1. Crustacean (San Francisco, CA)
This is my favorite restaurant ever. I love Asian food and seafood and this place is the best fusion of the two I have had. I always get their Garlic Dungeoness Crab and Garlic Noodles. It is simply amazing.
Official Website
2. Koi (Los Angeles, CA) Celebrity Hotspot
This is one of the trendier spots in LA. This Japanese restaurant is very hard to get reservations to, but is worth the struggle. The portions are decent, but the food is orgasmic. The best item on the menu is the Crispy Rice.
Official Website
3. Geta (Oakland, CA)
It's a family-owned restaurant with amazing, cheap Japanese food. It's all about the Crispy California Roll.
Unofficial Website
4. Acme Chophouse (San Francisco, CA)
This restaurant, inside AT&T Park, features incredible steak and seafood. I don't go here before games because it is too crowded, but when the Giants are out of town, I like to go their on special occasions. Their Flat Iron Steak is incredible.
Official Website
5. Spago (Beverly Hills, CA) Celebrity Hotspot
This restaurant is considered by many, the best in LA. This is Wolfgang Puck's pride of his restaurants. I try something new every time because everything is amazing.
Official Website
6. Il Sole (West Hollywood, CA) Celebrity Hotspot
This is the best Italian restaurant in LA. I always start off with an anti-pasta, usually the Berrata Cheese and Tomato appetizer. I usually get the Lobster Raviolis for dinner and the Carmel Gelato for desert.
Unofficial Website
7. Asia de Cuba (West Hollywood, CA) Celebrity Hotspot
Located in the Mondrian Hotel, this resturant is the best Asian-Cuban fusion food I have ever had. I have only been here once, so I can't recommend anything because it was all good, but it was a great experience and an amazing dinner. The decor was very modern and white and it came with a wonderful view of LA. Right next to the restaurant is the hotel's famous Sky Bar, where many celebrities party after hours.
Official Website
8. Ketchup (West Hollywood, CA) Celebrity Hotspot
By far the hottest spot in LA right now, this restaurant attracts many celebrities with it's prime location on Sunset Boulevard and very hip decor. The restuarant describes its type of food as, "Classic American food with a twist." The best thing to get here is the appetizer, The Threesome. It is a trio of types of french fries: Spicy, Parmesan Garlic, and Sweet Potato (with light cinnamon sugar sprinkled in). The Threesome comes with 5 kinds of ketchup: Regular, Chipotle, Ranch, Mango, and Maple. For entrees, try the Shake N' Bake Chicken with Plum sauce. It's incredible.
Official Website
9. The Infield (Sherman Oaks, CA)
This outdoor hot dog restaurant is the best I've ever had. The place has stadium seating, a field painted on the ground, and baseball music over the speakers. On top of that, they have around 50 types of hot dogs. They have specialty hot dogs from all around the country. My personal favorite is the Ballpark Classic. It just snaps when you bite into it.
Unofficial Website
10. Little Shin Shin (Oakland, CA)
This is my favorite Chinese Restaurant. It is only a few blocks from my house and it wins the best East Bay Chinese Restaurant by many different publications every year. I don't have a favorite dish, but I usually get some combination of 6 dishes every time, but I have 10 dishes that I love. So, choosing can be tough.
Unofficial Website
Just missed the list:
Zachary's Pizza (Berkeley, CA)
Genova Deli (Oakland, CA)
Smokehouse (Berkeley, CA)
Cut (Beverly Hills, CA)
Barney Greengrass (Beverly Hills, CA)
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
MLB Award Predictions
NL Cy Young:
Tim Lincecum
AL Cy Young:
Cliff Lee
NL MVP:
Albert Pujols
AL MVP:
Dustin Pedroia
NL Rookie of the Year:
Geovanni Soto
AL Rookie of the Year:
Evan Longoria
NL Coach of the Year:
Lou Pinella
AL Coach of the Year:
Joe Maddon
Tim Lincecum
AL Cy Young:
Cliff Lee
NL MVP:
Albert Pujols
AL MVP:
Dustin Pedroia
NL Rookie of the Year:
Geovanni Soto
AL Rookie of the Year:
Evan Longoria
NL Coach of the Year:
Lou Pinella
AL Coach of the Year:
Joe Maddon
Friday, September 26, 2008
My Predictions for the Weekend
Winning team in italics.
$= Correct
X= Wrong
NCAA FOOTBALL
Maryland @ No. 20 Clemson X
North Carolina @ Miami $
Arkansas @ No. 7 Texas $
No. 9 Wisconsin @ Michigan X
Tennessee @ No. 15 Auburn $
Houston @ No. 23 East Carolina $
Colorado @ Florida State X
Purdue @ Notre Dame X
No. 24 TCU @ No. 2 Oklahoma $
No. 8 Alabama @ No. 3 Georgia $
No. 22 Illinois @ No. 12 Penn State $
No. 25 Fresno State @ UCLA $
Colorado State @ California $
Oregon @ Washington State $
Stanford @ Washington$
Weekend Record: 11-4
NFL
Cleveland at Cincinnati $
Minnesota at Tennessee X
Denver at Kansas City X
San Francisco at New Orleans X
Arizona at NY Jets $
Green Bay at Tampa Bay X
Atlanta at Carolina $
Houston at Jacksonville $
San Diego at Oakland $
Buffalo at St. Louis $
Washington at Dallas X
Philadelphia at Chicago X
Baltimore at Pittsburgh X
Weekend Record: 6-7
MLB
NL EAST: Phillies $
NL WILD CARD: Brewers $
AL CENTRAL: Twins X
AL EAST: Rays $
AL WILD CARD: Red Sox $
Weekend Record: 4-1
$= Correct
X= Wrong
NCAA FOOTBALL
Maryland @ No. 20 Clemson X
North Carolina @ Miami $
Arkansas @ No. 7 Texas $
No. 9 Wisconsin @ Michigan X
Tennessee @ No. 15 Auburn $
Houston @ No. 23 East Carolina $
Colorado @ Florida State X
Purdue @ Notre Dame X
No. 24 TCU @ No. 2 Oklahoma $
No. 8 Alabama @ No. 3 Georgia $
No. 22 Illinois @ No. 12 Penn State $
No. 25 Fresno State @ UCLA $
Colorado State @ California $
Oregon @ Washington State $
Stanford @ Washington$
Weekend Record: 11-4
NFL
Cleveland at Cincinnati $
Minnesota at Tennessee X
Denver at Kansas City X
San Francisco at New Orleans X
Arizona at NY Jets $
Green Bay at Tampa Bay X
Atlanta at Carolina $
Houston at Jacksonville $
San Diego at Oakland $
Buffalo at St. Louis $
Washington at Dallas X
Philadelphia at Chicago X
Baltimore at Pittsburgh X
Weekend Record: 6-7
MLB
NL EAST: Phillies $
NL WILD CARD: Brewers $
AL CENTRAL: Twins X
AL EAST: Rays $
AL WILD CARD: Red Sox $
Weekend Record: 4-1
Thursday, September 25, 2008
My Unbiased Take on Every Pac-10 School's Football Program and Fanbase
Arizona
-Not a team you want to play in November.
-When playing in months not named "November," they don't matter.
-Mike Stoops is a jackass.
-Ugly stadium.
-Uneducated football fans and not very classy.
-Cool modern uniforms.
Arizona State
-Classy fans, great gameday atmosphere, hot girls.
-Consistently competitive football team.
-Hasn't been able to get over the hump since 1997.
-Dennis Erickson is a dirty recruiter.
-Stadium needs a renovation, but it's in a great spot.
-Has the ability to become the next USC.
California
-Fans aren't used to winning and thus think they are more important in the college football world than they really are.
-Students are loud, rest of the stadium appears asleep.
-Beautiful spot for a stadium, but it's falling apart.
-Too many hippies, not enough parking spaces.
-Jeff Tedford is a great coach and has his most successful years ahead of him with the new training facilities being built.
-Needs real tailgating areas.
-Having a "yell leader" is really lame.
-Band does awesome halftime shows.
-Really dumb mascot.
Oregon
-With consistent success since 1994, fans have become arrogant and unjustly so, as Oregon has not been to a BCS game since 2001.
-Fans are loud, hospitable, loyal, and create the best atmosphere in the Pac-10.
-Tailgating atmosphere is great.
-Uniforms have gotten downright silly.
-Facilities are the best in the country.
-Mike Bellotti's career is coming to an end, where Chip Kelly looks to take over should have ample success with Oregon's recent successin recruiting.
-Very fun offense to watch.
-Best stadium on the west coast.
Oregon State
-Mike Riley has proven his worth. He consistently takes talent-lacking teams and gets the most out of them.
-Stadium is more fit for a high school.
-Can't sell out games, even with only 45,000 seats.
-Fans aren't used to winning and they show it with their lack of class and humility.
-Drunk hicks flood the stadium.
-Tailgating areas smell like manure.
Stanford
-Beautiful new stadium with great acoustics.
-Classy uniforms.
-Jim Harbaugh has done a good job improving the program.
-Academic standards are too high to keep up with other schools in recruiting. Although, harbaugh is doing a great job with recruiting this year.
-Least enthusiastic fans in the Pac-10.
-Away teams outnumber them in tailgating at their own stadium.
-Great tradition, but recent woes.
-Awesome band.
UCLA
-Best coaching staff in the Pac-10, but not enough talent to succeed right now.
-Football stadium is way too far from the campus.
-Beautiful stadium, but needs renovations.
-Nonexistent football program since 2000.
-Students are very docile.
-Not enough fans in the seats.
USC
-Dirty program.
-Dirty, annoying, arrogant, but really good coach.
-Great tradition and great success.
-Too many bandwagon fans.
-Fans are obnoxious.
-Ugly stadium and surrounding area.
-Classy uniforms.
-Annoying band.
-Fun team to watch.
Washington
-Beautiful spot for a stadium, needs serious renovations and needs to get rid of the track.
-Sterngating is cool.
-Decent tradition, no recent success.
-Fan arrogance is slowly dying.
-Fans always have too high of expectations at the beginning of every year and then take a complete 180 during season and bash the team all year long.
-Brag too much about the past.
-Imaginary championships.
-Students and fans can get very loud.
-Great band.
Washington State
-Loud fans, just not very many.
-Middle of nowhere.
-Ugly uniforms.
-Who really cares?
-Not a team you want to play in November.
-When playing in months not named "November," they don't matter.
-Mike Stoops is a jackass.
-Ugly stadium.
-Uneducated football fans and not very classy.
-Cool modern uniforms.
Arizona State
-Classy fans, great gameday atmosphere, hot girls.
-Consistently competitive football team.
-Hasn't been able to get over the hump since 1997.
-Dennis Erickson is a dirty recruiter.
-Stadium needs a renovation, but it's in a great spot.
-Has the ability to become the next USC.
California
-Fans aren't used to winning and thus think they are more important in the college football world than they really are.
-Students are loud, rest of the stadium appears asleep.
-Beautiful spot for a stadium, but it's falling apart.
-Too many hippies, not enough parking spaces.
-Jeff Tedford is a great coach and has his most successful years ahead of him with the new training facilities being built.
-Needs real tailgating areas.
-Having a "yell leader" is really lame.
-Band does awesome halftime shows.
-Really dumb mascot.
Oregon
-With consistent success since 1994, fans have become arrogant and unjustly so, as Oregon has not been to a BCS game since 2001.
-Fans are loud, hospitable, loyal, and create the best atmosphere in the Pac-10.
-Tailgating atmosphere is great.
-Uniforms have gotten downright silly.
-Facilities are the best in the country.
-Mike Bellotti's career is coming to an end, where Chip Kelly looks to take over should have ample success with Oregon's recent successin recruiting.
-Very fun offense to watch.
-Best stadium on the west coast.
Oregon State
-Mike Riley has proven his worth. He consistently takes talent-lacking teams and gets the most out of them.
-Stadium is more fit for a high school.
-Can't sell out games, even with only 45,000 seats.
-Fans aren't used to winning and they show it with their lack of class and humility.
-Drunk hicks flood the stadium.
-Tailgating areas smell like manure.
Stanford
-Beautiful new stadium with great acoustics.
-Classy uniforms.
-Jim Harbaugh has done a good job improving the program.
-Academic standards are too high to keep up with other schools in recruiting. Although, harbaugh is doing a great job with recruiting this year.
-Least enthusiastic fans in the Pac-10.
-Away teams outnumber them in tailgating at their own stadium.
-Great tradition, but recent woes.
-Awesome band.
UCLA
-Best coaching staff in the Pac-10, but not enough talent to succeed right now.
-Football stadium is way too far from the campus.
-Beautiful stadium, but needs renovations.
-Nonexistent football program since 2000.
-Students are very docile.
-Not enough fans in the seats.
USC
-Dirty program.
-Dirty, annoying, arrogant, but really good coach.
-Great tradition and great success.
-Too many bandwagon fans.
-Fans are obnoxious.
-Ugly stadium and surrounding area.
-Classy uniforms.
-Annoying band.
-Fun team to watch.
Washington
-Beautiful spot for a stadium, needs serious renovations and needs to get rid of the track.
-Sterngating is cool.
-Decent tradition, no recent success.
-Fan arrogance is slowly dying.
-Fans always have too high of expectations at the beginning of every year and then take a complete 180 during season and bash the team all year long.
-Brag too much about the past.
-Imaginary championships.
-Students and fans can get very loud.
-Great band.
Washington State
-Loud fans, just not very many.
-Middle of nowhere.
-Ugly uniforms.
-Who really cares?
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Just got back from the Oregon/Boise State game, My Thoughts...
Good from Oregon:
-The run-game was good, despite Boise State stacking 8 and 9 in the box. .
-Darron Thomas looks like Oregon’s QB for the next 4 years.
-Oregon receivers stepped up.
Bad from Oregon:
-Chip Kelly’s play-calling until Thomas came into the game.
-Nick Allioti’s play-calling in the first half.
-Linebackers did not pick up the Boise receivers when playing zone.
-Not enough pressure on freshman QB, Kellen Moore.
-The defense showed no heart.
-8 missed points on special teams.
Good from Boise:
-Great play-action passing, Oregon bit every time.
-Major props to Kellen Moore for staying poised at Autzen Stadium.
-The offensive line provided lots of time for Moore.
-Boise State’s kicker had a great game.
-Boise State fans made their presence felt and weren’t disrespectful.
Bad from Boise:
-Cheap shots and dirty play.
-Bad tackling against Oregon’s run game.
Congrats, Boise. You guys deserved it. I was embarrassed today to have the Oregon football team representing my school. The defense showed no heart and Patrick Chung should not let that happen.
-The run-game was good, despite Boise State stacking 8 and 9 in the box. .
-Darron Thomas looks like Oregon’s QB for the next 4 years.
-Oregon receivers stepped up.
Bad from Oregon:
-Chip Kelly’s play-calling until Thomas came into the game.
-Nick Allioti’s play-calling in the first half.
-Linebackers did not pick up the Boise receivers when playing zone.
-Not enough pressure on freshman QB, Kellen Moore.
-The defense showed no heart.
-8 missed points on special teams.
Good from Boise:
-Great play-action passing, Oregon bit every time.
-Major props to Kellen Moore for staying poised at Autzen Stadium.
-The offensive line provided lots of time for Moore.
-Boise State’s kicker had a great game.
-Boise State fans made their presence felt and weren’t disrespectful.
Bad from Boise:
-Cheap shots and dirty play.
-Bad tackling against Oregon’s run game.
Congrats, Boise. You guys deserved it. I was embarrassed today to have the Oregon football team representing my school. The defense showed no heart and Patrick Chung should not let that happen.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Good Weekend
Ducks beat Purdue 32-26 in 2 OT
The Ducks looked lethargic in the first half, giving up 20 points and only putting up 6, but the Ducks woke up in the second half, holding Purdue to a FG while scoring 13 themselves. The offensive line did not play consistently, rarely giving Jeremiah Johnson holes to run through. The receivers all appear to be wearing gloves, laced with butter. They could not catch, and it was making Roper look bad. The Ducks won in overtime and they really needed a close win like this. It will make them work much harder. Major props to Legarrette Blount for picking up the slack in the run-game.
Game ball goes to: Jarius Byrd. His 87-yard punt return for a TD, his interception, and his continuous lock-down coverage was a huge key in the Ducks win.
49ers beat Seahawks 33-30 in OT
The 49ers finally came together today in a big win over their conference rival, Seattle. The Seahawks were hosting the 49ers for their home-opener in Seattle at Quest field, considered the NFL's loudest stadium. A very efficient passing game from J.T. O'Sullivan, a couple good bounces, and a great runback by Patrick Willis quieted the "12th Man" in a hurry. JTO looked like the QB that Martz praised in the preseason and he tore apart the Seahawks secondary, while getting help from some veteran receivers. Joe Nedney missed a FG at the end of regulation, which sent the game to overtime, but he redeemed himself by hitting the game-winner in OT. The 49ers looked good, but they need to get better penetration on defense and protect JTO better. Matt Hasselback came into the game with back problems and almost all of his receivers injured. That is an opportunity the 49ers need to capitalize on and put pressure on him. The 49ers offensive line gave up 8 sacks today, which is obviously way too much.
Game ball goes to: J.T. O'Sullivan. He looked like a veteran out there and led the 49ers down the field twice late in the game to give the 49ers the opportunity to win.
Giants win series over Padres 3-1
The Giants have really come together late in the season, winning 9 of their last 11. This young team is showing a lot of promise for next year. Pablo Sandoval, Eugenio Velez, Travis Ishikawa, and Nate Schierholtz continue to impress and make a case for starting next year. On Sunday, the Giants came back from a 4-run deficit in the 6th innings and won the gam in the 10th inning, 10-8.
Game ball goes to: Tim Licnecum. Lincecum sent a message to Cy Young voters on Saturday, by throwing a complete game shutout, giving up only 4 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 12 in 7-0 Giants' win on Saturday.
The Ducks looked lethargic in the first half, giving up 20 points and only putting up 6, but the Ducks woke up in the second half, holding Purdue to a FG while scoring 13 themselves. The offensive line did not play consistently, rarely giving Jeremiah Johnson holes to run through. The receivers all appear to be wearing gloves, laced with butter. They could not catch, and it was making Roper look bad. The Ducks won in overtime and they really needed a close win like this. It will make them work much harder. Major props to Legarrette Blount for picking up the slack in the run-game.
Game ball goes to: Jarius Byrd. His 87-yard punt return for a TD, his interception, and his continuous lock-down coverage was a huge key in the Ducks win.
49ers beat Seahawks 33-30 in OT
The 49ers finally came together today in a big win over their conference rival, Seattle. The Seahawks were hosting the 49ers for their home-opener in Seattle at Quest field, considered the NFL's loudest stadium. A very efficient passing game from J.T. O'Sullivan, a couple good bounces, and a great runback by Patrick Willis quieted the "12th Man" in a hurry. JTO looked like the QB that Martz praised in the preseason and he tore apart the Seahawks secondary, while getting help from some veteran receivers. Joe Nedney missed a FG at the end of regulation, which sent the game to overtime, but he redeemed himself by hitting the game-winner in OT. The 49ers looked good, but they need to get better penetration on defense and protect JTO better. Matt Hasselback came into the game with back problems and almost all of his receivers injured. That is an opportunity the 49ers need to capitalize on and put pressure on him. The 49ers offensive line gave up 8 sacks today, which is obviously way too much.
Game ball goes to: J.T. O'Sullivan. He looked like a veteran out there and led the 49ers down the field twice late in the game to give the 49ers the opportunity to win.
Giants win series over Padres 3-1
The Giants have really come together late in the season, winning 9 of their last 11. This young team is showing a lot of promise for next year. Pablo Sandoval, Eugenio Velez, Travis Ishikawa, and Nate Schierholtz continue to impress and make a case for starting next year. On Sunday, the Giants came back from a 4-run deficit in the 6th innings and won the gam in the 10th inning, 10-8.
Game ball goes to: Tim Licnecum. Lincecum sent a message to Cy Young voters on Saturday, by throwing a complete game shutout, giving up only 4 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 12 in 7-0 Giants' win on Saturday.
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