A wrong turn was the right thing in SF

So this is what happens when two Portlanders down in Oakland go the wrong direction on the 580, turn around and promptly miss their intended exit, and then somehow end up in the 3-person carpool lane that buzzes freely around the Bay bridge toll booths. Luckily no one noticed....we hope! Although we were in sis-in-law Jane's car, so who cares? Okay, we did, but later Jane didn't seem too concerned. Anyway, the point being, when life throws you a curve instead of a fastball, you'd better be ready to hit it. Of course when that curve leads you into downtown San Francisco at lunchtime, the strike zone expands exponentially.

Our first thought was to go to the Ferry Building for a plate of Hog Island Oysters and time to ponder our options. So we wheel down Embarcadero, find a parking spot, and discover that in "The City" they charge....for 20 minutes of meter time....one dollar. Now I don't have a problem with the amount. But unless I'm going to the laundromat, which thankfully I don't have to do, I don't usually have rolls of quarters rolling around in my car. In any event, since we had about 30 cents between us, it was time for Plan B. We didn't really have a plan b, but I had always wanted to check out A-16, a SF hotspot known for the their Italian cooking that celebrates the Campania region and a place that has been at the top of my to-eat-in-SF list for a long time. Sadly they didn't do lunch on Monday. But their new-ish sister restaurant SPQR, which was on SF Chronicle food guy Michael Bauer's Top 100 list, did. So after quick trip up and over Broadway, a quick left on Fillmore (thank you iPhone maps!), and we were walking in with much anticipation to SPQR's cozy dining room. SPQR moves the food a little bit north of A-16, centering their culinary inspiration to the areas around Rome. We settled at the bar, nabbed a couple of glasses of wine, and started in. They have an extensive antipasti list at SPQR, broken out in to "Cold", "Hot", and "Fried" sections. The charge is $8 each, or $21 for three. Since it would have been fiscally irresponsible not to take advantage of the discount, and because so many delicious sounding things were calling to us, we settled on one choice each from the three different sections. All were wonderful. From the Cold section w had the Tuna Conserva with puntarelle, garlic anchovy, and mojama. A deliciously fresh, balanced, and crisp salad. I'd never had nor heard of puntarelle greens, a member of the chicory family, and they were delicious, with great crunch and texture. To go along with that we added from the Hot section the House-made Pork Sausage Patty with heavenly lentils with pickled onions and a mustard aioli. Does pork ever disappoint? Not here, not now! And for our Fried choice, their Sweet Potatoes with pancetta, fried chiles, and pecorino were fantastic. Lightly parboiled sweets, then quickly fried to crisp the outside as a perfect counterpoint to their soft interiors...yum!

At this point w was already making her "I'm getting full" comments, but with some very enticing entrée choices staring at us she gamely manned up and we soldiered, happily I might add, on. She chose the Fettucine with sardines, currants, fennel, and breadcrumbs, while I picked the Anson Mills Polenta with salt cod, potato, olives, tomato, and chiles. w's pasta was inspired, surprisingly rich for such a simple preparation, and set off off by the addition of the seasoned bread crumbs. My polenta was equally satisfying, the salt cod in a semi-spicy sauce where all the flavors played so well together. Like all really good Italian restaurants, the dishes at SPQR are simple with few ingredients, the individual components being allowed to shine through and strut their stuff. After all that we foolishly skipped dessert, because as I have since read pastry chef Jane Tseng's Almond Milk Granita with espresso cream is the stuff of legend. Trust me when I say next time I will make it mine! I'm sure the dinners are equally satisfying, but on a Monday afternoon, the uncrowded dining room and warm service was such a pleasant place to indulge we couldn't have ended up in a better spot.

Oysters: Love and Information

Have I mentioned my deep and abiding respect for all things bivalve-ish? In particular those ruddily shelled delicacies called oysters that go so well with my icy bottle of Sancerre? And if you read this blog you know there's a healthy thirst...hunger?...for more food related knowledge. With this article in today's NY Times "Dining" section, I was able to satisfy two of my most fervent passions, oysters (sadly not eating them, but reading about them), and food knowledge, in less than 10 minutes. A very interesting story about the expanding oyster aquaculture going on around the New York area.

Now living and slurping oysters in the Pacific NW I am perfectly happy with a regular intake of creamy Kumamotos and briny Fanny Bay's, but it was still interesting to find out what is happening elsewhere, because we have our own burgeoning oyster "farming" operations here on the left coast. Bay Center Farms in Washington and Hog Island Oyster Farm in California come to mind. BTW- If you make it out to San Francisco and you're an oyster aficionado, you have to stop at Hog Island's oyster bar if the Ferry Building...mmmm, just thinking about it makes me happy. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to throw a bottle of Loire Valley white in the fridge to chill while I run down to my local mollusk maven to satisfy this sudden need to shuck!

Hog Island is hog heaven!

I've mentioned this particular obsession before in this space, but with so many new eat.drink.think. readers it bears repeating. Since I really do care about you and your happiness, I'd hate to think anyone is missing out on this! A customer at the wine shack last night was telling me about a trip they're taking to San Francisco and asked what some of my favorite places to eat are. I'm thinking "I don't know.....everywhere??" I mean, any trip to SF is an exercise in over-indulgence and tough decision making for the food savvy visitor. But I told them one place that is always on my must-have-it-every-trip list is a platter of freshly shucked goodness from Hog Island Oyster Company in the food-obsessive mecca that is the Ferry Building. Nothing is better on a sunny, or for that matter even a cloudy, day in the city than sitting at the bar with a platter of their briny fresh oysters and glass of icy cold Muscadet. Absolutely awesome, slurping those salty, oceany bits, then filling your mouth with a splash of the zingy Muscadet, both oyster and wine flavors building on the other with a synergistic explosion of flavor, all the while looking out at the water and sailboats on the bay. For this eater, that is absolute food heaven!

Aw shucks...or: Hunting oysters in the city!

A call a few minutes ago from my sister, who I reckon is preparing paella for dinner as I type this...and yes, I will be joyously and gratefully partaking...that led to a discussion of where to get fresh oysters here in Portland put to mind a suggestion for all you PDX oyster aficionados who may be wondering where to get the freshest, briniest mouthwatering mollusks. I always go to one of two places. First, I always check Newman's Fish Company (503.227.2700) in Citymarket at 735 NW 21st Avenue. In the last year they have installed circulating water tanks so you know they care about the quality. They also usually have at least 4-6 different varieties available, plus clams and mussels if ya need 'em. Last weekend we picked up some tiny, creamylicious Kumamotos and twelve superb Fanny Bays. My second choice is the venerable Dan and Louis Oyster Bar, which has been around Portland seemingly forever. While their food also tends to taste like it has been around forever, it is a great source for fresh oysters, either to go or washed down with a drink in their cozy bar. Both Newman's and D&L are about the same price, usually $12-$15 a dozen give or take. A fresh oyster always reminds me of tasting the sea, and not in a spitting out mouthfuls of saltwater way, but in a "oh my god, I think I am tasting the freshest thing I possibly can" way.

So now that you know where, the only question is how. The guys at Newman's will be happy to tell you. It is so much easier than you'd think, and I promise if you're even marginally nimble with your digits, you won't stab yourself with proper precaution. My tool of choice is the OXO Good Grips Shucker. Not too scarily pointy, and works better than any other opener I've tried.

Lastly, but certainly not leastly (?) is what to drink. Many people consider Champagne a great match, and while I've done this numerous times, I have to say it isn't my favorite pairing. The oceany oyster tends to bring out steely flavor in the Champagne that i can live without. Give me a dry, racy Loire Valley sauvignon blanc, say a bottle of spectacular Sancerre, or the all-time French bistro classic, a super chilled bottle of minerally Muscadet, which are usually very reasonably priced and really are about the best thing you could drink with the o's. Lately I have also been pleasing my palate by pairing a dry, slightly peppery Gruner-Veltliner from Austria. w and I enjoyed this particularly pleasing combo with a couple of dozen delights we were wolfing down a few months ago on a trip to the magical Hog Island Oyster Company in the Ferry Building in San Francisco.
Shuck away guys...you'll be well rewarded!