San Francisco A2K Gathering - April 9-12, 2004

I like everything you suggested, osso.

Let's eat something crabby on Saturday -- and we ought to make a reservation, because Piperade was filling up last week when I called them. The Dids will certainly get to the Slanted Door sometime, and no reason to inflict our food fetish on unwilling others (Lola, as well as blatham, and the others at the Austin Gathering have already been there and done that with us).

We are holding the weekends open for A2K activities, be that a you-conducted gallery tour or some other leisurely activity -- yes, GGB; yes, Conservatory; yes, Sausalito; yes, Tiburon -- and let's be sure it includes casual dining and shopping.

Yes, we will surely do Alcatraz, and preferably at night, as that has been highly recommended to us. Does not have to be on the weekend, but perhaps if jjorge and some others wish to...?

We are booked on a Muir Woods/Wine Country tour on Monday the 12th, an all-day affair. Baseball, maybe, on Wednesday afternoon (I have consulted the Giants schedule and that will be the one if we do it).

But the biggest treat will be simply being with all of y'all.

Ok, I'll resurrect the last crabby list, and add the few I noticed on another site.

Back in a minute.

Wow--so many choices is overwhelming! The tea garden and flower conservatory are two places I want to see and since both are in GG Park, it won't be difficult doing both in a half day.

We leave the choice of galleries open for you to decide, Ossso. If there are any that have some of the San Francisco School in the 50's, that would be interesting but not necessary.

Tiburon or Sauselito, either one--I just want to see that part of the Bay. Maybe one is less crowded or less touristy? Probably not.

You are a trooper! Why not charge for your services? You've done more for us than most travel agents ever would. We will be toasting Osso for sure!!

Toasts, I love toasts!

OK, found that SF list by a friend of friend that had some seafood places listed. Not in our more immediate neighborhood but not sure if much farther than I the list I made by looking up whole crab, san francisco on google. Not sure if I noise-proofread that crab list like I did the first one. The chinese places are often noisy and wonderful. What?

Re Ian's List -
I don't know him that well, but our mutual friend is quite the connosieur, but she is still in Spain as far as I know, so I'm not gonna pester her there. So it's a birds of a feather thing, his choices might be good.

Here we go -
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Ian's List: The Best of San Francisco

San Francisco has long been known for some of the best food in America. This has been because of our wonderful mix of ethnicities, our agricultural bounty, and the philosophy of pioneers like Alice Waters (of Chez Panisse), who thirty years ago, realized that the best cooking is done with fresh seasonal and very local ingredients. It is no exaggeration to say that Ms. Waters changed the way many cook and eat in America. Her acolytes now cook in many great San Francisco restaurants, and she encouraged small farmers to produce varieties that are never seen in supermarkets. This demand has greatly contributed to the astonishing number of artisan food makers here in the Bay Area. Ian's list is an attempt to note some of the very best food, food producers, and related products and services available in San Francisco today. The emphasis in this list is on takeout food and ingredients. This may change and I will attempt to keep it reasonably current. For restaurants, see Restaurant Reviews (below).

The Best of San Francisco: Dining and Food

* Farmer's Market: The Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market (Ferry Building, Embarcadero at Market St), Saturdays, 8 am to 1 pm. Without doubt, the best farmers' market in California. Expensive, but if God planted a garden, this is where he (or she) would sell the produce. Unsurpassed selection of organic fruits, vegetables, breads, pastries, seafood, meats, condiments, and flowers, all sold by the growers and producers. Many varieties of fruits, vegetables and other foods never seen in the supermarkets. A number of restaurants have set up outdoor food booths for great breakfasts. Glorious in summer and fall, and always a fun scene. See saturdaymarket.comSee saturdaymarket.com
* Chocolate Truffles: XOX Truffles. Traditional hand dipped truffles. 754 Columbus (at Greenwich), 421-4814. See xoxtruffles.com
* Chocolate: Michael Recchiuti, sold at the Farmer's market and a few retailers. See recchiutichocolates.com
* Bread: Acme Bread, sold at the Farmers' Market and many better food stores. Their levain is second only to Poilane (Paris).
* Dessert:
(1) Boulangerie, four locations: 2325 Pine (at Fillmore), 2310 Polk (at Green), 1000 Cole (at Parnassus), & 3352 Steiner (at Chestnut). Very French (I'ci tout est au beurre) with first rate pastries.
(2) Citizen Cake, 391 Grove (at Gough), spectacular desserts. Expensive but among the best in the city.
* Gelato/Sorbets: Tango Gelato. Almost like Florence. 2015 Fillmore (at Pine), 346-3692
* Seafood:
(1) Seafood Center, 831 Clement (at 9th), for live crab and lobsters.
(2) Bryan's, 3473 California (Laurel Shopping Ctr), for fresh seafood.
(3) Real Foods, 2140 Polk (at Vallejo), for fresh seafood.
* Fowl: Hoffman Ranch (at the Farmers' Market) raises free range chickens and game birds.
* Meat:
(1) Harris' Restaurant, 2100 Van Ness (at Pacific), 673-1888. Fine aged beef, all cuts. See harrisrestaurant.com
(2) Real Foods, 2140 Polk (at Vallejo.) Outstanding meat from small organic producers.
* Pizza:
(1) Via Vai, 1715 Union (at Octavia), 441-2111. Great thin crust pizzas. See viavaitrattoria.com
(2) Vicolo, 201 Ivy (an alley off Franklin), 863-2382. Great thick crust pizzas. vicolo-pizza.com.
* Dim Sum: Ton Kiang, 5821 Geary (at 22nd). Outstanding dim sum for lunch. See tonkiang
* Soup: Green's, Fort Mason (Bldg A). Great vegetarian restaurant with superb takeout food, particularly the soups. See more about Green's.
* Restaurant Reviews: Patricia Unterman's (of Hayes Street Grill) reviews have long been the best and most critical look at restaurants, food shops, and producers. No one serious about food can afford to miss her. Less comprehensive than Zagat's but far more intelligent and reliable. Subscribe to Unterman On Food.


The Best of San Francisco: Movie Houses and Bookstores

* Castro Theater: 429 Castro (at Market). A great, full restored 1925 movie palace that specializes in fine older and foreign films. See thecastrotheatre.com
* Landmark Theaters: A small chain that focuses on quality first run independent and foreign films. Includes the Clay, the Bridge, the Lumiere, Embarcadero, and Opera Plaza in San Francisco plus a few others in Marin and on the Peninsula. See landmarktheatres.com in SF and landmarktheatres for the Bay Area.
* DVD/Video Rentals: Le Video, 1231 9th Avenue (at Lincoln), easily the largest selection of foreign, independent, and older films in the city. See levideo.com
* Bookstores:
(1) William Stout Books, 804 Montgomery (at Jackson). Probably the best architectural book store in America. See stoutbooks.com
(2) A Clean Well Lighted Place: 601 Van Ness (Opera Plaza). Large, intelligent bookstore with very knowledgeable staff. See www.bookstore.com
(3) Get Lost Travel Books, 1825 Market (at McCoppin). Large selection of travel books with friendly staff. See getlostbooks.com


Other Links

* GreenCine: DVD movie rentals by mail, with over 10,000 titles with a focus on indie, art house, classics, foreign, anime and Asian cinema. See greencine.com
Yet more links.

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The full link for that was back on page six...


Oh, is the Slanted Door the Vietnamese place? can't remember, she says, drooling.

Back in a bit with the fish list from google -

I looked up the places on Ian's Links and two of them are grocery stores, the other doesn't have a website.

And I did find the Slanted Door Link (page 9?). Hmmm, anyone wanna go there Sunday night? Hmm, wonder if they do crab legs in a wok...

edit, checked that, many good things but not crab legs/wok.

Here's the crab link -
http://www.sfvisitor.org/crab/allrestaurants.asp
What do you think?
I liked, at first glance, but I might have missed something..
Azie, http://www.restaurantazie.com/
Cafe Pescatore, http://www.kimptongroup.com/cafe_pescatore.html
500 Jackson, http://www.500jackson.com/about.html
Crustacean Restaurant,
http://www.opentable.com/restaurant_profile.asp?ID=916&ref=251
Crustacean Link - 2
R & G Lounge, Link Here
Scoma's, http://www.scomas.com/home.htm (on Fisherman's Wharf... uh oh)

Note, I just checked the Azie link and a picture didn't come up, checked it again and the whole thing didn't. Probably because I refused cookies. If anybody has any trouble, just google away... I don't have time to clean out my cookie cache of "declines" right now. Will fix it tomorrow.. I think I liked that one best..

Yes, yes yes! ... likewise to all of the above, except the only time other than the weekend that I would have to see Alcatraz (which I very much want to do) would be daytime Thursday 4-8, or daytime Friday 4-9. I'm flying home Monday 4-12.

Although I'll arrive in town Wed. 4-7 afternoon, I figured on visiting with my bro. and his family Wed. and Thu evenings (they are putting me up after all)

Speaking of my bro and his wife, I'll be taking them out to dinner at least once. Maybe Sunday evening (if they can get a baby sitter). I haven't mentioned it to them as yet but maybe I could bring them with me if our A2K group is dining together that night.

They are thirty-something and parents of two little ones. They have lived in San Francisco since getting out of the Peace Corps about ten years ago.

Any thoughts about the idea of bringing 'guests' to one of our dinner gatherings?


PS thanks Osso for all your research

No problem with guests unless there are several and then just to add to whatever reservations we have..
in my humble opinion..

Yikes re alcatraz times. If you do it Friday you miss the big dinner..

Oh, Jeebus. Azie and Cafe Pescatore and these as well:



and:




and:



How am I gonna choose? (on edit, I notice these are Crab Festival specials, which date to the last weekend in February, so these may not apply. I'll just call them and see if we home in on one.)

jjorge, I believe that the group would be delighted for your brother and his wife to join us Sunday.

Now I need to make two reservations. You lurkers post a preference, please.

Yes, definitely, to the Farmers' Market (a great Saturday morning or afternoon option, yes?) and Tango Gelato. Let's start pushing a few puzzle pieces together on our calendar (each of you always has the option of declining and doing your own thing, of course).

Alcatraz will be something we do after the weekend.

And one more point of information:

The premeire of "The Alamo" with Billy Bob Thornton and Dennis Quaid is Friday, April 9. I'd rather do nearly anything but sit in a movie house in San Francisco during my week there (unless it pours down rain. We can handle cold and windy, even walking around outside, but no soakers). Being the loyal Texan I will have to see this movie sometime and don't mind waiting until I get home to do so. It's an inclement-weather option.

Is the Compass' serving whole crab? Dys (whole crab fan, I hear) and Diane, give all this a look...

1. Thanks Osso and Pdiddie. I think you'll like my brother and his wife.
Do we have a plan for Sunday dinner yet?

2. No problem with the Friday dinner. It looks like I'll be doing Alcatraz
by myself on Thursday 4-8

Speaking of WEATHER

Looking good.

PDiddie, I agree on deciding re Sat restaurant soon, hope people speak up..

No, we don't yet, JJorge.

I mentioned Slanted Door, but that is apt to be hard to get into, or maybe not, it being Sunday night. There was another place with Vietnamese/french food back on the list, something An....

JJorge, go back, if you would, and look at the original restaurant list, on page three, I think. It had quiet places (two bells) listed from the SF Chronicle reviews.. go see if there is something that strikes your fancy..

Solea sort of strikes my fancy, but the review was more than a year ago, might not be quiet now.. actually, I can't remember that much, but it interested me at the time..

Gotta go, late for work..

Dys isn't such a fanatic about crab that he would insist on having it in SF if there are other good places that others would want to see. We are very easy when it comes to food--fresh ingredients and prep that isn't too precious are our favorites.

That said, the Compass Grill does sound good and serves whole crab. PD, I checked and the Crab Festival is one weekend in February, but the crab season is from November through June.

To me, pizza isn't something I'd go for in a city with so many unique restaurants and definitely NO movies--maybe on an afternoon of constant cloud bursts.

Farmer's Market is a treat for all the senses. I'd forgotten about it until Osso brought it up. I'd vote for going there Saturday morning.

I hate to wimp out, but I'd rather the foodies pick the restaurants. One or two expensive places would be wonderful as long as the price is indicative of real value.

Is the Blue Fox still extant? I'll have to check the internet. During the 60's it was one of the classiest joints in the City.

To facilitate the planning process I happily grant my proxy vote to you osso. As an almost omnivore*, I am easy to satisfy. My one request is that it not be a venue that's obscenely expensive.



















* no haggis please

I'm following this thread and envious of you lucky people. (I'm going to visit mom for easter weekend.) I know you'll all have a marvelous time.

Don't forget to take pictures!

The Blue Fox, Ernie's (Hitchcock's "Vertigo") are gone and I believe one of my old favorites Alexis Tangiers is also extant. I can check to see if Le Bergoine (spelling?) in the Old Virginia Hotel is still going. A great breakfast on Sunday would be at the Sheratan Palace Palm Court.

Is the restaurant at the Altimira Hotel on Salsalito still there? It had a grand view back over the Bay Bridge to the city.

watching and salivating!

I'm going to terrorise MsOlga in Melbourne at Easter time. She'll probably never be the same again!

Hmm...Solea, I wonder why that struck osso's fancy?



from the Solea website:

Main Courses

Petite "Bob" Veal Osso Bucco
Risotto with Roasted Yams and Herbs
Natural Jus
22.50



sounds good to me.