Bistro

Eastside Road, January 28, 2011—

WHO DOESN'T LOVE BISTRO? There's something so satisfying about bistro fare: meaty, succulent, often slow-cooked, utterly urbane yet unpretentious. And with enough history behind it to make it clear when you're getting something authentic, the real deal, or when you're just dealing with wannabes.

Tonight's experience was authentic. We looked at the menus, looked at each other, and ordered identically: a butter-lettuce salad with a couple of white Spanish anchovies, sparked up with very discreet bits of pimento pepper and dressed with smoked olive oil and a hint of mustard; then duck-leg confit with pommes Landaises, thick-sliced potatoes fried in duck fat. The food was delicious; the room is warm and inviting; the service professional and relaxed. I'd go back in a minute.

Côtes du Rhone

• L'Ardoise, 151 Noe Street, San Francisco; tel. 415.437.2600