Cafe de la Presse- San Francisco

One of my coworkers recommended that we go to Cafe de la Presse since we were in the area (Union Square).  We had popped in one night looking for dessert… but nothing struck us.  Then on Friday night we were home a bit early and had little desire to wander far after a long day on our feet, so off to Cafe de La Presse we went again.

The meal began with a little amuse-bouche that I believe was a take on “ham and swish.” Delish!

We ordered the special “tarte” (crispy flatbread) with arugula, cheese, apples, and dates.  It was SENSATIONAL.  Dates on flat bread with cheese are one of my favorite combos.

Mike chose the squash risotto.  It was just okay. Was a bit more like rice than risotto in my opinion.

I went with my fave… Boeuf Bourguignon (really I just LOVE beef stew no matter what nationality it comes from).  It was very tasty, but somehow… lacking.  The meat just lacked depth of flavor.

Zuni Cafe- San Francisco

When I asked one of my favorite foodie friends (Noa) where to eat in San Francisco, she immediately said we had to eat at Zuni.  The only day we could squeeze it in was for lunch the day after Christmas. 

I had read a LOT of reviews to determine what to order and quickly realized it was a hot debate.  Eating the roasted chicken at Zuni was nominated as number one item on the list of top 100 things to try before you die..  Some people agreed that this was THE. BEST. CHICKEN. however, others mentioned that it was good… for chicken.  I knew what to expect… an hour wait… so we ordered a Caesar salad to split while we waited.

The restaurant was actually quite beautiful and set up very well.  Nice atmosphere while you wait.  Mike got another glass of his new favorite beer, Anchor Steam.

Then finally… IT CAME!  It is listed as served over a “bread salad.”  Mike and I speculated exactly what a “bread salad” might be, however, we severely underestimated how delicious this was.  It was really great homemade bread chunks that was browned (char grilled?) and then soaked in dressing (though not at all soggy).  It was DELICIOUS!

The chicken?  Ehhh… don’t get me wrong. It was REALLY… REALLY good… but in the end it’s still chicken.  (And I have a place in my heart for the roasted chickens that came out of a gas station restaurant near my college.. Yes… I am TOTALLY serious).

Completely delicious.  But I wouldn’t say it’s one of the things I would demand you must try before you die.

I think that list really hurts this place, as I probably would have ordered something different had I not heard SO MUCH about the chicken.  And it’s really hard to rate a restaurant on a caesar salad and chicken… but…

Total Nom Points: 7 out of 10

The Stinking Rose- San Francisco

On Christmas night, after spending the day seeing a movie at the Castro, wandering that neighborhood, then making our way up to the painted ladies and then strolling through the Civic Center area, we found ourselves at our evening destination: The Stinking Rose. Mike and I LOVE garlic… and I mean LOVE.  We roast heads and eat the whole thing and add at least twice as much garlic as is called for in any recipe.  So what better than an entire restaurant themed around garlic?

We started with a pot of roasted garlic.  It was a LOT of garlic but, surprisingly, not really garlicky.  It was wholly disappointing compared to the ones we roast up in our oven (cut the top of the head off to expose the cloves, brush with olive oil, wrap in tin foil, put in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, scoop or squeeze out the cloves… you’ll thank me).

We ordered drinks and I know Mike got his new favorite, Anchor Steam beer.  I went with the blueberry margarita.  It was okay, but I wanted more blueberry!

For my entree, I chose the garlic prime rib.  What could possibly be bad?  Weeeellll… it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t good either.  It was just… bland.  How can THAT much garlic be BLAND?

Mike got the Porterhouse Pork Chop, pan-roasted with sweet garlic relish and caramelized apples… and well… the apples were good.

We decided we would go for broke and try the garlic ice cream. Why not?  This was actually the BEST part of the meal (by far).  The sweet garlic was flavorful without being overpowering and the caramel sauce on top just added the right kick to it.  We really enjoyed this… and only this.

Without getting too personal, I must confess that the aftermath of so much garlic (regardless of how weak it tasted) was NOT pretty.  I think both Mike and I were thankful we weren’t a new couple!

Overall, The Stinking Rose was completely boring.  My theory is they rely too much on their gimmick to worry about fresh and well cooked ingredients.  It has so much potential and it just fell entirely short.  It was fun though!

Total Nom Points: 4 out of 10

Sears Fine Foods- San Francisco

We had no idea what to do on Christmas Day.  We knew it would be tough to find places to eat and our only plan was to have a merry Jewish Christmas at the movies (specifcally to see “Nine” at the famous Castro movie theater!)  We asked the concierge where we might find a place open for breakfast and they recommended Sears Fine Foods right up the street.

The place was kitschy but cute.  Very diner-like with a theme revolving around getting a token as you leave to spin a slot machine for a free meal.  (We didn’t win) 

We went all-in for the breakfast.  Mike got 2 eggs, 2 strips bacon, 2 sausages with 2 pancakes.

I went with the “Sears’ World Famous 18 Swedish Pancakes” (with a side of sausage).  They were actually quite tasty!  I still like my own better, but these were still good.  Light and flavorful.

Though I’m not sure if I’d call them “world famous.”

Overall, Sears Fine Foods was exactly that… fine.  I wouldn’t go out of my way to go there again, but if it’s the only place open on Christmas Day, it’s not a terrible option.

Total Nom Points: 5 out of 10

Nomming along the San Francisco Waterfront

Our first day out in San Fran was Christmas Eve.  We were worried that a lot of things would be closed, however, we lucked out for the most part (and even Alcatraz was open).

Our first stop was in the ferry building where I got breakfast and coffee from the famous Blue Bottle Coffee Company.  I got the New Orleans style coffee and a cinnamon brioche.

They did a very pretty leaf on the top of the coffee.

Both the coffee and brioche were delicious.

The brioche was perfect.  Buttery and perfect balance of cinnamon, nuts, and pastry. 

Our next stop was outside the Fisherman’s Wharf.  When I iPhoned the restaurants on the wharf, all reviews were pretty abysmal.  I also knew that dungenous crab is popular in SF AND it was in season.  So I figured the little huts along the water would be a fun place to eat some authentic crab.

I was wrong… both the crab sandwich and the lumb crab meat were… bland. At best.

Perhaps I’m too used to New England crab and there is a big difference, otherwise the crab just wasn’t great.

And we were still hungry… so we both decided to have our first In-N-Out Burger experience.

I know it was animal style. And it was delicious.  I managed 2 bites before my arteries started to protest.

The Animal Fries, however, wow!  They were delicious, fast food, gross goodness.  I had a few more bites of this than I intended.

While the food left a lot to be desired (I think a lot had to do with our selections), it was a beautiful walk and I just loved the waterfront.  Our trip to Alcatraz was also awesome.  I was really impressed with the tour.  Sure it’s touristy, but it’s fun and interesting.  Next time I’ll do some more research or stick to the restaurants on the inner part of the peninsula. 

First Crush- San Francisco

I heard so many good things about the food in San Francisco (especially from one of my fave bloggers, Feisty Foodie).  I was incredibly excited when I was asked to travel there for business (I had never been) and extended the trip to include leisure travel with Mike over Christmas week.  I was so excited to try so many different restaurants in SF (plus I knew it was prime artichoke growing territory… MMM!) and we planned the last 2 days in Napa where more wonderful nomming was to take place.

It was just my luck that I came down with a wicked case of food poisoning or a stomach bug about an hour before leaving for the airport.  (I do not wish having stomach problems like that on an airplane to my worst enemy!)  It actually had me completely in bed for 24 hours after the trip and sans food for the first two days.  I somehow dragged myself to work on Day 2 but it wasn’t pretty (I was so bad off that I never would have gone in had they not paid for me to fly out there and I knew I actually had to SHOW UP or risk them not reimbursing me).  By the end of that evening, I was finally feeling semi-capable of nourishment and went with chicken soup from Westin’s room service.  It was actually quite tasty and I’m pretty convinced it was slightly magical as that was the turning point.

By the next night I convinced myself I was well enough to eat again.  We were staying in the Union Square area and used our Urban Spoon iPhone app to pull up a convenient restaurant.  First Crush sounded like a good place so we went for it without much research (very uncommon for me!)

We started with something that sounded right up my alley: roasted winter squash with chestnuts, pearl onions, squash puree, and pomegranate reduction.  It was really, really good!  I was a bit dissapointed that there weren’t more (and bigger) chestnuts since I love them, however, I got over this very quickly with the amazing flavor combination and freshness of the ingredients. 

Mike went with the pistachio crusted wild hawaiian walu with rainbow carrotes, roasted fingerlings, fried shallots, and glace de veau. The crust was perfect and the fish was moist and flavorful.

I ordered the artichokes braised a la barigoule with toasted barley, flageolets, sunchokes, and lemon oil.  It was good but I was expecting a bit more robust artichoke flavor.  (I think I expect too much of my favorite veggie).  I really enjoyed it, however, and I’m glad I ordered this dish.

Overall, for a random restaurant in the middle of an unknown city, I thought we found a gem.  None of the desserts sounded especially appealing (which was surprising for a wine place… I always expect those 2 to go together) so we skipped.  What we ordered, however, was especially fresh and very tasty.  We enjoyed this first meal at First Crush very much.

Total Nom Points: 6.5 out of 10