This time I planned on getting there early enough to get a seat! Swan Oyster Depot opens promptly at 10:30am. We arrived at 9:50am on a Thursday. We were the first people there! So we walked up the street and got a cup of coffee and walked back to the Swan to officially get in line. It was about 10:10am and we were still the first people in line… but not for long.

People began to appear and suddenly the line was about 20 people deep. Apparently this was a “slow morning”.

Here’s a guy setting up the windows. The sun was beating down so he had white paper covering all of the fish until the sun wasn’t so direct.

This shot was taken right after they put all the stools down… 5 minutes before this shot all of the stools were piled up in sets of two against the wall. This is it though, this is the entire restaurant. One main counter with stools. It doesn’t seat many people, hence why there is always a line to get in. It’s awesome, old school, authentic and everything you’d hope a seafood diner would be.

Yay, they finally opened and we took our seats about halfway down the bar, directly in front of the menu on the wall. I ordered what I had the last time I was there – the combination seafood cocktail and a bowl of clam chowder.

There was a huge bowl of oyster crackers every 3 feet or so… we were lucky enough to sit right in front of one! When you sit down you also get a big hunk of bread and butter, but I forgot to take a photo of that…

My view from the bar…

Ahhh the combination seafood cocktail! It’s served in a little sundae dish and it looks small but boy does it pack a big punch. The bottom is filled with lump crab meat, it’s topped with a jumbo shrimp and an oyster. And you get a big dish of cocktail sauce to dip everything into. It’s pretty mild and ice cold which is yum.

The first time I had this clam chowder I remember it being the absolute best clam chowder I’ve ever had. This past time I beg to differ but only because it was slightly luke warm… but I’m going to blame it on the fact that it was 10:30am and we were the first people in line. It was still very good and I ate almost the entire bread chunk they gave us.

What makes this soup so tasty is the fact that the broth is super flavorful and isn’t not super chunky… it’s definitely creamy but on the thinner side which makes dipping bread into it completely OCD and oyster crackers absorb the broth faster.  It’s really, really good.

So, long story short, place is great. Despite all the hype surrounding this place, I still think it’s worth going (if you have time). The seafood is super fresh, nice and cold, and the ambiance brings me right back to the diners of Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  You really don’t find many down home places like this in San Francisco. I love everything about it, except the super long line.

Swan Oyster Depot
1517 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94109

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There are 3 things I need to point out about Mixt Greens before I reveal my actual lunch selection…

Mixt Greens:

• uses all biodegradable/compostable utensils and containers
• the tables inside are made from recycled laundry detergent bottles
• the food is organic, sustainable and local

Nothing not to like about that!

I was feeling adventurous so today I ordered the Maui Salad instead of my favorite “Bachelor” salad.  The Maui salad is comprised of: butter lettuce, coriander-encrusted seared ahi tuna, avocado, cherry tomatoes, mango, cucumber, red onion, mango citrus vinaigrette topped with crushed macadamia nuts.  That is the exact menu description.  It also comes with a half slice of bread.

So, the salad was good.  When I read the ingredients for the first time I was expecting nice, soft lettuce, with a light, mango-esque dressing… light, healthy with a little salty kick from the macadamias… Well, it was good but it wasn’t really what I was expecting.  Overall, I think the avocado made the salad a bit too mushy for my liking… and I know the crushed macadamias were supposed to be the textural, “crunchy” part of the salad, but even macadamia’s are soft too… coupled with the soft fish and the soft mango… just a bit too mushy for me. The ahi was good and seared perfectly, but I think overall something is a little off, and I’m not sure what kind of suggestion I would have to make it better…oh well.

Aesthetically, all of the salads at Mixt Greens look fantastic, including this one, but I’m not sure I’d order it again.  Also, some people say that the price is a little steep, but honestly, the salads you get are so big (I can rarely finish an entire one unless I’m starving)… so I think there is definitely value in the price, in addition to the other great “green” features of the place and operation.  I also have to mention that the people who work at this location are particularly awesome.

Thank you to Michael Poulton for taking this shot of me!

Sorry Mixt Greens, today I give you 3 fries.

Mixt Greens
560 Mission St
(between Anthony St & Shaw Aly)
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 543-2505
www.mixtgreens.com

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I ordered 2 fish tacos. I’ve had them before and they’re just ok. The “fried” fish is cooked in batches, so they have a tub of “fried” fish under the heat with the rest of the beans and chicken and carnitas… so by the time you get it in your taco, it’s kind of soggy and not crispy at all and rarely warm. Also, they only give you 1 tortilla, not 2, like REAL Mexican places. The 1-tortilla/soggy cold fish is a turnoff but I guess not a big enough one for me to not order it… I get what I deserve!

One TWO really, REALLY great things though about Taco Del Mar are:

1. They nearly ALWAYS play 80s music inside – The Cure, Depeche Mode, Madonna, etc… don’t ask me why… it’s definitely no Baja Fresh!
2. They have 4 choices of iced tea. …I believe regular unsweetened, sweetened, raspberry, and green. It’s not part of the iced tea fountain, it’s separate, and they have RASPBERRY iced tea, my favorite!!
3. Nice people who work there, in my experience.

I give Taco del Mar 4 fries because even though the fish tacos aren’t the greatest, they aren’t the worst, and I always seem to have a pleasant time eating there, even if it’s by myself. The people who work there are also friendly.

Taco del Mar
163 2nd Street
(between Minna St & Natoma St)
San Francisco, CA 94105
www.tacodelmar.com

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