Star power lights up Mid-Market
The area around the Proper Hotel and its restaurant Villon is an urban checkerboard: New bike shops and bars stand next to boarded and graffiti-covered storefronts. Animated patrons chat on the sidewalk in front of a recently redone event space, while people across the street slump with all their possessions at their feet.
Villon, at the juncture of Market, Seventh and McAllister streets, is an oasis. Diners enter a lobby of the recently opened hotel with its modern, eclectic design by Kelly Wearstler, known for her personal and sometimes quirky looks. The restaurant, with its lounge spilling out into the lobby, has a jubilant vibe.
A scattering of arched and high-backed booths brings a sense of intimacy to the 50seat space, and the wood floors inlaid with black squares give a sense of luxury. The handsome black boxbeam ceiling is hung with at least 10 oval lights surrounded by white ruffles, which make them look like bassinets. I was expecting the wail of babies rather than the pleasant rising pitch of the packed dining room. The imposing bar takes up one side of the room, backed with floor-toceiling shelves stocked with booze accessed by library ladders on rollers. Slatted black blinds at the storefront window are open just enough to reveal glimmers of what’s happening on Market Street, but still act as a screen that romanticizes urban life.
It’s a place geared toward the affluent tech crowd; the offices of Twitter, Uber and other companies are close by.
Villon’s culinary program is led by one of the West Coast’s brightest chefs, Jason Franey, who gained a national reputation at Canlis in Seattle before moving to Monterey to take over the kitchen of 1833. The hotel even has star power in the bar: The partners of Trick Dog created the cocktails. They’ve come up with a “7 by 7” cocktail collection with seven choices in each of seven categories to honor our roughly 49-square-mile city.
It’s clear the owner, Brad Korzen, who is married to Wearstler and has boutique hotels in Austin, Texas, and Hollywood, knows how to create an experience that attracts locals. The rooftop bar, Charmaine’s, opened the last week in October. The impressive and expansive outdoor space wraps three sides of the seven-story building with seating for 62 arranged in groups around fire pits. The 43-seat interior is just as appealing, and it’s clear this bar will become a coveted gathering place. The bar menu includes hot dogs, beef sliders, charcuterie, cheese, fries and a kale salad (this is San Francisco, after all).
The star of the Villon menu is the whole duck ($120), generous enough for four. It looks like a bountiful Thanksgiving table with the duck breast sliced on a platter and the confit legs in a separate bowl. Surrounding the meat are bowls of Brussels sprouts with duck bacon, glazed whole baby carrots, butternut squash puree and crispy sunchokes. It’s a memorable repast that epitomizes the convivial feel the restaurant encourages.
Don’t let its location off the hotel lobby fool you; it doesn’t seem like a hotel restaurant because the approachable food is as stylized as the interior.
Service is attentive but still in the startup phase. Waiters are quick to mention that everything on the menu is to be shared, but that’s wishful thinking. Trying to divide the barely set dashi flan with mussels, clams and maitake mushrooms ($12) leads to a mangled dish and a less than satisfying experience. The foie gras torchon ($22) surrounded by quince, mustard and pickled carrots is so rich that sharing is definitely advised, but the one thick slice of warm brioche subtly jettisons that idea.
One of the most beautiful dishes is the baby beet salad ($16), with a swirl of burnt ricotta in the middle accented with plums and pumpernickel streusel. It’s well-conceived but veers toward the sweet, diminishing its complexity.
As with many chefs these days, Franey mixes and matches cuisines. The okonomiyaki ($16) includes a thick, crisp pancake stacked with fermented red cabbage, chorizo and shrimp. The tuna tartare ($14) combines several trends in one dish: crispy chicken skin, deviled eggs and micro onions.
However, the chef pulls off dishes that cause problems in other kitchens. Grilling Little Gems generally leads to an acrid, wilted salad. Here the heads are lightly charred so they are still crunchy and chilled ($15). They’re topped with smoked egg yolk, pancetta and potatoes.
The gnudi dish ($22) is also one of the best around. Paired with chanterelle mushrooms, pecorino and crisp coins of sunchokes, which echos the flavor of the creamy puree underneath, the dumplings hit the mark because their crisp exteriors are lightly seared.
Franey creates another interesting cross-cultural mix with a squid ink tagliatelle ($25) that combines uni, bottarga and Parmesan. It turned out to be an extremely richtasting dish. His steak tartare ($18) is clearly inspired by Japan; it is served with yuzu, furikake (a seasoning blend) and nori crackers.
The puffy Hawaiian rolls ($8) are dusted with black and white sesame seeds and served with three spreads: cultured butter, preserves and chicken liver mousse glazed with strawberry gelee.
The mastery of technique shows on the skate wing ($25) with charred cauliflower, a silken lobster bouillabaisse and grapes partly dehydrated to concentrate the flavor.
The petit fillet ($36), however, was the biggest disappointment. The two slices of rosy meat had surprisingly little flavor. They were crowded onto a dessert-size plate with smoked potatoes, celery root and Swiss chard.
The lineup of desserts (all $12) includes warm beignets, which add yet another crosscultural touchstone. They are light and airy but shaped like a churro and served with lemon posset (a mousse-like cream) with butternut squash and coffee. The chocolate mousse, which is molded into disks, gains complexity with beets, brittle-like sheets of candy, black sesame and cocoa nibs. The honey bombe is my favorite pairing, with tarragon and pluots.
While most of Franey’s food was good, some combinations felt guided too much by trends. The chef is better than what’s on the menu. Now he might hone a singular voice that artfully melds his talent to his San Francisco home.