March 20, 2007

Good as Nua

Nua Restaurant

What’s that? A new wine bar? Yawn. Small plates? Zzzzzz …

Before you start popping NoDoz, grab a table at Nua, the tiny new restaurant in North Beach that’s giving the tried-and-true a tasty wake-up call.

The name means “new” in Gaelic (a nod to owner David White’s Irish roots), but the menu from chef Anna Bautista (The Public, Fifth Floor) is straight seasonal Mediterranean. Pan-roasted chicken with chickpeas and chorizo, stuffed piquillo peppers, and char with English peas and nage will rescue the palate from cheese plate oblivion.

Get the conversation flowing with interesting varietals like Argentina’s torrontes and Spain’s Bierzo. (Feel free to raise an eyebrow at cheeky wine list headers like “Are you blushing?”)

The room, done up in colors like burnt orange and sea foam and filled with exotic woods, makes for a lively yet soothing atmosphere.

But you better get there fast. You snooze, you lose.

Nua Restaurant and Wine Bar, 550 Green Street, at Jasper Place (415-433-4000 or nuasf.com).