Craftsman and Wolves

746 Valencia St
San Francisco, CA 94110

Occasion: Included in this post are of two different occasions.  First came here with the BFF to try their foie gras cupcake, but unfortunately they were sold out, so we decided to try something else. 06.22.12/ 06.24.12

Peach Cube Cake

Buttermilk cake with peach jelly filling

Amazingly tasty. How could something so simple taste so good?  The buttermilk cake is my favorite.  It was soft, dense yet spongy.  Not overly sweet with a touch of a tangy flavor from the peach.  The top layer had texture of a mousse, nice and silky smooth.

Raspberry cube cake

with coconut, earl grey and almond

It's about $6 a pop, but it's so good.  The cake itself is denser rather than fluffy.  The flavors really take you away.  There was not a lot of raspberry jelly, but as it hit my taste buds, it hit hard and the tartness of fruit burst in my mouth.  It was not a rich dessert at all.  Not only was it so beautifully made and presented, the tastes were phenomenally delicious.  It was so worth the try.

This was what we had come for. The Devil Inside.  Thanks to my bff for the special delivery.

The Devil Inside 

Chocolate muffin cupcake filled with chocolate ganache and foie gras torchon topped with a toffee brittle

I guess it's not a good idea to have something so rich and tasty first thing in the morning.  The cake was dense, the filling was creamy and the foie gras was subtle and not too overwhelming.  The foie gras had a nutty flavor to it.  The toffee brittle tasted burnt which I'm not too big of a fan of.  Overall, it was a great experience, I just wished that the foie gras torchon chunk was bigger and more distinct.  I'm glad I can say I got to try it before the ban. Yum!

Pomelo on Judah

92 Judah St
San Francisco, CA 94122

Occasion: Take out dinner during the NBA Finals. Miami vs. OKC. This is such a hole in the wall gem in the inner sunset.  06.21.12

Havana 

cuban style fried rice with black beans, plantains, chipotles, ginger and cilantro, served with grilled skirt steak, sautéed onions and cuban avocado salad

This was what I ordered and I loved it.  It reminds me of a peruvian dish, Lomo Saltado, except there's even more goodness to it. I love all the ingredients used in this dish.  It was absolutely flavorful, filling and full of variety.  

Lanzhou

fresh egg noodles stir fried with ginger, scallion and garlic, with peppered ahi tuna, seared rare and topped with a miso-sesame drizzle 
Jenny's dish.  the fresh egg noodles, were soft, springy and so good. I just loved the texture. Seared ahi tuna is another one of my favorite things to get, but I thought it could use a little bit more flavor.  The deep fried lotus root chips were a nice addition to the dish as it added a crunch texture to everything.

Bistro Central Parc

560 Central Ave
San Francisco, CA 94117

Occasion: In celebration of the BFF finishing her boards.  She has completed another milestone in her life. 06.20.12

Sweet breads with mushrooms

The waiter convinced us to get this.  It was really really good, but Jenny said she's had better when she was in Europe.  I loved the combination of the mushroom and the sweet breads. I would definitely recommend getting this.

Braised beef cheeks, red beet puree
goat cheese, mushrooms, potato fondant

This came in a bigger portion than we had expected,  The meat was super tender and super soft with great flavors.  It was also very rich in flavor and very filling.  I'm not usually a fan of beets, but the red beet puree was quite delicious.  Smooth and silky with a hint of sweetness. Amazing.

Filet mignon with foie gras

green peppercorn sauce, Potato gratin

It was a special on the menu.  We just had to get our fix of foie gras since we were nearing the ban.  Definitely not my favorite dish of the night, but happy to have gotten some foie gras in our system.

Another item on the special's menu

Don't exactly remember what it was, but it was a fish dish.  Light, flavorful and perfect with everything else, since everything else we ordered were very rich and heavy.  I loved the puree that complemented the fish.

Chocolate souffle 

So beautifully prepared and tasty.  Lately, chocolate souffle desserts have been growing on me.  If made right the light fluffy cake with the warm oozing chocolate filling= perfection.  I've always got room in my stomach for good desserts.

Gunther's Quality Ice Cream

2801 Franklin Blvd
Sacramento, CA 95818

Occasion:After Vinson's graduation in the Davis heat, we had lunch in Sac and then dessert here to cool us down a bit before we made our trek back to the city! 06.17.12

50/50 freeze 

You could choose one flavor of ice cream with two flavors of freeze.  I chose their mango ice cream with their strawberry and lemon freezes.  So freaking delicious.  Perfect balance of slushy goodness and creamy goodness.  Mango ice cream have chunks of mango in it and the strawberry freeze has chunks of strawberry.  It's so refreshing and not too much at all.  I love it and i can't wait to go back!  Aside from these freezes, they also have a lot of classic ice cream flavors and ice cream cones and sandwiches.  It's one of those old fashioned ice cream shops that's been around for decades and you'll definitely be up for a treat when you pay this place a visit.

Viet-Ha Vietnamese and Chinese Restaurant

6534 Florin Rd
Sacramento, CA 95828

Occasion: Lunch after Vinson's graduation.  It was the perfect place to fill all of our hungry bellies. 06.17.12

 For $7 you get this big bowl of goodness that I was only able to finish barely half of.  It came with Egg foo yung, grilled pork, shredded pork, shrimp, imperial roll, vegetables with vermicelli noodles.  So freaking delicious and you definitely get your money's worth here with their big portions and cheap prices!