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Pier 30
San Francisco, CA 94101
(415) 777-5626

Red's Java House  

Categories: Coffee & Tea, Seafood

2.0 star rating
3/25/2010
I don't even know where to start, this place is an utter trainwreck.

So I came here yesterday for lunch with some co-workers for a change of pace from our usual spots, and knowing Red's had been featured on Anthony Bourdain before, I figured it would be pretty damn fantastic. Boy was I wrong.

The menu is small and relatively simple, which I can dig. Cheeseburgers, hotdogs, chili-cheese fries, etc. Everything seems pretty easy and run of the mill, no weird stuff here, so how can you go wrong? Famous last words.

Well for some odd reason the people at Red's are opposed to the idea of lettuce and tomato on a burger, and they make it a point to have a sign saying that they don't have it. Are you kidding me? I thought we were in America? That's like ordering spaghetti and meatballs without the sauce or cheese. It just doesn't make sense to me. Is this place just so cheap that they can't afford fresh Lettuce and Tomatoes or do they REALLY not want me to have it? Well, I didn't notice the sign until after I ordered, and was greeted with a snickering "we don't have lettuce and tomato" as if I was some sort of moron for requesting such commonplace items.

So I order the burger regardless, and only have the options of mustard, onions and pickles to put on my burger. Mustard is not for me and I like my pickles to the side, so I opt for just onions. I get a side of fries and a water and sit down.

The fries came up immediately, and were decent. They were a little greasy like McDonalds, but I can't complain. Easily the best part of my meal.

Soon after that was the "burger", or lack there of. The first thing I noticed was that the burger was not on a bun, but on some sort of roll that you may get a sub or something on. It was so thick and doughy, it just DID NOT go with a burger. You need to have that light airiness, it's really essential to a good burger. It's all about the Brioche bun.

The actual meat patty was downright awful. I come from a place where the burgers are thick, juicy, and cooked to my liking. I want that burger moo-ing at me, and this just wasn't doing it. Cooked Medium-well, this burger was just devoid of any juice or flavor at all, and was about the thickness of a McDonalds beef patty. The "bun" itself was double the thickness of the burger, and for lack of a better term it was like "throwing a hot dog down a hallway".

I wasn't expecting a gourmet medium rare burger, but I was expecting something that looked more appetizing than the Big Mac my dog wouldn't eat of the garbage.

Overall, I was just completely unsatisfied and I will NOT be coming back here, for anything, ever. My co-worker had the fish and chips, and though it tasted fine and was nice and crunchy, I don't want to take the risk and let this place steal anymore of my money. Good riddance Reds.

Thanks for letting me down Bourdain. Get it right next time.

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958 Illinois St
San Francisco, CA 94107

Kitchenette  

Category: Food Stands
Neighborhood: Potrero Hill

2.0 star rating
2/10/2010
Came here for the first time today, and will not be coming back.

I do not like how small the menu is and changes. I like options as well as "favorites" at any given time and this place just doesn't have it.

I got the Pastrami sandwich, and since I don't like Sauerkraut or Mustard, I figured I'd add cheese to my sandwich, like how most good Pastrami's come. Nope. "We can't do that" aka "we don't want to do that" is what the lady told me. I don't get how hard it is to let me customize my sandwich. Its not like you don't have the ingredients.

On top of that, the wait ended up being about 15 minutes, it's cash only (i dont get businesses that do this, Ive noticed in SF its everywhere, get with the times folks), it's expensive ($8.50 for a PLAIN sandwich?!) and the Pastrami was mediocre. No more yuppie sandwiches for me.

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601 Divisadero St
San Francisco, CA 94117
(415) 563-3634

Bean Bag Cafe  

Category: Coffee & Tea
Neighborhood: Western Addition/NOPA

5.0 star rating
1/22/2010
$2 for a Watermelon Wheat or a Fat Tire during happy hour? $3 for one normally? What else even needs to be said! Food is also pretty good too. Can't go wrong with a nice afternoon of drinking at the Bean Bag. One of my favorite spots to bring visitors, they always seem to love it.

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1319 18th St
San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 647-7941

Hazel's Kitchen  

Categories: Delis, Sandwiches, Caterers
Neighborhood: Potrero Hill

2.0 star rating
1/22/2010
I can't say I generally enjoy this place. My co-workers seem to love it, but every time I go my sandwich is beyond sub-par. My biggest complaint was the thickness of the pastrami. It was literally like trying to chew through leather. Maybe they're veggie sandwiches are alright, but I'll more than likely refrain from coming back again.

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635 19th St
San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 282-1754

The Sandwich Shop  

Categories: Delis, Sandwiches
Neighborhoods: Dogpatch, Potrero Hill

4.0 star rating
1/22/2010
I have to say, I absolutely love the sandwich shop.

My co-workers and I come here multiple times a week, and besides a small line fairly often, there isn't much to complain about. Sometimes the workers take a littleeee too much time cutting the lettuce and making the sandwiches themselves, but the quality and price are both superb so it more than makes up for the time it takes.

I always go with a BLT + Pepper Jack and Avocado, and I've never been let down. The roll is good and always toasted just right. They avocado is sliced fresh throughout the day and they really load it on. THe bacon has a good texture and taste and the veggies all taste fresh.  Not to mention how high they stack them.

I grab a coke as well, I go to pay, and my total is just shy of $7. How can you beat that? Exactly. The woman who runs the place is also super-friendly and I always walk away satisfied. I highly recommend this place, especially for a great quick lunch spot.

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450 Rhode Island St
San Francisco, CA 94107
(415) 552-1155

Whole Foods Market  

Categories: Grocery, Health Markets
Neighborhood: Potrero Hill

2.0 star rating
1/21/2010
This review is solely based on the Market "Bistro" section of the store, or lack-there-of.

So I go to Whole Foods quite often on my lunch break at work, and it's generally pleasant when I go get my soup or salad and check out in the regular part of the store. Today was a little different since one of my co-workers wanted to go to their "Market Bistro" to get a Veggie Burger. I had never even been downstairs to see it, so I figured why the hell not. What a stupid decision that was.

We get in line, I grab a menu and figure out what I want. Right away I noticed how over-priced the sandwiches are. I understand this is "Whole Paycheck" but $9 for a BLT? At this point not much else seemed to appeal to my appetite or wallet, and I had no other options, so I stuck with the inflated BLT.

My friends and I order, and then wait. And wait. And wait. My BLT came out about 15 minutes after ordering which is unacceptable, especially for a sandwich that takes less than 5 minutes to make on my own. It's not like we we're waiting in line at Ike's folks, so I couldnt understand what was taking so long. Anyway, I get my sandwich and continue to wait with my friends for their Veggie Burgers, upwards of another 20 minutes or so.

At this point my food is cold since the people running the market didn't realize that people who order together generally like their food to come out around the same time. That would be too much to think about for this staff. I see others who ordered the same items AFTER us get their food and I started to worry. It seems as if they have forgotten about us, but then I suddently realized that the staff was incredibly slow. These are not people who know how to work and run a kitchen/restaurant. They were lethargic, chatty, and the whole time they all had this puzzled look like a lost dog looking for home. I understand how SF is laidback and casual, but being born and raised on the East Coast, I expect somewhat speedy service, or at least an effort. People do not have all day.

Once I finally got to try the BLT, I wasn't let down since I wasn't expecting much. The bacon had a nice consistency, but the mayonnaise was too much and slopped out on without care, the wheat bread was very cheap and bland, and the veggies weren't as fresh as I'd expect from Whole Foods.

Do yourself a favor and go to many of the other good places to eat in Potrero Hill and don't waste your money at this crappy excuse for a restaurant.

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477 Cambridge St
Allston, MA 02134
(617) 787-2337

Deep Ellum  

Categories: Pubs, American (New), Breakfast & Brunch
Neighborhood: Allston/Brighton

4.0 star rating
9/13/2008
I was skeptical at first to go to Deep Ellum, since the Model and the Silhouette are so close and so much cheaper, but my friends were set on Deep Ellum so I followed suit.

When we got there we quickly got a table on a busy night and were served drinks fairly quickly. I liked that they had some nice beers on tap, but if I was running low on cash I could also grab a tall boy of Nargansett. The selection was nice and the staff was pretty friendly. They were pretty coaster crazy though. Any time there was not a coaster under a glass a waitress/waiter was on it like white on rice.

In the end I ended up getting drunk, not dropping too much money, and had a good time. What else does someone want really? No darts or pool if you need to be doing something while drinking but definitely a good place for some good conversation and drinks with friends.

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1648 Beacon St
Brookline, MA 02445
(617) 277-2880

The Publick House  

Categories: Pubs, American (Traditional), Belgian

3.0 star rating
9/13/2008
I've wanted to go to the Publick House for a while now and when the opportunity presented itself with a few friends, I couldn't resist.

My 3 friends and I were seated promptly and that's where the pleasentries ended (at least for a while). The draft selection was a lot weaker than it claimed to be, especially with them being out of 2 of the 3 beers I wanted to try, not to mentioned a little over priced.

It wasn't very busy at all since it was a sunday night, but our waiter still managed to be terrible. He basically sat 10 feet from us the whole night watching the baseball game, and we still couldn't get his attention. No "you're welcomes" when we thanked him for the drinks and coming over or any small talk of any kind. We kept trying to be polite but this guy was a straight up dick. 2 of us had empty beer's for a bout 10 minutes before he decided to waltz over again in his coma-like daze.

The appetizers such as the belgian frites with the garlic mayo were very good though, so that started to redeem my experience a bit. A friend of mine got a cheeseburger and it looked absolutely delicious.

All and all it was OK. I might go there again for lunch with a friend or something and maybe to grab a beer, but I wouldnt go there with a bunch of buddies for a night out again.

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1629 Cambridge St
Cambridge, MA 02138
(617) 491-2999

Darwin's Ltd.  

Categories: Sandwiches, Coffee & Tea
Neighborhood: Harvard Square

3.0 star rating
9/13/2008
Overrated and somewhat mediocre  is how my experience went with this place.

The sandwich I had was by no means BAD, but it wasn't great. I just don't get the hype. All my friends talk up the sandwiches, but when push comes to shove they just don't hold up to what I was expecting.

I went there for the first time recently and got "the story" the mozarella, and pesto were good, along wioth the bread, but what is with the meat? The proscuitto on my sandwich was sliced super thick. Don't they know how to slice their meat? Oh wait, do they even slice their own meat? Who knows.

Another gripe was the lack of meat/cheese choices. All the sandwiches seemed to just be variations on eachother, avocado, sprouts, some form of vinagrette dressing. I'm not buying it.

I guess I would eat another sandwich here without any form of meat, but I certainly wont go there if I'm not already in the area. There are plenty of other places that slice everything fresh and made to order.

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89 Brighton Ave
Allston, MA 02134
(617) 783-5804

International Bicycle Center  

Category: Bikes
Neighborhood: Allston/Brighton

4.0 star rating
8/12/2008
I just entered this place about 45 minutes ago and couldn't be more pleased, especially for the situation.

I left my apartment to go to work around 12:30pm today. I get down to the Harvard Ave/Brighton Ave intersection area and realize i have a flat. I guess I didn't notice the slow leak. I got off before I destroyed the rim and walked over to the closest bike shop, International.

I walked in and they were immediately very friendly. I brought my bike right to the back and told them the situation, that I just popped my tire and needed to get to work (which started at 1). They understood the circumstances and replaced the tube right away. I didn't really have time to do it myself. The guy who fixed my tire also noticed a burr in my rim and fixed it so I wouldn't pop my tire from that as well. Nice dudes and real friendly. I knew I was going to be late for work but not that late. They were done with the bike by about 1:05pm, and I was on my way only arriving about 15-20 minutes late total.

It totalled about $14 (tube + labor) which wasn't bad, especially since I was in a pinch. If I wasn't heading to work I would just do it myself.

Backed.

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7 Compliments

  • You're Cool

    $2 for a Watermelon Wheat or a Fat Tire during happy hour? $3 for one… More »

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    Nice! You're in the Weekly Yelp this week!: http://www.yelp.c... More »

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    Lots of good beers here indeed...and local, too!

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Review votes:
39 Useful, 21 Funny, and 25 Cool

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