BudgetTravel

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Raleigh, NC: Was wondering if you could suggest some websites to visit to find out what kind of local activities are going on, like weekly concerts, sporting events and so on.

Sharron Wood: The web site affiliated with the San Francisco Chronicle, our daily newspaper is good. sfgate.com. Click on Entertainment. Also check out www.digitalcity.com/sanfrancisco.

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USA Hello, Could you tell me of any good martini bars in San Francisco?

Sharron Wood: One of the best martini bars is Martunis, on the corner of Market and Valencia, where a mixed gay and straight crowd drinks all sorts of wacky specialty martinis (as well as the original sort). There's a piano in the back room, and people like to stage impromptu singing performances when there's a piano player. Club Deluxe, on Haight Street, is popular with a hip young crowd who likes to dress up and drink swanky cocktails.

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Atlanta, GA: Having not eaten in San Francisco's Chinatown, I was wondering if there was a restaurant you could recommend whose dim sum would be equal to, if not possibly surpassing, that of Jade Villa in Oakland's Chinatown. Thank you.

Sharron Wood: I think the best two dim sum restaurants are, oddly enough, not in Chinatown. Yank Sing has phenomenal (if somewhat pricey) dim sum in the Financial District, and Yank Sing, in the Richmond, is also very good. In Chinatown I like New Asia on Pacific Asia, though I think it's debatable if it's better than Jade Villa, which has excellent dim sum.

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Boston, MA: Sharron, In your opinion, what is the best restaurant for seafood? Best restaurant all-around? We're planning to stay at the Orchard Hotel. How does their restaurant rate?

Sharron Wood: I always have a hard time answering questions about the "best" restaurants--it depends on what you're looking for, the sort of ambience you like, how much money you're willing to spend, and what kind of mood you're in. That said, for seafood the very pricey Aqua is generally considered the best seafood restaurant in the city, and one of the best restaurants in San Francisco period. For a cheaper (and quirkier) seafood experience, consider Swan Oyster Depot, open lunch only, where you perch on these rickety stools to eat superfresh seafood simply prepared. For best restaurant period I'd probably go to Gary Danko for a sublime foodie experience (foie gras, lobster bisque, extravagant desserts and cheeses), or to Boulevard for out-of-this world American food in a beautiful, romantic interior. I haven't eaten at the Orchard Hotel's restaurant, Solea, yet.