Tuning Up for Thai and Riesling
Readers and drinkers, we’re definitely back on track. Ok, maybe you were never off track, but I was, and as I had hoped the other day, dinner in the city did not let me down.
Lingba Lounge– or The Monkey Bar, as my friend calls it since a little plastic monkey was hanging from my lychee martini–is a fun bar/restaurant, whose cuisine is Asian-fusion, located in Potrero Hill. (I’ll have to go back to that area because though I didn’t see it, there’s a coffee/pastry place nearby called Farley’s.)
LG and I sat at a low table in the bar with cushy chairs and sipped the martini while we waited for our curry. Hers was chicken with peanuts and mine was seafood with green curry. As there were unfortunately only two Rieslings by the glass and one was dry, we each ordered the 04 Reusher-Haart Kabinett. It was pleasant alone, with gobs of green apple and pear, and hints of lemon zest. With the food, it was even better: enough sweetness to cool my burning lips, but with the acidity to stand up to the creaminess.
Another friend showed up and ordered an appetizer platter, which he generously shared. It was too big to fit on our small table, so it got its own chair. Satay, corn cakes, dancing prawns, spring rolls, and delicious beef with some type of peppery batter… All very good but not as good a pairing with the wine as the curry.
A very fun evening, all in all, and if Beau over at Basic Juice can recommend tunes on Music Tuesdays, I’m gonna plug for the band we went to hear after dinner at The Bottom of the Hill. Instead of Port, try Dolorata (formerly Coal Pitt’s Wash) for some rockin’ sweetness. So… really not all that sweet…but definitely high-in-alcohol hot.
Lingba Lounge, Riesling and Thai, Dolorata
January 15th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
Although it is not Asian-fusion, one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco was Yank Sing, when it was over on Battery in the financial district. They have since moved and branched out: Now they are at 101 Spear Street, and 49 Stevenson Street. They are famous for excellent quality traditional Dim-Sum. When they were over on Battery, they were staffed by a fast-paced team of old ladies pushing trollies loaded up with plates of goodies. Be warned: You will grab more plates off those damn trollies than you can eat.
Pace yourself, enjoy your Tsing Tao and learn to say “not yet, thank you” when the trolly comes by your table every 43 seconds.
January 16th, 2007 at 9:15 am
Mmmm, will have to try it soon. Thanks for the rec, Ahren!