Astaria--Uptown In Downtown San Mateo

The HO-HO Dessert

Crispy Polenta Fries!!

So it has been a while and it is time for me to write again.  And I have to admit my blog title is actually the tagline for the restaurant so I can't take credit.  This time I am writing about Astaria in downtown San Mateo, CA.  I have to admit that I have been here four times with the intent to blog about it.  Once with a very good friend who wanted to be included on one of my blog adventures and once for lunch with a group of nine people and a couple of other times.  I have eaten there for both lunch and dinner.  And I got pictures this time!!!  (although only of one of the dinners)  The food here is so good.  The menu is an eclectic blend that I would sum up as American fusion, American fused with Thai, Italian, Spanish and the list goes on and on.  You can find a little bit of everything here.  But first I have to RAVE about the Crispy Polenta Fries with sun-dried aioli.  Simply to die for, when I went for lunch with the large group, we ordered them for the table and then I ordered another side for myself as part of my lunch.  Crispy on the outside and a nice soft polenta when you bite combined with the sauce is heavenly.  I think you catch my point, if you go to Astaria, you must order the polenta fries even if you don't usually like polenta.  Next I want to tell you about the Double Dipped, Buttermilk Soak'in Fried Chicken, now just by the name you know that it is going to be lip-smacking good (don't even think about the calories, it is worth them!)  It is organic boneless chicken breast marinated in buttermilk and then dipped twice in seasoned flour served with garlic mashed potatoes, could it get any better?!?!  For entrees and appetizers I also have to give honorable mentions to the Eleni's Tossed Thai Salad which is crunch, citrus, peanut, cabbage and a tangy peanut dressing.  You can add grilled chicken or skirt steak to it as well.  It is a big bowl so be ready to share or have leftovers, and it is really tasty.  I also want to mention the Alaskan Halibut Mojito'd which is pan seared on a bed of herbed risotto with a citrus-mint sauce.  For those who may want a healthy approach it is a good option.  Now the next honorable mention is the Chicken Cordon Bleu Pappardelle which is panko crusted organic chicken breast paired with fresh pappardelle with gruyere, prosciutto and cream.  I will mention that this dish is de-constructed so that the chicken is not stuffed with the cheese and prosciutto rather it is layered with the pasta.  I have not tried this dish personally but out of our group of nine over half of the people ordered it and I swear I saw one of them licking the bowl.  Astaria has a robust wine list and actually received a Wine Spectator Award for 2009. Now last but not least, we get to dessert.  I always share and I always don't want to, but it is good manners, right?  Astaria's HO-HO is one of the best desserts ever!  For those of us who grew up unraveling those foil-wrapped chocolate rolls and even those people who have never eaten one in their life and laugh at something that can be called a "HO-HO"  It is decadent without being too rich-- a roll of chocolate sponge cake and whipped cream dipped entirely in chocolate.  I also have to give a shout out to the "Astaria" Brownie which is a star-shaped, moist chocolate brownie served with warm chocolate ganache and a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.  If you are looking for delicious food in a nice setting (even with the 80's music playing on the sound system), Astaria is the place to go.

Everyday Foodie, Not Everyday Photographer

So I was starting to really get down on myself for not getting photos at any of the food at the establishments that I have been visiting. What kind of food blogger forgets to take pictures of the food?!?! My problem is I remember just after I have eaten half or all of the dish!! My good friends have consoled me and said that it is due to my love of food and that I get so excited about the food and fun that I immediately dig in. Such good friends, part of what makes an everyday foodie like me love going out to eat with them. Then at Wexler's we came up with the idea of showing the empty plates to show how great the food was. I will only do it for that particular review because the photos don't look that appetizing, but they do show how much we liked the food. :-) So you will all have to bear with me and realize that I may never get that perfect picture of my perfect dish before I lick the plate perfectly clean, but I will try. The one exception is this shot of some delicious cookie cupcakes made by the household baker. Happy Eating!!

Wexler's- California Smokin'

So for a dear friend and fellow foodie's birthday celebration, I was in search of something fabulous and fresh. After much consideration and research, I made reservations at Wexler's located at 568 Sacramento Street (near Montgomery), San Francisco. Where to begin?!?!? They are barbecue at a whole new level. There were four foodies out for this celebration and we started by sharing a few appetizers and drinks. The concept is farm fresh to table "California Barbecue." The space is intimate, but welcoming maybe 40 people max. The bartender is quite the mixologist and the drink special of the night was a "Smoked Manhattan", I am not big on whiskey so I had my favorite, an Extra Sour Lemon Drop, which was so good, I had two. There is an amazing ceiling structure that looks like you are at a science museum staring at a blue whale's skeleton. Then we found out from our fabulous waitress that it is architectural representation of the BBQ smoke extending from the kitchen out the door. The architects Aidlin Darling Design who also designed the Bar Bambino space did an amazing job and according to our waitress are up for some prestigious design awards. Now back to the BBQ, Wexler's is getting quite a buzz for their BBQ Scotch Egg. Now traditional Scotch Eggs are hard-boiled and then covered in sausage and not necessarily something that I eat, but these were a scotch egg of a different kind. Here they are served soft-boiled and yolky. They were crusted with short rib and served with burnt ends and a housemade hot sauce. Now I am not one who likes my yolks runny, but I had to see what the fuss was about. Sooooooo delicious! As you can see by the "after photo" We also shared the Country Line Little Gems Salad, all I can say is "CORN BREAD CROUTONS"--Wow! The four of us fought for them, though we did give the birthday girl an extra one. We also shared a special shaved asparagus salad since it is in season. It was very tasty with a vinaigrette dressing and mixed organic greens. For my main course I had a whole new version of "surf & turf", the Cornmeal Crusted Skate. Now we asked if that would be enough food because skate can be quite light, but not when it crusted and is stuffed with mouth-watering pulled pork. Yum! The guest of honor had Shrimp & Grits which she thought were very good. (Warning they do come with their heads and tails.) Another friend had Wexler's Plate of Pork which came with two types of pork. The first was a heavenly pork belly served a top of a portion of country-fried pork, pounded, breaded and fried and scrumptious just like country-fried should be. For dessert, we had a hard choice, but we decided on the Bourbon Banana Cream Pie--how could we resist and by this picture you can see that we didn't. It was so light and so creamy with caramelized bananas. I have to note that the service was amazing everyone who helped our table out was friendly and fun. Me and my red-bottomed shoes are definitely coming back to Wexler's for some more California smokin' barbecue.

The Joya Luck Club

Good friends, good food, good fun. So I have two wonderful friends that I meet up with every few months. We meet in Palo Alto as it is kind of the mid-point for the three of us and for the past four get-togethers we have gone to Joya Restaurant & Lounge located at the corner of University and Florence in downtown Palo Alto. Joya (pronounced Hoy-a) refers to themselves as "modern latin cuisine". The lounge is our area of choice for dining--comfortable couches with lots of cushions in a modern and well-designed high-ceilinged space. Now onto the food--Joya's bar menu has a fabulous choice of tapas and some of the mot reasonably priced wines (and good tasting wines) by the glass in the Bay Area. I have to say that hands down my favorite dish is the Papas Bravas, but then again I am the girl who has never met a potato that she didn't like. The potatoes are so tender and the spices just the perfect blend with a dollop of creme fraiche sauce less spicy than traditional papas bravas sauce, but a great balance to the dish. So the most recent visit lent itself to some new menu items the Dungeness Crab Cakes and the Grilled Spanish Chicken Skewers. The crab cakes are amazing and come with a delicious ginger chipotle aioli. But I have to admit, we ordered a second plate of the chicken skewers, they were mouth-wateringingly good with four bite-sized pieces of perfectly grilled chicken on each skewer. Another fan favorite of the Joya Luck Club, as we have dubbed ourselves, is the Mexican Empanadas. The pork empanadas are serverd with a green aji sauce and the spinach and cheese ones are served with a mango chili sauce. These tasty tidbits are so good that another friend of mine who doesn't like much that is made with pastry, loved them. The last (but not least) dish I will mention is the Braised Short Rib Tacos served with jicama salsa and horse radish cream. You must try these if you go to Joya, the short rib meat is so tender and the combination of flavors is a brilliant experience for your mouth. I mentioned that they have a great wines by the glass list, but I know I would be leaving something out if I didn't mention the Sangria. They serve a red and a white sangria (peaches are the high-light) and both are delicioso. I usually sit in the lounge but I have also dined in the restaurant which serves the entire tapas menu in addition to entrees. No matter where you chose to sit in Joya, you will enjoy the dining experience. As long as you didn't mind those crazies laughing loudly from The Joya Luck Club, can't wait for the next meeting. Happy Eating!

Easy and Tasty, Little Packets of Wonder

So as I kick-start back into blogging. I thought I would expand my posts in hopes that I may post more frequently. Recently while shopping, there nestled in the meat aisle at my local supermarket, were the new McCormick Recipe Inspirations. Now these fun little packets are pre-measured, all-in-one spice packets that give you the step-by-step instructions to a really easy meal. It is marketing genius on McCormick's part!! The recipe is included so that you can use your own spices to make the dish again. But I find that it is so easy to make using the pre-measured packets that I just keep buying more of them. The Rosemary Roasted Chicken with Potatoes is fabulous and the Garlic Lime Fajitas are deliciosas. For a tasty and simple meal in around 30 minutes including cooking time, try out these little packets of wonder.