The Buena Vista Cafe

The Buena Vista Cafe

2765 Hyde Street, San Francisco, CA 94109. (415) 474-5044
http://www.thebuenavista.com

It's said that you can't go home again, but I call BS. This past weekend during our escape to San Francisco, Mr.S. took me to one of his childhood haunts- the historic Buena Vista Cafe near the Fisherman's Wharf. Had we planned a little more carefully, we probably could have hopped on a cable car right outside of our hotel and rode it straight to the porch of the cafe. Instead we drove over there and luckily parking didn't turn out to be an issue. We got there minutes before it opened and as we stood outside in line, we inhaled the crisp bay air and Mr.S. excitedly told me how he and his family would always stop by the Buena Vista when he was a child. At 9am promptly, a matronly waitress unlocked the doors and the masses moved in, tables become occupied in a flash and seats at the well worn wooden counter quickly filled. Somehow we were one of the lucky ones who were able to slide into a table next to the window. Those who were unable to find a table stood in the walkway and any open nook or cranny available anxiously looking for a seat to open. Everyone's elbow to elbow, that's how it rolls at the Buena Vista...a bit like musical chairs.

Now if you haven't heard, the Buena Vista is supposedly the birthplace of the Irish Coffee in America. The Buena Vista has been using the same tried and true recipe since 1952, can you believe it?!  Every table around us seemed to be sporting a goblet of the hot, frothy liquid. (I bet they go through TONS of Irish Whiskey!) For breakfast, we both went a bit traditional. Mr.S. ordered a plate of corn beef hash (he loooves hash) and I went with some eggs, sausage and toast. Both orders were tasty- nothing fancy. Service was a bit slow but it was a full house. As soon as we paid our tab and stood to leave, hungry patrons quickly swooped into our still warm seats.

The food at the Buena Vista is solid, the atmosphere is fun and nostalgia is abound in the small restaurant. Regulars and visitors equally were lining up to come in and smiles were plentiful. While I was digging into my breakfast , I looked up and I swear I could picture a school-aged Mr.S. bellying up to the counter and demanding a plate of hash. That made ME smile. So even if the joint is a wee bit touristy, I'm glad we stopped by.

Holiday Corn Casserole

Holiday Corn Casserole

Whenever the new year rolls around, I (like most of the world) am hasty to make a multitude of resolutions. Honestly- I always have the best of intentions but the majority of the time, my lofty resolutions (which usually have to do with exercise and eating healthier...big surprise!) end up being cast aside with that first giant bite of double chocolate cheesecake (gosh darn it!). Anyhow, I still like the idea of starting anew each year and this year in particular I'm ready for 2012 to wrap itself up. December has been a particularly rough month and I can't wait to dispose of it and start fresh. I've been feeling emotionally drained and conflicted for weeks on end and my stress eating has become reflected in some holiday pudge. I did get a tiny respite this weekend, when Mr.S. and I took a spontaneous weekend trip to SF. His kidlets were out of town and we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to have a romantic weekend getaway and just de-com-press!

 
We stayed at an adorable boutique hotel just steps from Union Square called The Orchard Hotel (super cute room and friendly staff), indulged in a delicious seafood dinner at Anchor & Hope with Mr.S.'s brother and did some fun touristy things like eating clam chowder at Pier 39 (I hadn't been in years), shopping in Japantown and taking a moonlit stroll to Union Square to see the ice skaters and holiday lights. It was a lovely trip and just what I needed.

Anyhow, my heart and soul haven't been into cooking for weeks but I was able to somehow muster myself into the cooking spirit for the big Christmas Day dinner. I made some spicy chorizo-lentil empanadas for appetizers and also a scrumptious corn casserole as my side dish. My friend Minzi had suggested a recipe by Paula Deen which gave me the idea to do a corn casserole. I liked the basics of Deen's recipe so I used that as my starting point and built from there. The dish turned out to be a big hit and almost all of it was eaten; considering how much food was out on the table, I was pretty impressed. Even the pickier eaters gave me compliments!

The recipe is listed below, give it a try in the new year and let me know what you think.

Holiday Corn Casserole

Ingredients

1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained (*do not substitute frozen corn, use canned)

1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn

1 (8-ounce) package Jiffy corn muffin mix

1 small sweet yellow onion, diced

4 ounce can diced mild green chiles, drained

1 egg

3/4 cup sour cream

1/2 stick butter, melted

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese

5 slices bacon

salt and pepper


Instructions

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees F.

2. In a skillet, fry up your bacon. Place cooked bacon slices on a plate lined with a papertowel. Allow to cool. Then dice bacon slices. Next, in the same pan- fry up your diced onion. Then set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, combine: corn kernels, creamed corn, Jiffy corn muffin mix, onion, diced green chiles, 1 egg, sour cream, melted butter and 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix throughly.

4. Take a greased 8x8 glass casserole dish and pour corn mixture from bowl into dish. Spread so it's even.

5. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Then remove from oven. Sprinkle bacon pieces and 2 tablespoons of cheddar across the top. Place dish back in oven and cook for another 10-15.

6. Serve warm.

Happy Holidays!

Down & Dirty at Foodbuzz '11 - Day Two

Down & Dirty at Foodbuzz '11 - Day Two

Finally! About time! I know, I know....Part 2 of the Foodbuzz Festival :

The second day of the Foodbuzz Festival started early (well, early for me--I'm not a morning person). I met up with Debby from A Feast for Your Eyes and we cabbed it over to the Federated Media Headquarters for some blog workshops. The first one I had signed up for was a featured panel discussion by five bloggers. Oddly enough, even though I write a food blog I don't follow a lot of what I would call the "popular" food blogs, so I had only heard of one of the five panelists.

• Joy Wilson (Joy the Baker)
• Kath Younger (Kath Eats Real Food)
• Jessica Merchant (How Sweet It Is)
• Tracy Benjamin (Shutterbean)
• Sarah Matheny (Peas and Thank You)

The topic for the discussion was "Taking Your Blog to the Next Level," and the panelists talked about how to make your blog unique, the importance of good photography and connecting with your readers. It was informative. Several of the panelists also talked about book deals and selling their photography but that part didn't really interest me since I just do blogging as a hobby. Afterwards we divided into smaller groups and I attended two sessions 1) The DSLR-Free Zone led by Greg Henry (Sippity Sup), Angi Chau (Rice and Wheat) and Chuck Lai (Foodgawker).
 

 
They talked about how you can use point & shoot and cell phone cameras to get great shots instead of lugging around your DSLR. They also talked about working with natural lighting, ways to work around not using a flash and different post processing apps. I picked up some cool tips from Chuck of Foodgawker that I'm going to try out soon. 2) Introduction to Adobe Lightroom: How to Make Good Photos Great led by Marc Matsumoto (No Recipes).
 
From there we were bussed over to the Metreon for the Tasting Pavillion. This was my favorite part of the weekend. It was so much fun (and this year they allowed you to bring someone so my friend Jenny who lives in the city was able to join me). In a nutshell, they set up this giant room with all sorts of gourmet food and beverage vendors (and a couple of big name sponsors) and all you do is walk around and taste samples and network with the reps for 3 hours. We had a blast. Some of the vendors even gave us full size products to take home, like this Vanilla Bean Syrup by Sonoma Syrup Co.. I can't wait to try it out in some of my holiday baking, it's so delicious!
 

 
The other product that I fell head over heels for was the Black Truffle and White Cheddar Popcorn by 479 Popcorn...it's gluten-free and kind of like popcorn crack...super addicting. While were wandering around tasting red onion confit, sampling goat camembert and sipping gin and tonics; Tyler Florence slipped in  and signed a few autographs and posed for some photos.
 
Now I think I mentioned earlier how I don't really follow a lot of food blogs, well I do follow one popular food blog based out of SF...The Tomato Tart. Anyhow, I ran into Sabrina of The Tomato Tart randomly at the tasting and she's just as sassy and nice as she is in her blog (and was kind enough to take a photo). I was pretty stoked about that!
 

 
Some of us were so pooped afterwards that we went and sat outside and enjoyed the view for awhile. The Metreon had this cool wall of succulents on their balcony that I loved. Maybe I could get Mr. S. to build me one?
 

 
Here's a few more shots of some of the stuff we sipped and tasted that I liked.
 

cute edible printed gnome icing sheets by ticings

 

Hell or High Watermelon Wheat Beer by 21st Amendment Brewery

Bellwether Farms (a-mazing cheeses!)

 

Gourmet Cupcakes from Mission Minis

 
Stuffed to the gills, I waddled back to the hotel and took a nap to prepare for what else...dinner! I'm not kidding, Foodbuzz had a cocktail reception, a cooking demo with Tyler Florence and a gala dinner on the evening's lineup. Jeebus! Since Alexia Foods was the sponsor of the gala dinner, the cocktail party was stocked with fries from their "Reinvent a Classic" Challenge....a contest where several bloggers had to come up with a new flavor. My favorite flavor was the dill flavored ones. Funny I only hit the fry line once (the fries were kind of lukewarm) but the Alexia photographer somehow photographed me and I found this photo of me online:  
 

  (photo by Ryan Anson/AP Images for Alexia Foods)

Our dinner time entertainment was watching Tyler Florence...or as I will forever call him now, Ty-Flo, cook up some fat Flintstone-looking pork chops, braised red cabbage and herb spaetzle with a mustard and crème fraîche sauce while we munched on hors d'oeuvres. I've always liked Ty Flo's recipes prior to this demo but had never been much of a fan of the chef himself but after watching and listening to him at the dinner, I have to admit his frat boy/dad personality kind of grew on me. The guy's likable.  
 

  Ty-Flo letting us know, "Color = Flavor"

 

Once he was done, it was dinner time. Dinner was...meh. Being that it was a dinner for food bloggers I was thinking the food would be more...well, tasty...especially after all the amazing eats we had at the Tasting Pavillion but quite honestly, the food we had kind of reminded me of hotel food and it very well could have been as the event was being held at the Grand Hyatt. We started with a Bibb Lettuce Salad with Honey Roasted Pears, Glazed Pecans and Bleu Cheese Vinaigrette. (There was way too much dressing on my salad, so much so that when I was done there appeared to be a pool of it on my plate with bits of pecan doing the backstroke in it.) The main course was a Brandt Beef Farms Filet Mignon and Meyer Lemon Roasted Prawns served with Heirloom Carrots, Celery Root Puree and Peppercorn Demi-Glace. Sounds fab, right? The prawns were really overcooked and neither the meat nor the shrimp had a lot of flavor. Pretty disappointing. In fact, I kind of wanted to chase after Tyler and grab that dish of herb spaetzle out of his hand and have THAT for dinner. Mmmm!
 

Dessert was a "San Francisco Trio" of Sourdough Bread Pudding, Cowgirl Creamery Cheesecake and Scharffen Berger Chocolate Mousse. I thought it should have been called the "frio trio" because mine tasted like they might have still been frozen. All three were really hard. I pushed my hockey pucks around the plate for awhile and decided to pass. Luckily I was still full from the giant feast I had indulged in at the Metreon earlier in the day.

 
Although there was a farewell lunch scheduled for the next morning, I decided to pass and meet up with a friend in the city and do a little shopping before heading back to Sac. Overall, I enjoyed myself at FBF'11...great food, friendly people---a fantastic time. Next year though I'll know to start exercising a few months prior in preparation for the calorie-fest. ;)

Down & Dirty at Foodbuzz '11 - Day One

Down & Dirty at Foodbuzz '11 - Day One

So this weekend I had the pleasure of heading down to SF and attending my first Foodbuzz Blogger Festival. I wish I had some juicy stories of illicit hazing where they made you eat vast amounts of uncured bacon or branded you with a secret Ancient Roman culinary symbol to share but it actually was just a fun-filled weekend of bloggers and lots and lots and LOTS ---did mention lots?---of food.

Although this was the first Foodbuzz Blogger Festival I've ever attended, it's actually the 3rd annual festival that's been held by Federated Media, Foodbuzz' mothership. Anyhow, I arrived at my hotel Friday afternoon and met up with Debby from A Feast For the Eyes, whom I had been blog buddies with for sometime now (and was staying at the same hotel). She turned out to be just as pretty and sweet in person as she is online. My room was cozy but super cute; in fact, my only beef were the über amorous pigeons right outside my window. Although it was a bit funny at first, the pigeon porn went non-stop during my stay; the only thing missing was the bow-chicka-bow-bow soundtrack in the background. I'm telling you, pigeons have stamina!

Anyhow, once I was unpacked Debby and I walked over to the Grand Hyatt so I could get registered. At registration we were given cute name badges and a reusable Foodbuzz Festival bag filled with all kinds of goodies (Godiva coffees, an OXO peeler, gourmet chocolates, a DIY Cocktails Recipe book, a tumbler and lots of other cool SWAG).

While in line I met several bloggers, including the super adorable Josh from Just Eat! who joined us for drinks at the top of the Hyatt. After cocktails, Foodbuzz bussed us over to the Terra Gallery in the SoMa district for a welcome reception, blogger award ceremony and dinner. Rumor was that at last year's festival a lot of bloggers were snooty and cliquey, I found the ones I met to be the complete opposite. Everyone I spoke to, whether it was on the bus, the cocktail party or the dinner was super friendly (but I could see if how if you're not an extroverted person how difficult an event like this could be). What I didn't anticipate was that there were going to be so many kinds of bloggers there- male, female, mom bloggers, single bloggers, vegans, ethnic food bloggers, and lots of bakers! Some people like Julie from Willow Bird Baking came from far away (she had flown in from North Carolina!) and others like Dorothy from Crazy for Crust turned out to live in my hometown. There also seemed to be a good mix of festival "veterans" and newbies.

Photo of me chatting with Josh from Just Eat! (borrowed from A Feast For the Eyes)

Debby from A Feast for the Eyes with Julie from Willow Bird Baking

For the first part we mingled about, ate delicious hors d'oeuvres sponsored by Sabra and enjoyed plenty of wine. Then we moved upstairs for a dinner hosted by Electrolux. Dinner was set up in a buffet manner and there was an open bar (my favorite kind!).



It was a bit crazy with everyone clamoring to take photos but somehow the lines seemed to move forward. My two favorite dishes were from the "small plates action station."

Glazed Marin Sun Farms Pork Belly over Broccoli Puree, Wood Roasted Florets, Pickled Shiitakes and Chile Morita Vinaigrette

Pan-Seared DayBoat Scallops served with Grapes, Capers, Wood Roasted Cauliflower, Baby Parsnip Puree and Verjus

They look yummy, right? Although to be honest everything was tasty...well, everything maybe except for the Tuscan Beef Stew with honey cornbread, I wasn't wild about that dish---and I noticed that I wasn't the only one who left their bowl of stew on the table. It didn't taste like beef...it tasted like some sort of weird vegan concoction (no offensive to my vegan friends out there). Once the dinner portion was over, it was dessert time!



Heirloom Pumpkin Tarts with a Gingersnap Shell

We were presented with an incredibly long table of tasty treats, selected by Top Chef Just Dessert Winner Yigit Pura, in an array of colors and shapes--tarts, macaroons, cheesecakes, pâtes de fruits, ...well, you get the idea. I called it the Gauntlet of Sugar; however my ever-expanding hips called it, "Danger! Danger!" I have to admit though the 'Creamy Italian Nougat and Valrhona Chocolate Ganache Bites with Marcona Almonds," was quite divine. Okay, I ate three...and that was me restraining myself. Oh yeah, with all this talk about food you're probably wondering...didn't you say something about awards? While we were dining they did give out a few blog awards, but we were sitting at a table right next to the stage so everything sounded like that teacher from the Charlie Brown cartoons (do you know which one I'm talking about? If not click on the link youngster) so I had absolutely no idea what the featured speakers were saying so I just clapped politely whenever everyone else did. I did take a look at the list of nominees and winners later though. At around 9:30, with full bellies and heavy lids, we were bussed back to the Hyatt. It was a fun evening and as I walked back to my hotel, I was excited to start Day 2 of the festival!

More to come...

WISH

WISH

1539 Folsom St, San Francisco, CA 94103, (415) 431-1661

After catching a show at Slim's, we ducked into Wish for a nightcap. Wish is a bit small and narrow but radiates a come hither attitude with its sultry red walls and flickering tealights. The crowd on the night we visited was a bit diverse, there were couples whispering sweet nothings with their heads tilted together at the bar, girls shakin' their junk to the DJ that was spinning in the back and clusters of friends kicking it on the couch while knocking back a drink or two... or five. The bartenders were courteous, drinks priced reasonably (and were served in proper glassware, not plastic cups) and the bouncer was quite polite and chivalrous. I also loved that they had handbag hooks under the counter, so that you could have both hands free to get your drink on--- ingenious!

The laid back vibe and sexy atmosphere made me a bit mischievous, good thing my alcohol consumption was regulated as I needed to drive later that night. My only "wish" was that we weren't subjected to the rank wave of patchouli incense and BO when we first walked in. It eventually dissipated, but good god!

Hooters

Hooters

410 Market St, San Diego, CA 92101, (619) 235-4668

The ex and I visited Hooters during our last jaunt to San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter. It was that time of the day between lunch and dinner where not much was open. He was fussing to watch some ESPN and I needed to eat something to tide me over until dinner (the pretzels on the Southwest flight, just didn't cut it). I'll admit I wasn't forced to go in (no arm twisting), but I was a bit curious to see what all the hype was about. I pictured something trashy with slithering pole dancers and Whitesnake blaring, but in reality it was just a tackily decorated beer-n-wings joint with extremely unflattering, polyester uniforms that looked like they would chafe (what's with the suntan colored pantyhose under the hideous, Bozo orange boy briefs?).

We had two waitresses during our visit. Our first waitress, Jackie, was super cool and chatty. Turns out that she was from Vacaville and we launched into a full scale conversation about the Vacaville outlets, much to the ex's chagrin. When I decided to purchase a tee for my teenage nephew, she rallied the other wait staff to each sign the shirt. I'm sure my sister-in-law in New Mexico appreciated the fact that we presented our 15 year old, hormone-infused nephew with a tee that was emblazoned with phrases such as "Randy, you make me randy!" and signed by a dozen busty Hooter girls; but screw her, our nephew loved it and dubbed me the coolest aunt ev-ah! Teenage boys are an odd breed.

Since we caught Jackie on the tail end of her shift, we were traded off to a second Hooterette for the latter part of the service. This 5'2, buck o'five weighing (all boob) nymph came bouncing over to introduce herself and chirps that she heard we were from Sac...well, guess what? She is too. We chat about Sac a bit and it turns out she and I went to the same high school. She throws me a sugary smile and cheerfully announces that she graduated in something like 2002 and maybe we know some of the same people? I choke on my beer, glare over the chicken strips and think darkly, "Yeah, maybe I went to school with your MOM!" The ex is smirking as he quietly turns his chair to watch the ball game.

Final tally: +1 star for the clean interior, average beer and the place not being as vulgar as I thought it'd be, +1 star for our cool waitress Jackie and no stars for the greasy chicken strips. I, however, deserve 5 stars for not reaching over and throttling that 21 yr old Hoot-chie for making me feel older than dirt.

Homestead

Homestead

2301 Folsom St, San Francisco, CA 94110, (415) 282-4663

John Wayne was once quoted as saying, "I never trust a man that doesn't drink." I think the Duke would have felt right at home at Homestead, as every patron had at least one drink in hand.

On a recent social call to SF, we ended up here; which turned out to be a perfect choice for knocking back a few rounds while waiting for the stragglers to meet up. The bar wasn't too crowded during our visit and we were able to grab a table by the window. Drinks prices were reasonable and the pours fair. The bartender that I ordered from was friendly and had no issue when I had to bring a drink back for correction (it was my bad, my friend wanted a vodka & tonic, I ordered a vodka rocks). Although he did raise an amused eyebrow when I confirmed that the Knob Creek shot was for me. Hmmm...do I not look like your typical whiskey imbiber?

The atmosphere was mellow and the crowd ranged from hipster, indie to a little WT. Everyone seemed laid back and to be enjoying the mellow vibe. Homestead's definitely not a meat market, more of a nice neighborhood watering hole to gather with friends and shoot the sh*t. The decor is reminiscent of early western saloons and it makes no qualms about being a bit divey (part of its charm). Also, there's a nice warm fireplace to gather around should you incur a chill or find a cute gunslinger to converse with.

Definitely a place that I'd like to give another whirl.

Chez Maman

Chez Maman

1453 18th Street, San Francisco, CA 94107, (415) 824-7166

Chez Maman is a small, nondescript neighborhood bistro that's one of those blink and you'll miss it places. The restaurant is long and narrow, consisting of counter seating that runs the length of the tiny eatery, 2 metal bar-height 2-tops by the window and one small outdoor table (Chez Maman's a great place for dining with 1, maybe 2 other friends, not any more than that due to the size of the place). Upon arrival, you place your name and the number of people in your party on the wait list that is taped to the front door. The atmosphere is warm and inviting and the decor sparse. Should you need to use the restroom, there's one right through the kitchen. The entire establishment is probably as big as my dining room and living room put together, if even that. The staff consists of 1 cook, 1 busser and 1 server. The server we had during our visit was courteous, efficient and brisk. Although he didn't engage us in small talk, I liked that fact that he didn't rush us through our meal despite the obvious wait for seating by other patrons.

I opted for the vegetarian crepe while my two dining companions went with paninis. One was the Croque Monsieur, the other I'm not sure (I forgot to inquire). The "mystery" panini came heart-shaped, which was a cute albeit cheesy touch. My vegetarian crepe was decent. It was stuffed with zucchini, roasted peppers, mushrooms and heavy on the tomato...all those healthy veggies that your mom would be proud you're eating. We also got a side of pomme frites with aioli to split and a few glasses of wine to chat over. My viognier was ok, but I felt their wine by the glass prices were a bit high considering what they were serving. The match-stick like fries on the other hand were probably my favorite part of the meal. They were crunchy, tasty and the lemon aioli was the perfect accompaniment.

Chez Maman did a nice job of filling our tummies before we scooted off to grab some drinks, but by no means did I find it to stand out from the vast selection of SF eateries.

Oyaji

Oyaji

3123 Clement St, San Francisco, CA 94121, (415) 379-3604

I loved Oyaji! Set aside the minimalistic decor reminiscent of the traditional izakayas and the tasty looking Japanese pub fare and you have Oyaji, himself. The term "oyaji" in Japanese can mean dad or an unrelated older man who's like a father, and sometimes can be used in the slang sense such as "sukebe oyaji" (dirty old man). And that's exactly what the owner, Hideki, is and quite proud of it, I must say. Hideki is a riot and very endearing. He regales you with humorous anecdotes then switches it up a notch with some raunchy humor about his massive testicles and unsurpassable virility. I laughed so hard during my visit that the sides of my stomach hurt and I almost had tears in my eyes.

In addition, to a pretty cool selection of zizake (regional sake), sochu and Japanese beer, Oyaji's served up the freshest uni and bincho maguro I've had in quite awhile. The texture was perfect and the fish positively melted in my mouth. My Tokyo houseguest popped in a piece of aka maguro and smiled from the pure pleasure of its taste. I did notice fellow Yelpers commenting that the nigiri sushi there seemed small, but to be honest it's like how I remember it being in Japan... bite-size. I think the sushi in the US, on par with McDonald's, has become super-sized. Traditional sushiyas in Japan don't make these humongous rolls drenched in mayo-y sauces, nor do they include ingredients like avocado or cream cheese. I think the only kind of rolls I saw during my stay there were oshinko, natto, tekka and kappa makis---which are much skinnier, with one filling. It's all about appreciating the technique, the freshness and the taste of the seafood on your palate not how much crap you can squish inside the nori and rice, like your Aunt Martha into a girdle. Also, would you put ketchup on your sushi? No? Then why are you letting them pour the equivalent of 1,000 Island dressing on your sushi order? Paying for prime, fresh sushi is a waste if you're going to just mask the flavor with condiments.

Anyhow, I'll definitely be returning to Oyaji. I'm not sure if it's a good date restaurant, unless you want Oyaji leering at your date's breasts or challenging your manhood. But it's a great place to grab some delicious food, knock back some sochu and grab a smoke outside with Oyaji while BSing. Next time round, along with the sushi, I plan to sample some of the asari sake mushi (my fav), ika sugaayaki along with a side order of gobo that I saw on the menu. Can't wait!

Namara-umai! (for those that speak nihongo, I just thought I'd throw in some Hokkaido dialect for you).

PJ's Oyster Bed -- CLOSED

PJ's Oyster Bed -- CLOSED

737 Irving St, San Francisco, CA 94122, (415) 566-7775

We've all heard that silly bit of info about only eating oysters in months that end in the letter "r." Well, screw that bit of nonsense! I've been on an oyster kick lately and when Ally D. wants oysters, Ally D. gets oysters. On a sunny Thursday, my houseguest and I took off for a trek to SF to fulfill my Ostreidae obsession. I wasn't going to be sated until I was slurping down some yummy bivalves from their half shells with a little sriracha and lemon. After doing some shopping, we met up with Yelper Omar B. who took us around Hayes Valley, Sunset and the outer Richmond. Although I've spent a lot of time in SF (usually lost if I'm the one driving), I wasn't too familiar with these areas. We grabbed a few drinks and then wandered across the street to PJ's Oyster Bed on Irving Street. PJ's blends in well with the various boutiques, bakeries and pubs lining the Sunset District. It's quite small which was the reason for the wait... about a half hour. This wouldn't have been too bad if there was a designated bar section or waiting area. As it was, we stood chatting in the foyer with our backs to a table of four that was chowing down. I'm sure they enjoyed staring at our asses throughout the first portion of their dining experience. Brandon, the host, seemed quite nice and was pretty on target with his wait quote.

Finally, our name was called. I sunk into our half-booth and politely browsed the menu (although I already knew what I wanted). The menu consisted of many NOLA-style dishes like jambalya, gumbo and something called Alligator Eggs (I didn't ask). Forget the menu! Bring on the booze! Bring on the oysters!

Hillary, our server, was friendly, attentive and efficient. She didn't blink an eye when we only ordered a plate of a dozen raw oysters and a bottle of wine (the Bolla, an Italian white, paired quite well with our order). Since my guest had filled her alcohol quotient for the night at Yancey's, Omar & I finished off the entire bottle by ourselves. The oysters were good, but lacked a little je ne sais quoi and were on the smaller side...not like the fatty, succulent oysters I had sucked down on a recent visitation to Sausalito. They're served with tabasco, lemon, cocktail sauce and champagne mignonette (Phooey! We don't need no stinkin' mignonette! Where's the damn sriracha?). Also, after a few glasses of wine the surrounding wall murals got a bit creepy...was it just me our did all the people in the mural look like they were in some kind of state of 420-ness?

Overall, a pretty good dining experience. If I were to return, I wouldn't mind checking out their Oysters Rockefeller. The table next to us were digging into some and they looked mighty tasty (the Oysters Rockefeller, not the people at the next table).