Monthly Archives: August 2010

OysterFest 2010 at Waterbar in San Francisco

drakes bay oyster with open shell My friend, GraceAnn Walden, asked if I wanted to join her at OysterFest 2010 this past weekend, an annual event held at Waterbar in San Francisco. She was to serve as a celebrity judge for various competitions at this “celebration of the sustainable oyster,” benefiting the San Mateo Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, an organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of “oceans, waves and beaches.”

Being part of an event that includes me and thousands of oysters on the half shell is the stuff of dreams, so, yeah, I’m there.

So many things in life disappoint. So many things sound good on paper. I told my husband and son, “If I don’t get to eat a ton of oysters I’ll be seriously pissed.” Let’s face it, there are few things worse than being teased by a small qualtity of something you really, really love.

OysterFest at Waterbar in San Francisco on 8/31/10 with view of hills brothers coffee company sign This celebration delivered – and how. The sponsors were clearly generous with money, time and product. Event-goers were tagged with a pink wristband, armed with a stem glass, and turned loose on the oysters and wine.

Before I made my way to the oyster stalls, I took in the whole gestalt.

First off, the weather cooperated. It was breezy, sunny, and not too hot. Second, we were right on the bay with the mightly Bay Bridge almost on top of us.

Under the bay bridge at oysterfest 2010 held at waterbar in SF The setting was ridiculously post card, and made me think how wonderful it is to live here.

They decked out the party space nicely. If you’ve never been to Waterbar, it’s one of two Rincon Park restaurants Pat Kuleto opened a couple years back – near that Oldenburg and van Bruggen monstrosity, Cupid’s Span.

Waterbar and Epic Roasthouse, sister restaurants, one surf and the other turf, sit adjacent to each other with an attractive outdoor space between them that blends into Rincon Park and the walking path behind them.

Maison Beausoleil stall at OysterFest 2010 in San Francisco Plenty of chairs and tables were set out. Even when the crowd swelled at about the midpoint, competition for seating was not particularly fierce.

We got there right at the start, so food and drink flowed freely and there were no lines. I was very happy that the food was all oysters, all the time.

Drakes Bay stall at OysterFest in San Francisco 8/28/10 Oysters were shucked on the fly at stalls representing farmers sponsoring the event. Drakes Bay Family Farms and Maison Beausoleil – the former right here in Marin County and the latter from New Brunswick, Canada – served up God knows how many oysters. Those guys were quick, too.

Nice that both Atlantic and Pacific bivalves were offered – all sustainably farmed.

You could eat as many as you wanted. The smaller Beausoleil oysters are clean, briny and a little smokey-sweet, so I had a goodly amount of those. Drakes Bay are larger and stronger in flavor – also very good – so I didn’t hold back at that stall either.

The idea was also to take five ‘sters over to the sauce station, try all five sauces, and then vote for your favorite. I have no idea which sauce won because I didn’t hear the announcement. I liked sauce 2, but usually don’t want much of anything on a good oyster.

Sauce station at oysterfest 2010 in san francisco Restaurant sponsors (all Kuleto-ville, save one, Nettie’s Crab Shack [closed], unless I missed something) provided small plates starring one or more oysters – with little filler, for the most part.

Epic Roasthouse put out my favorite dish of the day: a killer fried Drakes Bay oyster on a skewer with fried green tomato. This “brochette” apparently had “homemade pork belly.” Not sure how you make pork belly at home, and, if there was some on any one of the four I ate, I couldn’t detect it. I loved the remoulade-like sauce, though, and the oysters were big and fat and perfectly done. The tomato chunks were sweet and plump and coated in crisped-up cornmeal, as were the oysters. GraceAnn picked two up for me when I was holding our table, and I went back later for another two. When I was on BART riding home, I kicked myself for not getting a last one for the road. Sheer bliss.

Waterbar cranked out humongous grilled oysters with pickled cabbage in a light, buttery cream sauce. I think. If there was a card on the table I didn’t see it so I can’t swear to the sauce. I didn’t know what to make of this. It was interesting, but pickled cabbage – sauerkraut, more or less – does not play well with others. The oyster’s flavor was lost in confusion.

BBQ oyster from Waterbar at oysterfest 2010 in SF I was happy the water station was across from the Waterbar booth – and water is mainly what I drank. While there were numerous wine tasting stations, I decided to stop with the wine after my slug of Twomey 2009 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc. It was a drag to deal with the one wine glass I was issued while trying to eat oysters by hand as I walked around.

Waterbar stall at oysterfest 2010 in SF and grill full of hot stones and oysters Farallon doled out Vichyssoise oyster shooters, which I believe contained both potato and leek and were finished with celery. The chef rattled the contents off to me but I was already in some sort of coma from the sun, the sea air and many oysters, so I’m not sure I grasped it all. This was a tasty little viand and a good idea for the setting. Rich, though, so I had a total of one.

Farallon stall at oysterfest 2010 in san francisco Nettie’s Crab Shack made little fried oyster po’boys with all the trimmings. The oyster on mine was not as good the one on the Epic Roasthouse brochette, but nothing to kick out of bed. I went back to try another to see if I perhaps wound up with a nonrepresentative oyster on my first sammie, but, sadly, this stall closed up shop early in the game.

In between grazing and hanging out in the sun drinking beer, GraceAnn served as a celebrity judge for the oyster eating and shucking contests.

GraceAnn Walden at oysterfest 2010 in San Francisco judging eating contest Eating contests are always a wonder to me. I don’t really get them, but I must be in the minority. Here there were five people who ate oysters as fast as they could for three minutes. Each of the five celebrity judges tracked one participant. GraceAnn wound up tracking a young woman who entered the contest at the last minute, egged on by the crowd when an empty space at the table was offered up at high volume by the MC. The winner ate over 80 oysters, with the middle ground being in the 40-something range. Most memorable to me was GraceAnn encouraging her contestant by shouting, “Don’t chew, just swallow!” Indeed.

One of the platters made during the oyster shucking contest at oysterfest 2010 in SF The oyster shucking contest included shucking and arranging said oysters on a platter with other seafood under duress. The platters, judged not only by aesthetic appeal but also practical concerns – like ease of getting at crabmeat and shrimp – were sold to the highest bidders at the end of the competition. There were four contestants: three chefs from sponsoring restaurants and one amateur. The amateur won.

The winner of the oyster shucking contest at OysterFest 2010 in San Francisco with celebrity judges

The winner of the oyster shucking contest, Greg Babinecz, at OysterFest 2010 in San Francisco with celebrity judges

Judges Roland Passot, Narsai David, two Alice DJs, Matty and Icky, and GraceAnn conferred for quite some time before making a decision, and the winner was thrilled.

Celebrity judges conferring at OysterFest 2010

The supportive and cheering crowd gathered close around the long tables used for the contest, so it was a blast.

Shucking contest in action at OysterFest 2010 in San Francisco

I could have done without the surf music. The band, Drifting Sand, was good, but I experience even good surf music like a mild toothache: I just want it to stop.

ChicoBag’s “Bag Monster” wandered around the event. He’s a guy wearing a suit of 500 supermarket plastic bags, reminding us how many of these blasted single-use things the average American uses in a year, and that they wind up everywhere they shouldn’t – like shorelines.

Bag Monster and GraceAnn Walden at OysterFest 2010 in San Francisco

GraceAnn and I left shortly before the event ended and were both in need of a nap. We wondered if there was something about oysters that makes a person sleepy.

Like lemon juice in a wound, I had to stand all the way to the East Bay on BART, and then flung myself on the bed when I got home. Steve, my husband, channeling his Mother, said it was “the salt air and the sun.” Matthew, my son, not even looking up from whatever video game he was playing, told me he had “no intention of feeling sorry for someone who just got to eat alot of oysters for free at a fancy restaurant on the water.”

The final word: If you are an oyster-on-the-half-shell kind of person, you should run to this event in 2011. Not only will you satisfy a yen to an unprecedented degree, you’ll help a worthy organization. Just arrive early to avoid the lines, and drink more wine and beer than I did!

Heirloom Tomato Sandwiches Rock

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Heirloom tomato sandwich open face with crushed pistachios on top

I wait all year for that brief, shining portion of late summer that brings me luscious, flavorful heirloom tomatoes for about $2 a pound. Big, red, Beefsteak types, like the Beefmaster you see in the photo, which weighed in at 19 ounces.

That time has come, and I was able to savor my first really spectacular tomato of the year – courtesy of Berkeley Bowl West, which is now full-up with heirlooms at a great price.

I think most of the tomatoes sold in the US are, well, crappy. The only places to get good ones – and I mean with actual flavor – are the farmers’ markets and stores like Berkeley Bowl and Whole Foods. Even those quality tomatoes can’t compare to these heirlooms, though, but the price is usually so high for the latter that I go for the former until this time of year.

One little hitch is my tomato allergy. Since my problem is mostly with seeds, I’m able to eat fresh tomatoes in limited quantity, and I scout out less seedy types. I’m glad it’s not one of those life-threatening allergies or I’d never make it through the next few weeks!

A great tomato needs very little.

When I was a kid, we’d buy huge Beefsteaks at roadside stands in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and eat them like apples – by hand. We always carried a little salt shaker in the car so we’d be ready, and would bring some back home to Queens, where we lived. This is one of my strongest food memories, and eating a big red heirloom puts me right back in my parents’ car in a 1969 Sunday afternoon traffic jam on the Cross Bronx Expressway inching toward the George Washington Bridge in 90 degree heat – with the smells of melting tar and a basket of roadside tomatoes next to me on the back seat.

You need to go get a huge red heirloom and make a tomato sandwich with one big slice, like I do.

Tomato Sandwich

1 humongous red heirloom tomato with deep, sweet flavor
1 slice really good bread, like Vital Vittles Real Bread, toasted
1 nice tablespoon good mayonnaise
Sea salt
10 pistachios (I use Everybody’s Nuts Salt & Pepper version), crushed (put under plastic and rap with rolling pin)

1). Cut a 3/4 inch (at least) center slice out of the tomato and store the rest for later.
2). Spread mayo on toast and lay tomato slice on top.
3). Grind a little sea salt on top of ‘mater.
4). Sprinkle crushed nuts on top.
5). Eat.

Here are other ideas for sammies with heirlooms: chicken salad, a few curls of Emmentaler plus said ground nuts makes a good combo. Fried fish, mayo and a little parmesan works, too. Check this out:

Chicken salad and heirloom tomato sandwich

Fried fish and heirloom tomato sandwich

Brown Rice in Indonesian Yellow Rice Style

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Indonesian yellow rice on a blue plate with lime wedges

Nasi kuning is an Indonesian yellow rice dish often served at parties or special occasions. The yellow color, from turmeric, symbolizes gold, and the dish is meant to bring good things. You know, prosperity, health – like that.

I’ve always loved flavored rice, especially when it’s on the dry side – more stained by seasonings than swimming in them. Yellow rice is a perfect example of this. Attaining that fluffy yet savory texture can be tricky. It’s much easier, though, when you use brown rice, which brings me to the other point of this post: getting more brown rice into husband, Steve, and son, Matthew.

Brown rice has been manna from heaven for me when it comes to creating rice dishes that don’t clump up or get sticky. Yes, you have to deal with a sturdier texture, but you’ll get used to that. Also, that firmer tooth works very well in pilafs – better than white rice, if you ask me – because it allows the rice to stand up to the nuts and raisins and whatever else you throw at it.

If you use Jasmine brown rice, you’ll find it eats closer to white than many others, though right now I’m trying to work through a 20 pound bag of plain old Cali brown I got on sale.

For me this all boils down to being able to disguise brown rice in various ways. Myself, I like the texture, but I grew up in a European household where we ate things that required teeth.

One day I thought I would try to make a form of Indonesian yellow rice with some of that 20 pound bag – that it would be a big hit with the boys. For my first go I figured I’d just develop an easy wok recipe – which is what I’m presenting here.

Indonesian-style Yellow Rice (Nasi Kuning)
Makes a big batch for dinner or lots of sides

3 tablespoons Canola oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 batch nasi kuning paste (below)
3 cups Jasmine brown rice
1 can coconut milk (14 oz)
Up to 1 quart stock
Salt, if needed
Lime wedges, to serve

1). In a wok or other heavy-gauge, slope-sided cooking vessel, heat oil over medium heat.
2). Add onion and stir-fry/sweat for 1 minute.
3). Add nasi kuning paste and stir-fry for 1 minute.
4). Add rice and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
5). Add coconut milk and gently stir fry over medium-low flame until it is almost all absorbed by the rice.
6). Add 3 cups of the stock and a little salt, if need be, stir, cover and allow to simmer for 30 – 40 minutes, checking often, adding more stock as needed. Alternate covering and uncovering rice during the cooking process, as needed, depending upon progress and quantity of liquid.
7). Allow to sit – uncovered – for 5 minutes before serving.
8). Serve with lime wedges.

Nasi Kuning Paste*
1 tablespoon chopped shallot
The bottom 1/3 or so of 1 cleaned (tough outer leaves removed) stalk of lemongrass, chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
2 tablespoons coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1). Grind everything together. A bullet blender or prep food processor work well for this.

*May use a lesser quantity of jarred paste, but it’s not as good and tends to be salty and oddly strong

Chicken Primitivo

Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

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Graceann Walden and Tyler Florence at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

Wayfare Tavern
558 Sacramento Street
San Francisco, CA
(415) 772-9060
Click on link above for current hours

SF Bay Area food writer and personality (to say the least), GraceAnn Walden, asked me to dine with her at Tyler Florence’s new restaurant, Wayfare Tavern, as part of a public relations meal. While Wayfare Tavern had been getting some good press during its flagship first month, GraceAnn is so outrageous that you’re guaranteed a good time regardless, so of course I accepted. Once GraceAnn’s review is published, I’ll link to it here.

With celebrity-chef owned places there’s always that “hype versus substance” factor. And there is significant hype surrounding Food Network icon Tyler Florence, whose easy-on-the-eye countenance seems to be everywhere these days. Seriously, he’s got one foot firmly planted in Rachael and Martha territory – and I’m not just talking about pots and pans at Macy’s. There’s even a Tyler Forence iPhone app now.

Now, just because he’s cute and a TV star and selling a whole bunch of stuff doesn’t mean he has no chops. This one-man megalopoly is a culinary graduate of Johnson & Wales, and worked his way up by sweating it out on the line for years down South and in New York City before being “discovered.”

I bring all this up because the adoring public tends to lash out at people it makes famous.

The idea that celebrity chefs aren’t “real” has been kicking around for years. Most of them are – even if they haven’t been spending much time in the kitchen. This is true of all chefs-on-the-rise: the more responsibility they take on, the less time they have to stand in front of a stove. No reason to apply a higher standard to Tyler Florence.

For me, it boils down to motivation and commitment. Heart, if you will. If a restaurant is opened solely to make a quick buck with no respect for local culinary traditions, and Mr. Big is never in situ unless he’s there to sell autographed cookbooks, I’d rather they both stay out of San Francisco.

I was pleased beyond measure that Wayfare Tavern has gravitas and did not disappoint.

If you didn’t know Tyler Florence owned the place before walking in, I don’t think you’d be able to tell, given how schtick-free it is in that regard. I’m not surprised. This is the first of three restaurants the chef is planning to open in the San Francisco Bay Area, which he now calls home. It’s clear he wanted to do right by The City.

What we have here is a turn-of-the-century San Francisco tavern-themed restaurant that’s all all dark wood, stuffed wildlife and fireplace. I half expected A. P. Giannini to pop in for a dozen oysters after a hard day at the Bank of Italy. Giannini may be long gone, but suited bankers from Bank of America and other money houses around the corner on Montgomery Street occupy bar stools on weeknights, so he’s well represented.

The bar was busy. Aproned bartenders call out greetings to regulars as they enter the restaurant, reminding me of the old, dark wood, man cave-type establishements I used to visit when I worked on Wall Street in New York City. As the evening progressed, a mixed crowd of lovely people filled the first floor to capacity.

We were seated on the first floor directly in front of the fireplace and perpendicular to the open kitchen. Goodies were flying out of the kitchen – including Chef Florence, who greeted GraceAnn with a big smile and a hug.

Let me get this out of the way here and now: Tyler Florence was friendly, accommodating and good-humored throughout the evening, regardless of how often he was pestered.

He’s clearly invested here – passionate about the ingredients he’s working with and his dishes.

Wayfare Tavern’s one, all-day, menu is in keeping with its theme, so there are plenty of old school options. Entrees like hangtown fry nod to San Francisco’s past, with Southern influences from the chef-owner’s roots popping up in offerings like fried chicken and banana pudding. If you’re looking for evidence that this is a modern-day California restaurant, you’ll find it in the long list of creative appetizers, and there are indications throughout the menu of a commitment to ethical food practices.

If you’re not able to find an entree that pleases you, you can have a burger and fries.

Service at table was top-notch. Our server was skilled, competent, friendly and fun. We had a very small table, so finely-tuned orchestration added to our enjoyment of the evening. The hosts were polite, if a little selective in who they were really nice to, so it soothed my ever-so-slightly ruffled feathers to be treated so well by all other staff.

First things first, let me rave about the popovers they serve in place of bread. They’re what an Acme sour baguette is to Wonder bread. I think this is the best popover I ever had, and I’ve had many. Craggy, crisp, golden-brown and substantive with a moist, egg batter-webbed interior.

We started with a dozen assorted oysters (market price), which were outstanding in terms of freshness and flavor. The Fanny Bay were subtle, with that slight cucumber finish, and the Barron Point were sweet and creamy. The oyster tray smelled like the sea as it sat virtually under my nose on our small table. Mignonette and cocktail sauces provided.

Raw pyster selection at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

Our parade of appetizers started with the deviled eggs ($9 for 6 halves), which were creamy, soft and mild. Comforting, as deviled eggs should be, but we agreed the kitchen is too timid with the mustard for our liking.

Deviled eggs at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

I was thrilled to see steak tartare on the menu – and I suppose the nerve to put this on an SF Bay Area menu is part of the same nerve responsible for the taxidermy. Wayfare’s version is made from grass-fed, corn-finished beef fillet and served with a raw, organic egg yolk on top. This is the first time I had grass-fed beef as tartare, and I was surprised at the mild flavor. The texture was a bit mushy, though – as if the fillet had been overpulsed in a food processor. The generous half-portion was $16, and you’d spend more than that to make it at home. If you’re scared of tartare, this would be a good place to try it.

Steak tartare at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

The Monterey Bay sardines ($14) were plump and tasty, with a bright garlic-lemon sauce.

Monterey Bay sardines at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

I’m glad the salt roasted bone marrow ($14) was split in two, because it made sharing this luscious dish easy. Molasses crostini came on the side – a master stroke. The molasses added bittersweet, chocolate-coffee notes that worked well with the marrow. I would have liked more than two crostini on the plate, though.

Marrow bone appetizer at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

The hangtown fry ($18) included a wonderfully light omelet and perfectly cooked bacon – but the oysters were a disappointment. Traditionally, oysters in a hangtown fry are partially cooked and then folded into the omelet. This is a deconstructed fry, as most of them are these days, with bacon strips and fried oysters served atop a plain omelet. Hangtown fry lives and dies by oysters, and these were significantly overcooked and limp, and their breading lacked flavor.

Hangtown fry at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

There was robust, meaty flavor in the Wayfare Burger “Le Grand” ($18), made from a “proprietary grind” of four cuts of grass-fed, corn-finished beef – including short rib and ribeye. Cowgirl Creamery’s Mt. Tam cheese, bacon and roasted onion enhanced the whole affair. Normally I’m against all those burger add-ons when there’s really good meat, but they all worked fine, as did the homemade brioche bun. The accompanying fries – fried in peanut oil – were good.

Organic fried chicken ($22), one of Tyler Florence’s signature dishes, was moist and flavorful from the buttermilk brine. Served mostly boneless and with lemon wedges for squeezing, it could have been more crispy.

Fried chicken at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco

The side of creamed corn ($8) was excellent. Whole kernal corn cut from the cob arrived in a light, flavorful cream sauce with smoked olive oil and chive blossom.

Although full, there was no way I was leaving without trying the house-made salted caramel ice cream. It’s quite salty, and normally paired with the pineapple upside-down cake ($8). I was too full for the cake, so I just had the ice cream, which I enjoyed thoroughly.

GraceAnn had the banana pudding, which is Tyler Florence’s father’s recipe. I didn’t taste it, since I’m not a custard kind of girl, but GraceAnn was pleased – though you’ll have to read her review for the skinny.

After the meal I wandered over to BART in the evening air. While crossing over California Street toward Market, a woman crossing in the other direction looked over and said, “You look happy tonight!”

Indeed, and not just because I drank half a bottle of 2008 Tyler Florence Split Rock Vineyard Pinot Noir ($115). Actually, I had more than half. I love a nicely-balanced Pinot!

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