Vietnamese Restaurants abound in San Francisco and almost all feature their own version of Pho commonly made with a flavorful beef stock.  Turtle Tower Restaurant prepares a northern Hanoi style Pho made with chicken stock.  Its clear carefully prepared stock is one of the best around.  Here is chicken noodle soup -- Vietnamese style -- with large flat rice noodles, shreds of chicken and a handful of green onions - comfort food on a cold rainly night.

In my last blog on handrails, I showed the Pine Street handrail being changed with new brackets and a wood rail.  It's done now I now I happily feel the handrail daily as I go up and down the stairs.

I've taken a few pictures of our flat as we empty it and prepare it for renting.  This is the master bedroom. 

If you're looking for a beautiful flat in San Francisco, check this out.  It's available in April. 

Last January I showed this photo of beaded redwood panel in the entry porch of our Victorian in San Francisco.  We installed new intercoms and the old doorbell was removed leaving an unslightly hole.  I was afraid we would need to resort to a cover plate or a repair of the hole would always be visible.  Our contractor, Kenji said he would repair the hole so I anxiously awaited the outcome as I feared something unslightly. 

Finally he painted the whole thing to match the rest of panel.  If you didn't see it before, you would never know there was a patch.
Our contractor, Kenji Hasegawa did a fantastic job!  See more of his work on his website here.

My morning coffee at Vega Cafe is the best I can find near my office.  They use Blue Bottle coffee beans, but yet I find that Blue Bottle served at different cafes aren't equally good.  Maybe it's the machine or the barrista, but Vega almost always has a superior brew.

Although individually dripped coffee seems to be the new standard, I stick with the a short Americano which is an expresso with a little hot water.  That way I get this beautiful crema that needs to be sipped before its essense evaporates in the morning air.  What a way to start the day!

The expansion of Brenda's Restaurant at Polk and Eddy in San Francisco has doubled the dining room size.  The new section features an assortment of old mirrors hung on the concrete wall -- a nice contrast.  If you go, try the shrimp and grits.