A Bit Saucy Podcast

02/22/2022

It's Redemption Time! We are giving a second chance to a place we rated a little low at first. We return to Gott's Roadside in St. Helena California! Vanessa wanted to try the Crab Louie Salad, and Sergio went with one of their classic California Burgers! It was a near-perfect experience, except for one major flub on their part... Tune and find out what happened! Also: A Vanessa's History Hive update for Nick's Cove, Vanessa reviews Butcher Crown's Seoul Bowl, and a small review of KC's American Kitchen in Windsor (and find an unfortunately-described item on the menu!), and Sergio reviews Kosho's Sesame Chicken dish! Listen in and find out what makes it to the brand-new Best of 2022 leaderboard!

Gott's Roadside

Sergio's Order:

California Burger (Fried egg, Cowgirl Creamery’s Wagon Wheel cheese, Zoe’s bacon, arugula, balsamic onions & mayo on a toasted sesame brioche bun), Garlic Fries, Cherry Coke

Vanessa's Order:

Crab Louie Salad, Strawberry Milkshake

KC's American Kitchen

Sergio's Order:

WaHaKa Fish Tacos

Vanessa's Order:

Asian Crispy Chicken Salad

02/02/2022

We had a beautiful seaside dinner at Nick's Cove in Marshall, California! It's a quaint old restaurant with its own boat dock right on Tomales Bay. Does the quality of the seafood match the quality of the superb atmosphere? Tune in and find out!

We're doing something new for our reviews: We are doing away with our number rating and introducing a new segment where we will categorize our meals and nominate them for Best Of's when appropriate! We explain why we're making this change in the episode. Hope you dear listeners understand and enjoy the new addition to the show!

Sergio's Order:

Lagunitas IPA Beer-Battered Fish & Chips

Vanessa's Order:

Dungeness Crab Louie Salad

Both: Tomales Tonic (Gin and tonic with lime)

01/21/2022

To ring in the new year, we bring to you a special episode: The Best of 2021! Just like the food magazines do, we recap the year by giving out awards for many important categories of restaurant dining. We re-live all of our finest bites and experiences (and a couple the opposite!) And for the grand finale, find out who wins the prestigious Sparkling Plate Club Awards!

Here are all the awards we gave out in this episode:

Most interesting history • Most creative • Most excited to go back • Most pleasant surprise • Most underrated • Most memorable • Biggest disappointment • Place you want to give another chance • Where you want to try next year • Favorite podcast moment • Favorite episode to record • Best dish we didn't review on the show • Best Breakfast • Best side dish • Best sandwich • Best drink • Best alcoholic drink • Best salad • Best sauce • Best service • Best takeout • Best treat • Best atmosphere • Best cheap meal (under $40) • Best new restaurant • Best fancy restaurant • Best presentation • Best Vegetarian Dish • Best Seafood • Best value • Best dish • Best meal

Happy New Year everyone! Keep dipping it in and saucing it up!

01/08/2022

We spent the holidays saucing it up in style! We spent Christmas Eve having dinner at John Ash & Co. at the Vintner's Resort (Santa Rosa, CA) and our annual Christmas dinner celebration at Stark's Steak and Seafood (Santa Rosa, CA). There were some touches of Holiday spirit in each venue. Who was the fancier one? Which one did we like more? Was it worth the money? All this and more when you tune in! As always, we give our number rating out of ten, and talk about what we would order for next time. Happy New Year everyone!

John Ash & Co.

Sergio's Order

Hobb's Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin (Special), Old Fashioned



Vanessa's Order

Pan Seared Diver Scallops, Peach Bellini

Shared: Housemade and Journeymen Charcuterie with Cheese

Stark's Steak and Seafood

Sergio's Order

Medium Rare New York Prime Steak

Vanessa's Order

Medium Rare Bone-In Rib Eye

Shared: Roasted Cremini Mushrooms

12/23/2021

Nothing like the cold of the late autumn/early winter to make A Bit Saucy want to cozy up with some good ol' comfort food! We revisit Butcher Crown Roadhouse in Petaluma, Izakaya Kou in San Francisco (now Izakaya Hashibiro Kou), and Vanessa gets a salad at 4th Street Deli!



Sergio's Order:

Roadhouse Burger, Old Bay Fries, Prickly Pear Cider

Vanessa's Order:

Brisket Tacos, Sangria

Izakaya Kou

Shared order: Tako Yaki, Chicken Karaage, Square Beef, Okonomiyaki

4th St Deli

Cobb Salad

12/09/2021

Hey Sauceketeers! We are back after hiatus. We had a lot to do, but we also had a lot to eat! We review locals night at Rivers End in Jenner, have lunch again at Korbel Deli in Guerneville, try a new-for-us pizza at Kin in Windsor, have a quick snack at Amy's Wicked Slush, try the relatively-new O&C China Bistro in Sebastopol, and buy a giant cheesecake for Thanksgiving from the College Confectionista! We didn't give number ratings for these because they weren't full reviews, but we do give our honest takes on all of the orders! In order to be more consistent and save some money, we are switching to putting out episodes every other week. Stay saucy folks!

River's End (01:18)

Sergio's Order:

Quesabirria

Vanessa's Order:

Mushroom Pasta

Both: Sweet Basil Martini

Korbel Deli (15:37)

Sergio's Order:

"Bohemian" Sandwich

Vanessa's Order:

Harvest Salad w/Chicken

Both: Pomegranate Bellinis

Kin (20:38)

Sergio's Order:

Pizza Al Fun Guy

Vanessa's Order:

Truffalo Wings

Amy's Wicked Slush (26:39)

Sour Mango Slush with vanilla ice cream

Pretzel Bites With Cheese Sauce

O&C China Bistro (36:46)

Sergio's Order:

Szechuan Pork

Vanessa's Order:

Orange Sesame Chicken

Both: Egg Rolls, Dancing Prawns

College Confectionista (42:38)

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cheesecake

11/06/2021

We finally visit Kosho! This is a place that has been on our radar since we first saw it in the Barlow shopping center of Sebastopol. It always looked a bit fancy which was a little intimidating for us, but we actually found out the prices were reasonable enough! We had a hankering for sushi, so we decided to try it out. Was it worth? Tune in and find out! As always, we gave our number rating out of ten, and talk about what we would order for next time! We also touch on another visit to Dave's Hot Chicken, a preview of Kinsmoke in Healdsburg, and Vanessa's fun day at Martin Ray Winery!

Sergio's Order

Grilled Trumpet Mushrooms, Red Dragon Roll

Vanessa's Order

Machi-Bon, Pork Belly Donburi

10/28/2021

We review "Dave's Hot Chicken" a new small fast food chain with southern California locations and one northern California location that happens to be in Santa Rosa! It got high-profile when Drake became a backer of it, but what about the flavor? Is it worth checking out despite the hype? Tune in and find out! We also check out Penngrove Market, a small boutique corner market that makes wood-fired pizzas AND stocks Mariposa ice cream!! We mainly review the pizza but were so charmed by the shop overall that we had to talk about it as well. We give our number rating for both places and also talk about what we would order for next time.

Dave's Hot Chicken

Sergio's Order

#3 (1 Tender, 1 Slider) with large Hi-C

Vanessa's Order

#3 (1 Tender, 1 Slider) with small strawberry shake

10/18/2021

The newest offering from the Osha restaurant group is now in Petaluma! Tucked away in a small hidden strip mall in Northern Petaluma, this place is not the easiest to get to. But it packs a lot of flavor within its small walls! How does this place measure up to its San Francisco restaurant as well as Torsap Thai in Walnut Creek(Episode #35)? Tune in and find out! As always, we give our number rating out of ten and talk about what we would order for next time. We also review some new Khom Loi dishes!

Sergio's Order

Spicy Basil with Minced Chicken and Steamed Rice

Vanessa's Order

BBQ Pork, Tom Kha Soup, Thai Iced Tea

10/09/2021

10/07/2021

A Bit Saucy is on the road again! We celebrated our anniversary in SLO County (and in style), and we return to many of our favorite spots. First, a local favorite (Sweet T's, Windsor CA) gets a few new salads we try out. We also try the Memphis BBQ Nachos for the first time! We then head south and stop at The Alchemist's Garden (Paso Robles, CA) where we retry the duck chalupas, and try the new-for-us fondue, as well as some new drinks they offer. The next day we drive on down to Taco Temple's Morro Bay location and have some tried-and-true favorites! That evening we have some unassuming food at Sensorio Kitchen (Paso Robles, CA) after checking out an amazing outdoor light installation. On our drive back up through Big Sur, we go to one of our new favorites: Cafe Kevah! We try the lunch menu this time. And finally, we try the Hula's Island Grill Santa Cruz location, which has a totally different feel than the Monterey location. Which places hold up on second visit? Anything get a thumbs-down? Tune in and find out! And keep us in mind next time you drive down the coast! If you take our recommendations, please let us know!

Additional order lists:

Sweet T's: Chicken Tostada Salad, Caprese Burrata Salad, Kentucky Tea, Hurricane

The Alchemist's Garden: "When Faustus Met Krampus," "Proclus Finds Clarity", "Theurgy of Passion"

Sensorio Kitchen: Pretzel Fries, Sensorio Dog, Sensorio Burger

Cafe Kevah: Black Forest Ham Sandwich, Reuben Sandwich

Hula's Island Grill: Tiki Torch Chicken Wings, Macadamia Nut-Encrusted Mahi, Lilikoi Pie

09/25/2021

After spending lots of time painting around Marshall, we decided to check out Tony's Seafood, a restaurant we recently discovered got the prestigious Michelin Bib Gourmand award! After thinking about checking it out for a while, that was the nudge we needed to check it out. A few years ago this place was bought by the Hog Island Oyster Co. We had been here separately years before this happened so we were curious to see if it held up. Well... did it? Tune in and find out! As always, we give our number rating out of ten, and talk about what we would order for next time.

Sergio's Order:

Fish Tacos, New Ridge Lager



Vanessa's Order:

HIOC Clam Chowder, HIOC Grilled Cheese, HIOC Coastal Cooler