Starting the new year with some curries.

Sa Wad Dee is one of those cliched hole in the wall restaurant that seemed to be there forever. A no-frills Thai restaurant that is centrally located in busy San Pablo Avenue in Richmond, a few blocks from the El Cerrito Del Norte BART.

For the first dining out experience of 2014, it was Thai for lunch. A New Year's Day dining tradition that we started a few years ago that was initially composed of 5 people. As the years went on, there had been additions and subtractions to the members of the group.

This year there were 5 of us for lunch this year. The hubs is the one assigned to select the restaurant this year. We've thought about it for a half day and the choices boiled down to Mexican cuisine versus Thai cuisine. I think the reason behind the loss of Mexican cuisine is that the hubs is tired of the cuisine and he's afraid I'd fill up on the chips and dips. Well he's right of course.

It makes me happy to see small restaurants stay in business for long. Not an easy feat considering the Bay Area is full of many good restaurants. So I reckon Sa Wad Dee (a Thai greeting) is doing something right.

AMBIANCE:

The small restaurant is split in two set ups. The right side is where the traditional Thai seating is located. People sit on the floor with cushion to sit on. The left side is a regular booth and tables set-up. We chose to sit on the floor in the traditional Thai setting. The interiors is decorated with a few items/statues of Thai culture. Nothing fancy.

SERVICE:

Personally I felt it was a tad slow considering the restaurant wasn't full at that time. In fact at one time there were about 4 tables of diners at most including us. However, the wait staff is friendly, but not too chatty as well.

FOOD:

Since there were 5 of us, we ordered 5 different items to be shared. The order size is large enough for two people, or three people with bird appetites. In addition to the 5 items, we also asked for a side order of steamed rice (then ordered a second one later on).

Fried Tofu - appetizer - served with sweet chili sauce and cucumber salad. The crispy tofu was so good. One order is big enough for five people.



Potak - soup - sour soup similar to the Filipino sinigang. It came with mixed seafood. The broth was very comforting, it's something that would be perfect on cold days. A hit with everybody, just like the fried tofu.



Pumpkin Red Curry with chicken - on the special's menu. A tad sweet but the otherwise very good. Except that personally, I am not fond of curries in general. I find them way too sweet for my taste buds. Also a hit with everyone else.



Tofu Green Curry - a hit with everyone, especially me. I enjoy the green curry better than the red or the yellow curry. Less sweet than the red curry in my opinion.



Mung Sa Virut - stir fried noodles with black mushrooms and vegetables. Very tasty and flavorful. Someone in the group thought it could use more mushrooms, which I seconded.



Fried Banana and coconut ice cream - a perfect dessert. We ordered only one because we were all too full from all the curries. This one was the bomb. I loved the coconut ice cream, really perfect with the fried banana.



Including tip, each diner's share of the bill was $16.00.

(Photos courtesy of cell phone.)

The heat, the bridge and a little wine tasting.

In short, a little update.

Last week was all hot and humid, and by the end of the week it was still hot and no longer humid. Thank heavens for little mercies.

It was too hot to do anything on Saturday, so after driving mom to her errands I watched some movies on tv. There was a weekend marathon of Harry Potter, which ABC Family channel has periodically throughout the year. Each time, I find myself rewatching the movies over and over.

On Saturday afternoon they were showing the Sorcerer's Stone, the first one, my fave of all. When ABC does a marathon, they usually skip the first movie, for reasons I don't understand. As a fan of the movies, it gives me a kick to see the characters again when they were very young and cute.

Even the hubby who dislikes staying home on the weekends sat and read newspapers and whatnot. I didn't realize that he had plans later in the day.

We drove off at quarter to 5. Unbeknownst to me we were meeting up with his carpool buddy and his wife and we'd have a walk to the new bridge date.

When we got there, the hubby called him and he was already walking on the trail about 10 minutes ahead of us. We encountered heavy traffic, that's why it was 5:30 by the time we were starting our walk.

The path/trail starts just outside of Ikea in Emeryville and winds under freeway and beside freeway lanes. The path was well paved and very popular. We had many companions walking that afternoon; many more pedalling ahead.

Then we reached a point where we could see where the path would curve and apparently that's where the beginning of the bridge path is, but it was already closed. The sign that says dusk to dawn at the beginning of the trail meant something. At 6:00 pm for now the trail is closed for pedestrian. Bikers have no restrictions. We heard that later on they would make the trail accessible 24/7.

Sigh! From Ikea to the bridge is 2 miles, very doable. Not difficult at all. We'll try again someday.

When we got back to the parking lot, we both decided to browse at Ikea, while the other couple decided to grab a yogurt and go. We stayed and I was most tempted to buy something, but since hubby was with me (and the thought of long lines for paying) it was easier to resist the urge to spend.

Spend we did however for food as we were quite hungry. We split a meal of chicken tenders and fries. All I want is fries anyway, been craving for them lately.

By the time we finished eating, we were hoping the traffic to the city would ease up a bit so we could do our mandatory first drive over the new span thing. Thankfully despite all the traffic, we were able to cross the beautiful span in less time than what I feared. After all, it's past 7 PM.

Since we crossed the bridge anyway, we might as well go to Embarcadero and take photos. We found parking easily and snapped a few shots. Afterwards we took a short detour to Treasure Island for more shooting. Hubby did the shooting. I was using my smart phone, he brought his camera.

We got home nearly 10 pm, and the house was still hot.

Sunday was going to be in the 90s here; but we weren't going to be home all day. Our friends invited us to a wine tasting in Napa; and we told them we're taking them for early dinner once the wine tasting was over.

Napa was hot, but it was beautiful, as always.

Our first order of business was light lunch so that we won't be tasting in empty stomach. Our friend found this Mexican grocery store with a little taqueria at the back. Their specialty is carne asada so the hubs and I split a super carne asada quesadilla, while our friends split a carne asada burito. It was a good spot for these dishes. Affordable too. We ate at a picnic table behind the store with views of the vineyard. So very Napa valley!

We went to 2 different wineries for wine tasting. On the first one, where we have reservations, we took our time and sampled about 6 wines. I like only 2 of them. We sat in the garden underneath the umbrella and have fans on us; it was a hot day, but the garden seating was inviting. I didn't melt, although I was sweating like a pig.

The second winery was all spur of the moment. We finished tasting at the first winery and found that we had so much time to kill before the restaurant would open. Our friends like this second winery and they have been tasting here for years. The good thing about it also is that the tastings are free. So few of the wineries nowadays offer free tastings. I begged off this time, but when it was time to taste the port, hubby just had to make me sip. Glad he did, because it was a good port. It's the best wine I've tasted that day (not including the wine we brought for dinner).

Another stop we made was at Dean and Deluca, a gourmet food store. I really like browsing here and tasting. We left empty handed.

We arrive at the downtown area with plenty of time to go before the restaurant opens for dinner service, so we walked around the riverfront, giving tour to our friends who often visit Napa but don't come to this side of the city. We browsed at stores, enjoyed the gardens, photographed the tile mural and then it was time to eat.

Zuzu was our choice. We wanted to have them taste and see what they think. Overall we had about 11 or 12 small plates including the desserts. Rioja was the bottle that hubby brought with our dinner, and it's one of my favorites. The meal was satisfying. You know what they say, good food good friends good life. It was a good day to spend in Napa Valley with friends.

Oh, I think the temperature is going south starting Tuesday. Hey Autumn, aren't you coming in yet?

Let me tell you......

........about this new restaurant that I discovered last Sunday. It serves Vietnamese cuisine (yum) and is decorated by items/tools that the Vietnamese use for fishing and farming, or in their daily life. The restaurant also has high ceilings with exposed beams and a sunroof at the center. It's a big restaurant, and the tables are set a good distance from each other.

Gay took us out to Nong Thon on Sunday. She's been getting adventurous gastronomically in her advancing years, which I really applaud. When she phoned us she mentioned she's taking us to a Thai restaurant. We said okay, let's see what's going on in here. Several months ago we introduced her to Vietnamese cuisine via banh mi and spring roll. We thought that those two dishes would be the best for her to get acquianted with Vietnamese food. She loved it!!! So much so that she took one of her girlfriends out to eat at the Vietnamese hole in the wall that we recommended.

And so when she said Thai food we were thinking she was really getting adventurous. She just got to know Vietnamese now she's venturing into Thai cuisine on her own.

Anyway, the hubs and I were suprised that the restaurant was not Thai but Vietnamese and that it was in the same spot where a coffee house called CENTRAL PERK (yah, you Friends fans would recognize the name) used to be at the corner of Central and San Pablo.

We enjoyed the food of course. I love Vietnamese food and I shied away from my regular pho instead opted for a vermicelli bun. The hubs ordered the same thing.

I could not wait to go back here. I was talking about the restaurant nonstop for days after we ate there and then a colleague of hubs called to say she wanted to talk to him. They're bummed about seeing one of their co-worker lying in ICU after deterioting so rapidly after a diagnosis of Lou Gehrig's disease.

So the hubby made arrangements to meet with her at that same Vietnamese restaurant next week. Yay, I am going back there. I can't wait.

Happy Easter everyone!

A First For Me

Tuesday last week after work a group of us - 10 in total - armed with Travel Zoo dining vouchers carpooled in 2 cars and faced the maddening commute to the city to dine at E&O Trading Co. Along the way one of us called the restaurant to tell them that we were running late, but we were already on the bridge and if they could hold the reservations for us.  I thought that was too much, it was a Tuesday night after all and the whole region is wet.  Who would go out to dine under such circumstances?

Apparently a lot of people go out on rainy Tuesdays to eat out in the city as the restaurant was full!

The dinner was full of laughter and good food and fun company.  Good food did I say?  It was great eating was had by all.  Our voucher (thanks to TravelZoo) allowed us to have one pomegranite margarita, 2 appetizers and one entree.  And since there were 10 of us, we shared in all the food.  We were full.  Without Travel Zoo vouchers, our grand total for dinner was $1001.32.  With Travel Zoo we paid $48 per person including the voucher and the tax and the 18% gratuity.  Not bad.  Will go back there someday.  Menu is here in case you wanted to see.

Anyway after we got seated, handed the menu and got our drinks ordered, here came the waitress.  And guess what?  She spilled the pomegranite margarita all over my right side of the body.  I was wearing a thin cotton light mint green shirt that was part of my NYC trip souvenir (shh, I got it for $4.99)  and the shirt became green and red spotted shirt :(. 

I was too stunned to do anything.  The waitress was sorry.  I on the other hand was quite nonchalant about the whole thing.  After all, shit happens right?  Unfortunately that night, it happened to me.  The shirt dried before the appetizers came in, it was a thin cotton material after all.  I was only worried that the shirt was ruined, it is after all my fave one  - I wore it in Europe. 

But the minute we got home, I sprayed some stain remover and soaked it in color free bleach detergent.  The stain just disappeared so I'm happy  now.

Have you had any similar experiences while dining out?

Post B/day Ramblings

Two posts down I mentioned my birthday wishes. Wishes that I knew wouldn't happen, materialize or be fulfilled. It's still nice to jot them down, in case I'll find myself with enough extra cash to splurge on myself.

What you should know is that my husband and I made a pact when we got married that we will refrain from giving each other gifts on our b/days, Christmas, anniversary, and Valentines.

Instead, we will plan a get-away or a vacation, or go out on a day out with meal and movie included.

That way we both can enjoy the day. We both thought that anything material will be another clutter to add to the ones already gathering dust in the house. Don't you agree.

Although, a month before my b/day, we went to a one-week getaway in Cancun, which we both agreed is my birthday treat this year.

However, we also picked up another point and shoot (still no budget for Canon) that would be good for photographing food. You see we have been frustrated with our cameras. They take lousy food pics and the subdued lighting in restaurants don't help any. I wonder how the photobloggers take those lovely food pics.

I had a three-day b/day weekend! On Friday, which was the b/day, we went out for a day long drive to the Sonoma Coast and visited Fort Ross and Salt Point State Park, enjoyed the waves at Grestle Cove where the tide pools were a joy to watch and photograph. Also went to hike Anderson Redwoods State Park - imagine hitting three state parks in one day. That was lovely and a stop at Cafe Bazaar for a quick caffeine jolt.

We didn't need any other sustenance because earlier that day we had a heavy filling breakfast at Sukie's a local dive next town that's been there forever.

And on Sunday, we took in a movie "Inception", which was a fantastic movie. I will try to create a review of sorts on this movie.

Additionally, my sushi craving was satisfied with a meal at Happy Sashimi, another local fave, although their prices are a bit on the high side, but the quality of sushi, sashimi and especially the Hennessey chocolate mocha mousse for dessert were the best.

Thank you, I had the best time. I am tired though. I could use another three-day weekend just to recuperate.

Man Versus Food

Have you heard of "Man Versus Food"? That Travel Channel reality series hosted by Adam Richman where he goes to different American cities to take on the challenge - outrageously massive amount of food to be consumed within a specific time period?

Well out here in the wonderful foodie town of San Francisco, a Vietnamese restaurant has thrown down the challenge to anyone who can down a 4-lb pho (Vietnamese soup). It's called The PHO GARDEN CHALLENGE.

Click on the link of Pho Garden Challenge to make you understand this competetive eating.

So today, September 26, my wonderful husband and his daring co-workers set out to take on the challenge. Five of them signed up for the challenge. The object of the challenge is to finish all the noodles and the meat within one hour. Check the webside of Pho Garden to see how big the bowl is. Just the bowl size is pretty intimidating. However, the 4-lb pho hits about midway thru the bowl.

Almost every table has someone taking the challenge. I think our table has the most aspirants. Five. While they were gulping down massive amount of rice noodles, tripe, beef, etc. we (me and others who did not take the challenge) were eating and taking pictures. I ordered just an appetizer because I simply couldn't take in food while watching these guys stuff themselves.

Once the bowl is halfway gone, you can ask the waiters/waitress to transfer the left-over to a smaller bowl. What this accomplishes is it drains out the liquid. You dont really want the noodles to keep on soaking in the liquid because then the noodles get fatter and it's harder to eat, you get full too quickly. One of the guys on our table kept complaining that he got 3-lb of noodles instead of 2. No need to finish the soup.

And guess what? My dear husband finished his bowl. Yay! His mug will be gracing their wall of fame where photos of successful eaters are displayed. Another one finished on our table. The entire restaurant clapped when husband finished. No one else from the other tables finish. Not when we were there. It was a challenge just to see husband suffering from overeating. He did not have any thing to eat. If you finish the bowl, your $22-dollar pho is free; otherwise pony up the $22.

Hubs co-worker asked, "Aren't you so proud of your husband?" I didn't really know her enough to reply, "Proud of what? His stupidity or his gluttony?"

My dear husband said I should have replied that to her.

Anyway, I think that's the beginning and the end of his competetive eating career.