San Francisco!

I hadn't been to San Francisco just for fun in over 15 years! Wow- that's a real city, and that is too too long! We visited friends, and went to several new-to-me places. Of course we ate WELLLL.

First up - Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market. I had read about this place, and we were hungry and curious, so we started the journey there. Delish! We had some ACME Bread Company sour dough, with a beer and cheese pairing at Cowgirl Creamery. I had some lovely seafood gumbo from San Francisco Fish Company. And to wash it all down, Humphry Slocombe super-creamy ice cream. Damn I love that caramel/salt combo that's sweeping the nation! Not a bad start.

One thrill for me was to go to Rancho Gordo's shop at Ferry Plaza. I love their heirloom beans, hominy, recipes, newsletter, and overall personality. I took few pictures this weekend, but here's a funny one from their shop.

You know you want to

Another notable meal was at Facebook headquarters. My friend works there, and invited us to see the campus. It was amazing. It felt like a cross between a college campus, Main Street Disneyland, a mall, and a movie set. So many food options, it was ridiculous. We opted for organic salad bar, topped with meat from the barbecue joint, and two kinds of freshly pressed juice. If only we had had time to hit up the ice cream place, or candy shop! I tried two different meats from the barbecue joint, both so tender, and perfectly cooked. It made me want to officially go to cooking school, specialize in slow-cooked meats, and apply for an apprenticeship at Facebook!

Moving on, NOPA!! It was fantastic. Very crowded, but merely one block down from the venue we were going to that night. Great service, cocktails and food! The flatbread appetizer with pesto was melt-in-your-mouth delicious (my mouth just watered thinking about it), my black cod entreé was dense with flavor, the vegetarian toasts topped with avocado were so simple, clean, fresh and brimming with flavor, they were remarkable. Everything at NOPA was phenomenal.

The next night we went to Pizzaiolo in Oakland. This is the kind of place I love. The atmosphere was happening, but still pleasant. We were able to linger without feeling guilty for not releasing the table. You could enjoy your company without the waiter being overly enthusiastic (with needless interruptions to your party). The atmosphere actually reminded me of the kind of place you'd find in New Orleans. Our waitress was knowledgable, and helped guide us to the right drinks, the right combination of flavors, the right order of things. I love it when servers are actually helpful and enhance your experience. We shared everything - a couple of pizzas, meatballs, English pea ravioli, salads, cocktails! What is better than Italian (or any Mediterranean) food with great friends?

Every place we dined made it onto the must-return-next-time list. It's a very good thing that there is so much walking to do in the City, to help balance things out while eating delicious meals at every turn.

cauliflower crust pizza

I found this recipe through Pinterest, which is my newest networking obsession. That sounds funny to say in that lately I have been a real technology hater. Having so much information at our fingertips, it turns out that carrying on regular activities or conversations with people becomes impossible without everyone reaching for their own gadgets to check their messages, calendar, google something, search for an address, or cross check something or someone. What if we had to just talk about it until somewhere in the back of your brain, you actually REMEMBERED the name of that actor, without having to IMDB it?! That might just be too much of a mental workout! Better just google it. JFGI or GTS, if you will. I digress.

It's all about having this technology make your life easier, better, more fun, maybe even more efficient. So far, Pinterest is treating me right, by making it easier to do what I was doing anyway: collecting images, articles, and ideas and placing them into categories to easily find and review again later. And it's shared with your friends, thus the social aspect. Kinda cool.

Anyway, back to the recipe. It is from a blog called eat. drink. smile. I kinda screwed up the ratios from the get go, but it all turned out pretty well in the end. I will be making this flourless alternative again.

Neighborhood/Organic/Sustainable/Local

... this is what is printed at the top of the menu at Blue Ribbon Artisan Pizzeria in Encinitas. And it should be every restaurants mantra.
We visited B.R.A.P again last Sunday, and it was super. It is becoming a new San Diego favorite. There were 6 of us (including 2 kids), and we were able to share everything. We sat on the outside patio on a brisk, but sunny day. Heat lamps made it totally pleasant. Shared two baby greens salads with pomegranate seeds, blue cheese and candied pecans. Appetizer of black seed popcorn with truffle salt and parmigiano reggiano cheese. And three pizzas: one with sausage and pepperoni, one cheese for the kids, and one special of the day with butternut squash, and arugula that we added the house-made sausage to. It was all quite delicious. It's unusual that kids and adults can go out together, easily find something they both like and equally enjoy the experience. But we did!
We also shared one phenomenal butterscotch pudding for dessert. It was fantastic! Dense and flavorful, with little salt crystals every now and then adding a bit of excitement. I keep thinking I need to learn to make this pudding myself. And while it would be a fun challenge, I know I'd end up consuming more pudding than is advisable. Best to leave it for the special occasion of dining at B.R.A.P.
I believe the true test of a restaurant, is how good the simple dishes are. How good is the house green salad? the basic cheese pizza? the pasta with red sauce? At B.R.A.P., we sampled the simple dishes, and they were superb. Fresh ingredients, balanced flavors (showing creativity AND restraint) with prompt and friendly service makes dining here a pleasure.

Mozza!

Pizzeria Mozza. WOW. Yummmmmmm. Did not disappoint. We shared several appetizers, salad and a pizza. Simple ingredients, treated respectfully, fresh and delicious. The simple greens salad was a variety of fresh, crisp lettuces tossed with a bright and delicious vinaigrette dressing, then piled into a tower on a plate. It was everything a salad should be, and bonus: cool presentation. We also shared a fantastic wax bean salad, my husband couldn't stop talking about it. The panini was excellent. The pizza, perfectly crispy and flavorful. The very best part of the meal was dessert. I have a sweet tooth and definitely love dessert. But at many places, it often disappoints. Mozza's Budino on the other hand was sensational. Butterscotch, salt, rosemary cookies and cream... Might have been the best dessert I've ever had, outside of my mom's (and grandma's) kitchen.

If the Pizzeria is the less fancy/expensive alternative to Osteria Mozza, now I REALLY must go to Osteria.

Cocktails at the Tar Pit

ar•ti•san, noun: a worker in a skilled trade, esp. one that involves making things by hand

The Artisinal Cocktails at the Tar Pit are pretty incredible and made by just such a person. A couple weeks ago, I went there with several girlfriends for dinner/drinks. We tried just about every cocktail on the menu, plus a few more off the menu. I didn't realize it at the time, but because we ordered from the waiter and never stepped up to the bar, we were missing a big part of the experience: watching the artisan at work.

THIS time, my husband and I went for a pre-dinner cocktail, and got there shortly after they opened. We had front row seats at the bar for this unique show. Witnessing all of the ingredients that went into crafting one drink, plus the unusual shaking maneuver made me appreciate these cocktails even more. While making one bourbon-based beverage for us, the bartender carved a slice of orange rind from the fruit, smeared it around the glass it would eventually be served in, then lit a wood match, hovered the rind above the flame for a few seconds, poured the cocktail from shaker to glass, then balanced the warmed rind on the outer edge. I may have even seen it flambé for a split second. Quite a beverage, quite a show!


One more magnificent detail: the ice cubes. These blocks of ice were enormous and never seemed to melt. We were intrigued. What kind of mold did they use? What kind of water? For being one of the most basic elements used in making a drink, these cubes were noteworthy and added yet another dimension to the entire experience. Thumbs up to the artisan bartender, who takes his job very seriously.