photo SF Brit

by Karl Gregg of Two Chefs & A Table | As I left off Part One we were leaving the market, not so willfully but leaving it nonetheless. We had done our research beforehand and had other areas to visit and things to see on our jam-packed trip. So, with a lot still to absorb, we headed off to new targets.

One thing we have learned from a taking a few of these trips together is that a good food trip requires a little advance work. Some of the very essential elements include:

– A map (GPS helps–thank god for smart phones!)
– A keen sense of direction in at least one person in the group
– And of course, a plan

So our plan included some butcher shops where we planned to do a bit of market research on the ground for a future project (you’ll have to keep an eye out for press releases and news to get full details of this next Two Chefs’ venture). The two areas we had highlighted were the Diamond Heights and Mission districts where we were in search of a few butcher shops that focused on old school service and new school attitude.

The first stop we made was to Drewes Bros, located in an area that reminded us of the 19th and McDonald area of Kits/Kerrisdale. They were in a small strip in the middle of residential that housed some really cool independent shops. First was a corner store with a great wine shelf, some great stuff from Napa for cheap: Chimney Rock, Duckhorn, Mumm, Shafer and Stags Leap, to name a few. There was even a Signorello Vineyard vintage for $29! It was tough to pull our crew out of there but we got back on track and headed down the street to Drewes.

It was, as we hoped, a great old school butcher shop, almost out of a book. They had a few sandwiches made the way they wanted to make them, no thousand-option Subway specials here. The shop had a bunch of vintage scales and equipment that was still in usable shape, a great big wooden butcher block and even a great library of food books!! Just awesome. I bought one book “Fat, an appreciation of a misunderstood ingredient” –- go buy it!

They had a great meat case filled with product, from Niman Farms to handmade sausages, jerky, terrines and meatloaf. They had a porchetta-style Panini, great bread, mustard, and pickled vegetables all grilled crisp. We were already in level 1 food coma at this point and it was only 11 am.

We then headed back towards the Mission District, and not only was it enough we are driving a rental van in a tough area to navigate, but then I saw a warning light on the dash–never a good sign. Luckily it was just a low tire sp we stopped at a small Sanford & Son-type garage to fix the tire. Not in the plans, but every plan needs to have a little flexibility in it—another good lesson for food trips!

Back on the road again, we landed the next shop in an area called Laurel Heights. All hail Bryan’s Quality Meats! Again, it was very old school with a big selection of salts, cures, rubs, and sauces first of all in a small grocery area. Adjacent to this was the centre of the operation: the huge white case, the number machine for next to be served and all the old school meat cuts. Crown rack of lamb, great looking flank steaks and stuffed double cut chops next to a huge selection of hand made sausages, some great looking T-Bone steaks, Porterhouse and serious New Yorks. They cut them big and, by the looks of it, they sell a lot. It had a great feel and we found an old label bottle of Lea and Perrins that, as is the trend in America, was a huge 2-liter size. I sure hoped it wouldn’t break in the suitcase.

After a few more stops and, yes, more food, we were into the entertaining part of the trip: Canucks vs Sharks in San Jose! We made a quick stop at hotel to gather the girls who, strangely, didn’t want to tour butcher shops all day. Weird I know! And then it was a drive down the freeway to San Jose

A side note: the Shark Tank aka HP Pavilion (in the centre of Silicon Valley after all) looks like a mall, has more food stalls than any other arena I have ever seen and serves $16 double vodkas. And although we left the arena with heads hanging a bit low dealing with the odd American heckler, we still we able to taunt them with gold medal rebuttals. Thanks again boys!

With the idea of packing the most possible into the trip, we headed back to San Fran with the idea of packing in some more nightlife exploration. First, we headed to Cantina and Rye both recommended by cocktail guru Jamie Boudreau now of Seattle fame. I must be getting old, I remember when he was a bus boy!

Cantina was a small spot with a short bar and a cool back room with a DJ booth and tables all nestled together. As with a lot of places in San Francisco, after a certain time all the service is walk up at the bar. A couple of cocktails were standouts: the five spice margarita, and the pomegranate Manhattan. Then to finish, the Carmen Amyaya, one bourbon drink that I have no idea what was in it but it was herbal and sweetish and really good.

Then we headed off to Rye, also a Boudreau-recommended watering hole. It was a really busy spot where we enjoyed a couple of good cocktails. I’d like to go back when it was a little slower–but a very worthwhile stop nonetheless.

This time with the password burned in my brain, we headed back to Bourbon and Branch to get in the other rooms that we had missed first time around. We walked up to the doors at 1:30 – 1:45 only to be told that they are done for the night, and I thought only Vancouver had early last calls! Silly me. One point worth nothing is that these three bars, all quite well known and highly regarded, are close by each other–walking distance really. A good thing considering they mix the drinks pretty stiff—you don’t want to be driving.

It’s late and its time to rest as tomorrow is another day on our fee. Wait, are they still selling beer? Ok, six Rolling Rock wont hurt . . .

Update from Sunday AM, 6 Rolling Rock hurt right now! Much to the chagrin of the rest of the group, we are late and meet up at XYZ restaurant in the W Hotel. It’s a great-looking room, but in reality a fairly typical hotel-style room. We tucked into a great round of much needed Bloody Marys made with great fresh market vegetables like asparagus, radish and peppers–all house pickled, along with a couple of fresh OJ and Prosecco mimosas. Coffee was important, and also equally as good as the rest of the drinks.

Brunch is good, though not spectacular. The highlights were a handmade cinnamon bun, fresh fruit and house made vanilla yogurt and poached eggs over brioche.

All repaired and fuelled up, we headed off to Chinatown with everyone wearing comfortable shoes to cope with the hills.

Some Highlights:

The Wok Shop: we got some small pow woks, hand hammered and seasoned and only 14 dollars. I also got a small Japanese knife made for lefties!!! Yes I am a lefty, and if you’re in San Fran, go this landmark spot for some unique equipment.

Buddha Bar: a small bar on a corner a block west of the Wok Shop on Grant. With the knowledge I am aging myself but it felt like we were in Rosie’s bar from M*A*S*H fame–a small Chinese lady tending bar, a juke box with a mix of everything from Barry White to Garth Brooks and a bathroom that I swear was 4 stories below ground level.

Fire crackers!!! Everywhere there were bottle rockets, m-50’s but unfortunately homeland security would frown on carrying that in our suitcase.

And in general, great looking restaurants, tonnes of dim sum and seafood, but with brunch still lingering, we took a pass. Next time Ill come hungry and ready for food.

We headed off to the Russian Hill area for a quick tour and made a couple of stops at small Italian restaurants for quick beers and wines. Then back to the hotel to rest before more dinner hour adventures. Again, we needed more room for food in the Russian Hill area as there were some great looking spaces and some unique old school spots.

Keep up for Part 3.