November 3, 2011 Off

Delfina Pizzeria (San Francisco: Mission)

//// By in 04: SF+Bay Area

Delfina Pizzeria is one of the most popular joints in SF, and like most popular SF restaurants Delfina has a long line queueing outside. It’s located on the popular 18th street where it shares the block with other insanely popular places such as Tartine bakery and Bi-rite Creamery and Bi-rite Market.

Delfina

There are less than 10 tables in the small interior, we waited for about 30 minute for a table. You can order glasses of wine to whet your appetite while waiting and watching pizza being made in the open kitchen.

Delfina

Amatriciana: guanciale, chili, perorino, tomato, black pepper $16. So Delicious! The sauce is very yummy and I like the thin crust as well. I like how simple, classic the pizza is but they’re full of flavors and you won’t get bore eating more slices.

Delfina

Grilled Peppers. It was quite chilly but again, the preparation is very simple (olive oil, salt) but it’s so good!

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Monterey Bay Sardines.

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Carbonara – Scallops,  pecorino, guanciale, Egg. It sounded good on paper but it’s actually a bit salty in the end result.

Clam Pie – Cherrystones, tomato, oregano, pecorino, hot peppers $17. Very delicious! Their red sauce is just good – not too thick but flavorful. The chopped clam gave a nice fresh seafood flavor to the pretty spicy sauce.

Being from LA it’s inevitable we’ll compare Mozza with Delfina. I have to say I prefer Delfina for its simplicity. Their crust is good too. I came back here twice because I enjoyed their casual, simple vibe a lot. There’s a more proper restaurant version next door, I haven’t try it yet but I tend to like smaller, brighter places like the Pizzeria. 

Delfina Pizzeria
 3621 18th St (between Guerrero St & Oakwood St), San Francisco, CA 94110

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October 26, 2011 Off

Mission Pies (SF: Mission)

//// By in 04: SF+Bay Area

Mission Pie is a lovely bakery located further away from the hipster central part of Mission. When I took the Mission line of the company shuttle bus, I would come here before walking back home at the end of the day.

Mission Pie

Inside is great: homey, open space and felt very ‘community’. You get a huge table gathering at night sometimes and people working on their laptop and reading with coffee.

Mission Pie

Sweet pies, pot pies, quiche, savory tarts, galattes, etc. The menu is simple but there’s a lot of offering

Mission Pie

Meyer Lemon Pie. Amazing! Light, fluffy cream with crispy but not heavy crust.

Mission Pie

Potato Gratin Tart $4 by the slice. So good!

This is another of the great neighborhood gems that serve the community. Sigh…I miss San Francisco…

Mission Pie

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October 23, 2011 Off

Hya Gai Mi gia (San Francisco: Tenderloin)

//// By in 04: SF+Bay Area

Hya Gai Noodle

Hya Gai Mi Gia is a cheap and very popular Cantonese style noodle joint deep inside the Tenderloin district. This place reminds me of really authentic noodle shops in Hong Kong. It’s hard to find such classic style Cantonese style noodles in LA (Clear Broth! Egg Noodles! Wonton!) I got the Braised Duck Leg wonton Noodle. It’s very delicious, the duck leg are deeply braised with flavor and the meat is tender and moist.

I’d love to come back here a lot more if I live in SF, but you have to venture inside the scary Tenderloin neighborhood. For someone who’s not familiar enough with which street to avoid, I walked into some very shady street filled with needles on the ground and screaming mentally disturbed homeless. I felt like walking through a horror movie to get to the restaurant.

Hya Gai Mi Gia
707 Ellis St (between Larkin St & Polk St), San Francisco, CA 94109

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October 21, 2011 Off

Dosa (San Francisco: Mission)

//// By in 04: SF+Bay Area

I had many good authentic and cheap Indian food for lunch when I worked at Cupertino. One night I craved South Indian food so much, I looked up and found this popular spot at the hipster Mission.

Dosa

Dosa

A special of the night: Panipuri. A street snack where you crack open the puff pastry and fill it with the stuffings on the side, and you pour the green and brown sauce i. The green sauce is extremely spicy, and I accidentally poured in too much in one of my bites, my tongue never truly recovered that night.

Dosa

Dosa, Indian’s savory rice and lentil crepes. The flavor is not quite as rich as the ones I’ve bad near Cupertino.

Dosa

Uttapam: Indian’s savory pancakes. Again it’s not quite as rich tasting as the ones I’ve had (toned down), it’s still enjoyable.

It’s no authentic, ethnic dining experience, but it’s a nice, vibrant place to hang out with friends and a quick fix to my Indian food cravings.

DOSA on VALENCIA 415 642 3672
995 Valencia (@ 21 St)

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October 20, 2011 Off

Sandbox Bakery (SF: Bernal Height)

//// By in 04: SF+Bay Area

In this quiet Bernal Height neighborhood there’s a Japanese bakery called Sandbox Bakery. I craved some Asian style bread and I’m surprised to find one near where I live (Noe Valley). Bernal height is couple J Muni train stops away.

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My childhood favorite: Sausage bun.

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Achiote Pull Pork  & Cilantro Sandwich.

The bread is very good, not too sweet, it’s a nice blend of Japanese and Western style. I wish there’s something like this near where I live in LA.

Sandbox Bakery
833 Cortland Ave (between Ellsworth St & Gates St)
San Francisco, CA 94110
Neighborhood: Bernal Heights

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