Time Travel -- 1930s

Back from another work related road trip, this time it was the desert of Arizona. So, this week I will have a couple of postings from local business and a few from my trip to the Tucson and Phoenix.

This week I start locally. I was invited by a friend to attend a birthday celebration of a close friend of his in San Francisco. The invite was last minute, but I was up for trying something new and interesting. We head over on BART and walked the few blocks from the Embarcadero Station to 133 Steuart for an evening at Shanghai 1930. Once you arrive you head down the stairs and are transported to another time and place.

Shanghai 1930’s website, http://www.shanghai1930.com/ , boast that this is a “Cosmopolitan Restaurant” that invokes the spirit of Shanghai during the period between the Two World Wars. I did not dine on my first trip but did peek at the menu and saw the Asian influenced meals would be worth a trip back. The party we met raved about the food, so a must on the trip back.

The bar/lounge had a great feel. Live music flowed through the room, with the lead singer rattling off song from Dean, Frank and Tony. Live music is from 8-Midnight on Friday and Saturday and 7 PM to 11 PM every other day. The music is billed as Jazz, but given my experience I see that a few crooners slip in to entertain the crowd.

The staff was fast and the cocktails were large and pack a good punch. The full bar has a strong selection of beers and wine. Shanghai 1930 offers a happy hour menu between 5 PM and 7 PM in the Blue Bar. Signature drink and appetizers headline but the offer six beers and a selection of wines for $5 and $6 respectively. The signature drinks sound very exotic: Shanghaipolitan, Sexual Healing and Dragon Tea

This Downtown establishment also features a cigar lounge. After a couple of drinks we retired to the Guanxi Lounge (Members Only Cigar Bar). Some delicate encouragement to manager by our party got us into this members only section. The thought of a large bar tab and a group buying cigars with a high mark-up must have ran through his head as he sat us in one of the Private Rooms.

Guanxi translates into the American word “Connections”. You could see how this Cigar Bar can be a place for a couple of people to sit down get to know each and make a business deal over a couple of drinks and a smoke. I gave up cigars about a year ago, so I enjoyed more cocktails and watch everyone enjoy the evening.

This is a great place to have a drink and relax. For local Alameda residents it is close to BART and the Ferry, worth a trip in for Happy Hour and a little music before heading back to the Island.

Showtime

It was a big weekend in Alameda. The movie theater renovation and the new Cineplex completion drew big crowds for the Grand Opening weekend. From my perspective the opening was a huge success seeing people on the street, dining and seeing old friends in the crowd.

I watched movies in the theater prior to its closing and then later worked in the skating rink that lived in the building for a few years. It was one fun job, spinning records and skating, but I never saw the building in this state. The renovation is spectacular, the screen in main theater is large and the sound is awesome. This is just a great place to watch a movie.

My wife and I wanted to make the opening a event of our own, so instead of spending a $100 for the gala we decide to spend money on Park Street. We made a dinner reservation at Pappo, 2320 Central, for Friday and walked across the street for the 7 PM showing of Indiana Jones.

Although we had been to Pappo in the past, it was good to see that the restaurant was also taking advantage of the theater opening. Pappo has created a new “Movie Menu” for dinners to get a selection of tapas plates. We started with the Sangria, very tasty and refreshing; I went through my first glass pretty fast. If they offer the Spanish influenced drink give it a try.

We order off the Movie menu trying Kefta Sliders, Fringz, Eric’s Gnocchi and the Arugula salad. Off the regular menu a bowl of the potato soup with bacon. The slider were a lamb/beef mix with cucumber and goat cheese, the fringz a mix of French fries and Onion rings. Both dishes were very good, but it was the Gnocchi that was the hit of the evening.

The house made Gnocchi sauce was so good that we began dipping the French fries in the left-over. This dish is so decadent that it is good to share, but I could see hoarding this it very easily. The server told us that they call it “Crack Sauce” because it is so addicting.

The meal was great and the staff kept us on time for the short walk across the street to make our movie time. I have to say the entire staff at Pappo was very attentive and made the pacing of the meal very relaxing.

Pappo does not have a full bar, but does have a large wine list by both the glass and bottle.

We had such a good time that we went to the free showing of Singing In the Rain on Saturday and another movie on Sunday. I had a chance to see the theater before its opening during the restoration for some photos see my Flickr page: http://flickr.com/photos/john-alameda/sets/72157603681539844/

http://papporestaurant.com/
2320 Central Ave.Alameda, CA510.337.9100

http://alamedatheater.com/
2317 Central Ave.
Alameda, CA
510-769-FILM

Back on the Wagon an a Maverick

The Cozy Maverick

Okay I have been off the blogging wagon for a while, new job obligations and mucho traveling the last few weeks. So here we go to get the blog jump started. Today a restaurant in San Francisco and in the next couple of days some really great out-of-the Bay Area places that I have visited while traveling. Just a heads up I will be doing a lot more traveling in the next eight weeks so if you have tips for Phoenix, Boston, Philadelphia, Virginia Beach or DC drop me a note.

The wife and I really love the Mission and all the great places to eat and have a drink. We now have a new place to have dinner or brunch. Maverick, (3316 17th Street, San Francisco) is American comfort food with a fine dining twist.

With side plates Collard Greens, Mac n’ Cheese, Grits and Gravy the southern influence hits you right in the face. The Southern Fried Chicken looked awesome, and was flying out of the kitchen, but I passed on it for the Grilled Wagyu Beef Bauvette Steak and my wife had the Butter Braised Sturgeon. Both dishes were very taste.

Maverick does not have a full bar, but the wine list is very good. They bill themselves as an eatery and wine bar and succeed on both levels. The offer 15 wines by the glass and there is a varietal for almost every person. If you are more a hops and barley person, Maverick offers 14 types of beer. One of my favorites Trumer Pils is served.

We have also had brunch at Maverick and that experience was even better than dinner. The chorizo and eggs is house made chorizo with scrambled eggs, green onion and cheese grits, cornbread muffin with Marshall’s Farm honey. The cheese grits are awesome and I am not a big grits fan. The biscuits and gravey and cornmeal pancakes are worth the visit. Add a blackberry mimosa and it is a great brunch.

Make a reservation! This is a very small restaurant and it fills up very quickly. Maverick is on OpenTable.com for reservation convenience. The staff is very attentive and helpful.

http://www.sfmaverick.com/

Http://www.opentable.com/

Dopo -- Delivers Big

Dopo on Oakland's Piedmont Avenue

So the other night my wife and I, join our friends James and Brenda for dinner. The dinner was arranged by my wife and James, and it was suggested to go to Dopo, on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland. Now the reason was James and Brenda suggested the restaurant was because they thought we had dined there in the past, fact was a few years back we dined across the street at LoCoco’s. LoCoco’s is fine homey, down-to-earth, tasty pizza and Italian food place, but I had no idea that a mistake had been made, until later in the evening during dinner conversation, but this was a terrific mistake.

In all years eating on Piedmont Avenue, I had not been in Dopo so it was great to get a chance to try something new. James had a bottle of wine from the Piemonte Region, a 2005 Nebbiolo, Casina Morassino, waiting when we arrived, a very versatile vintage. A very good call by James. Dopo offers a very good selection of Italian wines and the list is designed to support the menu with good bottles from small producers. It’s easy to find a selection to pair with your meal. If you are craving a cocktail you will have to wait a while, Dopo currently has a limited liquor license, and they are petitioning to expand the bar offerings.

Dopo is sleek and sophisticated with warm lighting and abstract prints. Jon Smulewitz, a former cook at Oliveto in the Rockridge, assembles food from an Italian menu as tiny as the space itself. We started with Dopo’s house-cured salami; Copa, mortadella and Calabrian-style salami show there is a true passion for the pig in this kitchen. The plate was an excellent starter with our wine.

The second bottle of wine was from the Tuscany Region, a 2005 Morellino di Scansano, Erik Banti. This was a hardier bottle with a heavier taste. The table liked the first bottle, but you got to test them to know.

Our table had three pasta orders and a calzone. James and I had the braised short-ribs over pappardelle pasta. The sauce had an excellent flavor and complemented the meat. The pasta was cooked to perfection. My wife had the seafood (clams, mussels) spaghetti and Brenda had the calzone. The menu changes, so I will not go into the dishes in great detail, except to say that the quality of the food was fresh and full of flavor.

Even though no one at the table ordered pizza, you could tell it was a staple of frequent diners. Dopo uses a wood oven to create crackly, chewy pizzas: spicy peppers and sausage option, coated with vibrant tomato sauce and the buffalo mozzarella and basil flowed out of the kitchen. A must try next timed.

The desserts are simple but not boring, the offerings included a lemon tart, rich chocolate-almond torte and a cannoli. I had the cannoli, not the best ever, but very good for the West Coast.

Overall Dopo delivers. The service was good, although we were talking and enjoying the wine, although I truly did not notice the job the server was doing, which is a good thing. As mistakes go, this was one my taste buds could live with.

Dopo
4293 Piedmont Ave Oakland, CA 94611
Phone: (510) 652-3676
Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday-Friday; dinner 5:30-10 p.m.
Reservations accepted for parties of five or more.
Credit cards accepted.
Beer and Wine.
Street parking is tough, tough, tough.

La Coco’s 4270 Piedmont Avenue Oakland, CA 94611 (510) 652-6222. Cash only.

Wine-Ohh

During the Holiday Season, from Thanksgiving to New Years, I tend to drink more wine than the rest of the years, so when it comes to picking wine I am a complete novice. Over the last 20-years, I have given as much wine and alcohol as I have received, but like many people I have no idea what makes a good wine. The only thing I can tell you is what I like.

So this past year I started going to a local wine shop, Du Vin Fine Wines, around the corner from my home. Dan is always helpful and seems to find the right bottle for the occasion. I just tell him red or white and what I am having for dinner. He take the time, in simple terms, to explain what the bottle should taste like. After a short give and take he directs me to a product that would fit my needs.

For Christmas dinner the red was from La Mozza, a winery from Italy, a 2005 I PERAZZI, MORELLINO DI SCANSANO. Very nice and the bottle was gone halfway through dinner. A very good sign. The white was a Pinot Grigio also from Italy, a CANTINA SANTA MAGDALENA, PINOT GRIGIO, SÜDTIROL - ALTO ADIGE.

Brands and names do not mean a whole lot to me, I put them in for true wine drinkers, but the advice that I got from my local little store made the dinner complete. The Johnny Walker Gold that was under the Christmas tree was also a nice touch, but the wine was a nice finishing touch to the evening with family and friends.


I'm not sure that I will be much more of a wine drinker than I am now, but I am learning. My goal this New Year is to actually write down the wines I drink so I can start a reference for myself for future orders. I may actually become confident in ordering wine at a restaurant.


Check out your local wine shop to add a great touch to your dinner table.

Wine Shop Website
http://duvinfinewines.com/