Ferry to SF
This morning, the San Francisco Bay Water Transit Authority sponsored a free ferry ride from the Berkeley Marina over to the San Francisco Ferry Building. My neighbor Gary and I went, along with Eric and Rachelle. It was a beautiful morning, just a bit on the chilly side.
The ride over was fast; it took the ferry a few minutes to wind its way out of the Berkeley Marina, but once we were out, it was only 25 minutes or so to the city, past the long, decrepit Berkeley Pier and Treasure Island. The Ferry Building is once again a treasure, after the destruction of the hideous freeway that used to run along the Embarcadero. The 1989 Pretty Big One had at least that salutary effect: by destroying that freeway, it returned the San Francisco waterfront to beauty and the people.
The marketplace at the Ferry Building is a hoot, with a lot of unusual stuff I don't find in my normal market. I bought pimentos de padron from Happy Quail Farms, and cooked them up (sauteed in olive oil and then sprinkled with Kosher salt, following directions from the woman working the stand), and they were terrific. (For more on those, see Calvin Trillin's great piece in Feeding a Yen.) The beans at Rancho Gordo also looked terrific. But then, most everything looked great. Had a very good curry sausage from Aidell's and a fine clam chowder at Ferry Plaza Seafood. Before any of those, I had a Sharffen Berger chocolate chip cookie; dang but I love that chocolate.
Even with that, I was pretty good: I was tempted by the various Olive Oils there, by Cowgirl Creamery, and by dozens of other things. It's a great way to spend a morning, I need to do it more often.
5:28:19 PM Permalink
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The bike lock company just announced that it will offer free product upgrades to anyone who bought certain u-locks over the last two years. 
