75 Chestnut, Beacon Hill

The tourists go for a drink at Cheers on Beacon Street. The locals walk an extra 2 blocks across the flat of the hill, to 75 Chestnut Street, Beacon Hill, for a meal at the mysteriously named 75 Chestnut. It's a great spot for dinner. So-so for brunch.

Dottie's True Blue Cafe, San Francisco

Next time you're in downtown San Francisco, and the smug levels are safe, get yourself to Dottie's True Blue Cafe, 522 Jones Street, Tel +1 (415) 885-2767. Don't be put off by the line running out the door and down the hill. Breakfast at Dottie's is awesome.



I'm not sure how much the specials menu changes each day, but on my visit (the day after election day) it was dripping with options, and my mouth was dripping with drool. Pumpkin chocolate chip French toast with toasted pecans and pure maple syrup ($10.95). Smoked salmon, caper, tomato, scallion and cream cheese scramble with house-baked toast and potatoes ($12.95). Pulled pork, roasted sweet onion and jack cheese scramble with flour tortillas and potatoes ($10.95). And Prius drivers, who like the smell of their own emissions, will find it hard to resist a serve of black bean cakes and eggs ($8.50). That'll keep you fueled up for a whole day of sulfur-sniffing self-satisfaction.

My smoked whiskey-fennel sausage and mushroom scramble was magnificent. The service was great, with frequent top-ups of decent coffee. And from my bar-side perch I had a bird's eye view of the kitchen action. This was indeed a day of hope.

19/20 "scrambelicious"

Sears Fine Food, San Francisco

I am always suspicious of "world famous" venues I've never heard of. But I decided to throw caution to the wind and sample the world famous Swedish pancakes at Sears Fine Food, 439 Powell St (between Post and Sutter), San Francisco, CA, Tel +1 (415) 986-1160.



Rather than 18 straight silver dollar cakes, I went with 9 little pancakes, corned beef hash, poached eggs and hash browns. The eggs came in their own dish with a puddle of water, and were so runny that they disappeared into the beef hash as soon as I started to slice 'em up. The beef hash was good, and the fat wedge of hash brown potatoes was even better. Soft in the middle. Crisp and golden on the outside. As for the pancakes, they were fine. I wouldn't call them world famous. But I wouldn't complain about them either.

13/20 "babycakes"