Le P'tit Caribou

20160228:
Before coming here, my friends and I pre-gamed with a couple of drinks. In total, I had about 4 shots worth of liquor (~1.5, 1.5, and 1).

After arriving, I had two drinks.

While there were more guys than girls, my friends and I had fun and it wasn't bad.

Supposedly it's one of the top 10 bars in North America.* However, some of my friends were saying it wouldn't even make the top 10 bars in San Francisco!

In any case, the bar closes at 3 AM, but we left around half an hour til (2:30 AM).

There were plenty of locals there, both from Montreal and Mont Tremblanc.

When we got back to our AirBnB, we ate, and some of us jumped into the jacuzzi. It was a short, cold walk from the door to the jacuzzi, but it felt so good.

*[20180707] I looked up and found the actual claim. They have occasionally been noted as being a top "apres-ski bar" in North America. However, this is not ubiquitous. Not every top 10 apres-ski bar list mentions Le P'tit Caribous.

[20180707 Edit]

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Le P'tit Caribou

Relevant Links:
Le P'tit Caribou Website
Le P'Tit Caribou - Mont-Tremblant, QC, Canada (Yelp.com)
Le P'tit Caribou (TripAdvisor.com)

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On 20180707, their website makes the following statements:

1) Named best après-ski bar in Eastern North America for over ten years in a row by Ski Canada magazine!
2) Ranked fourth top après-ski bar in the world by Forbes magazine!
3) Voted best après-ski bar in North America! – Freeskier Magazine 2016

The bottom of the website reiterated the above and says the following:

Le P’tit Caribou bar in Mont Tremblant was voted best après-ski bar in North America for 10 straight years by Ski Canada Magazine and ranked fourth best bar in the world by Forbes. Le P’tit Caribou has not only held the title of best Mont Tremblant bar for 22 years, but we have been named a top Après-Ski bar by Canada Ski Magazine, Men's Journal, Canadian Traveller Magazine, National Geographic and Forbes Traveller to name a few!

Schwartz's

Schwartz's

Relevant Links:
Schwartz's Website
Schwartz's - Plateau-Mont-Royal - Montreal, QC, Canada (Yelp.com)
Schwartz's (Wikipedia.org)

French Fries / Patates Frites

20160225:
Between the airport and our final destination, we pass through the city and stop by a well-known smoked-meat restaurant called Schwartz's. While there are various options on their menu, the main event is the smoked meat.

Dill Pickle / Cornichons

Extras:
We ordered various extras: French fries*, dill pickles, 1/2 sour pickles, and coleslaw.

Unfortunately, the 1/2 sour pickles were barely sour and mostly tasted like regular cucumbers.

Coleslaw / Salade de chou

*The customers sharing our table asked for mayonnaise for their fries, but the employee said they don't have mayonnaise, because it's a Jewish establishment. Doing a bit of research, while mayonnaise is kosher, there is some sort of cultural resentment against it.

Salami Sandwich

Salami Sandwich:
If I remember correctly, all of their sandwiches are cold cuts except for the smoked meat. With that being said, I had a piece of this sandwich after eating my smoked meat sandwich and it was simple, but good.

Smoked Meat Sandwich / Sandwich a la viande fumee

Smoked Meat Sandwich:
With the choice of lean, medium, and fat meat, I went with the fat and it was so delicious! The meat practically melted in my mouth.

In the end I traded a quarter of mine for a quarter of Jack's medium. Not as rich as the fat meat, the difference was as clear as night and day.

1/2 Sour Pickle / Cornichons 1/2 surs

Thus, while the medium cut might be the way to go if you eat here often, go with the fat cut if you're just stopping by once in a blue moon!

A View on Taste:
So a friend of mine brought up this topic on how people could distinguish between expensive wine and cheap wine, and yet prefer the cheap wine.

While I did not see the original article, I questioned whether or not the participants were already accustomed to the cheap wine. As an example, I grew up eating nachos with nacho cheese sauce (e.g., Taco Bell) and like it more than nachos with melted shredded cheese.

But what if I had a child and raised him/her to eat nachos with melted shredded cheese?

Skipping some strong points, the conversation lead towards the subject of condiments and I said heavy use of condiments is meant to hide any lack of flavor.

Buy a pack of meat and take it to go!

After a bit of agreement and disagreement, a customer seated at the end of our table - a chef by profession - chimed in and offered his point of view. While I don't remember precisely what he said, it was to the following effect: every part of a dish has a voice and certain ingredients like ketchup or salt have voices which scream.

[20160316 Edit]

Joy's Place

20160224:
After getting some sushi nearby, I still had time to kill before catching my 11PM flight and decided to check this place out. Although I was primarily interested in a place with wi-fi and coffee, apparently this place has some decent desserts. However, being quite full, I didn't order any desserts and only got a regular cup of coffee.

While every table was occupied, there were a couple of open chairs and anyone with a small enough computer could ask a stranger to share a table. Unfortunately, my current laptop is gigantic and would have needed a two person table to myself, a spot on the couch, a spot at one of the two bars, or a spot at the bigger four-person tables. Luckily for me, a spot at the sofa opened up shortly after I purchased my coffee.

But as a twist, my primary plan of using the wi-fi to play Heroes of the Storm was nullified by the lack of consistent bandwidth. Furthermore, a combination of my fatigue, perhaps the sake from dinner, and the lag of the game resulted in my nodding off to sleep before getting more than one or two sips of the coffee I had ordered. 7:19PM PT

Although I was unable to tell if the coffee's quality was better or worse than Starbucks coffee, I would definitely come back to Joy's Place as a place to work. I also look forward to trying their selection of desserts.

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Joy's Place

Relevant Links:
Joy's Place Cafe Website
Joy's Place - Lower Nob Hill - San Francisco, CA (Yelp.com)

Miyabiya Sushi and Grill

Miyabiya Sushi and Grill

Double Hamachi Roll

Relevant Links:
Miyabiya Sushi and Grill Website
Miyabiya Sushi and Grill - Union Square - San Francisco, CA (Yelp.com)
Miyabiya Sushi and Grill (Facebook Page)

20160224:
On my way to the San Francisco International Airport, I got off the BART in one of the cities in search for food and ended up inside Miyabiya. While the place felt empty for five o'clock in the afternoon, the music was upbeat and the decor was pleasant.

Not having to drive, I decided to order a small house hot sake (Shochikubai). It had a nice, warm smell. I like how it smelled drinkable as opposed to overpowering, like when I certain whiskeys or tequila. With that being said, it was reasonably strong. I enjoyed the warmth of the drink.

House Hot Sake: the cup sits on top of the flask

Looking through the menu, I decided to order the Double Hamachi roll.

Menu Description:
Double Hamachi: deep fried Hamachi roll, topped with jalapeño, Hamachi, scallion and tobiko

I tried the first two pieces without soy sauce. The roll used a tasty sauce and I enjoyed the overall texture. From what I could tell, the hamachi on top seemed to have been seared and that certainly contributed to the roll. Towards the end, I found the thinly sliced jalapeños provided a deliciously subtle touch. In the end, the roll was probably worth two to three dollars less than its sixteen dollar price tag, but I'd rather have overvalued good sushi than undervalued bad sushi. 5:30PM PT

Sunflower Roll

In the mood for more, I ordered the Sunflower roll. When it arrived, I admired its presentation and the scent of the asparagus made its way towards my nose.

Menu Description:
Sunflower: real crab meat, tempera shrimp, asparagus topped with tuna, salmon, Hamachi and tobiko

The first piece, which mostly had salmon on top, tasted okay. In particular, I was under the impression that there was more vinegar in rice than usual. The second piece, which mostly had tuna on top, was a bit better. Perhaps, however, third times the charm, because mouth picked up on the crunchiness texture of both the tempura shrimp and asparagus in the third piece I ate.

Double Hamachi Roll

Overall, I enjoyed the textures within the Sunflower Roll and would recommend it to anybody who enjoys the texture of their food more than the flavor.

As a side note, today I had quite the appetite and I finally felt full after the sixth piece. Of course, I also had a long night and short nap on the BART. 5:53PM PT

Panda Express

20160222:
I wouldn't know first-hand, but from stories I've heard, me eating here at Panda Express is like a college girl getting drunk. Sometimes its a good experience, but oftentimes its terrible and you tell yourself you won't ever do it again, but against your best judgement you do it again.

Beijing Beef (20160222)

Actually, getting food from a Chinese fast food place isn't so bad during rush hour when all the choices are consistently being renewed.

In any case, today I got some chow mein (although there is the option of getting 1/2 chow mein, 1/2 rice), Shanghai Angus steak, honey walnut shrimp, and Beijing beef.

Unfortunately, because I came at four o'clock in the afternoon, the Angus steak was soft and unappetizing, the walnut shrimp was also soft but more enjoyable, and pulling up the rear was the Beijing beef which was not as bad as the other two.

Shanghai Angus Steak (top left), Honey Walnut Shrimp (top right), and Chow Mein (bottom)

Overall the meal was subpar, but met a craving of sorts. 4:23PM PT (Maybe college girls get drunk to meet some sort of social craving.)

[20160313 Edit]

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Panda Express

Overview: Chinese fast food chain.

Relevant Links:
Panda Express Website
Panda Express - Pinole, CA (Yelp.com)
Panda Express (Wikipedia.org)

Sobo Ramen

Sobo Ramen

Relevant Links:
Sobo Ramen Website
Sobo Ramen - Oakland Chinatown - Oakland, CA (Yelp.com)

20160218:
After walking around Oakland Chinatown, my friend and I passed by Sobo Ramen and I was interested in trying it. From what I can remember, I ordered the Spicy Miso Ramen, though many of the other "Special Feature Ramen" looked appetizing. In addition to our entrees, we split the Agedash Tofu appetizer.

While I would have gotten the Soft Shell Crab, my friend expressed interest in the tofu and I obliged.

Menu Description: Agedashi Tofu $4.95
Crispy fried tofu served on tempura sauce

When the tofu arrived, I took a piece onto my plate and poured some of the tempura sauce over it. Then, upon biting into the tofu, my mouth took joy in both the tofu's flavor and texture. Even if the ramen ended up being bad, I would have been content with having tried the tofu.

With that being said, I remember enjoying the ramen. I could not, however, distinguish its quality with that of ramen from other ramen places I've been to.

Menu Description: Spicy Miso Ramen $11.50
Topped with chashu, soft boiled egg, shiitake mushroom, bean sprout, seaweed, green onion, and sesame seeds in spicy miso broth. Option available for vegetarian.

[20160313]

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Taqueria Maria

20160202:
Tucked away in the Hilltop Plaza, this was my first time eating at Taqueria Maria (and at any establishment in the center for that matter). However, rather than ordering some tacos or a burrito, I couldn't help but see "Prawn Nachos" on the menu and decide to get them.

Menu Description:
Prawn Nacho - Any Beans, Cheese, Sour Cream, Guacamole, and Salsa

While I recall liking the nachos, I was mostly talking on the phone with a friend while eating them and so I don't fully remember and I forgot to jot down any notes.

I do, however, vaguely remember that the fillings were evenly spread out.* It's otherwise annoying when an establishment only puts enough toppings to cover the top.

In any case, I'll definitely come back one day and try something new here, especially since one visit may be insufficient to determine the quality of a restaurant.

*Turns out I took a photo of the nachos and the fillings do seem evenly spread out and plentiful.

[20160312]

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Taqueria Maria

Overview: Mexican food in Hilltop Plaza, Richmond, CA.

Relevant Links:
Taqueria Maria - Richmond, CA (Yelp.com)