Mystery Thursdays – Globe

As much as I’d love to deny it, I’m a procrastinator. Of course, I believe it’s because I work best under pressure and where is the pressure if you don’t wait until the very last minute? Tomorrow is yet another Mystery Thursday (from Marquita Farm) and I still haven’t posted any photos or recipes from the last Mystery Thursday…two weeks ago! I suppose if I did this in true procrastinator fashion, I’d be writing this at the wee hours of Thursday morning or from the airport – so, see Mom, I’m not a total procrastinator!

Speaking of Mom – my parents flew out at the end of May to help with the move, see the new place and celebrate my birthday. I was excited to take my Mom (who has heard plenty about my farm fresh vegetables) to Mystery Thursday at Globe, who happened to have a Marquita Farm Mystery Dinner featuring ingredients from the Mystery boxes . Marquita Farm alternates the delivery locations between the different restaurants that buy from them; the list of restaurants is rather extensive and some of the best dining in San Francisco.

Located near the Financial District, Globe offers seasonal cuisine in a laid back atmosphere. It reminded me a tad of Scott Howard (my previously favorite restaurant on the border of the Financial District and North Beach), but the prices were higher and the atmosphere a bit louder. Service was nothing stellar, but I can’t find any faults in particular to point out. Foodwise, my mom did have the hand-cut egg pasta with calamari bolognese, minced calamari replacing the typical beef. It was interesting enough that we’ve contemplated giving the dish a whirl at home. Surprise, surprise – I ordered the following prix fixe menu to get some ideas of how to use the vegetables at home.

– Local halibut ceviche, avocados, fava beans and cilantro
– Spinach fettuccini, caramelized cauliflower, shallots and breadcrumbs
– Zinfandel braised beef cheeks over collard greens, baby carrots and peas
– Buckwheat strawberry galette with buttermilk ice cream

The next day at home, my dad and I opened the mystery box to find a ton of my favorite vegetables – fava beans, cauliflower, cilantro, baby carrots, scallions, bacon avocados, English peas, spinach, salad mix, collard greens, and purple Sicilian artichokes.

I’m like a kid on Christmas Eve over the next delivery – my buddy T and I are splitting a mystery box, 10 pounds of cherries and a 5 pound bag of avocados!