Thursday, May 24, 2007

Caffe Tutti

Slices of life served here.
Caffe Tutti is a stone's throw from the Sausalito Ferry Terminal. A bustling sandwich and coffee shop where tourists and locals mingle in the small room full of wooden tables with cheerful flowers. I ordered and paid the friendly staff at the counter, and was given a wooden spoon with a number on it for my table. As I sat waiting for my Terramezza sandwich (thought I'd try ordering something I didn't understand again), life unfolded before my eyes. To the right of me was a sharply dressed young Japanese business man, and a casually dressed Japanese woman who was listening intently. My eyes were drawn because 1) he looked so out of place in otherwise a totally casual setting and 2) he was upset. He was speaking quickly and animatedly in Japanese, without a clue that anyone in the restaurant other than his companion understood Japanese. He apparently came all this way to find that whoever he was meeting was 'completely unprepared'. He was angry about this the whole 40 minutes I was there... I hope he has a strong heart!

Terramezza Sandwich

My Terramezza came (I hope I remembered the spelling correctly), and I found out that what I had ordered by that name in fact was a simple ham and cheese panini. It was fresh, hot and good, and I enjoyed the grated carrot salad with it although I could pass on the plain rotilli pasta salad. As I enjoyed my panini, I turned my gaze to the scene at the table just in front of me. A grandma, father and two-ish year old daughter were engaged in conversation. The father was wearing a black Cesar Chevez t-shirt, had a days growth on his face and wild brown curly hair. He looked quite revolutionary in a quiet sort of way. To his right was his daughter, a cute little blonde in a pink chiffon tutu and tights, dressed like a fairy, but acting like a terrible two making faces and sticking out her tongue at everyone. Grandma was trying to keep her in check while listening to her son's latest news. To my left were a mother and daughter speaking what I think was Russian, and enjoying some coffee and pastry. Then there was a group of older tourists behind me, seemingly from the mid-west trying to figure out where to get a good steak. Lastly, there were bikers in sleek biking 'uniforms' sitting inside and outside enjoying a break in their journey. I had most interesting dining companions without specific interaction, although I got some smiles from the bikers as I left. Just another day on the Sausalito waterfront.

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