AMERICAN
Bistro 1491 (Albany)
Bongo Burger – what to order: burger (duh!)
Cafe Rouge – what to order: NOTHING! Stay away from this place.
FIVE Restaurant and Bar – what to order: roasted bone marrow
Gather – what to order: vegan “charcuterie”
— first visit
— second visit
Herbivore the Earthly Grill (all vegan) – what to order: ollalie berry pie, rhubarb pie
Jodie’s (Albany) – what to order: grits and bacon, pancakes are excellent too! EVERYTHING is good here.
Nation’s Giant Hamburger (the Greater Bay Area)
Revival – what to order: anything vegetables and/or fruits
— just desserts
UCafe (bakery) – what to order: avocado smoothie! UPDATE: this place is closed 🙁
Venus
Zut! – what to order: desserts!
CHINESE
99 Ranch Market’s Bakery (Richmond)
China Village (Albany) – what to order: pork shoulder
Renee’s Place (Albany) – what to order: NOTHING!
Sheng Kee Bakery (Taiwanese bakery) (Richmond)
Taiwan Restaurant – what to order: pickled cabbage soup with tripe
DESSERT
Crixa Cakes – what to order: Boston cream pie and poppyseed rugelach
Ici – what to order: ANY ice cream to your heart’s content
Comparison post: Masse’s Pastries vs. Reuschelle’s Cheesecake
FRENCH
Bistro Liaison – what to order: seared pork loin
Crepes A-Go-Go
Grégoire – what to order: grilled seitan sandwich
La Bedaine – what to order: smoked salmon on baguette
La Note – what to order: frankly I’m not impressed by this restaurant at all to recommend anything here.
HAWAIIAN
Wiki Wiki Hawaiian BBQ – what to order: teriyaki pork chop, loco moco
INDIAN
Biryani House – what to order: chicken tikka masala
Himalayan Flavors (Indian and Nepalese) – what to order: mango kulfi
ITALIAN
Corso – what to order: NOTHING! Do NOT go here.
JAPANESE
Anzu – what to order: any Americanized sushi rolls
— first visit
— second visit
— sushi
Cha-Ya – what to order: vegan chocolate cake
Ippuku – what to order: EVERYTHING! (to be fair, I strongly recommend the chicken liver, squid ink fried rice and black sesame ice cream)
Iyasare
Kaze – what to order: tonkotsu ramen with gyoza
Kiraku – what to order: corn tempura, lotus root chips, Kiraku ribs
Miyuki
Musashi – what to order: gyutan (grilled beef tongue)
O Chamé – what to order: grilled caramelized eel – UPDATE (Nov 2013): this restaurant is closed and replaced by Iyasare.
So Oishi – what to order: ramen burger – UPDATE (February 2015): this place has been closed
Sushi California – what to order: 49’er roll, black seaweed salad, purple sweet potato korokke
Sushi Ko
— sashimi
— uni (sea urchin roe) sushi
KOREAN
Berkel Berkel
— first visit
— second visit
Now changed to: 1a. Cho Korean BBQ. UPDATE (August 2011): it has changed to a vegi house. UPDATE (March 2012): it was gone in a fire, and it is still an empty lot of debris at the moment. UPDATE (November 2013): It is now So Oishi.
Crunch – what to order: tteokbokki
MEXICAN
Tacubaya – what to order: taco al pastor, torta al pastor
MIDDLE EASTERN
Alborz
Azerbaijan Cuisine [CLOSED]
Razan’s Organic Kitchen
PIZZA
VIETNAMESE
Ánh Hồng – what to order: bo nuong sa (lemongrass grilled beef sausage) and bo mo chai (fat-wrapped beef sausage)
Le Petit Cheval – what to order: only go here if you want food ready in 5 minutes, otherwise it’s not worth it.
Le Regal – what to order: banh hoi with grilled meat
— fried rice and bánh hỏi
— cá kho tộ (claypot fish)
— phở
Phở Hòa [CLOSED, now changed to Toss]
Saigon Express – what to order: another cheap place that I don’t recommend. UPDATE (Dec 9, 2015): order the clay pot rice with beef
Vanessa’s Bistro – what to order: beef carpaccio
OTHER SOUTHEAST ASIAN
Da Nang Krungthep Thai Cuisine
Dara Lao Thai Cuisine – what to order: sticky rice roll, mordin
Jayakarta – what to order: ayam kalasan (roasted chicken with palm sugar), mi goreng (fried rice noodle) and pangsit kuah (chicken wonton soup)
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