Delfina

San Francisco, CA

I met with with LoKo on a Monday night for dinner at one of San Francisco's favorite Italian restaurants, Delfina, somewhere I've been meaning to go for years. I had been to the pizzeria  and enjoyed myself and had high hopes for the restaurant. Even on a Monday night, the entire place was packed. 

Fried Jerusalem Artichoke with basil and lemon

We had trouble deciding on appetizers, so we took the recommendation from our server who suggested the fried Jerusalem artichoke and the grilled calamari. I don't usually order artichokes because I don't like messing with the effort it takes to eat the leaves. But this artichoke was fried and the crispy leaves offered the great textural contrast to the artichoke heart. The lemon, basil and sea salt added simple seasoning and the made it a good first dish.

Grilled Fresh Calamari, warm white bean salad

The three small grilled calamari was visually beautiful served atop a warm white bean salad.  It was a totally fine, standard dish. Well executed, but nothing stood out.

Short rib cappelletti

The short rib cappelletti was also a recommendation from our server and was one of the most unique pasta that I've ever had. Simply because the contents of the cappelletti are a full flavored main course braised shortrib, making it a heavy, tasty, successful combination.

Tagliatelle with Berkshire Pork

The tagliatelle was unfortunately a pretty boring, uneventful course. I can't remember anything about it. I don't think it was bad, but I don't recall it whatsoever, so I'd say to unmemorable.

Wolfe Ranch Quail

We shared the secondi, a balasamic laced crispy Wolfe Ranch quail which was very good. The standout flavor was the tartness of the balsamic which combined with ramps and pine nuts, made it a very enjoyable final dish.

Overall, I enjoyed the items at Delfina. I would say that the dishes are mostly well executed and tasty, but not really cutting edge. It's not a place where you're getting unique flavors, but just good done Italian food and I would definitely come back.    

Salted Caramel and Strawberry Balsamic Bi-Rite

Instead of getting dessert at Delfina, we took a short walk to Bi-Rite and grabbed a couple scoops of ice cream. I went a scoop of the salted caramel and strawberry balsamic, which was a nice way to end a nice meal with a good friend. 

Overall 7/10
May 16, 2011