Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
hot chili sauce ($9), and banana bread pudding accented—and not over-
whelmed—by a lovely thin bourbon sauce ($6.50). Reservations are suggested on
weekend evenings. There's a full bar. It's busy for brunch, served on Saturdays and
Sundays until 2pm.
$$$-$$$$
A neighborhood mainstay since the mid-1980s,
Sumi
55
(4243 18th
St., near Collingwood;
%
415/626
-
7864; www.suminthecastro.com; daily 5:30-
10pm; AE, MC, V)
is one of the few places willing to serve up high-quality
California cuisine (meaning fresh, local ingredients, usually with an Asian twist)
at prices that the hoi polloi can swing. A major reason is its Castro location, far
from the bankers and investors, and another is the devotion of its chef-owner,
Sumi Hirose. Entrees off the regular menu cost in the upper teens, but I will steer
you to the three-course
prixe fixe,
offered nightly from 5:30 to 7pm and costing
$28. Menu items change, but they're always sassy in more ways than one—a
recent menu entry was called “Check Out that Rack . . . of Lamb,” although I'm
even more taken with the inventive sides (truffled mashed potatoes, tamarind but-
ternut squash soufflé) than I am with the well-cooked meat mains. As a sign of
how justifiably confident of their work Hirose is, your bill will arrive with a com-
ment book filled with the thoughts of previous customers.
$$-$$$$
Chef Chris Cosentino of the Tuscan-styled
Incanto
(1550 Church St.,
at Duncan;
%
415/641
-
4500; www.incanto.biz; Wed-Mon 5:30-9:30pm; AE, MC,
V)
does smart Italian-style dishes with fresh ingredients. Among the more inter-
esting dishes of late are ramp and fiddlehead fern risotto; white wine and rose-
mary smoked rabbit; and parsnip ravioli with pine nuts and sage brown butter.
Meat dishes are about $20, which is a great price for solidly done
carne
in this
town, and pasta dishes can be had as filling half-orders for about $11. Save room
for dessert, because they're curious, too (flourless chocolate cake with pink pep-
percorn ice cream). There's also a wine bar here, with more than 20 varieties avail-
able by the glass.
CIVIC CENTER, HAYES VALLEY & JAPANTOWN
The places nearest the Civic Center veer toward unspectacular joints serving
lunching city workers and salt-of-the-earth grub slingers. Within walking dis-
tance, Hayes Valley has a more style-aware vibe, good for dinner dates and
brunches, and attracts discerning young couples living off the proceeds of the dot-
com boom (or preparing for the next one). Japantown, as the name implies, draws
young Asian patrons with a semblance of authenticity.
$
There's always a bewilderingly disorganized, seemingly unmoving group of
people snaking out the door for the
banh mi
at
Saigon Sandwiches
555
(560
Larkin St., at Eddy;
%
415/474
-
5698; Mon-Sat 6am-6pm, Sun 7am-5pm
;
cash
only);
now and then, one of the women behind the counter takes the orders of
about 10 customers at a time, many of whom, you'll notice, order huge bagfuls to
take back to friends and co-workers. (You'll probably want to take yours away,
too, since there are only two rickety wooden chairs crammed into this closet-like
space.) These baguette sandwiches are well-stuffed but dirt cheap ($2.75-$3.25
each, depending on your choice of meat), and scrumptious. If you don't like spice,
