Last night I slipped into a fantasy realm of sizzling hog meat, pickled vegetables, grilled pineapple, and oysters. The owner of Bluebird Tavern hosted a party in her splendid backyard, and the chefs of the Tavern were in charge of the meat. Finally, somebody threw a party in which every conversation revolved around food! I drifted from group to group with my plate of goodies, finding myself in the company of chefs, baristas, pickling instructors, and general food enthusiasts.

“What is your favorite restaurant in San Francisco?”

“We should throw a chocolate party, with chocolate fondue and chicken mole!”

“I could really go for some espresso right now.”

“What cut of pork do you like the best?”

“I like to pickle thinly sliced ginger and carrots and spice them with cardamom and black pepper.”

The company and conversation was entertaining, but I was mostly engaged with the oysters. The four varieties, both West and East coast, proved to be intriguing and addicting. I found myself asking, “how many oysters is too many?” I ended up slurping down a dozen before they even cut the pork. One of the sous chefs started an evening trend by placing a piece of crispy pork skin on top of an oyster. 

The best combination was pickled shallots over a slice of pork.