Hiromi "the cat-whisperer" N.'s Profile

Je suis amoureuse!!!  Really, truly, I'm in LOVE with this place.  If you weren't LOOKING for it on Polk Street, you would miss it.  It is located between Clay and Washington and is tucked between La Parrilla Grill and The Cinch and if you are driving by and you BLINK, then you actually might miss it.

A friend and I came here and had a great SATC moment drinking wine and catching up on girl talk.  It is the perfect location to do so on a weekday night to unwind.  Unlike other locations on a Monday night, it was pleasantly filled with locals.  it is a perfect locale for a romantic rendezvous or a place to lounge with your most fabulous of friends!  I stepped in and loved the vibe.

In addition to the positive energy, what  I enjoyed about Amelie is not only the large, large list of wines, but also the food menu.  OMG, we tried the truffle raviole and it was AMAZING and the foie gras torchon was DELECTABLE.   Almost everything, including the wine, that we tried last night was delicious with ONE EXCEPTION.  There was a  free range chicken breast dish, which was not to our liking.  The mashed potatoes surrounding the sliced chicken breast were cold and the red wine reduction sauce was also congealed and cold.  Yet, all in all, we were quite impressed with the other selections that we made.

For wine, we chose to start out with Champagne, then focused on red wines.  My friend ordered a Malbec (amelie) and I chose a Rhone Valley blend.

Oh and I must complement the MUSIC selection that evening.  It was a perfect complement to the lounge vibe.  The staff are so friendly and the local clientele are very business casual.

One question - why are the lounge chairs up front so tattered?  It is the only thing that doesn't fit with the great decor of the lounge!

For our 3 dishes and 6 drinks our total came to around $125 (including tax, but sans tip)

What are YOU grateful for in your life today?  If you DON'T KNOW, well, then you better think long & hard about it before you step in the door, b/c you will be asked by the waitstaff  *hahaha*.  Of course, some people, who don't mind the on the spot type of questioning and extemporaneous speaking will not be taken aback nor mind.  Yet, I must admit that I'm a TYPE A personality and see each question like a quiz with a right and wrong answer... THIS PLACE IS TOO MUCH PRESSURE for ME *LOL* (JUST KIDDING...well sorta).

All in all, I felt this was a UNIQUE and different experience than I've had in the past at any other restaurant.  As I scanned the menu, I felt a bit of trepidation.  First of all...they serve ALL ORGANIC, Vegan and Gluten-free and I'm an OMNIVORE.  I eat meat and all products from animals.  Yet, with friends, I kept my mind OPEN and I was pleasantly surprised.

I absolutely LOVE the names of the drinks and the dishes that we ordered:

I am Vivid
I am Splendid
I am Warm
I am Cheerful
I am Loved
I am Magnificent
I am Adoring...

At the end of the meal, I found myself saying " I AM PLEASANTLY FULL"

It isn't cheap, the apps and "entrees" range from $9-16...

For 4 people, we spent about $112, not including tip.

I might not be back anytime soon, but it was definitely a great experience my first time.

My work colleagues have organized several happy hour get togethers here at the Poleng Lounge.  As you will see advertized on the website and also on the business page here on yelp, they offer happy hour deals on apps and drinks.  From 4-7PM (I believe) we took advantage of the $3.00 happy hour drink special (my preference is VODKA) and the $3.00 Happy Hour app special.  The food is ASIAN FUSION.  My favorite is the  Kalbi short ribs (which I think have been removed from the menu???) and the Shaken Beef...oh and you can't forget the sweet potato fries, right???

The lounge itself is intimate and I'd have to say that it isn't really suited for large parties unless reserved well in advance.

Hmm...I'm not really good with social graces.  Afternoon tea has always seemed like such a DAUNTING occasion for me.  Yet, here at Samovar, the staff is SO friendly w/o all of the FORMALITIES , which made it EASY for me to  enjoy the experience.  

The tea service menu offers a diverse array of tea service experiences.  They have everything from English High Tea, to Moorish to Russian to ChInese...the food provided is fresh and tasty and of an appropriate portion size.  Also, the staff is friendly and EXTREMELY knowledgeable about tea and the ART of tea drinking.

This feels more of an INCLUSIONARY place than an EXCLUSIONARY high society tea room.  

The parking here is hit or miss (depending upon the time of day that you arrive)

My friend, Chris C. has already written his review of our experience here together.  He ordered the Moorish Platter and I had the English Tea, we also shared a dessert.  After all of our tea and gnoshes...the bill was approx $56, not including tip.

Waow that didn't last long...I was going to write a mixed review about Essencia, but I see that the economy must have taken this business out, as well.

Trendy Indo-Chinese fusion cuisine.  During a visit to Toronto in March of 2009 a friend recommended The Spice Route.  I love to eat, I love fusion cuisine (in my opinion, my city of SF does it best...but...I am definitely open to being persuaded to think otherwise *haha*) and I love contemporary decor.  I found the ambiance to be young and modern.  The food was good and the service was average.  My friend had made reservations for us, we arrived a bit behind schedule, but were seated immediately.  We weren't overly hungry so we ordered two plates for family style eating: Thai crab cakes, kobe carpaccio (YUM) and All of our food was well seasoned and delicious.  We had 2 orders of the white chocolate lollipop dessert and a mango apple dragon roll.  We also tried a cople of their signature cocktails.  All in all, we left pleased and pleasantly full and only $57.00 canadian lighter in the pockets (not including gratuity)

I love cupcakes.  Period.  With that typed, I'm not a big fan of Kara's. One of my work vendors sends these to me as an annual Christmas gift.

I've been to the Kara's in the Marina several times and each time, I keep my fingers crossed that it will grow on me and that I'll magically fall in love w/their creations.  Unfortunately, 1) they are a bit expensive $3/cupcake??? and 2) the frosting is too heavy.  I can't even taste the cupcake under the 3 inches of icky frosting.

I mean, they are OK.  They are edible, I can give them as gifts.  Yet, I've had better.

Yum, yum, yum.  My Chicken Katsu curry and aloha ice tea hit the spot after a long day of SHOPPING.  I mean, why can't they have a Curry House Coco in San Francisco? I practically grew up on the stuff (thanks to my Japanese mother) and it is so nice to have it available for take-out.

Plus, it didn't break the bank (important after spending a load of money at Chanel!), my meal and beverage was approx $7.20, not including tax and tip.

Easy meal on the run and hands down crowd pleaser for me!

Don't let this cool, calm, well-dressed exterior of mine fool you, I'm a HOT DISORGANIZED MESS.  Believe me, it's true.  At work, my workspace is tidy and clean.  Yet, at home, it is a TOTAL different story.  Therefore, I'm eternally grateful for The Container Store and their clear stacking boxes!  

It's too bad that I can't move all my stuff from my apartment and just live in this store...I mean, they have everything that I need there...well, except a bed...:-)

They have a parking garage next to the store (kinda pricey), but  you can park at a cheaper garage and then, use the 15 minute loading parking space just to load up your purchases or hail a cab and use the 15 minute loading parking space.

The only down side...is that organization comes at a COST and the stuff sold there is not exactly cheap.  Yet, sometimes you can catch a good deal when there are store-wide sales.

This is a TREASURE trove for beauty supply lovers, such as myself.  I can't believe that I've walked past this store SO MANY times in the past 6 years and never went in until about 4 months ago!!!  I don't know WHAT prompted me to go in with a male friend of mine (gay), but I had a sudden urge to check out the cosmetics.  I'm so glad that I did.  

This is now my "GO TO" place for eyelashes.  They carry DARKNESS products, which I love.  My girlfriend from Hawaii actually introduced me to the DARKNESS products.  The lashes can be used for more than one time and they last MUCH longer than Shu Uemura.

The other thing that I love here are the lip glosses.  Also the selection of beauty appliances (anything you want, they have it!)

A major plus is that everyone, who works here is SO NICE!  I've been here several times for my lashes and I end up buying MORE stuff (like the BB Creme!!!  Amazing stuff, I tell you) than I had intended.  Also, they load you up with samples of goodies.