Mission Mission

Reader Laurie V. tells us what’s up:

Thought you might be interested in this tidbit: I live a few doors
down from the corner of 19th & Lexington (you know, where the lesbian
bar is). There was an old corner shop there that shut down 3 years ago
and has been closed ever since. 2 years ago, construction started on
turning it into a new restaurant — but it never seemed to get it
together. There’d be a burst of construction for a month, then it
would suddenly stop again. As neighbours, we got planning permission
letters every time it applied for a licence, which it did under 3
different names over 2 years. I’d just resigned myself to the fact
that it would never open, but today on my walk home I spotted a bunch
of people drinking inside, so I knocked on the window and asked what
was up. It turns out the place changed hands again last week; one
“Emily” has taken over the lease and says they plan to open in
October, serving “seasonal soul food”. I sure hope they do, as it
would be great to have a new restaurant 2 doors away! (To say nothing
of the awesome-in-concept Hog and Rocks, which looks like it is nearly
ready to open)

Yum! Thanks, Laurie!

Hella old photo by Seldo.

Coming down from a burrito high is the worst. If you find yourself in NYC needing quick fix, there are apparently options.

When a bartender heard that we were from San Francisco, he raved about Dos Toros in Union Square.

Another staff member who claimed to be from Berkeley (and later proved this by knowing intricate details of student co-op living) confirmed that it’s pretty awesome, so I checked it out. This is a taqueria modeled directly after the bay’s own Gordo Taqueria by two fellows from Berkeley who wanted to bring bay area burritos to NYC.

Here’s what their carnitas burrito looks like:

First of all, the pierced and tatt’ed young lady who wrapped my burrito really didn’t know what she was doing. Her end folds were way too big pushing all the contents to the middle. She tried to cover things up with an exaggerated triangle fold to bring the edges in, but this just resulted in burrito contents shooting out of the tip at a higher velocity after the second roll. The whole structural integrity of the burrito was therefore compromised, as you can see from the cracking of the overloaded bottom half:

This was a far cry from the burrito wrapping mastery one would see at any taqueria here, but I was in a forgiving mood. Maybe she was new here.

Anyway, when I could keep the burrito from spilling everywhere I thought it tasted really good. The carnitas meat was moist and flavorful. If I closed my eyes and tried to ignore the humidity and tourist swarms outsides I probably wouldn’t have thought twice about this being a bay area burrito. It’s really hard to be objective on the matter, of course the Mission in me wanted to hate it, but honestly I didn’t.

One of the guys working there must have picked up on my SF-ness because he asked, “did we pass the test?” Yeah, I think so. In any case, you’re definitely better off there than the Chipotle Mexican Grills that seemed to be everywhere.

One takeaway from this experience is that NYC is clamoring for a good burrito. Just about every NYC resident I talked to had heard of or eaten at Dos Toros. Other SF businesses are opening franchises in the area, so it doesn’t seem out of the question for taquerias to follow. Here’s to El Farolito East in 2011.

Eater SF readers reacted skeptically to news of Mission Street Food’s becoming Mission Chinese Food, so Chef Danny wrote in to clarify his mission:

We want to make delicious, frequently spicy chinese food, besides what everyone already gets delivered, without m.s.g., with responsibly sourced proteins and vegetables. Seven days a week. All day long.

Lots more here.

Previously:

Mission Chinese Food

After countless delays and a near two year gestation period, Middle Eastern sandwich shop Zaytoon is finally ready to meet the neighborhood.  We happened to walk by the spot on Valencia between 22nd and 23rd tonight as they were celebrating their grand opening (that’s one of the two Palestinian owners sitting there on the left) and managed to sample a bit of their falafel.

The texture was perfect, with a slightly crispy outer shell coating a soft yet firm center.  Both the falafels and the tahini are made in-house every day, and are featured on a menu along with lamb and chicken shawarma, available on either pita or lavash for $7-8.  Give it a try yourself to see how it compares to Truly Med and Old Jerusalem!

Previously:

Soon, Zaytoon?

Something is Going on in Zaytoon

Remember way back in November when this place’s imminent opening was announced? Well, hella months later Eye on Blogs delivers the good news that they’re open and partnered with the 500 Club and TCB Courier. So you can pick up any one of those sandwiches listed above and wash it down with a pint of lager a couple doors down, OR get it delivered right to your door. Welcome to the neighborhood, Clare’s!

We were so bummed when they parted ways with the Broken Record, and then we were so pumped when they started up this new thing with Bruno’s, and now we’re bummed again. Inside Scoop tells us it’s all over.

Ryan elaborates, kind of, on Twitter:

Kat and I intend on taking some stages around the bay and then work back into more traditional roles in the kitchen.

But what does that mean exactly?

In any case, Saturday’s the last day, so better get your fill soon.

[via SFist]

Photo by pstarr.

Previously:

Katharine and Ryan Still Got the Goods

Hey guys, Mission coffee really is that good.

Spotted this Four Barrel love at Maialino, a fancy schmancy pasta place in NYC’s Gramercy/Flatiron neighborhood. Also, Gramercy Tavern, a top rated restaurant around the corner proudly serves Blue Bottle.

Turns out my coffee backup plan of bringing everyone beans from SF was completely unnecessary.

Our friend Lisa has had the pleasure of living in Berlin for the past few months and finally made it over to that Dolores Burrito place that purports to serve real “Mission-style” burritos stuffed with all the same excellence that you would find at El Farolito or Cancun.  Her verdict?  Mixed, of course:

They cost about the same amount that you’d pay at a taqueria on 24th St. And they’re also comparable in monstrosity.

Menos puntos: they’re very very stingy about the chips!! Which I was very disappointed about. A side order of tortilla chips was 3 euros (= $3.68). Which is a heck of a lot more expensive than their usual price of…free.

Die Amerikanerin has the scoop!

Previously:

Guten Tag! Mission Burritos in Berlin!

Dolores Burrito in Berlin Obviously Not as Good as Taco-Truck Burrito

The Best Way to Transport a Mission Burrito to Somewhere as Far Away as Berlin

Helena had the presence of mind on this gorgeous summer Sunday to do it with Limoncello, but I can’t wait to also try it with simpler things like whiskey or rum or maybe a flaming marg. Good work, Helena!

Previously:

Broken Berries

Bernal Hill Blackberry Bonanza

Kombucha is full of alcohol? No wonder I drank so much kombucha during those three months when I quit drinking! I better return that medallion they gave me. Eater SF has the scoop.

Anyway, are we pumped or harumphed?

Photo by jessicersilk.

Previously:

Cutting Kombucha Costs