Best Free Tasting

Yum

1750 Market (at Gough), 626-9866, www.yumfoods.com

Tastes vary widely in our gastronomic metropolis, but most refrigerators have something in common: They tend to have overcrowded top shelves, home to those various ingenious accents that can turn a plain cut of meat or a raw vegetable into something spectacular. This affliction ensures that even if the rest of the fridge doesn't contain a lot of food, it still holds jars of sun-dried tomato walnut pesto and cucumber lime marinade. At Yum, such condiments are properly revered. This food emporium offers tastes of a cross-section of its oils, schmears, marinades, and sauces, not to mention pretzels, chips, crostinis, and other decadent munchables. How fortuitous if a packet of dipping crackers just happens to be in your bag when you stop in to sample the in-store delights.