TrelayneNYC

tonight: Zucchine alla parmigiana ("zucchini Parmesan") Fagiolini romani all'umido ("Romano beans stewed with tomato") Peaches and bananas for dessert

Ravioli all'ortica (nettle ravioli) with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and black pepper Green salad, shallot vinaigrette Fresh fruit for dessert

Insalata caprese. It's practically one of the easiest salads you can think of with only five ingredients (tomato, basil, mozzarella, olive oil, salt) and yet you can still err as evidenced by the version I had last week where the restaurant we went to apparently didn't believe in seasoning. And they added lettuce. Don't be like them. Chicken braised in white wine with mushrooms, garlic and rosemary Melon and strawberry salad for dessert

This was the scene at 8:30 am. It's like these people have no lives. Don't mind me, that's just my grumbling at having to get up early on a Saturday in order to be able to buy anything worth getting. today: herbs (basil, rosemary, Italian parsley), tomatoes, stinging nettles, chicken, cheeses (mozzarella, Parmigiano-Reggiano, ricotta), strawberries, romano beans, Walla Walla onions, salad greens (mesclun, spinach, watercress), zucchini, summer squash. I think I might be forgetting a few additional things...

Roasted cauliflower and cherry tomatoes with caramelized onion and lime Leftover BBQ chicken

I thought Toro in NYC was much better. Jamon de la Quercia Shishito peppers, olive oil, Maldon sea salt Quail with almonds, green olives, spring peas, Meyer lemon Mushrooms, fiddlehead ferns, farm egg Cuttlefish and orzo risotto, with squid ink, goat cheese and ham Galician octopus, with charred onions and crispy potatoes Cauliflower and kohlrabi with pine nuts, raisins, anchovy and pimenton de la vera This was a bit salty IIRC. Seafood stew with lobster, sea urchin and parsnip Smoked duck drumettes with an apricot-mustard glaze The kitchen comped us this one. It was my least favorite of all of the above: dry and boring. Out of all of those, only three four are tapas that I could see being served in Spain. The other difference between Beso and Toro - at least in my admittedly limited experience - is that the ingredients make sense.

Bingo!

They're supposed to be tapas. Only one of those pictures is a traditional tapa. Guess which one correctly and you win a Snickers bar.

Much better Friday night date night dinner at one of our local tapas places. It's not Casa Mono nor does it approach the quality of Toro in NYC. And you can have better in San Francisco; Esperpento comes immediately to mind. Having said that, the food is ok and since B and I are cheap dates, Beso served its purpose. Also, remember what I said elsewhere about the quality of restaurants in the Castro. I suppose I'll have to give the place another shot. We liked it this visit unlike last time where someone in the kitchen was heavy-handed with the salt. Apologies for the blurriness of some of the photos. Watermelon gazpacho with cucumber and tomato. Not a bad rendition, although I prefer a traditional version made in a clay bowl. What fruit there was, was an underlying flavor that wasn't overwhelming. Seared marinated beef skewers, toasted bread, salsa verde. Beef was a bit on the chewy side and not much marinade flavor; was otherwise nothing to write home about. Pickled onions saved it from being utterly boring. For $10 BTW. Roasted wild mushrooms, rosemary Manchego cheese. This was amazing and I'm going to try duplicating it for brunch tomorrow. Gambas al ajillo (garlic shrimp) with toast points. Shrimp was a tad overcooked; otherwise very good. The only way to beat Beso's is by making your own. Seared fresh chorizo, sunchoke purée, spinach, pickled red onion, garlic chips, red wine reduction. We thought this was a plate that suffered from "kitchen sink syndrome" and it shows. Also, sunchokes don't exactly inspire. It's the middle of Indian summer in San Francisco. Why isn't the kitchen using produce that reflects the season? Beso 4058 18th Street (Castro Street)

Nothing makes me angrier than when I am at a restaurant that clearly doesn't care. $136 for POOR Italian food tonight, for four people: hard bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar; bland insalata caprese with radicchio and other lettuces (no seasoning whatsoever - even Frank's recipe has salt); mediocre chicken parmigiana (heavy breaded chicken, bland sauce); bland, underseasoned flank steak cooked with rosemary and vinegar, served with bland fried potatoes and steamed broccoli, and watery balsamic vinegar-tinged gravy; gummy asparagus and mushroom risotto. I was dreading the food once the waiter served the bread. The "loaf" we received was hard as a rock. I had to soak the pieces I broke off in oil and vinegar to render it edible. The waiter handed us a plate of cookies and gummy bears along with the check. The wines were just "ok". We skipped dessert, paid the bill and went to Stella's for mascarpone-filled sponge cake. We went there so you don't have to. I wish I had brought my camera to document everything. Michaelangelo Ristorante and Caffe 579 Columbus Avenue (Union Street) North Beach ps. if it was up to me, I'd have gone elsewhere but that's what happens when you're with friends and they spend 15 minutes deciding on where to go. it's a behavior I've noticed is common in San Francisco. the New Yorker in me just wants to scream.

A bit OT but I thought I'd share. This is a pic from a place in the heart of the Castro that sells dishware and is also a hardware store. All of the Le Creuset pieces (which are easily identifiable I might add) are in the $25 to $30 range. The white ramekins are not Le Creuset, and so, don't count. I was especially surprised by the mortar and pestle. I bought an M&P at Bed, Bath & Beyond for 1/3 of that price in 2000 and had it up until my departure from New York City.

We had brunch at one of our favorite dim sum palaces which unfortunately will soon be torn down and converted to a real estate development. New Asia Restaurant 772 Pacific Avenue (Stockton Street) Chinatown

The roast pork loin and plum cake turned out really well. Roast pork is from A Recipe for Cooking, pages 183-185. The recipe contains an error: total roasting time should be until a meat thermometer registers 160 F when inserted. That's clearly going to be more than 20 minutes. Plum cake is from The Art of Simple Food II, page 258. I'm teaching myself certain things which I didn't know before, like cooking meat and baking. Next stop: bread. I might attempt challah next weekend. We'll see.

For dinner tonight.... Roast pork loin stuffed with olives and herbs Steamed broccoli dressed with California extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt and black pepper Pflaumenkuchen (German plum cake), made with Flavor King pluots

If it were plated a little more elegantly, maybe. A little more figs please though. Ditch the panna cotta - that was likely added as "value". The salad doesn't need it. I'm of the opinion that the ingredients have to make sense, and minimalist is best sometimes. This is one of those.

The parade of mediocrity continues that consists of restaurants that exist in the Castro. B and I have date night once a week. We usually alternate between a cheap/moderate place and an expensive place. Last night, we went to Starbelly and I was reminded why we hadn't gone there since 2015. Grilled fig and cress salad with blue cheese, panna cotta, honey and balsamic. The panna cotta was tasteless and added nothing. And there were literally three figs on that plate; technically, one and a half figs since the fruit was halved. For this, we were charged $9. It could have been dessert. Also, horrible plating. Try (!) to have some effort. Bavette steak, salt-crusted potatoes, grilled cebollita, mojo verde. Steak was slightly chewy and the potatoes served as "filler". Note the amount of potatoes in B's dish. I thought to myself: 'The farmers' markets in this city have amazing produce that makes the rest of the country weep for joy when they first taste what's on offer, and THIS is the best you can do for this plate? That's insulting. Really and truly.' I object to potatoes used as filler. At least they were prepared well. Halibut, grilled Little Gem lettuce, butter bean purée, chermoula and olive salsa. The halibut was overcooked and dry, and the purée an afterthought. Bill came out to $95 (with tax and 20% tip) for barely average food. We went there so you don't have to. Starbelly 3583 16th Street (Market Street) The Castro Afterwards, we went to the Castro Street branch of The Ice Cream Bar for some dessert. Brownie sundae with buttermilk ice cream and mint chip ice cream, whipped cream, caramel sauce

Brunch for two for August 26, 2017: Sopa de ajo (garlic soup) with tatsoi and poached egg Figs with sheep's milk ricotta cheese and mint Early Girl tomatoes with salt, pepper and extra-virgin olive oil Cantaloupe melon with chili pepper, lime and salt Leftover insalata cruda e cotta Better than at most places you'd find in San Francisco: no lines, no uncomfortable seats and no avocado toast!

Hi ktmoomau -- Yes, that's fresh Cara Cara orange juice that's pictured in one of the photos. There's about 1/4 cup juice. I had measured some olive oil in the measuring cup beforehand, then remembered that last item. Recipe is from Small Victories, pages 104 229-230. I added pine nuts which she doesn't use in the original recipe; it turned out fine. This was last night's: Dinner party for three for August 23, 2017: Meatballs and tomato sauce Insalata cruda e cotta (salad of raw and cooked vegetables) Olive oil cake with almonds, pine nuts and Cara Cara orange Cabernet sauvignon Coffee, herb tea

We had leftovers for dinner tonight: kare-kare (oxtails with eggplant and bok choy in peanut sauce) and bagoong (fried garlic and fermented shrimp paste) adobo (chicken and pork with vinegar, garlic and soy sauce) fagiolini e pomodoro (green beans braised in tomato sauce) creamed corn (corn cooked with butter, salt and cream) Then I prepared the following for a dinner party for three: Beef and pork meatballs (breadcrumbs, milk, Italian parsley, mint, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, nutmeg, egg, beef, pork). The meatballs were baked instead of fried and will be braised in a tomato sauce tomorrow afternoon. I have made these plenty of times before and prefer baking them instead of frying. They're lighter and there's not as much mess; can't beat that. Olive oil cake with almonds, pine nuts and Cara Cara oranges

Broiled cod with anchovy-raisin-parsley salsa Creamed corn The salsa saved the meal from being a dinner straight out of the 1950s. Plates were almost monochromatic. BTW, the corn is from a recipe from "Small Victories" by Julia Turshen, page 104. Takes 15 minutes from start to finish and has three ingredients not counting salt and pepper. B remarked, "It's better than the canned version!"

Was from the Ferry Building farmers' market this past Saturday. They were going for 1 lb./$5.50.

I had asked B to make some chili this past weekend -- which was a success -- and I found out later that he had used a Cook's Illustrated recipe. I suppose I'll have to revisit my dislike of that magazine now. Oh, this was tonight's dessert: a fig galette that had a bit of frangipane spread beneath the fruit.

Le Marais has a few branches in San Francisco. We had brunch at the Castro location today given that we live in the neighborhood. Croissant. On par with the ones at Tartine. A bonus is that the staff at Le Marais has ZERO attitude which practically ensures that we'll be back. Butter and jam. The jam was nothing to write home about however. Their hot chocolate was basically a cup of steamed cream with a shot of cocoa. Oh well, can't get everything right all the time I suppose. Croque monsieur with ham and gruyère, small salad. Unlike at other places we've been to so far, Le Marais uses brioche instead of croissants for their croques. Vinaigrette had a touch too much mustard and acid. Duck confit with roasted potatoes, mushrooms and small salad. Same issue with the vinaigrette here as above. Plate was otherwise perfect. Le Marais 498 Sanchez (18th Street) The Castro

Thanks! This was last night's: Shrimp scampi Potatoes, green beans and wax beans with pesto Genovese Cantaloupe melon and leftover peach galette for dessert

For brunch today: summer squash and onion sautéed in olive oil, then combined with leftover slow-roasted cherry tomatoes and basil pesto. Served as a filling inside a pair of three-egg omelettes, and by itself.