Yard House: A Full Rack

Just to let you know upfront this will be a pretty extensive review very much like the one I did for Taps Fish House and Brewery.  If you haven't read the review for that place, definitely check it out by clicking here. 

Now where do I begin with Yard House (YH)....Just a mental note, this will be my third visit but my first review.  From what I recall service was average and the food is pretty good.  Can't really remember what I ordered in the past but I can tell you exactly what I got this time around.  By the way, we also ordered a lot of food here so hopefully you can keep up with me by the end of this entry, if not, feel free to just scroll through the images and their respective reviews if something looks interesting to you.

First the appetizers...

Grilled Artichoke

Great appetizer especially if you haven't had grilled artichoke's before.  I love spinach and artichoke dip so I had no doubt that I wouldn't like this starter.  What's unique about this dish is that you break a piece of the artichoke wedge off of it's stem, dip the bottom of the wedge into the aioli dipping sauce, bite into the wedge and slowly scrape off the artichoke off of the skin with your teeth.  I thought that was genius!  Just being able to discover new ways to eat foods just fascinates me.  Not knowing this any sooner just surprises me since I've been to countless restaurants and this is the first time for me.

As far as taste, it was good.  Squirt the lemon on top of the wedges and you are good to go.  The chips were excellent since they kept it's crispy texture throughout the night.

Ahi Poke Bowl

I'd pass on the ahi poke bowl.  This dish consisted of raw, marinated ahi tuna with sliced carrots and daikon atop of two deep-friend wonton chips with a slice of avocado on the side, which was weird to me. It would have been better if they incorporated the avocado into the dish instead of it being a sidekick.  Sharing this dish was a little bit harder because of that reason.  Everyone's forks are trying to break up a piece of the avocado, some bigger than others, but if they were already diced to proportion then maybe there wouldn't be that problem.  

Out of all the raw dishes, this one was a bit tasteless.  I think you really have to rely on the marinade in this one because the carrots, daikon, and the wonton doesn't do much for the ahi tuna.  Also, if everyone in your party took a large portion of the avocado, you're basically S.O.L.  I'll give it a try again next time only if someone else decides to get it.

Spicy Tuna Roll

Died and went to heaven.  Only thing that kind of threw off the dish was the edamame but who cares, they sort of fell off of the roll and I really didn't bother to eat them with the spicy tuna after the first bite with it.  The mushy texture from the avocado + spicy tuna and the hard bite into the soybean didn't do much for me.  The dish itself is still heavenly especially if you are a avid sushi eater.  For an American restaurant, they did a pretty good take on a spicy tuna roll.

Truffle Fries

The truffle fries are a must here.  I adore french fries so when they are fried in truffle oil with shredded parmesan and herbs to finish it off?  It was to die for.  I can just imagine myself going to YH just for their truffle fries.  Okay, maybe with the Spicy Tuna Roll too. ;)

And the entrees...

Ahi Crunchy Salad

I love salads that have a strong sesame dressing.  Maybe it's because I'm Asian, but what can you do.  Greens were fresh, wontons crunchy, and the ahi tuna was nicely seared.  Don't mind getting this again the next time I'm feeling like I want a light salad for din din.

Pepper Crusted Filet

The boyfriend ordered the pepper crusted filet after the waitress had recommended it to us.  I've had wayyy better steak.  Kind of disappointed to see this on the not-so-good side of the review because I was pretty stoked after having all those delectable appetizers to start with minus the ahi poke tuna bowl.

St. Louis Style Ribs

NOW THIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!!  I did a review on the baby back ribs at The Stinking Rose, but that place had some dry a** ribs.  YH did good.  My baby back ribs were sweet, tangy, moist and finger-lickin', mother-may-I-have-some-more, gooooooood!

With my FULL rack of baby back ribs!

I usually like carbs on the side whether if it's rice or bread with my meat but it's all good since the creamed corn and the beans made up for it.  I don't like beans unless if they're in my Chipotle burrito but that's about it, but these beans had a sweet taste to it.  The cilantro is a plus (since I love that stuff!).  The creamed corn comes close to a second when it comes to this dish.  After I had eaten as much as I could, I see forks coming left and right going after my creamed corn!  Sharing is caring but internally, I was struggling to let my boyfriend and his sister-in-law take some.  Next day when I took my leftovers to work, I only had like a mini, clear plastic sauce containers you dispense ketchup in at a Burger King.  Sad, but I couldn't let it go to waste!

Last image is just a piece of artwork hung right behind me.  I'm starting to show bits and pieces of the restaurant so that you can somewhat have an idea how it's going to be.  This artwork doesn't sum up the entire setting, but it caught my eye.  That and I felt that the bandit was going to steal my food!  Not this time cowboy!

<3 Lina Chen

13881 Peyton Dr.,  Chino Hills, CA 91709

 909.631.2200.  http://www.yardhouse.com

House of Prime Rib

House of Prime Rib is notorious for...well...their prime ribs. 

Note:  Make sure you call ahead of time to make reservations.  Long before my trip out to San Francisco I knew I wanted to go here to celebrate my love with Eric, but the thought of reserving a spot for two didn't hit me until the day of.  That was a big mistake, but well worth the two hour wait.  The chances of us eating there was pretty slim, but the reservationist on the other end of the phone recommended coming in early.  Their doors open at 4 P.M. and we got there by 5 P.M.  

Parking is a nightmare in San Francisco so we pulled right up to the House of Prime Rib and valeted our car.  It's less of a headache trying to 1. find parking and 2. constantly feeding quarters into the meter.  Honestly, I think there was only 8 minutes to each quarter so within the 4 hours you sit waiting and eating at the House of Prime Rib, it equates to having your car valeted ($9).  

For walk-in's you want to make sure you put your name on the list and you're sitting in and around the waiting area, it can take a long time before they call your name and so you want the option to sit down but also stand up.  This place fills up pretty fast so get there nice and early.  

As soon as we were seated into our little corner, our server briefly tells us how to order.  Basically there are multiple cuts of prime rib based off of thickness and size.  I ordered the House of Prime Rib Cut where it's a hearty portion of meat that's slightly thick and smaller in size.  Eric's King Henry VIII Cut is basically a big, thick, cut for fattiest of fatties.  A perfect size for King Eric. 

The prime rib is complimented with a side of mashed or baked potato, creamed spinach or creamed corn, salad, and Yorkshire pudding.  The server brings out a bed of salad atop another bowl filled with ice cubes and starts mixing in the vinaigrette by spinning the salad bowl and slowly pouring in the dressing.  This isn't necessarily my first time watching someone do this, but it adds an element of entertainment that just enlightens the whole experience.

A good 10-15 minutes later our prime rib comes out with our creamed spinach and creamed corn.  It smelled so good, we just wanted to dig right in, but before my anxious boyfriend devoured his big meat, I took a picture of his gleaming, happy face:

Isn't he cute?

Overall, I give this place 4 1/2 stars out of 5.  The succulent prime rib was tender, juicy, and scrumptious.    I just didn't care for the Yorkshire Pudding and the Au Jus sauce that came with the prime rib was a bit salty.  So for those who like less salty dishes, try not to drench the meat in the Au Jus.  Other then that, everything was great.  The experience, the food, and the atmosphere.  If you visit San Francisco, visit House of Prime Rib.  

It's one of those places that everyone needs to try once in their lifetime. 

<3 Lina Chen

 1906 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109

415.885.4605.   www.houseofprimerib.net