Farmstead offers a tasting room and restaurant in a ranch setting. The San Francisco Chronicle 2011
Monday: Farmstead
Few places clearly promote the farm-to-table movement as this restaurant/farm/winery on Highway 29 in St. Helena. Diners look like they are entering a glamorous barn that holds 110 diners, and then outside you can dine between rows of grapevines. It’s all part of the Long Meadow Ranch Winery.
Stephen Barber creates American comfort food such as a beef chile ($8) made with Rancho Gordo piquito beans and topped with Vella cheese in a sauce that nicely balances spicy and sweet. Then there’s chicken cooked under a brick ($22), where the pieces are mostly boned and arranged on top of beans laced with spinach and salsa verde.
738 Main St. (at Charter Oak), St. Helena; (707) 963-9181. farmsteadnapa.com. Lunch and dinner daily.
Tuesday: Chaya
Even though the East-West food that was the rage when this restaurant opened 12 years ago has since waned, this Los Angeles transplant continues to thrive.
The sushi draws diners to the elegant and lively Embarcadero setting, whether it’s pristine mackerel, maguro or white salmon.
Beyond sushi, the scallop and veal sweetbreads ($16) is the starter to order; the star ingredients are arranged on cauliflower puree with Brussels sprout leaves, bacon and a chicken jus flavored with thyme. And for main course there’s the classic soy glazed local black cod ($31) with Asian greens in a yuzu soy sauce.
It’s also a restaurant that fills many needs, featuring two distinct dining rooms, both with postcard views of the Bay Bridge. In the front room it feels like a brasserie with wood floors and brick walls. The back dining room is carpeted and has a more elegant patina; great for those business lunches and dinners that seems to be on the increase these days.
132 Embarcadero (near Mission Street), San Francisco; (415) 777-8688. thechaya.com. Lunch weekdays; dinner nightly.
Alexander's dining room
Wednesday: Alexander’s
It makes sense that a Cupertino steak house would take over a the space of a dot-com icon, Bacar. Popular with the high-tech set, the original Silicon Valley location received a Michelin star, and steak houses seem to appeal to the widest common denominator.
What sets this one apart is the Asian overtones, so you can get such things as tai sashimi ($17) accented with black bean dashi, cucumber and violets; or the classic iceberg wedge ($10) dressed up with eggs, celery, bacon, blue cheese and Fuji apple.
You can get many steaks with Asian embellishments such as kimchi butter on the fire-roasted tenderloin, but what would bring me back is the slab of prime rib ($39/$43). It was beautifully marbled, served with natural juices and three kinds of horseradish: one with beets, one creamed and a third with wasabi. That’s really all you need.
448 Brannan St. (near Fourth Street), San Francisco; (415) 495-1111. alexanderssteakhouse.com. Dinner nightly. Reservations and credit cards accepted.
Thursday: Millennium
Chef Eric Tucker, who has been working at Millennium since 1994, has developed a loyal following for his creative approach to vegan cooking.
The raw sea vegetable salad ($10.95/$18.75) includes a mix of kelp moistened with a umeboshi, or pickled plum, dressing with shredded cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, avocado, snap peas and radishes, with shiso and wasabi-crusted cashews.
The ingredient driven main courses include a cornmeal- and pumpkin seed-encrusted portobello mushroom ($23.50) sharing the plate with a yellow eye bean and hominy stew with sauteed greens, nopales and the accent of orange and a chimichurri sauce.
580 Geary St. (at Jones), San Francisco. (415) 345-3900. millenniumrestaurant.com. Dinner nightly.
Pizza at Boot & Shoe Service
Friday: Boot & Shoe Service
Charlie Hallowell, a longtime chef at Chez Panisse, opened Pizzaiolo in 2005, then followed it up four years later with this second pizza parlor, located in a former shoe repair shop. At both places he creates some of the Bay Area’s best pizzas.
While you wait for your table — and you can expect a wait — you can enjoy an expertly prepared cocktail in the crowded back room. The counter in front of the open kitchen lets you know what you might want to choose for the pizza topping; baskets of fresh produce inspire both the cooks and the crowds.
There are the expected classics such as the marinara ($10), my favorite with potato and pancetta ($18) and nightly topping specials. In addition, there’s generally a pasta and meat course that changes nightly.
3308 Grand Ave. (near Lake Park Avenue), Oakland; (510) 763-2668. bootandshoeservice.com. Breakfast (light), lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday. No reservations.