Nua is a welcome addition to North Beach’s swiftly changing landscape, where red-sauce Italian joints rub up against Argentine steak houses and Thai restaurants. The small space is done up in a very Hermès palette of tan and orange, with exotic zebra-wood tables and a long bar; the best seats are by the front window. The familiar wine-bar-and-Mediterranean-food-formula, so prevalent in the city, manages to feel fresh here. Manila-born chef Anna Bautista stuffs piquillo peppers with brandade and then lightly fries them, prawns are spiced with chiles and garlic and Arctic char emerges accented by snap peas, fingerling potatoes and orange hollandaise sauce. The wine list (presented with such whimsical headings as “Are you blushing?”) spans the globe and has something for every budget, including 29 wines by the glass.
Nua 550 Green St., 415-433-4000
Nua is a welcome addition to North Beach’s swiftly changing landscape, where red-sauce Italian joints rub up against Argentine steak houses and Thai restaurants. The small space is done up in a very Hermès palette of tan and orange, with exotic zebra-wood tables and a long bar; the best seats are by the front window. The familiar wine-bar-and-Mediterranean-food-formula, so prevalent in the city, manages to feel fresh here. Manila-born chef Anna Bautista stuffs piquillo peppers with brandade and then lightly fries them, prawns are spiced with chiles and garlic and Arctic char emerges accented by snap peas, fingerling potatoes and orange hollandaise sauce. The wine list (presented with such whimsical headings as “Are you blushing?”) spans the globe and has something for every budget, including 29 wines by the glass.
Nua 550 Green St., 415-433-4000
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