 RN74 Restaurant Review: Named for the highway running through Burgundy from Dijon to Beaune, this restaurant and wine lounge from Michael Mina and sommelier Rajat Parr delivers California French fare and globally sourced wines without pretense. Casually-clad sommeliers, of which there are five on staff and generally three on the floor, reinforce the message. The wine list, crafted from 2,000 unique wines and a 25,000-bottle inventory, offers at least forty selections by the glass at levels seldom seen in that format. But it’s not all about the wine --- executive chef Jason Berthold's cooking delivers as well. Fort Bragg sea urchin is presented in a fully spiked half-shell still scented, perhaps excessively, of the sea, filled with a creamy gastronomic take on clam chowder incorporating blue crab, sea urchin “tongue” and potato mousseline. Bone marrow with bacon relish is liberally seasoned with herbs. All the classic proteins are available: grilled hanger steak comes with braised short ribs, duck is prepared three ways and Arctic char arrives with mussels. The atmosphere has the aesthetic of a European train station waiting room from the days when train travel was enjoyable, right down to the clickety-clack of a train arrivals and departures board that instead cleverly spells out notable wine selections available.
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