Visiting N in San Francisco -- By: V

I spent a full week out in San Francisco with N and it was wonderful.  N moved out to the West Coast a little over a year ago, and yes, I just made it out to visit her.  Most of our trips are heavily food focused, so needless to say there was a lot of sightseeing planned around eating.  Now, there are obviously a ton of tourist sites to see:  Fisherman's Wharf, Alcatraz, Crissy Field, GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE, and nearby Sonoma or Napa Valley just to name a few.  We even checked out this great coffee shop, Sightglass.  But, to avoid a lengthy post, and to provide all the food pictures I took, I'll just touch on the food and wine experiences we had...  

Hog Island Oyster Company

Here we enjoyed some seafood cippino and grilled harissa oysters.  We also shared a plate of shucked raw oysters (not pictured, but delicious ones of the Pacific West Coast variety).  

Good Mong Kok Bakery

Yes, they don't have a website, that's how delicious they are..word of mouth seems to be effective enough, there was a line out the door!  Delicious pork and shrimp steamed dumplings.

Domaine Chandon (in Napa Valley)

This was our favorite of the three wineries we went to.  Sparkling wine is one of our faves, and N walked away with her own bottle (that's how much she loved it!).  

Clif Family Winery (in Napa Valley)

Small selection of wine but this winery came highly recommended by a friend, and the wines did not disappoint.  If this sounds familiar to you, it may be because of the Clif Bars, yes, it's owned by the same family as the infamous protein bar makers.  And, no, the wine doesn't have protein in it...but, that doesn't mean you shouldn't drink up! :) 

Bottega (in Napa Valley)

After all the wine tasting, we decided to grab dinner at Chef Michael Chiarello's restaurant Bottega.  N ordered the Costolette Brasate e Affumicate (Smoked and braised shortribs with grilled Treviso smokey jus, polenta-speck polpette) and I ordered the Farfalle al Granchio e Piselli (Hand shaped butterfly pasta with Peekytoe Crab, English peas and vermouth crema, Bottarga gremolata).  We shared a delicious salad to start, Insalata di Cavolini di Bruxelles (shaved Brussels sprouts salad with whole Meyer lemon dressing, Marcona almonds, sieved egg, Pecorino).  Delicious!

Ike's Place

Before heading down the Pacific Coast Highway we grabbed delicious sandwiches from the infamous Ike's Place.  We found a beautiful spot on the beach and had an ocean view picnic.  We both ordered the same sandwich, the Spiffy Tiffy (Avocado, Halal Chicken, Mushrooms, Pepper Jack, Pesto, Provolone).  N ordered hers stuffed with mozzarella sticks and I got mine stuffed with jalapeno poppers.  Yes, this is why Ike's is famous.  

Elephant Sushi

The night before I left I knew I had to get some sushi in, so we went to the Russian Hill neighborhood of SF to Elephant Sushi.  This place had wonderful reviews, while the wait was about 45 minutes, I'd say it was well worth it.  We ordered the Himalayan Trout sashimi and a few sushi rolls that I'm forgetting the names of at the moment, but all delicious!  And, the house made pickled ginger was the best I've had in the states.  

Can't wait to head back to San Francisco...a beautiful city and a culinary delight!