Review: Comstock Saloon

April 16, 2014 by Angie Sommer 4 Comments

Comstock Saloon is a nice bar and restaurant on Columbus that’s kinda got a classy, old-timey feel to it. As in, it’s gussied up like an old fashioned saloon but with new, nice, and artistic fixtures. Dark wood bar, tables, and booths; dim chandeliers and lamps; bartenders who wear vests… you get the idea. Fine, I guess it’s kinda a hipster thing, but it’s cool and classy and fun and I like it. (Per their website, the historic space was a saloon dating back to 1907 — points for authenticity!)

Mushroom Pot Pie from Comstock — $17

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Events: SF Chocolate Salon 2014 — Recap

March 30, 2014 by Angie Sommer Leave a Comment

I was kindly invited to this year’s Chocolate Salon held at Fort Mason. It consisted of dozens of vendors, each with their own table displaying their goods and with samples for patrons to try. Since I was invited as a judge, I was requested to vote on my favorite vendors after the event. All the winners are listed on their website — click the blue circular award in the right margin (why no link, guys?).

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Review: Il Casaro – New Restaurant

March 23, 2014 by Angie Sommer 1 Comment

When I first saw Il Casaro as I was walking by a week ago, the menu was posted as a “soft opening menu”. It looked intriguing, so (with difficulty remembering where exactly it was) I returned yesterday. They are now fully open, and I think they’re off to a good start.

Marinara Pizza – $12

The owners of Il Casaro are not new to the area; they’ve owned nearby Vicoletto for some time. Which, oddly, I’ve never been to. Perusing their menu, I would now really like to try their pappardelle with fresh crab meat, among other things. More new restaurants, yeay!

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Review: Boogaloos

March 16, 2014 by Angie Sommer 1 Comment

Sometimes brunch in SF seems like some sort of Black Friday marathon event. By the size of the lines at some places, you’d think they were giving away gold-encrusted Eggs Benedict for free. The key to these situations? Have a strategy.

As far as I’ve seen, there are two effective strategies: 1) go hellza early, or 2) come prepared to wait hellza long. Strategy number two can consist of going elsewhere nearby for a coffee or bloody Mary, which generally helps ease the pain. Note: if you have a third strategy, do share.

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Review: 54 Mint

March 8, 2014 by Angie Sommer 1 Comment

54 Mint is tucked away behind the old San Francisco Mint off 5th Street just south of Market (indeed, in SOMA). It’s a cute space with rustic-chic decor, and a large-ish downstairs (basement) seating area for overflow seating and (I assume) large parties. They’ve got an extensive wine list, a fancy Italian menu, and, most importantly, it is possible to get a reservation.

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Events: SF Chocolate Salon March 15, 2014

March 5, 2014 by Angie Sommer 1 Comment

Chocolate. Just say the word in your head. Chocolate. Aren’t you just a little bit happier now?

I love chocolate. Chances are, so do you. Which is why you might want to make room in your busy schedule for the upcoming 8th annual SF Chocolate Salon at Fort Mason on Saturday March 15, 2014.

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Review: Hillstone

March 2, 2014 by Angie Sommer 4 Comments

I’ve done this before, and I’m sure I’ll do it again. A few weeks ago, I found myself wandering about the Embarcadero in search of food around 3pm. I wanted to see the newly remodeled Fog City Diner, so, starved, we walked down to their location across from Pier 23. For some unknown and seemingly unnecessary reason, they do not serve food between 2.30 and 4.30pm. I find that this happens to me on vacation a lot — arriving at a restaurant “between meals”. So irritating.

cheeseburger from hillstone ($19)

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Review: The Slanted Door

February 21, 2014 by Angie Sommer Leave a Comment

Sometimes you go to a restaurant in SF and suddenly feel that you’ve been inducted into some sort of exclusive group of people. There are a variety of these restaurants, which, incidentally, you typically can’t get a table at without rigorous and meticulous preparation, or, alternatively, without waiting for two-plus hours on a given night. As I’m not typically inclined toward the latter, the former is my chosen option for such places.

Inside The Slanted Door… image from their website: http://www.slanteddoor.com/images

The Slanted Door is one of those places. You want a reservation for 7pm for two people? It’s February 21 today, and Open Table tells me that you’ll need to wait until at least March 3 to get a table before 8pm, and even then, that table is for 5:30. Let’s just say we’re dealing with high, though not thoroughly hopeless, demand.

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Review: Sotto Mare

February 7, 2014 by Angie Sommer 2 Comments

Sotto Mare (full name Gigi’s Sotto Mare Oysteria & Seafood Restaurant & Fish Market) is a small, old school seafood place right in the heart of North Beach on Green Street just off Columbus. I’ve lived in North Beach for two years and still hadn’t been — it was time. There’s a line out the door so often (the place is small and cramped) that I’ve just never expended the effort. A few weeks ago, the line was short and I went for it.

I didn’t really know what to expect, and was hence very surprised by the atmosphere and the menu. I’ve sort of gotten used to the hoity-toity SF restaurant ambiance, which can range from rustic-chic to elegant-chic to hipster-chic, but is indeed very often some type of chic. At least when you’re paying $20 a plate or more. So I was surprised to walk into what I can only describe as a diner. Like, old school, knick-knacks all over the walls, counter seating, single-page laminated menu old school. It was interesting.

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Review: Presidio Social Club — Brunch

February 1, 2014 by Angie Sommer 1 Comment

There aren’t too many restaurants way out in the Presidio, but the Presidio Social Club is one of them. Housed in a remodeled 1903 barracks building on the east side of the Presidio, this fairly large restaurant has an old-timey, classic, yet comfortable feel to it. The sweeping verandas and old fashioned counter seating juxtapose the open space, modern furniture, and abundant natural light.

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Broccoli & Chocolate

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