Set on stun

Big Finish (Mission)

BARS • First Round

In an era defined by natural wine bars frantically jostling for hipness, “wine tavern” Big Finish is a refreshing antidote.

Opened in March between Mission and Valencia Streets, the straightforward bar features a food menu you could easily build a full dinner from, including an excellent burger.

Owner Adam Manson transformed the former Monk’s Kettle space with a fresh remodel featuring faux-brick accents and extra-comfy upholstered bar seats with backs. The centerpiece of the place is a long row of 48 taps behind the bar, from which pour several dozen wines by the glass, as well as seven craft beers. The full by-the-glass list includes over 50 pours priced $9 to $25, categorized under labels like “light finish,” “juicy finish,” and “big finish,” as well as the cheekier “orange-y finish” for skin-contact natural wines.

The food menu begins with delicious smoked trout, pimiento cheese dip, and soups (“solids suspended in liquid”) like tortilla and white bean-kale. Heartier dishes include that burger — with cheddar, dijonnaise, and Old Bay potato chips — a NY steak, some terrific braised-pork pappardelle, and a carrot-miso risotto.

On one of the space’s multiple TVs, you might catch an episode or movie from the Star Trek franchise — owner Manson is a self-described Trekkie, which may explain some of the menu’s rhetorical quirkiness. On nice-weather days, tables that dot adjacent Albion St. are a quiet outdoor option. –Jay Barmann

→ Big Finish (Mission) • 3141 16th St • Mon-Thu 4-11p, Fri 4p-12a, Sat 11a-12a, Sun 11a-9p • Walk-ins only.