"It seemed like a matter of minutes when we began rolling into the foothills before Oakland and suddenly reached a height and saw stretched out ahead of us the fabulous white city of San Francisco on her eleven mystic hills with the blue Pacific and its advancing wall of potato patch fog beyond, and smoke and goodness in the late afternoon of time…" ~ Jack Kerouac, On the Road, Chapter 9
http://www.primopatiocafe.com/ Place: Primo Patio Cafe Location: 214 Townsend Street (between 3rd and 4th Streets) Hours: Mon-Sat open at 9:00am (well, sometimes) Meal: Monterey Scramble ~ Eggs scrambled with black olives, green onions, Jack & Parmesan cheese, served with Caribbean potatoes and black beans; and a cuppa San Francisco Coffee Company
(Just some Caribbeany EweToobular videos to set the mood.) I finally made it back to Primo Patio Cafe(see previous 'blog-entry from October 8th, 2011); and by "finally" I don't mean that I had other things pending that kept me from getting back there, I mean that they were actually open for a change when they were supposed to be. After two failed attempts to eat there in the past few months when they were either closed or not open at the intended time (once was due to rain, which is perfectly acceptable), I suppose the third time's a charm. Once again, I sat outside back in their courtyard patio area (as that is all there is really available ~ hence the "Patio" portion of their name; I am still trying to figure out where the "Primo" and "Cafe" parts come in, though). For the winter months, they have a large covered awning to sit under, I was informed that starting next week, when the San Francisco Giants are back in town, they will take it down until next Fall again. There are even a few of those overhead gas heater jobbies ~ I chose to sit as far away from those as possible. (What is the point of eating outdoors if you need a stupid heater to do so?) Seating consists of twenty-six tables for two (or combinations of three to four people thereof), and there is an ocean/aquatic theme going on ~ some fishy decorated tables and seashells and stuff along the walls; of course, San Francisco couldn't be further from the water itself.
(You can really see the bright, vibrant colours that they have here.) the Wild Parrots of San Francisco Interlude I had parked over on South Park where there are (?where there is?) two hours of free parking during the day all week long (well, all day free on Sundays) and saw and heard several of the Wild Parrots in the taller trees around the park loop. I figure it won't be very long before most parks throughout the city are infested… er, inhabited by these little winged joys. There were a few other good ideas for stupid vegetarians off the breakfast section of their menu: Scooter (Scrambled eggs on a soft French roll, lettuce, tomato, Primo sauce; if I had ordered that, I would have ordered it with a side of Caribbean potatoes) or Seasonal Scramble (Eggs scrambled with spinach, mushrooms, roasted red peppers, onions, & garlic).
This was just an okay scramble. It had a mess o' cheese in it, which is always good, but the black olives were just the boring, sliced canned variety; it was missing something else ~ some fresh, sliced/diced jalapeños would have been great even. Unfortunately, as I had gotten there just a few minutes after they had opened (and actually on time this morning), they did not have any of the Caribbean potatoes ready yet. They substituted those with a toasted/grilled French roll (the potatoes would have been much better, of course). ¡Mierda! Once again, I missed out and should have ordered a side order of plantains. The cuppa Coffee came in an extra large/tall mug, because of which I only needed a half-refill once. This was served in a pretty cool mug, too; and like me (and Eddie's Cafe and Straw), it seems they do not own a matching set of mugs either. Apparently this roast/blend is made specially for them by San Francisco Coffee Company. The only condimentary supplementation that I saw out on some of the tables was El Yucateco®Salsa Picante Roja de Chile Habanero. This was kind of à propos as I had brought a bottle of my own El Yucateco® XXXtra Hot Sauce Salsa Kutbil-ik® de Chile Habanero (Thanks, Brian!) with me this morning, which I used a bit of all over the scramble mess. The dish comes with a small tin cup of their own Primo sauce, too, which, as best as I can describe it, seemed like French dressing with some hot sauce added to it; a little sweet with a little heat. I added some of that to the scramble, too, and mixed with my own hot sauce, it made for a pretty nice flavour combination. Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Monterey Scramble ~ 6.1; the Wild Parrots of San Francisco ~ 8.2
I have eaten at Primo Patio Cafe for lunch, when I used to work just a few blocks away, and for dinner before San Francisco Giants(still the reigning World Series Champs, by the way! ~ and it's just another 122 Days before the Giants season starts again) games, but this is the first time I have ever had breakfast there. They are located on Townsend, just a few blocks away from SBC Park. They have been in the same location for about 18 years now.
This is a kinda small space squeezed in between two other buildings, hence the "Patio Cafe" and not just "Cafe". It is always nice to eat breakfast in the fresh air (weather permitting ~ today it permitted), and the only seating space they have is in their patio (I did ask and they said for the Winter they rent a tent to cover the open space). Anyone know how you say "dining al fresco" in Spanish?
[No extra charge for this little bit of breakfast-y Taoism of Winnie-the-Pooh.]
Primo Patio have several good things from which to choose on the breakfast portion of the menu. I was leaning toward the simple Scooter (which I assumed was some sorta Caribbean-style Egg-a-Muffin thingy), but ended up going with Huevos Verdes~ Two poached eggs on a corn tortilla, Jack & Cheddar cheese, fresh tomatillo[2] salsa. Served with Caribbean potatoes and black beans. I also had a (large) cuppa coffee and a Guava[3] Mimosa[4].
I am very glad I went with this choice. It was very tasty; kinda a Huevos Rancheros-meets-Eggs Benedict-with a Caribbean twist. It was served on a crispy (fried) corn tortilla; I was expecting just a standard (un-fried) corn tortilla, so this was a nice surprise ~ this was very tasty and an interesting combination with the poached eggs and tomatillo salsa. I liked that it came with a side of black beans ~ mucho goodo. (The first time I ever had black beans was many years ago in Miami at a Cuban restaurant, paired with some rice and fried plantains[5]. I really liked them, and they are one of my favourite legume-y fruits now.) My only minor complaint was that the Caribbean potatoes were not really crispy enough for my liking; they did have a nice enough flavour, though. The Mimosa was pretty decent and I give it extra points for originality; however, it wasn't as if they used fresh-squeezed guava juice in it; I am pretty sure it was just from a can.
For condimentary supplementation, Primo Patio makes their own fresh salsa (a red version); so I did not need to use any of my own today (I did come prepared with three different ones from my collection). The salsa rojawas very nice, not too spicy, so I used it up on the eggs, beans, and potatoes. Their tomatillo salsa was also very good.
I probably should have also gotten a side order of plantains, carbohydrates be damned!
[1] This is their slogan on the menu, but I swear I tasted a little bit of Caribbean Sea salt in the salsa… and maybe just a touch o' da ganja, too, mon! [2] The tomatillo is a distant cousin of the tomato (they are both members of the Nightshade family) and also indigenous to "the New World". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomatillo Useless, boring cunning linguist punto número uno: Both "tomatillo" and "tomato" have the same word root and come from the Nahuatl word "tomatl", which the Spanish borrowed as "tomate". [3] Guava is also native to the Western Hemisphere ~ Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guava Useless, boring cunning linguist punto número dos: "Guava" comes from the Arawak word "guayabo", which the Spanish borrowed as "guayaba". [4] I am not sure why the drink is called a "Mimosa" as it isn't made from the Mimosa plant, but I am sure the damned Spanish can be blamed for this stolen word somehow. I am pretty sure that it was not named after that old Cuban Chicago White Sox Left Fielder, though. [5] Plantains are a tropical plant/fruit of the banana family. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantain Useless, boring cunning linguist punto número tres: "Plantain" comes from the Latin word "platanus" ~ meaning "plane/flat", which the Spanish borrowed as "plátano". Useless, boring cunning linguist conclusion of the day: The damned Spanish need to quit borrowing so many words from other languages and use some of their own.
(They play some pretty cool music here. The original Bobby Womack 70's classic "Across 110th Street" was playing at one point. I just like this "cover" version with Bobby and Los Lobos better.)
(No web-site available, and somehow I really don't think they care.)
(LONG AFTER THE VISIT EDIT: Avoid this "establishment" at all costs ~ even if it is free. I know that I will never darken their door ~ even a deeper burgundy or maroon ~ again. If a "straight" or "Yuppie" restaurant ever attempted to exclude customers in this way, you can be sure that the ACLU would be on them faster than you can say "blue-haired tranny Nazi". The food was good, but not that good. If you would like a list of at least ten places in San Francisco that have better French toast ~ and all bitchy attitude-free ~ just ask me. For an explanation, please see my 'blog-entry from August 26th, 2012: http://breakfastatepiphany.blogspot.com/2012/08/cafe-golo.html Mick Jagger had it right.)
I had heard some pretty good things aboutRed Door Cafe (I am not sure if that is avec ou sans accent aigu; it wasn't designated on their menu, nor on their sign above the entrance) and finally got around to going there for breakfast this morning. They are located somewhere in the no-man's land over on the corner of Bush and Franklin Streets, near all the old car dealerships on Van Ness (which is somewhat triangulated between the Western Addition, Pacific Heights, and Nob Hill neighborhoods).
It is pretty easy to locate along Bush Street as there really aren't many other places around there to eat and there is normally a line waiting on the sidewalk to get in. That is because this is one of the tinier places I have been to for breakfast in a long time. They only have five tables of two seats and one table of four seats… and that is it! Someone came in while I was eating and kiddingly asked for a party of sixteen to be seated. So, be prepared for a bit of a wait. I got there just before they opened this morning and was lucky enough to be seated with the first group of diners (breakfasters?).
Their menu is mainly a Cuban-inspired one with a French twist. They have many good things on their standard menu for a vegetarian; plus, they have a few other items on their specials menu that looked pretty tasty, too.
However, I skipped most everything on the menu(s) as I mainly came here to check out the French Toast Josephine ~ Delicious Ginger, Cinnamon Dipped French Toast with Powdered Sugar, Shaved Almonds (or maybe they were just prepubescent), and a Hint of Seduction*. I had it with added banana, and they even threw in a slice of mango and some berries (blue-, rasp-, and straw-) without my even asking for them. I also had a cuppa their House Coffee ~ which is from a good local roastery, Capricorn Coffee ~ in a "Smiley-face" mug at that.
Now, this was good French toast, but it really doesn't compare to the Pain Perdu at Baker Street Bistro; and I really didn't expect it to, as that is an unfair comparison to most eggy-bread dishes. This also wasn't as good as the coconutty French toast I had last Summer at Neighborhood Restaurant & Bakery (see 'blog-entry from July 10th, 2010), but I would recommend checking it out if you are a French toast aficionado (sorry, I don't know how to say that in either French or Spanish). I had expected the banana (singular and whole) to have been sliced and sautéed (à la the most excellent Bananas Foster French Toast that they used to serve at the now-defunct Merchant's Way restaurant in downtown Wareham, MA), but I did find out that I really liked this flavour combination: Maple, Mango, and Mint ~ this is the real 3M (those miners up in Minnesota be damned).
I was kinda surprised to find out that they do not offer any side orders of any kind of potato dishes: no home fried, no hash browns, no home baked, no house potatoes, nor home fried-hash browns, even. So there was no need for any complimentary supplementation on my part. However, I did bring a few hot sauces from my collection just in case. I ended up loaning some of the Palo Alto Fire Fighters Pepper Sauce (Thanks again, Amy!) to the couple at the next table because they had egg dishes.
The one thing that I am still trying to figure out is why they named the place "Red Door Cafe"… must have something to do with communism or Castro.
Glen Bacon Scale Rating: French Toast Josephine ~ 6.3
*(I asked if I could have a "Soupçon of Temptation" instead, but they strictly enforced the "No Substitutions" rule with me… fargin' bastages!)
