Thirsty Bear - Down Town San Francisco

Thirsty Bear is a good Spanish restaurant with its own brewery inside. I'm told the usual way to enjoy a meal here is to order Paella, a rice dish, for the table and each person should order a couple Tapas (small dishes) to share with the table (or don't). Our server suggested that two or three Tapas per person would be good for us, but seeing as how Paula and Brittney are light eaters and it was early in the day we each got one Tapa. The Paella we ordered was the Paella of the Day. It had chicken, zucchini, yellow squash and feta -- very, very delicious. For Tapas we had Fried Calamari and Capers, Chicken Adobado Skewers with Green Beans Mashed Potatoes and Tarragon Mustard Sauce, Organic Brussel Sprouts with Bacon, Pear, Shallots and Toasted Hazelnuts, and Patatas Bravas: fried potatoes with spicy brava sauce. The winners here were the Brussel Sprouts and the Patatas hands down. I haven't eaten Brussel Sprouts since I was about 8. I threw most of them in a napkin in my lap back then, and put them in the trash after dinner. My dad found them and made me finish them. Those were nothing close to these Thirsty Bear Sprouts. Yummy. The Mashed Potatoes that came with my Chicken Skewers were really good too.

If you go here you should also try their beer. The girls liked their Vanilla brew and I had one of their seasonal beers though I can't remember the name (it was something like, insanity or intensity).

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Old Port Lobster Shack - Redwood City

Here's a goodie that's a bit of a drive for those of us who live in the East Bay, but it's definitely worth the drive if you're as much of a fan of lobster rolls and steamers as my family. We heard of this place on KQED's Check, Please! Bay Area.

It's pretty much the only place outside of New England where you can find this great food and atmosphere. I'll admit that the location in Redwood City looks unimpressive from the outside, so close your eyes and step inside. My wife is a native New Englander and it gets her seal of approval.

Expect to pay a bit more than your average diner, but where on the west coast can you get a mouth-watering lobster roll on those delicious new england-style buns? Lobster Shack, of course.

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Burma Superstar!

This is our second trip to Burma Superstar in Alameda. Like I said earlier this blog is partially to help me remember what I order, because I ended up ordering the same dish in this visit (I am not sorry for it at all). I had the Chicken with Fresh Basil and Snow Peas, and Brit had the Mango Chicken

(Mango Chicken)

Lainey ordered the Nan Pia Dok which is a chicken curry of sorts, but I didn't think it was to curryish (I am not a huge curry fan so that was a good thing to me). Paula's dish was something to come back for. She had the Walnut Shrimp. Hohhhhh Man! Yum yum yum. It is a sweet dish which makes the shrimp and walnuts dance together when they are in your mouth. Try it with the Coconut Rice, you won't be sorry.

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