MADE IN JAPAN BURGER the ten layer TAKUMI Burger from MOS BURGER

How do you like to try a taste 10 layers burger called the Takumi Burger from Mos Burger? I myself so eager to try it, too bad they’re not available in the US. MOS burger mainly available throughout Asia many found in Japan, Taiwan, Hongkong and Singapore. So don’t miss on if you happen to have to transit via Singapore.

¥1,000/US$8.74. Limited to 40 servings per day. Takumi Judan roughly translated is “ingenius flavor in ten sections” (or something like that, you Japanese speakers feel free to correct me). Ten layers of goodness (bun, special sauce, egg, bacon, [beef] pattie, ketchup, onion slices, tomatoes, lettuce, mayonaise).

MADE IN WEST COAST USA the always freshly-made IN-N-OUT BURGER

The shape and size being almost the same between MOS and in-n-out (quite smaller than that of Burger King / BK Burger) they both has a very satisfying taste. I guess both will give me alllmooosstt the same satisfaction, this is quite hard to say though. So what do you think? Anyway I consider in-n-out to be in my “good available burger out there/favorite list” I love the fresh taste of it, and if you don’t like the fresh onion cuz it’s to spicy just call out for WHOLE GRILL ONION or GRILL ONION (for this they’re gonna give you the chopped sauteed version of the onion)

MADE IN EAST COAST USA the awsome one from SHAKE SHACK BURGER

need to read why this is awsome, here’s a comparison from yusheng:

In-N-Out’s bun (well toasted, just like the Shake Shack) is bigger and the burger comes with more lettuce, but the beef patty is much thinner and is basically nuked. So the whole meat to bun/lettuce/tomato ratio is way off. Shake Shack’s beef patty is more than twice as thick and you can tell it’s made from superior beef.

The Shake Shack bun is smaller and softer and comes with a single fresh crunchy slice of lettuce (both In-N-Out and Shake Shack come with a single slice of tomato). Smaller bun+less lettuce+much bigger beef patty = a vastly superior meat-to-bun/lettuce/tomato ratio.
The Shack Burger is twice as much at $3.95 but it’s worth every penny. I think it’s more than twice as good.

Well I think it’s worth a try, right? Especially when you’re not an east coast dwellers then it make all arguments right to have that one time try.
It’s located at Madison Avenue and 23rd Street. Also they’re opening a new one in the Upper West Side at 77th and Columbus Ave sometime in late 2008.

link1, link2.

Since Joey Chestnut (from San Jose, California) has just won the 2008 World’s Fastest Hot-Dog Eater Title, we will look at some of American’s most prominent Competitive Eater.

1. Joey Chestnut, aka “JAWS”

Takeru Kobayashi won the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest six years in a row, until 2007 when Joey Chestnut did what no American had done before. The San José State University student entered the competitive eating scene in 2005 with a break-out performance in the deep-fried asparagus eating championship, in which he beat high-ranked eater Rich LeFevre by eating 6.3 pounds of asparagus in 11.5 minutes. That same year, during Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest, Chestnut downed hot dogs and buns, placing second behind Takeru Kobayashi.

2. Sonya Thomas, aka “Black Widow”

After seeing Kobayashi (approximately 145 pounds) win the 2002 Nathan’s contest, Thomas realized a smaller stature was not an impediment to being a world-class eater, and entered the competitive eating circuit. In her first contest, the June 2003 Nathan’s qualifier held at the Molly Pitcher rest stop on the New Jersey Turnpike, her tally of 18 hot dogs took first place and enabled her to compete in the July 4th competition held at Coney Island. Her total of 25 hot dogs there broke the women’s record set three years earlier by Takako Akasaka, the dominant female in Japanese competitive eating.

3. Patrick Bertoletti, aka “Deep Dish”

On January 2, 2007, he became the first person to complete the Sasquatch Burger Contest at Bigfoot Lodge Cafe in Memphis. 679 People had tried to finish the burger and fries that starts with 4 lbs of hamburger meat on a homemade bun, Bertoletti finished the meal in 11 minutes.On July 4, 2007, he finished third in the 92nd annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, having eaten 49 hot dogs and buns in that competition. Only two others have ever eaten more during the contest.

4. Joe “Jammin” LaRue

A culinary arts student, Joe had a notable year of competition in 2004, winning an 84 Lumber baked bean eating bout, winning the Footy’s Y-100 Wing Ding chicken wing eating contest and placing second at the Sweet Corn Fiesta’s Sweet Corn Eating Championship. It was his victory in the 2005 sweet corn eating match (31 ears of sweet corn in 12 minutes) that showed he has the ability to play at the very top tier in the eating game.

5. David O’Karma

A painting contractor from Akron, Ohio, who owns the world doughnut eating title (30 donuts in 5:28), David started competitive eating at age 15 in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, at Church’s Chicken on Portage Trail. He ate 13 sweet potato pies in one minute to become the WCUE Sweet Potato Pie-eating Champion. From there he entered the Houlihan and Big Chuck Show’s Pizza Fight of the Century and became the only ‘human” to defeat the legendary Mariano “Mushmouth” Pacetti

6. Bob Shoudt, aka “Humble”

An avid mountain climber and IT manager at work, “Humble” Bob Shoudt is a competitive eater from Royersford, Pennsylvania, and a top-ranked member of the IFOCE - International Federation of Competitive Eating. He is currently ranked 7th in the World by the IFOCE. He is both the highest ranked Competitive Eater in the World that is a parent or is of Native American Indian heritage.

7. Hall Hunt, aka “Hoover”

Hall Hunt, a member of American MENSA, has made his mark as one of the up and coming “Young Guns” of competitive eating. Seen at the championship table of many IFOCE majors, Hunt has earned the respect and admiration of his peers. His personal bests are 29 Nathan’s Famous hot dogs, 52 Krystals in 8 min., 23 grilled cheese sandwiches in 10 min. and he also performed well in Spike TV’s MLE Chowdown.

8. Juliet Lee , aka “The Lovely”

A former Chemistry Professor, Juliet Lee has only been competing professionally since December 2006, but is one of the few women ever to earn a chance to compete in The Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest. Originally from the cold northern shores of China, she loves all types of seafood. As a child, she often ate only what she could catch from the beach.

9. Tim Janus , aka “Eater X”

A professional Wallstreet Trader, his given name is Tim Janus, but to the competitive eating community he is a man of mystery, Eater X, whose inner torment is concealed by a mask. Eater X has distinguished himself in the eating community, performing well in pie, chicken nuggets, hot dogs, cannoli, brats, and corned beef and cabbage.

10. Juris Shibayama, “Dr Bigtime”

A doctor ( orthopedic surgeon ) who burst onto the scene during the 2006 Krystal Square Off Circuit. He hails originally from Chicago, IL, and is looking to make his gustatory mark in 2007.

Link, Link

San Francisco police departments say that there is 1000+ auto burglary incidents per month in San Francisco.

In this real video recording where a real auto burglar was eventually caught, the San Francisco Police Department used a bait car to demonstrate how quickly an auto burglary can occur. They want to warn people to keep valuables out of sight. The suspect in this video was followed by an unmarked police car and quickly arrested.

Ways to reduce the chances of becoming the victim of a car burglary.

– Don’t leave valuables such as laptops, cameras, cell phones, I-Pods or GPS devices in plain view.

– Don’t leave power cords or chargers for electronic devices in plain view.

– Lock all items, including loose clothing or bags containing personal items, in the trunk before parking.

– Lock the doors and roll up the windows. Use an alarm system and/or anti-theft device.

Source: San Francisco Police Department

Link: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/24/BAT011EBEP.DTL

Broken heels? Without heels? Need to get ‘em fix?

Hmm,… I recommend the ‘Brodway Cobbler’ at 403 Broadway, Milbrae for fixing broken heels, especially if you love your shoes, and it’s a good one.
They did a pretty good job there for a reasonably priced service. Reach them at (650) 692-5155. Another good one to try will be ‘Boat Feet Shoe Repair‘ at 1212 W Hillsdale Blvd, San Mateo, CA 94403. (650) 349-0883.

here’s the cobbler review from YELP.

I am an oenophile, and enjoy drinking red wines and of course, always enjoy shopping and tasting new wines.

I won’t say that I have a very sophisticated palate in tasting red wine, but I generally find that award-winning wines that have competed in blind tasting competitions would give me some indicator to the quality of the wine.

I found this trick or hack for you to list the Gold Medal wines in BevMo (bookmark this link) and you will be able to sort the wines:

Visit Bevmo here .

• Gold medal wines
• Sort the price from Low to High
• And… now you can get the wine for the best value (so to speak).

FYI, here in San Francisco Bay Area, I have a few wine stores that I enjoy shopping at:

• The Wine Club (http://www.thewineclub.com/) - 953 Harrison Street, San Francisco, CA
• Costco (enough said)
• Local Trader Joes (http://www.traderjoes.com/locations.asp) . Sometimes you can find a bargain Sonoma or Napa cabernet or merlot at less than $7.00 per bottle.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have other findings to share with other oenophiles!

Disclosure: I love new world wines (Napa Valley) better than old world wines.

Mendocino Coast, one of the few romantic areas in Northern California is just conviniently located in four hours drive from San Francisco. It’s a perfect long weekend getaway for Bay Area dwellers just to find another nature comfort and relaxation. But it will be especially suitable for those trying to find romantic vacation here.

Mendocino have lots to offer from vast sigtseeing areas to various activities. Sightseeing includes

Mendocino Village - see and experience the beauty of historic buildings lining the cliffs and many New England style Victorians bed and breakfasts and restaurants.

Fort Bragg - The harbor town offer many activities from whale watching chatter boats to daily fishermen activities. (note: whale watching season is generally from December - March annualy)

Little River - here you can stroll along the sandy beach and do golfing, lots of good restaurants and lodgings

Village of Elk - Spectacular views and all that thing that is picturesque

the one place I find comforting is the J.D. house for B&B inn.

I found out about 1019898 and 1010229, and you could save on your long distance and international phone calls to Asia. They have great rates. US interstate is 2c / minute, but the real deal I think is in the international rates. They do have a connection fee of 10 cents and 20 cents per call, but overall it still is cheaper than anything else I have found.

See International rates for 1019898

See International rates for 1010229
I used to use OneSuite, however it gets tedious to re-charge the pin each time.

Dialing instructions for 1019898 :

For calls within the USA and Canada for using 1019898
Dial 101 9898 + 1 + area code + number

For international calls for using 1019898

Dial 101 9898 + 011 + country code + number

Dialing instructions for 1010229 :

For calls within the USA and Canada:
Dial 1010 229+ 1 + area code + number

For international calls:

Dial 1010 229 + 011 + country code + number

There are NO monthly fees with 1019898 and 1010229. You are only charged for calls actually made and charges appear on your regular Pac Bell or Verizon phone bill.

Update: 1019898 works for residents of state of California, using Pacbell or Verizon.

At this moment the 1010229 network is only available in the states of California, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and the great Toronto area.

In San Francisco Bay Area, housing prices are among the highest in the nation. In some Bay Area cities such as Palo Alto, CA and Cupertino, CA - the housing prices are even higher. Part of this is driven from the quality of the public schools in this area.
From US News High School ranking.

Seven South Bay schools have a lot to brag about today - they’re among the top 100 in the nation according to a new survey by U.S. News and World Report.

Lynbrook High School in San Jose ranks #73 out of 100 and that, along with eight other schools in the Bay Area, is a notable accomplishment - considering more than 18,000 high schools were analyzed in the U.S..

The list focuses on broad achievement in the U.S.. The rating is done by U.S. News & World Report. It’s the magazine’s first-ever ranking of America’s best high schools. It measures how well schools educate all of its students and their college readiness - using a formula with a three-step analysis.
First, it looks at students’ state testing data, like math and reading results, and factors in poorer-performing students. The analysis also evaluates how well each school’s disadvantaged students did. A third factor is availability of college-level coursework and how well students did on A.P., or advanced-placement tests. The top 100 schools earn gold medals. Nine in the Bay Area shot to the top of that list.

Ranking of Bay Area High Schools from U.S. News & World Report:

#2 Pacific Collegiate Charter, Santa Cruz
#49 Mission San Jose, Fremont
#59 Monta Vista, Cupertino
#66 Henry M. Gunn, Palo Alto
#68 Piedmont High, Piedmont
#69 Lowell High, San Francisco
#72 Saratoga High, Saratoga
#73 Lynbrook High, San Jose
#85 Palo Alto High, Palo Alto

In total, the U.S. News ranking recognizes almost 1,600 high schools that meet its criteria for great learning achievement. Aside from the top-100 gold medal schools, many more can boast silver and bronze status and at least half a dozen of those are also in the Bay Area.

Link

Okay, I live in San Francisco (in the San Francisco Bay Area) which has some of the best (read: mildest) weather in U.S.A. The weather is generally mild, around here. Bay area is home to some of the most diverse micro climates around though. Yesterday the weather was so sunny, and the temperatures was in the 90s F and this afternoon it gets so foggy around here.

San Francisco specifically can get very foggy during the summer. See these 2 pictures courtesy of Wikipedia and you’ll see the difference.

San Francisco - Nice day:

San Francisco - Foggy day:

Now, what is the cloudiest city in America.

Apparently after I downloaded the data from Weather Facts, and doing some simple Excel Sorting, I found that “Cold Bay, AK” is the cloudiest city in America with 304 cloudy days a year (365 days).

I found that my city, San Francisco, has 105 cloudy days per year (365 days).

The sunniest city in USA: Yuma, AZ (did you see 3:10 to Yuma yet? )

Link (Wikipedia), Link (WeatherFacts) , Cold bay (AK)