bittersweet chocolate cafe

bittersweet chocolate cafe
2123 fillmore street (between california street & sacramento street), san francisco, CA 94115
tel: 415) 346-8715
hours: monday-thursday 10am-8pm, friday-saturday 10am-10pm, sunday 10am-8pm

what was consumed: soy hot chocolate, latte, coffee

after a nice lunch in the makeshift "little italy" area of san francisco, nick, jenny, and i head back to the japantown/pacific heights area for a bit of after meal eats. wendy had mentioned a nice hot chocolate place; so, after a bit of blackberry googling, we found bittersweet and head over for some warm drinks and good conversation.

coffee shops like bittersweet seem pretty common in hip towns like SF (and even in some areas in DC, like georgetown). there isn't that corporate sense (even though that may be the case). there's something about the woodsy decor, bench and stool seating (in addition to other sorts of chairs) and the latte art that separates places like this from what more mainstream, corporate, mass production coffee shops have (unfortunately) become.

nick, jenny, and i grabbed a seat by the window. it wasn't until later that we noticed a whole 1 1/2 level area of seating. but that's alright because we had a good view of people going in and out, back and forth, on the rather busy fillmore street. there certainly are a lot of interesting people who walk by - people watching is great!

we each decided on different drinks - soy hot chocolate for jenny, latte for nick, coffee for me (to add to the over-caffineition that was necessary for me the weekend of SFIAAFF 2009 - yeehaw!). i'm glad one of us got the hot chocolate because that's what bittersweet is known for. and let me say, for those who love that sweet, milky, chocolately hot chocolate, bittersweet is for you! it is as though they melt the chocolate, splash in some milk, and serve it to you hot. that's how hot chocolate should be, mind you (totally different from that swiss miss deliciousness that i grew up with). the chocolate is think and creamy, helping it last through much time of good conversation and time with friends. and you always know that when the baristas take time to draw hearts, flowers, etc. with the milk in your drink, they know how to make you feel special and draw you in for another cup.

on a side note, i did comment on a note that was taped to their register that said something like, "all sales are final." i don't know why i thought that was so funny. i mean, do people take a bite of their cookie or a sip of their chocolate and come back in dissatisfaction, asking for their money back? i suppose it applicable to some of their other products (e.g. unopened packages of coffee beans), but really? really? there is no doube in my mind that the note was put up after someone complained that they were not taking returns. i dunno, it just seemed so ridiculous to me.

no matter - i enjoyed my time at bittersweet and look forward to sharing this chocolate haven for those with extreme sweet toothes (teeth?). i will sip on my rather delicious bittersweet coffee while you enjoy~

online: http://www.bittersweetcafe.com/