VinDivine - Living it Up John & Janine Style

Little Skillet - SOMA

+: chicken & waffles! Great spot for a quick, affordable quality lunch
-: If you are looking to 'dine-in' forget about it

The folks from Farmer Brown's expanded into the SOMA 'hood a little while ago with little skillet and lunch hasn't been the same since. This place is literally a hole-in-the-wall. Ya just go up, place your order, hang in the alley like a transient while they prep it, and either take it to go or hang out on the loading dock across the alley and chow down. Nice and simple. Cash only kittens!

Same for the menu, it's child-proof: Ya got yer Chicken & Waffles, Po Boys, and Salads.

I dig this place. We had the tried and true Chicken & Waffles, and a daily special - Chile and Molasses Chicken Wings. The place was doin' the biz on a beautiful SF afternoon, so the line was kinda long but it moved fast, and it only took about 5 minutes or so to get our food.

First the Chicken & Waffles. I had the small order (2 pieces of bird and a 2"x2" waffle). Both the chicken and the waffle prepped just like they should be - crispy on the outside, tender on the  inside. Mmm Mmm good. Finger Lickin' Good. Take that, Colonel  Sanders! The chicken had good spice, killer crispy skin and juicy meat. I got the thigh and a drumstick, both generous sized. You can also add gravy for an extra buck. Insider tip: you can request which pieces of fowl you'd like. Just don't get carried away, OK? It's not like ordering your '1/2 caf no foam low-fat mocha' at Starbucks, people.

The waffle? It's not a waffle fry, as some people think. It is a breakfast waffle. And y'know what? Even on a 80-degree SF day that warm waffle hit the spot. This entire dish was only $7 and filled up the tank big-time.

Next, the Molasses & Chile Chicken Wings. This was an $8 special o' the day, and it was pretty good. I didn't expect Buffalo wings, so I was not disappointed. We got about a dozen wings, some Ethiopian- sized and some regular sized so all-in-all plenty of wing-age. Tasty rascals too, the sauce was a little sweet for me. I woulda liked more chile heat but again, lots of food for the buck and it definitely did the trick.

The Po Boys looked good, I inspected a couple that some people in front of me ordered and they looked tasty. I hear they drown their salads in dressing, so if that's not your bag tell 'em to lighten up or put it on the side.

So bottom line, this is a great, unique place to grab some good grub for lunch. Solid basics plus enough else on the menu to keep ya comin' back for more!

VdV Ratings (out of 10):
Food: 7
Ambiance: 6
Service: 6
Overall: 7 (great value and funky/fun)

Hours:
Mon - Fri 9a-3p

little skillet
360 Ritch Street (@ Townsend betw 3rd and 4th)
San Francisco
(415) 777.277

21st Amendment - SOMA (update)

+: Great microbrews, awesome pub food
- : Can't really think of anything...crazy-busy before Giants games

I like brew pubs. I actually used to LOVE brew pubs but that was before Janine turned me into a Wine Snob. But I've still been known to toss back a pint or 4 of the 'ol brewski, but these days only if the quaff factor is high. That's how I roll. Like I always say, people: If It's Not Good Suds, It Doesn't Hit These 'Buds.

This is VdVs fave brew pub in all of Frisco! As opposed to some brew pubs that crank out the same 'ol suds day after live-long day, owners Shawn and Nico at 21A Never Ever Ever let moss grow under their butts. And not only 'cuz it's visually unappealing. Case in point, my beer-swilling bitches? They can their two top-selling brews, the Come Hell or High Watermelon Wheat and the Brew Free or Die IPA and are going from micro to galactic distribution with them. Perfect to take to the beach, sporting events or to sneak into the opera. OK, enough. I'm not gettin' paid for this!

Since it's a brew pub, we'll start there. They always have a line up of 6-8 house brews plus a guest pour or two. Some of the best include the Watermelon Wheat (hey don't call it a girlie beer, there's 400 lbs of melon in each batch. Yummy), Opening Day IPA (hoppy but not too hoppy), General Pippo's Porter (essence of coffee and chocolate) and when they have it, the Double Trouble (or is it Triple? Or am I just thinking about the Beastie Boys?) Anyhoo, it packs a punch so don't turn your back on it.

First, how many times have I treated this watering hole like my bitch and not given in the h-u-g-e props it deserves as both a watering hole and an eating hole?

Hmmm...let's see: The 21-A has been open about 6 years...I frequent it often but not so much  during baseball season when there are home games, but quite often when it's nice outside and the Giants are not in town, then almost every f'ing day during strong beer month...whew. I think it goes something like this:

So needless to say I've been there almost a year's worth, 279 times and change. SO I KNOW WTF I'M TALKING ABOUT, YA HEAR ME?!

But ya wanna know even more? Do ya?! Then ask nicely for once, we have feelings too. Though I tend to lose my feelings after about 5 PM on some days. These crazy bleeding edge brewers are serving up Beer Cocktails. Heresy, you say? Say what? I heard ya. I think they're keying in to the whole 'hybrid' craze that's sweeping the country, but they don't sell cars, they peddle happy buzzes. And what better way to add some good old fashioned PIZAZZ to a beer menu than throw in some 90-proof. Here's just a sampling:

    * 2nd Street 75 - Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup + watermelon wheat beer
    * 2nd Wind - Coffee, Sambuca + IPA beer
    * Coming Soon Mexican American (perhaps a tip o' the hat to the majority of their staff;) - A margarita with Elderberry + a splash of their Bitter American brew.

And they're brewing up more wild & tasty concoctions as we speak.

Wanna know even more? Say 'Yeah'! These Beer Geeks know how to throw down a kick ass lunch, dinner or brunch too. Lorenzo (da Chef) is awesome, cooks with his own beer and serves up solid food in the 'hood. Here's some sure-fire-can't-go-wrong VdV-approved suggestions:

Quesadilla with shredded chicken or bbq skirt steak, Chicken Wings, Buffalo Cobb Salad (awesome buffalo chicken in romaine with blue cheese and bacon), El Cubano sandwich (pressed in a panini machine with pork, ham, pickles, mustard, swiss cheez), Fish & Chips (beer-battered with 21A brew of course). and they even do pizzas well: Margherita or Veggie (hold the eggplant! and tell them thin crust if you want it thin. Otherwise, not so much), Jerk Chicken, and a great list of Burgers.

And last but not least. Rob, Maya and Jamie ROCK the house. Hell even if you don't like beer you'll want to come in and hang with them. Go!

VdV Ratings:
Food: 7.5
Service: 8.5
Ambience: 8
Overall: 8

Hours (food service stops at 10p):
Mon-Sat 11:30a-12a
Sun 9:30m-12a

21st Amendment
563 2nd Street (@ South Park)
San Francisco, CA
(415)
www.21st-amendment.com

Stuffed Shells @ Paragon!

 Ok this is gonna be a (mercifully & rare, I know) short & sweet post - Paragon Restaurant's celebrity chef Spencer O'Meara's Stuffed Shells rock the f'ing world!! Why? I dunno I'm in such a stuffed-shell frenzy I just gulp 'em all down then wonder WTF just hit me. The combo of the creamy ricotta, sweet tomato sauce, perfectly firm shells and some green stuff (I'm just too much of a retard to know what it is but it's tasty...pesto?) is awesome. Then he tosses some cheese on top and bakes it. They are like little pillows of love.

'Nuf said. I did have the foolish generosity tonight to share about three bites of the stuff with a couple pathetic droolers who I believe are now also gonna petition to get this masterpiece on the regular menu. Don't make us beg, O'Meara you bastard! 

Oh yeah, the pic here is the 'after' of the dish course, after I licked the plate clean (yep that's the actual plate with my tongue marks. I'm sure it's a little more appetizing as a 'before' shot). I chowed it down too quickly for a camera to catch the before part. Damn you, Wang Su!

Anyways, go get yerself some! And if the shells aren't on the menu there's tons 'o other grub that is killer. And Wednesdays are Smokehouse/BBQ night, so mark it! Woo Hoo!

Paragon Restaurant
701 2nd Street @ Townsend
San Francisco, CA
415.937.9020

Local Kitchen & Wine Market

Yeah that's right. We waited for the dust to settle on this one. Local shmokal, we said. If it survives beyond 6 months we'll check it out. I mean, we are a busy, dynamic duo, in-demand troupe. As you are well aware. So on day 181, 'ol J&J and our fresh-back from Manchu Picchu friend Candida stormed the place Saturday night. And without a resie! Clutch my pearls. Anyhoo, we dug this place from the get-go. And even though they were crowded the hostess was cool and assured us we'd get a table pronto. And we weren't even wearing our VdV blazers. How Did She Know?! Are we that famous? LOL.

Sooo, after waving at Claus, the guy we know from 21A that really talks this place up and getting ZERO recognition from the rat bastard and making us feel pathetic for making a big deal about saying "oh that's Claus! Hi Claus...HI CLAUS!!!" and getting no love we slinked (slunked?) around back to the bar.

The layout here is pretty groovy. Cool. Sorry I'm not in the mood to get into it any more than that. So we find 2 seats at the bar, a couple people leave and we pounce and decide to just eat there instead of waiting for the table Claus still has not vacated. And it was all good except for the bloated self-important bartender-who-knows-all is a d-bag and completely (or at least sorta) condescending about how he knows all about the 'daily rotating' wine list and we know shit. Just about when I was gonna introduce him to Mr. Knuckly and my 5-year old biz card from wine.com, J calms me with a flirty little Albarino. Mmmm. Nice.  A pretty nice wine list to boot. Saved that bartender's ass, let me tell ya.

The menu is hot to trot as well, especially if you think 'wine bar' vs. 'gastronomica'. That's right. 5 syllables. Check it. Anyway, they have a great selection of semi-thin crust pizzas, we had the Margarita Pizza. Great sauce, and BUFALA mozzie to boot. Only hint - put large, full basil leaves on top (look left...do you see large, full basil leaves on top?!).

Then JP and I shared the Organic Chicken w/ Panzanella. Two great tastes that taste great together. Killer roti bird with panzanella - and y'all dunno what that is, it's bread salad, and in this particular case with balsamic red onions, heirloom tomatoes and arugula. Yeah baby.

I have absolutely NO recollection of what Candi ate, but she seemed happy. Hell, after eating weeds and porridge in South America for 2 weeks I guess the bar was set pretty low! Ha. But no disrespect to the Local, this place is solid.

A few other enu stand-outs: Truffle & Parmesan Fries, Coppa & Pepperoni Pizza; Croque Monsieur; and a kick-ass brunch. Go guurrllll.

The take-away? I give this place a solid 7.5, maybe an 8. Coulda gone to an 8.5 without the 'tude from the 'tender. Oh well. I do think it may have been flukely and overall the people are cool. Go! And if you get that d-bag bartender, just ignore him and have an extra glass of wine. It gets pretty fun to make fun of him!

The Brickhouse - South Beach

I have NO idea why we haven't blogged about THIS PLACE yet. I mean it's been in South Beach forever and is about a 3 minute walk from our pad. Therapists often say sometimes you treat those closest to you like crap, sorry Brickhouse, we do love you.

To say that this place should be right in the heart of Eugene Oregon is an understatement people. What do I mean? It's like Brickhouse asked someone to go to a few yard sales in Eugene put on by a bunch of stoners with dreads and tats (who incidentally can also be found selling puppies for $5 each out of shopping carts at Saturday Market), bought the entire garage of mismatched furniture, drove it right down and POOF you have your kitschy little Brickhouse. We love you!

Lunch is amazing, Tuesdays and Thursdays they've got the Hot and Wild Pig sando that'll knock your socks off! Mondays and Fridays go for the Happy Meatball, great name, who isn't happy eating meatballs? No friend of mine I tell ya. Oh and don't think you can go in at lunch, plop your ass down and start sucking down their free wifi, no-go. They want paying customers not Starbucks loungers that run their entire day from a wing chair drinking ONE cup-a-joe. Cheap asses.

Go for a burger for dinner, made from WAGYU Beef. The Big Ass Burger is truly a great description.

Did we say full bar? No but I'm sayin' it now, LOUD. FULL BAR.

What we really go for? Sundays? Brunch? You betcha. Knock down a huge plate 'o eggs. They say it's two eggs, but we'd like to see the chicken those eggs came from. That musta hurt. Make sure you get the mimosa with 'em. They're heavy handed with the old sparklin'.

So go there, have fun, tell 'em VinDivine sent ya.

The Brickhouse
426 Brannan St.
San Francisco, CA 94107
415-369-0222

Congrats Jonnatan Leiva!

First, characteristically off-topic and A.D.D. as always. Here's how much I despise Chardonnay: I roll off the couch just now at 1 AM or so, and face a difficult choice as my beady eyes adjust to the glare of the sub-zero lights: pour a fresh glass of Chard from a brand spankin' new $40 bottle. Or, pour the remaining dredges from a $10 bottle of Pomelo Sauv Blanc that's been sitting open for the past 4 days? That's right VdV'ers, I took that Pom faster than a crackhead hits the pipe!

OK, back to our regular scheduled programming.

So Jonnatan Leiva finally got some the respect he deserves. This guy is a KICK ASS talented chef and basically the reason Jack Falstaff is one of the top go-to places in SoBe. 'Cuz otherwise I think most Plumpjack places are self-loathing, bloated pieces of crap. But not this one! No, no. OK, prolly not Carneros Inn in Napa either. But all ya P-Js in The Marina (and in Squaw) - I'm talkin' about YOU!

Anyhoo back to the the star (or rising star;) of the show. Jonnatan. This dude cooks his ass off, and has fun doing it. And he's super cool and a has passion for creating a fresh, refined, upscale menu that still fits the laid-back South Beach/SOMA style. Try anything Lamb. Actually try anything at all, he rocks it across the board. And, drumroll please...he was just awarded the honor of one of the Five Bay area Rising Star Chefs of 2008. Yay! Now that you mention it, that's the subject of this blog. Amazing how it all comes back around, huh? I mean, that crackhead Michael Bauer just doesn't get it, giving Falstaff only 2 1/2 stars a few months ago. Time to put that fossil out to pasture, don't you think? Go review Scoma's on Fisherman's Wharf, Bauer.

So congrats to Jonnatan. Plumpjack, you're lucky to have him. And y'all, go to Jack Falstaff and enjoy his creations. Now, dammit!

And here's a hint for all you neighborhood SF Giants haters: While 21-A, Paragon and especially MoMos (and probably Pete's Tavern) are full of a-holes during home games, Falstaff's is an oasis. Calm, cool and civilized. Shhh. Keep it real, keep it to yourself.

So that's that. Go Jonnatan!

Coming Soon! Reviews of: a wine that shares the same name as a massive oil spill (or at least the f-ing ship that did it) Valdez...a restaurant named after the capitol of the worst f'ing state in the union, Houston's...and last but not least, another restaurant named after a big fat guy, Orson!

Koh Samui & The Monkey

This is not your average Thai people. This place is packed every night for dinner and now for lunch. It's the sister restaurant of the famed Citizen Thai & The Monkey in North Beach that we've raved about. We still like Citizen Thai a teensy bit more, but since this place is about 1 block from Chez VdV, it gets the nod for convenience. Anyhoo, this place has been around for a few years and we gotta say, we shied away from it because the take-out on more than one occasion was a bit "off".  Screwed at the the drive-through, as they say. And that just pisses us off. But, we're no quitters. A beautiful thing happened on the way home from work one day: we bellied up to the bar (shocker!) to give it another shot.

We're so happy we did VdVers, and you should be too! The Veggie Samosa Rolls are OTH, and eating the Tom Ka Gai soup makes you feel like you're dining smack-dab in the middle of a Chang Mai hill tribe. By that, I mean authentic. I mean, as close to good Thai we got as kids was mom cranking open some La Choy's Chicken Chowmein and pouring it over those crunchy noodles. Are they still around anymore? Everyone should have some in their earthquake kits, that shit never goes bad.  Anyhoo back to the menu at hand, you want some Spicy Beef, you need it on demand. Well you got it here, with veggies in green curry sauce. Mmmm, mmmm good. We steered clear of any of the grilled stuff cuz it looked just too healthy.

Top if off with what else?? SAKE. They've got a great list. I'd pick some out but see my issues below.

An open letter to Koh Samui (and any restaurant, really)

1. When I clicked on your site link it goes to an annoying page that draws your logo, and I can't click past it. It's a nice logo, but do I have to watch it be drawn? I come to you for food, not art.
2. When I am finally able to click on it to get to your site it's an error page. Fire someone.
   
3. When I am finally able to get to the page where I see your menu, you only show a part of it and make me download a word doc. Word? WTF uses Microsoft applications anyway?! a) Why make it a download only? b) Why not show it in html on your site 3) If you do have offer a download, either do Google docs or a PDF. Screw MSFT!
   

Help us help you KS&TM, we love you.

Koh Samui & The Monkey
415 Brannan St. (3rd & 4th)
San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 369-0007

Update October 2007: Jack Falstaff's - South Beach

We've blogged about Jack Falstaff's in January of 06! Too long ago, time for an update! An entire life of a restaurant can change in 2 years people. That's why we'll always have jobs as food bloggies. Wait, do we get paid for this? Oh right. HELL NO. We do it for you VdVers, our followers.

This place has it changed for the "even betta". I mean it was good before, but now, they've cranked it up a notch. And even though it's part of the pretentious and snooty Plumpjack group, we are in love with it. The seasonal menu changes rock (although they go a bit veerd for jp's taste, bone marrow, fois grois, you know icky slimy stuff, but hey, no sushi for me either, so what the hell do I know?)

Classics you ask? You cannot go wrong with the chicken caesar (not your boring old CS, and even better, not fishy). What can you say about chicken right? I mean it's chicken! But this stuff is always dripping moist with flavor that's OTH & sprinkled with garlic chips. Hang on, I think I just drooled. You want more? Burgahh, raro. You can get it anytime btw.  Their soups are crazy good, if they have the pumpkin soup, order it, John won't shut up about it. But seriously, chef Jonnatan Leiva is the man for ANYTHING LAMB. I'll have the lamb ragu over pasta, a side of lamb meatballs, with an appy of lamb chops, please.

Being part of the all-uberly pretentious Plumpjack group (have I mentioned that?), they do have a great wine list, by the glass changes a lot though. They have a nice Gruner Veltliner which goes with all of the above.

Dessert you ask? No kidding...homemade doughnuts with dipping sauce. Someone get me some Lipitor.

Friendly bartenders? You bet! Shamsey, Jay, Joe, Roberto, they are the best and a few are even NYG fan. Jaime is always there and always smilin and say hi to Oscar! Tell 'em John and Janine sent ya!

The best F'ing Steak Salad in all of SF!

Hey happy people! OK, I won't even pretend we haven't treated you like that skeedgy tramp Britney treats those two spawn of hers the past few weeks. What can I say? Nothing malicious here - JP's birthday bash, 1 week l8r our 12th Anny, 1 week after that my bday. Whew! It's not like we didn't eat. And drink. And drink. I just don't think we were fit to blog!

So who cares, anyway? If we get a flashback, we'll post it. Let's move on. Not dwell on the past. So first off we're sick of this sunny weather. No, we're not goth. We just WANT A SEASON. Is that too much to ask?! Anyway, we had a relatively meeting-free day today, which almost never-ever happens. I mean, with me {COMMERCIAL BREAK HERE} launching my new technology company, Andiamo Systems, which provides real-time, actionable, intuitive, affordable word of mouth measurement and brand monitoring, with a 14-day FREE TRIAL go check it out!! {end of shameless self promotion, that is so tacky} and Janine's company winning award upon award we got caught up in the moment. Yup, full full full of ourselves. LOL.

But we're back, as your humble Sherpas of all things wining and dining. And a little travel to boot. So without further adeiu:

Lark Creek Steak in the Westfield mall or whatever it's called, y'know that thing they worked on 4ever. Bloomingdales, Hugo Boss, all that. They have a Steak & Spinach Panzanella Salad that I would poke my best friend's eyes out for. I mean this is custom-made, FILET salad. Not some acky sirloin crap. And rare, if you have been reading. Why's it so lip-smackin' good?

Well, after being in the trenches, walking into this semi-boring atmosphere place is still, kinda, civil. Second, they have a good wine list - get the Provenence Suavignon Blanc! Thirdly, and the reason we've come outta hiding, is that goddamn steak salad is epic.  Order the steak as you want, made to order; loaded with beets, feta cheese, persimmon (ok, I had to refer back to the menu for that tidbit) radishes, steak, and oh yeah, some salad-stuff. Spinach I think. This salad is TOPS in SF. Go get it, it's even healthy! It does make for a $100 lunch if you go as a couple, embibe with 3 glasses o' vino (not for each of us, suckas, shared) and a coupla espressos and tip like a human, but WTF, treat y'selves right!

Then go get your nooner shopping groove on!

Lark Creek Steak
845 Market Street
(415) 593-4100

Cook-Off at Jack Falstaff's - Janine Guest Judges!

Was I lucky or what? Ok not "lucky" but it's what cash can buy ya. Jack Falstaff's hosted a cook-off to benefit the Afterschool Alliance and boy did we have a blast. They auctioned off a few chairs on the judging panel and John was not about to lose. So a cool $450 later, (it's for the kids people) there I was sitting with the great chefs of SF. That's me looking up at Johnny.

First competition? Guy chefs against the chick chefs. Guys side? Ame and Zuppa. Girls side? Cave Wine Bar and Citizen Cake. The judging panel? Gary Danko was a judge! I was clearly in the presence of greatness. Tyler Florence went at it in a cook-off with Joey Altman. He's the chef on KRON's Bay Cafe. On top of it all, Leslie Sbrocco was the emcee, not only has she won the James Beard award an an Emmy for Check Please! but she's also wrote the book Wine for Women, wow!

Greatness? Yes. It gets better.

So the first 3 course menu is a lamb menu. Sorry to all of the vegans in the house but J&J love their lamb.

1st course? Rack of Lamb. Both dishes were wonderful, the chicks had it a bit more moist and the spices were amazing. Topped with mushrooms, they had it. The guys did an great job (beat the girls on time fyi, but isn't that to be expected?) but there was little contest.

2nd Course? Lamb meatballs. Now they have to beat the amazing Jonnatan Leiva's meatballs which we loooove at Jack Falstaff's, and they both did a great job. (Or came close at least.) The girls eeked it out with a med-rare ball with lots of spices, morracan style. Sorry dudes. Both were truly amazing.

3rd course? The guys did a dessert that rocked my world. Marscapone over peaches that was absolutely amazing. They won that course IMO. HOWEVER, the girls did a sweet lamb dish (for dessert?), with ground lamb, chantarrels, and you'll never guess in a million years...POP ROCKS. I'm not kidding. It was amazing. I think I was caught on camera saying "Pop rocks are awesome!" Overall the girls had it in my book 2-1 (and not just because I'm a chick).

The mixology contest was judged by a team of pros that included a friend of ours Greg, who owns Romolo, Rye and Rosewood bars and whose wife Shelly owns A16 (not too shabby huh?). The winner was Ronaldo from Americano who mixed up a mean margarita with chiles! Wow.

Finally Joey and Tyler duked it out at the end. Congrats to all and we had a REALLY great time. The staff at Falstaff's donated their time and I think a bunch of cash was raised for the Afterschool Alliance.

John, Aarti and Sandip watch the frantic judging process! -->