Tony Bennett first sang this song in the premiere San Francisco hotel, The Fairmont ($350/night), in 1961 and recorded it a year later. It became his signature piece and perhaps the most famous song about San Francisco.But I wasn't feeling like singing when I woke up Monday morning. Not sure what I ate to make me so bilious but I couldn't get out of bed. Glen had a breakfast meeting so he left me to sleep until 10:00 am. After a shower, I felt well enough to touch base with Jennifer. We'd made plans to go to Sausalito which I had cancelled earlier. Neither of us was up for a ferry ride so we decided to do a 'walk about'. She wanted to show me the theatre district where she used to come into town as a teen to see plays and musicals. We then did a quick tour of Chinatown before heading through Union Square.
That's where I saw the heart (see photo). I'd seen a few around town but thought they were much like the cows in Edmonton or orcas in Victoria where local artists decorated statuary to raise money for charity. Not so the hearts of San Francisco.
A talented artist, Tony Bennett donated these and each bears one of his paintings of San Francisco. Under the name, Tony Benedetto, he has exhibited his works in many galleries around the world. He was the official artist of the 2001 Kentucky Derby and the United Nations also commissioned him to do a painting for their 50th anniversary.
Beyond Union Square, we found ourselves in the financial district where we discovered a quaint sandwich/coffee shop called Bread & Cocoa. My stomach was still rocky but needed food so I ordered a roasted vegetable sandwich and a ginger ale. Jennifer went with chicken on a bun and Coke. Half a sandwich was an option offered which I took and am glad I did as the sandwich was substantial. The place was small so we were lucky to grab a table for two but most customers worked in the office buildings and took their lunches to go. The soups looked delicious but I wasn't sure my stomach could handle them.
Jennifer and I returned to our hotels so I could go back to bed but sleep eluded me. I guess I'd recovered.
That evening Glen was happy to dine with just me and we decided to eat near the hotel. After perusing his Open Table app, we concluded a Southern restaurant was for us. A five minute walk got us to Biscuits and Blues. The place was empty except for another couple but we were ready for a quiet evening so it was perfect. The minute I opened the menu, I knew I wanted fried green tomatoes. Then I saw the deep fried pickles and I knew I'd found my restaurant. Glen and I shared these appetizers then I had southern fried chicken and he had crab cakes. We also shared an incredible bread pudding for dessert.
As we ate, the place began filling up until there were no empty seats. The band set up and began to play. We enjoyed our dessert listening to Pro Jazz Jam with Mike Olmos. It seemed a fitting end to the day.
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