SIV Picks San Francisco, Gold at The Olive Garden

1) San Francisco: SIV switches up her usual review this week for a trip to San Francisco to sample six eateries: Plum, Cotogna, Commonwealth, Mission Chinese Food, Bar Agricole and Benu. Immediately Sher declares that San Francisco's "food scene there is on fire. Every meal I had was noteworthy. Either I was very lucky, or there's a whole lot of good cooking going around up there...What are the chances of picking six really good restaurants in a row? In my experience, slim. But it happened on this trip. The even better news is that many are quite affordable, fun and blessed with an exuberant and bright spirit." [LAT]

2) Arcadia: A foiled April Fool's joke, which Gold tried to play on his photographer, Anne Fishbein, lands him at The Olive Garden: "I had no intention of eating lunch at the Olive Garden. I was planning to intercept the grumpy photographer at the door and spirit her to the Derby, a track-fueled steak house less than a minute's drive down the street. We'd have a Sidecar or two. We'd laugh at how she'd been fooled...Except that I was caught in traffic and ended up at the restaurant 20 minutes after she got there. She had commandeered a big table upstairs, and was already into the bread sticks, long, doughy things slicked with grease and oil. She was working on a cappuccino, which was all but hidden under a swirly tower of whipped cream. She was looking forward to a bowl of 'Tuscan'' soup..." Anyway, as one would expect, Gold has nothing positive to say about his dining experience, every dish was a flop. He concedes, "I'm the snob. I will always be the snob." [LAW]

The Elsewhere: The Find discovers La Cocina del Camaguey, Eat: LA hits Venice Beach Wines, Food Je T'aime tries Red Medicine, Gastronomy dines at Yun Chuan Garden, Refined Palate chooses Raphael, and Sinosoul picks Roy's.