Jenny "Misojenny" C.'s Profile

There is something incredibly breathtaking and satisfying when a restaurant, through sheer culinary facility, breaks all expectations and preconceptions surrounding simple dishes like roasted chicken. Bouchon is precisely this class of restaurant. For most of my life, I have had a love/hate relationship with roasted chicken. Almost as much as I adore its crisp, browned skin and succulent dark meat, I detest its dry white meat. But my recent experiences at Bouchon have proven that roasted chicken (Poulet Roti) can have perfectly moist, tender white and dark meat. I savored every bit of the chicken breast. For however long it took me to finish the dish, I was in pure bliss.

If you're not already a fan of pork (and I don't mean just bacon), then Bouchon's Epaule de Porc will surely convert you. Don't let appearances deceive you, because the apparent heartiness of the pork belies its indescribable tenderness and juiciness. Again, the chefs at Bouchon have elevated a dish as pedestrian as braised pork shoulder to new heights.

As you would expect, the service is excellent. The bartender/server was pleasant, knowledgeable, and provided great recommendations. In fact, it was he who recommended I order the Epaule de Porc as I was deciding between it and the Steak Frites.

Bouchon is Thomas Keller's take on the classic French bistro. True to the bistro style, you find simple dishes like roasted chicken, braised pork shoulder, roasted leg of lamb, and pan-seared steak. Where Bouchon truly shines is in taking these humble dishes and preparing them with such finesse that you begin wondering how you've managed to settle for anything less. Therefore, be warned. Once you've consumed the fruit of the forbidden tree that is Bouchon, consider your gastronomic ignorance gone forever.

Wanting to take a break from Heat Shabu Baru, we decided to try Shabu Japanese Fondue, the only other shabu shabu spot we could find in Sacramento. The first thing we noticed about this place was its open rectangular space, hardwood floors, floor to ceiling windows,  and reception desk, which seemed far more appropriate for a small office than for a restaurant. Interesting to note is that while pictures on their website show bar seating, I did not see this when I came a few months ago.

Though the beef is described as being American Kobe, it neither looked nor tasted like it. The phrases smooth and melt-in-your-mouth, which I usually associate with Kobe beef, did not come to mind. Do not be fooled by the website. The meat did not have nearly as much marbling as the ones shown there. Just look at the user-uploaded pictures on Yelp for comparison. The broth was also rather bland. There's not much to say about the sides, other than that they're your standard napa cabbage, udon, enoki mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, and carrots.

There's no real compelling reason to come back. The food is about the same as what you can prepare at home if you have the equipment and visit a Japanese supermarket for the ingredients. I know not everyone can or will do that, but the point is that there's far better places to visit to satisfy your craving for shabu shabu in Sacramento and especially in the Bay Area.

As a self-described French small plate restaurant, patrons are encouraged to share food family-style. This works out well because once you see the menu, you will want to sample everything, and sharing allows you to do just that while still getting a satisfying portion of everything. Some of our favorite dishes are the Dungeness Crab Salad, Roasted Rack of Lamb, Truffle Risotto, and the Maple Leaf Farm Duck Breast. The one exception my boyfriend and I make to the rule is with the Hudson Valley Grade A Foie Gras, which is simply too delicious not to hog. Instead, we always order individual servings of the foie gras.  

The atmosphere is excellent. I love dining in the back patio area, which is hermetically sealed by an expansive canvas canopy and kept toasty with numerous patio heaters. The front offers a slightly more intimate environment. Overall, though, the environment is on the casual side, for French dining anyway.

Make reservations ahead of time and to allow time for parking since it is smack in the middle of the shops along Chestnut.

For those who aren't familiar with Little Sheep Mongolian Hot Pot, it has made quite a name for itself in China, so I was ecstatic to learn that they had finally made their way here. Even after having been open for such a long time, the wait during dinner time can be up to an hour long. But I will gladly wait it out for Little Sheep. The broth is delicious. Even Michelin Starred restaurants use meats from Snake River Farms, so you can be assured that you are feasting on some of the best of the best meat available anywhere. Aside from the usual beef and lamb, I urge you to try some of their housemade meat balls. They're fantastic. While you're waiting for your food to cook, order yourself the Mongolian Beef Pie. For dessert, try the Sweet Corn Pancake.  

The only downsides are the wait and the parking, neither of which you can do much about. The wait has usually been 40-60 mins, so plan accordingly.

Continuing my search for Sacramento's Next Top Froyo, I decided to check out Yogurt Garden. I usually like to sample all of the yogurt flavors before I make my final selection, but for the first time, I couldn't decide on what yogurt to choose. Even though Yogurt Garden offered a variety different flavors (8, I believe), none of them excited my taste buds. Most of the flavors were more on the sweet side than on the tart side, which I much prefer. Even the original "European Tart" lacked the vital tartness and smooth consistency of what I consider to be good yogurt. In the end, I went with strawberry yogurt, and added my usual selection of strawberry, mango, and mochi toppings. Overall, this place was disappointing, and I would rather make the extra effort to visit Pinkberry.

I come here more for the mochi than the yogurt. You simply can't beat the freshness and flavors of the mochi here. I'm especially fond of the green tea mochi. The yogurts, on the other hand, are decent, but don't stand out. Essentially, without the mochi, this place would probably fall in line with all the other Pinkberry aspirants out there.

However, while other yogurt places usually have brightly light interiors to welcome you in and make you want to stay a while, the interior here was dark, cramped, and uninviting. Especially because nobody else was inside, my boyfriend and I both felt the urge to just finish our yogurt and leave as soon as possible.

Come hungry, but not too hungry, because you will probably be waiting for a while for your table. Even at 8, my predicted wait time was 45 mins to an hour. Fortunately, there was open seating at the bar and my boyfriend and I were able to snag two seats halfway through our wait. As it turned out, some of the guests that came in around the same time as us ended up waiting well over an hour for their tables. Many people eventually decided to order for take-out, which took only a fraction of the wait time to have ready. Consider this option if you're starving or just hate waiting.

We ordered the Chicken and Waffles with the 1 half chicken/ 2 waffles option (there are also a dizzying number of other options such as 10 wings/1 waffle) and the 2 entree combo with Tri-Trip Steak and Pork Ribs, with side orders of Sweet and Spicy Corn, Mac & Cheese, and Cornbread. The Chicken and Waffles was overall delicious. The dry rub was fantastic and the pieces were deep fried to perfection. My only complaint would be the chicken breast, which was a little dry. Their waffles, with their crisp outside and light and airy inside, were certainly superior to that of your average waffle. The 2 entree combo was a bit of a mixed bag. The Mac & Cheese and Sweet and Spicy Corn was as delicious as other Yelpers have made it out to be. The barbecue sauce had the perfect balance of spiciness, smokiness, and sweetness. However, the Tri-Tip Steak was somewhat tough and the Pork Ribs did not have the fall-off-the-bone tenderness that I expected from such a reputable Soul Food establishment.

True to the ideals of Southern hospitality, the service was excellent from beginning to end. Despite my mediocre experience, the positive aspects of the dinner (Chicken and Waffles, Sweet and Spicy Corn, Mac & Cheese, service) more than made up for the disappointing Tri-Tip Steak and Pork Ribs. Part of me wants to believe that my mediocre experience was the result of having to keep up with the continuous onslaught of hungry guests. I can only imagine the pressure the line cooks must have faced.

My dinner was a 3-3.5 star experience, a bit lower than I had expected based on Yelp reviews. However, something about this place charms me and I can't help but want to come back for more.

Leave it to Oz to go the whole nine yards. The entrance was like a red carpet event, complete with welcoming greeters, a photo shoot, and of course, a brilliant red carpet. That night, the main dining area was transformed into a buffet-style dining experience. Given the crowd of people just waiting outside to get in, I expected to have to fight tooth and nail to get just a few morsels of food. Instead, the experience was almost straight out of Harry Potter, with the food trays being filled to the brim with hot, delicious bulgogi, kimchi, sweet and spicy chicken wings, and japchae just as soon as they became empty. However, I suspect that this was more the work of the amazing staff at Oz than wizardry. I eventually found my way to the outdoor patio. Underneath a massive white tent were a dozen barbecue grills/tables and a merry-making army of carnivorous Yelpers. The tent area offered precisely the same experience as the normal all-you-can-eat grill and eat dinner. I was given the same unlimited helpings of banchan (side dishes) and assortment of delicious, marinated meats. The only thing missing was a nice cold beer to go with my delicious meal. Oh wait, I did have a beer with me, curtesy of Yelp and Oz! Even though I'm still inexperienced when it comes to Yelp events, I think it will be hard to surpass this one.

Freshly baked bread is some of life's simple pleasures and La Baguette is a true artisan of French breading making. While La Baguette could do very well just selling their heavenly bread, they also offer outstanding Parisian-style sandwiches. One of my favorites here is the Pastrami Parisian, which features their freshly baked baguette with a thin layer of turkey pastrami and swiss cheese. You won't find special sandwich sauce nor difficult-to-pronounce ingredients. Just high-quality meat, cheese, and bread. Simple, yet delicious.

For me, this was the perfect lunch spot for my afternoon at the Stanford Shopping Center. All of the tables are outdoor, but under the cover of a tinted glass ceiling, so I was able to enjoy a satisfying lunch and still have my dog with me (who had a great time picking up bread crumbs off the ground). This seems to be a popular place, so expect a short wait to buy lunch and to find a table.

While their bread and sandwiches are divine, I found their macaroons to be a bit disappointing. I was excited to try the Guava macaroon but the flavor was lacking in depth. During future visits, I will be sticking with what La Baguette does best, make artisan bread and sandwiches.

Recommendations:

Baguette
Pastrami Parisian
Ham and Swiss Parisian

What drew my boyfriend and I to La Bedaine were the rave reviews for the dungeness crab sandwich. Unfortunately, it was unavailable on account of crab being out of season. Following the recommendations of the chef, we instead ordered the chicken tenders and roasted pork sandwiches. Admittedly, I half expected to bite into dry, coarse chicken breast. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself biting into moist, tender chicken breast. The radish, cucumber, spring mix, and preserved lemon zest lent the sandwich a refreshing quality. This was hands down the best chicken sandwich I've ever had. The roast pork sandwich was equally satisfying. Unlike the chicken sandwich, the roast pork is served warm on a toasted Acme roll. The pork was tender and succulent. The cornichons worked well to offset the heaviness of the pork.  The bread to meat/condiments ratio was perfect.

Service was fast, though to be fair, we were the only ones there at the time. The chef was friendly and helpful. I don't visit Berkeley often, but the next time I do, Le Bedaine will certainly be on my list of places to visit. I'm particularly looking forward to finally trying the dungeness crab sandwich.