Downtown workers (or at-home workers who order delivery): you have a new option for breakfast and it’s all going down at CITY COUNTER! Chef Sean Thomas has been putting together some menu winners, including a spin on East Coast BEC, The Breakfast Toasty. It comes with egg, potato, and sharp white cheddar on Acme bread. You can also get carnivorous and add ‘nduja, housemade brown sugar merguez sausage (whut), or bacon.
And then there’s My Jewish Husband, an everything-spiced gougère loaded with gravlax, bay leaf cream cheese, and a caper and charred onion relish. Or try a multigrain porridge with Umbrian farro, black barley, and Arborio rice with local asparagus, lavender-fennel goat cheese, and a soft-boiled egg (and you can add on crispy smoked bacon, because why not?).
A lighter option includes The Day Maker (seasonal fruit with orange blossom yogurt and gluten-free black quinoa-cashew granola), or you can succumb to Marla Bakery pastries (croissants, coffee cake). There’s Linea drip coffee or organic teas. Breakfast is available Mon-Fri 7am-10am.
And you can come back for dinner, served until 7pm Mon-Tue and until 9pm Wed-Fri (or you can bring the spiced chicken meatballs with harissa tomato sauce and toasted Acme bread home with you). Also coming soon: outdoor seating! 115 Sansome St. at Bush.
BAR VALE in Nopa just launched brunch, offering dishes like morcilla pudín with sunny eggs, frisée, and manchego ($14) and chorizo hash, two fried eggs, and chorizo vinaigrette ($14). French toast gets a Spanish accent with sherry custard, date syrup, almonds, banana, and cream ($11). Check out the entire menu here. You can also order hot and cold tapas.
And you know bar manager Jessica Everett has some new low-ABV cocktails and eye-openers for you, like the Pasatiempo with cold-brew coffee, Licor 43, Ancho Reyes, and stout. Served Sat-Sun 11am-3pm. 661 Divisadero St. at Grove.
Some updates at DUNA: chef Nick Balla is morphing the concept into Smokebread (by Duna), starting this Wednesday April 11th. The menu will feature their amazing house-smoked potato flatbread (made with sourdough starter and organic wheat flour and cooked on a cast-iron pan, (inspired by Hungarian langos) topped with their mezze and combinations like cumin sausage with yogurt and sprouted mung beans, or their brilliant lentil croquettes with saag and pumpkin seed tahini. (It’s like a flatbread pizza that you roll up into an awesome sandwich.)
There will be four sandwiches, and they will continue to offer two of their popular and juicy spoon salads, and of course, plenty of mezze sides, pickles, and preserved items. Open Wed-Sun at 5:30pm. 983 Valencia St. at 21st St.
Have you always wanted to try a sandwich from Portland’s famed LARDO? (I have.) Well, they are going to be popping up for the first time in SF at THE PEARL on Friday April 27th from 5pm-9pm. Your $15 ticket gets you a sandwich (they will be serving a half dozen of their signature sandwiches—it’s enough to make me want to collect all six) and hand-cut fries, and Oregon’s Fort George Brewery will be serving beer. A portion of the proceeds will benefit No Kid Hungry/Chefs Cycle, helping to end childhood hunger in America. 601 19th St. at 3rd St.
The new breakfast service at City Counter includes multigrain porridge with Umbrian farro, black barley, and Arborio rice with local asparagus, lavender-fennel goat cheese, and a soft-boiled egg. Photo courtesy of City Counter.
