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"Let's get incredible."
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Review votes:
167 Useful, 59 Funny, and 95 Cool
Oakland, CA
Yelping SinceFebruary 2006
Find Me InWhitmore @ Whitmore.
My HometownVacaville, Calif.
My Blog Or Website When I'm Not Yelping...i'm on the ballfield, drinking wine, or chasing the cats around.
Why You Should Read My Reviewsi like what you like.
My Second Favorite Website The Last Great Book I ReadCarter Beats The Devil
My First ConcertFishbone @ Freeborne Hall @ UC Davis. I dove off the stage.
My Favorite MovieThe Good, The Bad, & The Ugly.
My Last Meal On EarthAnything at Bouchon. Bread. Salt. Whatever.
Most Recent DiscoveryThe War On Drugs
Current CrushSauternes.
DateOakland, CA 94606
(510) 261-9800
Banh Mi Ba Le
Category: Vietnamese
Neighborhood: East Oakland
Oakland, CA 94609
(510) 290-5399
Stephen Loewinsohn Photography
Category: Photographers
Neighborhoods: Temescal, North Oakland
Maybe it's time to do some reverse shoulder-tapping. "Psst. Hey, kid. Go in and get me a gyro. Here's $6.00, keep the change."
1 Previous Review: Hide »
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2/4/2009
I don't give small, neighborhood lunch spot five stars very often, but Troy deserves it in every way.
Some coworkers took me here yesterday on our way to a tasting in SF. Wow. I think I've found my new go-to Greek place, even if it is all the way of Park in Alameda.
Super friendly service (one guy accidentally charged my friend $1 too much, and they brought that $1 to our table in cash with apologies), a great gyro (I loved that it had a grip of chopped, fine green lettuce on it), and the fries were great. Nice and light, with a dash of salt and black pepper.
They served the food with a squeeze bottle of ketchup and a squeeze bottle of "hot red sauce" that was orange, flecked with spice, and more flavor than heat. Super deliciosu.
They have a meal deal, and they take credit cards with only a $5 minimum. This place has all the things I love in a small, neighborhood lunch spot (except a bathroom).
Well-done!
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 621-9859
Double Play Restaurant
Categories: Restaurants, Sports Bars
Neighborhood: Mission
Well, the Double Play is like that, but for the SF Seals who played in the PCL on Potrero Hill where that huge Safeway shopping center is now. This is a dive bar, full of baseball memorabilia and San Francisco from a time gone by.
They have their own Pale Ale (delicious), small booths, and a side room painted like the inside of a baseball staidum including baselines, crowds, and a pitcher.
We just came here for the bar, so I have no idea if the food is good or not (I wouldn't expect too much from it, but a friend and I wasted some time in here, drinking beer and playing dominoes on a rainy Saturday.
Loved every minute of it.
San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 252-2000
Serpentine
Category: American (New)
Neighborhoods: Dogpatch, Potrero Hill
Started with a decent enough Bloody Mary at the bar while we waited for a both. Had a turkey and cranberry sandwich (I'm a sucker for these) with some greens. It was good, but not tremendously amazing, but the service was nice and I really liked the calmness I felt in there.
Also, I ate a cocktail onion for $3. I'm not proud, but I will always remember Serpentine for that.
This one is nestled up in Glenview a few storefronts away from another newish Italian joint: Bellanico.
I really liked Marzano except for the hated water glasses for wine. The roasted mediterranean octopus with olives, potatoes, capers, and calabrian chili was way too heavy on the chili (although I kind of liked that). The house cured Monterey bay sardines were excellent and tasted like my high-school tackle box (in a good way).
The pizzas were really super tasty (especially the next day) and feature super thin crust and are cooked in a large brick oven next to the bar. The Napoletana (tomato, anchovy, capers, black olive, chili flake) had a nice saltiness to it (no surprise) and matched the Gulfi d'Nero wine well. The Calabrian (broclli romanesco, tomato, calabrian chli, and marjoram) was also excellent.
The space is really nice, comfy, unique, and open. Service was friendly and unobtrusive and I liked that host had a fun, quirky personality.
A nice space, I'll for sure be back.
New spot on Grand right by the lake. I liked the square bar and enjoyed my beer and wanted to try more. They have a nice wine selection as well, but I can't wait for the cocktails!
No full liquor license yet, but this spot was super nice and I loved the oversized photography on the walls.
Please don't get all crappy on me Sidebar, I need a good after dinner bar for drinks!
To my mind, TJ's has been there forever. This was always the downtown biker bar when I was growing up, but this night it was filled with big bro dudes in black baseball hats, oversized shants, and bad facial hair. The place is weirdly humid and seems to be constructed haphazardly, including a stairway to nowhere.
Luckily, I didn't see anyone from High School, and a pitcher of Sierra Nevada and a pint of Newcastle came out to $13 bucks. I guess you can't beat that.
Oakland, CA 94620
(510) 251-1290
La Calle
Category: Mexican
Neighborhoods: Oakland Chinatown, Old Oakland
FRESH is key here, although I feel my lunching experience was marred by one of the salsas being so spicy that I couldn't taste my food very well and had to really take my time.
Had two nice gorditas, one stuffed with chicharrón and the other with carnitas and cactus flower. Both were delicious, with lots of good, fresh flavor. The red sauce in the former was really nice and it sat in a nice handmake corn pocket.
I loved the salsa bar (5 options plus limes and radishes), the ice cold water, the chalkboard menu, and the little stools in the window.
Keep in mind, you're paying for quality ingredients here, not quantity.
Also, I really love that they don't put rice in their burritos. Rice is filler, and my favorite spots (see La Taqueria in San Francisco) usually don't use it. I want the freshness of these ingredients to come out, not get marred down in rice. Rice does have its place in burritos, but not here.
I actually found the prices reasonable.
Now, I just need to pinpoint which one of those salsas had all that spice...
San Francisco, CA 94199
(415) 750-2613
De Young Museum Cafe
Category: American (New)
Had the soup and sald ($9.00). The broccoli cheddar soup was good, filling, and fell more on the cheddar side of things (I was OK with this). The caesar salad was heavy on the dressing, but again, I was OK with this. Washed it down with a glass of pinot in some nice, stemless glasses.
I actually quite enjoyed this meal and liked the flower on our table. I've already forgiving them for putting the salt and pepper in the wrong shakers.
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