Eddie L.'s Profile

I'm not someone who gets super excited about broadway shows, so when my friends wanted to put a musical on our New York itinerary, I was fairly indifferent. We also didn't really know anything about Memphis and ended up seeing it largely because it was one of the last musicals that still had good tickets the night before the show.  

But damn, this was one of the most fun shows I've ever seen. The actors are fantastic, the music is energetic, and the singing is superb. I absolutely loved it. Forget about those witches and Simba. You won't be disappointed with Memphis.

Everyone loves this cart. If you don't, you are a fool. My only warning is to make sure you go to the correct cart because, as you make your way down to the corner of 53rd and 6th, the impostor halal carts will try and holler at you like a bunch of desperate hookers. And much like real hookers, you shouldn't make eye contact with them. Keep your head down until you get to 53rd and 6th, and you will be well rewarded.

I really like this place. It's very unassuming, tucked away in a quiet neighborhood in Noe Valley. Food is great, of course, but the one thing I noticed most while sitting at my table was that everyone in the restaurant seemed to be having a good time. Whether it was the hipster wait staff, the extended family sitting at the larger middle table, the elderly lady taking her grandson and his girlfriend out to dinner, or the couple that looked like they had just come from occupying downtown San Francisco, Firefly seems to give off good vibes. That alone is reason enough to try it out.

As a side note, I should probably stop paying so much attention to the people sitting around me. I'm probably creeping everyone out.

i've been to LA twice in the last three months and both times have ended up here. lomo saltado must be peruvian for "big ass plate of meat and fries" because that's exactly what it is, and it's awesome. if i wasn't about to get in a car and drive six hours back to the bay area, i would have attempted to finish the plate. i would have gone into a coma, but i could have done it. anyway, the other people i went with got some other stuff, but i didn't really bother to pay attention to what they ordered. all you need to know is lomo saltado.

I see a lot of reviewers who hate on this gym, but honestly, this is one of the nicer 24 Hour Fitness centers I've been to in the Bay Area. Yeah, it's kind of small and thus, it gets crowded sometimes. But it's pretty clean and the equipment and weights are relatively new. I'll stick to the company line and say that parking can be tough sometimes, but I used to go to the Berkeley location, and during peak hours, parking there was probably the worst thing ever since you have to fight for spots with the old people who are going to the theater across the street, as well as the hippies going to some jam band music concert at the place next door.

Wait, sorry... which 24 am I reviewing again? Oh, right. Walnut Creek. Anyway, I'm a fan of this gym. As a heads up, you will feel like you are trapped in some pseudo-version of Real Housewives, but I guess that can be a plus or a minus, depending on what you're into.

My car's starter had a problem and they were able to fix my car by the next day. It's been a few months now and I haven't had any problems, so in terms of service and the quality of the work done, I have no issue. Price was okay (they actually ended up charging me a little bit less than the original estimate), but let's be real here: if there was actually a cheap mechanic out there, everyone in the greater Bay Area would be going to him.

My one complaint was that they removed my old license plate frame and replaced it with an Alameda Auto Lab frame without asking. Yes, my old frame was the standard one I got from the dealership when I bought the car, but still... I was not too pleased about that. If you want to put your logo on someone's car, go invest in NASCAR.

House of Prime Rib is a staple of San Francisco, much like the Golden Gate Bridge or the Giants. Or the Bushman. There aren't a whole lot of different ways you can go with the menu. It basically boils down to how big of a slice of meat do you want, and what do you want to go with that slice of meat. And when you think about it, what else do you really need to know? Meat? Good. Sides? Good. Lots of food? Really good.

Anyway, you can read up on the other reviews about what to get, but there are very few ways you can go wrong here. Sure, it's pricey, but you certainly get what you pay for. And yes, it does get busy. We had to wait over 20 minutes past our reservation before we were seated. And it also took a long time for the prime rib cart to finally come to our table due to the sheer number of diners. But all that really speaks to the popularity of HOPR, and with good reason. And if you're a big eater like me, this place will humble you. Don't be afraid to ask for a to-go box.

If this place was in the Bay Area, I'd probably go way too often for my own good. As you have probably figured out by now, the tri-tip sandwiches are the way to go, but I also love the big ass basket of fries which is enough to feed four people.

I read a two star review from a vegetarian who complained that their non-tri-tip menu options weren't very good. Uh... why the hell would you go to a restaurant whose claim to fame IS a sandwich with lots of meat in it? Is it that hard to understand?

I also read some reviews in which people have complained that there's not enough seating at Firestone. Now, I would say this is normally something to whine about, except that this place is already pretty huge with both indoor and outdoor seating. So I'm not sure what exactly these people want the restaurant to do because the problem isn't that there aren't enough seats; the problem is that the restaurant is too popular. Clearly the solution is for Firestone to start sucking in quality to drive people away and make seating less of an adventure. Yep. Problem solved. Hopefully someone in management is reading this review.

My brother hyped this place up as the best place to get Mexican food in Claremont. If that's the case, Claremont must be really deprived of good Mexican food. It's not like the food was horrible - it's decent and I've definitely experienced worse. But for whatever reason, the burrito doesn't taste at all like it's authentic Mexican, but more like it was made by an American - kind of like what Panda Express is to Chinese food. It's not bad, but it's definitely not the real deal.

Also, people are raving about the hot sauce. Okay, let's calm down. There's some serious groupthink going on here which is causing everyone to believe this sauce was created by God himself. Come on. Be honest. It's aiiiiight. In my opinion, the only reason people like it so much is because it gives some flavor to a bland burrito.

Anyway, Patty's isn't bad, but I can't say it's really that good either. But if there are seriously no better Mexican options than this place, I feel really bad for the city of Claremont.

When I was in college, I went to a Mos Def concert on campus. Doors opened around 6 and, after the opening acts, it was finally time for Mos. Now, like a typical star, he didn't come out right when it was his turn to perform. Instead, he decided to take his sweet ass time and make the crowd wait... and wait... and wait... Things got so bad that the MCs had to resort to holding an impromptu freestyle rapping competition a la 8 Mile between guys who were convinced they could flow, but were in fact really terrible. But that's another story.

Anyway, as the crowd got increasingly restless and began to throw things at the MCs on stage and started chanting "refund!" Mos finally came out and performed. The crowd went crazy and by the end of the show, all was forgiven and everyone left satisfied.

Why do I tell you this story? Because that was basically my experience with Chairman Bao. Being one of the more well known food trucks in the Bay Area, Bao's reputation precedes itself. I first encountered Bao at SJ Eats aka "Let's Try and See How Many People We Can Cram Into One Condensed Area Before They Want To Kill Themselves." While all the other trucks had been open for a good 30 minutes, Bao was still not open, but a sizable line had formed. I decided to skip out on Bao that day, but we would meet again the next week at Off the Grid.

Trucks began opening by 5pm, but Bao was again taking its time. A line again started to form in great anticipation and this time my gf and I got in it because when you see a line start to form, you naturally just get in it because you don't want to miss out, right? Anyway, after all the other trucks opened for business, an Off the Grid staff member knocked on the Bao door and told them to get moving and open up. They obliged.... kind of. They opened their windows, but still weren't actually taking orders yet. We could see the workers inside prepping food... and you knew they could see the line that was waiting on them as well.

Finally, probably a good 20 minutes after they had been told to open up, they started taking orders. And, like my Mos Def experience, after you eat their buns, you sort of forget that they made you sit there and wait and wait and wait. After trying five or six different places that day, it was clear that Bao has something unique. A little pricey? Perhaps. But you really can't get their style of bun anywhere else.

Anyway, let's recap. Chairman Bao: kind of a diva, but worth the price of admission.