Winter 2023: The Best Dishes Eater San Francisco Editors Ate This Week - Eater SF
"The reports of the mochi muffin have been greatly exaggerated, which is to say the flood of one-star reviews on Third Culture Bakery’s muffins came from a specific situation that has been, seemingly, ameliorated. Now, we can get back to the mochi — specifically, the mochi muffin and the Sunset Blend espresso combo at Home on Grant Street. There’s something wonderful about how the lively shot of coffee plays with the richness of the muffin, which is thick, chewy, and treated to a smattering of black sesame seeds on top, a fashionable choice given sesame’s current heyday. After one bite I understood the appeal: I always want more mochi, and the mochi muffin constitutes a veritable feast of the rice dessert. The espresso — a blend of coffees from Guatemala, Ethiopia, and Colombia that lives in between a medium and dark roast — counters the indulgent butteriness of the pastry with its acidity. No, the coffee’s not as juicy as a bourbon rosada varietal. But it’s a mighty well-dialed shot punching well above its weight on a street mostly devoid of primo coffee. Freda Yuan, a three-time United Kingdom coffee-tasting champion, compares a full tasting to a musical progression; I can safely say one of San Francisco’s favorite mochi muffins — paired with one of the city’s most well-tuned espressos — is as beautiful a symphony as they come." - Paolo Bicchieri
