Mama♥s

On Washington Square*



http://www.mamas-sf.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6egCk43qf4
 
(This song has nothing whatsoever to do with Mama, or trains, or trucks, or prison, or getting drunk, darlin'… Tuesday just happens to be the 70th Birthday of some guy named Robert Allen Zimmerman, and this is one of my favourite songs of his ~ I just prefer this version over his actual singing.)


I had another prima colazione eccezionale at Mama♥s on Washington Square this morning (see 'blog-entry from August 1st, 2010 for my last visit). They have a great location right across the corner from Washington Square Park (hence their complete name), and it is located just down the street from iconic Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill and next door to Saints Peter and Paul Church. (This is the historic Catholic church where Dom DiMaggio's less-talented older brother, ?George?, ?Jimmy?, ?John?, got married to Marilyn Monroe; well, they actually were married near-by in a civil ceremony, but had their wedding photos taken on the steps of the church.) Which is why Mama♥s is another popular word-of-mouth tourista destination much like Dottie's and Brenda's, so get there early to beat the long line/wait.

I had gotten there early enough this morning and lucked-out and parked right down the block on Washington Square for a change. I actually got there early enough before they opened up to be seated with the first wave of diners. (They open exactly at 8:00am, just like they state on their website. Now what are the odds of a professional restaurant-type establishment actually opening when they say they do?) Their ordering and seating procedures are a little different than most places. You have to wait in line once you are in and order at the counter; they then will not seat you until there is an empty table available.

While I was waiting in line before they opened, I spotted only about three of the Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill flying over Washington Square, by George! As the days get longer, the Parrots are probably getting up earlier and have already headed to other parts of the City for the day. They have to make their living pleasing all the touristas in various parts of the City, after all. After breakfast, I walked around Washington Square, but didn't see any more of them hanging out in the tall pine trees. I have witnessed them eating pinoli for their own prima colazione in the past.

It is always tough to choose between their excellent selection of French toasts (pane tostato alla franchese?) or their "Momelettes" and other egg dishes. I would go here more often if it were easier to find a parking spot and not always so crowded. As it is, I just make the pilgrimage once or twice a year (and usually on a quiet Sunday).

I selected the Momelette Northern Italian ~ Pancetta (Italian Cured Bacon [skipped it, Signore Valletta]), Mushrooms, Garlic Jack Cheese, Fresh Basil, & Tomatoes, with sourdough baguette toast and a decent cuppa coffee. I made sure to use some of their excellent, fresh raspberry jam on the toast. They serve Peerless Coffee & Tea® and do a very good job of brewing it (I think I had 2-½ cups in all).

http://www.peerlesscoffee.com/




I really liked this Momelette; it was kinda like a Pizza Margherita** omelette, but with mushrooms. It was made with lots of fresh basil and tomatoes in it. Fresh basil makes all the difference; a pinch of dried basil is okay in a pinch, but nothing beats fresh leaves of basil, Mr. Rathbone.

Mama♥s condimentary supplements are just Tabasco® (both the standard red and green Jalapeño). So I used some of my Palo Alto Fire Fighters Pepper Sauce (Thanks, Amy!) on top of the omelette, which I also shared with (read: forced on) two other tables surrounding me, and even the restaurant manager (owner?) tried a spoonful of it; it really has a lot of flavour and just the right amount of heat.

I probably should have eaten at Mama♥s two weeks ago on that other holiday that shares the same day as Single Loser's Day…

"Ah, but I was so much fuller then,
I'm hungrier than that now… "


Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Northern Italian Momelette ~ 7.2; the songs of Robert Zimmerman ~ 7.9 (I am rating this on the content, not Bob's actual singing)


*(Here's a little known fact, Cliff:

Interestingly enough, this was actually named after the great Italian statesman, Giorgio Lavaggiotoni, not after the First President of the United States. How else can you explain why there is a statue of another 'merican President, Benjamin Franklin, in the park and not one of "the Father of Liberty"? I don't make up this stuff, folk.
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Square_%28San_Francisco%29 )
 
**(A classic Pizza Margherita happens to be one of my favourite takes on my favouritest of foods.
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizza_Margherita )

Mama♥s

… don’t let your babies grow up, period.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ku1GU9p0NcQ



I had breakfast in North Beach at Mama♥s on Washington Square this morning. This is another local (and tourist) treasure for breakfast spots. The operative word here is "little" ~ only 10-12 tables (and many of those are just a "table for two"). Much like Dottie's, the wait is generally ½-hour to an hour (today I waited ½-hour just to get inside the door and another 15 minutes to order ~ more on that in a bit); however, the food is more than worth the wait, as long as the weather is clear and nice (being as it is Summer in the City, it was a cool 55-60° max and foggy this morning ~ somehow I really doubt that John Sebastian was talking about San Francisco in his 60's classic Rock-and/or-Roll song).

http://www.mamas-sf.com/

Mama♥s could easily be in my "Breakfast Rotation" somewhere (along with Dottie's, Ella's, Chloe♥s, Baker Street Bistro, Boogaloos, and Cliff House ~ DFA-ing whom, I am not quite sure) if not for the location and wait. Early Sunday mornings are easy to find a decent parking spot (I actually found one right along Washington Square Park), but just try to find a decent (free) spot after 9:00am otherwise on the weekends. The ordering process at Mama♥s is kinda strange: after waiting outside (it only feels like forever), you will again wait in line at the counter to order your meal and pay for it up front; then, only after there is a table open, they will seat you. This process can be another 15-20 minutes in itself.

Mama♥s offers many different types of French toasts from which to choose and what they call "Momelettes". I had the Kugelhuph French Toast. This is made with a home baked brioche-style bread. The bread has golden raisins, cinnamon, dates, and sliced almonds in it. And they added berries on top: (fresh) strawberries, (fresh) blueberries, (probably frozen) raspberries, and some champagne (? tiny little suckers) grapes on the side. This makes for a very tasty combination (and they have gen-u-wine maple syrup ~ none o' that watered-down imitation stuff ~ which is a big plus). I rounded out the meal with a side of grilled red potatoes ('cause there wasn't enough carbohydrates in the meal already) and a glass ("large" and for real again for a change) of ruby red grapefruit juice.


About half-way through the meal, I overheard the waitress tell another patron to be sure to try their homemade olallieberry jam that is on each table. She was right ~ it went great with the grilled potatoes. Otherwise, they only offer two types of Tabasco®: Red (standard) and Green (jalapeño).

While waiting in line I only saw a few (2-3) of the Wild Parrots* of Telegraph Hill flying overhead. I made sure to point it out to some people standing in line and explain the story to them. One of them has been living in San Francisco for four years and had never heard of this "only in San Francisco" phenomenon, and he had an out of town guest from Missouri (I am sure they don't see many wild parrots flying around St. Louis or Kansas City).

http://www.markbittner.net/parrot_pages/wildparrots.html



Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Kugelhuph French Toast ~ 7.5, Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill ~ 8.2


*(Useless cunning linguist story of the day:
One time when I visited Mama♥s, I overheard a German couple speaking and saw a flock of the wild parrots flying by and I pointed up and said "Papageien", which is German for "parrots". The couple must have thought me completely daft and just stared at me blankly, "Oh, the idiotischen Americaner; he thinks that all birds are 'parrots'." I pointed up again and said, "Nein, Papageien." They looked up this time and noticed the green and red feathers and answered back to me in perfect English: "Those ARE parrots!"; I then went on to explain the story to them, too. I only remember this word in German as it is much the same as the word for "parrot" in Russki: попугай ~ pronounced "papa-GUY" for you non-Cyrillic readers. Similarly, the word in Italiano is pappagallo; and "parrot" in Greek is παπαγάλος ~ pronounced just like it looks.)