The Slanted Door review - San Francisco Ferry Terminal Building's main draw

Address: 1 Ferry Building
San Francisco CA 94105
Tel: (415) 861-8032

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: Below $30pp (without drinks)
Service charge: 20% for parties of 6 or more
Taste: ****
Service: ****
Ambience: ***
This is a series of reviews done up for my trip to San Francisco. I figure that since I have to eat, I might as well write about it. Enjoy!

The Ferry Terminal Building at San Francisco is one of my favourite spot in the city for the simple reason that it is where I can find pretty much all I need under one roof. Other than the popular Farmers Market that operates in the front and back of the building on Tuedays, Thursdays and Saturdays, fresh breads can be had from ACME Bread Company and fabulous waffles, which trumped those in Brussels, from Blue Bottle.

Then there is The Slanted Door that offers a contemporary take on the Vietnamese cuisine. This restaurant that is at the northern end of the Ferry Terminal Building is not only featured on every single travel guides on San Francisco but also teeming with local regulars every single time we were there. In fact, we had to make a reservation a couple of days earlier and even then we could only get a slot at 11.30am for an early Sunday lunch. We were lucky this time round; we spent quite some time at The Slanted Door’s bar counter when we had unwisely thought that it couldn’t possibly be full at 5pm on a weekday afternoon (that is when it opens for dinner) in an earlier visit.

It is not difficult to see why The Slanted Door counts as one of the more popular restaurants in San Francisco. On a sunny day (and San Francisco has lots of that), there is a certain cheer about having even a simple pho facing San Francisco Bay. And that is especially so if you managed to get one of the five coveted booth seats that faces the Bay.

A staff greeted a diner on the table next to us by his first name and then went on to discuss about the Giants' recent win. Not only that, the couple in the table behind me were apparently regulars as well. And yes, they were on a first name basis with the staff as well. The Slanted Door must have done something right to get locals returning again and again.



We went for the usual suspects. The crispy imperial rolls ($10) good sized shrimps and bits of pork were a mouthful. With a name like that, I couldn't help but give it a go. Without a tinge of oil, which in itself was an accomplishment, they were when complemented by glass noodles and grated peanuts.

The pho bo ($6) didn't quite do it for me. Although the beef slices were pink in the middle - hallmark of a beef done just right, there was this unpleasant powdery texture in the aftertaste. The soup base had depth yet a tad subtle. While Wife loved its subtlety, I thought that it could do with a wee bit more taste.



The caramelised catfish claypot ($15) is something that we have always ordered whenever we dropped by The Slanted Door and for good reasons too. The mix of caramelised sugar and soy sauce was just the right mix with the sweetness and saltiness finely balanced. The chunks of catfish cooked slowly in the thick sauce remained tender and their freshness was apparent when each slice tore off cleanly.

Although it can get a bit crowded towards lunch proper (the reservation staff weren't kidding when they said that The Slanted Door would be packed). Though there was a small queue formed at the queue, there was no obvious effort by the staff to hurry us on (discreetly laying the bill on the table etc.). Yes, it may not have the intimacy of a traditional Vietnamese setup, but its heart is at the right place. The Slanted Door is worth taking a trip down to Ferry Terminal Building. Just don't get carried away while ordering as the prices are on the steep side.

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R&G Lounge Kearny Street review - San Francisco's famous salt and pepper crab

Address: 631 Kearny St
San Francisco CA 94108
Tel: (415) 982-7877

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: Below $40pp (with order of a crab)
Service charge: N/A
Taste: ***
Service: ***
Ambience: ***This is a series of reviews done up for my trip to San Francisco. I figure that since I have to eat, I might as well write about it. Enjoy!

This time round, I was better prepared for my trip to San Francisco after muddling through an earlier trip a couple of years ago. In order to make sure we get a table at my favourite restaurants in the city, we actually called and make reservations a couple of days before we depart from London.

While it was easier than expected to get a place at R&G Lounge, it was a bit more trying for The Slanted Door at San Francisco's Ferry Terminal. In the end we managed to secure tables for dinner at the former and lunch at the latter.

We were told that there are two dishes that you must try in San Francisco - salt and pepper crab and clam chowder with sour dough bread. And R&G Lounge is known for its salt and pepper crab. I recalled having at least two dinners at R&G Lounge and feasting on its crabs during my first visit, licking my fingers clean after I was done with the crabs' pincers. Naturally, this time round, we ordered the same dish as well.



R&G Lounge's salt and pepper crabs were almost as good as I remembered it to be. The word 'almost' was added after my realization that the crab wasn't exactly the freshest after you are done with the savoury batter layered on its shell. The crab meat came across as a tad too dry and there wasn't much juice retained in the it. Care must be taken to consume it while warm; when cold, it would taste like the fish and chips that has been left on the counter for too long.



In a futile attempt to cleanse our palate, we ordered fried beancurd. The fried beancurd (or 'tou pok') was one of the better ones that I have come across. Lightly fried, its interior remained silky soft. The starchy gravy helped quite a bit as well. This is one dish to go with a bowl of rice.

The double boiled soup tasted heavenly. At $6 per portion, it came with quite a bit of ingredients and among them a generous chunk of chicken with a fungus of some kind. Its full flavour with a tinge of bitterness was worth every penny.



On our second visit, we had a Cantonese speaker with us and we got him to ask the staff for complementary soup, which they obliged. While I would hesitate to do the same for the Chinese restaurants in London, I couldn't help but notice that you do get better service if you speak the Chinese dialect. They even threw in free desserts (sweet potato tong sui) at the end of the meal. Needless to say, we left a fat tip for that dinner.

I would venture to say that R&G Lounge's salt and pepper crab is still worth the queue. Forget about the salt and pepper prawns, go for the 'special' beef slices that are served stir fried with a slightly sweet sauce instead.

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Les Deux Salons William IV Street review - French brasserie with a twist

Address: 40 William IV Street
London WC2N 4DD
Tel: 020 7420 2050
Nearest Tube station: Charing Cross

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: Below £30pp
Service charge: 12.5%
Taste: ***
Service: ****
Ambience: ****
Having impressed them with Ottolenghi’s breakfast, there was a higher expectation for lunch, which followed soon after. Despite having a filling breakfast, our visitors who were stopping over London for the weekend were looking forward to lunch at Les Deux Salons.

We arrived in Covent Garden way ahead of our 1pm reservation that Saturday and took the opportunity to walk off the French toasts that was still burning off slowing in our guts. It was interesting to see what our companions, who frequently fly to and fro London and Singapore, get when they are in town. Apparently, the current fads are Fred Perry shirts and Swarovski pens. Then again, with the current exchange rate, anything goes. Given half a chance, folks back home would probably cleared the shelves along New Bond Street. The saving grace is that Londoners have the likes of Hawksmoor, Ottolenghi and Koya in our backyard. If we are indeed deprived, at least we eat well.

So there we were walking along Charing Cross Road turning into William IV Street and coming up to Les Deux Salons moments later. Granted that we were a bit early (twenty two minutes to be precise) but the all day French brasserie was a tad bare when we reached. I made the mistake of thinking that thought out loud and the hostess was a bit defensive with a ”it does get more crowded later on.” To give her credit, it did though not by much.

Wife was really disappointed when we were told that the sweetbread, an item Les Deux Salons was known for, had ran out. Not only that, the menu was different from what we expected. Actually, we were gunning for its famed cheeseburger. Not exactly something that you would expect from a French brasserie and thus the novelty. Maybe that was available for dinner and not lunch, in which case was not apparent on its website's menu. That said, the complementary bread selection was warm when served, a hallmark of a fine dining place.

The service was a joy however. A tall jovial gentleman served us, our companion uttered a merci. “Oh, it’s alright, I’m not even French,” he chuckled. With our stomach still filled with Ottolenghi’s bread, we ordered two mains and two sides to be shared among the four of us. He flashed us a brilliant smile, “But of course!”



The ravioli of rose veal (£8.95) was an interesting French take on an Italian creation. A thin slice of veal replaced the usual pasta; goat's curd and cavolo nero (or kale) laid within. The thickness of curd mixed with a slight sweetness of kale coupled well with the veal wrap's texture - something that had to be savoured whole.



The roast saddle of welsh lamb (£16.95) came stuffed with a pickled green, which I didn't get a chance to ask the waiter what it was. The greens were pushed into the crevices of the lamb cut and the entire piece was held together by a string, which cutting into the lamb's skin was still discernible, before being sent to the oven. While the accompanying citrus mash went well with the lamb, I thought the copious amount of greens was an overkill and dominated the dish. No complaints about the roasted potato side that came in a neat Staub though.


Les Deux Salons, a Will Smith and Anthony Demetre creation, reminded me every bit of a Parisian brasserie. It even came with a host that remained sullen and crossed arms throughout our meal. Formerly a Pitcher and Piano, Les Deux Salons is well positioned at the fringe of Covent Garden away from the throngs of tourists. While the first floor of Les Deux Salons was still empty when we left at around two in the afternoon, I suspect reservations for dinner is absolutely necessary for dinners.

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Maison Blanc review Hampstead High Street - a let down in some ways

Address: 76 Hampstead High Street
London NW3 1QX
Tel: 020 7443 9722
Nearest Tube station: Hampstead

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: Below £10pp
Service charge: N/A
Taste: **
Service: ***
Ambience: ***
“Should I get it?” Wife wondered out loud. With the sun out, it was a perfect day to be out at Hampstead Heath. And by ‘it’, Wife was referring to the crepe from La Creperie de Hampstead, which I think serve the best crepe in London. Apparently, I am not the only one who think that. A pal of mine who flies regularly into London from Singapore forwarded me a list of “restaurants/food to try in London” circulated widely among his colleagues and La Creperie de Hampstead is one of the names up there.

If you have to know, we didn’t join the queue this time round. After a tiring walk up Hampstead Heath, I wasn’t exactly in the mood to stand out in the open facing the increasingly chilly winds. We turned instead to the Maison Blanc, the French patisserie beside it.

Other than the occasional takeaway hot chocolate (which is divine by the way) to keep our hands warm when queuing up at La Creperie de Hampstead, we have never ventured into Maison Blanc. For our cake fix, we turn to its Hungarian counterpart just round the bend, Louis Patisserie instead.

We noticed two things immediately when we stepped in. The interior is smaller than it looked and the prices differ by quite a bit between takeaway and dining in. Determined not to regain the calories burnt the trek up Hampstead Heath go in waste, we went for something light.



Tenptation (£4.30), not a misspelling, looked suspiciously like an opera. Other than a soft chocolate multilayered with cream, there was this fruity taste to it, which I find it somewhat discomforting. I was beginning to regret not heading to Louis Patisserie instead.

The pain au chocolate (£1.70) wasn’t quite up to the mark as well. While Maison Blanc was generous with the chocolate bits, the pastry was tough bordering on overdone and tasted flat.

I’m not sure whether Maison Blanc is worth a special visit despite the raving online reviews. They seem to have some issues when it comes to payment as well; it took the staff some fumbling with the cash register every single time they issue a bill. That said, Maison Blanc does boost a sizable outdoor seating area perfect for catching some sunrays when it’s bright. Otherwise, stick to the good o’ crepe instead.

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