The path of happiness is simple. Be aware, stay connected, and feel and act upon your passion. There are few restaurants that I’ve come across that have accomplished this augmented level of existence in the form of food, wine and service. In my integration of self-discovery and my love for all sensorial elements of nature, I realized that a restaurant is another form of family. In its structure, it holds a nucleus of stakeholders---parents, children, in-laws, distant relatives, favored friends and those who just tag along for the ride.
Families who have figured out the magic of connection soar to a place of peaceful war, unconditional love, and managed harmony. In the case of Cotogna, the parents are Chef Michael Tusk and his wife, Lindsay Tusk, who run the restaurant with taciturn, and unflinching directive for seamlessness. In their original, charming location in Pacific Heights, Chef Tusk set a precedent at Quince for honoring each season in his Northern Italian influenced cuisine. As matter of reference, the motivation of dining at Quince was seeing on its online menu an unforgettable dish that I had at Osteria Murrevecchia in Bra located in the Piemonte region of Italy. This dish was a gnocchi made with the Rolls Royce of cheeses in Piemonte, Castelmagno. The same airiness of the gnocchi and supreme, nutty creaminess of the cheese brought these two places in the world inextricably together for me on my first visit to Quince. On my first evening dining at Quince, Chef Tusk prepared a tasting menu of early harvest fava beans. I still nostalgically reflect upon the purity, simplicity, and deliciousness of that meal and all the people at Quince that made my experience feel much like I was dining at home.
Fast forward to translating the familial engendering pulse of Quince in its current form of Cotogna on Pacific Avenue in Jackson Square, I feel even closer to my experience in Bra where I ate in the readapted property of the Ascheri Family who transformed their horse and haystack barn into an intimate space for the locals and hotel guests to dine. The rustic, casual space of Cotogna seduces you to open your mind, heart and stomach to a truly homebound meal that lingers through time. The eldest child of the family, Israel (otherwise known as Izzy), is the General Manager, who maintains a liveliness, playfulness, and sense of belonging to your experience at Cotogna’s dining room.
The middle child of the family is Matthew who not only fulfills Sommelier at Chef Tusk’s Relais Chateaux, fine dining restaurant, Quince, next door, but also fulfills that same role at Cotogna in a magnificent way. Thanks to Matt’s humble brilliance with the vine and invaluable resourcefulness, I have had the opportunity to drink at Cotogna the only other unparalleled wine on the globe next to LeRoy in Burgundy, Josko Gravner’s Amphora Ribolla Gialla. In a tiny village called Gorizia, Gravner is the cult leader in biodynamic wine making in Italy. Gravner ferments his wine like Abraham did 5,000 years ago in a ceramic amphora under ground. He filtrates the wine naturally when the sediment settles at the waning of the lunar calendar. Through bio-diversity of his vineyard he also enriches the soil in a way that honors the natural complexity of flavor of the grapes. The amber color of the wine possesses a striking depth of color and the natural wine making process produces a white wine varietal that ages and tastes as epic as any Old World Burgundy.
Families who have figured out the magic of connection soar to a place of peaceful war, unconditional love, and managed harmony. In the case of Cotogna, the parents are Chef Michael Tusk and his wife, Lindsay Tusk, who run the restaurant with taciturn, and unflinching directive for seamlessness. In their original, charming location in Pacific Heights, Chef Tusk set a precedent at Quince for honoring each season in his Northern Italian influenced cuisine. As matter of reference, the motivation of dining at Quince was seeing on its online menu an unforgettable dish that I had at Osteria Murrevecchia in Bra located in the Piemonte region of Italy. This dish was a gnocchi made with the Rolls Royce of cheeses in Piemonte, Castelmagno. The same airiness of the gnocchi and supreme, nutty creaminess of the cheese brought these two places in the world inextricably together for me on my first visit to Quince. On my first evening dining at Quince, Chef Tusk prepared a tasting menu of early harvest fava beans. I still nostalgically reflect upon the purity, simplicity, and deliciousness of that meal and all the people at Quince that made my experience feel much like I was dining at home.
Fast forward to translating the familial engendering pulse of Quince in its current form of Cotogna on Pacific Avenue in Jackson Square, I feel even closer to my experience in Bra where I ate in the readapted property of the Ascheri Family who transformed their horse and haystack barn into an intimate space for the locals and hotel guests to dine. The rustic, casual space of Cotogna seduces you to open your mind, heart and stomach to a truly homebound meal that lingers through time. The eldest child of the family, Israel (otherwise known as Izzy), is the General Manager, who maintains a liveliness, playfulness, and sense of belonging to your experience at Cotogna’s dining room.
The middle child of the family is Matthew who not only fulfills Sommelier at Chef Tusk’s Relais Chateaux, fine dining restaurant, Quince, next door, but also fulfills that same role at Cotogna in a magnificent way. Thanks to Matt’s humble brilliance with the vine and invaluable resourcefulness, I have had the opportunity to drink at Cotogna the only other unparalleled wine on the globe next to LeRoy in Burgundy, Josko Gravner’s Amphora Ribolla Gialla. In a tiny village called Gorizia, Gravner is the cult leader in biodynamic wine making in Italy. Gravner ferments his wine like Abraham did 5,000 years ago in a ceramic amphora under ground. He filtrates the wine naturally when the sediment settles at the waning of the lunar calendar. Through bio-diversity of his vineyard he also enriches the soil in a way that honors the natural complexity of flavor of the grapes. The amber color of the wine possesses a striking depth of color and the natural wine making process produces a white wine varietal that ages and tastes as epic as any Old World Burgundy.
The heart and spirit of Chef Tusk is his passion for the food. It is his vehicle for expressing his unconditional love for his entire family. The Cotogna journey entails a cross-section of the entire menu. I always order off the menu the Cotogna chopped salad. It is simple in its julienne use of iceberg lettuce, homemade croutons, pepperoncini, semi soft cow cheese, and perfectly acidic vinaigrette.
For antipasti, the local halibut crudo is exquisitely crafted with hints of dill, edible flowers, and thinly sliced Persian cucumbers for texture. Another mainstay, when in season, is the fried squash blossoms, delicately battered and flash fried to highlight the creamy texture of the squash.
For antipasti, the local halibut crudo is exquisitely crafted with hints of dill, edible flowers, and thinly sliced Persian cucumbers for texture. Another mainstay, when in season, is the fried squash blossoms, delicately battered and flash fried to highlight the creamy texture of the squash.
Chef Tusk’s pasta embodies the core of his family influence. My perennial favorite is the gnocchi with castelmagno cheese which Chef Tusk always keeps a private stash even if not on the printed menu. During the summer months, Chef Tusk prepares a corn and chive triangoli that elevates your sweet senses on your palate and, in turn, resolves in that moment any inner conflict you may be facing that afternoon or evening with your family. Regardless of which pasta you choose, you will experience with clarity the revelatory bliss in your interdependence with these pocketed, cylindrical, and navel shaped et al. semolina manifestations.
For the secondi, the unquestionable choices include the Wolfe Ranch Squab, the King Salmon, Watson Farm Lamb, Bistecca alla Fiorentina, and the Fried Chicken with house made hot sauce (which only appears intermittently on the menu and must be ordered in advance if you want to guarantee its availability). When ordering the Fried Chicken, also request the gnocchi with castelmagno cheese to experience the perfect pairing of this Italian version of Mac N’ Cheese with the most delicious composition of Fried Chicken that I have tasted to date.
For dessert, I always order another off the menu item, the wood-burning oven Marguerita pizza, although any pizza featured on the menu is an ineluctable choice.
In all of Cotogna’s ubiquitous warmth of what feels familiar, comforting, unabashedly truthful, I return every time I’m in San Francisco for I know the power of connecting with family in ways that inspiringly change and pleasantly astonish me when you do so without judgment. Cotogna will always hold a special place in my culinary heart.
Cotogna is located at 490 Pacific Avenue in San Francisco, (415) 775-8508, and is open Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sunday from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. www.cotognasf.com.
In all of Cotogna’s ubiquitous warmth of what feels familiar, comforting, unabashedly truthful, I return every time I’m in San Francisco for I know the power of connecting with family in ways that inspiringly change and pleasantly astonish me when you do so without judgment. Cotogna will always hold a special place in my culinary heart.
Cotogna is located at 490 Pacific Avenue in San Francisco, (415) 775-8508, and is open Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sunday from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. www.cotognasf.com.