Jeremiah R.'s Profile

So I decided I was going to impress a girl with my Thai-cooking skills (it was either that or the bow-hunting).  Problem was - I had never cooked so much as a Satay, and the list of ingredients looked as if it was prescribed straight from the spells of Marie Laveau.   So with a healthy sense of adventure and girl-to-impress in tow, I headed straight for the Sunset Super.  Given that my Kanji is a bit rusty, and the amount of English spoken in the store was practically negligible, the first 15 minutes were promised a monumental disaster.  But after finding the ever-elusive Red Curry Paste, and shouting a most titillating 'yeehaw' to the gaggle of boba seeking school girls in aisle 3, everything fell into place.  I found every ingredient on my list and stockpiled even more as I wandered the Super's busy, narrow aisles and stared, mouth agape, at the magnificent selection of exotic vegetables, sparkling tanks of live fish, and neat packages of every canned, dried, shrink rapped nicety you can imagine.  And while the success of filling my culinary dance card far exceeded expectations, it was the scene it self that left me swelling with immense SF pride. From the swarthy fish monger sporting the fashionable gut encrusted hair piece, to the Chinese grandma with the exceptionally lucky mole, the people of the Sunset Super will have me going back again and again.

The San Francisco dining scene is mad about Mitchell's ice cream, but for my dollar I prefer the understated extravagance of the Bombay Ice Creamery.  Creative flavors abound. Rose, Cardamom, and Coconut are some of my personal favortieds.  Or mix them together for a truly unique and luxurious treat. Mistry's Fine Balance in a climate that in no way requires the diversion, the Bombay Ice Creamery is one of my favorite indulgences.

They say that the best things in life are free.  And while the accuracy of that statement will be debated for years, I do know that you can get many great things for a dollar.  At The Catalyst on "Dollar Wednesdays" you can get the a beer, a slice of pizza, and admission to a progressive indie concert, for a buck each.  With its eclectic mix of hip-hop underground and santa cruz hippie funk, The Catalyst provides a great spot for people watching and a wealth of social opportunities.  It also makes a great first date spot for that high maintenance girl who you suspect might have agreed to go out with you after you dropped coin on a bottle of crys up in the club.