Ben Tre - Vietnamese, South San Francisco

219 Grand Ave, South San  Francisco CA 94080
(650) 952-2243
Parking: pay parking lot, street parking
Hours: Sun-Thurs, Sat 10am-9:30pm, Fri 10am-10pm
http://www.bentrerestaurant.com/

Last Visited: June 12, 2012

Food: 3 stars
Atmosphere: 2 to 3 stars
Service: 2 to 3 stars
Price: $ to $$$

After a couple of lunch visits and a dinner visit, I've had a chance to try a few different dishes.  I give Ben Tre three solid stars for food, but if everything was consistent, it could get a slightly higher food rating.

Like most Vietnamese places, service here isn't great, and lunchtime is extremely crowded on weekdays, so factor that in when you go for a visit.   As for setting, it's pretty crowded.  The tables are close together and the television screens are usually on.  It feels more like a cafeteria than a restaurant. 

- Ben Tre Appetizer Combination - Imperial Rolls, Spring Roll, Grilled Meatball, Sugarcane & Crispy Shrimp, Rice Vermicelli & Lettuce - The rolls were fresh, but I found the meat items to be a bit dry.  $11.25

- Ben Tre Rice Platter - BBQ Pork, Imperial Roll, and Fried Chicken Wings.  For the rice platter combination, you can choose from a variety of meats (pork, porkchops, short ribs, beef, chicken) and accompaniments (imperial rolls, chicken wings, noodles, shredded pork, fried egg, meatloaf, shrimp cake). The fried chicken is crispy, but the meat lacks flavor.  The bbq meat is good, but they forgot to give me the dipping sauce for the plate and I had to ask them for it.  Ironically, they remembered to give everyone else their dipping sauce.  The imperial roll is good.  The quantity is good for the price and good for lunch because it arrives quickly. $8.85

- BBQ Pork with Garlic Noodles - This dish is also offered with other meat if you prefer to select something else.  I was surpised that the garlic noodles were flavored with small deep fried garlic pieces.  I'm fairly certain that garlic noodles, as known to fusion Vietnamese restaurants, isn't made this way.  While the garlic flavor is definitely present, I missed the buttery quality of the noodles that I've had at other places.  Good meat, but the noodles aren't what you would expect.   $12.50

- Shrimp and Vegetables with Yellow Rice in a Clay pot - While this isn't the exact name, it describes the contents of the dish.  Four pieces of shrimp are barbecued and put on top of slices of onions, bell peppers, and young corn.  All of this is placed over yellow rice.  It was nice to try this dish since it's new to me, but I probably wouldn't order it again.  If you like onions that are just cooked and still a little sharp, you'll enjoy this a lot.  The shrimp was a little dry since it had been grilled.  The rice looks more flavorful than it actually is.  $9.15

Ben Tre is a good spot for rice plates and bbq meats.  I'm sure the pho is probably fine too, but I found the seafood to be a little too dry because of the grill.  This is a good stop for rice plates - stick to the classic items and you should be good to go.  Expect to eat lunch quickly because if you don't, they'll be sure to give you plenty of hints - the check will come before your table is done and they'll check back with your frequently. 

Roli Roti - Catering, BBQ, San Francisco

San Francisco Farmer's Market, Catering

(510) 780-0300

http://roliroti.com

Last Visited: May 2012

Food: 3 to 4 stars
Atmosphere: N/A
Service: N/A
Price: N/A

Roli Roti is well known on the food truck scene, especially at farmer's markets.  I recently tried them when they catered our barbecue event and was excited to see them making their delicious porchetta.  At the farmer's market, you'll also seem them offering rotisserie chicken and pork knuckles too.

- Farro Salad with Tomatoes and Herbs - For those who aren't familiar, farro is like large barley.  These Italian pearl farro berries are tossed with diced tomatoes and chopped fresh herbs. The dressing, made from lime juice, vinaigrette, and soy sauce, penetrates each berry so it has a full-flavored and light taste.  I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this salad.

- Salad Verde - A variety of greens was tossed with RoliRoti’s original French vinaigrette.  The vinaigrette is well-balanced - with just the right proportion of oil to vinegar.  The greens were fresh and yummy.

- Rotisserie Porchetta - Heritage’s free range pork loin is rolled into the belly with Thomas’s original herb mix with lemon zest. Grilled on the rotisserie for four hours until crispy brown on the outside, the meat is flavored well and juicy.  I liked how the guys offered a sample of the crispy pork belly and were happy to add more of the crispy stuff to my sandwich since the guy in line before me wanted only the meat.  Before putting the meat into the sandwich, they season it with rosemary and salt.  That extra flavor along with the soft bread and fresh greens make for a great combination. A good amount of meat was included, making this sandwich, which appeared a little on the small side, filling and satisfying.  If there was anything I could change, I would reduce the thickness of bread by just a little bit. 

If you get the chance, try Roli Roti and don't skip the salad - they're just the right complement for their delicious meat.

The Moss Room - Cal Academy of Sciences, California cuisine, San Francisco

55 Music Concourse Drive, San Francisco CA 94118
Golden Gate Park
(415) 876-6121
Parking: in parking lot
Hours: 11am-3pm Daily
http://themossroom.com

Last Visited: May 7, 2012

Food: 3 stars
Atmosphere: 4 stars
Service: 2 to 3 stars
Price: $$ to $$$$

Located in the California Academy of Sciences, you can enter the restaurant either through the Academy Cafe or take the elevator down.  Enter the Moss Room and you sense the peaceful environment as the lights are dimmed and the room temperature is cool.  I was pleasantly surprised.
This afternoon, the menu was selected for us except for the entree, so we had a chance to try a wide variety of food.  The first impression of the restaurant was really positive and their menu offer enough choices without being overwhelming. 

Warm milk bread was served in a skillet when we arrived.  It tasted a little fishy, but not in a bad way - we had just come from the aquarium, so it kind of fit our experience.  It's like Hawaiian bread, without the sweetness.  We asked about the fishy flavor and were told that it was just a sprinkle of sea salt. 

- Vegetarian Imperial Rolls - Tree ear mushroom, glass noodles, carrots, and tofu are put into a rice wrapper and deep fried.  Red leaf lettuce leaves and rice noodles are served on the side so you can wrap the roll inside the lettuce.  The golden rolls have a great texture from the crispy skin.  The flavor is light, but I enjoyed the cool lettuce against the temperature of the hot roll.  Good. $11

- Spring Vegetable Stir fry - The menus says that crispy shallots are included, but I didn't notice their presence.  Carrots, snap peas, and asparagus made up the stir fry.  A little too overcooked for my tastes, and the sauce was too sweet.  I can usually eat a large quantity of vegetables without any problems, but it was so sweet that I stopped before finishing a serving. $11

- Hamaichi Crudo - Placed on top of a slice of pickled fingerling potato, the hamaichi, along with a little avocado, was fresh and lightly dressed with a thai basil aioli. Four pieces to a plate.  I thought it would have been better without the potato since the potato texture, while cooked well, seemed to muddy the texture of the fish as you ate it.  I would have enjoyed the succulent texture of the fish by itself which was already accented by the smooth avocado. $14
- Pan seared Halibut - The halibut was very delicious and the red curry sauce was pleasant, but a bit sweet.  The vegetables - snap peas - were fine, but the rice was very undercooked, so much so that I didn't eat it - it was crunching in my mouth.  Worse yet, when we told the manager about the hardness of the rice, he told us he would check the batch in the kitchen.  When he came back, he told us it was supposed to be a little hard.  It was not until the end of the meal when we again told him that 6 of 8 people didn't eat the rice because of how hard it was that he mentioned that he should have offered us a replacement side dish.  The manager seemed to be a seasoned manager, and this suggestion was definitely too late as we had already finished our meals.  I was greatly disappointed by this response. $23

- Strawberry Napoleon - Crispy wafers are filled with whipped cream.  Strawberry slices are placed on the side and drizzled with a caramel sauce.  Good. $7

- Lemon Meringue Tart - The lemon curd was tart and with the flaky crust, it tasted good, but the mounds of meringue were a little too sweet for my taste. $7

- Elderflower Spritzer - Refreshing, but not a lot of it. $3.50

The food could have gotten a higher food rating of 3 to 4 stars, but the wild rice pilaf itself and the manager's response to our comments kept them from having an opportunity to increase their rating.  This also dropped their service rating too.  There was so much potential to make this a good experience, but it was completely disappointing to receive the response that we did about the rice pilaf.  We made every effort to be pleasant about our experience, but since we had pre-ordered, they must not have felt compelled to make the experience better.  Too bad - the halibut was actually really good and dessert was quite nice, but I won't return on my own.

Skyline Cafe - Chinese, Daly City

87 Skyline Plaza, Daly City CA 94015
(650) 991-1117
Parking: in shopping center parking lot
Hours: 10am-1am Daily

Last Visited: May 11, 2012

Food: 2 to 3 stars
Atmosphere: 2 stars
Service: 1 to 2 stars
Price: $ to $$

Located in the same shopping center as Ranch 99, Skyline Cafe is conveniently located and offers a lot of typical Chinese dishes at a very reasonable price.  However, note that it's cash only. 
Two units provide a lot of booth and table seating, and as dinner approaches, there are often lines out the door.  However, service here is extremely casual and sometimes nonexistent.

- Dry Fried Beef Chow Fun - The usual ingredients - chow fun, beef, green onions, onions, and bean sprouts. The flavor is good and you get a decent quantity of meat.  Pretty traditional.  While it's not the best I have tried, this is a good dish and great value.  I would have no qualms getting this again. Solid three stars.  $5.95

- Cod Fillet with Bitter Melon and Rice - Great wok air on this dish - it stays hot for a while.  The cod is tender and fresh and the bitter melon is sliced fairly thin and has absorbed the flavors of the black bean sauce. Two scoops of rice makes this a very filling dish.  Another solid three stars.  $5.50

Three dishes for $19.99.  A full page of choices is available for you to select three dishes from.  Some of the items require additional charges as noted on the menu.  The strange thing is that rice is included, but soup is an additional charge - since they didn't actually ask us if we wanted soup, it seems very strange to see it as an additional charge on the bill.

- Hainan Chicken - This was disastrous compared to the rest of the dishes.  The meat was dry and fairly flavorless.  It was hard to eat fresh, let alone as a leftover.  The pickled vegetables that came with the dish were also bad.  The daikon radish was bitter and only the carrots were good.  The cucumber was also lackluster.  I would avoid this dish like the plague.

- Braised Tofu with Vegetables - This dish was not that great either, but better than the chicken.  While the dish came out hot, the braised tofu was dense when it should be soft inside.  The vegetables, bok choy and dried mushrooms, were also just okay.  I was pretty disappointed with this dish and wouldn't get it again.

- Deep Fried Flounder (add $1.50) - Of the three dishes this evening, this was the best one.  The fish was fresh and the batter was light and crispy.  It came as expected with a slightly sweetened soy sauce underneath the fish.  A few green onions on top would make the presentation better.  Good.

Service here is minimal.  Staff is efficient in terms of taking your order and bringing the food quickly when the kitchen is ready, but they don't come back to check on you and getting a tea refill requires asking.  I was ready to give service two stars, but when the check came, one of the waitresses practically gave away my table while I was still sitting there and let the new customers hover over my table even before I had finished my tea, so I dropped their service rating.

While the first visit was really positive, my second visit left me desiring much more and leaning toward take out rather than dining in the restaurant to avoid the service issues.