Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Breakfast at home: granola with soy milk and yogurt, water. Surgery recovery activities all day. Mounted pressed flowers on blank greeting cards. Lunch: leftover risotto. Walked to Noriega and back. Rested. Nap. Rode Muni 48 to Noe Valley. Walked. Dinner at Contigo with Paul, Danny, Drew, Romy, Phil. Paul had been here I think once before. The rest of us it was our first time. We sat at a table on the back patio. Heat lamps kept us suitably warm in the otherwise frigid air. We ordered the tasting menu, a few items not on the tasting menu, and several bottles of wine. I thought the food and service and greeters were all excellent but the food is perhaps not the best value. Many at our table were surprised by the high total on the bill, but I wasn't; I felt I had a good sense of what we ordered and what it had cost. What I'd get again (a la carte prices listed here): croqueta de jamon serrano ($3.50 each), dungeness crab salad ($16), carmelized brussels sprouts ($8), patatas bravas ($9), grilled fish fillets ($15). What I'd skip next time: albondigas ($12, delicious but I don't like lamb), monterey xipirons (squid) a la planxa ($15, I don't like the texture of squid), jamon iberico de bellota ($26, severely overpriced for what is basically an ounce of tasty, salty, extremely thinly sliced ham but I wanted to try it anyway), sardine and avocado toast ($3, interesting flavor combinations, but if this is $3 per slice I'd say it's not worth it; you can probably easily make this at home and again I wanted to try it). The bread that comes with the meal as well as with the ham platter is excellent. For dessert we shared the orange cake, the xocolata calenta (hot chocolate), and the amb churros—all very delicious. Before everyone else arrived, I enjoyed a sparkling sangria while waiting. It was tasty, but it felt rather small—perhaps 10 ounces iced for $10. Our bill came to $90 per person after tip partly becuase we chose the $42 per person tasting menu, partly because we ordered a few extra items, partly because we enjoyed several bottles of wine, and partly because one bottle of wine recommended by the server turned out to be $66 and none of us bothered to ask the price before agreeing to it. Other items I'd like to try on another visit: smashed pumpkin torrada (toast) ($13), sauteed greens catalan style ($8), and all the other desserts.