23 - the Hob Nob - Alameda

1313 Park St,(between Alameda Ave & Encinal Ave), Alameda, CA 94501, (510) 769-1011

Last visit: January, 2009

the Hob Nob's website

The Hob Nob is a place where food, games, and drinks meet in Alameda. They actually have a server and a kitchen, and I found it interesting that they have daily specials. It's a dimly lit place that caters to who seem to be regulars there. They have one flat-screen that shows predominantly hockey for some reason. It's good that there's only one screen I guess, nowadays places are decked out with five or six at least. 

We get there early and the eating crowd is still there. I order their Blue Berry Mojito, which came with too much blue berry. My friends order their tequilla and Tecate combo and a pink cosmo-like drink. The drinks are pretty strong at the Hob Nob, so don't go crazy in ordering your cocktails. I try their Long Beach later and it has a bit of a kick to it. 

Our food comes in due time. I recommend the garlic fries. Quite a treat while watching the games on TV. They have the usual sports bar menu with daily specials. I have to try the burgers next time. 

Board games are in the back, and so are some in the front of the bar. We check out the scrabble and began our night of word banter and stories over drinks. I would like to go there again. 

22 - the Boiling Crab - San Jose

1631 E Capitol Expressway #101, San Jose, CA 95121

Last visit: January, 2009

their website: http://www.theboilingcrab.com/

"We're going to dinner at a seafood place in the south-bay," said my girlfriend as we got into her sister's car. The BMW sprung out of the small streets of East Oakland and onto the freeway energetically, like a dog waiting to go for a walk. I was kind of tired that night, but it felt like it was going to be a place that I would blog about later, so I was looking forward to that. We drove down the 880 freeway, passing my workplace in San Leandro, and then Fremont. As the ride went on, I realize that we're  moving through area-codes at the speed of light. Where the hell is this place?

Reaching the Boiling Crab took us 30 minutes, and the wait was another 40. I guess it's the kind of place people will make a trip out for, because the place was packed! And the first thing that you think about is, "Why are they all Asians?" Thats the way it was. I was trying to track the UNC vs. Wake Forest game, and good thing they had flat-screens all over. They lost that night.

We sat and ordered our food, which came in buckets by the pounds. Sitting there reminded me of Forrest Gump and how his buddy Bubba started listing all the ways to make shrimp. We ordered Shrimp, Crawfish, Crab, and some fries. Not really a veggie lover's place. But the seafood was really good. I think I ate a pound of shrimp, but also used a pound of napkins too. It's definitely a place where table manners were lax. You're encouraged to make noises while sucking on crawfish and build a mountain of shells on your area. They didn't even give us plates. Food was brought out in plastic bags. It's funny, but it's almost part of the culture. 

We started with a round of raw oysters, which were pretty good. I like their sauce, which was better than the regular tobasco sauce. I tried them back to back to compare. We then went onto the shrimp and crawfish. I recommend trying the regular with the "whole sha-bang" which means the combination of all their spices. Mild spiciness had a nice kick to it and Medium meant taking breaks for me. I couldn't fathom the hell it would be on our tongues if we ordered the XXX spice. It was definitely an experience, but I didn't think it would be a regular thing. 

Final thoughts? I never knew how good corn with cajun sauce was until then. Might be a good idea to make some. 

Yelp's Review