Museum of Ice Cream San Francisco

Tea Time skipped the Color Factory, but couldn't resist the Museum of Ice Cream, located in the former Armani building at Grant and Market. We were divided into "teams" at the entrance and had to choose a team name. We were team Unicorn Ice Cream Horn. We were told we could spend as much time as we wanted at each exhibit, but also reminded that the next team couldn't enter until we all had exited each room.

There are snippets of ice cream history on the walls.

The famous Ice Cream Vault.

We wonder what toy soldiers have to do with ice cream. But they're pink.

Our first treat was a strawberry It's-It. Everything is pink in here.

Even the vintage jukebox!

You can "write" on the walls with magnetic letters.

Then eat ice cream mocha. Fortunately not all pink.

Then there's freshly-made cotton candy.

Clouds and cherries.

 

Followed by the Gummy Garden.

Fun Wallpaper

Next,  A Unicorn Milk Ice Cream Cone.

Followed by an opportunity to get up close and personal with a unicorn.

We didn't crawl into the mirror room, but some team members did.

Angela braved the sprinkle pool. J.K. is still trying to get the sand out of the suitcase Angela took camping on the beach in Hawaii, so she sat this one out.

There are swings to play on.

Angela won an extra cone at the ring toss game.

Choice of two flavors

Then there was the gift shop. Expensive, but so cute!

Sprinkle Crowns

More Sprinkle Crowns

Golden Ice Cream Servers

Some Ice Cream Art

Lots of Jewelry

Many cute pins to choose from

Yin Du Wonton Noodle

It was soup weather again, and we decided try another Chinatown noodle restaurant. Yin Du Wonton Noodle on Pacific Street has good reviews so we gave it a try and were not disappointed 

There's an awning, too, but I would have had to cross the street to photograph it

Tea is served in mugs, so you don't have to keep refilling tiny cups.

Beth chose No. 4, Stewed Beef Brisket & Wonton Noodle Soup.

J.K. had No. 10, B.B.Q. Pork Wonton Noodle Soup.

The menu is much more extensive than what is shown on the website.

Because the prices are low, the portions are not huge. You won't leave hungry; you just won't have leftovers for another meal.

Willy Wonka at Dandelion Chocolate

Every year, Dandelion Chocolate presents "12 Nights of Chocolate" to benefit the SF-Marin Food Bank. This year, J.K., Angela and Beth all went to the annual showing of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, with Gene Wilder.

The doors opened at 7:00, and for half an hour we were treated to, well, treats, all made with Dandelion Chocolate, of course.

Chocolate Popcorn. What's a movie without popcorn?

There was an amazing selection of cookies.

And a flight of three brownies.

Pour-it-yourself endless hot chocolate, with three choices, plus the barista cheerfully made a house mocha for Beth. Unfortunately we were so busy guzzling our drinks that we forgot to photograph them. But you know what a cup of hot chocolate looks like. Also a generous supply of house-made marshmallows.

Dandelion has a new book, which we highly recommend.

The pre-film reception lasted ½ hour, to make sure everyone got enough to eat and drink. The treats and hot chocolate were all left out during the showing, and there were even plenty of leftovers, including hot chocolate, to take home. One lucky attendee found a golden ticket in her popcorn, entitling her to a free factory tour.

Swan Oyster Depot

Tea Time doesn't usually go to places with long lines, but Angela wanted seafood, we were in the neighbourhood, and the line wasn't too long, so we made an exception for the exceptional Swan Oyster Depot.

Close-Up of Seafood in Window

Close-Up of Seafood in Window From Other Side

Link to unauthorised menu

Lots of Baseball Memorabilia, starting right at the entrance.

The menu is on the wall, large enough to read easily.

Condiments and oyster crackers are within reach on the counter.

The Swan Story is on the counter, too. 

We ordered a cracked crab.

 And a combination seafood salad.

They came with crusty sourdough bread.

The wreckage 

 Our neighbors ordered a Sea Urchin, but we weren't brave enough. Maybe next time.

Our next stop was the Museum of Ice  Cream, so that took care of dessert.

Lunch With Beth / Hon's Wun-Tun House

It was a chilly day, so we were walking along Kearny Street, looking for soup (preferably with noodles) and decided on Hon's Wun-Tun House, a favourite of our friend and fellow Chocolate Salon volunteer, Lydia. Hon's is a "real" Chinatown restaurant without its own online presence, but is listed on menu and review sites. The menu is relatively short, but comprehensive.

 

 Beth chose No. 4, Stewed Beef Brisket and Rice Noodle Soup.

 J.K. opted for No. 23, Barbecued Pork and Wun-Tun Noodle in Soup.

 Some other posters have called the portions skimpy, but we found them to be just right, with no leftovers to deal with.

Turtle Tower

Beth and I were walking down Larkin Street, looking for a likely place for a quick dinner before going to the dress rehearsal for S.F. Opera's Girl of the Golden West. We decided on Turtle Tower, because there weren't many people inside, so it looked like service would be quick. It turned out that there were few inside because it was close to closing, but the staff nonetheless welcomed us and didn't rush us, even though they were obviously closing up, cleaning tables and putting the chairs on them so they could wash the floor.

There's plenty of choice on the menu.

 We finally decided on No. 7,  a soup-less Pho with Stir-Fried Beef with Celery, Carrot, Onion, Leek and Pan-Fried Noodles. As you have probably previously noticed, we like noodles (especially rice noodles).

 And Spring Rolls with noodles (No. 13).

We even got a loyalty card. But we didn't need it to know that we'll be going back.

Ham n' Latkes at Urbano Cellars

That it's an annual event tells you they haven't been struck by lightning yet.  On the non-hoity-toity side of Fourth Street in Berkeley, Urbano Cellars makes most of its wines from odd varietals.  The past two or three years, they've been sourcing grapes from the Clements Hills east of Lodi, starting to get into the Sierra Foothills.  They also make a red blend and a white blend sold by the growler.

One of the cool things Urbano does is throw a Ham n' Latkes party in advance of Hanukkah.  The excellent rendition is by Chef Cynthia, who also purveys her fine relishes and preserves.  She uses brown rice flour instead of matzoh, so I reckon these are gluten-free latkes.  (How many people's ears perked up at that?)  Also, she puts her potatoes through a cream of tartar wash to keep them from turning brown.

Does this make them Berkeley foodie latkes?

Music by Mission Hill, a combo from San Francisco.

I had a really fun time, no surprise.