Winter / Spring 2008

Wok Wiz

Occasionally, one of my Wok Wiz clients will show me an old guide book map showing distinct boundaries between Chinatown and North Beach. Anyone who lives or works in this part of San Francisco knows it is impossible to tell where one place ends and other begins. Such maps must have been drawn up before Chinese-Americans discovered pizza or real estate investments and before Italian-Americans learned how to use chopsticks.

San Francisco’s Chinese and Italian neighborhoods melt into each other just like Chinese and Italian cuisines have been doing for ages. The Chinese and Italian cooks have been stealing good food from each other (and anyone else) for years. Many staples of so-called Chinese and Italian cuisines were imported long ago. Coriander and lychees, for instance, came to China from the Middle East during the Han Dynasty. Tomatoes made their way to Italy from Mexico in the 17th century. Imagine southern Italian cooking without tomatoes - it wasn’t that long ago. I’ve presented a Chinese pizza recipe in one of my cookbooks, using tomato sauce, shiitake mushrooms and firm tofu (bean cake). I’ve also cooked tofu in fine olive oil, and have made Chinese Rice Congee with Texas long grain rice and a small amount of my favored Arborio rice. Chow Ciao!

Today’s North Beach is a haven for locals and curious visitors. One of my favorite suggestions after going on our Wok Wiz tour is to point the way to North Beach. I suggest that they walk off our shared dim sum lunch, and explore the historical and colorful Italian neighborhood. Of course, they should stop for a little snack at Stella’s bakery or Victoria Pastry and wash it down with an espresso or latte. If they stay out long enough, it will be time to have dinner there, and listen to some great music, or catch Beach Blanket Babylon at the Fugazi theatre.

Speaking of food, I recently visited my good friend, Gary Hirano, the new owner of the old Moose’s Restaurant & Bar. Since Ed and Marietta Moose left, Gary and his team have worked diligently and successfully to offer fine dining with great ambience. Moose’s is located across the street from Washington Square Park. The new young chef, Travis Flood is engaging, professional, and puts his heart into his cooking. The menu changes according to the season and what Chef Flood wants to play with in the kitchen. I can’t name a favorite so far, but can still taste the Ahi Tuna Tataki and homemade Pappardelle with chicken, chorizo and manchego and requested the recipes. On the flip side of the Italian menu, it is heartwarming to step into the “new” Fior d’Italia, America’s oldest Italian restaurant with a new address at 2237 Mason Street, in the San Remo Hotel. Affectionately known as “The Fior,” the menu features Northern Italian cuisine with old world veal entrees such as osso buco, gnocchi, scaloppine and saltimbocca. Chef Gianni Audieri is a good soul, works like a Chinese chef, overseeing lunch as well as dinner.

To tell Chinatown and North Beach apart: when the coffee shops are outnumbered by the tea shops you are probably not in North Beach. North Beach is America’s coffee capitol. Giant companies Folgers, Hill’s Brothers and MJB all began here. So did America’s infatuation with espresso and espresso culture, spread by the Beat Generation. Here are a few addresses to help you around our North Beach.

Wok Wiz Guide to North Beach

Green Street

• 478 Green St. Bocce Café. In North Beach’s non conformist manner, there is no bocce at the Bocce Café. It’s an Italian ristorante with a lovely garden.
• 510 Green St. Sodini’s Trattoria. Simple, good Italian food with the feel of a neighborhood museum.
• 516 Green St. Danilo Bakery. Famous cassareccio bread, fresh cannoli and tiramisu by the slice.
• 678 Green St. Club Fugazi. Home of the famous Italian tradition -Beach Blanket Babylon.

Grant Avenue

• 1345 Grant Ave. The Beat Museum.
• 1499 Grant Ave. North Beach Pizza. Hand tossed Italian style pies.
• 1501 Grant Ave. Italian French Bakery.
• 1522 Grant Ave. Aria. A unique store with cute puppets, antiques, etc.
• 1460 Grant Ave. Iacopi Meats. Cured panacetta, prosciutto, etc.
• 601 Vallejo St. (at Grant). Café Trieste. Probably America’s most famous traditional coffeehouse. The Beats hung out here and owners sing live opera on Saturdays.

Stockton Street

• Columbus Park. Through most of the 19th century, Juana Briones and Tapiade Miranda grew vegetables here for the ships that docked in SF Bay. Now it’s the community center.
• 1435 Stockton St. North Beach Museum. Easy to miss, as it’s tucked away on the second floor of the Eureka Bank building, this place also has bank hours.
• 1652 Stockton St. Moose’s. A not-to-miss. Read about it in this article.
• 1700 Stockton St. Liguria Bakery. Since 1911, this is a San Francisco heirloom. The bakery makes five kinds of foccaccia (Olive oil and salt; green onion; tomato sauce; raisin and sugar; and garlic) and nothing else. When it’s sold out, they close. It always sells out.
• 1701 Stockton St. Mama’s. Famous breakfast haunt, this café draws long lines on Sunday morning. Banana bread French toasts and corned beef hash are treasures.

Columbus Street

This is the part of North Beach most associated with the old Barbary Coast - Mark Twain and Bret Harte worked on Columbus St.

• 124 Columbus. Sciue Scuie. This little café is owned by my good friends, Mario and Stephanie Ascione. It is an authentic Neapolitan trattoria with great food and a fun ambience. I love the seafood black squid linguini. A wonderful addition is their piano bar/lounge, Café Macaroni’s Purple Onion.  415.217.8400
• 244 Columbus. Tosca. Favorite haunt of pool playing celebrities (Sean Penn and Bruce Springsteen like to meet here when they’re both in town), this watering hole is only a block or so from The Godfather—Francis Ford Coppola’s headquarters and restaurant.
• 255 Columbus. Vesuvio. Beatnik café and watering hole.
• 261 Columbus. City Lights. Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s “library that sells books” (mostly paperbacks) has been a landmark since October 3, 1957 - the day obscenity charges against Ferlinghetti were dismissed for publishing Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl,” now an American classic.
• 373 Columbus. Molinari Delicatessen. 100 years of hanging salamis and legendary lunches. Pick your bread, bring it to the counter and your sandwich is made from scratch. Take home some homemade pasta and sauces.
• 412 Columbus. Biordi. The place for Majolica pottery from central Italy.
• 1362 Columbus Ave. Victoria Pastries. One of the oldest and probably the most extravagant bakeries in town, known for layered, liquor soaked cakes for big occasions.
• 1414 Columbus. Figaro. A famous wedge-shaped café.

On its own:

• 2237 Mason Street. Fior d-Italia. In the San Remo Hotel. America’s oldest Itialian restaurant, since 1886. Northern Italian cuisine, full bar.

Shirley Fong-Torres is owner-operator of Wok Wiz Chinatown Tours and Cooking School, 654 Commercial St., San Francisco. 650.355.9657, www.wokwiz.com.