One Night Only: SWEDEN’s MAGNUS NILSSON & SF’s DANIEL PATTERSON Cook Together at COI

Photos and article by Virginia Miller

Food lovers in the know are well aware of Chef Magnus Nilsson and his restaurant Faviken Magasinet in the furthest reaches of northern Sweden, the small restaurant causing the biggest food magazines in the world to trek hours from anywhere for a meal. They return glowing, with photo spreads capturing meats hanging from a rustic wood ceiling, ingredients like lichen, moss and open fire meats turned into delicious, elemental art, all sourced within miles of the restaurant, and the young Nilsson in his nearly iconic fur coat.

His just released new book, Faviken (with charming, traditional Scandinavian art cover), is a pleasure to walk through. Lucky us, Nilsson’s US book tour featured only two nights of cooking in the whole country, one in Charleston at Husk with Sean Brock, one on October 20 at Coi here in San Francisco with Daniel Patterson. I savored all twelve courses of the collaborative dinner and will let photos and brief descriptors do the talking as imagination could not quite envision the unique tastes and earthy experiences reflecting Bay Area ingredients Nilsson and Patterson foraged for themselves that morning.

Think tofu made from water sourced deep within the ocean around the Farallon Islands or turnips one must dig for by hand through a pile of decomposing leaves and you’re on the right track.

 

At PLAJ with SCANDINAVIAN CUISINE

Photos and article by Virginia Miller

PLÄJ, Civic Center (333 Fulton St. between Franklin & Gough, 415-294-8925)

The world has become hooked on New Nordic cuisine in recent years, thanks to Copenhagen’s Noma, named World’s #1 Best Restaurant for three years straight, sparking a global interest in all things Scandinavian and a new generation of chefs. Before this renaissance, I dined at Aquavit in New York City, when Marcus Samuelsson was still chef, reveling in clean dishes and aquavit shots infused with horseradish or dill, wishing to see more of this cuisine. As a fan of pickled herring, cured fish and the like, I’ve long been drawn to Germanic and Eastern European cuisines, so loving Scandinavian was a given. I dream of trips to the region (I haven’t been though I’ve traveled Europe extensively), eating lutefisk (air-dried whitefish), breathing in crisp air during long hours of Summer daylight.

Finally, Pläj (pronounced “play”) opened in SF in June, within sight of City Hall, tucked in the back of Inn at the Opera. I dined opening week, returning multiple times since. Granted, this is an early take as the newborn restaurant needs time to come into its own. Yes, it’s a hotel dining room, but accents of bright orange and fireside seating warm it up, though off-putting smooth jazz or clubby Euro tunes alter the mood. However, the space is blessedly peaceful, service warmly welcoming, staff attentive and gracious.

Pläj isn’t so much New Nordic or minimalist food evoking Scandinavian style (there is much activity around defining New Nordic – case in point, cuisine guidelines from the Nordic Council of Ministers), but is more reminiscent of NY’s Aquavit: traditional dishes freshly interpreted regionally… Scandinavia by way of Northern California. Chef/owner Roberth Sundell hails from Stockholm but has been in the Bay Area long enough to be well-acquainted with local ingredients, put to use in Nordic-influenced dishes.

Working my way through every dish on the initial menu, I was happiest in the Fjord/seafood section as it highlights what is best about Scandinavian cooking. A creative Taste of Herring trio ($12) is herring in ginger-smoked soy, saffron tomato, and coriander-chile-lime, on rye crackers (rustic bread also arrives at the table in a paper bag). Krondill (crown dill) poached lobster is the seafood of choice for Sundell’s skagen, typically an open-face toast topped with a mixture often including poached shrimp, mayo, caviar. Beautifully reinterpreted here, lobster swims in a lobster foam akin to bisque, with horseradish, avocado, and a hint of chili, accented by white fish caviar.

Norwegian salmon belly gravlax ($9) is buttery, thin slices of cured salmon over lemon crème fraîche, spicy grain mustard and dill purée. Only Alaskan halibut ($21) felt closer to typical: fish seared in herbs, partnered with shaved asparagus in chanterelle emulsion. Similarly, in a traditional meat and veg entree vein, is tender, porter-braised ox cheek ($22) topped with a mountain of fried onions. Other than the vibrant red, whipped beetroot the ox rests atop, it’s well-executed, if not particularly memorable. I’d go for traditional, comforting Swedish meatballs ($15), juicy in pan gravy over mashed potatoes, with lingonberries and pickled cucumber adding the much-desired contrast of sweet and vinegar.

On the Hagen (“pasture”) or vegetarian section of the menu, burrata ($12) always pleases but presentation is similar to countless burrata plates everywhere with Heirloom tomato and greens (beets, though a more obvious cuisine fit, is likewise overdone with burrata). Barely-there aquavit in the vinaigrette could have set it apart if kicked up a few intensity levels. I found a subtle smearing of beetroot under a salad ($14) piled with Jerusalem artichoke, watercress, hazelnuts, and thinly-shaved layers of Västerbotten (Swedish) cheese and black summer truffles more interesting. As is potato dumpling kumla ($12), dense and doughy dumplings in brown butter sauce, savory with onion ragout and, once again, lingonberries.

Desserts ($8) are certainly pleasing, particularly a rhubarb crumble pie, though none left a major impression, while cocktails ($11) thankfully utilize Scandinavian spirits like vodka and genever (Dutch gin, often aged in wood so as akin to whiskey as gin). Spirit-cocktail aficionados may notice a leaning toward sweeter, subtle, light cocktails, craving more depth. The Midsommar is promising, however: Pernod absinthe delivers herbaceous notes to Flor de Cana light rum, lime and dill simple syrup – a garden fresh, light sipper, it’s a fine companion to seafood. An all Scandinavian beer list is a spot-on direction, with pours like HaandBryggeriet Norwegian Harvest Ale ($14) or cheaper, refreshing Einstock Icelandic white and pale ales ($6 each).

Pläj is a welcome newcomer to the SF dining scene – one I hope thrives as it dares to bring what we lack. What a delight it would be to form a “best of” list of Scandinavian eateries here, as we can with so many cuisines. Thanks to Pläj for introducing more to the joys of Nordic cuisine.

Improving with Age:
Two Restaurants on the Rise

Age is good thing: for wine, whiskey, cheese, wisdom and sense of self, to name a few. Age deepens, fills out, matures, makes whole. In the scheme of things, these two restaurants are youngsters – one could hardly call them “aged”, though Bar Tartine has thrived an impressive number of years since opening in 2005. Txoko is the new kid on the block, taking over a historical space (Enrico’s) just under a year ago. One thing they both have in common is that over the past year, with age, they’ve steadily improved – what was last year at times exceptional is now more consistently so.

BAR TARTINE, Mission (8561 Valencia Street between 16th & 17th, 415-487-1600)

Bar Tartine has long been a notable restaurant. What it has become is exciting. Last year I wrote of new chef Nick Balla, fresh from Nombe, who launched a Hungarian-influenced menu acknowledging his roots. While the food remains comforting, you won’t see the usual gourmet dishes found across town. Eastern European touches render the food unique, staunchly non-traditional yet exuding down home goodness.

Tripe strikes fear in the hearts of many – I don’t mind it, but only at Oliveto’s 2010 Whole Hog dinner had I found it delicious. Balla’s grilled tripe ($12) stands as the best tripe dish I’ve ever tasted. Silky (not slimy) strips of tripe fill a bowl aromatically entwined with fennel, cabbage and paprika. Beets, an ingredient we’re inundated with in recent years, are electrifying in an Ensalada Rusa ($12) with celery root, dill, chili, peppercress, and plenty of lime. This invigorating expression is stands above the best beet dishes. Another all too common vegetable, brussels sprouts ($7), are fried but instead of being tossed with the usual bacon or apples, are mixed with carrot, mint, anise and serrano chilis. Heat and mint infuse them with fresh life.

An entree winner is Hungarian farmer’s cheese dumplings, nokedli ($17). Sunchoke (Jerusalem artichoke) and wild onion meld with doughy, slightly cheesy, dumplings – sheer comfort. A beloved German dish of mine is pickled herring ($10). Here it is brightly fresh, shrouded in sour cream and onion, served with Tartine’s rye bread.

Puffy, fried Hungarian potato bread, langos ($10), remains the must-order menu item every visit, drizzled in sour cream and dill, it is blissfully garlicky. Not since my travels through the Hungarian countryside have I seen this addictive bread. Mini-jars of pickled vegetables ($4 per jar) are popular menu items – I like pickled tumeric cauliflower and carrot best. Here’s hoping when cherry season hits, we’ll witness the return of Balla’s fantastic version of Hungarian chilled sour cherry soup, meggyleves.

The wine list persists in quality, a recent example being a contrast of two rieslings: a dry, elegant, German 2009 Keller Von der Fels Trocken Riesling ($52 bottle) alongside a lively, unusual but refined, Santa Barbara 2008 Tatomer Vandenberg Riesling ($59 bottle). The wine list is expertly selected, as these two beauties suggest.

After nearly a year since Balla joined Bar Tartine, with the expanded, invitingly glowing space, I’d list Bar Tartine as a personal favorite and one of the best in town.

TXOKO, North Beach (504 Broadway at Kearny, 415-500-2744)

With so little Basque cuisine in our city, I was delighted when Txoko (pronounced “choko”) opened in the spacious, former Enrico’s, promising Basque influence. Lots of small plates and just a few larger ones appealed with an opportunity to try more. Early visits last year yielded delectable small bites, while I found larger plates less exciting. When the menu recently changed to a more traditional appetizer/entree format, I feared it would lose its uniqueness. Pleased I’ve been in recent returns to find Txoko rounded out, entrees keeping pace with starters. I do sense the Basque influence is looser than it was before, however, and would rather not see that aspect fade.

I am welcomed by the roomy space with covered patio in front, green leather chairs, animal painting on the walls, and a wood-lined bar.

Txoko’s Wednesday night, 4 course foie gras dinners ($55 + $35 wine pairing) are arguably the best way to ride out the remaining months until June when the foie gras ban takes effect in California (read Txoko owner, Ryan Maxey’s eloquent piece on this issue). The menu varies each week though typically finishes with buttery foie gras ice cream. One week I savored silky foie gras torchon on a flaky puff pastry, in a lavender golden raisin sauce redolent with thyme. My main was a gorgeous foie gras a la plancha (grilled), savory and meaty on a mound of beluga lentils, mirepoix, and chorizo, surrounded by strips of duck jamon, topped with crispy chicharrones. A “lighter” foie dish was seared rare ahi tuna lush in Pedro Ximenez sherry sauce, with slices of foie and caramelized pearl onions standing in a potato coulis.

On the regular menu, two dishes left an impression. Warm lamb’s tongue salad ($11) is a surprisingly light salad of lamb mixed with poached potatoes, Manchego cheese, shishito peppers and frisee, surrounded by smoked tomatoes. Different and delightful. A heartwarming dish of grilled venison Denver leg ($29) is served medium rare, draped over mashed yams, in blood orange endive marmelata, dotted with crispy sage leaves and pine nuts. Each dish is artfully presented and generously portioned.

Drink options are vibrantly varied, with choices like a bone dry 2009 Isastegi Basque cider ($6) and wines such as an earthy, plum and berry-inflected 2001 Senorio de P. Pecina Reserva Rioja. Txoko has a full bar with commendable cocktails ($10), like tart-sweet, sparkling Dominican 75, a twist on the classic French 75 with Brugal Extra Viejo rum, lime, simple syrup, and Mont Marcal cava, or a playful, refreshing Cool Hand Luke Fizz utilizing Fighting Cock bourbon, Peychaud’s bitters, egg whites for froth, vivacious with Mexican Coke.

Finishing the evening with moist, Spanish-style bread pudding ($8) is a pleasure, sweetened by prunes, olive caramel and candied marcona almonds, happily paired with a nutty, acidic, sweet Sangre y Trabajadero Oloroso Sherry($7 glass).

I’m expectant to see how Txoko will continue to evolve, a refreshing change of pace in North Beach, and, indeed, the city.

Top Tastes is not a list of all-time favorites, rather it’s about the best tastes of the last two weeks (since my last newsletter), often from new openings.

I’ve been eating steady, as usual, from a pleasant, if not notable, Vietnamese meal at My Father’s Kitchen, to trying out brand new trucks (and revisiting favorites) at Off the Grid Upper Haight AND Fort Mason (I find new LA import Nom Nom a bit overrated). I did try the Korean/Japanese place, Ahn Sushi & Soju, mentioned in my last Top Tastes – it was as uneven as I expected.

Eastern Europe Rising

BAR TARTINE, Mission (8561 Valencia Street between 16th & 17th, 415-487-1600)

Nick Balla does it again. As a guy with Hungarian roots, he rocked Japanese food when he was chef at Nombe with delicate artistry gleaned from his travels in Japan. Now he does an about-face at Bar Tartine, keeping their rustic gourmet tradition, but infusing the menu with Eastern European flavors.

Not only do I delight in less-overdone cuisines, but particularly at such an imaginative hand. He’s going a new direction with Eastern European food, one that is visionary yet stays true to humble roots.

I tried not to loudly broadcast my excitement after tasting Meggyleves, his version of a Hungarian chilled sour cherry soup ($9 – I retain vivid memories of attempting this type of soup many years ago – it was delicious but involved exploding cherries from the blender all over my kitchen). Balla’s soup is subtly sweet, sour, earthy, a dollop of sour cream deepening the creamy texture. One spoonful and you know you’re in for a (blessedly) different kind of meal.

When a puffy slab of Langos ($10) arrived (fried potato bread lathered in sour cream, doused with garlic, onion, dill), I was immediately transported back to 1999 eating a similar bread in the Hungarian countryside at a  festival. It’s so satisfying, one could fill up on this and leave happy.

Cucumber Mizuna Salad ($6) includes a big dollop of herring roe ‘sauce’.  It’s more like a fishy cream, tasting fully of herring. Mini-pickle jars work as palate-cleansers ($4 each) with choice of shredded chile cabbage (reminiscent of kimchi), green cherry tomatoes, carrot/cauliflower/tumeric, or cucumber/dill. Grated Buckwheat Egg Dumplings ($6) evoke a puffier, lighter spaetzle, buttery and in a much bigger portion than expected for a side.

Grilled Fennel Sausage ($18) with bread dumplings, pluots and sour cream is a true beauty of sweet/savory dimensions. Likewise the Kapusnica, a giant Blood Sausage ($22) that  fallsapart at the touch of a knife. It’s different than blood sausages I devoured in Ireland. – an elevated, gourmet version, redolent of Fall and cinnamon as all good blood sausages are. The sausage rests over a duck-filled cabbage roll, sauerkraut, tart dried cherries, hen of the woods mushrooms… plenty big enough for two.

Desserts (all $7.50) convey a savory side with ingredients like beets (Beet & Carrot Cake with goat cheese ice cream) or caraway, but aren’t unrecognizable as sweets. I like Sour Cream Custard with lemon curd, poppyseed, and a cherry/oat/walnut crumble.

Take note: Balla is one of our city’s most innovative and visionary chefs. He’s transformed Bar Tartine, an already strong restaurant, into something truly unique and stand-out. I can’t wait to see where he’s headed.

New North Beach Duo + Pizzas

LE BORDEAUX, North Beach (524 Union Street at Bannam Place, 415-529-1674)

Le Bordeaux holds subtle surprises. It’s ultra-traditional French bistro fare. And French staff are light on the English. You can expect dishes like steak frites (but with thick, Belgian-style fries instead of light, crispy French frites?) and duck confit… a curve-ball is thrown with meat fondue.

But there are a few things to set it apart from other classic French bistros. Wood slabs line the front room walls, and an all wood bar and back room evokes a rustic country lodge. With big picture windows on a quiet alley corner, it’s a mix of European city bistro and country getaway.

There’s no liquor at this point, but an Elderflower Presse ($4) refreshes next to rich French food. I was pleased to see an appetizer of Fried Camembert ($12) with grilled onions and garlic on toast. I adore fried, warm Camembert, but don’t see it on menus enough.

The highlight was a Boudin Blanc entree ($18 – that light, gentle white sausage I love so), atop a mound of caramelized apples and crumbled speculoos, a graham cracker-like cookie/biscuit. It was savory, sweet: like dessert… with sausage.

BOTTLE CAP, North Beach (1707 Powell Street at Union, 415-529-2237)

In what was the former North Beach classic, Washington Square Bar & Grill (aka Washbag), Bottle Cap recently moved in. A comfortable, airy space, its hardwood floors and light-colored walls impart a farmhouse spirit to the comfortable, airy dining room.

Early visits show promise as ingredients are farm-fresh and staff aim to please. Though I find a Negroni without a bitter (whether Campari or Gran Classico) is not really a Negroni (they make theirs with pür•spirits‘ spiced Blood Orange liqueur), I appreciate that they go for classic cocktails with a fresh twist, even if not all of it shines.

Their food menu is straightforward American, showcasing California produce. An Heirloom Tomato Salad ($10) is as fresh as it should be with bits of crispy pork belly, house-toasted croutons and a light buttermilk drizzle. Try not to love the simplicity of a Grilled Nectarine ($8) over a delicate goat cheese cream. Or the comfort of a Grilled Cheese Sandwich ($9) on rustic bread with savory tomato soup to dip it in.

It may not blow one away, but Bottle Cap comforted me. Open daily, I find for a mid-day respite, it remains (as it was as Washbag) a neighborhood staple offering simple, well-prepared American food.

TONY’S, North Beach (1570 Stockton Street at Union, 415-835-9888)

I recently (and happily) returned to my favorite Tony’s Pizza Napoletana to try some new-ish pizzas, grouped under the “California Style” section. I was disappointed in the Pastrami Pizza ($19), inspired by my beloved pastrami sandwich. With coleslaw instead of sauerkraut, the meat was dry, the pie a bit bland, not coming close to the fabulous pastrami pizza Orson did a couple years ago (please bring it back, Orson!)

What worked was their new Fear & Loathing ($19): slow-cooked pork is shredded over the pie, dotted with serrano and habanero peppers, tomatoes, queso fresco, and cactus, drizzled with lime and salsa. Instead of being a ‘hot mess’, there’s just a touch of each element, weaving into a spicy, savory whole.

When in doubt, however, Tony’s Cal Italia and simple, beautiful Jersey Tomato Pie always win.