Clambake!

My favorite food is clams. When I was a little girl, my favorite food was clams. As a teenager, my favorite food was still clams. As an adult, my favorite food is currently clams. When I am and aged elder, my favorite food will still be clams. In other words, I love clams.

So imagine my excitement the other day at brunch at the Presidio Social Club when I discovered that they have a clambake every Monday of summer on through the end of October. So guess what I had for dinner last night. That's right. I had clams.

But not just clams. The clam bake came with lobster and mussels, too, as well as sides, salad, and dessert. A feast indeed.

The butterleaf salad had a bright vinaigrette, crisp and refreshing - the perfect lead-in for a seafood fiesta.

The, the piece de resistance: a mound of shellfish. That parchment under the giant slab of lobster? That was filled with clams, mussels, and potatoes. The best part of the night came when I went to eat the last couple clams I saved for the end, only to discover that the parchment pouch continued further back under the pile of seaweed greens, sheltering another handful of the tasty morsels. Bonus clams!

I was in shellfish heaven. I would say I could eat clams multiple times a week, but I already do. I could almost eat them everyday. So what could make this meal better? Well, maybe chocolate. That's about all I can think of. Oh, wait! The dessert that promptly followed: DARK CHOCOLATE PUDDING. Heaven, I say. Heaven.

The Presidio Social Club's motto is, "All the benefits, with none of the dues," or something to that effect. All the luxury of a ritzy, exclusive club available to everyone. The decor and service fits the motif: classically chic with dark wood and leather, airy and full of light with lots of windows and an open floor plan, pleasant and friendly servers and bartenders. Certainly luxurious, but not without a sense of humor: