Well, it may not be new anymore, but at least for us, the novelty has not yet worn off the T-Third Street line. It goes through a really interesting part of the city, with new development popping up right next to crumbling waterfront, and a lot of businesses and neighborhoods to which you probably would have given short shrift if you had to rely on the old 15 bus to take you there.
So in this installment of On The Road Again, we’re taking a fantastic voyage up (down?) Third Street to celebrate the under-celebrated southeast side of the city.
• Following on the heels of the T-line’s opening, Serpentine is one of the first new restaurants to take advantage of the new access to the Dogpatch neighborhood. It’s a good, if a little slick, new venture. There’s lots of natural light, really fresh produce, and good drinks. Chef Chris Kronner, we learned at a recent dinner there, takes pains to find high-end, local ingredients. Oh, and he’s a good cook, too.
• Even though we’ve already given it a shout-out in this column, it’s worth noting that the T is the land-lubber’s route to The Ramp, the east side’s only restaurant/bar/boat repair yard with guest dock.
• Farther out Third Street, you pass into the Bayview district, where tons of African American folks moved from the South to work at the shipyards during World War II, and brought their cuisine with them. There’s a million little hole-in-the-wall southern joints of varying quality along Third Street, one of the most reliable of which is the Monte Carlo Bar and Grill, just off Third, on Yosemite. They do New-Orleans-style Cajun food for lunch, and appetizers at night when they turn into more of a club than a restaurant.
• Finally, toward the end of the line, there’s the always-fascinating Russia House. For some reason, we’ve never been here (probably because it is way out in the southeast boondocks and used to be hard to get to without a car), but this place has been on our must-visit list for a long time. If you’ve ever driven to SFO from the city, you’ve seen it perched there above 101, taunting you because you have to go fold yourself into a plane for six hours instead of going there and drinking vodka all night. Word is, it’s a really authentic Russian vibe, with heavy accents, carafes of vodka, and good, cold-weather food.
[Photo: Via eviloars/flickr]
