Food Heads
Gary and I jokingly called this our "foodie tour" of San Francisco all weekend long, when in actuality we cringe whenever we hear the word. In fact, just yesterday Natalie and I coined the term "food heads," so please, let's all retire foodie ;) After eating our way from the east bay to the city, I can hardly remember what order we ate these in. These photos span over our three day trip and is mostly what we ate, minus a dinner here and there.
Our very first stop in the bay area was Cheeseboard. A year ago our friends took us here and it was some of the best pizza we've had. They only make one kind of pizza a day so all you choose is how much you want, whether it's a slice, a half or a whole pie. Saturday's pizza was covered in heirloom tomatoes, comte cheese, red onion, mozzarella, herbs, and garlic. The crust is perfectly thin and crisp and let the quality ingredients shine through. I wouldn't consider this place fancy or gourmet, but simply great pizza with great flavors.
After a lackluster dinner one night, my mom was craving something sweet (now I know where I get it from). Only a few miles away was Scream Sorbet which I read about on my friend Sandy's blog, Tiny Tiny Fork. Whoa, talk about the best sorbet flavors! My mom and I both ordered one scoop of coconut thai basil while Gary chose Santa Rosa Plum. The coconut thai basil was the smoothest and creamiest sorbet that's ever touched my lips, while Gary choice was smooth and pure unadulterated plum. I also have to mention some beautiful details I spotted in their store such as the mercury glass mirror menu, the weathered window pane sneeze guard, and the faux fireplace mantle.
And of course no trip to the bay is ever complete without a trip to Blue Bottle coffee. My go-to is always their New Orleans iced coffee.
After reading about Pot and Pantry online and following the shop on instagram, I knew I had to visit myself. Pot and Pantry is owned and operated by Donna Suh and offers new and used kitchen goods, as well as a few periodicals. I really had to stop myself from poring through every nook and cranny or else I'd be pining for more than my budget allowed. The only piece I walked away with was the beautiful Gather Journal.
Across the street is my favorite bakery, Tartine. We restrained ourselves for the morning and had their brioche bread pudding and morning bun. But then we also ended up taking home a slice of their devil's food chocolate cake, two more morning buns, and a little bag of brownies. This was also the very spot I was sitting when owner Chad Robertson walked by. Being that their books and bakery really influence my own baking style and philospohy, it was like a celebrity walked by. We made eye contact, but he probably saw me as "the girl making funny googly eyes at me." Needless to say I was too nervous to say hi!
Donna recommended that we walk down the block to check out Craftsman and Wolves, a new bakery and restaurant that opened up a few weeks ago. Whoa. I can't even describe this place. There are so many places that attempt a clean, simple aesthetic in LA but Craftsman and Wolves really hit it out of the park. From the pastries to every design detail to the photographs on the wall, everything was cohesive and thorough. Being a stickler for details myself, this was something I really appreciated. Gary and I shared the passion fruit and sesame croissant, which had the perfect balance of flavors and flaky texture.
Later on we somehow ended up in Hayes Valley and I got to try Smitten ice cream. My favorite ice cream flavor is always mint chocolate chip so I knew I had to try their rendition. Smitten makes their ice creams right on the spot with a special machine using liquid nitrogen. The texture was incredibly smooth and a bit light too. Their use of fresh mint and TCHO chocolate tasted refreshing and indulgent at the same time.
On our last day we headed over to the Ferry Plaza for my beloved fresh dill pickle but it was no where to be found! If you saw a girl sulking around on Monday, that was most definitely me. I quickly cheered up after remembering that Black Jet Baking Co has an outpost here as well. I've been following them on instagram for a while (hooray for businesses on instagram!) and knew I had to try their famous home made pop tarts. I selected the strawberry and brie pop and boy was it so perfectly flaky and delicious.
And last, but certainly not least, we finally tried Dynamo Donuts. I am no donut connoisseur (although Gary might fancy himself one!), but their maple bacon donut was the best I've ever had. Seeing as we'd already stuffed ourselves silly I suggested to Gary that we only order 3 flavors, which resulted in a little bit of whining. The woman working the counter was so sweet that she put another 3 donuts in a box for us to go!
Phew, this took me a LOT longer than I thought it would but I hope you enjoyed this little roundup of San Francisco eateries. I'm already planning my next trip!