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/

Tabla Flavours Café

So last night I got to eat at this place. First of all, I didn't know where it was located so we had to roam around the shopping plaza to find the place. Eventually, we ended up finding it hidden behind other shops in the Charter Square Shopping Center.

I found out at the end of my dinner that they call themselves a cafe. Since I didn't know about that I had expected a little more. And then I thought since the place was in Foster City, it would have it's signature charm, etc. but sadly enough I was when I entered the place.

I had seen the menu outside so I was looking forward to find out what the South Indian food tasted like. The service was below average... the main waiter looked like he was having a bad day and didn't smile all throughout the ~45 minutes we spent there. We had just been given the seats and he walks over and asks us whether we already ordered. I felt like giving him don't-you-have-any-common-sense look but refrained. We told him we hadn't ordered so he threw the menus at us, literally. We ordered all the things we wanted but he forgot to write down the last item that I had ordered, which I realized half way through my meal because it never did come. Just to double check, I asked him whether I had actually ordered it, he said yes and that he remembered I ordered it, but then he came back from kitchen saying I hadn't ordered.

The food took quite a while to come, specially the thaali. So two of us who didn't order thaali got the meals quicker and rest of the two were waiting till the first two were done with their meal. So at any given time, two people were sitting at the table, just waiting - either for food or for others to finish their meals. Quite ridiculous if you ask me.

The food was alright but quite spicy, which I don't mind but it was mainly the service that disappointed me a lot. If you're craving for spicy Indian food, this is the place to go, but be prepared to face the waiters who seem like they haven't been fed any food for days and are mad at you for just being there.

Their menu mainly has the basic South Indian items. It also has quite a few non-veg items made from halaal meat.

We requested the grumpy waiter to make sure our food was vegetarian and he looked annoyed, we had to soften him up saying we just wanted to make sure for it. He didn't seem to like it.

They have the veg thaali listed with $7.99 but we were charged $8.29 + tax and similary the mysore masala dosa we ordered was actually for $5.99 but we paid $6.29 + tax. We didn't wait to deal with the waiter any longer so we just kept mum and paid and left the place.

They also have a few other locations in the bay area, I wonder whether they are the same as this one. Would I go to the place again? I seriously doubt it.

My rating for Tabla Flavours: 1/5 (that's for the food).

Name: Tabla Flavours Café
Type: South Indian/Pakistani
Average Price: $8-$10/person (Dinner)
Address: 1088 Shell Blvd, Ste C, Foster City, CA 94404
Phone: (650) 638-1555
Website: http://www.newtabla.com/

Dish Dash

If desis hangout any where in Sunnyvale that's not a desi place, it's Dish Dash. LOL! just kidding... [For those who're unfamiliar with the term desi, it means Indian and don't mean it to be derogatory in any way]

The food is good and so is the service. Their staff is quite friendly and polite. The place is fine middle eastern cuisine. When they say fine, they mean the prices.

The place does get crowded quicker and so if you're a large party, your best bet is to make a reservation or go at an odd hour to make sure you get seats without waiting long.

A few of their items that I've tried/tasted are Sambusak - spinach, mushrooms, onions, almonds and feta cheese wrapped in filo dough, and served with a special tahini-herb sauce.
My favorite M'shakaleh has layers of mushrooms, grilled eggplant, cauliflower, tomatoes, and rice, served with a yogurt-tomato sauce.
And the Tabsi Falafel is falafel, a Middle Eastern Favorite, topped with a thick sauce of eggplant, onions, peppers, tomatoes seasoned with garlic, mild curry and dry lime, served with rice. You can check out their vegetarian items page here.

They have quite a few traditional desserts. Baklava being the most famous & favorite that's the only one I've tried so far. I can say it is good but not the best I've tried.

Over all, Dish Dash is a fun place if you want to catch up with an old school pal or colleague for lunch. They have nice seating area outside as well, if weather is good. Being right in the middle of Sunnyvale downtown, it's a noisy place so not the best setup if you're taking someone special out on a romantic date.

Parking is hard to get close by to the restaurant during peak hours but a couple of blocks down on Evelyn, opposite from Caltrain station, there's huge multi-level public parking where you can park for 3 hours at a stretch without paying for it.

My rating for Dish Dash: 4/5.

Name: Dish Dash
Type: Middle Eastern
Average Price: $12-$15/person (Lunch), $15-$20/person (Dinner)
Address: 190 South Murphy Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94086
Phone: (408) 774-1889
Website: http://www.dishdash.net/