Ah, LA, how at times I miss thee. Your ability to satisfy my ever insatiable stomach/hunger (emotional void perhaps?) has so far been unmatched, even though I grew up in San Francisco, one of a few acclaimed eating cities in the country. Perhaps it is the sheer volume of offerings available in the greater Los Angeles area; I mean, consider all the versions-in-mini of locations in the world that exist in LA and Orange County: Little Tokyo, Koreatown, Little Armenia, Little Ethiopia, Thai Town, Little Saigon, etc., etc. And then of course, there are all the offerings available very late at night and at some places, all night. What does San Francisco have on that?
So far? Not much. At least as far as I can tell at the moment. But I am remaining open, ready and willing to be introduced to the myriad of delicious surprises that San Francisco undoubtedly harbors. There have been many stops so far on the "Places-to-Eat-Discovery-Train" since April 2009, but it's been a while since I've felt compelled to talk about them and a lot has happened since then... Now that I'm back in the city (by the bay) however, a renewed sense of curiosity/discovery/enthusiasm or whatever has taken over me, and all of these interest-piquing places of fulfillment are receiving visits from me (or in some cases, re-visits).
John's Snack and Deli is for instance, one delightful surprise all wrapped up in unassuming, small packaging. Lots of folks know about John's. Lots of folks have known about John's for years. Lots of folks who work in the Financial District have known about John's. I have actually worked in the Financial District for some years now.
But I only recently went to John's. If it is of any consequence, I have walked by it probably at least a hundred times. John's is basically a convenience store (Surprise!!!), and so it is easy to overlook, but it has been serving Korean food out of the storefront for a while. They are best known for their made-fresh-to-order kimbap, (Korean maki rolls) and their kimchee tacos (an idea appropriated a la Kogi Taco truck from LA). I know the Korean food is better in LA, I know there is a seemingly limitless array of Korean-food choices in LA, and I know that a great portion of these places are open til 3:00am. But damnit, this is not LA. John's kimchee tacos are good, however unoriginal, and I can get them for lunch for less than $3.00 a piece at a location only a few blocks away. It's a small, family-run business that, in its character and lack of pretention, is very of the city. Sometimes I just have to be thankful for what I have. And I like eating lunch out of a convenience store.
http://www.snackanddeli.com
They also have a great web name.
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2 comments:
boo hoo I have to live in San Francisco and have access to delicious and cheap ethnic foods, waaa waaa waaa. You could live in Reno where you pay $14 for "authentic sweet and sour pork" at a Japanese restaurant...yeah I feel real sorry for you :)oh and good luck with that whole getting fat plan, I would like to see you try, what would that mean like 8,000 calories a day?
Dude I've been here. The Kimchi burrito was surprisingly awesome. They were super nice too, passing out (sushi) rolls to the line while we waited.
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