Raina S.'s Profile

I love barbecue, and it's a real pleasure to have a good BBQ place so close to home. It's so funny to see the bright orange railroad car on the side of Hwy 1, smoking away, waiting for customers. They never have to wait long.

On my last visit, the place had only been open about 5 minutes, but there was a line of at least 20 people ahead of us. If you arrive starving, you may not be able to handle the wait.

The big buy behind the counter greets everyone like they are the first customer of the day. I have loved almost everything I have tried here, especially the chicken, brisket (though some servings can be too fatty), beans & rice, mac-n-cheese, and potato salad. The eggplant is the only thing I haven't been crazy about. I guess it's my own fault for trying to get too healthy at a BBQ place.

Most customers take their food to go. There are a couple of outdoor tables, but Pacifica doesn't exactly have the best climate for outdoor eating. A good alternative is to take your food down the road to Linda Mar beach. If it's cold, you can sit in the car, watch the waves, and enjoy your meal.

The house at 538 Main Street started as a dentist's office in 1906, and today is home to Dr. Moody and his staff.  The people here are wonderful.  They sponsor several local kids' sports teams, which I really appreciate.

It is my selfish hope that Dr. Moody never retires, because I can't imagine finding a better dentist.  I have had some really bad ones!

Great store!  This truly is a "Variety Store" -- these guys have everything.

My daughter got one of those hand buzzer/zapper gag toys.  It broke after about 5 minutes, but what can you expect from a cheap-ass toy?  Don't tell her, but I was glad the thing broke.

Tuff Beanz has a great logo consisting of a wired-out coffee bean grimacing and flexing his biceps.  I wish I had taken a picture of it when I was there.

The espresso drinks are very good, and the price can't be beat.  I had a chocolate craving (okay, that's nothing new) and ordered a mocha with Mexican chocolate.  It was very good and not too sweet.

The guy behind the counter was really nice. He was in no rush to make my coffee, but I really wasn't in a rush, either. Tuff Beanz looks like a nice, cozy place to hang out.  Unfortunately, I was taking my coffee to go.

El Mariachi has the most bountiful salsa bar I have ever seen at a taqueria, but my overall experience here only merits 2 stars.

I tried a carne asada burrito. The meat tasted oddly gamy and there was too much sour cream and too little of everything else. Drowning my food in the yummy salsas did not help. My hubby got a couple of tacos that looked extremely greasy. I think he liked them, though. My daughter got a bean & cheese burrito. I tasted the beans and they were very bland.

With so many great dining options in Davis, I'll try another spot next time.

http://SFgate.com recently posted an article inviting readers to discuss their favorite stops along the road from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe. Ikeda's was mentioned several times, so I decided to check them out. I have been to Ikeda's in Davis and really loved both the produce choices and prices there.

Most raves about Ikeda's centered on their famous pies. We decided to buy two. The crust of our cherry pie tasted old and stale (and a little overcooked). I ended up tossing it out after the first try. Our second pie was a razzleberry cobbler, which was better, but not great. At $17.95 each, I won't be trying another one.

While I can't recommend Ikeda's for the pies, they have lots of other great stuff in the market. You can sample many of their salsas, sauces and dips. The mango salsa was really tasty. Ikeda's also has a surprisingly good wine and beer selection. Prices on produce were very good. They were selling fresh-picked Fuji apples in 5 lb bags for less than 2 bucks!

I agree with Zakk D's statement (below) that Crystal Bay is the nicest casino on the North Shore -- at Stateline, at least.  Still, this is not a very high hurdle to overcome.  The other casinos are so nasty, this one wins easily.  And it's not even any good!

Two out of four video poker games we tried were malfunctioning.  The cocktails were heavily watered down.  The two open blackjack tables were full, so we were SOL there.  There was no one around to get another table going.  Can you believe it?  Here I am in a casino, and no one is interested in opening up another table so I can be parted with my  hard-earned money!  Something is very wrong here.

Wow, this place was so gross I didn't even drop a quarter here. My hubby and I came in for a bit of blackjack, but the state of the Biltmore casino was so sad, we quickly left. I felt embarrassed for the place, like I couldn't share its shame. No eye contact, just GET OUT.

Later that day, I learned that the English Beat were playing here on the night of my visit. I'm so sad I missed them. However, I'm glad to see in Allie A's review that the show did go on. I had speculated that the lads in the band might become suicidal when they discovered the hideous dump where they had been booked for a show.

This place is like a morgue.  The photos of the cool, fun things that went on during Cal-Neva's heyday only serves to show how far this place has fallen.

From the parking lot, it's a long walk into the entrance of the hotel/casino.  You end up passing by empty building space, sad-looking offices with ancient furniture, and boarded-up doors.  I could tell I wouldn't be winning big at Cal-Neva.  Clearly, they are barely staying afloat.  Inside, I saw a video poker game that looked as old as a Pong game from the 70s.  Same greenish glow, too.  On the bright side, the deer antler chandeliers add a bit of tacky charm.

Typical pub grub:  wings, pizza, burgers, sandwiches.  We saw "cheesy poofs" on the menu and had to try them out.  Turns out they are little deep fried triangles of mac-n-cheese.  How do they get them into the triangle shapes?  We couldn't figure that one out.  They were okay, but I wouldn't order them again.

This is a great place to watch sports.  They had several screens tuned in to different sporting events.  Lots of beers on tap and by the bottle.  There is also a video arcade for kids big and small.

Watch out for the booths.  They can seat up to 8 people, but they are uncomfortable as hell.  It's like sitting on those pallets you burn at beach bonfires.