Vaso Azzurro Ristorante

Classy Italian-French dining - that's what I call it. I love this place. If you're going out on a dinner date or for lunch with your colleague, you will love it here.

The food is great and the service is awesome! The staff is very polite and always smiling to help.

It gets a little crazy when they are crowded so the best time to go is in the early hours to avoid waiting for your meals.

My favorite dishes are:

* - my personal favorites

PANINI

Vegetali Panino - On a bun with aioli, grilled marinated eggplant, zucchini, roasted bell peppers, portabella basil, and sun-dried tomatoes, served with mixed baby greens side salad.

ANTIPASTI

Bocconcini Di Mozeralla Lombardy - Fresh mozzarellas, tomato slices, basil, oregano, olive oil & balsamic vinegar.

Aubergines Au Grill Modena - Hot stew of marinated eggplant with olive oil, diced red onions, tomatoes, garlic, roasted sweet red peppers.

Bruschetta Milano * - Freshly baked bread topped with fresh chopped tomato, red onion, garlic, basil & olive oil.

INSALATE

Insalata Della Casa * - Spring baby greens, kalamata olives, red onion, grated parmesan cheese & house dressing.

Insalata Trevisiana * - Fresh spinach, arugula, radicchio, caramelized walnuts & cherry tomatoes, house dressing. (Arugula is a herb)

Insalata Avocadro * - Fresh avocado, romaine lettuce, gorgonzola cheese, walnuts, tomatoes, lemon-herb dressing.

Insalata Arugula * - Fresh baby arugula, hearts of palm, goat cheese, cherry tomatoes, lemon-herb dressing.


ENTREES

Capellini Al Pomodoro Fresco - Angel hair pasta, fresh tomatoes, garlic, basil, EVOO, and spinach.

Penne Alla Diavola * - Pasta tubes with chunk of marinated eggplants, garlic, onion, basil, red bell pepper, spicy marinara sauce. If you like a spicy Italian dish, this is the one to order. It's very delicious!

Gnocchi Di Spinaci Al Gorgonzola - Spinach and potato dumplings in rich creamy gorgonzola cheese sauce, splash of chardonnay. Great if you are a cheese lover.

Ravioli Con Spinaci Di Mascarpone * - Pasta, stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese, sauted in a marinara mascarpone cheese sauce.

Risotto Fungi - Imported Arborio rice with Portobello mushroom, peppercorns, sundried tomatoes, and touch of cream.

You can practically order anything else that you see on menu and request them to not include the meat and they are kind enough to make it for you.

They have a fantastic collection of desserts as well, ranging from Italian ones to the Middle Eastern ones, including Flan, Mud Pie, Tiramisu *, Creme Brule, Cheesecake, Chocolate Fudge Cake, Baklava *, Affogata, Zabaglione, Sorbet, Gelato *, Chocolate Sundae, and Helen of Troy.

And btw, if you still didn't know, Vaso Azzurro means blue vase; they do have a whole bunch of them in the restaurant as well.

My rating for Vaso Azzurro: 4/5

Name: Vaso Azzurro Ristorante
Type: Italian-French
Average Price: $10-14/person (Lunch), $12-18/person (Dinner)
Address: 108 Castro St, Mountain View, CA 94041 (At Evelyn Ave)
Phone: (650) 940-1717
Website: http://vasoazzurro.com/

Firehouse Grill & Brewery

Pretty good for a brewery to have at least one vegetarian item in each category. I like this place and have been there numerous times. You don't get too much of a choice as a vegetarian but the food is quite good and so is the service.

Starters: Bruschetta - Tomato, Basil, Garlic, Sourdough Crostini
Mozzarella Sticks. They also have Fire House Garlic Fries for dinner.

Soups & Salads: Fire 'House' Salad - Seasonal Greens, Carrot, Cucumber, Red Onion.

Pizzas: Margherita - Tomato, Basil, Mozzarella.

Pastas: Roasted Vegetable Ravioli - Tomato Basil Sauce, Parmesan Cheese.

Sandwiches: Fire Roasted Portabello - Fontina Cheese, Spinach, Eggplant, Roasted Peppers, Pesto, Served Open Faced.


Surprisingly enough, I still haven't gotten a chance to try out any desserts at Firehouse. They have Blackberry Parfait (includes alcohol I believe), Chocolate Mousse, Crème Brûlée Cheese Cake, Mud Pie, Apple Pie, and assorted Gelatos & Sorbets.


My rating for Firehouse Grill: 3/5.

Name: Firehouse Grill & Brewery
Type: Brewery
Average Price: $10-14/person (Lunch), $12-18/person (Dinner)
Address: 111 S Murphy Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94086 (At Evelyn Ave)
Phone: (408) 773-9500
Website: http://www.firehousegrill.com/

Fina Estampa

Got to eat lunch at this place back in September of last year. I didn't really have a choice to decide because I was there with a group and majority of the people wanted to eat Mexican so we decided to go to this place. The place does not look very impressive from the outside. It is located right at the corner of Van Ness and Geary in SF downtown. Once we were inside, the atmosphere was quite authentic. The place has a Spanish/Peruvian decorations and the looks quite nice, not too fancy but makes you feel at home.

The menu has two lists of items - one Peruvian and the other Spanish/Mexican. A lot of Spanish names sound very original and you can tell it's not American-Mexican but authentic Mexican food.

They have THE BEST salsa ever. The chips and salsa are served as soon as you are seated. They also serve warm fluffy white bread (looks and tastes mostly like the French bread) slices with butter. There are four different kinds of sauces/condiments served as well.

After trying to make up my mind between the two kinds of ethnic foods, I decided to go with Peruvian. They have separate section on the menu for veg. items. This dish I tried (I forget the name) has sauted vegetables with French fries and is served with steamed rice. It was very delicious and has become my favorite now. I can't wait to go there again and try out other veg dishes that they serve along with the dessert.

There is parking available on the street as well as across the street under the Cathedral Hill Hotel where public can park for reasonable hourly rates.

For the fans of Mexican/Peruvian food, this is a must-eat place.

My rating for Fina Estampa: 4/5

Name: Fina Estampa
Type: Peruvian & Spanish/Mexican
Average Price: $8-14/person (Lunch), $11-16/person (Dinner)
Address: 1100 Van Ness, San Francisco, CA 94109 (At Geary Street)
Phone: (415) 440-6343
Website: http://www.finaestampasf.com/