My trips to visit siblings in northern California never goes without sampling the local cuisine. This trip we grazed from San Jose’s Santana’s Row’s “South of the Border” entrées to one of my favorites San Francisco’s Chinatown for Dim Sum.
San Jose like most cities has redone a section near downtown with trendy restaurants, shops and offices. I especially like Consuelo Mexican Bistro that serves Mexican, Spanish and Portuguese dishes along with a full Latino drink bar. I discovered a similar place in Burlingame where my brother and his wife bought a condo. Although it’s a much smaller strip the dining is just as memorable, and the napoleans at the local bakery there are to die for.
On Saturday, we ate burgers and breakfast at Alice’s Restaurant while on a motorcycle tour through the Santa Cruz mountains. It’s always packed with bikers and makes a nice stop before you hit the ocean and the Santa Cruz boardwalk for that famous clam chowder, oysters on the half shell and shrimp by the pound. Although the original Alice’s is on the east coast, this is a worthy west coast variety with landmark T-shirts for sale and all the right atmosphere. Later that day my brother Mark and I found a quaint little barn north of Santa Cruz outside of the town of Bonnie Doon. The women worked in the back cooking their wares while customers helped themselves selecting homemade jams and jellies, fruit pies, crisps and cups of freshly brewed coffee. I bought a jar of jam for each family, prices ranged from $5 to $8 a jar with a discount when you bought five or more (hence one for each family). I brought home a delightful Olallieberry jam that has reminded me of the trip each time we use it. The most unique thing about the place was the honor system. You paid on your own and made your own change. I think it’s very trusting in this day and age, but didn’t see anyone stiffing them..
Another famous restaurant Chez Panisse started by Alice Waters in Berkley over 50 years ago is known for it’s sustainable cuisine where all the produce is used locally in season and even the dinnerware is made in a nearby county. Alice was first before it became commonplace as we know it today. Reservations are recommended and we happened to get a table for three at lunch because of a cancellation. We enjoyed fresh cerviche with avocado and lime, California sea bass with saffron, Chanterelle mushroom tortellini and wild blackberry ice cream with Suncrest peaches—so fresh you can’t imagine. We also got to tour the kitchen afterward and watched the tarts, and appetizers being prepared for dinner that night. Alice has all her cookbooks there for sale including one for children. If you are lucky and she’s in the house, you get one signed.
In San Francisco proper, there are four favorite places for me: A seaside restaurant at Pier 39 is good if you want something elegant at night with a bay view. During the day, I prefer to meander through the booths at the Ferry Building on the pier where all the products are made in California and many vendors give samples. This is where I was first introduced to lemon olive oil which has become a staple in my kitchen for salads, and brushing over vegetables for grilling. The third is an out of this world Greek place near the Embarcadero called Kokkari Estiatorio. Without a reservation we line up outside the door after 4 waiting for it to open at 5 and grab a seat at the bar. Their lampchops, dolmathes and lemon chicken are fabulous, everything is great.
The fourth, Chinatown always promises fascinating flavors and new discoveries. Before or after you stop for Dim Sum at a number of the local restaurants, make time for a visit to one of several bakeries in Chinatown and a stop at the Red Blossom Tea Company on Grant Avenue. Here you will be treated like a queen and able to sample loose leaf teas to your heart’s content. This trip I bought a silver needle that opens up beautifully in boiling water so it’s nice to serve in a clear glass mug. I also bought the ginger green, good for arthritis and a number of other ailments.
Dim sum dates back to the 10th century on Canton’s famous Silk Road. Tea house proprietors offered snacks to eat with their tea – buns stuffed with tender pieces of meat, delicate dumpling wrappers filled with seafood, steamed meat balls and chicken parts steamed and served with spiced sauces.
There are now over 2,000 variety of dim sum which literally translated means “to touch the heart.” It’s always fun to do with a group and especially with children along who like to try things beyond happy meals, grilled cheese, and noodles with butter. Many years ago my niece Haley ended one of our Dim Sum outings with, “That’s some dim.” Some of my favorites include the baked pork dumplings, spring rolls and the classic pork siu mye- wontons filled with pork and shrimp. There’s no end to the delicacies you can sample on a dining tour through the California Bay area.