SF – Treasure Island Dining

[Krys Stanley]

There are two places to eat on Treasure Island, Crossroads Cafe by the Bay and Job Corps Advanced Culinary Academy Fine Dining Restaurant. I ate at the pleasant Crossroads Café run by Delancy Street.

On the Crossroads Café Link, if you click on Special Events, you will find buildings available for private events like Casa de La Vista.

On Tuesday thru Thursday at noon, you can get a three course meal for $10 at the culinary academy. I haven’t tried this place yet. You must make a reservation in advance. The web page has an interesting looking sample menu.

Crossroads Café is a pretty white café with blue trim, located just in front of the gate on Treasure Island. It is much the same as Delancy Streets’ Crossroad Café in San Francisco, menu wise.

For $2.71 I had a very good tart yellow tomato tarragon soup. It came with a small piece of foccacia. There were nice pieces of tomato in the soup.

There is an outdoor patio. Indoors you can sit near the windows that overlook the Marina and the East Bay Bridge. There are counter seats on the other window that have an amazing view of San Francisco and the Golden Gate bridge.

There are espresso drinks and Thanksgiving coffee. Juices, fountain sodas and Italian sodas are available.

There’s a small Mexican selection. Sandwiches (about $5) include tuna, grilled cheese, deli meats, an Italian sub, hamburgers and hot dogs ($2.25). Sandwiches come with a bag of chips. Lots of people ordered the burger. Salads include garden, Caesar, Taco and a Mediterranean plate. At breakfast you can have an egg and cheese sandwich, toast, bagels, fresh fruit, and pastries.

You order at the counter. Paper towels are in cups that have the following quote by W.E.B. DuBois “The important thing is this, to be able to at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we may become”.

Food for the mind as well as food for the tummy.

Who knows, you might see the cast or crew of Rent at the café. Today SF Supervisor Tony Hall dropped. He was with an intriguing looking man in a European black pinstripe suit and dramatic black hat (it ain’t the dress code for the café). I’m guessing it was someone Hall was trying to convince to do business on the island.

This is my first time on the Island since it was opened to the public. It is lovely. On the east side of the island there is a long drive by the bay with a few picnic benches. Seems like it would be a great place to watch Fourth of July fireworks.

There are a number of buildings on the side facing San Francisco that would make great restaurant sites, IMO. The large windows face directly on the bay. Treasure Island is a town waiting to happen. All the buildings are there … church, theatre, bowling alley, etc. All are just waiting to be occupied. There are sports fields. On the baseball field there was a flock of about 50 wild geese.

As mentioned earlier, many of these places can be rented for special events. It seems like the chapel, with the stunning view of San Francisco, would be a great place to have a wedding.

The only other business currently is a mini market. Skip it. It is strictly a neighborhood grocery.

[rancho_gordo]

Thanks for the heads-up on this. It's hard to believe that TI belongs to the public again!

Is the museum still open? And did you see the statues from the world's fair around? I heard they're there somewhere.

[marie-louise]

Thanks for the heads-up on this. It's hard to believe that TI belongs to the public again!...

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Yes, this is news to me too. I know it was going to be open to the public someday, but didn't realize that it had happened. Why hasn't there been more press on this-are they waiting for the bridge to be finished first?

[MsRamsey]

It's great to know there's somewhere to eat there, as we've been planning to go on a sunny day and look at the cool buildings and view. The Navy is still in the process of cleanup, which will go on for at least another couple of years. Perhaps certain parcels have been turned over to the city, but certainly most of it doesn't yet belong to the city. It's a long, tedious process. The museum is not open and the future of the museum is very much up in the air. The Navy is in possession of the collection and there's been no site designated to house the museum. The museum folks have a website with good info and pleas for people passionate about the museum to get involved.

Be warned that Treasure Island is off limits to non-residents during 4th of July and other big fireworks extravaganzas. I think I will take the goofy picnic backpack I received for Christmas out there someday soon with some Acme bread, cheese, and perhaps some Tuscan-y bean and tuna salad. (Just to keep this sort of about food.)

[Krys Stanley]

Thanks for the info about the fourth of July. Perhaps I should hang out there more and get to know some of the residents so I can visit on the fourth.

Quite a bit of the island is open, but I didn't go beyond the area that was private housing. There is a bus to the island that seems to circle it.

Now Crossroads Cafe isn't fancy. However, one of the best outdoor views in the area is on the patio. On one side is a view of the East Bay. Turn you head the other way and there is all of the city in its glory. Pick up a bowl of soup with your picnic if the cafe is open.

[rancho_gordo]

The museum is not open and the future of the museum is very much up in the air. 

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The big question is where are the Covarrubias murals from the fair???? They used to be in the Ferry Building in SF and I heard that they're now back on Treasure Island somewhere. I loved them as a kid, with the Pacific in the center of the world instead of the Atlantic.

I love that after the fair the Navy literally bombed the big statue called Pacifica, which of course means peace and what else would they do with it?