I had some mushrooms and onion left over from making quesadillas yesterday and I was on dinner duty tonight. I figured a risotto would be good. I love making risotto. We had picked up some dried porcini mushrooms for yesterday, more than we needed, so I used some of those as well.

Here’s the recipe I used (from Risotto).

Wild Mushroom Risotto

• 1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms
• 5 cups chicken or vegetable stock (use the mushroom soaking water for part of this)
• about 1 pound of fresh mushrooms, cleaned, dried, and chopped chunky
• 4 tsbp olive oil
• 3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 oz butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• generous 1 5/8 cups of arborrio rice
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 4 tbsp chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
• salt & pepper to taste

Soak the dried mushrooms. Drain and dry. Heat 3 tbsp of oil. Saute the fresh mushrooms until lightly browned. Add garlic and soaked mushrooms. Cook for a couple minutes, stirring frequently. Transfer to a plate.

Continue on as a regular risotto.

When the risotto is nearing completion, add the mushrooms. Season with salt & pepper. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and cheese. Sprinkle with the parlsey and serve.

I made some ravioli tonight for dinner: ricotta thyme filling with roasted heirloom tomato sauce. Everything made from scratch: the pasta, the filling, the sauce, and the ricotta in the filling.

Suzanne and I went to a ricotta making workshop recently and learned to make our own ricotta from scratch. Mix that with a bunch of fresh thyme, some lemon juice and olive oil. The pasta was a basic egg pasta: flour, egg yolks, olive oil, and some water. For the sauce, I took a few fresh, ripe hierloom tomatoes, cored them, rubbed them with olive oil and roasted under a 400 F broiler until they were soft, browned, and bubbling. Then I heated some olive oil, sauteed some minced garlic until it was soft but not browned. Next I broke up the tomatoes and add them to the garlic and let it simmer and reduce.

Suzanne and I went to A16 the first time we went to The Exploratorium After Dark. That was in early February and I was new to dining in San Francisco. I asked Jean, the CEO’s EA where I was working at the time, to suggest a good restaurant in the Marina. The thing with Suzanne was new at that point in time and I was looking to impress. Jean was known to be a foodie and an explorer of the dining scene. She did not disappoint when she directed me to A16. We had a great meal.

Fast forward to early September. We were planning out monthly trip to the Exploratorium and thinking about places to eat. “What about going back to A16, we really liked it.” And so we did. It was one of the best meals we have had at a restaurant. Not just the food, but the entire experience.

We gave ourselves plenty of time to get from home in the Mission up to A16 (which is quite near the Exploratorium at the edge of the Presidio), as we often run a bit late. This time, however, we got there with plenty of time to spare. Instead of sitting around waiting for dinner service, we browsed a bit in a couple shops we’ve noticed but never gone into. Being foodies, these were the meat & olive oil shops near the corner of Chestnut and Divisadero: Marina Meats and We Olive, respectively.

We eventually arrived at A16, still with a few minutes to spare. After checking in with the maître d’ we took seats at the bar and ordered some WIne. A nice sparkling white for Suzanne and a Sardinian red for myself. Both were very pleasant. Or table was ready and we took our glasses and proceeded to be seated. We decided to continue with our wine choices, and I ordered a carafe of the red I was drinking. As Suzanne was drinking a sparkling she proceeded on a glass by glass basis, with me telling our waitress to “keep it from getting empty”.

I have to add that our waitress was superb. We both thought she was strikingly attractive, but beyond that she did an exemplary job. Knowledgable, and completely on top of the situation. One small thing that must be noted is that during our entrée (lamb, see below) Suzanne switched to drinking my red. She simply poured some into her glass from the carafe. Almost immediately, our waitress was there with the appropriate glass and deftly replaced the one Suzanne had had for her white wine.

We chose the daily special appetizer to start with: Roasted Padrón Peppers. OMG these were Good.

We had tried some pasta last time we were there, so this time we wanted to try A16′s pizza (although Suzanne thinks we had some pizza last time). Without discussion we agreed on the Funghi – (roasted mushrooms, smoked mozzarella, grana, garlic, oregano, wild arugula, olive oil). Very nice, and we had some the next day … just as good.

For an entrée, we decided on the special: lamb (description requested). I’m still developing a taste for lamb and was somewhat hesitant about the idea. But Suzanne was enthusiastic about it and I was impressed enough with A16 that I was confident it would be good, even if not to my liking. When the dish arrived, it contained two reasonably sized pieces of lamb (along with some wonderfully roasted eggplant). I opted for the smaller of the two pieces. A choice I later regretted. This was mouth watering delicious. Not very pungent & gamy at all. I savored every bite. Both pieces were bone-in and so we had a nice gift for our pooch at home the next day.

The lamb came with a side, and we chose the cannellini beans (with garlic and oregano). Very tasty, mashed but not pureed with a nice, course texture.

A16 is pricey, but the food is good and the service is excellent. Maybe not an everyday stop, but great for a special meal.

I’ve heard of Pizzeria Delfino for some time. We’ve often passed by on our way home from Delores Park. Suzanne has been there before, but I hadn’t yet. So one day recently, when I had a pizza craving around lunch, it seemed like the opportune time. It was a Thursday, about 1:30 so we figured we shouldn’t have much trouble getting a seat.

When we got there, there were people waiting outside. We got worried for a minute, but when we checked in we were asked if we’d like to sit at the bar. When we said that would be fine, we were shown to two seats at the end of the bar, at the back of the restaurant. It couldn’t have been more perfect, with two seats looking into the kitchen.

Oh, did I mention this place does pizza?

There were all kinds of homey little touches that we could see from our seats. The plethora of pizza boxes shown above. Various bowls of ingredients, such as this big bowl of mushrooms on the shelf between the bar & the kitchen.

You know how pizza places have peppers and grated parmesan in shakers? Those boring, functional, and ubiquitous things full of dried out grated cheese and chili flakes:

Pizzeria Delfino, however, does a classy take on this: Fresh shredded parmesan, fresh twigs of oregano, and nice course gound chilis.

So on to the meal. For wine, we got a bottle of Grillo from Moziese, Sicilia. Now, as a rule, I don’t like whites. But as with any rule, there are exceptions. This is one. Very enjoyable.

We started with “Crazy Melon” (w/chili, mint, extra virgin olive oil & feta). This was insanely good. Sweet melon, spicy chili, and mint. All bathed in a butterly, mild olive oil.

We decided to try two pizzas (we had leftovers later, they were great cold as well). The first was “Cherry Pie” (Marinated Cherry Tomatoes, Basil, Ricotta Salata). Lovely fresh cherry tomatoes, perfect time of year for it. The pie was light, with an over the top fresh tomato taste.

The second pie was a “Napoletana” (Tomato, anchovies, capers, hot peppers, olives and oregano). This is one of my favorite pizzas. I first had a Napoletana on a trip to Alghero (on Sardinia). The combinations of flavors is one I just love: earthy and robust. Similarly, I love puttenesca and arrabbiata.

I’m obviously quite taken with Pizzeria Delfino. I look forward to our next visit.

Coco Pazzo Cafe was recommended to me. It was perfect. And across the street from my hotel. Bonus! I love Italian food, especially Tuscan, and Coco Pazzo Cafe was done up in a traditional rustic Tuscan motif. The effect was very homey. From their site: “Coco Pazzo Restaurants are Chicago’s authority on Tuscan inspired Italian dining.” I believe them.

I started with a glass of wine at the bar while I waited for a table. The wait was just long enough for me to order a glass and have a sip. Once I was at a table, a basket of sliced baguette and foccacia arrived to entertain me as I perused the menu and listened to the specials, which sounded too good to ignore.

For an appetizer I decided on bruschetta: Tomato & Basil and Mushroom & Arugala. The bread was sliced thin and grilled to the perfect crispness. The tomatoes were sweet and the basil vibrantly fresh. The mushrooms were nicely sautéed and earthy, topped with a thin slice of cheese and some loose arugala.

The bruschetta arrived so quickly, that the party at the table next to me asked if I were a known restaurant critic and was being pampered. Not yet anyway. Aside: they had been waiting since before I arrived, but they were a party of eight so you expect it to take longer to have everything ready to go together. They later said that they were unanimously impressed with their food.

Next up was the pasta course. I opted for risotto. I love risotto. A lot. Really. I love eating it, and I love making it. The risotto is a daily thing here, and today’s was wild mushroom. The flavor was great, the texture not quite so great. Personally, I think I make a better risotto … but only slightly. I have two complaints: 1) it could have been cooked slightly longer to make the rice a bit more tender, and 2) it needed more parmesan. The flavor was, as I said, great. Earthy mushroom and rich butter. It’s just that it could have been a bit better. That said, I’d try it again.

I chose the special entrée of the day: Roasted Sea Bass. This was roasted, skin on, to a beautiful brown. The flesh tender and moist … perfectly done. This was served on a bed of white beans with sautéed spinach and cherry tomatoes. Everything was just fabulous. The textures and flavors were bang-on.

Now, what Italian meal is complete without some dessert? I am an unabashed Tiramisu slut. It was on the menu, as well as Panna Cotta. Both were compelling, and I found myself wishing for a dinner companion so that we could get both and share. I asked whether the desserts were made from scratch in house and was assured that they were. Ok, Tiramisu it was, than. Very nicely done, rich with perfect texture. A scatter of fresh blueberries and a large, sweet strawberry completed the presentation.

I was impressed. So much that I’ve recommended it to Chad, my foodie friend. So much that I hammered out this post as soon as I got back to my hotel room. So much that it will be a go to place for Italian food once we get moved here. You should give it a try if you like rustic Italian food. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

This afternoon we discussed heading into downtown to pick up an Apple TV and grabbing dinner somewhere. “Oh wait,” said Suzanne, “It’s Valentine’s Day. Everything will be packed.” Having eschewed the occasion… really, pick one day to be nice to each other? Fuck, people, Bill & Ted had it right “be excellent to each other”. And that means all the time. Not just one arbitrary day a year picked by a greeting card company. Anyway, I digress. We decided to go out on Monday instead (see tomorrow’s post).

So that left us with dinner to make. Improvisation time. I knew there were anchovies left from a previous meal. And we had green olives (ok.. we had kalamatas as well.. unknown to me). And capers. Oh! @daksis gave me some Faro pasta to try. It’s starting to sound something like Linguine alla Puttanesca. No tomatoes. No problem: use some tomato paste. Garlic, onions.

So that’s what I did. Very close to a classic puttanesca:

My (now ‘our’) February dinner party is starting to take shape. This month it will be an Italian meal. French might have been a stretch, but I’m largely in my element with Italian cooking.

The plan is to start with a spread of antipasti: roasted peppers, olives, cold meat, …

The plan is to have some pasta:

Not that much variety!

I’m thinking of making homemade fettuccini and gnocchi.

I’ll also make a selection of sauces.

A tomato based:

Of course, a pesto:

Add a salad, bread and some Italian wine.

And for desert: Tiramisu.

This part will be something new.