Find a new greek place, the Bay’s latest closing ramen restaurant and what now occupies the spot of the former Lily Mae’s in Santa Clara

by Alexander Quebec

Achilles (Santa Clara)

Blink and you’ll miss this new Greek spot somewhere between Santa Clara University and Westfield Valley Fair. A Chipotle style set up featuring classic mediterranean food items in addition to a few of their own house specialties (the white sauce is awesome for garlic lovers), You have your pick of creating a wrap, a plate or a salad featuring any combination of meats, vegetables and other savory items. Pair your meal with some of the most flavorful falafel patty’s (pictured right) and a warm pita bread and you got a great meal.

Seiki House Ramen (Fremont)*

Owned by a good friend of mine, I was invited to try out the menu at Seiki Ramen’s newest location in Fremont. While I must admit that my knowledge and experience with ramen is probably not where it should be for a food critic right now, I did enjoy my bowl of Osaka Tonkatsu Ramen (pictured left). While my doctor might wince at my wanton slurping of the broth for many reasons, I loved the fatty and saltiness of the broth that bordered on creaminess and to be honest, that’s my favorite part of the experience. To end the meal, I was also offered a decadent slice of the popular Lady M Mille Crepe cakes, which are available to order as of this publication date.

One more reason to visit? This location is open until 2 AM (3:30 AM Friday through Sunday night)

La Costa Del Sol (Santa Clara)

Near the Airport, in a building once occupied by Lili Maes house of Soul Food, this taqueria serves Latin American favorites, but touting itself as a Salvadorian place, it’s the Pupusa’s that steal the show. Delicious patty’s of fried dough filled with various fillings such as meat, beans and cheese, and only $3 bucks each, they’re worth the visit by themselves to get a few. I also gave the Bistec Encebollado a try and to be frank, it was a bit tough to chew on, but at a level I expected it to be given the cut of beef they were using .In the end, however, I kept on coming back to the pupusas for the fried, doughy goodness.

*unless mentioned otherwise, all meals are paid for out of our own pockets. Trust me, you do not want to see how much I spend on food ><.