Zut! on Fourth, Oakland

On my way back in from San Diego last week, I dined at Zut! in Oakland and ate at the bar. Bartender was friendly and helpful. She knew her way around the menu and wasn’t afraid to give an opinion. At her suggestion and based upon facial expressions I chose three items off of the starter menu.

First were the fried smelts, with lemon and aioli. I always order smelt when I have the opportunity simply to compare them to Kokkari. These were fried fresh. I preferred to squeeze the lemon that night rather than the aioli, just to contrast the fried smelt. The lemon was wrapped in cloth, a minor service item, but a lost serv5ce touch these days. The smelts were good, crispy and salty almost at Kokkari’s level.

Next were the stuffed squid and the meatballs. The execution of the squid was spot on tender. No one wants a tough squid. Inside each squid chorizo, mint, and some bread crumbs. They served the squid on top of a relative of broccoli rabe.  The meatballs were composed of lamb, beef, and pork, topped with cheese and avocado on a tomato base and lightly gratinated to melt the cheese. The meatballs were tender and seasoned with more North African spices than Italian or Mexican. I probably would have served the meatballs, with the rabe and the avocado with the squid and tweaked the seasoning to more classical to the region. So I don’t know if it classifies as more fusion or freestyle. All the major elements, squid and meatball were cooked with care, but I’m a little challenged by the ending combinations of avocado with tomato sauce and bitter rabe on subtle squid.

Obviously, I dined that evening from a very specific area of the menu, starters. There is a whole section of pizzas as well as main courses that included a vegetable tagine, ahi with salsa verde, and a hanger steak. My hesitancy in declaring Zut! as brilliant fusion stems from the Italian base of pizzas, Moroccan style tagine and less than classical combinations of meatballs with avocado. As I mentioned, a challenging menu. The execution on my dishes was right on, no real misses. Which says chef knows how to cook well. So what is Zut!? Fusion, confusion, or innovation? Time will tell.