05/18/09

A SF institution whose days are over

by rakeshtondon

I think it is time that this SF institution kicks the bucket because I think its day are over. I don't believe there is enough soul, passion or life left in this restaurant. There is nothing good about the place other than the decor and the space. The food is OK at best, and tasteless and completely unmemorable. Being in a city like SF, one has no reason or excuse to pick this restaurant when you have excellent options like Fringale or Bacar and many others like it all over the city. Now that I've been there a couple of times and tried to like it, I have no idea what possessed me to waste my moolah. Needless to say I'd never do it again (and will try not let others waste their money either).

• Pros: Excellent decor
• Cons: Tasteless food

01/26/08

First visit - great dining experience!

by ebayfoodie

A friend and I came here for Dine-About-Town on a Friday night and enjoyed a wonderful meal accompanied by superb service. I don't know if the owner has been reading all the bad reviews regarding service and decided to implement changes or what, but all of the staff from the hostess to the busboys were courteous, pleasant, and professional. Our water glasses never had a chance to near half empty, all plates arrived in a timely fashion, the table was cleared efficiently after each course, and not once did we feel rushed. In fact on several occasions, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed our server quickly return to the kitchen with our next dish when he observed that we still had some remaining food on our current plates. Additionally, the chef even sent out complimentary samples of a cauliflower panna cotta topped with a red chile powder and watercress which I found innovative and flavorful. All of the servers seemed well-informed about the food (we ordered additional items outside the DAT menu) and provided details regarding the ingredients as they set the dishes before us - very nice touch. Overall the food was good. A few items such as the potato leek soup and chocolate ganache cake w/sundae were not memorable, but the black truffle & ricotta pasta, maple chicken, and sorbets were stand outs. And I don't even like sorbets! The beet salad was a nice mix of flavors, but the burrata was definitely not up to par with others I've tried, e.g. Mozza in LA, and the Cheeseboard in Berkeley. Definitely a restaurant worth trying at least once.

• Pros: service, patio seating for sunny days

04/16/07

Food and Service Underwhelm, Wine List Very Good

by mc_sfo2004

Setting: quiet and comfortable, lighting pleasant

Service: weak - inattentive server, bread arrives halfway through dinner, then butter only after requested. Waitstaff attempted to clear table before courses were finished

Food: Salad of vegetables and Greens was attractive except for odd choice of muscatel vinegar for the dressing. Tasted more or funky wine than vinegar. Vegetable composition could have been helped with more color variety for visual appeal; Steak tartare: tasty but plain.. offer some capers or minced onion on the side and fresh cracked pepper

Dinner: Guinea Hen was moist but the accompanying side of tabbouleh, tomatoes and cippolini onions was bad - very odd seasoning and too salty.

Wine list was very good. A lot of nice choices at appealing price points.

Overall, I would not go back. For the price, there is much better in town.

• Pros: Pleasant and quiet seating area
• Cons: Indifferent table service; badly seasoned sides ruin entrees