Bacon-wrapped Hot Dogs

Is there anything better after a late night out, when you come stumbling out of a bar, 6-8 hours since dinner... and from several blocks away you smell a delightful smell of bacon wrapped hot dogs cooked on a sizzling cart.

The story is the same for me every time. I get excited at the intoxicating smell grows stronger and I inch closer to what I can imagine heaven smells like, or maybe the charred fleshy smell of hell is more like it. None the less, I can't resist it. I impatiently wait in the chaotic line, and initially balk at the $4 price tag (I can get this for $1.50 with a soda at Costco!), then I remember that I've been drinking $12 watered-down cocktails all night. Why did I get that last drink, I could've had 3 more of these glorious devil dogs.

I like mine w/ grilled onions, jalapeños, ketchup and mayonnaise. How do you like yours?

Quickfire Dinner - Scallops and Garlic Noodles

After a late night of work, its hard to find the time to make dinner, especially when you haven't gone to the store in a few days. Last week we were in just that situation. So we pulled out some frozen scallops and defrosted them under cold running water for about 10-15 minutes. Dried them off well, and sprinkled a little  over them. Sear them in a hot pan for 90 seconds or so on each side and finish it off with a squeeze of lemon juice.

Garlic butter noodles are easy. Boil some spaghetti a minute or two less than the directions suggest. Mince a bunch of garlic. Melt some butter in a pan (I used about 2 Tbsp for half a pack of spaghetti). Throw in the minced garlic and a 1/2 tsp of salt and brown the butter and garlic on medium. Crank up the heat, and throw in your noodles. Toss them around nice and good, add some pepper, and serve. Veggies are always optional. In our case, some asparagus was in the fridge, so a light garlic and olive oil sauté was all it took.


As a finishing touch, I de-glazed the scallop pan with lemon juice and scraped the seared crud off the pan and topped the noodles with it. It added a unique lemony tang with some scallop juices and seasoning.

The lesson here, is to always keep some frozen scallops on hand. They defrost quickly and taste deluscious.

Boil, Butter, and Bike

The Miller-Lo's hosted a wonderful Memorial Day get-together which was aptly called, "Boil, Butter, and Bike." We started with a bike ride from Campbell Park through Vasona Park. We enjoyed a nice picnic of build-your-own sandwiches and spent some quality time in the park. After a ride back to the Miller-Lo's, we started boiling a couple pots of water and everybody pitched in to make the crab boil happen. We boiled up some clams, black tiger prawns (pictured in front), dungeness crabs (piled up in the background), corn, potatoes, hot links, artichoke crostini, and quinoa salad. For appetizers and dessert, we had Tracy's dark chocolate brownies.

Since I am allergic to shellfish (crab, lobster, shrimp, and crawfish), my contribution was a nice tri-tip roast with my Cajun rub (pictured below). Overall, the event was a hit. We enjoyed a beautiful day with some good friends, got some exercise to work up an appetite, and all pitched in for a glorious Memorial feast.

The House - Anniversary Dinner (part 2)

Nothing says fancy food like foie gras. For the main course of our anniversary dinner at The House in SF, Tracy had the grilled sea bass with garlic ginger soy, while I enjoyed one of their specials of the day, rigatoni with braised short ribs and foie gras with fava beans. In case you don't know, I'm a sucker for short ribs; so its no surprise that I ordered this. I had never really had foie gras before, but I have to say, it was very rich, and very tasty. The presentation wasn't particularly impressive and the short ribs were just modest meat chunks, also with a rich flavor. The combination of rich flavors worked really well when tempered with the pasta and the braising sauce.

Hopefully Tracy will follow up with a review of her sea bass soon.

Overall, I'd give The House a 4 our of 5 stars. I thought the service was mediocre, and the ambiance can vary by your table location in the tiny restaurant. The food is excellent, the portions a bit small, and the price a bit high (but not shockingly over priced, nor unsatisfyingly small) which brings down its value a bit for me. If you're looking for a great date spot or a romantic celebratory dinner, I think The House will do just fine.

Thanks also to my friend Nate for recommending this place nearly 5 years ago.

The House - Anniversary Dinner (part 1)

Earlier this month, Tracy and I celebrated our third anniversary. To make things both special and nostalgic, we had dinner at The House in San Francisco's North Beach, where we also went on our first date. I recall having the sesame soy glazed salmon and Tracy had the seared Ahi tuna. Both staples are still on the menu today.

This time around, we started off with the seared scallops with a yuzu vinaigrette, topped with some fancy micro-greens. Does that sound familiar? It should; in my first blog post I wrote about my version of yuzu seared scallops. They were cooked perfectly, the sauce was good, and the greens were nice too. It did however baffle me that the order came with three. I'd imagine most people at nice restaurants come in pairs, or in small groups. Three pieces? That means we had to share one, which could be a deal breaker if this were a first date.

We both slowly ate our first scallop, slicing it into quarters for each bite to make it last. I know you all do this, when you have good food in a very limited quantity. If there were 6 scallops on the plate I probably would've just popped the whole delicious bad boy in my mouth. After finishing the first, we both patiently waited to see who wanted that second one more. Tracy offered it to me, and she ate the radishes in the middle. I thought they were just for decor.

I'll write more about my main course tomorrow.

The House
1230 Grant Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94133
http://www.thehse.com

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