Tracy "Bork bork bork" O.'s Profile

This place is fantastic!

My friend and I showed up rather late in the evening, and when I expressed my disappointment with the full outdoor seating, the waiter picked up a table and brought it outside so we could sit and enjoy the evening.

Furthermore, their french onion soup was perfect; covered in a thick layer of cheese and fresh baguette slices, covering a thick, brothy onion soup. It was brought out as a first course, since I ordered the croque monsieur as well; a nice touch since it meant both of my meals would be hot when I get to them, rather than getting both at once, eating the soup, and then eating a cold sandwich.

Overall, great food and great service.

So this is an awkward review, but I had a very awkward condition; I had something called "vulvar vestibulitis", which, if you Google it, involves a lot of pain in a very awkward area. Not fun at all. Especially not fun when doctor after doctor misdiagnose, mistreat, and generally are uninformed about this condition.

I was researching information on the topic and came across http://www.sexwithoutp.../, which was in part created by Dr. Indman. And amazingly, Dr. Indman happened to be less than 15 minutes away from me in San Jose (even the receptionist was surprised that I was local -- people come from all over the US to see him, and I can see why).

This has been the first doctor who knew what my problem was and was devoted to solving it, even when I got frustrated and stopped coming for about a year. Yes, it took a couple years to finally find a cure for me (there is no real standard way to treat VVS), but he was set on finding me a solution that didn't involve surgery or treatments that would involve a lot of unpleasant side effects (no thank you, higher-chance-of-skin-cancer treatment). Even with non-VVS issues, he's extremely careful not to cause any unnecessary pain, even taking extra time that other doctors may not take.

He sometimes can be a little gruff, but it's usually with good reason, like the time I was lax on trying out a treatment because I was frustrated. I got lectured a bit, but I did deserve it. Otherwise, he's friendly and approachable.

The largest downside to seeing Dr. Indman is the fact he doesn't contract with any insurance companies, making him an out-of-network doctor for my health insurance and ergo, an order of magnitude more expensive. But I can tell you, as I'm completely cured, that the money I paid was absolutely worth it.

Even while my issue is a rather private issue, I hope that someone who is as frustrated as I once was will search "vulvar vestibulitis", land here, and be able to discover this amazing doctor. Not to mention, he's fantastic for any other weird pain disorder. Highly highly recommended.

Mmmm nothing like treating yourself after a hellish morning at the Redwood City DMV, eh?

I wanted to grab something a little more upscale than the Starbuck's near my work, and the awesome Yelp iPhone app directed me here. First off, why didn't I know about this place when I lived in Redwood City? Major oversight! Main Street Roasting Company is just off out of the "downtown"ish area with plenty of parking in the front and side (as well as a lovely outdoor patio). The inside is quaint, with a large counter, and I was greeted and helped with enthusiasm.

I LOVe the fact they have mini-breakfasts for weekdays; short stacks of pancakes and french toast; eggs, oatmeal... I was only going to stop by for coffee but ended up trying the short-stack of cornmeal buttermilk pancakes. DELICIOUS. And REAL maple syrup, none of that corn-syrupy stuff. I got the fruit on the side, and it was obviously prepared earlier and stuck in a fridge (some of the fruit was a little mushy, and a little frozen in bits), but it was still fairly tasty.

My cappuccino was a little disappointing; the espresso itself was strong and bitter, but the foam was disappointing; had large, sad bubbles, not smooth, velvety, happy foam that's the best. Next time I'd probably try the coffee or espresso straight.

Great place for a quick breakfast on the way to work!

Beware the website - if you see the website that says "DELIVERY", but Yelp saying it doesn't, don't think as I did that "Oh, their website must be correct!" - lies, all lies.

The person who picked up the phone was bitchy (I could hear someone mocking my "Do we do delivery?" question in the background too, even though his hand over the phone (as he told his coworker, heard that too)), and hung up on me after they told me they only do corporate delivery. Fix your website, or at least be polite to me on the phone, sheesh.

Now taking the place of my favorite restaurant ever...

Seriously, you need to have fun in life. So why not hit up a restaurant where the servers/patrons/entertainers dance on the stage; where the waitstaff look to be enjoying their job and making sure you enjoy your meal, AND sit outside in a grove of redwood trees under the stars?

When I arrived, there was a guy doing silly magic tricks on stage. Next thing I know, some guy gets up with a flashlight and starts dancing to Dr. Roboto. Then some people jump up and start tap dancing. THEN someone apparently had their birthday that night and had to go up to get paddled in front of the whole restaurant. See what I mean?

The food was great as well. The bread was soft and came with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and garlic. I ordered a mimosa, but they let me know that they were out of orange juice and got a champagne cocktail instead. As for my dinner, I wish I could remember the name of the dish, but it was essentially seared, filled pork chops with a baked potato (with sour cream and green onions) and vegetables on the side. Unfortunately wasn't able to get dessert, but the zabaglione at another table looked amazing; a dessert for two, they had two glasses with chocolate, I believe, and the server ran over with a pan of hot custardy liquid and poured it into their glasses right at the table. Fantastic presentation. I did get a cappuccino, which was extremely strong, but the foam wasn't perfect - but good enough.

Lastly, Ciao Bella is after 30 minutes of an amazing drive into the mountains on highway 9 - great way to relax by driving through the mountains, and grab a great and memorable dinner after.

Continuing the trend of my beer education in Seattle, I went here for dinner and the unofficial after party for the SEOmoz conference down the street.

It's underground, first off, so it's amazingly easy to forget what time it is down there. Luckily the place is rather tastefully decorated, and the bar spans the majority of the side of the restaurant with the famed 160 pulls for the beers on tap.

I had the dungeness crab mac and cheese, super unhealthy but chosen before I knew about the many many beers I would be having that night. It was creamy with large chunks of crab, but needed a lot of salt as it was rather bland, and I wish the cheese was more flavorful or strong.

The beers... I now have a new favorite, La Chouffe, and tried several other excellent beers located on their "Tap House Honor Society" menu. I probably had six or so beers that night, which is why the evening gets fuzzy towards the end. :D

The backroom has nice pool tables and a lot of seating to hang out. Good place to visit and have a couple pints; not really recommending the food.

I managed to go an entire day in Seattle without ingesting any coffee (which was rather horrific, considering my obsession with it), so when the second day rolled around, I specifically woke up an hour earlier than I had to to find the best espresso around.

Thankfully, Yelp exists to guide me in a strange city, so I headed to Monorail as it was only about two blocks from my hotel. Like others have mentioned, it's basically a hole-in-the-wall; small counter, one person, one espresso machine, and a mini list of products. Cash only as well, don't forget.

I grabbed a latté for myself (the board didn't contain my usual drink, a cappuccino, which was as well since a latté is a better on-the-go drink suited for the small cart catering to business folks on the go. The latté had some of the best foam I've ever seen on a drink, and the espresso (pulled "ristretto" style (short) as announced on the board) was flavorful and strong. I also grabbed a soy mocha for my friend, who announced it was an excellent mocha that wasn't overly sweet.

Best part, the two drinks were extremely fast; as it's only one person working, she was extremely fast about getting the two drinks for me while managing the line. Normally I would think this would be a sign of quantity over quality, but as the latte was so excellent, they really know what they're doing.

My friend and I were originally going to take Skyline and the backroads to hit up breakfast in Pescadero, but when Mother Nature decided to throw a bunch of cold fog up on the mountains (not very fun on a motorcycle), our plans changed and we ended up cruising to Woodside.

I've had breakfast in Woodside several times, and when confronted with the "this breakfast place or that breakfast place?" conundrum, every time I've chosen the Cafe because of the outside patio. Luckily, I was with someone who had heard of Buck's before, so I decided to try something new.

And WOW. The outside of the restaurant does not give away how kitschy it is inside. Anyone who is easily distractible like me will be overwhelmed with things to look at and completely forget to have a conversation ("You know, there was this one time--holy crap there is alligator carpet! I mean, that time--oh my goodness, look at the astronaut with the martini glass!" - so on and so forth). They even have a Shaq's sneaker on the wall, bought for $20,000 at auction and donated to the restaurant. Really. Kids can get a scavenger hunt paper, and run around trying to see how many things they can find (like the giant print of San Francisco in jello). But I'm a dork and grabbed it for myself with a couple crayons. Yay!

As for the food, I was mildly impressed. We ordered a coffee cake to share, which we ended up maaaybe eating 1/8th of it because it was about five inches square and three inches high. I also forgot to ask whether it came with nuts, and it actually contained my nemesis, the evil horror that are walnuts.

I ordered the Woodsider, an omelette that comes with avocado, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, and something else. The avocado was severely lacking--a couple slices arranged on top--but the rest of the omelette was pretty good. Not sure I would have artichoke hearts again in an omelette; the canned stuff is rather greasy and marred the taste. I got fruit instead of home fries, but it was rather un-artfully cubed pieces in a bowl... but every piece of fruit was fresh and in-season, not like the hard, unripe fruit that some breakfast places sell.

Great place at the middle of a road trip through the mountains, and probably pre- or post-hike in the mountains. The experience here is more fun, and I'll likely frequent Buck's more than the Cafe from now on.

When I arrived accidentally 20 minutes early to a friends place, I decided to drive around and see if there were any quick places to grab a bite. I had seen other El Grullense branded places around town before, and never had a chance to try them out, so I popped in.

Smallish menu, but a quesadilla seemed like it would be quick and easy. It only cost me a little over five bucks and a few minutes waiting, and I got this BEHEMOTH chicken quesadilla, covered in salsa, sour cream, lettuce, and a big tomato slice. Astonishingly, the chicken was super moist and tasty. I really was expecting something of lesser quality, but the quesadilla turned out fairly awesome.

Seems like a good, fast place for lunch -- too bad I'm not closer.

Badass climb, and with an amazing, rewarding view from the top.

First off, do NOT underestimate the climb. I know a lot of people do Half Dome every year, and yes, there are idiots who manage to complete it in flipflops with one bottle of water... just because others are insane, doesn't mean you should be as well.

1) Climb at night - you'll avoid the tourist crowds and really experience a wonderful, quiet Yosemite (especially the waterfalls by moonlight). Don't do what we did and sleep at a campground the night before - get a hotel, so you won't be dependent on quiet (and the inevitable lack-of-quiet) of a campground in the evening.

2) Bring a lot of water/food/wear proper clothing. It'll be cold at night, as well as cold on top of the Dome with the wind. I wore shorts and a tanktop with a fleece for when it was cold. I also had a 1.5 liter camelbak with electrolytes with granola bars, trail mix, and goo. The hike takes a TON of energy - we literally hiked from 12:30am to 7:15am (the top), to 2:30pm (back at the trailhead). It's definitely not a wussy day hike.

3) Don't be afraid to use a harness for the cables. Dude, people die here - yes, not very often, but often enough. The rock is worn smooth by all the people climbing, so you're essentially using just arm strength and your grip to climb up the cables. And if your grip fails... down you go. Having a harness greatly improved my security during the climb up, especially since I slipped a lot. And ignore the idiots climbing on the outside of the cables - be smart and climb in-between them.

4) Don't underestimate the climb down. Climbing up hurts a lot, but blisters and a lot of pain happen AFTER you summit. Reaching the summit is only half the journey. About halfway down, I highly recommend stopping at the stream to take off your shoes, cool your feet, and apply moleskine. And DON'T forget moleskine.

5) Ignore the idiots who modify the "do-not-swim" signs, and then proceed to let their kids play at the lake at the top of a waterfall. Sigh.

6) If you hike at night, don't mind the tourists on the way up, and want to see the waterfalls in the day, take the Mist Trail back as well. But if your knees are killing you and the prospect of going down another thousand stairs seems like a bad idea... take the easier, longer, Muir Trail.

Highly recommended (as long as you're smart about it!).