San Francisco Bay Area

So juicing is a thing. Practitioners range from DIYers who occasionally liquefy a sheaf of kale to the sort of person who has bottles of cucumber-watercress delivered each morning. Juices are expensive, so look to Chowhounds to tell you where to find quality for the price.

Pressed Juicery is an LA-based chain with locations in and near San Francisco. Chowhound user dunstable sampled most of their juices at the Noe Valley location and says they taste OK, if spinach-kale juice is your thing, though there are some fruity options. The product isn't cheap or exclusively organic.

Project: Juice sells cold-pressed varieties at a pop-up out of The Station, a coffee bar near Jackson Square. Cold-pressing means the company uses hydraulic pressure to extract, and calumin says it results in a fresh-tasting product.

The owners of SoW are former Blue Bottle employees who took a tip from the third-wave coffee movement to produce made-to-order juice. Check out their locally sourced produce on display before heirloom herbs and greens are liquefied and poured into your cup. While you're there, someone order me a coffee, kale on the side.

Pressed Juicery [Embarcadero]
One Ferry Building, San Francisco
415-291-0740

Pressed Juicery at Marin Country Mart [North Bay]
2257 Larkspur Landing Circle, Larkspur
415-925-1301

Pressed Juicery [Noe Valley]
3901 24th Street, San Francisco
415-285-1414

Project: Juice at The Station [Jackson Square]
596 Pacific Avenue, San Francisco
415-291-0690

Sow [Dogpatch]
2490 3rd Street, San Francisco
415-637-7343

Discuss: Pressed Juicery – SF Ferry Bldg, who's tried it?

Photo from SoW

It's a reasonable question: a Chowhound user who is planning to visit Napa likes the idea of visiting The French Laundry, but the specter of a quadruple-digit bill makes Thomas Keller's famed restaurant a no-go. Are there any undercover bargains in Napa that are worthy of a special-occasion meal?

Napa expert CarrieWas218 says don't bother seeking out a "lesser known" restaurant in Napa: the area is well trod by tourists, locals, and daytrippers from the city. For her money, tapas at ZuZu make a memorable, affordable special-occasion meal. On another note, if you're willing to eschew Keller's precision for hearty French fare like onion soup and sole meuniere, Bistro Jeanty fits the bill.

As far as a tasting menu experience, you're not likely to find budget versions in Napa. Look south, to Commonwealth in San Francisco and Commis in Oakland, both of which offer tasting menus for under $100 with optional wine pairings for an additional fee.

Bistro Jeanty [Napa Valley]
6510 Washington Street, Yountville
707-944-0103

ZuZu [Napa Valley]
829 Main Street, Napa
707-224-8555

Commonwealth [Mission District]
2224 Mission Street, San Francisco
415-355-1500

Commis [East Bay]
3859 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland
510-653-3902

Discuss: Is there such a thing as a poor man's French Laundry in Napa?

Photo from Commonwealth

Breaking news in SF's coffee wars: Philz Coffee, started in 2003 by Phil Jaber, recently raised in the neighborhood of $15 million in venture capital to expand the business. If the aesthetic at Blue Bottle, San Francisco's other recent breakout java star, leans toward the spare and elegant, Philz is sunny and baroque, with individual drips and a much-loved Mocha Tesora blend. And if you've ordered a cup of joe on a Virgin America flight lately, you've already had a taste of Philz, which is the on-board drip. READ MORE

Both shark fin and foie gras have been banned in California, and since the regulations went into effect you'll find neither fin nor foie on restaurant menus here. But Chowhound user Dustin_E was wondering if it's also illegal to bring these items into the state? READ MORE

Vibrant spices and bold flavors define the Indian street food at two-month-old Juhu Beach Club, by Chef Preeti Mistry, who cooked at Google and was a Top Chef contestant. Juhu was a pop-up in San Francisco before settling into a brick-and-mortar space across the bay in Oakland’s Temescal neighborhood. Superfan hungree recommends the crunchy, crumbly, crispy paneer balls and praises the meticulous spice combinations. READ MORE