It is a daunting task, trying to anoint one taqueria that serves the best burrito in San Francisco. It's almost a mission meant to end in defeat when one thinks of the sheer volume of celebrated taquerias in the famous Mission district alone. Even as I posted a teaser on Instagram about my San Francisco Burrito Quest, suggestions started to come in from Oakland . . . and the East Bay is its own beast, worthy of a separate "best burrito in San Francisco" piece, though some may consider those environs a city in its own right. But all I'm doing is anticipating the slings and arrows of detractors when really I'm trying to tell you that if you are coming to San Francisco for a burrito, you may well want to single out the best burrito in San Francisco because these burritos aint cheap. The average price was in the $13 range. For. A. Burrito. I know, I know . . . but you are eating a celebrated local food icon and they are all damn filling too. So grab a napkin for the impending drool factor because we are gonna find you some Bang for your Burrito Buck!! (more…)

 

The Vitals: the spot: Sour Duck Market 1814 E. Martin Luther King Blvd Austin TX 78702 the eats: Goat Chorizo Breakfast Sandwich the bucks: $9 the full nelson: it looks like a burger. it tastes like legit Mexican food. And its for breakfast.

Sour Duck Market is the latest offering from Bryce Gilmore, the chef who turned a food trailer into two of the more celebrated restaurants in Austin Texas: Odd Duck and Barley Swine. I have been going to Odd Duck for years now, in part because I take food tours there via Austin Eats and because ponying up to the bar for a brilliant cocktail program and some intriguing farm to table cooking with a Texas edge is worth the money for the babysitter. Though its set up as fast casual, Sour Duck is serving up something more than his Odd relative: a family friendly environment. The place is practically kid proof, has a full bar and serves up the same quality ingredients is a casual all day menu. There is a God. And God likes breakfast. (more…)

The Cheap Eats in Scottsdale were definitely a surprise. From a sugar bomb of a ice cream sandwich, to pulled pork for breakfast, the affluent extension of Phoenix likes to have some cheap eats options for the Snowbird set it seems. How far did my $35 stretch in the Spa capital of US? Let's take big second bite and find out! (more…)

The Vitals: the spot: Bird Bird Biscuit 2701 Manor road Austin TX 78702 the eats: Bird Bird Bacon the bucks: $7 the full nelson: a full on portable breakfast meal that is not on a tortilla

To the tourist and the local, breakfast in Austin means breakfast tacos. While popular throughout the state, Austin seems to have made breakfast tacos part of the city's brand, dare I say part of the city's soul. But there is more to AM carbs than just corn or wheat tortillas, like biscuits, which are kind of a thing in the South. Part of the excitement for me when I moved to Austin was the idea that I would be getting loads of great Southern eats in the ATX. After all moving from Southern California to Texas is dramatically closer to the land of whistling dixie. But the South, Austin is not. Up until recently I haven't found fried chicken worth blogging about(coming soon). And as far as biscuits go, I'd just as soon hop on a plane to the deep South, which I have been doing a lot lately if you have been catching up on your Cheap Eats. Still, it doesn't mean it is impossible to make a good biscuit in the 512 and I think that just may have been the motivation for Thunderbird founders Brian Batch and Ryan McElroy to bring their biscuit dream out of the oven and into the mouths of hungry Austinites looking for a quick breakfast fix with the brand new Bird Bird Biscuit. (more…)