Appreciating Good Things

Cotogna, San Francisco, CA🇺🇸
Food rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
COVID rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Food review: This restaurant receives a perfect score✨ thanks to the amazing food, service, and ambiance. Cotogna, located in the cozy Jackson square neighborhood, is owned by 2 Michelin starred 💫💫chefs Michael and Lindsay Tusk that also run Quince next door. This restaurant is a more affordable counterpart to Quince, but rest assured the quality of the food is certainly not compromised. We ordered the Jerusalem artichoke and burrata🧀 to start which was the perfect combination of fall flavors also including potatoes🥔 and mushrooms, and was perfectly seasoned and extremely flavorful. We then ordered the 7 meat tagliatelle ragú 🍝which was so creamy and really decadent due to the rich flavor of the pork meat fats in the ragu. We also ordered a weekly special dish which was the tortellini en brodo🍲.The chicken stock was exactly the warm hearty flavor one craves this time of year, which was complemented well by the pork tortellini. Last but not least, the torta della nonna was a warm oven baked apple tart 🥧which was perfectly caramelized on the edges which gave it the perfect amount of crunch to pair with the vanilla bean gelato🍨 on the side. The service was exceptional and they even gave us a complimentary hot chocolate☕️after we payed to enjoy on the way back home. This restaurant is a must visit when you’re in San Francisco.
COVID rating: The outdoor patio is expansive and extremely well separated as they included beautiful trees🌳to separate each table much more than the required 6 feet. They were strict about wearing our masks whenever the staff approached the table, which we appreciated, and also had heating towers beside every table to keep you warm. This is an elegant and very safe spot to dine at.

Baia, San Francisco CA🇺🇸
Food rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
COVID rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Food review: Baia is a very new Italian restaurant🇮🇹 in Hayes valley that offers solely plant 🌱based food...that’s right, it’s all vegan! We started off with their arancini 🧆 which was crispy on the outside and paired very well with the tomato basil🍅 sauce. What made this vegan take on arancini different was the texture once you bit in, it was much more gooey and pasty than traditional arancini, although the flavor was still tasty. We then tried the agnolotti🥟 which drew its flavor from the carrots 🥕and olives🫒 with added texture from the breadcrumbs. The lasagna can easily feed two people, and included the classic flavors like creaminess, crispy edges, a rich tomato 🍅sauce, and pasta al dente🍝. The major difference was again the texture where the vegan cheese🧀 they used was fairly grainy as compared to ricotta. For dessert we tried the torta which was absolutely delicious. It is made of a rich chocolate 🍫and hazelnut 🌰ganache and topped with a vegan whipped creme. Overall this is a creative restaurant that gets the classic flavors right even though it’s vegan, just remember you may have to reset your expectations on texture before dining here.
COVID review: This restaurant has a great outdoor seating area with individual areas for your table that keep you more than 6 feet away from the next table over. The staff always wore masks and frequently sanitized the space. Overall we felt very safe dining here.

Terry’s Lounge, Carmel by the sea, CA🇺🇸
Food Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
COVID Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Food review: This restaurant, located in the Cypress inn, makes you feel like you are a part of a classic Hollywood Grace Kelly film. In fact, it was owned by Doris Day and was said to be frequented by Cary Grant and Kirk Douglas! It has so much old school charm and is decorated with a Spanish colonial theme. We ate brunch in the outdoor patio, and tried their Cypress burger and Cypress eggs benedict, along with a delicious Rosé🥂, mint, and strawberry🍓cocktail. The burger🍔was simple but well cooked and juicy, while the eggs benedict 🍳which included Dungeness crab 🦀and avocado🥑 had a bit too pungent of a fishy smell and flavor. Overall I would recommend going for some brunch cocktails🍹 to feel transported to the golden Hollywood age of the 1940s. ⭐️💫
COVID review: Carmel by the sea has taken COVID very seriously and have mandated masks throughout the entire city whereby if one breaks the rules they will be significantly fined. That being said, the waiters always wore masks and sanitized the tables frequently, and the guests also complied by wearing their masks whenever they were not eating. The only suggestion is not to sit near the hallway outside since there is lots of foot traffic that passes by you.

Italian Homemade - San Francisco, CA🇺🇸
Food rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
COVID rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Food review: This is one of our favorite spots in San Francisco🌁 with consistently delicious, quick, and affordable pasta🍝. Their method is genius, just pick your pasta, then your sauce, and in 10 minutes it is ready for you to devour🤤. The pastas featured here include their weekly special which is a lamb ragú with tagliatelle. Behind their are two pesto pastas, one with cheese ravioli and the other with fettuccini. The pasta is always perfectly al dente and the food is consistent in its high quality⭐️ time after time. The staff is always so friendly, and when we arrived, they made sure to give us a table in front of the heating lamp so we’d be as comfortable as possible while eating outside. Highly recommend a visit.
COVID review: This is a very COVID safe restaurant where one simply goes to the counter to order and pay, and then waits for the food to be delivered to the table outside. The whole staff always wears masks and they sanitize the tables frequently. The only downside is that this neighborhood in cow hollow has lots of foot traffic on the weekends so try and pick a table away from the sidewalk.

SF Kebab, San Francisco CA🇺🇸
Food rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
COVID rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Food review: This casual spot right beside UCSF in Mission bay has an array of Kurdish and Mediterranean specialties. We ordered the Adana kebab with bulgur and salad🥗, along with the salmon wrap🌯. It was the first time we had tried bulgur which was delicious and vaguely reminded me of the flavor of Mexican rice🍚. The salad was crunchy and fresh🍅🥒 and the kebab was well balanced with the spices however it was a bit dry. For the wrap, it included a charred buttery salmon wrapped in warm and fluffy pita bread. Absolutely delicious!
COVID rating: At this casual spot, you order at the counter which includes a plastic barrier between you and the waitress and then you can head to the back patio which is very well spaced out where they will bring you your food as soon as it’s ready. The service was quick and the exposure risk was very minimal. Highly recommend a visit.