One Market

Spending lots of time in San Francisco these days - Don came out with me in early October, then I was back in early November before heading off to India. Courtesy of B&C I now have a studio on Nob Hill I can call home when I'm in town. SF is a great restaurant town, but its hard to enjoy when you're on your own - I hate eating out alone. I've found a good place, however, that makes it downright enjoyable. At One Market (the name and the address of this restaurant), you can ask to sit at "the counter" in the back. It is open to the kitchen, and you can sit there and watch the chefs at work while you enjoy your meal. Of course they are incredibly busy, and amazing really - doing 6 things at once, with almost no down time. Here are some shots I took from my seat last time - you can see my wine glass in the foreground! Only caveat - make sure you wear layered clothing, because those stoves put out a lot of heat, and as you can see, you are right next to them.

Don and I went the first time - and, reservationless, we were told we could either wait 90 minutes for a table or sit at the counter, which is how we discovered it. Seems there are almost always seats back there. I ordered a pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon, seared and then finished in the oven and served over a bed of sauteed dandelion greens with salsify. Don had braised beef cheeks, which are the actual jaw muscles of the animal - the waiter told us they were particularly tender because of all the exercise they get from chewing! When there's a bit of down time, the chefs are happy to talk with you about the dishes and explain techniques.

The second time I went by myself, and had a lovely seared ahi tuna with a grapefruit vinaigrette. Menus here. Went great with a New Zealand Marlborough sauvignon blanc, my new favorite. As I sat there, I thought about how much my mom would have enjoyed the experience, and remembered watching her cook in the restaurant we owned. And I didn't feel quite so alone in a strange city after that!