eating in public
venue: the public (1489 folsom st @ 11th)
guest eaters: lillie, vu, jesse, annette
price: $14 for my polenta. (entrees $14 - $17, starters $6-$9)
verdict: suitable for vegetarians but don't expect variety. meateaters, no prob.
valentine's day 2005.
i made it a point not to post dates on this thing but it's kind of a funny story.
i'm not much of a romancer and definitely not a planner. i asked a friend last night at 1 a.m. if she wanted to go to dinner for v-day. there was a long pause. i still can't believe she said okay.
around 3:00 this afternoon i realized i should make reservations and frantically called every place i could think of. it took me 12 tries. finally, a restaurant called the public--a chic, pseudo-industrial eatery in soma--had a spot open at 9.
then my roommate wanted to go. he asked my date's friend, then told me they were coming. i don't mind double dates (being the fricking atrocious conversationalist that i am) so i called the restaurant and put us in at 9:30 for 4.
around 6:00, as i was about to leave work, my roommate called. his date had a girlfriend staying over at her house so she would have to come to dinner as well. i was promptly told to "find another guy."
so i asked my buddy jesse. well, i sorta begged.
he had work to do, but he finally agreed because jesse is a rockstar, good sport, stand-up dude. you're the shit, jesse.
i sheepishly called the restaurant again and somehow expanded our table to fit 6.
so we meet at my place, three dudes, then drive to the restaurant. the public is in an industrial part of soma and looks like a cross between a warehouse and a brewery from the outside. inside, there's a bar and lounge space. the restaurant tables are upstairs. very romantic with mini candles from costco and fake rose petals strewn all over the place. felt like fucking prom.
the girls show up at 9:55. the kitchen closes at 10.
there's only two of them: lillie (my date) and annette (my roommate's date).
apparently the other girl "got sick."
i apologized endlessly to jesse, who'd unwittingly become the fifth wheel on valentine's day.
lord.
appetizers: scallops that i didn't eat but heard were amazing. plus these green stringy things that i can't remember the name of. they were good though.
entrees: i got the crispy polenta with butternut squash. the only vegetarian option.
the polenta was delicious. it came as two sanddollar-sized discs, crunchy on the outside, mealy on the inside.
i'm a big fan of the cornmeal-based dish, but i've never had any crispy versions. the butternut squash bed was a nice complement, a little too mushy (once again, i like solid texture), but thankfully not too sweet..
overall, i think the food is great for the price...which isn't a steal, but definitely good at 14 to 17 bucks.
romantic for the contemporary urban soul. hip. a little yuppie-ish.
as for conversation, my date and i both had foot-in-the-mouth syndrome. we talked about bladder infections, cats, and lactose intolerance.
maybe i should take a class...
guest eaters: lillie, vu, jesse, annette
price: $14 for my polenta. (entrees $14 - $17, starters $6-$9)
verdict: suitable for vegetarians but don't expect variety. meateaters, no prob.
valentine's day 2005.
i made it a point not to post dates on this thing but it's kind of a funny story.
i'm not much of a romancer and definitely not a planner. i asked a friend last night at 1 a.m. if she wanted to go to dinner for v-day. there was a long pause. i still can't believe she said okay.
around 3:00 this afternoon i realized i should make reservations and frantically called every place i could think of. it took me 12 tries. finally, a restaurant called the public--a chic, pseudo-industrial eatery in soma--had a spot open at 9.
then my roommate wanted to go. he asked my date's friend, then told me they were coming. i don't mind double dates (being the fricking atrocious conversationalist that i am) so i called the restaurant and put us in at 9:30 for 4.
around 6:00, as i was about to leave work, my roommate called. his date had a girlfriend staying over at her house so she would have to come to dinner as well. i was promptly told to "find another guy."
so i asked my buddy jesse. well, i sorta begged.
he had work to do, but he finally agreed because jesse is a rockstar, good sport, stand-up dude. you're the shit, jesse.
i sheepishly called the restaurant again and somehow expanded our table to fit 6.
so we meet at my place, three dudes, then drive to the restaurant. the public is in an industrial part of soma and looks like a cross between a warehouse and a brewery from the outside. inside, there's a bar and lounge space. the restaurant tables are upstairs. very romantic with mini candles from costco and fake rose petals strewn all over the place. felt like fucking prom.
the girls show up at 9:55. the kitchen closes at 10.
there's only two of them: lillie (my date) and annette (my roommate's date).
apparently the other girl "got sick."
i apologized endlessly to jesse, who'd unwittingly become the fifth wheel on valentine's day.
lord.
appetizers: scallops that i didn't eat but heard were amazing. plus these green stringy things that i can't remember the name of. they were good though.
entrees: i got the crispy polenta with butternut squash. the only vegetarian option.
the polenta was delicious. it came as two sanddollar-sized discs, crunchy on the outside, mealy on the inside.
i'm a big fan of the cornmeal-based dish, but i've never had any crispy versions. the butternut squash bed was a nice complement, a little too mushy (once again, i like solid texture), but thankfully not too sweet..
overall, i think the food is great for the price...which isn't a steal, but definitely good at 14 to 17 bucks.
romantic for the contemporary urban soul. hip. a little yuppie-ish.
as for conversation, my date and i both had foot-in-the-mouth syndrome. we talked about bladder infections, cats, and lactose intolerance.
maybe i should take a class...
posted by dave at 10:00 PM
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