Caffe DeLucchi, a really cute cafe in North Beach, has a great winter special going on now whereby on each Tuesday and Wednesday, you can bring in a bottle of wine and the corkage fee is waived. A nice group of us decided to enjoy the restaurant's tasty fare along with a nice selection of wines and we had a wonderful time. The only caveat is that each person who wants to take advantage of the no corkage fee deal must order an entree, but the prices are fairly sweet so it's really worth it regardless. Plus, if you add chicken to any of their salads, that counts as an entree. The group delved right into the wine, which ranged from dry Rieslings, lush Pinot Noirs to big Zins, and sampled a variety of the cafe's food offerings. A few favorites were the Carpaccio, thinly sliced beef with arugula, capers, diced red onion, shaved parmigiano reggiano cheese and extra virgin olive oil; Cozze e Vongole, or steamed black mussels and manila clams in a white wine, garlic and herb sauce with toasted crostini; Insalata Spinaci, which is warm spinach and bacon with balsamic glazed onions, diced roma tomatoes, goat's cheese and candied pecans; Prosciutto e Formaggi, a gorgeous plate of thinly sliced prosciutto di parma served with italian cheeses, seasonal fruit and toasted walnuts; Gnocchi Piemontese, or soft potato pillows served with gorgonzola cream sauce or with wild mushrooms and marsala cream sauce; Costolette di Maiale, or seared marinated pork chop with balsamic poached pears, white bean confit and an arugula and feta garnish; and Snapper con Granchio, or pan sauteed pacific snapper filet topped with a crab, artichoke, sundried tomato, basil and white wine butter sauce. servered with risotto of the day and sauteed vegetables. The staff was quite hospitable and the vibe was comfortable and relaxed, especially after some vino. I hope you pop in and take advantage of this great deal. Enjoy.
Caffe DeLucchi500 Columbus Avenue in San Francisco
http://www.caffedelucchi.com/
Maverick, self-described as an American Eatery and Bar, is a charming, neighborhoody spot in the Mission which has various regular events, including Junk Food and Wine Pairings, as well as Cheap Wine Nights on Mondays. The already reasonable wine list is offered at a 40 percent discount, making some of the selections downright cheap. The space is small but simple, elegant and comfortable. The brick walls and clean lines work well with the muted colors of the tables and chairs and lend a somewhat airy vibe but still one that you want to be in. The food menu is fairly limited but certainly covers all of the bases. There are around 8 each of appetizers and entrees and a few desserts on offer. We dined last night on gorgeous mussels cooked in a white wine sauce with tasty and rich pancetta and served with several creamy dollops of a smoky aioli which was gorgeous with the luscious bivalves. We also shared a side of asparagus which was well-seasoned and served with a nice amount of butter but not too much. The stalks were delightfully crisp and were of a green color that you can only get with very fresh product. We also had the Southern Fried Chicken which is rich, crispy and utterly decadent. It's buttermilk-soaked Mary’s free range chicken served with bacony collard greens, Nora Mill “Georgia Ice Cream” grits, and brown chicken gravy which was obviously started from the luscious chicken drippings. We shared two bottles of white wine, a Grüner Veltliner Der Pallerhof Österreich from Austria followed by a Pinot Gris Claudia Springs from Anderson Valley. At $34 and $30 pre-discount they were both certainly a deal. The Gruner was nice and refreshing but a bit floral for our taste. We thoroughly enjoyed the Pinot. The staff is knowledgeable and courteous and definitely can enhance your dining experience in a positive way. All in all a great way to start off the week, and one that hopefully fits in with the budget as well. Enjoy.
