Always befriend the bartender

A tip for the lonely traveller ;-)

Having failed for the second night to get even bar seating at the Swinging Door, I wandered further down the waterfront in SF, past La Mar, to the Waterfront Restaurant. I'd noticed it during the day's long walk. They have a lovely simple menu: several kinds of fish, grilled or roasted, with 4 kinds of sauce. Extras are extra. I started with a heritage beet salad, on a bed of arugala and frisée, then went for the Ahi Tuna, grilled, with grilled asperagus on the side. It was perfectly cooked, and the lime-cilatro mayo was a nice counterpoint. Being Sunday, I started with a martini made with a local SF gin called 209. Worth the premium price. As a wine I had a brilliant Sangiovese from Pietra Santa Winery in the heretofore unheard of Cienega Valley. It was full bodied, with a nose filled with black fruits and spice. Wish we could get those in Canada.

Oh, and the bartender... he was generous enough to top up the glass of Sangiovese and, apparently looking for conversation, offered a few complementary glasses of a Frog's Leap sauvignon blanc just to clear the bottle. As he said: "All good."