What a wonderful way to start a new year of dining experiences. When a friend suggested we get together in the East Bay, her selection of restaurant came as a complete and perhaps a slightly disappointing surprise to me. Soul food is not normally on my priority list because, if truth be known, I really dislike collards and macaroni and cheese and most soul food restaurants I have been to in San Francisco have limited selections of sides. I do however like grits, BBQ and fried chicken, other staples of this genre, so several, predictable selections would work for me. My experience had been limited thus far to small mom & pop operations, but my mind is forever changed about the depth of this classic American cuisine. With Pican, down home cooking just moved uptown. It equals or exceeds what I've eaten in Savannah or Charleston SC.
The room itself is elegant and sophisticated, utilizing deep wood veneers and warm paint tones. Being focused on the food, other details were missed, but the bathroom had faux alligator skin tiles on the floors and the floral arrangement was respectable enough to be at the front desk.
We started with the roasted cauliflower and crab soup that was beautifully decorated with a drizzle of a grassy olive oil. We had mentioned to our waiter that we would like a second spoon, so we could both taste it, and he was considerate enough to split it for us with no extra charge. It was so silky in texture that we could easily have forgotten that crab was in it at all, were it not for the delectable crab taste. This was a starter I could easily order over and over again. Simply delicious. If a restaurant has to serve bread, you could do worse than this moist cornbread, but could you do better? Not in my estimation.
When ordering I decided to go with the fried chicken, since it was still on my mind, but it came with a smoked Gouda macaroni and cheese. I asked if it was possible to switch the macaroni for grits and it was not a problem for this restaurant. They aim to please at Pican. It was a great call, because the grits were better than my Mascarpone polenta recipe. I asked the waiter what they put in them and the answer was, "butter, butter, and butter" However, I am now thinking that the smoked Gouda mac and cheese might be able to change my mind about that dish once and for all. I feel compelled to try it. The fried chicken had a major failing for me. Even though it was soaked in buttermilk and employed a good combination of spices, it had been brined. I won't buy chicken that has been "plumped" with water and I don't like to eat it. Competency at frying can achieve a juicy, tender chicken without adding extra salt by brining. It reminded me of a Butterball turkey with the pop up "timer" and that is an unfavorable comparison.
My dinner partner ordered the pork chop on a bed of Hoppin John mixed with basmati rice, topped with chow chow, a mustard laced ,onion chutney for lack of a better description. It's served with fried pork belly that you can see in the foreground. Succulent and extremely well made, this dish was very well balanced. We both swooned over the Hoppin John and would order it again without hesitation, but who can order the same thing from a restaurant with such accomplished cooking? Eating one's way through the entire menu seems a better choice. The Hoppin John was made with black eyed peas, sausage and rice.
Dessert was another item we split and it was quite good. It was a Coca Cola chocolate cake with a caramel chocolate ganache frosting and if that weren't enough, it was dolloped with whipped cream and came with a Bourbon panna cotta. The panna cotta was thin, so the texture was off, and I didn't exactly taste Bourbon, but it was still good.
I'll be going back to try some of their small plate offerings. The shrimp and grits is calling to me, and wouldn't that be just perfect with a cauliflower and crab soup, with a side of Hoppin John?
The room itself is elegant and sophisticated, utilizing deep wood veneers and warm paint tones. Being focused on the food, other details were missed, but the bathroom had faux alligator skin tiles on the floors and the floral arrangement was respectable enough to be at the front desk.
We started with the roasted cauliflower and crab soup that was beautifully decorated with a drizzle of a grassy olive oil. We had mentioned to our waiter that we would like a second spoon, so we could both taste it, and he was considerate enough to split it for us with no extra charge. It was so silky in texture that we could easily have forgotten that crab was in it at all, were it not for the delectable crab taste. This was a starter I could easily order over and over again. Simply delicious. If a restaurant has to serve bread, you could do worse than this moist cornbread, but could you do better? Not in my estimation.
When ordering I decided to go with the fried chicken, since it was still on my mind, but it came with a smoked Gouda macaroni and cheese. I asked if it was possible to switch the macaroni for grits and it was not a problem for this restaurant. They aim to please at Pican. It was a great call, because the grits were better than my Mascarpone polenta recipe. I asked the waiter what they put in them and the answer was, "butter, butter, and butter" However, I am now thinking that the smoked Gouda mac and cheese might be able to change my mind about that dish once and for all. I feel compelled to try it. The fried chicken had a major failing for me. Even though it was soaked in buttermilk and employed a good combination of spices, it had been brined. I won't buy chicken that has been "plumped" with water and I don't like to eat it. Competency at frying can achieve a juicy, tender chicken without adding extra salt by brining. It reminded me of a Butterball turkey with the pop up "timer" and that is an unfavorable comparison.
My dinner partner ordered the pork chop on a bed of Hoppin John mixed with basmati rice, topped with chow chow, a mustard laced ,onion chutney for lack of a better description. It's served with fried pork belly that you can see in the foreground. Succulent and extremely well made, this dish was very well balanced. We both swooned over the Hoppin John and would order it again without hesitation, but who can order the same thing from a restaurant with such accomplished cooking? Eating one's way through the entire menu seems a better choice. The Hoppin John was made with black eyed peas, sausage and rice.
Dessert was another item we split and it was quite good. It was a Coca Cola chocolate cake with a caramel chocolate ganache frosting and if that weren't enough, it was dolloped with whipped cream and came with a Bourbon panna cotta. The panna cotta was thin, so the texture was off, and I didn't exactly taste Bourbon, but it was still good.
I'll be going back to try some of their small plate offerings. The shrimp and grits is calling to me, and wouldn't that be just perfect with a cauliflower and crab soup, with a side of Hoppin John?
2295 Broadway
Oakland CA 94612
(510) 834-1000
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