Ame

Impressive!

by KarinnaZ at Citysearch

Dinner at Ame inside the St. RegisHotel in San Francisco was magnificent. Taking into account that we did not have reservations yet were still seated in under 30 minutes, the wait was reasonable for a Saturday night.

I am in town for the NASFT Winter Fancy Food Show and this chic, dark restaurant was exactly what I needed for a relatively quick, unplanned dinner meeting.

Ame is located past the lobby bar and concierge within the St. Regis San Francisco. The dark wooden walls lead you down a hallway which opens to the left to a warm Asian-inspired space with a Sashimi bar near the entrance of the restaurant. The wine cellar is clearly visible and proudly displays their impressive wine collection. The tables are covered with warm off-white linens and seating is spacious and comfortable.

The service at Ame is excellent--no less than what you'd expect from a Michelin Star awarded restaurant. Our server took the time to explain the menu options that could be made vegan (relatively few), while quickly assuring me that the Chef would be glad to make me a customized plate of in-season produce. We ordered the 2007 Hyde Vineyard Carneros Patz & Hall Chardonnay which has a floral and jammy nose, with a luscious, creamy mouthfeel, velvety finish and flavors of spices, peach and hazelnut.

Our table ordered the Grilled Whole Maine Lobster with Abalone Mushroom Yuzu Brown Butter Sauce and Gai-Lan, the Fish Spontanée, and the Grilled California Wagyu Beef Eye of Ribeye Steak

with Crispy Sweetbreads, Fingerling Potatoes and Forest Mushroom Sauce.

My plate was the most beautiful and exotic: savory skewered root vegetables, elegantly steamed Brussels sprouts, a variety of tender young carrots, richly flavored cauliflower, perfectly cooked purple potatoes, and delicious Quinoa with tender black beans. (see picture)

For dessert, they suggested the Trio of Sorbets. I was very impressed by the intense and creamy flavor of the kiwi, but the red citrus fruit was also crisp and delicious, the quince and strawberry was divine as well.

I highly recommend this restaurant whether you are staying at this fine Hotel or just looking for a dark, intimate restaurant with an impressive menu and the versatility to create a customized menu item for a Vegan. Tantalizing!

-Karinna Zarate

Japanese inspired cuisine

by CassieW at Citysearch

When you walk in the clean and refined decor immediately portends the simple elegant food that follows. The chefs use of Japanese ingredients and techniques lends a unique twist the the standard California nuevo style. The tuna tartare is a poetic interpretation of a traditional sushi roll, replacing the salty sweet of the soy with decadent shaved foie gras. Great for a romantic night out.

• Pros: Tuna tartare, black cod
• Cons: Desserts

Service was great, food not so much.

by trech747 at Citysearch

The atmosphere was very nice, and the service was perfect. The food, however, was not the highlight of the visit. The items were filled with too many different ingredients. Scallops with chilies and grapefruit did not mix right for me. The grapefruit was successful at bringing down the chilies, but the flavors did not complement each other at all. I will say the presentation was perfect.

The green egg soup dish was not very appetizing or visually appealing. In fact, i mentally plug my nose like a kid, trying to slurp down grandmas mystery soup.

My entree was a lobster and scallop with 'japanese' risotto. The risotto was rice in miso soup.... Not exactly what i thought it was going to be.

I spent 112 bucks for dinner for 1. Sadly i was thinking about the kobe beef burger i was going to get for dinner the next night during my meal.

The atmosphere and service was great, but the food was not. For 112 bucks, i expected more.

Typical Hotel Restaurant

by epicuriousgastrognome at Citysearch

Sure, the hotel is glamorous but this restaurant just doesn't cut the mustard. Bland sushi, weak cocktails, cheap-seeming in an inexplicable way despite the upscale hotel surrounding it. If you want to spend $200 to find out for yourself, go for it, but you'll be wishing you took my advice.

AMAZING!

by nillacookie at Citysearch

We came for lunch and Ame did not disappoint! The restaurant is upscale but not very pretentious. Needless to say, it was expensive so I would suggest lunch over dinner since most of the same dishes are served for lunch at a fraction of the price.

We started off with a few appetizers, tempura poke, ceviche, the hamachi, and oysters, all of which had great flavors and presentation. For my entree, I had their house specialty, the Alaskan Black Cod - delicious! It was extremely light, yet tasty. The cod's flavor was clean and naturally sweet and buttery; it melted in my mouth! Others at the table had the scallops and the kobe and gave raves reviews. I can't wait to come again!