fresh meat: Bar Crudo

You'd think I was obsessed about fish or something since I'm hitting you up with two seafood joints two weeks in a row. Well, in case you all haven't noticed, crudo is hot. Well, it's actually cold and raw. Like sashimi, you don't to even want to think about eating some marginal or inexpensive product, so it's wise to frequent places where you are quite sure the chef knows what the hell he's doing. For the record, chef/owner Mike Selvera knows his fish. He had stints at both Yabbie's Coastal Kitchen and Café Maritime=fish chops.

~BAR CRUDO~ is tucked in right next to the Tunnel Top bar on Bush, in a tiny two-level space where a crêperie used to be. You waltz in and odds are good you'll be greeted by the friendly Tim Selvera, Mike's twin, and partner in the business. Cool brothers, these two. The downstairs has some bar seating and ringside seats where you can watch Mike work his magic at the raw bar or while at his Easy-Bake/Holly Hobbie stove (fortunately he just upgraded to six burners). The walls feature sassy mermaid art by the fab Kelly Tunstall, who also designed Bar Crudo's sexy trucker mud flap-mermaid logo and menu. (You may recognize her art from A16.) The restaurant feels cozy and personal, in the way the best small venues often resonate. It's welcoming and warm, so it's a perfetto place for
a date.

Upstairs on the small loft-like mezzanine, there are about seven candlelit tables with Bar Crudo slyly embossed in the metallic tops of each, accompanied by rustic wood chairs. The music is personal and eclectic, like what you'd hear hanging out at a friend's place who happens to work at an indie record store. Very High Fidelity. Servers are nice, people are having a good time, so why doncha join ‘em? Kick off with a bottle of the U Mes U Fan Tres Cava ($27) while pondering the menu of shellfish that includes a range of oysters ($2-$2.25) or how about half of a Dungeness crab ($12)? If you want to splurge on a seafood platter ($35-$65), this is the place to do it. It's time to get all Tony Danza and show your wallet who's the boss.

So, the crudos. If it's your first time here, go for the sampler ($18 for two people) so you can try all four unique little jewels of
raw fish. Personally, I find the artic char to be the homecoming queen, slathered with creamy horseradish, a layer of tobiko (pop pop!), and dill, while the runner-up is the silky scallop accented with bright flavors of orange, fennel, mint, and olive. Green olive and scallop, who knew? Totally inspiring on the flavor scale. The other two offer equally clever flavor combos, although I recommend finishing with the tuna since the presence of the sriracha will blow your tastebuds out for a sec.

Next up, I hope you are SCUBA-certified and your tanks are ready, because it's time for full immersion into the chowder ($10). It's a creamy bowl of total badass-ness, including clams, cod, squid, potato, and hunks of smoky bacon. One night it wasn't quite warm enough, but the other time it was total perfection. Slurp. The lemongrass mussels ($12) are almost like a bowl of dreamy tom kha gai, without the chicken. See, not everything is raw.

A couple salads are on the menu ($11-$12), which also highlight Mike's skill with combining flavors. For a little touch of decadence, there's an artisan cheese plate ($11) and a sherry duck liver mousse ($10) that plays nicely with cornichons, caperberries, and hunks of bread with grill marks. It might be a little livery for some, but I'm down with my liver mousse tasting of liver, because after all, it is liver, yo.

Some folks may not be happy with just the chocolate truffles as the lone dessert option (for now). If you're on a date, you can repeat what my date and I did and cruise down a block and a half to Café Claude (7 Claude Lane, 415-392-3505) for some warm chocolate love, a glass of Sauternes, and some live jazz if you time it right (7:30pm-10:30pm). Or just go next door to the Tunnel Top and do a chocolate cake shot and you're all set.

A couple more details to note: first off, Bar Crudo's beer list is just straight-up fab. Belgium is seriously in the house—the bottle of Fantome, Pissenlit Dandelion ($14) (please refrain from jokes about the name, come ON) practically begs for a double date with you and your mussels. Secondly, this is not the place to go to if you're in a rush. They're not neglecting you; things just take a little longer. So cool your jets. And lastly, the total score is the parking rate drops at the Sutter Stockton garage after 6pm, which is just on the other side of the tunnel. Totally in the pocket. Which actually sums up the entire experience of dining at the diminutive Bar Crudo.

Bar Crudo
603 Bush St.
at Stockton St.
San Francisco, CA 94108

415-956-0396
http://www.barcrudo.com/

Apps/small plates $10-13
Shellfish $1.50 (mussels) - $65 (platter)

Open daily for dinner