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 CoffeeZatarra, 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 BreweryRiggwelterStrong 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 CoffeeZatarra ~ 7.0; Black Sheep BreweryRiggwelterStrong 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 BreweryRiggwelterStrong Yorkshire Aleis one of the Best Beers in the World! https://www.blacksheepbrewery.com/beers/1181/rigg 5. http://www.hebdenbridge.co.uk/
"I can't stand an actor or actress who tells me acting is hard work. It's easy work. Anyone who says it isn't never had to stand on his feet all day dealing blackjack." ~ Dino Paul Crocetti
(No official web-site.) Place: Chloe♥s Cafe Location: 1399 Church Street (on the corner of 26th Street); phonicular contact: (415) 648-4116 Hours: open 8:00am every day of the week Meal: Special Scramble ~ 2 scrambled eggs w/ mushrooms, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, green onions, choice of cheese (Cheddar, Jarlsberg[1], cream cheese, Mozzarella, or Feta), served with a cup of fruit or homefries and toast; and a large glass of grapefruit juice
(Today happens to be Dean Martin's[2] birthday. I always liked "Ol' Bloodshot Eyes" singing better than "Ol' Blue Eyes"; however, Frank Sinatra was a much better serious actor ~ maybe he worked harder at it). Continuing along with my redo's (redux's? reduxes? redi?), I went back to Chloe♥s Cafe (see last 'blog-entry from May 26th, 2014) this morning for breakfast. Their menu states: "Serving Noe Valley since 1987", so they have been in business almost as long as I have lived in San Francisco. I have been going there for many years now (since at least the early 90's). You really have to get there early just before they open to be in the first group of breakfasters. There are only eight tables for two and one table for four inside this tiny little joint. So, if my calculations are correct that is just about enough seating for only twenty people (okay, so I cheated and took off my shoes to get that correct count… just be glad the place doesn't seat twenty-one). They do also have sidewalk seating of two tables for two and four tables for four, but no one was brave enough to partake of the outside dining this morning as the Sun had yet to dare show its face through the thick misty fog. The menu isn't much bigger and really only offers a few other choices from which stupid vegetarians can decide: Avocado and Jarlsberg Cheese Scrambled Eggs (I don't think that I have ever ordered that one before); Red Potato, Cheddar Cheese and Onion Scrambled Eggs (which I have ordered a few times in the past, but generally will just go with whatever their "Special Scramble" of the day/weekend might be); or Grilled Brie and Tomato on Croissant (with blue corn tortilla chips; which I have also had before, but would probably need to order a side of homefries).
I went with the choice of Feta cheese as I felt it would go best to go with all the other ingredients (Mozzarella would have done nicely, too). This was a very good combination of flavours: sundried tomatoes, basil, and Feta all work together nicely for me. Of course I went with the side choice of the homefries. I actually asked for their Potato Rosemary toast, but they brought out Whole Wheat Walnut by mistake, which is all fine as that is still a very good bread (plus, they gave me three halves of this toast… Did that mean that someone else got cheated out of a half-slice or was I supposed to have four halves?). For condimentary supplements, Chloe♥s Cafe has both Tabasco®Brand Pepper Sauce(Original Red Sauce) and Tapatío®Salsa PicanteHot Sauce. Knowing what they had to offer after many, many visits there over the past few (well, about three) decades, I always make sure to bring a few from my own collection. Today I used some (just a few drops sparingly, as this stuff is a tad on the hot side) Fat Cat®Chairman Meow's Revenge (Scorpion Pepper Sauce) (Thanks, Cindy & Greg!) on the scramble mess and some (this one I could go a bit more generously with, 'cause that is the generous kinda guy I am) Lucky Dog Hot SauceMedium Fire-Roasted Pepper Sauce (Thanks, Brian!) all over the potatoes. The good thing about this place is that they open early enough in the morning for my liking (and don't call their early morning meal "Brunch"), and if Dottie's True blue café[3] ever does close, Chloe♥s Cafe can always be added back to my Breakfastary Starting Rotation. Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Special Scramble ~ 6.9 ________________ 1. I don't know how many times I have to state that Wild Bill Gates and his idiot Auto-spellcheckering Nazis really need to get out and eat more often. They don't recognize this typical Norwegian mild cow's-milk cheese. The alternatives they are offering are "Carlsberg" or "Arlberg". Perhaps they need to curtail their Walpoling activities and sally forth and infiltrate Ye Old Cheese Emporium to negotiate vending of some cheesy comestibles with the proprietor, Henry Wensleydale*. *(Hmmm?! It seems that Billy-boy and his Braunhemden spell-checkers also do not recognize this common North Yorkshire cheese varietal either. Perhaps they also need to watch more "Wallace & Gromit" animated movies.) 2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Martin Dino always seemed a bit confused (or maybe just a bit blotto) with all these songs: "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till* Somebody Loves You", "Somewhere There's a Someone". So, which one was it?! *(sic; yes, I know that really should be "until" or the abbreviated "'til", but I don't write these titles) 3. Did you ever wonder why the phrase is "true blue" or "true-blue"? Why not "true-red" or "true-orange" or "true-pomegranate-and-puce"?
"And another thing. Don't ever kid yourself about loving some one. It is just that most people are not lucky enough to ever have it. What you have with Maria, whether it lasts just through today and a part of tomorrow, or whether it lasts for a long life is the most important thing that can happen to a human being. There will always be people who say it does not exist because they cannot have it, but I tell you it is true and that you have it and that you are lucky even if you die tomorrow." ~ Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls (Whoever said ol' Ernie wasn't a romantic?! As for the answer to the title: "it tolls for thee".)
http://www.justforyoucafe.com/ Place: Just For Youbakery & cafe Location: 732 22nd Street (between 3rd and Tennessee Streets) Hours: open Monday-Friday at 7:30am, Saturday-Sunday at 8:00am Meal: Bleu Scramble ~ 3 eggs scrambled with Bleu cheese, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, spinach, and red peppers, served with home fries or grits, and your choice of homebaked (well, restaurant/bakery-baked) white, whole wheat, or cinnamon-raisin toast, cornbread, scone, biscuits, English muffin, or gluten-free toast; and a cuppa (and one-and-a-half refillas) Community Coffee® (at least that was what they used to serve there the last time I asked; I forgot to ask if that was still their house Coffee and which blend/roast they serve) http://www.communitycoffee.com/
(There is no real EweToobular juxtaselection between these songs and the restaurant. I had just posted two Wild Colonials songs on Saturday and felt like doing another. These are two versions of the same song; I actually prefer the instrumental version. It was used in the 1995 movie "The Last Supper". Which, of course, starred "Survivor" alumnus Jonathan Penner… as well as some other lesser-known actors and actresses like Cameron Diaz, Bill Paxton, Jason Alexander[1], and others.) It's been about (well, exactly) two years since I last ate at Just For Youbakery & cafe (see last 'blog-entry from May 27th, 2013). I figured it was about time for another visit. Even if they do have a stupid parklet out front.
At least it is just a one car-length wastelet. As far as these parking obstructions go, it's a nice (little) one, at least. There are two wrought iron benches on either end and one small, round table for two. I don't know if there is actual table-service out there, but it could be a nice spot to sit in while waiting for a table during a busy day (today was only about 75% full inside that early on a holiday morning, but I have seen a line out the door on Saturday mornings). In addition to a very decent standard/weekend breakfastary menu, they have a "Daily Special' menu that can change seasonally. Today it included: Special Scramble! (three egg scramble with Longanisa sausage, white onion, mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, & Swiss cheese; I could have always ordered that without the sausage stuff ~ Longanisa or not; by the way, they added the "!" to all of these specials!); Belgian Waffle! (Belgian waffle topped with a homemade chocolate sauce, fresh strawberries, & powdered sugar); or Smoked Turkey Benedict! (turkey & sautéed spinach topped with poached eggs & Hollandaise sauce over choice of bread; this would not be a very good choice for any stupid vegetarian-type persons or anyone that is trying to cut down on their daily intake of smoking turkeys[2]).
This scramble dish had lots of Bleu cheese (which is either a good or bad thing, depending on your take of this stinky, moldy cheese; I like it, of course). This was kind of a strange combination, but it all worked for me… in a strange way. The artichoke hearts were the brined, not marinated, version, which is always the best kind for any scrambles or omelettes. I went with homefries instead of "greets" as my side choice . I also chose cinnamon-raisin toast as my homebaked (restaurant/bakery-baked, whatever) bread choice (and it was a nice extra-thick slice, too; I was asked if I wanted one slice or two and was glad that I only got the one). After I had already eaten about half of my meal, I overheard one of the waiter/server-person guys say that they offer two different types of scones: apple or cherry… next time I am getting one of those for sure (if I remember, that is). Not everyone likes their Coffee à la N'Arlins (where it is made with roasted chicory added), but I rather like it, and usually only get it at N'Arlins-style joints, anyway. Just For You offers a fine array of condimentary supplementation. In addition to the Standard San Francisco Triumvirate of Hot Sauces (that would be: Tabasco®Brand Pepper Sauce [Original Red Sauce], Cholula®Hot Sauce, and Tapatio®Salsa PicanteHot Sauce), they always have a few other interesting choices. Today there were: Tabasco®Brand Green Pepper Sauce (made with green jalapeños); Crystal®Louisiana's Pure Hot Sauce; Huy Fong Foods, Inc.Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce; and Chef Michael's "Ruin Your Day" World's Hottest Pepper Sauce. I used just a bit of the "Ruin Your Day" on a small area of the pile of homefries. While they may claim that this is the "World's Hottest Pepper Sauce", that is really a bit of a stretch. Albeit, this is very spicy, but I have had several others that are much hotter still (and may or may not have killed an innocent, unsuspecting Korean waiter-dude). This is one of those hot sauces that is mostly all heat and not as much flavour; this is due to one of the main ingredients being capsaicin extract. I also used some of my own The Wiltshire Chilli FarmMango hot chilli sauce on most of the rest of the homefries and some Hell Mouth on the entire scramble mess. (Thanks again for both of those and the other two bottles that I had already used up, Cindy & Greg! I am going to have to finally "retire" these two, even though they are both only at half-mast. The label stated to use within 6-8 weeks once opened, and I have more than doubled that expiry date already.) File under: "It's a small World… but I wouldn't want to paint it." As today is Memorial Day, I happened to be wearing my one article of clothing that I knew had an American Flag somewhat on it (I say "somewhat", as the design is on a five-petal White Rose of York and has half the Union Jackand half the Stars and Stripeson the petals ~ I will let you determine which flag goes with which country ~ with a White Rose of York at its center). This happens to be an RAF Menwith Hill/Harrogate[3] sweatshirt. It was a gift/souvenir that I had received on one of my many trips to North Yorkshire over the years (Thanks, Greg & Cindy!). Well, the manager-guy saw it and said that he used to work on the base; he had managed the Officers Club for several years there. A Side Sojourn to Japanese Tea Garden, Golden Gate Park
On my way home after breakfast, I decided to stop by Golden Gate Park and walk off breakfast a bit. I was originally planning on just traipsing around San Francisco Botanical Garden (formerly known as Strybing Arboretum), but noticed that the Japanese Tea Garden was also just opening up for the morning and I hardly ever traipse through there. (It's free on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday before 10:00am; whereas, San Francisco Botanical Garden is free all day long every day to San Francisco residents, and I can always traipse my heart out there on any other weekend.)
(This was my million dollar view ~ well, $7.00 view, before taxes ~ from my seat in the tearoom area.) No trip to the Japanese Tea Garden should be complete without stopping for some actual tea (Hey, it's in the name, fercryinoutloud!), so I had a cuppa jasmine tea (for the uninformed ~ or those just living in Omaha ~ "a green tea scented with jasmine flowers and boasts a slightly sweet flavor. Jasmine tea originated in China, but is now enjoyed by tea lovers throughout the world.") and a dorayaki[4] (which they describe as "a pancake like pastry, filled with red bean paste").
(Sharon, check out that ceramic mug design. Nice, huh?)
I am not sure, but this building is probably some kinda Japanese "weather" station. (I would expect that only ex-Russkij 208's might get that dumb joke… or maybe not even them.)
Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Bleu Scramble ~ 6.3; Jasmine Tea ~ 7.0; Dorayaki ~ 6.2; Japanese Tea Garden ~ 8.0 ________________ 1. Here is a fun, little-known Cliff Clavinistic fact: Jonathan Penner's wife and Jason Alexander's wife are sisters. 2. "Abruptly giving up an addiction to cold turkey sandwiches is referred to in some circles as going cigarette." ~ the Library of Amazing Facts 3. While this little "Spy-base" is well-known and popular amongst the Liberal Leftist protestors of Great Britianland, not many 'mericans have ever heard of the town of Harrogate, let alone RAF Menwith Hill. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Menwith_Hill http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrogate 4. For the general uniformed, or just local Omahaians:
"The clever cat eats cheese and breathes down rat holes with baited breath." ~ W.C. Fields
http://strawsf.com/ Place: STRAW ~ Carnival Fare Location: 203 Octavia Boulevard (near the corner of Page Street) Hours: "Brunch" is served on Saturday and Sunday starting at 10:00am Meal: scrambler ~ scrambled eggs (hence the carnie moniker)/goat cheese/crimini[1]mushrooms/spinach/caramelized onions/toast; and a glass (well, a Mason jar) of strawberry basil lemonade
http://www.puddlespityparty.com/ (I don't care what anyone else says ~ especially any snot-nosed, hipster dufus-wannabes ~ Puddles is the best 7-foot tall, cabaret-singing, scary clown from New York City that there ever was! Check out his cover of another of Lorde's song, "Team", on EweToob, too.) I had "Brunch" (their term, not mine) at STRAW ~ Carnival Fare again (see last 'blog-entry from March 16th, 2013; coincidentally enough, this was exactly one year ago this Saturday; and, of course, if this trend holds forth, next year I will have to remember to eat there again on the ultimate "Pie Day": 3/14/15 ~ especially at 9:26:53).
stupid, useless parklets mini-rant of the day When I first arrived at STRAW this morning, I went all skelly-eyed[2] at the sight that confronted me there. I happened to notice that there is a brand-new stupid, useless parklet under construction right in front of STRAW. Here is where it is always important to ask questions first; you can always still jump to conclusions afterward. I asked my waiter-service guy what was up with the construction of the two-car space blockade in front of the restaurant (and also in front of the coffeehouse next door). He informed me that the café next door was the real instigator in providing this little idyllic resting spot for people to enjoy… instead of having to walk all the way over two entire blocks to an actual city/neighborhood park (Patricia's Green) on Octavia Boulevard between Fell and Hayes Streets, or even enjoying the actual city-provided tree-lined spaces with benches all along several blocks of Octavia Boulevard. (I won't even bother to mention that there is also another nice city-provided greenery spot ~ Koshland Community Park and Learning Garden ~ just two blocks up Page Street. But one would have to walk UPHILL all the way to get there. So, it is completely understood that a person with a full cuppa Large Decaf Chai Mocha Latteccino,made with non-fat skim soymilk and just a soupçon of nutmeg, would not want to make that extreme trek for fear of spilling any of their drink upon their precious Doc Martens.) These stupid parklets really are getting out of hand and are becoming more of an annoyance; they only serve to show the public that the respective stores/shops/restaurants that sponsor them are thinking: "Look at us! Aren't we so chic and hipster-dufusy?! We provide anyone stupid enough to think that this is an actual park with a completely useless space to sit in! However, if you own a car in the neighborhood, it is just too bad if you needed one of the two spots we now are uselessly occupying!" And because STRAW really isn't to blame and they are not footing the bill of the stupid wastelet, I will not be boycotting them (for now) as I first thought I may have to when I initially saw the stupid obstruction in front. The stupid next-door coffeehouse, however, will not get the same reprieval. The stupid coffee shop's name is immaterial (No, really, I think they call themselves "Immaterial Café") as I will never see fit to darken their door a shade or two of ecru ever again (truth be told, in all the years that they have been in operation, I might have been in there just once). (Why is it that a "mini-rant" turned out to be actually larger than the bulk of the rest of the 'blog-entry?) (Now back to our regularly scheduled 'blog-entry with only a minor reference to stupid parklets or two.) I have eaten many of the vegetarian-friendly "Brunch" dishes offered at STRAW already. Other than today's choice, there are just two others left: bumper car (sautéed spinach omelette/caramelized onions/swiss cheese/home fries/toast) or rancher's reserve (fried eggs/chili-tomato ranchero sauce/refried beans/tortillas/cilantro-avocado mousse/home fries ~ if this can be made vegetarian, that is). I can always try either of these on a subsequent visit now that I don't need to make any abstentions from eating at STRAW (and I might even just get a cuppa at the nearby Blue Bottle Coffeekiosk beforehand and sit in the stupid parklet out front drinking it in mockery of the stupid coffeehouse there).
(Okay, maybe sometimes black-and-whiteisn't the best medium for a breakfastary photograph.) My main reason for going with the scrambler this morning over the bumper car was that spinach, caramelised onions, and goat cheese trumped spinach, caramelised onions, and Swiss cheese. This proved to be a good choice as the caramelised onions added a genuine sweetness to the scramble and offset the tanginess of the goat cheese perfectly. The fresh spinach was just a good ingredient as always. The homefries were a decent version, made with red bell peppers and onions. The strawberry basil lemonade was good, but could have used just a bit more basil and a little less strawberry, I thought (but that's just me, I am neither a chef, nor mixologist, nor city planner, I am just someone that doesn't mind walking two absolutely, completely, whole, entire city blocks to enjoy the open outdoor areas already provided for that specific reason). The only condimentary supplementation that I noticed that STRAW had on all the tables was Tabasco®Brand PepperSauce. I used some of my own Youk's Hot Sauce (Thanks, Brian!) (which I had carried with me in my hot sauce holster ~ Thanks, Sean!) on the homefries and some Florida Gold Premium Habanero Hot Sauce(Thanks, Kerry!) on the scramblered stuff. Conclusional ratiocination: stupid parklets suck, but breakfast (or "Brunch" even) is always good. Glen Bacon Scale Rating: scrambler ~ 6.5; strawberry basil lemonade~ 6.8 1. Crimminy Jistmas! Seriously, little Billy Gates and his Nazi Spell-checkers did not recognise this simple word as a valid epicureanistic word. They really need to get out and sample different foods once in a while (even if that food is fungi). (This can also be spelled "cremini", but the Brown-shirt bastages at Microsoft do not seem to recognise that accepted spelling either.) 2. Stupid, useless cunning linguist/pseudo-etymological pointer of the day: I came across the expression "skelly-eyed" recently while reading a book that takes place in North Yorkshire. "Skelly" is another word that has come into English (well, Yorkie-English) from ye olde Scandinavian invading hordes. It probably comes from Old Norse "skjalgr", meaning "wry"; it is related to Old English "sceolh", meaning "a squint".
"I cook with wine. Sometimes I even add it to the food." ~ W.C. Fields
http://www.chouquets.com/ Place: Chouquet's Restaurant[1] Location: 2500 Washington Street (on the corner of Fillmore Street) Hours: "Brunch" is served at 10:00am on Saturday and Sunday Meal: Omelette du Jardin[2] ~ with spinach, tomatoes, & mushrooms, and, on the suggestion of the waiter-server guy, I had them add chèvre to this, too, served with a side of green salad & potatoes; and a cuppa Moschetti Coffee (but I didn't ask which specific roast/blend was being served) http://www.moschetti.com/
(I may have used this particular EweToob-ular video before, but I figured a Frenchy restaurant and sitting street-side called for some rocking accordion music. I don't understand why Street Boys had Elmo helping with the introduction for them, though.) I happened to pass by Chouquet's Restaurant a few weeks back and made a mental note (actually, the more PC-term these days is: "a retarded hemidemisemiquaver") to check it out for breakfast (or, what they refer to as "Brunch") one of these mornings. I found a nice parking spot just two blocks away alongside Alta Plaza Park (which is basically the Pacific Heights version of Alamo Square Park ~ with the requisite tennis courts, several dog run areas, and perched atop a hill ~ just without the illustrious Painted Ladies; however, there are several other Victorians all around the park and neighborhood). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alta_Plaza_Park This was another great, sunny morning to eat outside[3]. Which was perfect as Chouquet's has nine tables for two in their large sidewalk patio area; and this is a very dog-friendly joint ~ three mutts and their human-slaves saw fit to join me outside while I was there. (Why do we call people that are "foodies" and like to eat out a lot "chowhounds"? I mean, dogs are not very particular ~ as can be seen by the "best friends" company they keep ~ and they spend a good portion of the day licking themselves and drinking out of the toilet bowl.) And there are probably twice again as many seats available inside the restaurant. One drawback is that there are only eight items total on the "Brunch" menu from which to choose, and, of those choices, only half of them are suitable for stupid vegetarians (unfortunately, they don't offer a separate menu for dogs). Their web-site does show a picture of Tchoutchouka (which I can only assume is the Slavic spelling/version of Shakshouka; see 'blog-entry from Saul's Restaurant & Delicatessen from December 15th, 2013), but they do not actually offer it anywhere on the "Brunch" menu (and neither for "Linner" nor "Dupper").
This was a pretty good omelette. The chèvre actually made the omelette and I was very glad that it was suggested, and I was also happy to see that there were several dollops[4] inside the omelette; otherwise, the omelette would have been rather boring and pedestrian (see, 'cause I was on the sidewalk). The potatoes were a nice version of homefries. The salad was actually a green and reddish salad, but it may be hard to tell from the crummy black-and-white photo. ("Why B&W photography today?", you ask. Well, they were all out of colour memory cards at the store.) The Coffee was a very decent cuppa, too. I may have had Coffee from this roastery in the past. Moschetti is a local Bay Area company out of Vallejo. For condimentary supplementation, Chouquet's offers both Tabasco®Brand Pepper Sauce (the standard red) and Huy Fong FoodsTương Ớt Sriracha. I just used a little of my own Nando's®Extra Hot Peri-Peri sauce (Thanks, Kerry!) on the omelette and some Pickapeppa Sauce (Thanks, Amy!) mixed with just a scintilla of One Stop Hot Shop "Son of Smart Arse" Sauce (Thanks a lot, Cindy & Greg!). I have had that stupid bottle now for over two years and have yet to make a noticeable dent in its volume; at this rate, I figure by the time the Chornobyl'[5] nuclear disaster reaches its radioactive half-life, I may also be half-way done with the bottle.
The very knowledgeable waiter-server guy (whose name I didn't really get this morning; sorry, Mrs. Huneycutt, but unless the waiter-server guys are actually very cute waitress-server gals, I really don't care what they call themselves; if it helps any and is of any consequence, I did learn the names of two of the three dogs that were outside with me: Lucy and Elmer) knew both his Coffee and hot sauces stuff. He was even brave enough to try a toothpick tip sample of the "Son of Smart Arse" Sauce. I had given him the specific caveat ahead of time to just try a tiny amount first; we don't want any more international incidents like what happened at Eddie's Cafe (see the 'blog-entry massacre from January 7th, 2012). Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Omelette du Jardin ~ 6.4; MoschettiCoffee ~ 6.8 1. Almost a stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day: Unfortunately, I have no idea what "Chouquet" means in French. The best I could get was from GoogleTranslateand they say it means a "mast cap" (whatever the heck that is supposed to be). However, I am pretty sure that "restaurant" is just a fancy French word for "bistro". 2. Actual stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day, numéro un: "Jardin" simply means "garden" in French, Al. 3. Sorry, I don't know the French phrase for "al fresco", Mr. Jardine. 4. Stupid, useless cunning linguist (well, mostly a pseudo-etymological) pointer of the day, nummer to: "Dollop" comes to English from the Norwegian word "dolp" (meaning "lump"). There are many words that entered the English language from back when the Scandinavian hordes invaded and settled in Northern England. Even today, many words spoken in the Yorkshire dialect could probably be better understood by someone from Oslo than from someone from London. This titbit of information was actually gleaned from a book that I am reading on Tan Hill Inn (Thanks, Cindy & Greg! again), called The Inn at the Top ~ Tales of Life at the Highest Pub in Britain. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tan_Hill_Inn
(That would be a photo of Greg and a few of his local friends at Tan Hill Inn. This one is not in B&W as it is a stock photo from several years ago.) 5. Yes, I know that the standardised English transliteration is normally "Chernobyl", but in solidarity with the Ukrainian people, I am using the better Ukrainian transliteration, much like the old city of "Kiev" is now being spelled "Kyiv". Bad Vlad can "пошëл на хуй" for all I care.
(Continuing the Linda Ronstadt Weekend Tribute. The last song can be taken however you like, but I am sure Linda believes it now more than ever, as do we all as we get older. I always thought she was such a cutie back in the 70's and 80's; she was far from "a classic beauty", but she was also far from ugly ~ well, at least 500 feet from ugly… stupid restraining orders!)
As we near the last month of the Baseball Season, I am going to try to make it through my Breakfastary Rotation over the next few weeks. What better way to start it off than a little morning repast at Dottie's True blue café (see last 'blog-entry from May 6th, 2013)? (That was just a rhetorical question. I would always choose Dottie's over many other places, anyhow.)
I got there about fifteen minutes before they opened this morning (see above photo for times, ya lazy bastages). I was surprised that there were only three people in front of me for a change. These three blokes[1] were all from England. I figured this out all on my own after listening to them speak in a funny accent of 'mericanese, and confirmed it when I asked them which part of Australia they were from. One guy had lived in Harrogate for a while (and even knew of that megalopolis Pateley Bridge, Greg & Cindy). Another is married to a lady from Beverley, near Hull on the Yorkshire coast. I made sure to tell them to be sure to check out the Bakery Specials (the three of them could easily order two baked goods to share) and the normal Specials Board.
You know, in all the times I have ever eaten at Dottie's (at least a hundred or more), I think that I have only ever ordered twice from their printed menu. So, that's what, 97% of the time I order off the Specials Board?
The kitschy salt-and-pepper shakers on my table this morning were some little tiki[2] guys.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzfcRx0Os_M (For some reason I can not get this to imbed as a video like the others above. Just click on the hyperlink for this one if you want. This EweToob music interlude can actually still kind of be included in the Linda Ronstadt Weekend Tribute as both of those guys were friends of hers and occasional collaborators on her albums ~ and vice-versa ~ in the 70's.)
As always, there were several good choices on the Specials Board. Nectarine-Plum French Toast sounded very good, and if they didn't have what I eventually ordered on the Specials Board this morning, I would probably have chosen this one. However, as it was, Zucchini Cakes/Uova Benedicto was available again this morning, and I hadn't ordered it since several visits previously (my brother Sean did order this when we went there in May; coincidentally enough, Alison was with us that morning for breakfast, and Linda Ronstadt did a very good cover of that Deckie MacManus song on one of her albums). I also had a cuppa coffee.
I won't go into any long and boring explanation of how brilliant I think this culinary masterpiece is (but it truly is), which is basically an Italiano take on Eggs Benedict. I will just describe it from top to bottom. In place of any stupid "sauce from Holland" on top, they use a speecy-spicy Marinara sauce. Next there are the poached eggs; well, these were just standard poached eggs like you would find on a normal Eggs Benedict. And now, for the pièce de résistance (I do not know how to say that in Italian, though), instead of any boring ol' muffins from Mr. Thomas' bakery, they use fresh made zucchini cakes as the base. I have never really asked how these are made (Kurt would probably kill me if I ever did), but I think it's a cornmeal batter with finely shredded zucchini in it. This meal is always top-notch (or top-Marinara, whatever).
Today's side cup of fruits included: cantaloupe[3], watermelon(an actual botanical berry, of course), blueberries (also berries), strawberries (nope, sorry, not real berries), and blackberries (not real berries either).
I didn't bring any of my own hot sauces with me this morning, nor were any really needed, as I know that Dottie's offers a pretty decent selection for condimentary supplementation. I used some Tabasco®Brand Pepper Sauce ~ Chipotle on the potatoes. No way was I going to mess with the Marinara sauce on the Zucchini Cakes (again, that would probably be a death sentence from Kurt).
Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Zucchini Cakes ~ 7.6; Linda Ronstadt (singing and in general)~ 8.2
1. Stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day, part the first:
I know what you're thinking, "Very funny, Brian. You are still saying that 'English' is a foreign language to most 'mericans. Ha ha ha!" However, the origin of the word "Bloke" is actually unknown, but there are a few suggestions as to its origin: one is that it may be from Celtic "ploc" ("a large, stubborn person") or from Romany "loke" ("a man") with its roots in Hindi.
2. Stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day, number two:
In the Māori language, "Tiki" was the name given to large wooden carvings in human shape. In Māori mythology, "Tiki" is the name of the first man created by either Tumataunega or Tāne.
However, there is no truth to the fact that the word was originally coined by Walt Disney in 1955, Adam.
3. Not really a stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day, more like just a stupid, useless etymological/horticultural pointer of the day:
"Cantaloupe" is derived, via French, from the Italian "Cantaluppi" which was formerly a papal villa near Rome. Tradition has it that this is where it was first cultivated in Europe.
