It's a national holiday, and we're supposed to be in "lite-post" mode. Our connectivity is also on holiday, so quick, before the DSL goes down again. Reason to celebrate: Eater SF will join us this spring.
Between buying a new car, celebrating carnival, the Year of the Pig, plus more thin-crust pizza than you can shake a stick at, we celebrated George Washington's Birthday with a stop at Bi-Rite Creamery on 18th Street. The latest component in the Mission's block-long Ghetto of the Foodies, the wait may be cruel but the results are sublime. Something as ordinary-sounding as Lemon ice cream is a revelation. Which totally sounds like food-writer bullshit until you actually taste the stuff. We can also guarantee that one pint of chocolate (evidence above) requires two people and a DVD. Knock yourselves out on flavors like Roasted Banana and Caramel Sea Salt. Yes, at $7.99 a pint it's expensive, but this is a town where $799K won't buy you much house, either. There's nummy-looking pastries which seem to have been completely eclipsed by the ice cream.
As for pizza, the gold standard we thinks is still at Zuni. They've got a wood-fired oven, something new joints can't even get permits for. Nothing quite like real charcoal. The good news about Zuni is that you can eat there on the cheap or over the top and have a great meal regardless. The good news about the outstanding Piccino in Dogpatch is that their slow opening is now creeping into evenings. They'll be open until 8:30 Thursday through Saturday. Which is not good news for those of us who eat lunch at four and dinner at nine. Pizza seems to be the new entry level- a notch above coffee and pastry- for places to eat. A relatively low food cost and learning curve that still allows for the all-important artisanal cred.
· Bi-Rite Creamery [Bi-Rite Creamery]
· Five Hundred Feet of Food [Curbed SF]
· Zuni Cafe [Yelp]
· Piccino [Piccino]
· Make Pizza Not War [Curbed SF]