Boston - January 20, 2006

There Goes the Neighborhood

South Kitchen & Wine Bar Opens

Good Will Hunting would never approve.

There’s a new restaurant in the heart of Southie. And it isn’t rough around the edges. Fights aren’t likely to break out. There’s nary a morsel of bad bar food in sight. It’s even — can it be? — chic.

South Kitchen & Wine Bar, however, still fits in with the ’hood. Prices are affordable, service is friendly, and the menu is as unpretentious as it is tasty.

Dishes include that restaurant staple du moment — goat cheese and beet salad — and homey favorites like grilled burgers, which are served with Vermont cheddar, potato wedges, and a sourdough bun. Pork loin with caramelized onions and dried fruit chutney may be beyond basic, but you can also get it with mashed potatoes.

On the dessert menu: spiced pumpkin crème brûlée, and a notably non-yuppie apple pie à la mode.

Wonder how Good Will would like them apples.

South Kitchen & Wine Bar, 77 Dorchester Street, South Boston (617-269-7832 or southkitchenbar.com).