San Francisco Food Blog

Zingerman's

Spreading the swine gospel

​UPDATE Nov. 12: Citing a medical emergency, Ari Weinzweig has canceled tonight's appearance, but The Pasta Shop says the bacon tasting is still on. Read the latest here.

Is bacon the olive oil of North America? Care to taste some, and maybe pick up a new book while you're at it? Author Ari Weinzweig says bacon is the olive oil of North America. Weinzweig knows his swine and other delicacies; he's the cofounder of the famed gourmet food emporium Zingerman's Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Mich. Learn why he says, "bacon is so integral to the culinary history of this country. The roots are so deep in our cooking, I think of it as the olive oil of North America." Weinzweig will be chatting, tasting bacon with the audience, and signing his new book, Zingerman's Guide to Better Bacon: Stories of Pork Bellies, Hush Puppies, Rock 'n' Roll and Bacon Fat Mayonnaise (Zingerman's Press, $29.99) at The Pasta Shop (5655 College at Shafter, Oakland -- literally just steps from the Rockridge BART station) this Thursday, Nov. 12. The event runs from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. and is free. But bring your wallet: You might be tempted to buy the book and some gourmet food to go with it.

Alexa Shae/Flickr

Kirnon: modern Caribbean at Hibiscus.

As we noted Wednesday, Oakland is experiencing a flurry of new restaurant activity, besides the destination restaurants touted by mayoral candidate Don "I'll put our top 10 restaurants against San Francisco's top 10 any day" Perata. Among the most exciting new announcements: Hibiscus, a modern Caribbean concept from chef Sarah Kirnon (late of The Front Porch), and front-of-house man Omar White (veteran of Chez Panisse and Pizzaiolo), part of an ambitious multi-use project from the team behind the Independent in S.F.

They're hoping to install Hibiscus, along with a live-music venue named Town Hall and a clothing store called Density, in the crusty old Sweet Jimmie's space at 1733 San Pablo (at 18th). A sample Hibiscus menu features Dungeness crab with steel-cut grits, leeks, and crawfish butter; deep-fried chicken livers with crispy parsley and Miss G's hot sauce; salt cod fritters with roasted red chile aioli and grilled lemon; and jerk chicken with smoked local black beans. It's still in the very early stages of development.

Joey Altman's Miss Pearl's Jam House opened last year in Jack London Square, but other JLS projects are behind schedule. That includes Bracina from Coi's Daniel Patterson and former Delfina chef Lauren Kino, offering rustic California cuisine and featuring a rotisserie and outdoor seating on the waterfront. The latest guess is for a December opening. Also delayed: Bocanova from Rich Hackett of MarketBar, and the East Bay branch of Contigo, the new tapas eatery in Noe Valley. [Ed. note: Oops! No Contigo is planned for JLS. Check our SFoodie apology.] A long-promised Ferry Building-esque development in the Square is still in the process of attracting vendors. Encuentro, a Latin-themed wine bar, is due to open shortly within walking distance of JLS, at Second and Jackson.

dogmilque/Flickr

The kitchen at Pizzaiolo -- like the Oakland restaurant scene itself -- is bustling.

The New York Times' Christine Muhlke got it all wrong last week about Oakland: "With its high crime and poverty rates, Oakland doesn't have nearly the same precious food culture -- or produce -- that defines nearby Berkeley and San Francisco." Not even close. Besides the opening last night of Scott Howard's Five, the biggest news out of Berkeley may be that Downtown has shut down for the summer. Meanwhile, economic crisis or no economic crisis, Oakland is experiencing a surprising restaurant renaissance, with a slew of major new openings either already accomplished or in the works -- including new projects from MarketBar's Rich Hackett, and Sarah Kirnon of The Front Porch (more on those tomorrow).

Former state senator (and Oakland mayoral candidate) Don Perata was closer to the mark last week when he was quoted saying: "I'll put our top 10 restaurants against the top 10 in San Francisco any day." He didn't list them, apparently. But when Perata's state-leased Dodge Charger was carjacked from under him in Temescal last year, he was mere blocks from Doña Tomas, Pizzaiolo, and Bakesale Betty, three superb Oakland destinations. In 2007, the Doña Tomas owners opened Flora, a New American spot in Uptown, whose neighbors include Luka's Taproom, Ozumo, and the upscale Southern place Pícan.

A Lake Merritt moment

Brave the wilds of Oakland tonight, and you can savor $1 tastes served by a straight-up Italian gondolier. Franklin Square Wine Bar in restaurant-frenzied Uptown is pouring wines from the Roero region of Piedmont. Mario Roagna, winemaker for Cascina Val del Prete, will be uncorking Arneis, Barbera, and Nebbiolo (expect up to six 1-ounce tastes for your buck). Oh, and the gondolier? Angelino Sandri, who punts romantics around Lake Merritt for Gondola Servizio, and even sings. We're not kidding.

The spread of free eats during the early-evening and late-night happy hours at Adesso (4395 Piedmont, Oakland) goes far beyond anything in SF proper. For the first two hours of business (5 to 7 Monday through Saturday), and then again for the last hour (10:30 to 11:30 Monday through Wednesday, 11 to midnight Thursday through Saturday), the buffet counter at the back of the room offers platters of house-made salumi and pâtés, panini, crostini, stuffed piadine (flatbreads), deep-fried croquettes, and salads.

This isn't one of those not-so-happy-hour deals where the food comes out once and disappears. The kitchen keeps it coming, constantly bringing out new items and replenishing old ones. In the course of an hour and a half at the bar, I sampled at least 20 different items, completely stuffed myself, and paid only my $12 bar tab. Quantity doesn't trump quality, either: this food is as good as you'll get at any Italian restaurant in Bay Area. If you've eaten at Adesso's parent restaurant, Dopo, you know what to expect.

On Saturday, April 4, the East Bay Vintners Alliance presents the 2nd Annual Passport to the East Bay Wine Trail, a rare opportunity to taste wines from almost all the East Bay's wineries, some of which are not regularly open to the public. Participating food purveyors are to be announced. Tickets are $30 in advance ($10 for designated drivers), and the event runs from noon to 5pm.

Participating wineries:

Beer Lao is a relatively recent addition to the global beer menu. Commercial brewing dates back only to 1973, when some French colonists partnered with local businessmen to start what eventually became the state-controlled Lao Brewery Company. The current beers were developed by head brewer Sivilay Lasachack, who replaced most of the imported barley with domestic rice, producing a less bitter brew more appealing to local palates.

Beer Lao Lager has a good balance of malt and hops with a dry finish. It's similar in style to other Asian lagers such as Phuket, Singha, and Tsingtao, but better, and matches perfectly with Laotian cuisine.

From Tuesday through Friday of this week, Oliveto (5655 College, Oakland, across the street from Rockridge BART) celebrates all things porky with its annual Whole Hog dinners. As suggested by the name, the menu features almost every part of the pig, including ham, shoulder, belly, head, trotter, skin, ears, liver, heart, brain, tripe, kidneys, lard, blood, and spleen (milza in Italian), as well some wild boar. There are still reservations available, though Thursday and Friday are almost booked up. Most of the dishes will still be available on Saturday.

Here's the tentative menu:

The owners of Oakland's deservedly ultra-popular Italian restaurant Dopo are opening a wine bar/small plates place called Adesso (in Italian, dopo = after, adesso = now) a couple of blocks down Piedmont Avenue in the new Il Piemonte complex at the corner of Hidden Valley Road. According to a since-removed Craigslist help-wanted ad picked up by Eater SF last month, they're planning to open in February.

Speaking of Dopo, since getting its full liquor license, it's been offering one of the largest selections of amari (Italian after-dinner drinks) I've ever seen in this country. The list includes hard-to-find bottles such as Ciociaro, Luxardo, Meletti, and Nardini.

Oakland's Voila! Juice started life as a juice cart in front of the downtown Berkeley BART station in 1978 and is now a wholesaler of fresh squeezed and flash pasteurized juices as well as juice blends. They've also got amazing smoothies, such as the coconut-infused Strawberry Paradise, which ran a close second for the title of this edition of Drink of the Week, but the Mashugana Mango won for its intense and luxurious flavor and the possibility that more people will probably like it than the Strawberry. Voila! also has a Juice Bar and Cafe at 510 Derby Avenue in Oakland, where they serve items including raw vegan food and creative smoothies that aren't bottled for stores, such as the Maccha Mint Cacao (green tea powder, mint, almond milk, agave syrup and dates).
—Tamara Palmer