Brad P.'s Profile

What a wonderful surprise to find a specialty beer cafe inside Whole Foods. I was there during the day, and it's more like a cafe than a bar.*

A great way to spend an afternoon, sampling beer from 7 local New York beers on tap, or from the 100+ global and craft beers of all different types.

I asked the friendly server for suggestions and was steered right to the reliably awesome Hop Stoopid (shout out to Petaluma, yo).

I asked how many other "On Tap"s there were, and she proudly told me: "One".  I asked how long they'd been open... just 2 weeks.

I think this concept could go big, and I give Whole Foods props for giving it a try.

*Minus 1 star for no free WiFi.

During the past 5 years living in our house, we never got our carpets cleaned.  God knows how long it was before we moved in.  So, with new renters on their way, we knew we were way overdue to get our brown (err, beige) carpets deep cleaned.

I called around and got two highly regarded owner-operated carpet cleaning businesses to come by and provide a quote on cleaning carpets, our sofa and some area rugs, and went with Above the Rest's quote.

Shawn not only demonstrated deep knowledge, but also great enthusiasm and hunger to win my business with a competitive price. In fact, two days later, Shawn called me to alert me to a 20% off promo he was running, which saved me more money, which I appreciated.

As owner-operator, Shawn is very hands on with his work, and takes great pride to deliver the highest customer satisfaction you can imagine.  His work speaks for itself, and his approach (including following up 3 days later to make sure I was completely happy) ensured that I would be a delighted customer - or he'd deal with it.

Prompt, professional, and price competitive, Shawn is mean with a steam cleaner.  And, my carpets are cleaner than they've ever been.

In the market to get my sticks re-gripped before shipping them off to sweaty Southeast Asia, I came across Peninsula Golf when perusing Yelp to find an alternative to the soul-less corporate alternatives.

I took my irons and my favorite driver (all of which had completely worn out cable grips) and told Paul I was looking for the tackiest new grips I could get.  Tacky like sticky, not tacky like naked-lady tees.

Paul cheerfully showed me exactly what I wanted and told me he could turn them around in a few days.  Since I'm the sort of guy who believes in asking for deals (hey, you don't get if you don't ask), I said something to Paul along the lines of "what can you do for me on price?".  His response?  I don't charge a lot for re-grips - just $5 per club.  Man, you can't even get a hot dog at the turn for 5 bucks anymore.  What a deal.

Three days later, I came by his shop, grabbed my tacky clubs, and was out of there in less than 3 minutes.

When I'm back in town, and finally in the market to actually get fitted for a set of irons, I know exactly where I'll be heading.

Getting my house ready for renters meant getting a lot of deferred maintenance done -- things like making sure the chimney's been swept from a few years of wood burning in the fireplace.  I once experienced a chimney fire, so I know that this is serious business.

I called Keith based his Yelp reviews, and already knew what to expect with respect to price.  He was able to come on the same day, and was extremely pleasant and comfortable.

Keith did a great job.  He saw that  we actually had two separate flues and took care to service both - without any additional charge. I mentioned that we needed the dryer vent cleaned out - so he took a look at it, was honest that it was a simple clean-out, and took care of that. Finally, when he was on my highest roof, I made a comment mentioning that I wished that his arms were longer so he could clear out my gutter downspout which was completely blocked.  Next thing I knew, that was done. No charge.

Keith takes pride in his work, and is a pro.  I love to support guys like Keith who own and operate their own businesses, and build their business exclusively on referral.

Looks like I've got a new chimney-gutter-dryer-vent-guy.

I finally made it.

From Yelp's earliest moments, some of the most boisterous food reviews from these parts have come from the kindred neices and nephews of Uncle Frank.  So, to come here today, for the very first time is equally satisfiying as it is humiliating for knowing that I am *that* out of the loop.

Like the default order of lumpia at a philipino restaurant, I tend to order the briskit when I step into a bbq place for the first time (although Texans I've found may steer me toward the beef ribs - get it?).

Despite having come of age during college in a land where vinegar and pig flesh equate to the word barbeque, I've admittedly evolved into quite the briskit rut. (and, hook me up with a toothpick, while you're at it)

Like meat? Come see Uncle Frank.

Awesome 3 way vibe (eating, bar, pool hall) that makes anyone feel at home.

Minus points for no iced tea.  Huh?  Also, what is up with faux, synthetic, squishy, roll it up as a ball *WHEAT* bread with the meat?  What, did Wonder go out of business. Hello?

When you decide to take a 12 month haitus from yelping, and you find yourself ready to resume, you just might find that it's harder than you think to find the right re-entry point for your 'rebound' review.

Alas, my great pride in being an unincorpated neighbor yet unabashed fan of 'the city' (The City of Redwood City, that is), inclines me to contribute to the delightful renaissance happening in the revitalized downtown.

So, I figure I may as well get back off the schnide with a review of the place I ate last night.

With the kiddos being well looked after by the grand parental units, Mrs. Brad P. and I spontaneously went urban and picked Yokohama for date night (Barack's got nothing on me).

It being a warm and solstice-influenced evening, we sat on the perimeter of the dining area, just inside of the sidewalk al fresco patrons. Inside of us, the vacant decor, while unremarkable, came across as, well, unremarkable.

The next impression, the menu, was a glorified take-out 3-fold paper menu. I found myself instinctively drifting toward the safest option of ordering the sushi combo (ala ordering a chicken burrito at a new tacqueria, or pad thai at a new thai place, or bun at vietnamese, ok, you get the idea).

The Mrs. (who, only finally recently has come around to raw fruits of the sea) knowingly disapproved and sent me back to revisit the menu.  Our resulting order:

- Edemame (hello, cracked sea salt!)
- Pork Potstickers (crispy, hot, succulent)
- Spicy Tuna roll (savory, if safe)
- Dragon roll (insane, delicious, delectible, complex)
- Tuna and scallion roll (refreshing although of all dishes we wished we would had dropped this for something more adventurous)
- Large Sapporo (duh)

The Dragon roll was truly ridiculous (deep fried shrimp inside roll wrapped with avocado, unagi, drizzled with roe and house-made shaved dried smoked fish)

How do I know the thing about the dried fish? I asked the proprietor about "what was that shredded goodness on top of the dragon roll" and she told me and suggested I ask for extra next time.  Noted!

As a nice topper offer, they brought refreshing chilled cubes of cantelope and watermelon with some powdered sugar.

Maybe it was not expecting a lot, but wow, I walked away very satisfied, encouraged and pleased with dining out in the city.

Cliff notes:  Wife's reviw (admittedly, not a Japanese food officianado, yet an eager eater with good taste): "I like the food here more thank Kaygetsu."  Noted!

Setting: Saturday night in Samuel P. Taylor, sites 31-35.  Eleven kids 7-and-under safely tucked into their tents. Thirteen grownups, huddling around the fire-pit as the mercury dipped below 50 degrees, kicking this 40th birthday party into higher gear with every log thrown onto the blazing coals.

10:26 PM.  And lo, the 5 liter (yes, I said liter) "keg" was kicked. And there was much rejoicing! For we still "had it".

PHOTO: http://static.px.yelp....

10:26 PM. Enter Ranger Rick (I kid you not, Rick was the name on his uniform), who sauntered his way into our campsite wielding his sturdy flashlight and the power vested upon him by the State of California, and who proceeded to stand and deliver an Academy Award winning speech pleading the case of the campers within earshot who were likely to think our humor was somewhat less hysterical than perhaps we did. If we had been more poised (and less frozen) I think we may have given him a standing O.

PHOTO: http://static.px.yelp....

These campsites are gorgeous, set at the base of an ancient grove of redwood trees, each site with its own fire-pit, access to running water, and easy stroll to clean and pleasant restroom facilities, garbage dumpsters and the like.

With access to a network of great trails along including an easy stroll meandering alongside the adjoining creek, this site is outstanding for a place to get away from the hustle and bustle of urban life - provided you are not so unfortunate as to be situated within earshot of these boisterous birthday revelers.  

The sites are relatively close to each other, so consider putting "earplugs" on the camping list right before "eggs" and right after "early morning blend" on your alphabetized camping checklist if you value sleep.

Minus one star for the copious amounts of poison oak in the brush, and 85 pound raccoons who fearlessly help themselves to cleaning up unattended-to dinner plates immediately upon sundown.

Plus one star for the eloquence and class of Ranger Rick.

The Fleet Center is a cool interactive science museum with a lot of hands-on exhibits to entertain and educate people from 3 to 93.  We had fun interacting with the audio and visual exhibits, and the kids (predictably) were more interested in the hokey play structure in the "kids zone."

The IMAX theater is also pretty cool, as the screen is huge (duh) and spherical.  It's like watching a movie from the inside of the world's largest ping-pong ball.  We saw a 50 minute film on dolphins, and it was pretty spectacular.  One IMAX movie a day is included on those San Diego Go Cards that are worth checking out for tourists like us.

From here, lots of easy access to other cool things to do in Balboa Park, so make a day of it.

Owned and operated by the San Diego Zoo the Wild Animal Park is located about 45 minutes outside San Diego.  Or is it?  As you approach, it says "San Diego City Limits" just before you arrive.  Weird.

Since we had our San Diego Go Cards, we were eligible for the package that included park admission and a narrated tour on the trolly bus that they call a "safari".  The tour was actually quite cool, and lasts about 20 minutes going around their fabricated African savannah chock full of herbivores who are able to peacefully co-exist (think giraffes, elephants, antelope, rhinos, zebras, and so on).

I really couldn't imagine coming here and not going on that tour at the least.  There are any number of ways to spend lots more money including a private jeep safari or riding up on the "hot air" balloon platform.  

Everything's pretty expensive, but the good news is that the money goes to species preservation, and they really do a great job advocating for the animals, which is cool to be able to support.

It can get hot out here (it's inland).  Hey, it's supposed to be Africa, so of course it's hot!

In the need for household basics for our vacation apartment, we fired up our GPS and put in Trader Joes and found our way here.

Like about every other TJs I've been to in my life, the parking lot is a mess.  This one has the signature tiny spaces, and it's part of a bigger mall, so it's cut-throat to park.

Compared to TJs in Northern California, the selection here seemed slightly different on the fresh and prepared foods, and maybe a bit better.  I could be making that up, as we were on vacation so everything seems better.