it was funny we didn't have any reservation because of our own communitcation glitch but we got in last minute anyhow.the restaurant is on the ground floor of an old 3 level flat, a typical San Francisco building, narrow and long. the ground floor had been rennovated and has that Mission district industrial bistro vibes, with simple decor and materials such as wood and brush stainless steel table tops, clean lines and not fussy. the front section is the bar with high bar tables and a couple bistro tables. the mid section of the restaurant is a long corridor with the kitchen on the left, a short row of bistro tables on the right and the 2 bathrooms also on the right. And the back section is - i guessed - the main dinning area.
the crowd here is eclectic on this thursday night. the staff or our waiter is friendly, very knowledgeable about the food, ingredients and how it's prepared as well as the drinks/wine list.
we started off with the drinks since we were still waiting for 1 more to come. one had the rose bubbly as usual. one had the special drink of the night - vodka with white tea, i didn't try but she said it was very good.
i ordered one from the cocktail list - Vin de Pamplemousse - that has vodka, viognier, grapefruit juice, vanilla bean and lemon. that drink was so good! it tasted very light, i could hardly taste the liquour but felt the impact after 5 minutes. and our last guest showed up! She ordered ice tea for the evening.for starters, one friend and i shared the seared scallops with pea shoots. this one is new on the menu and was not on their online menu. fresh dayboat scallops, perfectly seared, still stranslucent on the inside, a good starter indeed. the other had the white tuna tartar with orange and herbs, looked very interesting but i didn't try. she said it waw very good and i had no doubt. the last one ordered the escarole puree soup with gruyere and crouton. i had half a spoon to taste and it was excellent. it was fresh and had that leafy green after taste. we were all happy with out staters.
for the entree, one had the roasted chicken. she said it was very good. the table next to us also had the chicken and the lady finished everything on the plate. it was 1/2 of a good size chicken! she said it was the best chicken she'd ever had, enough said! the other 2 ordered the same dish which was not on the online menu neither. it was the fluke, a type of white fish and it looked delish! and they said it was delish! i had the coffee rubbed pork shoulder. it was tantalizing! i thought i would be grilled but not the case. it was slow cooked, the meat came in 1 piece on the plate but as soon as i touched it with the fork, it fell apart like pulled pork.
it was tender and flavorful, i could only taste a super light hint of coffee afterward. it reminded me somewhat of a mole dish, but not as intense in flavor. it came with some kind of starch, i couldn't tell if it was potato??? and mustard green i think. i had the pork with a glass of syrah from santa ynez valley, in santa cruz. this wine was not on the online menu neither, so you do get a few nice surprises with the restaurant updated menu. it was a very good red, with deep burgundy color, nice bouquet and has a nice mix of spicey peppery taste, very hearty, perfect with this stronger flavor pork dish!
Desert, we were stuffed but had to try the desert since everything was good so far. And desert was no exception. we decided to shared the chocolate crepe with pink grape fruit and pink peppercorn vanilla ice cream. a perfect concoction again, all the tastes of sweet, sour, bitter and the rich flavor of chocolate balanced well with the delicate fragant grape fruit and a hint of pepper in the vanilla ice cream. a perfect way to end an excellent meal, really!
resvervation reccommended, and the restaurant does request credit card info for resv. sounds fussy with the reservation but it was the complete opposite once you step inside the restaurant.
http://www.rangesf.com/
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