Undulating over Ubuntu: The Angelina Jolie of Veggie Places

So, in an attempt to avoid the City's July fog, my friend Matt and I headed up to Napa. On a tip from fellow foodie Cindy, we ended up at Ubuntu - the yoga-studio-come-vegetable-restaurant in Napa. Ubuntu is not a brown-rice vegetarian restaurant mind you! (No, it has nothing to do with software either.)

Boy, what an amazing lunch it was - and I f*cking hate veggies. And, so does Matt, who knows how to eat and who is versed in the industry. He works at Hatfields in LA and is formerly of Quince in SF.

So instead steak, bacon and filth, we had bio-dynamic, (!) locally grown, strange-looking, but amazing tasting...bacon - of course this was grown bacon and had nothing to do with tofu. In fact, tofu was missing so much so from the menu that I feared the authorities would issue an Amber alert. But here's summary of the menu, pictures to support our conclusion that this was one of the most surprising and creative meals that either of us had had in a long time. Kudos.

To wash it all down: we had Robert Sinskey wine (from up the block. Also, apparently, the winery is 'family' friendly).

First course: peach panzanella with goat ricotta and brioche with nasturtium raised less than 2 miles away... mmmm.

Second course: This was amazing. Onion top fritters with an amazing french vegetable succulent 'bacon'

Third course: Cauliflower in a cast iron pot with puree, mint, brown butter toast with a vadouvan butter, which was hot! hot! hot! And good! good! good!

Fourth course: a nice black truffle pasta, which in most places would be the best dish, but was the average one here.

And.... dessert: The dessert! A vanilla cheesecake in a jar - with strawberries and verbena. So amazing. So light. So good.

The Skinny (and you will be skinny if you eat here):

Bill between us: $60.
Menu: changes daily and seasonally.
Chef: A James Beard Winner: Jeremy Fox, his wife makes baked goods. Those goods are served there and are, as you would expect, good. Quite good in fact.
Press (see, I'm not the only one): See the NYTimes Review - for once they are right.
Service: bubbly, happy, and informed. Yes, they've drunk the kool-aid. And so would you, if you ate here too.

Rating: Two Sporks up!

Pictures:

I'm back!

Time to write about good food again.

German Three-Stars?

All I remember in Germany were Benzs, BMWs, bratwurst and beer.....

See the NY Times today...

Langen Journal

Fine Dining Takes Small but Stellar Strides in Germany

By CARTER DOUGHERTY

Published: March 6, 2008

There has been a surprising development in the land of sauerkraut and sausage: Germany now has more Michelin three-star restaurants — nine — than any other European country except France.

Blowfish: A Bunch of Hot Air?

I had dinner with my friend Chris at Blowfish Sushi ("sushi to die for") last night. My no reservations policy worked again, but instead of getting a table, we ended up at the sushi bar. Unlike many sushi bars where you interact with the chefs, these guys looked intent on their work and for being so close, they still felt far away. Interestingly, last time Chris and I ate sushi it was Ebisu and we were at the sushi bar which was fun and entertaining. Here, it was a seran plastic wrap fest. Knives went flying as rice and seaweed were rolled together in plastic wrap and sliced up accordingly. Unlike Ebisu, with its careful attention to detail and relaxation, the Blowfish sushi chefs were quick, somewhat sloppy and high-volume.

Yet, it still took a long time before each round of sushi or rolls to come out. Unlike Ebisu's comfortable atmosphere and attention to subtle taste variation, Blowfish's emphasis is on atmosphere. In this case, women with bob-haircuts, darkly clad men who were scruffy, thudding and thumping music and orchids predominated the concrete-floor space infused with lots of manga comics.

The dark, heavy, almost brooding atmosphere pervaded into the rolls that we got. All of them, were essentially the same. Some fried variations of tempura bits, salmon, tuna and all kinds of other great-sounding fish were infused with wasabi and seaweed.

So, as my friend Chris likes to call people on their BS this was kind of apt, as Blowfish Sushi.... Anyway, a fun scene that, for a Tuesday night, was packed. The sushi tasted better than average sushi, but if it's subtle flavors your after, then take a pass here.

Aqua for lunch, a great treat with suprises....

I’ve walked by Aqua a thousand times before always thinking that I should go there and eat. Today, of all random days, was the day I decided to treat myself to it. From the outside, Aqua has big windows overlooking California Street with its tourists, Cable Cars and Financial District folk.

It looked to be California sheik meets Tuscany. There are $3000 bottles of champagne from 1966 on the menu nestled up against a $2800 bottle of French white wine. Yet, with all that, the power of Aqua (in my mind) is its ability to harken back to tastes and flavors from my childhood. I went in, at noon, without a reservation and was seated in less than 5 minutes (maybe it’s because I was in a shirt and tie, but so was everyone else).

I ordered the business lunch that was $36 and included Lobster Bisque, an Atlantic Cod and a dessert - chef’s choice. A Himachi Avocado Salad and a Chicken Pollard with potato spaghetti tempted me, next time I thought to myself. To pair, I ordered a nice Austrian Riesling (a Gruner Veltliner). The wine was chilled just right, buttery and fruity at once and looked like a perfect white wine.

The staff whirled by with plates and plates of great-looking food with people at the other tables smiling when they arrived. I was ready to partake. This was turning into an event. And, because I was dining by myself, I was really attentive to what was going on and ready for what was to come.

First, a three-piece amuse bouché. An Ahi Tuna Coquette with a pepper sauce base (flakey, rich, light, perfect), a Potato Leek White Soup (this was the winner that, was, strangely, just like something my dad makes) and a Himachi Tartar (not so good, warm, strong, but fishy).

That was quickly followed bread accompanied by goat milk butter with sea salt (delicious, you could taste the sea, yar!) and cow’s milk butter (too grassy for me).

And then, the Lobster Bisque. This was a surprise.

The bowl was empty but for basil shavings, two shaved pieces of Maine lobster. The liquid appeared in a brass pan and was infused with Eggplant caviar and the waiter poured it in to the bowl. The liquid, instead of being heavy and thick was almost water-like but the flavor was complete and rich. Without the heaviness of a cream-based stock, the bisque took on a new light, yet concentrated air. Again, the soup brought back and evoked childhood flavors by being so simple, yet so good. Maybe I was being more receptive than usual, but there was something about these dishes, created naturally from fresh ingredients I presume that evoked very old flavors and sensations that I haven’t had in years.

The main dish, an Atlantic Cod came on a bed of fava beans, and citrus sauce with a potato Napoleon draped over all of that. To be honest, it was warm, but salty. The texture of the fish was soft, buttery and the taste was, well, not very fishy. That said, the overwhelming taste was salt. At one point, the waiter asked me if it was everything I hoped for and if it stood up to the Riesling. I said, no, not really, but that I liked it but that it was lacking in the flavors you would expect. Texturally, it was a great play on soft and super soft with the beans and the flakey fish. Taste wise, though, it fell salt-flat.

The waiter, undeterred, thanked me for the comments and handled it well. I ended up getting a free glass of champagne later on in the meal that made me happy, if not buzzed.

Finally, a dessert, a Rum-Soaked Cake with a Pineapple chip and bits of cream on top. Again, it was sweet, intense but light. How do they do that balance thing? What’s more though, it reminded me of a dessert my neighbors made when I was a kid. After that, there was a yet another petite plate of desserts that were intense and balanced as well. And that free glass of champagne too. I left a happy and full customer.

Overall, Aqua was a treat. Despite the fact that everyone is decked out, business lunches are going on all around you, the room softens it all quite a bit. Sure, you get the feeling that you’re in the big city when you eat here. But, with that said, if you pay attention, the food, at least for me, it harkens back to simple, base and good tastes from way back when.

Perhaps, I never had these tastes before and I’m only imagining it and attributing it as such. But, I think there’s something to be said for a place that presents itself so well, the staff was professional, smartly dressed and attentive and yet can be so grounded.

Great.

Nopa's Great Truffle Dip

Instead of getting fried chicken one rainy night in San Francisco, the bf and I opted to go to Nopa. Throngs of smartly-dressed quasi-hipsters flanked the hostess desk as we got there. No way we'd get a table any time soon I thought. That said, we were nice, pleasantly goofy and apparently kind enough to be seated in less than 5 minutes of arriving.

We were seated centrally next to a table for four that was placed too closely to us. Later in the evening this social distance from the next table proved to work, good conversation with the guys sitting next to us, but in the end also a little too close as the point of social awkwardness, i.e., where each dining party should turn back to their dining companions passed us by.

Anyway, the evening started with an amuse bouche of a small piece of toast smeared with goat cheese. It was, as you would expect, a piece of toast with goat cheese. We ordered a warm bowl/plate with olives that, in the end, proved to be too large for two people to eat. The bf got the roast chicken while I opted for a hamburger and fries.

A hamburger you ask? I figured that a place that has confits, fish from exotic oceans and absinthe drinks on their menu (apparently, these drinks are popular, but I thought it tasted too much like liquorish) would make a mean hamburger. I was right, but what was really surprising was the French Fry dip which was infused with truffles. The hamburger came on a fluffy bun that was oiled just perfectly. The meat good, the dipping sauce made the burger feel earthy, but yet, despite being a burger, it was all very light. Of course, I didn’t finish it all.

The bf’s half-roast chicken was a bit dry in parts, but overall the flavor was rich and there was a finish that is the hallmark of good quality meat. Not too salty, not to dry, balanced nicely. The vegetable mash was an attempt to lighten the overt heaviness of the chicken and worked pretty well. Keep in mind that I’m not a fan of vegetables either!

Finally, as the dinner conversation with our neighbors grew more awkward, we ordered desert, Chocolate Covered Churros, which was disappointing. Too much cinnamon and not crispy enough. Nopa is a great place and has good food.

Overall, the company was fun and the night a good one with the surprise of the truffle French Fries. One surprise is better than none.

There is such a thing as a Free (Mediocre) Lunch

Breaking up the monotony of San Francisco Financial District lunches can be a hard thing to do. You have your hole-in-the-wall sandwich/curry/wrap/burrito joints, you have your posh lunches like Aqua, you can always bring leftovers, but to break the monotony it's always nice. So, on Kearny Street a new chain lcation (how did that ever get approved in San Francisco is anyone's guess) grand-opened with free food, balloons, long lines and cake. Yes, cake.

The "Teriyaki Experience" with such far flung locations as Waterloo, Iowa and Hayward, California is based in Toronto but opened a fast food teriyaki grill in the Financial District here. While I didn't initially get a "VIP" font-ladened glossy coupon, they were plentiful and a dapper-looking couple gave me theirs. The "Director of North American Operations," a tired-looking barrel-chested man, armed me with an array of other coupons for noodles, wraps and dumplings after seeing that I was coupon-deprived.

The coupon, it turns out, was only good for the teriyaki chicken, which is fine be me. After wading through the throngs of business-casual types, I got my bowl (which, contrary to San Francisco law came in a sturdy plastic bowl and bag) and started to munch. Hot, bland, and light, but typical of what I expected. The vegetables crisp, the teriyaki sauce from bottle and the cost would have been $7.00. Ouch. That said, in his repetition of marketing points, Mr. Director pointed out that there was no butter or fat used. Indeed, the army of 5 teriyaki grillers only splashed water and a bit of soy sauce on the volumes of chicken and bean sprouts beneath their spatulas.

What's more interesting is that the whole experience felt like it was from The Apprentice. Highly marketed with balloons, glossy fliers and long lines of people. A valiant attempt at "buzz." That said, will it be like this in a month? Would folks in Waterloo and Hayward swarm to it when they have other options? Not sure. But one thing that I took away from the mob scene there was that opening a restaurant, no matter chain or posh, is a hard, hard labor-intensive experience. In this case, however, they would be wise to focus on the food first.

Assessment: Heavy on marketing, light on taste.