This is going to be a weird post.
Basically, these food photos turned out relatively amazing. So this place looks amazing. And the food was really good, but the decor and general ambiance of Wine Kitchen irked me in a weird way. And since I was with my architect friend, she easily told me Eight Things that Wine Kitchen Could Do to Improve Their Vibe. And, while I would not have noticed them myself, she was right.
But first, food:
Behold: Fried gnocchi
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Extra, Extra, ReadAllAboutIt! Capo’s Now Open in North Beach!
Say that in, like, one of those Dick Tracy Chicago gangster accents to get the full gist of what’s happening in that sentence, y’shee. Capo’s is the newest gig from world champion pizza tosser Tony Gemignani of Tony’s Pizza Napolitana, one of the famous SF pizza joints (also the owner of Pyzano’s in Castro Valley). This time he’s gone old school with Capo’s — red patent leather booths, brick walls, and mood lighting chandeliers. And a specialization in Chicago-style deep dish pizza. I can dig it.
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Behold: Chaya.
The awesome thing about having a food blog in SF is that it’s no longer necessary to write bad reviews of restaurants. There’s just too much good stuff here to waste time on sub-par food. Chaya is one of the best places I’ve been in a while.
It’s mom’s birthday. More than a pony, she wants a nice meal at an upscale restaurant — preferably with a view of the water — and a fun night with her daughters. Choosing a restaurant is always difficult, but we settled on Chaya, though none of us had been there before.
Chaya is on Embarcadero across the street and a bit south from the Ferry Building. It has large windows that look directly out onto the Bay Bridge. The atmosphere is fancy but not pretentious. The menu is amazing.
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This adorable little gem opened up not long ago at the corner (ah, hence The Corner Store) of Masonic and Geary in the Inner Richmond, SF. It’s classic San Francisco with a quirky little menu, fun cocktails, and a cute space. I’ve been twice. This time, I was really happy, see?
Yeay, food!
There aren’t actually a lot of veg options on the menu, unfortunately, but I found something out the second time I went: they’ll make non-veg things veg if you ask. Because they’re chefs and that shiz doesn’t phase them. I love this city.
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Ok, I’ve been hearing about this place forever. I finally went recently. It was awesome, just like people (and the huge wait list) suggest.
They have two locations, Mission and Fillmore. I met Melanie way too late one night at the Fillmore location. We intended to go to SPQR, but were snubbed without a reservation*. So we got to Dosa around 9pm and I didn’t get home until midnight, so full that I thought I might explode. It was epic.
Dosa was full at 9pm on a Saturday night. And unlike SPQR, they were kind enough to put my name on a wait list**. We sat at the bar to wait our 30-45 minutes and then were kindly seated at a table for our 10pm dinner. Perfect!
Chutney appetizer. Four flavors! Good, but way too spicy for me. I could only eat one of them without crying.
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It’s so sad to me when people hear the names of restaurants like Plant and say something like, “Ugh, does that mean there’s nothing good on the menu?” When did plants become bad to eat? Why do meat eaters have to eat meat with every meal ever? I digress (and kinda apologize; you do what you want).
Plant is not a vegetarian restaurant. It is sorta healthy-ish, doesn’t have anything deep fried, and doesn’t have meat other than seafood and poultry. In fact, their website tells me they serve: all organic produce, all free range poultry, and sustainable seafood. Sounds good to me. And yes, they do have many meat-less dishes and some veggie-adventurous items (tempeh, anyone?). And it’s great! I love this place.
Inside The Plant on Pier 3.
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I’ll make this quick since I didn’t take any pictures. But, since all vegetarian sampler platters look the same at Ethiopian restaurants, I’ll just show you a pretty picture of another one I’ve eaten before:
Vegetarian Sampler
Sheba is an Ethiopian restaurant, bar, and piano lounge on Fillmore, just around the corner from the Fillmore concert hall. I love Ethiopian food. There’s not a whole lot of it in the city, so I’ve been slowly but surely seeking it out. I’ve only tried one other place in the Avenues somewhere, and I didn’t love it. This one was better.
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Wayfare Tavern = Awesome.
I guess that’s really all I need to say. I’m adding this to my wish list (for places to return with a camera); this place was birthday worthy!!!
Main points:
In short, I LOVED this place. I want to go back. With a camera, like a tourist. Whatever. Totally delicious, a little pricey, totally worth it. W00t!
Dude*. Commonwealth.
I keep hearing about this place. It’s at 29th and Telegraph in Oakland, and it’s a pub/cafe-type place that my friends like to go for Sunday brunch. And it’s awesome. I finally went today and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
From the adorable pair at the bar speaking in their British accents (which I hope were real) to the decidedly British/Aussie (hence the name Commonwealth) fare and beverages (beans and toast, “cuppa” tea), this place was A) uber-cute, and B) good. We three ladies ordered three dishes and shared. And the light was fabulous so my photos look money. See?
French toast with “Golden” syrup. You know you want it.
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I’m thinking I should shorten my food reviews. Sometimes I take notes after I go to a place since I don’t review it for a while after. My notes on this place were as follows*:
Russian Hill, corner of Broadway and Polk. Totally radical space looks like a 70’s swinger’s club or something. Red velvet everywhere, round booths in the wall, dozens of crystal chandeliers from the ceiling, large bar. Apparently a club at night. Apparently an attendant in the men’s room who will hold the water faucet on for you. Ladies room normal, no attendant. Taco selection good. We ordered fish, fried fish, and veggie. Get it “Nick’s Style” with guac and a crispy taco. Which apparently means they just fry it up a bit.
Inside Nick’s (during the day).
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