Cooking
The older I get, the more service seems to matter to me. I don't expect great service in a dive or a diner, though I am pleased when I get it. But in a moderate to expensive place, it really bugs me if the service is less than top notch. I do recognize that things don't always go according to plan, especially in a restaurant. People show up late, they stay at their table for ages after their check has been delivered, they show up in mobs at unexpected and inconvenient times. Any number of things can make service go from smooth to bumpy.
But tonight after being told a table was being set for us then seeing it given away to others and being told a table would be ready in 20 minutes and then having to wait almost 40, my level of irritation was palpable. At the very point our group was ready to give up, we were finally seated. To his credit the manager on duty apologized profusely and did not charge us for our drinks, smoothing over some frazzled nerves.
But on to the desserts. Citizen Cake is known for it's pastries. Lots of spectacular cakes, cookies and homemade ice creams to choose from in addition to some other frankly unusual and daring dessert plates. We settled on several--one ice cream sandwich, one Retro Shag cake--which was a genoise cake splashed with rum, and layered with exotic passion fruit mousse and covered with vanilla buttercream, then carpeted with unsweetened coconut shavings. We also had a Pokemon's Purse which consisted of a warm milk chocolate and caramel cake, chocolate ice cream, sprinkled with salted Spanish peanuts and wrapped in Japanese mochi. The last dessert was by far the most unusual and consisted of chunks of apples and fennel in a honey syrup, and ale sabayon, Great Hill blue cheese and a topping of walnut streusel served with apple sorbet. It would be an understatement to say the desserts satisfied; they were deliciously witty and tasty. Combinations of wonderful decadent flavors, in just the right proportions to satisfy a sweet tooth and an already full belly.
Other signature cakes at Citizen Cake include the After Midnight Chocolate, the Debutante, and a Chocolate Work Orange, proving desserts can be fun and seriously good at the same time. Now if they could just seat everyone...
Citizen Cake CLOSED
399 Grove St
San Francisco
415-861-2228
- Daring Bakers: Has The Fat Lady Sung Yet?
I'm rather pleased with myself. I saw this month's challenge, and decided I was going to turn it into a mother's day cake for Matt's Mom. Which means...I completed the challenge weeks early! Usually, I'm scrambling the night before,...
- Chocolate...all Chocolate
My Uncle Rick sent this to me, as an email quiz. After a quick look, I knew I had to share with you. I came out as #6. If all of the desserts listed below were sitting in front of you, which would you choose? (Sorry, you can only pick one!) Pick your...
- Salutations And Congratulations
My father-in-law recently celebrated two events: his sixty-ninth birthday, and his retirement from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. My mother-in-law wondered if I would make a cake...? Of course I would Another recipe from Perfect Cakes, I made...
- Let Us Eat Cake
Terrine de Gateau For the third "Is My Blog Burning", Renee suggested the theme of cake. I envisioned something I was calling a "buche de printemps", a variant of the classic French dessert, the buche de Noel. I...
- Dining With The Bloggers - April 20th
Ahem. It really couldn't have been me that suggested this weeks theme should be a cake. Why, I never bake, - do I?;-) Okay, so I do. On my recent trip to Berlin, I almost spend more money on cake tins, than on clothes (okay, almost - not entirely!)...
Cooking
Citizen Cake Restaurant CLOSED
The older I get, the more service seems to matter to me. I don't expect great service in a dive or a diner, though I am pleased when I get it. But in a moderate to expensive place, it really bugs me if the service is less than top notch. I do recognize that things don't always go according to plan, especially in a restaurant. People show up late, they stay at their table for ages after their check has been delivered, they show up in mobs at unexpected and inconvenient times. Any number of things can make service go from smooth to bumpy.
But tonight after being told a table was being set for us then seeing it given away to others and being told a table would be ready in 20 minutes and then having to wait almost 40, my level of irritation was palpable. At the very point our group was ready to give up, we were finally seated. To his credit the manager on duty apologized profusely and did not charge us for our drinks, smoothing over some frazzled nerves.
But on to the desserts. Citizen Cake is known for it's pastries. Lots of spectacular cakes, cookies and homemade ice creams to choose from in addition to some other frankly unusual and daring dessert plates. We settled on several--one ice cream sandwich, one Retro Shag cake--which was a genoise cake splashed with rum, and layered with exotic passion fruit mousse and covered with vanilla buttercream, then carpeted with unsweetened coconut shavings. We also had a Pokemon's Purse which consisted of a warm milk chocolate and caramel cake, chocolate ice cream, sprinkled with salted Spanish peanuts and wrapped in Japanese mochi. The last dessert was by far the most unusual and consisted of chunks of apples and fennel in a honey syrup, and ale sabayon, Great Hill blue cheese and a topping of walnut streusel served with apple sorbet. It would be an understatement to say the desserts satisfied; they were deliciously witty and tasty. Combinations of wonderful decadent flavors, in just the right proportions to satisfy a sweet tooth and an already full belly.
Other signature cakes at Citizen Cake include the After Midnight Chocolate, the Debutante, and a Chocolate Work Orange, proving desserts can be fun and seriously good at the same time. Now if they could just seat everyone...
Citizen Cake CLOSED
399 Grove St
San Francisco
415-861-2228
- Daring Bakers: Has The Fat Lady Sung Yet?
I'm rather pleased with myself. I saw this month's challenge, and decided I was going to turn it into a mother's day cake for Matt's Mom. Which means...I completed the challenge weeks early! Usually, I'm scrambling the night before,...
- Chocolate...all Chocolate
My Uncle Rick sent this to me, as an email quiz. After a quick look, I knew I had to share with you. I came out as #6. If all of the desserts listed below were sitting in front of you, which would you choose? (Sorry, you can only pick one!) Pick your...
- Salutations And Congratulations
My father-in-law recently celebrated two events: his sixty-ninth birthday, and his retirement from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. My mother-in-law wondered if I would make a cake...? Of course I would Another recipe from Perfect Cakes, I made...
- Let Us Eat Cake
Terrine de Gateau For the third "Is My Blog Burning", Renee suggested the theme of cake. I envisioned something I was calling a "buche de printemps", a variant of the classic French dessert, the buche de Noel. I...
- Dining With The Bloggers - April 20th
Ahem. It really couldn't have been me that suggested this weeks theme should be a cake. Why, I never bake, - do I?;-) Okay, so I do. On my recent trip to Berlin, I almost spend more money on cake tins, than on clothes (okay, almost - not entirely!)...