Town Hall has become the talk of the town. A convergence of circumstances has worked to make this the hottest opening in the past couple of years. Part of it is timing. With the depressed economy and so few debuts, diners are hungry for a glamorous new place.
The main lure, however, is the team behind this 115-seat American-regional restaurant in San Francisco. Chef-owners Mitchell and Steven Rosenthal are doing double duty: They remain top toques at Postrio, where they've been for a decade, and share cooking duties at their own venture. They've joined with Doug Washington, who has been a maitre d'/manager at Square One, Vertigo, Jardiniere and Postrio. Washington has such an engaging personality that his presence alone ensures long lines at the door.
The Postrio connections don't stop there. Pastry chef Janet Rikala Dalton was at Postrio in the mid-1990s, and she's creating a sweet sensation at Town Hall.
Yet there's little relationship between the two places. While Postrio may be the "town hall" of Hollywood, with its glitzy prices and grand decor, the more organic look of Town Hall echoes its roots in the historic Marine Electric warehouse, one of the first buildings to be built after the 1906 earthquake.
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The staff, led by Washington, takes a casual and caring approach. The servers have to be particularly flexible to maneuver through the tight spaces between tables and to keep customers satisfied when the kitchen gets backed up and the food isn't anywhere to be found. Yet with Washington stopping by each table to chat, no one seems to care. On one visit, a customer was so taken by the service that when she got up to leave, she hugged the waiter.
That's the type of feeling Town Hall evokes. It's clear after three visits that the food will evolve, and watching the changes will be half the fun.
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