Fried river moss in Laos. Photo by Ariel Soto.
(1) Scralifornia and grits, Pork Store, SF
(2) Fried river moss and water buffalo chili paste, Luang Prabang, Laos
P.D.R.
(3) Chicken piccata, rice pilaf, and Hardys boxed wine
(4) Shots of fernet at Ask Dr. Hal show
(5) Dungeness crab and Fish Eye red, Woodhouse Fish Company, SF
LOCAL ARTIST Lindsey White
TITLE Wonder (from the series A Field Guide to the Atmosphere), c-print, 50 by 40 inches.
THE STORY "I look for truth in everyday objects. I find solitude in the ones that offer me gateways elsewhere. For example, I came across a metal-encased flashlight with the brand name Wonder written across the front. This flashlight offers itself as a multifaceted tool of discovery. Everyday magical acts are happening before our eyes, but how often do people identify what they’re seeing as extraordinary?"
BIO White was born in Tulsa, Okla. She teaches at the California College of the Arts and is currently an Artist in Residence at the Kala Art Institute. Her work has been exhibited at Southern Exposure and Eleanor Harwood Gallery in San Francisco, and the Blackfish Gallery and Reading Frenzy in Portland, Ore. She is contributing to upcoming group shows in Izmir, Turkey and Houston.
SHOW "A Field Guide to the Atmosphere," through April 10. Tues. and Thurs., 6–9 p.m.; Fri., 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Ping Pong Gallery, 1240 22nd St., SF. (415) 550-7483, www.pingponggallery.com
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Heather, 20th Street and Valencia
Tell us about your look: “I like to be comfortable and I’ll shop anywhere for clothes.”
Haul your ass over to this world o’ internet adorability: ZooBorns: “the newest and cutest exotic animal babies from zoos and aquariums around the world!”
Seriously. Cuteness from aardvark:
Detroit Zoo’s baby Amani, born December 8, 2008.
…to zebra:
Toronto Zoo’s Kali, pictured here at two months.
And everything in between! Better procrastination fodder is not possibly found anywhere, on land (baby porcupines!) or sea (baby beluga whales!)
PS Thanks to Guardian contributor Louis Peitzman for the tip.
By Virginia Miller
As long-time San Francisco resident and writer, I’m passionate about this city and obsessed with finding and exploring its best food-and-drink spots, deals, events and news, in every neighborhood and cuisine. I started with my own service and monthly food/drink/travel newsletter, The Perfect Spot, and am thrilled to share up-to-the minute news with you from the endless goings-on in our fair city.
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NEW RESTAURANT OPENINGS
Herb Caen glory days hang on as North Beach’s classic WashBag returns
Herb Caen would be proud. When Washington Square Bar & Grill closed last year, many mourned the loss of one of SF’s most beloved classics, a preferred hang-out of the aforementioned Caen, local writers and politicos ever since the ’70’s. Under new ownership, Liam and Susan Tiernen of Tiernan’s (www.tiernans.com), the historical spot returns with brasserie menu intact. Pull up to the long wood bar or dine on white tablecloths as you order the famed WashBag burger on Dutch crust bun. Bartender Michael McCourt is also back… so bring on the Mad Men-reminiscent martini lunches!
Washington Square Bar & Grill
1707 Powell, SF.
415-433-1188
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EVENTS – FOODIE DINNERS
March 18-20 – Jamie Lauren creates a four-course scallop dinner in honor of her Top Chef run
Ok, all you Top Chef fans, Jamie Lauren is back to her home base of Absinthe, with an ode to Fabio’s “Top Scallop” comment by cooking a special, four course Scallop Tasting menu (reserve quickly – it’s sure to fill up fast!) Beginning with Bay Scallop Crudo, moving on to Scallop Clam Chowder, then a Hokkaido Grilled Scallop with sunchoke puree, artichokes, erbette chard and Meyer Lemon, finishing up with Seared Dayboat Scallops with asparagus, creamed green garlic and fava beans. Now you can pretend you’re a Top Chef judge, giving props to our very own Jamie.
5:30pm throughout dinner service
$75, not including beverages, tax or gratuity
Absinthe
398 Hayes Street
415-551-1590
www.absinthe.com
March 16 – Splurge for a James Beard Dinner at Fifth Floor
Food fanatics, save up your pennies (and then some) for a rare James Beard Foundation dinner at Fifth Floor, themed on the Cuisine of Southwestern France. The event honors famed cookbook author (and James Beard Award-winner), Paula Wolfert. Fifth Floor Sommelier, Emily Wines, selects wine pairings for the decadent six-course meal, including dishes like Foie Gras with shallot confit and quince compote or Braised Rabbit with sauteed crepes and dried plums. Headed up by Fifth Floor and Aqua’s Laurent Manrique, each course is created by a different chef: Jennie Lorenzo and Lionel Walter (also of Aqua and Fifth Floor), Ariane Daguine of D’Artagnan in NYC, Jean Pierre Moulle of Chez Panisse and Gerald Hirigoyen of Piperade. Whew, what a line-up! That crew can cook me dinner any time.
6pm reception; 7pm dinner
$165, including wine pairings ($150 for James Beard members)
Fifth Floor
12 4th St., SF
415-348-1555
www.fifthfloorrestaurant.com
www.jamesbeard.org
Finding themselves at 50: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at Zellerbach Hall. All photos by Ariel Soto.
By Ariel Soto
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater celebrated its 50th anniversary at Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley from March 3 to March 8. The performance consisted of a succession of snippets from 50 years of work, and the company took the audience through Ailey’s work and the important mark he left on the.history of modern dance.
I was impressed by the dancers themselves: their toes appeared to almost touch the ceiling and their fluid, precise movements flowed like honey across the stage. I have had the chance to see Alvin Ailey several times in the past, but I still cried like a baby and clapped my hands in time with the music till they hurt because there’s no other dance company in the world like Alvin Ailey. The company can draw you so far into the dance that you forget everything around you and just become one with movement, the emotion, and those amazing twirls.
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Jenny, 24th Street and Valencia
Tell us about your look: “I don’t really care about my look. I wear what I like and get most of my clothes at thrift shops.”
SFBG’s Diana Dunkelberger digs her fork into a deliciously local low-price menu every week. This time ‘round, she recruited SFBG’s Laura Peach to dig in with her. Check out Diana’s most recent installment here.
While discussing what sort of special place to sit down at, Diana had a hankering for the light, salty dishes of Japantown, but Laura was craving the rich, warm crêpes served up at Portland’s Le Happy. A compromise seemed out of the question. Yet a quick Google search revealed that in San Francisco, no cultural divide is so wide that it cannot be bridged by food. For there is, in fact, a crêperie in Japantown. Our curiosities piqued, we set off in the same direction to satisfy our divergent appetites.
On the second story of the Japantown mall we found Sophie’s Crepes, its sign partially obscured behind the bowed, flowering branches of faux cherry trees that sprout up out of the atrium. Past the clouds of pink blossoms and the plastic crêpes showcased in the window (a standard Japantown eatery practice), Sophie’s shows no frills in the airy, sunny space, distinguished by floor-to-ceiling windows at the back of the shop that overlook cars swishing along Geary Blvd.
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Jack, 24th St. and Sanchez
Tell us about your look: “I like color. No grays.”
Body art-averse parents are allegedly up in arms over the Totally Stylin’ Tattoo Barbie, who is clearly totally styling with her totally stylin’, tiny butterfly tattoo (my prediction: if they make a Ken version, he’ll have something tribal).
Don’t worry, Mom and Dad! Just because kids are begging for tattoos like Barbie doesn’t mean you have to cave! Take ’em to see Britney Spears’ new tour, where this t-shirt will be available. Buy it and pad the laser-removal fund for Brit-Brit’s many tattoos (most souvenirs from her unfortunate downward-spiral period, and many in the realm of Barbie’s pink butterfly). And if your little precious does get some ink work done, don’t fret — as part of her Sephora make-up line, L.A. Ink goddess Kat Von D has introduced — somewhat ironically — tattoo concealer. Billy Bob forever, never!
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Jackie, Elizabeth and Castro
Tell us about your look: “I’m a designer myself and I’m wearing St. John. It’s important to dress to look your best and feel comfortable and also wear clothes that flatter your own body.”
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Victoria, 24th St. and Noe
Tell us about your look: “I work at Five and Diamond, so I love getting clothes from them. Also, anything with a unique touch and warm layers.”
Zomg, the new Terminator Salvation trailer is out today. We’ve all listened to star Christian Bale’s awesomely vitriolic rant, and we’ve all seen The Dark Knight (some of us more than once, apparently, since the movie’s box-office haul was somewhere in the bajillions). Hell, if you’re like me, you’re already looking forward to the summertime release of Public Enemies — Michael Mann’s Depression-era gangster drama starring Bale as a G-Man out to nab Johnny Depp’s John Dillinger. No trailer for that flick yet (it’s out July 1), but Bale’s got plenty more, in a diverse career that includes everything from his debut in 1987’s Empire of the Sun to 1998’s Velvet Goldmine; 2000’s American Psycho; 2005’s The New World; and 2007’s Rescue Dawn and I’m Not There.
But there’s a Bale movie that often gets overlooked — and no, I don’t mean 1993’s Swing Kids or even 1992’s Newsies. I’m talking post-apocalyptic despair, shaggy facial hair, fire-dodging reflexes, and the ability to act opposite a ridiculously over-the-top Matthew McConaughey while keeping a straight face. Yep: it’s 2002’s Reign of Fire, y’all.
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Michael, 24th St. and Diamond
Tell us about your look: “My wife dresses me. She has a great eye and she even made me this hat.”
SFBG’s Juliette Tang peeps the best eco-friendly products and boutiques. Check out her most recent installment here.
Eco-friendly fashion a wonderful concept we should all get behind, but not so wonderful are the poor quality, high cost, and bad design that too often accompany the eco-friendly clothing on the market. Who wants to wear scratchy hemp cargo pants? What about a lumpy wool sweater with an embroidered peace sign? Eco Citizen fights the stereotypes associated with green clothing – that eco-friendly garments are ugly, uncomfortable, or out of touch with what’s currently in style – by offering beautiful garments with high design value that appeal on both an ecological and aesthetic level.
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Marika, Oakland
Tell us about your look: “My fashion philosophy is eclectic. I like to change it up from day to day, but right now i am really into yellow thrift store sweaters.”
By Virginia Miller
As long-time San Francisco resident and writer, I’m passionate about this city and obsessed with finding and exploring its best food-and-drink spots, deals, events and news, in every neighborhood and cuisine. I started with my own service and monthly food/drink/travel newsletter, The Perfect Spot, and am thrilled to share up-to-the minute news with you from the endless goings-on in our fair city.
New restaurant openings
Flavors of Spain delight Noe Valley at Contigo
Noe Valley’s tastebuds awaken to the flavors of Spain as chef Brett Emerson shares his passion for and knowledge of Spanish cuisine in this week’s debut of his long-awaited Contigo. This isn’t your usual tapas joint. The gorgeous, sleek room, wood-fired oven, and charming back patio with emerging vegetable garden, set the stage for warm service reminiscent of a welcoming neighborhood hangout in Spain.
Conversing with friends over a glass of Cava, Sherry or Rioja, order fresh Anchovies straight from Spain, intriguing Oxtail Fritters, a salted Rock Cod and Orange Salad or the Txistorra Burger with manchego cheese and fried onions. If the sneak preview I attended is any indication, this will be many a local’s regular go-to for finely-crafted food that comforts as well as challenges the palate.
1320 Castro Street
415-285-0250
Pickles opens in FiDi serving gourmet burgers under a retractable roof
The closing last year of Myth, one of our better upscale restaurants, was a sad one. But Myth alum chef Matthew Kerley has resurfaced in an unexpected place: the former Pickles (the new owners kept the name) which, prior to that, was Clown Alley. I personally am happy to see creepy clown motifs and circus colors gone. The place has gone upscale, or as upscale as a burger joint can, with brown tones and wood, a fireplace and a retractable roof in the shadow of the Transamerica Building. The menu entices with bacon burgers, mini corn dogs, beer-battered onion rings, sundaes and favorites from the also-shuttered Cafe Myth menu, like deviled eggs and Brussels sprouts. I’ve heard about long lines and service issues still to be worked out, but give ’em time… gourmet burgers are the right idea for the Financial District set by day or North Beach crowd at night (Pickles will soon be open till 3am; it’s lunch only until April 1st).
42 Columbus Avenue
415-421-2540
Bar news
North Beach’s 15 Romolo re-invents itself with premium cocktails and crispy hot dogs
15 Romolo is back. The North Beach fave re-opened a few days ago, reinvented by bartenders from Coco500 and Rye. It’s in an alley, and there’s a still that speakeasy air about it, but the aqua-colored interior is gone, with a more understated look and neutral tones. $8 cocktails, like the Yellow Bicycle (St. Germain, Yellow Chartreuse) or a classic Corpse Reviver #2, are made with premium liqueurs, while there’s also a wealth of top shelf pours and gourmet beers, like local Speakeasy’s Hunters Point Porter. A kitchen is the biggest addition, with two deep fryers frying up tortilla-wrapped Crispy (hot) Dogs, Pork Sliders and Savory Funnel Cakes. Now that’s what I call the ultimate bar food.
Happy hour daily, 5-7:30pm
15 Romolo Place
415-398-1359
Events
Tre Bicchieri, Slow Food’s Italian Wine Awards, comes only to N.Y., L.A. and S.F.
Only coming to three cities – New York, L.A. and yes, S.F. — Tre Bicchieri (i.e. “three glasses”) is the Italian wine event of the year with some big names hosting. Gambero Rosso and Slow Food Nation are showcasing wine producers honored with the Tre Bicchieri award. Tickets are available through K&L Wine Merchants at $50, which includes a complimentary copy of Gambero Rosso’s “Italian Wines 2009” (a $40 value and guide to all things Italian wine). Sounds reasonable for the added bonus of being able to taste more than 100 wines at the event.
4:30-7pm
Fort Mason Center, Herbst Pavilion
415-441-3400
Cafe Maritime’s seafood platter
Deals
Cafe Maritime impresses your date with free champagne and cream pie
Cafe Maritime is one of those underrated gems that’s been around for years but many locals still don’t know about. One reason: it’s tucked in the midst of cheap motels and chain restaurants on Lombard Street, where a few unexpected spots reside (hello, the ultimate, Zushi Puzzle ?) Maritime is one of those cozy New England seafood houses serving buttery lobster rolls, crispy fish and chips and creamy chowders. Wednesday nights are now “Date Night Special” with a free glass of champagne with dinner and a free coconut cream pie to share afterwards. On top of that, there’s a new prix-fixe every night with three courses for $33, starting with New England Seafood Chowder or a salad, moving on to your choice of four entrees, ending with dessert.
2417 Lombard Street
415-885-2530
Classes
Go whole hog with Meatpaper mag’s butchery class at UC Berkeley
The Society for Agriculture and Food Ecology starts the series, “Meet your Meat,” with “The Art of the Butcher,” a class at UC Berkeley hosted by Meatpaper magazine . The meat panel is all-star: Ryan Farr, formerly of Orson, now Ivy Elegance, A16/SPQR/Urbino’s Nate Appleman, Avedano’s Melanie Eisemann and David Budworth, Mark Pasternak of Devil’s Gulch Ranch and moderator, Marissa Guggiana of Sonoma Direct and Meatpaper. Ryan Farr demonstrates how to break down an entire carcass into cuts of meat, while the panel discusses getting whole animals from local slaughterhouses to more humanely, economically use all meat instead of buying plastic-wrapped grocery store meats.
7pm
UC Berkeley Campus, 105 North Gate Hall
Berkeley
510-536-5800
www.agrariana.org/speakers
RSVP: agrofoodecology@gmail.com
LOCAL ARTIST Andrew Li
TITLE Untitled
BIO Andrew Li was born in San Francisco in 1965. He has been making art at Creativity Explored since 1990 and is currently a student at SF City College.
STORY Li’s loose, sketchy drawings reflect his rapid artmaking process. Cityscapes, figures, and machines are his most frequent subject matter. He typically sketches from life, incorporating what he observes in SF and during his travels into artwork with precise perspective and an attention to detail.
SHOW "Andrew Li," through March 21. Jack Fischer Gallery, 49 Geary, suite 440, SF. Call for hours. (415) 956-1178, www.jackfischergallery.com
SFBG’s Laura Peach rounds up local items and experiences to die for. See her last installment here.
A few months ago I skipped down to Mexico to escape the cold and rainy west coast winter. As I stood in the square outside Museo National de Arte, smiling as the sun warmed my face, a group of traditional Aztec dancers started to dance. As their feet stamped the stone in unison I found myself mesmerized by the vibrant feathers swaying in their fancy headdresses.
When I travel, I usually pick just one thing from each place I visit to incorporate into my wardrobe to remind me of the beautiful places I’ve been. My sentimental takeaway from Mexico was, of course, feathered. I found a wispy pair of earrings I loved from a street vendor and every time I wear them, I hear drum beats and see swirling headdresses—at lease for a moment.
Back in San Francisco, I was again allured by feathered headdresses, this time as a fun accessory. For there is something magical about having feathers in your hair (or on your head). They take off some of the weight of the world and make the possibility of flight seem real. Here are a few ways to bring featherlightness into your life.
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1. Head Games
The playful colors and textured layers of this hairpiece ($68) make a strong statement. Rooster and pheasant feathers move with the breeze and every turn of your neck. “Each little feather is like a work of art in itself,” says local Circadian Studios designer Deanna Abney. “I was in awe of the spectacular colors and shapes.” All the feathers are naturally molted, then steamed and sanitized. So no stress that any unwelcome visitors will nestle in your tresses. This may just bring out the Aztec dancer in you.
Dress, 2271 Chestnut, SF. (415) 440-3737
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Paige, 23rd St. and Mission
Tell us about your look: “Go with whatever’s tight.”
By Michelle Broder Van Dyke
1. The Shape of Things
The Museum of Craft and Folk Art recently exhibited “The Shape of Things: Paper Traditions and Tranformations.” The show was a historical investigation of traditional cut, folded, and molded paper arts from Korea, Japan, China, and the Philippines, along with contemporary art inspired by them. Long-established Asian paper arts, such as Filipino parol lanterns, were juxtaposed with contemporary creations, such as Gene Apellido’s decorative stars, while little plaques outlined the date and cause of death for various traditional craft arts, noting such realities as mass production and forest extinction. Nonetheless, the emphasis was positive. The overall presentation revealed how classic papercuts, katagami, paper lanterns, papier-mache, and paper boxes inspired the adjacent contemporary art, which varied in degrees of intrigue and engagement.
Bull Moose, Opus 413, by Robert J. Lang
Banner for “The Shape of Things”
Spectacular life-like creepy crawlers such as a centipede, a black widow, and a Goliath beetle were placed alongside each other in glass cases that looked more like the taxidermy collection of a mad scientist than what they really were: displays of intricate crease patterns based on the mathematical theory of origami geometric constructions (i.e. Huzita axioms). Pitting conventional origami diagrams, which describe a figure by a folding sequence — a linear step-by-step pattern of progression — against crease patterns, which, by contrast, provide a one-step connection from the unfolded square to the folded form, is no competition. In the past ten years, crease pattern origami has become the popular style, allowing anyone to fold a real-looking 3-D moose.
Juliette Tang shouts out to local bloggers. Read her last installment here.
Image: El Faro burrito via Menupages
I like my burritos vegetarian, vaguely the length of a collapsible umbrella, and girthy enough to put a grown man into a coma if dropped off a 10-story building. I like my tortilla grilled — adding just rice, pinto beans, spicy salsa, avocado slices, a healthy dose of sour cream, and THAT’S IT. Babies crying in a movie theater is less of a pet peeve for me than lettuce in my burrito, and you might as well eat your burrito with soy sauce and hummus and then stuff a bacon doughnut in it if you’re the type to ruin it with grilled vegetables.
Whenever I get a burrito at a taqueria I’ve never tried before, I always mentally rate it against all the other burritos I consumed in San Francisco and then cross-check my findings afterward with what the editors are saying on Burritophile or Burritoeater, two of the most comprehensive burrito blogs in San Francisco. These blogs are written by seasoned burrito eaters who give you their input (which they graciously admit is by no means gospel) on what makes a good burrito and where to find good (and bad) burritos all over San Francisco. Between these two blogs, burritos from nearly every taqueria in San Francisco, from SOMA to the Sunset, have been consumed and rated. These writers aren’t trying to tell you how to eat your burrito; they just want to take you with them on a quest for the perfect burrito that is equally entertaining and informative.
SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.
Today’s Look: Madeliaine, Mission and 19th St.
Tell us about your look: “No comment…”
SFBG’s Diana Dunkelberger digs her fork into a deliciously local low-price menu every week. Check out her most recent installment here.
Blackened beef carpaccio and crisp salsify with rocket, corn cream and a basil emulsion. Brandade of salt cod with crostini and pequillo peppers. Ossobuco with gremolata, risotto milanese, grilled radicchio, tomato confit and parmesan bone marrow crisp. At Carême 350, you can have courses like these for just a fraction above the cost of the raw ingredients.
