Category Archives: Restaurant

Beet and halumi cheese salad – Cafe Mystique

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Beet and halumi cheese salad - Cafe Mystique
Mixed greens, pine nuts, black, olives, balsamic vinaigrette. $8
Cafe Mystique, San Francisco CA

Halumi (halloumi) is a goat/sheep cheese from Cyprus. It’s hard-ish and dry and it was fried before being added to this tasty salad. The halumi was on the salty side so it was great to have the beets to balance it out. The salad was over-dressed, however. 😦

Native American "street performer", Union Square
Native American “street performer” near Union Square. Like any other touristy city, San Francisco has its share of “street performers” who do nothing more than dress up in various costumes and expect money in return. Not impressed. My favorite part of this pic is the guy in the back with the snowman cardigan, hilarious!

Garlic flatbread – Cafe Mystique

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Garlic flatbread - Cafe Mystique
With herbs. Happy hour $1.95
Cafe Mystique, San Francisco CA

So simple and so good! The flatbread was really light and airy, but sturdy and elastic enough to take all the hummus I spread on top. Very flavorful!

Upper Marktet Terrace house number
Upper Market Terrace house number. I love this modern house number in this neighborhood. It’s on a remodeled house with very cute detailing.

“Coffee and doughnuts” – The French Laundry

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"Coffee and doughnuts" - The French Laundry
Cinnamon-sugared doughnut holes.

"Coffee and doughnuts" - The French Laundry
“Cappuccino semifreddo”, a mousse-like coffee dessert.
The French Laundry, Yountville CA

I guess this is a Thomas Keller signature combination that’s no longer available on the regular menu. We got it for free at the end of the meal (thanks again Olivia) and they were AMAZING!

Caramel covered macadamia nuts - The French Laundry
They also brought out a bowl of hard caramel-covered macadamia nuts. Yes, please!

Hummus – Cafe Mystique

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Hummus - Cafe Mystique
Blended chick peas (garbanzo beans) with olive oil, pine nuts, parsley, pickled beets, and sprinkled with sumac spice. Happy hour $2.95
Cafe Mystique, San Francisco CA

Wow, less than three bucks and SO delicious! What a value! The hummus was light and creamy, and the toppings added even more texture and flavor. Noms!

Chinatown, Grant Avenue

Chinatown, Grant Avenue. I don’t make it out to Chinatown very often because it’s out of the way and can be a total tourist trap, but there are so many cool stores and restaurants there. It’s great to live in a city that is so diverse!

“Marjolaine” – The French Laundry

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Praline mousse, “dacquoise”, meringue, and roasted banana sorbet. Chef’s Tasting Menu $270
The French Laundry, Yountville CA

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This was one of those desserts that has a lot of amazing components but I couldn’t seem to enjoy them all at once. It all tasted great, but I was left with a feeling of disappointment. The tiny pieces of bananas were amazing, lol!

Sangria – Cafe Mystique

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Sangria - Cafe Mystique

Fruity red wine sangria garnished with strawberry, lemon, apple, and mint. Happy hour $4.95
Cafe Mystique, San Francisco CA

I’ve often overlooked this restaurant on Castro Street, but I’m SO glad I finally tried it. They have a great happy hour, the food is tasty, and the service is SO friendly! Sometimes, it’s all about the details. Not only were these sangrias delicious, but I love all the large garnishes (that lemon knot is super cute) and they even add a skewer to better retrieve the alcohol soaked fruit.

Burning phoenix graffiti mural, The Mission
Burning phoenix graffiti mural, The Mission. I can honestly say that I’d never noticed this artwork before along 24th Street, but it’s frickin’ AMAZING! I love the colors and the positioning of everything. One of my favorites so far!

Cream yogurt sherbet – The French Laundry

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Cream yogurt sherbet - The French Laundry
Toasted oats, pomegranate, Oxalis and Osmanthus “nuage”. Chef’s Tasting Menu $270
The French Laundry, Yountville CA

Cream yogurt sherbet - The French Laundry
Ah, this was SO refreshing! I really liked the cream yogurt sherbet with the tart pomegranate arils and the crunchy oats. I don’t know what Osmanthus is supposed to taste like, but the “cloud” was cute enough.

Cream yogurt sherbet - The French Laundry
All done!

Scramble special – Chloe’s Cafe

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Scramble special - Chloe's Cafe
Two scrambled eggs with fresh mushroom, tomato, basil, zucchini and Jarlsberg cheese. Served with a cup of fresh fruit (strawberry, banana, orange, cantaloupe, honeydew melon), 2 slices whole wheat walnut bread, Darigold butter, and raspberry jam. $10.75
Chloe’s Cafe, San Francisco

Mmm, this scramble was very good and pretty healthy, even with cheese. Jalrsberg has less fat than other cheese so it was more guilt-free. All the vegetables were delicious, but I wish the eggs had been cooked as a softer scramble. That would have been perfect!

White Hygrandea (Hydrangeaceae), Jersey Street
White Hygrandea (Hydrangeaceae), Jersey Street. The house down the street improved their sidewalk-scaping along the side of their building. I love the addition off these lovely Hydrangeas.

Strawberry cobbler – The Glass Onion

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Strawberry cobbler - The Glass Onion
This was VERY good! I loved the ooey, gooey texture of the warm strawberry filling and the soft, caramely crust. The dish was quite large for a single person but I ate it all up anyway, hehe! The perfect ending to a great meal!
The Glass Onion, Charleston SC

George Washington statue, Washington Square Park

George Washington statue in Washington Square Park. ‘Ole George lords over the many visitors in this quaint park.

Elysian Fields Farm lamb – The French Laundry

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Elysian Fields Farm lamb - The French Laundry
“Ribettes”, medjool dates, cauliflower, toasted cashews, and madras curry jus. Chef’s Tasting Menu $270
The French Laundry, Yountville CA

This was delicious! Oddly enough, the cauliflower puree was my favorite component. I loved its texture and flavor, and the toasted cashews were a perfect addition.

Post-dinner kitchen - The French Laundry
Post-dinner kitchen. We closed the restaurant and were treated to a little tour of the kitchen. You can see that they have it pretty much clean and closed up. I felt kind of bad for being the last table in the restaurant, but with all the additional courses we were served there was no way we could have finished any earlier. Aahhh! I thought it was also cool that they had a tv screen showing the Per Se kitchen in real time!