yummy.

Miss me? Sorry, folks. Real life has taken me away from my culinary explorations, but I promise I’ll try to make it up to you. I’ll start with this review.

Tonight Jason and I ended up having dinner at Carlos Santana’s new restaurant Maria Maria in Mill Valley. It was originally known as The Cantina, and was one of our favorite spots. He bought the place, upscaled it a bit, but kept a lot of its roots. For example, it went from a Mexican restaurant to a Mexican restaurant.

Now, early on, Santana had said he wanted to do right by the locals and not do anything too drastic. At first, I thought he’d reneged on that, since when I entered the door I got a much different feel from the place - there’s actually a wall separating the foyer from the dining area. The decor is less Mexican kitsch and more refined with the aforementioned wall containing some geometric cutouts inset with candles. This added to the overall atmosphere, as the lighting is more subdued and somehow makes the place feel warmer and less stark. It’s clean typically-California design, but it’s attractive and makes you comfortable. The tables and chairs have also been replaced, and this is a positive change. Gone are the horribly uncomfortable bamboo-rattan-whatever they were chairs which reminded me of an early 90s deck. They’ve been replaced with other natural-material chairs, but with a pleasant black and white sort of pattern to the woven grass making up the backs and a soft black vinyl seat. The tables are also a dark brown-black and provide a good contrast with the lightly colored walls.

Now, the artwork was what pleasantly surprised me. Now, this place is very tastefully done, especially considering the celebrity owner. This is no Planet Hollywood. The only real nods to its parentage are the guitar in the logo - a shiny cherry red - and the artwork on the walls which are a direct nod to Santana’s own style.

Of course, the most important thing is the food. At first, I was a bit hesitant. It was definitely more expensive than The Cantina - my chicken fajitas weighed in at $15, and the rice and beans were $2 extra. My concerns were soon silenced when a good portion of chicken, red onions, bacon, and peppers were brought to my table in a lovely presentation of a baby cast iron skillet - a mini version of the very same type that I, my southern mother, my grandmother, my great-grandmother, and so on, use in our own kitchens - on a simple white plate. The chipotle cream was on the side, and they served it with ample tortillas. I also found that the $2 for the rice and beans was fair because the bowl they came in, served side by side, was generous. The rice, however, was a bit dry and the beans, while smoky, were spicier than the ones at The Cantina, but overall they were incredibly good when eaten together, which I think is the intention considering the way they are served. Jason, meanwhile, ordered the shrimp tacos - also at $15 -and was overjoyed to see they brought him 3 of them, with the shrimp lightly dusted and fried and still succulent. He apparently missed that there was avocado on them, but that just meant he could pass it on to me. I love that little green fruit.

So overall, the experience was good. I can’t say I’ll go there often - between $40-50 for Mexican is a bit rich for me when I can get good Mexican cheap around here - but for a nice elegant-feeling Mexican meal, it’s definitely worth a visit.

Oh, but Carlos? Ease up on the cilantro, will you? It looked like someone ripped up an entire garden just to pile it on my fajitas, and sadly, I’m one of those people who are genetically predisposed to not enjoy the stuff. I pulled it off easily since it was a huge mass of it, but even if someone likes it, it was excessive.

Sunday afternoon, my husband and I had to head up to Santa Rosa to have lunch/dinner with the in-laws for my father-in-law’s birthday. The restaurant they chose was Tex Wasabi’s, a venture of Guy Fieri of Food Network fame. I had high hopes, since I’d liked what I’d seen of Guy, but as both a BBQ and a sushi elitist, I was skeptical.

As it turns out, I had reason to be. The food wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t something I’d drive to Santa Rosa for, either.

My husband and I split a Red Dragon Roll ($12, spicy tuna, avocado, cucumber & black sesame seeds with crunchy tempura bits & maguro on the outside). The spicy tuna did have a kick, but I felt like there wasn’t much else to the flavor of the roll. The maguro on top didn’t have much taste at all, though it was clearly fresh. Even the avocado - which is one of my favorite things - left me a bit flat. It was good, but not as spectacular as I would expect from a menu item which brags “over 20,000 sold”.

I, being the optimistic Memphis girl, ordered the Pork Slyders ($7.50, pulled pork with BBQ sauce & slaw on potato rolls). I’ll admit it: I’m a snob when it comes to my BBQ, especially pork BBQ. I’m spoiled from growing up in a town famous for it, but I’ve learned to be tolerant. My first warning, however, was the fact that they used the umbrella term “southern-style BBQ”. That phrase is more than a little misleading, as there is no single “southern” style when it comes to BBQ. For example, there’s Memphis, Carolina, Texas, and many more, some that are hiding in small towns that you’d have difficulty finding on a map. I’ll say this: the pork was tender and the potato rolls were soft. It warmed my little Memphian heart that they even had the slaw on my sandwiches. What didn’t impress me, however, was the sauce. It certainly wasn’t anything like any of the southern BBQ varieties I’ve tasted. It wasn’t the tangy, vinegar-based sauce of Carolina, and nor was it anything like the sweet smokey sauce of my hometown. It had a kick, certainly, but there wasn’t much actual flavor to it beyond that. It taste more like a spicy tomato sauce than anything else. I will say that the slaw mellowed it out some and add a little much-needed sweetness, but it wasn’t the same. I think my expectations would have been different if they had not pretentiously used the moniker “southern-style”, as the BBQ wasn’t what I’d call bad, but it wasn’t what someone who has had pulled pork in the south is going to expect.

My father-in-law, however, did not finish his beef brisket. He did not say exactly what he found unpleasant about it, but for a man who has a hearty appetite and a love of BBQ beef - and makes a darned good tri-tip himself - he did find it lacking.

My husband ordered the Johnny Garlic roll ($6, cucumber, avocado, seared albacore and garlic mayo). This was, aside from the tempura onion rings, the best thing I sampled all night. The albacore was perfectly seared and the garlic mayo added a wonderful flavor to the roll.

Overall, my feelings were mixed. While Tex Wasabi’s does both sushi and BBQ passably, it doesn’t do either particularly WELL. If I were in the area, or if I had a craving for both sushi and BBQ at the same meal, I’d consider it again as a place for a decent meal. I certainly wouldn’t refuse to go if invited again, either, as for all extents and purposes, the experience was pleasant enough. For BBQ, I’ll stick to either making it myself with my family’s “secret recipe” sauce (or my coveted Neely’s sauce I brought back from my last trip home to visit my family), or visit Everett and Jones in the East Bay. In addition, there are tons of far better sushi restaurants a lot closer to home right in Marin, and the prices are comparable for a better quality product (including Sushi Ko, a mere hop, skip, and jump from my front door).

I guess I just wasn’t hearing the “rock and roll” at Tex Wasabi’s.

Sometimes, Jason will drive into the city and pick me up from work and we’ll go to dinner. Since my company recently handed out bonuses, we decided to have a nice dinner. We drove around for a while and ended up at The Beach Chalet on Great Highway near Golden Gate Park. We had been there before for lunch, but we’d never managed to arrange dinner at a time in which the place wasn’t packed to the gills. Today, however, we beat the crowd.

First, it’s good to know that most of the tables there have a fantastic view of Ocean Beach and the Pacific Ocean. This view probably is only second to that of the Cliff House down the street. Second, The Beach Chalet is also a brewery.

Jason ordered the Laura Chenel Goat Cheese Ravioli (with wild & tamed mushrooms, Savoy spinach, delta asparagus, English peas, and a mushroom & mascarpone sauce). This, I know, would be something that our own Padma would adore. While my husband did remark that the ravioli stuck together some, the flavor was excellent with the tang of the goat cheese and the mellowness of the sauce. He even liked the asparagus.

It was hard for me to choose, as there were several things that piqued my interest. I ultimately chose a glass of their Riptide Red ale and the seared day boat scallops (with herb risotto, roasted Roma tomatoes, and parmesan broth).

The first thing to take note of is that the scallops were perfectly prepared. They were seasoned well and seared with a slight crisp on the outside, but the inside was warm and soft and almost melted in my mouth. They were heavenly, and they were easily the best scallops I’ve had in years. The herb risotto added a pleasant color contrast on the plate since it was green and it was topped with the two slices of roasted tomato. A small pool of the broth surrounded it all, but the dish was not swimming in it. The risotto was subtle and creamy, not overpowering the delicate flavor of the scallops - something which is easy to do. I, not a real fan of tomatoes, actually enjoyed the roasted Romas.

The Riptide Red ale seemed a little more carbonated than I am used to, but it was crisp and had very little aftertaste. It was clean and pleasant and has easily become one of my favorite beers.

Overall, our experience at The Beach Chalet can be summed up in one word: excellent. Everything from the atmosphere to the service to the incredible food was impeccable. We will return again… if we can time our dinner right.

Before we start, yes, I’m talking about a food truck… one of the shiny silver emblems of urban life. Don’t let that fool you.

Today, when I left the office for lunch, I’d planned to just stop at Safeway and pick something up, but when the light seemed to refuse to change for me so I could cross Townsend, I walked past Seoul on Wheels and this time, I decided to stop.

I was greeted warmly and genuinely by the proprietor. She was inviting and helpful and you could tell she enjoyed her work. She offered me menu cards to take back to the office - she’d just gotten them from the printer after a long wait.

I ordered the rice bowl with chicken. The rice bowl also has the option of brown rice as well as rib eye or spicy pork as the meat. A regular is $5.50 and a large is $7.00. I am glad I opted for the regular, as it was massive and there was no skimping involved. I almost regret ordering the egg rolls which were pretty standard fare and nothing outstanding.

The rice bowl, however, was warm and flavorful, though I felt the meat could use with a little sauce of some sort. Nevertheless, it was tasty. If I hadn’t seen them, I would not have noticed there were carrots, but the mushrooms were a welcome addition, also, under that mountain of meat was a pleasant surprise: the thin cellophane type noodles that I love so much in various types of Asian cuisine.

Overall, I was pleased. I’ll almost certainly eat lunch there again - though I think if I get a rice bowl I’ll skip the add-ons. You can’t beat the price for a filling and delicious lunch.

You’ll have to find Seoul on Wheels if you want to try it, but I can take the guess work out of it:

6:45-8:45am @ Bryant & Main

9:15-9:45am @ Bryant b/w 4th and 5th

10:00-10:25am @ Harrison & 1st

10:30-11:45am @ 4th & Townsend

12:00-12:25pm @ Harrison & 1st

12:30-1:45pm @ Embarcadero & Bryant

It may not be gourmet, but it’s probably the best value for good tasting food you’ll find in South of Market.

Wanting something different than the usual cheese enchiladas, the idea was suggested to go to a Brazilian restaurant.  I was definitely not up for the typical churrasco experience of a Fogo de Chao type of restaurant.  Sampaio’s was suggested as the alternative.  Having never heard of it and always up for trying new places, I was totally game.

 Sampaio’s is located off far west Burnet road, in a nondescript area of little shops and strip malls.  There is a cute patio off to the side, although the view of the traffic leaves much to be desired.  Inside, however, the ambience is greatly refined from the exterior.  Warm colors, comfortable booths, and low noise level indicated that we were in for a relaxing time.

 We started off with drinks.  I ended up getting a Brazilian mojito made with Brazilian sugar liquer [cachaca] and rum, after tasting my dining partner’s.  It was very smooth, had just the right amount of mint, and had a sharpness that finished off the sweet tones.  Unfortunately, as I am a lightweight, I stopped after my one mojito and was unable to try the Brazilian drink–Caipirinha–which was recommended by our server and is a mixture of lime, sugar, and cachaca.

 After getting the scoop on portions from our server, it was decided that we would share an appetizer and a salad.  We kicked things off with Bolinhos de Arroz.  These were rice puffs stuffed with potatoes, herbs, and mixed cheeses.  While the taste was complex and inviting, the texture was a little too dense for my liking.  The texture seemed to render the puffs too chewy to be really pleasant.  The romsemary and tomato dipping sauce was okay, but nothing spectacular.

Next, was the Salada de Maca.  This was a salad of romaine hearts and baby greens, topped with a Burgundy basted apple stuffed with goat cheese, raisins, and pecans.  I admit to skepticism when I read the description, but I was pleasantly surprised when the salad came to the  table, both in presentation and in flavor.   The apple was a beautiful ruby color, which contrasted nicely against the bed of goat cheese and greens.  The flavors blended well, with the exception of the rustic mustard vinegarette, which overpowered some bites.

I had a dish called camarao ao molho de cachaca.  The dish was made of jumbo shrimp in a Brazilian liquor and garlic butter sauce with tomatoes, onions, and peppers.  It was presented with a side of sauteed veggies and a mandioca griddle.  The mandioca griddle was similar to a piece of polenta and was a nice change from the typical starch.

The sauce itself was stellar.  There was a good combination of sweet and savory within each mouthful, with textural interest being provided by the tomatoes, onions, and peppers.  The shrimp melded with the sauce nicely, although they were nearly overdone.  While not being a heavy dish, or, one of gargantuan proportions, this entree was extremely satisfying.

The other dish tried was the pork tenderloin [porco tenderloin].  Presented with a coffee crust and glazed with a sour cherry sauce, this dish was the highlight of the meal.  The pork was tender enough to fall apart, with a pleasant bite and smokiness from the coffee crust.  The cherry glaze made a nice finish of the morsel of food.  The garlic mashed yucca accompanying the pork had great flavor, but the texture was a little too stringy.  All in all, the tenderloin was the star of the show.

I give Sampaio’s 4 out of 5.  There can definitely be improvement on the side dishes and the restaurant is rather pricey for the portions you receive to eat here on a consistent basis.  The main portions of the entrees are excellent and the drinks are made well.  The experience is capped by a helpful, but unobtrusive, staff.  With this level of service, one can hope that the overall consistency of the food improves and they become a 5 star establishment.

 The restaurant’s website can be found at:  http://www.sampaiosrestaurant.com.

We decided to go for burgers and Barney’s supposed to be the place for that when you’re in San Rafael.

My first impression of the place wasn’t too bad. I really liked the big paintings of vegetables in the back ground and the seating was fine. There wasn’t too much of a crowd and we got a table to ourselves. It’s really a quite typical burger joint with a fresh decor to it. The lighting settings seemed to be a problem though, as the staff didn’t seem to be able to make up their minds on whether they wanted the lights to be dim or not.

We decided to get Guacamole burgers, beef for him and chicken for me, along with curly fries. This was my first time ever that I had curly fries so I wont review those.

When we got our burgers it was basically up to ourselves to put them together, we had the bread, the meat and the sauces there and lettuce, tomatoes and pickles on the side. I prefer this to getting a pre-made, usually, soggy burger.

It was served with guacamole, sour cream and Monterey Jack cheese, with the cheese melted to the chicken.

My first impression wasn’t great, it was good food, but it was fairly bland, I like my guacamole with a bit of a kick in it, preferably with a bit of lime, cumin and garlic, this seemed to consist mostly of avocado, salt and pepper.

The problem came when I was halfway through the chicken, if the chef had a black out or if it was a simple mistake is still unknown, but all of a sudden I sat there with a medium rare chicken. Since I’ve been working with food in different ways for over 10 years I appreciate not getting a dry and boring chicken, but this was too much.

Being half-way through our dinner the restaurant changes from being a pretty quiet place to playing electronica, I guess this was to give it a “lounge” feeling, it probably would’ve been great if they hadn’t served food. Fairly upbeat electronica doesn’t exactly mash with trying to eat a dinner in a relaxed tempo. Unfortunately it was also so loud that any talking was pretty much out of the question.

What really ticked us off in the end was the extremely bad service we got, we had to wait for 25 minutes to actually get our bill. We tried everything to get their attention short of actually walking over to them.

The bar staff seemed more interested in sampling the drink they were making in the blender than actually getting paid for what they had served. We were on the verge of just leaving without paying when they finally gave us some attention and handed us the bill.

On the plus side, the food has potential, I think they have the right idea and despite it being a bit bland and boring I could see it picking up, it wasn’t bad, just not good. For the food they get a 3.5, which doesn’t include the chicken as that is a -1. The place in itself is nice, I liked sitting there and for the most of the time they were quite nice, that’s another 3, big minus for the music though, the service was fine until we had gotten our food, then it went drastically downhill and stayed there.

I will make an effort to come back on a weekday as I suspect that will be a bit better.

All in all they get a 2.5/5.

Instead of going to the Japanese restaurant that we always frequent we decided to try something new. K & L Bistro’s menu sounded attractive with its typical classical French courses, such as Moules Marinière, onion soup, andouille and smashing desserts as Crème Brûlée (which, if done right, is superior to most desserts in my book). They were definitely on the pricy side for us (main courses ranging from $17.50 for the mussels to a $27 for a Halibut with potato purée), so we decided to go with a lighter entrée, in this case that meant an onion soup for my mother and a caramelized onion tarte for me.

Now, the place is pretty, it’s small, cozy and with the back wall being a brick wall it all added up to a nice atmosphere. It’s got an open kitchen, and except for seeing one of the chefs guzzling down a glass of white wine, it added up to the altogether nice interior.

They seemed to have a fairly trained staff, polite, not too much in the way, would refill beverages and bread almost invisibly. They were smartly dressed in black and white, which can be quite boring, but it looks nice and clean.

When the food arrived it was tiny portions, even with European standards. Ok, we could work around that.

What we couldn’t work around was the fact that the sourdough flutes with butter that we got to snack on before the food came was the most exciting part of the dinner.

The onion soup was soggy and at best bland in taste, completely flavorless and boring. The cheese was stringy in an annoying way and what should’ve been a fairly crispy crouton (with a soft underside) and golden cheesy top was now just soggyness through and through.

The onion tarte was served with a tiny ball of frisé lettuce with a very sharp vinaigrette that would’ve been fine if the balsamic reduction, which was squirted onto the plate, hadn’t been sour and burnt. The onions in themselves were also sour, not as sweet and soft as they should be.

The apples on top were bland at best, instead of taking care to really use a pair of aromatic, good apples they had taken a few slices of a Red Gala, which can be fine if one is lucky, but usually tends to be a bit watery and bland in taste.

The only thing which stood for itself were the crumbs of blue cheese on top of the tarte, and the probably pre-bought pie shell.

Now, the size of the portion would’ve been fine if every morsel had been exploding with rich flavors, but it certainly didn’t.

I was thoroughly disappointed, not only was it pricey, it wasn’t even worth half the price we paid.

I had planned to try their Crème Brûlée, but after the fiasco with the entrée I figured I’d rather go home and make my own.

I give them 2 out of 5, the service was at least impeccable (except that they overcharged us by $3.25, but that misunderstanding was easily and quickly taken care of).