Sunday, June 27, 2010

Shabu House (San Francisco)

If you are hungry and love meat, then you need to check out Shabu House. "Shabu shabu" is basically the Japanese version of fondue where you cook meats and vegetables in some sort of broth. Shabu House offers an All-You-Can-Eat option after 8PM everyday. I don't believe they take reservations for parties under 4 so be sure to show up early before it gets busy. There is usually a line on weekends, but it's definitely worth the wait. Besides, the longer you wait, the hungrier you get and you can eat to your heart's content! Prices have changed but it's still around $30 per person and there is also an All-You-Can-Eat & Drink option for a little bit more.



There is 3 broths to choose from. You can have either the traditional shabu of plain water, a ginger chicken soup, or spicy miso base. For me, I always pick spicy miso because it gives the meat and vegetables the most flavor! Once I have had the spicy miso broth here, it has spoiled me for other shabu places. This is one of the main reasons that makes Shabu House stand out. There are containers of garlic, daikon, and green onion on the table for you to mix with the sauces. Traditionally they give you a ponzu sauce and a sesame sauce. You can season, taste, or create the sauce to your own liking with the 3 accompaniments. With your meal, you get the traditional vegetable plates and udon noodles to add into the shabu. Of course this is unlimited as well, so feel free to ask for any particular vegetable but don't forget to save room for the meat!


The best part of the whole deal is the meat that they offer. You can choose either lamb or American Kobe beef or a combination of both! Personally I get both to start so I can see what meat is good that night. Most of the time I prefer the lamb. All the meat is freshly shaved to order so it may take some time for it to come out if they are busy. It might be a good idea to order the next plate of meat a little early if it's busy. The meat is usually pretty good and goes great with the spicy miso broth. To top things off, they serve you a scoop of ice cream at the end, which is a great way to cool off after a hot meal.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Double Decker Buffalo Wings

If only I knew about this place or thought about yesterday. After lots of research, the second place I chose was the Double Decker in SF. Albeit, it's located in a shady area as most people commented on the internet. The interior seems pretty clean where they prepare the food and the funny thing was everyone there was Asian, I think they spoke Cantonese. Everyone there was friendly. I just wish that we went on Wednesday night when it's all you can eat wings night for $11.95! Yum Yum! Of course we had to try it out ourselves to see if we liked it and then come back I guess. The dining area or waiting area by the kitchen was tiny. I didn't walk upstairs to go to their "dining" area.I ordered the Garlic Fries because I am a devout garlic lover! When I got in the car, I took them out immediately and they were so fragrant. Sadly, the fries were kind of soggy so they weren't that good and they lacked flavor. I know the pictures looks somewhat good, but to be honest I did a lot of color touch ups because it looked too bland. What really surprised me was that the Buffalo Wings were pretty good. They were much better than I thought they would be. Ms. Lin and I love good buffalo wings, but there seems to be a limited supply up in SF! The prices were reasonable and they were tasty. Their sizes were a little small, but it's still a better deal than Little Star Pizza. The buffalo sauce was tasty but a little bit on the sweeter side and not too spicy. Unfortunately I don't like things too spicy and Ms. Lin loves it hot! So we always do mild with hot sauce on the side for her. On the internet I read that they offer Inferno and I asked in Ms. Lin would like that but she actually declined! BOO! Maybe if she goes back by herself she can try the Inferno, if she dares!All in all I was satisfied with this place. The food was good and the prices were decent. They are on my list of places I might eat next Wednesday! Although once we go there for all you can eat wings, I am sure our pictures will be up on the "black listed" wall. O=P I kept looking at the fresh burgers they were making and they also looked good. They use a special ranch for their meat. I just might order take out and have them deliver to the apt. Yum Yum!

Double Decker
465 Grove St
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 552-8042

Saturday, April 10, 2010

San Francisco Cherry Blossom Festival

This will be one of many adventures we had on Sunday at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Japan Town, SF. I guess you can say that I am a huge fan of Japanese culture, so I dragged Ms. Lin to the festival with me. A few years ago I went to the Pasadena Cherry Blossom Festival and that was a HUGE disappointment. The only thing they had that was a cherry blossom was a puny cherry tree stick. It definitely wasn't worth the hour and a half trip! Luckily this festival was just 10mins away in Japan town and free, so why not! Sounds like a lot of fun. Ms. Lin and I definitely did not enjoy getting up early to go to the festival. Parking was murder too, but that's just a price you must pay. ^_^To start off the festival posts. I am going to talk about the yummy foods we tried. The first thing I got was Imagawa Yaki, like a pancake with sweet red bean filling. Typically I despise anything with beans in it, but I thought that I should be open minded and try some fresh pastries. At first we thought the line we were standing in was the Takoyaki line, but we made a mistake. So I took it as a sign that I should just wait it out and give this a try! The people there were super friendly and funny. I talked to some of the guys and told them that I came from the OC. They joked around that I came especially to see the two guys making the Imagawa Yaki. So they struck a pose! ^_- Of course I had to pay tribute to them on my site!All in all the snacks were hot and fresh. Ms. Lin commented that the dough had a salty tastes. I think that's done on purpose to bring out the sweetness of the red bean paste and to add flavor. They were a nice little snack. I still don't really like red beans but the atmosphere of the fair and the people there just made everything enjoyable!