I eat!
My daughter picked this pancake bread at Trader Joe’s and I was intrigued enough to give it a try. It’s very much like a coffeecake, only neither the cake nor the topping are as sweet. It’s supposed to taste like buttermilk pancake with syrup, and I really don’t get that. It is pretty good, however, and if I wasn’t limiting carbs I’d buy it again. It costs $4.50 for the loaf.
My daughter is a huge fan of orange chicken with rice, and thus she had this frozen mandaron orange chicken when she saw it at Trader Joe’s. I’d gotten it in the past, though I tend to skew prepared food I can’t warm up in the microwave or the air fryer. You need to cook this in the oven or sautee it on the stovetop.
She wasn’t super fond of this, though I did overcook it. She thought it was fine, but not as good as what you can get in a restaurant. She wasn’t too sure she’d get it again.
The 22 oz package costs $5 and is enough for two meals. Rice is not included.
I was surprised at how tasty this pizza was. I don’t usually like thin crust pizza, but it is a great way to save carbs. And this one is really ultra thin. The cheese and the alfredo sauce combined so that it looks like there is a lot of cheese. It was flavorful and loved the little bits of oregano. The caramelized onions provided the occasional burst of sweetness. The chicken didn’t contribute much more than protein. In all, I’d get it again.
Regular price is $7, but I got it on sale for $4.50
Trader Joe’s Family style meat lasagna is not bad. It’s a perfect acceptable dinner for two, when you add a side salad. It says it should feed four – maybe if they are children and/or are eating a salad and some bread to fill up. It’s not overly cheesy, not overly saucy and particularly memorable, but it will do. Alas, it isn’t as good as Stouffers. It taste more home made and less commercial, but not as good. It’s just $7, so it does make for an affordable meal.
I like a lot of Trader Joe’s frozen pastas, but this one was a failure. The dish is pretty much what it sounds like: linguine with pesto and tomatoes – but the pesto just wasn’t very tasty, there wasn’t much of it, and I was thoroughly unimpressed. Adding Parmesan helped but not enough. I wouldn’t get it again
Shawarma, in both its lamb and chicken varieties, has become quite common in the US, as Arab/Middle Eastern/Mediterranean food trucks and restaurants have become popular. And putting foods traditionally wrapped in tortillas or breads into bowls has been a thing here for quite a while. It’s thus not surprising that Trader Joe’s would offer a frozen Chicken Shawarma Bowl. What is surprising is how flavorless it is. The bowl has rice, spiced chicken, red peppers, tiny pieces of spinach and pickled onions and is supposed to have a spicy garlic sauce. There is some spice into the dish, but very, very little flavor either in the individual ingredients or in the dish as a whole. It’s edible, but I definitely would not get it again.
I hate Facebook for many things, but I have to admit their ad algorithm is amazing. It actually exposes me to more ads for things I’m interested in than anything else I’ve seen. So it was through a Facebook ad that I learned about the Taste of Thrones’ Feast of the Dragon. I’ve been looking to get out more and I’m always in the hunt for new culinary experiences, and this one seemed perfect – particularly as Mike and I had just finished watching the latest season of House of the Dragon. I was late getting into Game of Thrones – or “Dragon Tales,” as I prefer to call it. I only started watching the main series after the finale, but I got into it with gusto. A Game of Thrones theme dinner seemed like a lot of fun.
Taste of Thrones’ Feast of the Dragon takes place at 25 Lusk, a restaurant/bar/event place in China Basin. 25 Lusk operates a restaurant on its top level, Rooftop 25, has a private event place in the mid-level and is currently running the Taste of Thrones dinner in its sub-basement. They developed the concept of a themed pop-up restaurant/dinner series in collaboration with Theme Dream production, who created the decorations and props. It originally ran in 2019, during the last season of Game of Thrones, and it was revived this year for a month long stint, which has now been pushed to a second month. It is presently scheduled to run until the end of August, though it could be extended if there is sufficient demand. They are now also trying the idea of an all-you-can-eat family brunch on weekends.
I didn’t find any reviews for this dinner before I bought the tickets for the event, which was a good thing as otherwise I probably would have skipped it. The two post-pandemic reviews I later found on Yelp were very negative – and completely opposite to my experience. We had a great time and were super impressed by the food and the atmosphere.
Finding parking near 25 Lusk that Saturday night in August was surprisingly easy – though the place is near public transportation if you prefer to go that route. Once inside the building, I was a bit confused as to where to go: turn to your right after you go in and descend through the short stairs (or take the elevator down).
The space has a large bar as well as a number of communal tables. For the Feast of the Dragon, the whole area is decorated in Game of Thrones theme. The big attraction is the opportunity to take photos sitting on the Iron Throne, riding a dragon or posing with a White Walker. They also have a painted table, but I didn’t look for it and didn’t see it. You can access all of these photo opportunities by getting a drink at the bar – no reservations necessary. But the meal is well worth it.
We were then promptly seated at one of the communal tables for twelve, and allowed to choose our place. There was another couple sitting at one corner and we chose the opposite one. As it turned out, the party of eight that was supposed to share our table never showed up, so we had plenty of space and extra food: the platters of food brought to the table are supposed to serve four people. I’m not sure if we’d been as satisfied with the experience if we’d had to share them – some of the complaints in Yelp were about there not being enough food.
Dinner is set to start at 6:30 PM, but they don’t actually start serving food until 6:45, so you have enough time to get a lay of the place, order drinks and take your photos with the props.
The dinner is described as being served family style with 3 courses – but as each variation of each course is served separately in these platters for four people, this is really best described as a 9-course meal.
Dinner started with “Northerner rustic breads & pretzels, Rat Catcher’s cheddar fondue, goat butter from the Reach.”This consisted of little bread buns and pretzel bites served with whipped goat butter and a tiny pot of cheddar fondue. Everything was served cold, which was a minus. The goat butter was unremarkable but the fondue was pretty good. I’m very glad we didn’t have to share the tiny amount among four people, though.
The second course was “Winterfell heirloom tomato & cucumber salad.” This was surprisingly good. I’m not a fan of cucumbers, but the tomatoes were very fresh and flavorful, and they had the right amount of dressing. Even though it was for four people, I managed to eat most of it myself – it was that tasty.
Our third course – officially the first appetizer of three appetizers – was Aegon’s Dream
(“coconut and spice chilled noodle salad
oakwood roasted summer squash, ginger, yuzu”). It was made to look like brains coming out of a skull. The effect was very, very cool. Flavor wise, I wasn’t sold. I’m not a fan of cold noodles and these had a very subtle flavor. Mike liked them better, though he didn’t eat very many. This was a dish we’d have happily shared with others.
The fourth course was The Crab Feeder (dungeness crab salad, octopus sausage, grilled summer peppers served on organic red quinoa Bloodstone sand), and I was predisposed to dislike it from the start. I don’t eat crab nor octopus, after all. I did give the grilled peppers a try, and was quite impressed by their flavor. I’m not a huge fan of peppers – I like them mixed with other things or cooked in sauces – but these ones were surprisingly tasty. The quinoa was not, but it did give the dish a weird, sandy, gritty texture which was fun. I’m morally opposed to eating octopus – given that they are intelligent creatures (and yes, I should be morally opposed to eating all animals, but I’m a hypocrite in this regard), but I did try the sausages and they weren’t bad. It reminded me of a citrusy, flaky tuna. Mike, in particular, liked them, but he ate one piece – he said he didn’t want to fill up, but I think it was for the same reason. Octopus definitely worked with the Games of Throne theme, however. The crab was mixed with rice and poppy seeds and served cold, which I didn’t like, but Mike enjoyed it.
Our third appetizer, and fifth course, was Sea Snake’s Catch of the Day (local catch, burning aromatics, tempura sunchokes, dal lentils, sherry shiso sauce), and while the picture does not do it justice, this was an appropriately terrifying dish – it looked very much like a monstrous sea snake – with balls. The flowers decorating it added, rather than substracted, from the horror. I was duly impressed.
The fish itself was also very tasty. The sherry shiso sauce was subtle, tasty and acidic. It also came with large pieces crispy seaweed, which Mike, who usually likes seaweed, wasn’t a big fan of. They tasted burnt. I don’t like sunchokes, but Mike really loved them, in particular the tempura aspect of it. I just wish we had taken a better photo.
The first entrée, and sixth course was An Eye for An Eye (mini cauliflower crème brulée, salted lychee, forest mushroom escabeche, tomato water, basil). I guess the dish is meant to look like an eye, thought I didn’t really get the effect. It was, however, a very interesting dish.
The creamed cauliflower only had the subtlest hint of cauliflower taste which was great, given that I don’t like cauliflower. The lychee was mildly sweet and sour and contrasted to the very savory mushroom escabeche. Blending all flavors together produced something new, that I hadn’t tasted before, and which worked. I wouldn’t call it delicious, but I found it strange and interesting: it managed to encapsulate Game of Thrones into a dish. I did wish it was warmer, but maybe that’s the point.
Our second entrée and seventh course was Rhaenyra’s Kill (all parts of the pig pressed under brick, chicharrónes, star anise game reduction, grilled organic pluots). I was also surprised at how much I liked this dish. It consisted of pieces of pork meat and bacon, covered with chicarrones and served along with grilled pluots on a star anise sauce.
The bacon, of course, was the best part, because bacon always is. Always. this was particularly good and flavorful bacon, maybe even home made pork belly, but a complete winner. The pork, which I imagined was stewed in some form, was flaky and flavorful and worked really well with the delicious star anise sauce which tasted exactly of that: like a star anise reduction.
I hadn’t tried chicharrones before, but I enjoyed them. I wouldn’t go out of my way to have them again, but they worked here. The only thing that failed were the pluots. They hadn’t been grilled enough so they were tough and not sweet enough to compliment the dish.
Our final entrée and eight course was Fire & Blood: Dragon Meat (black angus beef roast served on a Valyrian steel sword, toasted black peppercorn sauce, grilled bread). Once again, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. The beef was tender and flavorful, with occasional bursts of charbroiled flavor. The peppercorn sauce was good, but the beef did not eat it. The grilled bread was just that, but it served as a good conduit for the tasty sauce. The presentation, of course, was marvelous and fitting. The only down was that it was a bit cold.
Dessert, our ninth and final course, was Dreamfyre’s Legacy (smoking dragon egg with dessert kebabs). The egg came with dry ice pebbles inside which produced that cool fog dried ice is known for. You could open it and add water to it for an even more dramatic effect.
The kebabs were small, but we were stuffed by then. They included two petit fours, a small brownie, a strawberry, a blackberry and a raspberry and two pieces of dried fruit. The presentation was great and the desserts were a nice dessert. I loved the brownie, which was very chocolaty and very chewy, while my daughter (who got the leftovers) loved the white cake petit four. It was also a beautiful dish.
Taste of Thrones offers a wine pairing, consisting of a glass of Chardonnay, one of Cab and one of Muscat, for $45. But we decided to try their cocktails instead.
Mike got Aegon’s Spirit (“bourbon, banana, benedictine, sweet vermouth, absinth mist” – $22) which came in a plastic aegon’s skull. He enjoyed it quite a bit and it was fun to drink from a skull. I should get some for Halloween. The drink was too strong for my taste – but I’m a very light drinker.
I ordered a Caraxes (rum, mango puree, lemon, afiero aperitif, perol,orange liqueur, angostura bitters – $13). This was a small, fun drink, sweet and not very alcoholic, and I enjoyed it. I also enjoyed the novelty of it coming in a plastic dragon egg. I do wish you got to keep them 🙂
Later on, Mike had a Meleys (tequila, lemon, pineapple juice – $13), another dragon egg drink. He enjoyed it, but I realize that tequila drinks are definitely too strong and bitter for my taste.
I also had a coke, which at $6 was painfully overpriced.
Service throughout the night was very attentive, cheerful and friendly. The servers are dressed in some medieval uniform, which definitely adds to the atmosphere.
The chef was also amazing – he is the one who poured the water into our dry ice – and doubled as a master of ceremonies of sort. He was also all dressed up and really into the theme of the meal. I would love if he would do other theme meals like this one.
It was a very expensive dinner, however. Dinner itself was $100 per person (including a $50 pp deposit, $45 of which is applied to your bill), to which you have to add drinks, a 6% “SF mandate” fee – a common, if hated, practice in SF – tax and the automatic 18% tip (it was called “event surcharge” in the bill, but our waitress explained it was a tip). The bill for two came out to $350, on top of which we tipped another $10 as service had been so solicitous. Still, the meal was phenomenal (at least, as we enjoyed it) and, as a very special occasion treat, it was well worth it.
In all, we had an amazing time and I would love if 25 Lusk would do another themed dinner there. I hope the owners organize one – I did hear they would like to do a Star Wars one.
Taste of Thrones' Feast of the Dragon
25 Lusk
25 Lusk St.
San Francisco, CA
415.495.5875
Dinner: Tu- Sa 6:30 - 8:30 PM
Bar: Tu - Sa 5 PM - close
Trader Joe’s has been carrying these frozen Pork Shu Mai Dumplings for a long time, so they must be quite successful. That’s not surprising because they are very good. The shells are soft and chewy, and work well microwaved. The filling is very flavorful, without the chewy, annoying texture of shrimp which I so hate. It has a fragrant lemongrass flavor which I really like. The dumplings did scream to be dipped in some soy sauce, however.
They were $4 for a 9-oz box.
La Cumbre used to be my favorite taquería, bar none, back in the 20th century. I think I originally discovered it during college, and it was a special treat that Mike and I would share when we found ourselves in the Mission district of San Francisco. The burritos were not super expensive – and they still aren’t – but getting to the Mission is always a trek when you live in the East Bay.
We stopped going to La Cumbre, however, when we moved to San Leandro and discovered that this town had taquerias that were almost as good. Los Pericos quickly became our favorite.
Last night, however, Mike found himself in the Mission and decided to go to La Cumbre for old times sake. He found that the once busy taqueria was pretty empty but the burritos hadn’t changed much in the last quarter century.
He got a couple of burritos to go, which were doubly wrapped on aluminum foil and were still warm when he got home about an hour later!
I had the all meat burrito with carne asada, which came with guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo – I skipped the lettuce. The meat felt knife chopped and it was very flavorful. The whole burrito was quite tasty, and I liked it more than the quesadillas I get at Los Pericos, but not more enough to go out of my way to get one. The one minus was that the tortilla was overtoasted in some areas.
Mike had a super burrito with steak, black beans and spicy pico de gallo. He was also quite happy with it – though I don’think he’d go out of his way to get it either.
He didn’t bring the bill home, but he feels he paid around $32, after tax, for both burritos – which makes them quite competitive with those at Los Pericos.
I am glad that La Cumbre is still going after so many decades, and that the food is still as reliable.
La Cumbre Taqueria
515 Valencia St
San Francisco, CA
(415) 863-8205
M -Th 11 AM - 10 PM
F -Sa 11 AM - 2 AM
Su 11 AM - 9 PM
I’m a fan of fried Mozzarella, but mostly in theory. In practice, it often has too much breading, it’s too oily and the breading competes with the cheese for flavor. These Breaded Cheddar Cheese Curds from Trader Joe’s suffered from exactly the same ailment. Though I air fried them without adding any additional oil, there was enough of it in the breading that they tasted and felt oily. And the breading was too thick. Cheese curds have an even more subtle flavor than Mozzarella, so they really couldn’t stand up to the breading, and at times I forgot that I was eating cheese in the first place.
After eating a small batch several days ago, I haven’t felt compelled to eating any more and I’m afraid I’ll actually throw out the rest of the bag.
These were $5, which is not cheap.
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