OK this is a prior review I never posted that I just found in drafts. Aye aye aye I must be losing what’s left of my feeble mind. That said we’ve been back, enjoyed many more meals of rare cuts of Filet – just a week or so ago we had another great meal and did the “Crackhead Crazy Expensive Filet Trio Eat-Off” ($195). Ask for it by name! Dang it was tasty. (From left to right) Hailing from New Mexico the Lone Mountain Wagyu vs. a Cabassi Wagyu from the land down under vs. a Japanese Miyagi Perfecture. From Under Meat. Eww. Ha. But au contraire´mon ami, all three rocked it with the Lone Mountain coming in first by a hair. No, not really a hair, it was just a close call. All good, but this night at least the Japanese cut needed to be different cut perhaps, the texture was good but not quite enough taste, esp. when you’re paying about $25 a bite! This is a fun meal to have occasionally so splurge. Or have someone treat you! We also had the Truffle Fries ($12), cooked in duck fat bien sur, Wild Mushrooms ($14), pass on these and a terrific Steak Tartare ($18). Yup, Steak tartare as an appetizer to a Filet Trio. That’s some nasty carnivore action!

Please, read on for the original review!

Bacar, we loved ya. You brought sexy to SoMa back in the day. But then you just didn’t age well, kinda like Kenny Rogers.

So out with the old and welcome to the ‘hood, Alexander! And smart move keeping that killer wine storage:)

So we saddled up to the bar the other night. Nope not the bar bar, the kitchen bar. We love kitchen bars – chat chitting with the cooks, seeing the preparation, the operations and in the case last night getting lots of free vittles to boot! As in a Smoked Escarole appy, which had excellent texture and spice, as well as a complete lack of fishiness that resulted in even the other (non sushi-ish fan) J being a fan. More? A Scallop and Crab Lumpia dish, with super-sweet tiny scallops and a generous lump of crab, deep fried and succulent. And the Hamachi shots are unreal.

So we were greeted a tout de suite by Sean, a very cool, fun guy who acted as our main server, but is in fact a GM. Opened up the SF location, and was at the Cupertino location for years. Knows his meat, if you know what I mean. Good, ‘cuz I don’t know what I mean.

Wait, there is some seriously tasty B&T people watching at this joint too. Night of the living whores. Awesome watching these dudes with their dates in 5″ heels (yes, some clear) trying to walk the stairs to the bathrooms. Worth the price of admission alone! I guess the night before some guy came in and…wait for it…had his ‘date’ on a cat leash. I wonder if they brought her a bowl.

So we had not eaten all day. That is, except for a serving of kick-ass Steak Tartare at Epic Roasthouse an hour before. Meat meat meat meat. The dance of meat. It may be a jig, actually. So of course our next stop is a Steakhouse! By the by, Alexander’s has an equally awesome Tartare as well.

So we ordered up the Iceberg Wedge ($10) with Bacon & Bleu (yeah I spell it French) Cheese, not even a healthy tomato in sight! How was it? It’s an f-ing Iceberg Wedge, you cretin, of course it was good!

Then we had Tony’s Potatoes ($9), which rocked the house. Gratin, kittens. Yummy.

We had some Sauteed Mushrooms ($14)…hmm, this was the one thing that was kinda blah. Tasteless. Skip it. Then WTF did I get it again the next time we went (read above…)? I’m kinda dumb I guess. But hey, we’re not here to graze on veggies, let’s get on with it!

Wait. Yes, surprise, surprise we did have some beverages. And we started with Sangria with Beets?! WTF? That’s TF, people. This was odd, good and semi-earthy. They also have a solid BTG (by the glass, keep up) wine list – we hit the Nebbiolo and Grenache, the Reussiac Sauternes and 20 Year Grahams Tawny.

Oh yeah, THE MEAT. There goes that jig again. So these guys have tons of delish meat. Doi. It’s not called a Steakhouse for nuthin’. But something in particular caught my bloodshot, beady little eyes…The Tajina F1 Filet ($125). What is it? “It’s a rare (as in scarce) cut of Filet Mignon”. What else is it? “One Hundred And Twenty-Five Dollas“. Anything else to add? “Why yes, and thanks for asking. The best f’ing steak we’d had in memory”.  Say it with me. R-A-R-E! So is it worth $125 bones? Every day – no? On occasion? Hells yeah!

Oh yeah, the Cotton Candy they serve for dessert…cute…I guess. But not for moi. Anyhoo, go!

We replied with something along the lines of “…hey good for you Matteo bring us a slice someday ‘cuz we’re not stepping foot in the East Bay anytime soon. As in never, dude!…” But guess what? Chicken butt! Nevermind, here’s what: as crappy luck would have it, we were forced to make an Ikea run last Friday for some new office furniture (no, not for the already plush VdV headquarters, for the cool new digs of our day jobs). And, Ikea is in Emeryville! What a coinkydink.

So we gassed up the hooptie, packed some water and PB&J sandos, a compass and some flares, increased our life insurance policies and set sail for the EAST BAY!! Clutch my pearls. What lengths will VdV go it for a slice or 5 of killer pie?! I dunno, but crossing the Bay Bridge tested us.

So after a fun-filled 3 hours at Ikea that i won’t even go in to, we mapped out the route to Rotten City Pizza. We only got lost twice. This place is a dive. Yay! And I mean that in the most complementary of all ways. Rotten City is a small place with a dozen or so stools, a glass case housing the pies and a very small kitchen. That’s it, kittens. And that’s all it needs to be. NY-style, bitches!

This fine, sunny Friday, they were offering 4-5 different slices including Funghi (Sauce, Cheese, Creminis, Thyme and Garlic Chips), Pepperoni (ummm, Peperoni) Neapolitan (Cheese & Sauce), and a sexy little Bianco Verde (Mozzarella, Ricotta, Parmigiano, Chili Flakes, Arugula Pesto) number. They have tons of other pies too, these were just the slices they had when we were there. The pies go for the low to mid $20′s the slices are $5 or so.

So Rotten City…the name…what does it mean? Well, pilgrims I guess back in the day, Emeryville wasn’t the toney zip code it is now! Ha. Anyhoo, back then, the Alameda County D.A. or something proclaimed Emeryville as ‘The Rottenest City On The Pacific Coast’. Rottenest? How’d he get voted in with grammar like that? What he was eluding to is that during prohibition Emeryville was somewhat of a den of iniquity. I guess these RCP guys dug the theme and went with it.

Speaking of the guys, very nice dudes, friendly jovial and full of chatter. Cool. Whatever. Let’s get on with the pies. Slices, to be specific. We gorged on slices of the Funghi, Bianco Verde and Pepperoni. All very authentic NY-style thin crust slices. Very thin crust, not crispy but with enough body and texture to do a great jog of holding the toppings. I prefer not to have any corn meal on my crust, but it was still very good. Foldable is the key takeaway. Toppings? Yes, the sauce was fresh, well spiced but I coulda used slightly more oregano. But I’m a pizza bitch! The cheese was well-proportioned, and tasted very fresh indeed. The pepperoni was great and not too greasy, and the way they roasted the Cremini mushrooms prior to baking was excellent! All good.

And I know, I know…the choice of the Bianco Verde (photo above). Don’t be a hater, it looked great! And tasted awesome too, with lotsa creamy ricotta, zesty pesto and, I am scared to say, it may of been our fave. No sauce, basically like a white pizza + pesto. Went great with the tasty micro-brew i can’t recall the name of. You’re welcome.

Bonus alert! These cool dudes whup up onna da best Meatball Subs ($9.50) I’ve ever had. Ever. The roll is perfect, crunchy on outside, and stuffed with a pantload of tasty, tender beef-pork-veal meatballs with a nice spiced sauce and gooey cheese. Word. Go to a pizza place for a meatball sub. Christ that was good.

So bottom line? Well, I had those stalagmites you get on the roof of your mouth after eating things with hot cheese. Yummy! It’s like a badge of honor inside your mouth. OK, real bottom line? I’d risk my life again crossing over to the East bay for another trip to Rotten City Pizza! But if they’d deliver to SoMa in SF it’d be even better (hint, hint).

Oh yeah, buy a hoodie while you’re there, that logo with the chimp carrying a pizza riding a greyhound is awesome!

I mean, it’s all about customer experience, is it not? And it’s pretty bad when a company’s website has more personality than the actual staff, to boot. So you’d think I would simply boycott the place, which for the most part I do…

But, wino that I am, I did stop by K&L a few days ago under the pretense of grabbing a b-day present for a buddy. He’s a fan of tequila, and I knew K&L would have Clasé Azul, an ab-fab bottle. Plus, hell while I’m there I may as well grab a bottle or 6 of wine, right?

And guess what? Surprise! If you lift the pewter cap up of Clase Azul about 1/4″, and smack it down with a little flair it rings like a bell. Yipee! Hey, it made for hours of fun after a few glasses of the stuff.

So imagine my surprise as I slinked, (or is it slunk?) in to K&L, in full disguise since I think the staff has ‘shoot on sight’ instructions, and saw…wait for it…TINY CARTS! Yay! You listened, K&L. Atta Boy!

You can actually stock up with these little double-decker carts (great for boosting that average cart value, am I right, K&L CFO?) as well as easily glide through the narrow aisles without turning it into a destruction derby episode (great for almost everyone involved).

So that’s one off the long list of suggested improvements. Keep up the ‘momentum’! And…You’re welcome. Can you call off that ‘shoot on sight’ order now?

Chaya’s onna ‘dem places that’s not far from home, that I’ve always enjoyed but rarely think about going to. Bummer. But that’s all about to change, kittens! This past week I was actually at Chaya 2x – once for Happy Hour liquid refreshment, and the next for a biz lunch. And by ‘biz’ I mean in the loosest of terms, BTW. Meaning it went on someone’s corporate AMEX. Bonus? Not mine!

These guys make a righteous Moscow Mule. I got hooked on these at Bar 89 in SoHo several months ago, and now enjoy them…quite frequently. It’s a refreshing mix of Russian Vodka, Ginger Beer and lime juice. And when done in the best Russian tradition, comes in a copper mug that keeps it freezing cool. Chaya skips that step, but we’ll let ‘em slide.

But for lunch, I thought swigging down several of these may not make a positive impression, so stuck with a glass or four of fine 2010 Groth Sauvignon Blanc. Least I could do, as a member of the Groth Family, and Carmen Policy’s daughter, gave our pup Dwight some serious love at  Sense Yountville a couple weeks ago! Plus it’s tasty vino.

OK, enough rambling. Christ, how do I get through the day. Where were we? Oh yeah, lunch. Chaya has a great menu, and a separate Sushi menu to boot. Most of us selected a delectable sounding dish called the the Chaya Medley that is a sampling of lots o’ good grub. You can get 3 tastes ($21) or 4 tastes ($26). And in the spirit of Go Big or Go Home…wait, in the spirit that this was all someone’s biz expense, we went all in and did 4.

And these samples weren’t the miniature portions that we had at Benu the other night. I’m still pissed off! But this put a smile on my face, (almost) erased the crappy memories of Benu and…Damn this is a heapin’ helpin’ of some awesome food! Details? Honestly, details aren’t my bag, baby, but I’ll try:

Quadrant #1 (top left, fool): Flank Steak (rare, bitches!) on a bed of creamy mashed spuds. Quadrant 2 (clockwise people, clockwise): Steamed Halibut Quad 3: Spicy Duck Spring Roll Q4: Toro and Salmon sushi and a coupla rolls I can’t remember WTF they were. Hey, circle gets the square! How didn’t we all know Paul Lynn was gay, anyway? Guess you could say the same about Freddy Mercury for that matter.

We also ordered up a couple specialty rolls (‘cuz we’re not sashimi purists. Nor do we enjoy stuff like sea urchin), the Red Dragon Roll ($15), Spicy Tuna and Snow crab w/Cucumber & Avocado. And the…damn what was it?! I was too busy yammering with everyone to remember. Anyway, it was tasty. Fresh, nice textural components (oh yeah), generous servings.

Go back factor: Yeah baby!

As Simon Cowell would say after a miserable performance on American Idol (or now X Factor) “Sooo Whaaat?”, as the lady from Wendy’s proclaimed “Where’s the beef?”, and with a nod to my homie Cee Lo Jones, who crooned, “F you and F Benu too”. That pretty much sums up VdV’s experience at Benu recently. And no, we’re not gonna make like Bauer and hit this place 3x before voicing our opinionated opinion. We can’t afford it!

See, I’m pissed. Even though we were their with our awesome buds Bob & Jane (synonymous with ‘gonna have a great time’), Benu =  buzz kill.

I am here to save you, pilgrims. Save you from a hard-earned paycheck wasted. Why this vitriol? Why, you plead?

First, as you are fully aware, bitches, we love you. For the good of humanity we’ll gladly drop $6 hundy (OK 1/2 that as we split with Bob & Jane) on dinner for the ‘experience’ and to help guide you through the joys and pitfalls of wining & dining. But it should at least be a better than a 1/2-ass experience! Hey I heard you! No, we didn’t even treat the wine list like our bitch, we only had 2 bottles of the least expensive bottles on the list.

I mean, from the drab interior to the boring servers to the…oh yeah, THIS ONE put me OTT, being informed by our server that “for ‘OUR’ dining ‘pleasure’, they reduced all entrees to kid-sized portions so ‘WE’ can ‘enjoy’ more of the ‘menu’” (OK air quote overload, that last one was didn’t even make sense!)

So Benu offers two options for your dining ‘pleasure’ (there we go again). A Tasting Menu, which ranges from 10-15 mini dishes and is described as ‘a work continually in progress, reflecting seasonality, inspiration and evolution.’ I hope that evolution part is accurate. One, the entire table has to agree to get it, and B, it’s loaded with weird shit like Monkfish Liver, Thousand Year Old (riigghhht) Quail Egg and Foie Gras Xiao Long Bao (Excuse me?)

Good guess -  we decided to go Ala Carte.

What’d we eat? Does it really matter? Was it sprinkled with gold flakes? No. But when Ramp Soup ($12) is the highlight of a meal, Houston, we have a problem. Ramp is like Wild Leeks for the uninitiated. It was good. For Ramp Soup.

Wild Sturgeon ($28) with Asparagus, Tomato, Green Onion & Bottarga. The fish was firm. Super firm-o-delic. Hey some things are good when firm! But this fish was a little too much so. Plus, they brined it to mellow out the fishy taste. But in that process, they removed all flavor.

Milk-fed Baby Lamb ($34) with Peas, Carrots, Onion and a Parmesan Jus.  A lamb, especially an infant, should not have given it’s life for this. I’m pissed. And that lamb’s parents should be pissed off too! Miniscule portion (hey, I guess it was just a baby), and relatively bland. Not even texturally interesting.

We had a hard time selecting which pasta to get. The one with Sea Snails or the one with Sea Urchin. Thank all that is holy the other option was Strozzapreti with Iberico Ham & Himalayan Truffle ($24). I mean, 3 pasta dishes on the menu and 2 with either Urchin or Snails?! See what I mean?! I don’t mean to sound like a rube that just fell off the turnip truck, but do you have to try so hard to be unique? Anyhoo, the pasta dish we had was OK. Nothing really stood out though.

Yes, we had more, as they were all minute portions. You get the picture, and now I’m feeling like I’m kicking Benu when it’s down. I won’t even get into the (drab) interior. Shit, sorry I meant to Stop The Criticism. Hey, dessert was OK. We shared something that had chocolate.

So Benu, we gotta break it to you…we won’t be back. And you’re probably OK with that too! Has anyone had a good experience here? Let us know!

I loved the crap outta their crepes. I loved the fact Mexican people were serving me French Crepes. I loved the ginormous salads they served. Oh well. I’m not even gonna snipe about the French being a bunch of whiners! That’s how much I dig, or dug, their crepes. Sissies! (Oops;)

The good news?! ‘Cuz VdV always looks for the silver lining? Giordano Bros. is opening up GD #2 in the Ti Couz space, following up on the kick-assness of their wings & all-in-one sandos in North Beach! Yippee Ki Yay!

So Ti Couz, with heavy hearts we bid you adieu, au revior, adios!

CON: If you are a veggie

Hey I may not know much kittens, but I do know a few things:

• Napoli-style pizza
• Hmmm. wow. Crap. Lemme think. Oh yeah:
• Epic Roasthouse has somma da best Steak Tartare in the universe!

So to call your restaurant ‘Epic’, you have to be a certain type of person. And I guess Pat Kuleto is just that type. I mean, we all know Pat has a ginormous…ego! Hey I can say that.

In addition to it being generally accepted in the rumor mill, I actually choppered (yes as in ‘arrived in a helicopter’…ahh the benefits of VdV-ness;) to his sprawling winery and pad in Napa awhile back and met Pat. Pleasant enough, but the dude has an Epic Ego. Maybe that’s how he named this place. Hey he has a helipad at his house, maybe the ego is earned. Who knows. I did really like his Black Lab though. He was fun and pretty humble to boot.

So we came to Epic right when they opened up and were underwhelmed. Mainly the service, which I guess is to be expected at the get-go, but because of that, we just kinda wrote it off.

But recently we heard our bud Jeff, ex-MoMos, was working the bar and decided to stop by for a bevvie or three. Yee Haw we’re giddy we did. Sure it was Jim-dandy catching up with Jeff, but it was the Steak Tartare that rocked our world.

Why, you ask? First, quit whining. OK, here’s why bitches: It’s great meat. They won’t tell me (read: I forgot) the exact blend of beef but it’s Wagyu-good. But I don’t think it’s Wagyu. It’s Halle Berry at the Oscars good. It’s not Halle Berry either. But it’s awesome. The consistency is fantastic, ground up until it’s spreadable but still resembles meat. They don’t over-season it,  just a little mustard, salt & pepper and then the obligatory egg on top.

Cool thing is, and I haven’t seen this often – when they offer to prep it for you, they’ll also add a teensy bit of hot sauce to it. Bada-F’ing-Bing! Served with nice crostini bits. I think Bauer calls them crostini ‘points’. Okey Dokey. And these giant caper berries on the side I’ll just try to ignore. They creep me out. Anyhoo, Get This Meal or face the wrath of VdV! I’d hook up a photo for ya, but it just doesn’t do it justice.

Oh yeah, and while we’re talking meat, get the burger. And if you are anything like us  and like to sit at the bar, or anywhere in the upstairs they refer to as the ‘bar area’, you can get the Triple B. Burger, Beer and a Brownie for only $20 bones.

Same meat as the Tartare, awesome looking bun, and your own kinda ‘build-it’ condiment set-up so you can customize to your heart’s content. (VdV legal disclaimer: No, we have not had the burger, but have seen it, talked about it, smelled it, drooled over it and witnessed the sheer ecstasy of the people that do order it. We’re gonna treat that burger like our bitch when e return next weekend!)

Oh yeah, bonus tip: Jeff has a new drink on the cocktail menu, and it’s kickin’! Has tequila and gruner veltliner and something else in it. Ask for it by name.

OK VdV has a a quickie for ya. ‘Cuz I just had a nooner with my bud Alex. Christ you’re a pervert. A noon lunch, fool! Us two ‘captains of industry’ (quit laughing. A d-bag I worked with years ago referred to himself this way.  John Tompane I hope you are reading!) had had (?) a time of it getting together for a little RDV but finally we got it going and decided we’d deem it Lobster Roll Day. And in this ‘hood, the first thought that came to my Zinfandel-Hangar One Lime-Clase Azul riddled mind was Anchor  & Hope. Bingo! The ‘noggin still works.

I mean, I’m not a Lobster Roll bitch, or even a connoisseur but my homie Alex, hailing from that nastiest of all sports towns Boston…well Boston don’t they all grow eating Lobster Gerbers? Sucking Lobsterpops? Celebrating their 6th birthdays with Lobster Thermidor? Terrible people. Except for Alex. And Cyndee & Eric. They Have Their Shit Down, is all I’m sayin’, when it comes to gay marriage (come on, Cali!), crustaceans, annoying accents…BTW, screw you Tom Brady. How’d that NYJ spankin’ feel, huh, beeyotch?! One of my fave Tom Brady hate cards is right here. And yes, before you all flame me with this fact: I do realize TB is from San Mateo. Traitor!

So, I will make this refreshingly brief. Nope, don’t call your bookie, I really will. This time. VdV has been here 2x for din din, & had a pretty good experience each time. Check it here. Now – lunch!

So the lunch experience. I dig the lunch scene. An ‘attractive’ crowd, as they say, and the cool, open warehouse space is very inviting. Especially with the doors wide open on a 65-degree day in January. Thank you, Global Warming.

So we bellied up to the bar, and promptly ordered…drinks. Jesus. When will you learn? Then after twittering and Four Squaring like a couple school girls we decided in a flash our order: Angels on Horseback, one Lobster Roll and one Shrimp BLT, all to split amongst ourselves.

Like an idiot I didn’t snap any pix. So this one is ripped off. But at least it is a picture of an actual Lobbie Roll from A&H. Same with Angels on Horseback. The Shrimp BLT? Nope.

So, the appy. Angels on Horseback ($13.50). That’s bacon-wrapped oysters to you, pilgrim. Does that look good to you? All I can say is, the camera is not kind to Angels on Horseback. Angels on Horseback is not ‘easy on the eyes’ as they say. OK, you get the drift. Cuz if it actually looked like that I would have heaved over the bar. Actually the ponies were OK. Boston liked them more than me. But seriously, wrap a camel’s ________ in bacon and it’ll taste like…bacon! And bacon is good. I just thought the texture of the oyster was a little rough and it was kinda dry. Waaahhh!

Lobster Roll ($24.50)? T-w-e-n-t-y  F-o-u-r  F-i-f-t-y. Twenty-Four Fifty??  Well, as Alex observed, a true L/R should have a generous dollop of lumpy Lobster as almost a coup de grace on top of the sando. A ‘give it to me hard’ dollop. OTT. Wait…hold on a minute fella. I just Wiki’d coup de grace and it says it means “to shoot someone in the head to end their suffering”. So, no not so much. Anyhoo, it should have a heaping helping of lumpy lobster right on top.

A&H’s Lobster Rolls lack that exclamation point. But other than that they’re pretty good. It’s lobster, kittens. I like the thick, semi-sweet, toasted brioche, and…hey it’s pretty good. Hear that Bauer? Those zippy adjectives? Yeah, thats’ right. Fear VdV! I wouldn’t run back for it though. Alex has my back on this. There’s better ways to put 2,000+ calories into your innards. Plus Lobster goes straight to my ass. Oh yeah, came with house made chips (good) and slaw (dandy).

Hit ‘o the lunch? The Shrimp BLT ($15.50). Bam! On toasted bread, with nice thickly sliced grilled prawns, lotsa applewood smoked bacon, just the right amount of cool, crisp butter lettuce and 2-3 slices of roasted tomato. Struck a nice balance. And bonus, as opposed to way too many places around here they don’t sneak it into being a BLAT! VdV despises Avocado! Ruins a dish and pisses us off to no end.

So the ‘Go back’ factor? Pretty high. It’s a tad pricey, but the vibe is good, the food is solid and there’s good times to be had. Oh yeah, and Alex paid!

Newsflash! VdV just pulled a Bauer!* Hold on now, ya don’t need to pull out the Urban Dictionary. Like I had to in order to make sense outta that Like a G6 song from Far East Movement. Slizzard? Sizzurp?? WTF? Hey, my 20-something friends didn’t know what the shnizzle they were talking about either so I didn’t feel too much like a fossil. I did know G6 and 3-6 tho. Yee Haw!

Anyhoo, appropriately located at 25 Lusk, off of Townsend between 3rd & 4th on..damn you’re sharp, Lusk Alley, 25 Lusk is one of the newest spots in the South Beach ‘hood. And it’s groovy. That’s right. Sexy head to toe. If I didn’t think you’d stab your eyes with a fork I’d make a reference to Right Said Fred.

*Oh yeah, back to that Bauer reference. As in Michael Bauer, semi-well known food critic whose M.O. is hitting a spot 3x prior to writing a review. Well, well. VdV Has neither the time (n)or the patience for such shenanigans! Actually it’s ‘cuz we were too lazy…I mean busy…to get to this until now. But we’re slap-happy we’ve been here several times in just a few short weeks.

Why, you say?

First off, this place is sleek, sexy Manhattan vibe loungey coolness meets brick and timber SF warehouse. Giggidy! Kinda like  Zoe Saldana meets Daniel Craig. Feel me? Don’t get too literal or anything just saying sleek sexy + rough and tumble stud. Back off!

1st visit: Drinks and din din with our birthday girl Candida. Had some cocktails at the teensy upstairs bar, then grabbed a table. Ate like pigs, had friendly (albeit sometimes a little slow) service, and vowed to return. Highlights, you plead? Those g-d Soft Pretzels with Ale Gruyere Fondue & Pink Salt. I’m a sucker for a good pretzel. These’re little tykes, bite-size and chewy with nice bits of the sea salt and the savory beer-cheese dipping sauce. Awesome. It went right to my hips.

Speaking of appys, I like 25 Lusk’s approach to raising their Average Order Value, and weeding out the cheapskates all at once. You need to get at least 3 appys ($14), or 4 for $19 or go hog-wild and get 5 for $23. And there’s plenty of apps to chose from. Hey, there’s an app for that! Hardee har har. Other good appys include the Dungeness Crab Crepe w/ Horseradish Cured Cucumbers, Avocado, Tomato Confit. Minus that god-awful green shit. Please. The crepe is actually pretty good sized, with a nice dollop of fresh crabmeat, well-seasoned and all-in-all scrumptious. Want more? Do ya, punk?! Ok, then. The Seared Hiramasa (that’s fish) with Poached Quail Egg, Smoked Potato and Nicoise Olive Oil. I mean, this is a well-constructed few bites. All the flavors play well, and the textural elements of the dish are quite pleasing. Quite, indeed. OK, another go-to is the  Braised Short Rib with Foie Gras Torchon, Watercress, Mini Brioche Bun. Let’s just call a slider a slider shall we?  Yes. Anyhoo, it’s a fancy and tasty slider. Note, they getcha an extra $3 ones for this.

2nd visit: With our fly friend Shari. Drinks. Screw dinner, we had catchin’ up to do, and it best been done at the bar. Hooked up 3 seats at the bar downstairs. We laughed, we cried, we ate. Oh yeah, and we drank. We had these little meatballs that were tasty. Once again, appys elevated. A nice thoughtfulness to each dish. Bottom line on this visit: Great company, awesome people watching, delish drinks and a nice, non-snobby vibe. Bam!

And speaking of cocktails, they have a pretty killer list. As killer as Comstock? I dunno, but damn good, with boozy goodness like _________________. Hmm, I seem to be hazy about the specifics right now. Good sign! I vaguely remember something about a Dark & Stormy. Oh well, figure it our for yerself, they have some mad mixologysts!

3rd time: Well it was a charm, fool. The lovely J’s cousin from somewhere called Michigan came, and we had yet another funtastic time. Started with cocktails downstairs, then moved on up (stairs) for a great dinner.

Glad I took a couple notes on this one cuz…well, the next day seemed my AMEX went missing. So what’d I do? Searched my pants pockets for it but instead found a receipt from Tres Agaves for a few shots of Forteleza. I’m like “Oh yeah, that last stop on teh stumbe home” (typed it as I prolly would have said it at the time). So I call the fine folks there and nope, no AMEX there. So I backtrack. I call 25. Yessir, the friendly lady informed me. “It’s right here, Mr. VdV. And while I have you on the line, you never even bothered to sign the receipt, retard” (I’m just imagining the retard part was intended since it wasn’t stated).

Some din din highlights for ya: Cauliflower Cremé Bruleé ($12) with Sunchoke Escabeche & Truffled Arugula. This is a dinner appetizer. I couldn’t tell ya what Escabeche is except it’s some type of marinade. But yes, this dish is kinda complex and this chef knows how to meld flavors and textures. Yummy. The Lobster Ravioli ($14) with Saffron and Thai Basil is another standout, I wouldn’t have thought about those two aromatic spices on the pasta but it bring it, and the lobster was very fresh, tender and tasty.

Entreés? I dug the Grilled Top Lamb Sirloin ($26) with Roasted Garlic Potato & Apple-Spearmint Demi-Glace. Ordered and served rare, people! Excellent flavor, slight char on the outside and the spearmint was a nice nod to the traditional rack-o-lamb with mint. But upscale and contemporary.

Another star is the Verbena Steamed Halibut ($27) with Beans, Tomato & Lemon-Lobster Vinaigrette. What’s with this dude and lobster?! Good and good for you!

So bottom lining it. We love it. Everyone we have talked to loves it. If you don’t,  you’re a commie bastard!

So we had a little shopping to do the other day, and y’all know what that means…that’s right homey, plenty ‘o cocktails to lube up that wallet of mine and turn shopping into more of a sport than a chore! Yee haw!

And I don’t even know why we were around Mint Plaza, but lo and behold we were, and although MP has yet to live up to the hype of a cool little block chock full ‘o bars, restaurants and…what was it again?? Oh yeah, PEOPLE, we strolled up the plaza to see what was going on. And it wasn’t people, I’ll tell ya that. The Annual  Running of the Bulls could occur down that Plaza and there wouldn’t have been even one broken nail incurred. Bo-ring!

Anyhoo, we walk past Chez Papa, up to some shop that we desperately hoped serve wine, but turned out only coffee…WAAAHHH! Emotional breakdown time approaching…but wait. We turned around and saw this cool looking spot – Thermidor. We’d never heard o’ this spot. Bizarre. They really need to use an email marketing service like VerticalResponse to get the word out. Bonus, they were open at 3p!

Yes, onna these days I’ll get sick of saying this. Maybe I need to get Zahid Sardar on the payroll. ‘Cuz I’m sure you’re already sick of hearing it: This is a cool space, with big super-high ceilings, concrete and reclaimed wood, and a mezzanine. Blah-dee-blah-blah. I know. It’s Been Done. But we still like-ee. And best thing, you basically walk smack into the bar area when you step in the door. Literally. Hey you only get one chance to make a first impression. And that is an f’ing awesome first impression!

And speaking of bars, that’s where we planted our bad selves. Therm was pretty empty, just us and a small gaggle of women at the bar, and we were greeted warmly by our bartender…Huckles, or something like that. Seriously. Whatever his name is, he can whup up a killer cocktail, fo-sho. And they have a good creative list to boot.

I barked out an order for a Warsaw Mule ($10) with Bison Grass Vodka, Organic Apple Juice, Lime, Sunshine Bitters & Ginger Beer. First: Is it a Bison or a Mule?! Get yer cloven-hoofed mammals straight! Anyhoo, quite refreshing I must say. Sure it was a little sweet, but the Sunshine Bitters kicked it up a notch and gave it some hootspa.

The other  J had a 1865 Cupp, with Pimms No. 1, gin, Blackberry Syrup, Lemon, Soda & Cucumber. This shit should be the New V-8. She’s not a big fan of the Gin, but she downed that thing like a sailor. I was lucky enough to get a little sip, and the combo of ingredients was tasty. The Blackberry syrup made it – not overpowering, but played surprisingly well with the cucumber. So there.

We weren’t really hungry but had to try a couple things anyway. No fool, not the Lobster Thermidor. Although they do have one and that’s why this place is called Thermidor. Duh. They also have a Mini Lobster Roll. Sorry, didn’t have that either. F Shellfish! No we went small. Noshy time. And if you are into snacking you’ll dig this spot. The menu is broken up into small sample plates, the Frogs…I mean French would call Hors D’oeuvres (all $6 each), then slightly larger appys then entrees.

We ordered up the Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon, Mint & Chile Pepper. Blah you say? How dare you! They blanch this stuff then roast it just-so with the spices and it was a righteous dish. Indeed.

We also had the Crostinos with Braised Short Rib, Horseradish Cream & Chives. Oh yeah baby, wishing they had a bigger platter of this junk on the menu. There’s just three pretty teensy crostinos, but they’re piled high with tender rib meat, well seasoned and with a dollop of horsey sauce on top. Yum!

So caveat, we only had a couple drinks and a couple H-Ds (sorry for abbreviation but I always misspell Hors D’oeourvoues), but we’re going to go out on a limb and extrapolate our small bites into an overall thumbs up for this place. We’d definitely go back for the Thermidor, Lobster Roll and more H-Ds. Oh yeah, and to treat that cocktail list like our bitch!