Tsunami Sushi Bar - San Francisco

Tsunami - Mission Bay's decorative collection of sake bottles Tsunami's Sushi - Art on a plate JoJo the Mixologist at Tsunami Sushi Whether you are looking for a hip stylish date spot, or a dinner out with friends, Tsunami Sushi...

Zucchini Carpaccio

This is quickest recipe I have ever made. It rally takes about 5 minutes.
I had a couple fresh Zucchini I had bought at the farmers market and decided to just slice them thinly with the mandolin. Don’t try this with a knife unless your knife skills are as good as a sushi chef.
Then get creative by placing the thin slice of zucchini on a plate, top with salt, pepper a beautiful virgin olive oil, shave some Reggiano and some fresh chopped parsley. Here you have it!

This dish is a perfect side to a grilled meat or just as an appetizer.



Bon Appétit !

Cesare's Salad: Tossing My Own.

I'm a sucker for a great Caesar salad. Call me old school, but there are few things that can beat it in my book. Garlicky, lemony, cheesy, and anchovy-y, if there is such a word. If there isn't, there should be. Sadly, a great restaurant Caesar salad has eluded me in this city of ours.

Truffle Report #5 – What’s that smell?

The truffle dinners are now in full swing and going very nicely, but I wanted to provide a brief wrap-up of this year's trip to Italy. Monti-in-Chianti, about 10 miles north of Siena, has been the center of my activities since I began traveling to Italy (over ten years ago) to get truffles, and Giorgio Sacchini and his family have been...

No Resolution in Dispute Over Where Cupkates Street-Food Vendor Can Sell

Cupkates mobile cupcake vendor Kate McEachern told SFoodie she's still waiting to hear from Berkeley city officials about her dispute over where she's legally allowed to sell. Last Friday,...

Sally’s After Dark: American Comfort Food at a Great Price

Sally’s After Dark 300 De Haro St. Ste. 332 415-626-6006 Saturday evening, Sally’s After Dark opens quietly in Potrero Hill. But for those of us who were lucky enough to get a sneak peek at the menu this past week, Sally’s After Dark won’t be a secret for long. A restaurant within another restaurant, Sally’s After Dark serves dinner [...]

Bottega

Mike and I took my sister and her husband to Napa for a weekend before they moved from the Bay Area to Hawaii. We decided we would dine at Bottega, Michael Chiarello’s newest creation. On the night we arrived he was actually in the house. While waiting for our table he walked through the bar [...]

Range Restaurant Review, San Francisco

Range is an American Restaurant located in the Mission district of San Francisco and is run by the husband and wife team of Phil and Cameron West. They opened in the summer of 2005 and received one Michelin star in 2009. Decor, Vibe – Modern industrial chic look with metal tables, open kitchen in the middle [...] Related posts:

1. One Market Restaurant Review, San Francisco
2. RN74 Restaurant Review, San Francisco
3. Mayfield Bakery and Cafe, Palo Alto

Cash Strapped Consumers Bring the Steakhouse Home.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Meat-loving consumers in the United States are eating out less, but they are not forgoing taste and quality as researchers have found that more restaurant-quality prime- and choice-grade steaks are being served on family dinner tables.

Beginning in 2008, cash-strapped consumers shifted to at-home dining. As a result, with restaurant business on the decline, meat companies are now shipping more of their restaurant fare to grocery stores and consumers are buying it, according to data presented on Thursday at the Worldwide Food Expo.

"Before, if you wanted a great steak you had to go to a restaurant. Now you can get it in the grocery store," Merrill Shugoll, president of Shugoll Research, told Reuters on the Expo sidelines.

Supermarket sales of all meat have improved this year, which had Shugoll optimistic for better sales ahead. This improvement has been attributed to lower prices and to supermarkets aggressively marketing meat.

Read More...

Vinegar Is Coming For Your Children!

An article in the San Francisco Chronicle says, "Eating just one tablespoon a day of some vinegars can raise a young child's lead level by more than 30 percent, modeling requested by the news service shows."

Which "some vinegars"? According to the article, red wine and balsamic vinegars. But not all of them. The article says, "Lead can vary widely from product to product and from batch to batch." I don't advocate feeding your children lead, of course. But this article sows so much confusion that it's hard to take it seriously.

First of all, where does the lead come from? The article suggests one possible source: higher lead content in the soil in Modena, the area famous for balsamic vinegar. But that wouldn't affect all red wine vinegars or even most commercial balsamic vinegars, which, at the cheap end of the scale, are wine vinegars trucked in from all over Italy and then "finished" in Modena (with caramel coloring and other tricks) so the producers can use the name. The author offers another clue: "Some toxicologists hypothesize that production and storage are the main sources of lead contamination rather than the soil." What parts of the production? What parts of the storage? The author doesn't say.

If the article had limited discussion to authentic balsamic vinegar, it could probably make a good case. That vinegar is produced by fermenting grape must and then letting the vinegar evaporate for 12 years or longer. You could imagine a slightly higher-than-normal lead concentration in the soil getting much stronger as the liquid reduces. You could probably make a similar case for high-end but unauthentic balsamic, which is often evaporated over a long time as well. But if you're talking authentic balsamic vinegar, which costs about $30 per fluid ounce, the number of people who could feed their children one tablespoon per day is probably limited to the upper end of the upper end of income brackets.

Let's recap. Some red wine vinegars from all over the world, balsamic vinegars, and "balsamic red wine vinegars" (a term for industrial balsamic vinegars?) have higher-than-they-should lead levels. The lead might come from the soil in Modena, which would not affect most of the red wine vinegar in the world. It might come from "production and storage." But the lead levels are higher than in white wine vinegar or fruit vinegars, which are produced the same way as red wine vinegar. It's all clear now, right?

The solution is clear, at least: Don't eat vinegar! Or, you know, assume that this article is so vague as to be unhelpful and eat as normal. Of course, my preferred solution is to just make your own.

Go Fish, St. Helena

Chef Cindy Pawlcyn is renowned for her Mustards Grill and Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen in Napa Valley. Chef Ken Tominaga is celebrated for his Hana Japanese Restaurant in Rohnert Park. Together, they're acclaimed for their jointly owned Go Fish in St. Helena,...

Chophouses falling out of favor

It seems that chophouses could be on the endangered list. Last week Chronicle Restaurant Critic Michael Bauer reported in his Between Meals blog that Acme Chop House at AT&T Park (24 Willie Mays Plaza) will close by Dec. 31. Now we hear that Joe DiMaggio's...

Aziza, San Francisco

In the heart of the Richmond district, Geary Boulevard transforms itself into an ethnically diverse urban-suburbia of 45º parking and wall-to-wall storefront displays. Among Russian shops, Korean BBQ joints and dim sum eateries you’ll find a discreet corner restaurant that attracts foodies from all over town. Now more than ever.



Since it opened its doors 8 years ago, Aziza has become a popular restaurant among foodies and the local press. But the recently awarded (fans would say, long overdue) Michelin star is likely to propel the restaurant’s fame nationwide.



Aziza’s main dining room may not be the hippest in town but it’s all-around welcoming. Designed with a simple yet thematically honest Moroccan flair, the atmosphere is colorful and warm. Arabesques adorn the floor and tabletops; Moorish arches frame cozy booths that can fit a romantic couple as well as a cozy party of six.



The restaurant also features two other more traditional dining rooms with tables set closely together. Service is attentive and efficient. Dishes are not described upon arrival but the wait staff will answer any queries.


The menu



Neighborhood and atmosphere aside, Aziza’s claim to fame is all about its food. Prepared by the talented Mourad Lahlou, the restaurant’s fare is an inventive and contemporary take on Moroccan and Mediterranean cuisine. Inventive yet never gratuitous. Lahlou’s creativity lies in putting together outstanding flavor combinations, perfect preparations and beautiful presentations.

The menu features 17 appetizers ($5 to $18) and 11 entrées ($18 to $28). Each dish is described only by listing its ingredients. A five-course tasting menu is also available ($62).


The meal

At first sight, Mourad Lahlou may look like a fashion model or a nicer version of the villain in Dan Brown’s latest novel. With tattooed arms and a shaved head, the Moroccan-born chef sees his body as a living journal of his life, according to a recent profile in the Chronicle. Self-taught and deeply influenced by his family, Lahlou is one of the most talented chefs in town. His food is at the same time sophisticated and highly approachable.



Sardines, sea lettuce, fennel, brioche. Delicate filets of fresh sardines with a nice acidity and the aroma of fennel make this dish very successful.



Hen egg, charmoula, crispy beans. In contrast to the sardines, this dish is hearty and layered with delicious Moroccan flavors.



Couscous, chicken, prawn, lamb sausage, vegetables. Each ingredient in this dish is perfectly cooked, from the surf-and-turf of proteins to the fluffy couscous. Together they create a very well-balanced dish full of lusty flavors.



Spanish mackerel, vadouvan, marble potatoes, leaves, octopus. Another very successful dish. The tasty fish is complemented by a velvety vadouvan emulsion and nicely balanced accompaniments.

Aziza’s pastry chef, Melissa Chou, has the difficult challenge of following Mourad Lahlou’s outstanding cuisine. And she does it brilliantly. Her desserts are delicious and artfully presented–it is no coincidence Chou’s started her studies in art school.



Yogurt, mousse napoleon, walnut nougatine, fig, blackberry. A delicate and rich dessert layered beautifully in complementing textures and flavors.



Hazelnut, dacquoise, pear, burnt honey ice cream. Deliciously complex and satisfying, a great way to finish a remarkable meal.


In short

Mourad Lahlou came to San Francisco over 20 years ago to get his masters in Economics. Opening a restaurant was a welcomed accident. An accident that gave us one of the city’s best-hidden restaurants and is giving Moroccan cuisine an inventive, modern flair. If you have never been, Aziza is definitely worth a drive across town–or around the world, depending on how you look at it.

Aziza is at 5800 Geary Blvd
Online reservations

Jackson's Nears in Sonoma

Up in Sonoma, the Bite Club is sitting on its hands to keep from fidgeting with excitement over the fact that Jackson's Bar and Oven is only one week away. "The ovens are on, and the final countdown has begun." [Bite Club/Press Democrat]

Read more posts by Adam Martin

Filed Under: openings, jackson's bar and oven, sonoma

EaterWire: Thoughts on the New Quince, Trying Top Chef Frozen Foods

[Photo: Jennifer Yin, 10/28/09]

THE MISSION—An epilogue to the Food For Thought fundraiser earlier this month, which saw 20+ Mission restaurants dedicate their proceeds on November 11 to benefit Mission Graduates: they raised over $35,000. [EaterWire]

JACKSON SQUARE—7x7's Sara Deseran shares one of the first real takes on the new Quince, and it's a good one: "When the food started to arrive, it was, in true Tusk style, the work of a perfectionist. It’s not bright, like the food you’ll find at another breed of Michelin-starred restaurant ... Tusk’s fine-dining take on Italian cooking is more of a sable coat: rich, luxurious and classic." More here. [7x7]

REALITY TV— Reader Brian Lerch reveals the new NBC/Magical Elves show won't be the only food show next year to be called "United Plates of America." He's been producing a show of the same name for the last year: "The show premise centers around celebrating cultural and culinary diversity in America. Each episode co-hosts Chad Kessler and Tati Amare are introduced to an ethnically diverse relationship through a viewer video submission or a live skype conversation. The viewers have an upcoming event in which they want to celebrate the uniting of their own distinct cultures in one dish that fuses both of their cuisines together- thus uniting their plates!" That sounds just as good as a glossy cutthroat reality competition. [Eater NY]

TOP CHEFFAGE— In a piece in Time, writer Joel Stein taste tests the Top Chef line of Schwan frozen dinners and realizes they aren't half bad. He also reveals that Top Chef alums are not paid for their efforts. [Time]