perbacco

chef paul and i decided to try one of the new hot spots in town, perbacco. this restaurant is located on california between battery and front st, next to tadich grill (famous for its fresh, simply prepared fish) and aqua (an uber plush french establishment). i haven't tried either but chef paul raves about both.

upon arriving, perbacco's decor reminds me much of a place i'd find in soho: exposed brick walls, soft lighting, and a modern-rustic feel. it also has the faint impression of a 80's grub-n-go diner where you can get a nice slice of apple pie and a white mug of coffee yellowed with age, just gone upscale. the hostess is to your right, 3 booths line up behind her, and on the left, a long counter/bar behind which a tall glass-front fridge hints at what perbacco really is: sf's new "it spot" for italian food. it boasts several house-cured meats, salumi, hanging from a web of butcher strings.

the space is tall. there's a slight art deco feel to the lighting fixtures. it's a long way back where the gleaming stainless steel open kitchen resides. as we follow our hostess to the heart of the restaurant, she hangs a right and up a flight of carpeted stairs we go. we land on a 2nd fl terrace that opens into a low-ceilinged dining room on the right. we get seated at the back of the room, right by the noisy private party sectioned off about 5 feet away from us. probably the 3rd worst seat in the house that evening. ah well. we were walk-ins at 5:45 pm. the rest of the room was filled by 6:10.

our server was amazing. i haven't had such excellent service in a long time. after a string of mediocre, disappointing experiences lately, i'd begun to lose faith. but tonite's server was quick, informative, agreeable, and was there when you wanted him, not there when you didn't want him. what set him apart was that he knew how to read his diners and responded appropriately. anyone can get an order right, fill your water and smile. it's a whole other cheesecake to anticipate what your customer wants and needs. even sharing him with 4-5 other tables, i felt he was our personal server.

thin, long breadsticks with a small ramekin of mellow salsa verde appears. we munch on this while we ponder the extensive wine and cocktail menus. they specialize in italian wines and it's a huge selection. the by-the-glass page was just as robust, with a strong rossi section of piedmont and toscana region wines. there's also flights available for very reasonable prices (around $20 for three 3 oz glasses). and the offer by the glass, 1/4 L and 1/2 L portions. i settled on a 1/4 L barbera d'avola after inquiring the server about it. his answer was concise and pleasant. no hesitations or snotty attitude. he knew his stuff.

after chef paul decided on a campari cocktail with blood orange, we settled into the huge menu. it's broken into 6 sections: crudo (raw), cured meats, appetizers, pastas, entrees and sides. the variety within each course is amazing, as is the uniqueness of preparation and parings. after some time, we decided on the following: crudo fresh sea scallop with pomegranate and white pomelo, coppa di testa warm pigs head terrine with pickled shallots and mustard vinaigrette, garganelli hand-cut pasta tubes with lamb ragout, peas, mint and ricotta for starters. then entrees berkshire pork shoulder al latte with savoy cabbage and anson mills polenta for me, roasted liberty farms duck breast with raddichio agrodolce, cipolline onion, and roasted grapes for chef paul.

the coppa di testa and garganelli arrived. very quickly. i figured the kitchen was getting things out before the 1st seating rush began. crudo arrive a few minutes after. pacing was wrong and the order of dishes was wrong. we should've received the crudo first, then the terrine, and the warm app garganelli final. i could tell our server knew things has moved too quickly. he immediately checked in, but we were fine with it and hungry.

the warm pig's head terrine was executed beautifully. it's a dish for people accustomed to specialty cuts of meat - pig's head just screams eat me doesn't it - so toss out the lord of the flies image in your mind. chef paul proposed that the meat is ground into a sausage, then cured i imagine, and reshaped on the plate to resemble two thin, round slices of moist salami. the concoction of soft, rare red meat, white fat, and gelatinous tendon was very delicate, almost like taretar. it was marinated with a whole grain mustard vinaigrette and minced pickled shallot. the acidity cut the fattiness of the terrine extremely well. the flavor was so complex and well combined. it's hard to describe. but i kept spooning small mounds onto the accompanying rustic toast into my mouth so i knew it was good.

the next starter, the garganelli pasta, was also a hit. upon observation you realize each tube was hand-shaped and rolled. i'd hate to be that sucker in the kitchen. well-seasoned and al dente it came. the lamb ragout proved to be a fantastic, thick meat sauce with green peas and hints of mint leaves. this showed how well the chef combines ingredients creating balanced flavor; nothing was overpowering. we only had a half-order. i could've had 2.

we finally decided to dig into the crudo. i love raw scallops. i order them every chance i get - scallop hand rolls, sashimi, with black truffles - you name it. the meat is so sweet and succulent, truly a treasure of the sea to me. so i was pretty excited to try this prepartion. arriving on a thin, rectangular glass plate, there were 8 paper thin slices of scallop garnished with pieces of white pomello, pomegranate seeds, and micro greens. the whole thing was swimming in a vinaigrette of some sort. i took a bite, making sure my fork had all the components on it. bleh. something was wrong. it didn't taste right. "does it taste fishy?" chef paul asks. we try again. same thing. "maybe it's not acidic enough," he says. we try the individual components. the pomello was plenty acidic. the pomegranate sweet-tart. the vinagrette of olive oil and citrus, eh. tasting the scallop on its own revealed its true natural sweetness. somehow the pomello and vinagrette neutralized the sweetness and overpowered the delicateness of the scallop. it totally didn't work at all for me. "they used the wrong olive oil. maybe if it was hamachi instead." nope, not me. moving on.

our server asked if we'd like our entrees now or some more time; we were still debating the last bits of the scallop crudo. entrees are here already?? pacing was totally off. the server caught on without a word. he offered to hold the dishes. but we opted on having them now since they'd just end up sitting on the counter getting cold and overcooked. the busboy came out a minute later with our plates. a quick glance - portion sizes were good, not terribly big, but it's definitely one of those places you want to order an app and side or dessert to "feel complete," as are most restaurants these days unfortunately. we pick up our forks and dig in...

i had a thick slice of pork shoulder sitting on a bed of braised savoy cabbage. using a fork and knife proved overkill; the meat practically melted off the fork! braised in milk, it was tender and mild, with a good amount of silky fat and cartiledge. the savoy cabbage was also soft and very buttery. the golden polenta, a smallish pile on the right of my rectangular plate, was well seasoned and also soft and buttery. everything was well balanced. i kept eating.

chef paul's duck breast was fine. smokey meat with a sweet-sour pan sauce cut by the bitter raddichio. he liked it quite a bit, but i wasn't sold. the pan sauce tasted slightly charred to me. the duck was also a bit grainy - a result of being pre-cooked to rare and then fired to taste before plating, he said. we then spent some time reminiscing succulent chinese roast duck.

water service and bussing was excellent, as was the server's attention to refilling our glasses with the mini-carafes of rossi on our table. we decided to pass on desserts. that menu was just as robust, but nothing really stood out at the moment. there's a sizable selection of dessert wines and cheeses, alongside sweets like pistachio panne cotta, polenta cake with olive oil and blood orange compote, and chocolate torte.

our bill came to about $130 with tax/tip. we were stuffed and pretty satisfied. with the exception of the kitchen pacing and poor execution of scallop crudo, i really liked it. environment is pleasant, although upstairs lacks the character the main floor has (whoever paired the gray drapes and metal ceiling fixures was channeling hotel conference room - yuck). apparently it's only been open for 3 months and was recently reviewed in the chronicle. i haven't read that review but i know i would go again. food, overall, was strong and service impeccable. if they can tidy up a few things i think perbacco will prove to be a long-lasting success. oh, and the semi-communal restrooms have fantastic sink fixtures!

recommended? yes.