Hakkasan

Pork soup dumplings at the sleek Hakkasan.

Fried pumpkin puffs with adorable little micro greens.

Mission Chinese Food

Mission Chinese Food looks like any regular Chinese food restaurant, but the dishes are on another level. With so many very spicy dishes, the smashed cucumbers in garlic sauce with coriander and sesame paste are good have around in between bites.

Thrice cooked bacon with tofu skin, chili oil, bitter melon, rice cake, scallion and black bean.

The Ma Po Tofu is so delicious - a rich, hearty and meaty stew with pork shoulder and broadbean paste.

Super hot Kung Pao Pastrami with celery, peppers, potato and peanuts.

State Bird Provisions

State Bird Provisions is a new take on dim sum - fresh seasonal dishes that can be selected from a cart, on a tray from passing servers and ordered from a menu. Oysters with chili oil.

A quinoa salad with tuna crudo in the background; tortilla chips with ceviche over creamy whipped avocado.

Amazing veal meatballs in red sauce.

 Pork belly with tofu and kimchi.

Baked quail eggs with sunchokes and ravigote sauce.

The most amazing garlic bread ever - a huge, doughy roll topped with burrata, olive oil and pepper.

Light and fluffy Japanese cheesecake with huckleberries; chocolate-gingersnap pudding with coconut crunch for dessert.

Dobbs Ferry

The ultimate combination of savory & sweet brunch at Dobbs Ferry: sunny side up eggs, crispy fried chicken, bacon, waffles and sausage gravy.

French Laundry

A few friends and I are having dinner at French Laundry (yay!) on May 2nd and have 2 extra spots in our reservation. If you're in the SF area and would like to join us, email me!

Miette

Miette in San Francisco might be the most adorable and irresistible sweet shop I've been to. The walls are covered in jars of brightly colored candies and it's stocked with good chocolate and other treats from around the globe. They also have the loveliest baked goods - specifically the old fashioned cupcake, a super dense and moist chocolate cake topped with smooth, bright white Italian meringue and a decorated with a tiny red sphere. It's a must on every trip to the city.

Humphry Slocombe

Avocado popsicles are interesting, but Humphry Slocombe in San Francisco ups the ante with savory flavors as unusual as their two headed cow mascot. I tried the buttery boccalone proscuitto (of nytimes review), salt and pepper and brown butter...and can't wait to get back for more flavors like peanut butter curry (can't believe I missed that one)! All were rich, creamy and intriguing; and how could I pass up pork ice cream??

Namu

Tacos have been on my mind lately, given recent posts here and here. This Korean-inspired beef taco from Namu in San Francisco was amazing...in a shell of crispy seaweed instead of a tortilla, it has layers of rice, chunks of beef, scallions and tomato salsa for an unusual and delicious take on the west coast taco.

Paulette

I have to admit that I haven't always been a big fan of the maracon, but with this delicate cookie becoming a trend I've seen it popping up in more and more places like Paulette in San Francisco. At Paulette, the entire playfully modern shop is dedicated entirely to their light and airy treats in great flavors like this rich Caribbean chocolate. This one (along with the cherry macaron at La Boulange) have made me a convert.

They even had this cute macaron tree on display in the window.

La Boulange

Another San Francisco treat: this incredible macaron from the local chain La Boulange. Being a chain I was skeptical at first, but I was delightfully surprised and swooning over the bakery. This macaron was so light and delicate with an intensely flavorful cherry center.


The beet salad was also full of fresh flavors with creamy goat cheese, mandarins and candied pecans.

The cappuccino, served in this giant bowl, was perfect and a great note to end on. I'll definitely be back during the next trip!

Beretta

Two words: lardo pizza. At the hot spot Beretta in the Mission district of San Francisco, I met the ultimate pizza: a thin crust with nothing but olive oil, sea salt and slices of delicious pork fat.

The gnocchi appetizer was in a rich tomato sauce and topped with basil and mozzarella.

The cauliflower was breaded with capers and sage.

The chicken liver crostini, despite looking like cat food was rich and delectable. We also tried the fava bean bruschetta.

Another incredible pizza topped with spicy salami, coppa and pecorino - this was a close second to the lardo pie.

The prosciutto pizza with arugula was surprisingly light and had a fresh, straight-from the garden feel.

The Italian sausage with panna and onions was a creamy balance to the other pies.

Desserts were incredible - this chocolate gelato was super creamy and topped with amaretto and caramel.

The panna gelato with olive oil and sea salt blew everyone away - and the crispy butter cookie was the perfect compliment.

The strawberry tart was sweet and fresh with a scoop of mascarpone.

Arlequin Cafe

I've been in San Francisco for the past week on vacation...and checking out all that SF offers in the culinary world. After getting voted "best cupcakes" in SF Weekly, I decided to check out Arlequin Cafe in Hayes Valley. They had one of the most exciting cupcakes I've eaten: s'mores, with a graham cracker cake with dark bittersweet chocolate frosting, topped with toasted mini marshmallows. Yum!

Then, I ran into them again at the Ferry Plaza farmers market, where they had this maple bacon doughnut along with other incredible looking cupcakes and baked sweets.

Foodie gifts - Sweet Revolution Caramels

These organic salted maple honey caramels from Sweet Revolution Caramels in San Francisco make a great gift and hardly need wrapping!

Boccalone lard caramels

Photo courtesy of The Moment, NYTimes.com

I'm dying to try these Boccalone lard caramels from Humphry Slocombe, along with the meat flavored proscuitto, foie gras, and pistachio-bacon ice creams on the next trip to San Francisco.