waldrons

The areas closest to Pacific Heights (depending on exactly where) could be Fillmore Street, Union Street, and the western slope of Russian Hill (Polk Street, Hyde Street). A very good Italian restaurant on Russian Hill is Allegro Romano (very Roman-style, an upscale but casual and cozy neighborhood restaurant). It's on Broadway and Jones, so not walking distance from Pacific Heights, but worth a cab ride. Susan

We went several months ago, and I had the same concerns as you. However, not having been there "back when", it was plenty amazing for us. A group of 7 of us did the $65 tasting menu (the 3rd-from-the-bottom choice), and had probably 12 dishes -- half cold, half hot. The food wasn't all great tasting, but it was all really interesting, and some was wonderful (much as with most tasting menus). A friend of ours went back a few weeks later with a different group, and Mario Batalli was dining that night. Hope that helps! Susan

Is there any chance he'd like more matchbooks? My father has collected matchbooks from restaurants, hotels and cruise ships for the past several decades. There's probably only 100 or so, mostly from the 70s and 80s, and mostly from San Francisco. But looking through quickly, there are matches from Doros and Vertigo in SF, as well as Jasper's and Biba in Boston. And a few oddballs from Antwerp and Ghent. Do you suppose there's any interest in this? Susan

That stuff looks handy to have around for several uses! (My mom uses it to open Champagne bottles!) Everyone has contributed really good suggestions! Thanks!

There's nothing like necessity to make us find creative solutions, is there? I'll keep this in mind, but my parents are pretty fussy, so a "purpose-built" solution would be better for them. Thank you, though! Susan

Karen, That looks interesting, but I agree on the size question. I'll mark them, though, and see what Mom thinks. (She might want them for herself, since she still cooks!) Thank you! Susan

That's it!! (or at least the best thing I've seen so far!) Thanks! I don't know why my Google searches didn't turn up this site, but I really appreciate it! Susan

My elderly father is having trouble gripping a steak or table knife to cut his food. My Mom wants to keep using their normal tableware (a "special" tool would point out his problem). Are there any add-on easy grip covers that anyone knows of? (I've done a Google search, but only come up with the easy grip utensils themselves, not any "after-market accessories" to add on to normal knives.) Thanks in advance! Susan

I've now tried a couple of the food court options (and 2 of the 3 new full-service restaurants), and have found them mostly mediocre. The Bristol Farms sushi I had was as bad as the prepared stuff in Safeway. The Thai was ok. Most places will run about $10 for a basic lunch of one item or plate. There is a common area in the center for you to carry your food to -- I don't think there's any table service. (I saw people being buzzed to pick up their food by pagers, so I think that's the only option.) Out the Door (Slanted Door's casual option) wasn't open as of last week. One plus compared to suburban mall food courts is you can get an adult beverage at many of the stands. And the choices are above the Pizza Hut level, at least in terms of variety. I'm not sure if the quality is actually any better. As for the restaurants, Straits is hopelessly disorganized and just ok; Zazil is horribly overpriced. Quality at both is ok. I haven't been to Lark Creek Steak yet. All in all, eh. Susan

If you are looking for something more than restaurants, you could do some very nice food tours in San Francisco and area: factory tour of Scharffenberger Chocolate (in Oakland, east of SF) Hog Island oyster farm (Tomales Bay, north of SF) Marshall's Farm honey (American Canyon, north of SF near Napa) I'm assuming you know about the Ferry Building Marketplace, where you can taste lots of local goodies in one place (huge Farmer's Market on Sat., with smaller ones on Tues. and Sun. morning, and Thur. afternoon). There are also some food-based walking tours of San Francisco -- Mangia North Beach (of our Italian district, led by GraceAnn Walden) and the Wok Wiz (of Chinatown, sometimes led by Shirley Fong-Torres). There is also Taste of San Francisco, a bus tour which covers several neighborhoods (although I've not done this one myself). Susan

>>We are featuring a good mix of ethnic, street food, family run places and the "old school" restaurants...plus places where people that work in the city and make the city run eat...such as the UPS guy, Cops, etc...and for good cheap eat....students and the like.... << Well, for Season 2, if you come to San Francisco, my husband and his buddies do a weekly "geezer lunch". (This is a group of retired/semi-retired guys -- and by retired I mean un- and under-employed!) The idea is great "working-man's lunch" places -- simple, honest but good food, under $10 for lunch. They've got a bunch of great places (the Hard Knox Cafe for fried chicken, Connecticut Yankee for pasta, Double Play , and others). Nothing yuppie or fancy or even ethnic, just good food at reasonable prices in a comfortable setting. With lots of beer. And good luck on the project!!! Susan

Most of the restaurants in the Union Square area are very "basic" or somewhat upscale. Budgetwise, you'll probably fit into one of the basic, mostly ethnic, restaurants. I like Sakana Grill or Sanraku for Japanese (they both serve sushi as well as cooked items), or Ar Roi for Thai. There are also some cafes, like Cafe de la Presse or Le Central, where you should be ok at $30 a head.

I've heard that question before, and the answer is simple... does one need to be a singer to enjoy opera? an actor to enjoy good theatre? etc.... While lots of foodies may enjoy cooking, I for one enjoy eating. Sometimes ya gotta cook good in order to eat good, but sometimes you get lucky! Besides, I'm not sure putting dinner on the table night after night is "playing with food in the kitchen"! Susan PS - Although I only cook once or twice a week (I "assemble" the rest of our meals), I did rent an apartment in Paris and Florence last year so that I could cook. My husband was a bit baffled that I would cook on vacation when I don't cook at home. I think he was just miffed because he wasn't going on the trip!

Tiburon is a little cutesy community on the Bay, north of Sausalito. It's a ferry ride from the city, with ok restaurants featuring great views. Guaymas ("Mexican" food), next to the ferry dock, was disappointing during my last couple of visits. The deck at Sam's is great for burgers and beer (although they don't have any shade, in case it happens to be sunny and hot). There are little shops, galleries, bookstores, etc. for a couple of hours of browing before or after lunch. Susan

The cheese dribbles that have run down the outside of a ramekin of French onion soup! Both crunchy AND stringy!