Art's Cafe

http://www.artscafesf.com/

(However, for the past few years [yes, years], it reads: "Sorry! Work in progress")


Place: Art's Cafe
Location: 747 Irving Street (between 8th and 9th Avenues); phonicular contact: (415) 665-7440
Hours: open at 7:00am Tuesday through Saturday; open at 7:30am on Sunday (??? ~ Here is where it might have been nice to be able to check their actual hours of operation on their "in progress" web-site; in any case, I had arrived there a little bit after 7:30am [and, by that, I mean exactly 7:33am; I had just checked my watch before getting there] and the place was already packed except for one last empty stool, which I quickly sat at... 7:30am on the day that Daylight Saving Time ends? Don't any of these people ever sleep in?!)
Meal: Spinach, Onions, Mushrooms, and Hot Sausages Hash Brown Sandwich ~ served with melted Cheddar cheese on hash browns, two eggs, and toast; and a glassa Strawberry-Lemonade; and, afterward, a cuppa Snowbird Coffee Zatarra, pourover-style

http://snowbirdcoffee.com/

(Good luck finding a specific reference for their Zatarra roast/blend there; while this web-site isn't a "work in progress", it really ain't nothin' much of which to speak none neither; interestingly enough, if you do a Google-search for "Zatarra Coffee", look what pops up as the fifth entry)

(Why all the Joan Armatrading[1] songs today? Simples. I asked them this morning and Momma[2] Art told me that their last name is "Armatrading"; apparently, it is a very traditional Korean family name.)


It had been some time since my last visit to 
Art's Cafe (see last 'blog-entry from Sunday, July 19th, 2015), so I figured it was about time for some more of their most excellent, crispy hashbrowns. This morning, I sat right in front of the grill where Poppa Art was working his magic with the never-ending line of hashbrowns being prepared.

As I have noted before, the diner-counter is covered with postcards (well, it is covered with Plexiglas and the postcards are under that) from around the World. This postcard from Santorini[3] was just to my left today. (Please note: I do not think that this photo is meant to be a political commentary on America's two current choices for the upcoming Presidential Election on Tuesday.)

I have eaten just about all of the available/suitable choices for stupid vegetarians on their menu. I think that there are just two items left for me to try: Spinach Scrambled Eggs (with onions, mushrooms, hot sausage, and Jack cheese; served with hash browns or rice and toast; which I would have ordered without the grounded-up porcine stuff, of course) or Four Cheese Omelete [ sic ] (American [well, I suppose they should call it "Three-and-a-half Cheese Omelete [ sic ]" with the inclusion of this "cheese"], Cheddar, Jack, and Swiss cheese; served with hash browns or rice and toast). Otherwise, I could always re-do a couple of my favourite choices: Bi Bim Bop Veggie Omelete [ sic ] (with spinach, zucchini, bean sprout, carrot, and Swiss cheese; yeah, it all sounds pretty strange, but it works for me) or Vegetarian Hash Brown Sandwich (onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, and tomatoes).

What can I say? I absolutely love this idea for a breakfast dish! Any time potatoes are the main focus for a dish, I am right there. Of course, I made sure to 
여든 여섯 the dead, decaying porky-product junk. For my "sides", I went with two over-medium eggs and whole wheat toast. (I almost thought about ordering a side of their famous hashbrowns, too.)

The Strawberry-Lemonade was extra thick and seemed to be made with much more ("many more"?) strawberries than lemons. This was not a bad thing, but I almost asked for a glass of water with which to cut it a bit.

For bottled condimentary supplements, Art's Cafe offers both Tabasco® Brand Pepper Sauce (Original Red Sauce) and Crystal® Louisiana's Pure Hot Sauce. Not that either of those were used, nor even (ever) needed. Knowing that they also have a very good (and thick) Gochujang of their own available in plastic squirt bottles, I don't even bother bringing any of my own hot sauces with me. I used a good amount of the Gochujang on both of the eggs and all over the hashbrown sandwich-thing.

I purposely had skipped any Coffee with my breakfast because I know that Snowbird Coffee is just around the corner and really like their Coffee. While I was there enjoying my Coffee at one of the tables, a guy in line that was ordering his own Coffee kept looking over in my direction and staring at me. Now, I have lived in San Francisco for thirty years and figured that maybe he was someone that I may have met in the past, but could not place his face at all. After he had ordered and received his Coffee, he came over to me and said, "That's a great Beer!"... I almost said to him, "But it's a cuppa Coffee..." and then I noticed that he had recognized my sweatshirt with a Black Sheep Brewery Riggwelter Strong Yorkshire Ale[4] (Thanks, Cindy & Greg!) logo on it. It turned out that he was from the West Riding market town of Hebden Bridge[5] himself. 

I thought this pretty funny. The official name of this coffeehouse and roastery is Snowbird Coffee, but, for some reason, my paper cup had an ink stencil that read: "Snowbirds SF". I am sure they have a good explanation/justification for that on their most informative web-site... oh, wait...


Glen Bacon Scale Rating: 
Spinach, Onions, Mushrooms, and (no) Hot Sausages Hash Brown Sandwich ~ 6.4;
Snowbird Coffee Zatarra ~ 7.0;
Black Sheep Brewery Riggwelter Strong Yorkshire Ale ~ 8.2

___________________

1. Why?! Because I said so! Dammit!

http://www.joanarmatrading.com/

I feel that Joan Armatrading has one of the best voices for all the Rock-and/or-Roll singing. 

Plus, that last song happens to be one of my All-Time Favourite Rock-and/or-Roll Songs of All Time. Heck, it's easily in my Top Ten All-Time Favourite Rock-and/or-Roll Songs of All Time; it might possibly be right up there at #3 ~ right after Bob Marley's 
"No Woman No Cry" and Jimi Hendrix's version of 
"All Along the Watchtower" (which share the #1-#2 slots; I can never decide which is my actual top favourite).

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

The word for "mom/momma" in Korean is "엄마" and it is pronounced pretty much like "momma".

3. I have never been to Santorini, but really wish that I had visited that Cycladic island when I lived in Greece. 

One of these day...

http://www.santorini.gr/index.php?lang=en

4. This is just my opinion (like I care for the opinions of anyone else, anyway), but I feel that Black Sheep Brewery Riggwelter Strong Yorkshire Ale is one of the Best Beers in the World!

https://www.blacksheepbrewery.com/beers/1181/rigg

5. http://www.hebdenbridge.co.uk/

Beer

Liquid Bread

Bier (German/Dutch), Beoir (Irish), Bière (French), Birra (Italiano/Maltese), Μπύρα (Greek), Bjór (Icelandic), Bere (Romanian), Bira (Turkish), Bia (Vietnamese), Пиво (Russkij/Ukrainian/Serbian), Pivo (Czech/Slovak/Croatian), Piwo (Polish), เบียร์ (Thai), بيرة (Arabic), آبجو (Persian), Գարեջուր (Armenian), Cwrw (Welsh), ビール (Japanese), Cervisia (Latin), Cerveza (Spanish), Cerveja (Portuguese), Serbesa (Filipino), Øl (Danish/Norwegian), Öl (Swedish), Olut (Finnish), and Sör (Hungarian).

 
"Beer[1] for breakfast?" Let he who is among you that hasn't had a six-pack or two before lunchtime cast the first stone (or get stoned first)!

Actually this 'blog-entry is not about breakfast, but just about the liquid gold, fermented beverage. My 'blog, my 'rules, after all. However, it is interesting to note that there are many similar ingredients to bread: water, grains, and yeast.

Beer is the third most popular drink in the World, after water and tea. (Unless your name is Mitt Romney, then it would be just water, 7up®, and ginger ale.) Beer is one of the oldest prepared beverages, possibly dating back as far as the early Neolithic or 9500 BC. There is archeological evidence of it dating to circa 3500-3100 BC. (So, while Beer is not quite as old as the invention of the wheel, I am sure the first DUI was handed out circa 3499-3099 BC.)

Beer is an alcoholic beverage made by brewing and fermenting cereals (especially malted barley, although wheat, corn, and rice can also be used), usually with the addition of hops as a flavouring agent and stabilizer. Beers generally fall into two broad categories: Ales[2] (made with top-fermenting yeast that ferment more quickly at warmer temperatures) and Lagers[3] (made with bottom-fermenting yeast that ferment more slowly at cooler temperatures). In the category of Ales, there are several sub-categories: Pale Ale, Brown Ale, Scotch, Belgian, Porter, and Stout. Lagers have the sub-categories: Pale (to include: Pilsners[4], Helles, Light Beers, and Märzens[5]) and Dark (to include: Dunkels, Schwarzbiers, Bocks, and Doppelbocks).

One of my favourite Beers is Guinness® Original/Extra Stout. This is especially best when served on tap from a keg at a good Irish pub that knows how to properly pour a "Pionta Guinness, le do thoil!" I have even had the pleasure to make a pilgrimage to the original Guinness Brewery in Dublin, Ireland. If you ever visit Dublin, it is well worth the tour.

http://www.guinness.com/

Probably my second favourite (and lesser-known) Beer is Black Sheep Brewery Riggwelter[6] Strong Yorkshire Ale. You can locate this Beer in 'merica, but usually only at the larger import liquor stores. Whenever I visit North Yorkshire, I try to get to the Black Sheep Baa..r & Bistro at least once during my stay to get some really fresh Beers, along with a pretty decent lunch.

http://www.blacksheepbrewery.com/

My favourite 'merican brewery would have to be Samuel Adams®, and my favourite progeny of theirs would have to be their Seasonal Brew Octoberfest. (Note: This style of Beer is actually called an Oktoberfest in German. It is a minor point, but spelling matters, 'kay?) "This authentic Märzen style, harkens back to the brews of Munich over 200 years ago. With 5 varieties of malt, it has a deep rich character & silky smoothness." "Hearty and smooth with a deep malt complexity and roasty sweetness." This brew truly matches or surpasses many of the Oktoberfest Beers that I had when living in Germany even. 

http://www.samueladams.com/beers/octoberfest/

Home brewing of Beer (as opposed to home brewing of coffee) has become very popular in the past twenty years. I have even had the opportunity to assist in the brewing of a few batches of Beers (drinking the output is much more fun, though). Another fellow 'blogger, Cabin Jim (by the way, he is the one to blame for me getting started with my own 'blog ~ you can direct any hate e-mails to him), has been trying his hand at this hobby lately. You can check out his bucolic 'blog here and look for the label "Home Brewing":

http://hawksbillcabin.blogspot.com/search/label/Home%20Brewing

And just in case you really would like some Beer for breakfast, there is always Well's & Young Banana Bread Beer:

http://www.wellsandyoungs.co.uk/home/our-beers/ales/wells-banana-bread-beer

Cheers! Ein prosit! Céad míle fáilte! *urp*


Glen Bacon Scale Rating:  Guinness® Extra Stout ~ 8.5 (consider this the Marilyn Monroe of Beers); Black Sheep Brewery Riggwelter ~ 8.2 (consider this the Nicole Kidman of Beers); Samuel Adams® Octoberfest ~ 8.1 (and this would be the Uma Thurman of Beers)


[1] Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-fermentary pointer of the day, number one:

The word origin of "Beer" comes from Middle English "bere", from Old English "bēor"; related to Old Norse "bjorr", Old Frisian "biār", and Old High German "bior".

[2] Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-fermentary pointer of the day, number two:

The word "Ale" comes from Old English "alu" and "ealu"; related to Old Norse "öl" and Old Saxon "alofat".

[3] Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-fermentary pointer of the day, Nummer drei:

"Lager" comes from German "Lagerbier", meaning "beer for storing", from "Lager", meaning "storehouse".

[4] Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-fermentary pointer of the day, Nummer vier:
 
"Pilsner" comes from German "Pilsener", meaning "of Pilsen", a town in Bohemia (the Czech name of the town is Plzen) where it was first brewed.

[5] Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-fermentary pointer of the day, Nummer fünf:
 
"Märzen" comes from German "Märzenbier", meaning "March Beer"; according to a Bavarian brewing ordinance, a true "Märzen" can only be brewed between September 29th and April 23rd.

[6] Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-fermentary pointer of the day, number six:
 
"Riggwelter" is Yorkie-dales-speak for a sheep that is on its back and cannot get up without help. This comes from Old Norse "rygg", meaning "back", and "velte", meaning "to overturn".