trip review (flour and water, delfina, mission st food, etc...)

[sam1]

i just got back from days in san fran. i posted awhile back looking for recommendations for this nyc chowhounder. in the end, i ate at the following:

thursday late night: arrived at our hotel around 12:30...the only place that seemed like it was still serving food was tommys joynt a few blocks away. it was nearly empty but my friend and i tried the pastrami (fatty but passable) and the ham (ok enough). the stuffing tasted like stouffers but the food was cheap, the beer was surprisingly great (great selection and prices) and we left pleased. i doubt id return unless it was late at night.

friday late breakfast/early lunch: we walked from union square to blue bottle on mint. i was disappointed with my espresso. it tasted burnt and was not nearly hot enough as it shouldve been. the cinnamon brioche was fine enough but for the price (and with the mediocre service), i was unimpressed by blue bottle.

after coffee, we walked to the ferry building where we had split two burgers from taylors automatic refresher. the basic cheeseburger seemed to be more about the bun and condiments than the actual meat in the burger...which i found rather meal-y. the wisconsin burger was a tad better but the meat was not that good. it was packed way too tight and too lean to be honest. i was not impressed with taylors. shake shack puts this place to shame here in nyc. in n' out does a much better job as well...for 1/4 the price.

friday evening: dinner at delfina. i had never been and was overall impressed. my salad starter with pancetta was simple but fresh...something i miss in the winter here in nyc. the braised squid appetizer was nice enough. my spaghetti with urchin and crab was creamy and good but the pasta was a bit on the boring side. it was a nice enough dinner but nothing truly wowed me here. however, for dessert we went to bi-rite for ice cream. i had the salted caramel and the roasted banana. the banana was fine but the salted caramel was so good, i ended up going there 3x in 4 days. unreal.

sat brunch: went to canteen and had a decent breakfast. the blueberry french toast was buttery and solid. the eggs benedict were also quite buttery but good. ive been to canteen before for brunch. it was nice enough. i keep forgetting to try it for dinner. i like the space though.

sat lunch-ish: had an amazing sausage at rosamunde on haight. ive been here before but dont remember them being this good. i had the neurenberg with kraut and mustard...ultra solid and perfect to fill me up before dinner.

sat dinner: mission street food. i was looking forward to this quite a bit. this is something they never have in nyc and i had high expectations. the place was crowded but my reservation resulted in a 2 min wait at 8pm...service was friendly. the menu that night was 'mexican/greek/something' but it mainly seemed like mexican to me. i had some great lamb tacos but everything else was rather forgettable. it was cheap but i had expectations for a knockout meal with a cool vibe...it was merely a cool vibe.

sun lunch: random cantonese dim sum place in soma...went here between football games. nothing too outstanding but definitely hit the spot.

sun dinner: flour and water...wow...yet again, i had high expectations but this one just nailed it. best meal of the trip by far. the pizzas were ok...the funghi was good but nothing id go nuts over. the pasta...that id go nuts over. my friend and i split the chitarra with nettles and squid...outstanding...one of the best pastas ive had in ages. my mixed pork entree was gluttonous and delicious but also heavy. luckily i split that as well. it was a perfect meal with good service, casual vibe. dessert was the bundino...it was ok...ive had better. the pumpkin cake was also merely ok. but overall, the pastas and food were fantastic. reminded me of a much more casual version of convivio here in nyc...food wise.

mon breakfast: dotties...waited about 10 minutes so i was happy. it may be touristy but it was very very excellent for breakfast. had the bleu cheese and bacon scramble and some baked goods...all were great.

mon late lunch: went back to rosamunde and had the weisswurst and the beer sausage. the weisswurst was great...the beer sausage was a bit spicy for my taste. these sausages are just awesome. if i lived in san fran, id eat here a lot. after sausages, we couldnt help ourselves...we walked down haight and down valencia to bi-rite again for more ice cream.

in conclusion, flour and water rules, four barrel also was great (didnt mention my 3 espressos i had there), bi-rite is insane. everything else was solid enough. wish i ate more mexican but what can you do...

[Ruth Lafler]

A belated thanks for reporting back! Interesting that you loved flour + water -- it seems to be a place people really like or really don't like.