Best Food In China

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Imagine a restaurant where you give back to the community while you munch on healthy San Francisco treats? Not only would you feel good about your food but good about yourself. San Francisco eatz is giving folks the opportunity to feel progressive and fit with its California style mentality towards food and people.

The concept of San Francisco eatz began with Professor Bruce Quan Jr., who teaches law at Beida University. The Dean wanted him to help his students, particularly the ones from lower socio-economic backgrounds, earn money and prepare them for the real world. Bruce devised this eatery, where the students would work for money but also at the end of the year, decide how to divide and distribute the profit among local charities. What better way to feel good about spending your money on a treat and knowing it will wind up in the hands of the needy?

Besides it’s not like you’re going to donate a fortune. The food is catered towards a higher end white collared clientele, but with reasonable prices. Rice plates and noodles are 15 to 28 rmb, soups in bread bowls are 25 rmb, local beer is only 6 rmb and Budweiser is 8 rmb, salads and sides 5 to 6 rmb, burgers are 10 to 30 rmb, and sandwiches are 15 to 28 rmb.

So I’ve covered how generously priced and charitable this little eatery is, but how does it make a body good. Well, you know those Californians, always health conscious. The portions are sensible sized and nothing doused in oil or fat or butter or cream. They even encourage you to eat more vegetables by serving a salad with each item and making sure the food isn’t so overwhelming that you don’t want to eat your salad. Plus there are great vegetarian dishes.

For example, the Vegetable Quesadilla tasted like good old fashioned American quesadillas but rather than being drenched in oil and gooey cheese, this one was light and fresh and I was able to taste the veggies for once. Crunchy but not too hard, it did the trick without the extra calories.

For those wanting gourmet foods, you will soon discover that the sourdough bread is made for the Wolfgang Puck’s of the world. Bruce’s old book group included Steve Sullivan the founder of ACME Bread Company, which is responsible for baking all the bread at the high end gourmet and starred restaurants. e received his start at Chez Panisse, a restaurant started by Alice Waters who is acknowledged as the originator of California cuisine which is a philosophy of using fresh, local ingredients to prepare healthy meals in tune with society's emphasis on a healthy lifestyle. Later, chefs such as Wolfgang Puck adapted her philosophy in their endeavors. Acme Bakery is the acknowledged leader in the San Francisco Bay Area for Artisan Bread. Bruce convinced him to share his secret recipe and technique and they brought it to China. Their sourdough is made exactly the way ACME makes it. Their customer must realize this too, as San Francisco Eatz does private lunches for the US Ambassador, Canadian Embassy, Australian Embassy, and for numerous corporate functions.

Hence I bring you to the next dish. The Clam Chowder in San Francisco Sourdough Bread Bowl also did not try to kill you with added fats. Served with a side salad of fresh that day picked vegetables corn and beans, and drizzled with light raspberry walnut dressing, the bread wall was much smaller than in American diners where it fills the whole plate, and the clam chowder was very tasty, but not as thick and creamy as in say a US diner. Their clam chowder was milkier and lighter, and stood against the scrumptious sour dough very well. The sweet soup and soft bread did not stuff or bloat me.

The Pan Fried Salmon with Pesto Sauce was also an appropriate size, and surprisingly (since this place is in a food court) smooth and moist. Very well cooked without trying to cover it up with seared oil, you could taste and appreciate the salmon for itself. When topped with the homemade pesto sauce, it was absolutely mouth watering. It was served with white rice and egg and garlic sauce, and of course the rice dish wasn’t overly fried like in most fast food restaurants but oddly enough was very light and crisp; I could barely taste the egg, which for me is a good thing.

San Francisco eatz even has a hamburger to rival that of the “great” burger joints in Beijing. It is topped with mushroom, cheese, onion and a sesame seed bun, but the burger itself is filled with a secret sauce made by the local chef. It taste like a medley of all the great sauces you usually put on a burger but with a mystery ingredient that gives it a sweet yet juicy taste, and makes you want to finish it all.

With a meal that left me feeling satisfied but not heavy or guilty, this place is a great choice for lunch. Resembling a diner with red chairs and white tables, it is meant to be a home away from home. Many ex-pats come here not only for the atmosphere but because Bruce has taken the time to do taste tests with ex-pat families to ensure the food reminds them of back home.

I have to say San Francisco eatz is the place to get high quality healthy Californian food. Locals shouldn’t be shy of it either; this is the place to try American food by far. You’ll walk away with a good body and a good conscience.

-- by Larissa Paschyn

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