Now, are we the only ones who feel a tad uncomfortable with the morbid conceit that anyone can come up with a list of things worth cramming down our throats before we croak? As if in, like, the next 40 years, there won't be some other damn glazed cruller or frisee salad some up-against-a-deadline city magazine editor says we really have to suck down at least once before cancer claims us. It may be Hoodscope online commenter Jacob who best expresses our attitude about lists like these, and more succinctly than we could: You can add my cock to that list of 100 things to try before you die. Nice. And while we've never seen Jacob, there's a good chance he just might be onto something.
| Eating My Way Down Clement Street |
| Mac Dre's Thizz face: Your new culinary rating system. |
| Adobo Hobo/Twitter |
| Prepare to get all sticky. |
Jason said he'll be using a turkey deep-fryer to keep the stuff warm, with a steamer setup for rice. He's taking a better-for-you approach to the classic dish: chicken only (skin removed), low-sodium soy, and -- here's the real departure from tradition -- he's skimming the fat from the surface. A plate of adobo and rice will cost you $5. And if you miss Jason this weekend (or, presumably, next), you'll be able to taste what he calls "cultural comfort food" at the Eat Real Festival late next month in Oakland.
| supabunny/Flickr |
| The possibilities are just about endless. |
The recipe is simplicity itself: a shot of booze and a glass of beer. This time-tested combination, repeated over the course of an evening, induces a pleasant sort of languor in which the high-octane hooch is cushioned (but not diluted) by the more easygoing brew. Some favor mixing the hard stuff with the suds, but the classical approach is to toss back the shot, then sip at the beer awhile. In this way the imbiber can regulate her alcoholic intake in a studied, languid manner.
The question, of course, is what booze with what beer? The possibilities are practically infinite, but taking the regional approach works well. You can't, for instance, go wrong with a shot of Bushmill's and a beaker of Harp. Or try chasing a nice Commemorativo añejo with a glass of Bohemia. A hooker of Blanton's single barrel makes a fine foundation for a tall, cool Abita, and what's Red Stripe without its kicker of Mount Gay?
Another nice thing about the boilermaker is that it's impossible to screw up: Any bar with a full liquor license has everything you need for an evening of simple inebriation.
| James Moisey/Twitter |
| James Moisey (left) |
It's been three weeks since the Frito pie hit the fan at the Broken Record (1166 Geneva at Edinburgh): chefs Ryan Ostler and Katharine Zacher got the hell out, citing burnout in interviews. And even though Tablehopper reported that a new chef would be reopening the kitchen July 18th, a fog heavier than any summer marine layer seemed to hang over the Excelsior. The BR was done.
Except it wasn't. This morning SFoodie had a phone chat with James Moisey, new chef at the Broken Record. Only he's not so new. The 27-year-old has cooked at the BR since last spring, originally helping out while still sous chef of Firefly, where he'd worked with Zacher, its former pastry chef. He started out as a sort of friend-consultant, helping Zacher and Ostler streamline the somewhat challenged kitchen space in order to hike capacity. Even introduced a number of his own recipes, like the mac and cheese and shrimp roll SF Weekly critic Matt Stafford loved.
The way the BR's kitchen operates is unusual. To keep his bar license, owner Jason King must serve food. But, reluctant to run the kitchen himself, he contracts it out to what are, in essence, chef-proprietors. Moisey said Ostler and Zacher were operating under a six-month lease that expired in late spring -- they continued on for about a month after that. Which makes their departure seem less surprising.
"There was a lot of press about Ryan and Katharine leaving," Moisey said. "A lot of people had the impression we were closed." Business has been painfully slow, he said, but started to pick up last week.
The chef is working under his own lease at the BR, which involves prepping food for King's other bar, Church Key (1402 Grant at Green). He seems dead serious about his role as indie kitchen proprietor. (Moisey and would-be restaurant partner Jan-Henry Gray, who cooks at Canteen and The Sentinel, had been scoping sites for their own place starting in May of last year; then, when the economy tanked, it killed their ownership plans, too.) Moisey said he's sunk nearly $4,000 of his own funds into kitchen upgrades at the BR, including boosting refrigeration capacity -- a contributing factor in the former chefs' burnout, since they couldn't hold enough prepped food to get ahead of demand.
| Cinnamon crumble cake is flocked with craggy streusel. |
Starting last week, the downtown restaurant launched a casual breakfast service: house-made pastries ($2.50-$3), a breakfast sandwich ($7), bagels ($2-$6.50), and Ritual coffee ($2.50). You can slump over your Fazenda Boa drip at one of the tables (order from the counter first), or take it to go. Just keep in mind that, unlike that chain coffee-shop pastry you suck from a bag, this is morning food good enough to savor. Slowly.
The breakfast sandwich offered up beautifully rendered textures: crumbly sage biscuit, a clammy, free-form disc of scrambled egg, and a rusky-'round-the-edges chicken hash patty. Delicious. The pastries had finesse worthy of, well, a restaurant kitchen. A mini loaf of cinnamon crumble cake was buttery on the inside, its surface flocked with craggy streusel. And a muffin was packed with more musky-tasting blueberries than we would've thought structurally possible. Go (Mon.-Fri. 6-11 a.m.). Additional pics after the jump.
Let's do lunch:
Friday, a good day to break out of the Healthy Choice habit. SF Weekly food critic Meredith Brody suggets the bhel puri (puffed rice, green mango, potatoes, and spicy and sweet chutneys) and dahi vada (lentil dumplings with yogurt and tamarind) at Dosa on Fillmore (1700 Fillmore at Post). Slip in a Bengali Gimlet before heading back to the office? We swear we won't bust you.
Drink therapy:
Experience Friday's Finds: unusual, specially priced wines and tasting platters, and a chance to ogle the lofty barnlike space that is Horatius (350 Kansas at 16th St.), 6-8 p.m.
Kind of exotic, kind of classy, kind of cheesy, and with happy hour discounts and drink specials, you can take it all in on the cheap: the Lone Palm (3394 22nd St. at Guerrero), 4-6 p.m.
