Friday, December 1, 2017
Day 21 of a cold. Breakfast at home: three cuties, toasted english muffin with cheddar cheese, 8 ounces of milk. Rode Uber Pool to UCSF Laurel Heights. Identity retheme work all day. Lunch at desk from The View Cafe: a small plate of fried rice fried noodles; one large, baked pork bun, water. Rode Muni to the Embarcadero. Dinner at Slanted Door with Phil, Danny, Drew, Romy, Quyen, Dave, Annita, Tina, Don Don, and Wayne. The restaurant was decorated with dog portaits, which I liked. We sat near the windows with a great view of the Bay Bridge and its light art installation. For a few minutes (10?) I was blinded by lights on a nearby docking boat, which degraded my dining experience a bit. The restaurant at dinner is very dimly lit, and it was impossible for me to see my menu even with my reading glasses and without bright light. I used my phone's flashlight feature, and tried to not annoy other diners by hiding my now-brightly-lit menu under the table. The menu was confusing to me until it was explained—when it says "select 3 items" or "select 1 item" it refers to a decision for the whole table, not individual diners. I learned later that this is their prix fixe menu. It would really have helped if the menu I was handed had said Prix Fixe at the top and maybe something like "select 3 items for your table". For wine we started with a riesling and midway switched to a rosé. Our meal: spring rolls, papaya salad, pork spare ribs, chicken, bok choy. Danny received for his birthday an order of spiced apple cotton candy with a lit candle on top. I was impressed by the cotton candy cone holder which was made of metal and seemed to be designed specifically to fit into a wooden platter for carrying and serving. Churros with chocolate dipping sauce completed the dessert round. Afterwards I rode with Quyen, Dave, and Annita in a 2017 Toyota Mirai to Shotwell House. We waited a long time for the others to arrive; they had unexpectedly dropped off Tina and Don Don at a hotel due to an early flight. We waited inside for Danny to arrive; he had returned to Slanted Door alone in an attempt to retrieve a birthday card he had received from Annita. (He did not find it.) We had a seasonal cake from Whole Foods which they called chantilly cake and was flavored with pear and rosemary. Rode UberX home.