When I first heard that Spice Kit was coming, I could barely wait for it to open.  As any reader of Realfilf knows, I’m a fool for street food and a consummate sucker for banh mi. So, on my first visit, I tried a five spice chicken banh mi with pate and extra jalapeños, a side of ginger peanut slaw, a steamed pork bun, and lotus chips.  Ok, I was with a friend and thought he may like to try some things, too.  I was tempted to order the Calamansi lime-aid, but nothing beats a fountain diet coke in my opinion and, frankly, most mass produced specialty drinks tend to suck (plus I am watching my plumber-ish figure).

Dressed with pickled carrots, daikon radish, cucumbers, jalapeños, mayo, and cilantro and slathered with a rich layer of house-made pate , the five spice chicken banh mi can be best described as a purposeful sandwich. Having eaten my fair share of banh mi, this as the “cleaniest” tasting street sandwich I’ve ever had.  Clearly the ingredients were top-notch and incredibly fresh. Same with the slaw: nice flavors, fresh, crispy cabbage, not too heavy or disguised with mayo, a good accompaniment to a sandwich or wrap.  The pork bun, two hunks of grilled pork belly, pickled cucumbers, scallions and hoisin sauce nicely packaged in a steamed rice bun was, of course, tasty. Pork belly is a tough thing to screw up, a chef’s cheat. The lotus chips were lost on me,  a mere starchy, salty garnish.

I predict Spice Kit will do well.  They have a good concept.  Their food is fresh and tasty. The location is decent and accessible to a good-size lunchtime crowd with disposable income.  Of course, there will always be those people, the typical Yelp hacks, that complain about the prices, “Be prepared to pay $8-10 and still be hungry.” To them, I say go to one of the 20 Lee’s deli outposts in the city and order your Sysco turkey sando for $4.95.  You’ll shorten the line for the rest of us who are willing to pay for thoughtfulness and quality.

Back country trout basque is quite possibly the most dangerous dish I’ve ever attempted to make. Here’s how it works.  First, pack all things you need into a bag that you’ll carry on your back for the next four days.  Don’t forget your fly rod.  You’ll need this. Next walk 30+ miles through the wilderness, at times off trail, to find a high mountain lake. This lake must have trout in it (and can’t be frozen solid).  Once you’ve found a lake with trout, unpack your bag, set up camp and build a fire.

Now go fetch your gear and go fishin’. This may take a few hours so make sure you keep your fire under control (leaving the resident pyro behind to tend to it is best).  Once you’ve caught enough trout to feed your now starving party, clean them and set aside. Hustle back to your camp and slice an onion, a pepper (green or red will work), a lemon and a couple of cloves of garlic. Put the onion, pepper, and garlic into a skillet with some oil to soften (about 10 minutes). Retrieve some long sheets of tinfoil from your bag and lay the clean trout in the center, sprinkle with salt and ground black pepper and stuff the trout with a couple slices of lemon.  Next, equally distribute your softened onions, peppers, and garlic on top of the trout and cover with another piece of foil to make a sealed package (tent). Place the trout package on top of the hot coals and cook for about 10 minutes.  Let the trout rest for a couple of minutes before opening the package. Serve with cous cous.  Bon appétito (or as the Basque would say On egin!)

It was like a fancy bun oasis in the food desert known as Russian Hill. No, I haven’t been hangin’ out with the double rainbow guy again. It was Chairman Bao, a San Francisco food truck which specializes in Asian-style steamed (Taiwanese Gua Bao) and baked buns. Commissioned by, of all places, Crunch, the local gym, for an anniversary event, the Chairman and his buns graced Polk St. with a much needed dose of unique street eats.

I learned first hand that the Chairman rolls large with a menu fit for a dictator. Here’s the  line up:

• Tender pork belly w/pickled daikon
• Red sesame chicken w/scallion & bok choy
• Lions head (Chinese Pork) meatball w/fresh kim chee
• Chinese sausage & egg sandwich w/hoisin
• Crispy garlic tofu w/miso greens
• Chinese spiced duck confit w/fresh mango salad

I’m going to make a confession here.  I’ve read other blog posts where people say things like “I tried the pork bully bun but I heard the sesame chicken was better.” Well, I’m an overenthusiastic glutton and a mug for street food.  I tried ‘em all – all 6 on the menu. Not Surprising, my favorite was the Chinese sausage and egg bun (steamed). I’ve always been a sucker for a good egg sando.  There’s nothing like salty, chopped lap chong (Chinese pork sausage)and scrambled egg glazed with sweet hoisin and wrapped in a doughy, steamed rice bun.  Think egg Mc dim sum – salty, savory, sweet. Bangin’!

I wish the Chairman or any of the other  San Francisco food trucks would pay more attention to the North Side of the city, Russian Hill in particular.  Polk St (btw Broadway and Union), a women’s personal care ghetto, has more nail salons and panties shops than places to eat. I could get a mani/pedi and a back wax easier than finding a respectable sando, taco, crepe, or hand roll. Maybe I should start using the @realfilf twitter account to let the good Chairman and the rest of the hard working mobile gourmets know when I’m craving food. Will they come to me?  If you’re reading this my roaming culinarians…it’s @realfilf and I’m hungry.

At Raman Dojo every bowl of soup is fortified with a couple of pieces of fatty roasted pork, a few cloves of fried garlic, a handful of sliced kikurage mushrooms, a bunch of strips of green chives, a quail Egg, and a ladle of rich chicken gravy (ground chicken, shitake mushrooms,  ginger, dried shrimp, sesame and chili oil, and red pepper). Combined with tonkotsu, shio, or miso broth and an ample amount of chewy ramen noodles, you learn quickly why this is called stamina ramen. There are enough calories for a sumo wrestler. And, if that weren’t enough, patrons can personalize their soup with tasty adds-ins  like: curry powder, fresh or roasted seaweed, corn, spicy cod roe, bamboo shoots, shitakes, kimchee and green cabbage.

I ordered spicy tonkotsu broth with roasted seaweed, kimchee, extra pork, and  green cabbage.  As advertised, the broth was rich and spicy: a well constructed, ruddy, pork infused stock with balanced umami. The addition of chicken gravy was spot-on, adding both texture and a punchy fragrant element.  For me, the chewy noodles were merely a delivery mechanism for the soothing porkiness – though, rest assured that they didn’t go to waste.

With such a good first experience, I’m pretty sure I caught ramen fever. Let the hunt for the world’s best ramen begin.  I vow to make time for ramen tastings between my search for the  best pho and soon du boo.

Ramen Dojo, 805 South B St. (at 8th Ave.), San Mateo; 650-401-6568; Wed. through Mon., 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5:30 to 9 p.m.

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While the service was excellent, the food was uninspired and lazy. The bar tender down the street suggested that we start with the pepperoni arrostiti, a bell pepper cut in half, filled with cheese and drenched in the house specialty, a tomato cream sauce. The dish, while reasonably tasty, was sloppy, unimaginative and not memorable.

After a couple of salads, our server promptly delivered our main courses.  KU order a seafood soup that ended up being almost  inedible.  Even after a couple of cocktails, I wouldn’t even finish it.  An unbalanced broth without even a hint  of white wine, garlic or lemon was topped with overcooked bi-valves and tasteless, rubbery squid.  The dish was a huge miss.  I ordered the polpettine, linguini in tomato sauce (I’m not much for cream sauce) with  ”Rocky’s” homemade meatballs.  It was fine.  The meatballs, dry and bland, had been previously frozen.  Needless to say, we skipped the dolci. Neither one of us wanted anymore of this delusione.

Whether it’s underground or not, it’s still a brilliant idea. The SF Underground Market is the brainchild of Iso Rabins, also the founder of forageSF. Annoyed by the stiff entrance rules imposed by legit farmers markets,  Iso held the first SF Underground Market at a friend’s home in the Mission in December 2009.  Apparently, he knew he was on to something when the event drew nearly 200 people with just 8 vendors.

It’s clear that Iso’s once small subversive market has gone mainstream.  Last night the there must have been 50 vendors set up both inside and outside the SOMArts center hawking everything from raclette to Laotian sausage (sai kok).  And, it wasn’t just the number of vendors that has grown experientially, throngs of people came out last night to snack, sample, and schmooze with fellow foodies.   I heard that the organizers had anticipated about 1200 people, but  from the line that extended around the corner at 8:30pm, I bet there were closer to 2500 people on hand last night.

So, with a complete recap nearly impossible (I was distracted by beer), here are the realfilf highlights.

Pizza People (didn’t get their name – yet): This crew was slingin’ delectable, personal-sized pizzas fired in a genius grill- kiln apparatus fueled with oak. I had a Bi-Rite pizza with heirloom sauce, pickled hots, sausage, and mozzarella. I’m gonna figure out who these people are and invite them to set up shop in my backyard.  Best in show.

Saucy Dumplings: Steamed pork dumplings (shumai). I don’t pass up a chance to sample dumplings.

Red Dot Eats: Lazy buns -stuffed buns (snicker) accompanied with homemade sauces.  Anything in the dumpling format is, again, a no brainer.  The Mediterranean was may favorite.

Raclette: Raclette. I didn’t try this, in part, because the line was always at least 25 people deep.  Clearly, there is a demand for heated cheese scraped onto starch. Makes sense.

Typically, I complain about going to Silicon Valley, especially when I have to go meet someone for lunch.   I have to miss my lunchtime workout and, to add insult to injury, my dining companions tend to pick safe, convenient places (Stacks or some bullshit Italian joint in the Silicon ‘burbs).

But today, I totally lucked out. The guy I was meeting made reservations at Tamarine, a nice enough spot in Palo Alto with generally decent upmarket, or as they put it, “contemporary,” Vietnamese cuisine.  As it turned out, we got our schedules mixed up.  So, this guy scrambled apologetically to pick another spot close by.  He asked if I minded Korean food. I said, “sure.”  What I was really thinking was: “fuck yeah I’ll eat some Korean food.”  I didn’t hint that I’ve been on a Korean food bender for the past 2 months.

Ten minutes later, I pulled into the parking lot at the So Gong Dong Tofu House on El Camino Real. I knew the minute I stepped into the place that it was on – the place was full of, get this, Korean people!  The service was great.  Within seconds I was staring at little bowls of appetizers (Banchan) comprised of spicy kimchi, pickled cucumber slices, tangy bean sprouts (Kongnamul), sweet jap chae, sesame  flavored boiled potatoes, and a raw egg that I was told to save for later.  I ordered the house specialty, a piping hot bowl of Soon Du Boo with chicken. Served in a clay pot,  the Soon Du Boo, had a spicy broth made rich with soft tofu and the raw egg that I added and mixed in with a bit of sticky rice.  This is Korean comfort food and I’m addicted.  Soon Du Boo gives a good bowl of pho a run for the money.

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Here’s the realfilf recap:

The Peanut Butter and Bacon Classic - Apparently, pb and bacon sandwiches are my grandma’s favorite. Who knew?

PB&J Rolls -This wrap-like sando wins the most creative presentation and possibly the healthiest entry. Of note: also good the next day.

The Dirty Sanchez – A traditional Mexican torta featuring chronic carnitas with all Big Mike’s glorious fixins.

The soft-shell crab, chipotle mayo on Wonder bread - The only seafood entry, slayed the voters from the East Coast, evoking sweet thoughts of summer in New England. Quite possibly the most labor intensive entry.

The B.O.L.T. – A refined (and delicious) twist on a piggy classic –  pork belly, onion, lettuce and tomato. Bam!

The Wild Bill – A bangin’ buffalo slider packed with zippy secret seasonings, including bacon (the not so secret ingredient).

The Notorious CLE – Pulled pork sliders with realfilf bbq sauce and jalapeno apple slaw.

Let me assure you that  planning has already begun for the Spring Sando Throwdown 2.0. So, start practicing now and hone your signature sando.  Rest assured the competition will be stiff  next year.

Some friends and I hit the most recent underground market near 7th and Mission and we weren’t disappointed. With nearly 20 vendors on hand cranking out everything from currywurst to bacon pecan pralines, we left happy and stuffed. In most cases, what we didn’t buy, we sampled.

Here’s the Realfilf recap.

Luscious Liquids – didn’t try

Raw Daddy’s – Brilliant idea. Flaxseed cones packed with vegetarian goodness.  RD may have been the most interesting vendor there even though he’s on the vegetarian front. I tried the Italiano. It was awesome. Raw Daddy should go pro.

Challah – didn’t try

Fat Alley Foods – gumbo.  This guy claims to have studied under the masters in the creole kitchens of  New Orleans.  He’s been working on his rou for 7 years.  I had a sample it was very good.

Maggie May’s Bacon Sweets – bacon pecan praline, bacon IPA caramels, Jack Crackin’ Caramel Corn – w/ bacon, Jack Daniels, black pepper, peanuts, caramel corn. I sampled the carmel corn – fantastic.  MMBS seems to be headed to the bigs too with great presentation and excellent packaging.  Aaron walked with a bag of bacon goodies under the guise of taking something home for his wife.

Heartbaker – bomboloni, cupcakes, creme brulee.  I’m over cupcakes and those torch things creep me out. didn’t try

El Porteno – empanadas. I tried a chicken empanada and thought the filling was decent.  The crust was just ok. El Porteno has a stand at 331 Courtland.  Not sure how underground they are. I prefer emapanadas saltenas personally.

Drunken Whisk BBQ – Applewood smoked pulled pork sandwich w/ apple jalapeno slaw – just ok.  I couldn’t resist the pulled pork. I had to try it. The description of the slaw inspired a recent creation of my own so that was a win.

Iso Rabins ( nice buns Iso – you rock!)- pork belly buns. Best in show! Tough to go wrong with a sando made from salty pork belly, lightly pickled cukes, green onion and some special hoisin-ish sauce between 2 slices of rice dumpling bread. The presentation was great and the concept-genius.

Ahram Namu Kimchi – kimchi hot dog.  I love kimchi so I sampled  it sans dog.  Good kimchi.  I’d say Michelle and Mike, my kimchi dealers, would take’em. Steve went full monty.

Kraken Candy – didn’t bu. The lady selling the stuff was dressed like a dirty nurse or something.

King of Currywurst – Vegetarian sausage stuff.  I liked the name so I bought some.  I wish they would have stuck with the “wurst” concept and dropped some sauerkraut on this instead of tomato sauce sprinkled with curry powder. Strange. Mike said the aftertaste was “not meatish”.

Flosa Creamery – goat cheese. I had a delicious sample of chevre. I should’ve bought some to take home.  The cheese guy was a character.

American Kobe BBQ brisket sliders –  I can’t pass up smoked brisket.  I had a couple of sliders. They were good- prepared well.  The sauce was decent too.

Banh Mi Burger – banh  mi burger style. I love banh mi.  The burger concept was smart.  I stood in line but bounced when I saw the rolls they were using.  They looked like hockey pucks.  Mike bought one and had to throw it away because he couldn’t even chew it.  Should have used a soft baguette.

Mali Num Num Treats – sio bao, arroz caldo, ensaymada.  didn’t try

House Kombucha – didn’t try

Fact: you can wrap just about anything in a flour tortilla.  But, who would’ve ever thought about kimchi? Go ahead, turn your nose up or plug it. I used to.  That is, until I tried my first kimchi burrito at John’s Snack and Deli.  Loaded with tangy sautéed  kimchi, lettuce, salsa, onions, and your choice of chicken, pork of beef, John slings Korean burrito goodness from a 200 sq ft hole-in-the-wall on Battery St.  An instant fan after the first bite, I’ve been hooked ever since. Unfortunately, my office moved and John’s is out of lunch hour striking range.  But, that hasn’t stopped me from continuing my kimchi burrito journey.

As with  many of my food predilections, I decided that I would try to recreate a kimchi burrito at home.  And, fortunately for me, I happen to  have a line to some fine homemade kimchi.  My kimchi dealers are a husband and wife operation out of Sausalito.  She, the Korean-born kimchi genius, and he, the sous chef and mule, provide me with a bi-weekly supply of different varieties of spicy, pickled Korean-seasoned veggies.

Like John, I anchored the kimchi with chicken bulgogi, a common Korean meat preparation that’s on the sweeter side.  I wasn’t sold on the notion of Mexican salsa for my burrito. I invented my own Korean salsa, a bright blend of pickled carrots, radish, shallots, sesame oil, and rice wine vinegar.  I rolled up my burritos with some white rice, cilantro, bulgogi,  kimchi, Korean salsa, and a squirt of fiery Sriracha. Blam!