JULES, SF; Interior. Reservations difficult to make.

Fantastic fig pizza

Pizza with corn pudding

Cheese pizza

Half a Roast chicken with skin detached and fried; Jimmy Nardello red peppers; bok choi; cherry tomatoes.


I had not made reservations for Sunday night so my friend recommended The Wood Tavern so we will go there, our last night before flying home.

Yum, looks good--I haven't yet been there.

That neighborhood is the Lower Haight.

Yeah I was going to chime in and say the same thing. When we lived in SF long ago on Sacramento and Divisadero we used to take the 22 Fillmore all the time. It’s an interesting street that starts in the Marina and goes through Pac Heights and ends in Haight Asbury area and almost to Market st.

Thanks to you both!!!

We were supposed to go to COTOGNA tonight but the other couple (giving the party) are so busy with planning and cooking that they cancelled so we are debating canceling--Uber is about 45$ each way from the hotel and my partner does not think we ought to go.....that was the restaurant I really wanted to try but I guess I will agree to cancel..it does sound fabulous, but that uber price!!! ( I can be so cheap in some ways and so extravagant in others...)

I loved visiting Berkeley Bowl---what a store! But the summer fruit season is over so Ii can really buy too much to bring home. Some GREAT pluots, super grapes, two local cheeses, some frozen noodles, Comice pears...last time II went it was early July and I never forgot all those peaches!!!! They still had some---we never get different varieties of peaches in NY!! I think prices there are around the same as NYC top supermarkets but the variety is astounding!! I think my friend must have bought $500 worth of things for her party and that was just her first trip to BB!! I want to go to Star Market but not sure I can get there.....

So tonight is up in the air and partner wants to use up the $100 Viertuoso credit in the restaurant in the hotel....super boring but what can you do?

Forgot to write that the dinner last night at JULES cost $221 before tip for six of us, with one beer and one Mexican Coke. (This group is pretty much non-drinking, so that really keeps the restaurants costs down!!). I thought the value was good for the amount of good food we had.

Our last trip to London we ended up eating one night at our hotel in convent garden and it turned out to be Peruvian Italian and really good. Sometimes doing something easy and convenient isn’t so bad. 😀

Turns out that the hotel restaurant WAS really good!
We shared one Little Gem salad (portions are huge) and also shared just one smash burger and it was plenty to eat for both of us. Extremely noisy but excellent service and just a good, solid spot. The name is LIMEWOOD. I think that many locals eat here.

There is a little cafe downstairs that we tried this morning and liked much better than the.main breakfast place.

I don't know about those Boychik Bagels, though....my friend thinks that the ones served in the hotel are frozen first and therefore, not good.

Yesterday we took a great tour to Alcatraz Island. Fascinating, with a great audio guide and exhibits.

Nest stop, a dispensary, where I had never been before--amazing!

Dinner (my choice) at SHANDONG in Oakland Chinatown. Three of us liked it a lot--it's really not Shandong food, but a mix of Cantonese plus a few other regional dishes.

. Excellent sesame noodles. Friendly and efficient service; no decor to speak of, but clean.

Alcatraz cell

Alcatraz corridor to dining room

Solitary cell

SHANDONG restaurant in Oakland chinatown--from lower left: fried rice, hand-pulled sesame noodles, dry-fried string beans, sweet and sour pork
Nothing exotic but it was very good, especially those noodles. Neither of my companions likes spice so I was limited in ordering.

'As President of your United States, I am hereby directing that Alcatraz be re-opened immediately, immediately if not sooner, to house all those horrible people on the Fodors travel site who say so many bad and evil things about me. Bad and evil. Its really unbelievable, disgusting really. They say these things in front of my granddaughter, you know. They have no class. Fodors is a failing guidebook company. Everyone knows. Bad, bad books. The Loneliest Planet books are far better, so far better you know. Even Gruff Guides, you know...so much far better."

A reporter interrupts: "Mr. President, how about Rick Steves guidebooks, what do you think of them?"
Trump (face gets more serious): "Prick Steves? I dunno those...sounds like probably one of the British book companies. Anyway, Kristi and Pam, and Kash, I thank you all for your attention to this matter."

I am done. the Birdman

As I mentioned before I enjoyed Alcatraz a lot. Went with low expectations and thought it would be too touristy but ended up being a great and very scenic outing. Asian food looks great. We just got back from avocado jalapeño smashburgers at a very fun brewery and winery in town.

It’s been a crazy couple of days. Dinner in Montecito on Thursday and had a chat with Steve Martin who was sitting at the next table, then Paul McCartney performing right below our house in Santa Barbara and we got to listen to the concert from our patio. Tonight there’s a big celebrity wedding in town and it’s been fun reading about that. We’ve had some cooler and cloudy weather and I’m hoping you’re getting more sun in the Bay Area.

Zebec I nominate you as the funnest poster on Fodor's.

Macdogmom: How much more jealous do you want to make me? Sounds as if you are living the life!!!

Don't laugh, guys, but last night for the first time, before bed, I tried the little "candy" I bought at the "dispensary. Could not even get up for breakfast this morning!

Zebec I nominate you as the funnest poster on Fodor's.

Macdogmom: How much more jealous do you want to make me? Sounds as if you are living the life!!!

Don't laugh, guys, but last night for the first time, before bed, I tried the little "candy" I bought at the "dispensary. Could not even get up for breakfast this morning!

Have to find some kind of box or bag to schlep home all the fruit and cheese I bought at Berkeley Bowl.

Sunday was our last day in the area.
We had a very good dinner at (the very noisy) WOOD TAVERN.
Nice, cozy place with very good food.....I loved their chicken liver pate, burger withy blue cheese (split with partner), roast chicken, salad.....very reasonable prices at about $160 with one cocktail and one beer, for four diners.

What a fantastic part of the country!!

Back home now after surviving the middle seat on the Jet Blue flight. Their seats are very uncomfortable, no padding on the bottom. Only snacks (Goldfish, etc) and non-alcoholic drinks are given out; you can buy other food but on the way there, we shared a ham and cheese sandwich which was just awful, and freezing cold. We were smarter. on the return, and brought fantastic ham and cheese on croissants from the hotel to eat on the plane. If anyone is heading for the CLAREMONT, check out the cafe on the ground floor, which I thought had better (more limited menu) food than the main restaurant. Heavenly pastries!

Overall, lovely trip!! Very nice hotel, even if I was too lazy to use their great heated pools. (Shame con me!)

Thanks to you all who guided me!!

Sunday we leave for Bari.

I can't believe you--the inveterate heated-pool seeker--didn't use the pools at the Claremont. For shame, eks.

Noted about Jet Blue. They used to be good, but that was a long time ago, I guess.

Thank you for a wonderful report, and I very much look forward to reading about your upcoming Puglia trip.

I'm with Leely in wishing you the Best in Puglia, Eks. Btw, the guitarist for our local legends 'Rush' and his wife were just in Ostuni for a while.
I am done. the bono bono

No laughing from us Californians. Pretty common here and “pharmacy’s” are all over the place. My collection of Bay Area friends have been using nighttime gummies for sleep for awhile. I’ve joined the club and take 1/2 of one every night now. We got a puppy last month but she’s a pretty good sleeper so we’re all slumbering away every night from 10-5:30ish.

Have fun in Puglia. We had a great trip there around May 2017 and it felt very non touristy or at least non American tourists. Stayed at a masseria in the countryside then a boutique hotel in Ostuni. And 2 nights in Matera based on your amazing trip report. I read it and said I have to go there!

Thanks so much, Macdogmom, and Zebe!
I'm excited about Puglia but first--the packing--still puts me in a spin! Every single time, I take too many things and wear about half of what I brought. But I've droned on about that issue many times, so...

I wasn't sure about how to word the "dispensary," of if I'd have the post deleted. I think the trick is getting the timing right on when to eat the candy. Last night I had 1 1/2 and slept great and had no fuzzy feeling in the morning because I chewed it around 8pm, instead of waiting for bedtime..... The experience of buying them was so new to me, I just can't get over how easy it was, and how knowledgeable the salespeople were.

So on the taxi ride back to our apt in NYC, what do we pass, just a few blocks from home? A dispensary!!! I guess it's a new thing in NYC. I will have to pay a visit soon!

Did I mention THE WOOD TAVERN above..I think so and if not, we had a very good dinner there on the last night.

eks, based on your recent positive experience (and my not-recent positive experiences), I decided to book Dec. 24 & 25 at the Claremont. There is not currently any restoration work happening, and my stay was truly fabulous! Had a gigantic room and bathroom, super comfortable and relaxing, and the hotel was buzzing and very festively decorated for the holidays. I have family in the Oakland Hills who host Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and to stay in this historic grande dame was so much more pleasant than driving back and forth to the city.

Your report was the deciding factor, so thank you!

A break in the rain.

Leely, that's so good to hear!

I had also considered staying in SF and was so glad we decided on the Claremont, instead.
I'm happy to have given you some useful information, as you've given me so much help over the years!