RESTAURANTS • First Word
The Skinny: Originating as a pop-up last year, Pacifico is now the latest restaurant at B-Side, the rotating venue at SF Jazz. Chef Daniel Morales Vallejo and wife/partner Laura Gelvez serve dishes that speak to Morales Vallejo’s upbringing in Colombia, his culinary education in Peru, and his experiences making ceviche at La Mar’s Miami and Embarcadero locations.
The Vibe: B-Side’s bustling, central Hayes Valley location at Franklin and Fell Streets offers a chic, modern blank slate for Morales Vallejo’s vibrant cooking. The dining room is dotted with low tables for two and larger high tables for groups or communal dining.
The Food: Start with ceviche, given the chef’s mastery of the form. The catch of the day is playfully paired with leche de tigre made with rocoto chili peppers, corn nuts, red onion, and cilantro. Empanadas and arepas are also specialties — notably, Colombian-style beef empanadas served with aji criollo. There are also great vegetarian options to be had, including an entree of roasted cauliflower with romesco sauce and vegan ceviche made with beet and sunchoke.
Brunch offerings include plenty of egg dishes like Huevos Pericos — eggs scrambled with scallions and tomatoes, served with cheese arepas — and Calentao, a traditional Colombian breakfast dish of braised meat (in this case, pork belly) with lentils, plantains, scallions, rice, Thai basil, and a fried egg. A whole fried fish is occasionally on the menu, served with coconut curry sauce.
The Drink: B-Side is set up with a full bar, which Pacifico makes use of via cocktails like a coconut-washed daiquiri, featuring rum, lime, and cane sugar; and the La Puerta Del Llano Old Fashioned, featuring bourbon, agua panela syrup, and bitters. There are also fun classics and riffs thereof, like the Refajo a la Brooklyn (Aperol, orange juice, and beer), and the Carajillo Andino (Licor 43, Colombian coffee, and orange zest). NA options include the Verano Sin Licor, with pineapple and lime juices, orange shrub, and sparkling water.
The Verdict: Pacifico brings delicious South American flavor to Hayes Valley, providing a convenient treat for concert-goers at SF Jazz, too. –Jay Barmann
→ Pacifico (Hayes Valley) • 205 Franklin St • Summer hours: Wed 1130a-230p, Thur-Sat 1130a-230p and 530p-8p, Sun 11a-230p • Reserve.