Our last Stunt Food Alert brought you such feats of stomach strength as the potsticker burrito and the waffle donut (or wonut). Honey, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Pop a pair of Tums and check out some new challenges that are coming your way:
Octodog at Shakewell
Brunch launched last week at this new Oakland spot, and chef Jen Biesty has dreamed up a wild item that taps into a ubiquitous current food trend. If you’ve sat on the Internet long enough, you’ve probably seen a hot dog cut up to look like an octopus — but this isn’t that. Instead, a whole octopus tentacle is grilled, put in a toasty bun, crowned with saffron aioli and served with an olive salad. (See photo above)
Ramen burger at CDXX
This Bayview cafe named after the Roman numerals for 420 is always dabbling in hybrid stoner foods; they created the aforementioned wonut as well as the ponut (pancake donut) and, of course, riffed on the cronut. Here they take on another trendy food, but instead of using ramen noodles as a burger bun, they crust the grass-fed beef patty with crunchy noodles, grill it and serve with seaweed salad, spicy pickles, and Sriracha aioli.
Hiro sandwich at Urchin Bistrot
The hot new French restaurant in the Mission has a true heartstopper on the menu, an open-faced “sandwich” with meatballs, bone marrow “buns,” jalapeno, and half a baguette. It’s named after chef/owner Hiro Sone.
Oakhurst style pizza at Mason
Ryan Scott is serving his childhood favorite at his new Potrero restaurant, a pepperoni pizza topped with salted buttery cashews and served with a side of fresh ranch dressing. It’s called Oakhurst style after his hometown, which is near Yosemite, because his sister worked at a pizza place that came up with this wacky combo. Funny thing is, it totally works.
Cap’n Crunch pancakes at The Willows
The SoMa bar that brought you the OMFC, a hamburger sandwiched between two grilled cheese sandwiches, is now tackling brunch with the help of the Cap’n. The sweet cereal tops peanut butter pancakes that are filled with chocolate mousse and served with caramelized bananas. Insulin at the ready!
Hiro sandwich photo by Joe Starkey, Octodog photo by Diana Haven, Oakhurst pizza photo by Tamara Palmer, Ramen burger photo by CDXX