Tartine

Oh my god, just saw a picture of the bakery case at 'Tartine' and I want to say I hate you people up there. We need places to buy pastries too! Quit hogging! So selfish! There is a tart that appears to be some kind of custard topped with dribbles of whipped cream and rose petals that is making me tear up.

[kevin]

do they still have the duck liver aka foie gras and fig sandwich, i thought they took it off the menu.

[allan]

<snif>! i still miss that sandwich. when i asked a while ago, they said it wasn't coming back. sigh, so wrong and yet so good.

[Chefanie]

OOOHHHHH The PUDDING! It makes me weep! Last year for my birthday I took myself to lunch there. I went alone because I wanted my shame to be secret. I had the Duck Liver sandwich. Perfectly seared slices on thickly sliced french bread and a chocolate pudding. The pudding was so good that I got a second one. That was my fat calories for the entire year. Here it is, one year later (to the Day!) and I still remember that pudding. I'm going back tomorrow (my birthday) for my annual pudding. I wish I could go more often but I don't dare.

[Gerard]

Good and heavy sounds about right to me. I love the place.

Get the croque monsieur for breakfast.

G

[ngardet]

If you want great croissant i.e. light, slightly crunchy and tasty go to Arlequin on Hayes. They have very good scones too. As for Tartine, had it been located in Paris, it would have gone out of business a long time ago. World class, give me a break...

[kevin]

oh, wow, those hot chocolate croissanta are pretty damn good, but yes they are rich, add one of there huge though airy grougeryes to round out the morning.

[ffelman]

please, you have got to be kidding me!? looks better than it tastes... too heavy...? Did you folks really eat there or did you stumble into the Cala Foods up in the Castro.

For me Tartine is one of the world class french bakeries, from their pastries to their cakes, tarts and cookies and open face sandwiches (tartines, their namesake) everything is made with unbelievable care and tastes far better than it looks.

If you don't like it stay away from Tartine and leave it for us who appreciate it because lord knows we need the line to be shorter ;-)

[Atomica]

I totally agree with the heavy part. The croissants are kind of a morning-long project to eat, especially the almond (oh excuse me, I mean "frangipane") and chocolate croissants. They are twice as big as the croissants in most bakeries. Most of their stuff tastes great, especially that PUDDING. There are some misses, which is not unexpected for a place that makes such a large variety of baked goods.

[ChowFun_derek]

...and their BREAD!!!!
Absolutely my favorite in the Bay Area.....still!! It has not yet been 'deposed"... get it hot from the ovens...ready usually between 4:30 and 5:00 pm...

[ChowFun_derek]

Actually the poster said..."everything at Tartine's tastes even BETTER than it looks!!!"
I guess we'll just have to put up with this poster being in line!!!

Oh, that must be the lemon tart... it's tart, creamy, and the crust is like a lighter shortbread cookie-- I'm a fan. Hope you try tartine soon!

I may as well rub it in and say that everything at Tartine tastes even better than it looks.

Tartine stuff is good, but boy is it not digest. This is the only place I cannot finish a pain au (scharfenberger) chocolat. Way too heavy for me, where it is supposed to be airy. Delanghe on fillmore st. is more sophisticated.

Funny - I had the same reaction to a butter & sugar morning bun I had at Tartine. I can usually polish off sweets, but it was so heavy that a few bites were enough for me.
Now that I think about it, maybe that is a good thing for my waistline!

Tartine stuff is good, but boy is it not digest. This is the only place I cannot finish a pain au (scharfenberger) chocolat. Way too heavy for me, where it is supposed to be airy. Delanghe on fillmore st. is more sophisticated.

[Atomica]

Delanghe more sophisticated?? WOW! I'd say more dirty and disorganized, sure. I was expecting to like Delanghe, but the stuff looked like a junior high school project to me.

[rworange]

What did you try that you didn't like? I'm really surprised by this. There's a larger selection of food at Delanghe than Tartine so the counters are fuller. Did you go at a particular time when it was really crowded or maybe at the end of the day when things look tired?

[Atomica]

It's one of those places with a huge over-reliance on marzipan. That was my impression. I was not there early in the day, so I should probably go back when there is more to look at. I was wholly unimpressed with my one visit. As I said, I went in expecting to love the place.

[rworange]

Yeah, give it another try. I like them mini cupcakes but they need to be eaten fast because the small diameter doesn't keep the cupcake fresh long ... or so I read ... I just immediately scarf them down. Some are better than the others but they all look so pretty. Go for pretty. Didn't notice anything marzipan-y but I wasn't focusing on that section. Not everything is amazing, but what place is ... when it is good though, it is very, very good.