Haute 5 Comfort Foods in San Fran: Because Who Doesn’t Need a Little Comfort During the Holidays?

Without a doubt, comfort foods come in handy many times throughout the year. When a relationship breaks up we can’t reach for the Ben & Jerry’s fast enough. When a hangover kicks in, only the greasy fried goodness of a burger and fries will do. When our beloved furry friends bid this world adieu, well, for that, there is almost no food that can cure our aching hearts.

So come December, let the feasting begin. The culinary delights that await us in the festive holiday month serve to not only pay homage to childhood memories of traditional holiday meals, but can also offer temporary relief from the stress that can sometime accompany the holidays.

Considering that it is almost time to travel and spend endless hours with family members who may or may not drive us to drink, here is a list of some of our favorite foods that may offer a bit of comfort this month.

You Say Potato, I say Potato too

We really don’t care how you pronounce it, what matters most is that you find a place on your plate for it. Growing up in the South, the version of this carb that made an appearance at our dinner table on a weekly basis was mashed with lakes of homemade flour gravy, and thus remains a favorite, though not quite as haute as the offerings that grace today’s gourmet menus. Take, for example, the potato creations coming out of Pat Kuleto’s Epic Roasthouse, with a whole menu section dedicated to the brown eyed blobs. Chef Jan Birnbaum includes everything from Truffle Whipped Potatoes to a Potato Onion Pie for four. Naturally baked, scallop au gratin, and steak fries demand attention too.

Of course Chef Michael Mina does not disappoint in our cravings for gourmet comfort foods, offering Cardoons and New Crop Potatoes with Black Truffle Emulsion, Aged Pecorino, and Wild Arugula on his New Year’s Eve menu at RN74. Not to be outdone, executive chef Gregory Short delivers Truffle Potato Salad to his haute diners at Masa’s that is also worthy of some ink.

Not Your Kid’s Mac-n-Cheese

So clearly, these days, truffle is the way to go when opting to class up anything formerly considered food for the masses, and with that in mind, we come to my most favorite category of comfort foods: mac-n-cheese. And all I can say is thank goodness this rich, creamy side has graduated from its time spent as an orange, powdery substance in foil package and cardboard box, because when its time to gorge on foods for comfort, the hauter the better. Not only does the truffle make it sounds fancier when reporting on your pig out session to friends, it really does make it taste better too.

Attempting to enhance the flavors even more, Circa offers a Lobster and White Truffle Mac-n-Cheese. It is a dish so rich and so properly executed that it consistently appears on Top 10 lists, although considering the recent change in ownership, we will be keep a watchful eye on what happens to this cheesy delight. And though we should spread the love somewhat, we must mention Epic once more for their commendable take on our haute comfort food.

Brown Sugar

While I am a salty girl to my core, there is no way a list of comfort foods can be issued without giving nod to the sweets that so many Americans hold so dear. While this time of year bids us to recall scents of gingerbreads, pumpkin pies, and sugar cookies, homage to that sweet dark deliciousness that is known as chocolate must come first. When forced to be sweet, I usually opt for white chocolate, but I do recognize that for many, milk and dark chocolates are the varieties that offer the most comfort. For those chocoholics in the audience, may we suggest the Chocolate Nemesis at Bar Jules. It is a flourless concoction, topped with freshly whipped cream with vanilla, which has kept the town raving about since inception. And refusing to sit back and play second fiddle is the Chocolate Peanut Butter Mouse from Fish & Farm. In the perfect combination of sweet and salty, the divine dessert brings together salted caramel, peanut brittle, and chocolate ice cream in a way that is not necessarily ground breaking, but a delicious dish of comfort nonetheless.

Childhood Treats

And not to be forgotten among our favorite sweet concoctions are the miniature cakes that can instantly transport us back to a time when the world was small. Of course in San Francisco the cupcake battle lines were drawn long ago, with Kara’s Cupcakes earning much adoration. But Sprinkles is another contestant demanding consideration in the games.

Nogs, Toddies, or Anything With Champagne

Now we certainly are not recommending that our dear readers turn to alcohol to find comfort, but when the holiday moment presents itself, you will know that the time is right to ingest the soothing effects of the spirits we cherish most. Most often times, connoisseurs of the strange dairy-laden drink we know as eggnog often find that nothing beats their own homemade recipes, perhaps with ingredients from the Strauss Family Creamery (though Laszlo’s is rumored to have served a great one in the city last year). So for our next favorite wintertime drink, we’ll send you over to Kuleto’s Union Square for the Organic Hot Toddy, crafted with Highland Harvest Organic Scotch added to steeped Organic Cloves, Organic Lemon Zest and Organic Honey. But if you just so happen to feel finer on wine, a trip to the Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco is certainly in order. Sommelier Stephane Lacroix never disappoints with his careful selections of reds and whites, which should certainly be sampled at one of their many holiday events. Restaurants we couldn’t resist mentioning once more include Masa’s because of the Orange-Cranberry Cocktail “Slurpee” on their Christmas Eve menu and Bar Jules for the New Year’s Eve Proseco cocktail with blood orange.