California Dreamin'

Every once in a while, California pops into my mind.  It's not because I lived there for 18 years, back in the go-go days of the 80s and 90s.  Maybe it's because every day I read another article about the coming droughtpocalypse; when I first moved out west, it was to Santa Barbara - then in the midst of a 100-year drought - I think those happen every now and then (in what's basically a desert).   And believe me, when you're standing in downtown Santa Barbara, watching the hills burn, smelling smoke and feeling the heat, it's weird.  So don't get me wrong - I think we're fucking up the earth really badly, but there are already enough people talking about that, and "food" blogs are supposed to be somewhat fun, no?

Where was I?  Oh yeah, California. Specifically, San Francisco and the Bay area. Since I ended up spending a long time in Silicon Valley, after 2 years in Santa Barbara, I like to return to the city by the bay, whenever I get a chance. So we jumped at the opportunity last month, to celebrate Significant Eater's b'day and our belated anniversary, and found ourselves in a rental car at SFO, on a beautiful, sunny Wednesday afternoon.

Here's where we head first - at least when it's dungeness crab season...

Swan

Because there's nothing quite like this...

Crab Louie

Just a big old pile of freshly steamed dungeness crab (maybe my favorite crustacean), topped with what's called Louie dressing,  and a big hunk of sourdough bread...ahhhh. There'll be a line, most likely, but it's worth the wait for Swan's impeccable seafood. They were out of uni this afternoon, but there were still some excellent oysters to be had, and those, along with the above Louie, should help you forget about your early morning flight.

After a nice break at our Union Square hotel (The Rex), and a couple of rye old fashioneds in their cute little bar, we were off to find Kin Khao, Pim Techamuanvivit's lauded Thai eatery. Pim is an old web friend from the early days - she posted on some of the first food boards and also Chez Pim; now, she seems to be busy running a restaurant. And a damn good one, too...

Kin Khao

Those chicken wings were great, but the highlight for me was the curry, with rabbit and rabbit meatballs. It's spicy, so be careful.

The next morning, we got an early start, since we were headed to Pescadero for lunch.. But we wanted to make our traditional visit here...

The Gate

Amazingly, I got Significant Eater to walk almost halfway across the bridge. I pretend I'm not scared of heights, so this was a first for both of us, and it goes to prove that it's never too late to try something you never thought you'd do.

Birthday dinner this night was at Chris Cosentino's new place, Cockscomb. We've been Cosentino fans for a while, at least since eating at the now-closed Incanto several years ago. Cockscomb's a big, high-ceilinged space, in a much friendlier location than Noe Valley, at least if you're staying in North Beach/Union Square, etc. It's got a great open kitchen, and chef was working the pass. A nice selection of oysters led into this bruschetta topped with uni and Iberico lardo...

Cockscomb Uni Bruschetta

I could easily eat the quail I had as a main on a weekly basis, and Sig Eater proclaimed her steak to be one of the better ones she'd had in a long time; must be that big, open fire they cook on.

Breakfast the next morning was at another one of our favorites, Plow. Plow's up on Potrero Hill, and if you're sporting a vehicle (it is California, after all), breakfast or lunch here is a must. It can be healthy or not - that's your choice. We usually go half and half; that is, we shared avocado toast (it is California, after all), and also a delicious house-made sausage with eggs, home-fries, and coffee cake to top it off. The service is sweet and earnest, and you'll thank me for this recommend.

We kinda skipped lunch; okay, not really -  lunch became a sandwich and snacks from here...

Ferry Market Building

Which actually was a sort of disappointment, only because I couldn't cook with these...

Morels

Oh well, maybe next time.  For now, these loomed ahead...

Filbert Steps

390 steps up - a good way to burn calories, right? The views are also pretty spectacular as you make the climb. There's the Malloch Building, used by Bogey as a refuge in the classic film noir, Dark Passage...

1360 Montgomery Street

And there's also...

Coit Tower

Bring water for the climb, and if you're lucky, the parrots of Telegraph Hill/ North Beach will be out and about - they often cavort in the trees on and around the Filbert Steps. From the top of Telegraph Hill, we made our way, walking, back to the hotel, first passing this locavore fish seller in Chinatown...

Stockton Street

I guess San Francisco's not that much different from NYC after all. Though I'd sooner eat a fish from the SF bay or ocean than I would one from the East River, but that's just me; YMMV. A shower, a nap, a cocktail - and time for dinner at - The Progress.

The Progress is the sister restaurant (and right next-door) to James Beard winner, State Bird Provisions. They offer a prix-fixe menu in the dining room, and a la carte service at the bar...we chose the bar, because, well, we like bars.   Long-time San Francisco restaurant critic Michael Bauer reviewed The Progress, with much better pictures, back in February. I'll defer to him, but I sure wish we had a place like this (or like State Bird, for that matter), here in New York. We had a fine time, with fabulous people working behind the bar - and great food.

Don't forget coffee; San Francisco is a damn good coffee town. We always hit up one of our favorites, Four Barrel, on Valencia Street in The Mission. Sig Eater will have one of these...

Macchiato at Four Barrel

While I go straight for the double espresso. I also bring home a couple of bags of beans, which I'm just now finishing.

This trip, we discovered a new (to us) great view spot at, you guessed it - Buena Vista Park. We approached from the back side, the entrance at the top of Duboce Avenue; if you're willing to schlep up a bit, and you're lucky, you might see this...

Golden Gate Fog

And what do you know? As we headed to our next stop, look who showed up...

Parrots of Duboce Triangle

The parrots of North Beach now appear to also have spun off a flock in the area of Buena Vista Park. This guy was giving me the eye...

Wary Parrot

Our next stop - a little time enjoying the views from the Marina Green...

Marina Green View

And...

The Rock

Don't forget, even though it's beautiful and sunny out, it may also be...

Sig Eater Enjoying the Weather

Chilly and windy. It's San Francisco, dammnit, but Sig Eater is well prepared...layers are important here.

Our final meal (well, we did have breakfast the next morning) of this whirlwind trip was at Trou Normand, located in the classic 1925 Pacific Telephone building. Trou Normand does the in-house charcuterie thing, butchering whole animals, so along with a nice roasted pork shoulder and a fine Tagliatelle Bolognese, this "small board" hit the spot with our cocktails...

Trou Normand Charcuterie Assortment

On the way back to our hotel, we popped into North Beach fave Comstock Saloon, for a well-made Sazerac. After all, we deserved it, don't you think?
Until next time, San Francisco.

In California, A is For...Carciofi

Artichokes. California artichokes. Coming into their peak season now, though they're available all year long, the artichoke is a favorite vegetable of mine. It's a favorite vegetable of Significant Eater's.  If we could be any place right now, eating artichokes, it would be...well, to be honest, it would be Rome. I mean, how can you resist Roman carciofi alla Giudia?

Carciofi alla Giudia at Sora Margharita

Or carciofi alla Romana?

Carciofi alla Romana at Armando al Pantheon

You can't, can you? But if you can't be in Rome, what to do? Well, there's always California - and that's where Significant Eater and I spent a few nights last week, celebrating a birthday and an anniversary, with a short get-away to San Francisco.

On our first full day, we hopped into our rental and took a drive along the coast, one of our favorite things to do. A mere hour away from the city (in either direction, actually), and you're practically in another era (if you stay on the coast, that is; otherwise, you're in Silicon fucking Valley). On this day, we headed south - Pescadero was our destination, and this was our objective...

California artichoke growing behind Duarte's

The California artichoke. California grows literally all of our artichokes, and the main growing areas are along the coast, with Castroville, in Monterey County, the center of it all...as a matter of fact, Castroville calls itself the "artichoke center of the world" (though Romans will argue, 'cause they'll argue about everything). And that's enough info.

In Pescadero, there's a 100+ year-old restaurant called Duarte's Tavern, and their specialty, Sig Eater's favorite, and the reason we took the drive, is cream of artichoke soup...

Duarte's Tavern's Cream of Artichoke Soup

I used to make a mean cream of artichoke soup. I also used to be able to get nice, meaty artichokes at 3 for $1...so making soup was thrifty. Now, at $3, $4 or $5 a pop, I like my artichokes to provide more fun - and even to last a little longer. For instance, I found these beauties last week at Whole Foods, for $3 each...

Big-ass California artichokes

And I made steamed artichokes, because that's also how we like 'em. You see those little thorns at the end of each leaf? They hurt - be careful when, well - just be careful. Pick off the crappy leaves, then cut a bit off the bottom; the stem is edible once peeled - don't waste it. Cut off the top, about an inch or two down - use a serrated knife - it's easier. Trim each leaf with a good kitchen scissors. Rinse well and turn upside down to drain. When you're done, they should look like...

Trimmed artichokes

I like to stuff thin slices of garlic in between the leaves before steaming - a good dozen or so per choke. Then they get stood up in a steamer, sprinkled with salt, drizzled with olive oil, and steamed until tender. No, I don't know how long it'll take, but if you can pull a leaf out easily, that usually means they're done. You can also slide a paring knife into the base of the artichoke - if it meets little resistance, done. For serving to loved ones, and even those you like just a little, it's nice to take the choke out. Do I have to describe how to do that - it's a pain in the ass, but a grapefruit spoon works well.

There, you're all done. Oh - you'll also need a nice dipping sauce for the leaves and the heart  - here I'm serving them with a nice lemon and Spanish Pimentón aioli. Better known as Hellmann's mayo with lemon juice and smoked Spanish paprika all stirred together - it works.

Steamed artichokes with dip

What are you waiting for, a trip to Rome? Go on - steam an artichoke now!

Steamed Artichokes - A Recipe

As many artichokes as people. Then, read the post above.

Swan Song

Doesn't every city have one?  You know, a place that once you've been to, you want/need to go back to every time you return.

It doesn't have to be fancy;  as a matter of fact, it's better if it's not, really. Who rushes back to places that are offering 8 course meals for $250 a person; gimme a great $25 or under meal any day of the week.

Significant Eater and I recently spent our 15th anniversary in San Francisco, a city we like a lot. After all, it's got great food and drink, it's got an $11 an hour minimum wage with a booming economy (take that Boehner, you douche) and the cab drivers still understand a little English.  Also, it's got some pretty nice views...

So before we had even set foot into our rental apartment, our first stop was at one of "those" places that we need to go to every time we visit the city by the bay,  a place that has been taking care of locals (and yep, the tourists too) for, well, a really long time...

Yeah, Swan Oyster Depot is one of "those" places...there are maybe 15 seats at a counter (way before that was even a gleam in Brooklyn Fare's, Ko's or Blanca's eyes), you wait in the doorway and they're only open until 5:30 in the afternoon - so it's a late lunch or an early dinner for Sig Eater and me.

Even though it's an oyster "depot," oysters are not why we rush here. Actually, they were 86ed on oysters by the time we arrived, but the offerings go way deeper than that...

From Monterey Bay squid to tiny bay shrimp, smoked Pacific salmon to diver scallops, it's all good.  However, the reason we rush here on every trip to SF, and the reason you need to rush here when you find yourself in SF, is for the one thing they do better than anywhere else: Crab Louis.  It's a simple yet spectacular salad; the main ingredient being that large orange/red creature, Metacarcinus magister, better known as the Dungeness crab (my favorite crustacean, actually).

Yes, there are fancier salads. And yes, there are healthier salads...that Louis dressing is, after all, mostly mayo, cream and chili sauce. But, there's nothing more delicious - and here, where they top off your iceberg with almost a half-pound of delicious Dungeness...well, you'll understand why Swan Oyster Depot is this city's must-go-to every time we return...

Swan Oyster Depot
1517 Polk Street, San Francisco
(415) 673-2757

Frrrozen Pizza and Brunch - Two of My Favorite Things

Ahhhh, the pleasures of San Francisco and the Bay Area. And boy, what I wouldn’t give to be in San Francisco during these east coast summers...because while the temperature has been above 100° here in NYC a few times, and we're looking at 90°+ coming up soon, in San Francisco it’s pushing a perfect 6 – 0. Sweater weather, to be sure. That old saying, oft attributed to Sam Clemens, comes to mind; something along the lines of “the coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco.”  But I digress.

Last month, Significant Eater and I spent a week in San Francisco, and had some pretty amazing meals. And on our last full day in the city by the bay, we indulged in two meals neither of which I’d ever think of having when we’re home; that’d be brunch and frozen pizza.

Our day started off nicely at Bar Tartine, in the Mission district.  Nothing too fancy – it was brunch, after all.  But high quality ingredients, expertly prepared.  For instance, we started off with a salad of little gems and smoked trout topped with crispy salmon skin – as delicious as it sounds...

Then I had baked eggs sprinkled with “dry vella Jack cheese,” and Sig Eater opted for a brisket tartine with a smoked onion marmalade and horseradish mayo; both were served with delicious roasted baby potatoes...

Bar Tartine would be my go to brunch place if I lived in San Francisco.  And if I normally ate brunch.  But even though I don’t do either of the above, I can highly recommend Bar Tartine.

Later that day, we headed up to Mill Valley, to hang with a couple of ex-New Yorkers who made the move west 10 years ago.  Now, they have kids in the house and chickens in the backyard. Seriously.  But since chicken wasn’t on the menu for dinner that night, and since no one really wanted to cook, we decided to get some take-out pizza; not just any take-out, mind you  – instead, this was take-out frozen pizza that was to be finished cooking at home.

Pizzeria Picco (and Picco Restaurant) are Larkspur (Marin County) mainstays, and have been for a few years. People love the restaurant, and pizza aficionados love the pizzeria.  But frozen pizza is a whole other story, and I’ve never had one that was any good; they’re usually cardboardy and just pretty darn awful. Trooper that I am, I was willing to give it a try – so we cranked the oven up to 500°  to preheat and off we went to pick up a few pies.   

Picco has four of their classic pies and one or two of their specialized pies available daily. They’re partially cooked and flash frozen and this is what you take home…

After a few minutes in that hot, hot oven (on a stone or pizza pan), an amazing pie emerges…

Now that's a thing of beauty, isn't it?  At least as good as any pie we've had lately; acutally, better than most.  A few of these in your freezer, and excellent pizza can be yours at a moment's (well, at least after the oven is preheated) notice.  Of course, I could never heat one of these up in my oven in NYC; no, not during the summer, when the oven NEVER is used. 

But hey, if we lived in San Francisco or even Marin, that might be a whole other story...

Coast. Commonwealth. Comstock. A Day's Work

One of the things Significant Eater and I like to do when we’re visiting California is to take a nice drive; it’s a car culture after all.  I mean, people drive to mail a letter, if you get my drift. 

So on a rare for California in June rainy Tuesday, that’s just what we did.  We set out for Pescadero, a little town snuggled just off the coast somewhere between San Francisco and Santa Cruz. I remembered and had always wanted to get back there, because in “town” there’s a famous old tavern serving some of the best artichoke soup this side of, well, Castroville.  Heading down I-280, the Junipero Serra Freeway (hey, it’s California) affords some great scenery for an interstate that basically runs through the middle of Silicon Valley.  That’s because there isn’t much to the west of it except state Fish and Game Refuge and a large reservoir system – which is just fine. We cut over to Route 1 on the coast via Route 92, which is a nice, windy road (with a couple of local fruit and veggie stands; we bought some early, delicious cherries) that runs out to Half Moon Bay, and from there headed south – we’d “explore” Half Moon Bay on our ride back to the city.

The main street through Pescadero is called Stage Road, and that’s where our destination, Duarte’s, has been since 1894...  

We ate in the bar room, where this guy watches your every move…

Seriously, how great is a place that not only has a head mounted on the wall, but the whole series of velvet paintings of dogs playing poker?  The actual bar is the original, as our server and bartender, the ever-friendly Larry, pointed out.

So, how was the soup?  Actually, it might have been ever better than I remembered.  It’s offered two ways; pure cream of artichoke or split half and half with their cream of green chile. Both were brought out for us to sample, and we opted for the half and half, “like the locals do” according to Larry…

I rounded out my meal with some local fried smelts and a huge cracked Dungeness crab, while Sig Eater had the fried oyster sandwich. Hey - it ain’t haute, but it’s good. Before leaving, we walked out back, where the restaurant has its own vegetable garden. No surprise as to what’s growing back there…

We headed back up the coast, all the way into San Francisco – there’s some stunning scenery along the way, but don’t go hiking up or down any of the hills.  Many years ago, I nearly got arrested for doing so – they’re muy peligroso and the CHP doesn’t want to spend the time or the manpower rescuing any dumb tourists when they get stuck or fall…

Dinner that night was at Commonwealth, one of the new wave of San Francisco restaurants that I’d heard and read good things about.  Before we left for dinner, I snapped this shot from one of the windows in our rental…

We arrived as the restaurant was  preparing for its first wave of diners; it was early because that was the only reservation available, but dining at the bar is obviously an option…

My starter of spring peas, yuba, black trumpet, silken tofu, etc. was very good – and foamy…

As was the soft-shell crab (hey, not everything has to be local), exquisitely fried and there’s that foam again. Oh, make that an emulsion, a yuzu kosho emulsion, to be exact…

Grilled squid with a bacalao croquette was hard to pry away from SE, but I managed a few bites…

And my main, a spin on surf on turf, was a spot prawn perched atop a portion of “young hen,” with asparagus, spring onions and crushed fingerling potatoes. They do chicken well here.  For dessert, the two of us split the “peanut butter semifreddo with chocolate ganache and frozen popcorn,”  basically, a really great frozen Reese’s peanut butter cup.  

Our verdict – this meal doesn’t need to compare itself against any from New York – and certainly not at this price point. We’d return in a second, and I’ll send anyone going out west here too.  "Fig man” included.

Since it was an early dinner, and since I didn’t drink at dinner because I was driving (a plus – the restaurant has its own parking lot), we ended up walking over to Columbus Avenue once more, to Comstock Saloon, where the drinks, be they classic or modern, are delicious; and the décor, like the original bar, is from the early 1900s.  And you’ll really know you’re in San Francisco, and perhaps think you’re in another era, when you look over and sitting on the bar next to you you see this…

San Francisco: Open Your Golden Gate

June has been a lazy blogging month for me. There have been computer issues from the time we left town, May 29^th, until just recently. Actually, both Significant Eater and I had tech issues at the same time and, because we were tired of our pc’s problems, we’re now the proud parents of Mac computers for the first times in our lives. They’re beautiful children. Where was I?

Last month, an old friend of mine got married (in the middle of nowhere) so SE and I decided to make a mini-vacation of it. Actually, it wasn’t the middle of nowhere; it was the middle of California’s Central Valley, in a city called Manteca. It’s about 80 or 90 miles, as the crow flies, from San Francisco, so we decided we’d establish a vacation base in the city by the bay renting a cool apartment on a street (Jones) that was so steep that walking up or down the street was a potentially dangerous undertaking (especially when slightly drunk). No worries though – we made it just fine, even though both of us suffered various leg aches and pains by the end of the first day. And if you think I complain, you should hear SE…

We arrived in SF pretty early and had a few hours to kill before we could check in so we headed around the corner to Columbus Ave. and a favorite cafe – La Boulange de Columbus, where if you’re lucky you can have a nicely made tuna Nicoise or a decent club sandwich. Very quick and very casual.

Finally checking into our apartment and check out the view from the living room...

How about this right out the front door...

Is that not totally cool, dude, though after the first 10 or 12 times up and down the hill, them dogs are aching.

Recently, San Francisco has been getting a lot of press for how its food scene is once again being considered cutting edge and happening. I guess it (SF) had stopped being that way for a number of years and a number of reasons, and then Chang went and said something about figs on a plate and then all hell broke loose.

Bon Appetit had weighed in (April, 2011) on the subject of SF food before our trip (Richman after, in GQ); eGullet, as always, provided some excellent guidance; friends whose opinions I value had their say and I came up with a nice meal plan, giving us the ability to try some of the highly thought of new places and a few old faves too.

Our first night in SF was a Sunday, and that figured into the equation. We were pretty happy with our meal at Prospect, a newish place from the team at Boulevard, a San Francisco mainstay for many years. We were really happy at the bar before the meal, as our cocktails were expertly prepared and the room is stunning – all natural light and California – y...

Food wise, the black cod appetizer in a red curry nage was a winner...

Another appetizer, beef tongue, I didn't like as much...it needed a kick in the pants. It was rescued by my Petaluma chicken entree, simply one of the best chicken dishes I’ve had recently; juicy, tons of flavor, and hooked up with morels, ricotta dumplings and parmesan crisps, it blew me away...

SE’s wild king salmon was simple and elegant, the roasted artichoke hearts and herb oil a nice addition to the rich fish...

Dessert wasn't anything special, but Prospect is very close to the Embarcadero, perfect for a post-meal stroll with my honey...

Monday morning started off with a cup of coffee in a lousy coffee shop on Columbus (yes, there ARE lousy coffee shops in San Francisco and I hadn’t bought my beans yet), followed by breakfast at Mo’s, a favorite diner of ours on Grant Ave. Bottomless diner coffee for SE, good eggs and hash browns for us both, and only less than $10 a piece – a real find. Of course, we were hungry just a few hours later, and hit the Ferry Plaza Building (first for a cuppa Blue Bottle) and then to Hog Island Oyster Co. for a snack – west coast oysters both raw...

and cooked…

It being Memorial Day, lots of places were closed. Even a few of the cocktail places we wanted to try. No worries – we ended up at a North Beach place I’ve been going to for 25 years – Brandy Ho’s, followed by bourbon and beers at Vesuvio’s just up the block. Brandy Ho’s is good and it’s Hunanese, and those are two things which aren’t found often in NYC…

A long walk home ended an early evening for us – but there'll be more where that came from.

La Boulange de Columbus - 543 Columbus Ave. (415) 399-0714

Prospect – 300 Spear St. (415) 247-7770

Mo’s – 1322 Grant Ave. (415) 788-3779

Hog Island Oyster Co. - Ferry Building (415) 391-7117

Brandy Ho's - 170 Columbus Ave. (415) 788-7527