La Ciccia La Ciccia

La Ciccia Menu

291 30th St. (Church St.)
San Francisco, CA 94131
Map
Cuisine: Italian / Mediterranean
Viva La Ciccia! Locals happily fatten up on rich, fresh Sardinian food.
Openings: Dinner Tues.-Sat.

Features

La Ciccia, San Francisco, CA


La Ciccia Restaurant Review:


"La ciccia" means "baby fat" or, as Italians put it, "sweet fat." Count on acquiring a few ounces of it at the thriving neighborhood restaurant. In the small, pool-blue dining room, conversation reaches a boisterous tempo (partly thanks to a fabulous wine list, heavy in Sardinian Vermentino) and no one is ever rushed. Sardinia is far enough culturally and geographically from Italy to have its own language; the food is simple, seasonal, sea-salty and saffron-kissed, with a traditional penchant for earthy flavors as well as oceanic influences. Al dente wafers of carrot, potato and radish bolster a seafood salad, served lemony, at room temperature, and lively with tender squid. Wafers of cauliflower make a surprising, sophisticated appearance atop rich "spaghittusu" pressed with bottarga---a "poor man's caviar" made from mullet roe. Sensuous, salted pools of olive oil collect at the bottom of each plate to be sopped up by hunks of bread; whether they choose the house mozzarella, house-cured salumi, mint-braised tuna or lamb, diners inevitably leave here tasting the sea on their lips.