4 Chicks & A Restaurant

 Liholiho Yach Club - No, we didn't set sail this evening. Instead, we dined at the Hawaiian-inspired restaurant in the Tendernob. This was Dionne's pick and only a month after our last Restaurant Club so we could include Noah in our festivities before the start of college! This was the first time one of our kids joined us for R Club in all these years!! To start, they had creative cocktails with fun names like Tiger Uppercut, the Love Boat, and Blind Date! The cocktails were so yummy - mine was made with japanese almond milk (pictured below, looking like a glass of milk!).  We started with house-made chips and a whitefish and orange caviar dip that was addictive! Then we had so many fun appetizers - sashimi, grilled shrimp, and a really funky rice noodle. The mains were so unique and delicious, with my favorite being the katsu swordfish. But the black cod and wagyu mains were also outstanding. The wagyu was sliced and paired with thinly-sliced potatoes and onions. This was No...

  7 Adams --- This was probably our first prix-fixe dining experience for Restaurant Club! This was quite lovely to dine at 7 Adams (Gail's pick!). I think my favorite was the pasta. Overall, I liked it.... I didn't love it. I think we've had better food elsewhere, even though this place is Michelin-starred. It's a very cute place in the Fillmore, named after the chef's home address.  The most memorable discussion of this evening was hearing about how Matthew survived 6 weeks in Senegal, sustaining himself on mush and no toilet paper! What an amazing kid!  Steph told us about her glamping weekend, I recently returned from Vancouver, and Gail had been to South Carolina.  In sum: we are so fortunate to have mild summers in CA! Can't imagine living anywhere else.

  Live Sushi Bar SF   - well, this was a random choice by Julia because this location in Potrero Hill used to be a restaurant that Julia and Jarrod went to when she lived in Potrero! It used to be a Chinese restaurant, and the layout of the restaurant is exactly the same! So this was a basic sushi restaurant, no frills, low key. Nice start to the summer, now that graduation is over and the kids are in their summer grooves!

  Big Finish Wine Tavern -- This was a cute place but nothing extraordinary stands out! The best part, perhaps, was just being in the Mission. Memories of so many good times in the late 90s, early 2000s. Gail and I had to take a trip down memory lane and went to Blondie's for their gigantic olive martinis!! I think we look almost as cute as we did in 2000! :)  Stephanie's pick and just so lovely to spend a spring evening in the mission district! (Stephanie's pick!)

 Dalida  is woooooonderful!! OMG, this restaurant is simply gorgeous. Located in the Presidio near the Tunnel Tops, it's based on one of the most iconic locations in SF. A short walk from stunning views of the Golden Gate Bridge, this Mediterranean restaurant is as delicious as it is beautiful. Thanks, Dionne, for this pick! Here we are seated at a window table: Here is a helluva bloody mary and some fabulous oysters!! More of the meal: Me enjoying the views before the dinner:

Well, China Live was a fun and lively spot! Almost like communal dining with an adjacent market to buy fun Chinese goods. High end Chinese food is always amazing! (Gail's pick).  This was a toast to the end of 2025!!!

 La Ciccia! Molto Bene!  Julia's pick. Tucked into a cozy corner of Noe Valley, La Ciccia is San Francisco’s hidden gem of Sardinian soul. This restaurant has been here for ages (Gail recalls it from when she lived around the corner). This intimate bistro features handmade pastas, and hearty meat dishes all rooted in traditional Sardinian recipes.  The atmosphere feels like visiting a friend’s welcoming home — warm lighting, close-knit tables, and staff who are very cozy and friendly. We started off with a beet and apple salad which was quite delicious (especially after a long wait to sit down - softened by complimentary bubbles!).  This is the salad:  We shared a bottle of Vermentino di Sardegna "Costamolino" Agricola Argiolas, 2022  . I'm writing it down here because it was so delicious, I want to document it! It was light, crisp, and a perfect pairing to our pastas. We tried the Malloreddus a sa Campidanese (Semolina Gnochetti Pork Sugo Pecori...

 Morella in SF's Marina District was Stephanie's choice for Sunday, September 21, 2025. We've certainly dined at this location before - many restaurants have occupied this space! The vibe was very midcentury modern, with plush seats, everything in a blush pink color, and a generally swanky vibe. The food - a combination of Italian and Argentinian cuisines - was actually very good! We had lobster empanadas and really delicious ravioli. The service was excellent. Was so great to catch up as the summer was winding down. Gail is still in knee-hell recovery (praying fo 100%), Dionne recently sent Matt back off to college, Julia was back from Peru and DC, and Stephanie has her hands full with soccer, softball (?), academics, singing, and the countless other activities her girls are up to these days. The positive news is that it seems all the kids are really flourishing. Everyone seems to have found a wonderful groove. Adults, on the other hand, are trying not to lose their minds ...

 Kaia's Island Kitchen & Tiki Bar is a cute new restaurant in Danville - Dionne's pick! We came out to Danville to see Gail in her recovery stages after knee surgery! She was on crutches, but at least out of the house and looking fine! We had some fun Hawaiian dishes at this Tiki-style restaurant. Great drinks too! 

 This restaurant club marks just over 20 years of dining together!! Two decades! Who could have imagined that when we started this in our 30s that we'd still be stuffing our faces and gossiping 20 years later. My god....we have been through births, marriages, and kids all grown up! Sash and Matt are in college and Gail and Steph's kids are quickly growing up. We even talked about how Stella said the F word when talking about what she was going to do out on the soccer field (she's 11!!). Had a good laugh over that one. Gail's boss Christina joined us this evening and had strongly recommended Che Fico (Gail's pick). She was not wrong!! It was so insanely good. We started dinner with delicious cocktails and a big fat round of focaccia. It came with mascarpone butter that was melt in your math. Then we had some kind of ravioli filled with short rib - amazing. And the gnocchi was some of the best I've ever had. Two kinds of pizza were absolutely delicious, and the 3 ...

First month of the year brought us to Gather in Berkeley (Julia's pick). Turns out we did our first (accidental!!) repeat. We were at Gather previously, but I completely forgot. Looks like we had some yummy pizza while lamenting the state of the world :(  Trump just took office. The holidays are behind us. Kids are back in school. Here goes....  

 Collina - Steph's pick for this cute little Nob Hill Italian restaurant. Well...now we know the results of the election and the Big Orange Splat won. We are terrified of what is in store for us. Will it be that bad?? At least we have each other! Much love and happy holidays!