Blue Jay Cafe

Memorial Day Special: 2-fer-1 Limosas?





Memorial Day breakfast at the Blue Jay Cafe (which, despite what my auto-spellchecker thingy on Microsoft® Works Word Processor is making changes to, does not have the accent aigu on the last "e" ~ I see their software had no problem recognizing the word "Microsoft®", though). The Blue Jay Cafe is on Divisadero (in the No Man's Land between the Western Addition and the Haight, sorta).

http://www.bluejaysf.com/



There is also a very cool (but very tiny) backyard patio seating area. Next time I go there I will have to sit back there (Sun, weather, and available seating permitting).

Damn kids and their tagging! No place is safe any more…



They offer Weekend Brunch Specials normally, but as today is Monday ~ Memorial Day notwithstanding (and, as long and run-together as that word looks, it is not being questioned by Bill Gates' software Nazis) ~ so there were no real specials today; however, there are several items from which to choose on their standard weekday menu. Also, I was pretty impressed with their Beer selection (many different bottles and a few on draught, too).



I had the Eggs Florentine*. It came with lots of fresh, sautéed (now the auto-spellchecker automatically added the accent aigu on the first "e" here, and I am happy to oblige it) spinach and tomato slices, covered with Hollandaise** sauce, all on a home-made biscuit (which was very good, too). Their Hollandaise sauce was a pretty good version. Served with a nice portion of good, chunky, home-fried potatoes ~ which seemed baked/roasted to me, not fried; making them a lot less greasy.




They offer both fresh-made Limeade and Lemonade ~ I opted for the former. This was served with a "bendy" straw, which is always fun.

The last time I ate there (it was a Saturday) and they had their normal weekend drink special of "2-for-1 Mimosas". I really wasn't in the mood for an orange juice-Champagne drink. So, I asked if I could have a drink made with their Limeade and Champagne instead. There is no real mixology term for this drink so I came up with "Blue Jay Cafe Limosa"; and to make it even more interesting, I had seen a bottle of lavender syrup on their bar and asked to have a splash of that added to the drink ~ it was actually pretty tasty. If this idiotic combination ever takes off (hey, you never know, the Bellini was thought up by some stupid bartender in Venezia), I will take complete credit for it; if not, I have never heard of the Blue Jay Cafe.

Seeing as this is Memorial Day, here are a couple of links for which we should remember what Memorial Day is really all about (parades and the first barbecues of the Summer aside):

http://francona.blogspot.com/2009_05_01_archive.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCvSc2b8CWc&feature=related

The article was written by Rick Francona. Rick is a well-known Military and Middle East analyst for MSNBC (and if his last name looks familiar to any Boston Red Sox fans, it is because he is Terry Francona's first cousin ~ just with more hair). Rick was a member of my old Air Force squadron back in Athens (technically, Ελληνικό), Greece (6916th ESS, "Ut Fiat Libertas"***, "Home of the Proud Professionals"); he was stationed there a few years before I got there, but we know a lot of the same people from back then (Rick just happens to also know hundreds of famous people: Presidents, Kings, Generals, Politicians, etc.).

The "Green Fields of France" is sung by the Boston (technically, Quincy) Irish punk band Dropkick Murphys ~ best known for their Red Sox anthem "Tessie".

I suggest reading the article while listening to the song. It really hits home. Just don't stand too close to your computer while doing so, I will not be responsible for any tears shed on your keyboard.


Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Eggs Florentine ~ 6.9; Limeade ~ 6.9; Rick Francona 'blog ~ 7.0; "Green Fields of France" ~ 7.0


*(Stupid cunning-linguist pointer #1:

Why are things that are made with spinach always called "Florentine"? Is spinaci de Firenze of such a higher quality to the normal spinach from Italy or the World even?)

**(Stupid cunning-linguist pointer #2:

"sauce Hollandaise" comes from the French word for "Dutch sauce". I don’t know why the French chose to honour the Dutch with one of the five sauces of the French haute cuisine mother sauces, but it beats "Neverland gravy", I guess.)

***(Stupid cunning-linguist pointer #3:

"Ut Fiat Libertas" is Latin for "Freedom Through Vigilance" ~ not "One Free Fiat", as many self-proclaimed humourists claim.)