Appetizing Aioli

A quick double-whammy today: The MarketWatch Radio Network did a thing on how consumers are cheaping out by not ordering appetizers, including soups and salads when dining out. Sounds like the consultancy is serving up some junk science to get some free press, because of course the pervasive small plates are basically just a bunch of appetizers. Ask me one day about my introduction to quick tapas in Madrid.

I just had an appetizer the other day, along with a drink post-haircut at the Hotel Monaco's Grand Cafe, already one of my favorite San Francisco venues and my go-to in the Union Square environs. I am now even prouder to announce that the Grand Cafe has one of the best happy hours in the city, period.

The bar menu from 4 to 7 is grouped not by offerings, but by price, with bites and beverages paired. I had the salt cod beignets, which were parked in aioli, and a Kronenbourg draft, $4 each. I was tempted to try the boudin blanc, which I was told is duck, with a porter from Marin Brewing Company, $7 each. Homemade chips and Sierra Nevada on tap are $3 apiece. There's also a pissaladerie for $5. Maybe I'm a sucker for the packaging, but I'm bowled over by pairings every time. (I've stopped ordering wines by the glass and instead am asking the server to pick something for my starters and main courses. We talk about the suggestions and sometimes taste something and then talk some more. Wine lists can be too much work, and the staffers have knowledge they're eager to share.)

Incident of note: While I was sitting at the bar, a quintessentially San Francisco thing happened. A wino walked in and sauntered over to the service station. Without raising his voice, the bartender says, "You have to leave." The guy, sort of regular-looking in a jacket and baseball cap, replied in conversational English but I remember it as "Arrrahghgahhhghaahr." The bartender stands firm, no change in expression. "You have to leave."

When the barman turns to phone security, the wino reaches over to the by-the-glass bottles and picks up some red wine, already opened. He looks at it in the light from the window, and sees that it has but a finger left. He puts it back where it was. The bartender calls out from the telephone: "I'm calling." A bouncer, a not too tall fellow, is there in an instant. The bartender says, "Search him." The wino holds open his jacket. He and the bouncer walk out. It probably happens eight times a day.

Maybe at some point in the city such an occurrence would have that old Barbary Coast/Kerouac/Bukowski quality, but even then it'd be a stretch. For more than a few years now it's just been a nuisance issue. Patrons like myself watched and waited for it to be over so we could get back to daydreaming and taking a little break from busyness.

I'll leave you with my simplified aioli recipe, based on Jamie Oliver's. It was great with the giant artichokes the in-laws got in Gilroy on their drive up.

1/2 small clove of garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
About 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Juice from half a lemon
A bit of mayonnaise to thicken
Freshly ground black pepper

Start by finely chopping the garlic or mashing it in a bowl, adding in the salt. I love mashing garlic. Spoon in the mustard, and separate an egg yolk with your hands and throw it in. Whisk with a whisk or a fork. Slowly pour in the olive oil; keep whisking. Squeeze in the lemon juice, and stir in a little mayo until it's the consistency you want. Crack some pepper there and you're done.

In Honor Of...

On the first day of life of Miss Gerencharus, first name undecided as of 10am, I sign into the Bistro and record my meal:

- French-cut bone-in pork chops, dry rubbed with cinammon, nutmeg, salt, pepper, clove, and a few other exotic powders, broiled on the lowest rung for ~8 min. each side.

- Purple cabbage and apple, slow-braised in a Central European style with caraway seeds, apple-cider vinegar, and caramelized onions. Soul food for my tribe.

- Chocolate chip and walnut cookies.

May all her meals be comforting, may she live a life both nutritious and delicious. Congratulations to the lovely parents, and we can't wait to bring you sustenance from the Bistro kitchen.

Greens Party

I love ordering beets and turnips from the box, not just because the root veg goes great cut into chunks, brushed with olive oil, salt, pepper and a bit of cider vinegar, then roasted for 30 minutes; but also because they arrive with their greens attached. Here's what we did with a whole mess of turnip greens tonight.