Morrocco's (San Jose)

http://www.moroccosrestaurant.com/

Well, Alicia and I ordered a groupon for this restaurant a while ago and it was time to cash it in and check the place out. Not surprisingly Morocco's restaurant serves Moroccan food. We made a reservation for 6:30pm today and arrived a few minutes early. It took a five to 10 minutes for us to get seated. I mean literally no one came to the front until five to ten minutes had elapsed. Not a good start but I could tell by only one server hustling around on the tables they were short staff for the shift. We were seated in the very colorful and small dining room (see picture) at a table for two. They had a lot of interesting items on the menu but as we were two people we had to limit our selections to three things.
For our appetizer we ordered Briwatts, which are phyllo-dough turnovers. We got the sampler which contained a vegetarian, a crab, and a chicken version. All three were very different and very good. They were fried and spiced very well. I just wish there were more of them, they were a little small. I washed this down with a Morrocan lager called "Casablanca". It was a good beer that reminded of the beer I had in North Cyprus, light and refreshing (good for those hot climates I guess). Alicia had a Chilean Pinot Noir which she described as "spicy" and enjoyed it very much. We shared to main dishes, one a Tagine dish and the other a couscous. The Tagine was the Chicken M'Rouiza, which was a combination of 25 spices, honey, almonds and raisins. Being cooked in the Tagine made the meat extremely tender and it fell off the bone with the gentle tug of my fork. It was came with a side of rice spiced with oregano and saffron. This was good for soaking up the sauce and the loose raisins on the plate. This is truly the ultimate comfort food. As you may imagine this dish was a little sweet (as our server had told us) with honey and raisins so we made sure to make our other main dish more savory. That was the lamb & vegetable couscous. This lamb shank was very tender and like the chicken easily came off the bone. It was supposedly spiced with ginger, white pepper, and garlic. I really only tasted the pepper however that was fine with me, it was a great tasting piece of lamb. The couscous had garbanzo beans in it and the zucchini and carrots that came with it were fork tender.
Even though this was plenty of food I always have to try desert. We got some phyllo-dough turnovers. The flavor combination were white chocolate & strawberry and apricot & almond. They were both enjoyable but nothing special. We also got a warm chocolate cake that came with their seasonal ice cream (mint tea). The same could be said for the cake, we liked it but it was nothing special. The bill for two drinks, the appetizers, two entrees and two desserts was 76$ plus the tax and tip. Certainly worth it in both Alicia and my opinions. The host apologized for the delays in service and explained they were short staff for the night. Funny thing was besides waiting to be seated I thought the service was excellent. The staff was friendly and helpful with the menu being that it was our first time there and first time at a Moroccan place. I would definitely recommend this place to just about anyone. The menu is diverse enough with proteins and vegetables and levels of spice that you should be able to find something you like. I have a feeling I would like most everything there and plan on going back. The did have a special family style menu for groups of 4 or more (the table next to us got that) and that seemed very cool so we'll have to convince a couple of people to come along with us next time. If you are in San Jose, check this place out.

La Pizzeria (Campbell)

http://www.campbellpizza.com/

Today Alicia and I had a craving for a pizza. Normally I make my own from scratch but our oven is awaiting a repair service so we decided to try a new place out. I put my faith in the reviewers of yelp.com and we choose La Pizzeria in Campbell which had an impressive 4 star average over 191 reviews.
We walked in at 6pm on a Tuesday and we were the only ones inside. There were 2 or 4 people eating outside. This is always okay with me because I assume the the service will be better and the food will come out quicker. Alicia asked what the soup of the day was. The server said "a mixed vegetable pureed in a chicken broth". Alicia decided to pass on that and get a Caesar salad. I however was the mood to try stuff and ordered the soup.
The soup was very thin and tasted mostly like a tomato soup. Honestly it tasted like a can of Campbell's soup that had been opened and personally warmed up for me! This has to be the worst "soup of the day" I've had anywhere. Alicia's salad didn't come with croutons but large chunks of cooked pizza dough cut into triangles. She didn't know what to do with them (they were 3-4 times the size of a tortilla chip). Alicia also complained that the lettuce was just a bunch of large pieces and not broken up enough for eating on a fork. Okay, so disappointing appetizers but this is a pizza joint you say, how were the pizzas?
Alicia got the "Tirolese" which included smoked prosciutto, onions, and blue cheese. She said the combination of flavors were nice but they was very little prosciutto, onions, and blue cheese on it. There was plenty of greasy mozzarella though, forming a pool of grease in the middle of the pizza, like Crater lake. I had the "Sarda" which included black olives and fresh sausage. Like Alicia's pizza I had the lake of grease in the center of my pizza. The problem they have is the pizza is larger than the plate so your crust is at a higher elevation than the center and all the hot oily grease funnels to the middle. This saturates the thin crust at the center and made both pizzas soggy in the center. Why not bring the pizza out on a flat board? Especially since they make YOU cut the pizza. I thought they had forgot to cut our pizzas but looking on Yelp I see other people have complained about this. They also only give you a butter knife to cut the pizza with. It wasn't really hard to cut to seriously, cut the pizza from now on. The "fresh sausage" actually did taste fresh and was one of the better sausage toppings I've had on a pizza. The olives were terrible. They put whole black pitted olives on the pizza. You would pick a slice up and the soggy tip would flop over like a soccer player in the World Cup and the black olives would go rolling down onto the plate. Hey that's okay because I love olives just as they are, you can eat them all by themselves. Well, good olives you can. These seemed to have been soaked in a brine of tap water and nothing else. They had a terrible texture and no flavor. They only thing Alicia and I agreed on was the crust tasted good. As mentioned though, it was soggy in the middle due to Greasy Lake and it takes more that good crust to make a good pizza. Needless to say we didn't even ask about deserts and wanted to get out of their ASAP. To top it all off, the bill with tax and tip was 50$ for two sub par pizzas and a soup and salad. We ordered no drinks. Considering I can get a decent large mushroom pizza from a take out joint for 20$ why would I ever go back to La Pizzeria? For the Campbell's soup of course!
Take a pass on this place or at least know that you were warned.

La Fondue (Saratoga)

http://www.lafondue.com/

So today Alicia and I celebrated 11 years of putting up with each other and decided to walk to La Fondue in Saratoga to celebrate the occasion. This restaurant is actually owned by our landlords however fear not, I shall give an objective review as I always do. (As objective as a persons opinion can be!). We had a 7pm reservation and showed up on time to be seated. The restaurant has an eccentric decor and it seemed to change from the lobby (lions heads and pop art photography) to the area where we were seated (religous art). We ordered the "Feast for two". This involved salads, cheese fondue, 6 different proteins for the main course, and chocolate fondue.
The salads came out while the cheese fondue was heating up. I had a few problems with the salad. It comes deconstructed on the plate but the plate is packed to where you can't mix the salad without having it fall out. You have to eat the salad a little at a time and then mix it a little at a time. You have a choice of chef or spinach salad. We both got the spinach salad. My carrots and cucumbers were fresh but tasted watery. I don't know if that is from them being rinsed quick and then shredded and cut while not properly dried. Anyway, the salad is also just too big to come with all the other food that is part of the "feast". I would skip the salad if I went again.
For the cheese fondue we ordered the Cajun, which consists of cheddar, beer, shrimp and spices. Our server added fresh garlic to it and what looked like salsa. This gave the fondue a nice punch to it and it went well with the bread cubes and fruits and vegetables that came with it. The only weird thing was at the end you have all the little shrimp piled up at the bottom of the fondue. I don't know why they are in there you just eat them at the end I guess. This was a nice start to the meal thought and we both enjoyed it very much.
For the next part of the feast you got to pick 6 different proteins from quite a large selection, including exotic meats like kanagroo and crocodile. For our six we chose: wild boar filet, buffalo filet, pacific shrimp, free range chicken, pacific catch (tuna), and scallops. You get to pick your cooking method and we chose the electric grill. The proteins come with a mix of vegetables and 6 different dipping sauces. So if the restaurant isn't cooking for you that what can you judge them on? Mainly the service and the quality of the products given to you. All the proteins were nicely cut and looked fresh. I smelled the tuna, scallops and shrimp closely and was impressed. There wasn't a hint of a fishy odor or the product slipping past its prime. All the seafood proteins tasted excellent and there was a dipping sauce to go with whatever your tastes, although a few were a little sweet. The tuna was such nice pieces that we just seared the outside of them and ate them mostly without the dipping sauce. The same could be said for the scallops. The shrimp however did taste good dipped in the "mango chutney" sauce. The buffalo fillet strips were very good as well and there was a chipotle type BBQ sauce that seemed to be made for these. There also was a sour cream and chive sauce that Alicia liked for that as well. The wild boar fillet was excellent and honestly better than most pieces of pork you get at a restaurant. I could have eaten a lot of that. The chicken was good as well but was out shined by all the other great proteins we had. I should say it is also kind of fun to cook your own food like that. It's a novel experience that you don't usually get when you eat out.
For dessert we had the "Choctastic" fondue which was dark chocolate, hazelnut, and marscapone cheese. It came with an assortment of things to dip in it, from fruit pieces to chocolate cookie dough and pound cake. If you like sweets you won't be disappointed here. Alicia and I agreed that the orange slices tasted best dipped in this chocolate. The one small issue was the cream puffs that came with the fondue were still frozen hard on the inside.
The service was very good. Our waters were constantly filled and plates were removed as soon as they were empty. The food takes a little longer than a typical restaurant because you have to wait for the cheese fondue to melt, the grill to heat up for your proteins, and the chocolate fondue to melt before you can eat each course. This isn't the place to go for a power lunch or quick bite. We spent almost two and half hours at our table. You need all that time for the amount of food you get. This is another reason why I should have ate half of the salad (Alicia was smart and did just that) . Our server asked if we were celebrating something special for the meal. We mentioned it was our anniversary and out with desert came complimentary glasses of champagne.
I would definitely recommend giving La Fondue a try. I think the fact that you can try so many different proteins in one sitting is worth it alone. It's a unique dining experience and maybe somewhat novel but go try it and decide for yourself. I would also like to thank our landlords Mitch & Tracy because when the bill came out it was "comped" by them so we just left a tip for our server and tried to walk off as much of the food as we could on the way home.

Casa Cobre (Saratoga)

http://www.casadecobre.com/
Tonight Alicia was in the mood for Mexican. Instead of getting in a car to find a place to eat we walked downtown to try the local Mexican place, Casa Cobre (House of Copper). Getting a seat at 6:30pm on a Friday night was not a problem. The place did fill up though by the end of the meal. The atmosphere is nice, warm Mexican colors and art and a nice looking bar. We sat down at a table for two and it was a little longer than the usual table. Alicia seemed farther away than usual. The area we were seated was on the smaller side so it got a little loud towards the end of the meal when the place filled up.

So after walking in the cold something hot sounded nice. There was a queso fondido on the menu. Melted cheese sounded just right and we ordered that along with the house margarita and a margarita called the Purist. The cheese came out bubbling in a little crock with warm tortillas on the side. It looked nice but was pretty bad. The cheese was very stringy and the chorizo tasted like one you buy at the local supermarket. I should have just burned 8$ dollars out of my wallet instead of ordering that. It was also gone in a few bites so I ordered the chips & salsa as well. You actually have to pay for chips and salsa here (3$) but it is easily worth it. The chips are right out of the fryer and warm. You get three different salsas (all of which are good) and a pico de gallo which honestly was the best pico de gallo I've had anywhere. Pico de gallo is pretty simple so I'm sure the fact that they actually had ripe tomatoes in there helped. (And where the hell do you get ripe tomatoes in January?). Ok, Alicia's house margarita came with key lime juice and triple sec. She enjoyed it very much and I thought it was passable. The Purist margarita was terrible. It consisted of fresh lime juice, agave, and tequila. It tasted like limeade and left me fishing for hints of the reposado that was supposed to be in there. I probably should have said something and I didn't bother finishing it. Alicia said she would finish it for me but had enough of it very quickly and was done with it.
Alicia ordered a Chile Relleno. Out comes her dish and a beautifully presented plate comes out with one of the nicest Pasilla peppers I've ever seen on it. It looks plump and of course is stuffed with a really nice Mexican cheese. It's covered with a guajillo type sauce and served on a bed of rice. This was the perfect pepper with deep dark green flesh and that awesome peppery spice that a ripe Pasilla has. This was by far the best Chile Relleno I've ever had and Alicia liked it very much but it was too spicy for her so I gladly finished it off. For myself I ordered Chicken Mole. Mole is my favorite Mexican sauce and I tend to judge all Mexican places by it. This dish too was well presented and garnished with sliced bits of egg and red onions. It had a nice aroma and I was looking forward to digging in. I tried the first bite and the Mole was missing something. It was mild and had no punch or depth in it. If Estrellita's (Los Altos) puts over 40 ingredients in their Mole then this place must use five. It was certainly edible just really mellow and uninspiring. The worst part though was there was so little chicken in the mole. At times I thought they forgot to put it in but then would see strands of shredded chicken mixed in the sauce. This is unforgivable. This dish is just lacking all around and I'm really disappointed. It is a stark contrast to the Chile Relleno Alicia got. Another thing, the mole enchilada comes a la carte. So I had to order beans and rice on the side (4$) and (3$) respectively. It's not as bad as it sounds because it's enough for two people or three "dainty" folk. The rice was good and mixed with well cooked carrots and potatoes. The black beans were amazing. They were by far the best I've had anywhere at home or at a restaurant. They were not in a heavy sauce or syrup but freshly cooked and served with onions sweated down to nothing but sweetness. Alicia described the beans as melt in your mouth and I can't say enough about them. I didn't know black beans could taste that good. That was enough food for us and we skipped desert.
I should say the service was good as well. A friendly waitress and bus boy brought us the food with good speed, kept the waters filled, and were clearing plates as soon as they were empty to help keep the table neat.
With tip the bill was 84$ and it was not worth it to me. This restaurant leaves me in a strange place. The chips/salsa were above average and the black beans were the best I've ever had. The Chile Relleno was just unreal and a must have for anyone who loves peppers and an awesome vegetarian dish for the non meat eaters. But how can I recommend a place that can't make a margarita? Or a chicken mole? I've never had a meal where such great and poor items were served in the same sitting. Okay so I have the only solution I can think of. This is a good one too for "hoity toity" Saratoga.

Order Chips/Salsa ($3)
Order two Chile Rellenos ($11x2)
Order side of black beans to share ($4)

Enjoy a good vegetarian meal for two people at $29 plus tax/tip
Order anything else at your own risk/reward.

Southern Kitchen (Los Gatos)

http://www.yelp.com/biz/southern-kitchen-los-gatos

I just got back from Southern Kitchen in Los Gatos for some breakfast. The link is to Yelp, I couldn't find their own website (if they have one). They get 4 of 5 stars on Yelp and were recommended by my neighbor/landlord so I decided today was the day to try it.
I ordered the Country Special. This is biscuits topped with a sausage patty, scrambled eggs, and gravy. It comes with grits or hash browns on the side. The gravy was really excellent. It had a nice peppery spice and was creamy but surprisingly not heavy. The biscuits were good enough as were the eggs. The sausage was standard and I think would be no good to eat on its own, but mixed in with everything else it worked. The dish was $9.25 and it was massive. I got hash browns with it. Someone once told me hash browns are the worst thing you can do to a potato. I agree with that but grits are corn and I'd rather have potato any way I can get it. I don't really like hash browns but these were okay for a couple of reasons. Strangely I don't even think they put salt on them. I guess you are supposed to salt them yourself but I didn't. This lack of salt made them more palatable to me. I'm so used to over salted and greasy hash browns. These were neither. They had a crisp outside and a soft boiled type inside that was clean and light tasting. It was a good contrast to the rich biscuits and gravy. Alicia liked the hash browns and finished them off.
Alicia got the banana nut pancakes for herself. For $9.25 out came three massive pancakes and a side of whipped butter and syrup. They certainly looked good. There were lots of banana slices and sliced almonds in there. I make banana nut pancakes at home all the time so I was looking forward to trying them. At first I thought they tasted fine but were a little dense. Alicia felt the exact same way. She ate one and that was enough for her and we switched plates. I ate one as well and was sick of it by the time I finished it. I could have eaten more. I wanted my biscuits and gravy back (but a deal's a deal you know) so I was stuck with the pancake. I stuck it in a to go box and I'll eat it later or the dogs will. I would never order than again. That was way too dense and just got boring fast.
We had a 10 minute wait outside in the drizzling rain. They have coffee out there for people that drink type of stuff. We got a counter seat and they were okay but you couldn't move the seat. It swiveled but was fixed onto the ground. I wanted to get away from the edge of the counter were all the servers kept coming and going. I think any other counter seat would have been fine and the booths looked nice. Moving here recently from Georgia, I can tell you there is nothing Southern about this kitchen except a few things on the menu. It has none of the charm of a southern place and feels like every other California breakfast place (and it's menu reflects that as well). This isn't an insult. The service was fine and the food was served quickly but if they are trying to deliver that down home atmosphere it doesn't work. What more can I say? Well, after waiting for 10 minutes in the cold drizzle sitting down to warm, stick to your stomach biscuits and gravy was definitely the right call. I don't know if I would order it on a 90 degree day in August. However, if you're in Los Gatos and are cold, wet, hungry, and it's in the AM, you know what to get.

James Randall (Los Gatos)

http://www.restaurantjamesrandall.com/Home.html

Today is Alicia's birthday, and for that she got to pick a restaurant that she has been wanting to go to: James Randall in Los Gatos. It's a cozy place with 14 tables, half of them with seating for just two. They do a small plates menu, not exactly tapas but they recommend 5-6 plates per two people. So what did we get?
We started with a cheese plate and a meat plate. The cheese plate came with a nice bleu cheese, a type of Parmesan, and something that was like a brie. They were accompanied with dried fruit and spiced pecans (very good) and warm bread on the side. The sliced meat had only two selections (was supposed to have three). They were dry Italian style Sopressata type meats. They came with dried fruit and warm bread as well. They were both good with one clearly above the other in taste. A good way to start the meal; meat, cheese, and bread.
Alicia had a white wine and I just had water. They wanted 7$ for bottled beers and the wines were pricey. I like to try different beers and wines but don't appreciate exorbitant mark up and decided to pass. After the meat and cheese we got our next two dishes. Delicatta Squash pancakes and fried chicken and waffles. The pancakes were nicely cooked, crisp on the outside and tender inside. They came with apple sauce and a sour type creme. They were nice with the creme but the apple sauce didn't seem to complement the pancakes. I ate the rest without the apple sauce. What can I say about the chicken and waffles. It was the first time I've had that combination so I guess saying it was the best chicken and waffles I've had doesn't mean much. I don't see how this dish could have been improved at all. The chicken was fried perfectly. It had a beautiful rich brown battered crust surrounding the tender dark meat. It was nice a crisp and not greasy, exactly what fried chicken is supposed to be. Not only that, this came on top of a crisp waffle with a slab of herb butter to spread over it. In between the waffle and chicken was perfectly coked Swiss Chard with bits of bacon that were cooked together and finished with something sweet (maple syrup maybe?). I really wish I ordered two of these. It was the highlight of the meal. Okay, the final two dishes of dinner were a spicy tuna tempura roll and gnocchi with mushroom. I made a mistake here. These two dishes came out together and do not go well with each other. Eating a couple bites of gnocchi and then having a piece of sushi was really disjointed. I should have got the halibut with vegetables instead of tempura. The tempura roll was okay, it was quite spicy (too spicy for Alicia) but I've had better and regretted ordering it. The gnocchi was made well and cooked well. It came with nice chunks of cooked mushrooms and was in a very rich and creamy sauce. It was a little too rich for me although I don't know if it was the food or just that I was getting full by this time. So if you're getting full that means no desert right?
For desert we got a brownie with salted peanuts, caramel, and marshmallow fluff. The brownie was rich, I loved the caramel and salted peanuts and Alicia loved the marshmallow fluff. The fluff was a mix between liquid and solid, interesting. I only wish the brownie was served warm. Oh yeah, we got a chocolate torte with white chocolate bourbon ganache. No that's not overkill, that's just celebrating a birthday you know?. So we taste the torte and it tastes exactly how I thought it would. Alicia says the same and we keep taking bites of it. Then I remark that it's like eating a truffle. Alicia says this is the smoothest torte she has had. The more we eat it the more we like it. By the end I think that was one of the best chocolate tortes I've had.
So the prices look reasonable when you see the menu but you have to remember they are all small plates. The bill was 96$ without tax (4$ for a bag of tea? What?) So it came to 60$ a person with tax and tip. This is pricey. At the same time though we got to try eight different things. If you are the kind of person that likes to try some of this and that well have I got the place for you. It's called James Randall in Los Gatos. The only drink you should have there is tap water. This is a cozy place with friendly staff and some good food to boot.

Rangoli (San Jose)

http://www.rangolica.com/


I just got back from Rangoli, an Indian restaurant in San Jose. We made a 6:30pm reservation and when we got there it was maybe only 1/4 full on a Friday night. By the time we left at 7:30 they had filled up a bit. Lately Indian food is becoming my favorite style of cuisine. I think the fact that most the spices used for food grow native to the subcontinent of India means the dishes of the region have a depth of flavor that can't be matched by western cuisines. They have been cooking with the spices long before Marco Polo introduced spices to Europe. Anyway, for the starters:

Potli Samosa: This was a really good vegetable fritter, stuffed with mainly potatoes and some peas. The mixture was seasoned and spiced very well. The potatoes were cooked as good as they can get, just having some slight resistance when you bite down and then it is smooth sailing from there. This came with a trio of sauces for the fritter. A spicy plum (good), mint (good), and grape (too sweet).
Yellow Lentil Soup: This was disappointing. I prefer a lentil soup to have some more texture and density than this one displayed. It was thin and seemed to be too much broth and not enough lentil. It had some heat to it but not good depth of spice or flavor. Really pedestrian. We did order plain naan to dip in the soup and the naan is very good.

Dinner:
Muttar Paneer (farmers cheese and green pea curry): This was great, soft pieces of cheese and cooked peas in a remarkable curry. This curry had depth, warmth, and spice. I wouldn't change a thing about this dish and would recommend anyone to try it.
Chicken Ka Korma: Another excellent dish. Tender chicken that you can break apart with your fork in another rich, flavorful sauce. Alicia said the dish was good but one of her chicken pieces needed to be cut with a knife. I find it hard to complain about this dish. I thought I should mention that though. I would love to eat these two dishes again at sometime in the future. (Actually I probably will tomorrow, with the leftovers).
The dishes came with a side of well cooked rice. They actually gave us more rice to go with the leftover curry we were taking home. We had garlic naan with dinner and I much preferred the plain. The problem with the garlic naan was the garlic not being cooked through. The naan cooks too quickly to put raw garlic on it. They need to cook the garlic first and then put in on the naan. I do like raw garlic for some dishes but not for this. Plain naan would have been perfect for dipping in the curries, however I still enjoyed dipping the garlic naan.

Desert:
I had to get those milk ball type things. I believe here they call them Galum Jalab. I am probably wrong on the spelling. Two of them came out and they were very reminiscent of deserts I had in Cyprus. They were warm, soaked in a sweet syrup, and had chopped pistachios on top. There was a rose water infusion as well. I liked them but fair warning, if you don't like sweet stuff this will be a turn off for you.

Service:
My favorite thing about service was the constant filling of my water without me asking. It's a pet peeve when staff is nowhere to be seen and we have empty glasses at the table. We had two bussers and one waiter serving us and they were courteous and the food was on time. They were very professional for the price range of the restaurant. A nice trick was bringing out very warm empty plates so the curries stayed hot on our plates the whole time we ate.

I would recommend this place for anyone and would like to go back myself sometime. This would be the perfect place to eat on a cold rainy day. The food and atmosphere will warm you up for sure!

Estrellita's (Los Altos)

http://www.estrellitarestaurant.com/

Estrellita's is a small restaurant on the Los Altos/Mountain View border. We strolled in on Sunday at 6:15pm. Estrellita's always puts their special plates of the day on display at the entrance so you can see what's on offer.
I'll warn you from that start that service is usually slow here. I've come before and it's usually one bus boy and one waitress (who is also the hostess) for whatever customers are in the restaurant. It takes a few minutes after we are seated and we get chips and two types of salsa. The chips are better than average for a Mexican place and you get a green (tomatillo) salsa and a smokey red salsa. Both are spicy and both are good. It takes a few minutes but the waitress comes over and takes our order.
While the service has been slow the last two times I ate there once you put the order in for the food it has come in a reasonable amount of time. I got the special Habanero & Mushroom Chicken and "Bewitched" Pork. The chicken (on the left of the plate) was so tender and juicy and had a nice smooth sauce on it with a little heat from the habanero peppers. This was quite tasty and just plain good. In the middle of the plate were pinto beans and rice which were standard. On the right was the pork which seemed to be in a type of adobo sauce. The sauce was very tasty and had a good depth of flavor with earthy spices coming through. The meat itself was a little dry and a little tough. This really stood out as a contrast to the tender chicken. It's too bad because otherwise I couldn't have asked for anything more. But now I must ask for tender pork next time. I also order a special tamal on the side. It was a Rajas Tamal featuring the peppers of that name. This was good again featuring nice spices and depth of flavor. Tony got a special sweet corn tamal which was similar to a cornbread and a must try in my opinion if you like sweet things. The other diners had Mole Poblano, Enchiladas Suizas, and Alicia got a chicken dish with a dry spice rub on it that was good. There were no complaints from anyone. Tony commented that his Mole was stronger on the cinnamon than chocolate flavors and had less heat in it that some others he has had. They claim to put 38 ingredients in their mole and I've had it before myself and definitely appreciate the taste of it.
We all enjoyed our meals and actually had to box some up as well because the portions are above average. It took like what seemed forever to get the check. It was maybe 10-15 minutes it's hard to say. Oh, and Tony ordered a beer and that took too long as well. If your blood boils when you get slow service then I would suggest you don't come here. I have a feeling you will get slow service with a smile :) I love the Mom & Pop feel of the place and all the Mexican decorations and art. I also love the food here. The prices are reasonable as well. 66$ included 4 main courses (came with salads) two tamales on the side, a beer, and tax. This place specializes in south Mexican food (there is a long history/story on the menu....you can read it while you are waiting for service) and is worth trying if you are ever in the Los Altos/Mountain View area.

Nick's On Main (Los Gatos)

http://www.nicksonmainst.com/
http://www.siliconvalleyrestaurantweek.com/

Today we ate at Nick's On Main in Los Gatos. It's part of Silicon Valley's restaurant week which let's you eat a fixed price 3 course meal (35$). Since Nick's had the best rating on Yelp of the participating restaurants (in Los Gatos/Saratoga) we decided to give it a go.
Nick's is a tiny place with a black/white theme. They had an old brick wall with some nice character, I didn't see much else. We brought our own wine (20$ corkage) and they brought out some soft foccacia and olive oil with sun dried tomatoes to dip for the bread. Let's talk about the appetizers.
Butternut Squash Soup: all three of us agreed it was tasty. It had a nice texture and was seasoned well.
Crab/Lemon Risotto: Alicia and I agreed this was the best appetizer. The risotto was a perfect al dente and hot and creamy. The crab was light and fresh and in good amounts on top of the risiotto:
Wild Mushroom Ravioli: Three ravioli's (house made pasta) with cut up and sauteed asparagus and tomatoes along side. The ravioli's had no mushroom flavor and were filled with a mild green filling. Were these spinach ravioli by accident? Couldn't have been, spinach has a very unique taste. I guess it was mushrooms blended with an herb which gave the green color. Really bland. The side vegetables were nicer than the ravioli. There was also too much oil thrown on the ravioli for dressing at the end. It was edible but not really enjoyable.
For the main courses:
Nani's Meatloaf: My Mom got this, we all agreed it was good. It came with a nice mushroom sauce and it was tender and moist and spiced well. The mashed potatoes it came with were standard.
Ahi Tuna: This dish was a little weird. To start with the quality and cooking of the tuna were great. It was a clean and fresh tasting tuna seared just enough on the outside. It came with a side of white Italian beans which were cooked to a nice al dente texture much like the risotto. The weird part was all the crap thrown on top of the tuna. There was a chopped mix of herbs and garlic with goat cheese on top of the tuna. It was way too much and made the quality of the tuna get lost in the mix. Goat cheese and tuna do not mix. The goat cheese was good with the herb mix but on top of tuna? Oh yeah, it came with asparagus.
Pork Tenderloin: My favorite of the three. Three medallions of tenderloin with a nice crispy char on the outside but tender sweet pork down below. There was a nice bourbon glaze on the pork as well. It came with string beans and mashed potatoes which went well with the pork. It also came with some tomato reduction on top but this was just overkill again. With that nice subtle glaze with crust and nice quality meat I didn't need that crap on top of it. It tasted fine too it just didn't belong on the pork.
Okay, it was a 3 course meal so here comes desert.
Chocolate Decadence Cake: Like a flour less chocolate cake (maybe it was). Rich and dense served with some raspberries. It was likable but I'm sure you've had better chocolate deserts somewhere else.
Creme Brulee: Alicia loved the crust (she is a sugar crust snob, has to be just right for her). She thought the custard was tasty but needed to firm up. To me the custard had the consistency of creme anglaise and therefore I took one bite and was done. So what if you can burn some sugar, give me a good custard mate.
Banana Bread Pudding: This is a must get if you like bread pudding. What I really liked that set it apart from other bread puddings I've had is again a nice crust on the top probably from being finished under a broiler (or accidentally burned in the oven?). Either way I love things that bring a contrasting texture to the dish. Whether intentional or not. There was a maple and caramel after taste and this is probably the perfect desert for a comfort food type meal. This was my favorite bread budding I've had that I can recall.

If you go to Nick's I've got the perfect meal for you. Get the Butternut Squash Soup, follow that with Pork Tenderloin, and finish with Banana Bread Pudding. The ultimate comfort food meal. Go during restaurant week and this is 35$. Go another time and throw another 10$ on probably for regular prices. I should also mention the servers were very friendly and professional, very much appreciated. This is a nice place to dine if you don't mind the prices. I think they are overdressing some things (mushroom ravioli, the ahi tuna, and even the pork). But you can just push that stuff off with your fork.

A snack at Capers (Campbell)

http://www.caperseatanddrink.com/

Alicia and I walk out of the new gym we just worked out and decide to grab a bite at a place called Capers which is next door. The menu seemed a little pricey but I wanted to try it since someone at the gym had just recommended it.
We sat at a bar table and I decided to order just a few appetizers. There were lots of TVs around tuned to different football games. Seemed like a good place to watch some football. The bar was half full and the tables were maybe 1/4 full on a Sunday @2pm. I ordered a chicken quesadilla, ahi tuni salad, and sauted shrimp.
The give you bread and oil/vinegar to start, standard stuff. The shrimp were served in a lemon butter sauce. It was 6 medium shrimp bathing in a pool of the sauce. The sauce was tasty and the shrimp were cooked well enough. The ahi tuna salad was good as well. It had black sesame seeds on the outside of the seared tuna. It came with the usual stuff; pickled ginger, soy sauce, and lemon. It also had a really bland salad of rice noodles with it that weren't worth eating. The 8 slices of tuna were clean tasting and seared well. The chicken quesadilla was plain but had lots of chicken on it and had very crisply cooked tortillas which I prefer to softer ones. It came with sour creme and a salsa fresca which was mostly chopped tomatoes.
So everything was okay but I won't be going back. Why? With tax and tip the bill was 46$. 46$ for three appetizers and no drinks? I'll pass next time Capers.....

Bai Tong (Saratoga)

http://www.baitongthai.com/

Alicia gets home tonight and I have a dinner ready to make at home but Alicia wants to eat out. What the lady wants she gets and I start searching through Yelp to see the local food joints around our new rental in Saratoga. Saratoga sure has a lot of overpriced restaurants and I wasn't in the mood for any of that so I decided on the only Thai place in town: Bai Tong.
We make the 10 minute walk over and fortunately don't have to wait for a table. It's a small place that can maybe seat 30-35 at most. It has the usual Thai theme decor and it's a nice atmosphere. I place an order for spring rolls and chicken satay to start.
The spring rolls come out first and are served with a peanut sauce. There are 4 of them cut in half and they are filled with various vegetables and herbs. There are also tubular things as well that I guess are made from vegetables. The spring rolls are good and have a lemon/basil/mint type aftertaste which goes well with the slightly spicy peanut sauce. I kind of hate paying 8$ for a protein less appetizer but for what it's worth they were good. Then came the chicken satay. Three skewers of chicken served with peanut sauce and some cucumber relish type salad. The satay was one of the better ones I've had. The chicken was seasoned well (yellow I guess from tumeric) and was very tender and juicy. The cucumber relish was almost like a palate cleanser after eating the satay. So far so good.
Then out came the two dishes we ordered: kang karee (chicken yellow curry) and Pad Kra Pow (chicken/basil/vegetables). We opted for brown rice instead of traditional white on the side. The yellow curry was quite good. The vegetables were cooked through nicely and had just the right amount of bite in them. I love biting into a perfectly cooked piece of potato, all the better in a nice sauce. The curry had just the right spice. We had asked for medium and the waiter said that their curry is fairly spicy and we may want to go a little less. It was a good call by him. The Pad Kra Pow was good as well, lots of basil and again perfectly cooked root vegetables like carrots putting up little fight as I bite into them and send them to the black abyss of my esophagus and digestive tract. (For some reason carrots aren't on the online menu for this wat?).
We passed on desert because two appetizers and two entrees were more than enough. We probably could have skipped something but I read online their portions were small. I guess if you are used to the Cheesecake Factory then it will seem small but each entree is enough for two people to share. Alicia did get a Thai Iced Tea though and liked it. I tried it and didn't but I don't like Thai Iced Teas.
The service was good and the wait staff was very professional and friendly. It is a family run business and they obviously all take pride in running the place, from the back of the house to the front. So whats the downside?
Only the price. Everything is about a 1$ or 2$ over the typical price you find on Thai menus. Even the brown rice was $2 each (come on now Bai Tong). The bill came to 44$ with tax and then throw eight bones on for the tip. Like I said though we easily could have dropped an appetizer or entree because it was more than enough. And even though it's pricey for Thai I am pretty sure none of the other restaurants in Saratoga can give me a better meal for $25 a person. Although I will try to find one. If you like Thai and are in Saratoga then I would say check this place out and save the $29 entree restaurants for another night (like when someone else is paying). I'll probably be going back.

Refuge (San Carlos)

So for our last night in San Carlos we decided to try Refuge, which is only a block away from the house we were renting.

http://refugesc.com/home.html

We went with my old roommates and their friends who are visiting from Sweden. We sat outside for a table of 7. We all started with different beers. Refuge has "Belgian" style beers which, not ironically, are mostly from Belgium but a few US micro brews as well. The beers were all quite good. Good dark beers and smooth blonde's. Refuge is known for their pastrami sandwiches so I got a Reuben. The pastrami is house cured and cooked well. It's cut into nice thick slices and topped with sauerkraut among other things. The bread was lightly toasted and good at soaking up the sauce on the Reuben. It came with big tasty pickles and I added a side of garlic fries. The fries were really good, nice and crispy with punchy pieces of garlic all over them. They came with chipotle mayonnaise which is a nice change from ketchup. A friend got a cheese steak hoagie with avocado on it. He liked it very much and I tried it and was surprised to find the avocado worked on a cheese steak. Three other guys got burgers and they were two for three on liking them. Two others had pastrami sandwiches that hit the mark. It sounded noisy inside when I went to the restroom so I would recommend eating outside if you can.
There was no downer to this meal. Good beers, good food, and good friends. Normally I would say where do you get off charging $16 dollars for a Reuben but I guess I get it now. This place is a can't miss if you are ever in San Carlos.

Speederia Pizzeria (San Carlos)

Sunday night in San Carlos and half the places I want to try are closed. After some internet searching I find "Speederia Pizzeria" which has a 4 of 5 rating on Yelp.com. Time to try.....
http://www.speederiapizzeria.com/

I've walked by this place every time I go to the Farmers Market. They say they are "New York" style pizza. Being born and raised in New York right outside of the city I take these claims very seriously. After all you are representing a style of pizza from a place many of your customers may have never been. Better get it right you know.
I ordered by phone a pie (18" size- your one and only choice) and added mushrooms and sausage. The guy told me 15 minutes and cash only. I walked down and it was ready. I was hungry and ate a slice on the walk home. It was a pipin' hot of course and I burned my mouth some. The crust was very very good. It had a good crunch and light sweetness with a chewy texture inside. The sauce was light and bright, not too sweet like some pizzerias. The mushrooms were fresh cut and not from a tin or bottle but they barely put any on. Four mushroom slices on one piece of pie? Get outta here! The sausage was sliced and not ground. It was par to below par for sausage although there was a decent amount of it the pizza. Okay so was this a "New York" style pizza?

15 minutes and cash only (NY all the way)
Pimple face white boys and random Mexicans working there (Legit)
Crust and sauce (Very solid, would be accepted in NYC)
Toppings (Fuhgetaboutit! I'll bring some mushrooms next time for you guys!)

Oh, a 18" large pie is 15.50$ plain and you can't beat that around here. Skip the toppings and get yourself a couple of these and your drink of choice and enjoy. This is solid "New York" style pizza for the Bay Area and worth a repeat visit.

TOWN (San Carlos)

I just got back from lunch at TOWN restaurant in San Carlos.
http://www.townsc.com/

It always seems crowded whenever I walk by it for dinner, I figured I would try lunch because lunch is always cheaper at pricier places like this and you don't have to wait. We walked in at 2:15pm and waited at the Hostess desk. The Hostess was fiddling with menus and didn't see us. She was having trouble picking one up, perhaps her nails were too long. She was dressed and looked similar to Chloe from "Keeping up with the Kardashians" c-list fame. She had overdone makeup, super high heels and a short skirt. Alicia said the Hostess wasn't as much of a "wildebeest" as Chloe is (whatever that means).
Okay, for lunch Alicia gets a soup/salad combo. It's a sweet corn chowder with andouille sausage and a Wedge Salad with a side of cornbread. Both Alicia and I think the corn chowder is good but not great. I like the battered/fried jalapeno slices in it, Alicia doesn't. The Wedge Salad is a big wedge of iceberg smothered with an average blue cheese dressing. It also has lots of bacon pieces on it and a few cherry tomatoes. Don't get this salad if you go there. The side piece of cornbread is very big. Alicia gives it the thumbs up although it's kind of plain and oily for me.
I got the Chicken & Cheese melt sandwich. I choose fries as the side. They were quite good, crispy and salted well. The problem was the sandwich I got it with. The sourdough bread was toasted on the grill but they slathered a ton of olive oil. The oil was beading up on the plate under my sandwich. The cheese was supposed to be Gruyere but it was like playing "Where's Waldo" I searched and couldn't find much cheese. There was an aioli on it that must be the secret recipe from the Corner Cafe chain's aioli vault. It was a 5$ aioli on a $10 sandwich. Well the bread was too oily for an Atkins hater like me to even eat so I scrapped it and ate the chicken with a fork. The chicken was good; it was pulled from the rotisserie chickens they make on site. Don't get this sandwich, the fries will be good with the burger for sure.
The service was okay. Everything was quick because it was fairly empty. One thing that was weird was the waitress calling Alicia "Hun". It happens like this: "You want any fresh pepper for your soup Hun?" Anyplace that charges 10$ for a martini shouldn't call customers "Hun".
I wouldn't recommend TOWN myself but they get good reviews on Yelp. I should have ordered the things that were given high marks on Yelp like the Tuna & Avocado Roll or Sloppy Joe (Yeah people still eat those).