Em's Place Breakfast
Okay, this is truly a guilty pleasure.There's a little restaurant in San Francisco on McAllister Street between Hyde and Leavenworth, not too far from Market Street (where they offer an entirely different kind of guilty pleasure) that makes the best breakfast sandwich in the known universe.
The eggs are fresh, the bacon crisp and generous, the melty American cheese gooping out with each bite, and the muffin freshly toasted. And served with a huge smile and a kind word from the lively Chinese couple who owns the restaurant and have put their son through college by the sweat of their collective brows.
People my age should never eat food this rich, but I do sometimes and it's always a great treat. Em's Place. $2.25 and the price hasn't changed in five years.Get yours before there's a price increase and be sure to leave a tip in case the son decides to go to grad school!
posted by Zoomie at
6:46 AM
9 Comments:
Oohh! Yummy! I love breakfast food.
You're killing me. I have all the ingredients to make my own sandwich in the fridge (and I have often made one of these to start my morning.) I'm just not sure if I would be able to bite into it. Waaaah!
Roxie, wish I knew a good place to tell you about in Boston but I'm sure you'll find 'em there!
Dagny, now that's truly torture - no fair! You could stop reading for the duration, but then I'd miss your comments and I'd be sad...
I explained my dilemma to my dad this morning. He said the answer was crumpets since they wouldn't be as hard to bite into as an English muffin. It's so wonderful to have a dad who loves food as much as I do. I might have to go to Andronico's now.
It's pretty. The muffin looks... homemade!
Dagny, aren't Dads the best?
Cookie, I should ask them if they make their own muffins. Kinda doubt it, but you never know!
Em's has been around for years and is a long time favorite of mine. Great food and wonderful people in a place where you would not expect it - let's hope that your plug brings in a new generation of customers.
namastenancy
Namastenancy, I hope so, too. They are lovely people, the best of America. They deserve to succeed.
"Em's Place" was an icon in the neighborhood. Celebrities like Joan Baez, Dianne Feinstein, Mark Hammill, Yul Brenner, and more took photos with Em and shared in her famous hamburgers made with real ground Chuck and Sirloin blends, chili "em-lettes" which had eggs that magically rose into a hot pocket of goodness, and french and mexican fare from her days of culinary institute training in San Diego. Em's Place once had a 4 star rating from food critics at the SF Chronicle and weekend magazine and she was even featured on a ABC7 News special as an beacon in the TL/Civic Center neighborhood. People talked about going to Em's like going to Cheers. Lines out the door, but always clean, food was great, and Em and her husband Wilson always knew every customer's name by heart and their favourite order.
Since then this has become a shadow of its earlier self. Time has created a hole in the wall, despite the new owners Eric and Betty who are very nice people and very hard working.
Long live em's. (by the way Em's Place has a descendant called M's Cafe on 9th avenue/Judah. Em has no part in ownership but helped teach the owners how to cook her burgers. Em is retired but sill lives in San Francisco) YungWingCo@googlemail.com
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