GraceAnn Walden's Blog (32)

At a lunch, I ate only a small sampling of the dishes at Wexler's. It could be that I tried all the best things and there are demons lurking on the menu.

First Impression

Wexler's is in the space that originally housed Zare; then Les Amis.

It was love at first sight at 11:30 a.m. on a Tuesday morning. If I had showed up 30 minutes later, I probably would have had to wait for a seat; 30 minutes after that, I would have been turned away.

Edwin Caba worked at CreoLa for several years before he was able to buy the business. Slowly he has been able to improve the décor and menu.

One enticing dish is the fried green tomatoes with Gulf shrimp remoulade and basil oil, topped with chopped egg ($9).

The rib-sticking seafood gumbo is chock full of shrimp, crab, Andouille sausage and okra, available in a cup ($7) or bowl ($12).

Be sure you try the sampling of crawfish, flown in a couple of times a week, shrimp e

Consistency is one of my hallmarks for holding a restaurant in high regard, and Royal Thai in San Rafael has stood the test of time.

About five years ago, I interviewed Roxanne Klein, who at the time was the chef-owner of Roxanne's in Larkspur, since closed. These days she has a line of raw food for the consumer. When I took her out, she chose Royal Thai. And despite her allegiance to raw food, she ate cooked vegetarian food.

I was no stranger to Royal Thai, having enjoyed man

TV chef Michael Chiarello, who first came to prominence at Tra Vigne in St Helena, has, in my opinion, opened the restaurant that defines the first part of this year. Bottega in Yountville is Tra Vigne taken to a level of sophistication that other restaurants can only hope for.

Located in the V marketplace, the restaurant sprawls across a lovely veranda that looks out on rose bushes and a verdant lawn.

Of course, Chiarello, who was making salumi before anyone knew the word, ha

With their new restaurant, Pican, Michael LeBlanc and his chef, Dean Dupuis, are part of the uptown Oakland renaissance. With the Paramount Theatre and the reopened Fox nearby, Uptown is kicking it. A flock of new condos doesn't hurt business either.

Pican is a modern soul food restaurant. Don't expect fat back in your collards, but do expect a light, interesting green dressed with good olive oil.

The fried chicken is so good that on the weekends, people reserve their chickens

Jennifer Cazares had a vision. Being the mother of two children under 6, she longed for a place that she and her husband could go to dine and bring the kids. Lucky for her, her husband Mark is in construction.

In a strip mall space in Walnut Creek, he constructed a dining room that seats parents comfortably and a separate Little Star playroom that delights the kids.

The adults can sit at picnic tables, have a glass of wine, and watch ESPN or the Food Network, while the kids ha

The name "È Tutto Qua" means "everything's here," says the Web site, and if you're interested in delicious Italian food, you want to be there too.

I began dinner with a tender and sparkling fresh carpaccio of octopus. The chilled paper-thin slices were dressed with capers, olives, onion and a lemon dressing. I didn't have a Roman pizza, but saw quite a few sail by. They looked luscious: thin, puckered edge and lightly dressed with tomatoes and cheese.

I did try the risotto nero-

I should get a bumper sticker: "I brake for barbecue."

That's just what I did a couple of weeks ago, while trolling down Divis in the rain. Barbecue--screech--parking space--success!

I tipped into B's and tried a two-way. That's two choices of meat. The sauce comes in mild or hot, but the hot wasn't too hot. It was exactly right to my taste, with just a little kick of heat.

I chose brisket and pork ribs. The brisket had been smoked for 15 hours, slowly and lovingly over h

This (mostly) second floor restaurant was opened, as its name suggests, for banquets, probably wedding banquets for Chinese newlyweds. Most Chinese-American weddings are huge, and this room could easily hold 300 celebrants.

I tipped into House of Banquet to try the dim sum one rainy afternoon. In the cavernous space there were about 30 diners, all Asian.

I soon discovered that dining at this restaurant is like a trip overseas. None of the women pushing dim sum carts spoke Engl

Nothing could be better for Sutro's than the arrival of chef George Morrone, who has garnered two four-star reviews in the last 10 years at two different restaurants.

Morrone came on to consult for the restaurant, and the young chef Brian O'Connor felt he could learn a lot from him. He stepped down to be sous and Morrone took the helm.

The course he has steered has been fortuitous for diners.

Begin with any of his soups. A beautiful cream of broccoli isn't like anythin

OK, I'll admit it; I'm a "Top Chef" junkie. And now, surprise! I pull for the young women, mostly.

Last year, Jennifer Beisty, also sporting a cock's comb hairdo like a one of the dudes on this year's show, was a competitor.

I remember her from her years at Coco 500, Loretta Keller's SoMa bistro. Ahhh, the fried beans with fig dip.

Well, she didn't win, and we are winners because of that. She is the new exec chef at downtown's stylish Mediterranean restaurant, Scala's. Si

For Shanghai 1930, George Chen took a serpentine space underground on Steuart Street, added a cigar room, a nightly jazz band and a very good Northern Chinese food. We're talking the food of the emperors.

Start with the minced duck in lettuce petals, with plum sauce. Here's what sets this apart -- kalamata olives are part of the preparation.

If you, like me, are a lover of hot and sour soup, try it here with seafood.

Don't miss the dumplings, the Peking duck, or the coo

Our new favorite on French Hill, in the Financial District: Gitane Restaurant & Bar. The young chef, Lisa, prepares French Basque food.

Just think about this dish: Bacon Bonbons, a dish of sautéed prunes stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in smoked bacon with a port demi-sec. Be still my heart.

Located in a beautiful art deco building in a new neighborhood that is blooming in uptown Oakland, Flora delivers sturdy Cal-Mediterranean dishes, a stylish horseshoe bar and a really noisy environment -- all those hard surfaces.

We enjoyed a grilled miso cod -- not a

People have been emailing me about Bella Venezia Ristorante Italiano in the Mission for months, so my curiosity was piqued. By total coincidence I was scheduled to do a Chef's Chat with Michael Soracco, one of the bakers at the historic Liguria Bakery in North Beach. (If you think focaccia, you should think Liguria.

Soracco, being the subject, chose Bella Venezia. He and I had a lively lunch at a spot tha

This wonderful French bistro in the revitalized Mint area brings the right vibe, wine list and tasty southern French food to the SF shopping district. "Pissaladiere," available at lunch, is the classic Nice version of a caramelized onion tart with anchovies and frisee salad.

We also like the Bresaola Carpaccio, with extra virgin olive oil, capers, Reggiano Parmesan and arugula salad.

The Beef Tartare with Dijon mustard, ketchup, parsley, shallots, capers and cornichons is a clas

The new chef brings this serene dining room back to the top with appetizers like a caramelized scallop with glazed fennel, grapefruit and toasted almonds.

This is the best place in San Francisco in which to enjoy a romantic dinner--tables placed far apart, and a subdued atmosphere.

The new chef, Louis Maldonado, perfected his technique at Yountville’s legendary French Laundry, and he returned to San Francisco in October 2008 for his first executive chef’s job at the helm of Caf

I've been loving this tiny restaurant for more than 15 years. Founded by two women from Italy, partners in business and life, it achieves what so many mediocre places in North Beach strive for.

And they do it without a stove, just ovens.

My friend had a terrific dish of roasted russet potatoes, yams, and carrots with rosemary. I took a couple of bites and it was very good. I also ordered the grilled radicchio wrapped in Parma Prosciutto.

Probably since the day it opened, Craig and Anne Stoll's Delfina restaurant on 18th Street in San Francisco was a slam dunk. It brought fresh, regional Italian food to a city knee deep in quasi-Mediterranean dishes.

It’s been next to impossible to get in for several years. It’s also next to impossible to hear yourself think, once you do get in. But the food -- oh -- the food!

I can always eat the grilled calamari, the pastas, the nettle ravioli and the seafood. Heaven!

There are not many totally vegan restaurants in San Francisco -- The Loving Hut is not only vegan but dedicated to a Supreme Master! (For the latter, you can check out the Web site or take one of the free CDs in which the Supreme Master expounds about her philosophy: part feel-good hugs and part ecology.)

The restaurant, on the other hand, is a real boon to the nabe, which is filled with too many mediocre Italian places and cheap Chinese joints. Besides its followers, it draws an ecle