Things to do on a Sunday morning

Although there are countless breakfast joints around the city, my favorite morning spot for freshly baked, mouthwatering breads and pastries has to be Tartine Bakery in the Mission. Both locals and tourists alike stand in lines that stretch around the block for a chance to savor their world famous croissants and pastries.

Staying round the corner from Tartine has its advantages, of course. So there I was at 8:15am on a cold drizzly morning getting in line to buy some breakfast. My usual is a plain croissant and soy latte, and one of their daily sweet creations. Today was going to be an almond tart. By 8:30am, the line had stretched out the door, and the cafe was completely packed. I decided to walk back to the apartment to enjoy my breakfast in peace.

Slow food for a slow day

We woke up this morning to very wet and cold weather in the city. Not the best of days to be out, but since this is Sunday after all, and we have our usual brunch ritual to maintain, we dragged our asses to the neighborhood cafe for some hot grub. Unfortunately, the line outside Mission Beach was massive as usual, and parking was non-existent for the next 3 blocks around the Mission area. So we decided to head farther afield to try our luck.

Soon, we found ourselves around the Potrero Ave and Mariposa St junction, and walked into Slow Club just as the rain started to fall again. While waiting for our table, I searched for restaurant reviews online and found out they were famous for the turkey sausage hash. And that would be my meal this morning.

Slow Club's famous turkey sausage hash uses fresh organic ingredients from local producers - butternut squash, garnet yams, apples, yukon gold potatoes, caramelized onions, baby arugula, two poached eggs with cheddar cheese, and served with a side of fresh artisan grilled bread from Acme bakery. I've always had a soft spot for butternut squash and caramelized onions so this dish certainly hit the spot for me. I loved the poached eggs that oozed onto the hash as I dug my fork into it. The sweetness of the yam and onions combined with the yolk and turkey sausage to make a very tasty mouthful of organic orgasm. Definitely worth coming back for seconds, but I also miss the scrambles over at Mission Beach Cafe terribly and couldn't help thinking of next Sunday's brunch venue already.

Slow Club is at 2501 Mariposa St, San Francisco, CA94110, 415-241-9390

Return to Maverick

I like this place a lot. And it's in the neighborhood. Matthew the co-owner and manager always seems to be in a funny mood to entertain us. Tonight we were talking about the art installation he had in the main dining area of the restaurant. It consisted of old wooden speaker boxes refurbished as light boxes with parts of the map of the USA embedded in it. It was certainly something unique and different, but that's what makes Maverick such a maverick. Anyway, I have digressed from my original intention for this entry, and that's about the food.

Tonight, I decided I needed comfort food, and nothing says comfort louder than Southern fried chicken, all dipped in buttermilk and deep fried with cornflour to perfection, with a side of kale, grits and gravy. My southern Florida roots are showing again. I also ordered the orange cauliflower soup for starters, and it was one of the best cauliflower soup I've ever had. Maybe that's the reason why I keep coming back to Maverick, they serve such simple dishes with ease and yet amazing in taste. And they always seem to be a regular mention in the local monthly San Francisco magazine (which is where I usually get my leads for the next big thing to eat in this city). We ended the meal with profiteroles and olive oil ice cream. It was a perfect meal for a wet weekend in San Francisco.

Hog crazy over Hog Island Oysters

A visit to Hog Island Oyster Co used to be my weekly Fri afternoon ritual when I was living in the bay area. I'd drag a friend over to the Ferry Building where the bistro is located and feast on freshly shucked oysters and clams and downing a glass of bubbly. Life used to be so simple, and tasty.

Now that I'm back in town for a week, I had to make the trip out here to resurrect the old habit. This is still one of the freshest spots for local oysters, delivered fresh daily from Tomales Bay just half an hour north of San Francisco. They also serve one mean manila clam chowder, probably the best I've had, and usually eaten with the accompanying rustic sourdough bread and steamer clams.

I Must Have Died And Gone To Croissant Heaven

It's Monday morning 8:30AM, I had a couple of hours to spare before my flight. Monday's can be hard sometimes, they hit you like a sledgehammer on the head and leave you spinning till noon. I wasn't too hungry, but a light breakfast would be perfect to cushion the start of the day. A walk around the block brought me to Tartine bakery, one of the better known pastry institutions in San Francisco. It's sister establishment, which I raved about last year over a weekend brunch, serves most of its breads and cakes from Tartine Bakery. The reason why the line snaked around the block of this corner cafe would soon be obvious to me. I ordered the vegetable quiche and an almond croissant to go with my latte. I've had many croissants in the past few years, in fact it's one of my favorite breakfast pastries despite the amount of butter that is used in the baking, but the almond croissant holds a special place in my heart because of the richness of the almond flavored filling, the toasted almond flakes on top sprinkled with icing powder and toasted to perfection. When I sank my teeth into Tartine's version, which on first impression looked a little bit on the burnt side, I knew this was a significant moment in my quest for the perfect pastry. Not too oily, very crunchy on the outside, and moist on the inside, just the right sweetness, with almond flakes drizzled with syrup and toasted around its edges. Unbelievably delicious, and well worth the $3.75.

I would have ordered a second had I not already ordered the quiche, which turned out to be equally delicious, wonderfully smooth and flavorful. French pastries and cafe fodder tend to be on the heavy side, but Tartine's versions were simply deceptively light, something which I thought was not possible until now. Obviously, this goes against my diet rules, but since I was going to embark on a 14hr trans-pacific flight in a matter of hours, this was the perfect excuse to mitigate the airplane food I was going to have to put up with. More about the airplane food later, if I have time. I'm not quite looking forward to it, but United's new menu should be a big improvement over their poor showing in the past few years I've flown with them.

By 9:00AM, the crowds started strolling in and a line was forming all the way out the door. Young families, couples on vacation, businessmen on the way to work picking up a quick fix, the neighborhood came alive with a buzz and fervent activity at the pastry counter as the bakery staff stepped up their pace to keep the patrons happy. What I scene, I felt I was sitting in a movie set watching the day's drama unfold before my eyes. I loved this city, but it was time to go.
Tartine Bakery is located at 600 Guerrero St, San Francisco, CA 94110. Tel: (415) 487-2600

My first Passover dinner experience

I've been meaning to try Firefly for the past 3 years, but was never quite made it there, for many reasons. So tonight must have been my lucky night, I was able to secure a table for 8:30PM at the last minute. I had heard many good things about Firefly and so my expectations were a little high when I arrived at the door. Above the main entrance sat a very large metal firefly sculpture with a blinking electric bulb affixed to its body. Quirky, but interesting. We were shown to a small table overlooking the main entrance, with a good view of the kitchen and the diners in the adjacent dining area. Kind of romantic, but I was there for the food, not romance.

This being Easter week, Firefly presented a special Passover menu featuring a number of traditional Jewish dishes, and some Californian fare. I have to admit this was the first time I've had a Passover meal, so this in itself was an adventure for me. I ordered gefilte fish with a two colored horseradish sauce, which was essentially cold fish dumpling meat served with a side of horseradish. Not how I would usually eat fish dumpling, but the flavor was very well balanced and delicious despite being cold. Perhaps a warm version of this would have tasted much better, over broth, but that's just the Cantonese in me talking. My main course was the beef brisket over sweet potato mash and warm gravy. The beef brisket melted in my mouth, and the sweet potato mash was an excellent complement as was the gravy. For dessert, I ordered the grapefruit sorbet with honey mousse and sliced fruit. The sorbet was very refreshing, not too sour or sweet, and the honey mousse was light as whipped cream with a delicate honey flavor. I can see why Firefly has remained so popular throughout the years, with amazing homestyle dishes that are affordable and very good value for money.
Firefly is located at 4288 24th St. San Francisco, CA 94114. Tel: (415) 821-7652

Eating French On Easter Sunday

There's a quiet French cafe located by the side of a small park in historic South Park in San Francisco with an unusually English name. Called The Butler and The Chef, this little French bistro overlooked the small park surrounded by older turn-of-the-century houses in this cul-de-sac, and as I strolled up the old lane to the cafe, I remembered the mornings I spent walking around the Montmartre quarter in Paris years ago.
The bistro was very brightly colored and cheery on the inside, fresh flowers adorning the counters, and the scent of fresh pastires wafting through the air. It seemed we were not the only early birds, the bistro was already half full. We managed to get a table at the front by the window, and were greeted by a friendly Japanese waitress, and there and then my French illusion shattered. This was San Francisco after all, and very rightly so, because all the items on the menu were organic and grown from sustainable farming methods in the neighboring farms.

Only in San Francisco. I couldn't resist ordering the Belgian waffle with blueberry preserves, bananas and fresh organic whipped cream, eggs benedict with Niman Ranch ham on the side, and an almond croissant to share. The lattes came first, followed by the croissant and the main dishes minutes later. There is something to be said about organic food, you can really taste the difference, the flavors seem more vibrant, natural and just delicious.

I'm always excited about trying new restaurants in the bay area, mostly because of the indelibly strong influence the sustainable farming and slowfood movement has on the local community. Most restaurants in the city have embraced this philosophy and has helped create a renewed awareness in healthy flavorful eating.
The Butler and The Chef is located at 155 S Park St, San Francisco, CA 94107. Tel: (415) 896-2075

Maverick in the Mission

Every so often, I stumble upon a gem in the city by pure chance, rewarding me for taking the risk to try something new or different. When I was glancing through the latest edition of San Francisco magazine's food review section, the name Maverick caught my eye. Not because it reminded me of Tom Cruise's character in Top Gun, but the name itself held the potential of being something different and unconventional in this city that constantly pushes the limits of individuality and steadfast conventions*. Ever hopeful and very hungry, I decided this would be the evening's dinner venue. We almost missed the restaurant when we first drove past 17th Street, because it wasn't the most prominently lit on the row, nor did it have a clear signage that caught one's eye. Anyway, GPS saved the day and we were able to find parking a block down the street.

We were 15min early, and the table before ours had not settled their bill yet, so while we were waiting by the door of this tiny restaurant, the chef came over with 2 pieces of pureed fava beans pesto on toast to distract us. Then Mike the manager offered to let us try some of the featured house wines of the evening, and introduced himself as the restaurant's sommelier as well. The little details in taking care of their patrons made me ever hopeful of the wonderful dining experience I was about to embark on, and truly I was not disappointed at all.

The menu at Maverick constantly changes depending on the season and availability of local produce, and tonight's list featured octopus tostadas, grilled pork balls with polenta and green and sweet potato soup. These were great starters and every selection was truly awesome. The octopus chunks were very well marinated and tender, the grilled pork meat balls had a light fennel flavor and grilled perfectly, and the sweet potato soup was deceptively bland on first sight, but hid an abundance of flavor. For the mains, I had to try their famous buttermilk soaked southern fried chicken with citrus flavored chard and wild rice. This was truly a decadent twist on a traditional southern staple, the chicken was moist, juicy and very tender, and the skin was crispy and full of spiced seasoning. The lemon flavored chard was a very good contrast to the chicken, as were the wild rice seasoned with a tomato based sauce.
Maverick is located at 3316 17th Street in the Mission, San Francisco, CA 94110. Tel: (415) 863-3061

More brunch discoveries in Cole Valley

I had heard of a cafe called Zazie in Cole Valley that was very popular with the neighborhood scene. I guess word of mouth had spread far and wide, and several coworkers had vouched for the fantastic brunches they served at the cafe. So I decided this morning would be the perfect time to stroll over to check it out. At first the name sounded very Greek to me, but menu was typical San Francisco brunch fare, with organic produce and ingredients featured prominently on the menu. Unlike most cities I've been to, restaurants in San Francisco are happy to serve you egg whites only by request, in place of regular eggs and will almost always accommodate any dietary restrictions you can name. My friends who live in the city generally order their egg white scrambles and vegan pancakes, but for me, I believe a little bit of cholesterol in the food makes it even tastier sometimes. i also often wonder what they do with all the egg yolks that are unused.

Locals tend to have breakfast a little earlier than most other people on the east coast, so arriving by 10:00AM assures you a very short wait to get seated. Stepping into the restaurant, I was greeted by the morning light streaming through the skylight near the back, and the whole dining room was abuzz with the morning feasting ritual. The small table in the middle of the dining room was the perfect vantage point to catch all the action.

At Zazie, you get hearty servings of breakfast staples, accompanied by strong fresh brewed lattes. In particular, the candied ginger wholewheat pancakes were amazing, fluffy and full of sweet ginger flavor. I loved the crispy bacon and fresh scrambled eggs (yes you can really taste organic eggs from the regular ones), and not forgetting one of the best French toasts I've eaten in a very long time.
Zazie is located at 941 Cole St, San Francisco, CA94117. Tel: (415) 564-5332

Brunch In The Mission Part 2

When I mentioned my delicious find to a friend who lived in the Mission District after getting home, he said he had an even better place to show me. The next morning found us sitting in Bar Tartine, sister restaurant to the famous Tartine Bakery in the Mission.

Tartine Bakery prides itself on decadent, amazing pastries and fresh bread made daily, and being the winner of a James Beard award for Best Pastry Chef, while Bar Tartine served up some amazingly simple but delicious Californian cuisine for the neighborhood urbanites. The country French toast with berry compote was absolutely delicious, made with fresh bread from their in-house bakery.
My friend ordered an egg white scramble with asparagus and cheese and it looked equally tempting. Bar Tartine is yet another San Francisco eatery that forges strong sustainable relationships with the local farms, which ensures a constant supply of the highest quality and freshest selections of meat, fish and vegetables for our dining pleasure.

Between the two of my new favorite cafes, I'd have to say the food at Bar Tartine was a little better than Mission Beach Cafe, but the crowd at MBC was much more livelier and youthful and fun.

Bar Tartine is located at 561 Valencia Street in San Francisco, California. 415-487-1600.

Brunch In The Mission Part 1

I was walking around the Mission District neighborhood in San Francisco last Saturday and stumbled upon this really sweet spot called Mission Beach Cafe. It actually reminded me of another cafe with a similar name in the Mission Beach area of San Diego some summers back. Looking at the menu in the display window, the items seemed very tantalizing and I had to give it a try. The cafe prides itself in serving New American cuisine (I guess that's another name for California cuisine), the kind of stuff I like on a weekend for brunch - scrambled eggs with truffle and cheese, golden potatoes and a fresh nectarine salad, hot coffee and a fresh artisanal bran muffin. Brunches don't get any better than this, usually.

Mission Beach Cafe has been attracting a very strong following since opening a couple of years ago.The cafe is another fine example of why I like eating in the bay area - the use of seasonal, organic farmer's market ingredients that help sustain the local community and provide an abundance of natural flavors at the table. Did I forget to mention the artworks on display? Some pretty neat pieces of urban landscapes that showcase the venue as a community focal point and a distinctive neighborhood institution.

Mission Beach Cafe is located at 198 Guerrero Street @ 14th St in San Francisco. 415-861-0198.

Canteen, possibly the best brunch spot in the city

There's nothing like a good brunch to start the weekend, and today, I discovered how amazing Canteen's food really was. The location is interesting to say the least, the tiny diner is right next to a youth hostel downtown, and so tiny that you might actually miss it if you were in a hurry. The breakfast menu is the main attraction, and the waiting line is usually 30 minutes long. You'll find your standard fare on the menu, but with some fresh touches thrown in. Like the eggs benedict I had - the Hollandaise sauce was light yet fragrant, the eggs very fresh, and the English muffins were so well toasted they stayed crunchy until the very last bite.

I was still hungry after wolfing down the eggs, so I ordered a french toast with berry compote that was probably one of the thickest and best toasts I've had in a while (since Barracks at House, at least). I came away from this dining experience a little delighted (that I found a new place to eat on weekends), amused (by the decor and book selections on the shelf) and slightly puzzled (by the fact that they food tasted very high-end for such a low-end affordable joint).

After some digging around, I found out that chef Dennis Leary was formerly the head chef of Rubicon, one of the city's finest dining establishments. The diner has also been receiving a steady stream of favorable reviews since opening several years ago. Well, needless to say, I'm won over by the food, and Canteen's made its way to the top of my list of favorite places for brunch. I hear the dinner menu's just as amazing, so that's good enough reason for a second visit very soon.

Limon - A Modern Peruvian Hit

I was very pleased to find a rave review of this Mission restaurant in the latest issue of San Francisco magazine. It had been on my To-Do list for the longest time, but something always came up at the last minute to scuttle dinner plans at this very popular Peruvian restaurant. But tonight, we were determined to keep our dinner reservations, enough though the only table they could offer us was at 10pm.



If you judge a Peruvian restaurant's quality by their signature cerviche, then Limon's shrimp and pacific corvina cerviche will bowl you over with its freshness and the tart flavor of fresh lime dressing over the ingredients.





My favorite way to sample cuisine is to do the small plates and tapas only, and skip the entrees unless they're absolutely irresistable judging from the menu descriptions.

Chapeau! in the Richmond district

One of my recent discoveries, Chapeau! has been a consistent favorite, and I've returned with friends several times for the cuisine, cosy atmosphere and excellent service. Not a date place typically, because of the noise level and cramped quarters (this little bistro really packs them in), but it's a great venue for group dinners or catching up with old friends. Located in a quiet corner of residential Richmond, it's far from most downtown restaurants and this makes parking a lot easier in the crowded city.


Tonight, we ordered the prix fixe menu, and started with a carrot and pumpkin soup drizzled with cream and croutons. This being early spring, the warm soup was a great way to start a meal on a chilly night. For the main, I had the pork loin over pumpkin puree and cabbage. It was served with an impeccable wine reduction, and the loin was perfectly roasted.


For dessert, I ordered the Chilled Orange Soup with Grand-Marnier, Souffle Glace, Tangerine Sorbet with Orange Segments and Coulis a la Menthe. That's it in the photo. Pure decadence, if you know what I mean.