Kitchenette

www.kitchenettesf.com

Visit dates: January 10

"Spontaneous organic covert nourishment"

Daily offerings include 1-2 sandwiches, a soup and/or salad, and cookie of the moment. Cash only.

Kitchenette is hidden in a row of loading docks in SF's Dogpatch area. I'm not quite sure where the kitchen even is because my sandwich just miraculously appears from behind some shelving a few minutes after I order.

Since the menu changes daily, I've kept an eye out for something I want to try. Today's sandwich is corned beef with caraway braised cabbage (w/onions) and grain mustard. The sandwich is $8.22 but added tax makes the total $9. It's kind of expensive for just a sandwich, but the sandwich is a decent size at 6" x 3.5" and the flavor is really tasty – corned beef is fatty but not too fatty, cabbage just salty enough but also sweet with some melted onions in it.

See additional post: Kitchenette, Part 2

Outerlands

www.outerlandssf.com

Visit date: January 08

I found Outerlands on a list for great soups. Being so cold this weekend, we are definitely in need of some hearty soups. 41 degrees! I don't think it's been this cold in a long time.

The restaurant is a small, cozy neighborhood joint out by the beach in the Sunset, at Judah and 45th. It's a bit of a trek but I'm always looking to discover new places. San Francisco may only be 7x7 miles, but there are so many great little gems in all its various neighborhoods.

The menu is simple – about 9-10 dishes and 3 desserts listed on the chalk board. With six of us, we order the entire menu plus one dessert and eat family style. (Romaine salad and beet salad not shown here.)

Outerlands doesn't take reservations, so I recommend getting there 10-15 minutes before opening to get in on the first seating. Otherwise, bundle up and be ready to wait outside. Being small, the seating translates to three 2-top tables, two 3-tops, one 5-6 top, and some tables outside under heat lamps for the more daring. Even so, I can't imagine how cold they must be since we're three blocks away from the beach.

No complaints at all. I love soups and Outerlands does a fantastic job. Their bread is baked daily and tastes great cut into thick toasts. I'm even adding Outerlands as a brunch place to try. Who wants to come with me to try their Dutch pancake baked in cast iron pan? Option 1 is sweet topped with caramelized apples, or option 2 is savory with bacon and drizzled with maple syrup.

See additional post: Outerlands, Part 2

outerlands levain toast baked fresh daily

served with herbs, roasted sweet garlic, olive oil

creamy chicken liver pate with apple butter, toast

warm spinach salad with bacon, trumpet mushrooms,

fennel, pached egg, roasted garlic vinaigrette

coconut carrot soup with green onions

split pea soup with smoked ham hock, sour cream

savory bread pudding with

roasted garlic, oregano, gruyere

clam and mussel stew with bacon, cilantro

braised leg of lamb with housemade

gnocchi, kale, balsamic onions

olive oil pound cake, vanilla ice cream,
satsuma tangerines

Greens

www.greensrestaurant.com

Visit date: January 07

What’s that saying? If you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all. But people should know...

So here’s the website blurb:

We opened in 1979… Greens Restaurant was a pioneer in establishing vegetarian cuisine in the United States. In the 60's and 70's, vegetarian restaurants were mostly small out-of-the way cafés. There was no high profile vegetarian restaurant in the United States. Greens changed that by raising the bar, by placing vegetarian cuisine on a level with other fine dining restaurants. We have been reviewed by food and design magazines from the time we opened. Today we are surprised if a good restaurant does NOT have vegetarian options. Greens helped pave the way for this acceptance.

Executive Chef Annie Somerville has earned a national reputation for her imaginative approach to vegetarian cooking. Somerville is a popular teacher of cooking classes throughout the Bay Area, and is the author of Fields of Greens: New Vegetarian Recipes from the Celebrated Greens Restaurant (Bantam Books, 1993) and Everyday Greens (Simon & Schuster, 2003). Her works have also been featured in many publications, including Gourmet, Food and Wine, Ladies Home Journal, and Vegetarian Times.

Let me preface by saying: I love vegetables, all kinds of veggies.

And yes, we own the Field of Greens cookbook. I’ve never opened it, but Steve and another friend have both used it and like it. I don’t doubt this but eating at the restaurant tonight, I give it a C+.

It’s been a few years since I’ve eaten at Greens, but the memories are pleasant enough to stir cravings in the last couple months. And with the in-laws here for their annual visit from Columbus, Ohio, this weekend is the perfect chance to kill two birds with one stone – satisfy my craving and do something special for my mother-in-law. She’s not a vegetarian, but prefers to stick to veggies, tofu, grains, and fruit to accompany her crazily intense exercise regimen.

Sitting down, our group of four is packed like sardines because the tables are so close together. The waiters are nice but the whole operation is just too mechanical – our appetizers arrive exactly two minutes after ordering – get us in and out as fast as possible.

My mother-in-law genuinely says the food is good with great nutritional value. All the while, I’m extremely regretful we can't revisit my experience at Dirt Candy because it's in New York, and that we didn’t go to Millennium (which I've been to a handful of times and it's never disappointing). Greens is not as imaginative as I remember it to be. Especially for the prices we pay, the plates look uninspired, not memorable and paired with as many vegetables as possible just because it's a vegetarian restaurant. Just look at the 100 word descriptions for each dish. Perhaps there's a method to the madness, but I'm just not comprehending tonight.

I guess this is what happens to restaurants after 30 years. This is also why restaurants need to close after some time. It might be sad to have a good place close, but closing even temporarily for renovation/reinvention/refocus of the overall vision is good. Only better things can come out of it.

Yukon gold potato griddle cakes with masa harina,

 jalapenos, smoked cheddar and cilantro. Served with

creme fraiche, fire roasted tomato and pumpkin cilantro salsas

Fresh spring role with frilled tofu, carrots, jicama,

watermelon radish, Thai basil, mint and rice noodles.

Served with lime chili sauce, radish and grilled beech

mushroom salad

The spring rolls may have been made today, but the mistake of making them too early and refrigerating ruins the texture of the rice paper.

Wild mushroom shepherd's pie with caramelized onions,

gruyere, roasted garlic mashed potatoes and pinot noir

mushroom sauce. Served with roasted carrots, cipollini

onions, parsnips and brussel sprouts

Tagine winter vegetables with tomatoes, chickpeas,

ginger, saffron, cilantro. Served with cherry almond

pearl couscous, grilled artichoke with lemon oil and mint

Tagine astes like Chinese sweet and sour with some saffron thrown in. O, and let’s just throw the artichoke on top for a lil something more.

Fire roasted poblano chili with quinoa, butter squash,

peppers, grilled onions, pumpkin seeds and Achadinha

goat Jaaak. Served with tomatillo sauce, fired roasted

tomato salsa, ranch gordo beans, grilled Mariquita Farm

sweet potatoes with chipotle lime butter

Farro spaghetti with roasted butternut squash,
County Line rainbow chard and kale, almonds, spring onion,
Hamada Farm raisins, brown butter and grana padano

Plum by Chef Daniel Patterson

www.plumoakland.com

Visit date: January 06

This Is Just To Say

By William Carlos Williams

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

Plum is Chef Daniel Patterson’s new digs in downtown Oakland as part of a plan to revitalize an area that typically shuts down and is deserted by 6pm when everyone heads home from work. The surrounding restaurants are pretty dismal offering cheap, often greasy, fast food for the few lunch hours they are open. There are some good taco trucks, though.

While the restaurant name is inspired by the poem above, the image of a deliciously sweet plum is also very fitting of Chef Patterson’s cuisine – modern Californian. He loves our abundance of fresh ingredients and is exceptional at creating great flavor combinations. Said during Le Grand Fooding 2010: New York vs. San Francisco, “products were better, the cooking more careful in my hometown.” (Full blog post here.)

Specifically, Plum is of “Coi lineage” (his upscale San Francisco headquarters) but more casual and a helluva lot less expensive without the 11 course tasting menu. The dinner menu offers four dishes in each section: bites, appetizers, vegetables/grains, proteins, and desserts. Unfortunately, there is no menu posted on the website, only the ability to make reservations (not through OpenTable). Though Plum is four months old, the menu is always changing so maybe he wants diners to be surprised.

The restaurant is small with only 45 seats, counter or communal style tables, all of which are reclaimed wood (very sustainable San Francisco). Lunch service is available on weekdays while dinner is served daily until 1am. This is especially good for those wanting late night snacks after a concert at the Uptown Theatre four blocks away. In keeping with its name, each of the two main walls features an array of 8”x8” depictions of plums connected like puzzle pieces to create two big panels. Seeing them up close, it only makes sense, but from the outside and without context, the panels look like wine racks displaying unopened bottles. (I promise I’m not already drunk.)

Dinner is exceptional. Us two ladies sitting at the counter watching the kitchen staff create dish after dish of beautiful arrangements and indulgent flavors. If I really must pick, my favorites are potato chicharrones (making process described below), cauliflower (I'd cut down on white rice if I can have his bulgur and cauliflower more often), farm egg (always a sucker for runny egg yolks; hard boiled eggs just leave that gritty texture I really hate, blame it on the Chinese tea eggs I was forced to eat growing up, yuck) and roast pork (spicy squash puree over applesauce any day – who came up with that anyway?).

We even receive a free dish of plancha grilled clams. Maybe because we ordered the other three proteins, they think we need to try them all. I don’t know, but we’ll take it. Unfortunately, this is the one dish we do not like. The clams have a peculiar flavor, but not the extreme fishiness of days-old fish not kept on ice. I can’t quite put my finger on it.

Lucky for me, the menu is always changing so there are always other great dishes to try!

potato chicharrones with black pepper, lime

Chicharrones-making process:
roast unpeeled potato, scoop meat out, add tapioca powder to make a dough, dehydrate, freeze, slice, fry

oyster and potato stew with parsley, frisee, rye croutons

olive oil braised cauliflower with

bulgur, almond, dandelion salsa verde

manila clams grilled on the plancha with

escarole, heirloom beans, new olive oil

roast pork with warm salad of fall veggies and greens,

spicy squash puree, vadouvan vinaigrette

slow cooked farm egg with savory fried farro,

smoked chicken, sprouts

beef shortrib steak with maitake mushroom,

sunchoke, onion, turnip

roasted white chocolate parfait with kumquat, fennel

Cotogna by Chef Michael Tusk

www.cotognasf.com

Visit date: December 31

Cotogna is the rustic version to its yuppie and refined sister next door, Quince. The big draw is the open wood burning oven cranking out pizzas and fire roasted meats, also visible from the street through the massive windows. In place of white tablecloths, Cotogna uses brown paper placemats stamped with their name, simple but does the job just as well. Kitchen towels take the place of white napkins, which I like better because they are softer to the touch. There is a mix of individual wooden tables and farm tables. The atmosphere is extremely warm, inviting and quaint – screams Italian food, good Italian food.

The best part is the menu and its great affordability: $10 antipasti (appetizer), $16 primi (pasta), $7 dessert. The only variation to these categories and pricing are the 3-4 entrees priced between $19-24. Additionally, Cotogna offers a nightly $24 prix fixe menu of three courses. The modest prices don’t end there… ALL bottles of wine are $40, or $10 per glass. This is especially great when asking for recommendations – the waiter will not bring out some $80 bottle of wine or $20 glass that you don’t realize until you see the bill. Endless possibilities to try!

Speaking of possibilities, my biggest problem of the night is that we have a party of 2 (celebrating a quiet, romantic New Year’s Eve) and there are so many things to try – 3 antipasti dishes, 4 primi dishes, 1 entrée and 2 desserts. Unfortunately, my stomach is not big enough to eat all this. Fortunately, we plan to go back and I can’t wait.

But what’s so special about this place? It’s just another Italian restaurant right?

For starters, this is NOT the Italian food you find throughout North Beach and along Columbus Ave. Chef Michael Tusk made his mark in Berkeley with his handmade pastas. (Pastas are another one of my weaknesses, as are dumplings, noodles and rice that I’ve mentioned in previous posts. I love my carbs.) Similar to fresh tortillas in my Regalito post, fresh pasta does not compare. I’ve had pasta advertised as fresh daily but the taste clearly indicated they were from a box. I’ve had freshly made pasta that was too gummy either from overcooking or being left out of the refrigerator too long. Just as easily, I can boil an expensive artisanal pack of dried pasta at home, but eating fresh pasta with the right texture is heaven. Pasta making takes practice and skill, which Chef Tusk has mastered. (Still trying to master it at home.)

Also to mention is the gnocchi. Again, it requires skill to make them light and fluffy. All these paired with the right sauces and ragus are just incredible.

Another honorable mention is the spinach sformato. Sformato is like an egg custard, similar to the Japanese chawan mushi (mentioned in my Morimoto post). Flavor combinations are endless and Chef Tusk’s particular addition of spinach is a welcome taste to the creaminess of both the custard and the fonduta sauce.

Though we skip pizza, the table next to us has the wild nettle/egg/pecorina pizza which looks good. The crunch from each of their bites is a good sign.

Overall, everything is done perfectly from start to finish, from appetizers to desserts with the delicately homemade cookies - pinenut to accompany the creme fraice panna cotta, and amaretti with the bonet.

Cotogna is now on my list of favorite Italian eateries along with Perbacco. Acquerello is good. Seven Hills just opened so I’ll have to check that out too. I’ve been to Flour + Water, which is the new rage, but Cotogna outranks it by a lot.

spinach sformato with grana padana fonduta
and fried spinach leaves

halibut tartare with blood orange citrus and crispy flatbread

rosemary gnocchi with braised duck

rosemary gnocchi with braised duck

lamb papparadelle coked in the wood oven

fried pumpkin (panko breadcrumbs), fried basil

bonet with caramel and amaretti crumble
(aka Spanish/Mexican flan)

creme fraiche panna cotta with pinenut cookies,
persimmon slices, pomegranate seeds

Regalito by Chef Thomas Peña

www.regalitosf.com

Visit date: December 30

Regalito is Spanish for “little gift”.

These gifts are NOT little – good portions and delicious!! It’s been a long time since I’ve had Mexican food this memorable. I’m already looking at my calendar to go back. It makes perfect sense why Regalito is ranked as the best Mexican joint in the city. Don’t come here looking for a late night greasy burrito or the Jack-in-the-Box $0.99 taco that we all waited for in college (smashed shut like a giant empanada with little filling, then deep fried, I’m sure). Even our 6 year-old friend tonight happily eats her chicken taquitos plain, sans salsa fresca and crema. No complaints at all! (And kids can be pretty picky. I once had a co-worker tell me her son wouldn’t eat his sandwich because he saw Mommy wipe off the mayonnaise that he didn’t like. They were the last two slices of bread and there was nothing she could do. One day he liked something and the next he hated it.)

The open kitchen is five feet from the front door and extends the length of the small and narrow restaurant. A simple wood counter with glass shelving is all that separates us from Chef Peña and his crew. Walking in, the first person we see behind the counter is a woman making tortillas. There is a world of difference between fresh tortillas and store bought. Fresh tortillas are a little thicker since they’re not pressed in some factory machine with 10 tons of weight. They have more bite, are soft and moist, and don’t crack when bent. The consistency and taste just doesn’t compare.

Simply put, everything tastes homemade and reminds me of growing up with my Mexican neighbors who made the best food. Seeing the woman tonight make tortillas from scratch says it all.

***Most importantly, big bang for our buck.
We did use a coupon, but I’d happily go back without one.

Regalito’s menu is small and simple, but I’m sure it offers some competition to celebrity Chef Rick Bayless. (I’ll have definitive results after my Chicago trip in March; we’ll be eating at his flagship, Frontera Grill.)

Things to try next time:
1. Tuesday night’s Pigalito – roasting a half Niman Ranch hog
2. Dinner – a dish with mole, churros and Mexican hot chocolate for dessert

No dessert at Regalito tonight. Our ecstatic 6 year-old friend wants ice cream from Bi-Rite Creamery after I tell her we are two blocks away. (Our flavors: Lavender honey, roasted banana, mint & chip, butter pecan. And yes, another post later for artisanal ice cream.)

3. Brunch – pozole, huevos rancheros

Pozole is a must try on most menus I see. Unfortunately, I’m still seeking the perfect pozole like the one my neighbors made growing up.

Regalito’s description of huevos rancheros is exactly how the locals made it during our honeymoon to Zihuatenejo, Mexico. As with most dishes, it’s traditionally served with a side of rice and beans. But the dish itself is amazingly simple: fried tortilla and two fried eggs covered with red sauce. No onions, peppers, corn, whatever else the Americanized version adds.

taquitos de pollo o de papas y queso

rolled tortillas filled with chicken or potato and cheese (or 2 of each),
fried crisp and topped with salsa fresca, queso fresco, crema and cilantro

chicharrones

pork belly cut into 1" thick slices, cooked and deep-fried,

served with pickled vegetables

enchiladas verdes

handmade corn tortillas dipped in green chile sauce,
filled with roast chicken,
garnished with queso fresco, crema, onions and cilantro,
served with whole pintos
(I love salsa verde, especially when roasted first to bring
out the sweetness of the tomatillos.
I try to eat it all but only eat 2/3.)

tinga de pollo

shredded free-range chicken in chipotle sauce,
served with rice and avocado salsa

Syd

Benu by Chef Corey Lee

www.benusf.com

Visit date: December 18

Dinner at the much anticipated Benu by Corey Lee (previously at French Laundry by Thomas Keller) tonight lasts 3.5 hours. We order the chef’s 11 course tasting menu. What can I say? The food is good… but… being a 4-month old restaurant, there is definitely some growing and refining to do. I understand Chef Lee is trying to bring Asian flavors into a more upscale point of view, but some of it still seems/tastes scattered.

On the one hand, Lee offers dishes with clean flavors and classic techniques, while on the other, some dishes are deep fried and heavy. The deep fried abalone is reminiscent of Italian food. One general trouble I have with upscale Asian food is that, often times, the food lacks “Asian-ness”. I suppose this is part of upscaling Asian to a wider audience. I suppose using Asian ingredients is enough.

Some low points – The second course offering is oysters with apple ice and horseradish. The apple ice is a tad too cold such that I couldn’t taste the flavor of the oysters. Had the waiter not told me, I wouldn’t have dug down deep enough to taste the horseradish underneath.

Speaking of, the waiters do a great job of reciting the menu verbatim (a copy is kept at the table), but unless you ask about a particular dish or what an ingredient is, you have no idea. Luckily, I have an Asian background, but still, I have some questions. What is “chicken Cecilia”?

Chicken Cecilia is inspired by Cecilia Chang, owner of a small empire in SF Chinatown and also mother to the owner of PF Chang’s. Apparently, she saw the abundance of yellow chives this time of year and suggested to Chef Lee to incorporate them into a dish. The chicken is shaped into a roulade, but unfortunately doesn't taste much of yellow chive.

Some high points – Sesame tofu with marinated salmon roe is surprising. The tofu arrives in the shape of a tiny bbq pork bun. Once you cut it in half, the salmon roe is nestled inside, perfectly unharmed. The starter of thousand-year-old quail egg, and dessert of persimmon pudding and burnt acorn ice cream are great openers and finishers. I do very much enjoy dessert with fruit – light and happy ending.

One last thing to mention – all the dishware is specifically made for Benu by Korean porcelain manufacture KwangJuYo. I wonder what happens if Lee wants to make a dish that doesn’t fit his current plating designs…

At this point, I may or may not take pictures of the food because mine never come out as good as the printed press that has all the good lighting. So for this post, the pictures you see are copies of stuff I found on the web.

Our meal. It might seem like alot, but when you have this many courses,

many of the dishes are 1-2 bites. I left feeling just right, not too full.

I've learned not to order the dish-by-dish wine pairings because it can

be over the top for so many courses, and extremely filling.

Chef Corey Lee

unleavened bread with sesame seeds and fennel

sesame tofu with marinated salmon roe

eel, feuille de brick, creme fraiche

trio:

1) eel, feuille de brick, creme fraiche

2) caramelized anchovy, peanut, lily bulb (was hoping for more anchovy flavor)

3) mountain yam and shrimp souffle

monkfish liver torchon - ours was slightly different
with accompaniments of cucmber, turnip, salted plum.

not shown was the amaaaazing brioche - buttery goodness!

crispy cod milt, pickles, mustard

"shark's fin" soup, dungeness crab, Jinhua ham, black truffle custard

chicken Cecilia

chocolates

(check out the special container they're served in)

Just another sample of the special porcelain dishware.

The rectangular shaped handle is for coffee, while the other is for tea.