Back on the Wagon an a Maverick

The Cozy Maverick

Okay I have been off the blogging wagon for a while, new job obligations and mucho traveling the last few weeks. So here we go to get the blog jump started. Today a restaurant in San Francisco and in the next couple of days some really great out-of-the Bay Area places that I have visited while traveling. Just a heads up I will be doing a lot more traveling in the next eight weeks so if you have tips for Phoenix, Boston, Philadelphia, Virginia Beach or DC drop me a note.

The wife and I really love the Mission and all the great places to eat and have a drink. We now have a new place to have dinner or brunch. Maverick, (3316 17th Street, San Francisco) is American comfort food with a fine dining twist.

With side plates Collard Greens, Mac n’ Cheese, Grits and Gravy the southern influence hits you right in the face. The Southern Fried Chicken looked awesome, and was flying out of the kitchen, but I passed on it for the Grilled Wagyu Beef Bauvette Steak and my wife had the Butter Braised Sturgeon. Both dishes were very taste.

Maverick does not have a full bar, but the wine list is very good. They bill themselves as an eatery and wine bar and succeed on both levels. The offer 15 wines by the glass and there is a varietal for almost every person. If you are more a hops and barley person, Maverick offers 14 types of beer. One of my favorites Trumer Pils is served.

We have also had brunch at Maverick and that experience was even better than dinner. The chorizo and eggs is house made chorizo with scrambled eggs, green onion and cheese grits, cornbread muffin with Marshall’s Farm honey. The cheese grits are awesome and I am not a big grits fan. The biscuits and gravey and cornmeal pancakes are worth the visit. Add a blackberry mimosa and it is a great brunch.

Make a reservation! This is a very small restaurant and it fills up very quickly. Maverick is on OpenTable.com for reservation convenience. The staff is very attentive and helpful.

http://www.sfmaverick.com/

Http://www.opentable.com/

La vida en la Misión: Tacos, Cerveza and much more

24th Street at Mission

As promised, I headed to San Francisco's Mission District yesterday. I took BART to the 24th street exit and planned to work my way back to 16th street, searching for some great hangout and good tacos. The visit to the Mission was very fruitful.

When you exit the BART station towards the eastern side, you come up from the underground station to a plaza. Walk through the plaza and on 24th Street you will find two good stops. Even if you don’t venture far from the station you can find five taquerias and one good waterhole. Carlos’ Bar, Taqueria El Taco Loco, Taqueria El Farolito, Taqueria San Jose are within a hundred yards.

Carlos’ Bar is a true neighborhood bar. Regulars bring in food from the local neighborhood restaurants, Tejano music blares from the jukebox and there is a pool table. The long bar can accommodate a big crowd. If you are into oil paintings of bare breasted women, this is a definite stop. Carlos’ boast four, very large paintings, of Romanesque women draped with very little and breast in full view as they hang throughout the bar. A beer cost $4.

I tried tacos at both El Farolito and El Taco Loco. Farolito has a line that goes out the door. It has a full taqueria menu and serves beer. The taco was $2.25 and the the Mexican Beer was $3. The Taco was a solid B. Good tortilla, the steak was seasoned well, but the meat quality was a bit on the cheap side. El Taco Loco fared on the C side, by my grading standards. There are much better places in the neighborhood, so I would skip it.

As you walk down Mission, you can see a neighborhood that once must have been a thriving district. I counted four, former large movie theaters that are now dilapidated and following apart. The street is full of shops, low cost shopping and place to eat on the cheap. There are two nice dining stops on the street, Foreign Cinema and Cha Cha Cha. I have eaten at both in the past, but this was not part of the excursion.

The street has some of the best little Mexican bakeries. If you have a sweet tooth, stop into any of them. I stopped at Acaxutla, they have these large cookies for a quarter. I did not know you could still by anything for a quarter. The cookies are perfect for a cup of coffee.

The final stop on this trip was Taqueria Pancho Villa on 16th Street. This is the cleanest and brightest place in the neighborhood. The food is excellent and the salsa bar is bursting with incredible flavors. Pancho Villas boast their wins from the State fair in the Salsa Division on the wall. I had the grilled Chicken Taco $2.44 w/tax included. A boast that they definitely backup. For more local flavor, head next door to El Tin Tan for a drink. The Mission is a great place to spend an afternoon.

There is so much to take in and to experience. I covered very little ground, after several hours, and still have Valencia from 16th to 24th Street to write about. Well another afternoon.

Weekend Planning

With the long weekend approaching, for some myself included, I like to stay away from driving anywhere and find a bunch of small things to do in one neighborhood. I do like to dive into neighborhoods and see what I can find: from the classic neighborhood bar complete with bartender/local historian, cheap eats and cultural happenings.

This weekend I am going to try and hit two neighborhoods the Mission and probably the Richmond District, not locked into the Richmond. The Mission is a must, I am still in search of the perfect street taco. I love tacos and burritos. Growing-up in a house where my abuela, would make the best chicken mole and homemade tortillas. So, I am a bit of a snob when it comes to tacos and especially tamales.

The Mission between 16th and 24th gives you a ton of options, so tomorrow will be a quest to find another great place to eat, plus it gives me more to write about here.

Heading to the Cal Men's Basketball game tonight, so more about the Mission on late Friday or Saturday.

Salute