Vegan Eats in San Francisco and a Challenge for St. Louis

Savoring a Pink Lemonade (Cranberry-Lemon Thyme Infused Gin, lemon juice, agave, and soda) and a Manhattan while waiting for a spot at Millennium for dinner, MD and I discussed the enormous painting of naked women loosely wrapped in crumpled sheets who gazed down at us in the Hotel California lobby. What were those women thinking, or not thinking, who appeared to me like some kind of Escher drawing gone all soft and sensual. Quotes on California rambled across the wall below the women. Herb Caen amused me with "One day if I do go to heaven, I'll look around and say, It ain't bad, but it ain't San Francisco."

Hours before, our trip began with a visit to the Mission District to check out Latin food and vibrant murals. Papalote's humongous burritos fortified us for our own walking tour of the area. Having just arrived in San Francisco, I was pretty overwhelmed with the menu. Not being accustomed to actual vegan options, I must have asked six times while ordering, "is there a vegan version" and "what's the vegan option?" The staffer patiently replied, "all the options can be vegan." Welcome to San Francisco. I settled on the grilled tofu con achiote, black beans, rice, salsa, and guacamole in a whole wheat tortilla, swearing to order the vegan chorizo at my next opportunity. The food was flavorful, fresh, and filling.

We went on to explore the Mission District, including the Women's Building mural below. It's more amazing than this photo can show. I thought it was kind of cool that another woman tourist was enamored as well, and we shared a moment of awe between shots of the art. MD and I also found Atlas Cafe in the neighborhood, by chance coinciding with the monthly Thursday bluegrass night. We had a few beers and I noticed a cheeseless pizza and tofu sandwich on the menu. The music had our toes tapping, and we found it amusing that bluegrass seemed so foreign to the California crowd. It's pretty common here in Missouri, and I thought the San Francisco folks quickly warmed up to the unfamiliar harmonies and old fashioned tunes.

The next morning we hit Herbivore for a hearty vegan breakfast. Below you see my order of scrambled tofu with spinach, mushrooms, and tomatoes, with house potatoes, toast, and fruit spread. MD gave a big thumbs up to his southwestern scrambled tofu with salsa, house potatoes, black beans, guacamole, vegan sour cream, and corn bread. The space was kind of noisy with lots of hard surfaces, but we were happy with the food.

Saturday morning we hit the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. We shared a raw spicy curry wrap of veggies and a sassy nut spread bundled in a big leafy green of some sort. The tables bursting with fresh, colorful produce and herbs made me want to load up some sacks of food and head to my kitchen. We also found these vegan samosas and addictive cilantro chutney. This was a great snack right before the cooking demo by a local cookbook author. While I was somewhat impatient with all her talk about happy cows and hens who produced the ingredients for her cream and egg smothered dish, I did learn about nettles and green garlic from the presentation.

That night, I discovered heaven on Earth, Millennium. See how subtle the facade appears, you would never suspect the awesomeness within.

I quote from the menu, because it doesn't get any better than this:

Black Bean Torte: whole wheat tortilla, caramelized plantains, smoky black bean puree, pumpkin-habanero papazul, cashew sour cream, carrot & onion escabeche.

Mushroom and Walnut Strudel: flaky pastry crust, green garlic mashed potatoes, seared asparagus, herbed green peppercorn cashew cream, blood orange & black olive relish.

Chantenay Carrot Polenta Cake: seared greens, snap peas & smoky tempeh "sausage", orange scented black bean feijoada, aji coconut cream, lime & cilantro soffrito, plantain crisps, coconut cashews.

Chocolate Bread Pudding with Peanut Butter "Ice Cream" and Port (sorry, no fancy menu description, but it was amazing!)

As many of you know, Millennium offers a fine dining experience that's creative, warm, and edgy all at once. The place is vegan and the place is packed. Yes it is.

But wait, there's more! The next day, we headed to Weird Fish for breakfast, and I finally got my fix of vegan chorizo. Contrary to rumors, we didn't have to wait for a seat and it didn't smell fishy. A shotgun space with plenty of dark wood accents and marine decor was brightened by aqua walls and porthole mimicking mirrors. I'd go back for that tofu chorizo scramble with red beans, vegan sour cream, and corn tortillas in a minute.

Across the Golden Gate Bridge, we were amazed by the beauty of the Marin Headlands and Point Bonita Lighthouse area. Here are seals resting and soaking up some rays. We really got lucky with sunny, bright days.

On our way out of the city, we traveled through Berkeley and happened upon Bobby G's Pizzeria for lunch. The restaurant's sign actually includes "vegan" in big letters. Considering that I'd been mysteriously craving pizza the whole trip, which I rarely eat since going vegan, this spot seemed meant to be. Bobby G's offers house made organic soy cheese as an option for any pizza, many vegan salad options, and vegan cookies. Santo Dios! I had the vegan baby greens salad with a tangy balsamic vinaigrette and we shared the vegan Margherita pizza. The crispy crust was topped with a thin layer of tomato sauce and a garlicky, rich soy cheese similar to a tofu ricotta, with a sprinkle of fresh basil. I thought this was absolutely delicious. MD thought that a veggie version would have added more pizzazz, so we'd try some extra toppings next time.

Thank you so much to everyone who left suggestions and well wishes for the trip! There were not enough days to cover the meals we wanted to try. San Francisco offers a delicious variety of vegan meals and I can't wait for St. Louis restaurants to step it up, considering the growing interest in fine vegan dining. St. Louis chefs, are you listening? 'Cause we know it can be done.