French and fabulous. Fringale is in my neighborhood of SOMA so it’s a quick walk from work for lunch and an even closer walk from my house for dinner.

I went to Fringale for lunch during the Appetite Stimulus Plan that Open Table did this month. Three course lunch for $21. Not bad. My mixed greens salad was crisp with just the right amount of dressing. I hate salads that have really drippy dressing. That was the most memorable part of the meal. My main course was a pasta dish that was good, but not great.

The atmosphere makes you feel like you just stumbled into a secret place only the locals know about…which is sorta true.

My only complaint is the size of the dessert they offered for lunch! It’s so darn big! I hate wasting food, but who can eat like that and then go back to work?! I just want a taste!

Anyway…you should go if you’re in the neighborhood.

Why is Fingale so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)
Food: 7
Drinks: I had water. The wine list looked great though.
Atmosphere: 8
Price: $20/person
Summary: Worth a visit.

Heston and I went up to Napa with my mom to spend some time and went to one of her favorite Napa restaurants, Bistro Jeanty. This is one of the most French places I’ve been outside of France. I loved our waiter. He reminded me of Javier from the TV show Felicity. (I adored that show.)

We couldn’t decide which bottle of wine to order so we ordered our meals first. I got the Salade de Betteraves, which was beet and mache salad with feta cheese and citrus dressing. It was perfectly balanced with sweet and savory flavors. My mom got the Salade de Laitue, which was a butter lettuce salad with a mustard vinaigrette. I tried that one too and it was very yummy.

At this point we had finally decided on a bottle of wine. We ordered a bottle of 2005 Rafanelli Zin that was just outstanding. It tasted like plum and black cherry. Soo yum!

For our main courses here is what we got: (I’ll comment on all since we all tried each others.)

Heston had the Cassoulet, which is baked beans with duck confit, sausage and apple smoked bacon. He loved it and I thought it was simply amazing. The portion was rather large though. I think 2-3 people could have had one!

My mom enjoyed the Coq Au Vin, which is chicken, mushrooms, bacon and red wine stew. I grew up having this dish and this was a fabulously flavorful rendition of it. I think the key is cooking the chicken on the bone.

I had the Sole Meuniere, which is a sole fillet, mashed potatoes with a lemon caper butter sauce. This was very rich and was also the first time that I’ve ever enjoyed capers! They really added a lot to the dish.

All in all it was a great lunch and I wish we could go back. The only thing I might change would be the portions, because they were so large! I can’t really find anything else to complain about. The atmosphere was just so warm and welcoming. I felt like I was sitting in my great aunt’s kitchen in Orleans, France.

Why is Bistro Jeanty so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)
Food: 8
Drinks: 8
Atmosphere: 8
Price: $50/person
Summary: Must go!

I’ve been back to CandyBar and Boulevard since my reviews of both of them. They both got much better the second time.

While I still think Candybar is a bit misguided, they did tell me that they are in the process of re-doing the menu to improve it even more. It’s a great place to go after dinner to have one more drink and something sweet. The atmosphere just can’t be beat either.

I know my review of Boulevard was rather shocking since Boulevard seems to have quite the following around here. I think their filet is just a bit of a let down. I got the short ribs this second time and really enjoyed them. They just had so much more flavor than that silly filet! It could also be that we were able to have some fabulous wine since it was a special occasion. Patz & Hall Durrell Chardonnay and a Hope & Grace pinot noir. The wine alone made the experience.

That’s all for now.

I took Heston to Bouchon in Yountville for his birthday. We had tried to go while we were in Vegas, but they were closed for a private event. It was perfect because we were in Yountville for the day picking up our wine club shipment at Goosecross and had a great day doing some tastings. Bouchon is the little sister of the famed French Laundry, also in Yountville.

We ordered a bottle of Hirsch Vinyards 2006 Pinot Noir Bohan Dillon. It had a great earth flavor with some blackberry and vanilla flavors as well.

It was recommended that we try the mussels here so we did. Wow. So wonderfully fresh. They were perfect. We shared those as well as a simple green salad with goat cheese. Both were fantastic!

For my main course I ordered the Coquille St. Jacques- seared sea scallops with piquillo peppers, asparagus, marcona almonds, green garlic & chorizo broth. Heston thought it was weird to put chorizo and scallops together. I disagree. The flavor of the chorizo gave the scallops a welcome bit of spice! The wine was a great compliment.

Ever since we went to Boulevard a few weeks ago Heston is obsessed with ribs. He ordered the Plats de Cotes de Boeuf- slow braised beef short ribs, spring onions, horseradish pain perdu & red wine beef jus. He seemed to think that the flavor a much flatter than at Boulevard, but he wants me to be sure to mention that they were still fantastic.

Dessert was a plate of profiteroles and so rich and wonderful. The ice cream was fresh and delightful. A great and memorable experience overall.

Why is Bouchon so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 8

Drinks: 8

Atmosphere: 8

Price: $80/person

Summary: Must go!

After hearing about how we just had to try Boulevard for so long Heston and I finally gave in.  It’s a bit of an early birthday celebration for H.

Our reservation was at 7:15pm, which is pretty early for us.  It was still light outside! They sat us in this cozy little corner table that was tucked away from everyone else.  We ordered our now signature Hanger One Kaffir Lime Gimlets.

To start I had the Mariquita Farm Beets & Red Lettuces salad.  It is served with pistachio and blood orange oil with Mad River goat cheese.  Anything with goat cheese I’m totally sold on.  The beets were marinated perfectly and they were quite tasty with the goat cheese.

Heston had the La Quercia Artisanal Prosciutto & White Asparagus with toasted hazelnuts, arugula, shaved parmesan, white balsamic & extra virgin olive oil.  His asparagus was killer and went supremely with the proscuitto.

Both salads were amazing.

For our main course I had the Filet Mignon.  It had cognac peppercorn sauce that completely fell flat with me.  I was so disappointed with it!  It made the entire filet less than exciting.  It also came with green peppercorn salsa verde over the fingerly potatoes that was disappointing as well.  The whole plate was just bland…

Heston faired better than I did with his BBQ Angus short ribs.  After he ordered it he confessed that he’d never had ribs before.  (He was a vegetarian for most of his life.)  His ribs were amazing.  I don’t really care for ribs, but these were wonderful.

All in all it was a good night.  I would have just been happy with my salad though.  I think I’ll have to try this one again sometime though.

Why is Boulevard so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 8

Drinks:8

Atmosphere: 7.75

Price: $101/person

Heston and I decided last minute to head out to Vegas a few weekends ago.  We both needed a break and had some free Southwest tickets so why not?!  Since this blog is about Bay Area food I’m going to review all the bars, restaurants, and hotel in one big post!

Before I start, I want to say that probably the best discovery of the entire weekend was Hanger One Vodka.  Specifically Hanger One Kaffir Lime.  Hanger One Lime Gimlet.  Order it.  You won’t be disappointed.  Hanger One is made with natural fruit and infused.  It’s simply delicious…and local!  It’s in Alameda!

Hotel

We wanted to stay at the Luxor because it’s probably the most iconic hotel in Vegas.  We stayed in the pyramid with a view of the strip.  It was clean and reasonably priced.  The whole weekend (3 nights) cost a little over $300 total. This hotel is quite old though!  The bed we slept on made me wonder if it had been around since the pyramids themselves!  It was clean and that’s about all I can ask for since we weren’t there very often except to stumble in really late at night.

We had made a goal for ourselves to try to visit as many hotels on the strip that we could.  We made stops everywhere: Luxor, Mandalay Bar, MGM Grand, Venetian, Palazzo, Paris, Treasure Island, Caesar’s Palace, Palms, Planet Hollywood, Bellagio, NY NY, Excalibur, THEhotel, and the Four Seasons.

Here is a summary of our journey with some commentary along the way.

Bars

 Mix Lounge - Hands down the best place in all of Vegas.  It’s on the 64th floor of THEhotel @ Mandalay Bay.  The view is stunning.  You can sit outside and they make some killer festive adult beverages.  Heston and I came here at the beginning of every night.  There is also a restaurant up here that I hear it killer too.

Aurora Lounge- Typical middle of the casino bar in the Luxor.  Drinks are cheap and strong.  The atmosphere wasn’t as smoky at the rest of the casino bars.  This is where Heston and I discovered that we could go anywhere on the strip and just “charge it to the room”.  It was a fantastic discovery and rather dangerous too!

MGM Centrifuge-  Again, typical middle of the casino bar in MGM Grand.  First…MGM Grand is horrible.  We walked all the way over there to check it out and were just really disappointed.  Service was horrible and it was full of smoke and sketchy looking people.

iPop Lounge- Where Heston and I spent our final night in Vegas  after dinner at Social House.  They made the drinks stronger the longer you stay and if you start gambling. Oh yeah and it’s inside Mandalay Bay.

Palms Island Bar- Okay seriously?!  We just took a $10 cab ride to The Palms to visit Ghostbar since Heston and I both love that place.  We get IDed as soon as we walk into the door of the hotel!  Then again at the bar in the middle of the casino…all this after on a SUNDAY night they were charging a cover to get up to GB.  I’ve never paid a cover to get in anywhere in Vegas…including at The Palms.  I wasn’t going to start on a Sunday night.  I’m so over The Palms.

Sala Lounge- Heston and I went here two nights of our three.  We liked this place.  It’s in the Palazzo.  Since the Palazzo isn’t quite finished yet there weren’t a ton of people around.  We talked up the bartender and ended up with some free shots.  I can’t wait to go back and see this place in full swing.

Restaurants

Chin Chin- Heston really wanted to go here because they’ve got one in LA.  We happened to be in NY NY passing through and decided to sit down.  Nothing too festive to report as it’s very similar to it’s LA counterpart.

Pyramid Cafe- Simple cafe for all the drunk people to come sober up at in the Luxor.  It does the job well.  Nothing I want more at 4am is some french fries!

Burger Bar- Same chef as Fleur de Lys (where we did Vday this year).  Pretty much the most amazing burger I’ve ever had…EVER.  You build it yourself and then it’s cooked to perfection.  Simply one of the best ideas for a restaurant I’ve ever seen…and I hate burgers!

Social House- Heston and I wanted to do one really nice dinner while we were there since there is a ton of amazing food in Vegas.  You may have heard of Social House because a lot of celebrities have been spotted there.  It is done by one of the chefs from Nobu, which is another favorite of mine.  We sat at the sushi bar and talked to the guys making us our sushi.  He prepared us a complimentary plate of octopus sashimi with cilantro that was THE best thing I had in Vegas…yes better than Burger Bar!  I’d definitely go back here…it was awesome.

Zumanity- This is a Cirque show that I took Heston to as an early birthday present.  It’s not a normal Cirque du Soleil show though because it’s done topless.  It’s about the journey to discover ones sexuality.  It’s got everything in it….everything.  This would make some people feel uncomfortable I’m sure.  The guy next to me apparently couldn’t handle the scene with two guys in it.  He was squirming the whole time!  The most famous scene is with two women playing and swimming in what looking like a giant martini glass.  They did flips and jumps…wow.  The show had all the normal Cirque elements in it too but just with a more adult flavor.  We both really enjoyed it.

There are many parts of this trip that I didn’t write about.  It was a ton of fun and wonderful to just walk around and spend time with my love.  I can’t wait to go back this summer with my girlfriends!

Why is Vegas so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 7.5 (They’ve got nothing on the Bay Area!)

Drinks: 9

Atmosphere: 7 (only because of all the smoking!)

Price: $1000/2 people

Whenever I walk into Gregoire I think about that scene in Mrs. Doubtfire where Robin Williams is trying to cook that amazing dinner and ends up burning everything so he has to call out for some equally amazing take out.  This is the place I would call if I was ever in a similar bind.

Their menu changes monthly and they are open for both lunch and dinner.  They have locations in Oakland and Berkeley, but both have very limited seating.

Heston and I joke that we can never get out of there for less than $50 because everything always sounds so yummy that you want to try it all.  I beg to differ….It was only $38 for both of us a few nights ago and we had leftovers!  The March menu let us try the baked boneless Cornish hen with tomato and garlic stuffing with chicken gravy as well as the grilled beef bavette medallions, lemon and parsley butter. YUM!  We also tried the potato puffs, which are completely unnecessary…but amazing and wonderful all at the same time.  You’ve gotta try those!

It’s classy take out for when you want a gourmet meal without going out.   Grab a great bottle of wine to pair with what you order and enjoy.

You can find the changing menu here.

Why is Gregoire so festive?

(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 8

Drinks: n/a

Atmosphere: 4

Price: $18/person

Since I was in the north bay I decided to go visit another friend of mine, Elena, that lives in Occidental. Since I graduated from Sonoma State this area is familiar to me, but I hadn’t been back in more than two years. It was great to drive around the area again. Elena suggested we to go Bistro des Copains as a special occasion since we rarely get to see each other.

We got there and sat right down. It was a Wednesday night, but apparently during the weekend it’s not as easy to get a table. Wednesday nights they have a special for $1 oysters. We promptly ordered some and when they arrived they tasted great. So fresh. They were served with a spicy sauce that really did the oysters justice.

Then we ordered some wine. We decided on a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from Mia’s Playground from the Alexander Valley. It had aromas of dark chocolate and cherries. It was an excellent choice.

I ordered scallops that were served with a caramelized fennel and cippolini onion risotto and wild mushroom broth. All I have to say is wow. The key was to get a little bit of everything in each bite. I’m not usually a huge risotto fan because I always feel like they’re so heavy, but I decided on this dish because I can’t pass up scallops. Speaking of the scallops…oh gosh those were done perfectly. The menu can be found here.

I know that I just said that we ordered red wine and then I had scallops, which generally goes with white. I took one for the team as the two friends I was with both ordered dark meat. I must say that these actually went very well together…surprisingly. You can find their wine list on their website.

Bistro des Copains reminded me of eating at a place called Chez Paul this past summer in Paris. It was on a hidden street far away from everything and the food was very flavorful. It felt like being back in Paris to me…and that will make anyone happy! I could have done the entire thing again…except I was so full.

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 8.5

Atmosphere:  7.5

It has been more than 7 years ago since I last visited a Nobu and that one was in New York City. I remember the meal being amazing. It’s definitely up there on my list of top ten best meals of all time.

Since we were visiting San Diego for the weekend and Nobu had just recently opened there. We had to go!

We sat at the sushi bar and talked to the guys behind the counter. It was really romantic and fun to sit up there. The sushi rolls were some of the freshest I’ve had in a long time. The rice was perfect and the fish was just out of the ocean. You can really taste the difference between good sushi and bad sushi after eating here. We had a shrimp tempura roll that was done with asparagus that I think was my favorite.

I recommend getting the rock shrimp hot dish with the spicy sauce. It comes on a bed of fresh greens and is just to die for. I remembered it from 7 years ago and it’s still just as good.

Drinkwise…try the cucumber martini! There are a bunch of really festive beverages to choose from though if you’re not into the cucumber.

I give Nobu two enthusiastic thumbs up and it makes me sad that they don’t have one in San Francisco! Of all the places to NOT have one…it just doesn’t make sense! There are Nobu joints in many international cities around the world. You can find them in close by in Malibu, Vegas, and, of course, San Diego.

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 8.5
Atmosphere: 8.5  (sushi bar)

Jardinere is a restaurant for special occasions. It’s quite fancy. The menu reflects what season it is, which is wonderful because it really allows the chef to showcase the food when it’s at it’s best. The wine list has lots of French, Californian, Italian and even some Oregon wines.

They have invited a jazz singer for Valentine’s Day and are planning a prix fixe menu for $125/person. I think that’s pretty reasonable considering a lot of other places are charging far more than that for a Vday feast.

One of the best parts of Jarinere is that they use organic and sustainable foods. They compost waste and recycle as well. They really care about the environment and it shows.

If you don’t want to go for dinner you should at least check it out for drinks. The bar feels like you’re sitting in a giant champagne glass. I was there to enjoy some champagne before dinner (at Chapeau!) with my boyfriend on our anniversary last year. We started talking with one of the bartenders and he suggested that I try a drink called the Old Cuban. If you do nothing else at Jardinere…go for the Old Cuban! It’s like a mojito but instead of being topped with soda you top it with champange. It’s amazing. Enjoy!

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 8
Atmosphere: 8