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Quirky San Francisco

• My Favorite Hotel – W Hotel

  13Jan
  Categories: Breakfast, Cocktails, Dinner, Food, Hotel, Lunch, People Watching Click Here to Leave a Comment

  The Starwood chain operates the W Hotels internationally and clearly it’s my favorite. (There’s another favorite, Leading Hotels, but they’re prices are a little stiff for my regular hotel diet.) The W chain seems to fit with my lifestyle. I enjoy simple style, good music and art, clean comfy rooms, a hip vibe that’s never pretentious or formal, great service, employees who seem real, and generally a company that’s dedicated to giving guests whatever they want, whenever they want it. They even have a button on the phones for Whatever Whenever. The concierges are anxious to help you figure out what you want to do or have. I can’t say enough good things about them. Oh, and they have free wireless Internet in the lobby, which they refer to as The Living Room. This is always one service that gets my attention. It’s a great place to hang out and people watch. We’ve seen a lot of celebrities there over the years too. Not a great reason to stay there, but it is fun to spot people from time-to-time. Alec Mapa – Ugly Betty, Sandra Bernhard-comedian, James Gosling-inventor of Java … to name a few … a real variety.

  I live 2 blocks from the one here in San Francisco and several years ago, we had a rogue fire sprinkler decide to blow and flooded our loft. We had to move out for a month and a half and lived at the W during that time. We got to know most of the people there and fell in love with the whole way they do business. We’ve since used the W chain whenever we can, when we travel. Starwood also has a great points system that can be used for rooms, air travel, food or even cash at the hotel. They’re not the cheapest chain, but they’re not the most expensive either. For me, they’re just right.

  

  Front entrance to the Lobby, which they call The Living Room.

  

  

  Bath

  

  Downtown View

  

  Concierge and view to side entrance for check in.

  

  The Dining Room - my favorite breakfast spot in the city.

  

  Another angle of the dining room.

• Zazil Mexican Restaurant & TEQUILA GALORE

  25Sep
  Categories: Cocktails, Dinner, Food, Lunch Comments: 1

  My friends and I stop here for margaritas or shots of tequila from time-to-time because it’s close and the variety of tequila is amazing … and the bartender, Chris (on the right), really knows his way around the agave field, if you know what I mean? Yes, it’s in the SF Mall, but it’s worth the trip to the 4th floor and you can shop (dangerous, after drinking) or just head back out to Market Street and carry on with whatever you were doing.

  

  

  

  Here’s the wording from their Website, which does a far better job than I could do …

  Zazil, located on the fourth floor of the Westfield San Francisco Center, is the latest addition to Eduardo and Sylvia Rallo’s restaurant enterprises. Named after the Mayan word meaning clear water, Zazil offers a cornucopia of traditional Mexican Cuisine enjoyed within an elegantly staged beach setting. A notable Bay-Area-based designer and architect is responsible for creating this oceanic oasis. He magnificently enveloped the restaurant in a swirl of colors ranging from cool whites to a spectrum of blues. Its site beneath the Center’s historic rotunda and atrium assures an ample supply of natural sunlight, which enhances the, outdoor feel.

  Entering Zazil, one passes through the “outdoor” patio with its bright yellow stone floor. A rustic herringbone bamboo ceiling with white fabric draped between bamboo rods, casts a filtered light to those dining below. Hand wrought steel railings playfully resembling woven blades of grass coral the patio and interior of the restaurant. The bar is made of light, naturally finished, Alder wood. Facing the bar one can view the wall of frosted glass with its sculptural display of lighting that changes from green to blue slowly throughout your visit silhouetted behind it by seaweed. Sculpted metal fish are randomly placed on the wall above the booths and banquettes creating the illusion that they are just swimming by. The huge woven metal “straw” basket lighting pendants that hang throughout the bar and dining areas further promote the playful aura of a coastal cabana. ” The look and feel of Zazil and its authentic coastal Mexican cuisine is what people have been looking for in San Francisco for a very long time.” said the Rallo’s. “We are very proud and delighted to bring this combination to our discerning customers.”
  Tags: Margaritas, Mexican Food, Tequila

• Fish Tacos at Rubio’s

  11Aug
  Categories: Dinner, Food, Lunch Click Here to Leave a Comment

  Rubio’s started in San Diego about 30 years ago. I first ate fish tacos in Ensanada, Mexico, which is about an hour and a half drive south of San Diego. Most of the stands serve exactly the same thing, only varying the salsa. I learned the recipe from a street vender there, which turned out not gourmet ingredients. The batter for the fish is just pancake batter. On a tortilla, with the fish is merely chopped cabbage. The white sauce is just mayonaise mixed with a little milk. Now that it sounds borderline disgusting, you’ll have to try them to believe there’re any good. People drive from San Diego for those little fishy delights. Being down by the docks, ads a romantic air, and the fact they used to be 25 cents each, didn’t hurt!

  Well, Rubio saw the opportunity and opened one, then another and another. While his recipe is all heavenly,
  Stuff. The only one here is in the mall on Market street, near Powell. Don’t judge by the fact that it’s in a mall, it’s good. Order the Pesky Combo.

  

  
  Tags: Fish Tacos, Mexican Food