If you work in the Financial District, chances are you've reached the end of your rope more than once when it comes to lunch options: falafel, soup, sandwich, burrito -- and repeat, ad infinitum. But don't forget that the Ferry Building is really only a few blocks away, and while there's enough precious, high-priced foodstuffs to choke a gourmand over there, there are also excellent, healthy routine-busters like the Lunch Hour Chef Series. Hosted by CUESA (Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture) and Parties that Cook, it's a Friday series of one-hour hands-on cooking lessons -- sandwich and salad, nothing too complex. The ingredients come from the Farmers Market, and when the cooking is all done, you can eat there or take it back to the office. The next lesson is happening this Friday, August 1, from noon to 1:00 p.m. The menu goes like this: Grilled chicken sandwich with marinated artichokes and lemony hummus (substitute grilled vegetables for the vegetarian option); arugula salad with grilled peaches, gorgonzola cheese and candied pecans; $25 per person. Buy advance tickets here.
-- Brian Bernbaum
The closest Bennigan’s may be in Santa Clara, and the only other California location in San Diego. (When the Bennigan’s website introduced the new Jameson BBQ grilled items for a limited time only, they had no idea just how limited that time might be.) And there are no Steak & Ale restaurants in California at all. You may have no use in your gastronomic life for a fake Irish bar and grill, or an ersatz old English country inn. But pity, at least, their thousands of employees, as their jobs disappear and trigger more catastrophe in the economy. In Santa Clara, it seems, workers showed up on Tuesday to find the places shuttered. Surprise! And good luck for locals finding another place in the area open until midnight.
But as restaurant chains in the “casual dining” category, one step above fast food, go under, with more to come, can the fine-dining sector be far behind? They’re being similarly “squeezed in all directions,” and in San Francisco, it’s not just the high minimum wage, sky-rocketing food prices, and eaters scared of high prices at the table and at the pump to contend with, there’s the healthcare mandate, sometimes showing up as a surcharge on your bill. Gather ye foie gras and panna cotta while ye may. —Meredith Brody
Around Town:
Potrero Hill baked good newbie Baked. (1415 18th St.) opened a few weeks ago, and the big question (besides "how many cupcakes can I stuff in my mouth?") is: What's with the period at the end of the name? "It's just baked, period. Like, that's all there is, baked goods," says co-owner Tina Fisher, who opened the bakery with partner Andrea Ortega. "We were just throwing out silly names. My friends jumped right on it. Plus, the name itself has a nice double meaning, especially here in San Francisco. It will be good for T-shirt sales down the road." But hawking T-shirts takes a definite back seat to the goods themselves: Baked. specializes in sweetbreads, coffeecakes, and cookies, with a focus on reasonable prices. Most everything costs below $2. "We also have two of the best cookies around," Fisher continues. "Peanut butter chocolate chip, with Reese's peanut butter cups in it, and chocolate cappuccino chip. Aside from the occasional cheddar scone, we don't do any savories. No croissants. We're going for the dessert crowd." Go ahead, awaken your inner stoner. Baked. is open Monday through Wednesday 7:30 to 3:30 p.m.; and Thursday, Friday, Saturday 7:30 to 2:30 p.m., then 4:30 to 8 p.m. For more info call 415-826-9455.
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Part happy hour, part educational workshop, Cocktail Ambassadors' "edutainment" mixology classes certainly take their booze seriously, which isn't to say there's not a fair amount of actual drinking involved. Nonetheless, you'll probably leave not only copping a pleasant buzz, but knowing how to mix a better drink next time you're entertaining, and how to buy a better bottle next time you're perusing the liquor store, another step on the road to becoming a full-fledged bon vivant. It won't come as a surprise then to find out that the man behind Cocktail Ambassadors is Elixir owner H. Joseph Ehrmann. The next, and last class scheduled until mid-September, is called Farmers Market Summer Cocktails, and it's happening this Thursday, July 31, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the San Francisco Bay Club (150 Greenwich); $85 for non-members; $75 for members. Buy tickets in advance.
-- Brian Bernbaum
