'Gourmet Kitchen,' SoMa StrEat, Ghirardelli, Michael Minas

Chinatown Breakfast

What a wonderful Monday. F and I hit so many neighborhoods today as we did a bit of shopping. We started the morning in Chinatown and stopped at a random shop to buy pork buns for breakfast. The window read 'Gourmet Kitchen,' but I'm not sure if that was actually it's name. Walking downtown with a short stop in Jamba Juice, we browsed a lot of the area stores before heading to SoMa  (neighborhood meaning "South of Market") to another shopping area.

Hawaiian - Food Trucks

All shopped out, SoMa StrEat Food Trucks, conveniently alongside the bus stop, made for a perfect lunch spot on such a sunny, gorgeous day in the city. There are numerous food truck locations all over the city, but this one is unique in that it's open daily and has a permanent location complete with seating, tvs, and a beer/wine selling permit (So hard not to have a glass of sangria yesterday! ). The trucks change each day, but your options are always numerous and your bound to find something that appeals to your taste.

Downtown Dessert

To cool down a warm afternoon, we shared a "World Famous" hot fudge sundae at Ghiradelli's. Yum. Do it.

Finally we dined at Michael Mina's. Can't even describe this place properly. Gorgeous dining room that boasts high ceilings and great location in the Financial District. Course after course passed each taste test. My favorites were the Springtime in the Garden salad, Alaskan Halibut, and Red velvet Cake dessert. Their tasting menu would be an event: dueling courses. They even have a dessert tasting menu, so if you know me at all, I'll be back just for that. The halibut arrived as a two part dish. It's plate allowed the sauce, poured on top tableside, to run down into the bowl below, soaking a surprise lobster dish underneath. Speaking if their dishes, each one is hand made by four potters. Pretty cool. I sadly don't have any pictures because I didn't want to look like a complete tourist or something.

Great Monday. Seems to be a trend lately that I could get used to!

Off the Grid, Park Tavern

Tonight I met a new friend at Off the Grid in North Beach. In case you don't already know, "Off the Grid" has locations all over the city.  It is basically collections of fancy food trucks - ranging from desserts to entrees from countries all around the globe. I've frequented the locations nearest to work more than a few times, as well as other random locations throughout the city, but never North Beach! We met and each purchased a steamed bun from one of my favorite trucks (although the name escapes me) and then tried some spring rolls and sweet potato tater tots at a Vietnamese truck I'd never seen before. Delicious! To check out Off the Grid locations, click here - find one near you!

Since the evening was off to a good start, we took a little stroll down Columbus to Park Tavern. Now, this was not a new experience for me. I first visited Park Tavern for R's birthday in January, but thought it would be a fun stop, especially since I love one of their cocktails, the "Mclaren." Although I didn't eat tonight, I do highly recommend this place for dinner. Their brussels sprout chips make for a super tasty appetizer, and you won't be disappointed with anything you order from the menu.

A short Uber cab ride and I'm home! Night all :)