Volume 1 I Issue 3 Spring 2013 San Mateo/Burlingame G U I D E Get the dish on all things culinary in San Mateo and Burlingame Small bites, Big flavor Celebrating Japanese Yakitori See Page 7 PLUS: Our usual directory of San Mateo and Burlingame food and dining establishments Free Take One
A directory of all things food and dining related in San Mateo and Burlingame. Bonus, a cover story about the latest trend in Japanese yakitori style restaurants.
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Volume 1 I Issue 3 Spring 2013
San Mateo/Burlingame
G U I D E
Get the dish on all things culinary in San Mateo and Burlingame
Small bites,Big flavorCelebrating Japanese Yakitori See Page 7
PLUS: Our usual directory of San Mateo and Burlingame food and dining establishments
Free Take One
GUID E
The San Mateo/Burlingame Food and Dining Guide is a publication of the San Mateo Daily Journal.The listings in the directory were provided by the Cities of San Mateo and Burlingame. For information about any aspect of the publication, to receive it at your business or to advertise your food and dining related business, or to let us know of any correction to the directory, please email us at [email protected] or call us at 650-344-5200.
Staff:
Business DevelopmentCharlotte AndersonMartin Gomez Jeff PalterCreative DirectorNicola ZeuzemProduction AssistantCarrie DoungInternsKevin SmithContributorErin HurleyPhotographyJD CrayneOffice ManagerGale GreenPublisherJerry Lee
On the coverPreparation of Yakatory at Kokko’s Restaurant
Copyright 2013, SMDJ LLC.
Leading local news coverage on the Peninsula
Irasshaimase!
If you’re familiar with the pleasures of dining out at Japanese restaurants, you will undoubtedly be familiar with that term. Employees and proprietors at most Japanese restaurants,
loudly proclaim it whenever a customer walks into their establishment.
This quarter’s issue of the San Mateo / Burlingame Food & Dining Guide features a wonderful piece about the recent trend in Japanese yakitori restaurants in our local area. The article, written by contributor Erin Hurley and backed up visually by photographer J.D. Crayne, features profiles of three local restaurants that offer the sumptuous Japanese grilling techniques at their establishments. Enjoy the wonderful talents of these two Dining Guide contributors. While you read the story and view the pics, you will swear you can almost smell the smoke coming out of the grills.
Along with the yakitori story (yaki-story?), we also have in this issue, a list of all food and dining related establishments in the cities of San Mateo and Burlingame.
The best way to use this directory is to keep this guide handy at your office or home. Several of our Dining Guide readers have told us that they keep a copy of the directory in their cars. whenever they have a hankering for food, they access the directory to find a place they have never tried.
However you may use our Dining Guide, we appreciate that you’ve picked it up. We hope, too, that you decide to support those who have supported our endeavors. Please let them know you found them through this publication. Remember, this guide is designed to have a shelf life of three months. Our next issue comes out in June.
Until then, here is a tip for you for the next time you go to a Japanese restaurant. After you have finished and paid the bill, if you’ve enjoyed the experience, tell them “Gochisosama.” It basically means “Thanks for the wonderful meal.”
San Mateo/Burlingame
3 San Mateo Dining Guide The San Mateo Daily Journal
213 Bistro213 E 3rd Avenue (650) 347-3988
231 Ellsworth231 S Ellsworth Avenue (650) 347-7231
2nd Avenue Market503 2nd Avenue (650) 759-0503
3 Bees Coffee House224 E 3rd Avenue (650) 548-0789
3rd Avenue Sports Bar & Grill77 E 3rd Avenue (650) 340-9872
7 Stars Food2200 S El Camino Real (650) 571-0578
31st Union5 S Ellsworth Avenue
(650) 458-0049See Page 12
ABC Cafe210 E 3rd Avenue (650) 685-8881
Acquapazza201 E 3rd Avenue (650) 375-0903
Ajisen San Mateo211 E 3rd Avenue (650) 344-8887
Aladdin Gourmet International208 E Hillsdale Boulevard (650) 212-7775
Albayk670 E. Third Avenue (650) 342-7500
Aldos Pizza600 S Norfolk Street (650) 344-5051
Alex’s Cafe at the Library55 W 3rd Avenue (650) 579-6087
Alhana Foods25 37th Avenue (650) 349-3300
All Spice1602 S El Camino Real (650) 627-4303
Americano Deli and Grill224 E Hillsdale Boulevard (650) 483-4091
Americas House1440 Cary Avenue (650) 342-5990
Amici’s East Coast Pizzeria69 E 3rd Avenue (650) 342-9392
Andersen Bakery and Cafe198 Hillsdale Mall (650) 571-5380
Annas Danish Cookies1001 Howard Avenue (650) 373-2662
Arguello Catering3055 Clearview Way (650) 366-6540
The San Mateo Daily Journal San Mateo Dining Guide 7
Small bites, big flavorYakitori adds fun, friends to dining experience
By Erin Hurley
San Mateo County is home to a variety of Japanese food, but if you’re look-
ing for something small and simple, yakitori might be just the thing. This dish is made by grilling different parts of chicken over charcoal and serving it on skewers. And it’s served proudly at three Japanese restaurants in downtown San Mateo and Burlingame.
Kokko promises a good time
One destination for customers seeking a ya-kitori fix in San Mateo
is Yakitori Kokko. The fourth restaurant opened by Keisuke Suga, Kokko has been on Sec-ond Avenue for three years.It’s common in Japan for people to go out and drink with friends and eat yakitori, Suga said, and at the time he opened Kokko there wasn’t a place like that in the area. He’s a big fan of yakitori himself, and said he felt he contributed to the Japa-nese community by opening his business.“Everybody has been waiting a long time,” Suga said.Kokko offers a range of ya-kitori dishes and other meat, vegetable and seafood skewers. Suga said he wants his yakitori to be just like the yakitori in a
restaurant in Japan, and serves it with the traditional salt or tare sauce. Though there are other yakitori restaurants close by, Suga said he isn’t worried about compet-ing and Kokko has developed a strong base of loyal customers. Some diners have come in and then left when they saw there was no sushi on the menu, or didn’t like the loud music played in the restaurant. But most people like it, Suga said. Other yakitori restaurants are more appropriate places for business meetings, but not Kokko — Suga wants people to feel comfortable drinking and talking loud. He has another restaurant that’s more of a “business style,” but Kokko is different. “This one I want to make small and busy — a fun atmosphere,” Suga said.
Yakitori served with a smile
Another option for yakitori in downtown San Mateo is Izakaya
Ginji, serving diners on the corner of Fourth Avenue and B Street for approximately two years. Kitchen manager Seiichiro Nishimoto said an “izakaya” res-taurant in Japan is where people go to drink and spend time with friends, rather than a family restaurant. And it was his idea to focus this restaurant on yakitori, which is “basically finger food” in Japan and often eaten while drinking. But the restaurant does get many families as repeat cus-tomers, and has a set menu with other fare like sushi and sashimi.“Maybe that’s different than the Japanese way of doing izakaya, but we’re trying to come up with our own style,” Nishimoto said.
At Izakaya Ginji, they keep the yakitori like “what you could get at any yakitori place in Ja-pan,” Nishimoto said, and the restaurant also serves other items on skewers like beef and prawns. Barbecuing is his favorite method of cooking, and Nishimoto said he likes the challenge of cooking with real fire. Nishimoto’s goal is to make Izakaya Ginji “one of the best yakitori places in the com-munity.” When it opened, not many people even knew what yakitori was, he said, but now
people are catching on and he’s more confident now.For Nishimoto, Izakaya Ginji is about service as well as good food. Customers are always enthusiastically wel-comed by employees, simi-lar to the atmosphere of an izakaya restaurant in Japan. He said he wants custom-ers to relax and have fun, as well as learn more about real Japanese food. “I want them to go home full with satisfaction from our service,” Nishimoto said.
Continued on page 8
Yakitori Kokko
Izakaya Ginji
photos JD Crayne
8 San Mateo Dining Guide The San Mateo Daily Journal
New arrival emphasizes experience
Last October, Burlingame welcomed Mokutanya, its own yakitori restaurant on
California Drive. Contractors Jason Li and Joe Zheng opened the restaurant because they were always looking for a place to eat after work, Zheng said, and decided to open their own. Mokutanya is a place where din-ers can hang out and order just a small amount of food rather than a large dinner, Zheng said. Li said he wanted a place where people could have drinks along with their food — he personally likes drinking, but not going to clubs or bars. A number of yakitori dishes are available at Mokutanya, some
served with different sauces like wasabi and spicy mayon-naise. The restaurant’s other fare includes sushi and ramen. They considered their target custom-ers in creating the menu, Zheng said, and deciding on details like portion size.“Pizza in Italy is totally different than U.S. pizza ... our food fits for this audience,” Zheng said. “Maybe we twist a little bit.”Mokutanya also distinguishes itself by staying open until 2 a.m., and Li said they get a lot of customers coming in late. But making a profit isn’t the most important thing for them. As long as they have customers, can
pay the bills and are happy them-selves, “we don’t really care,” Zheng said.Li said he wants customers to remember their experience dining at Mokutanya. The tables are designed so diners sit on the floor, like a traditional Japanese meal (but there’s leg room carved out underneath for comfort). “We deliver a different experi-ence for the customers,” Li said. “It’s not just the food. It’s the environment, the service, every-thing added together.”
If you go ...
Izakaya Ginji (yakitori only available on weekends)301 E. Fourth Avenue San Mateo(650) 348-1110www.izakayaginji.com
Yakitori Kokko509 Second Avenue San Mateo(650) 401-7008
Mokutanya-Yakitori1155 California Drive, Burlingamewww.themokutanya.com/(650) 348-9388
Continued from page 7
Mokutanya
Mokutanya Beef Tatakiphotos JD Crayne
The San Mateo Daily Journal San Mateo Dining Guide 9
Honey Berry165 E 4th Avenue (650) 340-0188
Hop on Sushi116 W 25th Avenue (650) 931-4038
Hot Dog on a Stick44 Hillsdale Mall #6074 (650) 638-1313
Hot Wok Bistro1012 Howard Avenue #A (650) 548-1758
Hot Wok Cafe2960 S Norfolk Street (650) 573-1350
Hotaru Restaurant33 E 3rd Avenue (650) 343-1152
House of Bagels680 E 3rd Avenue (650) 548-1100
Inshou Japanese Cuisine2942 S Norfolk Street (650) 212-1272
Islanders Meat and Groceries1620 Palm Avenue (650) 570-6663
Izakaya Ginji301 E 4th Avenue (650) 348-1110
Izakaya Mai212 2nd Avenue (650) 347-2511
J.J.’s Yogurt1226 W Hillsdale Blvd (650) 571-6311
Jack in the Box555 E 3rd Avenue (650) 347-5911
Jack’s Prime3723 S El Camino Real (650) 638-1479
Jade Dragon Restaurant2450 S El Camino Real (650) 635-6288
Jamba Juice1230 W Hillsdale Boulevard (650) 357-0804
Jamba Juice48 E 4th Avenue (650) 558-3918
Javaddictions3333 S El Camino Real (650) 863-3342
Jeffrey’s Hamburgers42 S B Street (650) 348-8698
Joy Sushi30 S B Street (650) 340-8974
Just Panini44 Hillsdale Mall (650) 638-1767
Kaffeehaus92 E 3rd Avenue (650) 347-4242
Kathy’s Kreative Kakes631 S B Street (650) 348-5253
Kaz Teriyaki Grill71 E 4th Avenue (650) 347-5777
Key Market500 S Norfolk Street (650) 340-0148
KFC406 E 3rd Avenue (650) 579-7271
Kingfish201 S B Street (650) 343-1226
Kingston Cafe19 N Kingston Street (650) 430-0623
Kisaku Japanese Restaurant47 E 4th Avenue (650) 347-4121
Kitcho Restaurant204 2nd Avenue #A (650) 348-6388
Kobeya140 W 25th Avenue (650) 530-2990
Kokko509 2nd Avenue (650) 901-7008
L and L Hawaiian Bbq94 E 3rd Avenue (650) 347-8885
La Cafe1900 S Norfolk St #126 (650) 345-5939
La Chapina397 S Claremont Street (650) 458-9797
La Flor215 S Delaware Street (650) 342-3713
Neal’s Coffee Shop Staff
10 San Mateo Dining Guide The San Mateo Daily Journal
La Fonda2310 S El Camino Real (650) 574-9699
La Lanterna180 W 25th Avenue (650) 341-8877
La Morenita Market1519 S Claremont Street (650) 286-1914
La Nortena1037 N Amphlett Boulevard (650) 347-3977
La Pinata Market511 E 4th Avenue (650) 343-6554
La Pinata Restaurant120 N B Street (650) 344-5722
Lahmacun Pizzeria and Mediterranean Grill35 Laurie Meadows Drive (650) 574-0107
Lakuni325 E 4th Avenue (650) 347-3140
Las Americas Restaurant254 S B Street #B (510) 344-9535
Las Palomas Taqueria504 E 3rd Avenue (650) 343-9925
Le Boulanger62 E 4th Avenue (650) 594-9244
Lilys Creperie108 De Anza Boulevard (650) 312-1579
Little Caesars615 E 3rd Avenue (408) 656-3285
Little Caesers4060 S El Camino Real (650) 358-8455
Little China Kitchen215 E 3rd Avenue (650) 348-3890
Little Hunan Restaurant120 De Anza Boulevard (650) 571-1575
Little Shanghai Restaurant17 E 25th Avenue (408) 656-7862
Little Sichuan Restaurant168 E 4th Avenue (650) 345-9168
Los Moreno Taquerio37 43rd Avenue (650) 312-1161
Lucetis109 W 25th Avenue (650) 574-1256
Lucky Dragon Restaurant152 South Boulevard (650) 578-8686
Mamas Vietnamese Cuisine2456 S El Camino Real (650) 572-8822
Marias Restaurant1452 Cary Avenue (650) 208-0845
Marina Market2992 S Norfolk Street (650) 345-6911
Mariners Cafe1510 Fashion Island Boulevard #105 (650) 357-0013
Market La Raza380 N Ellsworth Avenue (650) 343-5145
Maru Maru213 2nd Avenue (650) 344-2100
Masu Japanese Bistro79 E 3rd Avenue (650) 342-5254
McDonalds1420 S El Camino Real (650) 349-2878
Mcdonalds1324 W Hillsdale Boulevard (650) 577-8040
Melting Pot Restaurant2 N B Street (650) 342-6358
Mercadito El Nayarita700 Tilton Avenue (650) 347-1683
Mi Rancho Supermarket39 N B Street (650) 347-7052
Michoacan Super201 N Amphlett Boulevard (650) 343-6095