WTF is wrong with the bay area????
John Smith
Can Somebody explain something to me.
Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
pennsylvania
isn't paris or vienna, and having only traveled to southeast asia and
different states among the us, I felt service and food quality was
average.. Good italian food in philly, good anything in new york all
within an hour to an hour and a half drive.. Good service, I always
tipped 30% and was usually remembered after a few visits. Lines in
grocery stores were nonexistant, there were numerous, LARGE quality
grocery stores such as wegmans and super fresh, which carried good
produce, good selection, decent prices, clean shopping space.
I just arrived in the south bay about two months ago. I'm still waiting
for the red mark to get away from the slap in the face I got. This
place is HORRIBLE. I go to a grocery store any time of the day and
there's a 20 person wait, and usually an overworked, underpaid mexican
or vietnamese slave (err i'm sorry. customer service agent) working, who
sadly doesn't speak english.. so the experience for them as an employee
obviously sucks, and they take it out on the customer by being slow,
doing things wrong, needing to call a manager for every little thing
that's not normal..
Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
so I can forget about any food here except for denny's or fast food. I
work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore.. but i've
tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
That was my first dining experience. I've had three good experiences,
average steak house type places (austins in sunnyvale, and black angus
(of course it's a chain) in sunnyvale).. Average food @ midori's on el
camino, but to make up for the food the host has an amazing personality
and you feel like you're @ a cheesy japanese place in indonesia where
you're greeted with a handshake, hug, and your name is yelled out
(actually it was more or less the same @ midori's.. very friendly.. ONLY
friendly place in the south bay as far as I can tell) Also, an adequate
cheesesteak experience @ pete's cheesesteaks on tasman & lawrence (can't
expect a cheesesteak in california to be perfect.. I mean they can't
even do them right in new york.. 40 minutes from philly.. it's a philly
thing)
Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
geek has killed any taste for mexican food.. but I've tried local
places.. where the food is usually horrendous, but since I go there @
lunchtime there's a 30 person wait and a good half hour in line.. I've
had adequate chinese food @ man bo duck in mountain view on castro.. but
i've had HORRIBLE chinese food @ 3 or 4 small chinese places.. the only
decent thai food i've had is just simple satay (sort of satay.. weird in
america) @ a harley bar (go figure) in sunnyvale on .. i forget what
street it's on.. ah yes, murphy st. (good soup to be had @ scruffy
murphy's on murphy st.
Now delivery, you can forget.. EVERYWHERE here closes @ 9pm (WTF? I know
that I work until 10-11pm half the time and so does everybody else I
know) .. I ordered a pizza from pizza hut the other night.. 3 hours and
I was 2 miles away.. when I called up I had some mexican guy yelling @
me in english and spanish to stop calling they were closed the pizza was
on it's way.. roundtable is puke.. I mean dominos is cardboard puke,
roundtable didn't even bother with the cardboard.
fast food here.. It's nice seeing fast food options beyond mcdonalds,
burger king, wendys, and arbys.. though I noticed there are no KFC's
here (no black people in the south bay.. to quote chris rock.. ladies,
gentleman.. where did you hide all the black people?? I know they're
here somewhere) .. hmm that statement will get me flamed.. Anyways, in &
out kicks ass, mass kudos to those guys (especially bibi the cute asian
girl who always greets me with a smile @ the on off of rengstorff)..
carls jr. is edible.. but I can't distinguish it from jack n the box.
Actually the small chain fast food here is usually better than the big
chain.. the big chain places the food is ALWAYS cold, the service is
slow, and all except for the wendy's on maude and mathilda are rude (the
wendy's on maude/mathilda very nice guy to give me my 11pm munchie shot)
Anyways.,. my point.. Can somebody explain to me, why?
There is a LOT of money in this area, but no nice restaurants? Do all of
the
people I hear of and know who are millionaires due to stock (which I
hope to be sooner or later), do you all settle for such mediocricy? Or
is there something I don't know? WebVan perhaps? is that the secret? At
the very least I was expecting good seafood here (as you all chuckle @
me I feel).. no go.. The service being bad I understand, their loss.. I
buy everything I can online and no frustrations.. but the restaurants,
SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
Here are the types of restaurants I have not seen :
Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you
eat?)
French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of
them)
Irish (Not that the quality of them is low.. but damnit we should stick
together
and take over all these crappy other places.. irish food is what
a geek
needs. good palette pleasing middle of the taste spectrum food..
warm,
good feeling, hearty)
Dutch (a good bavarian pastry shop? anywhere?)
Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
here..)
AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS.. THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO. California is
the ONLY place in the country where mexican restaurants outnumber decent
good old fashioned american diners. The only diners I have seen here are
denny's.. Where I come from (eastern pennsylvania) we have 3 diner
chains, Dennys, PERKINS, and friendlys.. Here there are dennys and a
bunch of crappy theme restaurants .. gag me with a bennigans spoon
already.. Why are there no diners in the silicon valley?
DINERS WERE MEANT FOR THE SILICON VALLEY! 24 hours a day, good food,
friendly redheaded waitresses that call you sweety or honey, refill your
coffee and chat you up a bit @ 3am while you're frustrated @ core dumps
in your program on your laptop that you're too tired to figure out.. The
diner is one of those few american culture items to be proud of..
rock'nroll (yes rock is american, not british you limey beatles fans),
the blues, aeronautics, motorcycles, and goddamnit the good old
fashioned diner. I'm shocked a place like california is so low on
diners.. All the californian based literature that speaks of diners as
if they were home (steinbeck's canney row & sweet thursday, kerouac's on
the road, .. to name a few).. Now I won't get into entertaiinment..
This is a problem anywhere you go.. city planners want more
factories/thinktanks/office drone buildings instead of clubs.. and in a
city like sunnyvale or surronuding areas it doesn't surprise me there
are no real coffee shops/punk clubs/indie theatres.. but, and fuck the
stock market.. fuck analysts, Without good food and 24 hour diners NO
civilization can last, let alone a city that is supposed to be a mecca
of business.
Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
oh one last thing
all you assholes with the suvs
USE YOUR TURNSIGNALS OR I AM GOING TO RUN MY VOLKSWAGEN UP YOUR ASS!
arlene
Steve...@compaq.com
John Smith <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> I&O out kicks ass, mass kudos to those guys (especially bibi the cute
> asian girl who always greets me with a smile @ the on off of
> rengstorff)..
You just blew what little credibility you had left. What I
didn't know was that I&O had asians.
And another post brought to you by the Hershey Highway.
These damn Pennsylvanians are getting on my nerves. I
was just there for a few days, and every time I go back
there, I think how just plain _stupid_ and slow people there are
when compared to CA.
-sw
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
nospam_...@yahoo.com
> Hi.
Welcome to the bay area.
[snip long critque]
> Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
Yes. East-coast transplants never complain about the
food here. Occasionally we get the New Yorker who
raves about the pizza or bagels here. And, for a good
Philly cheesesteak try Chili's Philly Cheesesteak Wrap,
it's great.
Sorry you don't like the food here.
Steve
Yip Yap
>
> Can Somebody explain something to me.
>
> Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania.
You need to get to know the area better. There's
a lot to choose from here, and you've got to pick
the good over the bad. This newsgroup is a good
place to pick up tips from others.
With respect to supermarkets, some of the big
chains here are rotten. Safeway is at the top
of that list. But the top-notch markets are
far superior to what you'll find in most
of the U.S.
You like Black Angus? I guess everyone is entitled to
their own opinion. Midori has been mentioned on this
newgroup. Try Seto Sushi next time instead.
-- Yip
dke...@best.com
Meg Worley <m...@steam.stanford.edu> wrote:
>ObFood: Flea St. Cafe for dinner last night. Crappy service
>for once (dude kept forgetting shit and refused to apologize,
>instead making up clearly-false excuses) and the food wasn't
>quite as good as last time (rather, some of us didn't order
>well -- we picked the wrong desserts, for example), but it was
>still good. Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
>$24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
>on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
>
I'm gonna have to remember that expression and swipe
it as needed.
And I always have the same response you did to Flea St. That
is that the food is good, but that I'm sure I ordered the wrong
thing and it's way too expensive. The combination there doesn't
inspire me to go there more than once or twice a year. There
are places I'm more consistently happy with my experience that
don't cost as much.
--
Dave Eisen dke...@netcom.com
I think most people in the country feel that we need to eliminate
the possibility of actual innocence before we execute someone and
I'm one of them. --- Illinois Governor George Ryan
Meg Worley
I wrote:
>>Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
>>on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
Dave writes:
>I'm gonna have to remember that expression and swipe
>it as needed.
Be my guest. The Midwest variant replaces snot & booger
for shit & fart.
>And I always have the same response you did to Flea St. That
>is that the food is good, but that I'm sure I ordered the wrong
>thing and it's way too expensive. The combination there doesn't
>inspire me to go there more than once or twice a year. There
>are places I'm more consistently happy with my experience that
>don't cost as much.
See, my first two meals weren't that way -- we ordered
the *right* things, had *great* service, and were completely
bowled over. I suspect now that they may have been flukes,
but it's taken me awhile to figure it out.
Rage away,
meg
--
m...@steam.stanford.edu Comparatively Literate
Dan Abel
> Hi.
>
> Can Somebody explain something to me.
>
> Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania
Stop right there. That's your problem.
> I just arrived in the south bay about two months ago.
If you haven't found anything you like in two months, give up. This is a
pretty small place, after all, especially compared to the other coast, so
I'm sure you have seen everything there is to see. You might as well go
back home. Failing that, have all of your food shipped to you, like the
other transplants do.
> Anyways.,. my point.. Can somebody explain to me, why?
If you will look at your back in a mirror, you will see that we have put a
sign on your back that says, "KICK ME, I'm a transplanted Easterner". We
do that to all of you people. It's nothing subtle, we are just trying to
get you to leave because we are tired of your whining about this area and
how everything was better where you came from. PLEASE GO HOME!
> There is a LOT of money in this area, but no nice restaurants?
Maybe that's the problem. Who wants to work for restaurant wages when you
can make more money elsewhere?
> AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS.. THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
> offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO.
Not too up on local history, are you? California did in fact used to be
part of Mexico. It was never part of Greece, though, which may explain
the shortage of AMERICAN/GEEK DINERS (yeah, I left out the "R" on
purpose).
> Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
Yes, the only one...except for the other 45 people we get every week with
exactly the same complaint.
Let's face it. If you choose to live in the armpit of the Bay, you have
to put up with the conditions down there. Just count your stock options
and look at your bank balance, and think how nice it will be to return to
the East Coast and retire a rich man.
--
Dan Abel
Sonoma State University
AIS
ab...@sonoma.edu
http://www.sonoma.edu/IT/AIS/people/Abel.html
Todd Michel McComb
Dan Abel <ab...@sonoma.edu> wrote:
>Let's face it. If you choose to live in the armpit of the Bay,
>you have to put up with the conditions down there. Just count your
>stock options and look at your bank balance, and think how nice it
>will be to return to the East Coast and retire a rich man.
That's the main problem though. It was perfectly nice here before
the greed-mavens came chasing their Internet IPOs. I'm just trying
to wait it out, but it's plenty annoying. At least you can have
a civil conversation with the Mexican guy bagging your groceries.
More of them, less of the other, I say.
ObFood: I am going to Evvia this week, blissfully sans kids; is there
anything I should be sure to order?
Geoff Miller
Steve...@compaq.com writes:
> These damn Pennsylvanians are getting on my nerves. I
> was just there for a few days, and every time I go back
> there, I think how just plain _stupid_ and slow people
> there are when compared to CA.
I really wonder if that's a California thing, or a Silicon
Valley/Bay Area thing. I think we're spoiled by the high
levels of education and affluence, and by extension the
intelligence, that we take for granted in this area.
A friend of mine, a software engineer who telecommutes to
a Bay Area company from the outskirts of Reno, told me
he was really struck by this after moving out there. I
notice a difference even over the hill in Santa Cruz.
That's not to say that everyone who doesn't live in the
Bay Area is a drooling 'tard, of course, but there _is_
often a noticeable difference in the average apparent
average intelligence levels of people from less dynamic
places.
Geoff
--
"Next time I hear about 'The Holocaust,' are the liberals going to include
the tens of millions killed by the Russian and Chinese commies? Or would
that be too judgemental?" -- Julian Macassey
David Arnstein
>Go Back!!!
<ENTIRE original post (long) deleted>
Learn to use your text editor!
--
David Arnstein
arns...@netcom.com
Karen Anderson O'Mara
> Hi.
>
> Can Somebody explain something to me.
>
> Let me backtrack a bit.
I think you should backtrack a lot. Just because *you're* in culture shock,
please remember you're a guest right now. Please remember that if you
wanted Pennsylvanian grocery stores, cheesesteaks and restaurants,
Pennsylvanian black people, Pennsylvanian drivers, Pennsylvanian deliveries
and whatever else you're complaining about, you'll have to go to
Pennsylvania to find them.
So, pipe down and mind your manners. It's up to you to figure out "why" you
can't acclimate yourself to local ways. When in Rome, lean.
Karen
Aahz Maruch
Meg Worley <m...@steam.stanford.edu> wrote:
>Dave writes:
>>
>>And I always have the same response you did to Flea St. That is that
>>the food is good, but that I'm sure I ordered the wrong thing and
>>it's way too expensive. The combination there doesn't inspire me to
>>go there more than once or twice a year. There are places I'm more
>>consistently happy with my experience that don't cost as much.
>
>See, my first two meals weren't that way -- we ordered the *right*
>things, had *great* service, and were completely bowled over. I
>suspect now that they may have been flukes, but it's taken me awhile to
>figure it out.
My primary and I only went once, but our experience was more like
Dave's. We figure that if a place can't impress us the first time,
there are plenty of other places that will.
We went to the Atherton Fontana's last night for dinner. At 5:30, it
wasn't as noisy as it usually gets, and we were pretty happy with the
food.
--
--- Aahz (Copyright 2000 by aa...@netcom.com)
Androgynous poly kinky vanilla queer het <*> http://www.rahul.net/aahz/
Hugs and backrubs -- I break Rule 6
The best way to get information on Usenet is not to ask a question,
but to post the wrong information. --Aahz
Evergene
>...I just moved here from pennsylvania.
>...This place is HORRIBLE.
If you pay attention to this newsgroup and follow up on the recommendations
you'll read here, you'll find yourself eating some very good food. Fortunately
your comments about Mexican and Asian restaurants reflect only your ignorance,
which you might be able to overcome.
Having grown up in Philadelphia, and been back there for a week last month, I
happen to know that it is at least as easy to find bad restaurants there as it
is here. It's true that lots of very good restaurants have opened up in
Philadelphia in the past decade, but they haven't driven out the bad ones.
Anyway, after you reach your goal of becoming rich (or at least a millionaire),
you can have your favorite East Coast diner ship some SOS right to your Silicon
Valley door.
By the way, be careful with that VW. You might enjoy running it up an SUV's ass
so much that you adopt it as a lifestyle, and then what would your friends in
Philly say?
Peter L
>
> Hi.
>
> Can Somebody explain something to me.
>
> Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
> pennsylvania
Philly cheese steak, New York bagels, they are all available in the Bay
Area, I heard.
Robert Lauriston
finding and keeping staff. That has an effect on service.
John Smith wrote:
>
> Can Somebody explain something to me. ...
eis...@slacvx.slac.stanford.edu
[entire text deleted]
Well, as Dana Carvey would say, that was special. Welcome to ba.food. Now
that you've got that off your chest, you can just keep quiet and read the
posts.
--
Al Eisner
San Mateo County, CA
Michaela Schlocker
> John Smith wrote:
> > Hi.
> >
> > Can Somebody explain something to me.
> >
> > Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
> > pennsylvania
>
> Area, I heard.
Aw, it's not like the original post wasn't troll enough, huh?
Michaela
--
"Your head is as empty as a eunuch's underpants." -- E. Blackadder
http://www.redrival.com/schlock/
Meg Worley
Karen writes:
>So, pipe down and mind your manners. It's up to you to figure out "why" you
>can't acclimate yourself to local ways. When in Rome, lean.
No, no, Karen -- when in *Pisa*, lean. When in Rome, bitch about
the roads that brought you there.
ObFood: Flea St. Cafe for dinner last night. Crappy service
for once (dude kept forgetting shit and refused to apologize,
instead making up clearly-false excuses) and the food wasn't
quite as good as last time (rather, some of us didn't order
well -- we picked the wrong desserts, for example), but it was
still good. Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
$24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
Rage away,
Dan Abel
(Geoff Miller) wrote:
> Steve...@compaq.com writes:
>
> > These damn Pennsylvanians are getting on my nerves. I
> > was just there for a few days, and every time I go back
> > there, I think how just plain _stupid_ and slow people
> > there are when compared to CA.
And I'm sure they were happy to see *you* leave also. I can hear them
now, "Damn fool California twerp thinks he knows everything. All *he*
knows is how to talk fast!". A lot of people confuse "stupid" and
"slow". They are actually different.
> I really wonder if that's a California thing, or a Silicon
> Valley/Bay Area thing.
No, there are snobs everywhere, who think that people who are a little
different are thus necessarily inferior.
> That's not to say that everyone who doesn't live in the
> Bay Area is a drooling 'tard, of course, but there _is_
> often a noticeable difference in the average apparent
> average intelligence levels of people from less dynamic
> places.
"less dynamic
> places"?
Does that mean people who don't run around like chickens with their heads
cut off? People who think of the future as children and grandchildren,
rather than day after tomorrow?
jani...@my-deja.com
> That's not to say that everyone who doesn't live in the
> Bay Area is a drooling 'tard, of course, but there _is_
> often a noticeable difference in the average apparent
> average intelligence levels of people from less dynamic
> places.
>
> Geoff
A. I hope this is a joke.
B. I am moving to silicon valley and am looking forward to gaining a few
points on the intelligence meter because of it.
Jani
Christine Dabney
>
>Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
>then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
>misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
>so I can forget about any food here except for denny's or fast food. I
>work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore.. but i've
>tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
>camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
>would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
I suggest that you expand your horizons a bit. Santa Clara is only one part of
the bay area... If you are willing to explore the rest of the bay area you might
find more of what you are looking for.
Christine
Meg Worley
"John Smith" (yeah, right) writes:
[the usual ba.cub-scout bitch 'n' moan]
Let me recommend a course in basic economics. That should
explain everything to you except the Roll-Up-The-Sidewalk
Phenomenon.
As for the early closing times, I invite you, and anyone else
who feels the need to whine at length about it, to open a
late-night restaurant.
>SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
In freeway underpasses and under our desks, where they belong.
Didn't you get the memo about housing?
>Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
Okay, who left the door open on the last beer and cheetohs
run? Todd? Karen?
>oh one last thing
>
>all you assholes with the suvs
>
>USE YOUR TURNSIGNALS OR I AM GOING TO RUN MY VOLKSWAGEN UP YOUR ASS!
Great idea. I suggest you implement it immediately.
ObFood: St. Mike's for brunch on saturday. Excellent, and not
at all crowded. Very fine mimosas (they bring you a large glass
of fresh-squeezed -- we watched them squeeze it -- and a mini
bottle of Freixenet, all for $5.50), great egg dishes, good
coffee.
The Ranger
John Smith took an opportunity to show East Coast inflexibility with:
[snip of drivel]
Pittsburgh doesn't have too much to brag about, either, Bucco, but it's a
damn site better than Philly (the Arm Pit of Pennsylvania.)
The restaurant scene in Downtown is... sparse pickin's. In the hills, if
they'd MARK their damn streets, there are a few but the adventure is finding
them.
And the major grocers, Giant Eagle and Kroger's, are right there with
Albertson's.
So you were saying...
Oh... And if driving around bothers you, take mass transit. That'll give you
more time to work on your rants and hopefully lower your intolerance.
The Ranger
Jo Ann Malina
<lotsa griping about Bay Area food and culture>
arlene <arl...@taranto.com> is alleged to have said:
> Go Back!!!
And can I have your house when you go?
--
Jo Ann Malina, make spamthis best to find my address
To suppose, as we all suppose, that we could be rich and not behave as the
rich behave, is like supposing that we could drink all day and keep
absolutely sober. -- Logan Piersall Smith, _Afterthoughts_
Todd Michel McComb
Nate Edel <ed...@best.NOSPAM.com> wrote:
>Or, when in SV, suck it up and deal til the options vest, and then
>move back where you came from...
I must protest. This attitude seems grossly unfair to those of us
actually trying to live here.... If only the MMFers could have
their own planet or something.
Karen Anderson O'Mara
>
>
> B. I am moving to silicon valley and am looking forward to gaining a few
> points on the intelligence meter because of it.
Congratulations, btw...!
Karen
nicke...@my-deja.com
jani...@my-deja.com wrote:
> In article <8j86ab$u5i$1...@slb7.atl.mindspring.net>,
> geo...@netcom.com (Geoff Miller) wrote:
> > That's not to say that everyone who doesn't live in the
> > Bay Area is a drooling 'tard, of course, but there _is_
> > often a noticeable difference in the average apparent
> > average intelligence levels of people from less dynamic
> > places.
> >
> > Geoff
>
> A. I hope this is a joke.
>
few
> points on the intelligence meter because of it.
Jani
After reading/following this forum for a couple of months, I find
the people here -this newsgroup- are polite, helpful,friendly and
joke a lot.
All you have to adjust to is SiliconValley style of humour.
Jason E. McClelland
Coffeeshops. Talk about value!
~j
John Smith wrote:
> Hi.
>
> Can Somebody explain something to me.
>
> Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
> pennsylvania
> isn't paris or vienna, and having only traveled to southeast asia and
> different states among the us, I felt service and food quality was
> average.. Good italian food in philly, good anything in new york all
> within an hour to an hour and a half drive.. Good service, I always
> tipped 30% and was usually remembered after a few visits. Lines in
> grocery stores were nonexistant, there were numerous, LARGE quality
> grocery stores such as wegmans and super fresh, which carried good
> produce, good selection, decent prices, clean shopping space.
>
> I just arrived in the south bay about two months ago. I'm still waiting
> for the red mark to get away from the slap in the face I got. This
> place is HORRIBLE. I go to a grocery store any time of the day and
> there's a 20 person wait, and usually an overworked, underpaid mexican
> or vietnamese slave (err i'm sorry. customer service agent) working, who
> sadly doesn't speak english.. so the experience for them as an employee
> obviously sucks, and they take it out on the customer by being slow,
> doing things wrong, needing to call a manager for every little thing
> that's not normal..
>
> Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
> then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
> misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
> so I can forget about any food here except for denny's or fast food. I
> work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore.. but i've
> tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
> camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
> would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
>
> That was my first dining experience. I've had three good experiences,
> average steak house type places (austins in sunnyvale, and black angus
> (of course it's a chain) in sunnyvale).. Average food @ midori's on el
> camino, but to make up for the food the host has an amazing personality
> and you feel like you're @ a cheesy japanese place in indonesia where
> you're greeted with a handshake, hug, and your name is yelled out
> (actually it was more or less the same @ midori's.. very friendly.. ONLY
> friendly place in the south bay as far as I can tell) Also, an adequate
> cheesesteak experience @ pete's cheesesteaks on tasman & lawrence (can't
> expect a cheesesteak in california to be perfect.. I mean they can't
> even do them right in new york.. 40 minutes from philly.. it's a philly
> thing)
>
> Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
> geek has killed any taste for mexican food.. but I've tried local
> places.. where the food is usually horrendous, but since I go there @
> lunchtime there's a 30 person wait and a good half hour in line.. I've
> had adequate chinese food @ man bo duck in mountain view on castro.. but
> i've had HORRIBLE chinese food @ 3 or 4 small chinese places.. the only
> decent thai food i've had is just simple satay (sort of satay.. weird in
> america) @ a harley bar (go figure) in sunnyvale on .. i forget what
> street it's on.. ah yes, murphy st. (good soup to be had @ scruffy
> murphy's on murphy st.
>
> Now delivery, you can forget.. EVERYWHERE here closes @ 9pm (WTF? I know
> that I work until 10-11pm half the time and so does everybody else I
> know) .. I ordered a pizza from pizza hut the other night.. 3 hours and
> I was 2 miles away.. when I called up I had some mexican guy yelling @
> me in english and spanish to stop calling they were closed the pizza was
> on it's way.. roundtable is puke.. I mean dominos is cardboard puke,
> roundtable didn't even bother with the cardboard.
>
> fast food here.. It's nice seeing fast food options beyond mcdonalds,
> burger king, wendys, and arbys.. though I noticed there are no KFC's
> here (no black people in the south bay.. to quote chris rock.. ladies,
> gentleman.. where did you hide all the black people?? I know they're
> here somewhere) .. hmm that statement will get me flamed.. Anyways, in &
> out kicks ass, mass kudos to those guys (especially bibi the cute asian
> girl who always greets me with a smile @ the on off of rengstorff)..
> carls jr. is edible.. but I can't distinguish it from jack n the box.
> Actually the small chain fast food here is usually better than the big
> chain.. the big chain places the food is ALWAYS cold, the service is
> slow, and all except for the wendy's on maude and mathilda are rude (the
> wendy's on maude/mathilda very nice guy to give me my 11pm munchie shot)
>
> Anyways.,. my point.. Can somebody explain to me, why?
>
> There is a LOT of money in this area, but no nice restaurants? Do all of
> the
> people I hear of and know who are millionaires due to stock (which I
> hope to be sooner or later), do you all settle for such mediocricy? Or
> is there something I don't know? WebVan perhaps? is that the secret? At
> the very least I was expecting good seafood here (as you all chuckle @
> me I feel).. no go.. The service being bad I understand, their loss.. I
> buy everything I can online and no frustrations.. but the restaurants,
>
> SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
>
> Here are the types of restaurants I have not seen :
>
> Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you
> eat?)
> French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of
> them)
> Irish (Not that the quality of them is low.. but damnit we should stick
> together
> and take over all these crappy other places.. irish food is what
> a geek
> needs. good palette pleasing middle of the taste spectrum food..
> warm,
> good feeling, hearty)
> Dutch (a good bavarian pastry shop? anywhere?)
> Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
> is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
> here..)
> AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS.. THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
> offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO. California is
> the ONLY place in the country where mexican restaurants outnumber decent
> good old fashioned american diners. The only diners I have seen here are
> denny's.. Where I come from (eastern pennsylvania) we have 3 diner
> chains, Dennys, PERKINS, and friendlys.. Here there are dennys and a
> bunch of crappy theme restaurants .. gag me with a bennigans spoon
> already.. Why are there no diners in the silicon valley?
>
> DINERS WERE MEANT FOR THE SILICON VALLEY! 24 hours a day, good food,
> friendly redheaded waitresses that call you sweety or honey, refill your
> coffee and chat you up a bit @ 3am while you're frustrated @ core dumps
> in your program on your laptop that you're too tired to figure out.. The
> diner is one of those few american culture items to be proud of..
> rock'nroll (yes rock is american, not british you limey beatles fans),
> the blues, aeronautics, motorcycles, and goddamnit the good old
> fashioned diner. I'm shocked a place like california is so low on
> diners.. All the californian based literature that speaks of diners as
> if they were home (steinbeck's canney row & sweet thursday, kerouac's on
> the road, .. to name a few).. Now I won't get into entertaiinment..
> This is a problem anywhere you go.. city planners want more
> factories/thinktanks/office drone buildings instead of clubs.. and in a
> city like sunnyvale or surronuding areas it doesn't surprise me there
> are no real coffee shops/punk clubs/indie theatres.. but, and fuck the
> stock market.. fuck analysts, Without good food and 24 hour diners NO
> civilization can last, let alone a city that is supposed to be a mecca
> of business.
>
> Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
>
Jason E. McClelland
them ever smile at me like that! :^(
~j
Steve...@compaq.com wrote:
>
> You just blew what little credibility you had left. What I
> didn't know was that I&O had asians.
Jason E. McClelland
come from a small country hick town and it bugs the crap out of me to try to
have a conversation when I go home. I think it's a matter of simple life vs.
fast paced life....
~j
Geoff Miller wrote:
> Steve...@compaq.com writes:
>
> > These damn Pennsylvanians are getting on my nerves. I
> > was just there for a few days, and every time I go back
> > there, I think how just plain _stupid_ and slow people
> > there are when compared to CA.
>
> I really wonder if that's a California thing, or a Silicon
> Valley/Bay Area thing. I think we're spoiled by the high
> levels of education and affluence, and by extension the
> intelligence, that we take for granted in this area.
>
> A friend of mine, a software engineer who telecommutes to
> a Bay Area company from the outskirts of Reno, told me
> he was really struck by this after moving out there. I
> notice a difference even over the hill in Santa Cruz.
> That's not to say that everyone who doesn't live in the
> Bay Area is a drooling 'tard, of course, but there _is_
> often a noticeable difference in the average apparent
> average intelligence levels of people from less dynamic
> places.
>
> Geoff
>
Meg Worley
Todd writes:
>ObFood: I am going to Evvia this week, blissfully sans kids; is there
>anything I should be sure to order?
Ouzo!
I've always been mighty fond of the smoked-salmon/tzaziki
pizza, but it feels doofy ordering something so californicated
from a menu with so many Greek wonders.
Karen Anderson O'Mara
> If you like 24 hour diners, I would recommend looking up any of the Flame's
> Coffeeshops. Talk about value!
Dinners* are NOT good there, but have heard breakfasts and lunches are good.
* Fried prawns were terrible, full of the coating, and contained small prawns
(shrimpy), and portion was very small; ravioli/spag combo had terrible acidic
sauce, and gooey pasta. We left the whole works.
Karen
Tony Ning Lew
John Smith <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
>geek has killed any taste for mexican food..
OK, so you're so dumb you think Taco Bell is real Mexican food.
I guess we can safely disreguard the rest of your post as the
rantings of someone who knows absolutely nothing about food.
Tony Ning Lew
In San Francisco. The good restaurants in the Bay Area are mostly in San Francisco.
>
>
>Here are the types of restaurants I have not seen :
>
>Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you
>eat?)
In San Francisco. Alas, Shensen's has closed, but there are others.
>French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of
>them)
In San Francisco.
>Irish (Not that the quality of them is low.. but damnit we should stick
>together
> and take over all these crappy other places.. irish food is what
>a geek
> needs. good palette pleasing middle of the taste spectrum food..
>warm,
> good feeling, hearty)
In San Francisco on Geary Blvd. More Irish pubs there than you can count.
Lots of Russians there too.
>Dutch (a good bavarian pastry shop? anywhere?)
Got me there.
>Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
>is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
>here..)
In San Francisco.
>AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS..
In San Francisco, but here they're mostly run by Chinese rather than Greeks.
Michaela Schlocker
> Oh... And if driving around bothers you, take mass transit. That'll give you
> more time to work on your rants and hopefully lower your intolerance.
Only if he takes the one without all the immigrants. And welfare
mothers. And punk kids with their hair dyed purple.
Ward Stewart
<rob...@lauriston.com> wrote:
>The booming local economy means that restaurants have a lot of trouble
>finding and keeping staff. That has an effect on service.
>
Also the underpaid help has to deal with snotty, overpaid yuppies like
our own John Smith.
>John Smith wrote:
>>
>> Can Somebody explain something to me. ...
I suspect that a more cogent question might by WTF is the matter with
John Smith --- then again, who cares?
ward
Michael Nelson
->Can Somebody explain something to me.
I doubt it.
->within an hour to an hour and a half drive.. Good service, I always
->tipped 30% and was usually remembered after a few visits.
You're unlikely to be forgotten soon after your first visit to ba.food, too.
But where's our tip?
->fast food here.. It's nice seeing fast food options beyond mcdonalds,
->burger king, wendys, and arbys.. though I noticed there are no KFC's
->here (no black people in the south bay..
Two in Santa Clara (KFC, not black people)...
see http://www.kfc.com/Restaurant/locator/Default.htm
->gentleman.. where did you hide all the black people?? I know they're
->here somewhere)
You're welcome to come up to SF and visit Hunter's Point.
->Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you
->eat?)
Try Brothers Deli on Howard St. near El Camino in Burlingame.
->French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of
->them)
Dunno, I don't care for French food.
->Irish (Not that the quality of them is low.. but damnit we should stick
->together
-> and take over all these crappy other places.. irish food is what
->a geek
-> needs. good palette pleasing middle of the taste spectrum food..
->warm,
-> good feeling, hearty)
Lots in SF.
->Dutch (a good bavarian pastry shop? anywhere?)
Uh... Dutch? Bavaria? Did Germany sell it to the Netherlands?
->Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
->is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
->here..)
Clement Street in SF has several.
->AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS..
American diner... Max's Diner on 3rd Street near Folsom in SF. Greek
diners, I don't know, but plenty of Greek & Mediteranian restaurants in SF.
->THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
->offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO. California is
->the ONLY place in the country where mexican restaurants outnumber decent
->good old fashioned american diners. The only diners I have seen here are
->denny's.. Where I come from (eastern pennsylvania) we have 3 diner
->chains, Dennys, PERKINS, and friendlys.. Here there are dennys and a
->bunch of crappy theme restaurants .. gag me with a bennigans spoon
->already.. Why are there no diners in the silicon valley?
You are living in geek / yuppie central. Diners aren't "stylish", so the
yuppies don't want them. Come up to SF for that stuff if you want it so bad.
->city like sunnyvale or surronuding areas it doesn't surprise me there
->are no real coffee shops/punk clubs/indie theatres..
Again, get your ass up to SF.
->Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
No, but definitely one of the most obnoxious ones to post here about it.
Michael
--
Michael Nelson San Francisco, CA
Geoff Miller
ab...@sonoma.edu (Dan Abel) writes:
> A lot of people confuse "stupid" and "slow". They are
> actually different.
That's like saying that a lot of people confuse chancres with
gonorrhea: they may not be the same, but it can't be denied
that they *are* frequently associated.
> No, there are snobs everywhere, who think that people who
> are a little different are thus necessarily inferior.
It seems that you're getting a bit defensive; do you have
relatives in some real-life equivalent of Dogpatch or something?
"Ellie Mae's with 'er critters, and Jethro's out by the see-ment
pond. Lookie over yonder, here comes Miz Hathaway!"
Use common sense. Sometimes "different" *is* an indication of
inferiority. That's a bitter pill to swallow in an earnestly
(and self-consciously) egalitarian society like ours, but there
it is. For example, it can safely be concluded that somebody who
speaks Bad English(tm) -- "He ain't got none" -- is unschooled and
therefore ignorant. And ignorance is inarguably inferior to
learnedness, especially as far as basics like the proper use of
one's native tongue is concerned. Ergo, someone who's different
in the way he speaks, for certain values of "different," *is*
inferior to someone who's better educated.
ObPreEmptive: And before anyone asks, no, this doesn't mean that
such people should be rounded up and herded into
concentration camps, so don't even start with that
sort of hysterical crap.)
> "less dynamic places"?
A-yup.
> Does that mean people who don't run around like chickens with
> their heads cut off? People who think of the future as children
> and grandchildren, rather than day after tomorrow?
Ah, the Literalism Card! I haven't seen that one played in quite a
while; certainly not as recently as its corollary, the Deliberate
Obtuseness Card. No, that's not what it means. I wasn't referring
to a lack of physical motion or to a reluctance to procreate. Here's
what it *does* mean.
Intelligent people need intellectual stimulation. This means that
smart folks are unlikely to be content "down on the farm" or in any
other sort of intellectual and cultural backwater. No, they tend to
gravitate to places that have something to offer in the way of exciting
and challenging work, and forms of entertainment and diversion that are
more engaging than sitting on the back porch with a twelve-pack of cheap
beer and watching moths fly into the bug-zapper.
That means they tend to head for the urban areas by and large, partcularly
the urban areas that are associated with the most vital and exciting and
glamorous industries of the day. In New York those industries are finan-
cial; out our way that industry is computers, and the vortex of it is
right here in the Bay Area. Smart people also tend to be more affluent
than less intelligent people, since their hunger for challenges leads to
ambition which leads to education which leads to a fat paycheck. (As
opposed to masturbation, which leads to making a sandwich, which leads to
falling asleep on the couch. We can surmise with some degree of certainty
that people such as Malcolm Forbes and John Jacob Astor and Andrew Carnegie
and Lee Iacocca didn't suffer the ravages of Jerker's Elbow. But I di-
gress.)
Given a critical mass of such people, there'll inevitably be an affect on
the average intelligence level of a locale. And *that,* dear earnest Dan,
is why urbanites tend to be smarter than the typical bumpkin. Oh, I'd
never go so far as to deny that rural people aren't possessed of a certain
low reptile cunning, but that's about it. As my father once remarked
while we were driving through Texas, "There's a lot of 'dumb' in this
part of the country."
Geoff Miller
bizbee <tub...@ix.netcom.com> writes:
> somehow I doubt that, unless he comes across a bus ticket
> back to Punxatawny....
Or (heh) Gobbler's Knob.
Seriously, I note a distinct inferiority complex among the
readership. The reaction of a typical Californian to being
told that something is better Back East is a lot like the
sort of cultural inferiority a lot of Americans still feel
when it comes to the U.S. being compared to Europe.
Todd Michel McComb
bizbee <tub...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>The thing I don't understand is why people <move> someplace, then
>find everything they can to compare it to the way things were "back
>home..." and how everything in life sucks compared to the way "it
>was" (at this point they forget that their standard of living has
>increased tenfold and the fact that they're making 100K for doing
>a job an illegal immigrant could handle).
So many people around here having the attitude that a few bucks
in one's pocket is supposed to mean something is one of my chief
gripes about the place.
But I digress... people are going to miss things about where they
were before. The rants may be silly, but it's natural enough. I
like it here on balance, at least pre-dotcom, but it'd be silly to
think I ought to like everything here better than everything anywhere
else.
(Ob)Food, on average, is one of the best things about here though.
The thing I like best is the weather, usually, that is.
Bremer
walter
Meg Worley wrote:
Meg Worley
I wrote:
>> Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
>>$24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
>>on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
Bizbee writes:
>...and I thought it was just me....
I may go back; I've had two really fine meals there and one
pretty-good one (service included on both counts). I take
your word for it that FSC may not be the best place in the
area to work (although the servers seem to stay there long
enough), but I'm not gonna let that stand between me and a
good meal.
Todd Michel McComb
<dke...@best.com> wrote:
>I happen to like Cafe Pro Bono in Palo Alto for Italian, but it's
>not universally liked and I don't pretend it's as good as the best
>places in New York or San Francisco.
There are some pretty decent upscale Italian places around here,
but in the East you can find plenty of good Mom & Pop places, which
make for good everyday dining. I've basically switched to Mexican
for my everyday dining here. No larger value judgement implied,
as I like Mexican food just fine.
>I find it hard to believe that Tied House has good food, but am
>not willing to brave the mobs there to find out.
If you do go there, say "hi" to me; corner of the bar, ask for me
by name.
Some of the food is OK, some of the food is not very good. Certainly
don't go for the food.
>Straits Cafe in Palo Alto is Singaporean. It was excellent
>when it first opened, but has moved downhill to the point
>where I no longer recommend it. And I don't know of any
>other restaurants around here featuring food from that
>part of the world.
Banana Leaf in McCarthy Ranch has an interesting menu and is not
bad; less pretensious than Straits. It was absolutely packed when
we were there.
Michael Dix
>
> Meg Worley <m...@steam.stanford.edu> wrote in message
> news:8j9024$f...@steam.stanford.edu...
> life and I am goddam sick of newbies who move here, and 1) brag about the
> wonderfully expensive meals they have had and 2) bitch about how it is here.
>
> First off, us natives can't afford the expensive restaurants that have
> sprung up overnight.
Hey - if you save religiously, you can splurge occasionally. Foregoing
a can of soda out of the machine at work every day adds up to $175 in
a year - which adds up to a pretty good dinner for two. And I believe
the ruling theme on this newsgroup is value for money. Bullshit
restaurant PR does not fly here.
> We're too busy working two and three jobs to pay rent.
> We can forget about ever owning property here, it's not possible.
Houses here have been insanely expensive (compared to everywhere
except Manhattan and Honolulu) since the 70's, that I know of.
When I moved here I wondered just how much cocaine people had to sell
to get a down payment. I did not want to live in a neighborhood
full of burglar bars and Rottweilers chained up in every front yard.
Yet I realized I was working with Filipina production operators who
owned their own houses. Their secret: save like a madman, put a few
people's money together for down payment plus closing costs, ride the
real estate escalator for a while and sell it. Split the proceeds
and put the money down on your own house.
It helps a lot to be married/in a durable partnership.
> Think
> we're lucky? Think again. We can't afford to stay and we can't save up
> enough money to leave.
This has been the case for the last quarter century, at least.
If you can manage to buy a place, eventually the pain will subside.
I figured we were in good shape when nearby houses were renting
for twice our mortgage payment.
Mike Dix
--
"Subtract twenty" from email address to reply
Todd Michel McComb
Aahz Maruch <aa...@netcom.com> wrote:
>Depending on whether you think $15-20/head is "reasonable" for Italian
Well, that's more than I would have paid in the East, but the places
may well be good anyway.
>there are a *lot* of options in the Menlo Park to San Mateo area
>-- six or seven in San Carlos alone.
Okay, I'll take your word for it. I didn't mean to suggest I know
the neighborhood restaurants outside of my area. I mean, one thing
about "homestyle convenience food" is you don't travel half an hour
to eat it. It certainly makes sense that there are some Italian
enclaves around, but the food is not ubiquitous around the Bay.
Michael Dix
>
> Yn erthygl <jocflss8rg3gd2nib...@4ax.com>, sgrifenws
> Christine Dabney <arti...@ix.netcom.com>:
>
> >I suggest that you expand your horizons a bit. Santa Clara is only one part of
> >the bay area... If you are willing to explore the rest of the bay area you might
>
> ....somehow I doubt that, unless he comes across a bus ticket back to
> Punxatawny....
Speaking of Punxy, how come they let Straub beer turn into swill?
Boy, things just ain't what they used to be. (I realize Straub was
brewed in nearby St. Mary's.)
Michael Dix
>
> Yn erthygl <8j8q0q$qhu$1...@slb3.atl.mindspring.net>, sgrifenws
> geo...@netcom.com (Geoff Miller):
>
> >
> >
> >bizbee <tub...@ix.netcom.com> writes:
> >
> >> somehow I doubt that, unless he comes across a bus ticket
> >> back to Punxatawny....
> >
> >
> >
> >Seriously, I note a distinct inferiority complex among the
> >readership. The reaction of a typical Californian to being
> >told that something is better Back East is a lot like the
> >sort of cultural inferiority a lot of Americans still feel
> >when it comes to the U.S. being compared to Europe.
It's not better, just different. Or else why would my workplace
look like the UN?
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >Geoff
> The thing I don't understand is why people <move> someplace, then find
> everything they can to compare it to the way things were "back
> home..." and how everything in life sucks compared to the way "it was"
> (at this point they forget that their standard of living has increased
> tenfold and the fact that they're making 100K for doing a job an
> illegal immigrant could handle). Well, I guess I can understand why
> people <do> it, but its irritating as hell that they seem to find it
> necessary to <tell me about it>, as if I give a shit about listening
> to someone piss all over the place <I> grew up as opposed to <them>. I
> say fuck 'em. And it isn't just involved with CA, or the Bay Area,
> people bitch wherever they are if they aren't where they were a month
> ago, or home. If you've been around much, I'm sure you've heard it
> from others, and know what I mean.
>
> Hell, I have a friend that lived with me off and on for 15 years that
> came from Ohio.... he still, after 20 years, referred to his parent's
> place as "home", until I finally pointed out to him that since he'd
> lived more than half his life in California, perhaps it was time to
> make the mental move too. I haven't heard to him refer to it as "home"
> in front of me since.
>
> --
> "Well, it certainly doesn't taste like Watney's Red Barrel...."
> --<someone> in Monte Python
It's *sangria*. Sit back and enjoy it.
Michael Dix
>
> If you like 24 hour diners, I would recommend looking up any of the Flame's
> Coffeeshops. Talk about value!
And they are owned by honest-to-God Greeks. You missed the main
Greek church festival, but the new church off Camden is having one
later in the summer. The restaurateurs donate food to these, and are
all listed in the programs as a result.
>
> ~j
>
> John Smith wrote:
>
> > oh one last thing
> >
> > all you assholes with the suvs
> >
> > USE YOUR TURNSIGNALS OR I AM GOING TO RUN MY VOLKSWAGEN UP YOUR ASS!
Only 30% of BA SUV drivers are locals - that explains the shitty
driving. Since you're a new migrant worker:
Stop for pedestrians who've stepped off the curb.
Learn what the heck all the curb colors mean.
The bike lane is for bikes, unless you're making a turn and have
yielded to all the bikes.
*Never* cross the double-double yellow.
MD
Chester
>readership. The reaction of a typical Californian to being
>told that something is better Back East is a lot like the
>sort of cultural inferiority a lot of Americans still feel
>when it comes to the U.S. being compared to Europe.
Heh, I'd say it comes more from arrogance than any sort of inferiority
complex. There is a reason why the flow of people into California/The
US is much higher than the flow out.
Or, more likely, it has to do with it being annoying that people move
here and expect the same things they were accustomed to "back home."
Chester
Michael Dix
Yes on Banana Leaf (but they use mild-tasting blachan) - If
you're in that area I also recommend Mayflower for dim sum -
In Santa Clara itself I like Mio Vicino - I remember eating
fairly decently at Birk's (but not value for money)
Chester
from Philly that I've ever met has been an obnoxious asshole.
>work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore..
Which is why a lot of what follows is overridingly misinformed. Take
some time out and drive around a little before you make pronouncements
on a place you've only resided in for a couple months.
>Average food @ midori's on el
>camino, but to make up for the food the host has an amazing personality
This I'll actually agree with wholeheartedly.
That said, if you're incapable of finding a good Japanese place in the
Bay Area, you might try extricating your head from your asshole.
>i've had HORRIBLE chinese food @ 3 or 4 small chinese places..
If you can't find a good Chinese place here in the South Bay than you
really deserve the heaps of abuse piled on by everyone else here.
>decent thai food i've had...
Ditto.
>Now delivery, you can forget..
Yup, which is unfortunate. But realize we've got a car culture here.
People drive to restaurants here.
>fast food here.. It's nice seeing fast food options beyond mcdonalds,
>burger king, wendys, and arbys.. though I noticed there are no KFC's
>here (no black people in the south bay.. to quote chris rock.. ladies,
>gentleman.. where did you hide all the black people?? I know they're
>here somewhere) .. hmm that statement will get me flamed..
Maybe. But I'll flame you for being so half-assed moronic that you
can't even pick up a fucking telephone book. There is a KFC on
Homestead between Kiely and San Tomas, as well as one on El Camino a
few blocks west of Lawrence Expressway...very near Midori, which you
wrote about. There's a thing called "The Power of Eyesight" that you
should check out the next time you're not blundering around
unconscious.
>French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of
>them)
Like many have pointed out, there are actually quite a lot...just none
near your shithole "neighborhood."
>Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
>is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
>here..)
And those who have probably spell better than you.
>AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS.. THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
>offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO.
And it's not Greece either.
>Why are there no diners in the silicon valley?
Because of your aforementioned inability to use a phone book or
directory of some other form. Try The Cardinal Lounge in San Jose, on
Meridian @ Hillsdale. The Flames on Winchester by Stevens Creek ain't
bad either.
Chester
Michael Dix
>
> mdix wrote:
> << Houses here have been insanely expensive (compared to everywhere
> except Manhattan and Honolulu) since the 70's, that I know of. >>
>
> Manhattan and Honolulu now, btw.
>
> Renting is another story lately, too. A month or so ago, I took an additional
> job on the weekends as a Leasing Agent at one of the bigger apartment complexes
> in Mountain View. Market value is increasing by $300 per month for an average 2
> bdr. apt. Currently, there are no notices and no vacancies at this 208 unit
> property, and the phone does not stop ringing with inquiries. People panic when
> coming into the office because they are here for a few days from Boston, NJ,
> Finland, India, England, Australia, etc. to nail down housing, and they can't
> find anything. They will pay anything and do NOT blink an eye when quoted rent
> prices, and they are being transferred here with incredible salary offers. The
> writing is on the wall for me, I'm afraid, anyway. I can't compete much longer
> to keep my apartment. And there is no where to go. Funny, just a few years ago,
> the apt. complex where I live (I don't live where I work as Leasing Agent, but
> at a smaller complex) was 1/2 vacant, and the mgr. gave me a month's free rent
> to move in. Now, today she could rent my apartment for at least double of what
> I am paying now. In 5 minutes tops, the vacancy would be gone. I am grateful
> for the landlord that I have that appreciates long-term tenants and only raises
> my rent by $50-100/year (KNOCK on wood, geeze...)
>
> Karen O'
I'm sorry, Karen. If it's any consolation I don't expect the boom
to last much longer.
The couple who bought the house next door to us a few years ago ended
up renting it out to three (four?) guys. I don't know your living
situation, but could you share a place with some one if the worst
happened?
Mike Dix
John Smith
arlene wrote:
> Go Back!!!
>
> John Smith wrote:
>
> > Hi.
> >
> > Can Somebody explain something to me.
> >
> > Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
> > pennsylvania
> > isn't paris or vienna, and having only traveled to southeast asia and
> > different states among the us, I felt service and food quality was
> > average.. Good italian food in philly, good anything in new york all
> > within an hour to an hour and a half drive.. Good service, I always
> > tipped 30% and was usually remembered after a few visits. Lines in
> > grocery stores were nonexistant, there were numerous, LARGE quality
> > grocery stores such as wegmans and super fresh, which carried good
> > produce, good selection, decent prices, clean shopping space.
> >
> > I just arrived in the south bay about two months ago. I'm still waiting
> > for the red mark to get away from the slap in the face I got. This
> > place is HORRIBLE. I go to a grocery store any time of the day and
> > there's a 20 person wait, and usually an overworked, underpaid mexican
> > or vietnamese slave (err i'm sorry. customer service agent) working, who
> > sadly doesn't speak english.. so the experience for them as an employee
> > obviously sucks, and they take it out on the customer by being slow,
> > doing things wrong, needing to call a manager for every little thing
> > that's not normal..
> >
> > Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
> > then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
> > misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
> > so I can forget about any food here except for denny's or fast food. I
> > work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore.. but i've
> > tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
> > camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
> > would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
> >
> > That was my first dining experience. I've had three good experiences,
> > average steak house type places (austins in sunnyvale, and black angus
> > (of course it's a chain) in sunnyvale).. Average food @ midori's on el
> > camino, but to make up for the food the host has an amazing personality
> > and you feel like you're @ a cheesy japanese place in indonesia where
> > you're greeted with a handshake, hug, and your name is yelled out
> > (actually it was more or less the same @ midori's.. very friendly.. ONLY
> > friendly place in the south bay as far as I can tell) Also, an adequate
> > cheesesteak experience @ pete's cheesesteaks on tasman & lawrence (can't
> > expect a cheesesteak in california to be perfect.. I mean they can't
> > even do them right in new york.. 40 minutes from philly.. it's a philly
> > thing)
> >
> > Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
> > geek has killed any taste for mexican food.. but I've tried local
> > places.. where the food is usually horrendous, but since I go there @
> > lunchtime there's a 30 person wait and a good half hour in line.. I've
> > had adequate chinese food @ man bo duck in mountain view on castro.. but
> > i've had HORRIBLE chinese food @ 3 or 4 small chinese places.. the only
> > decent thai food i've had is just simple satay (sort of satay.. weird in
> > america) @ a harley bar (go figure) in sunnyvale on .. i forget what
> > street it's on.. ah yes, murphy st. (good soup to be had @ scruffy
> > murphy's on murphy st.
> >
> > Now delivery, you can forget.. EVERYWHERE here closes @ 9pm (WTF? I know
> > that I work until 10-11pm half the time and so does everybody else I
> > know) .. I ordered a pizza from pizza hut the other night.. 3 hours and
> > I was 2 miles away.. when I called up I had some mexican guy yelling @
> > me in english and spanish to stop calling they were closed the pizza was
> > on it's way.. roundtable is puke.. I mean dominos is cardboard puke,
> > roundtable didn't even bother with the cardboard.
> >
> > fast food here.. It's nice seeing fast food options beyond mcdonalds,
> > burger king, wendys, and arbys.. though I noticed there are no KFC's
> > here (no black people in the south bay.. to quote chris rock.. ladies,
> > gentleman.. where did you hide all the black people?? I know they're
> > here somewhere) .. hmm that statement will get me flamed.. Anyways, in &
> > out kicks ass, mass kudos to those guys (especially bibi the cute asian
> > girl who always greets me with a smile @ the on off of rengstorff)..
> > carls jr. is edible.. but I can't distinguish it from jack n the box.
> > Actually the small chain fast food here is usually better than the big
> > chain.. the big chain places the food is ALWAYS cold, the service is
> > slow, and all except for the wendy's on maude and mathilda are rude (the
> > wendy's on maude/mathilda very nice guy to give me my 11pm munchie shot)
> >
> > Anyways.,. my point.. Can somebody explain to me, why?
> >
> > There is a LOT of money in this area, but no nice restaurants? Do all of
> > the
> > people I hear of and know who are millionaires due to stock (which I
> > hope to be sooner or later), do you all settle for such mediocricy? Or
> > is there something I don't know? WebVan perhaps? is that the secret? At
> > the very least I was expecting good seafood here (as you all chuckle @
> > me I feel).. no go.. The service being bad I understand, their loss.. I
> > buy everything I can online and no frustrations.. but the restaurants,
> >
> > SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
> >
> > Here are the types of restaurants I have not seen :
> >
> > Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you
> > eat?)
> > French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of
> > them)
> > Irish (Not that the quality of them is low.. but damnit we should stick
> > together
> > and take over all these crappy other places.. irish food is what
> > a geek
> > needs. good palette pleasing middle of the taste spectrum food..
> > warm,
> > good feeling, hearty)
> > Dutch (a good bavarian pastry shop? anywhere?)
> > Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
> > is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
> > here..)
> > AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS.. THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
> > offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO. California is
> > the ONLY place in the country where mexican restaurants outnumber decent
> > good old fashioned american diners. The only diners I have seen here are
> > denny's.. Where I come from (eastern pennsylvania) we have 3 diner
> > chains, Dennys, PERKINS, and friendlys.. Here there are dennys and a
> > bunch of crappy theme restaurants .. gag me with a bennigans spoon
> > already.. Why are there no diners in the silicon valley?
> >
> > DINERS WERE MEANT FOR THE SILICON VALLEY! 24 hours a day, good food,
> > friendly redheaded waitresses that call you sweety or honey, refill your
> > coffee and chat you up a bit @ 3am while you're frustrated @ core dumps
> > in your program on your laptop that you're too tired to figure out.. The
> > diner is one of those few american culture items to be proud of..
> > rock'nroll (yes rock is american, not british you limey beatles fans),
> > the blues, aeronautics, motorcycles, and goddamnit the good old
> > fashioned diner. I'm shocked a place like california is so low on
> > diners.. All the californian based literature that speaks of diners as
> > if they were home (steinbeck's canney row & sweet thursday, kerouac's on
> > the road, .. to name a few).. Now I won't get into entertaiinment..
> > This is a problem anywhere you go.. city planners want more
> > factories/thinktanks/office drone buildings instead of clubs.. and in a
> > city like sunnyvale or surronuding areas it doesn't surprise me there
> > are no real coffee shops/punk clubs/indie theatres.. but, and fuck the
> > stock market.. fuck analysts, Without good food and 24 hour diners NO
> > civilization can last, let alone a city that is supposed to be a mecca
> > of business.
> >
> > Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
> >
John Smith
bibi and she'll give you a very warm one in return.. only warm things in the
silicon valley, her smiles and their burgers.. all other food is cold
John Smith
our appetizers, 20 minutes later we went searching for a waiter to bring us our
entrees which were then cold..
Meg Worley wrote:
> Karen writes:
> >So, pipe down and mind your manners. It's up to you to figure out "why" you
> >can't acclimate yourself to local ways. When in Rome, lean.
>
> No, no, Karen -- when in *Pisa*, lean. When in Rome, bitch about
> the roads that brought you there.
>
> ObFood: Flea St. Cafe for dinner last night. Crappy service
> for once (dude kept forgetting shit and refused to apologize,
> instead making up clearly-false excuses) and the food wasn't
> quite as good as last time (rather, some of us didn't order
> well -- we picked the wrong desserts, for example), but it was
> still good. Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
> $24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
> on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
>
John Smith
There is a level of quality and service that on the east coast you demand even
if you're poor. out here even if you're rich you're screwed..
restaurants, lines in grocery stores, bad drivers (come on man. those 2
shoulders on 101 are there .. use them.. and don't hit the brakes when you're
exiting or getting on the freeway, JUST GO.. people will move..
I wish i was in rome.. @ least there the italian restaurant's don't suck
> I think you should backtrack a lot. Just because *you're* in culture shock,
> please remember you're a guest right now. Please remember that if you
> wanted Pennsylvanian grocery stores, cheesesteaks and restaurants,
> Pennsylvanian black people, Pennsylvanian drivers, Pennsylvanian deliveries
> and whatever else you're complaining about, you'll have to go to
> Pennsylvania to find them.
>
> So, pipe down and mind your manners. It's up to you to figure out "why" you
> can't acclimate yourself to local ways. When in Rome, lean.
>
> Karen
John Smith
pizza/sandwich shop has to consistently be a good dining experience..
btw, if anyone ever goes to bethlehem, pa.. go to penn pizza off of
center st. in the "downtown" area.. a block from main st.. pizza kicks
ass, all the sandwiches are amazing, decent steak sandwiches + there's the
owner, joe, who's worth $20 just to say hi to.. again. why aren't there
any italians in the bay area?
dke...@best.com wrote:
> In article <cgtflscsgive6b1da...@4ax.com>,
> bizbee <tub...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
> >Yn erthygl <8j84g8$9...@steam.stanford.edu>, sgrifenws
> >m...@steam.stanford.edu (Meg Worley):
> >
> >>See, my first two meals weren't that way -- we ordered
> >>the *right* things, had *great* service, and were completely
> >>bowled over. I suspect now that they may have been flukes,
> >>but it's taken me awhile to figure it out.
> >
> >Inconsistancy in quality itself is worse than being consistantly bad.
>
> Few places other than the really top tier are really
> consistent. And this consistency is one of the things
> that makes them top tier.
>
> I end up getting a bad meal once in a while when I go
> out, even to places that are established as favorites
> for me. That's just the way it goes.
>
> --
> Dave Eisen dke...@netcom.com
>
> Researchers at Tulane U. have discovered that those who eat beans at
> least four times a week have a 20% lower risk of heart disease.
John Smith
it's the local pricks who have owned these hosues for 20 years
seeing the $$ they can make by doubling the rent every year.. my
landlady
has lived in this house for 17 years.. my neighbros pay from $1800-$2000
for theirs, same exact townhouse.. i pay $2500.. and that's considered a
good deal.
I went o rent a 4 bedroom house, was the first caller, they guy decided
to illegally ask me for a $8000 deposit and raise the rent from $3k/mo
to $4k a month because he saw someone else renting out a 3 bedroom for
$3k and figured his was worth more (it was a shithole)
Todd Michel McComb wrote:
> In article <osP55.381$0x.1...@nuq-read.news.verio.net>,
> Nate Edel <ed...@best.NOSPAM.com> wrote:
> >Or, when in SV, suck it up and deal til the options vest, and then
> >move back where you came from...
>
> I must protest. This attitude seems grossly unfair to those of us
> actually trying to live here.... If only the MMFers could have
> their own planet or something.
John Smith
waitresses, etc.. but here it's different. .the help doesn't care..
They have an opportunity to flourish by being gracious to the rich
snobby losers who they call patronize, but instead they're rude
and perform @ the level of a monkey.. then they expect a tip?
Peter Dy
<chester [at] chesternet [dot] org (Chester)> wrote in message
news:3957a220...@news.sirius.com...
> Just to troll in kind, almost without exception, almost every person
> from Philly that I've ever met has been an obnoxious asshole.
>
You are really generalizing there, amigo. But, well...frankly...my
experience hasn't been much different from yours....Alas... Kinda sad...
That whole post was, well, pretty embarrassing. Still, I'm sure there are
some from Philly who read it and cringed, hoping he'd shut up and never post
again. He certainly didn't make a very good impression for his city.
Especially the racist bits. "UNexcusable!" Ouch.... "This is America...not
Mexico!" Ugly, very ugly....
Peter
[...]
John Smith
> a lot to choose from here, and you've got to pick
> the good over the bad. This newsgroup is a good
> place to pick up tips from others.
A lot to choose from if I want to drive an hour to sf.. fuck that. I
don't
live in sf, I live in the south bay. Sure i can get an average meal @
place with a nice atmosphere in sf.. but that means i take a snow,
inefficient train like caltrain to get there, or brave 2 hours in
traffic then another to find parking.. or pay $25 an hour for parking..
god.. never deal with that crap in new york .. figure new york out in a
week and you've got options. there are no options here except mass
exodus.
>
> With respect to supermarkets, some of the big
> chains here are rotten. Safeway is at the top
> of that list. But the top-notch markets are
> far superior to what you'll find in most
> of the U.S.
>
What are the top notch markets here? The closest i've found is some lame
organic/hippy grocery store with good produce and no meat.. and i need
to check out nob hill.
>
> You like Black Angus? I guess everyone is entitled to
> their own opinion. Midori has been mentioned on this
> newgroup. Try Seto Sushi next time instead.
black angus had nice servers.. the steak was average.. i could cook
better on my stove .. actually just did yesterday. but it's one of the
few
places i've been to here that has dark lights and some notion of
cleanliness..
back east we stayed away from chain restaurants like bennigans,
applebees, etc.. here it's our only option for consistent service :(
John Smith
So you can all whine about there being no economy in 2 years when all the tech
companies move to buttfuck kansas because noone wants to deal with bad west
coast service and high rent?
Martha Hughes wrote:
> bizbee <tub...@ix.netcom.com> wrote in message
> news:iq0fls86usfegp6f6...@4ax.com...
> > What a fucking crybaby.
> > "WAAAAHHHHHHHH! Things aren't the way they were at home!"
> >
> > You are cordially invited to pack your bags and haul your pathetic ass
> > back to Pennsylvania. Next time do some investigating before you move.
> > Oh, and screw NYC, too. If it's so great, move there instead.
>
> Yes, that's another thing. I keep hearing all these newly transported New
> Yorkers complaining..."Oh there isn't a decent bagel in this town" and "the
> pizza sucks." Well, I don't want to hear it! They can all do us a favor and
> pack up and leave! Might help alleviate the high rents!
John Smith
> >SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
>
>
> In freeway underpasses and under our desks, where they belong.
> Didn't you get the memo about housing?
>
:)
i liked that.. but don't get me started on freeway overpasses here..
People. You get earthquakes, face it. CEMENT CRUMBLES.. Why does
california consistently get knocked down by an earthquake then rebuild
with cement..
STEEL BENDS.. it's repairable.. cement is a wash.
>
> ObFood: St. Mike's for brunch on saturday. Excellent, and not
> at all crowded. Very fine mimosas (they bring you a large glass
> of fresh-squeezed -- we watched them squeeze it -- and a mini
> bottle of Freixenet, all for $5.50), great egg dishes, good
> coffee.
>
> Rage away,
mmm.. veggie mimosas.. ok I'll admit the bay area has better indian food
than nyc..
I'd rage but you're too nice.. :)
btw thanks all for you're supportive e-mails.. feel like i'm being
spammed.. 20 emails from my post.. and 300 usenet responses
John Smith
> Not too up on local history, are you? California did in fact used to be
> part of Mexico. It was never part of Greece, though, which may explain
> the shortage of AMERICAN/GEEK DINERS (yeah, I left out the "R" on
> purpose).
Well it's a part of america, where the fuck are the diners?
Diners are one of those few semblances of culture america has produced..
And there are greek people here.. If there aren't then why not? greeks work and
learn english.. mexicans.. well mexicans walk up to my friend while i'm walking
next
to her and say "i'd like to smell your pussy".. i'd prefer a hardworking greek than
2000 deadbeat illegal immigrants any day
John Smith
> That's the main problem though. It was perfectly nice here before
> the greed-mavens came chasing their Internet IPOs. I'm just trying
> to wait it out, but it's plenty annoying. At least you can have
> a civil conversation with the Mexican guy bagging your groceries.
> More of them, less of the other, I say.
>
> ObFood: I am going to Evvia this week, blissfully sans kids; is there
> anything I should be sure to order?
John Smith
> Having grown up in Philadelphia, and been back there for a week last month, I
> happen to know that it is at least as easy to find bad restaurants there as it
> is here. It's true that lots of very good restaurants have opened up in
> Philadelphia in the past decade, but they haven't driven out the bad ones.
> Anyway, after you reach your goal of becoming rich (or at least a millionaire),
> you can have your favorite East Coast diner ship some SOS right to your Silicon
> Valley door.
>
goal of becoming rich? not really.. i'm here because I thought california would be
what it was like when i was last here.. 5 years ago.. but then again I also thought
californians could cook decent seafood
Blah.. the bay area has no culture anymore.. it's all lame.. in philly you can go
into a ghetto like down on catherine st. and still get yummy white castle, or to a
shady place like downtown by the troc off of arch street, to a run down looking
building and walk inside to an ugly restaurant.. then get escorted upstairs to a
hardwood floored palace.
>
> By the way, be careful with that VW. You might enjoy running it up an SUV's ass
> so much that you adopt it as a lifestyle, and then what would your friends in
> Philly say?
*grin*.. they'd say "fucking A.. now you gotta get a new car"
John Smith
out here the idea of a "new york steak sandwich" is a new york strip with
onions. wtf?
Peter L wrote:
> John Smith wrote:
> >
> > Hi.
> >
> > Can Somebody explain something to me.
> >
> > Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
> > pennsylvania
>
> Philly cheese steak, New York bagels, they are all available in the Bay
> Area, I heard.
John Smith
BUILD HIGHRISES.. in new york on one block you have 2,000 people and 50
restaurants.. half of which are decent, 5 of which are 4 star, and the rest are just
fast food.. but they've all got soul..
Christine Dabney wrote:
> On Mon, 26 Jun 2000 01:05:46 -0700, John Smith <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> >
> >Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
> >then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
> >misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
> >so I can forget about any food here except for denny's or fast food. I
> >work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore.. but i've
> >tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
> >camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
> >would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
>
> I suggest that you expand your horizons a bit. Santa Clara is only one part of
> the bay area... If you are willing to explore the rest of the bay area you might
> find more of what you are looking for.
>
> Christine
John Smith
lotta hard working blue collar people with more heart than any pansy assed suv
driving hippy i've met in the bay area.
> The restaurant scene in Downtown is... sparse pickin's. In the hills, if
> they'd MARK their damn streets, there are a few but the adventure is finding
> them.
>
> And the major grocers, Giant Eagle and Kroger's, are right there with
> Albertson's.
>
giant eagle and krogers sucks..
> So you were saying...
>
> Oh... And if driving around bothers you, take mass transit. That'll give you
> more time to work on your rants and hopefully lower your intolerance.
there is no mass transit here
John Smith
NOT COFFEE SHOP
DINER
good old fashioned place that's existed for a few years with fat but sweet
waitresses always there to keep you company
not coffee shop where some little brat asks you if you want a double mocha
coffee shops are coffee shops
"Jason E. McClelland" wrote:
> If you like 24 hour diners, I would recommend looking up any of the Flame's
> Coffeeshops. Talk about value!
>
> ~j
>
> John Smith wrote:
>
> > Hi.
> >
> > Can Somebody explain something to me.
> >
> > Let me backtrack a bit. I just moved here from pennsylvania. Now
> > pennsylvania
> > isn't paris or vienna, and having only traveled to southeast asia and
> > different states among the us, I felt service and food quality was
> > average.. Good italian food in philly, good anything in new york all
> > within an hour to an hour and a half drive.. Good service, I always
> > tipped 30% and was usually remembered after a few visits. Lines in
> > grocery stores were nonexistant, there were numerous, LARGE quality
> > grocery stores such as wegmans and super fresh, which carried good
> > produce, good selection, decent prices, clean shopping space.
> >
> > I just arrived in the south bay about two months ago. I'm still waiting
> > for the red mark to get away from the slap in the face I got. This
> > place is HORRIBLE. I go to a grocery store any time of the day and
> > there's a 20 person wait, and usually an overworked, underpaid mexican
> > or vietnamese slave (err i'm sorry. customer service agent) working, who
> > sadly doesn't speak english.. so the experience for them as an employee
> > obviously sucks, and they take it out on the customer by being slow,
> > doing things wrong, needing to call a manager for every little thing
> > that's not normal..
> >
> > Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
> > then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
> > misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
> > so I can forget about any food here except for denny's or fast food. I
> > work a lot and don't have the time i'd like to really explore.. but i've
> > tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
> > camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
> > would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
> >
> > SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
> >
John Smith
200 names
they're all fucking tacos boy.
Tony Ning Lew wrote:
> In article <39570EDA...@yahoo.com>,
> John Smith <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
> >geek has killed any taste for mexican food..
>
> OK, so you're so dumb you think Taco Bell is real Mexican food.
> I guess we can safely disreguard the rest of your post as the
> rantings of someone who knows absolutely nothing about food.
Bob R. Kenyon
Worley) wrote:
> I may go back; I've had two really fine meals there and one
> pretty-good one (service included on both counts). I take your word
> for it that FSC may not be the best place in the area to work
> (although the servers seem to stay there long enough), but I'm not
> gonna let that stand between me and a good meal.
This restaurant must have set some kind of record for longevity. I know
I was going there back in the 80's, and it was pretty damn good then,
too.
--
Bob R. Kenyon
Beautiful Downtown San Jose, CA
<http://www.bobrk.com/>
John Smith
Diners are the bastian of the geek. 24 hours long, unlimited coffee/soda
refills, greesy fries and burgers..
>
> You are living in geek / yuppie central. Diners aren't "stylish", so the
> yuppies don't want them. Come up to SF for that stuff if you want it so bad.
>
> ->city like sunnyvale or surronuding areas it doesn't surprise me there
> ->are no real coffee shops/punk clubs/indie theatres..
>
> Again, get your ass up to SF.
>
If the mexicans don't have to learn english after 10 generations then i
shouldn't have to go to sf to get a good burger and leech soda all night.. blah.
at least new york had 24/7 mexican restaurants with free water, chips & salsa..
>
> ->Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
>
> No, but definitely one of the most obnoxious ones to post here about it.
>
> Michael
Thanks, I tried.
Chester
>Frankly, it doesn't speak very well of you if you did.
I don't think he did, really. Or were you talking about me?
Chester
dke...@best.com
dke...@best.com
> for once (dude kept forgetting shit and refused to apologize,
> instead making up clearly-false excuses) and the food wasn't
> quite as good as last time (rather, some of us didn't order
> well -- we picked the wrong desserts, for example), but it was
> still good.
One more comment on this. My experiences there have differed
from yours in one respect --- I've had consistently excellent
service there. The waitstaff has been helpful, has known the
menu backwards and forwards, and I have never had any problems
either with competence or attitude.
Aahz Maruch
Geoff Miller <geo...@netcom.com> wrote:
>
>Use common sense. Sometimes "different" *is* an indication of
>inferiority. That's a bitter pill to swallow in an earnestly (and
>self-consciously) egalitarian society like ours, but there it is.
>For example, it can safely be concluded that somebody who speaks Bad
>English(tm) -- "He ain't got none" -- is unschooled and therefore
>ignorant. And ignorance is inarguably inferior to learnedness,
>especially as far as basics like the proper use of one's native tongue
>is concerned. Ergo, someone who's different in the way he speaks, for
>certain values of "different," *is* inferior to someone who's better
>educated.
That ain't *quite* true. I qualify as literate in English by pretty
much any measure short of the preposterous, but I'm rather fond of
certain expressions that add pungency, some of which trigger other
people's peeve-o-meters. For example, I like the sarcastic quality of
"I could care less".
Note that there is a big difference between someone who uses Bad English
and someone who can *only* use Bad English.
--
--- Aahz (Copyright 2000 by aa...@netcom.com)
Androgynous poly kinky vanilla queer het <*> http://www.rahul.net/aahz/
Hugs and backrubs -- I break Rule 6
The best way to get information on Usenet is not to ask a question,
but to post the wrong information. --Aahz
Aahz Maruch
Geoff Miller <geo...@netcom.com> wrote:
>
>Seriously, I note a distinct inferiority complex among the readership.
>The reaction of a typical Californian to being told that something is
>better Back East is a lot like the sort of cultural inferiority a lot
>of Americans still feel when it comes to the U.S. being compared to
>Europe.
Perhaps. Nevertheless, I don't see you showing up at work in a tie.
Martha Hughes
people like you MOVE here all the time!!!
John Smith <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:39570EDA...@yahoo.com...
> Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
> city like sunnyvale or surronuding areas it doesn't surprise me there
> are no real coffee shops/punk clubs/indie theatres.. but, and fuck the
> stock market.. fuck analysts, Without good food and 24 hour diners NO
> civilization can last, let alone a city that is supposed to be a mecca
> of business.
>
> Am I the only transplant who has noticed this?
>
>
Martha Hughes
<nicke...@my-deja.com> wrote in message news:8j8iho$nj$1...@nnrp1.deja.com...
> In article <8j8dun$svm$1...@nnrp1.deja.com>,
> jani...@my-deja.com wrote:
> > In article <8j86ab$u5i$1...@slb7.atl.mindspring.net>,
> > geo...@netcom.com (Geoff Miller) wrote:
> > > That's not to say that everyone who doesn't live in the
> > > Bay Area is a drooling 'tard, of course, but there _is_
> > > often a noticeable difference in the average apparent
> > > average intelligence levels of people from less dynamic
> > > places.
> > >
> > > Geoff
> >
> > A. I hope this is a joke.
> >
> > B. I am moving to silicon valley and am looking forward to gaining a
> few
> > points on the intelligence meter because of it.
>
> Jani
>
> After reading/following this forum for a couple of months, I find
> the people here -this newsgroup- are polite, helpful,friendly and
> joke a lot.
> All you have to adjust to is SiliconValley style of humour.
>
Yes, and be a millionnaire.
>
> Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
> Before you buy.
Martha Hughes
Meg Worley <m...@steam.stanford.edu> wrote in message
news:8j9024$f...@steam.stanford.edu...
>
> I wrote:
> >> Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
> >>$24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
> >>on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
>
> Bizbee writes:
> >...and I thought it was just me....
>
> I may go back; I've had two really fine meals there and one
> pretty-good one (service included on both counts). I take
> your word for it that FSC may not be the best place in the
> area to work (although the servers seem to stay there long
> enough), but I'm not gonna let that stand between me and a
> good meal.
>
>
>
>
> meg
>
Call me bitter, but I was born in San Francisco. I've lived here all of my
life and I am goddam sick of newbies who move here, and 1) brag about the
wonderfully expensive meals they have had and 2) bitch about how it is here.
First off, us natives can't afford the expensive restaurants that have
sprung up overnight. We're too busy working two and three jobs to pay rent.
We can forget about ever owning property here, it's not possible. Think
we're lucky? Think again. We can't afford to stay and we can't save up
enough money to leave.
>
> --
> m...@steam.stanford.edu Comparatively Literate
Allan Schaffer
>Can Somebody explain something to me.
Here goes.
>good anything in new york all
>within an hour to an hour and a half drive..
Yep. The local equivalent out here is a drive to SF.
>Good service, I always
>tipped 30% and was usually remembered after a few visits.
Service out here is indeed sketchy, but you'll find places with
seriously good service here & there. My overall blanket
recommendation: if you recognize the name of a restaurant from back
home, don't go in. All restaurants out here have a hard time keeping
good staff in an environment where anyone with half-a-brain can pull
down $100K at burnrate.com. That leaves only the morons and
otherwise incapable or uneducated for restaurant work. Fashionable
or trendy restaurants can buck this trend a bit with the high tips
that come with high prices, but chain restaurants get the lowest of
the low.
> Lines in
>grocery stores were nonexistant, there were numerous, LARGE quality
>grocery stores such as wegmans and super fresh, which carried good
>produce, good selection, decent prices, clean shopping space.
First, Santa Clara is sort of a hole, that's 75% of the problem. But
for the other 25% check out the shopping in more established and/or
upscale "neighborhood" areas. But in general Albertson's is the
worst of the bunch, Safeway next up, and then the more specialized
places like Nob Hill Foods, Draeger's, Andronico's, Gene's Quito
Market, etc etc.
>Ok I figured that would be expected.. I didn't flinch too much.. But
>then it came the point where I began exploring local restaurants. I
>misfortunately choose a townhouse in santa clara, near great america..
Oh man :-) I feel for 'ya. That spot is a culture vacuum.
>tried a few local italian places. The best I came to was a place on el
>camino with great atmosphere, piss-tasting table wine, and food that
>would get you shot if you served it & charged in nyc like they did.
Italian isn't big out here like it is back east (with jillions of
established neighborhoods originally made up of Italian immigrants)
and the style is a very california-influenced version of Italian
themes. There are some middling-to-good Italian places in the area
but certainly not Santa Clara -- I'll skip individual recommendations
(check dejanews, it's a frequent topic). The best Italian in this
area will be found in the North Beach district of SF.
>That was my first dining experience. I've had three good experiences,
>average steak house type places (austins in sunnyvale, and black angus
>(of course it's a chain) in sunnyvale).. Average food @ midori's on el
>camino, but to make up for the food the host has an amazing personality
>and you feel like you're @ a cheesy japanese place in indonesia where
>you're greeted with a handshake, hug, and your name is yelled out
>(actually it was more or less the same @ midori's.. very friendly.. ONLY
>friendly place in the south bay as far as I can tell) Also, an adequate
>cheesesteak experience @ pete's cheesesteaks on tasman & lawrence (can't
>expect a cheesesteak in california to be perfect..
You do sound like an easterner :-) with very stereotypical
impressions based on what-everyone-else-knows are doomed first
attempts.
I'd suggest branching out a bit. Actually, a lot. In particular you
might enjoy "california cuisine" and "microbrewery restaurant"
places. Again Santa Clara isn't the place for those -- take a trip
into downtown Sunnyvale (esp. Stoddards), downtown Mountain View
(esp. Global Village Cafe, or Vivaca, Tied House), downtown Palo Alto
(can't swing a dead cat without hitting one).
>Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
>geek has killed any taste for mexican food.. but I've tried local
>places..
Mexican food here in CA (cooked by mexicans) is generally a lot
different than Mexican food in PA (cooked by -- who knows, Puerto
Ricans?). You'll discover that of those worth noticing there are
essentially three types: (1) Tex Mex (2) big plate of
paint-by-numbers indistinguishable mexican food (3) authentic fare.
#1 isn't popular here but the chain restaurants (Chevy's, etc) do it,
generally to be avoided. #2 is all too common, but passable; and #3
is what we all yammer on about here in ba.food. Your taste for
Mexican will change a lot once you find a #3 place.
>where the food is usually horrendous, but since I go there @
>lunchtime there's a 30 person wait and a good half hour in line..
I very very rarely eat out for lunch for this reason. All of my
rec's are for dinner.
>I've
>had adequate chinese food @ man bo duck in mountain view on castro.. but
>i've had HORRIBLE chinese food @ 3 or 4 small chinese places..
San Francisco is the place to go but otherwise, here's where to find
decent Chinese: Mei Long (amazing, gourmet stuff), Chef Chu's,
Szechuan Garden, Mandarin Gourmet. All the rest, especially the
mom&pop operations, are very hit-or-miss. By the way, Chinese here
in CA is **very** different than that dreck that passes for Chinese
back east. You might not find much of the east-coast style.
>the only
>decent thai food i've had is just simple satay (sort of satay.. weird in
>america) @ a harley bar (go figure) in sunnyvale on ..
Thai food sucks here. The good places are in SF.
>Now delivery, you can forget.. EVERYWHERE here closes @ 9pm (WTF? I know
>that I work until 10-11pm half the time and so does everybody else I
>know) ..
Delivery is rare around here because it's such a wide area with
residential districts generally apart from commercial areas.
Services like "Waiters on Wheels" are __excellent__ for delivery from
restaurants that don't do it themselves.
>I ordered a pizza from pizza hut the other night.. 3 hours and
>I was 2 miles away.. when I called up I had some mexican guy yelling @
>me in english and spanish to stop calling they were closed the pizza was
>on it's way.. roundtable is puke.. I mean dominos is cardboard puke,
>roundtable didn't even bother with the cardboard.
Well, no shit man!! Let's review, Pizza Hut, Dominos, Roundtable??
Avoid that crap like the plague, and the morons who work there.
There are a _lot_ of mom&pop pizza places around here, stick to
those. Especially "Jake's Restaurant", which has excellent pizza.
>fast food here.. It's nice seeing fast food options beyond mcdonalds,
>burger king, wendys, and arbys.. though I noticed there are no KFC's
>here
KFC is common, you just must be overlooking them. Sometimes they are
combined with Taco Bell. (Same company)
>There is a LOT of money in this area, but no nice restaurants? Do all of
Tons of nice restaurants but (seriously, sincerely) they're not going
to be in Santa Clara. Of all the cities actually _in_ the valley
it's easily the most barren as far as culture/food/activity goes.
Sorry.
>SILICON VALLEY WHERE ARE YOUR PALETTES?????
Here's some areas where I'd suggest taking a stroll -- lots of very,
very good restaurants.
University Ave (downtown Palo Alto)
Murphy St. (downtown Sunnyvale)
Castro St. (downtown Mountain View)
Lincoln Ave (downtown Willow Glen)
Santa Cruz Ave (downtown Menlo Park)
N. Santa Cruz Ave (downtown Los Gatos)
Broadway Ave & Burlingame Ave (downtown Burlingame)
Big Basin Rd (downtown Saratoga)
etc.
>Here are the types of restaurants I have not seen :
>
>Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you eat?)
No, not much. Most Jews in CA don't care about keeping Kosher except
during the holidays, so they're rare.
>French (I know there are french people here.. I've met them.. all 3 of them)
All of my favorite French bistro- or cafe-style restaurants are in SF
(Plouf, Cafe Bastille, and Fringale); there are lots of FANCY french
in downtown Saratoga. Otherwise my personal choice is Le Petit
Bistro in Mountain View.
>Irish
Huh? There's an Irish pub or two with standard and/or slightly
better than standard pub fare in every downtown strip.
>Dutch (a good bavarian pastry shop? anywhere?)
No, very few Dutch immigrants in this area, compared to back east.
Same with German (heh).
>Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
>is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
>here..)
Apparently not.
>AMERICAN/GREEK DINERS.. THIS IS UNEXCUSABLE.. THIS IS AMERICA. No
Diners aren't all that popular here. About the GREEK connection,
better listen close: lots of GREEK DINERS back home is a result of a
large IMMIGRANT community from GREECE, which we don't have here.
Around here the immigrants are primarily Mexican, Oriental Asian, and
Indian. So (surprise surprise) you'll find a whole lot of Mexican,
Asian, and Indian food.
>offense to our mexican viewers, but THIS IS NOT MEXICO.
>DINERS WERE MEANT FOR THE SILICON VALLEY! 24 hours a day, good food,
>friendly redheaded waitresses that call you sweety or honey, refill your
Nor is it a backwater truck stop with people who call you 'honey'.
Just not popular out here. (Really)
>all you assholes with the suvs
>USE YOUR TURNSIGNALS OR I AM GOING TO RUN MY VOLKSWAGEN UP YOUR ASS!
As with everywhere in the world, general driving habits differ.
Turnsignals aren't considered all that important out here.
BTW to get back at asshole suv owners, do what I do: when parallel
parking, position your car with just enough space between you & the
next one so that a normally-sized car could fit, but not an SUV. And
whenever possible, make their life difficult when in traffic.
Welcome to CA.
Allan
--
Allan Schaffer al...@sgi.com
Silicon Graphics http://reality.sgi.com/allan
Martha Hughes
Martha Hughes
Todd Michel McComb <mcc...@medieval.org> wrote in message
news:8j855g$7du$1...@machaut.medieval.org...
> In article <abel-26060...@ssu-64en129.sonoma.edu>,
> Dan Abel <ab...@sonoma.edu> wrote:
> >Let's face it. If you choose to live in the armpit of the Bay,
> >you have to put up with the conditions down there. Just count your
> >stock options and look at your bank balance, and think how nice it
> >will be to return to the East Coast and retire a rich man.
>
> That's the main problem though. It was perfectly nice here before
> the greed-mavens came chasing their Internet IPOs. I'm just trying
> to wait it out, but it's plenty annoying.
Some of us have to fight the good fight, right?
dke...@best.com
Martha Hughes <bast...@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>
>Meg Worley <m...@steam.stanford.edu> wrote in message
>news:8j9024$f...@steam.stanford.edu...
>>
>> I wrote:
>> >> Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
>> >>$24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
>> >>on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
>>
>> Bizbee writes:
>> >...and I thought it was just me....
>>
>> I may go back; I've had two really fine meals there and one
>> pretty-good one (service included on both counts). I take
>> your word for it that FSC may not be the best place in the
>> area to work (although the servers seem to stay there long
>> enough), but I'm not gonna let that stand between me and a
>> good meal.
>Call me bitter, but I was born in San Francisco. I've lived here all of my
>life and I am goddam sick of newbies who move here, and 1) brag about the
>wonderfully expensive meals they have had and 2) bitch about how it is here.
If you don't like reading people discussing the food in
the area, especially if you take the discussion and commentary
and restaurant reviews to be bragging and bitching, then why
the hell are you reading this newsgroup?
dke...@best.com
who was either trolling (call me suspicious of someone
named John Smith) or just plain obnoxious, but I disagree
with a lot of your specific recommendations. It's probably
bad form to do so without recommending alternatives, but
here I go anyway.
In article <8j91jo$35h7a$1...@fido.engr.sgi.com>,
Allan Schaffer <al...@southpark.engr.sgi.com> wrote:
>
>Italian isn't big out here like it is back east (with jillions of
>established neighborhoods originally made up of Italian immigrants)
>and the style is a very california-influenced version of Italian
>themes. There are some middling-to-good Italian places in the area
>but certainly not Santa Clara -- I'll skip individual recommendations
>(check dejanews, it's a frequent topic). The best Italian in this
>area will be found in the North Beach district of SF.
Well, hard to argue with this. I happen to like Cafe Pro
Bono in Palo Alto for Italian, but it's not universally
liked and I don't pretend it's as good as the best places
in New York or San Francisco.
>I'd suggest branching out a bit. Actually, a lot. In particular you
>might enjoy "california cuisine" and "microbrewery restaurant"
>places. Again Santa Clara isn't the place for those -- take a trip
>into downtown Sunnyvale (esp. Stoddards), downtown Mountain View
>(esp. Global Village Cafe, or Vivaca, Tied House), downtown Palo Alto
>(can't swing a dead cat without hitting one).
I haven't been impressed with Stoddard's. Vivaca was OK (I
reviewed it here a couple months ago), but I have no great
desire to return. I find it hard to believe that Tied House
has good food, but am not willing to brave the mobs there to
find out. Maybe it does.
As far as microbreweries, Gordon Biersch in Palo Alto does a
pretty nice job with the limited menu it offers. They were
mentioned recently in the Metro as having health code problems
though so I would skip them for now until that's straightened
out.
>
>>Everything else.. I'm not one for mexican food, too much taco bell as a
>>geek has killed any taste for mexican food.. but I've tried local
>>places..
>
>Mexican food here in CA (cooked by mexicans) is generally a lot
>different than Mexican food in PA (cooked by -- who knows, Puerto
>Ricans?). You'll discover that of those worth noticing there are
>essentially three types: (1) Tex Mex (2) big plate of
>paint-by-numbers indistinguishable mexican food (3) authentic fare.
>#1 isn't popular here but the chain restaurants (Chevy's, etc) do it,
>generally to be avoided. #2 is all too common, but passable; and #3
>is what we all yammer on about here in ba.food. Your taste for
>Mexican will change a lot once you find a #3 place.
And if you do, please let us know. I like some Mexican places
just fine, but none of them (other than for taqueria food) really
stand out. And I would like to find one that does.
>>I've
>>had adequate chinese food @ man bo duck in mountain view on castro.. but
>>i've had HORRIBLE chinese food @ 3 or 4 small chinese places..
>
>San Francisco is the place to go but otherwise, here's where to find
>decent Chinese: Mei Long (amazing, gourmet stuff), Chef Chu's,
>Szechuan Garden, Mandarin Gourmet. All the rest, especially the
>mom&pop operations, are very hit-or-miss. By the way, Chinese here
>in CA is **very** different than that dreck that passes for Chinese
>back east. You might not find much of the east-coast style.
I think Mei Long, Chef Chu's, Szechuan Gourmet are awful (although
I appear to be in the minority with Mei Long). The good Chinese in
the area is further north, either in the city or Oakland although
I still have yet to find anywhere I prefer to Hon Lin in San Bruno.
Well. Hong Kong Flower Lounge in Palo Alto does very nice dim
sum (if a little repetitive). I bet they do a good dinner too.
>>the only
>>decent thai food i've had is just simple satay (sort of satay.. weird in
>>america) @ a harley bar (go figure) in sunnyvale on ..
>
>Thai food sucks here. The good places are in SF.
I like Siam Garden in Menlo Park a lot. A lot of people like
Krung Thai in San Jose too. Maybe the places in SF are a lot
better, I haven't tried many of them.
>
>>Here are the types of restaurants I have not seen :
>>
>>Kosher (come on, I KNOW there are jewish people here.. wtf, don't you eat?)
>
>No, not much. Most Jews in CA don't care about keeping Kosher except
>during the holidays, so they're rare.
And unlike back east, the Jews are spread out everywhere instead
of being in Jewish neighborhoods. Not enough critical mass to
sustain kosher restaurants.
>>Indonesian (Why aren't there any malaysian/indonesian places? indonesia
>>is the 4th largest population i'm sure at least a few have emmigrated
>>here..)
>
>Apparently not.
Straits Cafe in Palo Alto is Singaporean. It was excellent
when it first opened, but has moved downhill to the point
where I no longer recommend it. And I don't know of any
other restaurants around here featuring food from that
part of the world.
If you (John Smith) live in Santa Clara, you might try
one of the good Indian restaurants in the area there or
Afghani House or Kabul a little further north. But you're
not going to do as well there as you will in San Jose,
Palo Alto, or Saratoga. Or really anywhere else in Silicon
Valley.
On the other hand, you're from Pennsylvania. I grew up
in Philly myself.
Santa Clara is the suburbs, 45 minutes or so from the
city. Don't compare it to the food in Philadelphia, but
to the food 45 minutes away from the city line way out
in the burbs. There's no comparison. Santa Clara beats
central Bucks county or whatever you want to compare it
to with two restaurants tied behind its back.
Like others have said, the food around here is good. But
the food in Berkeley or San Francisco is better. Go up
there once or twice for a field trip and check it out.
Martha Hughes
<dke...@best.com> wrote in message
news:C3U55.435$0x.1...@nuq-read.news.verio.net...
post. If you had taken the time to actually figure that out before your
little retort, you could have saved making your post. So, I am assuming
you're taking offense because someone thinks $24 is too much to pay for
ravioli? I also think it is too much. What would be too much for you $50,
$60?
Ksoa650
<< Houses here have been insanely expensive (compared to everywhere
except Manhattan and Honolulu) since the 70's, that I know of. >>
If you can find a place to buy, you mean. I think this area has passed
Manhattan and Honolulu now, btw.
Renting is another story lately, too. A month or so ago, I took an additional
job on the weekends as a Leasing Agent at one of the bigger apartment complexes
in Mountain View. Market value is increasing by $300 per month for an average 2
bdr. apt. Currently, there are no notices and no vacancies at this 208 unit
property, and the phone does not stop ringing with inquiries. People panic when
coming into the office because they are here for a few days from Boston, NJ,
Finland, India, England, Australia, etc. to nail down housing, and they can't
find anything. They will pay anything and do NOT blink an eye when quoted rent
prices, and they are being transferred here with incredible salary offers. The
writing is on the wall for me, I'm afraid, anyway. I can't compete much longer
to keep my apartment. And there is no where to go. Funny, just a few years ago,
the apt. complex where I live (I don't live where I work as Leasing Agent, but
at a smaller complex) was 1/2 vacant, and the mgr. gave me a month's free rent
to move in. Now, today she could rent my apartment for at least double of what
I am paying now. In 5 minutes tops, the vacancy would be gone. I am grateful
for the landlord that I have that appreciates long-term tenants and only raises
my rent by $50-100/year (KNOCK on wood, geeze...)
Karen O'
Aahz Maruch
Todd Michel McComb <mcc...@medieval.org> wrote:
>
>There are some pretty decent upscale Italian places around here,
>but in the East you can find plenty of good Mom & Pop places, which
>make for good everyday dining. I've basically switched to Mexican
>for my everyday dining here. No larger value judgement implied,
>as I like Mexican food just fine.
Depending on whether you think $15-20/head is "reasonable" for Italian
(and whether you think Calitalian counts), there are a *lot* of options
in the Menlo Park to San Mateo area -- six or seven in San Carlos alone.
Even if you adjust your scale downward to $10-$15/head, there are plenty
of options. Cafe Alfredo, for example. Paul Joe's. Amici's. Etc.
Mary Kay Kare
> That's sad.. where i come from your average corner
> pizza/sandwich shop has to consistently be a good dining experience..
>
Then, please, do us all a favor and go the hell back there.
MKK
--
Member:
fwa
Evil Elitist Fannish Conspiracy
RASFF Fire, Usage, and Whinge Brigade
Worldwide TAFF Cabal (there is no cabal)
John Smith
I'm here to loot the bay area of "dotcom" dollars (come on. NOBODY back east calls
an internet company a dot com. that's just gay) and laugh @ your silly hippies
animzmirot
"Meg Worley" <m...@steam.stanford.edu> wrote in message
news:8j9024$f...@steam.stanford.edu...
>
> I wrote:
> >> Nonetheless, that place is waaay overpriced...
> >>$24 for ravioli? Puh-leez. Jesse Cool thinks she's hot shit
> >>on a stick, but she's really just cold fart on a toothpick.
>
> Bizbee writes:
> >...and I thought it was just me....
>
> I may go back; I've had two really fine meals there and one
> pretty-good one (service included on both counts). I take
> your word for it that FSC may not be the best place in the
> area to work (although the servers seem to stay there long
> enough), but I'm not gonna let that stand between me and a
> good meal.
When I first moved to this area a friend raved and raved about
Fleece St and we finally went to shut her up. It was HORRIBLE.
The service sucked, the food...well it wasn't what I wanted to
eat, and the prices almost made me wet my pants. I don't
care how cool Jessie is since she got off welfare, those
prices are beyond outrageous. Never again!
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>
>
>
> Rage away,
>
> meg
>
>
> --
> m...@steam.stanford.edu Comparatively Literate
Bob R. Kenyon
<vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> i liked that.. but don't get me started on freeway overpasses here..
>
> People. You get earthquakes, face it. CEMENT CRUMBLES.. Why does
> california consistently get knocked down by an earthquake then rebuild
> with cement..
>
> STEEL BENDS.. it's repairable.. cement is a wash.
Keep talking John, you're starting to really show your stupidity. You
need to go back and look up how bridges are built.
Bob R. Kenyon
<vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> out here the idea of a "new york steak sandwich" is a new york strip with
> onions. wtf?
And what kind of "tacos" do you have back home in Filly, braniac?
Bob R. Kenyon
<vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> snotty? as if. Even when the service is bad I give a 15% tip, flirt with
> waitresses, etc.. but here it's different. .the help doesn't care..
> They have an opportunity to flourish by being gracious to the rich
> snobby losers who they call patronize, but instead they're rude
> and perform @ the level of a monkey.. then they expect a tip?
Man, I guess the flirting with the waitresses didn't work, then, eh?
dke...@best.com
Peter Dy <pet...@mindspring.com> wrote:
>
><chester [at] chesternet [dot] org (Chester)> wrote in message
>news:3957a220...@news.sirius.com...
>> Just to troll in kind, almost without exception, almost every person
>> from Philly that I've ever met has been an obnoxious asshole.
>>
>
>You are really generalizing there, amigo. But, well...frankly...my
>experience hasn't been much different from yours....Alas... Kinda sad...
>
>That whole post was, well, pretty embarrassing. Still, I'm sure there are
>some from Philly who read it and cringed, hoping he'd shut up and never post
>again. He certainly didn't make a very good impression for his city.
>Especially the racist bits. "UNexcusable!" Ouch.... "This is America...not
>Mexico!" Ugly, very ugly....
I'm from Philly. It never occurred to me you'd generalize
from his behavior to other Philadelphians.
Frankly, it doesn't speak very well of you if you did.
dke...@best.com
John Smith <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>That's sad.. where i come from your average corner
>pizza/sandwich shop has to consistently be a good dining experience..
If you're from Philly, that's complete and utter bullshit.
Philadelphia used to be a HORRIBLE food city, with the worst kind
of high fat, low flavor food before Le Bec Fin ushered in the
cooking school and made the food scene tolerable. It's still
nowhere near that of the US cities that serve good food --- the
New Yorks, San Franciscos, New Orleanses, even the Chicagos.
You're going to find better pizza and sandwiches in Philly than
you do out here because that's the kind of food they specialize
in there. All in all, I'd rather have the good tacos and Chinese
food and more upscale things.
John Smith
crap stuffed in a pita or a cornshell..
a burrito is a taco.. crap stuffed into a pita.
a taquito is a taco
a chilito or wahtever is a taco with crap on it
tacos is tacos
"Bob R. Kenyon" wrote:
> In article <39584D25...@yahoo.com>, John Smith
> <vws...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > out here the idea of a "new york steak sandwich" is a new york strip with
> > onions. wtf?
>
> And what kind of "tacos" do you have back home in Filly, braniac?
>
John Smith
upscale is well and good.. but this is america, a country BUILT upon
the clogged arteries of millions..
give me good pizza over refried beans any day
at least the italians didn't fowl it up the first time and have to do it
again..
never heard of refried fagioli have you?