Tamarindo Antojeria, Oakland

While usually boasting about my own food writing skills, I do believe that Carol Ness wrote everything I ever wanted to say about Tamarindo. We'll call this review an "update" that just happens to echo every single one of her sentiments. I was so stoked to eat at Tamarindo Antojeria. It's been touted as the big rival to Dona Tomas' stronghold on upscale Mexican cuisine in the Bay Area, but I rate it with a big 'ol MEH.

The service was friendly, and the restaurant is cute but the food was very disappointing. As I look over the menu now, I realize that we weren't even offered whatever the special dinner/large plate was that night (the menu is mostly small plates), which is frustrating because some of the descriptions of the bigger plates sound like they could bump Tamarindo up a star. The service did do a great job of pacing the courses and not overloading our tiny bar table, but that's about where the fun ended.

We started with the Queso Fundido, Tamal Oaxaqueño, and Empanadas de Hongos Y Queso. The Queso Fundido ($10) sounded oily, gooey and delicious but only succeeded in acheiving my first two adjectives. It was a bowl of melted cheese with a few tiny pieces of chorizo served with tortillas. It needed a lot more meat, texture, and flavor. Maybe a veg to garnish or if it had been served with chips we'd have liked it a lot more. The tamales ($7) were incredibly dry and disappointing. I covered mine in salsa which still didn't help the stringy, overcooked meat. The empanadas ($8) were decent; I like mushrooms, I like fried things, but I could get the same thing for half the price at Picante and for even cheaper at some place on International that I haven't been brave enough to try yet.

Next, we had the Sopes Surtidos, and Frijoles Charros. The Sopes Surtidos ($9) are crispy masa "boats" topped with meat and/or vegetables. The "boats" were very tasty little corn tart-like shells that had great texture and flavor. One was topped with roasted peppers and cheese, another with carnitas and red onion and the last with carne asada and potatoes. The beef one was very good--the meat was tender and flavorful, but again the pork was dry. While I hate to toot the horns of Picante or Tacubaya too much because I think they're overrated as well, the food's just as good and way cheaper at both. The pinto beans ($7) were served almost as if they were in a soup with bacon slices and jalapeno. The flavor was definitely there but the dish lacked texture, which we quickly remedied by dumping our leftover Queso Fundido into it. Delicioso.

For dessert, we tried the Crepa con Cajeta ($7), which was a crepe covered in caramel sauce, sprinkled with walnuts and garnished with a strawberry and vanilla ice cream. The vanilla ice cream was icy, creamy and delicious but I had major beef with the fact that they garnished it with a strawberry. It's March, people, strawberries are totally out of season. Why serve one even as a garnish when there are so many great seasonal alternatives? The crepe was not very good either. The caramel sauce tasted like the stuff you can buy at Safeway in the plastic tub and the walnuts weren't even toasted so they blended in with the chewiness of the crepe.

It's too bad, I really wanted to like Tamarindo but at this point I'm not even tempted to go back and try anything else on the menu. Plus, you can get most of the small plates on their menu at their sister restaurant, La Calle, for a fraction of the price.

Sidebar, Oakland

Margaret was a huge fan of Zax Tavern, so she was really excited to hear that Sidebar opened. Excited from all the rave reviews we ate dinner at Sidebar this evening.

I instantly liked the atmosphere, and the prominently displayed bar is going to be amazing when they get their hard liquor license. Our server was nice, didn't rush us, and was overly willing to make recommendations. Overall, though, I wasn't wowed.

We started with the grilled calamari salad with bacon vinaigrette ($9) and duck liver crostini ($7.50). While the duck liver crostini was fatty, rich, and delicious, the accompanying salad and calamari salad were overdressed. The squid, which was grilled, was undercooked and kind of slimy. I'm not sure we were given enough it also to justify the $9 price tag.

That said, I really appreciated the portion sizes and prices for the mains. While a fair amount smaller than the entrees at my "boyfriend's" (Wood Tavern), all mains at Sidebar are around $5-10 cheaper but still filling.

Margaret had the brined/grilled double cut pork chop ($17). While nicely cooked, the butchering wasn't superb and she got a bunch of funky bony bites. The cannelloni bean ragout was good but unevenly cooked and could have used some form of veg or color. My heavily recommended atlantic cod stew ($19) was very flavorful and my fish was cooked perfectly. The clams, however, weren't cleaned properly and I got a lot of grit. Overall that issue was trumped by the fact that I ate all of our bread just to mop up the delicious sauce.

For dessert, Margaret had the "Almond Joy" ($6.50) which is basically a fudge brownie with ice cream, caramel sauce and whipped cream. I had the angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream ($6.50). Both were very simple yet good, and my latte reminded me of how much I dearly miss having good coffee.

I had a good time here, I just think they need to work out some kinks, especially in the prep kitchen. I'm looking forward to going back in a few months to see what happens. While the menu was nicely sized, it seemed like it suffered from a little imagination. Sidebar has a ton of potential but I'm not sure it's quite there yet. Seeing as they just opened, I hope other people give it a try; I'm wishing this place the best.

Sidebar is located at 542 Grand Avenue in Oakland.
For reservations, call (510) 452-9500.

Suppenkuche, San Francisco

I learned the hard way to never make a bet with my man Mikey D. Yet I think paying him back by taking him to Suppenkuche ended up being pretty win-win.

On a cold drizzly SF night like we had the other day, Suppenkuche truly hit the spot with an ice cold beer, friendly service, and, in all its glory, the bread ball smothered in a rich, thick mushroom gravy. Since I don't want to gain 50 pounds I won't plan on next time just ordering three of these as my appetizer, main, and dessert, but I'll be tempted. God that thing was so good.

I don't know anything about beer except that I like what's cheap, so Mikey ordered for me. Fortunately what I lack in beer snobbery/knowledge Mike makes up for and then some. Whatever it was, it was crisp, somewhat light, and had a little spice to it. Very tasty.

I was also obsessed with the bread and butter. The butter they serve the bread with is smooth, whipped, salty, and seasoned. Despite only having four slices of bread we slopped up the entire butter crock.

For mains, I had the braised beef with cranberries and Mikey had the venison (sauteed in red wine plum sauce). I wasn't crazy thrilled with either, but they were both very good. The meat was super tender (I could pretty much cut it with a spoon) and seasoned to perfection. It *almost* made me crave some veg, but Mikey was thrilled: http://www.myspacebrand.com/funny_pictures/quote-images/_img/quoteimage28.gif

The dishes did come with gravy, spatzle and pickled red cabbage, though, which were delicious. I'm usually not one to leave meat behind, but when it came down to it I scarfed up as much as the spatzle as I could stomach and let Mikey eat about half of my meat.

From reading reviews, I think I'm going to go with chicken or pork next time--seems like those tend to be a bigger hit than the red meat at Suppenkuche. And I'm definitely getting a bread ball all to myself. Fatty alert!

Our dessert was an apple strudel with ice cream, which was also very tasty. Even Mike could barely finish it, which is an indication that I got my money's worth at this place. Trust me, if this guy was full (http://www.summitpost.org/image/470993/155422/ice-step.html), they did an amazing job.

My main complaint was probably the wait and the noise. For two, we had to wait 45 minutes to be seated. We ended up going down the street to Place Pigalle (really chill bar with a decent beer selection when they're not sold out) for a few beers before having dinner. Then, when we did get seated, we had to practically yell in each others' ears to have a conversation. Don't get intimidated by the crowd, and just don't try to have a romantic date here--the food is worth it!

Suppenkuche is located on the corner of Hayes and Laguna in San Francisco. They have valet, but it's a really quick walk from Civic Center BART for you East Bayers. No reservations for fewer than 6, so show up early, or show up ready to wait.

Bellanico, Oakland

I initially went here because one Scott's cook buddies works in the kitchen. Bellanico is a relatively new Italian restaurant that opened up in the up and coming part of Park Boulevard. I ended up rounding out a group of three cooks with my amateur food critic (or just professional eater) status. If shoveling food at record pace into one's mouth while discussing food and cussing up a storm means fitting in, I think I can hang hardcore with cooks. Hear that, Bourdain?

The menu here seemed to be kind of hit-and-miss. Reviewing just what I ordered, I'd give them four and a half stars out of five, but from tasting everyone else's food I'd give them three.

I started with the farro salad, which was really simple but fresh and delicious. It was served with fresh cherry tomatoes, cucumber, toasted pistachios and plenty of olive oil with lemon. The cheffies had minor issues with it just because it was so simple, but I'm a sucker for farro anytime, anywhere. Scott had the soft shell crab salad with watermelon, purslane and tomatoes that Carol Ness had been raving like mad about. We all didn't understand it. The crab wasn't as crispy as it should have been, and it seriously lacked seasoning. His buddies split the salumi plate (decent but nothing to write home about) and cicchetti (another dish Ness was freaking out about). For those of you who don't know, cicchetti are little fried meat balls; these were served with a basil and walnut pesto. Meh. They were kind of dry and too grainy.

For mains, I had the pork chop served with chard stems marinated in vinegar. The pork chop was massive and beyond perfectly cooked, down to the grill marks and tender juiciness on the inside. Definitely one of the best pork chops I've ever had, and I loved the chard stems. The other dishes were not so memorable. So unmemorable that since it's been a while that we went I only remember what one other person got. The tagliolini pepati with fresh jalapenos, bacon, and tomatoes was only so-so. The flavors didn't seem to meld as much as I'd hoped. The fresh pasta was very tasty, though. It had a great bite to it and was obviously made that day.

My favorite part aside from the pork chop was the dessert. I had an almond pound cake with fresh peaches and whipped cream. I actually still dream about eating this cake--it was really moist on the inside and crunchy on the crust.

All in all, if you order like me this place is solid, especially for the price. Considering where Scotty and I have been eating recently, this place cost easily about half of what we've been paying at Wood Tavern, Corso (forget this place!), and Camino. They deserve a lot of points for service, too. Our waitress was beyond cool and amazingly tolerant of our raucous table.

I'm going to go back at some point later on when I'm not studying to see if the consistency has improved over the past few months. Update to follow!

Bellanico is located at 4238 Park Boulevard in Oakland. Reservations can be made by calling (510) 336-1180. They also have a website: www.bellanico.net.

Camino, Oakland

Wow. To begin with, Camino has one of the most beautiful kitchens I've ever seen. The gorgeous wood burning oven is open to the entire dining room, and they hang herbs from all of the chandeliers so there is always a really nice aroma floating around.

There have been a few complaints that the menu is too limited, but I think it's perfect. There's just enough to cover most palates, yet still just a few dishes so each can be perfected and be comprised of the freshest, most seasonal ingredients.

Cocktails were nothing to write home about (bitters overload!); then again Scotty and I are coming off dinner at Flora. But everything else? Wow.

We started with the crab toast and frisee salad with goose confit/persimmons. The toast was covered in a lump crab meat salad that put Flora's to shame. It was obvious that the crab was fresh and picked from a crab that day because it was so sweet and tender. No canned crab here! The goose confit had great flavor, and melded really well with the bitterness of the frisee and sweet, crunchy persimmons. The salad was also put together nicely...the frisee was already cut into manageable bites and everything was dressed perfectly.

Next we had the wood oven-roasted black trumpet and hedgehog mushrooms with leeks and garlic toast. I loved everything about this course. The broth was delectable, the toast crunchy and chewy, and the mushrooms were packed with flavor.

For mains, we split the grilled rockfish with tepary beans/wild nettles (pea sprouts)/chiles/saffron broth and the grilled/braised pork with sauerkraut, potatoes and mustard. I made the mistake of digging into the pork first. Everything about it was wonderful. The meat practically fell apart on my fork it was so tender and juicy. The potatoes were soft and perfectly cooked (lightly pan fried), and the sauerkraut added a great punch to the flavors. One thing that this kitchen seems to have mastered is seasoning the food. Everything is really nicely salted, almost to the brink of saltiness but never goes overboard. I couldn't stop eating it.

Unfortunately, the strong flavors from the pork made it hard for me to love the fish as much as Scott did. Everything in the fish dish was so delicate that no matter how many swigs of my wine I took, I just didn't get it. I can say though that the fish was really nicely cooked--it flaked apart and practically melted in my mouth. Just take Scott's word for it that the fish was awesome.

Dessert was also impeccable. Scotty couldn't stop eating the persimmon pudding with fresh whip, which is a true accomplishment because he is never a dessert person. It was nicely spiced without being too sweet, and had a rich, thick texture. My favorite dessert was the penko covered ricotta that was then deep fried and drizzled with honey. I don't even really like cheese that much, but these were little bites of heaven. The outside had a really great crunch to it, and the inside was sweet, almost molten ricotta.

Our server was friendly, prompt, and seemed to know a lot about the dishes, which we appreciated. The only thing I'd nitpick about is that the long benches that run down the center of the restaurant are slanted in a way that make it a little uncomfortable to eat. The grand total was also a little higher than I'm used to (about $35 higher than at Wood Tavern, Flora and Corso but maybe we were ultra fattys last night). But, I was distracted from the discomfort pretty quickly due to my amazement at the bathroom hand dryers (no seriously, they are awesome!), and an Elizabeth Falkner sighting that left me pretty star-struck!

Flora, Oakland

"You're scared you're going to cheat on your boyfriend and love it, aren't you?" --Scotty

I came close to loving Flora and ditching my BF Wood Tavern but unfortunately the entrees fell way short. Aside from the entrees, though, eating at Flora was one of the best restaurant experiences I've had in a while.

The cocktails, as everyone has said, are great. There's an extensive menu with lots of classics and new drinks, all of which are delicious. Scotty's a huge fan of the Trailer Smash but I preferred the Salt and Pepper (gin, fresh grapefruit juice, black salted rim). Service, also, was fabulous--friendly, prompt, and helpful. Plus, how can I find any fault in a bartender wearing suspenders? The suspenders go along with the very cool Art-Deco facade and homage to classic Americana vibe.

Scott had the crab salad over arugula to start and I had seared scallops over braised oxtail and risotto. The crab salad had a nice big portion of crab and was very tasty. My scallops were perfectly cooked and the flavors melded nicely. It was one of my favorite dishes of the evening.

The entrees were a different story. Scott had the chicken pot pie with seasonal lettuce. Sorry Flora, but even Marie Calendars makes a flakey bottom crust. The sauce was decent, but the chicken was dry and the crust didn't have enough butter to make fatty happy. The salad was also very unappealing. The lettuce was gorgeous but the dressing was underwhelming and relied too much on the parm grated on top.

I had the steak with kale, potatoes gratin, house made Worcestershire Sauce and horseradish cream. For $30, my steak was way too small (only about 3/4 of an inch thick!) and not properly cooked. I ordered medium rare but half of it was well-done, the other half was medium. Also the house made Worcestershire Sauce tasted like...the stuff from the bottle. Awesome. The potatoes were good, so was the kale, but nothing to really rave about.

Flora's saving grace (I was really unhappy with my steak) was the dessert. Unfortunately for me, Flora is located within a block of my new gym. I already know that I'll be canceling out every single work out with one of their caramel pudding desserts. It's basically a caramel creme brulee but instead of burnt sugar on top there is a thin layer of sea salt, topped with fresh whipped cream. Definitely one of my top five desserts of all time.

Overall, the menu seemed to lack some focus, but I'm definitely going back, and will most likely skip the entrees.

Flora is located at 1900 Telegraph Avenue at 19th Street in Oakland. Reservations can be made by calling (510) 286-0100.

They don't have a website, so here's a link to their Yelp! page: www.yelp.com/biz/flora-oakland

Water Lounge and Raw Bar, Oakland

Margaret and I went here for a drink before our table at Wood Tavern was ready. I mostly wanted to scout out the place after Scotty stopped working there. Trust me, you don't need to see this place for yourself.

It was totally overpriced, had stingy pours, and unfriendly service. The food we did have wasn't fresh and had no depth of flavor. The ceviche was rubbery and needed salt. It was obvious it had been sitting around for a while because the avocados had all oxidized.

Plus, we've all heard that the owner is super shady. I'm not going back.

Care to spite me? Water Lounge is located at 5634 College Avenue in Oakland.

Wood Tavern, Oakland

I think the only people who read this are family members but I'm going to tell you for the thousandth time: GO HERE! It's the best restaurant EVER!

This is by far the best restaurant in the East Bay, and it's my favorite restaurant of all time. Real talk. Every time I have gone, the service has been friendly, helpful, and attentive. They pace the courses properly, don't rush the patrons, and the bartender gives generous pours. I can highly recommend any of the cocktails on the menu (they change daily but are always delicious and strong).

The food is always perfectly prepared (I can't stress enough how much I care about properly cooked meat), flavorful, and has lots of depth. Despite the fact that I don't have a paycheck I continue to come back for more. My personal favorites on the menu:

-Butcher Block Sampler: Acme toast with a variety of terrines or smoked meats; the chicken liver pate is to die for, as is the prosciutto-wrapped beer-infused pork terrine.
-Roasted Balsamic Beef Marrow: "meat butter" --Scotty
-Tuna and Fennel Salad with Lemon: refreshing, tasty, with the perfect amount of acid
-Roasted Pork Belly Salad: crispy, melt-in-your-mouth tender
-Chocolate Cake: enough to split between two but you won't want to
-Southie Affogatto: Jameson with espresso ice cream and a shot of espresso
-Polenta Encrusted Halibut: it was served on a bed of sweet white corn cooked with bacon; if it's still on the menu, you must order this

Things that are great but not as good as most things on the menu:

-Seafood stew
-Salmon with leeks
-Get the burger and I will punch you in the face--I'm not kidding, I know where all of my blog readers live. This restaurant has so much to offer; don't insult it by getting a freaking burger.

I've eaten here 5 times now and each time the service has been impeccable; friendly, not intrusive, polite, and attentive with a great sense of humor. The room can get a little loud, but the ambiance is nice and the food has been consistently mind-blowingly good.

Wood Tavern is located at 6317 College Avenue in Oakland, across from the Safeway on College and Claremont.

They are open Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., and Sunday from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. They take reservations but are very accommodating to parties of two on a walk-in basis.

Phone: (510) 654-6607
Website: www.woodtavern.net

Corso, Berkeley

It's Winter Vacation and thank you family I now have some spending money, so it's time to EAT!

I really really really wanted to like this place more. I'll preface this review with the fact that I went to Corso with Scott S., my chef friend and fellow food snob, but unfortunately nothing really impressed us at Corso.

The hostess was very prompt with seating us (thank you, OpenTable!) and the waitress, who was incredibly friendly and laughed at our jokes in a relatively believable manner, recommended a great bottle of wine to go with our eclectic orders. Maybe we had too high of expectations...

We started out with the crostini trio, one of my favorite dishes of the night. One had mascarpone with tomato, another chicken liver, and the third a lobster puree. All were delicious, but a forewarning--if you order this, eat the liver one last, the flavor will linger in your mouth forever. It's great, but not when you're trying out the delicately flavored but wonderful lobster crostino.

Next we split the tripe with cannellini beans/spicy tomato broth and the papardelle with duck/olives. The papardelle was probably the best dish of the evening. The pasta was beautifully rolled and cut, and tasted very fresh. The duck sauce was also very flavorful, with extremely tender meat. The tripe was a total let-down. There were too many beans, not enough tripe, and the "broth" was more of a sauce and had no spice. Scotty has the most delicate, adorable palate when it comes to spice and even he thought it needed pepper. Post parmesean snow storm it tasted okay, but I wouldn't recommend this dish.

Then we had the pizza with funghi that everyone on Yelp has been freaking out about. This better have been an off night otherwise I am just reviewing the wrong restaurant. It's a pizza with a decent crust, but it's covered in sauteed button mushrooms. It is winter...mushroom season...and you give me BUTTON mushrooms?! For $13?!?! Please. Plus, Scotty pointed out that the center of the pizza had gotten a bit soggy; most likely because the mushrooms weren't cooked enough before being added to the pizza, so the water from them got soaked into what had been a decent crust. Ugh.

Last, we had sauteed baby spinach (still had some sand in it--not washed properly, but other than that it was obviously very fresh, good quality spinach) as well as romano beans with pancetta/hazelnuts/mint. The bean dish was actually a very unique, tasty combination, but the beans were totally over-cooked.

For dessert, Scotty had the olive oil cake and I had the poached pear with fresh whipped cream. The olive oil cake left something to be desired. It was a little muted on texture and could have used some rosemary. The poached pear was very visually appealing. They left the skin on, though. While my friend Margaret highly recommended the dish and thought it made it more rustic (I guess...), I guess I just don't really care about rustic when the skin peels off like slimey I-don't-know-what. The sauce had enough brandy for me to get wasted alone, though, so at least that was tasty. So was the pear after I peeled off the skin.

Service overall was very good--they sometimes seemed a little antsy to take our plates away which is a constant annoyance factor of mine, but other than that they paced our dishes relatively well considering how bizarre our ordering was.

At some point I might give this place another shot, but mostly the disappointment in Corso reminded me that I was cheating on my BF, Wood Tavern.

Dear Wood Tavern: I am very sorry that I went out on a date with one of your SF Chronicle food section rivals. It's just that I feel like I have to do all the work in our relationship. You're always busy, I have to take the initiative to call you, and I always have to pay. And what's with us needing to stay at your place every time? That said, I realized how well you treat me when I do call. Please take me back? Love, Kara.

Corso is located at 1788 Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley.

They now take reservations on OpenTable.com, which can be accessed via their website at www.trattoriacorso.com or by phone at (510) 704-8004.

Left Bank, Larkspur

It was my birthday a while ago. I made time to go to dinner with Andy but never enough to write about it. Chez Panisse was booked, so Andy asked around work for a good date place and came up with Left Bank, in Larkspur. I was a bit apprehensive because it's a chain restaurant...in Marin...but we went anyway.

The restaurant itself is adorable. It looks like a giant living room with a fireplace and has decorations of cute pigs everywhere. Mmm, bacon. It being in Marin, the bar was packed with bleached blonde 50-somethings with designer bags and botoxed lips, all of them drinking cosmos and lemon drops.

I myself preferred to have a diet coke with grenadine (I know, I know) while we waited for our table. Despite having a reservation, we had to wait for about ten minutes for our table. The hostess wasn't very friendly, but considering how busy the place was, we got seated relatively fast.

Being the good boyfriend to a high maintenance foodie girlfriend, Andy told me to order up. I started out with the Salade Lyonnaise, which had frisee lettuce, a poached egg, croutons, and bacon, and was dressed with a mustard vinaigrette ($8.50). Andy had the Salade Verte, which had butter lettuce, herbs, and a dijon mustard vinaigrette ($7.50).

My salad was delicious but also a recipe for a heart attack. Overall, it was a little bit greasier than I would have liked. I think that the thick-cut bacon could have been drained a little bit before being put in the salad. Because of the excess of fat, the croutons which were otherwise great, got a bit soft. But other than that, the egg was perfectly cooked and wilted the frisee just enough. Andy's salad was good; it was very basic but that's how he likes his food so it was perfect for him.

We also split Moules Florentines, which were steamed mussels in a white wine sauce with spinach ($11.75). By split, I mean that I ate all the mussels, dumped some of the shells onto Andy's plate, and he mopped up the sauce with bread. The mussels were very nicely cooked, but I think that the sauce could have had a bit thicker.

I think our server was new, too, because I had already eaten about half of the dish before he came by with those tiny little forks and plates to put our shells on. I had no problem just using my fingers, and the bread thickened up the sauce and made for another great side dish.

While not overly-impressed with my appetizers and the service, I am going to rave about my entree. Two months later, I still want to go back just to have it. While Andy ordered...wait...take a guess...steak and frites ($18.50), cooked medium-well (of course), I ordered the duck with lentils ($20.50). That duck was worth every penny.

It was cooked just enough so that the meat was juicy and the skin crispy. I got an entire half of the bird, so it was a struggle to finish everything. Even Andy liked it. The skin had a bit of a sweetness to it, almost like it had been cooked with dried cherries, but the sweetness didn't take away from the overall delicious, fatty flavor of the duck.

The lentils were just as delicious. They were cooked a bit al dente, and seemed like they had just been soaked in bacon juice. While they weren't greasy in the slightest, they contained the full flavor of smoked bacon.

I was so full at that point that I couldn't even try Andy's fries or get dessert. This is one of the best ducks I have ever had, and apparently it will only be on the restaurant's fall menu, so I need to get back there soon. Left Bank isn't a cheap place, but it's definitely worth it every once and a while.

Left Bank is located at 507 Magnolia Avenue in Larkspur. To make reservations (which I would recommend), call (415) 927-3331. I believe that the restaurant is a chain, so there are a few other locations that can be found on their website: http://www.leftbank.com/.

They are open on Sundays and Mondays from 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Tuesday through Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

Cocina Poblana, Emeryville

Cocina Poblana is a relatively new restaurant in Emeryville, on the corner of 65th and Hollis. I had passed it a bunch of times while driving from Nolo to the Women's Community Clinic. When they started advertising a happy hour, my friends Anna, Heather, and I decided we'd continue on with my unemployment celebration.

We were seated almost immediately, but it took about fifteen minutes for us to be able to order our food. To add to the wait, the hostess was unable to tell us anything about the drink selection, and when my margarita came it had a hair in it!

When we finally were able to order, Heather got the Ensalada Poblana ($7), with Romaine lettuce, a full serving of grilled chicken, avocado, Mexican cheese and black beans. Not the most exciting order ever, but Heather seemed to really like it. Plus, the portion was huge. I wasn't totally in wannabe food critic mode, so no, I did not try it. Sorry.

I ordered two appetizers, the ceviche ($8) and taquitos poblanos with beef ($6). The ceviche was made with shrimp, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and cilantro. This wasn't my favorite dish because it lacked a ton of flavor. Plus, the veggies were kind of overwhelming; when I get ceviche I want there to be a ton of seafood in it.

The taquitos, however, were out of this world. I ordered them "crispy with beef" and got three mini corn tortillas filled with stewed beef, Mexican cheese, cabbage, and salsa. The beef practically melted in my mouth and had amazing flavor. While not enough food for an entire meal, I was totally full after eating about half of the ceviche and my taquitos.

Anna also had trouble finishing her food--she got a gigantic serving of steak fajitas ($12); enough for two meals. The steak was seasoned with garlic, and garnished with all of the regular fajita fixings.

All in all, I want to go back to this place just to have that stewed beef again. The service and the ceviche leave something to be desired, but the prices and the food, overall, were great. Cocina Poblana has only been open for about a year, so I want to give them the benefit of a doubt.

Do give it a try and let me know what you think!

Cocina Poblana is conveniently located at 1320 65th Street in Emeryville. They even have breakfast, and are open from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and until 9:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Happy hour is from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

They also have a website: http://www.cocinapoblana.com/.

Fonda, Berkeley

Back by popular demand (yes, that means you, Andy McClary and Enghin Atalay!). Oh yeah, I'm also unemployed (by choice) for the next 3 months, have a ton of money saved up (thank you Aaron), and Margaret is coming back into town--which means that there are many more food reviews to come.

To celebrate my last day of work, I went out with my friend Heather (also a former Noloid). We had no idea where to eat but we wanted to feel somewhat healthy. Though not the healthiest choice in the world, I do feel better about myself when I eat small plates as opposed to a big honking hamburger; hence, we chose Fonda.

Fonda is a restaurant owned by the same group that runs Jimmy Beans (no! don't do it!), Sea Salt, Lalime's, and T-Rex. It's a "Berkeley Upscale" restaurant with a full bar that serves tapas, or small plates. I had eaten at Fonda once before when I started at Nolo and I was really impressed with their drinks and seafood. So, amping up for a new month of reviews, we headed in.

We started out with some chips, salsa, and guacamole ($6). It's simple, but the salsa is very good and the guacamole looked and tasted very fresh. The chips are even cooked up in the restaurant, and came to the table hot, crispy and salty. They make the chips out of thick corn tortillas so they have a really satisfying crunch.

To accompany our appetizers, we each got Mojitos ($9)--Heather got a ginger Mojito and mine was classic. Fonda was actually written up in the Chronicle for their cocktails, and for once I'm not arguing with them on an opinion. My Mojito was perfectly mixed, not too strong, and had a ton of fresh mint.

Next we ordered a salad, trying to be somewhat healthy. The salad was basically a Latinized Caesar, with crisp romaine, crunchy asparagus and Manchego cheese with a garlic lemon dressing ($7). It was very tasty and rather filling despite the dressing being light and citrus-based (no creamy dressing here!).

We had trouble deciding between the two seafood dishes ($13). On the lunch menu, there is a tuna tartare with avocado, or a halibut dish. Since the tuna tartare is a staple on both the menu at Fonda and at Sea Salt, we decided to go with the halibut, which is more seasonal. The halibut is served cooked with corn tortillas and grilled green onion so that we were able to make little tacos out of it. The fish looked like it would be too heavily spiced, because it was a really dark red, but it turned out to be spiced perfectly. There was a really hot salsa on the side that was too much for Heather, but I thought it added a lot to the taco.

My biggest pet peeve with fish is that it is often overcooked. Believe me, I know overcooked (boyfriend Andy!). This halibut was cooked wonderfully and flaked apart in my mouth. Because the onion was grilled, it also lent a really smokey flavor to everything.

The last dish that we ordered was the Torta Alambre ($12). My Spanish being incredibly weak I completely flubbed and didn't realize that this was a sandwich, but it ended up being pretty good. Inside a toasted and pressed roll, they had grilled skirt steak with bacon, black beans, rajas, and cheese. For tapas, it was huge, and served with more chips.

While it was good, I would say that it was my least favorite out of all the things we ordered. The steak could have been a bit more rare and sliced into smaller pieces. There could have also been a little more bacon in the sandwich. It wasn't a bad course, I just think it sounded better on the menu than it actually tasted.

Very very full at this point, Heather and I took a dive and decided to order dessert as well. I ordered the sliced mango with lime ($6) and Heather ordered the tamarind creme brulee ($7). I'm usually very nervous about ordering fruit at upscale restaurants because I pretty much know that I'm going to get ripped off. However, yesterday it was hot outside and I had already drank two Mojitos, so I was game for anything. Fortunately, they did anything but rip me off with the mango. We received an entire pint glass that was overfilled with juicy, sweet strips of mango with a hint of lime. Considering how expensive mangoes were the other day when I went to the grocery store, I'd say we got our money's worth. There were at least two to three mangoes stuffed into the glass.

The creme brulee was also great. It had a really nice orange rind flavor to it and a beautiful, thick sugar crust on top. The custard inside was not overly sweet which is a common issue with creme brulee. It was served with pie-crust cookies.

Heather and I both had to roll out of our booth because we were so full. The grand total was $90. Keeping in mind that $40 of that was for drinks, I think that we got a great value for our lunch. Plus, I didn't need to eat dinner after such a huge meal.

I'd definitely recommend this place for a good night out. The atmosphere is really nice, the service is relaxed and the food is tasty.

If you want to try Fonda, they are located at 1501 Solano Avenue in Albany. For reservations, call (510) 559-9006. They also have a website: www.fondasolana.com.

T-Rex BBQ, Berkeley

I've been here quite a few times now, ever since I found out that my friend Kete is an investor. T-Rex is owned by the same group who created Lalime's, Sea Salt, Fonda, and Jimmy Beans. For some reason I felt like pigging out on Tuesday night (this is after eating Picante AND Crixa Cakes in the same day...what can I say, the A's lost and I'm an emotional eater), so I dragged Andy to go get some BBQ (or not...).

Sorry Catherine, I don't go for the BBQ despite the place having barbecue in their name. I've had the ribs before with my friend Margaret and I wasn't impressed--$16 for a half rack of dry pork ribs with not enough sauce (which was mild even though we ordered hot). For ribs, go to Everette and Jones (or Doug's, per Catherine) to get way more meat that is way better.

Anyway, I go to T-Rex because I love their sides. The mac and cheese is usually really good and so are the greens. I love getting the cornbread for dessert (a huge slice of delicious cornbread soaked in maple syrup) but after Crixa Cakes, nothing can really compete. I ordered the mac and cheese and the kale. Andy got the brisket sandwich sans horseradish sauce. We also got the spicy drumsticks appetizer.

One thing I that has always impressed me at T-Rex and the other restaurants owned by this group is the service. Everyone is always friendly and laid back, and I've never had a bad waiter. Tuesday was no different. The food on the other hand, at T-Rex and Sea Salt, is inconsistent. I've had some amazing meals at both, but sometimes the chefs are not on their best game. I don't want to make too much of a generalization with this though because the majority of the time, especially at Sea Salt, the food is great. This review is about T-Rex though, so I'm going to move on.

The drumsticks came first. They were garnished with some lettuce, radishes, celery and apple with a little cup of bleu cheese dressing. The bleu cheese was good, and the drumsticks, though not spicy, were really good. The chicken was tender and tasted like it had been smoked all day and covered in bacon. Mmmm.

Then, our regular food came. I wasn't able to eat as much as I originally thought (thanks to Crixa Cakes), but my depression about the A's was mounting so I dug in. The mac and cheese at T-Rex is usually amazing. The mix of cheeses is so good that even I like it (I hate cheese--I know, it's weird.). The only complaint was that it is usually cooked longer to get a better browned crunchy texture on top. Flash forward to now, as I sit in front of my recently reheated leftovers of the mac and cheese, I have one more complaint. I reheated it in the microwave (probably not the best idea, but I'm at work), and there is now a puddle of melted butter sitting in my cardboard take-out container. Not too appealing. I drained my mac and cheese in the sink and now it tastes fine, but it still could be more crunchy. Grr. My recommendation: eat all of your mac and cheese at T-Rex so you don't see how much butter they put in it.

The kale was also good, but again too oily. Last time I remember having veggies at T-Rex, they were cooked really well and tasted a lot lighter. This time, the kale came with little squares of what I think were roasted yams, which were very tasty, but the kale itself was too oily. My Auntie Carolyn's greens are wayyyyy better than this, so maybe I have high standards, but honestly the greens were just dripping in oil.

Andy's brisket sandwich looked really good, but he scraped off all of the horseradish sauce that the waitress mistakenly brought which disappointed me. I didn't try any because I was too immersed in my mac and cheese, but he said it was good. He wasn't thrilled with the cole slaw on the side--he said they didn't put enough flavor in it, but that the potato salad was decent. He also had some pilsner (sorry I don't know my beers, nor can I hold them--I'm part Asian!), that he said was good...They have a huge selection of beers, wines and specialty drinks at T-Rex which look awesome but I was not in the mood to drink. Sorry, I know to be a food critic I should be trying everything but this is why this is a free blog that I'm doing while I'm bored at work thank you very much.

Long story short, this meal was okay. I've had a lot better at T-Rex, so I don't want to discount the place. But if you are in the mood for ribs, remember what I said before--go to Everette and Jones; T-Rex is overpriced for those. For sides, T-Rex is usually really good and I always go home full, regardless of whether or not I had Crixa Cakes beforehand. I know from this review they don't sound that great, but I know I'm going to go back there eventually...I think I was just there on a bad night considering my previous experiences.

There also has to be some credit for the ambiance at T-Rex. It's a really fun place to go with friends, either to the bar or you can eat upstairs--they have couches that are great for lounging at eating appetizers (which are the highlight of their menu anyway). Thanks everyone for your comments on my blog so far, keep 'em coming!

T-Rex is open Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (bar until 10:30 p.m.); Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. (bar until midnight); Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. (bar until midnight); and Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (bar until 10:30 p.m.).

They are located at 1300 Tenth Street (at Gilman) in Berkeley, CA 94710.
Phone: (510) 527-0099

Website: www.t-rex-bbq.com