|
Wrap Yourself in the Folds of Ti Couz
by Karen Solomon
This popular Bretonian crepery is one of the most popular SF dining destinations any night of the week, and for good reason. Ti Couz offers a unique cuisine at a reasonable price in the hip San Francisco Mission district.
The atmosphere is chatty and jubilant. Vaulted ceilings, funky ski lodge decor, long counters and a parade of bar stools packed with couples run the full length of the room, and larger parties of four or more occupy every one of the scattered tables. "It's a Tuesday night at 10:00", you remember, and yet there's still a 15 minute wait for a table. Just be thankful you're not here for the hour and a half wait for Saturday brunch. Ti Couz will take your Master Card, and they'll take your Visa, but they absolutely won't take a reservation.
When a restaurant tries your patience, it's for good reason. This is the local Francophonic supplier of classic savory and sweet crepes filled with quality ingredients and treated with magnificent, housemade sauces and creams. In addition, Ti Couz is often overlooked as some of the best salads in town, a stunning French Onion soup, and SF's only real place to drink American and French apple cider.
It's amazing how far $10 will go. For that price, you can sample a savory buckwheat dinner crepe filled with ham, caramelized onion, and cheddar, or a scrumptious combination of shrimp and scallop in a mushroom sauce. Don't let the quantity of the thin crepe fool you. One of these plate-sized crepes is easily enough for a full meal. If you're in doubt, share a soup or salad of organic greens and blanched vegetables in a robust, garlicky vinaigrette.
Another option is to head straight for dessert. Diners have the option of delicious ingredients like chocolate or vanilla ice cream, housemade fruit preserves, chocolate mousse, fresh fruit, Nutella, and chattily cream artistically sculpted into a white dessert crepe or towered into a parfait glass. Absolutely no selection will disappoint, but some earth-shattering suggestions include the perfect light simplicity of fresh lemon juice and sugar, Cafe Ligouse, a combination of coffee ice cream, chocolate sauce, and chattily, or the Sweet and Low (no resemblance to the pink-packeted saccharin substitute that bears its name); chocolate ice cream, chocolate mousse, and cream. There have been diners in the past who've managed to devour an entire savory crepe and then an entire dessert crepe, but their regrets were heavy, however short lasting.
An outstanding variety of outstanding beverages accompany your crepe, such as fresh juices, lemonade served the Parisian way (a glass of fresh squeezed juice, filtered water, and sugar syrup you combine to your liking), liqueurs, wines, beers, and coffee drinks. However, the variety of hard ciders, the classic accompaniment for this meal, is the best choice. Choose from American bottled cider, like Ace and Two Rivers, or a soft, champaigny Claud de Normand French varietal, served by the bowl or the pitcher.
Great food, great drink, great prices in a wonderful atmosphere is a treat, but there is one trick beneath all this splendor. Substandard or rude table service can cloud the Ti Couz experience. Understandably, a constant crowd flow and tips based on small checks must make this a difficult place to work. However, lucky for us, Ti Couz is a magnificent place to eat.
|
