cstuart

if you end up going to tartine, you can go to ritual roasters for some coffee.

uni, truffles. edit: per FG, the use of dashi and other "haute" asian ingredients ← dashi is "haute"?!?!?! but i do otherwise agree about ssam bar.

i've had good results using this recipe. when you plug it into google's translator it comes up with some rather funny translations, but you can figure it out if you think about it. edit - you can also find more recipes by searching google in spanish.

I live close to Church and Market and have to say it's a great area food wise. There are tons of options in the immediate, walking distance/short cab ride area(zuni, destino, chow, home, tartine, orbit room, etc), 16th/Valencia is a short walk(and you don't want to live any closer than that), Hayes Valley is a short cab/muni ride, Noe Valley is a short muni ride, and anywhere downtown is a short muni ride. BiRite is close for shopping, as is Harvest, but I never go there so don't really know how good it is, but it looks pretty nice. The actual area around Church and Market can be a little crazy but Duboce Triangle is nicer and calmer. Also, above Dolores Park towards Noe Valley is really nice and has great views. And the weather here is the best in the city. It's amazing sometimes how it can be totally sunny here while most of the city is covered in fog or clouds.

Have you tried Taqueria San Francisco way on the east end of the 24th st. strip? It's a bit far for me, but they make a good burrito. I tend to stick with either El Castillito because it's close and good or Papalote if we feel like jumping on the J or bart. Have you tried the fish burrito at Papalote? A couple of my friends swear by it. And they tell me it has to be super.

I didn't know you lived here, raxelita. Did you tend bar? Zodiac Room closed. The new restaurant or club there was/is named to Amber. Not sure if it is still open. I went by the other night and it looked closed. If you read Imbibe magazine, the new issue (Nov-Dec) has a multi-page feature on Alberta Straub and the Orbit Room. ← Amber is a loungy bar and is still open, or at least was last week. I'm usually at Orbit Room on Tuesday nights and it's still great.

I agree with most of the posters here - Lichee Garden for the cheap(but good), Chinatown experience, and Koi Palace for the more expensive, really good, but out of the city dim sum spot. Yank Sing is good also, but not in Chinatown and fairly expensive for dim sum. Carolyn, aren't both Yank Sing locations downtown, in the financial district or soma? I wouldn't mind one opening in the mission though.

Is this the guy you spoke with? I also saw a posting that A-1 Seltzer & Beverage Co. had gone out of business, so maybe it's too late. Other than that I would check with some upscale bars and lounges to see if they still use the old style seltzer, as I know that the Orbit Room in San Francisco does. I'll ask them where they get it next time I'm in there.

Franny is very fond of Fernet Branca. I had a Fernet and Coke there on her suggestion that was delicious and refreshing. ← Fernet and Coke is my roommates drink of choice. Recently I've seen a lot more people drinking Fernet - not sure why exactly.

Check out Bissap Baobab here in San Francisco.

Ok, let me know how your experiments go. (And I'll eat 2 for you!! )

Ya, I went to Manresa pretty much right in the middle of you two, and you can see the progression between your meal, my meal, and u.e.'s meal. Pretty amazing indeed!

Check out this page for some info on Beard Papa cream puffs. The shells are two layers - choux and pie crust, and the filling is a whipped cream custard. Too bad they don't travel well! I could've sent you a few along with some Tartine morning buns(I read your report and live a block away from Tartine ).

Really, you should come to SF and the mission. There are so many "taquerias" that fit your description. Look at Erik's burritoeater.com link, eat all of them, see what you like about each, and incorporate that into your shop. Once you eat at some of the top places, you won't be mentioning Chipotle as a role model. And just let me know if you need any eating buddies, as my roommate eats burritos at least 4 times a week. Good luck.

While I agree with your general sentiment towards Stephen, he actually agreed with the judges about his "tamale," and said something to the effect that he deserves whatever he gets for serving it. The judges were the ones with the look of complete disbelief on their faces. haha Anyways, my friend worked at the Rotunda. I'll have to ask him about chef Hill, who I didn't especially care for on the show.