It seems owner/chef of Cassava Bakery and Café in 
Importantly, the newly-opened café is located in What sets Cassava above and beyond the rest is [read my lips] E-L-I-T-E haut cuisine fare served in a tiny, yet tastefully appointed dining room at very democratic prices.
While breakfast, lunch, and brunch are the main focus here, recently introduced pop-up tasting dinners sell out the moment Yuka announces them on Cassava’s website and Facebook page. 
These dinners are offered by reservation only, and to only 12 people at a time to assure the necessary quality of preparation, service, and attention to detail, highly valued by the proprietors. Their diligent pursuit of the best possible results in cooking with the fresh local organic ingredients shows in every small bite on the daily changing menu. 
On the night I was lucky enough to get a taste of Cassava, the soup was made of Japanese sweet potato and ginger, with a touch of raw carrot juice and olive oil blended in, and with shreds of romaine and radish as decorative topping. By its look and taste, this soup alone could’ve been served in a high-end establishment, where I’d pay at least twice of what is charged here. 
Then came the most incredible quiche – silky, soft, and mushroom-strong in perfectly crumbly dough stuffed with Roma tomatoes, crimini, and 
My ham and cheese sandwich was perfectly grilled, crunchy, flavorful, with each ingredient holding its own, and – nicely complimented by a fresh burst of sprightly asparagus imbedded between the Black Forest ham and Vermont white cheddar on golden-toasted Semifreddi’s deli white. 
Another Kris’s masterpiece is called cauliflower cassoulet, and is baked with roasted tomato sauce; redolent of fennel and cumin, and crowned with a pouched egg with a bright gooey yolk. Not a stranger to this easy-going cruciferous, responsive to any cooking mode, I must admit that I’ve never tasted a cauliflower this good. 
Although Chef Kris said it more than once that he did not consider himself a baker, his walnut brownies, and especially the peanut butter and corn flake cookies (Yuka’s mother’s time-honored recipe) were as stellar as the rest of his food. 
Cassava serves an assortment of Semifreddi’s pastries (addictive brioche “morning buns”) and Ritual Coffee starting at 7 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. On Saturday and Sunday it opens at 8 a.m. and closes each day at 5 p.m. Full breakfast menu is served from 8:30 a.m., lunch from 11 a.m. On weekend, a sit-down Japanese breakfast is served, and brunch starts at 10 a.m. Closed on Tuesday. Dinner nights are on Fridays at 6:00 and 6:30 p.m., and on Sundays at 4:30 and 5:00 p.m. Since hours are subject to change, and availability of the goodies can be limited it is advisable to phone, text (415.640.8990) or email info@cassavasf.com ahead.
Cassava Bakery and Café is located at 3519 Balboa Street, San Francisco , CA 94121. Daily menu changes are announced on Facebook, Twitter, and on the menu board at the café, as well as on the website: www.cassavasf.com.
The Chocolatier Blue occupies a charming little parlor with an inviting outdoor seating on Fourth Street in 
Danyelle is the Pastry Chef with the Chocolatier Blue patisserie – the woman behind the chocolate counter, and behind the ice cream vitrine, and in front of her customers – ages 2 to 92, and in front of the tabletop stove she operates in-between making sundaes, shakes, floats, and malts to order. 
Please don’t rush her when she is stirring egg yolks for her custard-based incredibly delicious ice cream, or they might turn into a scramble. Making everything from scratch in old-school fashion, and not relying on industrially produced ingredients is the credo Danyelle works by, so her cherry or apricot sorbet would only last with the season, then other flavors and their creative combinations would roll in.
The Chocolatier Blue parlor has about 24 seasonal flavors to choose from, and several staples like vanilla, chocolate, salted caramel, and butterscotch. 
On the day of my visit, bright-green lemon-basil-eucalyptus ice cream impressed me the most – made with fresh lemon and basil, and drops of fragrant essential oil. For her strawberry-ginger flavor Danyelle used organic Tomatero Farms strawberries and fresh ginger from Berkeley Bowl, which she juiced in the shop. Goat’s milk with hazelnuts and Mexican mesquite honey were my other favorites, but wait, what about that pink peppercorn, or coconut sorbet? Loved those, too!
My "cereal bowl" sundae was comprised of vanilla bean and strawberry-ginger ice cream and topped with puffed whole grain cereal, lime milk jam, and crispy marengue Os, and it was as scrumptious as no other cereal could ever be. 
Besides gourmet ice cream and ice cream-based treats, the shop serves Flying Goat coffees and freshly-baked (usually twice daily) cookies. 
In the chocolate department, there is also the embarrassment of riches – various caramels in delicate chocolate shells, painted gold, red, and dark green; chocolate bark made with different nuts, and hot chocolate and marshmallows. 
A new concept at FIVE is a weekly changing lunch plate inspired by seasonal farm fresh produce. Five mini-courses on the plate include salad, entrée, sauce, bread, and dessert. Served fast and all at once, these quick meals allow hurried professionals to have their lunch out and eat it, too, not taking any extra time from the working hours.
According to the Executive Chef Banks White, he shops at the market every Saturday, and comes up with the lunch menu based on his weekly purchases.
FIVE & Dine lunch is usually accompanied by a glass of lemonade or iced tea, and served at a set price of $15.
It has full bar, high ceiling with the said crystal chandelier, intriguing décor, large windows overlooking downtown 
Elena’s son, Sergey (Alexey Rozin) is very much in-touch with his mother. So much so that living in a shabby housing project on the outskirts of Moscow, and obviously jobless, he relies on her pension money to support his wife, Tatyana (Evgenia Konushkina), his teenage son, Sasha (Igor Ogurtsov) and a new baby. 
It’s not every day that you get a glass of aromatic 1989 Dr. Heyden Riesling from 
And it’s not even every other day that an Italian movie star look-alike (a.k.a. Caterina Mirabelli, wine and spirits director) pairs your charcuterie plate with Angel’s Envy port-finished bourbon. 
As I said – not your neighborhood joint!
Located in a historic building with high ceiling, oversized windows, and exposed brick walls, the dining room is spread around the horseshoe bar which opens to the building’s original doorway header from 1878, now serving as a frame for a wine closet. 
Chef Bob Cina puts up and extensive menu of Italian-inspired small plates with some very creative twists on time-honored classics. 
He takes escargot out of its shell and off the traditional indented dish. Lightly battered and crispy, delicate snails are now enhanced with bright-green garlic-lemon-parsley cream, and served with earthy grilled ham and mushroom salad.
Seared sea scallops are garnished with ginger-sour orange sauce and candied jalapenos – all preserved and pickled in-house. 
Chef Bob’s charcuterie platter is not only abundant, but probably the most creative in the Bay Area – with all house-made pork and duck rillettes, truffled chicken liver mousse, smoked duck breast, various cured meats, and even beef jerky.
Wine director Caterina pairs it with a rare bottle of big red Monje Hollera from 
Conceived and implemented by the chef/owner Amy Murray, the restaurant’s menu features an array of delectable choices of seasonal greens and locally sourced seafood and meats.
My favorite roasted 
Revival Bar & Kitchen calls itself “Bar” for a reason. The full bar is stacked with top-shelf liquor, and the cocktails created by the head mixologist Nat Harry range from classic to novel. 
A wonderful starter to revive all your senses would be Happy Boy Farm black kale salad with sliced kumquats, fried almonds, grilled red onions, and ricotta cheese shavings. Dressed with whole-grain mustard and balsamic vinaigrette, this salad, made of tougher greens, lets you feel, experience, and enjoy your food, not just inhale it as often happens with its over-processed sissy counterparts. 
Revival skilled servers are well-familiar with the menu and very helpful in suggesting the most interesting plates. My trout from McFarland Springs came beautifully crisped and adorned with braised chard, grapefruit gastrique, and toasted walnuts. 
My husband’s Long & Bailey Farm pork chop was perfectly grilled and garnished with artichokes, fingerling potatoes, and a dollop of yummy bourbon butter. 
Local and seasonal ingredients permeate the dessert menu as well, like in 
The interior design is turn-of-the-century dark, fitting for the historical building the Revival Bar occupies. High ceilings, arched windows, patinated mirrors, and draperies separating a semi-private dining area from the bar create a hedonistic atmosphere of unhurried enjoyment, especially appreciated by those diners who smartly bypass the theatre crowd and settle here for a while. 
Dinner is served Tuesday to Thursday from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 5:00 to 10:30 p.m. and on Sunday from 5.00 to 9:30 p.m. 
In reality, the owners Mari Takahashi (executive chef) and Gil Payne (sake sommelier) modeled their establishment after a traditional Tokyo-style izakaya, or sake house, and branded their cuisine as “after-sake” food, which is rather casual, includes Western influences, and is meant for sharing. 
Various starters, or otoshi, might include a trio of tiny bowls – one with beet hummus and baguette slices, another with pickled peppers and green beans, and the third with exquisite eggplant puree, nasu, bathed in chive oil. 
Octopus salad is a not-to-be-missed chewy terrine nicely complimented by bitter mizuna leaves, shaved cucumber, and fried chick peas in wonderful soy vinaigrette. 
Yakimono (grill) menu lists a number of notable dishes. Bone marrow with miso powder looks like a contemporary art piece, and tastes even better. 
Scallops are served over braised cabbage in brown butter ponzu in their own shells, and sea bass with uni butter is grilled to crispy perfection. 
Fish skewers are excellent – salmon topped with ikura, and Hawaiian butterfish.
Vegetable skewers include seasonal produce, like asparagus, shishito peppers, zucchini, eggplant, or shiitake mushrooms, but all are yummy. 
Meat skewers with sweetbreads or Snake River Kobe beef are so good it’s hard to share them. 
While all the lighter dishes are paired with refreshing Namazake sake, for heartier meats, like oxtail ramen or spicy tantanmen, sommelier Gil recommends earthy Yamahai. 
When the time comes for a sweet finale, Nombe’s house-made desserts are as creative and enticing as everything else here. 
For ultimate satisfaction get a bowl with a scoop of beer ice-cream with maple bacon (you read that right!) and a scoop of chocolate ice-cream with chestnuts – all made from scratch just for you. 