09/09/09

No One Does It Better

by Tootielee

We came from Texas and tried the Cafe the first night in town. We stayed in the neighborhood so I don't much feel like a tourist - just a resident on a temp basis. Turns out Mark - the owner - had some connections to San Antonio so we talked quite a bit. Nice guy!

My boys each went for the Dungeness crab and my wife chose clams and linguine. I went with shrimp. I assume the boys loved the crab as they were covered in butter within moments - all I saw were flying hands cracking shells. Both acclaimed the plate a resounding success - the entree and all sides were excellent.

I don't usually eat shrimp when dining out - because I prefer to make my own shrimp. I buy them off of the Pollyanna shrimp boat in Port Aransas, Texas and they are the norm to which all others must compare.

Mark's compare nicely. Lightly breaded and fried to perfection, they were easily the best pacific shellfish I have had the pleasure of eating. The sides were a salad and fries. All-in-all, a very simple plate but done exceptionally well. I missed dessert in favor of an Opus X cigar. Not a bad trade off and certainly the cigar was a perfect finish to an exemplary meal by a talented chef and waitstaff.

Great job folks, now it's your turn to come to Texas and let us provide a similarly superb way to spend an hour or two!

• Pros: Good Food, Good Service, Good Owner
• Cons: It Aint In Texas Ya'll

09/09/09

As much of a can't miss in San Francisco as the Golden Gate

by spursrule

Cafe Maritime has the best seafood I have ever eaten anywhere, and I have eaten seafood all up and down the California coast. I went with my brother, mother, and father, and all of us agreed our meals were incredible.

My brother and I each ordered full dungenness crabs in garlic butter, and they were outstanding. Large too; it probably took each of us an hour and a half to finish them. Very very fresh with a delicious garlic butter. The sides were top-notch too (fries and garlic bread).

My mother got clam linguine, and we were blown away by the number of clams in it. Usually you get maybe 5 or 6 clams in the shell when you order clam linguine, but here the entire plate was covered with them. Even though I had a crab I was still jealous as hell seeing that plate when it came out, and even moreso after sampling it.

My father got the shrimp, and they were enormous. They looked like the giant shrimp that cost $25 a pound over at the Redondo Beach fish market, but the plate was probably only about $15 even though it looked like close to a pound of them (about 5). My dad said they were actually better than the enormous shrimp he buys right off the fisherman in Port Aransas, Texas, which is pretty high praise because Gulf shrimp are almost universally better than any shrimp I have ever had in California (by implication you can tell I wasn't able to convince him to let me try his... LOL).

We were all stuffed and didn't know what the heck to do when the owner offered us a complimentary coconut cream pie. I thought no way I'm having room for this, but tried a bite to be polite. After the first bite I all of a sudden found room, as the pie would get an 11 if I had to grade it on a scale of 1-10. That was completely unexpected to get a pie that good at a small seafood joint.

The staff was extremely friendly. We chatted with the owner for a while about our trip to Colorado and Vegas and how much we already loved San Francisco after only being there a couple of hours, and I told our waitress if I ever get the chair that I'd tell the warden to send for my last meal from their place. This place will always be the first I eat any time I make it out to San Francisco again. I cannot think of a restaurant I have ever eaten at that I would recommend over Cafe Maritime. Every single plate we had we would all rate a 10/10.

• Pros: Every single thing I sampled there was incredible
• Cons: It's a 1,750 mile drive from my house

10/19/08

Great seafood in the Marina

by jjlasne

I have not eaten there in quite a while but I remember telling the waiter that this was the freshest fish I had ever eaten in San Francisco. I was not too impressed by the New Zealand mussels in Pernod sauce but really liked the Marlborough Chardonnay from New Zealand. I will return there soon and add to this review but this is what restaurant to consider for fresh and well served seafood.

• Pros: Fresh seafood
• Cons: Parking