November 14, 2015

The Hilo housewives left Napa for San Francisco and checked in at the Hotel Zelos, formerly Hotel Palomar.  If you are a shopper, this is the perfect location for your stay in SF. It is located above the Old Navy store right next to Westfield Mall.  Our group is full of serious shoppers. As soon as we checked in and dropped our bags off, the group headed to the mall for their shopping fix. I’m not much of a shopper, but I am a huge fan of the city.  Instead of going to the mall, I walked to Union Square and spent a little time in the shadow of the Macy’s Christmas tree pretending to be a SF resident just taking a break from the hustle and bustle of the day. I love this city–the energy of the people, traffic, and noise.  Sitting on the steps, updating the blog here in the middle of the city brings a warmth to my heart. I love Hilo, but the time I get to spend in the city is special.

I stopped for a ramen snack at Katana-ya just a block away from Union Square. This was the perfect dish to fuel me through some omiyage shopping for the kids.  I had the Katana-ya special that had chasiu, boiled egg, chicken, gyoza, wakame, and green onion.  I easily found a seat at the bar and was served quickly after putting in the order.

I just had a few hours to spend relaxing and soaking up the energy of the city before I met up with one of my childhood friends whom I met in kindergarten at Kalanianaole School in Papaikou. Deaner and I grew up together, lost touch after high school, and have since reconnected in recent years. Deaner met me on the fifth floor of Hotel Zelos at a hip and trendy place called Dirty Habit that was previously called Fifth Floor.  They had an awesome selection of drinks in a fun atmosphere perfect for catching up with old friends.

After having some time to catch up with Deaner, the rest of the ladies met us for a cocktail before our 8:45 p.m. dinner at Restaurant Gary Danko. We had a group of 10 ladies so were able to secure a private room. I ordered the following heavenly courses.

• Seared Foie Gras with Caramelized Onions and Apples
• Glazed Oysters with Osetra Caviar, Salsify and Lettuce Cream
• Risotto with Rock Shrimp, Lobster, Shimeji Mushrooms and Butternut Squash
• Dungeness Crab Salad with Avocado, Citruc, Bulgar and Mustard-Tarragon Vinaigrette
• Roast Maine Lobster with Potato Puree, Chantarelle Mushrooms, Edamame and Tarragon.

We left the restaurant after 1 a.m., the last table to leave that evening.  (Somehow, we were the last table in the restaurant every single evening we went out!) The restaurant gave us a moist, delicious pumpkin cake in a gold wrapping for us to take home as a parting gift.  The most special parting gift, though, was our menu autographed by none other than Chef Gary Danko.  What an incredible end to our amazing Napa/San Francisco weekend.