I have been avoiding this for way too long. I promised myself early this year that I would be better!! Obviously that didn’t happen.
After being in the San Jose area for the past 4 months and eating out at least 2 meals a day, I finally found someplace worth blogging about. Someplace you should schedule a visit to next time you’re in town.
Bill’s Café has three locations in San Jose. I can only imagine what the other locations are like as I now frequent the location at The Alameda. I mostly go for lunch but have enjoyed breakfast a time or two as well.
Looking at the breakfast menu you will quickly see that this is “THE” place for breakfast. All your breakfast favorites plus other creations that will make you drool just reading about them. I myself love a good Eggs Benedict. The only problem at Bill’s is that there are too many to choose from. Traditional, California, Crab Cake….the list goes on!! Oh, you caught that too. Yep, someone at your table must order the Crab Cake Benedict but don’t be surprised if once they taste it they no longer want to share.
Lunch menu looks to be like your typical café type food. Burgers, Salads, Sandwiches, etc. I have yet to order a burger but have seen many devoured by the other patrons. I usually get one of the many salads they have to choose from. Each salad is fresh as can be and most are accompanied by a warm garlic parmesan breadstick, cup of soup and homemade dressing of your choice. I don’t get too excited about salad. A really good homemade dressing might raise an eyebrow but soup, this place has got soup that will make your toes curl. Each visit I try a cup of the Soup du Jour.
“Excuse me miss, what’s the Soup du Jour?? It’s the soup of the day!! Um, that sounds good, I’ll have that”!!(classic dumb and dumber)
Chicken Tortellini, Minestrone, Clam Chowder, Crab Bisque…….all are crafted to perfection. I have honestly not had soup this good……EVER!!!!
My only disappointment with this whole thing is that I have been in the area this long and only discovered this culinary delight weeks ago!! $$
http://www.billscafe.com/
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
When in San Diego.......
Finally!!! I have something to write about. Wow, what a great trip to San Diego. I can't say much for the food at the Zoo or at Sea World but the Gaslamp District of downtown San Diego is a must visit to anyone in the area. I can't wait for the next opportunity to take the family again.
Rock Bottom Brewery - Gaslamp Quarter
A lot like any other Micro Brewery/eatery you have been to in your home town or while on the road. Good food options on the menu from start to finish and even on the kids menu. Beer is wonderful!!! I had the Nut brown but would almost call it a Stout. Nice nutty flavor with hints of carmel and an almost smokey hops quality. We all enjoyed our food as well. Nothing special about the Hot Wings (just wings) but I did enjoy my Seared Ahi over rice with Asian vegetables. The sauce had a bit too much soy sauce in it for my taste but the Ahi was cooked perfectly. $$$
El Fandango - Old Town
DO NOT GO HERE!!! What a complete waist of 2 hours. Yep, that's how long it took to get our cold tasteless food and get out of there. Service was horrible as best. I didn't even tip!!! I'm not a big tipper anyway but to not get a tip.......ouch!!! I usually would have said something but I could tell it wouldn't have done any good. This place it a tourist trap of the worst kind. Unsuspecting patrons such as ourselves are drawn by the inviting outside patio only to be struck down and bludgeoned by the lack of service and food quality. Had we not been there with great friends it would have been a total loss. :(
Pizzeria Luigi - 25th St.
Ahh yes. A New York Style delight. You may have seen this place featured on the Food Network - Diners, Drive In's and Dives. Large, thin sliced Pizza, delicious Pizza. Some of the best pizza I have had anywhere. Perfect crunchy yet chewy crust with the perfect amount of toppings but what holds it all together is the sauce. Nice ripe and fresh tomato flavor without being too runny or thick. Try the spinach, mushroom and ricotta pie. It pairs nicely with an organic stout from the beer case. $
Cheese Shop - Gaslamp District
A must for breakfast. I hear the lunch is fabulous as well. A quaint little shop on the west side of the district serving breakfast and lunch all day. All my girls enjoyed there food but I inhaled my corned beef hash. The only other I would compare is from the deli at New York New York in Vegas. Nice crust on the outside and very moist flavorful on the inside. I'll be back. $$
Chianti Restaurant - Gaslamp District
I am saving the best for last. It's been a very long time that I can remember such a great dining experience. Located 5th St. in the heart of the Gaslamp District, Chianti Restaurant is sure to please your appetite for Italian dinning. Great wine list consisting of several local wines as well as Italian wines. All items are Ala carte but reasonably priced for the quality and quantity of food. We ordered two of the salads including a Cesar, Cioppino, Lobster Ravioli and Lasagna. Salads were great, Cioppino was fabulous once I added a teaspoon of red pepper flakes and the girls had no complaints about the Ravioli and Lasagna. Great place to take well behaved children or adults. $$$$
Rock Bottom Brewery - Gaslamp Quarter
A lot like any other Micro Brewery/eatery you have been to in your home town or while on the road. Good food options on the menu from start to finish and even on the kids menu. Beer is wonderful!!! I had the Nut brown but would almost call it a Stout. Nice nutty flavor with hints of carmel and an almost smokey hops quality. We all enjoyed our food as well. Nothing special about the Hot Wings (just wings) but I did enjoy my Seared Ahi over rice with Asian vegetables. The sauce had a bit too much soy sauce in it for my taste but the Ahi was cooked perfectly. $$$
El Fandango - Old Town
DO NOT GO HERE!!! What a complete waist of 2 hours. Yep, that's how long it took to get our cold tasteless food and get out of there. Service was horrible as best. I didn't even tip!!! I'm not a big tipper anyway but to not get a tip.......ouch!!! I usually would have said something but I could tell it wouldn't have done any good. This place it a tourist trap of the worst kind. Unsuspecting patrons such as ourselves are drawn by the inviting outside patio only to be struck down and bludgeoned by the lack of service and food quality. Had we not been there with great friends it would have been a total loss. :(
Pizzeria Luigi - 25th St.
Ahh yes. A New York Style delight. You may have seen this place featured on the Food Network - Diners, Drive In's and Dives. Large, thin sliced Pizza, delicious Pizza. Some of the best pizza I have had anywhere. Perfect crunchy yet chewy crust with the perfect amount of toppings but what holds it all together is the sauce. Nice ripe and fresh tomato flavor without being too runny or thick. Try the spinach, mushroom and ricotta pie. It pairs nicely with an organic stout from the beer case. $
Cheese Shop - Gaslamp District
A must for breakfast. I hear the lunch is fabulous as well. A quaint little shop on the west side of the district serving breakfast and lunch all day. All my girls enjoyed there food but I inhaled my corned beef hash. The only other I would compare is from the deli at New York New York in Vegas. Nice crust on the outside and very moist flavorful on the inside. I'll be back. $$
Chianti Restaurant - Gaslamp District
I am saving the best for last. It's been a very long time that I can remember such a great dining experience. Located 5th St. in the heart of the Gaslamp District, Chianti Restaurant is sure to please your appetite for Italian dinning. Great wine list consisting of several local wines as well as Italian wines. All items are Ala carte but reasonably priced for the quality and quantity of food. We ordered two of the salads including a Cesar, Cioppino, Lobster Ravioli and Lasagna. Salads were great, Cioppino was fabulous once I added a teaspoon of red pepper flakes and the girls had no complaints about the Ravioli and Lasagna. Great place to take well behaved children or adults. $$$$
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Tight Budget?? Try Big Batch Cooking!!!
Today is the day I will officially put the original purpose of this blog on a hopefully temporary hiatus. In addition to trying some new recipes and changing a few of the old ones I am on a quest to discover great meals on a budget. I'll be doing some big batch cooking that will taste wonderful for about $1 - $2 per serving. Where to start?????
"A large stock pot". At Christmas time I found a 20 quart stock pot at Macy's that was originally $129.99. It was reduce by 50%, then reduce again and again and an additional $10 taken at the register. I walked out the door with this pot for $29.99. Deal of the century if you ask me. I have used it three times already with excellent results. Chili, BBQ sauce and Spaghetti.
Everyone knows that spaghetti is one of the least expensive meals a person can make. Costco or Sam's Club is the perfect place to start for this. Get your meat, pasta and sauce making materials in large quantities and cut your cost significantly. I estimate the batch of sauce I made yielded 36 servings of spaghetti sauce for about $1.41 per serving. Keep in mind that this includes 6 pounds of homemade meatballs, 2 pounds of Italian sausage and 1 pound of peperoni sticks. I never said it was low cholesterol but it does taste fabulous. Add some pasta and homemade focaccia bread to this and your still well under $2 per serving.
Stews, Chili, non cream based soup, etc. All can be done in this same manner and freeze extremely well. The best way I have found to freeze them is to place the cooled soup, sauce, etc. into a 1 gallon Ziploc freezer bag by desired serving size and gently pushing the air out of the bag, zip it closed. Lay flat in your freezer in a shallow box (a shirt box works well) until frozen. After a couple of hours you will be able to store upright to save space in your freezer. It will keep for months and help stretch you monthly food budget.
As I mentioned, I have done Chili and Spaghetti sauce so far. I have also prepared and frozen a large ham and have plans for a turkey today. These can be divided into portions for soups, sandwiches or future meals and frozen for months as well. Take the time to prepare in advance and not only save time latter but you will also save money.
Upcoming meal preparations; Carnitas, Lasagna, Bahn Mi Pork, Tacos and Empanadas.
"A large stock pot". At Christmas time I found a 20 quart stock pot at Macy's that was originally $129.99. It was reduce by 50%, then reduce again and again and an additional $10 taken at the register. I walked out the door with this pot for $29.99. Deal of the century if you ask me. I have used it three times already with excellent results. Chili, BBQ sauce and Spaghetti.
Everyone knows that spaghetti is one of the least expensive meals a person can make. Costco or Sam's Club is the perfect place to start for this. Get your meat, pasta and sauce making materials in large quantities and cut your cost significantly. I estimate the batch of sauce I made yielded 36 servings of spaghetti sauce for about $1.41 per serving. Keep in mind that this includes 6 pounds of homemade meatballs, 2 pounds of Italian sausage and 1 pound of peperoni sticks. I never said it was low cholesterol but it does taste fabulous. Add some pasta and homemade focaccia bread to this and your still well under $2 per serving.
Stews, Chili, non cream based soup, etc. All can be done in this same manner and freeze extremely well. The best way I have found to freeze them is to place the cooled soup, sauce, etc. into a 1 gallon Ziploc freezer bag by desired serving size and gently pushing the air out of the bag, zip it closed. Lay flat in your freezer in a shallow box (a shirt box works well) until frozen. After a couple of hours you will be able to store upright to save space in your freezer. It will keep for months and help stretch you monthly food budget.
As I mentioned, I have done Chili and Spaghetti sauce so far. I have also prepared and frozen a large ham and have plans for a turkey today. These can be divided into portions for soups, sandwiches or future meals and frozen for months as well. Take the time to prepare in advance and not only save time latter but you will also save money.
Upcoming meal preparations; Carnitas, Lasagna, Bahn Mi Pork, Tacos and Empanadas.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Home for a while!!!!
One thing about loosing your job is you don't travel much anymore. Go figure. Yep, as of December 19, 2008 the doors of my company closed leaving many good people out of a job and spending much more time at home. One of these has turned out to be good and the other obviously not so good. I love getting to spend time at home with my girls doing homework, playing dolls and cooking. As you may have gathered from past blogs, I love to cook as much or more than I love to eat. I have created some new recipes, redefined some old ones and tried several new ones. For the next month or so you may see more recipes on the blog than restaurant reviews.
So, for all you cooks out there, send me your favorite recipes; I'll try them out and let you know what I think. Or just watch for recipes I post and you can do the same. Happy New Year!!!
So, for all you cooks out there, send me your favorite recipes; I'll try them out and let you know what I think. Or just watch for recipes I post and you can do the same. Happy New Year!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)