Two of the best dining advisors are my friends Jessica and Sara Hanson. They are sisters. They like...no... they INSIST on good food. Sara has been around these parts before, sharing her wine recommendations. If you've listened to These Days (please, just lie and say you listen all the time) you've heard Jess on Weekend Preview, talking about what's happening over the weekend in San Diego. She also writes an extremely entertaining blog.

I asked the Hanson sisters where they've been eating lately. This sparked a discussion about recent dining adventures. Thankfully, there's a little bird that transcribes everything they say. He works for breadcrumbs. Here's the report he sent me:

Sara just moved into one of the only walkable neighborhoods in San Diego. After three days of unpacking, two trips to IKEA and endless picture hanging wall banging with what might as well be a toy hammer (note: do NOT buy tools at Rite Aid), the first order of biz was to set out on foot to check out the neighborhood dining options. Exhausted and haggard from the move, they stopped approximately 50 feet past the apartment with the first smell of food. Bonus: it was a charming pizzeria complete with checkered tablecloths and a waiter straight from the old country. Double bonus: another restaurant, similar name and same owner, stood just a few feet away.

Pizzeria Arrivederci and plain old Arrivederci have been in Hillcrest for several years, garnering rave reviews and loyal diners. Somehow, these two gems never made it onto their radar - probably because they've been busy sampling all the shiny new eateries popping up in San Diego, leaving them in a grilled, braised, saut?ed, marinated and emulsified stupor.

They were so smitten, they hit both Arrivederci spots in the same week, starting with the pizzeria...

The shorts also look great, shot in contrasty black and white. Hickenlooper is probably best known for the recent feature Factory Girl, but I really liked a documentary he did some years back called Mayor of Sunset Strip, about LA radio DJ, promoter, and scenester Rodney Bingenheimer, aka Rodney on the ROQ.