Pasta ? - A taste of Italy in Palo Alto

Pasta ? is not a question, its the name of an Italian restaurant in Palo Alto.  We've been in Palo Alto a lot lately and we've come to love University Ave. Its great for walking and the range of restaurants is stellar. Whenever I ask Irina what she wants to eat its alway, Pasta, with an "!", so Pasta, with a "?" has become our go to Italian spot.  Dinners there are not only delicious, but also very reasonably priced. Irina's favorite smoked Salmon pasta is only 11.95 and its the best I ever tasted at any price.
  We go to this restaurant not only for the food, but for the atmosphere and great service. I grew up surrounded by Italians and their hospitality and the people at Pasta?, extend that same feeling. A review that I read of this restaurant said, "we visited Italy recently and we agree that visiting Pasta? is the exact same experience." We agree.
  Well, great, inexpensive food is one thing, but Eating Out Cheap, is about how good of a deal can we get? Today we showed up at Pasta? at around 4:30, being somewhere between lunch and dinner we were kind of stuck. We weren't ready for a huge dinner and the lunch specials looked really well priced, the waiter even said he'd be willing to try to get us those, even though it was pretty late. He then suggested we check out the happy hour menu. Now we're talking!  From 3-6pm and then again from 9pm to closing they have drink specials and an extensive happy hour menu. The selection was great and felt more like an Italian version of tapas.  We decided to try a range of dishes to get a feel for the range of the menu.
 While we mulled over the menu I started with a draft beer, Sierra Nevada for $3. Other drinks were, $3.50 for a glass of wine, $4 well drinks and $5 martinis, nice.

We decided to build the meal around some pasta, of course, and chose a Penne with Alfredo sauce. Nice fresh perfectly al dente penne, came with a light coat of tasty al fredo sauce. It was a nice portion, definitely enough for two.
 As another hearty dish we chose, Scampi al Limone, a beautiful plate with 5 med shrimp laid atop a bed of mixed greens topped with capers. It was accompanied by a warm dressing/dipping sauce, we used it for both and four pieces of garlic toast. I'm not even beginning to do this dish justice, suffice it to say this was a winner, paricularly paired with the pasta.

To round this out we had Caprese, which is sliced tomatos topped with fresh mozzarella cheese and drizzled with olive oil with basil, yummy. And last but not least a Piatto di Salami, which was an assortment of salami, the kind I've only had in Europe.

  This was more than enough for us and the variety of flavors and colors was divine. Funny thing is we barely scratched the surface of the choices on the menu. There were several more pastas, ciopinno, etc, etc. It'll take several visits to get to them all, but we're up to the task.
 The nice thing with this selection is that you can tailor it to your level of hunger. The choices we had today fit our needs perfectly, but if we wanted a more substantial meal, we would have order two pastas and one or two others.
  We enjoyed coming early because there was a light crowd and it was nice and relaxing sitting by the big full length windows.  Around six it really fills up and gets lively, so the timing is perfect for us.

Fuse Lounge- A Retro tradition brought up to date

We've been trying to find some great dining deals in the Monterey/Carmel area for awhile and were coming up empty handed. That is until an EOC facebook friend, Giule Garland tipped us off to a couple of deals in Carmel. The most interesting involved FREE FOOD! That got our attention fast. We decided a little road trip south was in the cards for us.  Fuse Lounge in the Carmel Mission Inn was our destination.  Many years ago it was the only large hotel in the area and was a Holiday Inn, but its been completely redo while retaining a slightly retro look. The lounge/restaurant has kept the most retro look and feel but is all brand spanking new. Lots of windows give the place an open airy feel. They are plenty of large comfy chairs arranged around large tables, which are great for large groups.  We chose a smaller table near a window overlooking the pool area and garden.  A good thing to do is call ahead and double check when hapy hour starts that day. I was told it was 4-6 and checking online I couldn't find a time on their site. When we arrived at 4:30 we were told it didn't start till 5. Not a big deal, we just soaked up some sun by the pool till opening time. So at this point it seems like happy  hour is 5-7pm. Much more civilized in my opinion.
  Okay here's the ground rules. The buffet is free if you buy a alcoholic drink. If you opt out  of the alcohol you can still get the buffet for 5.00. We went for two Sierra Nevada beers, $4.00 during happy hour, that's a dollar off regular price. Well drinks also get the dollar off discount. With the drink orders in we were given plates to use at the buffet. They're small but as it turned out well designed for loading up at the buffet, not that that's necessary as its all you can eat. 
  The buffet itself was a nice selection of items that allowed you to put together a nicely varied meal. In the cold department were a selection of grilled marinated veggies. This included; asparagus, eggplant, mushrooms, onions and bell peppers. I could've been happy with just this. The eggplant was buttery and the asparagus crunchy but not tough.  Even if veggies aren't your thing, get some onions or peppers as they make a nice garnish for the hot items. 
  On the night we were there the hot items were a rigatoni pasta with a tomato/garlic sauce topped with grated cheese. Then there were mushrooms stuffed with meat, my mom used to make these and her's were the best and these compared very well. Last were my favorite, tasty but difficult to catagorize. In the end I'd say they were mini chicken tostadas. A tiny, about the size of a half dollar, fried corn tortilla topped with chicken, sour cream and a little cilantro. Little bites of heaven. By the second helping of food I was pretty much full. I gamely went back for a third, but I think I was pushing it.
  Okay what was the damage? Two beers $4.00 each, total eight bucks! That's it! Okay, I don't think it gets better than that.  If you need more food they do have a regular dinner menu, but we were just fine with this.
  This deal is available Wed and Thurs. Friday they have another deal that we're going to need to check out. An all you can eat seafood buffet for 11.99. Again the catch is you need to buy a drink. But consider this. Without a drink the buffet is 19.99. So in effect you get the buffet and a drink for less than the cost of the buffet alone. Do the math.  We'll be checking this out in the future, but we're told they have blue point oysters, peel and eat shrimp, cioppino, and several other items.
  So if you're in Carmel during the week this is the place to land after a day of exploring the area.

Fuse Lounge 
3665 Rio Road
Carmel, CA, 93923
831-624-6632

Davenport Roadhouse-A Relaxing Drive up the Coast

  After a crummy rainy day we were happy to see the sun come out in the late afternoon. It seemed like a great time to hop  in the car and head north on Hwy 1 watching the sun dip into the ocean.
 Our destination was the Davenport Roadhouse, a place I hadn't been to in years, but I had recently heard some good things about the place so being as it was Tuesday and we heard they have a Taco Tuesdays, we figured why not?
  The drive was beautiful and from my Westside office only about a fifteen minute drive. Davenport Roadhouse is a combo, restaurant, bar and Inn housed in a beautiful brick and wood building.  We arrived around 8 and Taco Tuesday runs from 6-9, so with it staying light later its a great way to get a great deal without having to adhere to the regular 4-6 happy hour hours of most places.  There was an acoustic group playing when we arrived, The Sherry Austin Band, they were really good and had a nice turnout in the bar.
  We were seated in the restaurant section but we could still see andhear the music. Its nicely laid out where if you want even less music you could sit further back in the restaurant, but we were happy just off to the side.
  Most days the Roadhouse has a 4-6pm happy hour, but on Tuesdays and Thurdays that is extended to 9pm and on Tuesdays Tacos are on special for $3.00 ea. You have a choice of Veggie, Fish or Carnitas. We orders a couple beers, they had Santa Cruz Pale Ale on tap, which is my new favorite, very cold and very clean. For tacos we each had a fish and a carnitas taco. The fish is made with grilled Tilapia and the Carnitas was a delicious slow cooked pork.  The tacos come ala carte but are beautifully presented. A flour tortilla comes with the selected filling topped with red cabbage, really fresh guacamole, actually more like wonderfully ripe mashed avocado and topped with a spicy mayonaise. Its hard to say which was better, each was exquisite in its own way and if I had it all to do again I'd make the same choice.

 The service was very friendly and the whole place had a very homey comfy feeling.  Seemed like there were a lot of locals who knew each other, but it was still very comfortable. As summer comes upon us and the days get longer we'll definitely be making more trips this way and we'll most definitely be stopping by for more of this great food.
  If your planning a trip from out of the area, this would be an ideal place to stop for the night if you're traveling up or down the coast. A nice inn and some great food, it couldn't get much better.


Davenport Roadhouse
Hwy 1
Davenport, CA

A Happy Hour when you Need One

We had business in Palo Alto recently and were returning home to Santa Cruz around 2pm and realized we were famished and wouldn't make it home without some sustenance. We hadn't had lunch and it was still too early for dinner, so we decided to try to find a happy hour that started early.  After some searching around on my iPhone I found a place that got unanimously great reviews and they had a well regarded happy hour that went from 2-7pm! This sounded like our kind of place, It was in Campbell which was right on our way home.

 The place is called Grill 'em and seems to be a popular "cook your own steak" kind of place, but a lot of the reviews single out the happy hour as being worth the visit.  During happy hour beers are $3, well drinks $2.50, margaritsa $4 and appetizers $5.  We checked the menu online and it had a nice range of apps, so we were on our way. Grill 'em in on Bascom Av just south of Dry Creek Road. We'd passed this area many times but have never noticed this place. Nice sign, but the building is kind of dark looking. The posts we'd seen about the place mention this and also say ignore and go right on in, its a friendly place, and this was true, the hostess/waitress was really friendly and started to lead us into the dining room, I mentioned that we were here for happy hour, as a lot of places require that you sit in  the bar to get happy hour deals, but she just said, "Great", and proceeded to seat us in a nice booth in the dining room. Since we came smack dab in the middle of "dead time" at most restaurants, I can't comment on how busy the place usually is, but there was another table of people in the dining room and the bar had was pretty busy.
  The appetizer menu has a nice selection and we had some trouble making up our minds, but we finally settled on the Chicken Potstickers, BBQ short ribs and Chicken Quesadilla. For drinks we had a Sierra Nevada and since it was Thursday we ordered the $3 Mojito.

 Service was quick and our orders arrived fairly quickly. The Potstickers came with both hot and sweet dipping sauces. These are not the large doughy kind of Potstickers, they're more of what I see as Gyozas, that are served in Japanese restaurants. Crunchy but not hard on the outside and the filling was pretty tasty.  Take my word for it the hot dipping sauce if HOT!, but really addicting, the sweet is a nice compliment, both very good. Nice size order, 8 pieces.
  They arrived first and soon after our other two appetizers arrived. The Quesadilla was really nice, filled with cheese, chicken and grilled onion, served with a side of salsa and sour cream. Good size and very tasty. The salsa wasn't too spicy but was a good complement to the quesadilla.
  The hit of the trio was the BBQ short ribs, Korean style. I'm always wary of these because I've had a few too many fatty, tough versions. Here their exquisite. We had contemplated getting some bread to go with them but didn't and a good thing as the order comes with pieces of garlic bread, perfect.  These boneless short ribs were very tender, with enough fat to make them moist and delicious. They had been marinated in a teriyaki based sauce which was not overpowering and imparted a slightly sweet finish to the flavor.

  Drinkwise my Sierra was very cold and fresh tasting, and went perfectly with the meal. The Mojito on the other had seemed on the watery side, it seemed like a correct combination of ingrediants, but like maybe it had been premixed with ice and the ice had melted. I had read some reviews that said the same thing about the Mojitos and others that said they were STRONG. Unfortunately I got the former rather than the latter. If it had been later I would have ordered another cocktail to get a better impression of what the bar can do, but that'll have to wait till another day.
  All in all I'd say we had a nice light meal and we'd definitely return, the food was good and the prices were right and you can't beat the hours for the happy hour.


Grill 'em
2509 S. Bascom Avenue
Campbell, CA

Ma Maison-Fine French dining in Aptos, CA

  Ma Maison is the type of restaurant that Eating out Cheap lives for. Its a high end place that consistently gets great reviews for its food, and a place that is normally out of our price range and not on our radar. Well, that changed radically tonight! We were tipped off that the restaurant had some coupons on their website and one intrigued us immensily.  It offers any entree on the menu and adds salad and dessert all for 19.95.  Its a time limited offer, the coupon has an expiration date and you need to use it between 5:30pm and 6:30pm. The nice part was you could use it any day except Saturday. We figured what a great deal for a Sunday night out.
  The building the restaurant lives in is back from the road nestled among the redwoods and backed up to a creek, a very cozy setting. Its an old house with a nice warm fireplace for this winter evening. Its comfy, yet elegant, formal but not stuffy, you definitely have the feeling that you've been transported to a French country inn.
  One thing we'll admit is we're not coupon people and its an experience that always makes us a little uncomfortable, but we had nothing to worry about here.  The staff is friendly and gracious, I left the coupon on the edge of the table and when our waiter saw it he immediately made sure we knew that any entree including the daily specials were available to us and was very helpful in explaining various dishes and any discomfort we came in with was soon dissipated.
   Bread and herbed butter arrived quickly along with a very good glass of house Merlot ($6). Making my dinner choice was easy, I wanted steak and tonight they had a NY cut which was Flambéd with brandy and finished with a black peppercorn cream sauce, served with French Fries and asparagus.

 Irina had the Filet du Canard, which is Duck filet, roasted and sliced, with blueberry-aged balsamic vinegar sauce, mashed potatoes and asparagus.
  The salads were a nice mix of greens with a basalmic vinegrette topped with some shredded carrots, a nice way to start off the meal.
  When our main course arrived two things were immediatly apparent, the portions were ample and the presentation was beautiful.
 My steak was a large thick cut piece of meat, cooked to a perfect medium, something a lot of restaurants have trouble doing. I'm not a big fan of sauce on steak and I usually ask to have the meat cooked plain, but tonight I didn't and I was glad I didn't. The black peppercorn cream sauce, was the simply to die for. At first I felt the fries were a little underwhelming until I realized when you used them to sop up the cream sauce they became heavenly and by the time I was done my plate was pretty clean.  The best thing was the steak didn't let the sauce overpower it, it was flavorful and very, very, tender.  The asparagus was firm yet tender all the way down to the bottom of the stalk.

  Irina's duck was a hit too.  She was glad she ordered it and said it basically melted in her mouth. I only got a small bite, she was being very protective of her portion, but I'd agree it was the best duck I've tasted and its sauce added a lot of flavor without overpowering the duck meat. Again her asparagus was excellent and the mashed potatoes were first rate. Irina had arrived craving mashed potatoes and she said they did a great job of satisfying that craving. We were full and happy and we weren't done yet.
  Dessert was two incredibly fresh Tiramisus. Creamy and light and again ample portions. We complimented them with tea and coffee and were ready to roll home, two happy campers.
 Now here's the good part all that came to $50.00 excluding tax and tip. We figured that at full prices the bill should have been around $90.00, actually very reasonable for the quality and size of the meals along with the great atmosphere, but for a 40% savings it was incredible.
 At the end of the meal the chef/owner, Lionel Morvan came around to each table to chat with us and ask how we liked things, very impressive.  Well Ma Maison has two new converts and we will be back, with or without coupons.  In fact this is the great thing about these kind of deals, there are places you might not experiment with because of price, but with this kind of savings its worth taking the chance and if like our experience at Ma Maison you love the place, everyone wins. You have a new place you like and the restaurant has new regulars.  This is one of the main reasons we started eating out cheap and one of the driving forces that keeps us going.

 

Ma Maison
9051 Soquel Drive
Aptos, CA

Gordon Biersch-San Francisco

After a long day at Macworld in San Francisco, we decided we needed to clear our heads with some fresh air, so we cruised down to the Embarcadero to walk along the bay and enjoy the view. Wasn't long before hunger started creeping up on us and being as it was around 5 we figured there must be a happy hour somewhere nearby. Sure enough on the corner of Harrison and The Embarcadero in a picturesque brick building sits Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant. A quick check with the hostess confirmed that happy hour was in progress and the plates passing by were making us hungrier by the minute.
If you like beer, this is your place. They serve five types of Gordon Biersch beer, all brewed onsite. In fact along one wall you can see the big tanks they use in the brewing process. The decor is dark wood and brick and one wall is all glass which gives a nice view of the bay.

At happy hour all GB beers are $1.00 off, wine is $2.00 off and they have $5.00 Martinis, Margaritas and Mojitos. On the food side they have a selection of appetizers all for $4.95 each. These include: Tapas, glazed chicken wings, deep fried artichokes, garlic fries, southwest egg rolls, house made chips and mini pizzas.
There were seven of us so we basically tried the whole appetizer menu, with the exception of the house made chips. This was a mountain of food. Not was everything beautfully presented, but the portions were ample enough for us to have some leftovers. We tried a variety of beers and they were all very well received. I was especially impressed with the freshness of the flavors, very bright and distinct, makes the bottled beer I usually drink pale by comparison.
Where to start with the food? The chicken wings were awesome, honey glazed, the way I like them and meaty, so tasty. Their garlic fries are world famous, and for good reason, I could have eaten a whole portion by myself. Tapas are really cool. They take their pizza dough and bathe it in an olive oil marinade and cook it in the wood fired oven and then serve it with a variety of toppings on the side.

These include, hummus, garlic, olive tapenade and fresh salsa. Yum! We all loved the deep fried artichokes which had a parmesan coating. Light, tender and tasty. Gordon Biersch prides themselves on making everything from scratch and it certainly shows in the quality of everything we tried. BTW, the staff is extremely friendly and helpful, they helped make the experience memorable.

Gordon Biersch
2 Harrison St
San Francisco, CA

Shadowbrook-HIgh End Happy Hour

The Shadowbrook in Capitola by the Sea, is one of our favorite restaurants, we love it for special occasions and when we want to impress family or friends. Its also one of the pricier restaurants we go to, so we can't usually afford it as much as we'd to. Not only is the food top notch, but the grounds are among the most beautiful of any restaurant we know of and people come from afar just to enjoy it. The restaurant itself is nestled at the bottom of a hill among lush gardens and is reached by a rail tram. All these elements have made it one of the premier places for marriage proposals, amazing.
Well the Shadowbrook is also the grandaddy of establishments in the Eating out Cheap Hall of Fame. While they work hard to cater to a clientle that will drop some serious cash, they also have some awesome deals that allow people on more modest budgets to enjoy the food and surroundings on a regualr basis. Its obviously a win win situation since the place is full on any night of the week and any time of the year, that's a real feat in a town that usually survives on the tourist trade.
They do this two ways, one by having daily specials in the dining room, see their website for the latest specials and the second is by their happy hour. We been here a couple of times and what I've noticed is a lot of people are basically having an inexpensive dinner and drinks during this time. This is not an everyday happy hour, it only occurs on Tues. and Friday. Friday is half off happy hour and Tuesday is "two for one" happy hour. We went on Tuesday, when the happy hour runs from 3:30-6:00. Beer, wine and well drinks are $3.50 ea and appetizers including the pizzas are two for one, which means you pay for the most expensive one of the two.
We started with two vodka/cranberry drinks ($3.50 ea) and then ordered a Pizza Margherita and Memela's Oaxacan "pizza". The pizza consisted of fresh mozarella cheese, vine ripened tomatoes and fresh basil. Wow! The toppings were extremely flavorful and were nicely complimented by the thin crust which was lightly toasted on the bottom and edges. Turns out they're cooked in a woodfired brick oven, and it really makes a difference.
The Oaxcacan "pizza" is something out of this world. Its definitely not a pizza, its also not Nachos and its not a tostada. What it is a melange of incredible flavors sittin on top of two "corn tortillas" and I put the "" there because these are more than tortilla, they're a little thicker and have been lightly fried, crisp but not "chips" crunchy. The topping is a mix of 18 hour smoked pork, black beans, queso fresco, fire roasted tomato salsa and what appeared to be a whole sliced fresh avocado. Its the sum of the ingrediants that makes this the most heavenly concotion I've every had. This was a lot of food too. We had about half the pizza left and were about to pack it up and go home, but we couldn't resist nibbling and managed to finish it all. The best part is that in the end our bill was around $18.00 for two people!
We'll be coming back so for happy hour, but we're also going to try a dinner special. Thursdays all seafood items on the menu are $15.99.
Four thumbs up on this place.


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The Shadowbrook
Capitola and Wharf Roads
Capitola by the Sea, CA

P F Changs- A Saturday Happy Hour

Saturday is our least favorite food day as there are virtually no restaurant deals to be found. Most dinner deals are Sun-Thurs. and happy hours are Mon-Fri. Feeling adventurous we decided to go on a quest to find a great dining deal on a Sat. and since we had to go to San Jose on business we decided we try to find something there. Once we hit town we quickly found a Metro newspaper and scanned for some kind of food deal. We immediately found an ad for an everyday happy hour at PF Changs, but the only location I knew about was in Saratoga and we were headed downtown. So we decided to take a walk through downtown, up First Street and back down Second. Most restaurants didn't open till 5 and the ones that were open didn't have happy hours on the weekend. Just about when we were about to give up and head for our favorite Burrito shop, Irina said, "isn't that place on the corner a PF Chang's?" Sure enough there it was on the corner of Second and San Fernando and right out front was a sign announcing happy hour, everyday, 3-6pm.
Upon entering we were greeted by a friendly hostess and as she started to pull out dinner menus I quickly informed her that we were there for happy hour, not wanting her to get us setup in the dining room and then have to move us. Without batting an eye she asked if we wanted to sit in the bar or the dining room. We chose the dining room and were immediately seated in a comfy booth. Soon after being seated we were approached by a smiling server, who started explaining that she was going to mix up a special sauce for us and how it would work with dinner. Again, I informed her that we were going to be ordering from the happy hour menu and she said great, and that the sauces she could mix up would go great with our appetizers. We were impressed, in a lot of places once they know you're there for happy hour you're shuttled off to the bar and treated like poor relatives. These people were earning major points and we hadn't even got to the menu.
What a menu it is. There are 14 food items ranging from 3.00-6.00. Drinks also run in the same price range and cover all the bases; beer, wine, sake, well and specialty drinks. The food selections cover a wide range from spring rolls to spare ribs, enough variety to satisfy pretty much any craving you might have.
First a note about the dipping sauces. When you arrive the server brings a variety of ingredents to the table. These include; vinegar, soy sauce and chili oil along with a chili paste and wasabi sauce. You're asked if you want mild, medium or hot. We asked if we could have mild and hot and it wasn't a problem. Once the basic sauce is made the ingredients are left on the table for further enhancement, a nice touch.
There are so many choices is was difficult to narrow them down to three choices. Since this was our first visit we had lots of questions about different items and our server, Virginia, seemed to enjoy taking the time to answer all of our questions. We finally decided on Pork dumpling ($4 for 4), Northern style spareribs ($6) and Sichuan Chicken Flatbread($4). With the dumplings we also had a choice of steamed or crispy pan fried, we chose the crispy option. For drinks we went with a Kirin draft ($3) and an Asian Pear Mojito ($6). Our drinks came quickly and after a short wait the food arrived. Drinkwise the Mojito was a real hit, it came in a large glass and was an expert blend of ingredients. Its basic flavor was a very good Mojito, a good balance of rum, lime, mint and soda and then a very subtle but distinct pear flavor finished it off, hats off to the bartender for this one.
The food was beautiful and tasted just as good as it looked. The dumplings were perfectly crisp, the dough wasn't too thick and the filling was very tasty. The soy vinegar garlic sauce that comes with them was really good too. These disappeared way too fast, next time two orders. The Chicken flatbread initially confused us as I think of flatbread as something crunchy, but our server informed us that is was more like a tortilla. It was really an asian influenced quesadilla, with a twist. The wrapper was infused with Scallions, while subtle really livened up the taste. Inside were stuffed chicken, green onions and a little cheese to hold it together. This came with a chili mayo dipping sauce, which was awesome. Once the flatbreads were gone we spooned up the remainder of the sauce. this also came with an Asian Slaw, which had a nice lemon flavor that helped clean the palate and keep all the different flavor distinct, a nice touch. I've mentioned before that I'm a fan of dry rubbed ribs and the Northern Ribs are done that way with an Asian dry rub. I liked that the rub was used sparingly and that they gave you more on the side so you could season to taste. The portion was six good size meaty ribs, hardly any fat and moist and fall off the bone tender. As we started eating our meal we realized some rice would make this a full meal, but when we checked the menu there was no side order of rice. So we asked our server about that and she said if we'd like rice she'd be happy to bring some, no charge! Remember the sauce we mixed up at the beginning, well dumping that on the rice and now we were reaching something very close to Cheap Eater Nirvana. Could it get any better than this? Yes it could. We had been watching these colorful little shooters passing by on their way to the other tables around us. Turns out these are a variety of dessert shooters and at $2 each we couldn't pass them up. We got a Chocolate cake with Raspberry and a Strawberry Shortcake. Though small they packed an intense amount of flavor, the perfect way to top off this delicious meal. So for less than $30.00 we got a wonderful filling dinner, top of the line drinks and dessert! Along with fantastic service.
We've decided we could come back many times and make a different meal each time. One item that seemed to show up on most of the tables was the lettuce wraps, which come in tofu or chicken, they looked so good we wished we had ordered them, but definitely next time.
After dinner we talked with the Manager, Kat, and she explained that the happy hour menu was very a new addition and that a lot of thought had gone into it and that a concious decision had been made to put the best and most popular items on the menu. Hats off to management for this decision.
A couple of things to know. This is a chain and I am only reviewing the downtown San Jose branch. I do know that the two San Jose locations along with the Sunnyvale and Palo Alto are offering this menu. If you are in another area I would check the website or call the branch you are considering and ask what their happy hour policy it, as it may vary.

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P. F. Changs
Second and San Fernando Streets
San Jose, CA

Crow's Nest-Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor

The sun finally came out today and we knew there would be a great sunset and one of the best places to catch a sunset is at the upstairs lounge at the Crow's Nest. Fantastic view of the Bay and coast.
The great thing is there is a wonderful happy hour from 3:30 to 6pm. Pints of beer, wine and well drinks are $3.30 ea. All appetizers are half off and are there some good ones. After settling on a vodka tonic and vodka cranberry for our drinks we poured over the appetizer menu, trying to make a descision. They have great crab cakes and tasty natchos, but tonight we were after seafood, so we settled on the smoked salmon appetizer ($4.95) and the Ahi ruby rare tuna ($5.25). Wow so much flavor packed into each bite. The salmon comes with a Wasabi mayo dipping sauce and the tuna is crusted with cajun spices and comes with a soy dipping sauce with wasaibi and ginger on the side. Nice portions that are rich and filling.
Good drinks, great food and a wonderful sunset, life doesn't get much better than that.

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Crow's Nest
Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor

Michael's on Main - Soquel, CA

Michael's on Main is a great little restaurant tucked away on tree lined Main St in Soquel, CA, overlooking the Soquel Creek. Its got a large airy dining room and a separate cozy bar with a fireplace and french doors that open onto a large patio overlooking the creek. While the dining room is a little more formal, the bar is relaxing and cozy. It has tables but there is also a very comfotable couch that sits in front of the fireplace.
Prices on the menu are on the higher side, but since this is Eating out Cheap, we were here for the happy hour and boy do they have a happy hour. What usually brings us here is the Cuban pulled pork sliders, which are worth every bit of $12.00, but for happy hour these bad boys go for $6.00.
Usually for these reviews I fill up one side of a 3x5 card with notes, but today to get all the specials in I needed both sides of the card.
Starting off with the food deals, there is a poriton of the appetizer menu that is half off during happy hour, which runs from 4-6pm Tues-Fri. Besides the pulled pork sliders there is; Garlic Pepper Wings, Fish and Chips, Popcorn chicken, Garlic Fries, and Sweet Potato fries. At happy hour they range from $3-6.
On the drink side we have; draft beer at $3, House wine and well drinks $4. They also have specialty drinks for $5, usually $9 and those include; Margaritas, Lemon Drops, Mojitos and Appletinis. There is something for everyone.
We ordered the aforementioned sliders and the fish and chips, along with a Mojito and Margarita. The fish and chips are a generous portion; three filets of battered deep fried fish and a mound of delicious cross cut fries, if there weren't three delicious sliders waiting we might have stopped here. The sliders are to die for, a fat mound of tender pork with just a hint of barbeque sauce and some shredded cabbage inside a toasted bun, heaven on a plate. The drinks were handmade and potent, something I like about this bar. We will definitely be coming back.

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Michaels on Main
2591 Main St
Soquel, CA

The Hindquarter-Santa Cruz, CA

The Hindquarter Bar and Grille has been on our radar, because the shear number of ways they have to dine there and save money doing it. Besides the usual half off happy hour you find at loads of places, they have nightly specials, internet coupons and now specials that they have through their Facebook Fan Page.
We decided to try two of their specials, the Sunday night special and the Facebook members special. The special for Sunday night is Applewood smoked Pork chops for $13.99. Being a member of their Facebook fan page we were informed that we could upgrade a half rack of baby back ribs to a full rack for the half rack price which is 15.99. That's a savings of $5.00 off the pork chops and $8.00 off the ribs. This was going to be a meaty dinner.
We started off by splitting a house salad with Blu Cheese dressing. They are happy to split the salad and serve it on two plates and its a generous portion presented like two portions. The salad comes tossed with the dressing applied, the way I like it. I have never got used to the idea of dumping a big glop of dressing on top of a salad. If you don't like salad served this way, be sure to ask for the dressing on the side.
BTW service was great, water and two kinds of bread arrived almost as soon as we were seated and the server took our drink orders shortly thereafter. Very nice.
We were just finished with our salad when dinner arrived. Wow, the portions here are amazingly large. The special consisted of two large thick juicy pork chops, scalloped potatoes and sauteed root vegetables (beets, parsnips, rutabaga, and onions). The ribs were a large rack with the scalloped potatoes and cole slaw.
This place knows how to treat meat. The pork chops were nicely cooked, juicy and firm but not at all dried out. The ribs were meaty with a nice crispness on the outside from the Honey Peach glaze they use. This is a refreshing change from the usual red barbeque sauce, yum. We really like their scalloped potatoes, and so do most patrons as we've been here when they've run out early, but not tonight. The really nice surprise were the veggies. A mix of root vegetables sauteed in a delicous sauce. Really, really tasty. The cole slaw was no slouch either, crispy cabbage in a well balanced sweet/tart dressing. In the end we had one of the two pork chops and half a rack of ribs leftover. Going to make a nice dinner tomorrow.
This is a great place for family gatherings and intimate dinners. They have several rooms to accomodate both these kind of groups and even when they're packed we've seen them work overtime to keep everyone satisfied. A good sign is for all the years we've been coming here we've seen the same staff and they're friendly and efficient.

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The Hindquarter Bar & Grille
303 Soquel Av
Santa Cruz, CA

Winter on the Wharf

Today was the type of day that screams, "This is why you live in Santa Cruz!" It's the middle of January and today was clear and warm, no tourists and the waves were excellent.
We did a late afternoon walk near Natural Bridges and then went over to Lighthouse Point watched the surfer's at Steamer's Lane. The waves were huge and the rides extremely long, winding around the point into Cowell's beach. From where we were standing on the point we could see across the water to the Santa Cruz wharf, which is situated next to the Boardwalk. Being a wintry Monday, the area was fairly deserted, which gave us an excuse to cruise on over to the wharf and see what kind of deals were available. We parked at the beginning of the wharf and walked the length, checking each of the restaurants for the best happy hour deals. Almost all the restaurants had some kind of specials, but nothing got our attention till we got to the end of the wharf and checked out Stagnaros Bros. restaurant.
This is an old school family restaurant attached to a seafood market. Its also got one of the best views of the Monterey Bay great for watching a sunset. They have some nice looking dinner specials but the real deals are in the upstairs bar. Windows on three sides of this room give a wonderful panoramic view of the bay and coast. The place has recently been remodeled, but thankfully they kept the old time nautical theme that reminds me of my youth, we'd come from San Jose for a day at the beach and then dinner on the wharf.
While the view is great, it was food we came for. The room was full, but luckily there was one table near a window available, which we grabbed. Almost immediately a server brought us some warm sourdough rolls with butter a nice touch for a happy hour setting. Your can order from the regular menu if you choose, but most people seemed to be here for the happy hour menu, and with good reason.
Drinkwise for three dollars you could choose from several craft and import beers, served by the pint, a glass of Salmon Creek wine or a well drink. I choose the Stagnaro Bros. Pale ale, which was light and flavorful.
The appetizer list was the most extensive we had seen on our walk down the wharf. Normall we would have choosen two apps for the two of us, but we were famished and frankly there were too many good things and we couldn't make up our minds, so we chose three. We chose, deep fried Calamari (5.95), Crab Cakes (6.95) and Blackened Ahi Tuna (6.95). When they all arrived we realized we could have stopped at two, the portions were very good sized, particularly the Calamrai, which was a huge portion. In the end though we were glad to have been able to try all three. Two other items of interest were the coconut prawns and half dozen oysters on the half shell. These both seemed popular at the other tables.
As I said the Calamari was a large portion battered in a nice flour based batter. The Calamari was tender and the batter was just right, slightly crisp and not greasy. My only quibble was the batter was a little bland, but the tartar sauce and cocktail sauce helped bring up the flavor. What really kicked it into gear was the Aoli sauce that came with the Crab Cakes. The fresh garlic in the sauce really finished off the Calamari. If you order just the Calamari, I'd ask for a side of Aoli.
Their were two Crab Cakes in a serving and they came on a bed of salad, which had a light vinigrette. The cakes were slightly crunchy on the outside, fro the cracker based coating and moist and flavorful on the inside. Plenty of crab and not a lot of filler. My wife usually leaves these to me, but one bite and she claimed her full share.
The real standout here was the Blackened Ahi Tuna. This was more of a seafood salad. The tuna sat atop a mound of "Asian greens" and was drizzled with a slightly spicy sauce. Even split there was plenty for both of us, though I might be tempted to order this one just for myself. All this food, including drinks set us back around $25.00, throw in the view and you have one great deal.
Since we had been so frugal, we decided to treat ourselves. So on the walk back to the car we stopped at Marini's at the Beach, a local candy store or maybe just candy heaven. We choose two plump candied apricots dipped in dark chocolate, a great way to top off a great meal.

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Stagnaro Bros. Restaurant
Santa Cruz Wharf
Santa Cruz, CA

Takara- Japanese dining made affordable

When it comes to a style of food we love, the winner has to be Japanese cuisine. The problem is usually the price. We have several favorite places in the Santa Cruz area and one we frequent is Takara, located in Capitola. On our last visit we were surprised to find an addtional menu tucked into the regular menu. At the top it said, "Dinner for Two $25", and it didn't say "each". So we confirmed with our server that indeed for $25.00 you get; an appetizer, two soups, two salads, two order of rice and two entrees. Now usually on these kinds of specials we've found the selection to be limited, but here we found the listings to be extensive. There were four different appetitzers, nine entrees and nineteen different rolls! This list doesn't exclude vegetarians either from that list; three apps, three entress and seven rolls were listed as vegetarian. So I'm guessing from that list you should be able to satisfy everyone in your party. One nice thing is you can substitute the entree for two sushi rolls. This give you a lot of options. Two main entrees or one main entree and two roll or four sushi rolls. The selection of rolls is like a "Best of" list of their best rolls. There are two additional entrees that you can choose for $2.00 extra; Broiled Salmon or Salmon Teriyaki. Whew!
For our visit we chose the Chicken Wing apps, Sesame Chicken with Lemon Sauce and Beef teriyaki. Our soups and salads arrived quickly and were very tasty. I'm especially fond of the miso based salad dressing that's used here. The Chicken Wings arrived shortly thereafter and were a treat. I'm not a fan of Chicken Wings at all, but I'll make an exception for these. Six small wing pieces fried crispy with a not overly hot sauce cooked into the skin. The skin was crunchy and I liked the subtle sauce. The chicken inside was moist and tender. They come with a Blue Cheese dipping sauce, which I found unnecessary as the wings were plenty tasty on their own. We were starting to feel pretty satisfied at this point, but there was more to come. When the entrees arrived we were very happy to see this were not scaled down portions at all. We have the Sesame Chicken quite often when we dine at Takara and this portion was exactly the same size as off the regular menu, two large pieces of white meat chicken, deep fried in a light Tempura batter. This comes with a lemon dipping sauce on the side, but I like the chicken plain or dipped in Soy Sauce. The Beef Teriyaki was to die for. I'm picky about my teriyaki and I don't usually order any beef dish in Oriental restaurants. The Teriyaki because I'm not fond of overly sweet sauces and I more often than not disappointed with the quality of beef used in sauced dishes. Well this dish changed my mind in a big way. The beef was a very tender piece of sliced steak and the Teriyaki enhanced the flavor without overpowering the dish. My wife doesn't usually eat red meat, but this time she claimed her fair share of the dish. Rice rounds out the meal.
For $25.00 I haven't found a meal to equal this in quality or quanitity. We had enough left over for a late night snack or light lunch.
We talked with one of the owners who told us that him and his wife had spent over six weeks coming up with this meal deal. He said they debated, coupons, percentage off deals, etc. and even brought in staff suggestions before deciding that what they wanted to do was offer a real honest deal that was difficult for people to pass up. And in my book they've done just that, my hats off to them.
They haven't decided how long to keep this deal available, so I'd suggesting checking before you go down there to make sure you're not surprised, but I definitely suggest taking advantage of this offer as soon as possible.

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Takara Restaurant
41st Av and Capitola Rd.
Capitola, CA