Gastro Monkey // 美食家

On June 6th, we went to the JCCSF for the event An Evening with Eddie Huang . Driving out from Sacramento, we wanted to make sure that we found parking and that we got there without any worries from the traffic (a lot can happen on the road between Sacramento and SF). We got there earlier enough to find street parking a few blocks away and with enough time to grab some dinner. They were going to serve bao of some sort at the event, but it didn't seem appetizing to me. I busted out the trusty yelp restaurant finder to see what I felt like eating. A few of the places nearby looked good but were closed. One of the places nearby was a BBQ place that looked good, but I wasn't in the mood for anything that heavy (didn't want to have the itis while listening to Eddie speak!). Luckily, we found a sushi place about 4 blocks away. I went there with low expectations. I haven't heard of it before and advertising it as sustainable sushi among other things made me worry it was just ...

Every time we head up to Seattle, we try to find some new place that we haven't been to. During this trip, it was The Brooklyn Seafood, Steak, and Oyster House. It looked awesome. Beer and oyster flights? Sign me up! They have other flights to choose from, but I went for the beer and oyster flight. The options change daily depending on what's on draft and which oysters are freshest.  We grabbed a seat at the bar in front of the oyster display and main signage. Service was surprisingly slow for a restaurant that wasn't busy yet (we were there at 4PM on a Sunday because we had a flight back home afterwards). I was also not the only one to be a bit disappointed by the beer and oysters. There was some bits of shell in my oyster, so a little sad that they didn't clean the knife between shucks. With flights, I like trusting that someone took the time to taste the beer or wine and the food item so that they pair nicely. I feel like in this situation, it wasn't well pa...

One of my favorite steakhouses in the country, John Howie never disappoints. I've been there for my birthday before and enjoyed a fantastic A5 Wagyu Ribeye from the Miyazaki Prefecture, but more regularly, I stop by for their well priced happy hour. I wouldn't say it's cheap, but it's much more affordable than their regular dinner menu. There is only one food item I order every time, and that is the kurobuta bacon. It is a tempura batter on the outside and fried, served alongside a maple sambal sauce. It is sweet and spicy and all sorts of umami. I always tell people they gotta try it, but not everyone seems to think it's worth it. For those in the know, we know  it's worth it.  Happy hour and food aside, the cocktails here are top notch. Everything is so well made and perfect. And, like all good bartenders, if you have a particular taste or liquor preference, just let them know and they'll concoct something for you to your taste. If you haven't...