This was my first upstairs dinner in a few years. Several lunches since, but no dinners.
We started with the pizza, which was pleasant (generally, sausage and peppers) but not close to “pizza at its best” from this kitchen. Also, it could have used another 30 seconds or so in the oven.
I then had the pork shoulder with polenta and peppers. This was a fantastic dish - everything about it.
The birthday boy had the duck. I don’t care for duck, but I did sample the pureed fennel, which was delicious.
We then shared a slice of Ginger cake w/peaches and berries. This was phenomenal.
We washed it all down with a 2014 Barbera d’Alba, Pairolero, Sottimano, which went well … well, not “all down” because I figured it wouldn’t go well with ginger, and our excellent waiter delayed the dessert until we were done with it.
Stepped next door afterward for a bajativo at César.
Went on the spur of the moment thinking it’s a cold Wednesday night and the holiday crowds haven’t seemed that bad this year. Walked in at 8:45 without a reservation and got a table for two right away. There were two other two-tops next to us that were empty the whole time. Drank a Pavese Blanc de Morgex.
There are really few restaurants with similarly first-rate atmosphere, food, and service in the East Bay. Arguably The Wolf,Commis, maybe Wood Tavern.and À Côté. Am I forgetting anyplace?
AQ was nice and we liked it but it feels that Chef is more invested in Mago and the overall tasting menu really came together much better. And as an added bonus Birdsong in the old AQ space is a very nice “upgrade” - one of our favorite restaurants in SF currently
Duck was excellent. My companions had the pork, also excellent. First bottle of 2016 Ghemme was seriously off, opened another, it was very good. Good reason to drink old / expensive wines off restaurant lists.
Went next door to Bar Panisse for digestifs. Around 8:00 it was almost full, quieted down over the next hour. Nice bar. My friend got gougeres and beans but I didn’t taste them.
