Which is all to say, they\u2019ve been here before.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reason it\u2019s called Here Before is we\u2019ve been here before with this same collaboration, and we\u2019re exploring [whether] we want to do this out on the West Coast now,\u201d Nevola explains. \u201cExperiencing San Francisco is so amazing; it\u2019s supportive of pop-ups, and it\u2019s such a great way to get a taste of what people are into and also to be creative.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stern and Nevola are working the pop-up circuit as they learn more about the Bay Area. They\u2019ve appeared at wine and sake shop Millay<\/a> in San Francisco, and on Sunday, October 19, they\u2019re returning to natural wine maker Broc Cellars<\/a> in Berkeley for an event.<\/p>\n Stern and Nevola, who handles front-of-house management and social media, bring some restaurant touches to their pop-up. For instance, they use real plates and silverware when they can, and occasionally incorporate a \u201cdrop line\u201d explaining the dishes they\u2019re handing off to diners. It\u2019s not that they\u2019re opposed to paper plates and plastic utensils, but they see Here Before as \u201ca mini restaurant [that] is popping up,\u201d Nevola says.<\/p>\n In that vein, Stern approaches pop-ups as if it\u2019s a mini restaurant menu, typically two smaller bites, a couple of vegetable dishes, a hot fish or meat dish, plus a dessert. Stern\u2019s base influence for the pop-up is French, with a bit of Spanish touches; from there, dishes evolve based on \u201cthe best products we can get ahold of and feature,\u201d he says. For now, what that means is vegetables during this summer-to-fall transition of produce. At Broc Cellars they\u2019re serving pimientos de padron and sliced tomatoes, if they manage to stick around for the weekend. (Stern says that his prepared menus flux and change with the seasonal ingredients.) They\u2019re dubbing that event \u201cLa Grillade,\u201d as there will be grills to cook up a portion of the dishes, such as the chicken a la diable, made with chickens from Fogline Farms.<\/p>\n One dish that Stern regularly places on the menu is a tortilla de patatas, a Spanish omelet with potatoes that he\u2019s workshopping. He\u2019s even sought advice from friends like chef Ryan Bartlow of Ernesto\u2019s<\/a> and Bartolo<\/a> (\u201cHe\u2019s kind of like the tortilla master<\/a>,\u201d Stern says) when he first started working the dish. He\u2019s topped the dish with a piperade, or pepper stew, but for the Sunday event, he\u2019s created a marinated chanterelle mushroom accompaniment. There\u2019s even a marinated anchovies dish, and a Basque cheesecake as a closer. Hungry folks can go HAM and order the entire menu, but it\u2019s also good for heavy snacking, as Stern puts it \u2014 picking and choosing through the selections.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really enjoy food and the community of restaurants,\u201d Nevola says. \u201cWe\u2019ve been together for 16 years, and we are trying to bring people the food and the experience that we like to have when we go out \u2014 it\u2019s just that simple.\u201d<\/p>\n The duo is not quite at the stage of opening up a restaurant, but they\u2019re enjoying the pop-up life for now. \u201cThis is just a way to explore a little bit more,\u201d Stern says, \u201cand it just seemed like something that people were doing and could be a fun thing. It\u2019s meant to be a fun thing for us, more than a job.\u201d<\/p>\n Here Before<\/a> pops up at Broc Cellars<\/a> (1300 Fifth Street, Berkeley) from noon to 4 p.m. (or sold out) on Sunday, October 19.<\/p>\n