#20 Chicken pot pie at Liberty Cafe

Though it comes in at #20, the chicken pot pie at Liberty Cafe is, in some sense, number one. This is not only because it is delicious (more on that in a minute), but also because it is so justifiably famous that this chicken pot pie was how I heard about the list! As some of you remember, I was chatting with my attending about restaurants in San Francisco when he told me that he had eaten at Liberty Cafe the night before and enjoyed their succulent pot pie. One thing led to another, and, well, you're right now reading some of the after-effects of that one conversation.

Until last night, B and I had never been to Liberty Cafe. For that matter, B and I (and two other of our dining companions) had never been to Cortland Street in Bernal Heights. We have clearly been missing out until now, as this neighborhoody main drag is lined with restaurants, bookstores, bars, and charming shops.

As we were going to be a party of six, I called Liberty Cafe a few days ahead for reservations; you can therefore imagine my surprise when we arrived and they had no record of our reservation. Though it meant that we had to wait for an extra half-hour to be seated (the restaurant is tiny), the staff were incredibly accommodating about the mistake. We were all offered glasses of wine, and dessert was comped too! We also happened to have chosen an evening with a two-pot-pies-for-$20 special, which we liberally took advantage of. Four of our party had the pot pies (three chicken and one vegetarian), B had skirt steak, and E had fresh pasta with meat sauce (a daily special).

The pot pie was very, very good. Served piping hot, it arrived at the table emanating a buttery aroma from the delicious puff pastry sealing in the pot pie. A few taps of the spoon later, I was deep into the chicken filling, a hearty mix of potatoes, peas, and carrots in a brown sauce. My one complaint was that the filling was slightly more peppery than I would have made it myself. Nonetheless, delicious.

According to R, Liberty also has great brunch. The good food and exceptional service guarntee that we'll be back to try that, and to explore the rest of downtown Bernal.