For breakfast Jeff went and picked up Starbucks which was just across the street. We ate on the balcony, it was a bit cool, but still nice and sunny. We wanted to have Dim Sum in the Chinatown before we left so after breakfast we headed that way. Luckily the hotel was just a short walk to there. They had something special going on, they had closed Grant Avenue and when we arrived there the end of a parade was going by. They also had table tennis tournaments towards the other end of the street. After wandering around for awhile and checking out different places we found Peninsula Seafood Restaurant. It is on Jackson Street between Grant and Kearny. We had to wait for a bit (the place was packed), but was seated pretty fast, we also noticed that we were the only non-Chinese in there. We usually take that as a good sign, if the locals like the place it must be good. And they didn't disappoint us this time either. This was a Hong Kong style Dim Sum, and if I've understood correctly, that is where it originated. They had waiters/waitresses bring trays of different things from shu mais to dumplings to noodle rolls to chicken feet, (we didn't try the chicken feet), and everything in between. It was really good and will recommend that place to anybody who wants to have Dim Sum in San Francisco.
 |
| Breakfast from Starbucks at the hotel balcony |
 |
| Some light reading and a cup of coffee after breakfast |
 |
| End of a parade in Chinatown, San Francisco |
 |
| Chinese gate at Bush and Grant |
 |
| Table tennis tournaments |
 |
| Lovely music along the way |
 |
| Dim Sum |
 |
| Dim Sum Menu, or part of it |
 |
| Dim Sum |
After lunch we got our car and headed out towards Napa. We took the Golden Gate Bridge, but it might not have been the fastest way. We wanted to stop at the look-out on the other side of the bridge, but there were so many cars in there that even if waited in the line to get off we might not have found a parking space. So we just drove to Napa. We had a hotel reservation so we didn't have to worry about finding a hotel. We went to the downtown and found the Welcome Center were they were very helpful and sent us to a winery which was still open for tours at that "late" hour. We would have been late for most of the other tours, not that the hour was late, just mid afternoon. So we headed out to the Hess Collection Winery near Napa. We had their tasting, which was good, while we waited for the tour to start. Most of the tours seem to be pretty much the same, but I did find it interesting that some of their vines are over 90 years old.
 |
| View of San Francisco |
 |
| View of San Francisco, lot of sailboats for the America's Cup |
 |
| Downtown Napa River area |
 |
| Hess Collection Winery |
 |
| Don't know what these are at the Hess Collection Winery |
 |
| Hess Collection Winery |
 |
| 90 year old vines at the Hess Collection Winery |
 |
| The cellar at the Hess Collection Winery |
 |
| Hess Collection Winery |
 |
| Hess Collection Winery |
After the winery tour we headed to our hotel, Marriott, which also had a happy hour and free wine tasting. We had some of their wines and checked out our e-mails etc. Neither of us were too hungry and since Jeff still hadn't had a chance to have his In-N-Out burger, we went there for dinner. I know, it's Napa and it's full of nice restaurants, but we had a burger instead (we are going to have lunch tomorrow at the CIA, which will make up for it too). I don't know about Jeff, but I don't think In-N-Out is as good as Five Guys. I remembered them being better. We also stopped at a store and got some wine and cheese and crackers. The cheese was Brie, but it was the stinkiest Brie ever. I think the room smelled really bad after we left, feel sorry for the maid.
