Five Ways to Find Dining Deals

In the past I've purchased discount restaurant gift certificates from sites like Restaurant.com, but lately I've discovered a number of new sites that also offer great deals on dining. Each one leverages group buying power in order to get great deals. Subscribe to the sites and you'll get offers sent to you in daily emails.

This is the way it works, a new deal is emailed to you each day, the deal is not "on" until a certain number of people buy it, so you may want to share the deal with friends if it's a deal you want in on. Once enough people decide to buy it, the deal is on, and you will be billed. Deals are limited in time and number so you must act quickly. Once you've purchased the deal, you generally need to print a coupon to take to a store or restaurant. The discount may expire in a year or even six months, so read the fine print carefully before you buy.

All the of the following sites offer deals in San Francisco, and are adding cities all the time so check to see if your city is listed as well. Many of the sites also offer you a referral fee if you get friends to sign up and they make a purchase.


Groupon (think "group" and "coupon") is the largest of these sites. Recent deals in San Francisco include $25 for $50 worth of food at Luna Park, $15 for $30 worth of food at Kasa Indian Eatery, and $10 for $20 worth of food and drinks at Goat Hill Pizza. There are also deals for spas and entertainment. Groupon offers deals in over 50 major cities in the US.


TownHog has recently offered deals such as $20 for $40 worth of food at Ramblas and $10 for $20 worth of hot beverages, like their scrumptious hot chocolate, at Bittersweet Cafe. You'll also earn $10 for each friend who signs up and purchases a deal. TownHog offers "hot deals" in 42 cities.


My Joffer offers another similar program. Recent deals include $17 for $33 worth of cupcakes at That Takes the Cake and $15 for $30 worth of pizza at Bruno's Pizzeria. They also have a lot of spa specials. MyJoffer offers deals in about 17 cities and some deals are nationwide.


Living Social offers sends out daily deals, and a recent offer was 50% off Indian cuisine at Rotee. You can also use the site to keep track of collections of things such as a virtual bookshelf where you collect, rate and review books that you own. An added feature is an iPhone app if you prefer to get your deals sent directly to your phone. Living Social deals are available in 8 cities but the other features are available everywhere.


Fresh Guide doesn't have as many restaurant deals available as some of the other sites, but the ones they do have are very good, such as a $25 for $50 worth of Italian cuisine and drinks at Sociale. Fresh Guide is available in 8 cities so far.

One more!

This morning a friend told me about BloomSpot. BloomSpot offers hotel discounts in addition to spa and restaurant deals. Recent restaurant deals include $20 for $40 worth of food at Colibri, $10 for $25 worth of food and drinks at Roots and $15 for a $30 prix fixe dinner at Heaven's Dog. BloomSpot is only available in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York, but they will be adding more cities.

Phở Bò Tái

Eating Phở is fun - it is such an experience! I love getting that steaming bowl of noodles and beef slices swimming in a fragrant, savory broth, finding that perfect balance of toppings to make the flavors really pop. Add in fixins lime, bean sprouts, scallions, basil, hoisin sauce, and fresh jalapenos (for my husband...) and a delicious feast is born. Eating homemade pho is an even better experience, because after just a few hours of work, you get to sit down and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Ingredients
1 ginger root
1 onion, peeled
smidgen fennel seeds
dash coriander seeds
1 cardamom pod
2 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
3 star anise pods
14 cups water
2 lbs beef shank
1 lb oxtail
1 teaspoon salt
2 anchovy fillets
2 shitake mushrooms
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 lb rice vermicelli noodles

Toppings:

Thai basil
scallions
limes, quartered
bean sprouts
cilantro
jalapeno
hoisin sauce

Instructions
Broil ginger and onion until charred. Toast fennel, coriander, cardamom, and clove for 2 minutes, or until they start to become fragrant. Make a bouquet garni with cheese cloth - place the toasted spices, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and star anise pods in the cheese cloth and wrap. Tie with kitchen twine. Bring water, beef shank, and oxtail to a boil, skimming off foam as necessary. Add charred ginger, onion, bouquet garni, teaspoon salt, shitake mushrooms, and anchovy fillets. Simmer for two hours. Strain the stock, and place the liquid over low heat. Add 1 teaspoon each of sugar, salt, and pepper. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Cook noodles for 5-7 minutes in boiling water. In individual bowls, add some cooked noodles, sliced beef, and onion slices, and pour stock. Beef will cook in the hot broth. Garnish with toppings as desired.

Sweetest Treats in the Mission

I love the Mission District in San Francisco. Today check out my picks for the Mission's"sweetest eats" on Frommers.com. As soon as Bi-Rite Creamery reopens, I will do another post on all the fabulous ice cream to be found there too. My top picks are Mitchell's, Humphry Slocumbe, Bombay Bazaar and Bi-Rite. What are yours?

Hibiscus Shortbreads

An afternoon tea break calls for an afternoon snack. These shortbread cookies, with their slight crunch and subtle flavor, are a great accompaniment to a perfectly brewed cup of tea.

Ingredients
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
½ cup powdered sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup rice flour
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons dried ground hibiscus leaves

Instructions
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter and sugars. Mix in flours, salt, vanilla extract, and hibiscus. Roll dough into a log and slice. Bake 8-10 minutes.

Cheesemonger A Life on the Wedge

Remember last year I told you about my friend Matthew Amster-Burton's book Hungry Monkey? I told you it was funny and smart and filled with terrific recipes and that even if like me, you didn't have kids, you would still love it. If you read the book, then you know I didn't steer you wrong. Now I'm going to tell you about another book, by another friend. It's Cheesemonger: A Life on the Wedge by Gordon "Gordonzola" Edgar. And even though it's about cheese, you don't have to love to cheese to enjoy the book.

Because I was a big fan of the cheese department at Rainbow Grocery, I interviewed Gordon for KQED several years ago and was surprised to learn we went to the same high school. Since then I've been impressed with how knowledgeable, funny and what a great writer he is, in addition to being a great cheesemonger of course. So I am particularly happy to tell you his first book is just as wonderful as he is. The book combines humor, politics and all things cheese, especially the stories behind cheeses you may know and cheeses you will certainly seek out after reading the book. I had cheese on the brain while reading the book and it gently steered me away from some of my usual picks over to some more interesting ones. Hello, Explorateur!

As was the case with Matthew's book, by the end of the first chapter I was laughing out loud. Not that the whole book is humorous but it is completely engaging and delves into local issues, food issues, the world of retail, all with a bit of punk rock and political activism thrown in for good measure. If you enjoy Gordon's blog, Gordonzola you are bound to appreciate the book as well.

EVENT:
Thursday, February 25, 2010 from 7:00pm - 10:00pm
at
Books Inc. 1760 Fourth Street in Berkeley

Gordon will be signing books at a book launch party. Cheese will be provided by the Epicurean Connection. I will be there and hope you can make it too!

Why do YOU cook, Andrea Nguyen?

Photo credit: Penny De Los Santos
Andrea Nguyen is a cookbook author who has demystified making Asian dumplings and recreating Vietnamese food in your own kitchen. Woven in between her recipes are stories about family, culture, traditions and faraway places. But aside from being such a talented author, it's great to spend time with Andrea. She exudes enthusiasm and positive energy. She also has a wonderful laugh and can talk about food for hours. Here are the 13 reasons why she cooks. I bet some of her reasons will ring true for you too...

My mother started me out cooking when she deemed me old enough to make rice for our family dinner. I was about 8 years old. By then, she and my father had observed that their chubby youngest daughter was an enthusiastic eater. Why not see if she can cook too? After all, it’s part of being a good, well-rounded super woman. My mother, now 75, is not only beautiful, but socially graceful. Her hair is constantly coifed, her nails are perfect (she does them herself), and her clothing is custom-made by her. She still cooks 99% of the meals that she and my dad eat. I don’t aspire to be my mother but she did get me on the road to cooking and seeded my culinary curiosity.

I’m a cookbook author, writer, and cooking teacher, not a chef. I feel awkward being called a chef because I don’t practice my craft in a restaurant. I describe myself as a ‘professional home cook’ as my workspace is a regular kitchen equipped with a modest Sears stove. I don’t put out food on an industrial scale and my adrenaline rush to ‘fire’ a dish and send it out to the table is because I want to sit down to eat with my family and friends.

Though I’ve cooked for decades, I don’t foresee myself stopping. Why continue to mince, simmer, sauté, grill, pound and clean up after myself? Here are a baker’s dozen reasons for why I cook:

1. I get hungry and eat three meals a day.

2. There are no Asian street vendors or noodle joints outside my door.

3. Homemade food is tastier than purchased food.

4. A meal you cook yourself costs less and you can freeze leftovers.

5. A pot of rice or pho makes the house smell nice.

6. You can dial in your personal food preferences when you cook for yourself.

7. When I eat a bad dish out, I feel compelled to make it up to my palate by preparing a better version of that dish at home.

8. To see if I can replicate a professional chef’s brilliance.

9. To get a feel for traditional foodways and experience an old-fashioned cook’s craft.

10. Repeatedly making the same recipes allows me to work through unfamiliar techniques.

11. The more I cook, the better I write better recipes.

12. To preserve cultural traditions, lest they disappear.

13. Cooking calms and centers me. I turn off Twitter.

Why Do YOU Cook? posts from food bloggers and cookbook authors:
Hank Shaw
Allen Williams
Eric Gower
Kalyn Denny
Garrett McCord
Carol Blymire
Sean Timblerlake & DPaul
Matthew Amster-Burton
Kamran Siddiqi
Susan Russo
Guy Prince
Allison Arevalo
Mary Ladd

...and on other blogs:
Judy Witts Francini
Michael Ruhlman

Baba Ghanoush

Eggplant is such a beautiful vegetable! Roast or grill these purple beauties and then puree with sesame paste and seasonings to create a delicious appetizer for your next shindig. Serve with some pita bread, naan, or whatever you prefer! I like to dip seasoned pita triangles in my baba ghanoush.

Ingredients
2 medium eggplants
3 garlic cloves, minced
sea salt and pepper
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup tahini
1 tablespoon olive oil
juice of a lemon
½ teaspoon sea salt
dash cumin
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

Instructions
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Slice eggplants in half lengthwise. Place on lightly greased baking sheet and drizzle 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, sea salt and pepper, and minced garlic over the halves. Roast for about 40 minutes. When done, scrape out the meat of the eggplant and place in food processor. Add tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt, cumin, and pulse. Adjust seasonings to taste. Transfer to a serving dish and stir in chopped parsley. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top.