The economic situation is being tough on San Leandro restaurants - and many of them are resorting to coupons to get people in the door. Whereas a few months ago, there were only a couple of San Leandro restaurants in restaurant.com, now you can find quite a few of them.

Restaurant.com lets you buy $10 gift certificates for $3, and $25 gift certificates for $10. There is usually a minimum purchase ($35 or $50 for the $25 gc) which may exclude alcoholic drinks. The real deal, though, is that sometimes you can get these certificates for 70-80% off (keep an eye on dealdetectives.com), so our savings can be really substantial.

The San Leandro restaurants on restaurant.com now are:

-Biggies Brazilian BBQ
-El Amigo Mexican
-Los Cabos Seafood Mexican Restaurant
-Luke's Grill
-Porky's Pizza Palace
-San Gaspar Restaurante
-Sweet Fingers Restaurant
-Tito's Mexican Restaurant
-Vo's Restaurant

There are also a bunch of new restaurants in the surrounding areas, so remember to check out restaurant.com before going to dinner anywhere.

Note: La Bella Italia has re-opened in the same location under the name Tuscany.

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As I announced a couple of days ago, La Bella Italia has become "My Ultimate Tandoori". Its old Italian menu is not changed, but it's now complimented by an Indian menu. The new menu offers a plethora of entrees from all over India ($8-13 a la carte, $12-17 with plain naan, rice, salad and lentils), including quite a few vegetarian entrees. There are several appetizers and desserts in their take-out menu, but they were not included in the dine-in menu that we were given (after asking for it, they gave us the Italian menu by default). Appetizers in the take-out menu include vegetable (but not chicken) pakoras for $5 and chicken samosas for $6. They also have a variety of naans ($1.25 - 4), but not kabuli naan. Though not in their menu, they do serve lassis. I had a sweet lassi, which was OK. For some reason it was pink - it tasted a little bit of curd, but mostly of sugar; it was extremely sweet. I think next time I'd ask them to make it less sweet.

Dinner started with their usual rolls and butter - the rolls were warm, but a bit stale this time. They also brought us papadums, which were very crispy but too spicy for my taste. They were not served with the cilantro and sweet-sour sauces that usually accompany it at other restaurants.

For dinner we had our "staples": chicken tikka masala ($9), lamb korma ($10), a plain naan ($1.25) and an onion kulcha ($3). I also ordered rice ($2, I think).

The tikka masala and korma sauces were quite similar - the korma being more spicy (we ordered them medium). They were thick, flavorful, without much in the way of sweetness. The tikka masala lacked any pretension of smokyness, and the korma was probably bolder and less creamy than other kormas I've had. I wasn't crazy about them, but that's probably a matter of individual taste. I did eat them all (helped by naan), I just didn't love them. The chicken, unfortunately, was quite dry and the lamb a bit too tough.

I'm not an expert on identifying rice grains, but I can tell you that the rice served here was not basmati. The grains were pretty thick, and it was stickier than it should have been (perhaps it was a tad overcooked). It also tasted very plain, without the nutiness of basmati. Interestingly, I found that the curries were horrible when eaten together with the rice - fortunately we had the naan.

The naan and the kulcha were quite nice, and I would order them again.

Dinner came up to $40 after tax and tip - a little steep, I think. Service was good, though the waiter failed to let us know about the Indian menu, and he did not tell us what we could order off-menu (such as appetizers, desserts and lassis).

In all, we had a pleasant meal but not one we would be rushing to have again. The food at Favorite India, in Hayward, is considerably more to my linking and its entrees are a dollar or two cheaper. My Ultimate Tandoori delivers with a $30 minimum order; Favorite India does as well, but only to parts of San Leandro.

Still, I'm quite happy that Ultimate Tandoori has opened and I imagine I will go back with friends when we don't want to have an Indian dinner in the city. I'm also planning on trying their lunch buffet ($7 without a drink - 11 AM to 3 PM daily) (see update below)

My Ultimate Tandoori
15015 East 14th St.
San Leandro, CA
510-278-5899
Daily 11 AM - 3 PM and 4 PM - 10 PM

San Leandro Restaurant Reviews

Marga's Indian recipes:

Balti
Bengali

Update

Today I went to lunch to My Ultimate TAndoori with a couple of friends. The buffet lunch had regular salad, raita, plums (I think), vegetable pakora, chicken tandoori, a seafood curry, a lamb curry and chicken tikka masala (I think). It also had rice, some spinach dish, daal, a vegetable curry (I think) and, for dessert, gulab jamun and a rice pudding. The buffet was $7, with drink and tax it came out to $10. A hot butter naan is served at the table.

All in all I thought it was an average Indian buffet. The naan and the gulab jamun were simply delicious. The chicken tandoori was a little uneven, the first piece I got was very good and flavorful, others less so. The meat curries tasted about the same as they did the other night. They were thick and tasty, but they were missing something. Perhaps they have not simmered for long enough. Once again I found the chicken somewhat tough, and I preferred to eat the curries with the delicious naan. I didn't try the vegetable selections. One of my friends really liked them mixed with raita - the other one didn't do so and found them too spicy.

In all, it was an OK buffet, though not one of the best I've had. I expect that I'll go there from time to time and you should give it a try too.

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Update 12/09

We went again to My Ultimate Tandoori around Xmas time with my parents and I think we had a pretty experience. Mike and I had Indian food and my parents Italian. It's been a while so I don't remember what we all had, but we all liked the food. However, we all felt it was overpriced, which is why My Ultimate Tandoori is not my choice for either Indian or Italian food, despite the fact that it's relatively close to my home.

A couple of days ago I went with my friend Mauro to lunch at Khana Peena. He likes it quite a bit, but I was not crazy about the buffet. It had many of the usual dishes: chicken tikka masala, a lamb curry, chicken tandoori, naan, rice and so forth. It was $10, including soda.

The place itself is very nice, in particular the outside patio which has benches and pillows and lots of fresh air. Inside it looks a bit more elegant than your run-of-the-mill Indian restaurant.

I wasn't thrilled with the food, though. It was OK, but I thought the curries needed more "ummph", not necessarily spiciness, but something to complete the flavor. The chicken tandoori also wasn't very flavorful, but most importantly, it was quite undercooked. The rice and naan were nice.

I wouldn't be rushing back to Khana Peena, but I won't mind if Mauro suggests it again.

Khana Peena Indian Cuisine
5316 College Ave.
Oakland, CA
510-658-2300

Marga's Bay Area Restaurant Reviews

I've always wanted to have an herb garden. Herbs are impossibly expensive at the supermarket (usually around $2 for a package, and you can't buy them in smaller units) and you don't tend to use them that much. But I'm a terrible, neglectful gardener - or rather, I'm not a gardener at all, so I've just mumbled and grumbled about wanting an herb garden and never really did anything about it.

Then, a few weeks ago, my 7-year-old daughter Mika started saying she wanted to plant vegetables. I figured if she was planting, I could be planting too, so I cleared out a section of dirt by the front porch and planted some rosemary, sage, chives and basil, plus some thyme and oregano in a pot I already had. The kids, meanwhile, planted some veggies in the back yard.

We've been meticulous about watering them every day - and they are finally paying off. The herbs are doing beautifully and actually starting to expand. Hey, the moment may come when they fight each other off :-)

Here are some pictures I took this morning. We'll be cooking with our herbs all week long (tonight I'll be making some pesto). I'll post recipes, if warranted.

And here are some of Mika's veggies & fruits:

And finally, some blackberries we've let grow:

I had several of these when I was at all-inclusives in the Riviera Maya and decided to make my own. Based on an online recipe, this is what I came up with:

-1/4 cup light rum
-juice from 1/2 lemon
-1 cup ice
-1 banana
-1 tsp. sugar

Put everything in blender and blend until smooth.

It's quite good.

I was just thinking that one of the reasons that I like cooking so much is that I am a very careless person. I rarely pay much attention to the world outside me (a horrible trait for a mother), and I'm the opposite of meticulous. That means that I often skim through a recipe, missing ingredients and steps. Indeed, I seldom look at the directions for a recipe before I start cooking (I guess this also means I'm pretty confident in my ability to do anything the recipe would call for). And often I just glance at the ingredients, forgetting to buy one or two. Sometimes I send my husband to buy them (poor buy), others I just improvise or do without.

But cooking is forgiving, often very forgiving. Often times a missing ingredient will not make a huge difference, same thing for a missed step. Forgotten spices can be added later, salt fixes a thousand mistakes.

Baking is not so forgiving, some people insist that it calls for exactitude and sometimes that's true. But a few weeks ago I made a cheesecake that called for five packages of cream cheese and I forgot one. It was just as good. Still, I enjoy cooking much more than baking.

This week I've been trying to cook with herbs from my garden and today was oregano's turn. I found this recipe for Pasta with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Mushrooms at epicurious.com and followed the directions pretty closely, though I cut the quantities by 2/3. The results were fantastic, a sauce with a deep, hearty flavor which I even liked more than my regular pasta sauce. It's supposed to get better if made in advance (as with most stewed dishes), I made it in the morning and served it in the evening.

I'm "copying" the recipe in the modified format:

Pasta with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Mushrooms

Ingredients

- 1 lb mild Italian sausage, loose
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 8 oz sliced button mushrooms
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped fresh oregano
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
- 1 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup white wine
- 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
- 3/4 cup canned diced tomatoes
- 1/2 Tbsp. butter
- 1 lb broad noodles
- 1/2 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese, grated.

Cook the sausage in a medium-size sauce pan over medium-high heat until brown, about 15 minutes. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon and add the olive oil to the drippings. Heat again and add the mushrooms and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until they are both soft, about 15 more minutes. Stir in oregano, garlic and 6 Tbsp. chopped basil, and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the wine, mix well and cook until it's almost fully absorbed. Add the crushed tomatoes, mix, cover and simmer over low heat for 25 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes and butter, mix and cook for 15 more minutes, stirring frequently. Up to this point you can make in advance.

Cook the pasta according to instructions. Drain.

Heat up the sauce (if you made in advance) and stir in 2 Tbsp. chopped basil and 3 Tbsp. grated cheese. Serve pasta with sauce and additional grated cheese on the side.

Marga's Best Recipes

I'm sorry to say that I have not added restaurant reviews to my website for many months now. I was waiting for Mike to edit them, but I don't think it's going to happen any time soon, and some of them are over a year old! So here they are, unedited:

Asmara - typical Ethiopian food on Telegraph Ave.

Bijou - This new French restaurant in Hayward fails miserably in ambiance and food.

Cafe Majestic - I went there for my birthday last year, alas, it seems to have closed before I posted my review :-(

The fig cafe & winebar - a great lunch spot in Glen Ellen

The Golden Tea Garden is a relatively new tea house in Hayward that has quickly become my favorite.

Highland Dell Lodge Restaurant - Less than successful food at this German/American restaurant.

Pizzaiolo - unusual think-crust pizzas in North Oakland

Skates on the Bay - I loved the atmosphere and burgers at this Berkeley institution.

Soizic - a very nice Californian restaurant near Jack London Sq. has a Michellin star and killer mushrooms.

There are three more reviews from the Vancouver, WA area that are in Mike's computer so I can't post now. When they are ready, they'll be at http://www.marga.org/food/rest/other/

As usual, you can find my restaurant reviews at http://www.marga.org/food/rest/

We were on I-5 again, returning home from LA, the kids were hungry and the next stop was Buttonwillow so we headed there. We hadn't been to the Willow Ranch restaurant before, and we figured it might be better than the other choices. In reality, it was not - we only had breakfast, but their breakfast left some to be desired. I'm rating it a solid "D" for Dennys-like quality.

I had the French toast (2 bread slices for $6) that came with a side of bacon or sausage. I got the bacon and it was overcooked and tough. The French toast was OK but not exciting, a rather small portion for the price (but I wouldn't have wanted more). It was served with regular syrup.

Mike had the "hearty" breakfast ($8) which included pancakes, 2 eggs, sausage, and I think bacon. The pancakes were fine, but his eggs over medium were actually runny. Without any potatoes or bread to soak the yolk, they were a waste. The kids had the pancake and egg breakfast ($3) and were both happy, but they are easy to please. With 3 hot chocolates and a glass of milk the bill came to $30 after tax, expensive for a very mediocre breakfast.

The Willow Ranch is a modest, western-style restaurant and I think they specialize in BBQ foods, so their BBQ may be good - but I wouldn't be rushing back in in any case.

Willow Ranch Restaurant
27770 Lagoon Dr.
Buttonwillow, CA
(661) 764 - 6605
http://www.willowranchrestaurant.com/

Marga's Road Restaurant Reviews

I finished this Cretan menu over a month ago, but only now I wrote up the last recipe. Cretan food is very similar to Greek food and it's, therefore, quite good. Check out the recipes at:

http://www.marga.org/food/int/crete/

As for this week, I will be finishing off Cyprus and hopefully making a dessert from Croatia and another from the Baleares (to finish off those cuisines). One of my friend gave me a South American cookbook, so after that I'd like to move on to Colombia. There are a lot of "C"s I want to cover after that, at least two of them in dinner-party format. It'll take a while.

Hollywood Peanut Oil, 24-Ounce at $2! It's usually $5-6 at the supermarket. I probably should stock up.

It's once again time to < href="https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/61507">order your tickets for the 2009 Women of Taste event. Women of Taste is a fundraiser thrown by Alameda County's Girls Inc., an organization that helps empower girls.

"Held Saturday, September 26th in the outdoor gardens of the Oakland Museum of California, this unforgettable affair features tastings from over 30 notable restaurants and 20 beverage companies, an extensive silent auction, live entertainment, dancing, and an art exhibit."

It's quite cool, you get a tray and a wine glass (yours to keep) and you wander from booth to booth picking up a bite-size appetizer, dessert or taste of wine. I've enjoyed it tremendously the two times I've gone.

You can read my notes from last year's event.

I'm not sure if we'll go this year, I don't think we can afford it, but I encourage everyone else (who can) to do so.

I made this cheesecake for dinner tonight - there was some leftover breadcrumbs and filling so I put them in some ramekins and cooked them with the cheesecake. My kids loved it, which is a pretty good recommendation :-) I made a couple of changes from the original recipe and would make slightly less crust next time (as per the recipe below), but I like having extra filling to taste before cutting the whole recipe.

Turtle Swirl Cheesecake

- 8 oz chocolate graham crackers, finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp white sugar
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 5 Tbsp unsalted batter, melted

- 4 8-oz packages of cream cheese
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 eggs

- 2 Tbsp. whipping cream
- 2 1/2 oz dark chocolate, chopped

- 1/2 cup pre-made caramel sauce (store bought or home made)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F

Mix the cookie crumbs with the sugars and melted butter. Grease a 9" springform pan and cover the bottom and 1" of the sides with the cookie crumbs. Wrap the outside of the pan with aluminum foil. Place in the refrigerator and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

Put the cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer and mix on high to maximum until the cheese is quite fluffy. Slowly add the sugar and mix until it's fully incorporated. Add the eggs, one at the time, until fully mixed in.

Prepare the chocolate sauce by bringing the whipping cream to a simmer in a small saucepan, adding the chocolate and cooking, stirring constantly, until it's all melted.

Remove the pan from the fridge and pour half of the cheese mixture into it. Spoon half of the chocolate sauce onto the cheese. Swirl with a fork. Repeat with half of the caramel sauce. Pour the rest of the cheese mixture into the pan and add the remaining chocolate sauce and caramel sauce. Swirl.

Fill a roasting or lasagna pan with 3/4" of water and place the springform pan in it. Bake for an hour or until the sides are set. Cool in rack and then place in the fridge and cool for at least 8 hours.

I would never have guessed that they have cooking videogames, but apparently there are several out there. The skills they "teach" seem to be quite basic (e.g. how to shake salt into ground beef to make a hamburger), and I wonder how they can be in any way more helpful than watching a food show on TV. But hey, to each its own.

Alice Waters has gotten into pr trouble by stating that she'd want her last meal to be shark fin soup - apparently unaware that sharks are caught, had their fins cut off and then are thrown back into the sea to die. Now that she knows, she's changed her mind.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/mbauer/detail?entry_id=44654&tsp=1

It seems a bit surprising that she wouldn't know about the horrible treatment of sharks in the first place, but then again - how much of the food we consume is from animals that have been horribly treated? Sometimes I think the only ethical choice is to be a vegetarian - too bad I don't like vegetables.

I've been enjoying watching Top Chef Masters - in particular this last show, in which the winners of the last six previous episodes competed against each other by making each other's signature dishes. Part of what I've enjoyed is getting to know the chefs, some of whom were completely unknown to me.

I've been rooting for Hubert Keller, the chef-owner of Fleur de Lys, a restaurant that I've gone to a couple of times. I loved the food last time, though the service and timing left much to be desired. In any case, Hubert is local and seems like a very cool guy, he has these big, puppy dog eyes and gives an aura of happiness. He is also clearly very secure on himself and his cooking, clearly he has mastered both technique and flavor profiles, and yet you don't ever see him boast. I think he is the true master.

And yet, I was very surprised on how well Rick Bayless has done. I've seen some of his shows and I have not been particularly impressed by him. Part of it is that I'm prejudiced about a non-Mexican becoming the voice for Mexican food in America - mostly through his television programs. It seems sort of unfair. It's difficult to believe that there aren't Mexican chefs that are just as accomplished. I'm also prejudiced against the true cooking abilities of television chefs. Clearly there are some who are marvelous cooks, such as Jacques Pepin - his techniques are so beautiful and effortless, you know the end result must be great. But others seem too young, too inexperienced to be the experts they proclaim themselves to be. And of course, some are truly grating (Joanne Weir in particular). Until this show, I would have put Bayless in that category. He seems quite arrogant about his knowledge of Mexican cuisine and enunciates too much when he speaks. But seeing him in the last two shows has made me change my mind. For one, I learned that he was in Mexico working on his PhD in Anthropology when he fell in love with cooking. That indicates to me that his primary interest is, or at least was, on the Mexican people - that he wants to know about them (even if through their cuisines) and that he probably does have a respect for Mexican culture that was not apparent to me before. In other words, maybe he is, indeed, paying an homage to Mexican cuisine by bringing it to this country, instead of just stealing it for fame and profit. The other thing that impressed me is that he clearly is a good cook who understands the fundamentals of cuisine. He won by making an Italian dish, after all, something you wouldn't expect from him.

My suspicion of TV chefs also made me wonder about Michael Chiarello; but I've been impressed by his modesty (even though he did say he was going to win the show). Clearly he understands his own limitations (while Keller, for example, doesn't seem to think he has any).

I was happy to see Anita Lo do so well. I hadn't heard of her before the show started, but it's nice to see a minority woman do so well (in particular given this). Her food seems really interesting as well. I think it's really hard to do fusion food well, it requires an intense knowledge of several cuisines, great technique and creativity, which I think many fusion chefs don't have. I'd love to go to her restaurant.

I have little opinion of the other two chefs. Suzanne Tracht didn't seem to have much of a personality. I loved Art Smith's personality, but I think I may be partial to teddy-bear gay guys.

Anyway, I can't wait to see what happens. And I'm still rooting for Keller.