Suppenkuche

There is nothing better in the world than a cold beer, especially in a three foot tall glass mug shaped like a giant boot.  My interest in the BOOT was piqued by a wonderfully creative and funny movie called Beerfest, about an annual drinking competition held during Oktoberfest in Germany. At the pivotal point in the movie the main characters have a chug-off -- a beer drinking contest organized like a relay race. Both teams are drinking out of an enormous boot. There is just something about watching people drink beer out of a glass boot that made me want to try it.

I began to prowl the streets of San Francisco looking for a bar that served beer in a boot.  I looked through Yelp; I searched Google. Finally, a friend told me about  a wonderful German restaurant/beer-hall called Suppenkuche in Hayes Valley. So I decided to give it a try with some friends on a cold Friday afternoon. The first thing I noticed when we entered this wonderful beer hall is that this place is all about keeping to tradition! The beer hall itself is small and crammed together-- the bar is tiny, the tables are arranged picnic table style, many of the dishes and drinks are German favorites. But I wasn't concerned about tradition; I was concerned about the boot! 

After a quick wait, we got our seats. We sat with another party who came in from the Marina district in San Francisco to try the boot as well. After settling in, we had to decide on a type of beer -- a decision that isn't a problem with the crowd I hang out with.  But the task was more challenging than expected. The beer list was long and every beer sounded delicious--- Suppenkuche has a variety of Lagers, Hefeweizen, Pilzners, Hellas,  Ales, Festbier and more. I finally decided to try Weltenberger Wintertram, a Festbier that looked amazing and felt like the right choice for the boot. 

So after ordering our drinks and putting down a deposit on our boots (40 dollars), we turned our attention to the munchies. Suppenkuche has a variety of traditional German comfort food that are not for the faint of heart ---hearty meat dishes, a variety of potatoes dishes, grilled vegetables, traditional soups. Being that this was a table full of 20 something males, we didn't have trouble navigating through the salivating selections on the menu. I ordered the Kassler von Grill, a cured pork chop with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes. But you can't go wrong with anything on the menu.

Our boots soon arrived after ordering our food and the drinking began. The beers we chose were cold, crisp, and more importantly strong. We tried each others beers and I couldn't find a flaw in any of them. Something about drinking out of a three foot tall boot makes any beer exceptional. 

The food soon showed up during one of our Prost (German for Cheers). The plates were immaculate and surprisingly huge. The potatoes and the meat were spectacular, one of the best German foods I've ever eaten! My food soon vanished and my friends were not far behind. I struggled to breath and sit up stright after going on such an epic food voyage. I was in a coma that I wish I could mimic daily. We ordered another boot and sat around talking to the people sitting with us, trying to digest enough to gain the courage to walk. 

All in all I would say that my boot expedition was a success! My friends and I enjoyed a wonderful night full of beer and amazing food. We met a lot of people and enjoyed some traditional German music. So the next time you're looking for a fun date, expedition, or just a huge beer after a midterm, head over to Hayes Valley and get a boot and some comfort muchies! 

Siagon Sandwhich

The greatest thing about food are the multidimensional flavors that you experience within every culture. The same cut of meat might be prepared a thousand different ways according to a culture history. To me sandwich has always been--bread, meat, some garnishes, and maybe grilled. Pretty Americanized in my eyes. 

But that perception of what classifies a good sandwich in my eyes soon changed when I took a bite of that delicious and crunchy Saigon Sandwich. I have never experience a Vietnamese sandwich until I moved too San Francisco. Living in LA, there isn't a large scale Asian community centered in one area. Not to the extent like in a town like San Francisco. 

Saigon Sandwich is located in one of those Asians cluster in the middle of Tenderloin/Civic center district. I stumbled upon this little place when I was riding my bike through Little Saigon and saw a large line of people outside an armpit of a building. I stopped and asked a man in line, why this place was so popular? He had one of the best responses ever, "just get in line and thank me later." Thats all I needed to hear.

So I got in line quickly as possible. The line was growing extremely long due to the lunch crowd from the surrounding civic center buildings. Surprisingly the line moved pretty quick and I was soon inside the den of flavor. The colors and items inside were so overwheliming once you got in. There were numerous types of munchies that looked like they came from another planet, I didnt attempt to look thru them because I couldnt undestand half the labels languages. Besides I was here to try the sandwich.

When it was finally my turn to order, I noticed a four foot nothing women behind the counter with a temper that cannot be matched. The best way to describe her is to reference the Soup Nazi in the television show Seinfeld. Here is a tip people, BE READY WITH YOUR ORDER! 

The menu is short and simple and extremely cheap, every sandwich is priced at three dollars! They have a variety of sandwich's that includes-- grilled pork, roasted pork, meatball pork, grilled chicken and vegitarian. I decided on the roasted pork.

All the sandwichs are made the same way. They use traditional Vietnamese sandwich toppings like-- onions, carrots, cilantro, jalapenos, spicy garlic mayonnaise and the choice of meat. By far the best thing about the sandwich is the bread. I have no idea where they found this amazing dutch crutch bread, but its so crunchy and fresh. They heat the bread up so that the garlic mayonnaise melts into that warm pocket of happiness. All the ingredients are brought in fresh and they do a great job of balancing the flavors with the spiciness of the meat.

I would recommend getting the roasted pork or meatball pork, so tasty. A great thing to do is get your sandwich and head over to the city hall plaza to enjoy those munchies-- its only four blocks away. So the next time your in the the mood for some cultural munchies. Head on over to the Civic Center/Tenderloin area and walk over too Eddy and Larkin. Look for a long line of salvating costumers with their money already in hand and follow suit.