Private Event Dining at Boulevard

Boulevard is a fairly classic San Francisco restaurant located just down the street from me.  I say classic because it has some staying power, as it has been in business since 1993.  It may not be Tadich Grill or Zuni, but, in the restaurant industry, this is still a pretty significant time.  The restaurant, and team behind it, have won many awards over the years, including James Beard Nominations and Michelin stars (although, they lost their star this past year!).

I've been to Boulevard a handful of times over the years, such as my full dinner in the main dining room, a full dinner at the Chef's Counter, and just appetizers and desserts.  I do love sitting at the Chef's Counter to watch all the action.  It is also a fantastic place for cocktails, although, the bar area is not large.  I often leave Boulevard a bit disappointed though ... because I love the atmosphere, the menu, the people, but I usually find the food a bit lackluster.  Not bad, but, just not amazing, and it is fairly pricey.

But I always want to like Boulevard more.  The chef and management team show up at events all over town (like the Meals on Wheels big gala I volunteer at).  I like them.  I want the restaurant to continue to do well.

I recently planned a multi-day event for my group at work, including members from all our other offices, about 35 people.  The majority of the time was spent in talks, meetings, discussion sessions, etc, but, the first night, we also wanted to do a group dinner.  And, as the planner, it was up to me to pick where we would go.

This was no easy feat.  We needed somewhere walking distance from the office.  And, while anywhere within about 3 miles is what I'd consider walking distance, I knew that wasn't true for all my colleagues.  We needed somewhere that could seat 35 people.  Most private rooms I found were could seat only 15-20.  Places that could accommodate a group our size tended to be too pricey.  I had a decent budget, but these places started at $150/head just for the food.  Ooph.

I nearly went with Alexander's, which you know I love.  It is walking distance.  However, even the basic private dining menu would certainly push our budget, but, it was doable.  They have a fantastic private dining room, the Wine Library, which I know as I've attended many events there (and held a big dinner for my work group before).  But the menu ... it just wasn't interesting.  A 3 course dinner with just a soup or salad to start, steak, fish, or veggie main, and a single dessert option.  I love Alexander's, but, this just wasn't very appealing.

I also really wanted to do something less formal.  I knew that we would be sitting all day long, for multiple days, and a long, formal, seated dinner just didn't sound great.  And I wanted the group to be able to mingle and socialize, after all, a big part of getting us all together in the space place was to form connection.  So, ideally, I wanted to do a cocktail reception, with heavy appetizers, wonderful cocktails, and of course, some sweet bites.  Finding somewhere that would do that was impossible.

Somewhere along the way, I remembered that Prospect (right across the street from my office, where I've also been many times) had a private dining room.  While not my favorite place, it clearly would be the most convenient (ok, actually Palomino would be, but, um, no.  Besides that killer Caramelized Cauliflower, there is no reason to go there).  Unfortunately, Prospect was booked, but thinking of Prospect reminded me of Boulevard (they are sister restaurants), so, I looked up Boulevard's private dining info.

As I read the private dining package, I breathed a huge sigh of relief.  Yes, the had a private room, and it could easily fit our group.  The restaurant is only two blocks away.  And the menu options?  Fantastic.  We had to do a three course dinner, but, I could choose one appetizer for the group from a decent list of choices, not just soup or salad.  For the main, I could offer two items, again, from a decent list.  And then, two dessert choices.  I've never seen a group dining menu where they offer up two desserts!  And finally, the icing on the cake for me, the group dining menu is mostly drawn from the regular menu.  The choices change weekly, just as the main restaurant dishes do.  It always makes me so sad when group dining menus are generic, designed to be crowd pleasers or dumbed down versions of dishes, and really don't accurately reflect the quality of the restaurant at all (ahem, Alexander's!)  At Boulevard, these were regular menu items, plated up just as nicely as in the main restaurant.

I immediately sent an inquiry in, fingers crossed, that my date was available.  It was.  Once I decided to go with Boulevard, everything happened easily.  The event planner was very responsive over e-mail, paperwork was handled quickly, and our space secured.  Phew.

I am very happy with my choice.  The space was beautiful, the service spot-on, and the food good.  Large group dining is never a restaurant's strongest point, but they handled it wonderfully, and I'd gladly host an event with them again.

The Space

The private dining room is located on another floor from the main restaurant, but, we had to walk through the entire dining room to reach the back where the stairs and elevator were.  It was a bit funny leading a group of 30 t-shirt and jeans clad engineers through the lovely dining room of Boulevard.

I was absolutely thrilled when I saw how nice the room looked.  Elegant yet comfortable, professional.  Perfect.  I'd host an event in this space again in an instant.

Private Dining Room and Bar.

The private dining room is really a beautiful space.  Elegant, classy, but not stuffy.  Lots of dark wood, red tones, gold accents, including long gold curtains.  Stunning light fixtures.

Near the entrance to the private room is a bar, which I choose to have fully operational.  As host, I could have chosen just to serve beer and wine, but I knew this group wouldn't be too crazy, particularly as we had an early schedule the next morning.

As we all entered, the friendly bartender welcomed us and asked if we'd like drinks as we got settled.  It was a bit of a bottleneck having 30 of us show up at once and line up at the bar, but, he handled us quickly.

I also was able to pre-select a red and white wine to offer to the group.  I somewhat randomly picked from the extensive wine list, opting for the varietals I liked at a reasonable price point.  For the white wine, I went with a sauvignon blanc, Lieu Dit, Santa Ynez 2014.  I sadly didn't like it at all, and found it way too harsh and acidic, but, my tablemate enjoyed it, and gladly took my glass off my hands.  For a red, I went with a pinot noir, Dutton-Goldfield, Dutton Ranch, Russian River Valley 2014, and I loved it.  Smooth, easy to drink, very low tannin, and able to pair with seafood, which is what I was going for.

Service throughout the night was great.  Servers were attentive but never in the way.  They kept everyone's glasses full and the wine flowing, without being pushy.  They cleared plates in a timely fashion.  Impressive service, and they are clearly accustomed to handling groups of our size.  We felt well taken care of the entire night.

Private Dining Room.

The room could have easily fit more than the 5 tables I asked to have set up, but 5 felt just right, nicely spaced out, easy to move around, but still filled the room.  Along the back wall was wooden furniture and more curtains, and along the side was a large painting.

It felt very comfortable and was fully private.

Place Setting.

Tables were set with white cloth table clothes and napkins, wine glasses, water goblets, shining silverware, bread plates and knives, and hand written name cards (my request, since I was orchestrating the seating).

Savory Food

There were several themes throughout the meal.  The seafood was shockingly well prepared, particularly for group dining.  Fruits and vegetables shone, all clearly fresh, seasonal.  Quality ingredients were evident throughout.  Plating was just as elaborate, and dishes just as complex, as when served in the main dining room.  And yet we were all served quickly, and our food was all hot.  I was really impressed with how they handled our group.

Custom Menu.

Our 3 course dinner was priced at $90 per person.  Since most dishes are available on the regular restaurant menu, I can tell you it would have been about ~$72 if we weren't dining privately.  There was a markup, obviously, but that is to be expected.

Since I planned the event, I also got to pick the menu.  Picking the menu was actually incredibly hard.  Unlike most private dining menus, they gave me a lot of choice, and I really wanted many dishes.

For the starter, I could offer only one for everyone, out of 7 choices.  This was actually a bit strange to me since they let me offer two for everything else, and starters seem the easiest.  I'm curious what the reasoning is.  Anyway, I could pick from a soup of the day, salads (little gem, various greens, beets with blue cheese, or Dungeness crab salad), or, the far more exciting options of ahi tuna tartare or scallops.  Ok, this choice was easy: scallops (although, I was a bit tempted by the Dungeness crab salad, and, I did really like the ahi tuna tartare once before ...).

Next, I could pick two entrees.  This was harder.  Again, 7 options, and I could pick 2, but, there were no easy to exclude dishes like salads in this category.  I decided to offer one seafood and one non-seafood.  I ruled out the roasted chicken, even though I knew it might be the safe crowd pleaser.  I also ruled out the pork chop, and settled on the kobe bavette as my non-seafood option (filet mignon was also an option, but, it carried a $15 surcharge).  Everyone likes steak right?  The seafood was the hardest choice.  I could offer wild halibut or king salmon, both available with multiple preparations.  I do like salmon, but, I adore halibut.  So, halibut it was, even though I thought salmon might have more wide appeal to the group.  From there, I had to pick the preparation, and went for the one with the sides I liked more (asparagus, corn, etc), although I would have been perfectly happy with the option that came with peas, pea shoots, watercress, and fresh horseradish too.

And finally, dessert.  Here I could also pick two to offer, from a list of 5.  I ruled out the cheese plate, although I realize perhaps that would have been a nice offering for those who don't like sweets.  But, when I could pick only two, I really didn't want to waste one on a cheese platter!  I also ruled out the two chocolate desserts, not entirely intentionally.  One was a pretty amazing sounding chocolate pudding with peanut butter powder and chocolate pop rocks (!!) and the other was a flourless chocolate cake with ice cream.  Wow, I sound like a jerk for eliminating those.  But I was totally intrigued by the red velvet layer cake with cheesecake and ice cream listed as components and the panna cotta trifle with seasonal strawberries and apricots.  I mean, really, I wanted them all, this was a very hard choice.

Once we were seated, servers came to take our full orders, desserts included, all at the beginning of the meal.  Vegetarians also had a custom menu, made up of fresh, seasonal picks.  My table had a mix of both regular entrees and desserts, so I was able to see, and taste, most of it.

Sourdough and Salted Butter.

After our orders were taken, we were brought bread and butter.

Ojan, clearly starving, dug into the bread.  It looked like sourdough to me, and, sadly, he confirmed that it was.  You may recall that I don't like sourdough.  But everyone else at the table loved the bread.  "It is the correct amount of chewy and crispy!", exclaimed one dinner.  "The butter is really, really good", said another.

I didn't try the bread, since I knew I wouldn't like it, but I did try the butter.  And, I'll admit, it was really fantastic butter.  Slightly sweet, full of cream flavor.  Oh, and on top of the butter?  Huge salt crystals.  I wished I liked sourdough, but, alas, I had to just wait.

The appetizers actually took a while to arrive, not until 45 minutes into our dining time, so, we quickly depleted the bread.  Servers were quick to bring us more.

Appetizer: Sea Scallops.

"Salsify, Smoked Shiitake Mushrooms, Buttered Buckwheat, & Nasturtium."

Our appetizers were worth the wait.  We were each presented with 2 huge seared scallops on a bed of grains.

The scallops were well seared, not mid-rare as I'd prefer, but solidly medium, not rubbery or over cooked.  My table mates remarked at how impressive it was to get scallops cooked well, particularly in such quantity.  I love scallops, so, these were a hit for me.

The buttered buckwheat reminded me of farro, in that it was a hearty grain.  It was fine I guess, but, not really my thing.  There were also small chunks of salsify mixed in with the buckwheat, and on top.

At the very base of the plate was a smooth puree, only a very small amount, but it was very good.  I think it may have been a puree of the same salsify?  I'm not sure where the smoked shiitake was though, perhaps that was in the puree too?

Anyway, this was a good dish, and impressive that someone seared 60 scallops, and served them hot, that well.

This dish is currently on the dinner menu for $25, perhaps a bit pricey for only two scallops, but it was everyone else at my table's favorite dish of the night.  I ranked it second, and it was certainly good, but the best was yet to come.

Main Dish: Northern Halibut.

"Green Asparagus, English Peas & Sweet Corn, Carrot Top & Garlic Scale Pesto, Wild Greens."

For my main, I obviously picked the halibut, on the menu because, well, I wanted it.

It was really well prepared.  The fish had a slight sear on the outside, and inside stayed moist and tender.  It was seasoned fairly simply with just the right amount of salt and pepper.  The quality of this mild, delicate fish was allowed to shine.  Again, impressive execution of cooking the protein at such scale.

As well prepared as the fish was however, it was not the star of this plate.  Shockingly, the sauteed peas and corn totally stole the show.  It was basically a succotash (and actually, the original  menu I was provided listed favas in place of peas).  I don't have words for how good this was.  Lightly cooked, not at all "mushy peas".  Beautiful vegetables, generously coated with butter, well seasoned.  Seriously amazingly delicious.  The diner sitting next to me also ordered this dish, and I was amused when I watched him just devour the vegetables, leaving the fish on the side for after.  I tried to compose balanced bites, mixing fish with the vegetables, but wow, it was so hard not to just devour the veggies immediately.  There was a generous amount of this succotash as well, although you can't see it in the photo very well, there was a sizable mound under the fish.  Still, it took literally all my willpower to save one bite for Ojan.  I felt like I *had* to, given how much I was proclaiming the deliciousness, and how clearly superior my dish was.

The asparagus spears were less successful.  Thin spears of asparagus, slightly too crisp, not particularly seasoned or flavorful.  But honestly, nothing could have compared to that succotash.

On top of the fish was another shockingly good element: carrot top and garlic scape pesto.  The simple, well seasoned fish didn't actually need an accent, but this pesto was fantastic.  I really couldn't believe how strong the carroty taste was to it, which messed with my head, since it was green, not orange.  A lovely compliment to the fish.

Finally, a pile of herbs on top, which I think were also carrot tops?  They added to the visual quality of the dish, but weren't really necessary.

This was hands down dish of the night for me.  Well prepared halibut, tasty pesto, and just totally amazeballs succotash.  I'd gladly get this again, and was impressed with the cook on the fish for such a large group.

The halibut option on the regular dinner menu is $36, which seems correct for a quality dish of this level.

Main Dish: American Wagyu Bavette Steak.

"Crushed Olive Oil Potatoes with Soft Fennel, Leeks & Arugula, Broccoli & Kale al Limone, Sauteed Broccolini, Mushroom Relish, Beef Jus."

Most of my table, Ojan included, went for the bavette.  Before the entrees were brought out, they were provided steak knives.

The bavette eaters were ... not very happy.  One commented on how chewy it was.  Another said that the fat wasn't properly rendered out.  Chewy and fatty?  Sadness.  The kitchen executed the other proteins so well that this surprised me.

I didn't try anything on this plate, but, all of the diners who got it said it was less good than the scallops, and Ojan, who tried my dish, said it was the weakest dish of all three.

The dinner menu has a very similar dish, but it is a filet rather than bavette, but has the exact same sides.  It is $49.

Dessert

And now, usually my favorite part of any meal, dessert!  The dessert options were the hardest for me to narrow down to only two choices, so I'm glad that Ojan was willing to split both with me.  And by split, I obviously mean, take a bite of each, and then just give them both to me.  #winning

Panna Cotta Trifle.

"Roasted Apricots, Dirty Girl Strawberries Sugar Cookie Crumble, White Velvet Cake."

Ok, so this was the dish I was really intrigued by.  Sure, I know what panna cotta is, it is a dish I love, and my blog has a label devoted to it.  But as a trifle?  And with "white velvet cake"?  What is white velvet cake, anyway?

This was an interesting layered creation.  I believe the panna cotta element was the firmer pudding at the base.  Above that was the sugar cookie crumble, which added a great crunchy element.  Above that, the roasted apricots and strawberries.  The fruit was really fantastic, soft, flavorful, clearly perfectly ripe and seasonal.  Above that was a generous amount of whipped cream.  And then?  A ring of cake, which I guess was the white velvet.  It tasted more like angel food cake to me.  And then, on the very top, apricot sorbet. The sorbet was wonderful, so intensely apricot flavored.

This was a pretty fascinating dish, with so many elements.  It was good, and I enjoyed creating bites out of all different combinations of the elements.  Creamy, fruity, crunchy, all in one bite?  Yes!  The cake I could have done without however.  It reminded me of all other desserts I've had at Boulevard though ... lots of thought clearly went into it, it was complex, but, just didn't blow me away, for no particular reason.

I was again impressed by the execution of the chefs, this time the pastry kitchen.  All our dessert had a frozen element (sorbet here, ice cream on the other), and they all arrived perfectly intact.  And again, I appreciated the restaurant not dumbing down the dessert selection for a large group, because assembling 30 of these to be ready all at once is too hard ...

Both Ojan and I agreed this was the better dessert of the two, but I wouldn't go running back for it.

Red Velvet Layer Cake.

"Cream Cheese Cheesecake, Malted Milk Ice Cream with English Toffee, Fudge Sauce, White Chocolate Curls."

We also went for the other option, which sounded nearly as intriguing.  Red velvet layer cake sounds boring, but, um, cheesecake was involved?  And ice cream?  I had no idea what to expect, but I knew it wouldn't be a standard red velvet cake, which I clearly wouldn't have ordered.

This one was a little more simple.  I thought that perhaps the ice cream would be a layer in the cake, but it was just a small scoop on the side.  It was fine, but, just ice cream with some bits of toffee in it.  Boulevard takes their ice cream seriously, as I believe every dessert has an ice cream component, and they also offer scoops of housemade ice cream as a more basic option.  I guess I expected more from the ice cream, as this wasn't remarkable in any way.  That said, it also wasn't store-bought, freezer burned, plain vanilla either, which far too many places serve ...

The layer cake had layers of classic red velvet cake with cheesecake in place of the standard cream cheese frosting layer.  The cheesecake layer was fantastic, rich, creamy, flavorful.  I loved it.  Why on earth would you use frosting when you could use cheesecake?  Genius idea here, and they have clearly improved upon red velvet cake.

The red velvet cake itself was just cake.  I never really like cake.  It wasn't particularly moist or flavorful.

On top was more crumbled english toffee bits and white chocolate curls.  They added a bit of crunch and sweetness, and, well, looked good.  The final element was the small line of fudge sauce on the bottom, a very rich chocolate fudge that I loved and wanted more of.

So, overall, this was ... ok.  Better than a regular red velvet cake, but, still, cake.  I enjoyed a few bites, particularly of just cheesecake with chocolate sauce and toffee from on top, but, I preferred the other dessert.

This is on the current dessert menu for $11.

Decaf Coffee.

After the desserts were served, servers came around with coffee.  I appreciated that they had both regular and decaf available, I so often need to ask for decaf and it comes much later.

That said, this decaf was horrible.  I'm sorry, but it was foul.  I really, really love having coffee with my desserts, and I tried a few sips of this, but I just couldn't handle it.  By far the worst coffee I've had in ... years, including on airplanes and in hotel breakfast buffets.  Seriously.

Coffee and tea service was included with our dining package.

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Reef Bars, NZ

A while back, I flew on Air New Zealand to Sydney (via Aukland).  On one of my flights, they had a snack basket with REEF Bars.  I grabbed one, just in case I got peckish at some point.  You never know when you need a snack bar ...

I wasn't able to find out much about the manufacturer, which seems to be Bite Me Foods, located in New Zealand.  The bars are made for sports and recovery, not exactly what most airline flyers need at the time.

"The Reef Bar is the perfect combination of proteins, carbohydrates and essential fats your body needs for energy and recovery before, during and after sports or exercise.  They are healthy, nutritious, balanced and they really taste amazing. Reef Bars don't contain any fillers like oats of peanuts. There is only 0.4g of brown sugar used in each Reef Bar."

I found this pretty amusing, because, really, how often are folks on a plane "before, during, or after sports or exercise"?  Still, it was nice to have a balanced bar like this available.

Tropical Fruit & Nut.

This was a delightful mix of fruit, nuts, and seeds smashed together, with very few random filler ingredients or binding agents.

I tried the tropical flavor, which included papaya and pineapple, along with standard dates and raisins.  I really liked the bits of fruit, quite sweet, and flavorful.  I appreciated the ratios in this bar, with 19% each devoted to the star ingredients of papaya and pineapple, and only 7% and 5% to the raisins and dates, respectively.  I hate it when bars are overwhelmed by dates!

The nuts used were brasil nuts, making up 10% of the bar, plus almonds (only 4%).  The seeds were sunflower (like the dried fruit, 19% of the bar).  I loved the nuts, as brasil nuts are always a favorite of mine. The seeds were not my favorite, a bit bitter.  I'd like to swap the percentages of these.

The final elements were bits of crystallized ginger and fruit peel, which both added zing, but I didn't really like.  The binders were just egg, potato starch, soy flour, rice flour, and maize flour,  making it gluten-free, but I didn't detect them in the bar at all.  A little brown sugar and vanilla round it out.

I actually quite enjoyed this.  Great crunch from the nuts (and nuts that I like!), and sweetness from the fruit.  The texture was great, the flavors were good, for a bar, it was quite enjoyable.  I appreciated the slightly chewy, sticky nature to it as well.

I don't often have the need for items like this, but, if I were looking for a snack, I'd certainly get another.

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Reception Catering at Town Hall Restaurant

Town Hall is a southern inspired restaurant located a few blocks from my house and office.  It has been around for a while, and has a decent reputation.  I walk by regularly.  But I hadn't been to the restaurant in years.

So let's rewind first.  Back in January 2009 I went to Town Hall for the first and only time, for lunch, during Dine About Town.  I don't remember anything about the savory food, but I did remember that we went there intentionally for the butterscotch pudding.  Mmm, I love pudding.  And then ... we all felt sick afterwards.  Not that I was scared of going back, but, the place just hadn't left an impression so I saw no real reason to return.

Fast forward to 2016, when I was invited to a reception in the private dining room.  So, I gave it another try.  The private dining room is upstairs, and has a small area near the entrance where they set up a little bar.  It then opens into the larger room, long and fairly narrow, with large windows.  They use this space for formal sit down dinners, cocktail parties, meetings, and more, so it is pretty customizable.

Our event only had beer, wine, and appetizers, so I can't comment on much else.  The little bites were all decent, but nothing mind blowing, about what I remembered from our previous visit.  I'd go back if someone else wanted to, but, I have no reason to return of my own accord.

Corn fritters with cilantro aioli. $5 (back) Some other fritters (front).

These two trays contained different items, even though they looked similar.

In back were the corn fritters, basically hush puppies.  Honestly, I'm not sure why they called these corn fritters, as they were cornmeal, not corn kernels.  Anyway, they were dense balls of cornmeal, not particularly interesting.  They had a dot of aioli on them, but, too small to really taste.  I wanted some kind of pop to this dish, like a jalapeño aioli, or honey butter, or ... something.  It was just kinda dry, dense, and boring.

The front tray is something I'd actually call a fritter, and I expected to taste some vegetables in here, perhaps corn, perhaps okra, uh, something.  But, they just tasted like balls of fritter dough.  These had a more sizable dollop of what seemed like a yogurt sauce?

Both of these were pretty lackluster.

Tuna tartare with Tabasco aioli on a crispy wonton. $6.

The crispy wonton looked incredibly oily, and I don't really like tuna tartare, so I skipped these.

Mushroom profiteroles, mint-pea creme friache. $5.

The mushroom profiteroles sounded better than they were.  Not that they were bad, but, don't profiteroles and crème fraîche sound awesome?  These were good, not awesome.

They were small little profiteroles, stuffed with a woodsy chopped mushroom mix, with a dot of the crème fraîche  on top.  Fine, but, well, just not very interesting.

Roasted veal herb meatballs with green peppercorn sauce over potato purée. $5

The veal meatballs were quite good.

Super moist, juicy, cooked medium (almost medium-rare actually, perhaps a tiny bit under).  They were drenched in jus and served over creamy, flavorful potato puree.

Overall, nicely executed, although not particularly memorable.  I'd prefer to have some kind of sear on the meatball to give a little crispy exterior.

Still, my favorite dish of the night and I went back for seconds.

Grilled ribeye skewers, guajillo chile jus. $7.

The ribeye skewers were so close to being delicious.

The meat was really well cooked, as you can see, still some pink, medium.  And the sauce was delicious.

But ... it was ribeye.  I took one bite, and it was tender and pretty good.  I went for my second bite, and wound up with a mouth full of fatty chewiness, and, since we didn't have silverware, I had no way to cut off a piece, and the entire chewy thing wound up in my mouth.  I did not appreciate this.

Still, delicious sauce, more creamy yummy potato puree, but, alas, ribeye.  My least favorite item.

Smoked chicken mini tacos with avocado salsa. $7.

Well, these were a surprise hit.  I actually tried these last, and didn't intend to try them at all, but curiosity got the better of me.

The taco shells looked super greasy, like the wontons I skipped.  I was pretty sure it was chicken inside.  Why would I want these?

I'm glad I tried though.  The taco shell, although, yes, greasy, was really delicious.  Crispy, oily in a good way, like a giant wonton.  I loved it.

The filling was I think smoked, shredded chicken.  It was tender and actually had a nice flavor to it.  On top was a slaw, crispy cabbage and carrots, and some creamy sauce.  The event menu lists smoked chicken tacos with avocado salsa, but I certainly didn't find any avocado salsa on these, hence my confusion as to what they really were (items were not labelled at the event).  They might have been pork?  Or duck even?

Anyway, the crispy shell and the slaw were tasty, making these my second favorite.

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Perfect Bar

I don't really like granola bars, protein bars, and the like, but, sometimes I need convenient snacks to carry with me, or to make sure I have protein to supplement my sometimes ridiculous lifestyle, and bars work well for this.  As such, I end up trying a lot of bars, surprising for an item I just don't generally like all that much.

Perfect Bars are nutrition bars, all with peanuts or almonds as the base (well, specifically, peanut or almond butter).  They are sweetened with only honey.   Like all trendy bars these days, they are non-GMO, gluten-free, kosher, full of protein, no refined sugar, laden with super foods ....

They produce 3 types of almond based bar: plain almond butter, almond acai, and almond coconut.  I didn't try any of these, since I don't generally care for almond butter.  Peanut options are Carob Chip, Fruit & Nut, Cranberry Crunch, and plain Peanut Butter (available as a mini only).

Perfect Bars however lose out in the convenient factor, because they require refrigeration and have a shorter shelf life.

Peanut Butter Mini.

"Creamy organic peanut butter meets organic honey meets 20 expertly-hidden whole foods."

The first flavor they ever made was peanut butter, so, I started with this, their first, and signature, item.

I tried a mini version, not really expecting to like these bars, and not wanting to invest in a full size bar.  The mini was indeed mini, easily finished in 2-3 bites.

The bar was a fairly solid texture, just kinda a block.  Since I had it straight from the fridge, it was also cold, and crumbled a bit.  I wonder what it would be like if it warmed up a bit?

Anyway, my 2-3 bites was only 100 calories, which is decently low given that it is a peanut butter bar, and, shockingly, the first ingredient is indeed peanut butter.  And you can tell.  It mostly just tastes like, well, peanut butter.  There was not a strange bitterness to it.  There was not an awful aftertaste.  It tasted like peanut butter, honeyed peanut butter even.

As I said, the first ingredient is peanut butter, and the second is honey, so, it actually makes sense that that is what I tasted.  The bar actually tastes like what it is made of.  There are more ingredients in it, including "Dried whole food powders", which includes kale, flax seed, rose hip, orange, lemon, papaya, tomato, apple, alfalfa, celery, kelp, dulse, carrot, and spinach, but honestly, I didn't taste any of that.  Notably, there is no "whey protein isolate", or any strange chemicals.  The only not entirely obvious ingredient is rice protein, which never tastes as nasty to me as the other proteins commonly found in bars.

Anyway, was this actually tasty?  Well, not really.  If it had some chocolate chips in it though, I could imagine liking it (they do make a version with carob chips, perhaps that would work?).  Or just something to give it a bit more oomph.  As it was, it was just a strange textured bar, that mostly tasted like honey peanut butter.

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Pino's Pizza, Boston

Pino's Pizza is a hole in the wall pizza place in Cleveland Circle in Brighton, near Boston.  It is a friend's family's favorite pizza place.  They have been visiting for years.  It seems to be an institution among others too, as it has been around since 1962, which is crazy in restaurant years.

Whenever he visits home, my friend always makes a trip to Pino's, with his entire family, including his elderly grandparents.  It is a big ordeal, but a tradition and something they absolutely love to do.  I've somehow not usually been around when they have gone, but this time, I was.  I was assured I was in for a treat.

Menu and ordering area.

Pino's is a no frills sort of place.  You order at the register.  They sell slices that are pre-cooked and just warmed when you order, or whole pies.  They also have the makings for subs.  I guess they also have some Italian dinner classics, like ravioli, ziti, shells, spaghetti, and assorted parmigiana, but we didn't order any of those.  These folks come for the pizza, and only the pizza.

It was lunchtime, and slices and subs seemed like popular items for others.

Once you order, you are given a number, and that is that.  Pizza is delivered to your table with paper plates.  Silverware and napkins are self serve.  Classic toppings such as oregano, parmesan cheese, garlic, and red pepper flakes are available in shakers at the register.

And that is that.

Cheesesteak with peppers.

I said they go for the pizza, but one diner also wanted us all to try the cheesesteak.  So we got a cheesesteak to share amongst everyone.

The bread was soft and not very fresh tasting.  The beef was well done (as in, cooked completely) and chewy.  I don't really like cooked peppers. The cheese was nicely melted at least, but there wasn't much of it.

Clearly, not my thing.

Large onion, peppers, mushrooms, "extra crispy". $18.50.

The first pizza we got was a large with onions, peppers, and mushrooms.

I liked the onions and mushrooms, both were soft and well cooked.  The topping amount was generous, nicely coating the pizza, and evenly distributed.  I didn't care for the peppers, both red and green, but, again, I don't really like cooked peppers.

The sauce was fine, simple tomato sauce.  The cheese nicely melted.  A bit greasy for my taste overall though.

The crust was rock hard.  Not charred in a nice way, just rock hard.  But, we did order it "extra crispy", as that is how the person ordering likes it.  The rest of us disagreed, but, this is her thing, so we went with it.  I thought the crust had absolutely no flavor.  No cornmeal, no oil, just ... rock hard brick of flavorlessness.

We also got a pepperoni pizza and a small cheese.  I tried a bite of the cheese, and it was much better, the crust not quite the same level of rock.

I think if you didn't ask for it extra crispy, the crust would at least not be hard to gnaw on, but it wouldn't likely be anything remarkable.

Overall, just simple pizza, not much more to say here.

Clearly, not my thing, but, I'm not really one for pizza in the first place, and, I think this place is their favorite due to all the memories.  I'll also throw in a shout out to the staff, who clearly know the family well, and treat them so very well.  They always make extra pizza bread for his grandfather to take home, as he loves to have it for breakfast the next day with classic Persian feta cheese and herbs.

Definitely an institution, just, not mine.

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Donut Savant

Have I mentioned that I love donuts?  Yeah, I love donuts.  I'm always look for an excuse to try out a new donut shop.

One place I heard great things about is Donut Savant, known mostly for the size of their donuts.  And no, not because they are huge.  Instead, they are known for having actually reasonable size donuts.  The donut holes are bigger than a standard donut hole (probably twice the size of a Munchkin, for you Dunkin' Donuts folks), a bit bigger than a golf ball.  Really, the perfect size to be able to try a few different donuts (which you know you always want to do anyway).  They also make bars that are slightly bigger, rolls that are a bit bigger still, fritters that are bigger yet, and some full size cronuts and jelly donuts.  But none are monsters.  The story goes that the owners wanted to solve the problem of having folks always hacking up donuts and leaving behind a box of carnage so they could try multiples / take less.

Since I like to try all the things, this sounded great to me.  Plus, the donuts are supposed to be excellent.  The only problem?  Um, Donut Savant is in Oakland.  Luckily, they deliver to SF!  But ... only if you order $50 of donuts.  Which, for some places, (ahem, Dynamo), is easy.  But at Donut Savant, each donut is ~$1 (even less when you buy them in person, basic holes are only $0.50!).  I needed a reason to order 50 donuts.  I finally got one, when I organized a large event for my team.  We obviously needed donuts for our morning break, right?

Ordering online and delivery were easy.  But, honestly, I didn't love the donuts (except for the fritters!).  For the most part, they were fine, but, really nothing special.  Maybe I went into it with too high of expectations?  That said, the size really was great, and the fritter was one of the best I've ever had.  I'd eat them again, but, I'll be seeking out somewhere else to try next time ...

Baker's Choice Dozen. $12.50.

"Baker's choice of a dozen assorted cake donuts plus one free specialty donut."

To make decision making easy, I opted for several boxes of Baker's Choice Dozen, which come with 12 of the donut holes, plus an extra large special one thrown in.  Our boxes of dozens included all their standard offerings: chocolate glazed, vanilla glazed, salted maple glazed, chocolate dusted, maple pecan, coconut dream, and cronuts for the extras.

From this box, I tried a donut hole, the chocolate dust (center near the top, below the pecan topped one).

Chocolate Dust Hole: "Buttermilk cake with a dark chocolate cocoa and sugar dusting."  I tried only one of the holes, since I had my eye on the specialty donuts.  It was a standard cake donut, not too dense, and coated in cocoa and sugar.  It was what it was.  Not particularly interesting, and I didn't really taste that much cocoa.

Delivered, the dozen is $12.50, pickup is $10.

Chocolate Bars - $1. Sufganiyot - $2.50. Chocolate Glazed Cronut - $2.50.

I mostly ordered boxes of the Baker's Choice Dozens, but, I did also pick out a few specific special ones.

Chocolate Bar: "Raised dough with dark chocolate frosting."

I ordered a bunch of the chocolate glazed bars, since I knew they'd bit a hit with my crowd.  They were about double the size of the holes, yet still only $1.  I didn't try one, but I'm assuming it was the same dark chocolate frosting as the others, which was fantastic.

Chocolate Glazed Cronut: "A labor of love which blends the best of a donut and a croissant. Our raised donut dough is rolled and folded like a croissant. The result: a unique combination that tastes like a donut with the flaky, layered texture of a croissant. We call this creation 'The Cron't' (rhymes with “don’t”)."

Ojan wanted a cronut, and selected the chocolate glaze.  I stole a bite before delivering it to him.  It wasn't like other cronuts I've had, in that it wasn't really layered and laminated like a croissant.  I think they used the same regular raised donut dough and just folded it differently, rather than frying a laminated dough?  It was kinda chewy.  So it wasn't really a croissant, and it wasn't really a donut.  Honestly, I wasn't impressed with the texture at all.  The chocolate ganache on top however was great, very thick, very rich, great chocolate flavor.  Cronuts are the most expensive items at $2.50 ($2 at the store), and are basically regular size donuts.

Sufganiyot: Inside.  $2.50.

"Raised dough filled with strawberry raspberry jam and dusted with cane sugar. "

This donut was the reason I was excited for Donut Savant.  I really, really love a good jelly donut.  I didn't know anything about Donut Savant's jelly donuts in particular, I just know they are my favorite donuts, so I couldn't wait to try one from a donut shop that was supposed to be all around great.

Sadly, it was the most disappointing donut I tried.  It was just a basic mediocre raised dough donut.  The dough didn't seem special in any way, not slightly sweet, and, almost even a bit stale and chewy.  It was nicely coated in sugar.

The filling ... also not great.  And there wasn't that much of it.  Really, everything about this was mediocre.

It was a standard full size donut size, and the most expensive item (besides cronuts) at $2.50.  I wouldn't get again.

Cinnamon Rolls. $1. 007 Sean Pecan-ery. $1.25.

One of my co-workers loves cinnamon rolls, so, I also got a ton of these.

Cinnamon Roll: "Raised dough cinnamon roll."

I started with a basic cinnamon roll.  These were slightly bigger than the smaller donuts, but still much smaller than any other cinnamon rolls I've seen.

It was ... fine.  The defining characteristic was the amount of cinnamon, very generous between the folds.  Nicely glazed.  Overall, solid I guess, but not particularly distinct from other cinnamon rolls, besides the smaller size.

007 Sean Pecan-ery: "Raised dough cinnamon roll with buttercream frosting & toasted pecans."

Of course, I really had my eye on the 007.  Why have just a glazed cinnamon roll when you can add frosting and pecans?  I liked the addition of the sweet frosting and crunchy pecans, and this was a far more exciting option than the plain cinnamon roll.

Apple Fritter. $1.25.

And finally, fritters.  Because, although I said I love a good jelly donut, I adore a good fritter.  I'm a sucker for fritters.

"Raised dough with granny smith apples and cinnamon."

And these delivered.  This was basically the best apple fritter ever.  For multiple reasons.

First, let's start with the apple part.  They actually had chunks of apple.  I know most fritters have some little bits of apple here or there, but in these, you could actually find the chunks, and they were good.  And I don't even really care for apple!

The dough was slightly sweet, moist inside, slightly crisp outside, nicely glazed.  Very solid.

Next, the size.  These were the second largest donuts (besides the cronuts and full size jelly donuts), about twice the size of the small ones, a little bigger than the cinnamon rolls.  Literally the most perfect size.  Plenty big enough to satisfy, but not pushing you towards feeling gross at all, which can really happen with standard super sized fritters (seriously, why are fritters always so crazy big?).  I had one after lunch (yes, after having 3 different donuts that morning), and it still didn't feel like "too much".

I really enjoyed this fritter, and would gladly get another.  Hands down favorite item I tried.

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SF Soup Company

SF Soup Company is a San Francisco based chain, started in 1999.  They have 10+ locations in San Francisco, mostly in the FiDi, as well as a handful throughout the peninsula.  As you may have guessed, they specialize in soups, but also make salads and sandwiches to go alongside.  A few of the locations also offer breakfast.

I've walked by several of the more prominent locations, in the Westfield Mall and the Metreon, many, many times.  But, soup, salads, and sandwiches aren't really my go to items.  Of course, samples are though, and often times when you walk by one of their restaurants, they are out front hawking soup or salad samples.  So, even though not a destination I'd really seek out, I've tried a number of their items over the years.

The Space

Premade Sandwiches, Soups.

Soups and sandwiches are pre-made.  They make something like 40 different soups, which rotate daily.  Even when not out front hawking soup samples, they are happy to let you sample any flavor before purchase.  Soups are served for you, in a regular or bread bowl.

Sandwiches are mostly half sandwiches, and aren't anything unexpected, your basic turkey, roast beef, tuna, and egg salad are available.  Perhaps the most interesting is the hummus wrap?  Sandwiches are clearly not the focus, but, an item added to the menu because customers don't just want soup.  They are pre-made and easy to grab and go.

Salad Making Station.

Salads are made to order.  They offer up some suggested recipes, but you can also create your own custom tossed salads.

The Food

I've tried many samples, but only stopped to purchase soup one day, when Ojan wasn't feeling well, and I wanted to bring him something comforting.

Sourdough Bread.

Soup comes with a choice of sourdough bread (a baguette chunk) or wheat roll.  I didn't want either, but Ojan opted for the sourdough.  The chunks were all a generous size, assorted pieces, including ends as he selected, or middle slices with less crust.

The bread looked fresh enough, soft and fluffy, but since I loathe sourdough, I didn't bother try it.  Ojan said it was "too sour", and only ate a few bites.  Sourdough that is ... too sour?

Soup

As I mentioned, they offer a slew of soups, and the varieties offered at any given location rotate daily.  You can check the soup schedule online.

Grandma Mary's Chicken Soup. $xx.xx

"A flavorful, soothing broth full of chunks of hand pulled Chicken, Parsnips, Carrots, Celery and Egg Noodles finished with fresh Dill. Just like Grandma Mary used to make it. "

This was for Ojan, when he was not feeling well.  I tasted the broth.  It was decently seasoned, nicely salty.  It seemed like the right sort of thing for a sick person ... if I liked soup.

The egg noodles were actually optional, and were added in by the person serving the soup.  I'm sure the gluten-free or low carb folks appreciate this.

The soup did look decent, loaded up with generous chunks of vegetable and tons of chicken.  Ojan said it was ok, appropriate for being sick.

On other walk-bys, I tried the following:

• New England Clam Chowder: “A thick, rich and creamy traditional recipe loaded with Clams from the North Atlantic and Red Skinned Potatoes. “  Tasting notes: Awful!  Fairly nasty flavor in the base, really fishy, not creamy. Clams really chewy. This was really not good. [ This time I liked it, very creamy rich base. Didn't love, but didn't hate anyway. ]
• Organic tomato bisque: “A luscious, silky, Organic Tomato and Sweet Cream soup.”  Tasting notes:  Not flavorful at all. Canned tomato soup is better.
• Organic Southwestern Corn Chowder: “A delectable blend of Roasted Corn, Red Bell Peppers and Red Skinned Potatoes simmered with Ancho, New Mexico and Chipotle Chiles. “  Tasting notes: Not bad.  Creamy, nice corn flavor, big chunks of not overcooked potato. It was a bit spicy, but the potatoes were overwhelming and mushy.
• Cream of Exotic Mushroom: “A rich, thick, pureed mushroom soup with Crimini, Oyster, Porcini, and White Mushrooms finished with a splash of Cream. “ Tasting notes: not much mushroom flavor, not very good.

Salads

Salads are available in several pre-designed recipes for entree or side salads, or you can pick your own ingredients and they are mixed to order. I haven't ever ordered a salad, but Ii've tried a few samples. Interestingly, the salads have been my favorite items.

Cranberry Kale Salad.

"Tender massaged kale with tri-colored quinoa, dried cranberries & feta cheese with meyer lemon vinaigrette." 

This salad was entirely ruined by the vinaigrette.  It was way, way too tangy.  The kale was fresh and crisp though, and I did like the quinoa, but I don't really like dried cranberries or feta, so, not much for me here, and that dressing ... ugh.

Others:

• Grilled Chicken Chipotle Salad: “Organic Mixed Greens, Grilled Chicken Breast, Roasted Corn, Jicama, Black Beans, Cherry Tomatoes, Avocado, Cheddar Cheese, Organic Blue Corn Tortilla with creamy chipotle dressing”. Tasting notes: This was surprisingly good. Fairly fresh greens, nice ingredients, zesty dressing.  Cheddar cheese was generic shredded stuff though. 
• Asian Chicken Salad: “Organic Mixed Greens, Grilled Chicken Breast, Shredded Carrots, Edamame, Shredded Cabbage, Crispy Wonton, with Sesame Miso Dressing.” Tasting notes: This was tasty! Fresh greens, nice crunch from the crispy wontons, tender edamame. The sesame miso dressing was delicious, and it wasn’t over dressed. 
• Grilled Chicken Ceasar Salad: “Organic Romaine, Grilled Chicken Breast, Foccacia Croutons, Shredded Parmesan Cheese.” Tasting notes: Another pleasant surprise. The lettuce was crispy and about as good as you can hope for romaine. The dressing was zesty. The parmesan was a fairly sharp flavor, in big shreds. The croutons were a nice crunch, not stale tasting. Overall, pretty decent, although the dressing was the weakest component, not all that indistinguishable from any generic dressing from a bottle.

Breakfast

Several locations offer breakfast. The menu is simple, just oatmeal, yogurt parfaits, and frittata sandwiches. I tried the oatmeal once when, as you might be able to guess now, they were giving out samples.

• Brown Sugar and Raisins: "Organic Steel Cut Oats simmered and stirred with just a dash of Brown Sugar and hint of Cinnamon and Vanilla. " Tasting Notes: I had this as a sample, so it was lukewarm, but the oatmeal was actually pretty nice and creamy.  Not gloopy.  They had topped it with way too much brown sugar, a dash of cinnamon, and some plump raisins.  Not bad, actually.
• Fruit and Granola: This item has been discontinued. Tasting Notes: I had this as another sample. Again, not a bad consistency. Definitely no bad mushy, gloopy, oatmeal here.  The fruit was sweet and nice, more like a compote than fresh fruit though.  Granola on top of oatmeal was a little strange, I liked the crunch, but it was a bit odd.

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