HOT HENS ON THE FRONT PORCH

Tuesday night. It's cold, rainy and I'm late to meet the ladies for dinner at the Front Porch. They've already ordered wine, and there is somewhat of a Cajun Caribbean party popping off when I get there. By this I mean, the place is loud and popular with Mission hipsters in de rigueur fatigue colors, skinny jeans, and facial hair, eating buckets of fried chicken amid the found-this-cute-stuff-at-a-yard-sale themed decor. I like to think this place completes a lowbrow, high-quality, hipsterized trinity of places to eat in the outer Mission neighborhood (the founders being Emmy's Spaghetti Shack and Blue Plate). But enough about that, and onto what we ate.
Cute cornbreads shaped like corn on the cob alert! Good consistency, but don't forget the chili butter.Then there was my favorite Kumquat soda (previously mentioned in this blog), a creole-style Waldorf salad (mmm...mayonnaise), and ricotta fritters with tomatoes and greens to start. Ho-hum. What can I say about this place that you haven't already heard...the food is pretty good--not high-fiving awesome--and the service is inconsistent. That said, our Cuban waiter got props for steering us away from the guava dessert, with a lengthy explanation about proper guava poaching techniques. Good to know. zzzzz

Nobody got on the fried chicken bandwagon, (though I've had it and it's better than average-see article in today's SF Chronicle Food section about the fried chicken trend; there were three orders of the vegan stew (against my normal group dining rules, but dietary restrictions were in effect); and I got the dungeness crab porridge. Fine, ok, it was all good, but not pee-in-your-pants awesome. Desserts were a highlight though, with a dependably delicious yellow cake/chocolate frosting combo, and more fritters-this time with plantain and sweet potato, bathing in a pool of gooey chocolate. Kate said they "tasted like the fair" all fried up and powdered sugar. Yee-haw! Thanks to the ladies for helping me flesh out my dreams of becoming a "dining consultant." It's got a nice ring to it right?