Eating my way through San Francisco - Part 4

The final full day.  We decided to hit up some of the places we saw on our Mr. Toad's Tour for a more in depth look.  Today was also the first day we saw the infamous San Francisco fog.  We had been very lucky with the weather and it was sunny every single day.  The fog brought a damp coolness to the air.  It was actually kind of refreshing.

Our first stop was in Chinatown.  San Francisco's Chinatown is the largest Chinatown outside of Asia!  It was buzzing with activity. 

We stopped in a few grocery stores and shops.

There are always so many interesting finds in Chinese grocery stores.

On one side of Chinatown is North Beach, which isn't a beach at all, but rather the Italian section of San Francisco.  We were slightly hungry, so stopped in for a slice of pizza at L'Osteria del Forno.  It's a tiny restaurant, but they make each slice of pizza to order.  It's nice knowing your slice hasn't been sitting around all day.  We were first served some warm and tasty focaccia bread.  I ordered a slice of TRE FORMAGGI, which is made with imported gorgonzola cheese, ricotta, mozzarella.

It was divine.  I loved the gorgonzola on my pizza!

After this snacking interlude, I went a few doors down to La Boulange Bakery.  You know I'm a sucker for those French Macarons!!  I had to try these too. 

I have to say, these were pretty damn good.  The flavors were much stronger than the ones from Miette.  The caramel flavor was my favorite.  Light and crispy with deliciously creamy caramel in the center.  My only complaint is they were cold.  I couldn't wait for them to be at room temperature.  I gobbled them up in 5 minutes.  The menu at La Boulange looked wonderful as well.  Why can't we have one of these in Boston??

I'm not going to lie.  Today was an all out eat-fest.  It was our last day and we truly made the most of it.   After already consuming a slice of pizza pie and a few macarons*, we headed back to the Ferry Building Marketplace.  While strolling along, we were drawn into The Ferry Wine Merchant.  We spotted a platter of cheese and meats and had to go in. We ordered a small platter of cheese and one of meat along with a half carafe of wine.

I don't even know what kinds of meats and cheeses we were given.  I loved every one of the cheeses, but the meats weren't my thing.

I must mention, it was also Halloween, so there was a lot of people watching going on!

  We lingered here for a while and then hopped on a bus over to the Castro.

 But while we were in the Castro, we were also close to 2 more foodie destinations I had to try.  First up was Bi-Rite Creamery.  I'm not gonna lie, but this had to be the best ice cream I've ever had.  I had Salted Caramel and it was a little scoop of heaven.  I just love anything salty and sweet all in one bite.  My husband had Balsamic Strawberry and was very impressed.  It was sweet with a little tang.

Now feeling rejuvenated, we headed back to the Castro for some more Halloween action.  We spent about 5 hours checking out the costumes. I'll post some here, but I'm afraid that many may not be safe for work, so these are a select few.

Ok then....

Next up was Tartine Bakery.  This bakery has won  a James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef.  They are also well known for their fresh baked, artisan breads.  We stopped in for dinner to try some of their sandwiches. 

I ordered Pecorino & Almond:

Sheep milk cheese & almonds crushed with olive oil, lemon, and sage

These sandwiches were huge!  While I liked the flavor and the bread, I thought it was very greasy.  It is an interesting combination and I'd never have thought to put almonds in my panini.  I may have to try a scaled down version of this at home.

My husband ordered the Pastrami:

Niman Ranch pastrami, Gruyère cheese, horseradish & Dijon mustard

The pastrami was very lean and tasty, but again it was very greasy.  And the Dijon mustard was over-powering.  Not a crowd pleaser, I'm afraid.

Feeling kind of ill at this point, we actually didn't buy any pastries.  Or maybe we just couldn't afford it after spending $30 on sandwiches!  But their pastries looked amazing.

And that ends our time in San Francisco!  I'd love to go back some day, but I'm afraid my wallet (and stomach) can't afford to do so!  I'll have to scour Boston for some artisanal, locally grown, sustainable and organic restaurants! :)

* Macaron is the correct spelling for a French Macaron.  In the U.S., our coconut goodies are macaroons.