Isa Winner

So, Monday was a pretty nice, liesurely day. A perfect summer day. The SF weather was unusually warm, sunny and the wind was unusually dull. The boyfriend and I decided it was a perfect beach day and made our way over to Baker Beach with Emiliana Torini's Love in the Time Of Science playing in the background. That record always reminds me of lazy summers (especially the track, "Unemployed in Summertime"... go figure.) People were tanning, dogs were playing, the dolphins were swimming. We read a little, napped a little and then finally, after about 3 hours, we lazily made our way back to the car. Now what? Dinner.

We drove to Chestnut, with the intention of going to E'Angelo's. But (and we run into this problem often) they were closed Mondays. So, we walked around until we wandered into this place called Isa, on Steiner St. We chose to sit in the patio, which was this adorable, enlosed space, lit by christmas lights and the setting sun's final rays piercing through the sides of the awning. We were protected by the wind, and therefore were not cold despite our barely-there beach attire. After one quick look at the menu, we knew all the things we wanted... seabass crudo, procuitto de parma bruchetta, butterfish baked in parchment paper with truffles and herco vert, al dente pasta with truffles and tomatos and finally (yes, I know we eat a lot thankyouverymuch), lamb with flava beans and mini olives. All of which were Delicious.

I started off with a Rose (it was that kind of day), a Bailly-LaporreCremant de Bourgogne. Then, we were prsented with the crudo, which looked beautiful. Fresh, thinly sliced pieces of seasbass with just the right amount to celantro, lime and zest! We quickly went through that. Next, procuitto de parma bruchetta which was presented with fresh pieces of arugula and little orange melon balls on top. Yum. Then the first main course arrived, butterfish. It was pretty neat how it came cooked in parchment paper. How that paper doesn't go up in flames, I don't know, but it certainly holds all the flavors in nicely. Soon after came the al dente pasta. Half way through, we knew we wouldn't be full so we ordered theRoasted Rack of Lamb. After all this, we still managed room for dessert-- 2 desserts: amareto flavored semi-fredo and creme brule. I nearly always get creme brule if it's on the menu. And this one was pretty yummy. My only gripe was that it was in a small, deep dish so there was more cream than sugar, whereas I like it in a wider, shallower dish so there's more sugar than cream. Anyway. Check it out. The place has the atmosphere, the food, and I'd like to say service bu t that isn't necessarily true. I've yet to find a place that has good service in SF. That's what would get me to come back to a place. Besides convenience (thank you, NOPA).