European Ethnic Adventures

When I first moved to the Bay Area in 1973, a reliable type of restaurant to get a large meal for a great price was Basque restaurants. San Francisco had quite a few offering 5 course meals for $5-6. Most have closed but there's still a fascinating example in South San Francisco, the Basque Cultural Center, where I recently had lunch. It's a huge place with banquet rooms and a pelota court and a big restaurant. A woman who looks like she's worked there for 50 years sat us down and gave us menus. The waiter brought fresh sourdough bread with sweet butter in little silver packages. The menu has both lunch and dinner on it and daily specials. We went for the specials. V. had pork loin with the daily soup (broccoli) at $11.95. The pork was lean and tender served with potatoes and veggies. I went for the veal short ribs served on polenta and the house salad. Both the veal and polenta were delicious, the veal tender as can be, balanced well with creamy polenta and a stewed tomato sauce. We both licked our plates clean. Most dinners are around $20 including soup and salad and vegetables and a starch and each night features a family style dinner(the classic Basque experience) with 2 entrees. It's not Piperade but it's a fun and fulfilling eating experience.



Have you ever noticed Russia House driving south on 101 on the hill opposite Candlestick? I've always been fascinated by the chandeliers and odd location and wondered who goes there? Now I know after a multi-course banquet with lots of vodka. Russians go there and they have a good time when there and seem to feel at home, whereas our group felt like we were visiting a foreign country. Which is exactly what I was hoping for. A Russian scholar friend made the reservation for 8 and was told when to come and how much it cost, but nothing more. We entered the huge, chandeliered dining room, past a long empty bar, and were directed to our table, totally covered with appetizer plates. The drooling began: fresh herring, smoked salmon, sturgeon, breaded shrimp, great chopped liver, potatoes, coppa, ham, tongue, eggplant. A nice bottle of Russian Standard vodka, soft drinks, and water. We ended up finishing one bottle of vodka and another was brought. Da, I was drunk but fortunately not the designated driver. Mushroom turnovers came fresh from the oven. We ate the appetizers for over an hour and a two-man modern folk Euro-Russian group played and sang.
People started to dance; we danced. Then a course of fresh pelmeni simply served with butter and dill. More music and dance. Main courses were rack of lamb and chicken with asparagus, roasted potatoes and onions. More music and dancing but much more difficult because we were so full. Fresh pineapple and strawberries for dessert. You have an odd view over 101 that feels like you're in a highrise overlooking a big city. One of the highlights of this Saturday night was when I went into the men's room, somewhat tipsy. There was a guy plastering the wall in the restroom! As I said, it was like being in a foreign country but that really did it. We left after 4 1/2 hours for $92 a person which ain't bad for all we got, besides assuaging my curiosity about the mystical Russia House. How great that we live in an area where this exists.