Captain Hongo

All right, let's get down here and down home. First, A.H. Burritos, home of the soft tacos. This is a hole in the wall that started the soft movement and the basis of that is the taco shell, bursting with its own flavor and just right for the outstanding fillings they have. It's at 516 East Houston, between the Alamo and River Walk. Then there's the Zuni Grill, a higher class tourist trap on the River Walk at 223 Losoya. Take the shortcut across from the Alamo, next to the Visitors Center down to the River and turn left, go about 4 stores and it's at the first bridge. The Prickly Pear cactus Margaritas are great and so are the crab cakes and the sashimi nachos. My last "real" San Antonio favorite is the Pig Stand at 1508 Broadway. This is about 1 1/2 miles from the Alamo. Home of the "authentic" chicken fried steak. "nuff said. In a thread about Biga On The Bank I reported a dinner spending big bucks.But you can file it under "special occasions", for now. Have fun.

Scott, That was perfect. Gimme two.

I was at the Kitchen Table having the 20 course Tasting Menu on Oct. 20, the night they got their 4th star. I had learned about them from eGullet reviews (you know who you are), and flew in from LA just for dinner. It, of course was great, and Chef David was an enjoyable tour guide. I'm ready to make reservations at the new place. Chef G should give eGutteteers priority for reservations. :) Da Captain

I like Cascadia for local products and game. The room is beautiful and the menu changes with the season. I think it's great. Then there's Mistral for an incredable tasting menu. Or you could eat your way through Pikes Market, lots of little and big places there, my favorate is Lowells for the chowder and the view. The Crab Shack below Pikes Market is fun and there's always the original Starbucks there when you need the caffene. If you have a car, Snowqualime (sp) Lodge is beautiful and has a great waterfall to look at.

Thanks FoodZealot. I went to Nanbankan tonight and had the Lamb. You were right. Delicious.

From one Yank to another. I noticed that some gulleteers were reccomending West Restaurant. I was there less than 2 weeks ago and posted a review in the Vancouver forum that you may find interesting. The place is great.

So, we arrived and were shown to one of the chef tables which was in the service area and looked directly into the kitchen, perfect. Our server Chris, who, being the service manager, couldn't have been more pleasant, personable and professional, greeted us and we agreed to 10 courses with wine pairings. Being more of a micro-beer person, I left the choices to him. And, so; The first dish was described as a classic tomato gazpacho. A wide-lipped bowl containing a mound of firm Dungeness crab meat, avocado and sweet roasted peppers was placed in front of us. The gazpacho was then poured, by Chris, from a pitcher over the mound with an effect not unlike the vapor dishes served at Trio by Chef G. We were enveloped by a bouquet of the peppers, avocado and gazpacho, such that we spent a time just enjoying the scent. The dish changes with each taste and mixture of the mound and was gone way too soon. So many flavors with such intensity, I used the bread to clean my bowl. At Chris' suggestion we had 1/2 bottles of wine with each two courses. The first was a Vin D'Alsace 2002 Willm Pinot Gris. Very nice start, indeed. After the gazpacho, the server told us we were going to have Chef Davids' signature dish from his days in England. At this point we realized that there had been no amuse bouche offered. Being as it was too late to mention it we stifled our disappointment and moved on. On to Salmon poached in pork bouillion topped with a dollop of crema fraich dotted with caviar. The salmon had been slow poached and then held for 6 hours in the bouillion. It was smooth as velvet and served with slices of lightly toasted brioche. Our third dish was indigenous Princess Island lngline Ling cod over a spoonfull of tomatoes with a Meyer lemon vinaigrette. I particularly like Ling cod and this was exquisite, crisp and buttery at the same time with the acidity of the lemon and tomatoes mellowing each other. The wine for these courses was a Marcel Diess, Berghein, Buie Lerberg, Pinot Noir 1999. Smoothly offset the cod with its various acids. Next, we addressed a carmelized weathervane Alaskan scallop paired with a spot prawn and basil ravioli ajudicated with a light shiitake mushroom foam. So wild, so delicious, it was ready to swagger. Number five arrived, just barely. I say that because it was composed of first of the season Oregon Morels (BCs hadn't appeared yet), with new English peas in a Piedmont risotto. Morels are a risky treat because the poisonous false morels appear before the true ones and the difference is subtle, the cap with brainlike swirls being false and yet wrinkles almost the same for the true. (Chalice with the palace...) The wine for course 5 and 6 was an uplifting champagne. Chateau Du Pape, Domajre Du Pegan 2001. Wonderful Champagne was the perfect choice for this next course. (Deep breath) We almost stood in awe when presented with chilled poached lobster situated near the edge of a plate decorated with an abstract design drawn with a tracing of curried mango dressing and beetroot dressing accompanied by slices of sweetened glazed tomato and crested with a cocked lobster antenna as a touch of whimsey. I had mentioned during one of my calls to the restaurant that I liked game dishes and West responded. (I noticed that the staff seemed to remember everything that had been mentioned in all the calls. I didn't.) Presentation seven was rabbit roasted over cedar in a tapinade butter sauce with chilled Salt Spring Island organic white asparagus. Juicy, crispy with subtle woodsy flavors. Great. With this and the next course, and staying with the game segment of the menu our next wine was a Quailsgate Reisling from the interior. What year, I didn't note. The next course, (Ah, the next course. By this time I was intoxicated and contented.) Mount Lehman Squab with smoked, pan seared Foie gras garnished with butternut squash. Much has been written in eGullet about this foie gras, (most poetically by malachi, I bow to his writing. He more than anyone, except the chef, is the impetus of my trip up.) Crispy with the delectable smoothness dripping through, sinful. Changing to a Quailsgate Port we moved into the dessert wonderland. Chef Rhonda Viani and her extraordinary creations. My bad, but my notes are smeared and confused at the point (must get small tape recorder). So, there was a malted milk chocolate mousse with a white chocolate rasberry tart. Then a darkchocolate coconut cake with banana ice cream. Then, I wrote that we had a espresso Grand Marnier terrine and rasberry sorbet. I ate and ate and wanted more and more. She is a great chef and a perfect fit with Chef David. This then was my first night in Vancouver. Later, that weekend would be Carderos, Raincity Grill, Feenies lunch, and Tsunamis' on Robson for sushi (I was staying at the Westin on Robson, and it was a short walk. I get very buzzed on sake.). The staff were all professional and the room was beautiful with great colors, leather walls and a marble floor. The bar was classic with an open wine wall and bookstore type ladders to access the glass fronted casing. Digression: I have never been able to obtain a quality Margarita in Canada. I climb around Baniff, Jasper and Lake Louise, I trained in Toronto, and nowhere have I been satisfied. West, I'm sorry, was no exception. I asked for a Herradura Margarita on the rocks, no salt. I was served a shot of Tequila, no juices, no ice. We need to have a BC seminar on covering this. Anyway, The check. $130 each for the dinner and $305 total for the wine, in Canadian dollars. Add the GST and the LST and it totaled $628 Canadian. A bit pricier than the menu would indicate, but being a gastro-tourist has its costs. Overall the night was as wonderful as we had hoped and expected. No one let us down . We made a reservation for the next (Sunday) evening, but got lost on the Island and didn't get back in time. Our loss. However, we Christmas in Seattle and are making plans to day trip to West then. (Anybody interested in discussing Seattle's Cascadia, Mistral, Earth and Ocean or Inn at The Market?) See you then.

I nevered concidered Hermosa B each as a cajun haven. Now it's time for a road trip. I trained at K-Pauls and have had gator in "Lafyet" at the Festival, several times. Thanks for the info.

I've been eating at Nanbankan since day 2 of the restaurant. It's in West LA on Santa Monica Blvd, just west of the 405. They offer several "tasting menus" sort of, with their most common items bundled. For those who don't know, Yakitori is a grilled meal consisting of many different items, each grilled on a skewer and served individually. Thnik about a sushi bar where everything is cooked. You sit around the counter and order as you go, with the cooks in front of you. Kim, the manager and the several servers bring you the back kitchen items and the sake and beer. My favorite items after 20+ years are the bacon-wrapped Asparmaki, the soft shell crab (back kitchen), quails eggs, sweet shrimp, chicken balls and the clams. I'll be doing my B-day there Friday and will have some friends with me. We usually drop $35-40 a person and go home full. The place is always happy and full. But, no one whom I've talked to knows the place because they don't advertise, just a small name on the front. No reservations. Either for them or from me. Does anyone know of any other yakitori places on the Westside? This place is a gem. Kim has been there since day 1 and is a very gracious and humorous host.

We used to have lots of Cajun restaurants in LA. The best was Orleans in West LA, but they merged with Rick Royces's Ribs and then both disapeared. Now all we have is Uncle Darrows. Good, but more like fast food than classic. Any one know any places, maybe in Pasadena area?