Duncan Street Herb Garden
The Roof is in Bloom
Nonna (that's my wife, for those of you not lucky enough to know her) has been laboring away these past several weeks in "the back forty" – Incanto's rooftop herb garden, which overlooks Duncan Street. It was one of those ideas that sounded smart when we first thought of it: "Let's plant a rooftop herb garden! We can grow our own food. It will be a model of sustainable urban agriculture. It will be fun!"
In truth, it has been fun. But it certainly has not been easy or inexpensive. Soon after the "gee-isn't-this-a-great-idea" phase, I had nightmares about the roof caving in on a rainy night, collapsing under the weight of mud-filled planters. So, before doing anything we consulted a structural engineer. He made some calculations based on the depth and size of the planters and the weight of planters filled with waterlogged dirt. Structural engineers actually have books filled with tables to assist in such calculations: "Yes, they're using organic dirt, not agro-chem potting soil, so you need to use Table 832.d not Table 641.a." He advised me where we could place planters (on load-bearing walls and on the newly framed part of the roof) and where we should not place planters (pretty much everywhere else, unless we were pure-bred Irish).
I ordered lumber from a local lumberyard. Somebody in that business is making a killing and I'm pretty sure it's not the trees. Then one day our good friend and skilled carpenter Don Matter came over and helped us build deep redwood planters and haul them up to the roof. We placed them on load-distributing sleepers in locations based on the recommendations of the structural engineer. Looking on, a curious neighbor asked what all the boxes were for. We told her we were planning a mass grave. She hasn't been by to eat since.
A fellow Slow Food member, Therica Elliot, assisted with lining the planters, filling them with dirt, and planting our first crops. After a few months of growing, the first harvest came. It included red chicories, peas & leeks. They were all beautiful. Each of the ten servings the harvest produced was delicious. So much for sustainability.
Over the winter, Nonna replanted, putting herbs everywhere. We went for quantity, not variety. Sage, parsley, thyme, mint, and rosemary. Now we're starting to see some of the first leaves of our labor. The parsley is going into the salsa verde, a hundreds-of-years-old Italian recipe. We're making Duncan Street rosemary salt to season roast potatoes. Rooftop sage is flavoring soups and beans. Upper Noe thyme is scenting our braised meats and stocks. And, in a moment of true inspiration, we lifted some of the beautiful, delicate, light-purple rosemary flowers and candied them. We served the candied flowers with our olive oil cake. They were ethereal. And I'm pretty sure Incanto is the only restaurant on our block that offers them.
Changing Seasons
The new season has brought more than a flowering garden to Duncan Street. On April 4, Incanto was recognized by the National Restaurant Association with an award for "America's Best Wine Lists" in the category of "Casual Dining: Wine List of 100-250 Selections." Claudio, Nonna, and I went down to the Monterey Wine Festival to attend the award ceremony. My mother and grandmother were the most popular guests of the event, especially among vendors trying to sell services to Incanto.
The season is also bringing Italian winemakers to Incanto. May and June, following Italy's largest wine trade show VinItaly, are the most popular months for the Italian wine trade to visit the United States. As a result, we will be having at least two winemaker dinners at Incanto in May: Tuscan estate Castello di Ama on Monday, May 5 and Friulian estate Volpe Pasini on Wednesday, May 21. More details about these dinners can be found in the special events section of Incanto's website.
A Pair of Birthdays
Two upcoming birthdays have us equally excited for the coming weeks. A few months ago, our neighbor David Lawson, who frequently helps us here at Incanto asked, "Why don't you throw a birthday party for Dante?" It sounded like a fine idea. And probably be a bit less involved than the rooftop garden. We did some research and have learned that Dante's birthday, adjusted by scholars for differences between our calendar the Gregorian calendar of Dante's time, was June 2, 1265. Were he still alive, Dante would be turning 738 this year.
June 2 sounded familiar to me, then I remembered: Incanto opened on June 2, 2002. What a coincidence! In celebration of both anniversaries, Incanto will be hosting an open house, from 5:30 to 9:30 on Monday June 2, 2003. We will all raise our glasses to Dante and to Incanto, whose fates seem to be related somehow. Consider this your formal invitation to join our celebration.
Spring is Here
Yes, Spring has arrived at the intersection of Duncan and Church streets. Time for rebirth, growth, and change. Time for April showers and May flowers. Or, in the words of Chauncy Gardner, "we plant in the spring so that we may harvest in the fall." Above all, spring is a time for optimism, for hope in what the future may bring. Our hearts here at Incanto are full of hopes: for a bountiful crop from our infant garden, for a championship for the Boston Red Sox, and above all, for there to be more peace and understanding in our world.
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Incanto Italian Restaurant, 1550 Church Street, Noe Valley, San Francisco 94131
415-641-4500 - Email: info@incanto.biz