baron45
Grape Truck Driver
Posts:26
 | | 04/04/2008 1:18 AM |
| Posted By saut on 04/04/2008 12:00 AM
Daniel: You're right. Presidio Heights...I can't afford anything in that neighborhood (even the lattes), so it might as well be the avenues to me. Fine place, though. Good wine list.
Last night: Circuit. Are we running out of restaurant names or what? Actually, food is tasty, wine list is short and good (half bottles of Copain viognier, fifths include Owen Roe, Outpost, etc.). Tried a number of different dishes, appetizers all are great, main courses also tasty, but the steak entree a bit deconstructed. Beef marrow bone with toast and microgreens, fried potato cubes (1" wide) with a teaspoon of hollandaise, and a rectangular cut of steak as big as my fist. All tasty, but a big chunk of steak. Desserts that we tried were great. Prices are fair: appetizers 10-12, entrees 22-30. Boy, I remember the first time I saw a steak entree for $30...
Did you mean to say "Conduit" instead of Circuit?
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saut
Grape Fermenter
Posts:502
| | 04/07/2008 12:16 AM |
| | HA! You are right. Conduit. What is next? Plug? | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 04/08/2008 9:10 AM |
| | Dropped into lunch at Epic Roasthouse before Opening Day. First impression is that the pump house theme is a nice one. Very attractive brick, exposed beams, etc. The bar is on the second floor in the back corner. Rather an out of the way location and if one just wants to be in the bar than Waterbar next door is a much better venue. Great, spicy tartare (went fantastically well with the 2005 Sine Qua Non - Grenache Atlantis Fe203-2a we brought in) which while not a huge portion (fine as an app for two people to share) was not badly priced at $14. Half pound burger (a blend of filet and ribeye) "with all the trimmings" (by trimmings they mean little cups filled with aioli, bacon, mushroom, etc.). Very good but a little dry. Not cheap ($20; in the evening the burger gains a quarter pound which jacks the price up to $25) however. With the burger we had a modified Bressler (not Cal Cab rather an 81 Lafite Rothschild). Corkage was $25 per bottle. After the game we dropped back in to the bar for perfectly fried tempura. Service was exemplary in both the bar and dining room. I prefer Waterbar to Epic (Waterbar is more expensive though) but will definitely return to Epic. | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 04/11/2008 12:10 AM |
| | Had dinner at Spruce tonight (disclosure: members of my extended family have a financial interest in Spruce)
As usual the ambience and service were fantastic. I'd like to see more seasonality in the menu but overall the food was great. From the bar menu (but served at the table) mussels were plump, large, and perfectly cooked. Foie gras terrine was good but smaller than in the past. Bavette steak (sourced from Marin Sun Farms) with potatoes cooked in duck fat, chard, and sauce Bordelaise was fantastic. Went great with the Sine Qua Non Syrah. Started with dayboat scallops perched on brandade in a pea and pea sprout nage (despite my complaints re seasonality this course was spot on for mid April in Northern California). Overall a very fine but expensive restaurant in a location with little high end competition. We'll be back soon. | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 04/11/2008 8:16 PM |
| | Lunched today at Villa Taverna. Can't get much more old school San Francisco then this. High quality smoked salmon. Extremely well priced wine list. Sauteed petrale sole just the way your grandfather ordered it. Espresso could have a little more stuffing. Exemplary service. Very private. Worth dining at imo. | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 04/14/2008 12:06 AM |
| | Had dinner tonight at Gary Danko. Exemplary service. Good sometimes even great food but safe food and nowhere near the cutting edge. Danko has been doing oysters in butter sauce with caviar for more than a decade but there is a good reason for this: its spectacular. Lobster risotto: good but not great. Needed salt (everything was underseasoned). Roasted Maine Lobster with morels and asparagus is spot on for the season. Boned quail stuffed with foie gras was very good although the foie was obscured by the potato cake the quail was served with. Cheese course was as it always has been phenomenol (although the livarot was a little immature). Stephanie's duck entree was really chewy and as a result (without prompting from us) the entree was removed from the check). Tables are still much too close together. Quite loud. Corkage was $35 per bottle with a two bottle maximum per table. Corkage was not waived for every bottle bought off the egregiously expensive wine list. Valet was $11. Five courses came in at $96. Asparagus soup a la carte was $18. Lobster salad (lobster was tough) was $20. Cheese course was $18 (but still worth it imo). | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 04/19/2008 9:11 AM |
| | Took my oldest to lunch at A16. A16 only serves lunch Wednesday through Friday. Its much easier to get a table at lunch so its a good option if one cannot get a table or doesn't want to fight the crowds at night. Over the years prices have gone up across the board for wine and food but for the experience A16 remains a relative value. Essentially you can't go wrong with getting pizza at A16. The funghi is my personal favorite although they oftentimes have a special pizza of fresh ricotta and arugula. If that's available its a must order.
Had dinner with friends at Garibaldi's in Presidio Heights. I would have thought that the success of nearby Spruce would have cut into Garibaldi's business (not only is Spruce much more happening but Spruce's food is considerably better too) but it hasn't. The restaurant was full. Not much has changed at Garibaldis except for the prices which have spiraled upward. Garibaldi's was never a value but now its gotten pretty painful. Three courses plus tax, tip, and (high two digits) wine for two breaks $300. Food is solid if rather ho hum. Asparagus in oyster sauce ($12) has been on the menu for years. Right now is the time to order it because of the asparagus' quality. Halibut with english peas ($30) was something any good home chef could accomplish. Basically Garibaldi's remains a decent though expensive neighborhood place but not a restaurant worth traveling any distance to dine at. | | | |
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saut
Grape Fermenter
Posts:502
| | 04/20/2008 3:05 AM |
| Daniel...agree with you on Gary Danko. Something detracting from almost every dish. The wine list is a big yawn for me because I can't afford anything on it. Some of those bottles have been in that space for three restaurant incarnations to date. I think if you go with a special party and someone knows Danko, it can be a great experience. For the rest of us it's just a money drain.
Went to Spruce for dinner. We thought the menu was good, and the wine list great. French stuff all expensive, but I guess I'm getting used to spending $150 on a bottle of wine, so I found lots to choose from. I knew the sommelier from a previous visit, and he did a good job, but there was a front room (private dining) group that needed help with their Petrus, so we told him to go play with them. A few good dishes that were offered off the menu: whole roasted foie (I'm suspecting the smaller lobe for $125, but still...) and a porterhouse with bordelaise sauce, which we split. Perfectly cooked. Perfect sauce. Delicious potatoes. $100. (for 2 people)
I agree the foie torchon portion was small, but I like good sized portions (until my bypass, that is). The rest of the dishes were very good. Worthy of some special wines. Service very good. It's expensive, but I love the space, and the team is great. | | | |
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cassismatt
Grape Truck Driver
Posts:36
| | 04/28/2008 7:18 PM |
| | My girlfriend and I frequent Namu on 6th and Balboa st. in the Richmond district where I live. It used to be fantastic. We went there and to Gary Danko's back to back weeks, and we prefered Namu - and it was less than 1/4 of the price. I had a great cheap Malbec that went well with my skirt steak. Unfortunately the "dine about sf" went to that restaurant and "buisnitized" it. When we first went to it I think they were reputation building and every dish was hand crafted to perfection. The last time we went, the prices went up and the food quality went down. It could have just been an off night and I think they are worth a shot again. They also have an awesome lunch with an excellent burger and fish sandwhich - I had an asahi beer with my lunch and it was fresh cool and crisp - it was apparent that they have studied the perfect temperature to serve things at. So I would reccomend giving it a try www.namubar.com they have an online menu (hit the more button to see more selections)
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Winegeek
San Francisco
Grape Puncher
Posts:774
| | 04/29/2008 1:11 AM |
| Posted By cassismatt on 04/28/2008 7:18 PM
My girlfriend and I frequent Namu on 6th and Balboa st. in the Richmond district where I live.
Some friends took us to Namu last week - after (and because of) Patty Unterman's review - and we had a terrific meal. We tried 8 or 9 dishes and almost all of them were both delicious and interesting. A bit out of the way but we'll go back.
Richard | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 04/30/2008 4:19 PM |
| Went to Waterbar last night to celebrate a friend's birthday. The restaurant was packed at 6.45 on a Tuesday night. I have to agree with Bob's earlier comments: the back room is horrible. They tried to seat us there and while I hate to complain about seating (can't remember the last time I did so) I insisted they put us in the "Aquarium room". The restaurant claims one can specify being seated in the Aquarium room when one makes a reservation. I didn't think there would be a problem at 6.45 on a Tuesday but I was wrong. In any event, after a few minutes they seated us in the Aquarium room right next to a window. Interesting people watching: former Mayor of San Francisco Willie Brown was next to us (Willie knows many things including food (and obviously men's fashions - can't go wrong with Brioni imo) so seeing Willie is always a good sign) and in the booth across from us was Epic Roasthouse's chef Jan Birnbaum (he has lost so much weight he doesn't even look like the same person he was). Hits: crab gratin ($19 app; the crab is served on top of sliced open marrow bones and then drizzled with truffle sauce for a fantastic surf and turf combo); english pea gratin ($6 side); sea scallop ceviche ($12 app) Miss: sea bass and sea urchin ceviche ($16 app) (way too much acid and not enough salt). Good to see the restaurant offers filtered flat or sparkling tap water. Despite the economics of bottled water, this trend is going to continue imo (at least in forward thinking locales). | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 05/06/2008 9:30 AM |
| | Went to Campton Place for a Peay Vineyards wine dinner last night. Haven't been here since Manhattan stole Chef Humm (thereby spiriting away Campton Place's four star review from the Chronicle). Wine dinners are different experiences than regular service so I can't fairly judge the new Chef's acumen. Still the room remains quite attractive. Service was very good but not top notch. Food was interesting enough to make me consider going back in about six months to assess what Campton Place can really do. | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 05/09/2008 11:48 AM |
| | Dined at Presidio Social Club last night (http://www.presidiosocialclub.com/). Interestingly the restaurant is housed in a century old enlisted men's barracks. I went here a couple of times right after it opened a little over a year ago but haven's been back since. Its my loss since this place is very good and well priced to boot. Completely packed at 8 on a Thursday night. Wine list is short (reserve list is even shorter and crazily priced) but serviceable. Had a 2005 Hansel Cahill Chardonnay ($58). Corkage is only $15 and that's the way to go imo. Started with a special of day boat scallop pancakes with herbed butter ($12). Didn't look great but I'd order it again in a heartbeat. Frisee salad with lardons and a fried egg (wish it was poached as in most preparations of this classic) had a bit too much bacon (did I just type that?) but was satisfying all the same. A side of crushed English peas and mint was fantastic (and a bargain at $5 given both the quality and quantity of the portion). Gruyere cheese toasts with tomato fondue ($6) was classic comfort food at its best. I can see why the restaurant is so full. | | | |
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Eric White
San Ramon, CA
Advanced Sommelier
Posts:9127
| | 05/09/2008 8:41 PM |
| Posted By Daniel Bailey on 05/09/2008 11:48 AM
...had a bit too much bacon (did I just type that?)...
 ROFL! | | | |
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Randy Sloan
St. Helena
Barrel Sampler
Posts:2054
| | 05/09/2008 9:29 PM |
| | Going to Slanted Door for Mother's Day. Unbelievably, after 11 years in the Bay Area, I have still not been there. | |
Randy Sloan
Match Vineyards | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 05/09/2008 10:56 PM |
| | Slanted Door is worth the hype. Whatever you do be sure and get one of the claypot dishes (I've probably had the claypot chicken a hundred times and I'm still not tired of it) and the cellophane noodles with crab. | | | |
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Randy Sloan
St. Helena
Barrel Sampler
Posts:2054
| | 05/10/2008 1:23 PM |
| | Thanks for the advice... I'll take it. Sasha has been to the Slanted Door but somehow I've always missed out. After that, it's the Asian Art Museum and then a chick flick. Ah, Mother's Day. The day when Moms call in their markers. | |
Randy Sloan
Match Vineyards | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 05/21/2008 4:46 PM |
| Perbacco for lunch today. Still can't understand why this restaurant is so popular. At best its merely good. Wine list is well selected and well priced. Starter of grilled squid and arugula ($12)was drenched in oil and the squid was essentially raw. Pansotti stuffed with wild greens and walnut butter ($18) however was superb. I'd recommend this restaurant for a business lunch but no way is it worth going out of your way for imo. | | | |
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gus fleener
gilroy
Barrel Filler
Posts:1343
| | 05/23/2008 1:07 PM |
| i may be in a bit of a rut when i am in san francisco overnight, but i had dinner wednesday night at spruce. it is no wonder i go there whenever i get the opportunity, it was fantastic. unfortunately, i made something of a pig of myself. i started with a charcouterie & cheese plate which peter, the charcouterie guy, put together special for me. everything on this plate was good to phenomenal. on the phenomenal end of the spectrum was a duck mousse. i had to restrain myself from licking the ramakan. this would have been enough for a person with significant self-restraint, or the charcouterie & an entree for a reasonable person. i, on the other hand, just had to try the sweetbreads which appear on the menu as: SEARED SWEETBREADS, 18 FARM EGG RAVIOLONO, SAGE
this dish was rich to begin with, but when you cut into the raviolono (big ravioli) & the warm egg yolk spilled into the sauce, i was glad i had brought a wine with enough acidity to slice its way through & cleanse my palate for yet another bite of this decadent dish. you might think that if i was going to insist upon having an entree, i would go with something a bit light. remember now, i am making a pig of myself. so, i went with the duck breast. HONEY LACQUERED DUCK BREAST, 36 CINNAMON SPICED FOIE GRAS, POACHED RHUBARB
now, i have dined here in the past with 2 of my brothers & with my wife, katy & 2 of the 3 of them have pronounced the duck breast as the best duck they have ever had. on my 1 previous experience with the duck breast, i was disappointed. i think it was a bad breast. i remember it as chewy & gristly. these other breasts were different preparations, but they always seem to have a nice piece of seared foie gras topping off the breast which is truly a wonderful thing. in a way i wish i had not ordered the duck breast. it was so absolutely out of this world delicious that i don't know if i will ever be able to order anything else when i return. this was the best piece of duck i have ever had; no, the best piece of fowl that i have ever had! all 3 items went very well with the 2001 nicolas rossignol, ronceret that i brought with me. i'm not a real big burgundy guy, but this was great with this meal. should i have flet a little weird about them having the same wine in a different vintage on their list? i was a little surprised by this since i have so little burgundy & there are so many different producers out there. for the record, they have the 2005 on their list for $200. i paid $40 for this bottle & $30 corkage, so i feel like i made out alright. i know this should have been enough, but i was perusing their winelist & they had an aglianico they were pouring by the glass. not that i needed any more wine since i drank all of the rossignol except for the glass i sent to peter, the charcouterie guy. wow! what a contrast in wines. the was not the best aglianico i have ever had, but it was good & it paled in comparison to the rossignol, but the differences were just incredible. so i sipped my last glass of wine of the evening & asked that they take their time getting my beignets out to me & oh yes, could you please bring me a double espresso with them? i made it back to my hotel room & turned on the tv satisfied but wishing i had not eaten so much (not really!) | | | |
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Daniel Bailey
Grape Fermenter
Posts:657
| | 05/23/2008 1:42 PM |
| | Sounds great Gus. I too am a huge fan of the duck and have a tough time by passing it for something else. Sorry I was stuck in the East Bay at a board meeting on Wednesday. Next time just in case you get hungry at your hotel they have charcuterie to go... | | | |
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