Weekday Getaway

Among the many, many, many, many, many, many fantasies I've entertained myself with over the years -- perhaps too many, now that I think about it, but then again, they're more interesting than television -- by far the most alluring remains that of running away. This dream has many avatars -- the bohemian- expatriate-in-Paris fantasy (Tropic of Cancer); the touring-the-country- in-my-college-sweetheart's- VW-bus fantasy (Thelma and Lou); the camping-in-the-jungles-of-northern-Kauai fantasy (Tarzan Learns to Surf) -- but the feeling each produces is always the same: a certain lightness that comes from the idea of letting go, of leaving my responsibilities behind.

Of course, I realize, it's not as simple as that. My employers, landlord, and girlfriend probably wouldn't reserve the special place each has created for me during my absence; my houseplants would suffer terribly; and what's more, new commitments would surely emerge wherever I fled. But still, it's a fun idea to play with from time to time, to know that, some day, I could ride off into the sunset and let my worries fend for themselves. And until that day there is always Dago Mary's.

Tucked inside the main gate at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, Dago Mary's is the kind of place where your obligations will never find you. As we stepped into a cavernous dining room graced by dark wood trim and winking chandeliers -- "we" being me plus my friend Frank, who, if I ever do run away, will hopefully be riding shotgun -- any traces of workaholism we might have carried in with us simply vanished.

Instead, we succumbed to a sort of relaxed, familiar glow as we took our seats among well-dressed older couples and business types, a feeling that was enhanced when our waitress said she hadn't seen me in a while. Actually, I told her, I'd never been to Dago Mary's. Well, that's OK too, she replied.

Once a bustling dining hall that was known properly as the Venetian Villa, colloquially for its former owner, "Dago" Mary, this decades-old haunt now focuses on one of my favorite rituals, the extended weekday lunch. By its very location at the productive heart of the workday, such a meal forces duty aside, leaving a space that should by all means be filled with a Bloody Mary ($4). This mildly spicy classic, graced with pickled green beans, proved a cocktail that left us with two choices -- order four more, each, and write the day off completely (the Frank-gets-fired-for-not-showing-up-at-his-restaurant-job fantasy), or order one more, enjoy a brief buzz, then get our asses to work (which is what we actually did).

You won't find a lot of new-school, California-style fusion on Dago Mary's menu, nor will you miss it. Instead, a selection of pastas, sandwiches, seafood dishes, and steaks is supplemented by a list of daily specials. We began with salads, each served on a chilled plate: a somewhat understated caprese (sliced tomatoes topped with mozzarella and fresh basil, $6.95), and a more zesty tomato, onion, and anchovy ($6.95), whose rings of red onion and salt-cured fishies guaranteed, once again, that Frank and I wouldn't kiss, handsome bastard though he may be.

Our waitress, on the other hand, deserved multiple smooches for recommending our next appetizer -- the deep-fried calamari ($5.95). I'm not sure how the kitchen pulled this off, but somehow, these golden rings of squid were a bit more tender than any I've had previously, and a drop of fresh lemon juice vaulted them into the realm of the divine. In fact, I decided the calamari would be my favorite dish of the day, then changed my mind seconds later upon tasting the French onion soup ($5.50). A traditional blend of sweet onions and beef stock, topped with bread and melted cheese, this luxurious brew cascaded over the sides of the bowl as our spoons sank in, making us realize innovation isn't always a good thing, and some recipes should never be messed with.

Entrees at Dago Mary's are what you might call good, solid fare, sturdy lunches that make their presences felt and color the rest of the day. Though the daily specials were the most enticing, we did make one foray into the regular menu for the eastern scallops ($12.95) -- huge cylinders of mollusk in a rich butter-caper sauce, served with lightly steamed zucchini, carrots, and yellow squash.

I don't mean to knock Dago Mary's regular menu (linguine with clams, ravioli, hamburgers, New York steak, etc.) but then again, why order tortellini with cream sauce when you can have Cajun pasta ($11.95) instead? Served over cords of bucatini, the mélange of chicken, sausage, and bell peppers in a spicy orange cream sauce exuded just the right amount of heat, enough to warm the insides without overwhelming the ingredients it was meant to enhance. Or, to continue, why order the fillet of sole dore when you can have the sole dore amandine ($12.95)? This mile-wide sheet of egg-battered flounder was buried under approximately half an inch of thin-sliced almonds, enhancing the tender fish with a delicate crunchiness that, like the calamari, needed only a drop of lemon juice to make it complete.