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French brasserie fare in a slick Fidi location. Patrick Heig on
09-23-2009
Like "NOPA," "Midi" is an initially annoying abbreviation for a newly christened neighborhood—the alleged "Mid-District," where the Financial District and Union Square overlap—but as with NOPA, in time the name may cease to irk. Not irksome at all is the slick, angular bi-level design, with the bar and kitchen at street level, and a smartly appointed dining room upstairs for a casually upscale setting that should please the shoppers and lunching suits Midi was built to attract. Chef Michelle Mah, a Chronicle Rising Star at Ponzu, here turns her eye to seasonal, French brasserie classics (think Nicoise salad, pork rillette, and grilled hanger steak) so adeptly that you wonder where her heart was when she was cooking Pan-Asian. In this watering hole-starved area, Midi's bar is sure to be an after-work hangout, and to that end there are 8 American craft beers available, some (rather pricey) wine and cocktail lists, and a list of solid bar food. In the end, Mah's serious food makes up for the restaurant's silly name, and it's well worth a visit if you find yourself anywhere near—gulp—the Mid-District.
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