Hello world! We’ve been dormant for the summer (pretend like that’s a thing) here at B&C, but we’re trying to come crawling out of our shell for winter. I thought I’d ease us back in with a re-review that simply confirms that Mission Rock Resort in Potrero Hill is still awesome and amazing and makes my weekends happy and joyous.
Smoked Salmon Benedict — $17
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A few months ago, the purveyors of Ichi Sushi + Ni Bar opened up a new restaurant in their original location: a 21-seat intimate Japanese oyster shop and raw bar called Ichi Kakiya. Restaurant Manager and Beverage Director Shasta Olarte was kind enough to invite me for a meal, which I wholeheartedly (and immediately) accepted.
Photo from the Ichi Kakiya website
Ichi Kakiya is housed in a very small corner spot way down on Mission Street, south of Cesar Chavez, on the west side of Bernal Heights. The space fits a sushi bar and a handful of small tables between the deep blue painted walls, and the feel is cozy and modern. The menu features a couple dozen small bites, specializing in oysters of which they were offering six different types when I visited….
You may remember that I posted a short, cryptic blurb a couple months ago about being in an upcoming Google video… it’s now been released on Google Plus!
It’s amazing that this took a full day to shoot! It was interesting to see the process of creating a video, including all the alternate shots the team goes through to give them enough fodder to make the actual video. This is a bit like the process of writing a speech — you gather a whole bunch of thoughts and information and then distill it into one smooth piece of text that only includes a fraction of the information you gathered. I happen to know a bit about that, and, as a totally unrelated, shameless self-promoting side note, was so excited to have my business, Vow Muse, featured in the NYT last weekend!…
I went to Novela on Mission in SOMA this week and it was so cute and fun! A good-sized bar with book-themed decor and killer cocktails? Yes, I will be back. 🙂 Cue the photos!
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Wine festivals aren’t just for Napa, and 2015 is Oakland’s inaugural year getting in on the action. This full-day festival on Saturday July 18 is jam packed full of winemaking and tasting events, seminars, and presentations that you can attend a-la-carte, or one after another with full day and half day packages. See below for the press release information about the festival, and their site for a schedule of activities and tickets!
Oakland Wine Festival (OWF) is a high profile wine and food event featuring over 100 celebrated winemakers from Napa Valley, Sonoma County, and beyond with creative pairings from 10 of Oakland’s most celebrated chefs.
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Update: The winner of the giveaway is Nina from San Francisco! Thanks for the email, Nina; enjoy your sundaes!
Yeay, ice cream! The weather is (sort of) heating up, and it’s time to enjoy a nice ice cream sundae at one of Ghirardelli’s San Francisco ice cream and chocolate shops. If you’d like to try two sundaes for free, leave a comment below or email me at brocandchoc [at] gmail.com for a chance to win*!
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Ah, brunch. I hate being on bandwagons, but I’m totally on the brunch wagon. It’s such a wonderful feeling to enjoy your first meal of the day in a leisurely fashion while not having to do any actual work. SF is full of incredible brunch places, but I’ve found one where the food is great, there’s not usually a wait, and you can park your car (gasp).
Mission Rock Resort is a bit out in the boonies—bayside in Potrero Hill—but totally worth the trip. It’s huge and has a large outdoor patio that is amazing on a nice day. The food is awesome, the service is great, and the prices don’t break the bank. I know, it’s not Plow or Boogaloos or Zazie, but you can park out front, you don’t have to wait over an hour, and you can actually look out on the bay while you eat. And now for the food….
For actual Mother’s Day this year, we went down to Pebble Beach to visit the boyfriend’s mom (and family). On Saturday night we all made seafood paella! It was a team effort, and it took a while to make, but it turned out great and was actually really interesting to witness.
Traditional paella is made in a big round pan, and we had an awesome outdoor paella cooker that’s made specifically for these special pans. We loosely followed this recipe for seafood paella, with modifications including omitting the dried tarragon, replacing sweet paprika with smoked paprika, and (most notably) using two pounds of Trader Joe’s frozen scallops instead of the littleneck clams. Here’s the play-by-play….
We’ve received a handful of thoughtful housewarming gifts after moving into our new place, but one of the more interesting ones was a sourdough starter. This was a little bit of the boyfriend’s mom’s sourdough starter that she’s been keeping alive week after week for some time. Now it’s ours to keep alive each week and make into delicious treats if/when we choose. This week we did our first sourdough loaf, yeay!
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About a month ago I moved into a new house (new to me) across town, and have been busy trying out the sights and tastes of my new neighborhood in between the seemingly endless quest for new furniture. My new ‘hood is Glen Park, and they have the tiniest, most adorable one-block strip of “town” where we can shop, drink, and eat. One of the highlights in this micro neighborhood is Gialina, an Italian-style pizza joint by the same owners as Ragazza on Divisadero.
Asparagus w/ preserved lemon, leeks, Campagnolo & ricotta $18
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