San FranCelia

For a taste of the good life, sometimes you have to wait.  Many of the best restaurants in San Francisco don’t have a reservation list, you simply arrive and your name goes on a seemingly endless list.  Sometimes, this waiting period isn’t really worth it (I mean,what’s the point of waiting an hour when a Lean Cuisine would give me more flavor?), but in other cases, like my dinner at Pizzeria Delfina in Pacific Heights for my friend Liz’s birthday, the wait was not only well worth it, but part of the fun.  You can order wine at the counter once you put your name on a chalkboard (so you always know where you’re party is at) and hang out outside the restaurant.  This makes the time fly, as no food mixed with alcohol can really bring on the pre-dinner buzz nicely.  Once we were sat the experience began – our server was really nice and immediately asked us if we wanted more wine… yes please!  The house red was delicious but there are many other choices, and they have an extensive wine list for such a small place.  Yes it is small – the

place is packed to capacity (and was the entire time we were there), but that actually adds to the ambiance – who wants to eat in a restaurant that’s dead anyway?  We ordered several of the Fresh-stretched Mozzarella and the Insalata Tricolore, and each was delicious, especially the Mozzarella (oh my God, how do I emphasize this more!).  I would say that one for two people is a good breakdown, but I know I could have eaten the whole thing, it was that good. 

Pizzeria Delfina is famous for their pizzas, so of course we had to order a few for dinner.  There is only one size for each pizza, so you order several and, again, share and do it up family style – one pizza for two people is about the breakdown you want to be satisfied.  We ordered the 4 Formaggi, the Funghi (mushrooms!), and the Salsiccia, and each one was heavenly.  The best part of the pizza here though is the crust.  It is perfect  - sourdough that is soft on the inside and just the perfect amount of crunchy on the outside.  I don’t think I’ve ever had better pizza dough, and I like me some pizza. 

For dessert, check out the Amarena Cherry Sundae made with gelato, chocolate sauce (they even give you the extra in a small metal carafe), and pistachios.  Yum!  Perfect ending to a delectable meal!

The atmosphere is really lively, and the staff was super nice and on top of their game.  I had a bit of sediment in my first glass of wine at the table, and not only did he apologize profusely (which is half the battle), but he gave me a new glass and took off the first glass from my bill, all before I could even think about it.  Great service!  You could tell that this wasn’t a common occurrence, since everything we ate and drank was amazing, but it was nice to know they knew how to react just the same.

I highly recommend this place – it’s in a cute neighborhood, has great character, and mouth-watering food, at a fairly reasonable price, which in these times, I know is on everyone’s radar.  Happy eating!

Peace and love Xo 

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I hit up Florio Café on Fillmore St. the other day for a birthday dinner, and it’s a really cute little (and I emphasize, little) spot. However, for the price, there is much better fare that fills you up and makes you feel like you’ve had an experience, especially in the city by the Bay. We ordered the fried asparagus to start, which was pretty tasty, but for the whole table of 5, they brought out maybe 6 or 7 pieces, and that was the large order. I feel like if something is an appetizer (and maybe this is just me), they should ensure the amount they give out is at least sizable enough for a small to medium sized party – I know they can’t customize (which would be awesome!), but come on.

We then moved on to salad, and while the Caesar that the others at our table ordered looked really good (if you screw up a Caesar, you don’t deserve to run a restaurant in the culinary Mecca that is San Francisco, I say), the salad we ordered was an endives, blue cheese, cabbage, and apple salad, that left me feeling a little sick. It was flavorful in all the wrong ways. It was sort of sour and bitter all at the same time, and I’d rather not have a bunch of cabbage and that lettuce that looks like the human circulatory system (what’s it called?) in a salad, if I can at all help it. I am pretty generous with my reviews, and I have to say this salad was really not good.

This spot does offer size options similar to the Bistro portion style that has become popular, and while this is a great idea, their sizing was off. I ordered the Butternut Squash ravioli after the waiter assured me lots of people order it and it was

really tasty, so in keeping with our style, I ordered the large. Once it came, I got 6 small raviolis in a shallow bowl with no other accoutrements, just the ravioli. This was the large order? What if someone who wasn’t, say, a small to medium sized woman, came in and wanted a real meal? There was practically no food on my plate! It was also slightly cold, which is one of my pet peeves at a restaurant. It’s like – if someone is ordering a steak and I’m ordering ravioli, start mine after theirs, will ya? The waiter was nice, but very quiet and not really around enough to fill glasses (the bus boy gave us plenty of water throughout the evening. We went in at around 6:30pm, and it was calm inside for sure). At the time we went in, we should have been made more of a priority, as far as I’m concerned. I’ve waited tables before, and if no one else is in the restaurant, it’s like… come on! I think, in fact, (besides the going to bed a 9:30pm part) this is why old people go to restaurants so early – so they can give you more hell and know that you have to do it because they are the only ones there.

Dessert was equally as average. We ordered two things for the table to share: the “molten chocolate cake” and an apple, caramel fritter type dessert. The “molten” part was off since the cake was cold, and instead of getting a warm chocolate cake à la mode which is what I thought the norm was, it came with whipped cream. Cop-out. I’ve had better molten chocolate cake at Chili’s for half the price. The fritter was really tasty and home-made-esque, so that was a pleasant surprise, at least.

Overall, I’d say this spot was pretty unimpressive. Nothing was so bad I couldn’t eat it, but that’s not saying a lot. Humans have been known to eat some crazy shiz (you’ve all seen Man vs. Wild… that guy can eat a raw camel testicle for Christ’s sake!), so you do the math. It was pretty pricey, as well, being in the trendy Fillmore/Pacific Heights neighborhood, and I didn’t think it was worth the cost at all. Good food is worth spending a little extra on, and this trade off didn’t quite equate. The company and conversation, on the flip side, was awesome, so that really did help with the overall evening. I think the birthday girl had a lot of fun, and I guess that’s really the point after all is said and done.

Peace and Love Xo

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While I love to go out to restaurants and everything, sometimes it’s nice to go to dinner parties at a friend’s house and enjoy a glass of wine on the porch. And that’s exactly what I did tonight. Had a really fun night at my friend Liz’s new place. She just (finally – yay!) moved into the City into this huge, sprawling flat on the cusp of Pacific Heights and Western Addition; quite the dichotomy. It’s such a cool spot. I love the old homes of San Francisco that have been converted into the flats. You can tell that this home was some sort of huge mansion in its hay day with winding stair cases, one set for the maids and others for owners and guests. She’s on the third floor, so when you get to the door on the bottom level and she buzzes you in, it looks as if you are walking the stairway to heaven it’s so damn high – definitely the maid stairs… haha! Like seriously, so many stairs, oh my God! But the hike was well worth it. The ceilings were so high and there seemed to be so much space. There were these gorgeous bay windows and wood floors that added to the ambiance. I wish houses everywhere could be half as cool and intricate as the ones in San Francisco. It gives not only the city, but also its inhabitants, a sense of charm and character. Her porch overlooks her backyard (yes, she has one… lucky!) which looks like it came straight out of “The Secret Garden”; so amazing. We sat on the porch eating her delicious Thai Chicken with a wonderful glass of pinot noir. Anyone who was out in the City tonight knows just how gorgeous the weather was – we chatted for ages about everything from high school to American Idol (I think I may be the only person in America who doesn’t watch that show) and then we went inside for Angel Food Cake dessert. That is my favorite cake… mmmm. Don’t you just love it? It’s like the cotton candy of cake.

After dinner, we decided it was time I check out the ever popular American Idol. I watched my first full episode, and let me tell you, it’s interesting. Not good, not bad… interesting. There is this one guy on there who looks like he is a creepy serial killer looking for his missing van, one girl with a weave that looks like a wig about to fall off her head backwards, and another girl who thinks she’s Amy Winehouse, except she’s blonde. Paula is on her perpetual cocktail of Valium and Xanex (I do read the blogs, she’s like that even off the show, poor thing) and Simon is being “real” while flirting with pill-poppin’ Paula during each song. What is their deal? Even a newbie like me can tell they’re getting it on and if that’s not it, I don’t wanna know. I felt like no one could really sing – they were all good in a way, but it’s not like you’re seeing anything magical. It seemed like an overblown local talent show. Oh well, I guess I am just missing the awesomeness that everyone else sees. People will hate me for saying it, I know! Haha! We had so much fun commentating on the show – everyone can attest, I like to comment thoroughly about each show I watch. Liz lucked out and got really cool roommates who are chill and nice, plus she is also a roommate now with this cool dog Molly. Molly is the chillest dog ever and she literally sits on her butt like a person. Molly = awesome. She was so sweet and can contort her body in any position to get a good angle for the ‘head on lap’ pose… haha! Who knew, I mean really.

Very fun night with the girls – I hope everyone gets a chance to go inside an old San Francisco mansion, as they are so intricate and well thought out. We should be so remarkable as to build like that today. Maybe I should join the Historical Society… haha!

Peace and love

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