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LB Steak (Left Bank)
Location: 334 Santana Row, Suite 1000, San Jose, CA (inside Santana Row)
Cuisine: “Modern American Steakhouse with a French twist”
Price: Moderate - average for a main course is between $20-30
Recommendation: Nice place to eat, especially for the price.  I would check it out if you’re looking for a nice, semi-fancy meal that won’t break the bank.
Website: www.lbsteak.com
Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/lb-steak-san-jose

Right off the bat, I would like to say that I was a little disappointed in LB Steak.  I will go into more details throughout this post, but at the end of the day I would still come back because it really is a nice place to eat with a good atmosphere and although there were some problems with the food, it still tasted delicious.

The decor and design at this place is modern and clean.  Although the lights are very dim, it sets a modern American steakhouse type of mood and makes the restaurant look more upscale.  The front of the restaurant has retractable glass doors so the restaurant can be closed off or it can turn into an open balcony to let fresh air into the space.  For a warm night like tonight, the open air was perfect.  But perhaps the thing that really caught my eye was the kitchen design.  First of all, the kitchen and dining area is separated by an automatic see-through glass door.  It may not sound that cool, but it looks super baller when you’re there.  The kitchen itself is spacious, very modern and very clean with chefs and sou chefs busily running around preparing orders.  It was quite a sight and it was a really cool design to make it seem like an open kitchen with the glass doors.

In terms of the service at LB Steak, it was very good.  Our waitress was very nice, answered all our questions, and even made some small talk with us.  On top of that, one of the managers came over to talk to us as our food was being served.  He saw that I was taking pictures of the food and made conversation about how they prepare the food aesthetically as well.  He was very friendly and definitely knew what he was doing to make a good impression on his guests.

French Onion Soup

Now onto the food!  My brother and I started off with beers.  Their selection of tap beers is limited, but was refreshing nonetheless.  They also have a special where a glass of wine or champagne is $5, which my brother’s girlfriend ordered.  I liked how the beer came in tall pint glasses, but maybe that’s just me.  My brother also started with an order of French Onion Soup (we’re both big fans).  The cheese on the soup was very good, but the soup itself was actually a little bland.  I’ve defiintely had better French Onion Soup elsewhere, but this wasn’t bad.

Grilled 10 oz. Lobster Tail with Lemongrass Beurre Fondue and Napa Cabbage Salad

For the main course, my mother ordered the Grilled 10 oz. Lobster Tail with Lemongrass Beurre Fondue and Napa Cabbage Salad. The presentation was very beautiful and it definitely looked like a winning dish.  However, the lobster was too overdone and that made the lobster meat tough and chewy.  The dish was also overflowing with beans as part of their salad.  Although the taste was there, it was still a shame that the lobster was overcooked and made this dish a little disappointing.

Mussels, Clams and Day Boat Scallops Linguine, chablis garlic herb butter

My brother’s main course was the Mussels, Clams and Day Boat Scallops Linguine with chablis garlic herb butter. This pasta dish was absolutely delicious.  The creaminess of the garlic herb butter sauce was not overbearing and the pasta was a perfect al dente.  The scallops were perfectly seared as well.  The only problem with this dish was the fact that the shellfish still contained some sand, and my brother actually bit so hard on a chunk of sand that it hurt his tooth.  Other than that, it was a great dish.

Slow Roasted Sea Bass, asparagus, aged balsamic-bliss vinaigrette

My brother’s girlfriend ordered the Slow Roasted Sea Bass with asparagus and aged balsamic-bliss vinaigrette. The sea bass was a little overcooked but the flavors were pretty good.  There isn’t much to say about this dish because to be honest it wasn’t really that special.

Pan Seared Colman Natural Pepper Crusted Pork Chop

Finally, I ordered the Pan Seared Colman Natural Pepper Crusted Pork Chop. The pork chops had a lot of flavor and a great glaze on top.  The pepper crust gave it a nice spice.  I was also very surprised and impressed because I detected a hint of mustard/mustard seeds on the crust as well - a very nice surprise indeed.  The only complaint I have about the dish is that I asked for it to be prepared medium and got it pretty well done instead and hence a little dry (hmmm….this seems to be a recurring theme for this restaurant….).  Other than that though, the flavors were all there.  The shallots on the dish were also very good.

In addition to our main course, we also ordered a side of Pommes Souffle. For those who don’t know, they fry the potatoes like wedges, then they suck out all the potato from the inside and fry the skin again before serving it (skin only).  It was very interesting, but super oily.  In fact, I was able to actually pour a puddle of oil off two of them.

Pommes Souffle

After reading this post, you can see why I was just a little disappointed after eating at LB Steak.  Although the food was still very delicious, the chefs tend to have a problem with overcooking the food a bit.  However, I loved the atmosphere, the setting, and the service here.  Also, I came into the restaurant with a critic type of mindset, so that’s why I nitpicked at every little problem.  If I step myself out of that role, I still very much enjoyed my dinner and the food flavors were all quite delicious.  I would definitely come back again to actually try the steak at this steakhouse among other dishes.  I would also recommend that you come here if you’re looking for a fancier type of meal that is still affordable.  I think this would be a great place to take a date.

E-Noodle
Location: 438 Barber Ln, Milpitas, CA (inside Milpitas Square Complex)
Cuisine: Chinese and Taiwanese Noodles and other small dishes
Price: Pretty cheap
Recommendation: It’s not super, but it’s cheap for a quick bite if your’e in the area
Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/e-noodle-milpitas

This is your run of the mill Chinese noodle restaurant and definitely has that cheap Chinese restaurant type of feel.  The waiters mostly speak Mandarin and while some are nice, some are pretty rude.  The menu consists mostly of mostly Chinese noodle dishes, as well as a couple rice dishes and smaller appetizer dishes like dumplings and pot stickers.

The restaurant is pretty cheap and can get you pretty full since the noodle sizes are pretty big.  I usually order a beef noodle (shown above) or spicy beef noodle, as well as “open mouth” potstickers (pictured below).  The noodles have a nice texture - it is a little chewy and just the way I like it.  the meat is usually pretty good as well - never overdone and never undercooked.  The potstickers are something they make a lot of, so when you order it it’ll come out in like 2 minutes.  I think it is a unique way to prepare potstickers but the quality varies.  Sometimes it is good, but other times (like today) the pork was too tight and cooked for too long.

“Open Mouth” Potstickers at E-Noodle

Overall, don’t expect too much from this place.  It’s nothing special and I just come here simply because it is cheap and fast when I’m in the area.  There are many other options when you’re at Milpitas Square, so unless you’re craving Chinese noodles, you could probably pick something else.  That being said, I know I’ll go back again when I’m looking for a quick meal.

Difficulty Level: Easy
Time: 5 minutes prep time, 10-15 minutes cook time
Ingredients: Salmon, mayonnaise, honey mustard (or any mustard, I personally prefer honey), salt, pepper, Nori Komi Furikake Wasabi Rice Seasoning

Although I haven’t prepared this salmon dish in a while, it is really easy to make and really delicious so I wanted to give you the recipe in case you ever want to make it.

In terms of the salmon, it doesn’t matter what size it is.  You can have a large filet or a small strip like mine and this recipe will cook the same way.  First, season the salmon with salt and pepper.  Let it sit for a few minutes and then you can start cooking the salmon.  You can grill it, sear it, or put it in a George Foreman grill.  It really doesn’t matter as long as its cooked all the way through and to your liking.

While the salmon is cooking, you can prepare the Honey Mustard, Mayonnaise, and Nori Komi Furikake Wasabi Rice Seasoning “sauce” that tops the salmon.  I use the term “sauce” loosely because it is still pretty thick (due to the mayonnaise) and I’m not sure “sauce” is the perfect term to describe it.

For those of you who don’t know what Nori Komi Furikake Wasabi Rice Seasoning is, it looks like this:

It is a Japanese product usually mixed with rice so white rice is not so bland (although white rice is not bland to begin with!)  You can pretty much use it with anything you please and it works really well with this “sauce” as well.  You can find this product at most Asian supermarkets for a couple dollars.

Anyway, back to the preparation of the sauce.  Depending on how much salmon you have, you’ll need to adjust the amount you put in.  Also, you can adjust the ratios to your liking.  In a bowl, mix together about a 1:1 ratio of mayonnaise and honey mustard (I usually do 2 spoon fulls of mayo and 2 spoon fulls of mustard and that’s plenty).  Once the two are mixed well, add in a good amount of the rice seasoning and mix well again.  That’s it for the sauce.

When your salmon is cooked through, take it off the heat and top with the sauce.  Next, sprinkle more rice seasoning on top of the sauce and place the salmon in the oven at 350 degrees for a minute or two to give the rice seasoning and sauce a good browning.  I use a toaster oven because it is quick and easy.

Take out of oven and enjoy.