Towse: views from the hill

May 28, 2007

A Sunday walkaround

Filed under: art,food,life,San Francisco,shopshopshop — Towse @ 8:28 pm

We ate again last night at bushi-tei. The younger younger guy joined us. For the first time we tried Waka’s tasting menu. Superb. We added an extra dish, one I’ve mentioned before — seared fresh foie gras, pumpkin pot de crème, pistachio crunch, red onion marmalade — which we shared amongst the three of us. The description sounds weird but this is really one of the tastiest things ever. I wanted the younger younger guy to sample it because I rave about it so much. Perbacco Chardonnay with dinner. Sparkling sake with dessert. The bushi-tei staff is terrific. The food is delish.

We walked to dinner and back with a side trip to visit Sunday Open Houses at 1998 Broadway #905 and 2502 Broadway, two very different homes for sale. After visiting 2502, we backtracked through Pacific Heights and wandered down Fillmore where we stopped at the California-Pacific MC Thrift Store, Zinc Details, Design Within Reach, and the Goodwill (‘natch) which was having a Memorial Weekend Sale: 50% OFF ALL CLOTHES!

We poked through the stores at the Japantown mall before stopping in at bushi-tei (with our Goodwill bag in hand) for an early (6 p.m.) dinner. Six-plus miles of walkabout in all.

Whilst in Japantown wandering around before dinner, we made a sidetrip to visit Ruth Asawa’s fountains at the Buchanan Mall. Lovely work she did. The fountains remind me of her Aurora Fountain, on the west side of the Embarcadero, between Mission and Howard.

May 24, 2007

NY to get shoe store so big it has own ZIP code

Filed under: shopshopshop — Towse @ 8:59 pm

Yo, PAULA!

Reuters. Dateline: NEW YORK

NY to get shoe store so big it has own ZIP code

May 15, 2007

Prayer flags in North Beach: Global Books on Columbus

Filed under: bookstores,life,restaurants,shopshopshop — Tags: , — Towse @ 6:17 am

The flags from Lhasa got old and tatty and finally ripped apart in a storm. I mended them and then searched until I found some more down on Pacific Avenue.

When those needed mending (the weather here is rough on the flags … those flags are still flying mended), I went off to Wonders of Tibet on Lombard, near the condo at Broadway and Laguna. Those flags were cotton and went stiff and sticky in the first rain, needed to be shaken and unstuck after rains and … well, they’re still hanging too.

Haven’t found yet flags like those we bought from the non-Tibetan Han Chinese vendors in the square in front of the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa.

But we need more. These are wearing. The guys come next week to tear off the photo-voltaic panels and then more guys to tear off the roof and replace it. Then our solar guys come back to replace the panels.

The prayer flags up on the deck are on their last legs and need replacing. They probably won’t survive the activity.

A couple weeks ago we went back to our purveyor on Pacific and found he was moving up and around the corner onto Columbus. We went up to Columbus, but he wasn’t open yet.

Today for lunch we hied over to the House and had deep-fried salmon roll with a chinese hot mustard sauce to start, unagi and avocado sandwiches with a side salad with sesame seed oil dressing that came with the sandwiches. Tapioca pudding with mango swirl for dessert. Ym.

Afterwards, we decided to check whether Global Books and Art had the Columbus Avenue location open yet.

They did.

“When did you open?”

“Nine-thirty.”

“No, when did you open here, after moving?”

“Last Wednesday.”

The new space is excellent. Large windows onto Columbus. A MUCH larger space (and selection) inside.

Global Books and Art can now be found on the west side of the Columbus block between Broadway and Pacific.

Go thee there. Buy some prayer flags, some pashmina shawls, some jewelry, some thankas, some books.

Or just say hey to the guy who runs the space. He is very happy with the new location.

We really hope he does well. Quite a gamble. Hope it pays off.

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