I love the juxtaposition in this city. Somehow, wherever you are, you're only one block from the corner of crack and whore in one direction and the corner of rich and waspy in another. You see some of the best artwork in the world, while standing next to a pile of trash. Much of this yin/yang can be found in the places we choose to eat. While I've understood this for a long time, the reality of it hit me just this weekend when I went from a culinary relic to what's clean, fresh and new.
On Saturday, after a 3 hour long Batmitvah at the temple on Brotherhood Way (mazel tov!) we were really, really hungry and stuck in the culinary no-mans land that is Lake Merced. Options? Not many. Decision? Joe's of Westlake. Joe's of Westlake is an experience. It's a restaurant that time forgot. The menus haven't changed, the bar hasen't changed (yes that is Crystal Gayle on the jukebox thank you....), hell even the servers haven't changed, since 1980 at least! This place serves chablis by the carafe, sides of spaghetti with your steak and a dessert called "Fried Cream in Blue Flame." There's lots to make fun of about this place, it's an irony-loving hipster paradise to be sure, but the thing is sometimes a plate of chicken parmesan followed by a cup of coffee and a scoop of spumoni really is a thing of glory.
The next day, I was toddling around the Mission with a friend and we needed a little respite from the heat because we San Franciscan's just don't know how to handle the flamin' orb in the sky-- so we popped into Radish for a light lunch and a drink. Opened just in April, this great little spot has a fantastic new-american menu (local ingredients, in-house made breads, fresh organics etc) all with a Southern twist. It's clean, new, shiny and boasts a friendly waitstaff to match. I had an herb and organic berry salad while my friend had the po' boy. Both delicious. We had pink, juice and beer based drinks (sounds weird but were excellent on a hot day) and chatted with the staff. Everyone in the place seemed relaxed, well fed and really enjoying the art-filled, freshly painted interior. And it was just what we wanted on that day.
But who's to say that tomorrow I won't want carnitas tacos off a truck for lunch and and a 15$ burger served in a white linen joint for dinner. One block either way and I'm sure my cravings could be satisfied.
EB
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