Dinner and a Movie with Katie & Lisa

by: Katie Kerr & Lisa Larragaga
Sports Editor & Copy Editor

San Francisco Oven
4706 Utica Ridge Road
Davenport

Atmosphere:

KATIE : San Francisco Oven has a fun, “hip” new feel to it.  Much like Panera Bread, the San Fran Oven has an order counter with plenty of booths and tables to sit at while you wait for your food.  This new restaurant was clean, and very comfortable with surrounding San Francisco flare filling all the walls.  They have great soothing lighting that sets the mood for this calm retreat of a “quick meal” restaurant.    

LISA: As soon as we opened the doors to the restaurant a sweet aroma of fresh herbs and vegetables tickled my senses. I knew we were in for a treat!  The dark yellow walls and black-and-white pictures had a calming effect, making me feel at home. Booths and tables surround the medium-sized establishment and the atmosphere invites middle-aged scholars with thick-framed glasses and laptops to enjoy an intellectual conversation over tiramisu. A book would be the perfect companion for a trip to the San Francisco Oven.

Food:

KATIE: There were so many creative plates that I wanted to try, but I ordered the Napa Valley Chicken Salad, which came with a side of pasta.  The sandwich was the perfect size to fill me up but still have leftovers as a break from the cafeteria for the next day.  The chicken salad and all of its ingredients were incredibly fresh and placed between great sourdough bread.  The pasta was simple but based with an Italian dressing which was delicious!  The food was great and it had a unique taste to it.  It was a nice, healthy escape from the usual fast food restaurants!                                          

LISA: After 10 minutes of indecisiveness I threw my cards in and went for the California Mozzarella Tomato Focaccia sandwich and the Pier 39 Clam Chowder soup. The sandwich’s ingredients were so fresh I wouldn’t be surprised if they came right from the garden. Although the sandwich contained fresh mozzarella cheese, roma tomatoes, greens, basil, onions (which I went without) and oregano vinaigrette dressing, it was a bit bland. I would have liked a little more zest. The clam chowder was served piping hot and full of flavor! My sister insists that seafood should only be bought on the Coast, but since a city on the West Coast was in the title of the restaurant, I decided to go for it – and I’m glad I did! The soup was delicious!

Pricing and People:

KATIE: My meal came to a total of $8.62 which consisted of my sandwich, pasta, and fountain drink.  For the quality and quantity of the food, I thought it was great pricing that I will be taking advantage of again and again.  The people were very friendly and helpful.  They were able to help suggest favorite meals, and brought our food to us.  Even though there weren’t any waiters, the help came to check on us from time to time and cleared our food when we had finished.  Overall I was really impressed with how they went out of their way to help us.                                  

LISA: The crowd carried a variety of people, from families to high school and college  students. The service was fast and friendly and although they did not have wait staff, they did have an employee that walked around to make sure customers were satisfied. My sandwich, drink and soup came to a grand total of $12.57. I left with a full stomach of quality food and leftovers.

Complaints:

KATIE: There really aren’t any complaints that I have except for their location.  It’s a bit of a drive, but well worth the time. Besides, the movie theatre is right next to it!

LISA: The only complaint I have is that my sandwich was a bit bland. The atmosphere and the fresh ingredients make up for dull food any day!

Katie’s rating: 4 of 5 forks
Lisa’s rating: 3.75 of 5 forks

"Brokeback Mountain"

 KATIE: I was really excited to see this movie not only because of the two leading men, but because of all the award nominations it has received and all of the buzz about the original storyline.  I couldn’t have been more disappointed!  I have to agree that this film is groundbreaking for Hollywood and for our culture, but I was so bored I started a grocery list!  The film has a beautiful backdrop, Brokeback Mountain, which is a gorgeous setting for this film full of young and rising stars. 

“Brokeback Mountain” is a love story told in a different way than most are used to.  It is a story about the relationship between two male cowboys, Enis Del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal), who meet one summer at a job they share herding sheep on Brokeback Mountain. 

The story begins in 1963 and takes you through the years when they deny, and embrace their relationship and all the other struggles that come with a homosexuality. 

This jam-packed cast (Ledger, Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, Anne Hathaway and Randy Quaid) did a great job, but I don’t think they or the film deserve the award nominations they’ve been given (with the exception of best original screen play).  The movie was too long and too slow with not enough dialogue and a horribly annoying musical score that trickles throughout the two and a half hour film.  I’m glad I was able to see the movie because of the breakthrough that has been made, but I won’t be spending any more money when it comes to DVD.

LISA: Well, to put it bluntly, “Brokeback Mountain” was two hours and 30 minutes too long. It was horribly slow- paced and the storyline moved in a circle. I understand that the movie is breaking ground, as Katie said, but they should’ve made the film as compelling as the story it told.

It was disheartening to see what the two main characters, Gyllenhaal and Ledger, had to go through for love. But, it was even harder to fight the urge to close my eyes as the repetition of the men meeting secretly, and going back to their normal lives carried on over and over again.

The story of Del Mar and Twist is one that will be an important part of our generation’s history. Hopefully it will open society’s eyes to the lives some people are forced to live because of bias, but the film itself was overrated.  

 Katie’s rating: 2 of 5 stars        
Lisa’s rating:  1.5 out of 5 stars