fun
Yesterday, we spent the day in the city. We started off at the Randall Museum, which is operated by the San Francisco Parks dept. It was a cute little museum, geared towards kids. The primary exhibits were alot of small animals (farm birds, hawks, owls, lizards, bugs, crows, sparrows, snakes, etc). David was unusually exicted over this crow that was attacking a metal can, and the beehive. He was in awe of the bees flying in & out of the hive. Beyond that, the exhibits were a bit limited, old & worn down. Immediately behind (and above) the museum was this rather steep hill with a staircase leading towards its summit. From the top we had some rather impressive views of the southeastern side of the city, stretching all the way out to the bay we saw several large container ships preparing to enter the shipping terminal.
Afterwards, we had lunch, and then drove up to Crissy Field. We walked the full two miles out to the base of the Golden Gate bridge at Fort Point. Along the way we stopped at the beaches, and the Gulf of the Farallones Nation Marine Sanctuary visitor center. David really likes the visitor center, as they have alot of really nice exhibits, plus a box of gravel with shark teeth that he can search through to get a shark sticker.
For dinner we had reservations at Firefly. We had been several months ago, and I thought that the food was excellent, although Denise wasn't as impressed as I was. However, when on the menu (which changes every few weeks), Firefly is supposed to have the best fried chicken in the city. Denise likes to check their menu every so often for the fried chicken, and when it changed earlier in the week and had the fried chicken again, Denise convinced me that we should go. For appetizers, I had Spiced Lamb Meatballs with Tea Soaked Prunes and Rosemary Oil, and Denise had Bleu Cheese Soufflé with Star Thistle Honey, Dates, Endive, and Walnuts. We both shared with David. The meatballs were pretty good, but Denise's souffle was definitely the standout winner. It was amazingly creamy, but not overpowering. For main courses, I had Roasted Scottish Salmon with Israeli Couscous, Grapefruit, Moroccan Black Olives and Sumac Vinaigrette, David had Shrimp and Sea Scallop Potstickers
with Sesame Soy Dipping Sauce, and Denise had Fried Chicken with Mashed Potatoes & Gravy, Peas & Carrots and a Buttermilk Biscuit. Everything was very very good. The salmon was very moist & flavorfull, and the couscous was amazingly buttery. Without argument, Denise's chicken was easily the best I've had in a very long time (if ever). David enjoyed his potstickers, especially being able to dip them in the sauce. For dessert, I had Humboldt Fog Cheese with Pain d'Épices Crisps, Apricot Compote and Pistachios, and Denise had Warm Chocolate Cake with Toasted Hazelnut Ice Cream and Hazelnut Praline (we both shared with David). The highlight of my dessert was definitely the apricot compote, which was amazingly tart & juicy. The cheese was nice, creamy & a bit nutty. It had a vein of blue-ish mold running through the middle of the slice, and the closer I ate to the vein, the stronger the flavor of the mold (similar to blue cheese). Denise's cake & icecream was good too.