Yip on Mama's

Mama's on Washington Square * 1701 Stockton @ Filbert * San Francisco, CA 94133 * (415) 362-6421
Cuisine: Breakfast, Brunch
Neighborhood: North Beach

You are perfectly matched for this famous SF breakfast haven if you fall into one of the following categories:
A) You or you significant other works market hours and are used to getting up at the crack of dawn, and you get cranky if you are not fed on Saturday mornings until after 8:30am.
B) You never have to use the bathroom when you go out to breakfast (READ: This is not you triple venti extra hot latte drinkers).
-OR-
C) You generally are not starving once you get going for the first meal of the day, and you actually enjoy waiting outside on the sidewalk (rain, sleet or fog) to get seated and served.

As you may have guessed, I find that there are many reasons to avoid this place, but Mama has been cooking up the delicious for many years now, and that is at least one great reason to try it. And despite the shortcomings, you might just be hooked.

The Scene

Everyone from locals to tourists, this place is an SF breakfast staple. And you’ll know you’ve found it because they are all lining up outside. Don't be fooled. --it isn't THAT busy. It’s just that they don't allow any waiting inside. You do not enter the restaurant until a table is open for you. This makes it a much more pleasant experience for those actually dining because the place is small (Godzilla Sushi could learn from this practice). However, waiting outside for usually a minimum of 15 minutes doesn't exactly add to it's charm (in my personal opinion that is ... and after all, that is what this is all about).

Also, they are only open for breakfast and lunch, and you'll generally find people lined up pre-8am to get seated straight away once they open. Try to make your visit during the week if you can to avoid some of this headache. If you choose to go on a weekend, prepare to be patient (and layer!) or get there a few minutes before opening and queue up to be one of the first in.

The Service

This place had a total routine to it, so don't glub it up by being a newbie. It's a good thing you are reading up on the procedure:
1) Prepare to wait
2) You don't put your name on any kind of list so don't head to the door or front of the line when you see a boat load of people waiting. Just go to the back. Mama's seats straight from the queue. No more of that party of 6 getting in ahead of you, even though your party of 2 has been waiting. This is a first in, first out kind of place.
3) Next, you wait in a much smaller, quicker, and warmer line inside along the kitchen window to order and pay. Somehow they stalk where you are sitting because they don't give you a number or anything, but the wait staff knows exactly which food and drink go where. They are also super friendly.
4) They only take cash, so be prepared. Don't be annoying once you get to the counter, shocked by the no CC rule, and then have to scurry out to an ATM. It's embarrassing and rookie.
5) And while you're at it, another rookie move is to leave your waitress tip-less. Since the bill was already paid at the counter, it's easy to forget to leave a few bucks to show your appreciation. Don't let this happen to you.

The Menu

They have every breakfast treat you want from omelets to eggs/bacon/toast to pancakes, sweet breads and fresh fruit. They also serve some more traditional lunch options a bit later in the day like Burgers and such, but I think breakfast is the way to go here. Specifically you can't go wrong with their specials. However, everything I have ever had there sounds appetizing and tastes twice as good as I expected. I do think it is a bit pricey for breakfast, but with all the fresh ingredients, you get what you pay for.

The Food

The eats here are so so so miraculously and unbelievably fresh. And need I say it another time: Delicious! When you walk along the window getting ready to order, you can see the most beautiful fruit, crab and other fresh ingredients. It may just make you change your mind dead in your tracks. Sweet verses Savory: I like to dine with a patron that will split 50/50 since most meals are a portion plus anyway. I adore their crab omelets, special Benedicts, and their low fat yogurt French toast with berries is absolutely to die for. I'm only a bit upset that I ordered it about three times before someone suggested using their homemade jam instead of syrup to top it off. Pure heaven. Making my mouth water just thinking about it.

The Bathrooms

In case you didn’t get the clue already, survey says ... DIS-GUST-ING. I have to think that Mama’s has been around for so long that this maybe was grandfathered in under some old building code. Then again, they allow smoking in TOSCA so maybe simple city wide rules don't apply to North Beach. I would not wish this experience on anyone. It is clearly a staff bathroom (and yet still not acceptable) that they allow patrons to use (p.s. It’s the law that sit down restaurants MUST have a public bathroom). But it is downright scary. The door barely closes and you literally have to walk through the dish washing area to get to it. I've never in my life wished so much that there was a Starbucks in North Beach, just so I could leave mid-meal to tinkle.

***********

In a spoonful, it is pricey, you are almost guaranteed to wait in line (all this after you circled for parking in NB), and the bathroom is absolutely un-usable. But the food is fresh and nothing short of spectacular. I love it and I keep going back. In fact, I take tons of people from out of town here and I love filling my tum tum on a sunny September day before I head out for some rays at Stinson Beach. Since this blog is all about the complete overall experience and not just about the food, I cannot in good conscience give this restaurant 5 spoons. But I almost want to ...
Yip gives it 4 spoons.

Yip on Godzilla Sushi

Godzila Sushi * 1800 Divisadero @ Bush * San Francisco, CA 94115 * (415) 931-1773
Cuisine: Sushi
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights

The Scene

Not much of one. Space is small and there is zero waiting area. You are on top of the other sushi-loving patrons if you wait inside, so go on a nice night and wait out on the corner until a spot opens up. There are only about 10 tables and a small sushi bar. For the boys not interested sharing in the double-date girlie conversation about mani/pedis and the latest must have denim, some sort of sporting event is usually showing on the tube. They also have "Godzilla" movie posters all over the place. Natch.

The Menu

They have all the usual sushi delights, and I think they have teriyaki meals too (though I never order this at a sushi place). Nigiri is good as well as the usual rolls. Miso soup, edamame, seaweed salad ... you know the drill. Nothing too original. I ythink you will find, however, it is a good value for the price.

The Food

A no brainer - the specials are the freshest thing in the house, written on small boards behind and adjacent to the sushi bar.

The Service

They are efficient, but short. Don't expect to get a long passionate description of the menu from the wait staff. Ask for the freshest and that's what you'll get. And that's all you want anyway. They are also superb on filling and refilling your cup of green tea. I doubt it will go empty the whole meal.

The Bathroom

Not exactly pristine in cleanliness, could use a good scrub down, and seems more like a bathroom for the kitchen staff than for the patrons. However, there are these very cute framed hand drawn cartoons (they look like they were on cocktail napkins) all about Godzilla. I think they are adorable, so they extra points for that.

*************

In a spoonful, fish is good. Middle of the line on atmosphere as far as sushi joints go (most are big on hip atmosphere with low-grade fish, others are highly authentic cuisine with no ambiance whatsoever). Bathrooms are worth a visit for the giggle. Since the space is small, if you're dining with a large group, pick another place - perhaps Solstice across the way for fun drinks and eclectic apps.

Yip gives it 3.5 spoons.

Yip on Out the Door

Out the Door
865 Market St. Suite 173 (SF Shopping Center, basement floor) * San Francisco, CA 94103 * (415) 512-6776
Cuisine: Modern Vietnamese
Neighborhood: Union Square

When you are tired from a long afternoon (or in mine and my gay boyfriend's cases - a marathon) of power shopping, you are surely in need of some immediate replenishment. And I'm not talking about restocking the shelves after you gave your AMEX that well needed workout. I'm talking about a vitamins, minerals, and perhaps a cocktail to revive you. These havens are hard to come by, because somehow in the midst of retail Heaven, a starved shopper can often find themselves in snacksville Hell.

Enter Out the Door ...

In the first floor (I hesitate to use the words "food court", but that's what it is) of the new SF Westfield shopping center with Bloomies and other fashionable finds, there is a hidden gem that might fool you as a shopping stop, since they have a small retail space with a to-go counter. But sit-down eats are to the rear. Out the Door is a quickie version of it's famous and hard-to-reserve friend: Slanted Door, now located in the remodeled Ferry Building.

The Scene

There is the coooooolest kind of stained glass on the far side wall in brilliant yellows and oranges. Love it! They also had gorgeous oversized floral decor on their long family style table which I adored. They did miss a bit on the scale of their art on the other wall (big wall, long wall, relatively puny art). This long family style table, where patrons that don't know each other share space, is reminiscent of London's Wagamama (a deliciously wonderful, not-to-be-missed British dining treat, but I digress....). They also have an exposed kitchen, which I tend to like. And it makes me feel like they must be doing something pretty clean back there or they wouldn't want me seeing it. I generally squelch any sanitary health preparation concerns I might have when I see a kitchen like that.

The Menu

Similar to Slanted Door. Food is family style portions. Comes out of the kitchen when it is ready - not served in courses. This means, there is no such thing as an "appetizer", just a side dish. You may get it first, you may not. It all depends on how it is prepared. Cold food comes before hot food. Fast prep comes before long prep. It's not rocket-science. Just not done that often in such an obvious way in America. Take note, that is one of the GOOD reasons they advertise it as family style. One person at your table could get all their food several minutes before the other. Plan to share and you'll avoid that hiccup.

The Food

We had a delicious grapefruit and jicama salad with red cabbage and candied peanuts, shared some crispy veggie imperial rolls, and a rice noodle stir fry with chicken, shiitake mushrooms, mung bean sprouts and egg. They probably should have more accurately called it a mushroom garnish, since I saw maybe 3 slices of shitake on the entire plate). All get a "pretty good" -- not a resounding "to-die-for" nor a "just ok." Salad ingredients were very fresh, but I thought a little tasteless. Gay boyfriend didn't agree - he loved, and suggested I mention as such. Done.

The Service

We were seated in a small half booth table at the front of a long line of tables. A half booth is a comfy, boothy seat on one side of the table, and a less comfortable hard chair on the other side. Guess which side I sat on. I don't want to be as spoiled as it sounds because I like to face the action of the restaurant so I can see if anyone important walks in. Also, since the Godfather is my favorite movie of all time, I often don't like a lot of activity going on behind me, since I fear someone may one day be coming out of the men's room guns-a-blazing. I find out later, no real risk of that here (see Bathroom section).

So anyhoo, in this first seat, we are kind of close to the wait staff station and a nice gentleman offers to move us, thinking it may be trafficy, loud and distracting. We opt out, saying we are fine. And we were fine. Until an unfortunate occurrence happened mid-meal when my eyes wandered to the right, where I could see directly into the prep kitchen. I was then faced with one of the most awful, most unappetizing sights I have ever seen. I wish I knew the right word for it. You know how sometimes you see in Italian restaurants they are curing the beef and it's hanging up all over the place. Somehow, that is ok. And it looked just like that here -- except it was a dozen or so chickens. Yes, chickens. Don't try to hard to picture what I am saying. It was grotesque and you'd like to just move onto the next point. *Ugh*

The Bathroom

Well, here's the kicker: There is no bathroom. How, you may ask, can they get away with that?!? Isn't it the law that they need to have a restroom !?! Well, yes. And technically (which they are capitalizing on), no. They are theoretically, in some being-part-of -the-masses way, actually, technically, part of the food court. Even though they are really a stand alone establishment. This would be like Starbucks saying it was ok not to have a bathroom, because you could go next door and use the one at the Gap. Well, not exactly the same thing, but you know how riled up about the bathrooms I get. So, yes, as you may have guessed, that means patrons have to actually exit the sanctuary and head out into the foodie chaos to wash, tinkle, or re-apply tricky lipgloss. Highly annoying. And actually the next level of highly annoying (highly annoying plus), as my dining companion informed me, that the cleanliness state of these exterior restrooms is less that adequate. I didn't brave the swarm of shoppers or the olfactory nightmare. Instead, I decided I could hold it until we'd be heading over to visit the things I can't afford at Dior.

************

In a spoonful, it IS in the mall. Not recommended for a tranquil lunch, as it is still quite loud. But is a decided difference from being out in the chaos of the food court when you are having "food panic." You can sit down, get fed, waited on, and even have a glass of champagne. Which we, of course, did. Just be sure you are not sitting near the chickens. And hopefully you don't need to use the ladies room.

Yip gives it 3.5 spoons.