The quest for great gnocchi — like the search for Sasquatch — is a passion of our lives. And like ol' Sas himself, great gnocchi is hard to find; reports of sightings are many, but mostly unsubstantiated. So it is with great pleasure that we are able to report on a confirmed discovery: The gnocchi of our dreams is served at Pacifica's Ristorante Mare.
This small restaurant, situated in a eucalyptus-scented hillside pocket of the Pedro Point area, looks like what it is: a good neighborhood place. Its proprietors — according to the framed newspaper items covering the entryway wall — bailed out of the stress of a very popular San Mateo place they used to run, and opened anew in sleepy, laid-back Pacifica; we think the desire for a slower-paced life might explain the laconic (but friendly) service, while the food certainly explains the owners' former celebrity.
SFist Lydia, contributing
We first visited Ristorante Mare last summer, and found it charming and affordable, with a decent though not very creamy mushroom risotto and, as mentioned above, really quite good gnocchi. But as we have learned to our sadness at other establishments, these potato dumplings can be finicky — "little pillows" one time, wads of congealed paste the next. Ristorante Mare, however, apparently has the knack for getting it right every time.
On this visit, in which we and our Dining Companion were treated for our birthday by our lovely in-laws (thanks, guys!), we ordered a Stoli gimlet from the bar first; the teenage waiter (who on our previous visit asked us, apropos of nothing, "Do you guys surf?") clearly had no idea what we were talking about, but the old proprietor/host/bartender sure did — he made us a good one. Then we ordered a bottle of wine from the short but adequate list, and our main courses: our companions had the Risotto Mare (~$16) — tender, skillfully prepared scallops, mussels, and calamari in a tomato-based broth over risotto — and the meat lasagna (a big and reportedly delicious square for ~$15).
Our decision was mainly which sauce to have with the thing we knew we would order when we decided on the venue. Eventually we picked the gnocchi with pesto (~$14), and it was wonderful: dumplings a perfect, light consistency; creamy pesto that didn't overpower; and the surprisingly tasty addition of a handful of steamed red potato chunks mixed into the dish — they functioned almost as a palate-cleanser, a counterpoint in taste and sensation that really played up the gnocchi's best qualities.
We were stuffed (and eager to get back to several TiVo'd NCAA basketball games), so we declined dessert. But next time — and there will be a next time — we're not going to miss finding out what Ristorante Mare can do with pastry, chocolate and cream.
The particulars:
Ristorante Mare
404 San Pedro Ave, Pacifica
650-355-5980
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Thank GOD the Opinionated Loudmouth is back. I was beginning to go hungry! Can't wait to try the gnocchi...
my wife and i used to live in pacifica and our first valentines dinner together as a couple was enjoyed at ristorante mare. we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food considering it's off the beaten path location. we have long since moved out of pacifica but now find ourselves back in that neck of the woods and will have to return (maybe even this valentines day).
also of note in pacifica, sushi koko and their "fireworks" roll - amazing
Sooo, Sushi Koko is worth trying? I wondered if it was ... [note to self]
Delicious gnocchi can also be had at Beauregard's on Solano (I forget if it's on the Albany or Berkeley side of things; it's very close to the border, next to Britt-Marie's.)
The gnocchi there are a pastry-dough type (which are different from the potato-rolled type) that they serve with a white sauce.
Loudmouth, m'dear, you are right on the mark! Those were the *best* gnocchi that ever melted in my mouth!
Janet
Happy Birthday!
You should host a traveling dinner party at a different restaurant each month! I'd be in.
What was the name of the San Mateo place the owner's used to run?
Happy Birthday!
You should host a traveling dinner party at a different restaurant each month! I'd be in.
What was the name of the San Mateo place the owner's used to run?
Unfortunately the owners Renzo & Guido of Ristorante Mare have chosen to retire and the restaurant was closed around Easter 2006.
We checked out the new restaurant in this location on Friday (thanks to the opening of Devil's Slide). They cleaned up the interior a lot. Instead of character, it has fresh-from-the-pages-of-a-magazine clean/blandness to it.
The service was silly; our waitress had never worked in this field before a few weeks ago I assume. She didn't know what was on the menu. They brought us out plates for sharing, then they took them away before the entrees arrived, and then they brought 'em back again.
The owner came around to our table and was really negative about the old place and how bad it was and how great it was now; he forced himself into our dinner conversation and was rather slimy; I like the genial host thing now and again but this was just awkward, he kept kind of pushing us on personal details about the people in our gathering, stating assumptions and making pronouncements as if he was some kind of great reader of character.
And the food was bad. The pizza was floppy/soggy. The gnocci were so-so. The steak was too small (what's the old line? "how did you find your steak sir? I looked under my potato and there it was!"). I wouldn't go back for anything. I didn't have any attachment to the previous place, and was not impressed with my visit there, but this was memorably negative.
I've been to the new place (Borolo's) that took over the space that used to be Ristorante Mare a few times. I think it's actually fairly good.
By no means can you compare it to Ristorante Mare.
RM was such a great place! They even had "Big Night" style dinners a few times a year held on Mondays (a night they normally were closed).
Guido and Renzo changed the face of dining out in Pacifica when they opened RM in 1995. We took my dad there for his birthday shortly after they opened. He lived in Burlingame and had been to La La Conda (?) which was the place they ran in Burlingame a couple years earlier. I remember going there and thought it was pretty good. But they closed one day and dissapeared . So there we are eating dinner at RM and my dad looks up as this guy walks by. My dad said "Holy cow! It's Renzo!" Renzo looked over and recognized my dad and greeted him.
My parents and my wife and I went to RM many times over the 10 years they were there and always enjoyed the food and service. I laughed when I read the above posting about the server who was a surfer. He was actually a real good guy. So were all the wait staff over the years going back to the ever popular Tony!
When I found out they closed, I felt like I'd been "dumped." To this day I hope I'll go to some new Italian restaurant and discover Renzo and Guido running the place!