Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Among the good stuff for sale:
u
The Cowgirl Creamery
(
%
415/362-9354)
sells cheese from a rare
breed of Holstein cows, and it doesn't ship well, so this is the only
place to pick some up.
u
The Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant
(
%
415/391-9400)
sells a small
section of $10 wines, but, in general, it's for folks with cash willing
to sit at its wine bar and splash on $19 cheese tasting plates.
u
Lulu Petite
(
%
415/362-7019)
sells sauces and ritzy Fig Balsamic
Vinegar, while
Miette
(
%
415/837-0300)
must spend untold hours
making its unbearable adorable pastries and cookies.
u
Slanted Door
(p. 69;
%
415/861-8032)
sells its deservedly cele-
brated Vietnamese food at a take-away window called
Out the Door
(
%
415/321-3740; closed Sun)
where dishes are simply not as elab-
orate but still excellent, and cost about $7.
u
Taylor's Automatic Refresher
(p. 230) is one of the only truly
affordable places to get a seated meal on the premises.
This upscale showmanship is complemented on Tuesdays from 10am to
2pm and Saturdays from 8am to 2pm by a true
farmer's market
at which
vendors are required to produce their own stuff. If you show up early, there
will be few other customers there with you, and you can use the opportu-
nity to chat with the sellers, who are more likely to dole out free samples
then than they are when the tourist hordes show up and splinter their
attention. A few of the vendors don't open on Monday, but otherwise, it's
a week-round affair.
DC, MC, V):
Waitresses are in fact lady-boy drag queens, and throughout the
evening, they mount the bar and perform burlesque-like amusements. Nothing
too dirty, mind you, but edgy enough (and skilled enough, to the consternation
of more than one straight frat boy) to make this a favorite spot for birthday par-
ties and office farewells. Food is pricey (appetizers are around $12, and mains
$15-$20), but it's surprisingly tasty (miso-glazed king salmon, truffled soba noo-
dles, sesame steak salad). It's lots of campy fun, and downstairs there's a subter-
ranean dance floor for continuing the fun after dinner. Especially because this is
the kind of place where you're likely to order a few cocktails (or like the group of
howling secretaries at the next table over, more than a few), you'll spend more
money than you predicted if you're not careful from the start, but because of the
show, you really are getting more value for your buck. Consider this splurge a
memorable example of “real” San Francisco.
