Mistral Rotisserie Provencale is a classic French rotisserie offering meat and poultry roasted with Mediterranean flavors. Specialties include naturally raised chicken, lamb, pork and beef from small producers, many of them local. These are roasted over two centerpiece, gas-fired, French-made rotisseries. The lunch menu includes box lunches and soups, which can be enjoyed at one of several small tables just outside the shop. Signature dishes to eat-in or take home for dinner include paella; lamb stew with couscous; ratatouille; bouillabaisse, and potatoes cooked beneath the roasting chickens.

The shop draws its name, Mistral, from the strong northerly wind that blows toward the Mediterranean coast of southern France. Owners Fabrice and Betty Marcon say this is most fitting for their "back to nature" approach to cuisine where cooking is seen as a simple, knowledgeable enhancement to natural ingredients. French-born Fabrice worked as Chef Saucier—sous chef in charge of all the sauces—in Lyon under Paul Bocuse. Betty, who trained as a pastry chef, has been a pastry instructor at City College of San Francisco.

(Photos by David Wakely)