Hog Island Oyster Co.

I've been to San Francisco Ferry Building so many times but this was my first time trying out Hog Island Oyster Co. with my mom during one of our lunch outings. The place seems to be always packed every time I passed by. This time was no difference. We had to wait for 30 min or so for our table. Not too bad I guess since we came right during the lunch hour rush. We were seated right in front of the guys who are shucking the oysters. It was really interesting to see them opening one after the other. Their food was overall great. I'm no foodie so I can't really describe each of the items we ordered in great details, but they all tasted fresh and delicious, each with different distinct flavors. My favorite was their clam chowder. The clam chowder has a nice tasty broth and they are pretty generous with the amounts of clams and other ingredients in the soup. It was a really fulfilling and satisfying bowl of chowder. Can't go wrong with ordering their clam chowder at this place.

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Brown Sugar Kitchen

After living in Seoul for almost a year, one of the things that I missed from the States is a good American breakfast with perfectly cooked runny eggs on the side. I didn't realize that I've been taking runny eggs for granted when I was still living there. Mainly because there are a good number of places that can cook 'em the way I like it that I can easily go to when I'm craving 'em. But turned out, it is something that I rarely encountered in Seoul for some reasons. The places I went to mostly overcooked their eggs, so I didn't get to taste those thick runny yolks very often. (Prolly need to go for a runny eggs finding mission next time :P)

Anyways, after an 11-hours flight and waking up too early because of the jet lag, going for a good American breakfast sounds like an excellent idea. Went to go try Brown Sugar Kitchen in Oakland and their breakfast was delicious. Plus their poached eggs were perfect! For my next visit, I think I'm gonna have to try their famous buttermilk fried chicken & cornmeal waffle cos everybody seemed to ordered that menu item ;)

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The Ramen Bar

I had the chance to visit The Ramen Bar during one of my trips to San Francisco. Located in the heart of downtown San Francisco, this place is a collaboration between chef Ken Tominaga and chef Michael Mina. Blending the California cooking philosophy with Japanese techniques and ingredients, their menus definitely taste different than the traditional Japanese dishes. I ordered the Tonkatsu Ramen and Sesame Salmon Donburi. My ramen's broth was a little bit too salty for my taste. The donburi was really nice tho. I really liked the flavors and the texture of the whole dish, and the crispy salmon skin was cooked just right. They also have selections of pastries, desserts, and beverages that you can choose from if you need something sweet or refreshing to finish off your meal.

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The Ramen Bar
101 California Street
San Francisco, CA, 94108

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La Lune Violette

Perfectly. Cooked. Lamb. That's the thing I remembered the most about this place. La Lune Violette (라 룬 비올렛) is a French bistro located around Hongdae (홍대) station with great food menu and wine selections. Went there for dinner with a friend of mine to do some catching up. We ordered their Sous-vide Pork Belly with Bacon Wrapped Asparagus (수비드 꼬숑), Apple Chips Salad (사과칩 샐러드), and Sous-vide Lamb Shoulder Rack (수비드 램) to share. The Apple Chips Salad was a nice refreshing opener to the meal. The crispy apple chips were really delicious and gave a nice balance to the dish. On to the main courses, the pork belly was cooked perfectly, with crispy skin on top of each pieces. Although the overall dish tasted a little heavy, it was still good. My favorite dish was the lamb dish. Perfectly cooked, a little crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and seasoned just right. The only thing that was lacking is the portion :p (was still craving for more lamb at the end of our meal). Overall, I would recommend this place to anybody who want to try some good French food with a fairly affordable price. Although the menu portion is a little small, I guess that just means that you'll still have some room for desserts afterwards :)

Hope everybody have a good weekend ahead! :)

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Cafe The Yellow

If you wanna try a not-so-classic burger, Cafe The Yellow (더엘로우) located in Yeonnam-dong (연남동) is apparently a pretty popular joint amongst the locals. Why I called their burger 'not-so-classic burger' you might ask? It's because of the runny sauce that they pour on top of the beef patty that makes the burger tastes (and looks) so much different than the American classic burger that I'm used to eating. And since it's pretty popular amongst the locals, I'm guessing that that's how they like they burgers. The portion is pretty fulfilling and they have good fries. If you are up for trying something new, this place is worth going I guess. But for me, I still prefer the classic burger over this ;)

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