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For many American business executives, working in California's Silicon Valley or San Francisco's financial district is the pinnacle of their careers. They have been promoted to successful companies based close to the Napa Valley, the state's wine hub, including computer greats such as Hewlett Packard, Oracle, Google, Yahoo! and Sun Microsystems, as well as financial giants such as Wells Fargo, Charles Schwab and the BancWest.
If you've reached the upper echelons of these institutions, there is pressure to perform and these executives work hard to keep their positions.
Some start as early as 6am, in a bid to keep up with the East Coast markets. And if a work dinner is in the diary, they will finish at 11pm if they're lucky. It never occurs to them to cook a meal during the week - though they do like to whip up something on the weekend after a visit to a farmers' market.
The San Francisco restaurant industry knows its best customers well and exists to serve their every whim. San Franciscans like their food and wine and are not about to go without, no matter how busy they are at work. One four-star establishment, the Globe, at 290 Pacific Avenue, serves dinner until 1am, so even if you are working late on a deal, you don't have to do without your hand-cut egg pasta served with duck ragout, citrus and almonds. Not a bad midnight snack.
Meanwhile, an ever growing number of wine bars are springing up offering tasty charcuterie snacks for hungry workers who have not managed to get home for dinner and who are far too health conscious to drink on an empty stomach.
One private equity financier from Vancouver who frequents the city says he is struck by the wine-drinking habits of his San Franciscan colleagues: "They like sitting down with a nice US$20 ($28) cabernet; they feel it's not as bad as drinking a Budweiser."
The local business community follow the fortunes of the hot wine bars and eateries with the same intensity that they follow a new financial market rumour or a product from Apple.
Executives on the bar and restaurant circuit are conversant with the hottest chefs' names, are up on the best sommeliers and are on first-name terms with the most influential maitre d's.
Steve Rivera, of Rivera Public Relations, represents one of the hottest new wine bars in town, District, at 216 Townsend St in the SOMA area of San Francisco. Rivera, a 29-year-old man about town whose girlfriend works for Google, says the latest hot areas are SOMA and Southbeach, as bars follow the construction of new apartment buildings. Complete with a 21-seater horseshoe bar, District is a wine lounge and small plates restaurant, which opened earlier this year.
Tres Agaves, a Mexican bar/restaurant in SOMA, is another favourite of the young techies. It is just a block from the San Francisco Giants' ballpark and renowned for its freshly squeezed lime margaritas. "It attracts a lot of a expense accounts," says Rivera.
Money is no object for these San Franciscan night owls. The majority of the executives out on the town are on expenses, entertaining out-of-towners who have high expectations of their stay in the city.
When Andy Lark, the expat Kiwi director of Silicon Valley company Loglogic.com, is asked to come up with some favourite city haunts, he reels off a list with typical San Franciscan zest.
"You can't beat the viewing and cocktails at Asia de Cuba," he says. And if peckish, he likes to try the lobster mashed potatoes in the dining room.
Alternatively, "there is nothing like a nice glass of white and a couple of dozen oysters at the Hogg Island Oyster factory in the Ferry Building".
He says: "I love everywhere. Perbacco is amazing for food and wine these days. I also like Town Hall, Salthouse and Chaya."
Perbacco is one of the hot places in San Francisco this year. The bar/restaurant is in the heart of the financial district, at 230 California Street, and attracts professionals who live in the nearby Bay Area, whether in the city or surrounding neighbourhoods.
Umberto Gibin, owner of Perbacco, says: "Our guests come to unwind from a hard day's work, socialise with one another, or talk business, while drinking a glass of wine or grabbing charcuterie.
"The bar has become increasingly popular with women, as we offer an environment in which they feel safe and comfortable."
For the high flyers who have really made it, one favourite mid-week dinner venue is Boulettes Larder in the city's Ferry Building.
At night, the eatery closes to the public and the restaurant hosts private dinner parties for people who enjoy the BYO policy. They don't just pick up a bottle from a nearby wine store though; they tend to bring a selection from their own wine cellar.
The treasured cafe/restaurant operates in an unusual way. It serves breakfast and lunches during the day, a favourite spot for a discreet breakfast meeting.
As diners eat their meal at a cafe table, immediately behind them, about 10 chefs bustle around the kitchen making stocks from scratch, fresh salsa and roasted marrow bones.
"It is appropriate for people to understand that (the food) is being made by human beings," says owner Amaryll Schwertner.
The chefs are making prepared meals for busy San Francisco families and executives.
They prepare stuffed quail - ready to roast, with farro (a type of wheat), pinenuts and spinach. There's even organic poached chicken for the dog.
Something for everyone. These San Franciscans know how to live and eat.
* Gill South flew to San Francisco courtesy of Air New Zealand.
