Mission Mission

Josh and I checked out this new Italian place within Mission Market last night. The whole experience was eerie, starting with the overeager bystander/good Samaritan ushering us forcefully around the corner onto 22^nd toward the entrance. We walked down the tiled hallway into an expansive dining room (35 tables or so) that was completely empty. La Grotta is not really cavelike (it’s officelike) but it is cavernous. Another patron walked in with us and tentatively sat down at one of the bar tables, but he bailed, which is no easy task in a restaurant with audible pin drops. Josh and I soldiered on.

No booze yet, so we tried the water. We started with the Mesa Platter because it’s damn impressive looking. Unfortunately the meats were tres lunch-meat and the vegetables tasted like vegetables. The bruschetta was very good, well-toasted and nicely garlicky.

Josh had the eggplant lasagna and I had the spaghetti and meatballs. The water line in my bowl was around 67% of capacity. The sauce tasted good, nice and basily, and the pasta was cooked reasonably well. The meatballs were bland and the consistency of matzo balls. Josh found the eggplant bitter and the lasagna ok, but who can trust him, he’s just getting over a cold.

I take no delight in disparaging an unpretentious Italian restaurant in the neighborhood; if it were even pretty good I would eat here every day. Cheap Italian is rarely mastered. Josh’s suggestion was that they offer $2 drafts from 6-9, which I agree might be the ticket to Bean-Bag-sized success.

On the upside, nothing was gross, the service was good and the place was clean. And most of all, I was so full that I could hardly get through my beer half an hour later, which actually sucked because everyone else at the Attic was wasted.

Oh and they had this really good hipster boxing show on the T.V., so that was a plus.

The first couple times I went to Hog & Rocks, the schmancy joint on 19^th and San Carlos that bills itself as San Francisco’s first ever ham and oyster bar, I skipped over the namesakes and went straight for the entrees (and cocktails, their cocktails are outstanding.) Recently I discovered I was totally missing out. I’m not an oyster enthusiast and lots of places have oysters, but the meats at this place are really something special. Each mound of prosciutto, Serrano ham, etc. is paired with something to bring out the meat’s specific flavors, from pickled grapes to mozzarella. The other night we ordered the large sampler and tasted all the current selections. Here’s some specifics:

• La Quercia prosciutto with pickled grapes: subtle and smoky, smoky like a barbeque not a chimney fire. If you’re not into salty, this is definitely the best pick.
• San Daniele prosciutto with fresh mozz: Probably the saltiest on the menu but I liked it a lot. Dry and intense, like it’s 10% of the way to becoming jerky. The mozzarella doesn’t do much except maybe cut the saltiness a little.
• G&W Hammery with pickled onions: creamy and fresh tasting. The onions were pickled in red wine vinegar like the onions on fancy burgers, which are pretty clearly great.
• Redondo Iglesias Serrano ham with sun-dried tomatoes: Another salty one, also good. Not quite as intense as the San Daniele and the tomatoes were just okay, but still a good pick.
• Broadbent’s ham with Fresno chile syrup: gross, imho. The meat was bland and chewy. The syrup was overly sugary, and it didn’t capture the orange-bell-pepper-y deliciousness that makes Fresno chiles great (see Youk’s.)

Happy ham-eating!

[photo]

Found under Fred Sharples’ floorboards.

[via Brock]

UPDATE: Detailed 1954 vs 2012 comparison over at Burrito Justice.

I had the pleasure of watching one of the new fake bus ads go up today. I was on the 49 when two young males boarded. One mentioned concernedly to the other that there was no one driving the bus. I informed them that the driver was behind the bus fixing the wires, which had fallen off the lines as the bus turned off 16th onto Mission. They removed the poster above from a small cardboard box and slipped it into an empty spot. Once their culture-jamming was complete, they quickly sped off out the back door. I tried to snap a pic of the culprits, but it was pretty grainy and I don’t know if I’d post it anyway. Suffice it to say that one of them had a pretty sweet mustache.

We happened upon this pair en route from the Phoenix to Serrano’s Pizza last night around 10. Were they occupying? Camping out at a stop on a road trip? Were they still there in the morning? So many questions.

Spotted at the Phoenix.

This was the scene at the new food truck spot on 18th and Bryant yesterday. It’s a nice sunny courtyard just north of 18th, and hopefully will be a good food option in the area. I used to work on that block, and there’s only so much Tortilla Flats a man can take. 11-2, Monday through Friday.

The Brass Knuckle food truck. Note the Occupy SF fries, $8.

Here’s the latest in a series of shocking fake ad campaigns that have been popping up on Muni buses. The text reads: “Fartine Bakery & Cafe. Wait in line for five hours to buy a fucking donut.” Someone should smash the windows of that place before they sell any more pastries.

[Muni Diaries via Grubstreet SF]