Millbrae, CA: Hong Kong Flower Lounge
Lobster Lo Mein from the Hong Kong Flower Lounge in Millbrae. They charged us $30 for one and a half pounds and $3 for the noodles. What a bargain – for the noodles. The noodles were good but didn’t get a lot of the lobster flavor. I did like that it was very saucy and that the sauce clung to the noodles. It was lacking the toasty wok flavor that I really like – that you can only get from a restaurant. The lobster wasn’t over cooked and was very meaty. Overall, the noodles were not worth paying $33. I miss the lobster lo mein from ocean restaurant clement street – not as saucy but so flavorful. Unfortunately, ocean restaurant no longer exists and is now a vietnamese restuarant.
Hong Kong Flower Lounge
51 Millbrae Ave
Millbrae
California, 94030
P:650.692.6666
F:650.692.0522
San Francisco, CA: Genki Ramen
Overall, this was a very disappointing experience. You would think that the ramen should be pretty good if it’s part of the store name. They had some interesting ramen varieties like fried crab leg (still in shell) with roe ramen, combination mushroom, seafood ramen and ma po tofu ramen. The only ramen that looked appetizing was the crab leg ramen but it was still in the shell and we didn’t feel like doing the work. We ended up ordering the nori with corn ramen which turned out to be okay. The broth wasn’t half bad but the noodles were awful. I’ve had instant ramen noodles that tasted better. We also ordered the agadashi tofu as a starter and that was good. The batter wasn’t gooey and the tofu was soft. Ironically, the tofu was the best part of the meal at Genki Ramen.
Agadashi Tofu
Nori & Corn Ramen
Genki Ramen
3944 Geary Blvd
San Francisco, CA 94118
415.752.2663
Burlingame, CA: Ramen Club
This past Saturday was one of the best Saturdays I’ve had in a long while. The day started with noodles for breakfast, noodles for lunch and then…you guessed it…noodles for dinner. Dinner was at Ramen Club in Burlingame. We didn’t have high expectations because we recently tried Himawari in San Mateo a few weeks ago and was very disappointed. The ramen was salty, even for me, the queen of salt! And we really wanted it to be good too. We found the Ramen Club using the ramen map. The restaurant is quaint with about 10 tables and the sushi bar. We started off with a spicy scallop roll that was surprisingly good despite the fact that we were at a ramen restaurant. I ordered the Spicy miso ramen. The soup wasn’t very spicy but it was flavorful and smooth. The noodles were perfectly al dente and the cha siu was sweet and tender. There were also bonus kernels of corn and slices of bamboo. We were happy to finally find a good ramen restaurant that we will definitely return to.
Anthony ordered the Wonton Ramen which he enjoyed immensely.
Spicy Miso Ramen
Kent ordered the Shoyu Ramen which he slurped down in a blink of an eye.
Ramen Club
723 California Dr
Burlingame, CA 94010
(650) 347-3690
San Francisco, CA: Turtle Tower
Northern Vietnamese Pho located in the heart of T.L. This is different than the usual Pho…the noodles are soft and flat and a bit thicker…like ho fun…but better. Mmmmm…and the broth….how do you describe it? It’s so flavorful but, yet, fresh and clean. I’ve never had Pho like this anywhere else.
The shocker is that there’s no basil or bean sprouts to be served. AND no hoisin sauce! All the extra ingredients that I love about Pho. The only veggies you get are the cilantro and green onions in your soup and a side dish of lime and chopped jalepenos. I was skeptical of this new Pho the first time I had it…no basil? no bean sprouts? No way! However, with one spoonful of the broth and a slurp of the noodles – I was in flavor heaven. This is the only way I want my Pho.
I guess if you go to Turtle Tower 2 days in a row it’s worth trying something new on the menu. This is their Beef stew with wine. Again, it’s different from the usual beef stew, the broth is more clear and less oily. The beef is very tender and there are cilantro and scallions in the soup. All in all, very tasty but not as delicious as their Pho.
Turtle Tower
631 Larkin St
San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 409-3333