If I lived in Eastern Europe, I would be very fat.

I hate when restaurants or bars bill themselves as “A little piece of Italy/France/Djibouti Right on your Doorstep!” Lame, cliche, whatever you want to call it. But I’m going to have to use that line. Sorry.

I recently moved to the neighborhood right around USF, and there’s a little bar and grill on the corner of Fulton and Masonic that I had yet to try. I had been walking by pretty much every night on my way home from work and wondering over the scads of Russian-speaking smokers hanging out on the sidewalk and the raucous parties of twelve sharing feasts at the table in the window. The sign says “B and G,” which alternately stands for Beer and Grill, Bar and Grill, or Bistro Gambrinus depending on which of the many handwritten signs you consult. According to their menu, and to wikipedia, Gambrinus was a legendary King of Flanders who was widely considered patron saint of beer and brewing.

I stopped in there solo on Tuesday when I had an hour before LOST and no food in the house. Armed with the New Yorker, I ventured in past the smoking gauntlet and made myself comfortable at the bar. Although I’m not normally a beer drinker, the extensive list begged a taste. I asked the nice barmaid (it’s European, I can call her a bar maid) for something with two qualities: 1. Dark brown in color and 2. a name I couldn’t pronounce. She seemed amused and gave me something Czech and brown on tap that was very good. I settled down with the menu and picked out a couple of things that seemed unique, one being lox canapes and the other “pelmeni,” a traditional Russian ravioli with garlic butter sauce and sour cream.

The ambiance is typical European bar, meaning the proprietors had no particular plan for the decor, in contrast to most other bars in San Francisco which seem to have a predefined “look” and “feel.” Lots of wood and beer brand paraphernalia with about six televisions, mostly playing sports. Insubstantial napkins.

Here, I break into the cliche part. I have traveled extensively in Europe, and a good portion of that was alone. Sitting at the bar drinking a beer I couldn’t pronounce, eating food I’d never had and pretending to read while eavesdropping on conversations in languages I couldn’t understand, I was flashing back to being a pert young backpacker in Europe. It was like a mini-vacation. The food was awesome: ravioli drenched in butter with a side of sour cream? Yes please. The lox canapes came with these strange forest green olives that seemed fresher than your average olive and very tasty.

Although Bistro Gambrinus is right on my corner, I almost don’t want to become a regular. I want to go in there every time as an anonymous traveler and try a new beer and some random Eastern European dish.

Bistro Gambrinus

1813 Fulton St. (at Masonic)

San Francisco, CA 94117

415. 221. 7777

http://www.beerandgrill.com/