Vacation III
Monday morning I awoke with a slight hangover - the first (and last) of the trip. It wasn't too bad. I was a little headachey and tired, is all. We drank a LOT in the Castro. The beer was cheap ($2.75 for Corona) and so were we. Okay, we weren't cheap. After all, we were going to charge that yellow eyed drunk $5 to see us kiss.
That was so creepy.
Monday, we had Starbucks for breakfast (and breakfast from Starbucks gets old really quickly, let me tell you. Chocolate croissants and raspberry almond scones are only good for breakfast once every other year. Eating them twice in a week is too much. It makes you feel queasy. It's like eating McDonald's or Waffle House or something - it's tasty, but it's disgusting and maybe even sickening). After our coffee (I will never say "venti". I will always say "large"), we took a cab to the gate at Grant Ave. and the other street where Chinatown begins.
We walked up and down Grant Ave. and bought some crap at the Canton Bazaar, which is this huge Wal*Mart of an Asian import store. It's great. And here's a helpful shopping hint: When visiting San Francisco, buy your souvenirs in Chinatown. Chinatown has all the stuff you see on Fisherman's Wharf for a fraction of the cost. For instance, a small, sterling silver cable car charm cost $1.95 at the Canton Bazaar. The same charm cost $8.95 at a store on Pier 39. Don't get ripped off!
We had lunch at a large restaurant near the Li-Po bar. The dim sum lady came around and I was going to have that, but I couldn't understand anything she was saying, so Schwulerin and I opted to order from the menu, instead. I was kind of depressed, because when I worked at the casinos, I could understand all kinds of broken and heavily accented English. It saddened me that my ear for accents had eroded. So I decided to eat my way out of my sadness.
Schwulerin and I started with the hot and sour soup, which was hot and sour and delicious. We gobbled it up quickly. Then I had clams in black bean sauce, which was spicy and wonderful, and Schwulerin had chow fun, which was bland and awful. We washed it all down with a Heineken each, and grabbed a cab to Ghirardelli Square so I could buy chocolate for the reps.
We bought the chocolate, then walked down to the Hyde Street Pier, where we took this picture of Hyde Street:
We walked to Pier 39 and saw sea lions:
We had a beer at the pier, and watched a bad comedian/juggler perform. We found a bench and watched the tourists ebb and flow. It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon and I was happy to be alive.
Our Dear Nash works on a nearby pier as a mime. We waited for him to get off work, and he took us to a dramatically decorated restaurant overlooking the bay. It was called Butterfly. It was fucking great, man. Nash the oenophile picked a very velvety Arrowood cabernet to have with dinner. As appetizers, I had duck confit spring rolls with mustard (drool); Nash had barbecued pork served atop a head of lettuce (drool); and Schwulerin had mussels and clams in garlic butter sauce (drool). As entrees, I had (get this) macadamia nut and blue cheese coated filet mignon served over mashed potatoes and accompanied by steamed carrots, mushrooms and green beans in a sweet brown sauce (drool, DROOL!); Nash had a whole red snapper beautifully presented - tucked into itself like a napkin crown - which was crispy and tender and snapperific; Schwulerin had a fried chicken breast stuffed with crabmeat and mascarpone cheese served with mashed potatoes and corn. For dessert, I had a bananas Foster tart thing which was painfully wonderful and which I washed down with an amaretto coffee (the waitress had never heard of an amaretto coffee before, which I thought was odd. I told her it was coffee with a shot of amaretto, and she said, "we can do that."); Schwulerin had vanilla creme brulee with an Irish coffee (it was a very good creme brulee, but the citrus one I had at Cozmos was better, nyah); Nash had regular coffee (because he's not an alcoholic like Schwulerin and I are) and a slice of dense, sweet, warm chocolate cake.
Best meal of the trip.
Although Cozmo's was pretty good, too. That might have been the best meal of the trip, not Butterfly. Hmmm. We had very excellent servers at both. The Cozmo's server was sarcastic and funny, and the Butterfly server told us as she filled our glasses that she was so hungover at work one day that she had a hard time pouring wine because her hands were shaking. Both were beautiful. Although the Cozmo's server was more beautiful. When did I get this shallow, that the beauty of my server affects the opinion I have of a restaurant?
Hmmm. I think I'll say Butterfly was the better meal. The restaurant was far prettier than Cozmo's, and the duck confit spring roll appetizer was slightly better than the tuna tartare appetizer. Butterfly's filet and Cozmo's lamb were equally delicious, and while Cozmo's does a wonderful citrus creme brulee, Butterfly's bananas Foster tart is a better overall dessert. What do you think, Schwulerin?
SCHWULERIN: Actually, I think the meal at Cozmo's was slightly better. Although my recollections may be influenced by the fact that at Cozmo's I was also slightly drunker. I forget what we had as appetizers or for dessert at Cozmo's, but I remember how much SR liked her lamb, and I loved the entree I got. It was tortellini with a pumpkin stuffing in a creamy peanut sauce. I think both SR and Nash found my meal too sweet for a dinner entree, but I was extremely pleased with it.
Oh, wait. Now I remember. Nash got a baby lettuce thing for an appetizer, but I got an amazing chocolate thing for dessert. It was elaborate and yummy. As I recall, it was a diamond shaped dark chocolate shell with chocolate mousse inside. I remember being quite happy.
The view of the bay at Butterfly, however, was way better than the wood paneling and sport television at Cozmo's.
SR: I think I liked Butterfly just a bit more. God, it's so hard to decide!
COMING SOON....WINE COUNTRY TOUR! YAY, BOOZE!
That was so creepy.
Monday, we had Starbucks for breakfast (and breakfast from Starbucks gets old really quickly, let me tell you. Chocolate croissants and raspberry almond scones are only good for breakfast once every other year. Eating them twice in a week is too much. It makes you feel queasy. It's like eating McDonald's or Waffle House or something - it's tasty, but it's disgusting and maybe even sickening). After our coffee (I will never say "venti". I will always say "large"), we took a cab to the gate at Grant Ave. and the other street where Chinatown begins.
We walked up and down Grant Ave. and bought some crap at the Canton Bazaar, which is this huge Wal*Mart of an Asian import store. It's great. And here's a helpful shopping hint: When visiting San Francisco, buy your souvenirs in Chinatown. Chinatown has all the stuff you see on Fisherman's Wharf for a fraction of the cost. For instance, a small, sterling silver cable car charm cost $1.95 at the Canton Bazaar. The same charm cost $8.95 at a store on Pier 39. Don't get ripped off!
We had lunch at a large restaurant near the Li-Po bar. The dim sum lady came around and I was going to have that, but I couldn't understand anything she was saying, so Schwulerin and I opted to order from the menu, instead. I was kind of depressed, because when I worked at the casinos, I could understand all kinds of broken and heavily accented English. It saddened me that my ear for accents had eroded. So I decided to eat my way out of my sadness.
Schwulerin and I started with the hot and sour soup, which was hot and sour and delicious. We gobbled it up quickly. Then I had clams in black bean sauce, which was spicy and wonderful, and Schwulerin had chow fun, which was bland and awful. We washed it all down with a Heineken each, and grabbed a cab to Ghirardelli Square so I could buy chocolate for the reps.
We bought the chocolate, then walked down to the Hyde Street Pier, where we took this picture of Hyde Street:
We walked to Pier 39 and saw sea lions:
We had a beer at the pier, and watched a bad comedian/juggler perform. We found a bench and watched the tourists ebb and flow. It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon and I was happy to be alive.
Our Dear Nash works on a nearby pier as a mime. We waited for him to get off work, and he took us to a dramatically decorated restaurant overlooking the bay. It was called Butterfly. It was fucking great, man. Nash the oenophile picked a very velvety Arrowood cabernet to have with dinner. As appetizers, I had duck confit spring rolls with mustard (drool); Nash had barbecued pork served atop a head of lettuce (drool); and Schwulerin had mussels and clams in garlic butter sauce (drool). As entrees, I had (get this) macadamia nut and blue cheese coated filet mignon served over mashed potatoes and accompanied by steamed carrots, mushrooms and green beans in a sweet brown sauce (drool, DROOL!); Nash had a whole red snapper beautifully presented - tucked into itself like a napkin crown - which was crispy and tender and snapperific; Schwulerin had a fried chicken breast stuffed with crabmeat and mascarpone cheese served with mashed potatoes and corn. For dessert, I had a bananas Foster tart thing which was painfully wonderful and which I washed down with an amaretto coffee (the waitress had never heard of an amaretto coffee before, which I thought was odd. I told her it was coffee with a shot of amaretto, and she said, "we can do that."); Schwulerin had vanilla creme brulee with an Irish coffee (it was a very good creme brulee, but the citrus one I had at Cozmos was better, nyah); Nash had regular coffee (because he's not an alcoholic like Schwulerin and I are) and a slice of dense, sweet, warm chocolate cake.
Best meal of the trip.
Although Cozmo's was pretty good, too. That might have been the best meal of the trip, not Butterfly. Hmmm. We had very excellent servers at both. The Cozmo's server was sarcastic and funny, and the Butterfly server told us as she filled our glasses that she was so hungover at work one day that she had a hard time pouring wine because her hands were shaking. Both were beautiful. Although the Cozmo's server was more beautiful. When did I get this shallow, that the beauty of my server affects the opinion I have of a restaurant?
Hmmm. I think I'll say Butterfly was the better meal. The restaurant was far prettier than Cozmo's, and the duck confit spring roll appetizer was slightly better than the tuna tartare appetizer. Butterfly's filet and Cozmo's lamb were equally delicious, and while Cozmo's does a wonderful citrus creme brulee, Butterfly's bananas Foster tart is a better overall dessert. What do you think, Schwulerin?
SCHWULERIN: Actually, I think the meal at Cozmo's was slightly better. Although my recollections may be influenced by the fact that at Cozmo's I was also slightly drunker. I forget what we had as appetizers or for dessert at Cozmo's, but I remember how much SR liked her lamb, and I loved the entree I got. It was tortellini with a pumpkin stuffing in a creamy peanut sauce. I think both SR and Nash found my meal too sweet for a dinner entree, but I was extremely pleased with it.
Oh, wait. Now I remember. Nash got a baby lettuce thing for an appetizer, but I got an amazing chocolate thing for dessert. It was elaborate and yummy. As I recall, it was a diamond shaped dark chocolate shell with chocolate mousse inside. I remember being quite happy.
The view of the bay at Butterfly, however, was way better than the wood paneling and sport television at Cozmo's.
SR: I think I liked Butterfly just a bit more. God, it's so hard to decide!
COMING SOON....WINE COUNTRY TOUR! YAY, BOOZE!