Stones Throw, California Casual in Russian Hill

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After a lightning-fast turnaround, Stones Throw, the restaurant in the former Luella space, is ready to open tonight. Its team is a mix of restaurant veterans from Michael Mina (chef Jason Halverson, GM Ryan Cole, front-of-house and operations partner Tai Ricci) and beverage pros from Fat Angel (Jason Kirmse and Cyrick Hia), all coming together to create a seasonal, casual California vibe that the team hopes will be Russian Hill's answer to Nopa or Frances.

Halverson's food spans cultural influences, with a concise menu of starters like grilled octopus with chorizo and white beans, duck pâté and mousse with a pretzel roll, and warm pork belly salad with avocado and citrus. Main courses include a roasted wild king salmon with smoked farro and heirloom carrots, chestnut ravioli with brussels sprouts and truffle butter, and "da burga," served with baked potato tots. For dessert, Halverson is reimagining childhood treats like oatmeal cream pies and peanut butter and jelly donuts, with a rotating monthly space on the menu for customer-suggested favorites. Here's the full menu, and the dessert menu.

On the wine side, Kirmse's goal is to offer about 50 value-oriented bottles, organized by quirky categories like Sense of Place, Crowd Pleasers, and Classically Trained and with 11 options available by the glass. The list is global, with options from California, Oregon, and much of Europe. The four draft beers are equally eclectic, and in an exciting move for beer lovers, the beer bottle list is just as long as the wine one, with approximately 50 options in categories like Funky Farmhouse, Sour Patch, and Asking For Trouble. A handful of aperitif cocktails round out the offering, including a Pimm's Cup with housemade Pimm's and an oloroso sherry, pink peppercorn, and persimmon number.

The 49-seat space, which the team designed themselves, is clean and modern, with an 11-seat bar and lots of reclaimed wood and yellow accents. Also notable: as mentioned earlier this month, Stones Throw will be the first-ever SF restaurant to partner with Uber, offering diners 5% off their bill if they show proof they took an Uber to the restaurant on their smartphones. Hours are Tuesday-Thursday, 5:30-10:30 pm, Friday-Saturday, 5:30-11 pm, and Sunday, 11 am-2 pm and 5:30-10 pm. The bar opens a bit earlier, at 5 pm.

· Stones Throw Will Be Uber's First SF Restaurant Partner [~ ESF ~]
· Stones Throw Taking Over Luella Space [~ ESF ~]
· Stones Throw [Official website]