We made it through the city to the farthest north east side avoiding all the areas of highly congested traffic. The darkened windows in a non-commercial neighborhood behind the famous Ghirardelli Square gave no hint of the beautiful restaurant inside. The doors opened. The area is perfectly lit, the area is flooded with huge vases of cut flower arrangements that are breathtaking. Mark said that it almost felt like Las Vegas. Beautiful, elegant, lovely.
The adventure began with an amuse bouche of a soup. Hello! Michael and I began with the seared fois gras with rhubarb and Mark had the seared Ahi tuna. He said it was the best he had ever eaten. It was then that he realized that this was not a normal restaurant.
Mark ordered a second course of salmon. It arrived and we all had a sample of the perfectly cooked little medallion of horseradish crusted salmon with dilled cucumbers and mustard sauce. Oh my.
The meat course arrived. Michael loved the pork tenderloin with pork belly, green garlic puree, fava beans, peas, Piquillo peppers and picked ramps. Mark had the seared filet of beef with Swiss chard, potatoes, shallot marmalade and bordelaise butter. Oh my goodness. And I had the coconut Thai curry with shrimp, calamari, lobster, scallops, scallions and shiitake mushrooms. It was marvelous.
The portions were small but were so satisfying and really more food than Michael and I normally eat. The cheese course arrived next. Out of the 25 cheeses offered, four were chosen and paired with grapes and the perfect bread. Then dessert. Michael had the strawberry souffle and Mark had the creme fraiche cheesecake with citrus, spiced pecans and blood orange sorbet. I had a taste. It was creamy, tart and divine.
Suddenly, a little plate of tiny confections arrived. More dessert. Then, with the bill going to the gentlemen, the women are presented with a beautifully wrapped banana coffee cake for the morning. The perfect ending.
Mark was stunned. This really was the finest restaurant he had ever experienced.
We staggered out, filled to the brim and stood near the car for a bit. As we made our way back to the city, we went through the famous North Beach area. Old Italy. Beat generation coffee shops. Strip clubs from the 40s. Famous book stores, butchers and bars. Oh, the bars.
Michael had seen the Esquire's channel's "Best Bars in America" and they mentioned the Comstock Saloon as one of the oldest in the city. I noticed on my iPhone, as we were navigating our way through the city to the freeway, that we were going to go right by it. There was a parking place. It was fate.
There we were. From the #1 place to the total opposite. The bar was packed with loud 30-somethings. We walked in wearing our finest, the manager rescued us and seated us at a table near the bar. Mark and Michael had an amazing cocktail and we watched the scene unfold. Michael and I realized we were the oldest people in the place! Mark noticed the girls! The waiter was just a bit younger than us and he really took care of us. Finally, it was time to go.
We stood out front on this very famous strip of road with lots of locals and tourists out on the town. The manager came out for a chat and a good laugh then invited us back anytime. I guess they don't see people like us often.
As I don't drink, I was the driver home. We made our way through some nasty traffic at MIDNIGHT then worked our way to the coast. Mark had an amazing night out with us. He loved the food and the cocktails but he really loved how we talked to people throughout the night.
My plans for today? Lots of water, a long walk then I am going to wash and iron all three sets of bed linens in preparation of our company in a couple of weeks.
The meat course arrived. Michael loved the pork tenderloin with pork belly, green garlic puree, fava beans, peas, Piquillo peppers and picked ramps. Mark had the seared filet of beef with Swiss chard, potatoes, shallot marmalade and bordelaise butter. Oh my goodness. And I had the coconut Thai curry with shrimp, calamari, lobster, scallops, scallions and shiitake mushrooms. It was marvelous.
The portions were small but were so satisfying and really more food than Michael and I normally eat. The cheese course arrived next. Out of the 25 cheeses offered, four were chosen and paired with grapes and the perfect bread. Then dessert. Michael had the strawberry souffle and Mark had the creme fraiche cheesecake with citrus, spiced pecans and blood orange sorbet. I had a taste. It was creamy, tart and divine.
Suddenly, a little plate of tiny confections arrived. More dessert. Then, with the bill going to the gentlemen, the women are presented with a beautifully wrapped banana coffee cake for the morning. The perfect ending.
Mark was stunned. This really was the finest restaurant he had ever experienced.
We staggered out, filled to the brim and stood near the car for a bit. As we made our way back to the city, we went through the famous North Beach area. Old Italy. Beat generation coffee shops. Strip clubs from the 40s. Famous book stores, butchers and bars. Oh, the bars.
Michael had seen the Esquire's channel's "Best Bars in America" and they mentioned the Comstock Saloon as one of the oldest in the city. I noticed on my iPhone, as we were navigating our way through the city to the freeway, that we were going to go right by it. There was a parking place. It was fate.
There we were. From the #1 place to the total opposite. The bar was packed with loud 30-somethings. We walked in wearing our finest, the manager rescued us and seated us at a table near the bar. Mark and Michael had an amazing cocktail and we watched the scene unfold. Michael and I realized we were the oldest people in the place! Mark noticed the girls! The waiter was just a bit younger than us and he really took care of us. Finally, it was time to go.
We stood out front on this very famous strip of road with lots of locals and tourists out on the town. The manager came out for a chat and a good laugh then invited us back anytime. I guess they don't see people like us often.
As I don't drink, I was the driver home. We made our way through some nasty traffic at MIDNIGHT then worked our way to the coast. Mark had an amazing night out with us. He loved the food and the cocktails but he really loved how we talked to people throughout the night.
My plans for today? Lots of water, a long walk then I am going to wash and iron all three sets of bed linens in preparation of our company in a couple of weeks.
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