As Quince prepares to serve its final meals at the Octavia Street location tomorrow, chef/owner Michael Tusk shares some details about their new inception, due to October 1 in the old Myth space at 470 Pacific Ave. Among the changes: An a la carte menu and two different tasting menus, opening up more options than the previous four-course taster. Some of the new dishes patrons can expect in the already-booked opening weeks include Monterey Bay abalone “alla Milanese,” tortellini of warren pear with pecorino di fossa and poppy seeds, and roast duck with quince in two preparations and Barolo Chinato sauce.
New-ish wine director David Lynch, who came over from New York’s John Dory, has expanded the wine list and added more Italian options, as well as bringing a distinctly more Italian influence to the operation, Tusk tells us. “Interestingly, David has to some extent helped re-energize my cooking through our our mutual love of Northern Italy, particularly Piedmont… We will have a big focus on hard to find bottles outside of Italy.”
As for Cotogna, the Quince team’s casual counterpart due a few months down the line, expect an osteria or trattoria feel, with a simpler menu serving the same ingredients being used at Quince. It will be open for lunch and dinner, and feature an occasional three-course prix fixe that will regularly focus on different regions. While Cotogna will have its own kitchen, Tusk said “the bread and pastries will be provided by the same department. All of the other food will be produced in the Cotogna kitchen [but] there will be crossover in house-made products such as pasta and salumi production.” The casual setup means you could conceivably stop by for a dish of Michael Tusk’s pasta on a workday lunch, which would certainly brighten up a dreary Tuesday.
