PreludePrelude

Image Credit: | https://guide.michelin.com/en/california/san-francisco/restaurant/prelude-1217863 Located on the ground floor of the swanky Jay Hotel, this dusky space offers an elegant retreat from the bustle of downtown. Although Chef Celtin Hendrickson-Jones grew up in California, maternal grandmothers from Alabama had a formative influence on his cooking, resulting in cuisine that seamlessly blends humble roots with an elevated technique and a modern sensibility. Offered either à la carte or as a tasting menu, the dishes feature hearty flavors tempered by an edge of refinement, as in lacy fried chicken wings, partially boned and stuffed with andouille dirty rice, or a pimento cheese made with triple cream cheese and garnished with trout roe. The best might be saved for last: a banana cream pie reimagined as a delicate inverted tartlet with dark chocolate and pretzel.