Mission Street Food returned to it’s usual haunt this Thursday, and brought along some neighbors to play.  The line was long, but the weather played along nicely – it was the perfect temperature to huddle in the street with other bloggers.  When we did get seated, the front of house wasn’t a perfectly oiled machine, but then, how could it be?  This is an ad-hoc operation, and you make certain trade offs.  Bumps in the road were handled with smiles and humor by the staff.  When our food finally arrived, it was good to be back.

 

 

 

The “Farro, Beech Mushroom, Macadamia Nut, Grape, Marjoram, and Verjus Vinaigrette” was the surprise of the night.  It was texturally interesting thanks to the grapes and nuts, and the meaty mushrooms gave it real body.  The burrata was good, although I felt like the rosemary oil blew out all of the other flavors. 

 

 

 

 

The MSF standards were back in full force.  The PB&J will keep me returning every time.  This time I was smart enough to order my own so I didn’t have to share – totally worth it.  The MSF is a treasure hunt, with lots of nuggets of flavor hidden in the well crusted rice.  Note to self: pay more attention to this dish when it comes to prevent my girlfriend stealing all the cracklins burried deep in the rice. 

 

 

 

Finally the brisket.  I’m something of a brisket snob, but this really won me over.  It’s classic style Texas BBQ with an overt smokiness.  I’m really going to have to check out this Broken Record place. The guac underneath wasn’t my favorite – it didn’t distract from the sandwich, but it just didn’t add much either. The nickeled fennel on the other hand was just the balance the meat needed.  It was so tender, it even stood up to being cut into cubes, which would make my Jewish Grandmother very sad. Brisket is normally cut against the grain into slices, so that the tendons that hold the cow together are cut as short as possible.  However, this brisket was tender enough to stand up this preparation.  My request for next time: cut the brisket into slices, and serve it in your homemade flatbread with the picked fennel and a homemade BBQ sauce.  Then offer it to the two dozen people waiting to get inside. 

 

 

 

Desert was from Humphry Slocombe, serving my favorite flavor: Balsamic Carmel.  And my second favorite: Secret Breakfast. (Pssst… Bourbon and Cornflakes – but don’t tell them I told ya.)

I poked my head in after dinner to say thanks.  Anthony and Chris were hard at work, assembling PB&Js when I walked in.  Chris was always working in the background on other nights I’ve poked in with my camera, but always very focused on cooking, and usually doing three things at once, making it hard to get him into focus. 

 

   
   

That cramped little kitchen kinda looks fun.  Any other aspiring line cooks around here want to take a stab?  

 

 

Afterwards, we headed back out onto the street, where it was still unseasonably warm, and the crowd seemed to be milling anxiously on the street.   Everyone seemed to be outside to enjoy the weather, including the SF Fire Department, who were saving an imaginary person from a faux building as we walked home.   

 

 

 

Oh, and I almost forgot.  The beer?  Tecate. 

Tags: mission street food, MSF

This entry was posted on Friday, January 16th, 2009 at 8:43 am and is filed under Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.