong

www.nepalrestaurant.com.hk

City Hall Maxim's Palace 美心皇宮

2010-09-01T03:39:00.000-07:00

Delicious dim sum on the 3rd floor of City Hall. There was a 30-45 min wait when we arrived at noon on a Sunday, with people flowing out the stairs. There is a coffee shop on the first floor where you can chill for a while.

The enormous dining room is strangely British with igantic crystal chandeliers, tea cups with plates, and tea poured out of silver pots. The carts are strangely high tech -- while they are still carrying your typical few kinds of dim sum, some of them have video playing on the front of the cart!

2/F Low Block, City Hall, Central, Hong Kong
2521 1303

Mon-Sat 11:00-15:00, 17:30-23:30
Sun and holidays 9:00-15:00, 17:30-23:30

Hutong 胡同

2010-09-01T03:34:00.000-07:00

Chinese/Sichuanese restaurant in a very sleek beautiful space on the 28th floor of TST. Wonderful views of the harbor and unique seating spaces.

Great bar upstairs with floor to ceiling windows with a view of the HK skyline and the nightly light show.

28/F 1 Peking Road TST HK
342 88 342

www.aqua.com.hk

Lotus in Moonlight 荷塘月色

2010-08-23T08:08:00.001-07:00

Lotus in Moonlight vegatarian restaurant is in Beijing at two locations.

We were recommended the one near Worker's Stadium, but the hotel concierge had us go to the Liufang NanLi one in Chaoyang, which may have been a mistake, as it is in the middle of a residential complex that no cabs will ever be able to find, even with a call to the restaurant (remember to bring that number).

Deck 4, inside the east fate of Workers' Stadium, Sanlitun
工人体育场东门内 4看台
6268 0848 / 6268 1318

Bldg 12 Liufang NanLi, Chaoyang District
潮阳区柳芳南里小区内12号楼
6465 3299 / 6466 3114

www.hetangyuese.com.cn

You Xin Kao Ya 友鑫烤鴨

2010-08-23T08:02:00.000-07:00

This place was recommended by a Shanghai friend who said it has the best Peking Duck she has ever had. The restaurant is across from main gate of 798 Art District (Dashanzi), which is a little off the Beijing tourist track. Kind of like 50 Moganshanlu in Shanghai, it’s a collection of art galleries and hipster community of artists.

The restaurant itself is located in an alley behind the main street, and is a local place without ambiance (think Chinese guys without shirts).

I don’t know my duck that well, but it was delicious. I ate half a duck, and they also give you a huge bowl of broth that they make with the rest of the parts that was just exquisite. Their menu looked great and I would have eaten a ton more meat and spicy food, but had a great dinner of vegetables as well. I think 150rmb for whole dinner (2 ppl).

Chao Yang, Da Shan Xi Bei Li 9 Lou
朝阳区大山子北里九楼

Again, it's located in the alley behind the main Da Shan Xi road across the street from 798. When you come out of 798, walk left to the closest overpass and walk down the little street with Semir clothes store on the corner. Take first right and it's a few houses down.

TEL is 6437-1602 but they don’t take reservations and definitely don’t speak English

Pure Lotus Vegetarian 净心莲

2010-08-21T18:36:00.001-07:00

Delicious Chinese vegetarian -- this place did not have the fake meat that I enjoy from Chinese veggie places, but the food is good nonetheless and the presentation is fantastic.

The table is set with real lotus leaves and huge clam shell plates. Their menu is unique with many "words of wisdom" and the names of the dishes kind of made my roll my eyes a few times. Menus are also about 3 feet long and weigh a good 12 pounds.

Their genmai tea is great, as are many of their fresh drinks (had a great vegetable one, cucumber-tomato I think). Sushi rolls were interesting and good. We liked the papaya salad with a little spicyness. The dumplings were good and I liked the mochiness of the cheese balls (though my friend didn't). They brought us melons for dessert.

There are two Beijing locations. We went to the Nongzhanghuan Nan Lu one first, which is in this little alleyway that is impossible to fine (bring the phone number for your cabbie) -- very cool space. The one in the Holiday Inn is not so nice - it's on the third floor deep inside the hotel next to a bowling alley, much closer tables, and service was definitely not as good (or I might have been put off by the waiter who recommended one crappy little fake beef dish that was about 50% of the bill and tasted like rubber).

Chaoyang Park 朝阳公园
Tongguang Bldg, 12 Nongzhanguan Nanlu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区农展馆南路12号(通广大厦内)

6592 3627, 8703 6669

http://www.thebeijinger.com/directory/Pure-Lotus-Vegetarian

梅亭

2010-08-21T18:35:00.001-07:00

Individual shabu shabu pots, all you can eat 88 rmb in Jing'an. We negotiated for AYC beer too. Fun with a big group, and I loved the carpaccio

841 Yan'an Zhong Lu, OOCL Building 1F (look for the building with green vertical lights)
静安区延安中路841号东方海外大厦1楼

13651617578

http://rakurakupress.com/restaurant/2143.html　
http://www.dianping.com/review/22555250

Enoteca 2

2010-08-16T17:06:00.000-07:00

Great wine bar a few blocks off of Xintiandi. Great space for a bottle (or two) with friends, and they have a nice menu as well. We liked the salad with warm goat cheese on baguettes. Very reasonably priced wines are available.

58 Taicang Lu, near Jinan Lu
太仓路58号, 近济南路

5306 3400

People 7

2010-08-15T10:30:00.001-07:00

Number 7 of the Taiwanese "People" franchise, People 7 has the signature sleek design, interesting dishes, and quirky entranceway (hint: make sure you arrive close to your reservation and bring the phone number!)

805号 Julu Rd near Fumin Lu, Jing'an, Shanghai
巨鹿路805号，近富民路

+86 (21) 5404 0707

The Deli & Bakery

2010-08-15T10:26:00.000-07:00

We came across this cute little cafe/bakery after lunch at Colabo on Hengshan Lu. They have a few tables and an upstairs. Nice place to have a chat over coffee (or milk tea with pearls for me!)

No. 150 Fen Yang Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai 200031
6474-4823

www.bln.com.cn

842 Lounge and Restaurant

2010-08-15T10:21:00.000-07:00

Nice French restaurant on Hengshan Road set in an old house with patio seating (though too hot for that in August) as well as dining inside. All white setting and romantic, though not so full on Saturday night. The scallops were ok. Swordfish was well flavored and black cod was good.

842 Hengshan Road, Shanghai
衡山路842号

Jujubetree Vegetarian Lifestyle

2010-08-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

As their card says, "no smoking, no alcoholic beverage, no egg, no meat." Doesn't really sound like my kind of place, but it was amazingly delicious and I even forgot it was a vegetarian meal.

First time we went, we over-ordered by several dishes (three boxes of take home) and it was 250 rmb for two of us. Have been there three times since (yes in three weeks, though I did have a vegetarian visitor for two of them). Favorites are the sweet and sour pork, Malay chicken satay, tomato and tofu stir fry and their great selection of juices (melon-cucumber and watermelon are two good ones). Also some great teas like the brown rice and corn (which is kind of like creamed corn).

They have five locations total, three in Shanghai
http://www.jujubetree.com/

No. 77 Songshan Rd by Huaihai Zhong Lu, Shanghai
Note: walk under the arches up the driveway off of Songshan Lu, second restaurant on left

6384-8000

Colabo

2010-08-15T10:08:00.000-07:00

Italian place on Hengshan Lu
Lunch set menus
Had a great salad and vongole for ~80rmb
Old house so drafty and hot

http://eg.colabo.cn/

156 Hengshan Rd near Dong Ping Rd
衡山路156号近东平路

Four Seasons 四季亭

2010-08-15T09:33:00.000-07:00

Japanese izakaya food and beer/sake. Pretty good and super cheap! Steak tartare, sushi, sashimi, age tofu, lots of selection. All you can eat and drink for 150rmb per person.

369 Xinhua Road by Pan Yu Road
新华路369路近番禺路

They also have a few other locations

6280-0249

Nova

2010-08-06T01:28:00.000-07:00

Cute French place on Dagu Lu. There's an outdoor patio space and cozy dining room (though it never seems to be full). Had a delicious steak tartare.

http://www.nova-sh.com/

418 Dagu Road, Shanghai
大沽路418号上海

Banana Leaf

2010-08-06T01:22:00.000-07:00

The Thai restaurant in Dawning Center (where Cisco office is located)... fascinating and unexpected decour, kind of Waikiki-like. Service not so fast and food mediocre to ok. The food is also more Chinese than Thai really...

They started us with water that tasted like it was from a park fountain. The tea took a while but better. The closest to pad thai we could get were Thai rice noodles, which were a bit bland. Eggplant was good, and the green beef curry was great, and we went to town on that. We also went with the small appetizer plate, which generally was ok except we didn't finish it since it came last and we overordered (for three).

215rmb for the whole meal of four dishes, tea and tax.

Dawning Center, 500 Hong Bao Shi Road, 2F
红宝石路500号2楼

People 6

2010-08-06T01:18:00.000-07:00

Part of the super-cool Taiwanese chain People, the Japanese designed People 6 is funky and interesting with decent food.

The uber-cool design starts at the front entrance -- I won't ruin the surprise (hint, poke around if you can't get in). The bamboo lined walk leads into a three-story cleanly designed dining space, with a bar on the first floor. All of the tables are white with a single spotlight illumating the food (which is good and bad). The bathrooms are also a trip worth making.

My colleague took charge of ordering a great spread, from duck to the test tube drinks with dry ice floating out of the bowl.

150 Yueyang Lu, near Yongjia Lu

岳阳路150号,近永嘉路

6466 0505

Amokka Cafe

2010-08-06T00:36:00.000-07:00

A fantastic space with a bar/cafe downstairs and large yet cozy sitting space on the second floor. It feels like a fancy dorm lounge in a way, with small tables and booths where people have meals, drinks, or just reading or typing away. One guy even had a full PC station set up (that remarkably collapsed down when he was done).

They have some good inexpensive wine options (few bottles under 200rmb) and the food is good. You can order pizza from the place down the street, as well as Thai from next door. We went with the antipasti sampler with salumi, cheeses, olives, etc.

No 201 An Fu Rd, Shanghai
上海市安福路201号

5405 0998

Lost Heaven

2010-07-13T07:17:00.000-07:00

Lost Heaven on the Bund is a Yunnan restaurant with great, reasonably priced folk cuisine from the southwest Yunnan province. It is definitely foreigner friendly, with English speaking hostesses and menus, and plays to tourists with staff dressed in the colorful traditional costumes of Yunnan. The clientele was more foreigner than local, and fairly full for a Tuesday late dinner hour.

It is housed in its own full building -- you walk upstairs into a sprawling dining room that requires the hosts to communicate via walky talky. The restaurant is right off of the Bund on Yan'an East Rd before Zhongshan East Rd, and we didn't make it up to the lounge, but they just opened one on the 3rd and 4th floors.

We ordered a lot for two, but remarkably finished almost all of it and it was pretty light. The papaya salad was richer than I'm used to but good. Sauteed kale was super garlicky and yummy. Shrimp spring rolls looked more like cylindrical shrimp cakes with dipping sauce but were light for being fried. Tibetan beef was delicious, and I liked the pork with lettuce wrap. All of this plus pu'ur chrysanthemum tea for roughly 350rmb. Good deal.

http://www.lostheaven.com.cn/

17 Yan'an Dong Lu, between Sichuan Nan Lu and Zhongshan Dong Lu
延安东路17号, 近四川南路

Gyu Jin ShabuShabu & Sukiyaki

2010-07-02T06:27:00.000-07:00

All-you-can-eat shabu-shabu with heavenly buffet of meats, vegetables, Asian goods like tofu and fish cakes, and sauces galore to mix yourself. We had half pot of kimchi and half pot of soy milk (I think), both quite good and makes great rice porridge at the end.

There are two locations, one by Nanjing Xi Lu and other on Nanjing Dong Lu

No. 242, Lane 169 Wujiang Lu, near Shi men yi Lu
吴江路169号四季坊242单元，近石门一路
+86 (0)21 6218 5171

http://www.diningcity.com/shanghai/restaurantgynjin/index_eng.jsp

Room 213 on the 2nd Floor of 353 Plaza, No. 353 East Nanjing Road, near Middle Shandong Road (this is a pedestrian street, so cabs can't drop off in front)
3331-3575

http://www.gudumami.cn/en/shop/cs08135/

たんや又兵衛 Tanya-Matabei

2010-07-02T06:15:00.000-07:00

Amazing kushi-yaki, or skewered meat shop, specializing in high end wagyu 'tan' (or tongue). It is a small place with a counter and high seats that seats maybe 12 or 15 in the narrow restaurant.

Definitely get the 'gyu-tan' -- the rows of enormous black tongues hanging in the fridge might make some nervous, but believe me they are delicious. The sirloin just melted in your mouth as did the uzura-egg (quail I think). Many vegetable options that we loved. Ginnan (gingko I think) also quite good.

Very high end, reflected by the prices, but worth it. Probably close to $300 for three people to eat until stuffed with a few drinks

高級黒毛和牛たん専門店
東京都港区六本木3-13-8斉藤ビル2F

Roppongi 3-13-8 Saito Building 2nd Floor

山の上てんぷら

2010-07-02T06:11:00.000-07:00

Fabulous view from Tokyo Midtown Tower with high end tempura. Nice to sit at the counter and watch them cook. Lunch sets are lovely. Definitely expensive.

www.tempura-yamanoue.jp

Tokyo Midtown Tower Garden Terrace 3F
東京都港区赤坂9-7-4

島唄楽園 Shima-uta Rakuen

2010-06-24T07:04:00.000-07:00

Shimauta-rakuen (島唄楽園) is a great Okinawan restaurant in Roppongi that co-workers had first taken me to, and I have since taken my big boss to because it is so yummy and unusual.

Okinawa has its own distinct culture and heritage (kind of like Hawaii in the US) and that includes food. They use ingredients that are not available anywhere else in Japan, like sea grapes (海ぶどう) and goya (ゴーヤ) and have funny names for their dishes too. "Rafty" (ラフティー) is pork belly (豚の角煮) and "chample" (チャンプル) means stir-fry. Okinawa is also known for an amazing and potent shochu called awamori (泡盛), and there is an extensive awamori and cocktail list here.

I arrived tonight to a raucous Okinawan performance by Nakasone Mitsuru-san (仲宗根充). The restaurant has live performances about twice per week (schedule). Most of their seating is family style communal tables and you pay 1000 yen cover for a seat where you can see the little stage. I was a little skeptical at first, since I had planned on a quiet dinner with a book, but I am so glad I got to experience this! Not only was it super fun and interactive with people getting on stage to sing and the whole room dancing, the people were incredibly welcoming and inclusive. I can't wait to visit Okinawa!

Btw, in addition to his musical talents, Nakasone-san runs a taxi service in Naha, Okinawa. I am so calling him when I visit!

The restaurant is on the 4th floor of a building on the big Roppongi corner of Roppongi-dori and Gaien-dori. Here's the g-navi site (Japanese)

〒106-0032 東京都港区六本木7-14-10 誠志堂ビル4F
03-3470-2310

Fuchun 富春

2010-06-22T06:38:00.000-07:00

A totally local Shanghai food place that my local friend brought me to in Jing'an. I don't think I can find it again but it was delicious and cheap and packed at 7 PM on a Tuesday (he said it always is, and people drive in from afar on weekends).

We had fried spring rolls, a tonkatsu (fried breaded pork), spicy cold noodles, and several kinds of xiaolongbao, which were awesome. Plain, crab, or shrimp, the juices were amazing and the rest delicious as well. First time trying to eat these without a spoon -- the foreigner friendly places where I have always had xiaolongbao has spoons to catch the juices. I had to gracefully hold the squishy dumpling, chew a small hole in the side, then suck out the juices without spilling all over me (took a few tries). But worth it.

I need to practice a little more Mandarin before I try on my own.

Short walk from Jiangsu Station (Line 2), come out Exit #2, walk left for two blocks
静安区愚园路650号(近镇宁路)

Zapata's

2010-06-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

Zapata's is the outdoor bar adjoining to Sasha's in the French Concession. We went for the USA-Slovenia World Cup game, and the place was packed with Americans. Oh how obnoxious we are, it was so much fun. Tie was unfortunate. Nice patio seating under tents I think, and they had set up several screens outside. Mexican, beer, fun.

www.zapatas-shanghai.com

5 Hengshan Lu, near Dongping Lu
衡山路5号，近东平路

Mr & Mrs Bund

2010-06-18T19:53:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorites in Shanghai I think. Fun elegant, with mix of loungey and funky "Alice in Wonderland" furniture and waiters (right now they are all wearing MM soccer jerseys), and most importantly delicious food and cocktails. They call themselvs "a modern French eatery in cosmopolitan Shanghai"

I was lucky enough to have two occassions in a weekend to dine -- apparently reservations are impossible to get there.

Friday evening, I joined a friend's dinner late. They had done all of the ordering and brought his own wine so I just sat back and enjoyed. Starters included tuna tartare, a light fish marinade, and delicious beef carpaccio. Bread's good too, with this super light . The spare rib off the bone had amazing flavor and delectable meat. Loved it. Pork I was a little less excited about, but I find it hard to get excited about pork. We ordered four or five desserts to share (table of 8) and all were just amazing.

Saturday night, I was with our wonderful organizer way early, enough to be about a cocktail ahead of the crowd, and what a lovely cocktail it was -- a wasabi martini, one of the multitude of yummy, can't-tasting-a-lick-of-alcohol creative martinis. I sadly did not complete my goal to make it through the whole martini menu, but the raspberry, French (Chambourd), ginger pineapple, and Mr Bund (basil) are all worth trying (for the record, I tasted a number of my colleagues' drinks, not all mine!)

We had a group of 21 at the tall table with tall chairs (quintessential Alice in Wonderland pieces) and also the set menu with family style for all courses. Most of it was delicious - starters include a pate, eggplant tartine, cold chicken with aioli, with a beef bourgignon with mash and the best fish for mains.

Caveat, I didn't pay for it, but otherwise might be tough to do twice in a weekend

http://www.mmbund.com/

Phone: 6323 9898

6/F, Bund 18, 18 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, near Nanjing Dong Lu
中山东一路18号6楼, 近南京东路

Azul

2010-06-12T07:42:00.000-07:00

I think I found my favorite Shanghai brunch place. Azul Tapas lounge is "Peruvian Modern Cuisine" with a fantastic 130rmb brunch that gets you a drink, coffee/tea, two dishes, and scones/bread. 160rmb if you want 3 dishes.

I had a bloody mary (pretty good), gazpacho with crab meat, and Latin steak and eggs. Scone also yummy and warm and comes with regular or honey butter and jam. I loved my gazpacho and was ok with the steak and eggs (simply because I happen to like everything rare and this wasn't, taste was good). However, I had terrible food envy of my lovely brunchmates who had a Spanish bruschetta, gourmet omelette with goat cheese, asparagus and other veggies (this was delicious, I am getting that next time), and blue berry pancakes. Benedict looked good too.

Also the drinks, though there were many bloodies to go around, the fruit shakes looked fantastic too. Cute neighborhood in French Concession right by Sashas.

http://www.azulviva.com/
Reservations at azul@azulviva.com or 6433-1172

http://www.smartshanghai.com/venue/357/Azul_Tapas_Lounge_/_Viva_New_World_Cuisine_shanghai

18 Dongping Road (by Hengshan Road), Xuhui District, Shanghai
上海市徐汇区东平路18号

Yuxin Sichuan Dish 渝信川菜

2010-06-12T07:36:00.000-07:00

Amazing Sichuan food, exactly like I remember it from Chengdu! So yummy and so many options so delicious spicy goodness.

Mix of cold and hot, as well as spicy and sweet, helps keep your mouth from burning out of control. Lettuce with sesame sauce and cold yams (yamaimo I think) with coconut soup were nice 'coolers' along with the soy milk, while the beef lungs, frog, and shrimp were awesome hot dishes. Must get the sticky rice cakes with egg at the end.

http://www.yuxin1997.com/

We went to the one in Chengdu Bei Lu but there are two more in Shanghai, one in Chongqing and four in Beijing too.

333 Chengdu Bei Lu (near Weihai Lu) 3/F, Zhaoshangju Square
成都路333号招商局广场3楼近威海路
5298 0438

5/F, Huasheng Tower, 399 Jiujiang Lu, near Fujian Zhong Lu
九江路399号华盛大厦5楼, 近福建中路
6361 1777

Pankoo

2010-06-06T18:16:00.000-07:00

A Korean restaurant chain in China (primarily Shanghai), and with one located a few blocks away on Huaihai Lu, I will be going back to Pankoo. The kimchi was actually good (was already going vinegary at last few Korean places I tried). I had paejan and a chigae, though I did find none of the wait staff recognized the Korean names. About ~20rmb for the dishes

www.pankoo.com.cn

Tsui Wah Restaurant

2010-06-06T17:54:00.000-07:00

I went for a midnight coffee to Tsui Wah Restaurant, a Cantonese chain on the Fumin Lu - Changle Lu corner with Cantina Agave and a few other restaurants. It was pretty full with late night snackers, surprisingly of many ages. They have a nice HK menu, which I am sure I will try some time. The special tea is interesting - never tried it before, mix of coffee and tea... not sure how I feel about it but interesting.

291 Fumin Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai
www.tsuiwahrestaurant.com

M on the Bund

2010-06-04T09:09:00.000-07:00

Great atmosphere and nice outdoor deck with fantastic view. The food was beautiful, but to be honest not the best. The arugula salad was fine. The salt crusted lamb leg looked fantastic, I was the envy of the table when it arrived and just melted with a touch of my fork, but ended up being pretty dry and tasteless. Same with the raspberry souffle - great presentation, totally too sweet, tasted like chunks of sugar. Might be worth another try since I have heard good things, but there are many better restaurants in Shanghai as well.

7/F, No 5 The Bund (corner of Guangdong Lu)
(86 21) 6350 9988

http://www.m-onthebund.com/

Herbal Legend

2010-05-31T07:55:00.000-07:00

Surprisingly good Chinese food with a bias towards the healthy... the restaurant itself smells cross between a temple and medicine shop, with incense permeating the space. We were in Xintiandi, though there is another across town as well

The hongbai (? red dates) tea was quite good. Started with yam (yamaimo) with a citrus kick. I really liked the spicy beef though I went too far with some of the red chilis (note: do not suck on them... they are spicy...) The spinach soup and fried eggplant with meat were yummy, and I loved the pumpkin side. Any of the soups would be great -- the chicken stock in mine was wonderful.

Despite the fact that I felt many of the dishes should be good for me, they were yummy and I want to go back. About 150 rmb per person.

Unit 1B No. 1, 123 Lane Xing Ye Road, Xintiandi Plaza.

Cantina Agave Taqueria & Tequila Bar

2010-05-31T07:35:00.000-07:00

Pretty decent Mexican place with good selection of traditional grub and lots of drinks. I liked the outdoor space, though beware the gnats if you sit by the trees (I have never had a saran wrapped margarita with straw stuck through).

260rmb for two drinks each and nachos, so not cheap.

A Mansion, 291 Fumin Lu, near Changle Lu
富民路291号，近长乐路

http://www.smartshanghai.com/venue/4153/Cantina_Agave_shanghai

Southern Belle

2010-05-31T07:26:00.000-07:00

A homey Southern style bar with a great outdoor patio and happy hour, it was a great Sunday afternoon booze spot on a beautiful May day. It's an expat bar, not so much local presence. Budweiser on tap and for happy hour, but decent bottle list also.

433 Changle Lu, near Xiangyang Lu
长乐路433号，近襄阳路

http://www.smartshanghai.com/venue/4466/Southern_Belle_shanghai

Bellagio Cafe

2010-05-29T18:39:00.000-07:00

Hip and casual Taiwanese food on Hongqiao side of town. It is a chain with a handful of Chinese locations, but not in Taiwan. The crowd is a bit on the younger side, to match the white, minimalist interior and the pixie waitresses (all of them have a cute boy cut, apparently it's a requirement).

Food was great. I wasn't super hungry but you can have a light meal or full on dinner. The steamed whole fish was amazing, and I liked the chicken with garlic and ginger oil. The Taiwanese omelette was fluffy and I liked the crunch of the turnip. We also had some sort of greens in a broth with preserved egg, which was interesting.

They have an extensive dessert and drinks menu, and the desserts at the other tables were monstrous. Definitely worth giving a try.

I didn't realize that Bellagio Cafe was a sister to La Paleta. You can find info on both at http://www.bellagiocafe.com.cn/

101 Shui Cheng Rd. (S), Changning District, Shanghai
Tel: 021-6270-6866

La Paleta

2010-05-29T18:31:00.000-07:00

Lovely bakery with Japanese-style breads and pastries (or in my mind they are Japanese-like, though with Chinese twist).

I don't know why, but my favorite right now is the charcoal bread with Gouda cheese -- it's a big dark grey brick with yellow chunks, so not the most appetizing site, but it's perfect amount of chewy and savory for me.

There is one by the Carrefour near Hongqiao and also one by my office at Hong Bao Shi Rd, which has a sit-down place with cute cafe options for lunch.

480 Hong Bao Shi Rd,Gubei/Hongqiao near Jinzhu Lu
红宝石路480号近金珠路

6209-6008

Wagas

2010-05-29T04:17:00.000-07:00

Sandwich and coffee shop with 'California'-like paninis and salads, in addition to fresh juice and wine. They have plenty of small tables and booths, more trendy than homey, but a place that you can camp out and read/work for a while.

I had a "Greek" sandwich, falafel, roasted eggplant, tabouleh, on toasted ciabatta and a beetroot-pear juice, which not surprisingly is beet red. 75 rmb.

I went to the one in Hong Kong New World at Huai Hai Zhong Lu near Madang Lu (near Uniqlo), right in a little square with other restaurants and a block from my Shanghai apt!

http://www.wagas.com.cn/

Vue

2010-05-09T07:30:00.000-07:00

The bar at the top of the Hyatt on the Bund. Has a fantastic view of the Pudong side and Bund, though I think there is a cover to sit a the tables by the window. There is a rooftop area with beds to lounge on and a jacuzzi outside.

I had the worst viognier ever and a good virgin mary (weird drink mood...) Pretty crowded for a lounge and they had good house playing.

www.shanghai.bund.hyatt.com

199 Huangpu Road, Shanghai
+86 21 6393 1234

SUN with AQUA

2010-05-09T07:11:00.000-07:00

Fantastic and authentic Japanese restaurant on the Bund. It's on the second floor of #6 Bund, in a great Japanese-inspired space (well, except the shark tank behind the reception desk).

There are a few staff who speak Japanese, but not so much English. Definitely make reservations in advance for weeknight.

They have a pretty good drink menu, with sake, shochu (and even sours), and several flights of sake for very reasonable price. Wine was good too I think.

We started with a maguro and other sashimi moriawase, a fantastic salmon salad, and chawanmushi. Shishamo was just ok. My co-workers liked the gindara saikyoyaki (fish) so much that we got a second order of it! Yakitori was quite good too. The spare ribs melt in your mouth and flavorful.

I liked the black sesame ice cream and fried mochi dessert.

6 Bund, 2F, Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, Shanghai
+86 021-6339-2779

Mesa

2010-05-07T19:57:00.000-07:00

I went for rooftop drinks, but Mesa also has dinner.

Drinks were very fun, great crowd inside with pop-music dancing and outdoors.

The Thailander was interesting Absolut Peppar drink with a huge kick. It was good for one drink, not for the night.

Muombie is a ridiculous (secret) concoction of alcohol and some kind of Malibu rum or coconut juice that goes for 98 rmb. It says two per person, but you really shouldn't need more than that.

www.mesa-manifesto.com

748 julu road (east of fumin rd), shanghai china 200040
(86) 21 6289 9108

Sichuan Citizen

2010-05-07T19:54:00.000-07:00

Cool Sichuan restaurant run by the same people as Citizen Cafe. Pretty foreigner-friendly and had more ex-pats than Chinese, but yummy food, interesting drinks and fun atmosphere.

Four of us had pan fried green peppers, tofu, string beans, chicken, fried pork, and rice, with a few drinks and came out to about 50 rmb per person.

http://www.citizenshanghai.com/

30 Donghu Lu, near Huaihai Zhong Lu
东湖路30号近淮海中路

5404-1235

Kathleen's 5

2010-05-07T19:52:00.000-07:00

On the 5th floor of the Shanghai Art Museum across the street from the JW Marriott, Kathleen's 5 is a lovely space with good western cuisine for reasonable price. Went for a lunch on pleasant Friday afternoon, and sat outside on their covered patio.

They have a two course or three course prix fixe menu for lunch. I had the Caesar salad and split main -- sea bass and swordfish (I think I liked sea bass with potatoes better). Their site of potatoes was crispy fried and salty (which I guess can make even cardboard taste good...) and it came with a good aioli.

www.kathleens5.com

325 Nanjing Xi Lu, Shanghai 200003
6327 2221

Sim's Cozy Garden Hostel

2010-05-04T09:28:00.000-07:00

Sim's is a fabulous hostel in Chengdu, but that's now why I'm including it in the 'Eats' blog. Lonely Planet had suggested them as one of the places that offer Sichuan cooking lessons, and we had an awesome time and some delicious food.

We called Sim's the day before -- they wanted us to show up in person to make the booking. The cooking lessons are pretty informal, depending on the chef's schedule along with availability by one of the bartenders to translate. Sim's is a bit out of the way on the northern end of the city, but we had a few beers and walked to ChongQing QinMa Hotpot close by

The next day we returned to Sim's at 7pm for our lesson. Our interpreter (aka bartender) was a Shanghainese who had come out 4 months ago to help out at Sim's. Bob (or Bao) took us to the roof deck (6 or 7th floor) that had a small nook with a small kitchen, where our chef instructor was waiting with our ingredients and equipment ready to go.

We chose three dishes - Kung Pao Chicken 宫保鸡丁, Fish Flavored Eggplant 魚香茄子, and Ma Po Tofu 麻婆豆腐

We spent the first part of the class chopping and preparing the chicken (cubed), cucumber (halved and thirded, then seeds sliced off, rest cubed), eggplant (quartered lengthwise then peeled with the cleaver), and tofu (cubed). We also learned to make decorative flowers from pink pickled daikon slices and toothpicks.

Then onto the cooking. It's all about the spices -- minced garlic, ginger, Sichuan peppers (ground and whole), red pepper (ground, whole, and wet), scallion, MSG (yes, MSG), salt, chicken stock, soy sauce, vinegar, and starch, and then oil and water. I figured the blend of spices and sauces, the order, and timing of the cooking was going to be impossible to remember... so it's all on video...

Kung Pao Chicken 宫保鸡丁

Fish Flavored Eggplant 魚香茄子

Ma Po Tofu 麻婆豆腐

The biggest difference between the chef's and our creations was the cut and the balance -- I loved the dishes I made, but I'd want to be served his.

After the dishes were done, we carried them back downstairs and chowed down with some complementary Tsingtao. Yum. Fantastic deal for 100 rmb each.

See http://www.gogosc.com/ for more info on the hostel.

Long Chao-shou 龙抄手

2010-05-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

May 2010

A chain of hole-in-the-wall local eateries in Chengdu and rest of China, Long Chao-shou was yummy albeit confusing for the two of us who didn't quite read or speak Chinese that well. Tan Tan Mien is the staple Sichuan order for me (or it happens to be the one thing that I can read ona menu), some sort of rou mien (meat noodles) that Ryota could order, and we pointed to a few others. Tan Tan Mien was the best here for sure.

ChongQing QinMa Hotpot

2010-05-04T09:21:00.002-07:00

May 2010

Yummy firey Sichuan hot pot a few minutes walk from Sim's Cozy Garden Hostel where we signed up for cooking classes.

We ordered the foreigner-friendly split hot pot, with a non-spicy broth in the middle, though we did end up deciding that the spicy broth was much better. Then we chose several meats and vegetables for the pot. They gave us small bowls filled with sesame oil into which we put spoonfuls of minced garlic and chopped cilantro.

The cooking is much like shabu-shabu. You dip the meat/veggie into the boiling broth for a set time (1-5 min depending on what it is). But then you dip the fiery hot item into the sesame oil, and yummmm...

Fire Pot!

Remember that the more surface the item has, the more 'spicy' it will keep. Large greens are great in hot pot, but REALLY spicy.

Definitely get some beers, helps with the cooling.

All for a whopping 100rmb ($14 USD) for two.

Chen's Ma Po Tofu

2010-05-04T09:21:00.001-07:00

May 2010

Seems to be THE famous Ma Po Tofu place in Chengdu, as all hotels and guidebooks will recommend. It's the oldest restaurant in Chengdu serving the local specialty, and it is fiery and delicious.

We walked in for lunch. One order of their mapo tofu, one order of greens, and rice and tea was the perfect amount.

Jean-Georges

2010-04-27T07:37:00.001-07:00

April 2010

I was sooo excited to hear that my co-workers got reservations at Jean-Georges at Three on the Bund... Of his restaurants, I had only been to Mercer Kitchen in NY a few years ago and that was wonderful. So his namesake in Shanghai, yay.

3rd floor of Three on the Bund - very elegant, quite dark actually, with plush booths in the rich dining room. We had a late dinner and watched the staff spray the tableclothes to iron press them to the right shape.

Yuzu Drop - might be the best cocktail I've ever had. It was simply wonderful. I thought it might just be me, and I made two of my dinner companions try it, and their reactions were similar to mine. Really yummy.

The menu has several prix fixe options. Tempting to do the Jean-Georges set for about 1000rmb, but held back and did the standard 3-dishes and dessert for about 600rmb. First was a foie gras brulee. Wow. Melts in your mouth with the perfect amount of grilled smokiness. Second I had scallops with roasted cauliflower. Not as impressed with this one, just ok. Main was lamb chops, with a ton of flavor and great rich juicy fat (though it was also rich juicy fat).

We did have desserts, and the almond tofu with apricot ice cream was not the best choice -- my dinnermates' chocolate cake was amazing.

http://www.jean-georges.com/

New Heights

2010-04-25T01:36:00.001-07:00

New Heights is the bar/restaurant on the 7th floor of Three on the Bund, the high end contemporary shopping and dining establishment central to the Bund. We had a brunch on a unusually pleasant Sunday, so we sat outside on the patio overlooking the Bund walkways and Pudong side. Fantastic view, I don't think there is anything better.

There is a two course brunch for 148rmb - I had a salmon terrine and sea bass with gnocchi and mushroom sauce, which were quite good. We split the three crepes, pretty good.

Service is pretty miserable. Expect to take a long time for your meal and service.

Almost all foreigners there, but I think most of Three on the Bund is.

Lou Wai Lou

2010-04-25T00:56:00.000-07:00

Lou Wai Lou is a famous Hangzhou restaurant serving local cuisine like fresh fish and vegetables. It's on West Lake with quite large capacity -- there were two wedding banquets simultaneously on the first floor while the second floor and outsides patios were still open for dinner. The hotel had suggested we arrive by 5 or 5:30 to avoid a wait, as they don't take reservations. We walked in at 5:30 pm and the restaurant was already packed. We couldn't get a table in the front patio that overlooks the lake, but got one of the last in the back courtyard.

There were three of us so we got to order a fair number of dishes, including a local vegetable dish with minced greens and pine nuts, jelly fish, marinated duck, grilled duck liver, and fresh white fish with vinegar-based sauce.

Total 123rmb per person

No 30 Gu Shan Road, Hangzhou, China 310007
0571-87969023

Jade Beauty

2010-04-19T08:06:00.001-07:00

Jade Beauty is a chain with Shanghainese food. They have good dumplings and just about anything else Chinese that you could want. Nice decor, large groups, many foreigners, located in the 2F of the new mall in Xintiandi

Zen Chinese Cuisine

2010-04-16T09:30:00.000-07:00

Great filling lunch at Zen, a chain with good Shanghainese and other food at Raffles Plaza.

411/412, Raffles Plaza, No 268, Tibet Road (Middle), Shanghai PRC
+86 21 6340 4333

Bar Rouge

2010-04-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

Great bar in Bund, with (I think) a 6th floor balcony patio that has panoramic views of the Bund lights and skyline across the river. We were some of the first guests at their grand 're-opening' we were told.

Very expat, very little Asian faces, lots of champagne accompanied by sparklers. Wow.

http://www.bar-rouge-shanghai.com /

7F, BUND 18, 1 ZHONGSHAN DONG YI RD

Barbarossa

2010-04-16T09:26:00.002-07:00

We did a work dinner at the Moroccan fusion restaurant about a 3 minute walk from the JW Marriott Tomorrow Square, located right by Shanghai Art Museum and Kathleen 5 in a small park in a cute house in the middle of a lake. It was nice to see some green space in Shanghai.

There's a second story lounge as well as bar and dining space on the first floor. Good mojitos, plenty of Western alcoholic options, and pretty good food. Appetizer plates are nice, and Moroccan lamb shank was pretty good

Went back a second time, and loved the wagyu burger.

http://www.barbarossa.com.cn/

231 Nanjing Road West, People's Park, Shanghai
+86 21 6318 0220

South Beauty

2010-04-16T09:26:00.001-07:00

We had a large group dinner for the World Expo team at one of the South Beauty outposts in the French Concession. We filled the back room, and it was a great space for a group our size (80 pax perhaps). We had a pre-set menu that came at a decent pace. There were about ten to a round table to the food was shared on a lazy susan and usually gone in one round.

Ye Shanghai Xintiandi

2010-04-12T07:22:00.000-07:00

Nice, classy Shanghainese restaurant in the row of old-style houses on Huang Pi Nan (South) Road in Xintiandi. I was there with a group of 20 of so loud and fun colleagues, and we completely ruined the ambiance for all around us. Otherwise, it would be a sweet date spot.

We had family style with over a dozen dishes, pretty good, though not spetacular.

338 Huang Pi Nan Road, Xintiandi, Shanghai

sasha's

2010-04-11T07:36:00.000-07:00

Sasha's is a lovely restaurant and bar located in a historic house on the corner of Dongping Lu and Hengshan Lu. Nice couch seating. Great bloody mary's and tea, that comes in clear pot and kept warm over candles. Yummy tomato, mozzarella and basil salad, and rest of menu looked quite good.

http://www.smartshanghai.com/venue/1316/Sashas_shanghai

M1NT

2010-04-11T07:34:00.000-07:00

Clubbing in Shanghai. Fun stuff. 17 meters long shark tank.

http://www.m1ntglobal.com/what-is-m1nt/shanghai
M1NT • 24 Floor 318 Fuzhou Lu • Shanghai • China • 200001

Dintaifung

2010-04-11T06:51:00.000-07:00

Dintaifung is a great Shanghainese and dim sum-like restaurant in Xintiandi. Ironically, it's a Taiwanese chain with locations across China and Asia (and one in LA), but some say Dintaifung has some of the best shaolongbao in the city (my favorite for now).

For the shaolongbao, they come in sets of 5 dumplings. I would recommend the standard pork, pork with hairy crab, and the chicken. All delicious and quite different. Drip out the sauce and then slurp the whole thing (and be careful not to burn your tongue if you decide not to let out some of the hot soup first).

I have brought vegetarians who were quite happy as well. Many veg/tofu dishes if you want and all quite good. Raw cucumbers with sesame oil and hot peppers. A bean curd and mushroom dish, quite some heat. Veg dumplings. Veg and pork and veg pork buns. Mushrooms with oyster sauce. Noodles with peanut sauce. Fried rice with egg and scallion. My favorite of the green dishes is the morning glory with ginger.

http://www.dintaifungsh.com.cn/

Located on second floor of the mall-like complex in Xintiandi.

2/F, South Block Plaza, Lane 123 Xingye Lu, near Madang Lu
新天地南里广场5楼, 兴业路123 弄，近马当路
Phone: 6385 8378

Nanbantei 南蛮亭

2009-09-11T19:06:00.000-07:00

September 2009
Dinner

Great yakitori place that we found on Guru-navi in Shinjuku. They have several restaurants in Tokyo, and on the larger end of a yakitori place.

Started with some 'premier' draft beers and appetizers like sesame dressing salad, chicken karaage (Japanese fried chicken), tomato salad, and chicken yukke (sashimi). We ordered a ridiculous amount of yakitori. I think the most popular were the asparagus wrapped in pork, the amazing steaks with wasabi sauce, and the tebasaki (wings). Vegetables are quite good. I've had better tsukune (chicken meatballs). I love sunagimo (gizzards).

Hint: no more than eight to ten skewers per person, and remember orders come in pairs.

English menus with a few staff that speak if needed .

http://r.gnavi.co.jp/g041700/
Few minutes walk from JR Shinjuku station or Marunouchi line Shinjuku-sanchome station

〒160-0022 東京都新宿区新宿3-28-7 キーストンB1
03-3354-0343

Tori-hide 鶏ひで

2009-09-11T18:08:00.000-07:00

September 2009
Dinner

This is my aunt's family's 'go-to' yakitori place in Akabane, and it is fabulous. Never been disappointed and have been there many times over the years.

Guru-navi http://r.gnavi.co.jp/a091900/

〒115-0045 東京都北区赤羽2-4-4 西村ビル1F

Black Pig 黒豚家

2009-05-07T06:56:00.000-07:00

Seoul
May 2009

Korean BBQ place next to COEX. It's apparently new and huge (two story), with complex ventilation systems at each table. Delicious and seemed business/tourist friendly. Yum.

http://www.blackpig.kr/

(02)2051-0008

Si Gul Jip

2009-05-07T06:52:00.000-07:00

Seoul
May 2009

Work dinner at Korean restaurant in Gangnam near COEX. Typical banchan (side dishes), pajun and meats, but what I loved was the dondon-ju (unfiltered soju), my favorite Korean drink!

568-7513, 7514

Hakka Ye Ye 客家爺爺

2009-05-07T06:47:00.000-07:00

Hong Kong
May 2009

Great Chinese food restaurant from the Hakka region in the heart of Central. Nice place on the second floor of Parekh House building with trendy but cozy interior.

Food was great --
Limited alcohol, we had beer. Very reasonable too (250 HKD I think)

www.yeyegroup.com

2/F, Parekh House, 63 Wyndham St, Central, Hong Kong
+852 2537 7060

Orange Tree

2009-05-03T18:05:00.001-07:00

Hong Kong
May 2009

Dinner with GSBers at a lovely Dutch place in Central, right off of the escalator a little above Caine Road. It is a fairly small place, feels very European (no tap water for example) and very cozy. Probably 10-15 tables, and it opens out to the street.

We started with mussels with garlic and light cream sauce for an appetizer. The seasonal white asparagus looked good too. Pandu had the "bitter ballen", fried beef balls that you dip in Dijon mustard, yum.

I had the steak tartare with salad and side of garlic sauteed mushrooms (switched out fries). Steak had anchovy and some onions on top, and some diced onions and I think pepper mixed in as well. The steak was great, I mean what a great way to have raw beef, great flavor and really soft. The chef said their signature is a lamb puff pastry, and Rai says he goes just to get that dish.

Wonderful Dutch chef/owner, Pieter Onderwater (love the name, it was on his chef jacket). He also gave the ladies a gift of battry operated pepper grinder.

www.orangetree.com.hk/

17 Shelley St, Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 2838 9352

Gusto

2009-05-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

Hong Kong
May 2009

Saturday late brunch at great little restaurant. Norweigian Ben = two poaches eggs on smoked salmon atop potato hash with dill and Hollandaise.

http://www.gustogusto.hk/

No.41 Yik Yam Street, Happy Valley, Hong Kong
Tel: 2838-2689

Metropolis

2009-05-03T17:59:00.002-07:00

Hong Kong
May 2009

Metropol's dining hall is above the Admiralty MTR Station (4F). It is an enormous dim sum restaurant, but with both carts and a buffet center to order from. Delicious and reasonable and every kind of dim sum you could want.

Samy's Curry House

2009-05-03T17:54:00.001-07:00

Samy's is my favoriate Indian food in the world. I have only been to Bangalore for one week so perhaps I need another India visit to try more food, but Samy's is damn good.

Samy's is located on Dempsey Road way on the end of one of the forks at Block 25. I have sat at their covered outdoor tables each time I go (more of a sidewalk) though alot of room inside as well.

Since I typically don't know the names of anything, I go inside first and point at all of the dishes that I want. Typically I get the dried mutton, masala chicken, and sometimes fish (they have fish head curry, yummmm) and then ask for some naan. They lay a banana leaf on the table in front of you, spoon a huge mountain of biryani rice, the yummy chips that I don't know the name of, and then the food comes. I also like the lime juice, it's a bit sweet but so good in the Singapore heat eating Indian food.

http://www.samyscurry.com/

Yelp

2009-03-01T12:06:00.001-08:00

Check out this cool Yelp tool!

Recent reviews by Aki N.

What's this?

Bambuddha Lounge

2009-03-01T10:15:00.000-08:00

February 2009

We found Bambuddha Lounge online when we searched last minute for a pre-ballet dinner reservation in the area. It's unmarked and in the beginning of a shady neighborhood, so make sure you know where it is (the staff told us that as long as we weren't "bright shiny objects that looked like crack" the people on the streets shouldn't bother us...)

When I met my friend, there were about five patrons in the whole big place. Granted it was 6pm, but it didn't fill up too much more in two hours. Friendly, but average, service.

We ordered the shrimp over papaya salad and the tuna tartare appetizers while we waited for our third to arrive. Both standard Asian fusion fare, if not a bit bland. Had a nice bottle of South African chardonnay. We shared a skirt steak and scallop entrees, of which steak was a little too flavored and scallops were good. The drunken noodle and bok choy sides were good.

Looks like there is a lounge/club scene as well, and it might be a cool space half full, but not sure I have a reason to come back. Final bill ~$45 per person.

http://www.bambuddhalounge.com/

601 Eddy Streetat (between Larkin St & Polk St), San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 885-5088

BIN 38

2009-03-01T09:16:00.000-08:00

February 2009

I had a lovely pre-movie dinner at Bin 38. It was totally packed at 8pm on a Saturday, with every table booked and a gaggles of yuppie Marina folks around the bar. Our table was out in the front by the bar, so I didn't see the rest of the place.

We had a good bottle of Rioja (well, two between three of us), and then several courses of food to share. The winter crudites were small but refreshing, and the spinach artichoke bruschetta were great. Good crab and citrus salad. Love roasted cauliflower and broccoli (did not love the random patron from the bar who kept asking us about it), and lamb meatballs were pretty good. Not huge portions all around.

It was a bit loud, but a fun girls dinner. Final tab ~$70 per person.

http://www.bin38.com/

3232 Scott St (between Chestnut St & Lombard St), San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 567-3838

Hey Cupcake!

2009-02-23T22:54:00.000-08:00

February 2009

YUM. I don't even like cupcakes, but YUM. The Double Dose, with chocolate bottom and top, was amazing. And they sell cartons of 2% milk. Which I also don't like but was really good call with the cupcakes. Oh and did I mention it's sold out of a trailer?

http://www.heycupcake.com/

1600 South Congress, Austin, TX 78704

Amy's Ice Cream

2009-02-23T22:52:00.001-08:00

February 2009

Huge fan. Had Amy's three times over the course of the weekend - at the airport when I landed (Mexican vanilla with cookie dough), at the South Congress shop (some strawberry neopolitan one), and at the airport on my way out (again the Mexican vanilla with cookie dough).

YUM.

Cissi's Market

2009-02-23T22:34:00.000-08:00

February 2009

We came across Cissi's when Jo spotted the enormous flourescent letters on top of the building that read WINE BAR. Turns out Cissi's is also a great gourmet market, bar, and cafe, with super nice people. We sat outside on the street with a bottle of wine, but the folks inside looked like they had some pretty amazing meals too. I'd go here a lot if I lived in Austin.

www.cissismarket.com/

1400 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
(512) 225-0521

Bess Bistro on Pecan

2009-02-23T22:30:00.000-08:00

February 2009

This was our big birthday dinner, at Sandra Bullock's restaurant Bess. I actually don't remember enough about it because the drinks were free flowing, but we had yummy shrimp appetizers with the most amazing sauce that we sopped dry with bread. I had a great rare filet.

www.bessbistro.com/

500 W 6th St, Austin, TX 78701
(512) 477-2377

Lamberts

2009-02-23T22:22:00.000-08:00

February 2009

By far my favorite restaurant in Austin. We went down to West 2nd Street for Saturday brunch, and it was amazing.

Started with some of the best bloody mary's we have had (and we drinks lots of bloodys). Appetizers of deviled eggs, fried green tomatoes on a bed of some goodness (amazing), and wild boar spare ribs, followed by a brisket and jalapeno sausage link sandwich with a side of mac and cheese. I mean really, does life get any better?

Super cute place, and their upstairs area has live music at night!

http://www.lambertsaustin.com/

401 W 2nd St, Austin, TX 78701
(512) 494-1500

San Jose Hotel Lounge

2009-02-23T21:55:00.000-08:00

February 2009
So maybe this is more bar than restaurant, since they only have small snacks like seasoned edamame and nuts. Super cute outdoor space in "SoCo" neighborhood in Austin. Only beer and wine, but they have some interesting drinks like a cava with bay leaf and some fruit infused champagne.

A little chilly but they have heat lamps for nighttime, which is key.

http://www.sanjosehotel.com/

1316 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
(512) 804-2418

South Congress Cafe

2009-02-23T21:46:00.000-08:00

February 2009

Nice and reasonable restaurant in the "SoCo" neighborhood in Austin. We showed up around 9pm and had about a 30 minute wait, but the staff was nice and we perched at their bar area, which is actually pretty big (looked like some were eating there too). Our group of six got a cute corner booth.

We weren't super hungry but were pretty happy with the small plates and appetizers. I had the special beef chili (yum) and a blackened beef dish with horseradish hash. We had several drinks, and wine. Amazingly our final bill was about $22 per person, not bad at all

http://www.southcongresscafe.com/

1600 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
(512) 447-3905

Lavanda

2008-11-28T18:13:00.000-08:00

Dinner and drinks

Tristen loves this place so much, she went three nights in a row. I was there for drinks on night #2 and dinner on night #3. Really yummy (Tristen claims new chef) and great wine and atmosphere. You can sit at the bar for a nice glass of wine and snacks or wonderful sit down dinner.

Rabbit ragu is wonderful, as is their gnocchi. Brussel sprouts are supposed to be signature but unfortunately they had run out.

www.lavandarestaurant.com

185 University Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301
(650) 321-3514

Mamacita

2008-11-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Shreni

YUM. Favorite fusion Mexican place in the city, it was so delicious. Ceviche was amazing, as was the guac. Both our entres were amazing. Really great margaritas too :)

You can get reservations for half of their seats, and rest is walk-in, so especially prime time, should definitely try for a ressie.

www.mamacitasf.com

2317 Chestnut St, San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 346-8494

Lotus Thai

2008-11-01T14:05:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Yell

Trendy Thai place. It was nice to sit on sidewalk with yummy drinks. I was somewhat limited by Yell's 'no meat, no spicy' but still had pretty good spring rolls, pad keemow and vegetables.

www.lotusthaisd.com

906 Market Street, San Diego, CA 92101
(619) 595-0115

Carpaccio

2008-11-01T14:03:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Katy and Gerri

Kind of a funny scene - totally hopping for a weekday night in Menlo Park, but a slightly older crowd (say 40s). Yummy Italian food, quite full.

www.carpaccios.com

1120 Crane Street, Menlo Park, CA 94025
(650) 322-1211

Zanzibar Cafe II

2008-11-01T13:40:00.000-07:00

Brunch with Yell

What a great brunch spot. Downtown San Diego, huge open windows to the street, tall airy space. DELICIOUS brunch. Eggs amazing, really fresh ingredients. Yell had this great looking latte too

http://www.zanzibarcafe.com/

707 G St, San Diego, CA 92101

(619) 230-0125

Sogno Divino

2008-11-01T13:36:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Yell

My favorite place by far in San Diego. Middle of Little Italy, and it's basically a wine shop with a few dishes, but SO good. This eggplant wrap with cheese, tomatoes and goodness (I dont know what) was amazing, as were the paninis and salad.

http://www.sogno-divino.com/

1607 India Street, San Diego, CA 92101
(619) 531-8887

Kasadela

2008-11-01T13:26:00.000-07:00

Dinner with group

Pretty cool izakaya type restaurant in the East Village. Had dinner with a group of 10ish GSB and NY friends - the place does not take well to large groups since it's a pretty small space. Cute bar, then dining room. They have great selection of sake and shochu. Dishes are good but a bit small.

www.kasadela.com

647 East 11th Street (almost corner of Ave C), New York, NY 10009
(212) 777-1582

Terzo

2008-11-01T13:21:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Wiser, Shane and James

Mediterranean/Italian place that we went to during Heirloom Tomato Week in August. We were not so impressed with their one heirloom tomato dish but the rest was ok. Everything is good (not sure if great), and somewhat limited menu though it's because they source all of their ingredients locally.

www.terzosf.com

3011 Steiner Street, San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 441-3200

Aburiya Kinnosuke

2008-11-01T13:15:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Joyce and Eddie

Fantastic and authentic Japanese 'robata' grill restaurant. Lots of skewers of vegetables and meat, and their starters are true izakaya style dishes. Tofu is amazing. Good shochu too.

Service is Japanese = amazing. I had dinner with the Wu's before getting on Metro North at Grand Central a few blocks away. When I asked about train schedules, the host actually looked up all of the times online and wrote them out for me. Extraordinary for US, normal in Japan.

Same folks that do Yakitori Totto, which is another favorite

www.aburiyakinnosuke.com

213 East 45th Street, New York, NY 10017
(212) 867-5454

La Bodeguita Del Medio

2008-11-01T13:12:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Kate and Kai

Yummy, if somewhat pricey, Cuban place on California Ave in Palo Alto. Great mojitos. Cute bar too.

www.labodeguita.com

463 California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94306
(650) 326-7762 ext 13

Betelnut

2008-10-30T17:32:00.001-07:00

Dinner and drinks

Great cocktails (bloody mary if you are in the mood), great food, a lot of scene, gets super crowded though

http://www.betelnutrestaurant.com/

2030 Union St, San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 929-8855

Academia de Cachaça

2008-09-12T22:26:00.000-07:00

September 2008

A low key bar in Leblon with incredible selection of the Brazilian liquor. While no one spoke English, we picked through their extensive menu (fortunately in English) and ordered 5R shots after the other, as well as other mixed cachaça shots. The Brazilian cherry one was kind of a miss, but I liked the shot with honey and brown sugar. My brother had had a shot of a really good cachaça at dinner – unfortunately the name is lost, but it was about 20R and totally worth it.

Rua Conde de Bernadotte 26G, Leblon
2239 1542

Porçao Ipanema

2008-09-12T22:20:00.000-07:00

September 2008

The Porçao in Flamengo is supposed to have wonderful view of Pão de Açúcar, but it was rainy for us, so we opted for its closer sister restaurant in Ipanema. Recommended by our concierge as one of the three churrascarias to go to (others being Espaça that we already went to and Mario’s which is a bit more expensive on the other end of Copacabana).

This was definitely my favorite meal in Rio, with a great salad bar (Espaça had more selection but I liked this one better) and amazing meat. The waiters are incredibly friendly and we were quite happy and full after a few hours. We learned to ask for meat malpasado, which got us rare, bloody pieces of animal. The dessert cart came around when we thought we couldn’t take anymore, but of course we got flan, egg yolk pastry, ice cream and coffee. Yum. With two bottles of wine and a bunch of drinks, I think it was about 600R total (63R per person).

They also have a bar area in front, with the most volume of Johnny Walker bottles that we (including my brother who works for Diageo) has seen.

Rua Barao da Torrs 218, Ipanema

Via Sete

2008-09-12T22:17:00.000-07:00

September 2008

Via Sete is a cute lunch spot around the block from the H Stern museum and flagship shop – convenient for us post shopping since it was raining. Ended up being a great, light lunch, ‘light’ being the operative word – we were all craving salads and wraps by day five of our Rio trip. Had a really yummy meat carpaccio and greens wrap with a salad. Cariocas kind of drown their salads with dressing, but besides that quite good. Also had a nice glass of mate, a Brazilian tea-like drink that I like from Argentina.

Rua Garcia D’Avila 125, Ipanema
2512 8100

Osteria Dell’Angelo

2008-09-12T22:12:00.000-07:00

September 2008

Great Italian on Sunday night. Antipasti platter to start was fantastic, grilled eggplant, zucchini, warm baked parmesan, olives, marinated eggplant, fruta de mare. Appetizers of polenta with porcini was great, as was seafood salad and prosciutto. I had a veal and arugula dish that was quite rich, but my dad’s squid risotto in ink sauce was the best (and most famous) dish.

Rua Paul Redfern 40, Ipanema
2259-3148

Rio Scenarium

2008-09-12T22:08:00.000-07:00

September 2008

Three story samba club in Lapa – Lonely Planet fairly described it as having a local-to-foreigner ratio of 50:50, but in September (off season), we found the “foreigners” to be from Sao Paulo or other parts of Brazil rather than real foreigners like us (though we could definitely point out the awkward dancing American pretty easily).

There was a line with several dozen people down the street when we got there around 10:30, 11pm, but we bought some bottles of beer to go from another bar and it wasn’t too long of a wait. There is a cover of something like 15-30R – they give you a piece of paper with your name, and the bartenders keep your tab on the sheet, so you pay for the cover and additional charges on your way out. Not sure what happens if you lose the paper…

The place is decorated in antiques – as Jesse described it, “it reminds me of my grandmother’s house.” Cool dark wood bars and walls with dozens of old school clocks, an old “drogeria” with rows and rows of corked dusty vials with “drogs” (that’s what they told my brother). The samba band plays on the stage on the first floor atrium with balconies that overlook the stage from the second and third floor.

http://www.rioscenarium.com.br/

Rua do Lavradio 20, Lapa
3852 5516

Espaço Brasa Leblon

2008-09-12T22:04:00.001-07:00

September 2008

Churrascaria with all-you-can-eat buffet and roaming waiters with slabs of meat – different cuts of beef, pork, chicken, adult and kid, and not sure what else, since we didn’t understand most of them. I think I actually like the salad bar better than the meat, though both were good.

http://www.espacobrasa.com.br/

Av Afrânio de Melo Franco 131, Leblon
2111 5700

Choperia Brazooka

2008-09-12T21:54:00.000-07:00

September 2008

Three story beer house that we happened to stop for lunch during out Rio sightseeing tour. Our tour guide kind of made fun of us for wanting to try feijeoda, a black-bean dish cooked with salted pork and other meats. It is served with rice and stewed kale, and typically eaten on Saturdays. Super yummy, though rich, we had several refreshing glasses of chope (draft beer) and also fried fish and cheese.

Rua Mem de Sá 70, Lapa
3474 3363

Garota de Ipanema

2008-09-12T21:51:00.000-07:00

September 2008

We stopped in here for a post-dinner drink because the recommended bar down the street, Devassa, was too packed. No matter, we loved this place – got some chope, or draft beer and a plate of chicken hearts, which was perfectly grilled and super garlicky, we have been talking about it all week! I had a yummy spicy tomato juice, which we were split on whether it had none or a ton of alcohol, but good either way. This is also a hang out of Tom Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes, of the famous bossa nova “Girl from Ipanema,” bar eponymously named.

We came here again for our last Rio lunch. We had the chicken hearts again, and palm heart salad, pizza, fried fish, soup and sandwiches.

Rua Vinícius de Moraes, Ipanema
2523 3787

Zaza Bistro Tropical

2008-09-09T17:41:00.001-07:00

September 2008

We had dinner at Zaza our first night in Rio. We sat on the outdoor patio with “French-colonial décor”, cute lights and nice ambiance. On the second floor, patrons take off shoes to lounge and eat on throw pillows. Everything is organic.

We started with wasabi-cream cheese, eggplant antipasti and herb butter to go with bread and crackers. Then the waiter recommended Germana cachaça shot... Yummy seared tuna for entre.

Rua Joana Angelica 40, Ipanema
2247 9101