Continuing to gnaw our way through Central California—in San Francisco, we had a nice meal with friends at Venticello, tucked away (sic) behind Grace Cathedral near the top of Nob Hill (shrimp wrapped in prosciutto); took some young folks to the Great Eastern in Chinatown, where the fish hop out of the pond and onto your plate; then brunch with a friend at Zuni before the opera.
But the best meal of the week was (envelope, please) in Davis, 60 miles inland. There must be 80 restaurants in Davis if you count the Dairy Queen, but our vote goes to Tucos Wine Market & Café, tucked into an odd space just off the railroad station.
Okay, "restaurant" is a bit of a stretch. Wine by the bottle is probably the moneymaker. The on-site dining is 10 tables for two plus a few more on the patio, and a tiny bit of bar space. You can buy a pork chop or a halibut steak but the real action is in the “small plates”—“appetizers” in some parlance. It’s the kind if place here they sell soup by the shot, and where Balsamic vinegar is a menu item (8-year-old Trebbiano at $5). The wine list is deep for such a small shop, and they push the flights—samplers of two-ounce shots. We chose a plate of chicken/corn ravioli, and a sampling of patés, along with a flight of four California reds—top marks to the T.R. Eliot Three Plums 2004 Pinot.
I know next to nothing on the backstory of this place, but my guess it is a cook who has found away to minimize his time managing and leave more time to hang over the stove. Caution: the Davis Wiki suggests it may have gone downhill lately, but it seemed fine to us. For our money, not even Fresno can top it.
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