Wing Lee / Banana Leaf

San Francisco, CA

Popped into Wing Lee...Happy Bakery...er, whatever it's called on 23rd and Irving for a quickie breakfast.

Mmm...I love shortbread crusted egg custard tarts (dan taat). Shoosh...I'm a part of the smaller shortbread/cookie crust faction. I only wish this sucker was hot...and the custard silkier and eggier.

Dan taat rating: 6.5/10 Passable. Eh, it's all about the timing...hot, fresh ones are the best!


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Milpitas, CA

After some shopping at McCarthy Ranch, we stopped off at Banana Leaf for a belated birthday lunch for my aunt. We weren't terribly hungry, so decided to order 3 apps and one rice plate.

Green papaya salad ($6.95)

Roti prata ($2.95)

Satay combination - chicken and beef ($6.95)

Hainan chicken with rice ($8.50)

The papaya salad had a heavy hoisin-based dressing that smothered the papaya shreds in sticky sweetness. I much prefer the Thai fish-sauce based dressing in som tum (green papaya salad).

The roti prata was airy, crisp, light, yet with slightly chewy sections. Wonderful! Nearly every table had this appetizer. The curry had a light coconut flavor and a teeny bit of heat. Would definitely order it again - but next time, I want one for myself. =P

Now the satays - the highlight of the meal for me. Super succulent, juicy chicken and beef skewers. The meat had to have been marinated as they didn't need the requisite peanut based sauce. Need I say it again - no dryness!!! Damn good juicy meats on sticks!

The Hainan chicken rice was decent. Auntie complained that the chicken wasn't a free-range or Empress chicken but the meat was very juicy. Mom complained that the dish did not come with the ginger condiment. I complained that the rice wasn't chicken-y enough. But hey, it was pretty good and we're just selectively picky, especially with my aunt and chicken.

El Taco de Oro / La Tapatia, Part II

South San Francisco, CA

El Taco De Oro taco trucks, (~Lawrence Ave @ Littlefield Ave and Grandview Dr. @ East Grand Ave, plus other locations)

On the way back from running errands, I pulled over on Utah Avenue when I spotted a taco truck and patrons lining up for food. I had been wanting to try some tacos at the various trucks I see around the area but never really had the chance since I don't usually leave work for lunch. I figured, this one was busy and the price was right ($1 tacos). Funny, I used to work down the street from this particular truck but I never ventured past very mediocre Coliazone Cafe and Luigi's Sandwiches.

(Clockwise from bottom: pollo, carne asada, pastor)

Most of the customers were ordering burritos and tacos. I ordered the three shown above for 3 whopping dollars. I hopped back into my car to enjoy these goodies at work when I spotted another taco truck. Impromptu taco truck taco taste-off! *oink oink* Well, this second taco truck was also a El Taco de Oro truck! Neat...I guess I could only taste test between the two trucks. =P

Carne asada taco from the other El Taco de Oro truck in SSF

Small mounds of meat, salsa, cilantro, and onions covered the smallish ~5" diameter griddled corn tortillas. I think I'll have to give the first truck I encountered on Littlefield the slight edge since the first carne asada was a bit juicier. I'm too tired to break it down, but I'd definitely want to try the burritos others were getting. Yummy...

Nation's Hamburgers

Daly City, CA

After a quest with "L" for Happy Meal Toys (ssshhh), we stopped off at Nation's for a real burger. Nation's Giant Hamburgers is a Bay Area chain with its 24 locations serving up burgers and pies all day long at the Daly City and Tracy locations.

I opted for the new Wild Salmon burger and shared a piece of lemon meringue pie with "L."

I had forgotten to ask for no mayo or onions. Oh well...napkins to the rescue! The wild Alaskan salmon patty was cooked to perfection but to be honest, I was rather disappointed by this sandwich. I think I can get the same wild Alaskan salmon patty at Costco. Heck, I think there are a few in my freezer. =( Sandwich was messy, but filling. Nice cool pieces of crunchy iceberg lettuce and 3 halfway decent large slices of tomato. Would I order it again? Prolly not. I think I shall stick to the burgers.

The 1/4 pie slice looked pretty good when it was just served. The cloud of meringue with a nice light browning topped off a creamy smooth lemon filling. My main gripe was that the meringue started sweating after our burgers were done. The meringue partly-melted, partly-oozed in my mouth - not the most pleasant of textures. The lemon filling was the best part - not terribly sweet and fairly lemony. The crust was nothing spectacular. I couldn't help but think, we should have went for the strawberry pie instead.

Beard Papa

San Francisco, CA

My good friend L kindly brought me two Beard Papa cream puffs, knowing how much I've been wanting to try some last Sunday. (She's a seriously faboo friend plus a food-buddy.)

We started a running gag with the cows...

Hmm, what's this?Ooh! Two cream puffs!Mmm...cuuuustaaaard...mooooooo. *buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurp* ~~~CH4 CH4 CH4~~~

*drooooool* My Achilles heel would be custard. Shoot, my wedding cake will be egg custard tarts topped with custard/cream puffs!

The Beard Papa filling overwhelms the pastry. It's like, 80% custard cream and 20% max of pastry. Even me, a custard lover, found it overwhelming. I could see the vanilla flecks in the custard from the touted vanilla beans used in the filling. The custard had a very distinct eggy flavor and was not too firm but not too thin. Nice!

Would I go back for a cream puff? Sure! Do I rank it as one of best ever? Nope. Really, the disproportionate amount of custard throws the puff off.

Boulevard

San Francisco, CA

=( My coworkers and I trekked out to lunch at Boulevard to celebrate another coworker's retirement last Monday. The 10 of us fit nicely into their wine room. Quiet enough to each other, private enough so that we wouldn't annoy people with our conversations and sometimes highly animated discussions. Dark and cozy...intimate. Plus, we had fun looking at all the wines. "Hey, did anyone bring a backpack?" =P

For starters:

LAURA CHENEL GOAT CHEESE & HAZELNUTS
Marinated Beets, Blood Oranges, Endive Watercress & Hazelnut Vinaigrette
(3 of us had this)

SEARED DAY BOAT SEA SCALLOPS
Soft Polenta, Fava Bean, Pine Nut & Meyer Lemon Relish, Balsamic Jus
(3 of us had this)

The remaining had one of the following (no pics...people were digging in!):

HEARTS OF BUTTER LETTUCE
Bosc Pear, Gorgonzola Cheese, Candied Walnuts
&
DUCK BOLOGNESE & PORCINI RAVIOLI
Spring Peas, Bacon & Chervil, Natural Jus
&
FRESH DUNGENESS CRAB CAKE
Yellow Tomato Vinaigrette, Avocado, Watercress

Onto the lunch entrees:

CHAR RARE AHI TUNA

Three Mediterranean Salads: Farro Tabbouleh; Tiny Italian Ceci Beans in Hummus Zucchini Ribbons & Squash Blossoms Viniagrette

DRY AGED CALIFORNIA LAMB CHOP & SICILIAN LAMB SAUSAGE
Wrapped in Pancetta Crushed Yukon Gold Potatoes with Arugula, Mascarpone, Confit Garlic & Chili Flakes Natural Lamb Jus

GRILLED FLORIDA BUTTERFISH (ESCOLAR)
Fregola di Sarda with Clams & Rock Shrimp, Tomatoes, Herbs, Garlic & Shallots, Wild Arugula

One person had the Wasabi Crusted Mahi Mahi with Sauteed Pea Shoots with Baby Shiitake Mushrooms Ginger Beurre Blanc & Sesame Vinaigrette (not shown). I was one of the four who ordered the escolar. I loved how the little al dente pastas that were gently cradled by the clamshells since the sweetness of the escolar drippings flavored the pearls of fregola di sarda. The escolar was perfectly cooked with that moist, rich white flesh. However, I think mine was overseasoned on the outside. I had to gulp down a few glasses of water with the entree. Still, the nice char and moist flesh made up for the salt. The rock shrimp were surprisinly plump and perfectly cooked though the clams were just okay without the slight brininess I like. The savory fish drippings were definitely a great accompaniment to the more mild clams.

For dessert:

KAFFIR LIME SCENTED CREME BRULEE w/ Lime Madeleine cookies

BLACKBERRIES & RASPBERRIES
Meyer Lemon Meringue (Look at that ice malt crystal sugar decoration!)

Others had the Strawberry "shortcake" Lady Finger Cake with Strawberries, Mascarpone Meringue & Fresh Strawberry Coulis or the Ice Cream Sandwich selection with macadamia nut ice cream, and two other ice creams that I forget. I split the creme brulee dessert with my coworker "H" since we were stuffed. She had wanted the madelines and I'm a sucker for all things cuuuuuustaaaaaaaaaaard. The most interesting bit of the dessert was the ice malt sugar decoration on the blackberries and raspberries covered with meringue. When you get a bunch of nerdy biochemists together, we get really into the chemistry behind the formation of something so clear.

Ice malt pellets...a form of maltose?

We had a lovely lunch sending off a dedicated colleague who actaully started off our eating fest in the morning with a cheese puff from Fatapple's and fresh cherries and strawberries! I sure am going to miss her sarcasm, wit, and honesty but at least we squeezed in precious good times. =(