Chronicle Critic Gets ‘Warm Fuzzies’ From Filipino Restaurant Be More Pacific

Chronicle reviewer Jessi Cape reviewed Filipino restaurant Be More Pacific this week, a restaurant that cured her recent onset of “flavor fatigue.”

Cape started on the right note with two kinds of lumpia, both the pork and shrimp Shanghai (“perfectly fried”) and the krab-and-cream-cheese-stuffed Gio’s (“decadent, but a bit rich paired with the creamy mayo dip”). She dubbed another appetizer, the longganisa tots with sausage crumbles, queso, and banana sauce, as “the perfect stoner food.”

Cape’s kilawin (Filipino ceviche) had a “searing heat,” but she craved a bit more brightness from the kare kare and lumpiang sariwa (fresh spring rolls). Despite a few quibbles, she had an overall positive impression from the restaurant:

My salmon sinigang soup was light and healthy, the fish was cooked to pink perfection, but the broth, and the long beans in particular, were missing one element of Filipino cuisine I’ve grown to love — the vinegary, bitter, sour profile. Still, there’s something so — I’m not sure — caring, huggable, gentle in that bowl that I’d return just for the warm fuzzies. It’s an overall theme at BMP really.

Statesman critic Matthew Odam released a twofer this week, with mini-reviews of South Lamar sushi restaurant Soto and Irish pub Darcy’s Donkey.

Of Soto, Odam was critical of “Spartan service,” especially when perennial favorite Uchi is just across the street. Still, he praised the nigiri offerings, though he recommended passing on the wagyu gyoza:

The harmonious flavors of shallots and basil hide beneath an ethereal chili ponzu foam that caps olive oil-slicked pieces of translucent nigiri ($7), and pickled wasabi and chives brighten the luxurious fattiness of bluefin tuna ($9)

He also stopped by Darcy’s Donkey during brunch service, and found a convivial atmosphere and a “lovely” brunch. He recommends going for the boozed-up coffee drinks, and trying the Irish eggs Benedict:

Thick tender slabs of housemade corned beef, perfumed and ringed with just the right amount of fat, sit on Irish soda bread beneath wobbly mounds of soft eggs draped with a vibrant, puckering Hollandaise sauce ($15).

ON THE BLOGS: Fearless Captivations revisited Pitchfork Pretty for the enjoyable tasting menu, and found it hard to pick a favorite dish (though the potato panisse eventually won). Food Banjo visited Easy Tiger at the Linc, and their one-year-old liked the roasted broccoli and pretzel, while the adults praised the cocktails.

• Restaurant Review: Feasting on Filipino Flavors at Be More Pacific [Chronicle]
• All Coverage of Be More Pacific [EATX]
• Matthew Odam’s Critic’s Notebook: A taste of Darcy’s Donkey and Soto [Statesman]
• All Coverage of Soto [EATX]
• All Coverage of Darcy’s Donkey [EATX]