SobaAddict70

roast cod broccoli, cauliflower and zucchini sauté light dinner tonight especially after our late Japanese lunch

Hiyayakko tofu -- tofu, scallion, bonito, grated daikon radish Tempura, gohan (rice), miso-shiru (miso soup), oshinko (pickles) Oyako-don (chicken and egg over rice), miso-shiru, oshinko Anyone want to guess how much all of that cost? How about $30 (not including tip). Cheap Japanese food in SF is a real bargain compared to in NYC.

yes the apricots really are something; ditto for most of the produce it is exceedingly difficult to go back to reality afterwards.

it's pretty safe, but anything can happen anywhere at any time. no pix tonight; we had: gem lettuce salad with crispy pancetta and Japanese turnips to start (pancetta fried until crisp, then blanched Japanese turnips, seasoned with sea salt, black pepper and lemon zest; then plated with baby salad green and gem lettuce, and dressed with a simple olive oil/lemon juice vinaigrette) penne with zucchini, turnip greens, broccoli and cauliflower. blanch the broccoli, cauliflower and greens, then fry garlic in olive oil over medium heat, add the zucchini. when the zucchini begins to brown, add the other vegetables. taste for salt and pepper. meanwhile, bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil, then add your penne. cook until slightly al dente. drain, reserving pasta water. transfer cooked penne to the pan with the vegetables. you're going to finish cooking the pasta as you would a risotto. add a ladleful of pasta water to the pan. cook the pasta until it's al dente. how much additional liquid you add depends on if you want the pasta brothy. taste once more for salt and pepper, then serve immediately. I like to drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil and pass either (1) fried breadcrumbs, (2) grated cheese or (3) pesto at the table.

They were amazing. I didn't have to choose carefully at all. They were at the peak of ripeness and smelled divine.

those tomatoes were like the Form of Tomatoes (if you're familiar with Plato's Republic) they were simply perfect and needed very little cooking to bring out their best. we'll be back at the Ferry Building on Tuesday, so expect more pix of the market.

OH god, those tomatoes and apricots we bought were AMAZING. people who live in CA are spoiled.

1/2 large shallot, minced; one very small pinch of sea salt; juice of 1/2 a lemon. mix everything together in a small bowl and let shallots macerate for 5 minutes. then whisk in 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon minced flat-leaf parsley. taste for salt and pepper. the salad: fry pancetta until crisp, add minced scallion, lift out with a slotted spoon into a bowl and set aside. add cut up apricots and fry for 1-2 minutes until glazed in the pancetta drippings. pit dates. spoon apricots into shallow salad bowls, top with dates and pancetta. drizzle dressing atop, then sprinkle with minced scallion and serve at once.

Apricot and date salad, with pancetta and scallion Roast cod, zucchini and tomato

B lives 6 blocks from the Castro, actually.

Unfortunately, my camera's battery died about 30 minutes after this shot so I wasn't able to get all the pix I wanted to. We'll be visiting again on Tuesday to pick up stuff for a dinner party on July 4, the night before I fly back to reality. Some pix from the market today:

thanks liuzhou

no, not yet that will have to be in the future, maybe this December

This is the Sentinel Building. I love the juxtaposition of old SF and new SF. We'll probably have lunch or dinner here soon. B says Tadich is one of the last "old-school" restaurants in San Francisco. Tadich Grill 240 California Street (Battery Street) Financial District

More random pix: We went to Stella's for my introduction to cannoli. I can't believe I've never had them before. Stella Pastry & Cafe 446 Columbus Avenue (Green Street) Telegraph Hill

Random pix:

Starfish and...??? Bitter melon on top and some kind of squash below??? Anyone have an idea of what this is? Here's the sign behind the whatever it is... Then we went to a place that B likes for a light dim sum lunch: New Asia Restaurant 772 Pacific Avenue (Stockton Street) Chinatown It was the first time I'd seen a dim sum palace with a band set-up. Supposedly that's for when there are banquets. Chinese broccoli, with oyster sauce on the side Roast pork and soybeans Shrimp dumplings GIANT pork and chive dumplings

We visited Chinatown and North Beach today.... Sea cucumbers? The red stuff I think are jujube dates.

B bought it back in 1990 or something....

Dinner at Kin Khao tonight. Kin Khao 55 Cyril Magnin St (entrance at corner of Ellis and Mason) Khao Tung Na Tung -- sweet & savory pork, shrimp and peanut dip served with crisp rice cakes NV Val de Mer Crémant de Bourgogne Brut Nature Rosé Sai Ua and Namprik Noom -- grilled house-made Northern Thai pork sausage, cracklings, with darn spicy young pepper relish Khao Soi Gai -- Northern-style chicken curry broth, egg noodles, pickled mustard greens, and spicy chili oil (on the side.) I don't remember exactly what this was but it was some kind of rice pudding with sticky black glutinous rice (and not very sweet); counter-clockwise from top left: burnt caramel sauce, coconut cream, pralines. It's like no Thai food you've ever eaten before. We're definitely returning.

We went to the Williams-Sonoma food porn store. Crazy expensive. A non-copper core pan, about 10", costs $30 at Bed, Bath & Beyond by comparison.

Green salad, miso dressing (much better than the usual carrot-ginger dressing you see at many Japanese restaurants) Ramen with braised pork belly Hamano Sushi 1332 Castro Street (24th Street) It's pretty basic Japanese -- tempura, sushi, ramen, etc. Lots of fresh ingredients which makes it stand out; I loved it.

a few more pix... pasta with heirloom tomatoes (I think) and shaved mozzarella MKT Restaurant The Four Seasons Hotel 757 Market Street (O'Farrell Street) it's not a very good pic, but I really adored this dish. I found myself licking the bowl clean (not literally of course, but it was quite good for such a simple prep; California cuisine at its finest). duck pate salad, peaches, wild greens, Spanish sherry chocolate croquette, figs, balsamic ice cream, chocolate fudge peaches, lemon basil ice cream, cake slow poached egg, caviar, melted endive, wild fennel and blini roasted lamb loin, eggplant, cranberry beans, roasted figs the first two pix in this set were on the previous page but I didn't provide a caption for them. étoile Restaurant Domaine Chandon Vineyard and Winery 1 California Drive Yountville and B is an accomplished cook in his own right (we're a match in a lot of ways ) Berry cobbler (blackberries, blueberries and raspberries, brown sugar, butter, AP flour and nutmeg) -- and it's from a Weight Watchers recipe of all things... Bouillabaisse -- it's Paul Bocuse's recipe No rascasse though, but that's okay. It was perfect.

The recs will be for future trips. I'd say more, but I don't want to jinx things. *mysterious grin* I'm aware of the Tenderloin's rep. I'm not exactly a stranger to San Francisco; I just haven't mentioned my previous trips prior to meeting B on eG.

Hah. After I get through the mass of people, I'll meet B (I have no luggage apart from my carryon; hobbits travel light) and head over to his place. But I'm sure we'll stop for a bite to eat along the way. The plan tomorrow is dinner at Kin Khao, breakfast at a nabe place on Friday (we like Kitchen Story (3499 16th Street (Sanchez St) in the Castro) and ???. I think there will be a trip to the Ferry Building on Saturday for the farmer's market. Lots of pix to come.