San Francisco Treats

So, when I left off we were waiting for the Ferry Building to open. We fought the rain and hopped on the street car to the Ferry Building. We arrived just as Boccalone was opening. Perfect timing. We love the Ferry Building so, it's like letting kids loose in a candy store. We bought breads, cheese and meats for a picnic back at the hotel.











We gorged on the tasty pig part platter above. Even those olives were good, and I usually do not like olives of any sort. We also ate rustic breads and Point Reyes, goat gouda, and sophia cheeses. Yum! We realized that we overlooked a purchase of olive oil in our excitement, only that could've made the meal better.

After stuffing ourselves silly we made lunch plans (for Monday) with my friend Mary, and while chatting she suggested we check out Beach Blanket Babylon. The uniquely San Francisco music revue sounded interesting so we walked to the theater in hopes to get tickets for the 2pm show. Unfortunately only $82 tickets were available for both of Sunday's shows. We'll try booking in advance on other trip to secure cheaper tickets. We wandered about North Beach and rode the cable car to Chinatown. Walked around there for awhile and then took the California Cable Car line from end to end. Now, we've done them all.

Yeah, Giants!
























We transferred and rode back toward North Beach and stopped at Victoria Pastry Co. we loved their napoleans last visit, we had to come back for another taste. I had the chocolate again and Frank had whipped cream. They were good, but no where near as tasty as last time. I think they were a couple days old; the layers were tough. It helped none that the lady that assisted us had a nasty attitude. Not sure I'll pay them a visit next time.



After our sweet bite, we walked back to the hotel to rest up a bit. We watched football until we grew hungry. I did awesome this week in my fantasy games, my team had high points and I took the lead in Pick'em after only having one loss.

Sunday's dinner was at Penang Garden. It's a Singaporean restaurant, it was featured on Food Network's Best Thing I Ever Ate. Tyler Florence suggested the Hot & Spicy Crab. We were sold on the first run. We ordered that and an order of singapore noodles with shrimp and pork in a curry sauce. It was good, but it was outshined by the crab. So much so that I forgot to take a photo. Probably because I was elbow deep in sauce from crab cracking. It was a lot of work to eat this sucker, but totally worthwhile. It was very good.



Bellies full we took the Cable Car back toward North Beach. We searched for a bar near the hotel, and settled on The Fiddler's Green in the Wharf. It's a small Irish bar, with quite a few beers on tap and live music. We bellied up to the bar and enjoyed a few beers, before turning in for the night.

Rain drops keep fallin'...

My internal clock wakes me at 6:30 most days. Sunday was no different, only my internal clock failed to observe daylight savings time. It was 5:30. I forced myself to snooze. All was well until a loud buzzing alarm went off an hour later. What is this? A drill? An earthquake? Is there a fire? I call the front desk to find out, maybe I should be mad-dashing down the stairs?! A few rings in, it stops. We must be safe. But we were now wide awake. We prepare for the day, and I seek out a breakfast spot. It's pouring rain so I choose Hollywood Cafe nearby.

We first stop at Safeway to purchase umbrellas. Half of San Francisco had the same idea, they were sold out. We were told to try Walgreens, but they wouldn't be opening for sometime. Instead, we decide to bear it, and dodge the drops as best we could so we proceed to the restaurant. No dining was available inside, but patio dining was available. Imagine that? Such luck. As long as we nestled together we were able to huddle under the overhang, and there was a heater to keep us warm.

Frank ordered a ham & cheese omelet which came with hash browns.





I had the special hashbrowns with two scrambled eggs. These weren't magic potatoes (couldn't be too sure, I'd been smelling pot around every corner, thus far), just special ones which meant they were topped with a mixture of bacon, mushrooms, onion and cheese. It was tasty and just enough to hold us over until the Ferry Building opened.

We noticed a few souvenir stores were starting to open so we walked around the corner to see if we could find umbrellas. We were in luck, there were a few behind the counter. Two please. Purple and blue, and covered with San Francisco. Just in case, we forget... I suppose. They did the trick. Although, they were mighty awkward. I had not used one since I was a small child. Even then, I tried to fly like Mary Poppins rather than use it as intended.

Now, able to face the elements we sought out an ATM, which was Burger King thanks to the convenience of ING. We had the Wharf to ourselves so we decided to walk around a bit.







It didn't take long for the newness of the umbrellas to wear off. I have arthritis in my hands so they were cramping like something fierce. The winds picked up and caused the rain to blow sideways so my jeans were getting soaked, and they were soaked through from the foot up, as well, from puddles. I suddenly wished I had purchased a super cute pair of galoshes I spotted at Walmart a few months back. They were on clearance. Of course, they were, we live in the desert. But I certainly could have used them this day.

We had enough, boo hiss on the elements. We dashed back to the hotel and stripped off our wet clothes and climbed into the warm dry bed, until it was Ferry Building time.

How I've missed you, San Francisco...

About a week before our trip Frank realized we booked our departing flight the same day as Breeder's Cup. We had to re-schedule for a later flight because Frank had to work, fortunately Southwest makes it easy and fairly inexpensive to makes changes. Our trip was shortened by 8 hours, but we were set.

He got off work just before the main race, it left just enough time for him to come home, change, and then we were off to MGM's valet. We left the car in their trusty hands and hopped in a cab to the airport. Our Southwest flight was on-time, we boarded just before 5pm. Even though our boarding passes were A48/A49 we managed to score the exit row. Frank was able to stretch his legs. He was positively thrilled. Too bad it was only 1.5 hour flight. However, his excitement was short-lived. A little one, a girl about three, sat directly behind him. She kicked the seat and fussed with the tray table the entire way. At least, it was only 1.5 hour flight.

We found ourselves in San Francisco in no time. We quickly left the airport and took the tram to Bart. Not long after, we were in Union Square hopping on the Powell-Mason Cable Car toward the hotel. We only made a brief stop to purchase our 3-day Muni passes, best $20 spent. Seriously. And there is even a booth that sells them right outside the Bart station (by the ginormous Forever 21). The Cable Car took us right by the hotel. It's less than a two block walk to the Tuscan Inn. We enjoyed its location, value and accommodations so much last time; It was no question when booking this trip.

We were promptly checked in and given keys to our room on the second floor overlooking the courtyard. This room was much quieter than the street view room last stay. We unpacked and rested a bit, while looking over dinner options. We settled on Sotto Mare in North Beach. It was a short-walk. It could have been an even shorter Cable Car ride, but we wanted to get the feel for the city.

Sotto Mare is a family run Italian Seafood restaurant. It was an easy sell. We drooled over the menu a bit before deciding on seafood risotto and "the best damn Cioppino". With a name like that how could I pass it up? We snacked on bread dipped in oil and vinegar to pass the time. Then, the waitress brought out bibs. We adorned them quite fashionably.





Once we were properly dressed for the occasion, we dug in. Literally. And guess what? It was the best damn cioppino. The seafood -- crab, mussels, clams, squid, scallops and shrimp were all cooked to perfection. Not a single piece was overdone.



Frank's risotto was nothing scoff at. It, too, was wonderfully prepared. This meal was the perfect welcome to San Francisco.




We paid the tab, which was pennies compared to what a similar meal would run in Vegas. And we walked North Beach just soaking up our favorite neighborhood. We thought we might grab some drinks at a bar, but it was Saturday night and we preferred something more relaxed so we stopped at the Safeway around the corner from the hotel and stocked up on pop, water, and we also bought a bottle of Pinot Grigio.

After chilling the wine, we popped that baby open and poured ourselves a couple glasses. Too bad it tasted terrible. I could barely choke down a glass. Rather than head out, we snuggled up and enjoyed a quiet night in, and prepared for an early start.

Hello, Lovelies

As fun as San Francisco is, my heart is in Sin City. I was very happy to get home late last night. We had a great time. We ate a lot. We walked a lot. However, I didn't walk enough, my scale this morning shared the ghastly news that I gained two pounds over the weekend. I suppose I should've relied less on the cable cars to tote my ass around. But they're fun, and every single bite I inhaled was worth while. We ate crab, and more crab. We ate pasta, and more pasta. We ate deli sandwich, after deli sandwich and we even saved room for Chinese treats.

We saw some sights we missed last time, and we fought the rain, and enjoyed the sunshine. Monday was a perfect day, or so we were told numerous times. It was 60 and sunny. Beautiful days in those parts must equal sunny skies. I was chilled the entire time, but layers and scarfs kept me warm. Brought home souvenirs this trip, that I wish we could have done with out. Any guesses? Considering it is San Francisco they were oddly appropriate, but I hadn't had a need for one since I was a small child. And then it was mostly to play Mary Poppins.

Anyway, once I sort through the photos, I'll share them along with the details of our trip.

Ding! Wanna get away?

Southwest's commercial has been stuck on repeat all week in my head. This week had a hellacious start and I felt like the weekend would never arrive. But here it is. Tomorrow, we'll be on plane headed to San Francisco. We are beyond ready. We want to unwind, enjoy the city and eat. A. LOT. I plan to partake in all of San Francisco's treats. All but Rice-a-Roni, that is.

This day is nearly done, so I'll leave you with my latest LLV article, Vegas Values: Sushi Mon.

Catch y'all later next week.

Just Listed

We've had enough, and we don't want to be house poor. Traveling and experiencing life outside my home is far more important. Plus, I don't have the stomach to handle being underwater for the next twenty years. I want to have the ability to be flexible. I don't want anything standing in the way of following my dreams, so we listed the house for short sale. We are hopeful that we won't have to move for several months but we have to prepare and set the process in motion.

Don't get any crazy ideas. We will remain in Las Vegas. We'll likely even stay in the same neighborhood. Unless a sweet deal on Panorama comes available. Believe me I have my eye out. So, this is home, only for a while longer...

Unnatural

I kept busy this weekend cleaning house among other things. Every week I do basic tidying up, and then every two months the house gets a top to bottom deep clean. That's when I'll put out the appliances, scrub the tile, wipe the base boards, descale the hardwater in the showers, scrub the stove, etc. The house was due for a deep cleaning this weekend. When I pulled out the microwave I found an old bag of Sandwich Thins that had fallen into the abyss.

Immediately I was grossed out, I didn't want to get near it. Let alone touch it to throw it away. I figured it had to be pretty gnarly and laced with furry mold. I took a deep breath and went in, and much to my surprise it wasn't gross at all. In fact there wasn't a spot of mold. It wasn't even all that stale. Then, I was utterly grossed out in the same way I was after watching that Super Size Me movie. That showed the twinkie-like life of McDonald's french fries. Yuck. I checked the date, August 21, 2010. Yep, these things should've expired long ago. I bought them thinking we could save some calories and they're made without high fructose corn syrup. I'm not sure what's in these, but I can be sure it's not natural. I won't be buying them again.

PBR Rock Bar

I mentioned before that we went to PBR Rock Bar for lunch. Saturday they were celebrating Horny Halloween, but the crowd was gathered for college football. It took us a few minutes to be seated. We looked over the menu and got started with their pepper poppers. They looked unappealing, and they were very greasy. The pepper was very tough, when you tried to cut into it, the filling spilled out.



Next, came our entrees the Big Bossman salad and the Bloomin' Onion burger. The burger is topped with cheese and fried, and then served with grilled onions, tomato and bacon. It was dry, dry, dry. How can that be? After the peppers the grease was too much to bear so Frank and I switched a few bites in. The salad was wilted. It seemed like a bowl of mush. I was not a fan. Frank also asked for their house cornbread muffins. The texture was off, but the flavor was decent, I liked addition of diced jalapeno. They were the highlight of the meal.







Service was average, an overall the place had an odd vibe. Frank said it best when he mentioned the place has an identity crisis. It's a great place to watch games, lots of great TVs, but stick to drinks because the food is weak. PBR makes you think country, but much of the music was rock. I suppose it is a rock bar, but then they threw in pop like Katy Perry. Not sure how that fits. Yep, an identity crisis.

November? How?

Seriously, how is it November? This year is just zipping by. As much as I hate the cold I really can't complain (much), it is pretty mild here and I have trips to warmer destinations planned. First up is San Francisco, can't say it'll actually be warmer, but the forecast looks about the same as what we've been experiencing here. Then, we're off to Phoenix. And next month, it's Mexico. To say I cannot wait is an understatement.

I'm happy to see October go. It was a rollercoaster month, and it's left me pretty drained. I'm ready to put it behind me, and focus on better times ahead. Halloween was kind of a bust this year. We went to the Strip on Saturday and casino hopped between Bally's and Treasure Island. Not too many costumes, maybe they were all waiting for Halloween? This year offered the best bang for your buck on costumes, you could've had really gotten your monies worth this year... you could dress up Fri, Sat and Sunday. Parties even started mid-week at the clubs. Anyway, the most popular costume spotted was Mario and Luigi. Funniest I saw was a group dressed like ICP rolling down Flamingo smoking a blunt. Sadly, I don't have a vote for most creative. Saturday afternoon, Frank and I had lunch at PBR Rock Bar. They were celebrating Horny Halloween. Sexy versions of Care Bears, TMNT's Raphael, and others were spotted.

Yesterday at 6 o'clock I feared I wouldn't have any trick or treaters, but then the bell rang, and it didn't stop until 8:30 when I turned out the lights because I ran out of candy. Lots of cute kids, polite, too. Even the older kids played nice.

Tomorrow is election day. I think I may be even more excited over that than Halloween. Today should be my last day for junk mail and political calls. I'm pretty stoked it's nearly done, I've grown so tired of it all.