That San Francisco Treat

This was our fifth trip to San Francisco and I an not sure if familiarity has bred contempt or whether I was just too sick to enjoy it, but I have come to believe that San Francisco is a great place to live, but I wouldn’t want to visit again.

Actually that is a little bitter even for me. I’m sure I’ll go back, but probably not for some time. It really is a great city, but nausea, back spasms, lousy weather and long crappy flights kind of sucked all the fun out of SF.

For those of you interested in following in my footsteps, here is a brief review/trip report.

We stayed at The Clift on Geary St. near Union Square. The Clift is an Ian Schrager/Philippe Starck project. The room was aesthetically pleasing but not practical. There was nowhere to store clothes except a little two shelf contraption in the closet that prevents you from hanging up anything longer than a man’s shirt. The bed was simply a mattress on wooden slats with no box spring or back support. Room service was expensive ($22 for two cups of tea) and the mini-bar prices were a touch absurd (small Evian water for $10). No spa. But the staff were fantastic. They were friendly, helpful and were not like the snobby black-suited creatures that normally man the lobby of these funky boutique hotels. And there was a Starbuck’s right across the street. Was this the worst place I’ve ever stayed? No Would I stay here again? No.

Due to our gastrointestinal issues, we were not up to our usual four square meals a day. We did venture out to some of our favourite, less digestively-challenging spots though.

Breakfast at Sears Fine Food was as special as always. Located on Powell at Sutter, Sears opened its doors in 1938 and I don’t think they have redecorated in all that time. They are famous for their little round Swedish pancakes (18 of them on the plate), but everything I’ve ever eaten here was delicious. Try the hash browns, skip the home fries. www.searsfinefood.com

SF has the largest Chinese population outside of China and if you love authentic Chinese food you must head to Chinatown. The one outstanding exception to this rule is Yank Sing which has the most amazing, delicious, speedy dim sum in the city (and possibly North America). I don’t enjoy seafood and usually find dim sum a bit of a challenge as most places heavily feature shrimp in their dim sum. But Yank Sing has such a huge variety of dishes that finding pieces that I love is really easy. The Peking Duck was pronounced "the best thing I’ve ever had at dim sum" by Husband (who has dim summed his way around the world). And the Chicken Fun Gwor (steamed dumplings filled with chicken, shiitake mushroom, winter bamboo shoots, and cilantro) are my pick. www.yanksing.com

Max’s (on Geary) saved our lives. One block from our hotel, it offers homey, well-cooked, tasty dishes made with fresh ingredients. Not fancy, but that really doesn’t matter when the food is this good. And when you are not feeling well, meals like turkey pot pie, meatloaf and mashed, and scrambled eggs with toast are just what the doctor ordered. http://www.maxsworld.com/ Word of warning though - don’t expect the same quality at Max’s at the airport.

On this trip, the creme de la cream was of course Michael Mina. Nothing I had read about Mina’s new restaurant had prepared me for just how damn good it really is. Every bite of every dish was perfection itself. Service was polished, perfect, impeccable. The wine list was deep and not outrageously priced. The room was grand and soothing. The only disappointment was that we were there with business associates (doesn’t that sound a little Godfathery) one or two of which didn’t want to try the longer tasting menu (which is only available if the entire table chooses this option). So it was only three courses for us. But wow. I opted for beef carpaccio three ways, kobe beef six ways, and summer berries six ways. Husband had scallops three ways, lamb three ways and a duet of butterscotch pudding.

If you are not familiar with Mina’s dining concept, here is an excerpt from their website:

Seasonal selections highlight a fresh primary ingredient paired with a trio of accompaniments; each of the three presentations offers a distinct taste sensation. The essence of a dish is found in the interplay of comparing and contrasting ingredients and techniques.

If you love food you must make a trip to SF and eat at Michael Mina’s. It just doesn’t get any better than this.

As for the non-food portion of the trip it was shopping, shopping, shopping. Husband indulged his "straight men can love shoes too" passion at a massive sale at Nordstrom’s and I, as mentioned in the previous post, went hog wild at the world’s best fabric store (Britex). And I bought the cutest tough girl motorcycle boots (henceforth to be known as my oxymoron boots).

So now its laundry, laundry, laundry. And clearing the decks for a juicy sew-a-thon with my new San Francisco treats. Yipee!!