Art's Cafe looks like your run of the mill diner counter. A trademark tall table runs down the narrow restaurant space. Behind it, the expected sizzling skillet, dented shake cups, and coffee pitchers. Underneath the tabletop's piece of glass lay faded pictures of smiling children and postcards from all over the world. Regular diner, right?
Except not really. Art's Café brings a Korean twist to the old American favorite. Next to the shiny toasters is a steaming rice cooker, and the ketchup squeeze bottles are paired with one for Korean red chili paste. And it all starts on the back of the laminated menu. The front side of the single sheet features all the usual stuff: omelets, toast, eggs, blah blah blah. But on the back side there's a small section devoted to Korean favorites—bulgolgi, BBQ chicken, and different sorts of bi bim bap. I asked the lady behind the counter which dish I should try, and she suggested the BBQ chicken ($7.30) only if I were really hungry and the bi bim bap ($7.10) if I were moderately so. So I chose the latter. What a great decision! I chose the beef bi bim bap (opposed to the chicken or tofu), which had extremely tender, well-marinated, thin strips—I think possibly shredded pieces of bubolgi. The rice also earned tons of extra points because it was so fluffy. Unsurprising, since it came from the Mercedes of all rice cookers: the Zojirushi. Accompanying vegetables—zucchini, water crest, and bean sprouts—were unremarkable. You can also control the amount of red pepper sauce yourself, since they slide over a squeeze bottle for yourself. It was well-mixed, not overly spicy and carried tons of flavor. The couple that runs the place is adorable. The old guy with fluffy white hair commands the skillet, while the older lady runs around, taking orders and chatting with customers (She went up to this one guy, an apparent regular, and said, "So have your friends gotten married yet?"). There are two other employees who the lady watches closely ("What are you looking at?" "No short cuts! Step! By step! By step!"). My only wish was that they had spicy pork. Next time: BBQ chicken (comes with kim chee!).Art's Cafe
www.artscafesf.com
747 Irving St
San Francisco, CA 94122
(415) 665-7440