Call Me Dr. Jones

This past weekend I was lucky enough to enjoy some great food but not so lucky enough to watch game 1 of the Boston/Orlando series or any other sports for that matter. It was just one of those weekends with Bay to Breakers taking up the majority of my time. So this entry is mostly foodie related but I will review the Conference Finals match-ups in my next post. Also, congrats to the Chicago Black Hawks for a nice victory in game 1 over the Sharks…let’s hope they can continue the solid play.

When I first moved to San Francisco I moved into a neighborhood called the Mission District with my brother Mike. One of our first suppers was at was a place called Ramblas Tapas Bar on Valencia street. Ramblas is authentic Spanish tapas that also have serve great cocktails. This place is also significant to me because I took my girl friend there for one of our first dates four years ago.

We found ourselves in the Mission neighborhood over the weekend and decided to dine in again after such a great experience, we had not been back since our first date. I am starting with the good news first:

We started with drinks at the bar while we waiting for our table to be ready. People who know me understand how much I enjoy a martini its the Lithuanian and Polish roots driving this cause, I was born to like the vodka. So I order a Grey Goose martini straight up with olives. The bartender made a great martini but the glass that it was served in made my evening. I am notoriously known for observing food/drinks in movie/TV shows and get excited when they cross my path in real life. Let me explain…..Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom has one of the best introductions to a movie. When Dr. Jones drinks his martini out of the 1950’s martini glass that contains poison that was giving to him by Lao Che is priceless. When Ramblas served my martini in a similar glass on Saturday night I felt like Dr. Jones himself except whiteout the white suite. So this got me thinking, what are the best 10 food/drink moments in TV/movie history? Here are the rankings:


10.) Big Trouble in Little China Town-Egg Shen's secret potion that made Jack Burton “feel invincalbe”. Who would not try something that contains a six-demon bag?



9.) Honey I Shrunk The Kids-Yes this is a kids movie but how good did that huge cookie look?



8.) Demolition Man- 2 nice dishes to choose from: one being the high-end taco bell dish but more importantly the Rat Burger Stallone eats in the underground community.



7.) Ground Hog Day- Bill Murray enjoying life's favorites food without any consequences.


6.) Back to the Future 2- Who would not try a dehydrated pizza? I did also enjoy the fruit tree that came down from the ceiling.



5.) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Secret of the Ooze- The turtles called it Ninja Pizza and I ate a lot of it.




4.) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom- I had to list 2 from this movie. First the martini glass I mentioned earlier, very classic and 2nd the "chilled monkey brains", after all is was served for desert.



3.) Big Lebowski- White Russian, nothing else to say.

2.) Cosby Show- I grew up watching the Cosby show and this is probably why I really enjoyed Hoagies with chips sprinkled in the sandwich so much. Plus, it was always greeted with orange drink or cola.



1.)Pulp Fiction- Big Kahuna burger and the thick shakes…Samuel Jackson really sells that burger and soda for that matter.

Did I miss anything? let me know.

Back to dinner
We had one of the following:
Salt Roasted Beets- I did not even like beets before I had this dish.
Niman Ranch Bavette Steak
Spanish Pasta-Best thing I had that night
Zuckerman Farms Grilled Asparagus
Garlic Shrimp
Onion Roasted Potatoes-Second favorite
Organic House-Made Flatbread

Ramblas does not disappoint but earlier I did mention there is bad news. Ramblas will be closing at the end of May, which is truly sad but I am happy I was able to dine their one more time. If your around the Mission area in the next few weeks get in before it's too late and ask for a martini straight up.