Ernest opening in the Mission on Wednesday
Ernest, a hotly anticipated San Francisco restaurant from a former Rich Table chef, is officially opening on Wednesday.
The Mission District spot promises a constantly changing, farmers’ marketdriven menu with global influences from chef and owner Brandon Rice, who spent five years as Rich Table’s chef de cuisine. There will be a full bar, raw bar and familystyle set menu in lieu of a more traditional tasting menu.
“If you come in with three or four friends and you don’t want to make a decision, we’ll cook for you a couple courses that are larger format and you’ll get bombarded with food,” he said. “I didn’t want this to be a tasting menu type of place. I want it to be loud and fun.”
The modern, 2,500squarefoot industrial space — a sea of neutral colors and concrete — will start out with outdoor dining only, seating about 40 people on the sidewalk and parking lane. Indoor dining will begin when Ernest’s employees are all fully vaccinated.
Rice expects just one dish to never leave the menu: a beef tartare on sushi rice, covered with ikura cured in sake and soy sauce. Toasted nori will sit on the side so people can make their own handrolls.
There will also be a rotating cruditestyle dish. Instead of serving raw vegetables, though, the chefs will blanch, pickle, roast or ferment them — and serve them with a Green Goddessinspired dip made with pandan oil and makrut lime leaf oil instead of avocado. Cocktails are designed to pair nicely with Rice’s flavors, such as a negroni that gets a floral boost from Japanese preserved cherry leaves.
For dessert, there will be a seasonal shaved ice such as coconut with lime as well as caramelized cheesecake, Rice’s version of the burnt Basque cheesecakes that have taken over Instagram lately.
Snacks and small plates will cost around $8$25, entreesize dishes will land around $30$40 and largeformat dishes, such as a whole duck or hefty steak for the table, will cost $65$120.
While Ernest was ready to open last fall, Rice anticipated another shutdown looming and decided to wait. In the meantime, he got to tinker with menu ideas, build a gradual following through takeout popups and land his first vaccine.
“It’s really been a bummer to wait but at the same time, it’s completely understandable,” he said. “I’m just grateful we’re at a point now where it seems like a lot of people are getting vaccinated.”
Ernest. Opening March 17. 59:30 p.m. WednesdaySunday. 1890 Bryant St., Suite 100, San Francisco. ernestsf.com