Category: My Other Writing

April 10, 2010

Spork Excudes Fast Food Charm Without the Fast Food Flavor

[rating:4]

Miniature, plastic Pikachus decorate the restaurant’s entrance, greeting each customer when they walk in the door. Giant prints of 1950’s billboards hang from the walls. Shiny, illuminated cooling fans adorn the space above the food pass window. If walking into Spork feels a bit like walking into a modern-day drive-thru, that’s probably because this space was literally an old KFC that has been converted into a lively, quirky neighborhood restaurant. Although the days of serving buckets of chicken wings may be over, every detail of the renovated space, from the décor to the cuisine to the staff’s dress code, preserves the spirit of fast food culture...Continue Reading

April 6, 2010

Restaurants to Impress - April

You want the inside culinary scoop? Wanna be in the loop? Or, maybe you just wanna rhyme.

Well, unfortunately I don't have the juiciest, underground industry tip, so you're just going to have to settle for this critic's personal opinion. If you want to know which restaurants are currently putting a dent in both my personal time and bank account, and which ones you need to make a point of visiting in the next month, I've got you covered.

These, my friends, are April's Restaurants to Impress.

April 5, 2010

Innovative Cuisine That Puts the "Je ne Sais Coi" in Fine-Dining

Let’s face it, there are some restaurants that a diner can’t help but enter with high expectations. Many of these restaurants live up to said expectations; a select few exceed them. Then, once in a blue moon, you stumble upon a restaurant that doesn’t just go above and beyond, doesn’t just become another entry in the book of memorable meals, but redefines your concept of food. Coi is one of those restaurants...Continue Reading

March 25, 2010

Is it a Bird? Is it a Plane? No, it's a Fish, and at Anchor & Hope, it's Delicious.

[rating: 3.5]

Is it a pirate ship? Is it an oceanic habitat? Is it a warehouse sprinkled with a few tables, posing as a fine-dining restaurant? Or is it simply a place to kick back after a long day of work for a drink and a solid meal? After visiting Anchor & Hope, an unassuming restaurant tucked away on a side street in SOMA, I’m convinced that it’s all of the above.

This is not the sort of restaurant where you sit back in your seat, sip your whiskey rocks, and let the mood lighting ease you into the setting – the second you step foot inside, the spacious, barge-like environment embraces you head on. From the wooden rafters, the lengths of rope hanging from the ceiling, to the lamps painted to resemble giant eyeballs, it’s clear that you’re here for a deep-sea culinary adventure.

Dive in...Continue Reading

February 27, 2010

Restaurants to Impress - March

After a crazy February (note my lack of posts as proof), my schedule is looking unusually empty in March. So, I'm clearly trying to find ways to fill it up with restaurant reservations!...

February 21, 2010

The Garden Comes to Life on Saison's Seasonal Menu

In a sense, Saison is a play of contradiction: a sophisticated restaurant tucked into what looks like the back alley of a Mission warehouse, a French country-side interior with Led Zepplin and Lynyrd Skynyrd serenading diners in the background, and seemingly simple food which, in actuality, requires an astonishing amount of patience and technique to prepare. And when I say patience, envision a chef carefully balancing tiny flower petals, one by one, onto a bite-sized piece of sashimi with tweezers. And that’s just the amuse-bouche...Continue Reading

February 7, 2010

Last-Minute Valentine's Day Ideas

Valentine's Day is next weekend, and if you're like half of the people I know, you're scrambling to find that idea that is sure to shock-and-awe that special person in your life. While most restaurants have been booked for weeks, if you're looking for more than a cozy night indoors watching movies, there are still a couple of fine-dining options.

Please check out my latest Examiner article for all of the juicy details.

February 3, 2010

One Market: So Much More Than a Power Lunch

One Market. One Michelin star. One hell of a good lunch.

From the outside, One Market resembles many of its Embarcadero neighbors – a conspicuous, sprawling, posh space dotted with white tablecloths and men in suits. But don’t let the exterior fool you. Unlike many waterfront restaurants, which exude a Power Lunch confidence but have little substance, the quality of the food being served inside far surpasses its nearby competitors...Continue Reading

January 22, 2010

A Working Definition of California Cuisine

Unless you have been stalking me on facebook or twitter, you probably haven't heard the big news: I'm going to begin writing for the SF Examiner as their SF California Cuisine Examiner. In fact, I've already started. My first article addresses a fairly important question - what the hell is california cuisine? Here's an excerpt:..

December 13, 2009

SPQR U Seriously That Good?

[rating: 5]

I almost hate to say this, but I think my quest to find Italian to rival Delfina has come to an end. Ahhhh the many years of hopelessly searching finally led me to the doorstep of SPQR (pronounced "spa-khrrrrr"- no that's a complete lie). Actually, because the entrance is so nondescript, I walked by the place 2 times (in the rain) before realizing it was what I was searching for.