It seems a bit odd to me that Bernal’s Locavore restaurant is a) rearranging its org chart like a Fortune 500 company, and b) issuing press releases about it. But with that caveat, Locavore just rearranged its org chart, and here are the details from their press release:
“We are proud to announce that we have promoted Jonathan Merritt to Executive Chef,” Locavore stated. “Jonathan has been acting in that capacity for several months and we are happy to officially recognize him” in the role of Executive Chef of the San Francisco organic restaurant.
In the food industry since he was 15, Merritt joined Locavore with experience and a dedication to excellence to match his ideas. After his studies at the Boise State Culinary Arts Program, Merritt moved to Portland, where he worked alongside several famous Portland chefs in successful restaurants including Pok Pok. Merritt’s expertise in French and Thai cuisine brings a new dimension to Locavore’s menu.
He replaces Locavore’s founder Jason Moniz as Executive Chef. Moniz will continue his role as a partner/co-owner of Locavore, but he will spend more time on special projects, including an expansion of the celebrated in-house sausage production.
I’m overdue for another visit to Locavore. Have you been? With Merritt now in command, how’s the food??
PHOTO: Inside Locavore, by Throgers
Bernalwood 
I went twice for lunch and once for dinner in the month of March. I don’t know who the executive chef was then. My impression was that the idea is fantastic, but the food wasn’t. I mean, it was good, just not as good as I hoped/expected it to be. Things weren’t seasoned that well (I think they omit salt on purpose, to allow the flavor of the food to be itself or something?), and the steak I had for dinner was too tough to chew. On the plus side, they serve their delicious fries with Muir Glen Ketchup, which has no HFCS.
I’ve had a couple of good meals there. Once was fresh mackerel from Monterey Bay that were just fantastic, the next time was a pork dish that is a bit hazy because it came after a couple of Sazeracs at the Royal Cuckoo. My wife’s meals on each occasion were tasty as well. It’s not really a budget option, but is a nice dinner for sure. The wine list isn’t very extensive, but it’s not terribly marked up, and sitting at the bar provides a clear view straight into the guts of the kitchen, which is cool.
We’ve been about 4 times, twice for brunch and twice for dinner. The brunch has been consistently above average in every way, but at our first dinner (a couple weeks after they opened), we had odd service, my steak was very chewy and the food was indeed kind of bland. However, at our most recent dinner there, we were told that the new chef was in the kitchen and our food was pretty great. Our food was seasoned well and the burger was a perfect medium rare, as ordered. We’ll be back.
Hm, no more lunch service? I had the burger at lunch, which was pretty good, but the price was higher than what was listed on the site. And I like Super Duper better. Dinner was pretty good, but I think the whole feeling of the place is Amateur Night. Maybe a new chef will help.