Saving the best for last

Every time we trip out to San Francisco, there is an unspoken question that is in back of both of our minds: where are we going to have THE BEST MEAL of the trip? Of course, you never know when that's going to happen, and you don't always know until the very end. And there have been times when it happened at the beginning, and then the middle. This time, it was the last one .We were probably Woodward's Garden 's third and fourth customers. It's an example of how chance meetings lead to wonderful relationships. I was taking private Japanese lessons, and my teacher told me how her friend and classmate Margie, was opening a restaurant with her partner Dana. They were opening while we were there, and we should check it out .Check it out, we did. It was tiny. The dishes didn't match, the silverware didn't match, they didn't have a credit card machine, and the phone was, well, spotty (made more spotty by the fact that my Japanese teacher called during our dinner to chat and ask for help on how to work our VCR machine - REMEMBER VCR MACHINES????). But the meal was wonderful. Margie was working that night at the front of the house, and we really had a wonderful meal and wanted to go back. And go back we did. And it was good that we had the "connection," because the place caught on. Somehow, the offbeat location (it's really not in a great part of town, but it's safe), the idea of these two lesbians cooking some really wicked food, and the SF "bloodsport" mentality about eating out made it one of the "hotspots." Getting a reservation was not always easy. Then, two things happened. One was the demolition of the Embarcadero freeway. Made it nearly impossible to get there. And then, when that was done, September 11, 2001. The combination nearly put the place under. The ladies were looking, very hard, at closing the place, moving to another city to raise their daughter Claire, and just get out of town. Then, something else happened, uniquely San Francisco. Like any city, SF has its cooking shows, one of which is called "Check, please." In this show, three people talk about their favorite restaurant, the three of them go to all three places, and then vote. Hands down, Woodward's won. SF is a food town. People watched the show. They started going. And while the buzz isn't the way it was, there's no question about leaving. In fact, there's discussion of getting a bigger place. And we'll be a part of it. No question about it So, why do we come back? Well, here's some idea. We really didn't want to choose our food. Margie chose a griled goat cheese fritter with ramps and a tomato ramp vinaigrette for us. We've actually had this before. Frying soft cheese is not easy. Annalena always makes a mess of it. This was NOT a mess. Man, was it good. Dana who does the cooking is not afraid of high heat. The toast under the cheese is TOAST. The cheese is BLACK on the outside. And it melts, like dairy lava, all over everything. Also, a plate aof scallops over fava bean puree . This was the third scallop dish we had out here. It was the best. I think there were also peas in the fava beans, and it was chunky, spicy and wonderful. A great counterpoint, and I kept on thinking "I could make this for Caz. He would eat this. " Yes, we're going to get together and have this soon, Caz. I promise. I'm bringing fava beans home with me, and once there back in season in NY, a date? Margie always sneaks something in, and she did : a bowl of new fennel soup, with a crostini of sweet ricotta on it. Annalena loves fennel soup, this was superb. It was like an anisey onion soup. I didn't have to say it. Margie said "I know, you're going to make it when you get home." Yes I am. Onto main courses, and more challenges with choosing. No one cooks a steak better than Dana does, and Guy had the hanger steak, with a grain of fava beans asparagus and potatoes. It was the FIRST gratin we've had out here that didn't taste sweet. For me? Pork chop, grilled so beautifuly, and so succulent, with a salsa of meyer lemons, olives, almonds, and the wonderful slice of grilled prosciutto right over it. That came with one of Dana's signature items, gigante beans. She loves cooking with them, and she does such a great job. I was cracking the bones to get whatever was left. In the past, we wondered whether the ladies really had their heart in desserts, and often didn't want to have them, but did, because they insisted. I think now it was a learning curve. Margie and Dana are savory chefs, not pastry chefs. But now.... Desserts that are simple, but wonderful. I had a cherry almond tart, that didn't change my mind about cherries (I think sweet cherries should be left alone, eaten out of hand, and that's it. I think they lose their magic when they're cooked), but was still wonderful. Guy had a chocolate meringue, split open and filled with strawberry ice cream with chocolate sauce. Annalena is not a fan of chocolate, but she liked this. Everytime we're there, we get into discussions with the people around us. It seems that everyone who goes to Woodward's knows each other, in some form or another of "six degrees of separation." We were chatting with a group of four on one side, and a group of three on the other. One of the three had been an assistant cook there before. That happens here a lot. the former cooks come back and eat. It's always hard to say goodbye to "The girls" as we call them. It was easier last night, because when we left, the place was booming. Dana had ten pans on the stove at the same time, and was smiling as much as she was when we walked in and there were two. Margie was looking frantic and nervous, the way she always does, but she stopped for a hug and to give us a bottle of the wine we had drunk for dinner, because there's history behind it and she wants us to know it. Annalena's galettes are based on Dana's crust. You will be seeing them soon, now that the summer fruit crop is upon us. And she will make that fennel soup. Without question, the best meal of the trip. No qualms, no problems, no nothing. The ladies rock. Can't wait to get back. ********And so, that ends Annalena's romp through SF restaurants. I hope you enjoyed reading about some of the places we love, and I hope you'll try some. We get on a plane tonight, going home with groceries picked up at the farmer's market. I'll be talking about those in days to come, as I cook through the yummies. It has been a wonderful trip. We DID do things other than eat, if you can believe it. Guy's pictures - all 2000 of them - will be available if you want to