SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - Jessica Bonecutter was very deep in the weeds behind the stove at the opening of the Hog Island Oyster Bar in the then-newly renovated Ferry Building. People were pouring in, orders were piling up and service was breaking down.

I had an anxiety attack just watching her, but this young chef stayed surprisingly calm. She put her head down and worked through the tickets one by one. Though slow to arrive, the food was delicious.

Jump to four years later on Hayes Street, where Bonecutter has just opened her own Bar Jules. Though not exactly a bar — only wine and beer are served — this breezy place doesn’t feel like a serious restaurant either.

The menu of six or so items is written on a blackboard. So is the wine list. Backless stools rim the doglegged counter in front of the open kitchen, and a hard wooden banquette with square wooden tables traces the periphery of the small storefront located right next door to Suppenkuche. With all its hard surfaces — concrete floor, high ceiling, bare walls — and Cafe Tacuba on the soundtrack, the room roars.

By now, Bonecutter has it down. One night, braised baby leeks in vinaigrette nestled beneath a blanket of sieved egg and capers ($9). Two thick levain toasts slathered with olive oil, sliced avocado and fresh sardines ($11) proved a voluptuous, shareable starter.

Grilled swordfish ($26) a tiny bit overcooked, rested on flavorful cannellini beans and artichokes, all lubricated with smoky red pimenton oil.

Her braised short ribs ($24) on the bone with smashed potatoes perfumed with those harbingers of spring, green garlic and sweet farm carrots, is today’s dream plate.

A ramekin of intriguingly runny, burnt sugar-tinged butterscotch pudding ($8) was so good we demolished it, even after a huge meal.

A Thursday- night menu offered a few more choices: a cumin-scented salad of farro, the barley-like whole grains tossed with shaved fennel, radishes and buttermilk dressing ($9); and a super simple fresh crab omelet seasoned only with scallions so that each bite delivered the sweetness of the crab captured in delicate, buttery egg ($14). What a beautiful little dish!

Moist bluenose sea bass ($25) was paired with a stew of lentils and bacon, and garnished with peppery mizuna, a tangy salad green. Three thick, rare, rib lamb chops ($26) came with a chickpea ragout studded with baby chard leaves, currants and pine nuts, a combination you either love or hate.

Four wines of each color, by bottle or glass, mostly from Europe, turn out to work just fine with a menu of four dishes.

Service is friendly and casual, with a few loose ends. If you want bread — fresh Acme with a saucer of olive oil and a bowl of sea salt — you must ask for it.

One day, we got a dish of spiced peanuts when we sat down. Another day the people next to us got some olives. You never quite know if share plates are coming even though a plate of food is set in the middle of the table.

No matter. Each night everything is buoyantly new — the menu, the wine list, the service, the walk-in crowd.

Bar Jules delivers the surprises and fun of a starter restaurant. And it has a solid foundation of good cooking and a commitment to local ingredients. It is just the kind of place that restaurant insiders want to keep to themselves.

Patricia Unterman is author of the “San Francisco Food Lovers’ Pocket Guide” and a newsletter, “Unterman on Food.” Contact her at pattiu@concentric.net.

Bar Jules

Location: 609 Hayes St., San Francisco

Contact: (415) 621-5482; www.barjules.com

Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 6 to 10 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday for brunch

Price range: Starters $6-$9; small plates $12; main courses $24 to $26; lunch $6 to $11

Recommended dishes: Menu changes daily; look for short ribs; bluenose sea bass with lentils and bacon, braised leeks, avocado toasts, butterscotch pudding

Credit cards: Visa, MasterCard, American Express

Reservations: Only for groups of six or more

Comments from Examiner Readers

12:14 PM MST on Thu., May. 15, 2008 re: "A slice of the Middle East"

Examiner Reader said:
layaly have the best middle_eastren food in the bay.there food is delicious and have consistant recepie. what you taste today you'll taste tommorrow. it's a winner. I love the hookah lounge, they sereve very good hookahs & have very unique Tobacco Flavors. the hookah lonuge opens at 8pm -12am & 8pm - 2:00(fri & sat)on the weekends.i recommend this place cause it's a winner

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3:01 PM MST on Thu., May. 8, 2008 re: "Take Mom out to the ballgame at AT&T Park"

Examiner Reader said:
My mother would beat me like a rented mule if I took her to a baseball game for Mother's Day.

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7:50 AM MST on Wed., Apr. 2, 2008 re: "Namu�s intricate flavors entice your palate"

Examiner Reader said:
I visited Namu on a trip to San Fran a year back when the restaurant had just opened. The space is minimal and hip, and the food fantastic - the black cod was superb!

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10:51 PM MST on Tue., Apr. 1, 2008 re: "Namu�s intricate flavors entice your palate"

Francis Kim said:
actually namu never closes early. the restaurant that always closes early was written right next to the namu article. I believe everyone is getting confused. And on thursday, friday, and saturday they stay open till 1am!!!! that is awesome.

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3:58 PM MST on Thu., Mar. 27, 2008 re: "Jazzy soul food in the heart of the Fillmore"

M.S. Jackson said:
Ms. Unterman's laughable dialectic suggests she is feeding on some of the large sausages at the Soul Food joint and getting more than her fill!

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4:55 PM MST on Sun., Mar. 16, 2008 re: "Jazzy soul food in the heart of the Fillmore"

Examiner Reader said:
I suspect they close before the posted closing time to save on staff costs on nights when the amount of business does not cover expenses. I give them another six months.

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12:28 PM MST on Thu., Feb. 21, 2008 re: "Review: Innovative Japanese dining with a California twist"

Examiner Reader said:
Go early in the evening because they'll close early if the mood stikes them. Even if you have a reservation.

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