COLIBRI MEXICAN BISTRO - San Francisco

COLIBRI MEXICAN BISTRO is an easy 5-minute walk from Union Square. It is located next to the Diva Hotel on Geary Street.

After a long afternoon of shopping and walking in this amazing City by the Bay, I was ready for some authentic Mexican cuisine.

This Mexican bistro offers a traditional menu with a twist. The décor resembles cantinas found in the early 1900’s. I ordered the made-at-your-table Guacamole. The guacamole had the perfect combination of semi-mashed avocado, chucks of tomato, fresh squeezed lime juice & a secret ingredient or 2. This was served with a stack of hand made tortillas, still warm from the griddle. No need for chips when you can eat warm tortillas.

I had a bowl of Pozole Verde for dinner. This chicken and hominy soup was perfection at its simplest. It is served Sinaloa style (recipe typical to Western Mexican) with jalapeno chili, tomatillo and some secret spices. A side plate of diced radish, shredded lettuce, oregano, onion & homemade tortilla chips are yours for garnishing the pozole. I have found no pozole better than this outside of Mexico!

The Diva Hotel is a wonderful boutique property that offers room service from Colibri. I recommend staying at the Diva - excellent location, fair priced, and an extremely accommodating & friendly staff.

I ate at the bar where I could watch the entertaining bartenders. They are masters at making margaritas with lighting speed. I learned that they offer more than 100 different types of tequila. You will most certainly enjoy yourself at Colibri. I will definitely return during my next visit to San Francisco.

Mmm, Mmm, Mmm

www.colibrimexicanbistro.com

$$
++++
✦✦✦✦

Entrée
$ 10
$$ 20
$$$ 30
$$$$ 40+

Staff
+ Stop bothering me!
++ Anyone here?
+++ Stopped when in the area.
++++ As needed and friendly.
+++++ Invisibly perfect!

Overall
✦ “One visit too many”
✦✦ “Convince me!”
✦✦✦ “I’ll be back”
✦✦✦✦ “Same table next week!”

KAN'S - San Francisco

KAN’S RESTAURANT is a family owned restaurant that advertises itself as being a Chinatown landmark for over 45 years with a long-standing tradition of fine Chinese dining. The restaurant specializes in Chinese seafood dishes and dim sum. It is located 4 blocks from the Dragon Gates at Bush & Grant in the Chinatown neighborhood of San Francisco, home to the largest Chinese population outside of Asia.

I chose my lunch from their Dim Sum menu. I started off with the Pork Pot Stickers. The pot stickers were the size of golf balls filled with tasty chunks of pork and vegetables. The Roasted Chicken & Vegetables on Skewer was excellent; the very tender chicken was accompanied by onions and carrots. The black bean sauce is an excellent dipping option. The Crispy Prawns with Salt & Pepper were perfectly seasoned, coated in a very light, see-through breading. The whole shrimp is served – a little bit of work, but the reward is so worth it! The Pan Fried Stuffed Mushrooms could not have been better. I can not remember how they were stuffed, but I do know that I would have ordered another plate had I not reached my limit.

My favorite dim sum plate was the Snow Flower Crispy Shrimp Balls. Again, these golf ball size nuggets of delight were filled with chopped shrimp and a very small amount of onion. The balls were very lightly breaded and creatively hidden in a “bird’s nest” of very thin strips of won ton skins. This delight was quickly fried – apparently at a very high temp, there was no trace of oil on my plate. I chose the sweet & sour sauce and the spicy red sauce for dipping. Choose your sauce; you won’t be disappointed.

How can you go to Chinatown and not have some very authentic dim sum? Each dim sum plate was a tasty treat! I always feel it is a good sign when you find “locals” dining in an ethic restaurant. The restaurant is located on the second level. Request a table near the window for added entertainment.

Mmm, Mmm...

$$
++++
✦✦✦

Entrée
$ $10
$$ $20
$$$ $30
$$$$ $40+

Staff
+ Stop bothering me!
++ Anyone here?
+++ Stopped when in the area.
++++ As needed and friendly.
+++++ Invisibly perfect!

Overall
✦ “One visit too many”
✦✦ “Convince me!”
✦✦✦ “I’ll be back”
✦✦✦✦ “Same table next week!”

FUZIO - San Francisco

Fuzio is a small, very friendly café in the Castro neighborhood. The menu features Thai and Italian cuisine.

My very good friend, Rich, treated me to lunch. He ordered for both of us; I could not have been more pleased. For a starter, we shared the Firecracker Lettuce Wraps. The firecracker marinated chicken is cooked with tidbits of portobello mushrooms and water chestnuts. The wraps are served with a carrot & ginger salad and leaves of iceberg lettuce for wrapping. The sweet chili vinaigrette dipping sauce is fantastic. This very flavorful plate is an excellent starter to your meal.

For my luncheon entrée, I had the Sukiyaki Noodle Bowl with bite-sized strips of very tender steak. It was an incredible blend of sake wine and soy sauce tossed with onions, slivers of fresh ginger, generous pieces of shiitake mushrooms and Shanghai noodles. This Asian bowl was absolutely delicious. I am still licking my lips.

The very diverse lunch guests and full bar made for a very enjoyable and entertaining afternoon. If you happen to be driving, be certain to bring a pocket full of quarters. The parking meters are very hungry.

Fuzio prides itself on ensuring every plate that comes from their kitchen is rich in authentic flavors and ingredients. The tag line on their business card “Savor the world one forkful at a time.” is so very true! I wish there was a Fuzio nearer to my home.

Mmm, Mmm, Mmm

http://fuzio.com

$$
++++
✦✦✦

Entrée
$ $10
$$ $20
$$$ $30
$$$$ $40+

Staff
+ Stop bothering me!
++ Anyone here?
+++ Stopped when in the area.
++++ As needed and friendly.
+++++ Invisibly perfect!

Overall
✦ “One visit too many”
✦✦ “Convince me!”
✦✦✦ “I’ll be back”
✦✦✦✦ “Same table next week!”