One of our very favorite cafés, Velo Rouge, is undergoing a few changes now that Megan Lynch is no longer the owner. The good news is we haven’t come across any dealbreakers—it’s still super bicycle friendly, they still serve good food and gigantic mimosas, they still have free wireless and they’re still certified as a Green Café by the Green Café Network (a newish project started locally in 2007).
But there is one big change: Radio Kitchen Café, the popular bi-weekly floating restaurant has been replaced with Melissa Claire’s Kitchen every Thursday with two sittings, one at 6:15 p.m. and one at 8 p.m. The vibe seems similar to Radio Kitchen; local, organic, sustainable fare (is there any other kind in San Francisco?) with 2-3 communal dining tables (another very popular trend in the SF food scene). We haven’t checked it out yet so we can’t compare the two, but it’s definitely on our radar and we’ll be making a reservation soon.
We have to admit we had no idea who Melissa Claire was, but checking out her site it seems she’s worked the kitchens at Fringael and Delifina and now when she’s not doing the whole prix fixe thing at Velo Rouge ($45 – cash only), she’s also a personal chef. Not bad.
The menu is seasonal and therefore changes, but right now she’s featuring a trendy watermelon, pancetta and feta salad (appropriately enough we had a similar dish at Pizzeria Delifina this weekend), housemade gnocchi and pan roasted flat iron steak.
With Velo Rouge being so charmingly small we’d suggest making a reservations, but they do take walk-ins.
Velo Rouge Café [Menupages]
Velo Rouge Café [Official Site]
Fringael [Menupages]
Fringale [Official Site]
Pizzeria Delifina [Menupages]
Delifina [Menupages]
Delfina [Official Site]
Melissa Claire’s Kitchen [Official Site]
[Photo via notphilatal/Flickr]
