January - California Restaurant Month

No matter where in the Bay Area you are, California Restaurant Month has something out there for foodies.

Berkeley Restaurant Week, January 15-22, 2013

Marin County Restaurant Month, January 1-31, 2013

Napa Valley Restaurant Month, January 1-31, 2013

Oakland Restaurant Week, January 20-29, 2013
Prix fixe menus for $20, $30, and $40

San Francisco: Dine About Town, January 15-31, 2013
Three Course Lunch $18.95, Three Course Dinner $36.95

San Mateo: Share the Bounty, January 15-31, 2013

Sacramento Dine Downtown Restaurant Week: January 9-18, 2013

There are other Northern and Southern California locations celebrating their restaurant weeks too.  Check out the California Restaurant Month website for details.

Red Hen Cantina - Mexican, Napa

4175 Solano Ave, Napa CA 94558
(707) 255-8125
Parking: parking lot
http://www.redhencantina.com/

Last Visited: November 24, 2012

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

If you like Americanized Mexican food or what you often find at chain Mexican restaurants, then Red Hen Cantina might be up your alley.  Claudia loves this place - her favorite is the nachos; so when it was her turn to choose the restaurant, we ended up here. 

It's a large restaurant with a bar and plenty of parking.  While dimly lit, the colors inside are pretty bright.  Booth and regular seating are available.  The menu offers typical fare that you find at Mexican chain restaurants and upon our arrival, we were given a couple of baskets of chips and salsa as well. 

- Fish Tacos - Two tacos are filled with deep fried halibut, cheese, onion, cilantro, and cabbage.  Rice and beans are served on the side. The tacos were okay.  Not exactly authentic, but more than just edible.  The beans were fine, but the rice was harder than it should have been - it was thoroughly cooked, but dried out.  $12

- Chimichanga - Available with chicken, beef, or shredded beef, the chimichanga is filled with meat and then deep fried.  Sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo top the chimichanga.  Rice and beans are served on the side.  The chimichanga was also okay.  There was a good amount of meat and the sour cream and guacamole helped make it a better dish.  The pico de gallo was alright also.  See the comments about the rice and beans above. $12

Tonight, service was okay - nothing to write home about, but nothing glaring either.  The sound of plates breaking and the smell of something burning in the kitchen came out of the kitchen - these were both alarming and somewhat unpleasant since it took a while for the smell to go away. 

If you must have Mexican or prefer Americanized Mexican and need a spacious location, then this might be ok for you.

Farmer's Kitchen - Hawaiian/Fusion - Hilo, Hawaii

91 Punahoa St, Hilo Hawaii 96720
(808) 933-8009
Parking: street parking

Last Visited: October 2012

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

Located across the street from the Hilo Farmer's Market, Farmer's Kitchen is just a window with outdoor table seating, but the call for free samples will certainly catch your attention and it worked - it got us to buy. 

- Egg Rolls - Even though it was only about 10am, I couldn't resist their fresh egg rolls.  The oil is fresh as can be seen by the coloring on the fried wrapper.  Fresh and yummy with a slight crunch in the filling and a crisp crunch from the wrapper, this is a good treat.   $1 each

- Turnovers - Pork and Taro or Curry Beef - Available in two flavors, the turnover are reminiscent of a fresh version of a hot pocket.  The pork and taro is a lot like pork and potato in texture with sweet onion to add flavor and texture.  The curry beef is ground beef cooked with curry, much like Chinese curry beef turnovers.  The outside is cooked until slightly crisp and golden brown.  This is a great taste of comfort food - delicious.  $2

Farmer's Kitchen is a great addition to the Farmer's market scene.  I could eat these treats any time of day.  If you need breakfast or lunch, they also offer burgers,corned beef hash, sandwiches, and more.

HRD Coffee Shop - Cafe/Korean, San Francisco

521 #A 3rd Street, San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 543-2355
Parking: street parking
Hours: Mon - Fri: 8:30am - 3pm, Sat: 8:30am - 2pm

Last Visited: December 8, 2012

Food: 2 to 3 stars ( could have been 4 stars - see details below)
Atmosphere: 2 to 3 stars
Service: 4 stars
Price: $ to $$

I first heard about HRD while watching Guy Fieri's television show - Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.  HRD is known for serving breakfast and lunch with a blend of both American and Korean flare.  Their tagline is: Good Eats. Nice Peeps. Grab a Seat. 

A couple of the items featured on the show were the Kim Chee burrito and the Sloppy JoJo.  These sounded quite yummy, but when I saw the menu for myself, there were just too many choices.  And if Korean food isn't your thing, no worries - they have sandwiches and burgers on the menu too.  For those that are adventurous, there are items like Japanese Curry Kimchee Loco Moco and Spicy Chicken Pineapple too. 

When we walked up to the storefront, one of the owners and one of the employees were out front getting ready to take a break, and I give them four stars for service primarily for their greeting and then for their service once inside.  The guys were super friendly, warm, and welcoming.  By far, they gave the friendliest greeting I have ever received or a close second.  They definitely lived up to their tagline. 

Walk inside and it reminds you of a diner.  There is seating facing the outside window and some tables in the back.  The decor is super simple, but clean.

- Korean Pork Chop special - This isn't a regular menu item (at least not anymore).  Two slabs of pork are marinated and cooked on the grill.  The juicy meat is then topped with a fried egg and served with broccoli and white rice.  The flavor of the pork was slightly sweet and salty.  The cut is medium in thickness and each bite of meat was delightful.  While the broccoli is plain, it works fine with the pork.  The unfortunate part of the dish was the white rice.  While abundant, it wasn't cooked through.  I decided not to waste it and took it home - as I put it in the box, one could hear it dropping in to the to go box like raindrops.  The meat is delicious though and the fried egg is a nice touch.   $7.75

- Kim Chee Fried Rice with Fried Egg - Rice is cooked with shredded pork (think of carnitas), green onions, and kim chee.  The dish is topped with a fried egg and more green onions.  The flavor is well-seasoned.  They make their own kim chee after all.  The rice soaks up all of the kim chee juices and the hot sauce that tops the fried egg gives it extra spice.  Once you break the egg, the yolk runs all over the rice, adding yet another flavor and texture to the dish.  I really enjoyed this dish, but again, the rice was not completely cooked through.  Since the dish was comprised of a lot of sauce, the rice managed to be a little softer, but still not quite enough.  $7.75

Both of the dishes would have been a solid four stars if the rice had been cooked through.  I'm fairly particular about my rice however - it's such a basic ingredient and foundational in both of these dishes that if it's not cooked through, there is no way to rescue it, so for that reason, I gave them a two to three star food rating.  I still have faith that they can make a great dish with some more attention to detail since their flavor profiles are so good. 

During this visit, I also heard that they're opening up another shop in the North Beach area.  All the best to HRD - if their service is any indication of how they'll do in the new space, they'll be great. 

Big Island Candies - Candies, Hilo, Hawaii

Best: Shortbread cookies

585 Hinano St, Hilo, Hawaii 96720
(808) 935-8890
Parking: in parking lot
http://bigislandcandies.com/BIC

Last Visited: October 2012

Food: 5 stars
Atmosphere: N/A
Service: 3 to 4 stars
Price: $$

While this isn't a restaurant or cafe, Big Island Candies is definitely worth writing about!

Teiko gave me a piece of Big Island Candies shortbread when she came back from a trip to Hawaii.  Apparently, their products were originally only sold in stores on the Big Island, but it's now available in stores on the other islands as well.  Of course, they're also available online. 

I tried shortbread at a number of specialty shops during this trip to Hawaii.  Nothing comes close to the delicious Big Island Candies shortbread.  The address above is for the factory where you can watch the shortbread cookie manufacturing area.  The chocolate dipping stations are closest to the window and there are samples throughout the retail store for you to try their delectable treats.  They have everything from plain shortbread to chocolate dipped shortbread to  brownies to coffee.  There is even ice cream available for sale.  Unfortunately, the smallest serving is three scoops, so I had to pass - there was no way I would be able to eat it all.

While they have beautifully packaged individually wrapped cookies, at the store, you can get bulk packaged short bread which is a great deal.  Big Island Candies is known for their higher prices, but the cookies are so buttery and super crispy/flaky that they're completely worth it.  The photos just don't do them justice.  I would rank these first out of all the shortbread I tried for sure!  You can't miss this when you are on the Big Island. 

Taqueria El Farolito - Mexican, South San Francisco

394 Grand Ave, South San Francisco CA 94080
(650) 737-0138
Parking: street parking
http://www.elfarolitoinc.com/

Last Visited: July 11, 2012

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

I didn't realize this when I was eating here, but it turns out this place is a chain restaurant with locations in Rohnert Park, San Francisco, Concord, Santa Rosa, Oakland, San Jose, as well as in South San Francisco.

I noticed that the taqueria had gotten good ratings in South San Francisco and decided to check it out.  While it's certainly not a fancy place, it has seating available so I went to check it out for dinner one night. 

You order off the menu above the counter and the guy behind the register was very friendly and patient.   Everything comes in a red plastic basket and all of the utensils are plastic.  There is also a salsa bar and you'll pretty much need salsa since some of the meat is dry.

- Regular Taco Carne Asada  - While there is a lot of meat, this is a bit high in price for a taco.  However you might be almost full if you have a small appetite if you were to eat just one of these.  A lime wedge accompanies the taco.   I found the sauce to be insufficient and needed to get more salsa.  The flavor was okay. $ 6.25

- Super Burrito - The size of the burrito is reasonable, but I found the meat to be dry.  After a few bites, if you don't eat evenly around the burrito, or even if you do, it just lacks moisture and there is a need for salsa.  Be sure to stock up.  $5.80

- Tostada de Ceviche - I liked the fresh avocado on top of the very fresh tasting ceviche.  Of the three dishes I tried, this one was definitely the best.  The contrast between the crunchy tostada shell, the refreshing seafood, and the creamy avocado was great.  I would get this one again.  $4.50

Overall, the tostada was pretty good, but when it comes to the taco and burrito, I thought they were just okay.  The tostada kept the food rating at 2 to 3 stars.  Considering the great competition in this area for Mexican food, I expected more. 

Two Ladies Kitchen - Mochi, Hilo, Big Island, Hawaii

Best: Strawberry Mochi
274 Kilauea Ave, Hilo, HI 96720
(808) 961-4766
Parking: street parking
Hours: Wed to Sat 11am -5pm

Last Visited: October 2012

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

Two Ladies Kitchen was highly recommended by Jay and Brent, and as someone whom has always loved Chinese style mochi, I was excited about trying something I enjoy so much in a new way. 

It's rather unassuming from the outside, and when I went into the small shop, there was nobody out front.  This family who owns this business can be seen hard at work in the kitchen.  The women who came to the register took our orders and let us know there would be a short wait - it was definitely made fresh for our order. 

I had recently tried a kaiseki style meal which is a multi-course traditional Japanese meal.  For dessert, they had a grape wrapped with mochi.  That was my first introduction to fresh fruit and mochi. 

- Strawberry Mochi - Jay had mentioned that I needed to go early to make sure that they didn't run out of their strawberry mochi, so I got there right before they opened.  A whole sweet fresh strawberry is covered with tsubashi-an (sweetened red bean paste) and wrapped in mochi.  If you have never eaten mochi before, it's made with sweet rice flour (aka sticky rice flour).  The glutinous texture is a little chewy and very soft - it makes for a delightful experience whether flavored or filled.  The addition of fresh fruit gives an amazing freshness and juiciness to each bite.  It's no wonder Two Ladies is known for this in particular.  Note that these don't last long because of the fruit, but once you've had a bite, it's hard not to be addicted.  $2.75 each

- Lilikoi Mochi - The same sweet rice flour as described above is flavored with lilikoi and cut into squares.  Lilikoi is similar to passion fruit in its flavor - they're from the same family.  The pulp of lilikoi is more tart than passion fruit.   Each square was super soft and delicate. 

Two Ladies has a very large variety of flavored mochi including sweet potato, peach, brownie, and much more.  If I were a local, I would definitely be back to try the other flavors.  If you're in the area, the strawberry mochi is a must try.