Oriental Restaurant

20140926:
The pho broth today was a bit lighter than that of yesterday (Pho Saigon II). The beef balls and meat were a bit chewy and not as good. I only got steak slices today here. The coffee was also bitter in comparison to yesterday. This place was oriental restaurant. 2:20PM PT

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Oriental Restaurant

Relevant Links:
Oriental Restaurant - Downtown Berkeley - Berkeley, CA (Yelp.com)

Pho Saigon II

20140925:
Overall, the pho here was okay: the amount of saltiness was at a medium, the meat was just so-so, and the portion-size was small.

On the other hand, I thought the coffee was good.

(20140925)

[20140926]

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20150214:
I came here today after bouldering at Bridges Rock Gym. I ordered the Number 1, Đặc Biệt Bò Viên.

While the broth was pretty good, I was also pretty full and so I couldn't finish all of it. The ingredients were also pretty good. 4:41PM PT

(20150214)

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20150307:
As usual, I order the Number 1, Đặc Biệt Bò Viên. The pho broth tasted better today. In particular, it was not salty. Furthermore, today I managed to drink all of the broth.

(20150307)

Unfortunately, I did not get a refill of my tea or water; this restaurant has practically no service (I give a small tip for the food, $1).

[20150504 Edit]

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20150321:
After some bouldering at Bridges Rock Gym, I came to Pho Saigon II and ordered a bowl of pho. Today the meats were okay and the broth was good, but sometimes it tasted a bit oily.

(20150321)

[20150504 Edit]

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20150503:
Once again, after bouldering, I here for a bowl of pho. Also again, I got the Number 1. What's interesting to me, however, is how my thoughts vary from visit to visit. In any case, the broth today was really good and the bowl was big and full. The meat, however, was okay.

I also noted today that once they serve you, they leave you alone. Today I was happy with that, but sometimes its nice to get a refill of water or tea.

Speaking of service, I overheard a customer received the wrong dish and one of the waiters handled it in an unfriendly manner. The customer look displeased.

[20150504 Edit]

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Pho Saigon II

(20140925)

Relevant Links:
Pho Saigon Restaurant II - Richmond, CA (Yelp.com)
Mall Map (Pacific East Mall Website)

Lee's Deli (Berkeley)

20140924:
I went to this place for lunch today and got the BBQ chicken plate. Apparently the quantity in the plate is much more than I needed, and next time I would get the bowl instead of the plate.

In any case, it was solidly prepared chicken, there was not too much oil, nor too little. While I don't know much about cooking, I would guess part of the delicious flavor comes from the fat that's right beneath the skin.

Oh, I should note that one benefit of the plate versus the bowl is that the white rice can be substituted by brown rice for no extra charge. 3:33PM PT

Hawaiian Burger

[20141108]

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20141104:
Today I got a burger with pineapple and overall it was good as one would expect.

I mean, it's a fact of life, right? Pineapple makes just about everything better. While people like adding ranch or ketchup to everything, I love adding pineapple and avocado to everything.

Menu Description:
Hawaiian Burger - w/ grilled pineapple & sweet teriyaki sauce 6.75

Spam Musubi

This is the first time I've had a spam musubi. Not knowing what to expect, I found this simple snack used a lot of rice relative to the spam. If I were to prepare it to my own liking, I'd have sandwiched the Spam between two layers of rice. With that being said, I definitely enjoyed it.

Menu Description:
Spam Musubi - made w/ less sodium spam 1.75 1pc / 3.25 2pcs

While the burger came with fries, I didn't really like them (I generally don't like these type of fries) and saved them for later when I was hungrier and not particular about eating them.

[20141108]

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Lee's Deli (Berkeley)* **
*Apparently Lee's Deli is a family owned business with several locations throughout San Francisco. Typically selling sandwiches and other deli foods, their Berkeley location switches it up and serves Hawaiian food.
**[20141123] I was looking through some receipts today, and apparently this place used to be called Alohana Hawaiian Grill (the receipt still has this name printed on it).

BBQ Chicken (plate)

Relevant Links:
Lee's Deli Website
Lee's Deli - Downtown Berkeley - Berkeley, CA (Yelp.com)
Alohana Hawaiian Grill - Downtown Berkeley - Berkeley, CA (Yelp.com)

McDonald's

20140922:
Looking for "healthy" options on the menu, I ordered a grilled chicken club without the swiss cheese and mayo. It was then to my surprise that the sandwich came with bacon. In any case, the meat was a bit chewy, as if microwaved I guess. 7:52PM PT

Chicken McNuggets (20141125)

[20150218 Edit][20170211 Edit]

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20141125:
Bacon Habenero Ranch Quarter Pounder; 20 McNuggets; 4 Sweet & Sour Sauce

The sauce used in the Bacon Habenero Ranch is appropriately spicy.

Wow. I don't know why, but I enjoy the taste of Chicken McNuggets.

Perhaps it's because I had so many of them as a kid and enjoy their strange texture. After all, I even have a special way to eat them.*

Bacon Habenero Ranch Quarter Pounder (20141125)

Note, however, that because I ate the burger, I couldn't eat all of the McNuggets; I only ate about twelve before taking a break. 10:49PM PT

*My style of eating Chicken McNuggets with the purpose of evenly distributing sauce usage and reducing messiness can be roughly broken down into three stages:
Stage 1. Dip whole nuggets in sauce packets which are at least half full.
Stage 2. Dip half-eaten nuggets in sauce packets which are not full.
Stage 3. Finish the little bits which are left, scraping the bottom of sauce packets which are almost empty.

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Big Mac (20180802)

20150420:
Today I got a Big Mac and having eaten at In-N-Out so often, the difference in quality relative to price was shocking (In-N-Out wins hands down).

[20150521]

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20180802:
The Big Mac was not as delicious as I remembered. The meat tasted dry and lacked flavor (I originally wrote "boring"). The cheese was not melted and there was not much sauce. 5:04 PM PT

I also bought chicken nuggets. Nowadays, I think every trip to McDonald's has to have at least one order of chicken nuggets.

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McDonald's

Grilled Chicken Club (20140922)

Relevant Links:
McDonald's Website
McDonald's (Wikipedia.org)

Uncle Chung's Szechuan

20140921:
Today I came and ordered the shrimp chow mein and Szechuan lamb.

The chow mein is simple, and not so oily, which is good.

Szechuan Lamb

The lamb is a bit chewy, but the vegetables are good. The dish was supposedly spicy, but I didn't even find it to be mild.

In any case, I thought the food was delicious and the pricing was reasonable (12.50 for the lamb and 6.95 for the chow mein, I ate half of the dishes at the restaurant and had the other half packed to go. 5:25PM PT

Shrimp Chow Mein

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20160411:
It comes to a bit of a surprise that while I've been to Taqueria Morena a countless number of times, I've only been to Uncle Chung's Szechuan once before today.

In any case, today I got seated near the window where there was a nice view of the Pinole Vista Shopping Center and the general surrounding area.

Great Wall

Feeling in the mood for a drink, I got a Great Wall. However, among all the ingredients, I mainly just taste the Bailey's.

Menu Description:
Great Wall Absolut Vodka, milk, Bailey's Irish Cream, cola, Romana Sambuca

For the main entree, my friend and I got the deluxe vegetables and shrimp chow mein.

Vegetables

The deluxe vegetables come with bamboo shoots, tofu (which I liked), and a delicious sauce.

The first ingredient I noticed in the chow mein was the celery - it adds both a nice crunch and a particular flavor. After the celery, I noticed the green onion, then the beansprouts, and then the onion. Of course, possibly the most important note, is that the noodles were not excessively oily.*

Shrimp Chow Mein

*I realized upon updating this post that I also had the shrimp chow mein the last time I came here. I noted the light use of oil on both occasions.

[20160419]

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Uncle Chung's Szechuan

Relevant Links:
Uncle Chung's Szechuan Website
Uncle Chung's Szechuan - Pinole, CA (Yelp.com)

Taqueria Morena

20140920:
Today I came and ordered two ground beef tacos and two al pastor tacos. Given the choice of bonito, regular, or guapo, I got the bonito-sized tacos.

Morena Plate (20150111)

The chips have a roasted, smoky flavor to them. Furthermore, they are not salty. The salsa is mildly spicy.

The tortilla is amazing. It's soft, yet crunchy.

I had the beef taco first, and it was great.

Bonito Tacos (20140920)

In comparison, the al pastor taco was less moist, but definitely not dry. There was a good amount of flavor.

The supplied lime was fresh, and I found it was a nice addition to the beef taco.

Overall, it was a great visit and I intend on coming back. 7:33PM PT

Super Burrito (20141101)

[20141229 Edit]

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20141101:
Today I ordered a Super Burrito with black beans, keeping the cheese and sour cream in today. It's mostly good, but either the cheese or sour cream doesn't take good to me, at least not today. I only managed to eat half of it.

Actually, I also ordered a pork flauta. It only tasted so-so.

Pork Flauta (20141101)

The chips are good here.

[20141229]

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20141109:
Today I ordered a regular carnitas burrito and it was really good.

I suspect, however, that it was actually a Mexicali burrito, because it also had shrimp.

Mexicali Burrito (20141130)

Like the last time I ordered a burrito from here, I only half of the burrito. Unlike the last time, I remembered to bring the leftovers inside. 6:05PM PT

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20141130:
Today I ordered a Mexicali burrito with black beans. The burrito was tightly wrapped, tasted delicious, and once again I couldn't finish it. 9:57PM PT

Chips (20140920)

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20150111:
Morena Plate. This dish has a great presentation. In addition, it tastes delicious and the portion is plentiful. 5:23PM PT

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20150207:
Mexicali burrito with black beans, but no sour cream and no cheese. I love the thick, plump shrimp. I was full after finishing the burrito. 6:06PM PT

Mexicali Burrito (20150207)

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20150322:
Morena Plate. Getting a Morena plate over a Mexicali burrito at Taqueria Morena is similar to getting a burrito bowl over a burrito at Chipotle. It's less of a mess, there's a greater quantity of food, and it tastes better!

Bonito Taco (20150823)

[20150516]

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20150823:
Today I decided to order a regular taco and a bonito taco.

Starting with the bonito taco, I squeezed some lemon on and thought the lemon was not so citrusy, but the onions and cilantro tasted good. The chicken was especially good.

Regular Taco (20150823)

The regular taco was juicier than the bonito taco because of the tomatoes. In addition, the tortilla was toasted and slightly crisp along the edges. I thought it was a nice touch. 6:28PM PT

[20150918]

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Taqueria Morena

Mexicali Burrito (20141109)

Relevant Links:
Taqueria Morena - Pinole, CA (Yelp.com)

Fresco Mexican Grill

20140919:
Barbacoa burrito with black beans, cheese, and sour cream.

Tasted more fresh than Chipotle, but not as flavorful.

The chips were also salty, like Fritos. 6:41PM PT

Barbacoa burrito (20141201)

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20141201:
Today I ordered the barbacoa burrito. It's really good.

The burrito did not feel heavy,the lime was tasty, and the meat was juicy. 4:40PM PT

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20141217:
Today I ordered a barbacoa burrito with avocado and black beans.

The chips taste like Fritos. In particular, they're salty.

Barbacoa burrito with avocado and black beans (20141217)

Most of the meat was dry, but the meat at the bottom of the burrito, where the juices collected, was tastier. On that note, I also liked the pico de gallo.

Overall, I thought the burrito was either average or slightly below average. 2:00PM PT

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20150121:
For lunch today I wanted to go to The Sandwich Spot, but it was crowded. So then I stopped by Sandwich Zone, but it was crowded. Then, before going to Fresco, I dropped by Sliver, but it was crowded.

Chicken burrito with pinto beans, guacamole, and more (20150121)

At Fresco, I got a chicken burrito with pinto beans, guacamole, pico de gallo, hot salsa, and lime. This burrito was delicious and very filling. In fact, it was so filling that I almost couldn't finish.

While possibly not as good as Cancun Sabor Mexicano, the service is faster by nature of the setup. 4:03

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20150202:
Chicken burrito with black beans, pico de gallo, hot sauce, no cheese, no sour cream, guacamole, and lime. This burrito was delicious and unbelievably filling.

My first visit to Fresco Mexican Grill (20140919)

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Fresco Mexican Grill

Barbacoa burrito with black beans, cheese, and sour cream (20140919)

Relevant Links:
Fresco Mexican Grill
Fresco Mexican Grill - Downtown Berkeley - Berkeley, CA (Yelp.com)

Boudin Bakery

20140917:
I've been to a Boudin SF in South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, CA maybe two or three times before. As far as I can remember, this is my first time going to a Boudin located in San Francisco.

This bowl of chowder at Boudin was alright. While the sourdough bread bowl looks quite big, actual bowl depth was not so big.

In any case, I don't normally eat sourdough bread, but it seemed to have more of a sour taste than usual.

Overall, maybe the bowl of chowder was overpriced compared to the quality/quantity received. 2:18PM PT

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Boudin Bakery

Relative Links:
Boudin Bakery Website
Boudin Bakery (Wikipedia.org)
Boudin Sourdough Bakery & Cafe - Fisherman's Wharf - San Francisco, CA (Yelp.com)

Anzu Restaurant

20140916:
The miso soup was good.

The Bay Scallop is dominated by the creaminess of the mayonnaise.

Bay Scallop

Menu Description:
BAY SCALLOP Crabmeat, avocado over baked scallop with sauce

The Unagi Lover was less delicious. One bite was not filling.

Unagi Lover

Menu Description:
UNAGI LOVER Unagi, cucumber roll topped with unagi, avocado

The Spider Crazy had some more texture to it.

Spider Crazy

Menu Description:
SPIDER CRAZY Deep fried soft shell crab, cucumber, avocado roll over crabmeat with tobiko

The fish of the Mammoth had an interesting spice. The crunchy texture on the inside was the best part. Note that, since I usually can't eat spicy tuna, we got the Mammoth with crabmeat instead of spicy tuna.

Mammoth

Menu Description:
MAMMOTH Deep fried shrimp, crabmeat, spicy tuna cucumber topped with salmon, tuna, tai, wakame, tobiko 8:51PM PT

This place had friendly service. The food was good. Four rolls split across three adult males was filling. 8:54PM PT

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Anzu Restaurant

Relevant Links:
Anzu Restaurant - Downtown Berkeley - Berkeley, CA (Yelp.com)

Phil's Sliders

For some reason I never thought of sliders as a lunch option until running into this place. There's actually another slider place not too far away, though I haven't been to that one yet.

(20140916)

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20140916:
The beef sliders (medium rare) are pretty good. I think the sauce helps.

Menu Description:
BEEF SLIDER - WITH CHEDDAR, OUR SPECIAL SAUCE AND ICEBERG LETTUCE (WE RECOMMEND MEDIUM RARE FOR MAXIMUM FLAVOR)

Chicken slider with bacon (20141020)

The coleslaw in the chicken slider made for an interesting experience. However, I'd likely not get the coleslaw version in the future. 3:39PM PT

Menu Description:
FRIED-CHICKEN SLIDER - WITH COLE SLAW AND LEMON-THYME AIOLI

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20141020:
Today I got two beef sliders and two chicken sliders, but the ones with bacon, not the ones with coleslaw.

Beef slider (20141020)

[20141105]

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20150108:
Just before heading home today, I decided to stop by Phil's Sliders and get some dinner.

Having ordered four medium rare beef sliders, I was surprised and delighted to find I was also given a fifth, complimentary chicken slider. In any case, the three beef sliders I ate were yummy and the chicken slider was yummier! I was, however, full after four sliders and saved the fourth beef slider for later. 8:53PM PT

Four beef sliders and one chicken slider. (20150123)

[20150219 Edit]

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20150123:
Originally planning to go to BUILD Pizzeria, I came here after learning that BUILD had stopped it's low-price lunch special.

I wrote: "I love the fried chicken sliders here at Phil's Sliders." 2:28PM PT

(20170111)

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20170111:
Today I got two chicken sliders, a portobello slider, and a side salad to help keep my meals more balanced and healthy.

While the salad tasted ordinary, I was pleased to note that the chicken slider tasted as great as I had remembered it tasting.

(20170111)

Trying the portobello slider for the first time, my impression was that it tasted good, but lacked the crunchiness of the fried chicken slider which makes the chicken slider taste so great.

I happily completed my meal with the second chicken slider. 10:22PM PT

[20170127]

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Phil's Sliders

Relevant Links:
Phil's Sliders Website
Phil's Sliders - Downtown Berkeley - Berkeley, CA (Yelp.com)

China Delights

20140913:
Today I came to China Delights for the first time and ordered some takeout: honey walnut shrimp and house lo mein. There were no peanuts, and while I said I'm fine with peanut oil, apparently they use vegetable oil.

House lo mein (20140913)

Of the food, I found the sauce deliciously sweet, but the lo mein was oily. 7:12PM PT

[20141104]

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20141202:
Today I got an order of chicken chow mein and an order of general chicken.

General chicken (20141202)

The general chicken sauce was absolutely delicious. However, the chow mein, without adding the general chicken sauce, was a bit dry. Fortunately, eating the general chicken and chow mein together was perfect. 3:14PM PT

Chicken chow mein (20141202)

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20160315:
Today I came here for dinner and split an order of the wonton soup, mixed vegetables, and honey walnut shrimp.

The combination won ton itself tasted good, but the broth was salty and the meat was a bit dry.

Wontons (from wonton soup) (20160315)

In addition to the wonton soup, getting the mixed vegetables was a great choice, because the prawns were just okay. They were deliciously sweet, but the exterior wasn't as crunchy as I had hoped it would be.

Mixed vegetables (20160315)

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20170115:
Today (Sunday) I came around five o'clock and noticed that only two other tables were occupied. I didn't realize that most people ate dinner later in the evening.

In any case, I got an order of Chinese broccoli and half an order of steamed chicken with ham and greens.

(Half) Chicken with Ham and Greens (20170115)

Though I expected both dishes to arrive one after the other, I got the broccoli first and had to eat it by itself while I waited for the chicken - I opted not to get any rice. Overall, the broccoli tasted as it should.

When the chicken arrived, I was amused to find that the "greens" part of "steamed chicken with ham and greens" was just a couple stems of Chinese broccoli; the quantity given paled in comparison with the standalone order.

Chinese Broccoli (20170115)

Regardless, the chicken tasted good, the occasional mushroom between the pieces of chicken was a treat, and the ham between the pieces was just okay.

Overall the chicken sauce was reasonably sweet and I liked the meal.

[20170127 Edit]

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China Delights

Honey walnut shrimp (20160315)

Relevant Links:
China Delights - Pinole, CA (Yelp.com)