SFoodie's countdown of our 92 favorite things to eat and drink in San Francisco, 2011 edition.
"Gusto ko ng isang platong breakfast," says the lady in line, "Give me a breakfast plate," but the counter guy at Daly City's Fil-Am Cuisine has to break the news to her: The next batch of rice isn't ready yet ― it'll be five, maybe ten minutes. She sighs forcefully, makes a clicking noise with her tongue, but she isn't going anywhere.
Sunday morning, and there's the usual chaos at this packed Filipino point-point, a tight storefront at the edge of a residential neighborhood, where five cooks work the food line. Customers trail out onto the sidewalk, waiting for rice plates or party orders ― flimsy, foil-wrapped pans of lumpia and pancit bihon, turron (fried banana spring rolls) when they have them, and above all the BBQ skewers constantly packing the double grills. The grill cook looks perennially stressed, a tightly rolled towel wicking the sweat from the back of his neck, armed with a spray bottle to fight flare-ups. One grill's covered with chicken skewers, the other with pork, foil strips turned a shade of bronze by the intense heat, lined up to prevent the bamboo skewer ends from turning to ash.
But it's precisely the carbonized bits of fat that make the pork skewers so tasty. Narrow hunks of anything-but-lean pork shoulder are bathed in a marinade containing soy sauce, garlic, and Sprite, then tightly shirred onto skewers and partially immolated on the grill. The virtue here isn't tenderness: It's the primal sensation of teeth grinding against plush flesh, burnt fat, and sinew. Meanwhile, the residue of char is so potent you taste it in your nose, and your throat feels itchy. The perfect balm, of course, is rice. No doubt the lady who's endured the wait for her breakfast plate ― a pork skewer with a couple of shiny longaniza sausages over a thick heap of rice ― could tell you that.
Fil-Am Cuisine: 66 School (at Mission), Daly City, 650-992-6191.
92: Goat tacos from El Norteño
91: Faux shark's fin soup at Benu
90: Esperpento's alcachofas a la plancha
89: Poco Dolce's olive oil chocolate bar
88: Decantr's chicken-liver mousseline
87: Outerlands' levain bread
86: Fraîche's frozen yogurt
85: Gyro King's spinach pie
84: Tandoori fish from Lahore Karahi
83: Braised oxtail and daikon from Namu
82: Golden Gate Bakery's custard tarts
81: Commonwealth's cured foie gras with umeboshi purée
80: Star Stream's Liège-style waffle
79: Mexican hot chocolate from La Oaxaqueña
78: Meatball sandwich from Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store Cafe
77: Cheesecake from Zanze's
76: Chicken pepian at San Miguel
75: Macau iced coffee at Vega/Special Xtra
74: Comstock Saloon's Pisco Punch
73: Hai Ky Mi Gia's duck leg noodle soup
72: Sauerbraten at Walzwerk
71: Boudin noir at Cafe Bastille
70: Blackstrap molasses gingerbread at Lotta's Bakery
69: Plow's crispy potatoes
68: Prospect's Catcher in the Rye
67: Pork banh mi from Little Vietnam Cafe
66: Nakaochi at Ippuku
65: Sidekick's chocolate spritzer
64: Farmhouse Culture's horseradish-leek sauerkraut
63: Destination Baking Co.'s challah
62: Cotogna's roasted carrots
61: Hard Knox Cafe's chicken and waffles
60: The Rebel Within from Tell Tale Preserve Co.
59: The Slanted Door's Whiskey Cocktail
58: Carnitas burrito from Taqueria San Francisco
57: Sakura mochi from Benkyodo
56: Birria at Gallardos
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