Co-motion and confit

Jerry and I test-rode a Co-motion tandem yesterday. We took a 15-mile ride around Pinole, where the owner lived. Considering the seat wasn't quite high enough and I was too close to the handlebars, it was a good ride. Jerry said the bike handled well, and it's lighter than our Trek. We climbed some pretty steep hills without killing ourselves, despite it not being geared as low as our Trek. But at $3,000 we're not so sure it's THE bike. Another couple is going to ride it on Monday or Tuesday. We'll see if they make an offer.

Yesterday was Jerry's birthday. We went to yard sales in the morning, then to Barney's for lunch. But dinner was the celebration. We went to Garcon! on Valencia in the Mission. It was very good, though not sublime. We started with salads-- he had the salade maison and I had a salad with arugula, beets and grapefruit. Very nice, but not the taste sensation I had anticipated.

For main course, Jerry had penne with sausage and a sage white wine sauce. He enjoyed it quite a bit. I had duck confit with lentils and more arugula. The lentils had a nice smoky flavor and the duck skin was crisp, and while it was quite enjoyable, I wasn't in raptures.
We had a half bottle of a very nice central coast red. I'm sorry I don't remember the winery; I may check Garcon's website to see if they have a wine list.

We had dessert. Jerry had a tarte tatin that looked like no tarte tatin I'd ever seen. The "crust" appeared to be more cakelike, and the apples were buried inside. I had creme brulee that was in a small deep dish. I like the new style of shallow and spread out. Less creme, more brulee. I had a very nice cup of coffee. I'd asked for a refill that never came.

While it does sound as if I'm complaining I'll add that dinner really was lovely, and the restaurant was nice. We arrived at 7 before it got super crowded and busy, and I might even think of going back even earlier, so we'd get better attention and it would be quieter.