Cut-Rate Cuisine

Five courses with wine for $90.

There is much to admire on the regularly changing à la carte menu at Baker & Banker, the six-month-old Pacific Heights restaurant.

For our money, though, a surefire way to explore the skills of chef-owners Jeff Banker and Lori Baker is to order the bargain-price seasonal tasting menu with wine pairings.

A recent meal began with a cylinder of house-stretched, panko-crusted fried mozzarella set on a pool of spicy marinara and accompanied by a Burgundian sparkling wine. Gentlemen, start your engines.

The courses then swerved assuredly across a swath of culinary inspirations: roasted Zuckerman Farms asparagus with a poached egg and a glass of white from Jura; pan-seared snapper over coconut-curry noodles with New Zealand Pinot Blanc; braised lamb teetering on fregula with Domaine de Sang Cailloux, a southern Rhône blend from Vacqueryras.

A complimentary course of flawlessly smooth strawberry sorbet segued to dessert, Lori Baker's famed salted caramel cheesecake with a quenelle of crème fraîche and fleur de sel, matched with a Bual Madeira.

Thoughtful cooking, smart wine pairings, relaxed surroundings--all for less than $100.

Baker & Banker, 1701 Octavia St. (at Bush St.); 415-351-2500 or bakerandbanker.com