Beast and the Hare: Meat as Art

Comments (0) By Jonathan Kauffman Wednesday, Feb 16 2011

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The meal ended with two simple, lovely desserts (both $6): a cloudlike panna cotta topped with dried figs marinating in a hefty slug of rum, and a s'more pie, with graham cracker crust and browned whirls of marshmallow fluff, that reveled in the density of its chocolate-mousse filling.

Again, though, the cooking could be off-kilter enough to make me focus on its calorie content rather than its flavor. Oil glistened and pooled in the crevices of honey-mustard chicken wings ($7), each wing a giant, unsegmented triangle, and the exterior wasn't nearly crisp enough to warrant eating more than a few greasy bites. A pressed duck leg ($16) had been cooked under a weight to melt out the excess fat, but then it came out mahogany-skinned and overcooked, perched on a warm salad of farro, red cabbage, and green olives shiny with too much oil. The servers were bustling a little more to attend to the crowded room — they were just as affable as the last time, but they forgot the salad we'd ordered, leaving us with a vegetable-free meal that I swear left my spleen a little achy. I got the feeling that Beast and the Hare needs one more line cook, since most of the flaws seemed to stem from a lack of attention.

Lara Hata

This taco filling is real meaty: Veal, beef, lamb, and pork belly.

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Beast and the Hare

1001 Guerrero
San Francisco, CA 94110

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Mission/ Bernal Heights

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Details

Beast and the Hare
1001 Guerrero (at 22nd St.), 821-1001, www.beastandtheharesf.com. Dinner 6-10 p.m. Mon., Wed.-Sun. Muni: J, 14, 48, 49.

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Countering the crise de foie was a pappardelle with smoked pork cheeks ($16), inch-wide ribbons of pasta tossed with a tomato ragu and chunks of braised pork. Just enough smoke lingered between the fibers of the tender meat to subdue the brightness of the tomatoes, but not enough to stomp all over the dish. The ragu was proof that when Marks controls his brawny side, he stays on message: presenting meat as art, not extreme eats.