TonyC wrote:so far, i know i'm having thanksgiving lunch here:
http://www.manzanitarestaurant.com

Oragnic Vegan Macrobiotic Cuisine

What a waste of a perfectly good holiday meal.

TonyC wrote:bumpin' to the top
need some East Bay recs for next week.

so far, i know i'm having thanksgiving lunch here:
http://www.manzanitarestaurant.com

Oragnic Vegan Macrobiotic Cuisine

Wow! Who did you piss off. My suggestion is to suck it up and go to that miserable tofu celebration then head over the bridge to Oakland for some of the best fried chicken and collard greens I have ever eaten anywhere at Nellies.

Just got back from a weekend in San Francisco. In addition to the always excellent Swan Oyster Depot, I did have one other meal worth mentioning here - burgers at Bullshead Steakhouse.

Half pound hand-formed patties, grilled perfectly to order (medium rare was actually medium rare), with fresh, hand cut fries included. Very solid burger. Not quite at the same level as Tessaro's in Pittsburgh, but still very good - well worth a trip to the somewhat out of the way "Portal" neighborhood. Open 7 days a week.

Bullshead
840 Ulloa St.
San Francisco
(415) 665-4350

YourPalWill wrote:Wow! Who did you piss off. My suggestion is to suck it up and go to that miserable tofu celebration then head over the bridge to Oakland for some of the best fried chicken and collard greens I have ever eaten anywhere at Nellies.

first nite's meal in Oakland involved relations with the collard greens... they were AMAZING. s'posedly there's better fried chicken in the East Bay (Lagniappes is far superior imo), but no matter. We also had a cutesy waitress who kept on calling us "honey" + "babee"; who also dipped the fried chicken in gravy just to save us $2. on the way out, we were invited for drinks by a bar full of boisterous & tipsy middle aged African American women dancing to Aretha. DIG this place.

other comments (including EB banh mi comparo) to follow...

Today: Partly Cloudy Feels Like 62°F

I'm in the process of moving out to the Bay Area, this weekend Julia joined me out here.

After a forgettable Thanksgiving Dinner in Montclair (at the Montclair Bistro, not terrible, not great, but open and serving at 8pm on Thanksgiving) we had much much better luck with our meals yesterday.

We started with lunch at Limon (http://www.limon-sf.com) which is at 524 Valencia St. It being lunch, we ordered the lemonades for our beverages - very good, perhaps even worth the $4.

For our meal we stuck with a selection of appetizers. We shared the empanadas - as Julia said - probably the best she has every had. Not heavy at all, very light, with a complex mix of flavors - olives, raisins, beef and a sauce on the side that enhanced it all.

Then we had the Chicarron de Pollo. These were succulent pieces of fried, spiced chicken (fried without breading) dry on the outside but still moist inside. Served with an onion garnish and a great vinagaer sauce, this was also extremely good.

Our last dish was a mixed salad, tasty and flavorful, but not quite as phenomenal as the first two dishes.

All in all, a great meal, fair prices, and definitely worth many return trips. As a small bit of advice, lunch seems to be a great time to go, no problem getting a table though they were busy.

For dinner after a long day of exploring San Francisco, we headed up to the Rockridge area of Oakland (along College ave). There we decided to eat at Pearl (http://www.pearloncollege.com/) which now that I see their site was rated #1 by Zagat in Oakland in 2006, but that aside, they live up to the billing.

We were eating relatively late, so had no problem getting a table. Though they are known in part for their oysters, we concentrated instead on their appetizers and were not disappointed in the least.

After ordering two glasses of wine - both excellent (a Thomas Fogerty Gwurstraminer for me and a Seven Sins for Julia) we started with the Tuna Poke.

Served in a martini glass this is a mix of raw tuna and cucumbers in a spicy sauce with a seaseme seed tuile. The tuna was very premium and succulent and the mix of flavors excellent.

On the side we had an order of their spicy smoky fries. Tasty, but not quite as good as the Pommes Frites at Hopleaf (on a good night).

Our next dish was the thai flavored ceviche. Truly a wonderful and light dish of thin slivers of fish with an intense mix of flavors.

We then had two of their salads, which are large portions, we'd suggest sharing one and ordering an additional appetizer. My salad was their fall salad which included some amazing pieces of pecorino cheese.

For dessert we shared their ice cream sundae - chocolate-hazelnut, coffee, and vanilla ice creams with a premium dark chocolate fudge sauce and bananas it was a perfect way to end the meal (it usually includes hazelnuts as well but we skipped them having had a lot of nuts already).

Ordering the way we did Pearl was under $75 before tip, I'd certainly recommend trying their oysters or one of their fish entrees on our next visit, in that case expect to pay another $20-30 a person, but it would be well worth it.

Sunday we'll be eating at The Slanted Door, I've eaten their once this month already, but that was with a client and was a bit rushed as it was late and he was on east coast time. There reservations are needed many weeks in advance, but it is worth calling as I did get lucky and get a reservation the same evening.

Just got back from a weekend in San Francisco. For those in this and other threads who suggested Swan Oyster Depot, thank you very much!

A truly legendary restaurant with a unique vibe. Exceptional food and an atmosphere perfect for a solo traveler.

Thanks!

Just back from San Fran myself. Let me just say, Gary Danko's is far and away one of the best meals of my life.