Speisekammer

One night after the holidays, I was hungry for a chicken or turkey pot pie. I know Ole's has one, but the last time I went there for a pot pie, it was the worst ever. Sorry, Ole's.

I know I could have easily purchased a frozen pot pie in any grocery store, but the amount of sodium and fat inside each little pie can deter anyone from entering the frozen food section.

I was driven to find a pot pie. After no luck, I went to Speisekammer for rotisserie chicken, green beans, cranberries and mash potatoes. Okay, so the food was not exactly a pot pie, but nonetheless it was the closest I came to one without the crust. The chicken was moist with the skin on, and it was spiced up with lots of herbs. The cranberries were fresh with a hint of cinnamon. I am a huge fan of cinnamon, but not with cranberries . I still consumed the entire bowl, but the cinnamon was a miss. The mash potatoes were okay, a little light on flavor, and the green beans were decent. Interesting enough, when you want extra sauce even though the meal comes with a small amount, the restaurant still charges you $1. It doesn't matter that you order a full entree, you still must pay for the extra sauce. The meal portion was large. I received one-half of a chicken, which was plenty.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to All! 2010 is just around the corner and there is good news to cheer about. Optimism is in the air and restaurants are on the rise in Alameda Towne Center.

Pearl's Hamburgers will open soon! They claim they will serve gourmet burgers which will be awesome. I love a great tasting hamburger with good quality meat.

A new dessert place will open soon called Fruits and Chocolates. I think their name pretty much sums up what they will be serving. I am ecstatic because Alameda desperately needs a dessert place that is not yogurt.

If someone would open a gourmet dessert place that stays open late just like La Pinata, the owner would make a fortune. Obviously, the dessert must look scrumptious and taste incredible. I wonder if someone is ready for that challenge.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Wish everyone a healthy and safe New Year.

As I was strolling along Park Street checking out the festive Christmas decorations, I noticed Amarin Thai Restaurant next to C'era Una Volta was closed. The space is up for rent and there is no trace of Amarin whatsoever. What a surprise! The food in the restaurant was tasty. I did remember last year that the restaurant's beer and wine license was revoked due to serving minors. I wonder if this incident started the momentum of the downfall of the establishment. It is a shame Alameda has lost a good restaurant.

Yume

Had a wonderful dinner at Yume on a Thursday evening. There was no waiting line for the sushi bar. The assortment of fresh fish was amazing and the sushi was awesome! The fish was so fresh that it tasted like butter and was extremely tender. Definitely ask Sushi Chef Hideki for the daily specials. Unfortunately, the waiting line could be long because the owners are no longer serving at the two small tables away from the sushi bar. They decided to stop service at these two tables because Chef Hideki could not guarantee the wait time of the food orders. Wait times were over twenty minutes and the chef felt that time duration was too long. The wait for the sushi bar is worth it because the fresh fish is great. Do not get surprised by the price tag when you get the bill. Fresh fish coming in from Japan, New Zealand and other exotic locations around the globe is expensive.

December Dining

Last Saturday night I was calling a few restaurants to get a reservation for a party of two. I called about seven places and they were all booked from 6 to 9 PM. I could not get a table. I was shocked. I thought it would be easy reserving a table in this weak economy. I was proved wrong. Who said that we are in a recession?

Thanksgiving Dinner

In the little town of Alameda, few restaurants offer Thanksgiving Dinner. Most of the eating establishments prefer to be closed for the holiday to spend time with their own families. In addition, in this weak economy, families may opt to eat at home instead of going out. Of course the large hotels in San Francisco like the St. Regis, Four Seasons and Ritz Carlton create a prix fix menu with with the works for a hefty price.

A few of the places in Alameda that are offering food for the holiday is Pappo and Pier 29. One has a fifty/fifty chance of eating out. Have a great Thanksgiving.

Chipotle Mexican Grill

I went to the Mall on a Sunday afternoon and wanted lunch. I was at the eastern side of the Mall where Borders is located. I dabbled between Daphne's, Panera and Chipotle. I quickly eliminated Panera because it was too crowded and the line was out the front door. The decision then became a taco or a gyro. I chose the tacos. For $7.00 I received three crunchy shelled tacos. I ordered one chicken, one shredded beef called barbacoa, and one carne asade (grilled beef) taco. In the tacos, you have a choice of rice and beans or plain meat. I opted for one taco to have the rice, beans and meat and the other two tacos with only the meat.

I watched the staff assemble the tacos that I ordered. The first person inserted the meat in the taco shells. The second person added the salsa, cheese, sour cream and lettuce. By the time I received my food, the plate was a hot mess...and not in a good way. There was sour cream over the side of the plate, sprinkled cheese all over the plate and not necessarily inside the taco. The food was poorly prepared. Presentation wise, it was a sad looking meal.

I ate my meal at the restaurant. The first taco was the barbacoa. The meat was tender and tasty. The salsa was medium spicy and it had a kick, but it did not overwhelm the mouth. The second taco I consumed was the carne asada. The grilled beef was cut into little cubes. Unfortunately, the carne asada was overcooked. The beef ended up as hard, chewy, little meat cubes. The meat was dry and it made the taco less desirable. The last taco I ate was the chicken. The chicken was a little tough to eat. The chicken taco had the rice and beans inside; the two ingredients did not add a lot of value. All three tacos were messy to eat and salsa dripped out the sides. The saving grace of the tacos was the sour cream. The sour cream cooled the heat from the salsa and added moisture to the overcooked meat.

Chipotle seems to specialize in cooked meats and not fish. I did not see any fish tacos or fish plates on the menu board. The barbacoa was the best of the bunch, since it sits in its own sauce. The chicken and carne asada are kept hot in a heated tray which dries out the meat. My recommendation is to eat barbacoa.