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-And we were so mad we couldn't eat it all. -...a carnivore's dream in San Mateo... -It's a roaring fire of goodness. -...and a world of Turkish delights in Emeryville...

-There's salted butter. It's just -- it's everything. -...just ahead on "Check, Please! Bay Area." -Make my mouth water. -I know, I know. [ Indistinct conversations

] -Hi. I'm Leslie Sbrocco. Welcome to "Check, Please! Bay Area," the show where Bay Area residents review and talk about their favorite restaurants. Now, we have three guests,

and each one recommends one of their favorite spots, and the other two go check them out to see what they think. Joining me at the "Check, Please!" table today are flight

attendant Tina Wentworth, grocery category manager Thuy Nguyen, and senior territory manager Justin Mallet. Welcome, everyone. -Welcome. -You ready? -So ready. -Yeah. -Tina's up first.

As a flight attendant, she's on one culinary adventure after another as she crisscrosses the nation looking for hidden gems in every place she visits. The restaurant she loves most

right here in the Bay offers that same sense of escape with tropical vibes, Caribbean flavors, and Latin flair. In the heart of Walnut Creek, it's Lita. ♪♪♪ -What makes Lita stand out

is as soon as you open those big, giant doors, you feel like you're someplace else. Well, we have a little Miami vibe. Beautiful, sexy, fun. But I think most important -- difference.

-Yo tengo oxtail. Did you taste the risotto yet? I was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and everything that I bring to the kitchen has been based on learning from my mother and my grandmother.

You're gonna have a lot of pimento, a lot of fresh thyme. A couple of my favorite dishes on the menu would be braised oxtail and our various jerk-chicken dishes. A lot of my dishes are

slow-braised dishes, that allowing for the flavors to enhance. -The oxtail is also amazing. It's all about the meat being pulled off the bone. You don't need a knife. It's

just literally a fork. And, of course, I love gravy, so the more gravy, the better for me. -The history of jerk chicken dates back to when the slaves had to escape their pursuers and cooked

this jerk chicken underground in order to not allow people to find them. That enhanced the meaning of my food. And sharing the stories with people, I believe that our guests appreciate it

more. When you go to a Caribbean restaurant, you want to have the guests feel like they're being hugged. [ Laughs ] -Preach it. -Chef gets a lot of hugs, let's put it that way. And

when I say when he says there's passion that goes into -- I mean, it really is. From the front of the house to the back of the house, everyone here really cares about the experience

because that's what we're here for. -I think my food has done more for myself than I think I've done for the food. It's created a hub for a lot of West Indians on the

West Coast. People will say, "Oh, I haven't had this since my grandmother made it, and I have to go back home to get this." I really enjoy the fact that it's created this

destination of culture. -So this place is a little bit of Miami in Walnut Creek, isn't it? [ Laughs ] -Absolutely. From the visuals to the sounds to the -- everything about this

restaurant is a absolute vibe. It's just a very visually stimulating place. -And so when you walk in, is there something that you always get... -Absolutely. -...to start with?

-Absolutely can never not have the coconut curry chicken empanadas. They are phenomenal. And there's a dollop of the coconut-cream curry on the top, which is a velvety texture.

It's sweet but spicy, like, not hot spicy, but plenty of spice. -And did you have that, Justin? 'Cause you were going, "Mm-hmm." -Actually, I did, I had that, and I have

to say that that was absolutely delicious. -Oh, good. -That was one of our first things that we tried. We walked up to the bar, and we were able to order the coco-naut, which is -- -Oh, I

had that. [ Laughter ] -That drink itself is a vibe. I mean, it's like a fire show. -I was worried about my eyebrows. -Yes, exactly. -Because she was -- she sprays the alcohol with a

water bottle and then sprays it with, like, a flamethrower, and it's just like, yeah. -So, you know, it's tasty. It's a very tasty beverage. It's a coconut-inspired

drink. But then it goes very well with the coconut curry chicken empanadas. I completely agree. -Oh, okay! I always get the sangria 'cause a lot of times sangria can be overly sweet,

and this is not. This is super enjoyable. -I started with the ceviche trio because there were three ceviches... -Yes, yes. -...and I couldn't pick, so I got all three, and it was, like,

a shrimp aguachile, a guava kampachi, and then the ahi tuna tamarind. And I think the guava one was actually my favorite because I've never had guava in a ceviche before, and the

flavor was just so fresh and, like, nice and acidic. -It's completely different. -Yeah. It's so good. -Did you have it with the plantain chips? -You have to get the plantain chips.

They were warm. They were freshly fried. They were just so crispy. And you just love, like, dipping and trying all the ceviches on top of it. -Yes. -Have you guys had the corn? There's

an actual corn stalk. -Like a street corn? Okay. -And it's Caribbean street corn. -Mm-hmm. -And they put a Caribbean spice on it. That was delicious. -Yes. -The salt cod fritters were

so good. They were like crab cakes, but with more flavor. And they were creamy. And there was this jerk aioli, I think the same jerk aioli that was used on the callaloo empanadas. It was

just really spiced and creamy. And there's four of us, and there was five fritters. So we were fighting for that last fritter. Like, I was trying to be nice and, like, cut it into

fours. My friend -- she took it all. She took it all. She was like, "I'm sorry. This is too good. I gotta eat it." [ Laughter ] -We had the Brussels sprouts, and I was shocked

at how much we enjoyed them 'cause, I mean, you have a Brussels sprout, you -- but these are different. They're not greasy in any way, but they're perfectly charred. And then

they serve it with a citrus aioli or something. I mean, the sauces this place has, it's... -They shine on the sauces. -...unreal. -So the main course that we got was the escovitch

fish. So it was, like, a whole fried fish. -Oh, whole fish. -And it was amazing 'cause it was covered in this pickled pepper. I think that's the escovitch. And there was, like,

fried thyme on top. And it was just, like, a nice vinegar. And you have to, like, get in there, right? You have to, like, pull it apart with your hands. And this restaurant, even though it

was a nice restaurant, I didn't feel self-conscious just going for it. -So for us, the main courses that we had was the oxtails. And it's in this dark-brown sauce that is extremely

fragrant. When you go into the oxtails, it's virtually fall off the bone. Oxtails were phenomenal. -Oh. -Did they roll you out of there after all that? -Oh, my gosh. -They rolled me

out of there after we had desserts. -Oh, my God. [ Laughter ] -Okay, now, you knew I was gonna get there. -Oh, man. -All right. And dessert? -And this is the first time we had dessert

'cause we never have room, but I forced myself 'cause I knew it was coming and I had to have dessert. So it's the Caribbean spiced pineapple upside down cake. -Ooh. -The

sugars in there and the Caribbean spices are, like, brûléed on it, so it's got a little crisp to it. And they serve it with a coconut gelato. So it's got that cold and then

it's warm. And we were so mad we couldn't eat it all. It was so good. [ Laughs ] But you can't take gelato home, you know? -Yeah. We ended up going with the donut holes. -Ooh!

-I don't know if you -- did -- I don't know if you guys have had those. -They have a little squirty? -Yes. And so it's a donut hole and then they're rolled in a sugar

and cinnamon. And then they put a insert of coquito, which is a rum and eggnog kind of inspired squeezeability into the donut. And you squeeze it and then you eat it. Oh, my God. Then you

get rolled out. Those donuts are sinful. [ Laughter ] -Sign me up. Sign me up. -You can't stop. I mean, it's that good. -Well, you took your job seriously here for "Check,

Please!" -Very. -Really were checking it out. -I was fully dedicated... -Yeah. -...to the position. [ Laughter ] -What about service? -Oh, service was so nice. Our service started with

the cocktails, and she was like, "Okay, you might want to, like, move back a little," when she did that fire coco-naut thing. -I agree. The service is fantastic. Actually, I went a

couple of days ago as well to follow up just because I wanted to do my research. -Yeah. -Taking it seriously. -Donuts, donuts, donuts! -I wanted to make sure -- Yeah, exactly. The donuts

and the drinks, they were calling my name. But I wanted to make sure that they were actually just as good as they were the first time. -Yeah. -I think that they're doing a really good

job. -Yeah. -All right. So you all liked it, I could tell. -It was fun. Like, we danced on the way out. -Out the door? -Yeah. It was -- It was a party. -It is definitely a party. -And did

you feel like it was worth the money? -Oh, yeah. I thought it was actually a really great deal, especially in that Walnut Creek area where things are a little bit more high-end. I would

definitely go back. -All right. If you would like to try Lita, it's located on Bonanza Street in Walnut Creek, and the average tab per person without drinks is around $40. Thuy's a

serious home baker, so she's always on the hunt for pastries and breads that can rival her own. Her latest find is a cafe run by a female chef who's putting her own twist on

baklava, borek, and other Turkish delights, all made fresh daily. Located in Emeryville, it's Simurgh Bakery & Cafe. ♪♪♪ -My name is Hatice. I am a self-taught chef. It needs to be

like that. I'm originally from Turkey, but Simurgh Bakery, to me, is more than Turkish cuisine. It's about Balkan cuisine. It's about Arabic cuisine. It's about Greek

cuisine. It's that we make almost everything from scratch. We make Turkish sesame bagels, fluffy pita bread -- we call it pide. We make our own dolma. I don't know who invented the

baklava first. This is very controversial issue. When you talk to Greek people, they say, "Oh, baklava is Greek." When you talk to Turkish people, they say Turkish. To me,

I'm not interested in the origin of the baklava. I'm only interested in the culture behind the baklava. This is tough. What makes a baklava perfect is, number one, fresh phyllo

dough. We make fresh phyllo dough almost every day. It has a rich texture because we use eggs, we use good-quality flour, and we make sure the baklava dough is delicately thin. You can see

my hand. The perfect baklava must be delicately crispy, but not crunchy, and also sweet, but not overwhelming sweet. The syrup is the most important part of the baklava. Cane sugar, water,

and also lemon -- that's all. It needs to be perfect. Simurgh is a bird like a phoenix in the Persian literature, and it is a symbol of unity. I named my business Simurgh because, to

me, national borders are the artificial boundaries. You know, we create these boundaries in our minds. And, but the food doesn't have border. Also, we feel we are building the community

together with our customers. Every day we see people from different backgrounds. They come and they chat and they laugh and it makes us very happy, and, you know, we also create good

memories for our customers, for ourselves. -All right, Thuy, you know, the name "bakery," you really have to pay attention to "cafe," because there's such a

wide-ranging list of offerings, from sweet to savory. -Yeah. -Do you go in for one or the other first? -I think I have to go in for both. I mean, I -- the baklava is what drew me in because

she makes the phyllo dough from scratch, so no one does that. I don't think any bakers make it from scratch, but she does. And the first bite I had, it just, like, completely shattered

everywhere, but in the best way. So she makes four different types of baklava. There's a traditional pistachio, a rolled pistachio, a date and walnut, and a chocolate. And they're

all really good. I feel like maybe my favorite's the pistachio, but sometimes it's the date and walnut, sometimes it's the chocolate, depending on the day. -Who knows? -Who

knows? -But I did get the traditional. And then I did get the chocolate because my mom loves chocolate as well. And the chocolate one -- I thought that was amazing 'cause it's a

completely different play off of baklava. -I've never had that before. -I've never had a chocolate baklava before. -You know, when I go to the cafe, of course, I always need to get

the baklava, but when you walk in there, you see them making fresh bread -- fresh pita bread and simit, which is like a Turkish bagel that's just covered in sesame seeds. -Delicious.

-It's so good, right? That's the one. -We had that, too. It was -- It was reminiscent of a bagel, but it's a little bit narrower, not quite as chunky as a bagel would be. And

it's lighter. This is nice and light. It has chew to it. -Yes. -We had it with their housemade labneh, which... -That's the move. -...which was good. It wasn't what I was

expecting 'cause I love yogurt, but it was really tangy but goes really well. Yeah, it was tasty. -We also had the Turkish bagel. It's called a egg in a hole. -Oh, yeah. -That is

delicious. It's the bagel. -Okay. -And then it has a layer of greens, egg, Turkish sausage, and it has some cheese on it as well. That is a fantastic breakfast move. -That's so

satisfying. I always start with the breakfast platter because I love variety in my breakfast. So it's a giant platter. And there's the bagel, of course, but there's also two

fried eggs. There's that beef pepperoni you were talking about. I think it's, like, sujuk. There's kashkaval cheese, there's olives, there's honey, there's jam,

there's salted butter. It's just -- it's everything. The simit is, like, cut into four pieces. So I split them all in half and I make little sandwiches. So you get, like, a

sweet sandwich, a little savory one. It's my perfect breakfast. -Yeah. We ordered the Istanbul plate. -Ooh. -So it has three different shapes of the ground-meat kebabs. -Mm-hmm. -One of

them was really neat. When you cut into it, it had cheese in it. -I got that one. I was so surprised. -Yeah, I was surprised, too. And it came with sliced tomatoes. It came with shishito

peppers. And then also these roasted potatoes, which were fantastic. And they gave you a piece of that fresh bread, pita, so you can make a perfect bite. You can get some of that eggplant

roasted tapenade on there, and you can get some of the labneh and some of the meat all in one bite. It was really good. -Make my mouth water. -I know, I know. -It's perfect. -I also had

the chicken sandwich. Have you guys had this? -No, I need to go back. -Oh, my goodness. So it's one of their pitas, which is kind of like a chubby pita bread, but it's airier. And

they slice that open and it's huge. And they put a layer of the labneh, then a layer of that eggplant and roasted -- -The ajvar sauce. -Yes, that's delicious 'cause it's

tangy and briny, so it really goes well. And the chicken is marinated and there's greens on it. I mean, we only ate half. We were so excited to take the other half home and have later.

So we will definitely go back for that sandwich. -So it was a lot of food? -A lot of food. -Mm-hmm. -For the price, absolutely. -Yeah. We also had the kebab plate. -Okay. -Was it the

simurgh kebab plate? -Yes. And there's, you know, kebabs and then there's a bread and then they put sauce on top of that. -Yeah. It's, like, really nice and tangy. -It is

delicious, and it's a lot lighter than I anticipated. -So you had a lot of savory. Did you have any sweet? -Oh, yes. So we had the honey cake with the berries on top. That was very

decadent. -And the honey cake is so labor-intensive because you have to make the layers one by one. It's really hard, and hers is so good. It's one of my favorites. -We took some

desserts to go because we were full. It was a tahini cookie. -Mm-hmm. -I think that would be amazing with tea or the Turkish coffee, which I'm so sad I didn't get the baklava. -Oh,

yeah, I always get the baklava with a side of the Turkish coffee. Did you get the Turkish coffee? -I did not, but I have to go back to try it. -It comes in this really cute set. So

there's, like, the really small cup of Turkish coffee, and then there's a cup of water on the side because you need to wash it down because it's quite strong. And then a

little Turkish delight on the side of the mug. -Oh! -Turkish delight. -It's such a perfect, like, afternoon treat. -Yeah, I love this place. I'm so glad you suggested it. -Yay!

I'm so glad. -I mean, I don't go to that part of the Bay, so it was really, really great to get out... -So, again, it's important to say bakery and cafe. -Absolutely. -Right.

Right. -Absolutely. -True. Very true. -Well, if you would like to try Simurgh Bakery & Cafe, it's located on San Pablo Avenue in Emeryville. And the average tab per person without

drinks is around $20. Now it's time to get to the meat of the matter with Justin's pick, a classic steakhouse where prime cuts are all dry-aged in-house. Add in a swanky

old-Hollywood vibe, and it's easy to see why it's become Justin's favorite date-night destination. Located in San Mateo, it's Porterhouse. -John, we love you. -Thank you,

thank you. -Delicious. -Our goal at Porterhouse is for every diner that comes in to have a memorable experience. [ People cheering ] And, of course, being a steakhouse, it starts with the

excellent steak. -Very juicy flavor, marbling. In other words, the best steak you ever had in your life. That's -- That's called Porterhouse. -This is a family-run restaurant. As a

family, we just love steaks. We do Midwest beef from stockyards. And, of course, we also offer grass-fed and finished beef from local ranches here in California. Here is where all the magic

happens. We dry-age for 30 days. And what that does is it tenderizes the meat, concentrates the flavor. Some Wagyu steaks. We have about five different cuts that are offered on the menu

year-round, but porterhouse is, in our eyes, the most impressive cut of steak. [ Whirring ] That's the porterhouse. The best of two worlds. You have a filet mignon and a New York strip

separated by a T-bone in its natural form. To get the perfect steak, we just use salt and pepper. We do have a little olive oil as well, and we grill it over a open-flame grill. And we also

finish all the steaks in an 1,800-degree broiler. You want to lock in all the moisture in the steak while having a nice caramelized surface. -And plate is very hot. Usually a lot of

steakhouse, your steak comes cold. Ours come very, very hot and perfectly cooked. I make flambé tableside, and I've been doing more than 35 years. I do more than 36,000 of them. -Yeah,

there's nothing like the look on people's faces, too, when the dining room lights up with the flambé, because he definitely can get the flame up there. [ People cheering ] You

know, after so many flambés, he still has his, uh -- both his eyebrows, so... -All the movie poster come because I love "Casablanca" movie. I watch that movie more than thousand

times. I used to know every single word. [ Indistinct conversation ] For us, hospitality is very, very important. We treat the guest as a guest, not as a customer. Since 1982, we know each

other. -Long time. -Make sure to enjoy. -Life is beautiful, you know. -I appreciate you guys, too. They come happy and they go happy. The rest -- up to them. -All right, Justin, let's

talk steak. -Exactly. I love this place. As soon as you walk in, to the right, there's just a meat locker of meat that they are drying to have dry-aged meats. You can walk in or you can

go to the bar. They have a great happy hour there. I have not had a bad steak there. -Do you start with something? -Yes. So I always traditionally start with the French onion soup in a nice

little cup. It's not too large, not too small. And then they will put the bread, and then there's -- it's packed with grilled onions, the layer of cheese. I usually like to

ask for a little bit of lighter cheese... -Light cheese? -...because I like cheese, but cheese doesn't like me as much. -Yeah. -Right? -I got that. I got that. -You got that? -Yeah, I

love that cheese pull that you get when you dig the spoon in and then you pull it out. It was just so fun. -We had the French onion soup as well, and it was fantastic. There's a lot of

depth of flavor there. The balance was really good, and I liked all the cheese. So cheese me up. I love it. -Cheese me up. -Cheese lovers unite. -Yes. Cheers to that. -Whoo-hoo! -Along with

that soup, we had their Caesar salad... -Yes. -...which was served a little different than I have had it. It's served as the actual full wedge. It has just a drizzle of the Caesar on

top, and then it has, like, a long piece of crostini, like, on top of that, and then the Parmesan shavings, which, just, the more Parm on there, the better for me. -Those are good. -Well, I

had the Caesar salad. It wasn't my favorite because I think there was, like, that red onion that was on the top. And it was just kind of -- it didn't -- I didn't know if it

went very well. But we also got the polenta poutine, and that was really savory. -Oh! -It was really nice. And it was covered with this housemade beef ragu. And there was cheese on top of

that, too. So it was kind of like a log-cabin stack, or what's it called? -Kind of a Jenga. -Yeah, it was Jenga! It was definitely stacked. It was very fun to eat. -Have you guys tried

-- so one of my favorite drinks there is a Woman in Red. -No. -I love wom-- I love -- I love women. No, I love drinks that are sweeter, and that is a sweeter drink. So it's a

strawberry-inspired drink. So it's very light. It's like a day-drinking drink. I love that drink. -I had the Bogart, which is their play on a martini which comes with a

blue-cheese-stuffed olive. Fantastic. -All right, now let's talk meat. -Yes. -What's your favorite? -I mean, I do love the porterhouse 'cause that's what they're

known for, right? It's fantastic. But every now and then, I like to switch it up, and I like to do the mixed grill. Mixed grill gives you a little bit of everything. And you'll get

that filet. And then you also get the lamb chops as well. And so the filet is perfectly cooked. And I like, you know, a nice sear on the outside and then, like, very warm red center in the

middle. And then the lamb chops will come with a demi-glace that's on top. And it comes with a twice-baked potato which is -- I'm a huge fan of it. -That baked potato is so good.

-Right? And it's just 'cause it's like a baked-potato cup. -We had the mixed grill as well. -Oh, you did? -Yes. But we upgraded the filet to an eight-ounce 'cause we

shared the meal. -Oh! Okay. -I'm gonna tell you right now how fantastic that cut of beef was. -It was just perfectly cooked. I think we all got medium-rare or rare steaks. -Yes. -And

the temperature on that was just amazing, the way they executed it. -So impressed. Just the right amount of salt and pepper just to accent the flavor of the beef. The lamb chops -- to die

for. -I need to get the lamb chops. I didn't get -- -The lamb chops are amazing. -I got -- what did I get? I got the cowboy ribeye because I like a fattier steak on mine. -Yes! -I like

the marbling. And the sear on that was really nice. The cook on that was really good. The potato -- I just loved everything together. But my partner got the porterhouse, and I think I had

steak envy because -- because I tasted a piece and it had such a nice dry-aged flavor. So I took a bite and went back to my plate and focused on mine, and I looked back to get another one,

and his was gone. Like, everything off the bone, just the "T" left on it. And I was -- I was shocked and very sad, but it was -- it was gone. -I have to ask if you guys had the

truffle mac and cheese? -We did! Oh, it was so good. Brie. Was it Brie? -I don't know how many cheeses were in there, but I'm gonna tell you, they brought it in a cute little pot

like they bring the soup. -Uh-huh. -And it has, like, buttery breadcrumbs and they're all browned on top. And you put your spoon in there. It's just steaming hot. -Cheese pull?

-Cheese-pull city all the way. Craveable. Like, I dream about that mac and cheese. Fantastic. -Okay, so that's a lot of food you all had. Did you save room for dessert? -Oh, you have to

save room for dessert. There's a couple of, like, really, really key desserts there. One of my favorite desserts is the bread pudding. -Mm-hmm. -That's probably one of my favorite

bread puddings of all time. It's sweet, but then at the same time, it's not like a heavy brick. It's still a little bit lighter. I think that, and then I don't know if

you guys were able to treat yourself to the bananas flambé? -No! -Oh, my gosh. That's the owner's specialty. He'll come tableside and then cook it for you. And it's a

roaring fire of goodness. -Oh, my. -You're gonna get, like, the banana, the cream, the liqueur. And then it's all over the ice cream. Now, that's a treat. -It's like

dinner and a show. It's got fire, everything. -Yeah, 100% dinner and a show. Yeah. -I can't speak enough on the service. -Yes. -The attentiveness, the fact that if the

server's there taking your order, there's nobody coming to the table to fill your water cups. They wait. You watch them. It's like a ballet happening. They're so

considerate. -And this is not an inexpensive place, right? I mean, you're paying for the experience. You're paying for quality. -Absolutely. -You feel like you got that? -Oh, yeah.

I mean, the steak was definitely lived up to the name. -Yeah, I loved it. It's definitely gonna be a special-occasion restaurant for us, but I already have it on the calendar for my

birthday next year, so, like, I'm ready. -If you would like to try Porterhouse, it's located on B Street in San Mateo, and the average tab per person without drinks is around $95.

Looking for more Bay Area bites you've just gotta try? -[ Laughs ] -Check out "Cecilia Tries It" online at kqed.org/checkplease. I have to thank my fantastic guests on this

week's show, Tina Wentworth, who can't get enough of the coconut curry chicken empanadas at Lita in Walnut Creek, and Thuy Nguyen, who tucks into the Turkish breakfast platter at

Simurgh Bakery & Cafe in Emeryville, and Justin Mullet, lover of the mixed grill at Porterhouse in San Mateo. Join us next time when three more guests will recommend their favorite spots

right here on "Check, Please! Bay Area." I'm Leslie Sbrocco, and I'll see you then. Cheers! And cheers to you. Whoo-hoo! Did you have fun? -I had so much fun. -Yes!

Whoo! -That was great. That was fun. -Whoo! Whoo-hoo! -We usually use this part only when we cut the baklava, because we need to make sure it's sealing the dough. -I love what I do, I

don't work for money. I love what I do. [ People cheering ] -It's good we have high ceilings, actually, you know? -True. That is true. I teach him, and hopefully one day he can

better than me. -Yeah. I think it tastes about the same, but I just can't get the flambé that high. ♪♪♪