In a Golden State 5: Street Food!

If you're as starved for street food as we are, and you happen to be in the San Francisco Bay Area on or around August 20, by all means, make you way to the extraordinary San Francisco Street Food Festival. The second annual edition was really one of our favorite food occasions of 2010. The third annual edition looks to be just as exciting, if not more. And it's all for a great cause.

Need further convincing? This is what it looked like last year:

The SF Street Food Festival had a full range of street food temptations, both high and low.

fig. a: on the grill

The grilled corn looked great to begin with, but it was even better all-dressed.

fig. b: all-dressed

Ritual Roasters had their mobile unit out for the occasion, in case you happened to be under-caffeinated. Philz was also just around the corner for those in search of a seat and a Philharmonic experience.

fig. c: Ritual in da house

There were so many options, so many different avenues of street food delight, that Michelle found herself at a crossroads.

fig. d: standing at the crossroads

We tasted a whole lot of tasty treates, but our favorite street food delicacy of the day was this totally outrageous Japanese fried chicken.

fig. e: oishii!

When we'd had our fill, we started to head back into the heart of the Mission when we saw an Aztec ride by on a Razor Scooter. We couldn't let that pass us by. So we turned back around and headed back into the heart of the Street Food Festival and came across this:

fig. f: sacred smoke

And the next thing we knew, the scene erupted into a full-on pre-Columbian frenzy.

fig. g: Montezuma's revenge

The performance was riveting, creating something akin to a time portal in the urban landscape.

fig. h: our lady

So if you happen to be in the San Francisco Bay Area this coming Saturday, if you're even remotely within striking distance, please do check out the SF Street Food Festival. We were warned that it would be "swarmed," "overrun" with "foodies," that the lines would be "a mile long," but we showed up early and found the whole experience positively convivial. And we had absolutely no problems scoring each and every delicacy we desired.

The moral of this story: don't believe the hype. Or, rather: the early birds get the street food.

aj

Postscript: The San Francisco Street Food Festival is much more than just a one-day street food extravaganza. The 2010 edition also featured a stimulating and highly inspiring two-day street food conference featuring practitioners, activists, public officials, urban planners, and academics. And there were brother and sister events all over town all weekend long, like Humphry Slocombe hosting NYC's Big Gay Ice Cream Truck for a special edition of Tranny Smackdown.

fig. i: un zoo la nuit

Jane Wiedlin (of the Go-Go's) performed, John T. Edge was fêted, a special sundae was concocted, and Humphry Slocombe was even more of a zoo (a wonderful one) than usual. We thought about trying the Tranny Smackdown Sundae, but ended up sticking with our very favorite Humphry Slocombe jam.

fig. j: shhh...

In a Golden State 1: Coffee

fig. a: golden eagle, golden state

It seems like eons ago now, but in the month of August, at the height of summer, Team AEB found itself in Northern California for the first time in five years. Not for lack of desire. Our last trip had been a dream, jam-packed with all kinds of memorable adventures and discoveries. Probably the best AEB expedition of all time. Certainly one of the longest. If you had told us it would have taken five years to get back, we would have said, "Are you loco?" But that is in fact what happened. So when we finally got around to paying a return visit, we were more than ready.

Back in '05, when it came time to start typing up our field notes, we went a little overboard. We broke things down into a series of "revelations." Nine of them. Some were themed (burritos, dim sum, Point Reyes Station), but the overwhelming majority were profiles of specific places/people/businesses (June Taylor, Andy's Orchard, Tartine). This time we've elected to go a more consistently thematic route.

Installment #1, as I'm sure you've figured out, is on coffee. Few things about the Golden State helped to keep us in a consistently golden state as effectively as its rad coffee scene.*

And when we got back from California, one of our most prized souvenirs was this simple bag of beans.

fig. b: the other Michelle

Not only did the bag bear the name "Michelle" on it (never did find out why), but it contained some truly lovely beans from one of the irie-est of coffee-growing regions, Ethiopia, and it hailed from one of our favorite SF coffee establishments, Four Barrel.

It's safe to say that the coffee scene in the Bay Area has changed dramatically in just five years. There may be other cities in North America that have undergone similar coffee revolutions during the same period (Chicago? Portland?), but, if so, we haven't had the pleasure of visiting them. What we witnessed in San Francisco was entirely new to us, unprecedented in any of the coffee towns we're familiar with (Montreal, New York, Toronto, Vancouver). You see, not only had several hardcore, high-end coffee operations opened across town, transforming a town that was already coffee-obsessed into a town that was positively twitchy with meticulously sourced, carefully roasted, and expertly executed coffees using a wide variety of brewing methods, but many of them were sourcing and roasting their own beans (!), and most of these establishments housed their roasting operations on-premises in beautifully designed spaces that were oftentimes minimalist in style (lots of wood, exposed beams, etc.), but gargantuan in size. Think high-end, tech-friendly, funked-up loft style, then add some post-industrial industry back into the brew.

Take Four Barrel, for instance. Here's their selection of freshly roasted coffees:

fig. c: interior design 1, Four Barrel

And here's the coffee roasting operation that's housed just beyond their twin banks of espresso machines.

fig. d: interior design 2, Four Barrel

Add a turntable, a sizable collection of vintage vinyl, and a crowd of die-hard coffee aficionados, many of them with new media devices in tow, and you start to get the picture. This place was positively buzzing with Mission cool. And the buzz was addictive. Montreal likes to think of itself as a coffee town, and it is, but this was next-level.

Or take Sightglass, another of our favorite coffee joints.

fig. e: interior design 1, Sightglass

At the time of our visit, Sightglass was just a tiny hole in the wall in another gorgeous post-industrial space. Just a small counter, an espresso machine, a bench, and some basic appliances.

fig. f: interior design 2, Sightglass

Their roasting operation was next door, mostly out of view. But only temporarily. You see, they were busy transforming the warehouse space that surrounded the shop into another gigantic new-school café, and all indications were that this too would be a marvel of design.

(Again, to put this into local perspective. Take one of our favorite Montreal restaurant spaces, one that was created/renovated in recent years, and one whose design bears quite a bit of resemblance to a place like Four Barrel: La Salle à Manger. Imagine opening a space like La Salle à Manger, putting just as much care and attention into the reno, and then devoting it entirely to coffee. No food (okay, maybe just a few pastries), no alcohol, just coffee. Crazy, right? Well, that's exactly what's going on in SF.)

Most importantly, though, both places were roasting some truly mind-blowing coffees, like Sightglass' Blueboon Blend, and both had the chops to turn them into the headiest of brews.

Four Barrel Coffee, 375 Valencia St., San Francisco, (415) 252-0800 (Mission)

Sightglass Coffee, 270 Seventh St., San Francisco, (415) 861–1313 (SoMa)

fig. g: Ritual mobile unit

Other recommended SF coffee establishments:

a) new school

Ritual Coffee Roasters, 1026 Valencia St., San Francisco, (415) 641-1011 (Mission), plus two other locations

Another of the pioneering new-school cafés/roasteries, and the only one I can think of whose beans are available here in Montreal (at Myriade)

b) "hand-made"

Philz Coffee, 3101 24th St., San Francisco, (415) 875-9370 (Mission)

you know full-well how much we love Philz (Philz's?) original location on 24th--Philz has franchised widely since 2005 (they now have 7 locations!), but the original store still has all the old charm, not to mention those killer Philharmonics

aj

* to use the local parlance

p.s. Way to go, Giants!

Philz in the house

"Good things come to those who wait," right? Politically, I've always found that dictum a little suspect, but in other spheres of life it's not without its merits, I guess. For one thing, fasting and feasting traditionally served as the natural rhythm of most societies. Then there's that clinical study Michelle and I heard about on CBC 1 a couple of weeks ago: the one where children were basically told, "You could either have this one cookie here in front of you now, or if you wait an hour I'll give you five cookies. Which option would you prefer?" The two groups of children--the impulsive ones who need to be gratified instantly, and the ones who were willing to wait to get gratified five times as much--were then periodically studied over the course of a lifetime, in a manner not unlike Michael Apted's Seven Up! series. Guess which group turned out to be a "more productive" part of society?

Well, we here at "...an endless banquet," always keen to prove that we belong to The Elect, have patiently done without Philz coffee truly extraordinary coffee for months and months, and for our tremendous patience we were rewarded with not one but two bags of Philz coffee--one bag of Philz Philharmonic and one bag of Jacob's Wunderbar--a few weeks ago when Michelle's sister, N., returned from a trip out west. From the moment we opened that bag of Philz Philharmonic, the first blend that flipped our lids back in 2005, it was love all over again. And from the moment we brewed our first two cups of Philz Philharmonic, it was true love. The only thing left was to "make love" to our coffee, as Phil would say (remember, we'd been "saving ourselves" for this moment for months and months), but we were out of the whole green cardamom necessary to give Philz Philharmonic that Philz touch. So we headed off to Jean-Talon Market to pay Olives et Épices a visit.



The timing couldn't have been more perfect, because when we arrived, Ethné de Vienne, just back from a 3-week trip to India and Sri Lanka, told us that they'd returned with the most phenomenal cardamom ever. Not the Guatemalan variety that we usually get here in North America, but real Sri Lankan cardamom. We checked it out and took a sniff and, sure enough, it was the most perfumed cardamom we'd ever encountered. We snatched a canister (not without stopping at the till first, mind you) and raced back home, and within about 15 minutes of arrival we were savoring a proper cup of cardamom-laced Philz Philharmonic. Bliss. The only thing we forgot was the mint leaf. Sorry, Phil.

Anyway, if you're going to San Francisco, pay Philz a visit. If you know someone who's going to Frisco, get them to pay a visit on your behalf and show some love (i.e., bring some back). If neither of these scenarios apply, you could always mail order some of Philz magical blends. Call in your order and you might even get to talk to Phil himself. Imagine.

aj

Revelation 1: Philz

Philz Philharmonic
Originally uploaded by michelle1975.

Getting back on the food tip (as they say), our trip to San Francisco was made up of a series of revelations, some of which had a rather profound impact. Not the least of these occurred on Day 1. Somehow we'd gotten ourselves booked on a hellish flight plan on our way out to California, one that took us from Montreal to New York at 6:00 A.M., then continued on to San Francisco International Airport with a 6-hour flight. The gods were apparently smiling down upon us, though, 'cause we scored these amazing seats on the New York-San Francisco leg that were in their own little quiet compartment, between two sections in coach class and next to a flight attendants' workstation, and that had seats that fully reclined (!). We showed up in San Francisco in half-way decent shape, actually, and because it was still only noon when we got there, we had a half-day to play with.

We decided to not waste any time and just head down to the Mission District from my sister's apartment in Noe Valley and dig in to our first burrito of the journey. For our first one we went to a place I've been going to for about 10 years now and which I've always found friendly and tasty: Casa Sanchez. Not only do they make excellent tacos and burritos, but their salsa and chips are outstanding, free, and "bottomless" (courtesy of a handy self-service bar), and they have a beautiful courtyard.

Afterwards, we were in the mood for our first coffee of the day. We'd made an attempt to score a coffee in JFK, but the results were undrinkable. I'd told Michelle that San Francisco was riddled with good coffee houses and espresso bars--this was her first time to San Francisco, after all--and that, in fact, San Francisco was one of the few cities in America where you'd been able to get good, strong coffee prior to about 1990. A couple of blocks up 24th St. from Casa Sanchez we came across a coffee house, and it looked kind of interesting. It had a generic sign outside declaring that its coffee had won a Best in the Bay award, but what really intrigued us was their own sign announcing the fact that they served "handmade" coffee and that each coffee was made "one cup at a time." We didn't know it at the time, but the gods were smiling down upon us once again.

Behind the bar they had a sign listing all their espresso-based drinks, but they also had a sign with all their "handmade" coffee selections, and each of these sounded a whole lot more interesting. I initially ordered a Arabic-style "handmade" coffee, but when another patron ordered a "Philharmonic" blend I asked the barista to change my order to one of the same. She ground just enough coffee beans for my order, then threw them into a large, long paper coffee filter held in a stand and placed the coffee cup underneath. Then she threw a couple of secret potions into the filter along with the beans and added a long, steady stream of boiling water. She asked me if I wanted cream and sugar and I said, "yes." A minute or two later she handed over my perfectly brewed, perfectly creamy, and perfectly sweetened Philharmonic and I headed over to where Michelle was sitting. I took a sip on the way and it nearly blew my mind. I took the lid off the coffee and saw that it had a mint sprig on top. I handed to cup to Michelle and said, "You're not going to believe this."

Neither of us had ever tasted a coffee as exotic or delicious ever before. We both take our coffee quite seriously and we've both done a fair bit of traveling, but we'd never experienced anything like that first Philz "handmade" coffee, with its strong hints of cardamom, its wonderfully mellow depth, and its mint finish (sounds crazy, I know, but the sprig is really an stroke of genius).

Needless to say, we got seriously hooked by that first Philz coffee and Philz became a touchstone for our trip. We went back at least half a dozen times and we tried almost all of the "handmade" blends they offer. We made a point of initiating my sister into the brotherhood (she'd never been), and then we started making the silliest excuses just so we could pass by Philz. The Philharmonic remained a favorite throughout the trip, but we also became very attached to the Jacob's "Wunderbar," which was a little less spicy, but was made with a stronger roast, and the Phil's Tesoro Mocha was also a big hit, although the intensity of its chocolate flavor made it a "special occasions" blend for us.

One time we stopped by and Michelle ran in for a couple of take-away coffees before we headed out to Treasure Island. When she got to the bar Phil himself was waiting for her. He asked her how she was doing and she responded, "I'll be a lot better once I've had my Wunderbar." Phil looked at her and said, "You're already fine." She was on Cloud 10 when she got back to the car--Phil is a very charming man who sports a dashing and unpretentious fedora and has a sly sense of humor. Which brings me to another point: the atmosphere at Philz takes a close second to their amazing coffees. Like many other San Francisco coffee houses the interior design is whimsical and eclectic and the place is frequented by regulars who can only be described as "true originals," but how many other coffee houses in San Francisco (or anywhere else, for that matter) can you purchase a potted plant with your coffee?

interior decor, Philz
Originally uploaded by michelle1975.

By the end of our trip I was only half-joking that Philz alone had been worth the price of our airfare out to San Francisco, but if you don't believe our hype, check out the testimonials that you can find online on the topic of Philz, or, better yet, go there yourself.

Actually, let me finish with yet another anecdote. Last night, we were gathered at Le Pocket Palace, talking with Hermine and Kazi about our trip over a glass of wine. We had gotten on the topic of Philz, as we're wont to do these days, and we were giving them the full lowdown: the "handmade" process, the use of spices and herbs, the devoted following, the rapture, etc. I was going off on some spiel about San Francisco being a city of coffee houses, but that nothing could compare with this coffee house we'd found there, when I noticed a young woman listening in on our conversation, waiting to see which coffee house I was going to name, waiting to weigh in with her own opinion. When I named the coffee house in question as Philz, she turned to us and said, "You mean the place on 24th?" Turns out she had lived just around the corner on 25th St. for six months and had become a very regular regular during her time there. Imagine her surprise. Imagine ours.

Casa Sanchez, 2778 24th St., San Francisco, CA, (415) 282-2400

Philz Coffee (a.k.a. Phil's Coffee, a.k.a. Gateway Market), 3101 24th St., San Francisco, CA, (415) 282-9155

aj