Restaurant Review: Betelnut: Fusion Food that's Not Confusing

Down on San Francisco’s trendy Union Street there’s a fairly well-known restaurant called Betelnut. Since the place is roughly 400 yards from my house, I have been there close to a dozen times. It’s supposedly former President Bill Clinton’s favorite SF eatery, and I know for a fact he has been there several times in the past couple of years. And no, he didn’t bring Jennifer Flowers or Monica Lewinsky with him, either. Betelnut is modeled after a “pejiu wu”, which in Chinese means “beer house.” The cuisine is described as Asian “street food”. It tends to a little spicier than your standard Asian faire, using primarily fresh local ingredients and regional spices. I like it because the food is a mixture of just about every type of Asian cuisine – including Chinese, Thai, Japanese and Malaysian. A lot of fusion food is gimmicky and just doesn’t work. I had American Indian/Mexican food one time, and it was so bad I lost it in both my head dress and my sombrero. One time I had Italian/Eastern Indian food, and that was pretty awful as well. Chicken Tandoori Pizza isn’t my idea of creative food – it’s my version of a gastronomic nightmare. Dick Cavett used to do an old joke where he talked about eating German/Chinese food one night and being hungry for power 15 minutes later. But the fusion food at Betelnut works, because the basic building blocks of all the cuisines that are being combined are basically the same. The chef is Alexander Ong, a highly regarded food artist who worked for the Shangrai-La Hotel and at the Caesar’s Tahoe Ritz-Carlton before venturing to SF to do his magic at Betelnut. Consistently in the SF Chronicle’s Top 100 Restaurants, this place is fun from the minute you walk in the door. The motif is dark wood with bright red accents. Kind of like Chinatown meets a Montana hunting lodge. Betelnut has a wide assortment of exotic drinks and features a lineup of custom-brewed lagers and ales that the Pyramid Brewery makes just for them. For $6.00 a pint, the beer is just as good or better than any micro brewery I’ve been to. My favorite dishes at Betelnut all come on small plates and will serve three people each. I love the Pork Springrolls with “Wood Ear” Mushrooms, Glass Noodles and Szechuan Mustard ($8.50). The mustard alone is worth this one. It’s a mixture of hot mustard with something sweet and tart in it that hits your palate with a gentle ferocity. I also like the Nonya Oyster Omelet with Kecap Manis and Spicy Lime Pepper Dip ($9.85). The oysters are so fresh and buttery you’ll think they are still alive. Putting them in a fluffy omelet with this incredible sauce is pure genius. The Firecracker Shrimp with a 5-Spice Sambal Dip ($9.99) is worth every cent. They’re spicy but not tongue-searing hot, and they bounce off your tongue with an elasticity that is pleasant and not too tough. The Hand-Pulled Mongolian Hoison Pork with Grilled Pancakes ($9.95) is like high-end Asian burritos and a lot of fun to eat. What makes this work is that the pork is super tender and full of flavor. One disappointment was the Satay-O-Chicken with Malaysian Peanut Sauce ($8.25). When I go to a place like Betelnut I expect new and exciting things and this was just run-of-the-mill satay that you might find in 200+ other restaurants in the City. It just wasn’t unique enough. Betelnut is located at 2030 Union Street in SF and their phone number is: (415) 929-8855. They’re open every day for both lunch and dinner, but I would strongly suggest making reservations if you want to go there during the weekend.
If you see Bill there sans Hilary, maybe you can interest him in an after-dinner cigar. After consuming this great food, he might just be in the mood.

Our Last Dinner with Ratdog

This is a short film we did last year. Check it out.
The acting is pretty lousy, but you must admit, it's an awesome performance by RATDOG.
The movie is called, "OUR LAST DINNER WITH RATDOG"
And no -- don't worry, Ratdog isn't dead!

Thinking about a Brazilian Bride? Read this First!

SAN BRUNO, Calif. (Oct. 31) - The lonely, divorced carpenter thought he was going to Brazil to make wedding plans.
Instead, he was drugged and held captive for six days at his fiancee's home while she and another man emptied his bank accounts, according to Brazilian authorities. Then they drove the 56-year-old victim to a vacant lot, where they strangled him with copper wire, doused his body with fuel, and set it on fire, investigators say.
Authorities found Raymond Merrill's charred body in April.
Now, the woman he believed was his betrothed is under arrest, along with a man suspected of helping to kill him.
"He would talk to me about ideal relationships and pure love," said Merrill's best friend, Bill Rauch. "With age doesn't necessarily come wisdom. He was used to doing things his way and, in the end, it did him in."
For months, his family knew nothing of his horrifying end. It was only after a bungled robbery Merrill met Regina Filomena Rachid last year through an online dating service. At the time, he was lonely and depressed, having been dumped by a Las Vegas woman for whom he had bought expensive gifts, according to Merrill's best friend.
Merrill and Rachid exchanged dozens of calls, e-mails and photographs, often enlisting Rachid's 18-year-old daughter as a translator. Rachid was 41, from an upper-middle-class family that was in the real estate business.
"I thought, `This is going a little fast,' but I didn't want to sound critical," said Merrill's sister, Marcia Sanchez Loebick.
The warning signs were obvious to Merrill's friend of nearly 30 years. Merrill gave Rachid $10,000 to start a skin care clinic and bought her a $20,000 sport utility vehicle. She complained it wasn't a fancier, more expensive model, Rauch said.
"This from a man who was tightfisted," Rauch said. "Ray and I would go out and I'd have to buy all the beers. All of a sudden, he's lavishing all these gifts and money on a relationship he's not even close to consummating.
"I said, `Ray, these are so many red flags. I can't believe you're pursuing this,"' Rauch said. "He would just slough it off. He'd say, `She's just a passionate and emotional Latina.' What do you say to a guy like that?"
Merrill visited Rachid twice in Sao Jose dos Campos, an industrial city about 60 miles from Sao Paulo. Both times he stayed a week longer than planned. Both times he notified Rauch, who then drove to Merrill's home in San Bruno to water the plants and collect the mail. On the third trip, Merrill again overstayed his return, but this time he didn't call Rauch to let him know.
Loebick, who lives in Cleveland, said she sent her brother repeated e-mails warning him that their 86-year-old father was dying, but got no response. She and Rauch's best friend called police in California to report him missing.
What happened to Merrill was more awful than either could have imagined.
Sometime after he arrived on March 21, Rachid and her real boyfriend, Nelson Siqueira Neves, drugged Merrill, kept him in a room in Rachid's house, and drained his bank accounts, stealing about $200,000 in all, according to Merrill's sister and Brazilian authorities.
Then, on April 1 - the day he was scheduled to return to California - they hired Evandro Celso Augusto Ribeiro for $5,600 to help kill him and set fire to the corpse, according to investigators. Authorities found the scorched remains but could not identify the victim, and buried the body in a pauper's grave.
But then Rachid - to raise money to pay off the hit man - took part in the holdup of a black-market money changer, and accidentally left her purse behind, investigators say.
The money changer went to police and turned over the purse, which contained Merrill's credit card. Hours later, Rachid showed up at the same police station to report her purse stolen. Police arrested her on the spot. The alleged hit man soon told authorities what happened to Merrill, investigators said.
Rachid and Ribeiro are in custody, charged with armed robbery followed by death.
Rachid's boyfriend was questioned by police in early October but was released under a Brazilian law that says no one can be arrested in the days immediately before and after an election, investigators said. Now he cannot be found.
"I feel a really terrible sense of loss," said Merrill's best friend. "You expect to lose your parents. But you don't expect one of your best friends to die.”

Now read this, from www.nomarriage.com:
Brazilian women make much better wives than American women.
An American woman has several fundamental problems that will never go away and that will get much worse a few years after she is married:
Her inherent anti-male bias and pre-occupation with fairness that was drilled into her at high school, college, and through the media. Her constant confrontations and trying to prove herself and to make a point.
Her self-centeredness, her ridiculously high expectations, her sense of entitlement, her high-maintenance, superficial, and stuck up attitude, her snootiness and her sense of superiority. This "princess" syndrome means that she will always think that she is better than you, and that she deserves and she is entitled to whatever she wants from you.
Her general mental instability and psychological disorders.
Her using sex as a weapon and reward to get things.
Brazilian women generally don't have any of these problems. Marrying an American woman simply does not make sense. The ONLY reason men stay with American women is because they did not have enough exposure to Brazilian women. Any man who spent a few months in Brazil will not even look at American women again.
They forgot one big thing: Brazilian women might KILL you!!

Ohio State Who? Michigan Who?

All season long, all I’ve been hearing about is Michigan and Ohio State, over and over again ad nauseam, the Wolverines and the Buckeyes, and how they’re so dominant and how there’s no doubt that they will be the only teams playing in the BCS Championship when it’s all said and done. Since the very beginning, I’ve been more than skeptical. I have just never seen it. And yesterday, my feelings were reinforced and were proven to be justified in a BIG WAY! Sure, both teams won, but they definitely struggled against no-name teams. Michigan beat Ball State by 8, 34-26. Ball State is a team that lost to North Dakota State, Northern Illinois and Western Michigan. Their offense looked like the Indianapolis Colts against the so-called mighty Blue and Gold. Ball State had a chance to tie the game with two minutes to go! And Michigan is #2? On the other hand, Ohio State barely triumphed over an Illinois team that lost to non-entities like Ohio, Syracuse, Iowa and Penn State and has pretty much been the embarrassment of the Big Ten. The Buckeyes got out to a fairly impressive 17-0 lead in the first half Saturday and then couldn’t score a single point in the second half against a deplorable defense while giving up 10. Sure, weaker teams are going to get pumped up and play way beyond their abilities when they go up against powerhouse schools like Michigan and Ohio State, and granted they did not lose. But, doesn’t the BCS take poor showings like this into account when calculating their rankings? I guess we’ll see next week. If the BCS is worth anything, Louisville should move WAY UP in points and both Ohio State and Michigan should drop considerably. I’m not saying they shouldn’t stay #1 and #2 respectively, I’m just saying that dominant undefeated teams worth anything play well week after week, and don’t put in the kind of performances we saw yesterday. If Louisville runs the table, there is no doubt in my mind they should be in the BCS Final. But, because they’re not a big school with a big name and $uper rich alumni, just watch the BCS deny them a chance. Until college football picks the top eight teams and has a playoff series every year, teams like Louisville will most surely get screwed. Just watch!

UGLY FRIDAY

Today was just ugly. I had to work all day and then I got caught in traffic and people were cutting me off and then cussing me out and it rained and then I felt like I was coming down with a cold and my dogs growled at me and then my fiancee was in a bad mood and then I started to get an upset stomach and then there was nothing worth watching on TV so I went to the video store and there was nothing good to rent so I rented something anyway and it was terrible. Now I want to go to sleep but it's too early and I'm stuck with indigestion, two angry dogs, one cranky fiancee and an unwatchable DVD. Man, it was an ugly day!

My NBA Selections for the Western Division

Yesterday I picked my Eastern Division winners and today I’m headed west, where the sun is brighter, the cheerleader’s outfits are tighter and the blunts are rolled hella bigger!
It’s a Texas hoedown on the Western Front, with all three teams from Tejas weighing in with some huge chances to be there when the cow dung hits the fan.

Here they are and all I can say is Yee-ha!

WESTERN DIVISION

SAN ANTONIO SPURS: If they don’t go all the way this season, they deserve to be hog-tied and bull-whipped, because they have the best squad, at least in the Western Division if not in the entire NBA. Tim Duncan is no longer the spry young man he was way back when, but he’s still a force night after night and when he’s at his best, he’s unstoppable. Sure, he averaged less than 20 ppg for the first time in his career last season, but he will get his numbers back up to respectability in no time. Rasho Nesterovic and Nazr Mohammed are gone, which is cool because I thought their names were too long, anyway. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobli are back, however, and that’s the good news.
Odds to win it all: 2 to 1.

DALLAS MAVERICKS: Granted, the owner is a jerk. (I refuse to print his name here, because he craves publicity and that would only be encouraging him.) Last season, Dirk Nowitzki stepped up and actually played some defense. He will continue to D up more this year, which will help this team immensely. Even though their backcourt is small, they have a great bench, with Jerry Stackhouse, Austin Croshere, Devean George and Anthony Johnson. If Josh Howard can mature and show more discipline than the team’s childish owner, the Mavs will look marvelous in 06/07.
Odds to win it all: 4 to 1.

PHOENIX SUNS: Coach Mike D’Antoni has a bunch of players that can beat any team on any given night, and if Steve Nash can continue to be a leader, the sun will again shine in Phoenix once more. Amare Stoudamire is back from missing last year due to injury, and although he may be a quarter- step slower, he’s probably a little wiser after observing and learning the game from the sidelines. The Suns have to learn to step up during the postseason – they always play phenomenal basketball during the regular season and then crumble under pressure during the playoffs. This may be the year they explode and char the rest of the west.
Odds to win it all: 7 to 1.

HOUSTON ROCKETS: If Tracy McGrady can stay healthy and Yao Ming starts playing tough and ceases being the Kung Yao Chicken in the post, the Rockets are headed skyward at the speed of light. If they learn to listen to Jeff Van Gundy, the coach will retain most of his hair and Houston will be once again in the championship race. Yao is the key to their success – it’s time for the 7-foot-5 former #1 pick to finally emerge as the dominant center in the game. Various foot problems caused the Yao-ster to miss 57 games last year, so hopefully he used some of his yen to hire a good podiatrist of acupuncturist this season.
Odds to win it all: 14 to 1.

Who will be in the NBA Finals?

(Drum roll, please!)

Dallas vs. Cleveland

And Who Will Go All the Way?

LeBron in 7!!

My NBA Selections for the Eastern Division

My NBA Pix for 2006/2007

The NBA season always starts out just like your average NBA game – things get going slowly and the most important part of the contest is always invariably the fourth quarter. That’s why they call the playoffs the second season. Injuries, arrests, benchings and quarrels all play a part in the way an NBA season evolves, so to accurately predict who will be there in the end is like trying to guess what Nicole Ritchie will weigh next month – it’s a crap shoot at best. But, because I am a glutton for punishment and hope springs eternal, I will give you who I feel will are the best four teams in each division. Today I will do the Eastern Division and tomorrow I will do the West.

EASTERN DIVISION:

MIAMI HEAT: Pat Riley is the best basketball coach still alive since the recent death of Red Auerbach and this team is loaded from top to bottom. Dwayne Wade and Shaquille O’Neal remind me of all the great tandems in the history of the game, like West-Chamberlain, Magic Johnson-Abdul-Jabbar and even Stockton-Malone. If Shaq stays healthy, the Heat will be a tough team to beat. If he gets hurt or loses momentum at any point, they’ll have to rely on Walker and Wade, which will make it a little tougher. No matter what, they’re still the class of the East.
(Odds to go all the way: 9-2)

DETROIT PISTONS: Center Nazr Mohammed has replaced Ben Wallace, which is like Vince Vaughn replacing Brad Pitt. They both do the same job, but one is a serious threat (Pitt) and the other (Vaughn) is about as dangerous as the lint you find in your naval on occasion. The Palace will still be rocking, however, because Detroit fans are the salt of the earth, and the team will contend. But, unless they get some major contributions from people like “Flips” Murray and, the Pistons might be running like hybrid vehicles with no gas in the tank by the time it’s all over.
(Odds to go all the way: 10-1)

NEW JERSEY NETS: The emergence of center Nenad Kristic and the comeback of Vince Carter could spell success for the Nets. Both can play in the post and possess the ability to make a big difference every single night. If Josh Boone can block some shots and provide support for Jason Collins, and if Jason Kidd can quickly teach Marcus Williams how they do things in the NBA, watch for the Nets to snag a few wins down the stretch and pull in some victories in the playoffs.
(Odds to go all the way: 12-1)

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: Why didn’t this team use the off season to surround King James with more talent? Four point guards to feed LeBron is not the approach I would have taken. Larry Hughes is flashy but inconsistent and center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is a very beat-up 31 years old. If Mike Brown will commit to the big Lithuanian, LeBron should get open enough to make us forget about his silly TV commercials. If things go as planned, the fans in Quicken Loans Arena will be get their payback for decades of frustration and false promises that the championship check is in the mail.
(Odds to go all the way: 12-1)

Back From Las Vegas

After a working vacation in Las Vegas, I'm dog-tired and drained. I had a great time, even though I was there covering a series of events for a newspaper. I saw a bunch of celebrities -- like the singer Jewel, baseball pitcher Roger Clemens, ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons, actor Ben Affleck and more. That's one thing I like about Las Vegas -- you get to see stars walking right through the casinos just like normal schlubs like you and me. One of the highlights of the trip is when we got to see the Cirque du Soleil Beatles show LOVE at the Mirage. All I can say is Wow! I will be reviewing it in more detail soon, but for now let's put it this way -- it's AMAZING!! This spectacular show called LOVE was created from a personal friendship and mutual admiration between the late George Harrison and Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte. LOVE brings the magic of Cirque together with the unmatched spirit and passion behind the most beloved rock group of all time to create a vivid, intimate and powerful entertainment experience. Using the tapes at Abbey Road studios, Sir George Martin and Giles Martin have created a unique soundscape of The Beatles music for LOVE. The custom-built theater at The Mirage features 360 degree seating, panoramic video projections and amazing surround sound. I loved LOVE and so will you!

ON (A WORKING) VACATION

What do we have here? A stowaway? United doesn't allow dogs in the luggage!
I have blogged every single day since I started this thing, but I have to leave town for work this week, so the blogging will finally get a break. If you're bored, you can always look at any of my archived material. Also, you can click on Next Blog in the upper right hand corner of this page, and visit any of the other great blogs out there. I'll be back in the blogging game upon my return on October 31, ready with more amazing stories of LIFE ON THE EDGE.

NBA's Stephen Jackson is an Easy Selection as My Douche Bag of the Month

(If some of these guys weren't NBA athletes, we'd see them for what they truly are -- COMPLETE THUGS!! Stephen Jackson got involved in an incident outside a strip club a while back, and then instead of admitting he screwed up, he's now trying to say he did the right thing and people just misunderstand him. Yeah, going to a strip club while you should be in training with three guys who all have guns with them is really a smart thing to do. You're all over it, Stephen! Jackson is trying to play it like he's the victim here. Ever heard of staying home and resting so that you can earn some of those millions someone is dumb enough to pay you? Not to mention you're already on probation for some other stupid sh-- you did earlier. Man, these a-holes really make me mad. Way to stay out of trouble, Jackson. If you didn't have a jump shot you'd probably be in prison right now. Guess what? Stephen Jackson is my Douche Bag of the Month! And it was a no-brainer!)

INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana Pacers guard Stephen Jackson fired shots in the air in apparent self-defense after he was hit by a car outside a strip club early Friday -- the latest blow to a team struggling to rebuild its image.
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said Jackson and teammates Jamaal Tinsley, Marquis Daniels and Jimmie Hunter committed an "error in judgment" by staying out late during training camp. No one was seriously injured.
"Stephen is very lucky," Carlisle said. "It was a potential life-threatening situation that was averted. And right now, the biggest emotion I feel is relief that he's going to be OK."
Police said the disturbance began with an argument inside Club Rio involving patrons and players. The players said they left the club, but the patrons followed them. Then things turned physical.
Sgt. Matthew Mount, a police spokesman, said Jackson fired five shots from a 9mm pistol outside the Indianapolis club after he was hit in the mouth and struck by a car that sent him tumbling onto the hood. Officers were searching for the vehicle and three men wanted for questioning.
Carlisle said Jackson needed stitches in his lip and face but had no broken bones or other damage. His status for Wednesday's preseason opener against New Jersey was unclear.
"He's got some scrapes and bruises, but this guy is going to bounce back," Carlisle said.
Police said a small amount of marijuana was found in the passenger-side door of the car belonging to Tinsley. Carlisle declined to comment on that, saying he didn't have enough information. Mount said no arrests were made because police could not determine who had the marijuana. Three others were in the car with Tinsley, police said.
NBA spokesman Tim Frank said the league was monitoring the situation. The NBA's drug policy says players who test positive for marijuana face rehabilitation, fines and suspensions, depending on whether it is a first offense. Testing is done randomly throughout the season and for reasonable cause.
Tinsley and Daniels also had guns in their cars, and all three armed players had weapons permits, Mount said.
Mount said police were reviewing a security tape and 911 calls from the club. The grainy image shows a car striking Jackson and at least one shot being fired into the air, police said.
The Pacers are still trying to shake the damage from the fight between Pacers and Detroit Pistons fans at Auburn Hills, Mich., two seasons ago.
Indiana was a title contender the last two seasons but those hopes were dashed by fallout from the brawl and suspensions and injuries. Fans often booed the team and crowds fell to their lowest level in nearly decade in last year's 41-41 season.
This year, the team has taken out ads and billboards featuring players and the slogan "It's up to us." The Pacers held parties for season-ticket holders in an effort to renew interest.
They also brought in 12 new players, including former Pacer Al Harrington. Even Jackson, who was suspended 30 games for his role in the brawl and often was at odds with Carlisle last season, talked about spending a summer "soul-searching" and returning with a positive attitude.
But instead of being asked about the positive moves, a new up-tempo offense and the exhibition opener Wednesday against New Jersey, team officials again were answering uncomfortable questions.
Jackson, a 28-year-old guard, joined the Pacers in 2004 and averaged 16 points during the 2005-06 season.
He pleaded no contest to misdemeanor assault charges related to the Auburn Hills mayhem and was sentenced in September 2005 to a year's probation and community service. He was named in a lawsuit filed by a Detroit fan in connection with the brawl.
During a recent news conference, Jackson hugged Carlisle and sat by his side to answer questions -- a gesture the Pacers hoped would symbolize improved team chemistry.
"As a franchise, we have to take responsibility for what goes on," Carlisle said. "Our players realize that being out that late during training camp is not the right thing. It's an error in judgment, and it's going to have to change."