Mission Street Food update

I'm not sure, but I think that people aren't supposed to update blogs on Friday nights, thus creating the illusion that they are out having a better time than you are. However, I am pretty beet (!) from being out on the streets all last week, from Halloween Critical Mass, to election night spontaneous street dancing, to finally getting a taste of the S.F. foodie phenomenon Mission Street Food last night (I missed the vigil and march to protest the depressingly misguided passage of Prop. 8's ban on gay marriage, but many of my friends were out there).

In a tragic missed connection, I never did get to meet that elusive King Trumpet sandwich, since the operation has tweaked its menu and moved on up from a taco truck to a Chinese restaurant on Mission St. between 18th and 19th streets, hence taking it from Mission Street Food to Mission Street Food. I did get to sample the dreamy ginger and coconut ice cream, followed by the highly tasty meat-smoked fried rice with duck (yes not so vegetable, though the smoke part could be deemed weird). The restaurant was packed and had a kind of speakeasy vibe—the lights were mostly out except for some red-and-blue Christmas twinklers and the fluorescent glow of the back room, casting film noir shadows on the forms hunched over bowls of indeterminate edibles. By around 9:30pm, the food was running out, so I had to grab whatever happened to go by on a tray, dim-sum style.

The foodies were out in full effect thanks to the frenzy whipped up by local blogs like Eater SF, SFist, and Burrito Justice, which have already posted extensive photos and updates on last night's meal. The service was friendly and volunteered by chef Anthony Myint's loved ones, and I left a hefty 75-cent tip for my harried waiter, who found me a spot at a table with his friends (thanks!). I also met a nice Italian food enthusiast named Arrigo who has promised to give Weird Vegetables the inside scoop on his upcoming vegetable fermentation extravaganza based on a workshop he went to in Berkeley. Check the updates on Anthony's blog Mission Street Food for more information on location, menus, and possible guest chef appearances. Still every Thursday until further notice...