San Francisco's Plow + Moving Recap Pt. 1

Radio silence can be a tough thing to come back from. When I think about my last post, it seems like an eternity ago and I'm not quite sure where to pick up. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that there have been so many changes in the last few days. Maybe it's because I'm starting to feel a bit disconnected from the outside world due in part to the lack of cable and internet in my new home (cable is allegedly coming on Friday and internet should be up and running this Wednesday, *fingers crossed*). Or maybe it has something to do with this insane LA heat that has been sucking the life out of me daily, while I'm organizing the house room by room. I also feel like an old lady because my back should not hurt this much, and yet it does #notthirtyyet. And I'm sure the reason why those Spicy Tamarind Margs seem like a lifetime ago is probably a combination of all of the above. Regardless, I'd love to take a step back and take a minute or two to share some of the glorious details of our move as well as recap our last San Francisco brunch at Plow.

So let's start with Plow. Nestled in Potrero Hill, on the corner of 18th and Texas, it is the epitome of comfort food.  For better or worse, Plow is one of the "it" spots in San Francisco for brunch. Better because it's fantastic and everyone should experience and worse because it's become so popular that there's always a line out the door, around the corner and up the hill (gotta love hilly San Francisco). It's the kind of spot that tourists and locals alike flock to. You're almost always guaranteed to hear at least one local mutter phrases like "I wish tourists didn't know about this spot" or "Why are there so many tourists here?" And to be fair, I understand why a local might feel that way given how good it is and how long that wait ends up being (ours was 35 minutes at 8:15 am on a Saturday) but good food shouldn't be exclusive to the local community. It should be enjoyed and shared by food lovers from all over the world.

Plow-Moving-SF-Update-7.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-6.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-5.jpg

There are heaps of reasons why I'd recommend dining at Plow. The interior is is inviting--it's a happy mix of quaint, cozy (very cozy), farmhouse and urban hipster. It also isn't one of those trendy spots where everyone's decked out from head to toe in the season's latest fashion and thank goodness for that. While you can expect to see a few of those tables, you will also find groups clad in workout clothes, classic SF attire (see photo below) or even PJS! ( I swear the girl in front of me was in her pjs.) You might even run into your favorite celebrity, which is a rarity in SF. We sat next to, ok, I'm exaggerating--near, Adrian Grenier (oh hi, Vincent Chase), which I of course took as a sign that SF was telling us that it was time to head down to LA. See if you can spot Vince/Adrian in the photo of the outdoor seating.

Plow-Moving-SF-Update-10.jpg

That same type of diversity can be found in the menu. Take their brunch menu for instance. They are serving up everything from chia seed pudding to chicken tinga to lemon ricotta pancakes, as well as their signature dish "The Plow", which some might say has earned itself somewhat of a celebrity status in the food world. It consists of the following:  two eggs (your choice on prep), a choice of house made pork sausage, Nueske bacon or chicken apple sausage, two lemon ricotta pancakes + crispy potatoes. Basically, it's everything you could ever want for breakfast, served up on a plate. Naturally l had that. Moses went for the Soft Scrambled eggs with stinging nettles, cherry tomatoes, goat cheese, crispy potatoes and Acme bread toast. Both were fantastic, although I'm pretty sure I'd order "The Plow" every time. The lemon ricotta pancakes are pillows of heaven infused with the sweet smell and tang of citrus and the crispy potatoes are pretty much gold. They have to be twice baked smashed potatoes. I'm convinced. And while I could wax on for days about Plow, I feel like now might be a good time to launch into some details of how our move went.

Plow-Moving-SF-Update-8.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-9.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-14.jpg

The move. So the last time I updated you, I happily shared our moving schedule: movers arriving early morning, the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend, to help us load everything into the the U-Haul. Well that didn't really happen. U-Haul called to confirm the night before our pick up that we would be able to pick up our U-Haul at 4:00 pm versus the 8:00 am pickup we had requested the week prior. So we were basically scrambling like headless chickens trying to coordinate new move out times (movers, elevator lock-downs, etc.) and I really started to panic about what time we'd actually get out on the road. My biggest fear up until that shift, was that we'd hit a bit of holiday traffic. Well, I almost wish we had encountered that because my newest fear was that we wouldn't get on the road until 9:00 pm at the earliest, which meant driving all night. Turns out we got out much later at around 11:00 pm. Such is life. We went for it. And here are the highlights:

  • Fueled up at In-N-Out.
  • Parked outside of a Best Western (or at least I think it was) for a few hours to power nap in the U-Haul.
  • Purchased toothbrushes from a gas station (ours were crammed in a bag that was wedged in the tetris-like jigsaw of boxes and miscellany that we were driving around).
  • Sang at the tops of our lungs.
  • Ate gummy candies at 3:00 am.
  • Saw the sunrise while driving on along the Grapevine.
  • Put my feet on the dash (I'd never be able to do that in a car we own).
  • Vienna was my road-dog. Literally.
  • Rolled up to our new place in Los Angeles at 9:00 am on Sunday morning, about 30 minutes before our movers arrived to unload everything out of the truck and into the house!
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-17.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-18.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-19.jpg
Plow-Moving-SF-Update-20.jpg

All in all, it was an adventure. And I can't wait to fill you in on my speed unpacking skills and how we spent our first week in LA. Look for that in the next few posts this week and then thank your lucky stars because moving season is over for me, which means we can get back to the regularly scheduled programming (a.k.a. less moving talking and more creating).  xo