Greg had a great idea to go to the Buena Vista Cafe for some Irish coffee - this place was apparently the first spot in the U.S. to serve it. I love places like that! The inside reminded me a lot of P.J. Clarke's back in New York. Very 50s/60s style with stained glass and tiled floors. We sat at the bar and got quite a show by the bartender! There was actually a painting on the wall of our same bartender from over 20 years ago working behind the bar - he had aged, but it was definitely the same guy! Now that's dedication! He had quite a method to his madness in preparing the drinks. I'd say this is a must-visit spot for anyone who goes to San Francisco! Such a unique place - I was definitely lucky Greg knew about it so we could check it out - I thought it was a great find! The lineup of glasses about to be prepared, with the wild bartender getting ready to slosh coffee all over the place in the background:
After our refueling, we started walking toward another spot he suggested called the Black Horse London Pub. He'd heard it was tiny (only 6 barstools!) so it seemed like a kitschy spot we just had to see. On the way there, we passed back by Ghiradelli Square - everything was open this time so we got a tasty ice cream cone dipped in chocolate. Well, he got it, and I mooched a little bit.
The Black Horse really was impossibly small! There was a TV up in the corner with the football game on, and a cooler filled with Bud Light and PBR behind the bar. It felt very much like a neighborhood spot. The few people that came in while we were there all knew the bartender and were very friendly with him. It's always fun finding places like that. We had a couple drinks there and then were on our way!
We headed down to the Embarcadero, where Greg had planned a really fun activity - renting bikes and riding them across the Golden Gate bridge to Sausalito! We picked up our bikes at Bay City Bikes and then began the trip up to the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge. This was a much more strenuous task than I had imagined, most likely because I hadn't ridden a bike in years and forgot how to operate the gears. After a couple of heart attacks, I did in fact make it up to the bridge, where we took a break, and I got my sought-after photo:
The ride got much easier once we actually got onto the bridge, and then was all downhill once we actually got to the other side. It was just a short ride from the bridge to Horizons, where we stopped and had snacks and wine. There was a nice porch overlooking the bay which had heat lamps, so even though it was a bit cool outside, it was very comfortable on the porch. We had oysters and and the ahi tuna tartare - both were delicious! I love the oysters here; they just taste so much fresher than what I'm used to! Looking across the bay also gave me a really good view of these "micro-climates" I keep hearing about. There would literally be sun, and then storm clouds, and then more sun as I looked from one side of the city to the other. I don't know how people here ever figure it out!
After our fun little excursion, we got our bikes and rode a very short way down the road to the ferry that would take us back across to San Francisco (and was also included in the bike rental). We had a few more drinks on the ferry, as it was a 20-30 minute ride across the bay. I love being on the water here - New York's water feels dirty, and like it's not fresh to breathe in the air, but here, it feels almost invigorating! We had to bike a couple miles in real traffic back to the bike rental spot from where the ferry dropped us off - that was a little intimidating to have an 18-wheeler pulling up alongside me on my little bike!
We headed back home to freshen up after a long day outside (did I mention it was a little rainy going across the bridge?) MUCH-NEEDED SHOWER! Dinner tonight was at Zero Zero, a pretty spacious restaurant near Greg's apartment. We ordered the Fillmore and Castro pizzas, and they were AMAZING! I thought I was going to pass out in a food coma for sure. I also had one of their specialty cocktails, the Picco Collins. It was a cucumber & vodka drink that was very light and refreshing. Greg was totally set on getting dessert (even though I'm pretty sure we were both about to burst). They had a make-your-own-dessert menu, so we had the mascarpone cheesecake with vanilla ice cream and huckleberry compote. It was pretty delicious - I'm a big fan of huckleberries now!
Needless to say, this was the most active day yet, so we weren't home for 20 minutes before we started dozing off. Bed time - sad I have to say goodbye tomorrow morning!
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