By Virginia Miller of www.theperfectspotsf.com. View the last installment of Appetite here.
EARLY TAKES ON THE LATEST RESTAURANT OPENINGS, Part One
Each of these restaurants opened within the last few weeks (the rest to come next week). I’ve had the chance to make initial visits and provide an early take on these new, buzzed about spots. Of course, more visits to come, realizing each needs time to settle in and claim their identity on our dense culinary map.
Baker and Banker
I’ve long missed lush brunches at a former occupant of 1701 Octavia Street, The Meetinghouse … thankfully, we can still get their famed biscuits by the box at Sweet Jo’s. The space then became one of our city’s Italian greats, Quince, which recently moved to the FiDi, garnering a coveted 3.5 stars from the Chronicle’s Mr. Bauer. With such tough acts to follow, forgive me if I didn’t have overly high expectations of brand new Baker and Banker. My mistake.
Certainly the husband and wife chef team bring rich experience as chef and pastry chef respectively. But seeing (or tasting, in this case) is believing. He’s (Jeff) Banker and she’s the Baker (Lori Baker, to be precise). Nightly dinner is the mainstay, but soon they’ll open a bakery on the premises – I’min!