Restaurant Rating
We recently finished up our culinary tour of Germany in the Summer of 2012. It was interesting to see how authentic German food and restaurants in Munich compare to the ones we have in the San Francisco Bay Area. Below are several Munich restaurants we dined at. See our Tantris Review for a two Michelin Star Munich Restaurant.
Wirtshaus In Der Au
Why did we dine here? – Tantris was designed to be exotic and different. This restaurant has two Michelin stars (the only one in Munich) and stands out from the crowd with its crazy decor. We wanted to eat here as a fine dining contrast to all the meaty and loud restaurants we ate at. Check out our other Munich restaurant reviews.
Why did we dine here? – Brown Sugar Kitchen is run by Tanya Holland, who draws upon her African-American heritage and her formal culinary training from France. This restaurant is located in an industrial part of Oakland, not far from Emeryville. We happened to be in the area and had this legendary place on our hit list. Our meal was for lunch on a weekday, so the wait was short. This place is packed during the weekends for breakfast.
The Restaurant at Meadowood is the other 3 Michelin Star restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area. Everybody knows about French Laundry. This restaurant has long been at the top of our Must Visit list. We finally found a good excuse, a special occasion nonetheless, so we blocked off an evening to drive up to this lovely location.
Why did we dine here? – Crown Princess is a top rated Chinese restaurant in Downtown Toronto. We were here for a couple of days and wanted to try several Chinese restaurants to see how they compared to the ones back in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Why did we dine here? – Grand Chinese Cuisine is a Chinese restaurant located almost next to Toronto’s International Airport. This convenient location made it a no brainer for a quick dinner before our flight.
Wakuriya is a Michelin Starred Restaurant in a San Mateo strip mall. They’ve been around for several years and have established themselves as one of the finest Japanese restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area. The owner and chef Katsuhiro Yamasaki used to work at Kaygetsu (a now closed Japanese Fine dining restaurant). His wife also helps to run this tiny restaurant. You need to book roughly one month in advance as this restaurant only has 4 tables and a small counter.
Twenty Five Lusk – 25 Lusk is a long-awaited and hot restaurant from an All-Star team that opened in the middle of October, 2010. Tucked away in an alley, this place will draw much walk-in traffic! They serve “sophisticated, contemporary, approachable fine dining specializing in neoclassical-influenced cuisine”, which probably means locally inspired California cuisine. Our last visit was in 2012.
Opened in 2004, A16 has since been present on many top Italian restaurant lists. It is a very popular restaurant in the Marina district, with prime time reservations needing to be booked a week or two in advance. This restaurant is serious about wine and pairing. Our last visit was in the summer of 2012.
Ad Hoc at Home – This book is full of Thomas Keller’s insights from Ad hoc.
Be sure to check out the French Laundry Cookbook
Why did we dine here? – All Spice is one of the highest rated restaurants on Yelp (4.5 stars) within the San Francisco Peninsula. We’ve heard good things about this restaurant. A recent review on Check Please reminded us. Their unlucky but cozy mini Victorian location just off El Camino Real has housed The Dining Room, Dolly Marie, among others. This restaurant focuses on seasonal food along with the traditions of Indian cuisine.
Why did we dine here? – Redd Wood is the sister restaurant to Michelin-starred Redd in foodie heaven, Yountville. We love Redd, so we were just waiting for our next visit to this area for an opportunity to dine here. Redd is one of those top notch places that falls below the radar of many folks. This restaurant is located in the northern part of Yountville, not far from the French Laundry.
Why did we dine here? – Press is a Steak House in St. Helena that has received positive press from Michael Bauer. We were nearby and decided to give this beautiful restaurant a visit for dinner. A surprising mainstream change from the California cuisine that we normally have, at a place like Terra..! This restaurant is situated next door to foodie heaven, Dean and DeLuca.
Make sure visit them before coming here for dinner.
Why did we dine here? – Orenchi is a very popular Japanese Noodle House that has been on our hit list for a while. They are a sister restuarant to Sumika in Los Gatos. The broth that they use is cooked for a minimum of 18 hours. It is made with organic chicken, Canadian black pork, and filtered water. There is a line much of the time. We had to wait approximately 45 minutes for a Saturday night dinner. They close up when they run out of broth, which happened about 8:30pm on this particular evening.
Why did we dine here? – Soowon Galbi is a popular Korean restaurant in LA and one of the highest rated on Yelp at 4.5 stars. It is located right in the heart of Korea town, in a nondescript strip mall. LA is renown for some of the best Korean food in the US, so we had to give this restaurant a visit. We had previously dined at Genwa Korean in Los Angeles and wanted to see how this place compared.
Why did we dine here? – Providence is a seafood restaurant run by chef, Michael Cimarusti. It has been top rated and focuses on seafood in its purest and simplest form. Located in Patina’s formerly digs, this restaurant was our fine dining destination on our recent trip to LA.
The modern decor features an ocean theme with barnacles and fins hugging the walls. 2 Michelin Stars in 2009.
Gioia is a top rated Pizza place in North Berkeley. It has been there since 2004. As they put it: “Gioia Pizzeria takes the best of pizza traditions from the old world and the new. Classic flavors and ingredients such as artisanally made sausage, fresh mozzarella cheese and arugula come together in inspired traditional ways, seasoned with the influence of Bay Area kitchens such as Zuni Café, Chez Panisse and Oliveto” Gioia is a small hole in the wall with minimal counter seating. The place specializes in thin crust pizza and is known for local, organic ingredients. It was rated as a top pizza place by Michael Bauer. Our last visit was in late 2011 and we noticed prices had gone up. Their San Francisco location opened in 2012, we dined here in May 2012. It is located right next door to burger heaven, Polkers.
Why did we dine here? – Genwa Korean BBQ is a popular Korean restaurant in LA’s Mid-Wilshire District and one of the highest rated on Yelp at 4.5 stars. It is located in a new housing complex, not far from Koreatown. LA renown for some of the best Korean food in the US, so we had to give this restaurant a visit. They were remodeling next door when we dined in 2012.
Why did we dine here? – We were on vacation in Pismo Beach and found some positive buzz for Ventana Grill. It is located right by the water with killer views of the Ocean, especially during sunset.
Why did we dine here? – Koi Garden also known as Koi Palace at Dublin is the East Bay outpost for Koi Palace, arguably the best Chinese restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area. We were in the area and had to give this Chinese restaurant a try. This restaurant is located in an Asian-focused strip mall. They also run Just Koi downstairs, a casual Chinese noodle restaurant.
Why did we dine here? – Newport Tan Cang is a Vietnamese-Chinese restaurant located in San Gabriel. This restaurant is highly rated on Yelp and is listed on the top Chinese restaurant of the USA list. We were recently in southern California and wanted to try some of the better restaurants and had this place on our short list.
Why did we dine here? – Bar Tartine has been on our hit list ever since Mr. Bauer extolled the virtues of this restaurant a couple weeks back. We are big fans of the sister location, Tartine Bakery. There haven’t been many new Hungarian, Eastern European restaurants lately, so this was a refreshing change of pace from another California cuisine restaurant. Chef Nicolaus Balla took over in January 2011 and has moved Bar Tartine forward. The restaurant is loud and interior decor rough, but the food is exciting.
Aziza is a former one Michelin star restaurant in San Francisco’s sleepy Richmond district run by executive chef Mourad Lahlou. They focus on organic, local, and sustainable ingredients. His modern reinventions of traditional Moroccan dishes has garnered him much acclaim. We first dined here in 2012 and have been to his now closed restaurant Mourad.
Sons and Daughters is a One Michelin star restaurant run by young chef/owners Matt McNamara and Teague Moriarty. (Gregoire) They have a 1 acre garden in Los Gatos that yields fresh produce and herbs.
Atelier Crenn is a one Michelin star French restaurant from Dominique Crenn (Formerly of Luce) located in San Francisco’s Marina District. (Atelier means workshop in French.) As she puts it, “An expression of taste, scent, and vision.” Seasonal and sustainable cuisine. We have been debating whether to dine here for a while. Our worries were whether this place was more style or substance. Some of the pictures of the dishes here looked too beautiful to eat!
Why did we dine here? – Great China is a popular Chinese restaurant in Berkeley right near UC Berkeley. A friend recommended this restaurant to us and Great China has been rated highly in Zagat’s.
Why did we dine here? – Kunjip is a top rated Korean restaurant in Santa Clara, situated in a Korean focused strip mall. They focus on soups and noodles, no BBQ unlike most other places.
Why did we dine here? – Tobang is located next door to the Korean restaurant Kunjip in a Santa Clara strip mall full of Korean merchants. We had enough soup and noodles there, and wanted some Korean BBQ.
Shenzhen Citizen Center Restaurant is a restaurant located underneath the ultra modern Shenzhen Citizen Center. This restaurant caters to Government officials and may not be open to the public. We were lucky enough to be invited by a friend and dined in a private VIP room. The food here was extra-ordinary when compared to Chinese food back in the San Francisco Bay Area. The service was very good as a waitress was assigned to our private room. Be sure to check out our review of Fu Gow in Shenzhen.
Shanghai Restaurant is a Shanghainese Chinese Restaurant in the Cupertino village shopping center, replacing the popular HC Dumpling restaurant. They have the usual Chinese dishes along with a fair amount of Traditional Shanghai dishes not served in most restaurants. Our last visit was December 2012.
We had dined at Chez Panisse Cafe almost 3 years ago.. Our last visit to the Main restaurant was decades ago. Tons of restaurants have come and gone since they opened over 30 years ago. It was time to see how Chez Panisse has stood the test of time.
Why did we dine here? – Cottonwood is one of the chief rivals of Moody’s in Truckee. We have dined so many times at their adversary, we decided it was time to try something new.
Sushi Sam’s is a popular Japanese restaurant in downtown San Mateo. We have considered them and Hotaru as the 2 best Japanese restaurants in this area that seems to have a Japanese restaurant on every block. There is a large Japanese and Asian population in this area. Our last visit was in January 2012.
Gialina Pizzeria is a small pizzeria named after the chef-owner’s grandmother. It is opened in January 2007 and is located in San Francisco’s Glen Park neighborhood right near BART. Chef Sharon Ardiana has help positions at well respected places including Lime, Dine, Garibaldis, Slow Club, and Boulevard. Her next restaurant, Ragazza in the Metro Kathmandu space on Divisadero, is their sister restaurant.
Buck’s is a quirky restaurant nestled in the small town of Woodside. The interior is full of off the wall models, toys, posters, and more. Even the front of the seasonal menu has a lecture on different topics. Their website is pretty crazy. Our last visit was in 2014. They have a separate lunch special menu that changes from time to time. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We came for lunch.
Nanling Restaurant in the French Concession is a restaurant in Shanghai, China serving Huaiyang cuisine, famous for its carving techniques using specialty knives. Nanling also serves Yangzhou specialties, including lots of fresh seafood dishes and the signature dish, roast duck. Interesting Asian art hugs the walls. Our excellent US$50 meal could feed six people or more. After dinner, hit one of the many bars down the block.
Subway: Hengshan Road Station
Why did we dine here? – La Costanera received One Michelin Star for 2012, raising the restaurant’s profile and putting it on our hit list. They focus on Peruvian cuisine and are located above the beach in Montara in a nice multi level building that housed The Chart House.
Joël Robuchon is a Haute Cuisine French Restaurant located in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. It was opened in 2006 and is the US outlet for most Michelin Starred Restaurateur in the word, Joël Robuchon. This Las Vegas location received 3 Michelin Stars in 2008 and 2009. A separate review is available for the lower cost restaurant next door, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon.
Wow, one of the top molecular gastronomy restaurants in the USA… é by José Andrés is a mysterious restaurant in the Cosmopolitan Hotel, Las Vegas that doesn’t even have a phone number. They take reservations by email ([email protected]) 30 days in advance for one of the 8 spots of counter seating. Seating are at 5:30PM and 8:30PM, meals typically last 2 hours. After you make a successful reservation they will send you a Golden Ticket in the mail.
Manzanita Lake Tahoe is the new restaurant by Traci Des Jardins in the posh Ritz Carlton Highlands at Northstar Lake Tahoe. It opened in Decemeber 2009. Rooms here start at $350 a night. She is best known for Jardinière and Mijita Cocina Mexicana in San Francisco. Manzanita serves French inspired California cuisine with a focus on organic, sustainable, seasonal ingredients. Free valet parking for dinner guests. Our last visit was in early 2012 where we found prices had increased significantly.
Poggio is an Italian trattoria Restaurant situated in the Casa Madrona Hotel, right on the main touristy street of Sausalito. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They focus on Northern Italian cuisine using local ingredients, sustainable products, and property-grown organic herbs and vegetables. The founder Larry Mindel has a long history with restaurants including Ciao, Prego, and Il Fornaio. Peter McNee is the executive chef. Our last visit was at the beginning of 2012.
Why did we dine here? – Parallel 37 is the new restaurant from Chef Ron Siegel in the Ritz Carlton San Francisco. This restaurant replaces the fine dining establishment known as the “Dining Room”. This new more casual eatery should attract a more mainstream audience.
We were fans of the chef and came for a visit shortly after they opened. Parallel 37 focuses on contemporary American cuisine utilizing the freshest, local ingredients available.
Parallel 37 is a hotel restaurant, so you’ll see families in addition to the regular fine-dining crowd.
