June 3, 2024
Frasca! We don’t document every time that we visit, but this menu was spectacular!
To clearly distinguish between the menu and our descriptions, quotes from the menu will be in a Helvetica Neue font, our descriptions will be in the usual Times New Roman font.
The 4 course, or “Quattro Piatti” menu. You select one dish for each course. Bill and Martin both simply had to do the Risotto with Pacific Morel mushrooms.
We always start with the only dish that’s always on the menu - Frico Caldo. It turns out that they get the Montasio cheese that’s key to the dish from Cheese Importers!
Our wine tonight is an amazing Dalia Maris “Piccolo”. Martin got citrus and a touch of pineapple on the nose. Bill smells unidentified tropical fruits and a hint of minerality. There is a rich full body to it as well. Definitely want to try out more of this vintners work.
This was quite the surprise, we haven’t had sourdough this good even from Boudin’s in San Francisco. It really was the best we’d ever had. The butter is made in France and we have no idea of how it was formed up like that!
Another surprise, this Amuse-bouche is Elderflower soda with rhubarb. Wow this is amazingly bright. This is spring in a bowl.
Bill’s Antipasta was:
PANCIA DI MAIALE
pork belly • alubia bean • nutmeg • sauerkraut • green garlic
Bill says, “I hate sauerkraut”, but they made it work! Absolutely amazing.
Martin’s Antipasta was:
CRUDO DI CAPESANTE
day boat scallop• rhubarb • celtuce • pistachio • spiced oil
Celtuce, also known as celery lettuce is a lettuce that’s primarily grown for its stem. Really adds some crunch. The rhubarb is really sweet and an interesting contrast to the rich scallops. The pistachio “milk” is really a fairly thick oil completely infused with pistachios. Again a contrast to rich scallops.
Martin, being a scallop fanatic says he won this course!
Both of us did the same Primi:
RISOTTO ALLE SPUGNOLE
aged carnaroli rice • pacific morel • sculpit • smoked ricotta
This dish tried to steal the whole show! The pacific morel mushrooms are front stage. Sculpit is common in Italy and is commonly described as a combination of tarragon, radicchio, and arugula. The smoked ricotta is also from Cheese Importers and we couldn’t believe how the smokiness supported but didn’t overwhelm the morels. Although not mentioned on the menu, we believe the green bits to be spring onions.
Bill’s Secondi was:
ANATRA
liberty farm duck • heirloom polenta • stone fruit • sculpit • montasio
The skin is crisp the duck breast is tender, a hallmark of liberty farms, and the accompaniments are both attractive and quite tasty. The sauce is a very difficult to describe savory with some sweetness. The duck is amazingly tender and incredibly flavorful. Bill wins this course!.
Martin’s Secondi was:
IPPOGLOSSO
alaskan halibut • hokum carrot • new garlic • spinach • whey emulsion
The sweet earthy carrot is an interesting compliment to the halibut. The new garlic was very mild just like it has to be to work to work with this dish. Regular garlic would’ve been way too strong. The halibut was perfectly prepared, falling apart just right.
Bill’s Dolci was:
BANANA CIOCCOLATO
maple • roasted banana • cinnamon
Bill‘s bananas and chocolate are an amazing combination. The bananas are small balls and the chocolate is a full gelato and there’s a dark chocolate underneath everything.
Martin’s Dolci was:
MAGNOLIA
cherry • peach • financier • chantilly
What an incredible, six layer assembly! The financier “cookie” was actually done as a light almond cake on the bottom. The layers alternated between ices and baked cookies. There were 3 of each and Martin really can’t describe any of them well enough to do them justice. We tied on this course!