Sno-Crave Tea House--Cupertino, CA

The "Taiwanese Spicy" hot pot

I caught on pretty late to the shaved snow craze, which hit here in the Bay Area in 2012. Once I tried it, though, it immediately became one of my favorite desserts. There's nothing quite like that soft fluffy spoonful of snow melting into a firm, gummy, delicious wad. But, more on that later.

Sno Crave in Cupertino is known as much for their hot pots as their desserts. However, the hot pot I ordered was a disappointment. I ordered the spiciest of the three levels for their "Taiwanese Spicy" soup base. To make it spicy, Sno Crave just dumped a heaping cupful of hot chili oil, which dominated the texture and appearance of the dish. There was so much oil that I took the leftovers home and I've been using the soup as a condiment at dinner.

Though Jenny chose the Japanese Miso soup base, the hotpot didn't feature miso. Still, the broth was flavorful and was even tastier when I ate it as a leftover a day or two later. The dish was a great value--it was packed with delicious protein--and more than enough for even the hungriest diner, especially given one has to save room for the shaved snow. In speaking of which...

 ...we got the honeydew flavored shaved snow with mango popping juice ball topping. Yes, it was delicious and I'd love to come back to Sno Crave again to have some more. However, the texture was just a little hard when it first entered the mouth and it wasn't quite the religious experience I had at Snow-Zen in Mountain View.

The big bonus for the kids--actually, the main draw for them--was that the restaurant played Spider-Man on their multiple flatscreens. The boys loved it and we lost them because of it for most of the dinner. Oh, well.

Sno-Crave Tea House

www.snocrave.com

Ajito--Cupertino, CA

Soboro Don

With the kids away at a birthday party at De Anza College, Jenny and I tried the nearby Ajito in Cupertino. Wanting to try several different items, I started with a couple of skewers. I had the chicken skin skewer with "Sauce" as opposed to "Salt". It was nevertheless very salty. I also had the pork belly skewer, which was a bit spongier than what I was expecting but otherwise fine. Overall, the skewers were small and of questionable value, even at two dollars each.

Chicken Skin skewer

The chicken, rice and egg dish Soboro Don) was, just like the chicken skin skewer before it, quite salty. Also, the egg, poached, was the tiniest I'd ever seen coming from a chicken.  Jenny and I independently thought the ground chicken tasted a lot like pork sung, which isn't necessarily a bad thing--I'd just never had chicken that tasted so much like pork.

Pork Belly skewer

Salmon Avocado Tartare featuring homemade potato chips was a delicious, though. I'd never even thought of potato chips and salmon going together, but it was a combination that worked.

Salmon Avocado Tartare

As surely as boys from Indiana know how to shoot free throws, chefs in Bay Area Japanese restaurants know how to grill fish. Ajito was no exception with their grilled black cod (Gindara Misoyaki), which tasted good just looking at it.

Grilled cod

We finished with a sashimi salad, which wasn't in the same league as the similar offering at Rokko Sushi in Sunnyvale. But, it was a valiant attempt. The sashimi was great, but the presentation was a mish mash. We had no regrets.

Sashimi salad

Ajito
www.ajitoizakaya.com

Waffle Amore (food truck)

My lunch today

Moveable Feast comes to Mission Park in Santa Clara (across Mission College Boulevard from where I work) every Tuesday 11:00-1:30. Today, however, there were only two trucks. And, when I got there at 1:00, Jon Jon's (ribs) had sold out, leaving me with Waffle Amore and a sweet lunch.

The vendor taking my order told me the Brussels Waffle is the least sweet of the bunch, so that's what I went with. For $5, you get a big waffle, one topping (I chose strawberries) and syrup. An additional topping is $1 each except for blueberries ($2). The kind woman who brought out my dish asked if I wanted whipped cream also. Being interested in every free calorie I could get, I said yes. The waffle had a hard exterior and was chewy once you got through the crust. Just about all the flavoring, though, came from the topping and syrup.

In this day and age where $5 doesn't get you very far, Waffle Amore exceeded my expectations with quantity, great strawberries and service with a sincere smile.

Waffle Amore
www.waffleamore.com

Bowl of Heaven--Mountain View, CA

The Sunset at Bowl of Heaven

Recently we experienced the acai bowl wave sweeping through town. We tried the Sunset acai bowl at Bowl of Heaven in Mountain View on Grant. Strawberries, kiwi and shaved coconut topped a soft concoction having a consistency similar to that of frozen yogurt. For the Sunset, this was pineapple, strawberries, mango, coconut milk and MAQ7, a Bowl of Heaven proprietary blend featuring the Maqui berry.

The menu at Bowl of Heaven in Mountain View. Zoom to view.

The flavor and texture of the dessert reminded me of a tangy frozen yogurt. The kids loved it. One word of warning, though: This is not your place if you're in a rush. Inexplicably, it took twenty minutes for them to give us our order. And, even then it was only after some inquiring. Judging from the crowd that arrived before and after us, others needed to wait a similar length of time.

Cup and bowl sizes

Bowl of Heaven
1040 Grant Road
Mountain View, CA 94040
(650) 282=5710
www.bowlofheaven.com

The Duke of Edinburgh--Cupertino, CA

Having had kidney pudding in London a few months ago, I was curious to try out the steak and kidney pie The Duke of Edinburgh last week. Overall, I enjoyed the pie, which was loaded with beef and kidney, both done perfectly.

For $12.75, though, I was expecting a lunch more substantial. I was hungry again not long afterwards. Another nit: The crust, so important in a pie, was a bit too thin and dense for me.

All that said, I wouldn't mind eating here again because of the ambiance. The Duke of Edinburgh did well in recreating the pub environment of the early 1900s. I truly felt removed from the hussle and bussle of midday Cupertino and neighboring Cupertino Village. When we ate here during lunch, it was as though we had the whole restaurant to ourselves. It was that peaceful.

The Duke of Edinburgh
10801 N Wolfe Rd.
Cupertino, CA 95014
408-446-3853
www.theduke.com

Brazilian Shrimp with Vegetable and Rice by Gobble

Always in the market for food delivery, our family tried out Gobble. Though we were able to take advantage of a promotion, the Brazilian Shrimp with Vegetable and Rice (for two) would normally be $24 including delivery.

The delivery from Gobble comes through in two important ways: First, the veggies are chopped. As I wrote earlier, for our delivery from Hello Fresh, just chopping vegetables can take up to half an hour. Second, we really appreciated the sauce came pre-made--another huge timesaver.

Did our family enjoy the dinner? Yes, we did! That said, though, the sauce reminded us much more of a Thai coconut sauce than anything else. More importantly, Gobble delivery is available only by subscription. So, if you're in a pinch and need to get bailed out by a delivery, you have to subscribe, then cancel. Otherwise, the $24 dinners for two will add up quickly for this family of four.

Wild Jack's Tex Mex BBQ in Bravo Farms--Kettleman City, CA

With Kettleman City being the halfway point for our drives between LA and the Bay Area, we always make a stop. There, we were usually resigned to eating at gas station dives and waiting in line at the restroom.

Then, along came Bravo Farms. We first visited the strip mall with the Western theme over the holidays and saw something that didn't exist elsewhere at Kettleman City: parking, available tables and huge, clean restrooms. This afternoon we tried Wild Jack's Tex Mex BBQ and were delighted. It wasn't so much the food, which was certainly good, but not great. But, it represents such a vast improvement over the crowded, grimy alternatives nearby.

The grilled cheese sandwich ($4.45) was a bit on the oily side, but it was still a great value. The brisket ($9.45) and tri-tip ($9.75) sandwiches were both tender. So, at Wild Jack's you've got good food, plenty of seating and big, clean restrooms. What more could you want in a pit stop?

Bravo Farms, Kettleman City
http://www.bravofarms.com/kc/