Stu-i-moto

I will make it to Mecca, a.k.a. TFL, this September - for the first time. I have been trying to get a table at TFL for so many years, I finally just gave up and bought the two cookbooks and started making this stuff at home. Reading a TK cookbook is like reading Einstein's personal diaries. It is incredible how he gets your head into the food the way he looks at it. And without a kitchen staff, these dishes, although not terribly exotic from an ingredient standpoint, are a labor of love for the lone home chef. Thanks for the advice about asking for a tour of the kitchen. I did this once when I ate at Fleur de Lys in San Francisco and Hubert Keller (no relation to the uninformed) personally took me and my wife around. I think my wife would have dumped me for him - she was like a high school cheerleader gazing into the eyes of the star quaterback. Good thing I was able to peel her starry eyes away from him. I can't wait for this. But I have just one question: for those of you who have eaten at TFL, where have you gone from there? What's next? Anything? Back to Mickey D's?

I really like Mayflower too. The only thing is they are too crowded. Seating arrangement wise. I meant, really elbow-to-elbow crowded during meal hours, compared to other dim sum restaurants in the city because their restaurant is so small. I also like Parc Hong Kong nearby. And Hong Kong Restaurant on Noriega near 33rd in the Sunset district. ← try Lychee Garden on Powell (near Broadway). it's on the edge of chinatown and north beach. Great dim sum there - no tourists. note: no one there really speaks english, so just point and nod...

My new favorite spot is Just for You Cafe in the dogpatch. Since I don't eat eggs (especially bad ones), I love the fact that they serve pork chops (thin and tasty) and - GRITS! Now, who has the guts to serve grits in this town? That shows some individuality - and I like it. I have had mixed results with their beignets. At times, they are fluffy and hot and great with some honey drizzled over. Other times, they are greasy and dense, and put me into a food coma (a definite no-no for breakfast - after all, you have the whole day ahead, no?) What I don't like is that it's cash-only. But there's an ATM in the convenience store next door. Good enough for me in a pinch.

Lychee Garden is very authentic - and inexpensive Koi Palace is good, but bring your patience as well as your pocketbook - it'll take forever - and it's not cheap - but the food is good. Yank Sing - good if you want Americanized dim sum - good but not as authentic as other options out there.

Good to know - thanks, ghost. I am a transplanted New Yawka too - and always spanning the globe looking for the perfect slice...

Has anyone tried to make a turducken by: - brining it - smoking it, then - - frying it?

Hanger or flatiron - only from grass-fed, sustainably-raised, no hormone or antibiotic beef. Other than that, I am a huge fan of rabbit, as well as duck -

It's OK - if you like feedlot beef, pumped full of more hormones and drugs than an MLB star. To top off your meal, you'll catch a nice whiff of the feedlot next door... ...on top of all that, their beef is nothing special. I tried it a number of years ago - before I knew about such things as sustainable farming and such. Bring a sandwich on your trip - and don't go out of your way for this "deal" - life's too short. My $0.02

I agree with that assessment - Where's that? I'm always on the lookout for an honest bird...

OK, Eje - I finally went. Here's my honest opinion. Note: the restaurant has only been open 4 weeks, so it is still in it's initial "burn in" period. Read: ruogh around the edges, even though it is packed to the gills. That said, the service was very marginal, but they tried hard and maintained a good attitude which made up for a lot. They even brought us a couple of comp apps to smooth things out, which I consider a great gesture in any establishment. The place was packed; we had to wait what seemed like an hour for a table. Eventually, we figured out we could just order apps at the bar and we were about to order our entrees at the bar when the table came available. We had the fried chicken, the black eyed peas with collards, the grits and the cole slaw. The grits were the best of the three; the black eyed peas were quite good but needed more salt. The cole slaw was OK. The chicken, their signature dish I suppose, was not authentically southern, but it wasn't bad. I have to say, however, that the crust (corn meal crusted - cheap way to get crispiness) was overdone/burnt, and the white meat was very dry. Good thing I don't like white meat. Plus, this chicken was deep fried, not pan fried. For my money, the chicken at Hard Knox Cafe is much better (and pan fried - the real southern way). I liked the chicken but I didn't love it. I'd give the food a 6.5 out of 10 and the service a 5 out of 10. Eje, let me know if you want to go to Hard Knoz for some better chix.

Hmmm... I feel a bit on the spot! ← Didn't mean to put you on the spot, Eje. I really want this place to be good because it's right around the corner from my house. I'm just being cynical about it- Lutefisk, eh? Can you share a recipe for that? I'll let you know how I find the fried chicken over there - thanks for the heads up!

Eje - tell me more about your background. I want to know where your adjective "stellar" emanates from. I don't want to get too excited and run over there to try the food - I can't tell you how many "southern" food places I've tried all across this great country that have only led to disappointment. It's not just a San Fran phenomenon. So far, the only stellar southern food I've had has been at my grandmother's house in Queens and at church potlucks in Brooklyn (that my grandmother dragged me to when I was a kid).

Ever read an in-flight magazine lately? See those "best steak houses in..." or "top gourmet cuisine" such and such? Now, you can just pay to be on a list, and they'll put you there. What is this world coming to??

I can't help but wonder "why does this matter?" If you were to ask someone who the best impressionist painter was, and they had seen impressionist paintings before, I'm sure they would have an opinion. Whether you agree with it or not is an entirely different topic. What constitutes a "proper evaluation" to you? Maybe a proxy for how you would evaluate? Can you ever really rely on that with a subject as broad, diverse and complex as food preference? Everyone's proper evaluation will vary anyway- I used to live in Boise, Idaho - a place where locals would swear the best seafood could be had at Red Lobster and the best Italian was at the Olive Garden. So I've seen this issue up-front (painfully). In those cases, I just chuckled to myself and reminded myself never to ask a local for a restaurant recommendation unless I had "pre-qualified" their opinion, meaning they were more aware of the world of cuisine - at least as aware as I believe I am. People know what they like, and they'll reflect that back if asked - and maybe even if they're not asked. That's just the way we humans tend to be -

Bocadillos definitely. But there are quite a few places that have "small plates" - that seems to be the style in San Fran.