(San Francisco)
I don’t eat pasta too often and I haven’t tried that many places in San Francisco, but there’s one place that I keep going back to. Two summers ago, I had a pasta craving, something that’s never happened to me before, so I didn’t really know where to start. Luckily, I heard about a Mano and had been wanting to try it. I was really excited about this place because I heard that they had handmake their pasta daily, which is not something many Italian restaurants offer. Moreover, this restaurant is located in one of my favorite neighborhoods in the city, Hayes Valley.
a Mano means “by hand” in Italian and refers to the way in which the kitchen and the bar approach the creation of each and every dish and cocktail.
Credit
Appetizers:
- Duck Liver Mousse: I rarely get liver mousse, but ever since I had it at Starbelly, I’ve grown fond of it. I was pleasantly surprised by how big the portion was! Typically, I don’t like sweet and savory mixed together, but the fruit that it was paired with balanced the dish very well. If you need more crostini, just ask them for more 🙂
- Arancini: This is similar to a porcini, but they’re a lot crunchier. I would save to eat this at the end, so it doesn’t take up all your stomach space. It’s very hot, so be careful! I think it’s worth getting this once if you’ve never had an arancini before, but definitely not something I’d be able to eat a lot of. Although the sauce looked cheesy, it was actually tomatoey.
Duck Liver Mousse w/ Cherry 
Duck Liver Mousse w/ Apricot 
Arancini
Pasta:
- Spaghettini Seafood: I love how strong the seafood flavor is! Moreover, the sauce is light, so I can eat more of this.
- Campanelle Funghi: I liked the campanelle, but the sauce was very bland, so I wouldn’t get this again.
- Tagliatelle Pesto: The tagliatelle pasta was harder than I had liked, but the pesto sauce was great.
Spaghettini Seafood 
Campanelle Funghi 
Tagliatelle Pesto
- Fusilli Beef Shank: This is one of my favorite pasta dishes there! I love how much beef there is and the pasta they use.
- Tagliatelle Mushroom: The mushroom flavor was good, but the tagliatelle wasn’t the best since I’m used to a wider and thinner one.
- Fusilli Pesto: The pesto here is always great! I like the fusilli as well, but I wish there was meat in this dish.
- Squid Ink Orrechiete: I had high expectations for this, but I was very disappointed. There are as many chickpeas as there are orrechiete, if not more. However, the real disappointment was the pasta itself. It was quite hard, and I couldn’t taste the squid ink flavor much. I wouldn’t get this one again.
Fusilli Beef Shank 
Tagliatelle Mushroom 
Fusilli Pesto 
Squid Ink Orecchiette
They offer inside and outside seating as well as a bar area. However, the tables are quite small, but maybe that’s just because I get too much food. The high stool seating tables definitely don’t offer enough room if you decide to get more than one plate per person, and I strongly recommend ordering 3-4 plates per 2 people because their portions are not that big and also because they’re that yummy. I like the portion size because it allows me to get more dishes so I can try more of their pasta! Their prices are also inexpensive for pasta, especially for an Italian restaurant. I love how the menu changes every time I go! Of course they have seasonal items, but they switch up the pastas they use with the sauces they offer too. I’m not sure how many different type of pastas they actually make, but I’ve definitely had more than five different ones. The only thing I would change about this place might be the lighting. It definitely fits the ambiance, but it makes it hard to take good photos. Similarly, with the tables. However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t come by because it’s worth the wait! Not to mention, Urban Ritual and Salt & Straw Ice Cream are just around the block.
Website
Luke’s Lobster
(San Francisco)
I don’t recall exactly how I heard about this place, but I knew they were opening up a location in SF soon, and I heard that they were going to have a popup. I love lobster, so I knew I had to try it out! Not to mention, I heard about how popular Luke’s Lobster is in Japan. Their popup was located inside Black Hammer Brewery, and I think it was only for a day or two. I’ve been to the SOMA location a few more times after that, and it did not disappoint. The food and service are great! It does seem like their winter specials have been around since mid-January, so it might not be here for much longer.
- Lobster Roll: Initially, I got one lobster roll to try, but after I had the first one, I knew I had to get another one. I haven’t had that many lobster rolls, and I never really liked the bread that it was paired with until I came here. The buttered bun they use is one of the reasons I think makes the lobster roll so outstanding. I also like how they don’t mix their lobster with fill-ins. Although the portions are a bit small for how much it costs ($17), they claim to have a quarter pound of seafood in each roll and it’s only 300 calories! They lowered the price of their lobster roll to $16 last October, but it seems like they raised it back to $17 when I went this month. If you want more lobster, they have jumbo rolls that have 50% more seafood, and it costs $23.
- Luke’s Trio: The trio consists of 1/2 of the crab, shrimp, and lobster, so you can get this if you want to sample each of the rolls. I calculated the price and it’s $0.50 cheaper than if you were to get half individually, so if you want to try all three, it’s not too bad. Out of the three, I definitely still like the lobster the most. The shrimp was nothing special or maybe I just prefer the full size ones. Similarly, the crab was not bad, but I prefer the whole pieces of lobster. The bread is the same for all three rolls, so they were all very buttery and delicious.
- White Truffle Lobster Roll (SEASONAL): I saw this on their winter specials, and I knew I had to try it. For just an extra dollar, you get melted urbani truffle butter. I was very surprised by how strong the truffle taste was in each and every bite! Moreover, this has the same amount of calories as their regular lobster roll, so I guess that means truffle doesn’t have any extra calories 🙂 I am not sure how much longer this will be around for, so get it before it’s gone!
Luke’s Trio 
White Truffle Lobster Roll
This is the best lobster roll place I’ve ever had. I’ve only been to LobsterMe (SF Westfield mall) and New England Lobster Market and Eatery (Burlingame) in the bay area. LobsterMe was not good at all, and I definitely wouldn’t go back. It comes with coleslaw and fries, but I substituted the fries for their clam chowder for an extra dollar. The chowder wasn’t bad, but their lobster had a lot of fillings and I didn’t like the bread at all. New England Lobster Market and Eatery is even pricier than Luke’s Lobster. It costs $24.50 for the same amount of seafood but it’s served with chips and coleslaw. There’s no option to not get the sides for a cheaper roll.
Website
Ramen Nagi
(Palo Alto/Cupertino)
Ramen Nagi is my FAVORITE ramen place in the bay area. Typically, if the ramen is good I won’t say much about the broth, but this place has excelled in every aspect. I wasn’t expecting much initially since there tends to be hype at first but it dies later on. Moreover, I’ve been to places where I’ve waited a while and the food wasn’t amazing. HOWEVER, the broth, noodle, toppings, and sides blew me away! It could be due to the fact that you actually get to choose exactly how you want everything so it’s more accustomed to each person’s taste, but that’s just what makes it so great 🙂 They have a location in downtown Palo Alto and recently opened another one inside the Westfield Valley Fair mall in Santa Clara.
I tend to go for less salt, normal oil and garlic, thick noodles, and pork belly. The noodles have come out with the perfect texture every time I’ve eaten there. I like thick noodles since it tends to be chewier, whereas thin noodles are crunchier. Additionally, I prefer the pork belly over the chashu because it’s so soft and tender. Not to mention, most ramen places offer chashu so pork belly is more unique. Another special feature of this place is the side condiments they offer! I’ve never been to any other place (even in Japan) that offers bean sprouts, pickled veggies, hand-grounded sesame seeds. The bean sprouts are seasoned with sesame oil and sesame seeds, so it’s very flavorful. The pickled veggies aren’t bad either for someone like myself who doesn’t like pickled anything. I’d give them all a try!
- Red King: This one’s my go-to because the broth is actually spicy! I even get to make it up to 10x spicier 😀 I’ve tried it before, but I like to stick to 8x, so I don’t have a tough time later. The one part I’m not the biggest fan of is the minced meat. It’s quite sweet and similar to the ones you get with tantanmen. However, the overall ramen dish is very flavorful.
- Black King: The squid ink is very apparent in this dish as you can tell by the dark black color it gives off. You can make this spicy as well, but it’s definitely not as spicy as the red king. The minced meat in this one isn’t sweet, so the squid ink and garlic flavor are very apparent in it.
Red King 
Black King
The last time I went they noticed both my friend and I wore white clothing, so they even gave us a bib like the ones at the boiling crab. I didn’t know they offered those, but they’re super helpful since the soup tends to splash and you have oil stains on your clothes before you know it :/ It’s definitely worth making a trip out here, but be prepared for a wait! I’d recommend going after 2pm on the weekdays and after 8pm on the weekends for a shorter wait.