For a restaurant that has been open less than 2 months, Dixie is in full swing and running smoothly overall. Owner-Chef Joseph Humphries provided Michelin-starred food at Murray Circle and saves us $6 in bridge tolls now that he is located at the Presidio (former Pres-a-Vis space).

The lightly sweet Preakness cocktail made with Ballantine’s Scotch, Benedictine, black tea tincture and bitters kicked off our meal nicely:

Dixie’s bread service is pretty unique – they offer creamed black-eyed peas with house-made lavosh:

We ordered 3 items from the snacks menu: Deviled Eggs topped with fried chicken liver, Pork Crackling with nori seaweed chips and Jambalaya Calas (similar to Arancini fried rice ‘balls’):

The Pork Crackling was very addicting and crunchy – it was just like eating ‘pork popcorn.’ Using the Nori seaweed ‘chips’ as mini taco shells for the pork bites, we wished they provided more of them:

For the salad course, we opted for Trumpet Mushrooms served with andouille sausage bites and endive:

The Chicken Fried Quail served over a roasted garlic waffle with a spicy cabbage salad definitely gives State Bird Provision’s version some competition:

The winelist was too heavy on Bordeaux and Burgundy domestic varietals for our liking, but this Tempranillo was one of the better versions of a Rioja that we have had lately:

We shared the Roast Duck main dish which featured duck 2 ways (perfectly cooked breast and duck leg confit hidden under the purple Mizuna). We were thankful that there was neither fruit nor lentils on the plate. Served tableside, the ‘dirty risotto’ accompaniment was nicely speckled with bits of duck liver:

After the meal, we asked for a tour of the wine room, which is located at the center of the restaurant. The big surprise was an almost full collection of the Sazerac Company’s Antique Collection prominently displayed in the room. We had a very nice discussion with the bar manager, Chris, who pointed out that they plan to do flight tastings of these rare domestic whiskeys sometime soon:

We look forward to participating with that; but in the meantime, Chris explained that they are doing their own aging of Tuthilltown Spirit’s (makers of Hudson Whiskeys) corn whiskey in 5L charred oak barrels.

For comparison, he provided us with tastes of a 1 week and 8 week versions – the young one was drinkable but the older version was definitely more complex and smoother:

Aug. 28, 2013 Update: Chef Humphries has left Dixie and has temporarily been replaced by consulting chef Chef Erik Hopfinger. For more information, read the InsideScoopSF article.

April 9, 2014 Update: Dixie is now closed

http://sfdixie.com/

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