Cortez

Forgive me. I realize that, lately, the blog has veered strenuously in the direction of restaurant write-ups, and away from the kitchen. While locals may not mind this as much, surely my out of town guests are feeling neglected, since they will not be reserving a table at Jack Falstaff or Walzwerk anytime soon. I've tried to make up for my transgressions this week with not one but two delicious dessert recipes, but thought perhaps I owed you an explanation. (deep breath)

You see, I have gone back to the Ugly Corporate World (UCW). WAIT! DON'T SHRIEK! It's not as bad as it sounds. As probably very few of you know, I left the UCW last summer to devote myself to writing. It wasn't like I thought I was going to have a book published a year later, or even anything published a year later; I had no delusions about supporting the Lifestyle To Which I'd Become Accustomed (LTWIBA) with my writing, but I figured I had slaved away long enough (and I do mean slaved). It was time to do something that made me happy, so I saved up some cash and traded it back for my soul.

The LTWIBA changed (though Mr. FM did not give up his association with the UCW and we've been able to continue stuffing ourselves silly with great food). But those who know me know that the LTWIBA went from one that included lots of shopping to one notable primarily for its lack thereof. The good news is that neither money nor the things it can buy bring happiness, while doing what you love does (if it doesn't drive you insane first. Whoever said writing was easy?)

Money does, however, keep the showers hot and the lights on. In order to continue funding my writerly lifestlye I've taken a short-term freelance gig, the prodigal daughter returned to the working world, and my time over the last few weeks has been at a premium since the UCW owns my soul again (well, they're renting it four days a week). I have had neither time nor energy to cook much. Kudos to all you who do both all the time, and write about it. You are made of stronger stuff.

And now, on to a brief discussion of Cortez, yet another Pascal Rigo establishment (oh, and Sam let me know the other day that Americano is not his newest restaurant. That honor goes to Café du Soleil in the Haight.) Cortez has been open a while (feeling lazy so I'm skipping the research) and Mr. Food Musings and I have eaten there quite a few times. He's a big fan, I am less so but mainly because I despise small plates dining. (More on that another time...) But there's no denying that the kitchen turns out marvelous fare, and so when our friend C., who has been calling the Dominican Republic home for the last three years, called to say she'd be in town for the weekend I knew exactly where we should go.

The room is large and if you go early, you may feel a bit out of sorts. I find that large rooms need to be brimming with people to live up to their promise. Saturday night at 8 pm the place was hopping. My only quibble with the decor is the strange assortment of globe-like light sculptures in red, blue, yellow and green. They're tacky, or at the least very 80s, and I wish they'd replace them with something more toned down, or at least something that doesn't look like they raided an old planetarium.

The kudos I'll give to Cortez, which I refuse to give to any other small plates establishment I've been to, is they know how to course the food. You never end up with ten plates being dumped on you at once, which is annoying not only because it crowds the table but also because you either have to eat fast or risk the food losing its heat. Nor do they bring oysters last and duck first. Like a wine tasting, Cortez's coursing thoughtfully puts things on the table in the order that works best for the palate. They've never let me down and it's the main reason I continue to eat their small, silly plates.

Here's what we ate on Saturday. All of it was excellent. For your first time, I'd highly recommend you start with the soup of the day, which is served in tall shot glasses. It's just plain fun. Ditto the milkshakes for dessert. And the crudo du jour, which is an Italian preparation of raw fish similar to sashimi, has been amazing, fresh, flavorful and surprising each time I've ordered it. (Jeffrey Steingarten recently wrote all about crudo in Vogue, if you can get your hands on the June issue.) My only complaint was the presence of foam on a few dishes. Despite adding an often perfect amount of scent or flavor, it just looks like the scum you skim off a slowly boiling chicken stock to me. I'd much rather do without.

~ Frisée salad with smoked trout, potatoes and mustard vinaigrette We order this dish each time we go and it's always very good, little nuggets of smoked trout and medallions of just cooked potato hiding beneath the frilly frisée.
~ Beets with Point Reyes blue cheese and candied walnuts A perfect trio of flavors that makes you wonder why pear and apple are more popular in this salad. It's beet prejudice, dammit!
~ Crudo: Japanese tai fish (sea bream) Mild and silky smooth in all but a few spots. A beautiful red hue washes over parts of the fish, which is often served at weddings in Japan.
~ Katafi crusted crab cake A bird's nest of crisp katafi (shredded phyllo dough) tops the crab cake, and the citrus tartar sauce adds just the right amount of zing.
~ Calamari salad Oops! Didn't write this one down, but I think it was tiny grilled calamari rings with sugar snap peas and mushrooms in a buttery foam. Whatever it was, it was the surprise hit of the night.
~ Ricotta-filled ravioli with peas, mint, and grapefruit Yum! C., who is not a big pasta fan, loved the sweet, mild ricotta insides and the flavors all harmonized brilliantly.
~ Pork belly with carrot spatzle Ummmm.... is all I can say. The spatzle were crisp and much richer, surprisingly, than the soft pink pork belly. The pork was from a Berkshire, or black pig, renowned for its high quality.
~ Lemon tart The miniature tart came garnished with a thin candied lemon slice, a thick crepe topped with blueberry compote and ice cream. Lemon and blueberries are a truly classic summertime treat and I've been seeing recipes combining them everywhere lately.

We drank two wines (one a red Movia) from Slovenia, which along with Italy's nearby Friuli wines from Collio, is the hip new wine region. Read all about it in July's Food and Wine.

Cortez, San Francisco, 550 Geary Street, 415-292-6360