The Rotunda

   

Last day in San Francisco. My friend highly recommended the Rotunda in Neiman Marcus. As the name illustrates, it has a circular ground plan and a dome top. The interior was grand and the big windows brighten up the restaurant. When you arrive, you are served with a complimentary hot chicken broth, popover, strawberry butter.

Just the broth and the popovers are worth. The broth was home made and you can taste the freshness of the chicken. It was low sodium so it's perfect to start off your meal. The popovers was hot and fluffy. Strawberry butter still has the buttery flavor adding the sweetness of the strawberries. Great combination.

I order the lobster club. There is applewood smoked bacon, avocado, arugula, lemon aiolo on toasted brioche. It also comes with taro chips. There is a decent amount of lobsters and the sandwich was packed with freshly cut vegetables. It is the first time i tried taro chips. They were harder than potato chip and taro taste was not too strong. 

My mom ordered a cheeseburger with white cheddar. She was craving for a burger and this was a great choice. It looks like a regular burger but the special aspect is the bun. They used a scallion bun that adds a lot of flavor. The fries were great too. 

The Rotunda closes at night so everyone is there for brunch. The interior design is gorgeous and relaxing. The food is great and the view is beautiful. It is perfect for a cocktail also before or after shopping around in Neiman Marcus.

The Rotunda

150 Stockton Street

San Francisco, CA 94108

T: 415.362.4777

http://www.neimanmarcus.com/store/info/restaurant.jhtml?rest=200010

SCALA'S bistro

 

Our family friend recommended this restaurant to us. Located on Powell street where the cable car starts and runs through those famous steep roads. It is a bistro so the price was average but the food but totally worth it for this price. 

Bruschetta: fava pesto, duck prosciutto, pecorino, mint, pine nuts

The first time I tried duck prosciutto. It was not too thin. It was chewy and had a very strong duck flavor. The pesto and pine nut gave the bruschetta a nutty twist. It was a great combination.

Moules Frites:
PEI mussels, leeks, pastis










Seafood is always a good choice when you are near the bay area. The mussels were big and juicy. The pastis added tons of flavor and the soup was addictive. This also comes with pomme frites. It was skinny and freshly made fries that was crispy and not oily at all. A new twist of combination which was delicious

Linguine & Clams   manila clams, garlic, roasted tomato, white wine, calabrian chilies

Once again, you will never be wrong by picking the pasta with seafood. The clams tasted fresh from the sea and the chilies spiced it up. This was a simple dish but each aspect of it was perfectly done. The pasta was al dente, the clams were fresh and the white wine brought out that freshness.
Delicious.

Potato Gnocchi: field mushrooms, tuscan kale, spring onions, garrotxa cheese

I am a fan of gnocchi and mushrooms therefore this dish is perfect for me. These gnocchi are big and the smell of mushrooms rushed in all your pores when it arrived. Kale is also the healthiest vegetables, low calaries and highly nutritional. It was a little heavy but nothing could stop me from cleaning this plate.

This restaurant is always packed so definitely make a reservation beforehand. It is a perfect restaurant for a date or just a nice dinner with your family. Everyone was nice and the food was worth it for this price. Highly recommended.

Scala's Bistro

432 Powell Street

San Francisco, CA 94108

T: 415.395.8555

RoliRoti

 

The second time here in San Francisco's farmer's market. The first thing you notice is the long line in front of RoliRoti's Rotisserie. You would not missed it. They offer free range chicken (whole or half) and potatoes soaked with the juice and oil from the pork and chicken. Of course, most importantly, their fabulous porchetta. We waited for about an hour but it's all worth it. 


The juicy roasted pork were sliced and prepared for sandwich orders. All the juices drip onto the cutting board with each slice. The folks never let a bit go to waste and quickly grab a piece of bread to wipe down the cutting board to absorb all of that flavor.
The main ingredients are seasoned slices of Porchetta, caramelized onions, fresh arugula and most importantly crispy pork skin!
The chopped skin gave the sandwich an explosive WOW.

It is a must to visit this food truck whenever you are near the Bay area. You will never regret waiting in line.

RoliRoti
http://www.roliroti.com/

Solbar

Day trip to Napa Valley. It was a cold day and most of the wine tastings were not as good as expected. We didn't get a chance to go to most of them as planned but lunch was delicious.
Solbar, located in Solage Calistoga Resort. It was too cold to be outdoor but the interior was chic and relaxing accompany with the spectacular mountain ranges.

Spicy shrimp lettuce wraps with glass noodles, nam pla dipping sauce, avocado and pickled carrots. This dish was very refreshing. The shrimp was fresh and the dipping sauce was not too spicy. It was a great starter.

Sliders. This tiny burger was blasting with flavors. The bacon, cheddar and onion fits perfectly with the soft and crisp bun. The patty was juicy and only this size could keep all of these flavor intact!!

Seared yellowfin tuna burger. On a griddled steam bun with kim chi. This is very fusion dish. The steam bun was chewy and nicely done but the tuna patty was too well done. It lost the flavor of the tuna and the kim chi flavor was too strong.
The sides of marinated tofu and edamame salad was a nice combination but the tofu was too salty.

This is the highlight of the meal. if anyone tried peking duck, this is a different version of that. Lucky pig: a slow-roasted shoulder of long and bailey duroc pork. The wrap is a black sesame crepes and lettuce cups. There are four different sauces. Pickled pineapple, mongolian peanut, sprouts and a spicy dipping sauce. Basil and mint is also served. The crepe was chewy and aromatic. The pork melted in your mouth and this combination was perfection.

This chocolate cake was nothing special but still delicious.

Solbar

755 Silverado Trail

Calistoga, California 94515

T: 7072260850

http://www.solagecalistoga.com/solbar.html

CHAYA Brasserie

 

DAY2 in San Francisco. With the culture of eating out in the city, most of the restaurants are full. We arrived Chaya, which is near the Bay Bridge. We ate early just in case, but it was also half full. This restaurant serve Japanese and French fusion. The interior design separates the restaurant with different atmospheres.

 First a cocktail. The menu was filled was really special cocktails. I ordered the Lychee soju 'tini. They used a combination of Soju and Sake. The cocktail was pretty strong was it started my night with a good start.

For my main course, I had a pan roasted petrale sole with day boat scallops. They wrap the fish around the scallop and put them on a bed of risotto accompany with tempura mushrooms and lobster fondue. The price was very reasonable with the portion they serve. The scallop and fish was perfectly cooked and i love the risotto. The tempura was nicely done but i think it was too oily with this dish. It made the dish really heavy and filling.

My friend ordered the chinese five spiced duck breast. The duck was perfectly done and they were well marinated. Very nice flavors. The pomegranate cider jus brought out the flavor of the duck and gave the dish another boost of refreshing flavor.

Pan Roasted Wild Seabass. My mother is very picky with seabass. She like it tender and smooth and it is very hard to satisfy her. She enjoyed this seabass a lot. The purée was very smooth and the vegetables are good sides.





Overall, the food was delicious. Unfortunately, we could not fit in dessert. The atmosphere is relaxing and very casual. The service is great and the view of the Bay Bridge at night is unbeatable. It was a satisfying night with friends and family.

CHAYA Brasserie
132 The Embarcadero
San Francisco, CA 94105
T: 415.777.8688
http://www.thechaya.com/

Cliff House

San Fancisco became one of the best cities on my list. This city comprises both the financial vibe in New York City but also the lay back and relaxing atmosphere all through California.

Cliff house is as the name said located on a cliff overseeing the Ocean Beach. If you get a chance you could also visit the famous Sutro bath ruins.

Accompanying the beautiful coastline is of course some cocktail to start.

We ordered hanger one citron vodka with soda. If you never tried hangar one, it's plain delicious. They serve you a very generous amount too.

Then we ordered our lunch.

I ordered the Ahi Tuna Tartare. There is asian pear which balance out the flavor and brings out the flavor of the tuna. The chili sesame oil is not too spicy. The quail egg was my favorite because i love all kinds of egg. The portion good for an appetizer.

My friend ordered the lamb sirloin sandwich. The sandwich is spread with olive tapenade and pine nuts, spinach and caramelized onions. It also comes with rosemary fries. The sirloin has a really strong lamb taste that i dislike. Other than that it taste pretty good. 

My other friend ordered a burger which was delicious. The meat was juicy and the truffle fries is awesome. We even ordered extra truffle oil on the side. YUM.

Although the food was average, the view was absolutely worth it. The vibe in the restaurant is perfect for a afternoon cocktail. Definitely recommended if you want a chill and relaxing afternoon near the beach.

Cliff House
1090 Point Lobos, San Francisco, CA 94121
Phone: 415-386-3330
www.cliffhouse.com