Verbena
Restaurant Fine California Cuisine
Dining
Detectives
By Carol & Joe Davis
The
Restaurant Business is thriving in the San Francisco Bay Area
and the trend is for successful and talented Chefs to open second
locations. Executive Chef Sean Baker, who was
Esquire Magazine's 2010 Chef of the Year, opened a very successful
vegetarian, vegan, omnivore restaurant called Gather in Berkeley
near U.C. Berkeley about four years ago. Now, he has just opened
Verbena in San Francisco in the Russian Hill neighborhood on Polk
Street across from the deco Alhambra Theatre.
| |
click
on image to enlarge & get caption |
Verbena
has an impressive entrance with their massive custom wood Front
Door which dates back many decades. The interior décor
features a Black Walnut Bar enhanced by the accent lit brick wall.
There is also a very unusual illuminated wooden "Pickle Wall"
which displays beautiful jars of rows of marinating pickles. There
is also an Upstairs Mezzanine for intimate dining which is quite
romantic. The tables in the main dining area are nicely spaced
and the 20 foot ceilings which keeps the noise level low.
TWe
sat in the main dining room which was almost full on the Thursday
evening that we dined. We started with Artisan Cocktails from
their Full Bar which features Spirits from small producers and
uses seasonal ingredients. We loved the Verbena Fog Cutter
made with Oola Vodka, falernum, Strega, lemon and sparkling wine.
It was quite refreshing and a great way to unwind. The menu is
small and focused offering California Cuisine with mostly locally
sourced and sustainable ingredients. Our first WOW was the extremely
fresh Firebrand Artisan Bread which is baked in Oakland
in an 800 degree wood fired brick oven. It was amazing... with
great crisp crust and it was delectably moist.
Our
knowledgeable server advised us that all menu items were meant
to be shared and helped us pair wines from their Producer Driven
Wine List. We loved the Button Mushrooms with celeriac, lovage
and tomato vinegar which were just wonderful! This is a must have
to any dinner! It was served in a lovely Wheelstoneware deep bowl.
The Carrots Verbena with Aleppo pepper, nettles and cashew
was sweet and slightly spicy which we love. Next, we enjoyed the
Meatballs braised in black mole with collards, hominy
and whey. The flavor of the meatballs was excellent and they were
a combination of beef, pork and duck.
The
Beef Rib in broth with Bok Choy, Garum and mint had a
medley of flavors which were particularly fabulous and great comfort
food.
The outstanding dish was the Koji Quail.... with Sonoma
grains cooked dirty, hedgehog mushrooms and pumpkin juice. It
was smokey, tender and truly a favorite!
The
Wine List is Producer Driven which means that they offer 3 or
4 wines from each producer. Our favorite white wine was the 2012
Niepoort Vinho Verde from Portugal which was clean and light
with a crisp finish and our favorite red wine was the 2005
Lopez de Heredia "Vina Cubillo," Crianza, Rioja
from Spain which was rich and bold. We appreciate that they are
very accommodating and we enjoyed sampling a couple of flights
of wine to discover our favorite.
The
Desserts were delicious and works of art. We loved the Molasses
Ginger Bread with carrot sorbet and IPA caramel and the Chocolate
and Parsnip ice cream, custard and cranberry gelee. A Saint
Frank Coffee double espresso and an Amaro Montenegro Italian dijestiv
were the perfect finish to our excellent dining experience. Verbena
is a worthy addition to the San Francisco dining scene and they
interesting Nob Hill neighborhood. The décor was inviting,
the cuisine was fresh, unique and delicicous and the service was
professional and friendly. We look forward to returning soon!
Verbena
Restaurant
2323
Polk Street (@ Union St.)
San Francisco, CA 94109
415-441-2323
www.VerbenaRestaurant.com
