Paul C.

Nob Hill Foods

Went here to pick up a nice big bag of chips with lunch (as opposed to those tiny 99cent bags) and thought I'd get a sandwich. I stood in the line that said "Order Here" for probably ten minutes, said I'd like to have a Nevada City sandwich, and was told that I was in the wrong line, I should wait "over there" (not that there was anything indicating this) and that I needed a ticket. Well, I said screw that, bought my chips and went next door to Bagel Street Cafe for my sandwich.

But aside from that experience, the grocery store part of the place is quite nice, with a fairly extensive selection of 'natural foods', as well as a good selection of 'unnatural foods' (heehee)... I was in and out fairly quickly (admittedly I only had two bags of Doritos to buy) and the place is definitely huge.

They do seem to run a little expensive, though. A four-pack of Starbucks Frappucinos was "on sale" for $5.99, but I've always seen the same thing "on sale" at Safeway for $4.99...

PROS: Big store, very wide selection
CONS: Little expensive, deli counter people not very helpful.

Quiznos

I like sandwiches. I can almost always find a sandwich acceptable as lunch, particularly if you have someone else make it for you, and you can take advantage of the fact that they've already got a ton of toppings they can build a sandwich with.

I started out loving Togo's... Then I found "corporate delis" at the various places I worked... I've found a few really good Subway shops (and a few bad ones)... Safeway's delis often make really good sandwiches....

And then I finally got to try Quizno's. The toasting of not only the sub, but the meat and cheese, really makes a Quizno's sub distinctive. Plus, they put a bunch of black olives on (I love black olives) and they have a bar where you can pile up jalapenos, pepperoncinis or banana peppers to your heart's (and stomach's) content. The fresh wheat bread is a favorite of mine too, it always seems really soft and yummy...

Mmm... Quizno's...

PROS: Toasted sandwich goodness
CONS: Often a buck or two more than places like Togo's or Subway...

Taco Bell

Okay, so it's not the easiest place to get into if you're driving south on El Camino (cuz it's o nthe northbound side, and you'd have to get lucky making a left across two lanes of traffic, or cope with driving on and finding a place to pull a u-ey)... But hey, it's a Taco Bell. Absolutely great, cheap, not-at-all-authentic Mexican "inspired" food...

I'm sure the Mayans weren't chomping down on Gorditas, and the Aztecs weren't coming up with the "Crunchwrap Supreme" (they didn't even bother trying to give that one a Spanish-sounding name!) -- but that doesn't make the food any less deliciously comforting...

PROS: Quick service, clean shop
CONS: Parking lot's a little tiny...

Roobik's Cut

Went here to get my locks trimmed down, and was fairly disappointed. I tried to explain to the woman that I wanted my hair to look "just like it is now, but shorter on top". My shoulder-length hair turned into half-length, and I got weird bangs that weren't there before. It's taken me months to grow it out.

But they were cheap. Only charged me like $20 -- but I note I didn't get a shampoo & rinse like most places do, which quite surprised me. Maybe they thought, me being a guy, I wouldn't want that kind of thing. But then, they didn't ask, either...

PROS: Plenty of parking, no waiting (wonder why), cheap...
CONS: Don't take direction well

Vietnam Village

There are apparently two types of people in the world, genetically -- those that like cilantro, and those who think cilantro tastes like soap.

I appear to be a third, mutant form of human being, because I don't think cilantro tastes like soap, but I REALLY don't like it... Perhaps if I liked it, I'd rate this place higher -- but then again, maybe not. See, even when I have fairly good food here (finding the correct combination of dishes so as to minimize my cilantro intake), the service seems to suck -- waiters take forever to come back with your water, days pass waiting for the bill, civilizations rise and fall between courses...

Okay, I'm exaggerating, but attention to service definitely seems to be lacking. Some days you luck out, others, you don't -- even when the restaurant's not particularly busy, you're just as likely to be 'forgotten'.

PROS: Perfect for cilantro lovers and people with patience.
CONS: Sucks if you have no patience and hate cilantro.

Cafe Grillades

I'm a meat & potatoes kinda guy. In fact, forget the potatoes... So this isn't really my favorite place to go, although they do have some good dishes that have meat in them, it just really isn't my bag.

That said, the food I've gotten here has been pretty good, although sometimes the service is a little slow. So, three stars, I think the others have better formed opinions.

I do, however, love the dessert crepes with the Nutella and bananas... Maybe I should just go with the expectation of having dessert by itself...

PROS: Nice little sit-down place in a strip mall
CONS: Not for the meat & potatoes crowd.

Yat Sing Restaurant 3

The big neon window display says, "Best Potsticker In Town", and they may have a point; I quite enjoyed the postickers. However, they don't have a potsticker *sauce*, they simply provide you vinegar, soy sauce, chili oil, and let you go at it. Sichuan Delight, on El Camino, on the other hand, has pre-made potsticker sauce that is excellent, a wonderful blend of soy, vinegar, and just enough spices to be very tasty, not overpoweringly hot.

The main dish we got, cashew chicken, was okay, although it seemed like the chicken content was low, and bulk was achieved with carrots and celery (both of which I dislike). The flavor was fairly bland (although admittedly I tend to go for spicier Chinese dishes, my date doesn't do spicy at all), and I was fairly disappointed. My date ended up with an upset stomach after dinner as well (and no, it wasn't a ploy to get me to leave...) although my years of ingesting things only barely classified as 'foodstuffs' seems to have protected me from any gastrointestinal issues.

PROS: Plenty of parking, good potstickers.
CONS: No potsticker sauce, bland entrees.

Bagel Street Cafe

I like the sandwiches here; using bagels as the 'bread' in sandwiches gives a very distinctive sandwich that not everyone likes; a friend of mine thinks bagels are 'too heavy' for a sandwich, but I quite like dense sandwiches, so more for me!

They're very west coasty, and you have to specifically tell them "no sprouts!" but that's not so bad. They have a sandwich "club card", too, buy 9 sandwiches, get the tenth free.

Price wise, they're okay. A bagel sandwich clocks in around $5, but you probably actually get less content for that $5 than you would at the Togo's a few doors down. Of course, you get a fresh bagel (toasted on request) to compliment your sandwich, so it's really a preference thing.

They have some tables and chairs outside, too, so you can enjoy the usually sunny weather in Redwood Shores, while gnoshing on your bagel sammich...

PROS: Bagels are tasty, make for a distinctive sandwich
CONS: Bagel form factor limits size of the sandwich...

Togo's

Togo's is a chain of basic sandwich shops. Their big advantage is good quality components at a decent price, and this place does well at that. As I write this, I'm scarfing down a large "Number 8", turkey, roast beef and cheese, with lettuce, tomato, onion, pepperoncinis... on Dutch Crunch bread, and for the $6 I paid, this sandwich is huge. (oo, found a pickle slice!)

I went just before "lunch time", around 11:45, and the place was pretty empty. I could step up and give my order just about as quickly as I could decide what sandwich to get. They're pretty efficient, too, so I was in and out very quickly.

The sandwiches are tasty, but admittedly just sandwiches; no fancy prepwork, like how Quizno's toasts most of their sandwiches, but if you're looking for a decent sandwich, budget's tight and/or you want to get in and out quickly, Togo's is a good option.

PROS: Fast in & out, plenty of parking, good prices
CONS: Just sandwiches, nothing fancy.

Larry Flynt's Hustler Club

Came here with two friends and had a blast. The liquor was a bit watered down and overpriced ($7 a drink), but there were plenty of small tables and comfy chairs to sit in (we didn't elect to sit around the stage).

The whole place was pretty classy. The waitresses were very attentive, picked up our empties and came back with refills very promptly. Some of the dancers would come and sit at your table and actually strike up a conversation before offering lap dances. One woman, "Ferrari", had a very thick Italian accent, and was actually very friendly -- and if she was putting on an act, then wow, she could act. I think she was just a natural socializer. And definitely easy on the eyes.

Heck, even the bouncers were really nice and friendly.

The music was decent, loud but not deafening. They serve food, too, but we'd already eaten, so I can't vouch for it. I did see a dessert of some kind go by on a tray, and it looked pretty good...

In all, I'll definitely vouch for this place. The $15 cover seems pretty reasonable (I'm sure they make it all up in the drink sales, though I don't remember seeing anything about a drink minimum...)

PROS: Very relaxed, really nice people, very comfy chairs
CONS: Drinks too watered down to be that over priced...