Kabuto Restaurant

5121 Geary Blvd
San Francisco, CA 94118

Occasion: Dinner date with the BFF! This is definitely a hole in the wall gem of the Richmond district. You can easily pass by and miss this.  Definitely do not judge a book by it's cover with Kabuto because they create some of the most unique sushi rolls.  Their rolls are not only very innovative they're also delicious. The combination of ingredients used in each sushi roll is so out of the ordinary and I could not possibly imagine it working, but it does.  I love love love this place.   Each roll is so flavorful on it's own that we don't even need to dip it into anything. The rolls are authentic with a modern twist. I would highly recommend this place for those with an open mind and enjoy good food. 08.14.12

16-20 Kiss

Black Tiger Shrimp Sushi with avocado wrapped with thin slice marinated radish served with Kabuto chocolate sauce

Hamachi Pear

Yellowtail sushi topped with sliced pear and Kabuto fruity mustard sauce

Ceviche

Halibut and salsa wrapped with deep fried seaweed and served with lime and sea salt

Crunchy Sushi

Tempura halibut served with Kabuto special curry sauce

Ono Grape

Wahoo sushi topped with grapefruit and basil cream sauce

1869 Oyster Shot

Baby Main Lobster

Sauteed Abalone

It was on their daily special menu.  Jenny loves abalone everything and anything so we had to get it.  It reminded me of a creamy abalone risotto.  There were a few chunks of mango which added a nice sweetness to it.

Saikyo Sushi

Grilled marinated Black Cod served with uzu-Kosho gravy

Spoon full of goodness. I love love love black cod, so this appealed to me.  It was buttery soft with a hint of sweetness to it.

Hot Apple

Seared scallop sushi served with apple and fruity mustard sauce

Shrimp almond aged

Deep fried prawns coated with almonds
We saw the couple next to us eating this and we kept eyeing it. By the end of their dinner, we had exchanged our insights on places to eat in the city and some opinion on our food.  They highly recommended this and we did not regret it at all. The almonds definitely added a fun crunchy texture to this dish. Not your typical tempura like dish.

Sushi Ran

107 Caledonia St
Sausalito, CA 94965

Occasion: Triple date with Henry's cousins and sister.  His cousins were free of the kids for the weekend so they wanted to go out and indulge on some good food! Great little Japanese spot out in Sausalito. I love eating with more people, that way we can get a variety of things and share. 08.03.12

Hawaiian ahi poke

with ahi tuna, avocado, kukui nut, seaweed sauce

The tuna poke was seasoned so well that I could have had it without the seaweed sauce, though it was a plus to dip each bite into the sauce.  Anything with good avocado is always a plus in my books.  This was a great little appetizer to start our night with.  Everyone loved it.

King trumpet mushrooms with salsify, onion jam, arugula
These are to die for.  There just aren't enough pieces per plate.

Hamachi Kama

This rare piece of meat of the fish comes in limited quantity, so I was shocked and happy when there was one piece left for our party to order. Buttery soft and delicious.

Braised octopus

Chewy, but slightly crunchy with a smoky taste to it topped with some kind of foam emulsion.

miso glazed black cod with bloomsdale spinach, glass noodles

So buttery soft and delicious!! YUM!

Toro

So fatty, so delicious, so soft! We each got a piece to enjoy!

Sashimi Platter 

that came with salmon, albacore, tuna, yellow tail and one more that I don't remember

We got two platters to share between the 6 of us and it was more than enough to go around especially with

Uni from Santa Barbara

Not from Hokkaido, but this was still very tasty. Creamy and not too fishy. Warning: you may not like it at first try and it's definitely an acquired taste.

Banana Foster dessert

So freaking delicious. No matter how full I am, I always have room for dessert.

Sushi on North Beach-Katsu

745 Columbus Ave
San Francisco, CA 9413

Occasion: While the girls got together to have dinner at R &G Lounge in Chinatown, the boys had sushi in North Beach. 06.30.12

Foie Gras sushi

Special delivery to the girls from the guys.  This was the last day to enjoy any bit of foie gras in California before the ban.  So glad I got to have some on the very last day. Foie gras on top of hamachi. Delicious!  What a gem in the middle of north beach. I need to try their sushi one day, soon!

Orenchi Ramen

3540 Homestead Rd
Santa Clara, CA 9505

Occasion: Reward meal after one of our finals.  We've tried coming here several times, but always happened to get there when they've already closed.  We did not know that they had changed their hours of operations on the weekdays to close at 9pm. 06.13.12

Chicken Karage

We usually order three pieces between two people. I love adding it into my ramen, but it's absolutely delicious to eat on it's own.  Crispy deep fried skin with juicy tender meat.

Potato Croquette 

Another favorite of ours.

Orenchi Ramen 

An absolute must when I come here! Check out my previous reviews here and here.

Orenchi Ramen

3540 Homestead Rd
Santa Clara, CA 95051

Occasion: Dinner after the first day of class in Santa Clara.  Since we're in the area...why not.  The wait wasn't too bad either. 04.04.12

Chicken Karage 

One of the best chicken karage I've ever gotten.  Tender meat and perfectly fried skin.  I love putting it in my ramen and soaking up some broth.

Orenchi Ramen 

Broth that's cooked for 18 hours. Springy thick noodles.  Half cooked egg. I finished more than I thought I would. Love.

Sushi Bistro

431 Balboa St
San Francisco, CA 94118

Occasion:  Surprise dinner for the bff in celebration for her getting matched to one of her top three residency program.  03.23.12

Definitely not my first time here, but always a great time.  Not your typical authentic Japanese sushi rolls.  There is a fusion twist to some of these rolls that I enjoy a lot.

Hawaiian Breeze

One of my all time favorites as it not only have great flavors, but also textures. The tangy mango chunks with crunchy cucumbers and macadamia nuts combined the pesto flavor and the fresh tuna is perfection in my mouth.  A roll that I almost always have to get!

C2 Roll

Butterfish Blasters

Another favorite of mine.  The sauce has a delicious garlic flavor that any garlic lover will enjoy.  It's a great appetizer.

Spider Roll

Rainbow row

Caterpillar Roll

Suzu Noodle House

1825 Post St
San Francisco, CA 94115

Occasion: Wednesday lunch to celebrate Jenn's new adventure in life. All this food shared beween three of us. 02.22.12

Miso Ramen

Love their thick springy elastic noodles that have a great bounce.  Though there's not a lot of ingredients included in the ramen, I still enjoy the simplicity of ingredients.

Agadashi tofu

Soft and silky inside with a slightly crispy outside, dipped in ponzu sauce, yum!

Pork Belly

One of the tastiest and most tender pork belly ever. It was freaking delicious. I loved eating it with my ramen.

Salmon and Tuna Sashimi 

So soft and fresh. The tuna came in square chunks, which I thought was too big and chunky, but the salmon came in slices and was perfect. Buttery, rich and flavorful. Yum.

Ebisu

1283 9th Ave
San Francisco, CA 94122

Occasion: Saturday night date night before we watch The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. 01.28.12

Kobe Beef Sashimi

It came with three different sauces, all of which were spicy.  The slices were thin and rolled up very perfectly.  I unrolled each one to spread some of the sauce into it. Rolled it back up then dipped it into the soy ponzu sauce.  It was good, but Shabu House would have been way more satisfying.

Oyster Barnabi

Oyster on the half shell topped with rich uni, quail egg, ikura, scallions and ponzu sauce

It was like an orgasm in my mouth.  I loved the freshness of the oyster combined with the rich flavors of the uni and the quail egg.  The marriage of flavors came together very well as you could taste the sweetness of the seafood.  The ikura balls added not only flavor, but also texture to this little appetizer.  It was a very delicious bite of the sea.

Sashimi platter for two
Beautiful presentation and freaking delicious.  Of course when things are more appealing to the eyes they taste better as well.  It was a great variety of fresh and tasty seafood.

Double Hamachi Roll

I love love love hamachi, so when I saw it on yelp's highlight, I decided to get this.  I love how it's topped and filled with hamachi; yum buttery goodness.  I just wish there were more too it.  I could only imagine how much tastier it would be with some avocado. YUM.

Tanpopo

1740 Buchanan St
San Francisco, CA 94115

Occasion: Perfect lunch after a busy and stressful morning. 01.26.12

Miso Ramen

My choice of ramen.  Everyone else got spicy miso besides Hana, who's allergic to anything soy.  It was warm, filling and delicious. Though, I usually like my noodles a little thicker and more bouncy, it was still good. The noodles here are chewier and thinner than my choice, but some people like it like this better.  It was the perfect remedy to a shitty morning.

Tekka Japanese Restaurant

537 Balboa St
San Francisco, CA 94118 

Occasion: Friday night date night for some Sushi! Little hole in the wall restaurant hidden in the inner richmond district.  They only seat 11 people per serving; one at 7pm and one at 9:30pm.  So glad I had the opportunity to dine at one of the city's hidden gems. 01.13.12

Sashimi Platter

with tuna, white tuna, hamachi, salmon, squid, scallop and octopus

All of which were cut in generous cuts, fresh and delicious. My favorite has to be the hamachi as it is not only "melt in your mouth" soft, but it also has a sweet buttery taste to it. Octopus came second with a crunchy and chewy texture that I absolutely enjoyed.  Then there's the buttery goodness of the salmon, followed by the soft cartilage like crunch of the squid.  Scallop was good, but very very fishy.  The tunas are always a classic as it is probably the least fishy, but still soft.  I got filled up pretty quickly with these heavenly tasting goodies.  I guess you can say it served as our appetizer.

Steamed clams

Warm and delicious with a generous portion.  It was definitely a plus that there were chopped up scallions sprinkled on top.  It's not a fancy dish and that's why I like it.  It's simple, homey, delicious and comforting.  

Spicy Tuna Roll

I've never been a big fan of spicy tuna rolls.  Perhaps they're too plain, or too spicy for me.  The bf requested for it, so that's what we got.  The rice definitely filled me up even more! Overall, it was a good filler, but nothing spectacular.

Eggplant stirfry

Since eggplant is something I absolutely love, I requested to order this dish. My only complaint is that there's not enough in a serving.  If we had not ordered all the things we ordered and filled up on everything else, this dish would have been too small to serve me.  Anyhow, the eggplant was cooked perfectly as it was not too soft, nor was it too hard. It was perfect!!

Hamachi Kama

I was craving it and just had to try it.  It was a generous piece and of course delicious.  No complaints and just what I wanted.  The collar bone of the fish seriously has the tastiest and softest chunks of fish meat. Make sure you dig around for those hidden chunks of heavenly goodness.

Uni for two

We could have totally ordered one, but Henry went wild and ordered two.  It was rich, decadent, buttery, slimy and scrumplicious.  Henry thought it was a little bit fishy.  It was such a generous portion that neither of us could finish.  Next time, I'll be sure to put henry in check and not let him over order.  He has a tendency to do that.