San Francisco Bay Area: Your favorite things to do or places to go

[El Diablo]

JB,

$10-15 per person? For app, entree w/ sides, dessert, and 2 beers? I dunno, I lived in Houston and Atlanta for a lot of years and have eaten at tons of small-town places throughout Texas, and $10-15 for that still seems absurdly cheap.

Having said that, you can pretty much double the price of dining out at similar-level places in SF or NYC as compared to cities in the South, but everything costs a lot more out here.

Cajun/soul-food/"country cooking" is not a super-common category, but every city definitely has a few, ranging from shacks in bad neighborhoods to "upscale" versions in the city.

Here's a pretty legit place in SF:
http://powellsplace.ypguides.net/

Here's an "upscale" place in SF:
http://www.farmerbrownsf.com/

Here's an even "higher end" place in SF:
http://www.theelitecafe.com/

I've been to Powell's and it's f'ing great. I've been to Farmer Brown and it was OK. Angeline's is somewhere in the middle in terms of niceness and price, but far superior to Farmer Brown. Haven't been to Elite Cafe.

[James Boston]

El D,

Well, I was guessing considering I've never duplicated the order you just described. Apps are generally not necessary at the places I eat at, as the "main course" is a ton of food. Meat and 3 sides runs about $7-$9. Beer is about $3. So yeah, $10-$15 is do-able, especially if there's no alchohol.

[El Diablo]

JB,

"What you just described would cost like $10-$15 per person at numerous places here."

Using your numbers, it looks like a comparable meal would be something like:

$9 + $3 + $3 + $3 for dessert + $3 for apps = $21 + tax and tip = ~$26

$26 is very different from $10-15.

[cbloom]

[ QUOTE ]
Should I be moving to a large city and cook like my grandmother did? How common are places like this out of the south?

[/ QUOTE ]

Obviously lots of people have that idea. Then they have to pay the much much higher rent here. And they have to pay higher city mandated minimum wages for restaurant employees. Now they have to provide health care for restaurant employees. They have to comply with no-plastics laws. Then you have to deal with a far higher quality standard and level of competition which makes you use local organic/sustainable ingredients and good interior design. etc. etc. etc.

Yes food is more expensive here but it's not like the restauranteurs are just gouging everyone.

[badluckal]

I must recommend Shimo for sushi/sashimi if you are in the Outer Richmond/Seacliff area, 2339 Clement St. This place is a hidden gem, surrounded by some other decent eateries. The prices are very reasonable, and the chefs offer daily specials from giant rock crab to to otoro, depending on what is available. The atmosphere is low key and friendly, and the freshness of the fish is tough to beat.

[cgrohman]

The Vesuvio on Columbus. Pitchers of Stella.

[talentdeficit]

i used to live at broadway and stockton, across the street from yuet lee. definitely the best place to eat in sf, maybe the entire west coast. it's a total dive, of course, but the food is incredible.

[El Diablo]

Tik,

Went to Gary Danko tonight. Awesome dinner. Since you gave such a great report, I'll just say that the service, as always, was great. You described it well.

Here's what we had.

App: Both had Foie Gras w/ Caramelized onion and some fruit. Delicious. But later I saw someone get my second choice, the sweet corn and truffle ravioli soup, and regretted not getting that. Then I read Tik's review and now I REALLY want that - I love great corn soup. I just couldn't help but order the foie gras. Anyway, it was still delicious.

Fish: I had seared scallops w/ pea puree. Delicious, the pea was a perfect mild complement to the flavorful scallops. She had the lobster, which was just as described by Tik.

Meat: I had the herb lamb loin. Perfect. Perhaps my favorite Danko entree. She had the tenderloin, which was very great, but somewhat on the simple side. Incredible beef flavor, though.

Cheese: You get to choose three, but he added an extra piece to both of ours. We had two blues - one Auverge or something that was OK, and a Roaring 40's that was INCREDIBLE, super strong and flavorful, but not out of control stinky. Just delicious. A brie, but I'm not a big brie fan. A triple cream that was just super rich, very tasty. One gruyere-ish thing that was OK. A manchego-ish thing that was very good. One more creamy and one more slightly cheddar-ish cheese. Everything was very tasty, but Roaring 40's, BY FAR the highlight of the cheese course.

Dessert: She got the ice cream platter - mango, espresso mint (my favorite), and condensed milk (I though this would be super sweet and rich and unique, but it tasted pretty much just like sweet cream ice cream - delicious, but not that unique). Overall, I'd say that dessert was OK, but not great. I got the waiter's recommendation - chocolate cream with passion fruit mousse and black tea ice cream. This was in layers, the ice cream was very mild flavor, the mousse was pretty dense and intensely fruity, and the chocolate super rich and sweet. Together, it was a great combination. Excellent dessert choice.

Had a glass of Chateauneuf de Pape and a glass of Pinot to go with dinner.

Overall, another great Danko experience. This is definitely my favorite high-end dining place in SF.

[steel108]

[ QUOTE ]
Bambudhha lounge on sundays. outdoor grass/pool/dj. nice looking space.

[/ QUOTE ]

That place is pretty ghetto. What's with the motel white trash lounging in the pool?

[Snipe]

Taraz: Favorite spot to eat in the East Bay by FAR is Zachary's Pizza (1853 Solano Ave). Incredible deep dish pizza. Must try.

Also - as you're a hoops fan - if you want to get the best pick up games in the bay area, jump on 680 and head out towards the Bollinger Canyon courts. It's a bit of a drive, but you won't be disappointed.