House of Annie

There are lots of dim sum places in the South Bay, especially in Cupertino and Milpitas. But in San Jose, the place we go the most is Dynasty Chinese Seafood Restaurant, on Story Rd near McLaughlin. They have a large banquet hall so the wait at even the busiest times is short. They also have a large selection of dim sum, not just the usual char siu bao, siu mai and har gau. The food is good, with some (including the fried taro puffs pictured above) bordering on excellent. Prices are reasonable, though they have been inching up in the past years.

#4: Akane Sushi

We got spoiled for good sushi when we came to San Jose, but good sushi can be very expensive. I found out about Akane Sushi in Los Altos from the Big List of Peninsula Sushi. It was among the top tier of sushi restaurants and noted for its value. We used to save up for a whole year before going up to Sushi-Man in San Francisco. With Akane's prices, we can afford to go every few months. For a completely enjoyable evening, go on Thursday nights when the Los Altos Farmer's Market is running. Shop first, then sit yourself down at the sushi bar for omakase (pictured above).

#3: East Lake Seafood Restaurant

East Lake Chinese Seafood Restaurant on White Rd near Quimby was one of the first Chinese restaurants that we went to when we arrived in San Jose. We took an instant liking to it. They always have tasty food at very reasonable prices (like the satay udon and the jook pictured above). Everybody around here knows it. At times when we want to eat in, we have to remember to get there before the crowd. Other times, we call ahead for take away.

#2: Thao An Vietnamese Restaurant

I haven't posted an article about this restaurant, despite the fact that we have eaten here numerous times. Thao An Restaurant on Aborn Rd near King Rd is really close to our house, in a mall next to an Asian grocery. This makes it very convenient when we want to go shopping and get a bite to eat. They serve all kinds of great tasting Vietnamese dishes, but strangely enough, not beef pho (for that we go to Beef Noodle #1 on Capitol Expressway). I guess they figure why compete with the dozens of other pho places in San Jose. The kids like their tomato rice, I usually get some rice plate (the fried quail is really good), and Annie goes for the dry egg noodles with pork, chicken, shrimp and crab (pictured above). Thao An Restaurant is (until now) virtually unknown, a hidden gem.

So, where is our #1 favorite place to eat in the South Bay? Of course, it has to be...

#1: House of Annie

Please, allow us a little indulgence! I mean, what's not to like? It's the closest place to home, it's open any time of the day or night, the food is great almost all of the time, and it's got the best prices.

When we came back from our Hawaiian vacation, the first place we went was Thao An for lunch. Then we went shopping, hitting the Asian grocery next door, then Costco and Trader Joe's. At Trader Joe's, Annie picked up a couple of bags of whole wheat pizza dough and a ball of mozzarella. We brought them home, then used some homemade tomato sauce plus tomatoes and basil from our garden to make our own pizza margherita (pictured above).

(Pizza pic submitted to the August 30 edition of Grow Your Own, hosted by Andrea's Recipes.)

So there's our Top 10 Favorite Places to Eat in the South Bay. Of course, they are not the only places we hit regularly. Honorable mention goes to Goveas Mexican Restaurant, for their chile verde burrito and chicken mole, and to CPK for their salads.

Now it's YOUR Turn

Food blogging is about sharing, so tell us where your Top 5 Favorite Places to eat out are! All of us wanna know! Either blog about it and link back to this entry, or leave us a comment below.

Aloha, Nate

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Top 10 Favorite Places to eat in the South Bay