Citysearch Editorial Review

by Patrick Heig

On the eponymous fifth floor of the Hotel Palomar, the New American cuisine of new chef Jennie Lorenzo--a veteran of multiple multiple-Michelin-starred kitchens--is ushering in a new era for this restaurant. She's brought a more laid-back vibe and more accessible prices and fare, while maintaining the high level of service--and Fifth Floor's Michelin star. Sommelier Emily Wines (yes, really) lives up to her name with a massive and highly regarded wine list.

01/25/09

A great evening

by davidvanatta

We just had dinner with another couple last night at the 5th Floor. It was a great evening. Contrary to some other reviews, the service was very good. The wait staff had good recommendations to make and were very attentive.

The wine list is terrific although pricey. The food was very creative and artfully served.

The ambience was very nice. It is nice to have a restaurant that has style and still be able to carry on a conversation with your table mates.

11/17/08

Beautiful location, ambiance, and service

by dangnat

I'm not a foodie, so I'm probably not qualified to speak on the food, but to my untrained tongue, it was excellent! The service and ambiance are perfect and left me wondering why we don't have anything close to this in LA!

• Pros: Excellent service, food, and ambiance
• Cons: None

09/05/08

Extravagant, modern Gascon cuisine featuring the freshest local ingredients pleases the palates of an international clientele in the Hotel Palomar.

by Contributor

On the fifth floor (naturally) of the Hotel Palomar, France's Gascony region meets the Bay Area: on the menu, on the wine list, in the decor, and probably even among the well-heeled international clientele. Chef Laurent Manrique uses local ingredients to refine his rustic native cuisine into elegant numbes like crab soup with saffron emulsion, while Sommelier Emily Wines (yes, really) selects the best of both countries for her massive wine list.

10/17/07

Very Romantic, Great for a dressed up Date

by sallyvjj

The ambience is very romantic. It is very good for a special occasion. Funny thing is I went with my boyfriend just for trying something new, but the waitress just asked "What is the occasion?" I bet most people go there for really special reason.

05/24/07

A perfect evening!

by lizziew

My husband and I recently dined at the Fifth Floor and can I say, what an amazing evening! We have dined there on occasion since the place opened in '99 and have never been dissapointed! We started our evening out at the bar and had one of the most intriguing cocktails I have ever had... the menage poire, a beautifully crafted cocktail with Grey Goose's poire vokda! We did the chef's tasting menu with wine pairing, which was in our opinion the only reasonable option since we couldn't decided on what we wanted because everything just looked so good... and when it came to the wine... forget about it! What a fantastic list the sommelier has put together. We only felt right putting our pairings in her hands. Service was flawless as always! So all in all another perfect evening at the Fifth Floor.... we will definately be back again soon!

• Pros: Wine list, ambience, service
• Cons: Had to dine later than we wanted

05/01/07

Excellent service but disappointing meal -- please spend your money somewhere else, or regret it

by jblacksf

First time reviewer. I had to warn others. First, let me say, that I had already heard that the food, although good, was not worth the prices. But, we wanted to give the place a try, especially given the mixed reviews already listed here. The service was EXCELLENT, but that is the only good thing I can say about our experience there this week. Nicest people, really. The host, the sommelier, the wait staff -- everyone was great. And, they have an extensive wine list that is very impressive. That being said, we left thouroughly disappointed in our actual meal. Parts of it were good, but quite frankly, if you are paying this much, the food should be outstanding as well as the service. The parts of the meal that were good were the little in-between treats they did send out our way and our cheese plate that we ordered. But our appetizers, entrees and desserts were not good enough. My risotto appetizer was salty. Both of our entrees were bland and unfulfilling. Desserts were not even edible really, which sounds like a uncharacteristical thing to say about dessert in general, but it was probably the most disappointing part of the meal. And, fifteen minutes after our meal.... we were hungry again!!! I wish we spent all the money that we spent there on pretty much anything else. I really wanted to love my meal because the service was so great, but I didn't, and neither did my dining companinon -- so much so that I had to write this review. If you go to Fifth Floor, go for the ambience, have some wine and cheese and talk to the nice people, but do not order anything from the actual menu. I hope this review helps someone spend their hard-earned money elsewhere.

03/26/07

Run from Molly

by kgrayca

Although the food was what I expected, the service was the worst I've seen at this level of a San Francisco restaurant. Our server, Molly, had a bad combination of poor skills and bad attitude. She made several mistakes with our order bringing the wrong items and forgetting others. There is no flexibility in ordering. If one orders from a tasting menu or ala cart, then everyone else must also. It took over 20 minutes to get our first bottle of wine and when the second arrived, they just topped off the glasses which still had wine from the first bottle.

No apologies were ever given for the service. Instead, our server acted like we were an inconvenience and were somehow the cause of any issues. At the conclusion of the evening, we were given our check which had 21% gratuity already included. I can?t remember the last time tipped less than 20% but I certainly would have this time. In our fantastic city, there are way too many restaurants with both excellent food and service for me to subject myself to this one again.

• Pros: Food
• Cons: Service

12/21/06

Wonderful, top notch splurge, tasty, conveinent.

by alanpryor

We had an excellent meal with our friends after a Wednesday theater matinee. The girls had the garden tasting with a sunchoke soup enriched with creme fraiche, tasty salad with persimmon and a citrus dressing, potato gnocchi with a green, a lovely risotto and more, while the boys had crusty mackerel or chestnut soup and then duck breast with confit or a lovely piece of beef with a bourgourgne sauce. Desserts were equally impressive. The decor was warm and modern luxurious, the waitstaff attentive and helpful, and the price heady but not excessive. The amuse bouche were many and wonderful tiny tastes which held our interest. It was a high point and we hope to return many more times to this five star restaurant.

• Pros: Great tasting food, delicate but not fou-fou, excellent staff
• Cons: get help with the wine list

04/24/06

Impressive!!

by athenababy24

I loved the classy dining room, very chic and romantic to say the least. The chef's little samplers are a plus, too. I had the duck which was fabulous and the velvet chocolate mousse cake is to die for!! The only drawbacks were the small portions and a little inattentiveness from the server. Overall, a great place to eat for a special occassion, though.

• Pros: Ambiance, Food
• Cons: Costly, Service