PESCE E RISO ROLLS OUT FALL MENU, DEBUTS WEEKDAY HAPPY HOUR

Chef Joe Lin blends Italian and Japanese cuisines at his intimate restaurant in North Beach

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – November 6, 2017 – Pesce e Riso, an Italian restaurant with a Japanese twist located in the heart of North Beach, has introduced its fall dinner menu, as well as Tuesday–Friday Happy Hour, including $1 oysters.

Pesce e Riso, which means “fish and rice” in Italian, are the building blocks of Japanese cuisine. Fish and shellfish are prominent on the menu, with new seasonal offerings such as Udon ai frutti di mare, Halibut carpaccio, and Tempura misto with scallops and squid. Lin sources fish from San Francisco-based Water2Table, which sells local hook and line fish directly to restaurants. Pesce e Riso’s signature rice dishes include an “arancini” tuna roll and a sushi-style prosciutto, asparagus tempura and cantaloupe roll.

The restaurant now offers Happy Hour from 5 to 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday through Friday. Fish and shellfish figure prominently, with an appetizer-sized plate of Tempura misto—a Japanese riff on Venice’s famous fritto misto or “mixed fry” ($8), Oysters on the half shell ($1 each), Steamed mussels in sake broth ($8), special pricing on beer and wine, and a Sake-Secco cocktail made with sake, Italian soda and Prosecco ($7).

This quietly cutting-edge restaurant in the heart of North Beach fuses two seemingly disparate culinary traditions together by leaning on the principles that unite them: simplicity and the use of quality ingredients. In China and Japan, the merging of European and Asian cooking techniques is not uncommon. But Lin may be the first to bring a restaurant of this kind to the Bay Area.

“The way in which regional Italian cuisine showcases high-quality local ingredients is very similar to Japanese cuisine,” said Lin. “You can’t disguise flavors when you make sashimi.”

Pesce e Riso turns diners’ expectations upside down by combining familiar Italian ingredients with Japanese-style preparations, like Tempura Misto, where Sapporo beer batter replaces olive oil in Fritto Misto; Udon ai frutti di mare, with udon noodles instead of pasta and sake miso broth instead of wine sauce; and the restaurant’s signature Emilia, where prosciutto, cantaloupe, Parmigiano and white rice come together in a stunning sushi-style presentation. Other Italian-inspired dishes include izakaya-style Crostini Fegatino; Paccheri with pork sugo with shio miso, mirin and soy sauce; and Tri tip tagliata with rosemary pepper oil, Japanese BBQ sauce, arugula and Sicilian potato. Prices range from $3 for starters and sides to $29 for entrees (Whole Roasted Branzino for two people sells for $48). Other touches that set Pesce e Riso apart from traditional Italian restaurants are chopsticks, which come to the table with dishes like Hamachi and tuna tartare, and a sake list.

Chef Lin curates the restaurant’s wine list, which is comprised of mostly local California wines and Italian wines. In addition to the wine, Pesce and Riso offers a small selection of sake and bottled beer, as well as Sapporo and Lagunitas IPA on tap. And no Italian restaurant would be complete without an espresso machine.

Lin was born and raised in Shanghai, China. He moved to Vancouver, B.C., to study art at the University of British Columbia. His first cooking job was at Sushi Station in Vancouver, where he started as a dishwasher and rose to sushi chef. Finding kitchen work more satisfying than office work, he opened his first restaurant, Capilano Sushi, at the age of 27. Inspired by author and chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, Lin traveled to China to learn classic cooking techniques from a French chef in Shanghai, then from an Italian chef in Tuscany. He fell in love with the simplicity and authenticity of Italian cuisine, and after a year in Italy, he brought his newfound knowledge and creative ambition to the U.S., where he opened Pesce e Riso in July 2017.

Chef Lin is often behind the counter at the bar or in the kitchen. Like his restaurant, Lin is low-key and casual. He is always happy to talk about his creative process and his passion for Japanese and Italian cuisines.

Pesce e Riso occupies the former space of a longtime Greek restaurant called Estia. Sherry Fang, Lin’s wife and an architect with YA Studio in San Francisco, designed the restaurant. The space feels warm and inviting yet sophisticated, with caramel-colored walls, exposed brick, rustic wood tabletops, and blue accents. Handmade ceramic bud vases glazed in orange and blue adorn each table and add a graceful Asian flair. The left wall features a captivating oil painting that Lin created when he was in art school, while the right wall is lined with photographs of Lin’s favorite landmarks in Italy and San Francisco.

The restaurant seats 45 people, including 10 at the bar.

Pesce e Riso is located at 1224 Grant Ave. in San Francisco, and is open for dinner only: Tuesday–Thursday and Sunday, 5:30 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 5:30 to 11 p.m.Happy Hour is Tuesday through Friday, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Reservations are available via OpenTable and yelp. Visit www.pesceeriso.com for more information.