Tadich Grill
Encyclopedia
The Tadich Grill is a seafood
restaurant located in the Financial District neighborhood of San Francisco, California
, United States
. It is the oldest continuously running restaurant in San Francisco, having opened in 1849 as a coffee stand. In the 1920s, the Tadich Grill claimed to be the first restaurant to grill seafood over mesquite
charcoal.
, this was after Wells Fargo
bought Clay Street for redevelopment. The current space is one-third larger than the original and the Buich's worked with contractors to recreate the Art Deco
interior design that the Clay Street space had. All of the moldings and woodwork was copied, and the original Clay Street bar was moved to the present location. The restaurant reopened within one month of moving.
In 1925, Louis Buich advised that the chefs use a mesquite
broiler
for cooking fish. A native of Croatia
, Buich was familiar with the technique, as it was a traditional Croatian style. The Tadich's use of grilling became popular and in a day the restaurant can go through four 40-pound bags of mesquite charcoal. Little has changed in regards to the restaurants cooking techniques, and the restaurant has only had seven chefs in its 90 plus years existence.
. Ingredients are locally sourced
, including seafood such as Dungeness crab
and sand dab. The restaurant also offers a day-of-the-week menu, which has remained unchanged for many years. Items on the day-of-the-week menu include lamb
roast
on Mondays, beef tongue
on Tuesdays, and corned beef and cabbage on Thursdays. Oysters are also a major feature on the menu and most, if not all, menu items are prepared in restaurant. Prawns are the only frozen fish at the restaurant, and the Tadich actively avoids selling fish that is overfished, limiting sales of fish such as sea bass
.
Waiters wear white jackets and black pants and the restaurant does not take reservations.During busy periods, the Tadich can have between 600-800 patrons waiting in line to dine at the restaurant. On average, the restaurant serves 700 meals a day.
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
restaurant located in the Financial District neighborhood of San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the oldest continuously running restaurant in San Francisco, having opened in 1849 as a coffee stand. In the 1920s, the Tadich Grill claimed to be the first restaurant to grill seafood over mesquite
Mesquite
Mesquite is a leguminous plant of the Prosopis genus found in northern Mexico through the Sonoran Desert and Chihuahuan Deserts, and up into the Southwestern United States as far north as southern Kansas, west to the Colorado Desert in California,and east to the eastern fifth of Texas, where...
charcoal.
History
The original restaurant opened in 1849 as a coffee stand on Clay Street in San Francisco. In 1887, John Tadich purchased and renamed the restaurant after his surname. In 1928 the Buich family bought the restaurant from Tadich; they continue to own the restaurant today. In 1967 the restaurant moved to its present location on California StreetCalifornia Street (San Francisco)
California Street is a major thoroughfare in San Francisco, California. Fifty-four blocks of California Street, from Van Ness Avenue westward to 32nd Avenue, comprised the last major leg of the final 1928 alignment of the Lincoln Highway, the first road across America, leading out to the highway's...
, this was after Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational diversified financial services company with operations around the world. Wells Fargo is the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by assets and the largest bank by market capitalization. Wells Fargo is the second largest bank in deposits, home...
bought Clay Street for redevelopment. The current space is one-third larger than the original and the Buich's worked with contractors to recreate the Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
interior design that the Clay Street space had. All of the moldings and woodwork was copied, and the original Clay Street bar was moved to the present location. The restaurant reopened within one month of moving.
In 1925, Louis Buich advised that the chefs use a mesquite
Mesquite
Mesquite is a leguminous plant of the Prosopis genus found in northern Mexico through the Sonoran Desert and Chihuahuan Deserts, and up into the Southwestern United States as far north as southern Kansas, west to the Colorado Desert in California,and east to the eastern fifth of Texas, where...
broiler
Broiler
A broiler is a type of chicken raised specifically for meat production. Modern commercial broilers, typically known as Cornish crosses or Cornish-Rocks are specially bred for large scale, efficient meat production and grow much faster than egg or traditional dual purpose breeds...
for cooking fish. A native of Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Buich was familiar with the technique, as it was a traditional Croatian style. The Tadich's use of grilling became popular and in a day the restaurant can go through four 40-pound bags of mesquite charcoal. Little has changed in regards to the restaurants cooking techniques, and the restaurant has only had seven chefs in its 90 plus years existence.
The Tadich Grill today
Today, the menu focuses on seafood, stews, and casseroleCasserole
A casserole, from the French for "saucepan", is a large, deep dish used both in the oven and as a serving vessel. The word casserole is also used for the food cooked and served in such a vessel, with the cookware itself called a casserole dish or casserole pan...
. Ingredients are locally sourced
Local food
Local food or the local food movement is a "collaborative effort to build more locally based, self-reliant food economies - one in which sustainable food production, processing, distribution, and consumption is integrated to enhance the economic, environmental and social health of a particular...
, including seafood such as Dungeness crab
Dungeness crab
The Dungeness crab, Metacarcinus magister , is a species of crab that inhabits eelgrass beds and water bottoms on the west coast of North America. It typically grows to across the carapace and is a popular seafood...
and sand dab. The restaurant also offers a day-of-the-week menu, which has remained unchanged for many years. Items on the day-of-the-week menu include lamb
Lamb
Lamb or The Lamb may refer to:* A young sheep* Lamb and mutton, the meat of domestic sheep-Film, television and theatre:* The Lamb , a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks, Sr...
roast
Roasting
Roasting is a cooking method that uses dry heat, whether an open flame, oven, or other heat source. Roasting usually causes caramelization or Maillard browning of the surface of the food, which is considered by some as a flavor enhancement. Roasting uses more indirect, diffused heat , and is...
on Mondays, beef tongue
Beef tongue
Beef tongue is the tongue of a cow. The human consumption of beef tongue dates back to the days of Paleolithic hunters, who preferred the fatty portions of the carcass including tongues, as well as organs, brains, feet, and marrow. Beef tongue is very high in fat, at almost 75% of its calories...
on Tuesdays, and corned beef and cabbage on Thursdays. Oysters are also a major feature on the menu and most, if not all, menu items are prepared in restaurant. Prawns are the only frozen fish at the restaurant, and the Tadich actively avoids selling fish that is overfished, limiting sales of fish such as sea bass
Sea bass
-Family Serranidae:* Barred sand bass , lives mainly off the coast of California* Black sea bass , whose range is the eastern coast of the United States...
.
Waiters wear white jackets and black pants and the restaurant does not take reservations.During busy periods, the Tadich can have between 600-800 patrons waiting in line to dine at the restaurant. On average, the restaurant serves 700 meals a day.
Further reading
- Briscoe, John. The Tadich Grill: The Story of San Francisco's Oldest Restaurant, with Recipes. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press (2002). ISBN 1580084257
External links
- Official website for the Tadich Grill