Mission Mission

As in a trash bin full of squash. Savvy dumpster divers would be wise not to squander the opportunity!

Well, perhaps they’ll serve it again at some point.  But at any rate, despite the consistently transcendent deliciousness of Arizmendi pizza, the only thing preventing it from attaining “best pizza in SF” status is the lack of tomato sauce.  Perhaps I’m going overboard here, but I’ve come to realize lately that my favorite component of a good slice is the tangy sauce (which is why Escape from New York has gained traction on my list recently–did they change their sauce recipe in the last year?  It’s damn good now!).

Over at Arizmendi they’ve perfected the chewy yet firm consistency of the crust and have excelled at complementing pungent mixtures of cheese with fresh and sometimes whimsical toppings, but I have longed to taste that potent combination in conjunction with some zesty tomato sauce since the day they opened.  I’ve even gone so far as to straight-up call my cousin Nushin a liar when she claimed that she had eaten a saucy Arizmendi pizza in the past.

So you can understand my jubilation upon finding out that yesterday’s pizza contained this compelling ingredient.  Sadly however, I don’t work in the city anymore so I didn’t get to try it.  Did any of you get a chance to check it out?  Was it THE GREATEST PIZZA YOU HAVE EVER HAD???  That lady in the picture seems to think so.

[Photo by Helen]

Previously:

• Arizmendi Opens For Realz
• Arizmendi Is Done
• Best Arizmendi pizza I’ve had in a while

It seems like this place has been boarded up for years, because it has. The restaurant, which shares a name with an Indian TV show about conjoined twins who share a liver, will finally open this May. According to the sign seen above.

Apparently the same people have a spot of the same name in Palo Alto. I asked my friend and collaborator, Palo Alto resident Tanuj Chopra, what he thought about it and he said the food is fine and they have a solid reputation in the peninsula. About the style of their temporary sign he said “it’s interesting as the spots here are not graf or urban or edgy – feel like that’s just a temporary look or maybe a different marketing direction for SF.”

Well, they wouldn’t be the first to welcome themselves to the neighborhood by throwing up some “edgy urban artwork”. And maybe it does capture the feel of the establishment, according to the owner, this outlet will be a “high energy” 200 seat Indian tapas restaurant and bar. I guess we’ll see in May.

PHÕ THE PAIN AWAY

— totallyclubbin (@primopreems) March 23, 2012

The first time I ate at Herbivore, I left deeply skeptical of the enterprise. I ate lunch there with an ex-boyfriend (amicable, but still), on a rainy day between two job interviews (neither of which panned out), so looking back, I probably wasn’t in the best state to be critiquing my cuisine. The space was dark and cold, and the most memorable dish I had fell squarely into the category of mediocre. After that lunch, I made up my mind that the only thing Herbivore had going for it was that it was vegan. I was like, “What is this place even doing here?”

I heard they had revamped their menu lately so I decided to give it another shot.

Started with a small green juice, which was good and, at $3.95, was definitely cheaper than Sidewalk around the corner.  (Though I still like SWJ’s a little better.)

I was in the mood for a simple dinner, so I got a salad and a side of hummus.

The salad had lots of fresh greens and perfectly ripe avocado. Thumbs up.

Now, for my money, Old Jerusalem has the best hummus the Mission has to offer, but this hummus was still very flavorful and it came with these adorable pickle crosshatches:

So, here’s the deal: if you have the time and energy and daylight and sunshine to run around to make your own salad and then pick up juice and hummus from different locations, you can probably get better options.

But Herbivore has everything in one place with friendly, attentive yet not intrusive, and remarkably well-paced service. My server ran outside after me when I left my umbrella inside (I do stuff like that a lot). It’s clean and quiet and reasonably priced and no longer freezing.  It’s exactly the kind of thing I want to eat on a Monday night after a boozy weekend, or after getting off a plane.

Glad I gave it another shot. I’m going back and looking forward to it!

Now called Dante’s Weird Fish, the beloved vegan-friendly eatery reopens today, right on schedule. The menu still has all the classics, like the Little B. Stack and the fried pickles. Read all about it here.

[Grub Street SF]

Can’t wait!

Mission Local has some background here.

[via Less Jokes]

I’m probably (hopefully) not the first person to have thought of this, but it turns out that a teacup or mug of an appropriate circumference makes the perfect burrito stand, for those of you who like to multitask while you lunch.

Our BFF Jess Kelso went bowling at a Mission Bowling Club preview party last night, and took a bunch of beautiful photos and told us all about it:

Apparently they rolled the scissor lift out 5 minutes before we arrived, but you never would have known it — the space looked amazing. As well as being responsible for a lot of the decor inside (including the curtains and the bowling stripes along the wall), Sommer’s mum has also created a beautiful garden wall in the space out the front of the alley. The outdoor space was still a bit bare but there are tables, chairs and bike racks on the way.

The food was delicious and beautifully presented, I especially liked the Home Fries on a Stick (literally served on a stick poking out of a piece of wood that was once part of a bowling lane) and the Buttermilk Pannacotta, served in a vintage teacup.

You seriously have to try the house cocktail, “TBD,” a blend of mescal and jalapeno jam. I’ve never tasted anything like it (it made my nose itchy), and it will be named after the first person to score a perfect 300. Challenge accepted! Although since I only scored 58 I think I have a long way to go…

You can do it, Jess! Now let’s look at more pictures:

Lots more pictures (of the food, the drink, the dining room, the garden and more) after the jump:

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Duc Loi Market at 18th/Mission officially kicked off its brand new kitchen today, and the star of the show is the “Authentic Vietnamese” sandwich, which owner Amanda Ngo serves piled high with cured ham, pork belly, chicken liver pâté, and head cheese. How does it compare with the $3.50 banh mi’s you’ll find elsewhere in the city? The quality of ingredients, proximity to the Mission, generous portions, and overall flavor package make it well worth the extra buck and change.

The menu also has a good breadth of variety – including a fried chicken sandwich, a BBQ menu, and a veggie portobello tofu sandwich that can be made vegan if you ask for no mayo. According to Helen Tseng, “It’s as big as your head and contains about half an avocado”. Hit the jump for a closer look!

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