Simple Pleasures Cafe

Richmond (District) Coffeehouses ~ Part 28

and

Bay-to-Beer! #104

(No official web-site.)


Place: Simple Pleasures Cafe
Location: 3434 Balboa Street (between 35th and 36th Avenues); phonicular contact: (415) 387-4022
Hours: open 6:00am every day of the week
Meal: (pre-Bay-to-Beer!) some kinda Linzertorte[1]-bar thing and a small cuppa their House Blend; 
(post-Bay-to-Beer!) Hummus & Veggies Bagel and a medium cuppa their House Blend

(These EweToobular songs are just a continuation from yesterday's Tom Russell mini-concert. The second one is a triet done with Dave Alvin and Katie Moffat; it was co-written with Dave Alvin, too.)


As it was right along my way to watch the start of this year's Bay-to-Beer!, I stopped by Simple Pleasures Cafe (see previous 'blog-entry from March 15th, 2010) for a quick snack, and then on my way back home I stopped by again and finished up my breakfast there. And I would just like to point out that no one working there this morning was drinking from an outside cuppa that St*rbucks cr*p.

Gone now are the really cool table lamps that they used to have on all the tables in the back part of the café. I guess they couldn't afford them any longer with the upkeep on the stupid parklet out front now...

stupid, useless parklet mini-rant

There is a HUGE stupid parklet in front of the place. It has been there for about two years now. I did a small boycott (for about a year straight) of the place, but it's been one of my favourite go-to neighborhood joints since I first moved to San Francisco, so I could only stay away so long (besides, their Coffee is really good and the Hummus & Veggies Bagel is also a good, quick meal ~ convictions only matter for other people). This stupid parklet takes up a spot along Balboa Street that makes for at least 3-4 car parking spaces being wasted. Oh, well, at least it's a nice enough looking space (even if it is still a stupid wastelet). I even decided to eat the Linzertorte-bar thing while sitting in the stupid parklet. (End of mini-rant, for now.)

They really only offer a few other ideas for a breakfastary repast. I could have ordered Scrambled Egg & Cheese Bagel (which I probably would have ordered with an Asiago[2] cheese bagel) or one of those pre-packaged burritos (you know, the kind that many coffeehouses sell now-a-days ~ there was a Potato, Black Bean, Egg, & Cheese one that didn't sound half-bad) in the front refrigerated case.

(not necessarily a stupid, useless) Bay-to-Beer! Interlude

http://www.zapposbaytobreakers.com/ 

I stationed myself in front of the Bison Paddock at first, but made my way to the corner of John F Kennedy Drive and Chain of Lakes Drive East[3], where there was a live band just starting to warm-up.

(Dammit! And me without any PURINA® Buffalo Chow.)

(These are photos of the lead pack of runners.)


After about the first 100 runners had gone past, I decided to head out and get breakfast. I figured as long as I was already in the area, I would swing by Raccoon Island and see if Rocky and any of his buddies were around to watch the race. Unfortunately, it was way too early in the morning for any of them to still be awake or up yet. I did run into several of those fuzzy-tailed rats, Steller's Jays, and Red-Winged Blackbirds, though.

(Dammit! And me without any PURINA® Raccoon Chow...
or any PURINA® Squirrel Chow...
or any PURINA® Steller's Jay Chow...
or any PURINA® Red-Winged Blackbird Chow...)

"Hummus on a bagel?! Oy vay[4]! Are you meshugge, Brian?!"

I was a bit skeptical the first time that I ever ordered this, but now I know that it is way better than any of that soft Philly-cheese stuff. They make their own hummus and it is generally very good. Today it was just good (a bit on thick side), but still much better than anything I would ever attempt to make at home. (Yeah, fat chance!) I went with a sesame bagel for the basis of this meal; that always seems to pair very well with hummus. Today's "Veggies" were tomato slices (Sorry, Greg!), cucumber slices, sliced pepperoncinis, sliced black olives (the plain ol' boring, canned variety; this would be so much more awesomer if they ever used authentic Kalamata olives), red onions, and a few leaves of romaine lettuce. Sometimes this plate will also include 
alfalfa sprouts.

I didn't bother to check out what Simple Pleasures Cafe might have to offer in the way of any condimentary supplements, nor did I bother bringing any of my own hot sauces with me this morning. I knew in advance that I was going to get the Hummus & Veggies Bagel and knew it didn't need any spicing up.


Glen Bacon Scale Rating: 
Linzertorte-bar thing ~ 6.2;
Hummus & Veggies Bagel ~ 6.3 

___________________

1. Was?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linzer_torte

2. http://www.cheese.com/asiago/

3. There really is no longer a "Chain of Lakes Drive West", so I do not know why they still need to use the "East" designator here. The old Chain of Lakes Drive West used to be the transverse around the other side (that would have been the "west side", of course) of North Lake (aka Raccoon Island Lake), but that road had already been turned into just a pedestrian walkway for many years now.

4. Stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day:

The Yiddish word "vay" comes from the German word "Weh" (which is pronounced somewhat like "vay", nu?). "Weh" in German simply means "woe" or "ache/pain".