Danny D.'s Profile

My review, as told by the post-dinner Facebook conversation:

* Danny just had his best SF fine dining experience at Coi. Now tied in my book with Manresa for Best Restaurant Evar.

* Carlos A: Same price range as Manresa?

* Danny D: Same price range, possibly a little cheaper. We saved money on wine because we're both still kinda sick. Tasting menus were $120pp for 11 courses, and when we were still interested in other dishes that weren't included in our menu, they gave them to us free anyway, because they "didn't want us to leave hungry".

In my opinion, Manresa has amazing food with very good service, while Coi has very good food with amazing service. Note that my use of "very good" indicates that they're better than almost any other Bay Area restaurant.

Also note that this isn't In-N-Out good, or Little Star Pizza good, or even NoPa good, When I want those places, this won't do. This is an entirely different type of experience. A better comparison would be "more worth it than the Opera" good, or "better than the ballet" good, or "skydiving or nice dinner?" good. These are places where the food comes together with the service, the ambiance, and the company you bring to create a memorable life experience.

As guy sitting at the table next to us put it: "This isn't a first date place. This is a 'closer' place. This is where you bring her after you're married."

This is the first time I've ever walked into a food joint and ordered by quantity instead of menu item. While there were several different items on the menu, only one of them wasn't plastered over with a big "Coming Soon" sticker, a la the giant sticker that was visible outside of the establishment for about a month before the grand opening.

I missed the grand opening by over a week, and I'm glad: my entire lunch-break visit was about 5 minutes long, and I left with two warm, flaky pastries filled with cold, delicate vanilla custard.

Beard Papa's is definitely worth stopping by if you're in the neighborhood -- the creme puffs put a nice, refreshing gourmet spin on the ever-reliable creme-filled donut we're all so familiar with. But don't bother picking them up to eat later -- if you can't consume them while they're still warm on the outside, cold on the inside, you're not getting what you've paid for. Fresh and on-the-spot is the way to go here.

Looking at other reviews here, Tu Lan is very clearly a place that polarizes opinion. With few exceptions, everyone acknowledges that the food is terrific and that the atmosphere leaves much to want. Tu Lan is not a great restaurant to bring a first date...unless you're looking to scare away the Marina Girls and prissy boys (not a bad idea, really). What Tu Lan *is* good for is getting amazing authentic Vietnamese food on the cheap. Of all the places I go to lunch, I trek no farther to any of my favorite luncheterias than I do to Tu Lan. The imperial rolls alone are worth going out of my way for, worth braving the needle-infested, crack-addled block of 6th between Market and Mission. When I want something that is magically both greasy and yet not-too-heavy, I head to Tu Lan for the Imperial Roll and Rice Noodle.

I'm there at least every first Thursday of the month for Flickr meetups as well.  They're generally really friendly and accommodating for our (occasionally very) large groups.  I'm probably the kind of guy that makes Ivana I. want to shoot herself in the foot, except I'm usually between sessions of Hefewisen Wheat instead of Catcher In The Rye.  It's nice to have Prohibition Ale on tap in a coffeehouse. Admittedly, their chai seems to lack something, so I stick to the beer, generally.

The Best Sushi I Have Ever Had.  Consistently.  So yes, if you get there more than half an hour after they open, you can expect to wait anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, but what do you expect?  They only have two tables and a handful of bar seats.  One server/host works with one sushi chef and one prep cook/dishwasher on busy nights, and they can only handle so much volume.  The upside to keeping such a small restaurant is phenominal quality control.  The sushi here is the best I've had, and I've been whoring myself at sushi joints all over the Bay Area and South Florida for at least six years.  Get anything with mango.  Get anything with macadamia nuts.  Get anything with thinly sliced lime.  Particularly, I recommend the Hawaiians 1&2 and the Spicy Hamachi.  So just remember: get there early.  Sushi Zone is the place to start a night.  Fill up on the most delicious sushi you've ever had for less than $20 a person (including a beer or few) and then head out on the town.

Pretty good.  Delivery seemed relatively prompt to the Duboce Triangle on a Wednesday night around dinnertime, and the Large Popeye (for $21.60) was tasty and covered with spinach and feta.  Some of the better pizza delivery I've had in the area.

Still one of the few places I can get a decent Soy Chai, and it's right around the corner.  The service is friendly and they recognize me every time I come in.  Really, it's just so hard to find good chai.

The Memphis Pork is fantastic and my roommate can't get enough of their potato salad.  Most importantly, they deliver and they have an online menu: http://www.sflocals.co...