Sweet & Savory

SF Town Hall

A and I went to the Town Hall for our 1st year anniversary. Inside the red brick restaurant on Howard and Fremont, the closely packed dark wooden tables made examining your neighbors dishes prior to making your own selections so much easier. :) The industrial-looking chandelier made for an interesting conversation piece. I liked the feel of the place. The controled hubbub of random conversations, the dark warm interior, and candles on the windowsills all contributed to the genral coziness of the place.

We started off our meal with the roasted veal meatballs with potato purée and green peppercorn sauce. Three round meatballs sitting on a bed of buttery puréed potato doused in gravy arrived at our table with a little bit of chopped cilantro sprinkled on top. They looked very inviting. We had read about these veal meatballs from various reviews and wanted to try it first-handed for ourselves. Cutting into the meatballs revealed its slight pink inside, attesting to juicy-ness. The meatballs were also distinctively flavored with some type of cheese, which was interesting.

Our side order of jalapeno cornbread was served hot to our table still in their cast iron mold. The outside had a little crunch with a fluffy soft inside. The jalapeno flavor was subtle. These were delicious jalapenos cornbreads!

My main entree was the peanut and tasso crusted Niman Ranch pork chop with smashed potatoes, spring corn, English peas in garlic parsley butter. The pork chop was tender and juicy but a little salty-spicy. The mix of peanut and tasso on top created a nice textured topping. The corn and pea mixture was so overwhelmingly peppered that I couldn't discern any corn or pea flavor. :( The meal had started off so well that I was really disappointed by how the entree turned out.

A's entre, the Sonoma lamb T-bone with Nicoise olive gnocchi, herb smashed English peas and fava beans, gave similar results. The lamb T-bone was delicious but the sides were lacking. The emphasis at Town Hall seems to be on strong overpowering flavors rather than subtleties.

We were both pretty stuffed after the main entress but after scanning the dessert menu, we couldn't resist ordering dessert. Besides, it's better to end on a good note! There was no consensus so we each ordered one with the promise to share our pick.

I ordered the coconut panna cotta, strawberry, gelée, with ginger bubble tea, which turned out unimpressive. Both A and I wondered if they forgot to add the coconut and the ginger flavor?!

This was Town Hall's signature dessert, the butterscotch and chocolate pot de crème with butter toffee chips. The dessert was creamy and tasty but a little sweet for my taste. Even A, the one with the sweet tooth, ultimately surrendered to the overwhelming sweetness.

In all, A and I were a little disappointed in Town Hall. The appetizer and the side dish was great but never one of us liked our main entree. There was one hit and one miss for the desserts. I don't think we will be going back anytime soon.