This film is a beautiful thing! Not the reality of our industrialized food system, to be sure, but the efforts of Director Robert Kenner and Michael Pollan, our most eloquent advocate for establishing a safe and sustainable food system. I’ve been doing my best to help spread the word for many, many years and am just so happy and thankful there’s finally a mainstream film to broadcast the tale (and hopefully reassure my friends and family that I’m not a total nutcase).

Before going to see Food, Inc. last night, my friends and I had dinner at Cafe Gratitude. For any of you who know the place and its amazingly delicious (and healthful) food, you know the ‘question of the day’ can sometimes be, ‘What are you grateful for?’ Today, I am especially grateful to live in an area with so many wonderful farmer’s markets filled with plentiful, sustainably grown food. I’m also grateful that so many talented, creative people are making wonderful products using produce and meats grown and raised by these dedicated farmers. Living in San Francisco, it’s easy and convenient for me to make good food choices. It’s my hope that we can all work toward the day when we may all share these same choices.

As soon as I found out Orson was serving lunch during the week, I hightailed it over. I already knew I’d enjoy sitting at the gorgeous marble bar where, even on a gloomy day, beautiful light pours in through the massive skylight. Plus, chef/owner Elizabeth Falkner always has something new up her sleeve that I’m happy to try. Little did I expect I’d find my new favorite burger! There are a few righteous burgers in town, but I kid you not, the Orson burger kicks ’em all to the curb. I eat maybe a burger a month but this one’s so incredibly delish, I went back just a couple days later for another –with a different friend.

Here’s the deal….the lightly grilled bun (baked in-house, of course) is pillowy soft, buttery and, miraculously, doesn’t get soggy. The burger comes with a trio of condiments, which are a Cobb relish (egg, bacon, bleu cheese), truffle mayo and house steak sauce with a chili/chipotle kick. Elizabeth recommends slathering it all on the burger along with the pickled carrots and onions. I wholeheartedly agree, though recommend saving a little of the truffle mayo for your duck fat fries. You know, just in case you’ve soaked up all the heavenly brown butter Bearnaise sauce that comes with those fries, you’ve got a little extra deliciousness to dip into.

And I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time leaving one of Elizabeth Falkner’s restaurants without having a little something sweet. So I capped off that rockin’ burger with a chocolate cupcake — rocky and road on the outside. How cute is that!

Then I rolled myself on out the door with a full belly and a big smile….and I just might roll myself back in again next Weds. night to watch Top Chef Masters on the huge digital screen over the bar. Did anyone else catch the episode last night? All I can say, is: totally unexpected outcome (and sign me up for one of those chocolate chip cookies, please).

The first day our lunch showed up at the studio in this packaging, I was hooked before I even took a bite. Packaging pushover, that’s me. AND it’s all compostable — extra points! So then I learn it’s Doug Monsalud (of the famed LRE Catering) and his crew that are behind the brainchild kitchenette. They’re rolling up the door at the loading dock and cranking out ‘spontaneous organic covert nourishment’ Monday through Friday from 11:30 to 1:30, or ‘whenever they run out’. This is definitely known to happen, so I recommend going on the early side.

The menu is simple and changes daily: a coupla sandwiches, salad(s), housemade chips and/or chicharrones, freshly baked cookies and some sort of seasonal drink like strawberry rhubarb refresher. You can check out the menu, posted daily, to get your salivary g’s in gear. kitchenette also serves up plenty of friendly neighborhood attitude and smiles which, I have to say, is counting for more and more in my book these days.

There’s nothing fancy about the digs; but if you’re staying, there’s bench space and lots of folk around you who also love good, simple, tasty fare, so you know you have at least that much in common.

This little sign is what to look for on Illinois St, just about in the middle of the block between 20th and 21st Streets, in Dogpatch.

To kitchenette, I think I can say on behalf of all of us who work in the vicinity of the American Can building, a big fat Thank You!!

After the fog moved my outdoor garden brunch with friends indoors, I was happy to bookend my day with the splash of garden colors in the mural adorning a space that is so refreshingly different from the ubiquitous wood table, wood chair, concrete floor uniform of SF eateries of late. Midi is fresh on the scene (just over two months) and welcome breath of fresh air. The interior feels urban and un-San Francisco, which made it feel like I was dining in a different city. The room is intimate, comfortable and sophisticated — like the Galleria Park Hotel decor that surrounds it, but different.

The oval plates (including the wee bread plate) are a refreshing change, and the crisp lines of the stemware and comfortable, contemporary cutlery are just right. I love the individual wine carafe — lets me linger over my one glass.

The bright, clean flavors are just my taste. I had the jumbo asparagus salad with paper-thin breakfast radishes and a perfectly delicate sauce gribiche. It was absolutely delicious — and asparagus is not an easy sell for me. It’s been at least a couple of years now, but after sorting, peeling, blanching and roasting 45 lb of asparagus for a tv spot, I never thought I’d want to eat it again.

To Chef Michelle Mah, I say a big huge, ‘Thank you!’ for combining a tangy watercress, raddish and picked onion salad with bleu cheese butter topped grilled hangar steak. Fantastic! And if you’re a die-hard who has to have frites with your steak, you can order ’em on the side.

Oh yeah! Don’t miss the caramel slurried, silky-smooth, chocolate pot de crème garnished with a quenelle of whipped crème fraîche. I happen to know one of the servers who confided she loves watching people go into a savor zone and shut out their dining companions. Chocolate isn’t what I typically order for dessert but my dining companion does. I must say, it was a memorable treat and worth a special trip.

Martini Anyone?

The next day I headed north to escape the frigid wind and fog, and found a bit of sunny poolside heaven up in Calistoga. At the end of the day, I sunk into a chair on the garden-surrounded patio of Martini House in St. Helena to enjoy the last vestiges of the day’s sunshine and warmth. I decided on the mushroom and spring vegetable tasting menu, which proved to be a terrific choice.

We started off with a ramp and green garlic vichyssoise, with sauteed morels, marinated potatoes and pickled ramps. The colors were beautiful and the little fried bits of green garlic add just the right crunchy texture.

Then came the saffron gnocchi with violet artichokes and olive oil braised King Trumpets in a mushroom glaze and crispy persillade.

The portobello ‘steak and frite’ with pan roasted fiddle head ferns and red wine butter sauce was a clever, fun and tasty play on the classic.

Even the dessert course was made using dried Candy Cap mushrooms which were steeped in cream to impart their maple syrup aroma. Two nights in a row, I found myself thoroughly enjoying desserts that wouldn’t necessarily be my first choice (note to self). This particular bread pudding was light enough to finish the meal. I do love maple and who can argue with currants and a maple sugar anglaise.

I have to admit that though I was really looking forward to dinner at Martini House, I was somewhat skeptical, fearing it’d gone the way of so many wine country restaurants whose menus have become stale and uninspired. I was happy to experience Chef Todd Humphries still keeping it fresh, delicious and lovely. It was the perfect end to a perfect day.

I’ve never seriously contemplated living in the East Bay, but for the first time I thought I could actually consider it if I were able to live around the corner from Camino.

For awhile now, I’ve been drawn to smaller dining venues, but the wide open space at Camino won me over with its stunning simplicity and the incredible attention to detail. Absolutely everything here is done with an artful eye, including the kitchen–which is open to the dining room.

Everywhere I looked–from the bar at the front to the kitchen at the back –there were large bowls and platters of gorgeous produce, beautifully arranged. To me, it was the best testament to the food I was about to be served, which was perfectly executed, simply and enticingly plated and phenomenally delicious. Honestly, after surveying the room and seeing the concise, brief and perfectly seasonal menu, they had me. That they had a cardoon salad, just punctuated my instant infatuation with an exclamation mark!

Then there’s this egg stand at the kitchen station which knocked me out.

The bread station was stylishly stacked on a lovely antique sideboard.

and came to the table on gorgeous wooden boards (extra points for the epis!)

Our entire group felt welcome and well cared for from beginning to end and found every member of the staff reflecting the same friendly and welcoming air as Allison, one of the owners, who was there and greeted us with a welcoming smile (and wonderful sense of humor).