Movie Menus: "Milk"

Harvey Milk spent his first 40 years hiding who he was inside his New York closet. Then he moved to San Francisco and became California's first openly gay man to be elected to public office. In a familiar story arc that seems to kick in whenever social change is afoot, Milk (along with Mayor George Moscone) is ultimately gunned down by fellow city supervisor Dan White.

Athough you know from the start where this story is going--it's public record after all--this bio-pic from director Gus Van Sant takes you on a journey worth taking. Harvey Milk (Sean Penn) is a late-blooming charmer who leads a passionate fight against conservative oppression and finds himself in the process. Dan White (Josh Brolin) is a family-values kind of guy who comes tragically unraveled and can't seem to get himself straight again. No pun intended. It's complicated, just like people.

Harvey Milk was born on Long Island but he comes alive in San Francisco. Perhaps he dined out on local specialties like these.

Milk was a master of the dramatic gesture when he needed to rally troops for the cause.

It's historical fact that Milk broke social and political ground in San Francisco. Making a wild leap of associations that lands us on less certain footing, we present a list of drinks that are rumored to have been invented (or popularized) in San Francisco.