Day 4, the one day we were car-free. (Yes, there was a lot of driving on this trip. Thank goodness gas is just $5 a gallon, right?) We lucked out on parking: While our hotel charged $50 a day for unlimited in and out privileges (uh, no thanks), we found a metered spot in front. Normally $1 per 24 minutes -- again, robbery -- street parking was free thanks to the holiday. Comfortable in the knowledge that the car probably wouldn't be broken into right in front of the hotel, we left it there and spent the holiday on foot.
It's not a trip to San Francisco for us these days without a breakfast visit to Dottie's True Blue Cafe. A morning visit means standing in line for as long as an hour -- but like we told the first-timers behind us, it's worth it.
When I think of San Francisco, my mind frequently wanders to Dottie's breakfast, as a matter of fact. We woke up early and called soon after 7:30 to gage the wait. "There's no line!" the guy on the phone claimed. We rushed to get ready, walked out to Jones.. and encountered the longest line we've ever faced there. No matter. We were there, and we were going to wait. Here's what we ordered once we finally got inside the tiny dining room:
Louisiana hot link and eggs any style, grilled cornbread and potatoes ($8.95).
Smoked whisky fennel sausage, mushroom and baby spinach scramble with grilled cornbread and potatoes ($10.45).
Evan's pancake ($3.50).
After breakfast, we decided to finally grant Evan his wish -- it was time to ride the cable car. But given that it's the height of tourist season, the line for the main cable car route in Union Square is crazy long. We weren't in the mood to stand for hours in line, only to be squeezed into a cable car -- so instead, we walked to Van Ness and California to take the other, less traveled line.
Yeah, it's much shorter than the other route, and the views aren't as breath taking. But it's still cool, Evan's still on a cable car, and we didn't waste hours in line.
Once out near the Ferry Building, we turned around and walked up to Chinatown, and then down Columbus. We wound up in Fishmen's Wharf, which was jam packed with people, some of whom had already camped out, waiting to see fireworks. Given the crowds and the foggy sky, we decided to skip the show and hop on the bus back to the Ferry Building. We then switched to an F train -- another treat for Evan -- and rode it back close to the hotel.
We asked the concierge at the Intercontinental for a decent pizzeria, and he suggested Uncle Vito's, at Bush and Powell.
It was there that we dined next to the San Francisco Twins.
The identical twins, Marian and Vivian Brown, live nearby in Nob Hill, and do virtually everything together -- including wearing the same exact outfit, something they've done all their lives. Apparently they're regulars at Uncle Vito's, where they take their time sipping wine, eating dinner and having cake for dessert -- all at a steep discount. Perhaps there's a secret to growing old in there.
Uncle Vito's earned Evan's approval too, as it's right on the cable car line. While we waited for a table, a cable car conductor stopped traffic by parking his fully packed trolley, running inside Uncle Vito's and fetching his dinner.
We walked back to our hotel after that and caught some far-off fireworks via the room's windows.
Next: The long drive south, and pea soup? Pea u!
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