Maverick, San Francisco
December 11, 2006 at 2:29 am (american, mission, san francisco, worthy)
3316 17th Street, SF, CA 94110 (415) 863-3061 www.sfmaverick.com
This is a small and modern restaurant that specializes in nouveau southern cooking. I was surprised that they were able to accommodate a rather large group of us (10) with skillful and efficient service. We were seated in by the service window and could watch as the dishes were cranked out, I was very impressed and think that the two guys in the tiny kitchen kicked ass!
They have a Monday special of 40% off a bottle of wine, which I mean to go back to check out… They also serve a flight of 3 half glasses for $16ish which is also a really good deal.
We ordered the crab fluffs, which are round eggy poufs filled with crab and air on top of sliced cabbage and a kind of creamy tartar sauce. These were quite good, and not too filling (only 3 pieces per serving).
We had the toasted ravioli filled with duck that was crispy and crunchy upon the biting into it, but then becomes a little soft and al dente as your teeth meet and the savory filling and duck suffuse and permeate your mouth. Continue chewing and you are treated to a perfect crunchy outside countered with the soft doughy inside. Go maverick!!
We also ordered the cinchy ribs with succulent meat that fell off the bones, very scrumptious and liberally dosed with a spicy hot sauce.
We saw a lot of buttermilk fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy coming out of the kitchen, it seems to be a favorite. The crisp breading on the outside was savory and crunchy, exactly how you expect and want it to be… Notice the freshly chopped sage on the pool of gravy.
I ordered the Appalachian Pork stew, that was super tender and moist and fell apart with no need of a knife. It was maple glazed, served over potato dumplings and roasted vegetables, and would have been perfect if it hadn’t been overwhelmed by the sweetness of the glaze on the pork. It smelled fantastic!
The macaroni and cheese was perfectly gooey and soft on the inside, with a crispy toasted top. I’d go back just for this!
I really liked the bourbon pecan pie, it was creamy and caramelly and you could really taste the butter in the crust.
We also tried the chocolate bread pudding which was gorgeous, but seemed dry and too fluffy and crunchy. I had hoped to find a dense rich filling inside of the dry crackling crust, but was not quite satisfied…
We spent $50ish per person which was quite reasonable considering all of the drinks and extra dishes. I definitely will come back, loved the mac and cheese, and the Monday wine special is a great deal too!
second visit feb 07
