7x7 Big Eats 2013 - Wing Wings

Location: 422 Haight Street, San Francisco, California 94117
Date: Friday, January 17th
Food: Angry Korean Wings
Price:$6.00 (for 5)
Comments: These technically shouldn't count towards the list because they were consumed in 2014, not 2013. But since the 2014 Big Eats list was not-yet-released @ that point, we let it slide. I thought the wings were neither angry nor were they Korean. They were just sort of sweet, & maybe a little tangy. Perhaps the fact that these wings had sat in a box for a couple of hours before reaching my palette had played against my experience...but I didn't expect flavor to just completely disappear. For the same price, I would actually recommend the Papalote salsa wings...they were muy delicious.

Marnee Thai Closed After "F" From Health Inspector

I love Thai food.  Sadly, Russell can't stand having it but once a year & that's only because he wants to hear people say "Happy New Year" in a Thai accent.  The good news is, we have started making some progress in increasing Russell's tolerance for Thai food.  The bad news is, our favorite Thai restaurant is now temporarily closed after getting an "F" from the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

During a health inspection on Monday, Marnee Thai @ 9th/Irving received a food safety score of 58 (out of 100) & is now shut down pending re-inspection.  The immediate closure is also prompted since the restaurant failed to clean up its act from a previous citation that happened in January 2012.  Among the long list of health violations were "live cockroaches on prep table/shelving," "rodent droppings on floor and shelving," and "utensils stored in/on surfaces with a build-up of debris, food residue, grease, and grime."  According to an article on Inside Scoop SF, a spokesperson for Marnee Thai expresses that she is hopeful the restaurant will reopen for business within the next week after they have corrected their violation.

In addition to this week's low scoring, the 9th/Irving branch of Marnee Thai has received mediocre food safety scores in the past.  According to records at the San Francisco Department of Public Health, the restaurant received a score of 71 in May 2011 which dropped to a 66 in December 2011.  Across all available inspection reports, the restaurant has consistently been in violation of having "high risk food holding temperatures."  Comparatively, the other branch of the restaurant - located on Irving between 23rd and 24th - received a score of 86 during an inspection in February.

In my experience, I have eaten @ seemingly dirty restaurants & was able to leave with my health intact.  I have also eaten @ seemingly clean restaurants only to have to rush home to use the little girl's room.  Food safety scores aren't everything & it alone certainly won't deter me from going to any particular restaurant.  However, having a knowledge of this score & knowing where to access it can be very helpful.  And it can help pass hours and hours of time.  If you ever want to know the scores of any restaurant in San Francisco, you can visit the public health department's Food Safety Program website.

You can find the entire food inspection report on Marnee Thai here.

7x7 Big Eats 2013 - Old Jerusalem Restaurant

Location: 2976 Mission Street, San Francisco, California 94110
Date: Saturday, March 23rd
Food: Stuffed falafel
Price: $1.25 each
Comments: I haven't had many falafels in my lifetime but these were really, really delicious.  The crust is crispy but not oily & the inside wasn't too dense or mushy.  There were whole pine nuts mixed together with the chick peas to add crunch  & the chopped onion on the bottom added moisture.  It's slightly larger than a regular falafel but not as large as I'd expected for a falafel that is supposedly "stuffed".

7x7 Big Eats 2013 - Nopalito

Location: 1224 9th Avenue, San Francisco, California 94122
Date: Saturday, March 2nd
Food: Caldo Tlalpeño
Price: $10.00
Comments:  I am not sure what I want to say about this soup.  I thought the chicken broth was flavorful but it was too spicy because I left the chipotle pepper in the bowl for too long.  There was plenty of vegetables in the soup but somehow it wasn't satisfying...I think I needed some shredded chicken or some other form of protein in there to make me feel like I had a complete entrée.  The warmed avocado was interesting texturally since the very first sensation is slightly mushy but then it becomes more firm afterwards.  My favorite part of the entire bowl was the cauliflower - the florets were not too cooked & the spice from the broth took away some of the grassy taste cauliflower can have.

7x7 Big Eats 2013 - Irving Cafe & Deli

Location: 2146 Irving Street, San Francisco, California 94122 
Date: Sunday, February 24th
Food: Banh-Mi
Price: $4.00-$4.50
Comments: I got the combination pork sandwich which was pretty disappointing.  I have only had a few Banh-Mi sandwiches in my lifetime but I know they are supposed to have quite of bit of pickled vegetables.  This sandwich had only shredded carrots & 1 piece of cucumber that was slightly pickled (if @ all).  There were 3-4 different types of pork products but they all tasted very similar in their seasoning except for the paté which was so flavorful, it overwhelmed everything else.  This is also where the acidity from the pickled vegetables would have helped a lot.  The best thing was the bread which remained crispy even after sitting in the wrapper for 30 minutes.  The price was reasonable & the service was quick but I don't think I will stop in for another sandwich any time soon.

7x7 Big Eats 2013 - Zuni Cafe

Location: 1658 Market Street, San Francisco, California 94102 (main entrance on Rose Street)
Date: Saturday, February 9th
Food: Roasted chicken & bread salad
Price: $48
Comments: We have talked about getting this dish since August of 2010 & we finally did it!  It was worth the wait & anticipation too.  The chicken was moist & flavorful & all it was missing was that perfect crispy skin.  The texture of the chicken meat was firm; a complete 180 from the supermarket rotisserie chicken that I know too well.  While the chicken was great, the true star was the bread salad.  The bread was grilled first which gave it a toasty undertone & a more substantial body to stand up to the chicken juice that it was soaking up.  The pine nuts & the currants added a sweetness which enhanced the bread.  Last but not least, the bright vinaigrette & bitter greens lightened up the dish & gave it balance.  The 2 of us ate most of the chicken & polished off that salad.  I think if we didn't have appetizers and weren't planning on getting dessert, we would have finished off the chicken too.  The dish takes about 40 minutes to be ready so think about ordering that first & then browse/order your appetizers.

7x7 Big Eats 2013 - Art's Cafe

Location: 747 Irving Street, San Francisco, CA 94122
Date: Saturday, February 2nd
Food: Hashbrown sandwich
Price: $5.45-$7.00
Comments: Apologies for only having a picture of the leftover; the one I took of the full dish somehow didn't save on my phone.  I had the spinach, onions, mushrooms, & hot sausage version & it was quite nice.  This was more of an omelet since a sandwich would probably look more like 2 patties of hashbrown on top & bottom...@ least that's what I thought of when I read the name.  The "sandwich" was not too greasy & there was plenty of stuffing on the inside.  The service is really quick but that's about all I can say about that.  We were in & out in about 30 minutes.  Art's is really small & only has 1 long counter with about 12 seats so be prepared to wait or have a backup plan.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Delfina

Location: 3621 18th Street, San Francisco, California 94110
Date: Tuesday, September 25
Food: Papardelle with liberty duck sugo
Price: $17
Comments: The 7x7 list calls for a papardelle with pork sugo but this counts!  The pasta was fresh but slightly too al dente for my liking.  Duck was nicely cooked but could have benefitted from a less salty sauce since the duck flavor got kind of covered up.  The portion size is decent for the price.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Papalote

Location: 3409 24th Street, San Francisco, California 94110
Date: Wednesday, September 21st
Food: Chips & Salsa
Price: $1.50
Comments: This is not like regular salsas that are available @ most Mexican restaurants; it is tomato'y & cheesy without the heavily feeling of bad nacho cheese.  There is a good deal of heat in the salsa but it's not the kind that stays on your tongue & makes you want to drink a lot of water; it sits in the back of your pallet & just kind of coats the entire opening into the esophagus.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Bi-Rite Creamery

Location: 3692 18th Street, San Francisco, California 94110
Date: Saturday, July 21st
Food: Salted caramel ice cream
Price: $3.50 for a single (1 or 2 flavors)
Comments: Really cream texture but it was a little too soft & melted too quickly for my liking.  It was more caramel than salt but that is often a difficult balance to achieve; I did really enjoyed the toasty'ness of the overall flavor.  If you get lucky, the line will be short, but if you go on a nice, warm, Saturday evening like we did, be prepared to wait for approximately 30 minutes...& the line goes around the corner.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Il Cane Rosso

Location: 1 Ferry Building #41, San Francisco, California 94111
Date: Sunday, July 15th
Food: Warm egg salad sandwich
Price: $9.00
Comments: This is not your mama's egg salad.  The mustard and relish balances out that gross egg'y taste/smell of the traditional egg salad.  The bred underneath was hearty without being heavy.  The cheese on top was sort of overkill as well as the bitter greens on top; they were really bitter.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - The Slanted Door

Location: 1 Ferry Building #3, San Francisco, California 94111
Date: Sunday, July 15th
Food: Cellophane noodles with crab
Price: $20.00
Comments: The noodles were flavorful but you could tell the crab wasn't cooked with it enough to infuse its flavors; and they were really oily.  Really appreciated the fact that there were actual pieces of crab meat instead of shreds.  The portion is really small & so made it really not worth its price.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Muracci's Japanese Curry & Grill

Location: 307 Kearny Street, San Francisco, California 94108
Date: Friday, July 13th
Food: Katsu curry
Price: $9.45
Comments: Biggest complain is that this is very over priced.  The pork cutlet was really tender even though it was fried to brown crispiness.  There is a choice of brown or white rice as well as a choice for mild, medium, or spicy curry.  The mild curry was not spicy but it still had a good amount of heat.  The location is very small & there is very little place to sit so be prepared to take the order away.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Tartine Bakery

Location: 600 Guerrero Street, San Francisco, California 94110
Date: Wednesday, July 11th
Food: Morning bun
Price: $3.85
Comments: This is complex.  It has the flakiness of a croissant but it is more substantial and has more integrity than a croissant.  The orange flavor really comes through without being aggressive as orange can sometimes be.  I ate it at 5pm but I am sure it will go really great with a cup of morning coffee...or soy milk.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Nopalito

Location: 1224 9th Avenue, San Francisco, California 94122
Date: Tuesday, July 3rd
Food: Carnitas
Price: $15.50
Comments: The waitress said this is "life changing."  The pork was flavorful, tender, & super duper hot! Unfortunately, the flavor of the meat did get overpowered by the carrot/cabbage slaw when eaten together.  It is slightly pricey but worth it once in a while.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Curry Up Now's Truck

Location: 38 Fort Mason, San Francisco, California 94123
Date: Friday, June 8th.
Food: Tika masala burrito
Price: $8.00
Comments: Interesting concept, quasi'failed execution.  The are big pieces of chicken, basmati rice, garbanzo beans, & onion inside of the burrito.  While it started out spicy, the tika masala sauce soon because sweet, rich & makes you not want to eat anything else.  On top of that, there were burnt pieces of chicken which were not pleasant surprises.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Chairman Bao Bun's Truck (aka The Chairman)

Location: 38 Fort Mason, San Francisco, California 94123
Date: Friday, June 8th.
Food: Pork Belly Bun
Price: $3.75 (steamed); $6.75 (baked)
Comments: What a disappointment!  The bao tasted pre'made & it was dry.  The pork belly was way dry except for the tiny little bit of fat in the middle.  There was too much pickled daikon on top.  And the sauce that they try to hide in there?  It was so sweet I had to wipe it off with the daikon!  Seriously, if you're going to do pork belly, do it right; pick a style & do it right.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Turtle Tower

Location: 5716 Geary Boulevard, San Francisco, California 94121
Date: Friday, June 8th.
Food: Pho Ga
Price: $6.20 (regular); $7.20 (large)
Comments: This pho is not pho!  What I mean is that the noodles are not the usual thin ones that you get in beef pho but the skinny version of what you get in beef chow fun.  There is plenty of tasty, tender chicken & the broth is not the one used for beef pho.  The only big criticism is the incredible amount of cilantro & the lack of sprouts.  But @ least they gave us limes.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - The Leader Board

As you have all seen, all 10 of you anyway, we are well on our way to devouring this year's 7x7 Big Eats List.  It is to our understanding that 7x7 Magazine does not rank the eateries & their foods, but where is the fun in that?  So to make things more interesting, the Boy has decided to start his own leader board of the things that we have tasted.  We will be posting this leader board every 10 places we try.  Here goes!

1. Tartine Bakery
2. Izakaya Sozai
3. Hog Island Oyster Co.
4. Bi-Rite Creamery
5. Delfina
6. Nopalito
7. Turtle Tower
8. Humphry Slocombe
9. Scream Sorbet
10. San Tung
11. Anthony's Cookies
12. Il Cane Rosso
13. Papalote
14. Namu
15. House of Prime Rib
16. Outerlands
17. Muracci's Japanese Curry and Grill
18. The Slanted Door
19. Curry Up Now's truck
20. Miette
21. Chairman Bao Bun's truck (now named The Chairman)

Disclaimer: Please note that these rankings are made based solely on the authors' palettes & does not reflect the taste of other individuals or the eateries' chefs/owners; or the opinion of 7x7 Magazine.

7x7 Big Eats 2012 - Izakaya Sozai

Location:     1500 Irving Street, San Francisco, California 94122
Date:            Sunday, June 3rd.
Food:           Tonkotsu Ramen
Price:           $9.00
Comments:  "This ramen rival any in New York."  That should about describe it all.  The
                     ramen was cooked to the perfect "al dente"; the pork had just the right
                     amount of fattiness; the yolk was not too overcooked; the broth was rich,
                     flavorful, but just a tad too salty.  While this is definitely the star dish, this
                     restaurant has many other dishes that are worth the reservation.