COCKTAILS PROSPECT, SoMa – In the midst of 3.5 star reviews and consistent accolades, Prospect moves forward in its early opening months shining. My first take on it was strong and repeat visits only confirm. This place is the whole package (see Top Tastes for food, below for wine). Enter more supreme cocktails from Brooke Arthur and crew. On the… Read more →
SAN CARLOS THE REFUGE – Much has already been said about the famed pastrami at San Carlos’ Belgian bar and hearty sandwich/burger spot, The Refuge. Jan Newberry of San Francisco magazine rightly lists it as one of the best in her sandwich guide. All I can say, is get there if you haven’t. These are among the best of these… Read more →
Dinner & Cocktails with a View at Luce and Top of the Mark Wednesday through Saturday nights there’s a ready-made date if you want romance without having to think too hard. At $80 a person, it’s a package deal between Luce Restaurant (which I’ve written about more than once) in the Intercontinental Hotel and Top of the Mark. Choose the… Read more →
“Childhood is the kingdom where nobody dies. Nobody that matters, that is.” – Edna St. Vincent Millay Summer ends and San Francisco’s “summer” begins with pristine days and balmy nights spent sipping scotch on my front stoop with good friends (and the occasional cigar). Concerts in the park give way to SF Cocktail Week (9/21-9/27), while the truly awesome Hardly… Read more →
Top Tastes, rather than a list of all-time favorites (another thing altogether), are among the best eats since my last newsletter, often from new openings. Many don’t make the cut, being a revisit previously written about or simply not as stand-out as dishes mentioned. Cheap Eats HRD COFFEE SHOP, SoMa – I’ve had Korean-style burritos before (like the ones at… Read more →
ROSE PISTOLA, North Beach – Lovely bar manager Aurora Siegel maintains a fine cocktail menu at Rose Pistola that could be easy to miss in North Beach’s tourist bustle. Finely-wrought takes on classics like Rose’s Manhattan ($10 – Bulleit Bourbon, sweet vermouth, bitters, Amarena cherry juice, essence of orange) mingle with bright refreshers like The Q ($11 – Hendrick’s Gin,… Read more →
“In New Orleans, gluttony is a way of life.” – Morton J. Horwitz I’m getting those Basin Street Blues again. I’ve done articles on the Uptown, Carollton and Garden District, more Uptown & Bywater, on French Quarter food and drink, and the Fauborg Marigny and Treme neighborhoods. Now I cover the more commercial, high-rise-littered CBD, where some of Nola’s best… Read more →
LEFT COAST LIBATIONS – Ted Munat with Michael Lazar Left Coast Libations, which came out September 1st (catch the launch party this Saturday, 9/18, at Heaven’s Dog), is, as far as I’m concerned, a must for the library of any West Coast cocktailian, not to mention drink aficionados everywhere. Ted Munat clearly displays a fan’s love of drink and the… Read more →
Daniel Patterson is one of our city’s true visionary chefs, willing to push the envelope, gifted with technique, but, yes, able to make it taste damn good. I’m a big fan of Coi, delight in Il Cane Rosso and try not to resent Oakland for getting both Bracina and Plum, his upcoming ventures. Thankfully, Plum sneak preview dinners were held… Read more →
There may be other Bay Area concert winery venues (Mountain Winery, for example), but none like family-owned Wente Vineyards in Livermore. Run by the same family for five generations and set on a 3000 acre expanse of golden rolling hills and vineyards, Wente is managed by delightfully down-to-earth family members who keep the business alive, yes, with wine-making, but also… Read more →