The fact that Restaurant BT has one of the most innovative and provocative cocktail lists in town may actually be hurting the place. Walk in and order the Cucumber Aloe, or the Dirty Dirty, and you'll need something to nosh on. Not just because of the hefty alcoholic toll they'll take on your senses, but because you need something to temper the powerful flavors. Ever use "pungent" to describe a martini?
I wouldn't have it any other way, actually, if my only other choice is an array of the same raspberry and coffee 'tinis at the other 99 percent of Bay area restaurants. (Simmer down Ocean Prime, I'm not talking about you.) But with intensity and daring comes a need for equally intense and powerful food. That, however, is not Restaurant BT's strong point.
Elegant? Sure. Restrained? You betcha. I'd also give you: subtle, composed, and even thoughtful. But none of it is in your face, even on the bar menu.
Chef BT Nguyen unveiled this new bar menu last year, and loaded it full of her trademark Vietnamese cuisine, reduced in size and, in many ways, simplified. Think of it as BT flirting with street food, in the form of grilled meat skewers and stuffed dumplings, big bowls of cold bun and steaming soups. Admittedly, most of it is much ritzier than anything you'll find in a Saigon street market. Which, as I mentioned, is a problem.
After tasting through the vast majority of the menu I can say without equivocation that it just doesn't work. That's not to say that any of the food was bad, but so very much was boring. Drab. It not only couldn't handle the incredibly potent flavors of the restaurant's signature cocktails, it could barely stand on its own. It's like all the power of BT's culinary influences were stripped down to a homogenized, sterilized, Vietnamesish. Sheesh.
Spring rolls were incredibly dense with rice paper, the filling seemingly beaten into submission by its blanket of fry. Shredded papaya salad — usually an amazing vehicle for fresh herbs, tangy vinegar and powerful fish sauce — was reduced to mere crunch. Spare ribs felt like bare ribs, the glistening sauce coming across as mere moisture for the meat.
And when BT does exert a heavy hand with Asian herbs and seasonings, like in the Bo Tai Chanh steak tartare, there are different problems. The texture is great, soft and crunch meeting in equal measure, with powerful bursts of garlic, chile, cilantro and nuts. I could eat it by the handful, but even if I did I would never taste the beef. It's overwhelmed by the flavors. I might as well be eating tofu, or potato, or soft cardboard, instead of glorious steak.
The bun was dry, the bright dressing pooled at the bottom barely enough to cover half the expanse of noodles, and the duck dumplings were tasty, although the soy dipping sauce was bland. Two BT classics though, were easily the best parts of the meal.
Pate, with its intensity of fat — if not flavor, stood up to the drinks with a shrug of Gallic indifference, especially with liberal use of palate-cleansing sharp mustard. And the pumpkin soup, laden with big hunks of tender gourd, is so good it doesn't matter what you're drinking with it.
Considering the seemingly dumbed down flavors of BT's bar menu, I would normally jump to the conclusion that it was a purposeful move intended to appeal to a culinarily bland customer base. But, without giving the restaurant's Hyde Park regulars any credit at all, that can't be the case. You won't be serving gullet-punching cocktails like they serve in this bar unless your customers can handle some profound flavors.
So why? Maybe BT hasn't adjusted her naturally restrained and very Vietnamese-French style to take into account the revitalized bar taken over last year by nephew Steven Nguyen. She'd better, and soon, considering the push for attention she announced this week.
Starting next week, Restaurant BT will host an "Eat for Good" program that will encourage diners to consume healthy items off the bar menu and small plates. Good for your heart, sure, but it'll also help the community. Portions of the "Eat for Good" menu prices will be donated to Kids Café of America's Second Harvest.
So, by all means, go there and eat up. Despite my kvetching, the food is good and the cause is just. But instead of one of Restaurant BT's amazing martinis, order a bottle of wine to go with the food.
This article appears in May 13-19, 2009.