I Left My Husband in San Francisco

I left my husband in San Francisco last weekend. He will be spending the next six months there. Lucky for me - it is a great place for food.

I don't think I could make a trip to SF without visiting the Ferry Building, a renovated ferry building now housing a wonderful farmer's market outside on weekends and year round shops inside. Recchiuti Chocolates (flavors like Tarragon Grapefruit, Star Anise and Pink Peppercorn, Ginger Heart), Tsar Nicoulai Caviar (truffled scrambled egg back in the shell, topped with caviar), and Far West Fungi (glass bell jars of exotic mushrooms, fresh procini, truffles) are just a few. I am slowly trying to make my way to all the food booths and resturants. I have had no disappointments.

Sunday was a miserable rainy day and after spending the morning at SFMOMA we headed to the Ferry Building for lunch and a steamy bowl of soup. We got 2 sets at the counter right in front of the schucker at Hog Island Oyster Company. Hog Island Oyster Company is the retail outlet for the Tomales Bay oyster farm of the same name.

They shuck the oysters as you watch. And the Oyster Stew is perfection. It is nothing but fresh oysters, cream, butter and chives. They serve it with a chunk of butter and a great Epi loaf. Really fresh oysters taste so different than the ones that have been sitting around on ice for days, sweet yet briny. To keep the stew company we got the Oysters Casino and the Oysters with ginger and lemon. If we hadn't been so cold and wet from running around in the rain we probably would have gotten a few raw oysters to slurp down. They serve 6 varieties and there was a lot of bubbly been served at nearby tables with fresh oysters piled high on stainless steel trays of rock salt. We also got the the Cowgirl Creamery Grilled Cheese (Cowgirl Creamery is the subject for another day!) It paled in comparison to the oysters but still it was a mighty fine grilled cheese.

I will go back at the end of March and hope to eat somewhere else but I may have to stop for a quick bowl of the Clam Chowder - Manila clams with bacon, cream, aromatic vegetables and thyme or maybe another bowl of Oyster Stew? Mmmmmm....