Back tracking before going 3 hours forward...
Whoa.. Whoa.. Whoa..
A lot has changed since returning from the vineyard and getting back to business. The business of cooking and annoying people. It's great to see that I can still do both very well. So yeah upon returning to DC I was able to teach and train the new cooks that were hired while I was away. Seems like a great achievement to be able to say that you can transfer your knowledge to another person. But it's definitely not as easy as Rachel Ray makes it seem. TROLLIP!!!
After helping the Executive Chef and Chef compile a list of things to put on the new cafe menu that showed the broad range of Palena's Cafe. Upon seeing the new cooks I was a little worried about how we were going to be able to train, work, maintain and hell just keep up with the volume. We expanded more than double the capacity of the original cafe and along with that the menu. But I was up for the challenge and still am. So far so good and the menu looks better everyday. That's all I'm going to say about that because I don't have enough characters.
Fast forward 6 months and here I am in foggy San Francisco with a pair of stolen sunglasses and an Iphone 4. I still find it hard to read the map on this damn phone and it makes me feel a certain way. The plane trip across the USA was slightly uncomfortable due solely to the fact that I had a rather large young guy and a senior citizen sitting next to me. Of course I had to take the advice of a GREAT PERSON WHO SHALL REMAIN NAMELESS and sit next to the window. " Oh Giuseppe you'll be able to see everything" and yes I saw everything go by without them noticing that maybe the black guy sitting underneath the large guy wanted his snack pack of peanuts and free orange juice. I didn't get out of my seat until we landed and well ummm let's skip that part.
So I arrived and my lovely hotel just outside the city and close to the airport's Bart System. The hotel has a 24hr restaurant adjacent to the lobby and I thought this could get nasty. So I checked it out and it's like being at an Asian waffle house they even had pot stickers and udon noodle stir fry. I debriefed my self in my hotel room after jumping to high on the bed and watching family guy. I was gonna get a almost early start on visiting the city the next day.
Second stop : 16th st Mission. OK that's more like it. I managed to work the Iphone's map enough to find Tartine Bakery and it reminded me of something from NYC. Cool spot with about 25 seats all first come first serve and a mix of hip, family, senior, and black ( just one ). The was visible and directly behind the glass showcase filled with bread, breadpudding with seasonal fruit, cookies, tarts, sandwiches, and quiches. I ordered a shortbread, hazelnut biscotti, and a coffee sat on a bench and looked next to me. There sat a lady eating chocolate pudding and she was licking the container. AMOR!!! We started chatting about the city and how her daughter was here visiting colleges and blah blah blah. Bragging about her sandals and the pudding being so good and then it was my turn. So I told her that I was visiting the city to get to know the food scene and that my dad sent a car for me to explore the city and gave me his black card. We departed after my agent calls and I headed up mission st toward something I saw in the distance. I hopped back on the Bart and headed towards civic center and the downtown area.
Third stop : Civic Center. This place is a god walking distance away from downtown San Francisco where all the shopping takes place. Across the street from the City Hall there was a farmer's market full of people shopping, street dancing, and lines of kids. I walked further up and could see why there were only kids in line PANIC AT THE DISCO was in town!!! I walked through all the shopping then walked back and I happened to walk into The Green Arcade a small book store on market st. I bought Blood,Bones, & Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton and asked the owner was there a good place to grab lunch. He pointed me into Zuni Cafe a two level italian cafe with a wood burning oven and grill and a light summery menu. I grab a small plate of baked ricotta with a beet salad. Leaving that part of town I tried my way on the Muni the other subway system in San Fran and it seemed pretty easy to get around the city. The cars are smaller than DC but are on time, clean, and have AC that works. After a jammed pack day I decided to call it a night at 7pm because oh the time difference and watched adult swim while eating a couple of reeses cup.
OK now I'm off to head back to the city fr another day of searching and eating!
OUI
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