Posted by Adrienne on April 23, 2007

Success! Our trip to San Francisco was absolutely fabulous. Aside from seeing all the touristy scenes in the city (clam chowder at Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatrez, Union Square shopping, Chinatown, Golden Gate Bridge, and riding the cable cars), I did get to check out a cafe or two along the way.

The most anticipated cafe was Caffe Trieste in North Beach, which was the first espresso shop on the West coast in the 1950s. The Beat poets used to do their thing here and over time the shop became a bit of a celebrity, appearing in movies and drawing famous faces, even today. I had heard they do some sort of impromptu opera show on Saturdays and I must have just missed it when I went. As much as I heard about this place, I must say I was a little disappointed. It had nice character (and characters) and the walls were plastered with photos and writing but it was itty bitty and crowded. I ordered a cafe au lait to see what the fuss was about but only came away with a bit of sit-around restaurant coffee and a splash of milk in a to-go cup. Could this have possibly inspired a crowd such as Jack Karouac and Allen Ginsberg? I kind of doubt it. “Over-rated”, is my vote, but who knows, maybe I missed something. However it was neat to be in such a historical site for American literature.

While I adored exploring the city, I have to admit that driving up the coast to do some hiking in Muir Woods was my favorite part of the whole trip. We found ourselves just half an hour outside the city, yet surrounded by gracefully monsterous redwood forests carpeted with ferns and trickling streams. Later we made our way down the dangerously curvy Hwy 1 to the small beachside town of Stinson Beach, where we had lunch at my favorite cafe of the trip: Parkside Cafe. Very unassuming, you could mistake it for a greasy spoon for starving tourists. We found, instead, a family-run casually gourmet neighborhood cafe. The food was simple but delicious, light, balanced, and healthy. Because it was a small town the decor was also simple and the space felt open, with large windows opening right into the park next to the Pacific Ocean. Neighbors stopped in for coffee and joked loudly with the employees – everyone knew everyone. We liked it so much we decided to spend the night in the little town and came back for a quick breakfast the next day before heading to the beach.

Thanks for the suggestions on places to visit. I promise another review is in the works: Gigi’s on 36th in south Minneapolis, and then I’ll try my hand at somewhere in the northern part of town….