Hedonia

Chez Panisse

Despite both DPaul and I having lived in the Bay Area more or less 20 years apiece, and despite being avid diners, neither of us had ever eaten at the world-famous Chez Panisse. This is something we have long wanted to remedy, and have discussed doing so with various folks. At long last, our dear friends Nick and Russ made it happen, and better yet as a very thoughtful wedding gift. After one abortive attempt where we languished on the waitlist, they were finally able to land us a reservation last week, at 6 pm on Friday, February 13. Our excitement mounted as the date drew nearer.

On the big day, I planned to leave my Redwood City office sometime shortly after four, a time that normally allows for easy commuting all around the area. But the best laid plans of mice and men, and all that. I ended up having to give a presentation, which delayed my departure to slightly after 4:30. I had to drop my colleague off back in the city. It was raining and the Friday before a holiday weekend, and traffic was unusually bad for that time of day.

Crawling up the 101, my blood pressure rose as the time slipped inexorably by. By the time of our 6 pm dinner reservation, I was still in downtown San Francisco, stuck in dead-stop traffic waiting to get on the bridge. Veins throbbed in my temples as I screamed expletives at the top of my lungs. I sent DPaul a one-word text message: "Hopeless." I was on the verge of tears. The evening was ruined, and I would not be dining at Chez Panisse that night. The disappointment was crushing.

Daiquiri days and tiki nights

Food and drink bloggers tend to be a merry lot; DPaul and I are certainly not alone in our pursuits of things hedonistic. It generally takes little provocation to get a group of local bloggers to assemble to consume something of interest, in groups large or small.

Last year, Jen organized a come-as-you-are series of outings to case out the various bars and beverages featured in the 2008 edition of Food & Wine Cocktails, 17 of which were from Bay Area locales. A schedule was built, and week after week a cadre of bloggers and booze enthusiasts traipsed to watering holes in San Francisco and beyond in search of these rarefied concoctions. So regular and assiduously attended were these events, they became referred to as our "book club."

Sadly, as it turned out, relatively few of the cocktails in the book were available for the tasting. It stands to reason in an artisanal cocktail center like San Francisco that menus change with the moods and seasons, but some instances were just outright silly. At one location, the cocktail was on the menu, but is apparently never actually served, since they don't stock one key ingredient, a Belgian Trappist ale, that is both perishable and expensive. In one other case, the cocktail was not -- and had actually never been -- on the menu. Of the comparatively few cocktails featured in the book that were of offer, some were simply disappointing, though often there were superior drinks available at those locations. Ultimately, only a few stood out; my personal favorite was the Tommy Gun at Bar Drake.

Where to buy Spanish stuff: The Spanish Table

A major part of planning is shopping, and a major part of shopping is knowing where to shop.

While the grocery list for our Iberian dinner contained plenty of items that were easily gathered in one morning's visit to the Ferry Building -- produce at the farmer's market, pork from Golden Gate Meats, clams from San Francisco Fish Company -- there were some particular items special to Spain that we needed to source separately. I could probably have found it all by scouring the city and buying a little here, a little there, but I saw no reason to when we have a place like The Spanish Table just across the bridge in Berkeley.

The Spanish Table is an astonishingly comprehensive emporium of all things Iberian: Manchego, cabrales, jamon serrano, lomo, marcona almonds (blanched or roasted and salted), angulas, bacalao, piquillos, padrones, and of course sardines are just a few of the items at your fingertips. The array of olive oils, sherry vinegars and of course wines, sherries, madeiras and ports is dizzying. Luckily, the friendly and courteous staff is eager to help you navigate those waters.

We stocked up on meats and cheeses, bought almonds and sherry vinegar for the gazpacho, and picked a couple sherries to pair with various courses. Our mighty haul wasn't exactly cheap, but still less expensive than airfare to Madrid, so all good.

Not in the Bay Area? Why, check out their flagship location in Seattle or satellite store in Santa Fe. Or, just shop online.

The Spanish Table
1814 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, CA

Where to buy junk: Urban Ore

On a beautiful, balmy mid-February day, DPaul and I were compelled to undertake a field trip to Berkeley. Shocking, but true: We actually crossed the bridge.

Our main impetus for this excursion was to go to Sari Palace on University Ave to pick up a couple of Jodhpuri suits that we had had made for Saturday night's Mardi Gras event. This in itself is reason enough to go to Berkeley; we each had a gorgeously embroidered, beaded and brocaded suit made custom for less than off-the-rack at Men's Wearhouse.

But it was a lovely day, and as long as we found ourselves out in the Eastern colonies, we opted to avail ourselves to one of my greatest pleasures, Urban Ore. A self-proclaimed "ecopark," Urban Ore is a scavenge yard chockablock with the detritus and flotsam of countless renovations or demolitions. While it's not the place to go if you're looking for something very specific, you are almost certain to find something you didn't know you needed.

In a past life, when I was doing theatrical set and prop design, I practically lived at Urban Ore. When your budget is under $100 and you need to effectively build and furnish an entire house, this is where you start.

I Am Curious

So it seems that everyone but everyone (in the blog world) is buzzing about quirky nouveau-hippie Café Gratitude. The restaurant's dishes, featuring all organic and even mostly live ingredients, sport self-proclamatory names, like I Am Thankful (Thai coconut soup), I Am Dazzling (Caesar salad) and even dipping into multiculti waters with Yo Soy Mucho (shredded kale with warm grains, guac, spicy salsa, Brazil nut parmesan and sprouts). You have to wonder whether, what with all these earthy-crunchy goods, their number-one seller must be I Am Delicious (almond malt smoothie) simply for what it promises.

But perhaps garnering the most attention is the dauntingly named I Am Courageous -- organic, fair-trade coffee that is not brewed but steeped for 48 hours in cold water. And yet the concensus is that it's pretty good. Maybe not the eye-popping cup of joe you crave in the morning but rather, as the kids at SFist point out, "like a cup of tea."

As a recovering vegetarian, perusing the menu full of organic greens, live sprouted grains and ... well, actually all the places I used to frequent actually served regular old coffee ... sends me back down memory lane to countless shabby veggie joints in places as far flung as Albany (NY), Santa Fe and, yes, even here. (Anyone remember Good Karma?) However, I'm pleased that today's culinary idealists have somewhat more interesting options. Quinoa is the new brown rice. Move over, chamomile; rooibos rules the roost now. Send seitan back to hell and let the sunflower shine. I Am Curious.

Cafe Gratitude
2400 Harrison St, SF
1336 9th Ave, SF
1730 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley

Weekly Joe: Cafe Gratitude [Curbed SF]
We Are Courageous (For Trying This Coffee) [SFist]
Cafe Gratitude [Gridskipper]
Cafe Gratitude: Vegan Un-Cookery at its best [eggbeater]

Two offal dinners

Must be innards season, cuz there are two hoof-to-horns special meals lined up at two of the Bay Area's best Italian restos. Tonight through Friday, Berkeley's Oliveto is serving up The Whole Hog, offering up a remarkable selection of dishes composed almost entirely of pieces of our friend the pig. (Oh, there  are a few vegetable sides, though I would not be surprised to find flecks of bacon therein.) And March 6 will see the return of Incanto's Dining from Head to Tail meal. I adore Incanto, and have had beef heart there before and loved it. This year's menu comprises an interesting selection of goods, including Marin mountain oysters; a finanziera of cockscombs, sweetbreads and sanguinaccio; and, perhaps most interestingly (or disgustingly, depending on your inclinations), suet pudding with chocolate blood gelato.  What, no brains this year?

Now, as a recovering vegetarian, I am not deeply inclined to partake of these meals myself, but I know there are more than a few of you out there with a taste for such things.

[Photo lifted from flashgoirl]

Oliveto
5655 College Ave, Oakland
510/547-5356

Incanto
1550 Church St, San Francisco
415/641-4500