Celebrating New Year at SoMA Food Truck, San Francisco

This is food truck heaven with bottomless mimosa on January 1, 2015 from 10am to 5pm.

There is going to be a full lineup of food trucks, lives music and College Football.

We were there last New Year’s Day and had a BLAST!!

http://somastreatfoodpark.com/event/new-years-day-2015-food-truck-picnic-bottomless-mimosa-brunch-soma/

Here is a list of Food Truck Lineup:
– Bacon Bacon: The name says it all
– Senor Sisig: Famous Filipino Mexican fusion
– Bowl’D Acai: Made to order Acai bowls, smoothies, juices, and protein shakes
– Tacos El Tuca: Serving all of your traditional Mexican favorites
– Adam’s Grub Truck: Chinese and American infusion
– Frozen Kuhsterd: Unique frozen dessert creations
– Hella Vegan Eats: Festive Vegan Cuisine
– Dusty Buns: California-style sandwiches on freshly baked bread
– FireTrail Pizza: Brick oven baked Neapolitan pizzas
– Lil Burma: Traditional Burmese cuisine

– Nucha Empanadas

– Koeks and Co: Fried Dough
– Lidias Oysters

Here is a picture from January 1, 2014. It was so much fun!!

Belden Place, San Francisco

An unassuming street of San Francisco which can be easily overlooked by pedestrians. Belden Place is one of these streets where once you discover, you will want to come back for more!

At first, it may look a bit sketchy, but once we turned the corner to the actual alley way, we were blown out of our mind! The alley is colorful and bursting with various eateries and all of them have outdoor seating.

http://www.belden-place.com/

It’s one of our favorite streets to visit and here is a list of the restaurants:

·        Sauce- Candied bacon Brussel sprouts…super!!

·        Brindisi- Best ravioli ever!!

·        Taverna- Juicy and tender Kurobota pork chop!!

·        B44- Mouth watering Paella!!

·        Café Tiramisu- Tiramisu, of course, nice and moist!!

·        Plouf- Oyster and mussels heaven!!

·        Sam’s Grill- Old school with a flare!

·        Café Bastille- Blue cheese burger…oh man!!

Doggy Play Yard, Belmont

One of the attractive features about Belmont is there is an off-leash dog park hidden in the quiet neighborhood of Belmont.

It’s frequented by dog owners where the dogs and run and be themselves!!

It’s a great place for dogs and owners to socialize and there are scoopers and garbage cans available.

Even if you don’t have dogs, if is enjoyable to see the pups having a good time!

Downtown Sunnyvale

We were showing clients homes in Sunnyvale and decided to stop by downtown Sunnyvale for lunch.

It was a beautiful day and we are happy to see that there are farmers market happening at the same time!

Downtown Sunnyvale has gone through some development and we recall when S. Murphy Avenue was blocked off for construction.

We had lunch at DishDash: here is our Yelp review  http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=KukvXqIYipsn0EEXZ37gZg

There are several other places we love to try and we will be back here soon!

The 14 Bay Area Ramen Shops Worth Your Time

Ahhhhh, “RAMEN”….the most sumptuous word in our dictionary. Living in the Bay Area allow us to access some of the best ramen we will find!

There are ramen noodle shops everywhere and here is a list of the 14 favorite spots.

https://www.theinfatuation.com/features/best-bay-area-ramen-shops

One of our goals for 2015 is to try ALL of them….and we are making good progress so far and reaching our goal!

Make sure you slurp! And that is ok!!!

And what makes a good ramen? According to http://blog.cookingchanneltv.com/2013/09/29/what-makes-the-perfect-bowl-of-ramen/, the following are the key to a amazing ramen!!!

THE BROTH
Ramen makers aim for an intense, deeply flavored broth. Chef Tatsu considers it the “body and soul” of the dish, and his broth takes almost three full days to perfect. For his tonkotsu-style broth, he starts with two surprising ingredients: pig feet and pork bones. After soaking them in water for two days to draw out impurities, they are blanched in boiling water, then simmered for at least 30 hours. This draws out flavorful marrow from the bones, and releases collagen and fat from the feet. Sounds odd, but this process is the key to a milky and rich broth.

THE NOODLES
Perfect broth deserves nothing but the best noodles. While some ramen shops make them fresh in-house, many choose to partner with a master noodle maker (yes, they exist!) and have them delivered daily. Since ramen is all about balancing different textures and flavors, Chef Tatsu chooses the type of noodle for each ramen dish very carefully. His thick tonkotsu broth calls for the thinnest of noodles, while his lighter broths are paired with thicker noodles. No matter the choice, they are slightly undercooked to account for the additional softening that occurs once they are added to the broth.

THE FIXINS
Equally as important as the broth and noodles, the toppings in ramen can make or break the experience. The possibilities are endless, but some common additions include chashu pork (succulent pieces of braised pork belly), soft-boiled eggs (cooked in the pork’s braising liquid), assorted vegetables and extra pork fat for good measure. Chef Tatsu even offers customers a garlic press and fresh garlic cloves so you can adjust how pungent your ramen is right from your seat. For additional color and flavor, many restaurants finish off the ramen with a sprinkling of saffron, scallions and/or sesame seeds.

Night of Lights, Half Moon Bay

Night of Lights is a free annual holiday event hosted in downtown Half Moon Bay on the first Friday in December, and it’s happening on Friday, December 5^th, from 6-9pm.

Downtown Half Moon Bay is going to be decorated in dazzling lights and many stores will stay open late. It’s a great time to do some holiday shopping in the unique coastal shops.

The event generally features a tree lighting ceremony in Mac Dutra Park, a Parade of Lights down Main Street, carolers and musical entertainment, roasted chestnuts and activities for the kids.

http://www.halfmoonbaychamber.org/events-calendar/annual-events/night-lights

We plan to have dinner at one of the awesome restaurants on Main Street then head to the parade.