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Where to Dine in San Francisco
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San Francisco
Fine Dining continues to enhance the quality of life in
the Bay Area for locals and tourists alike. We had the opportunity
to enjoy fine cuisine paired with excellent “Bubbly”
at Jeanty at Jack’s in San Francisco’s
Financial District at a Champagne Dinner. We had the pleasure
to meet Regis Camus, Genologue - Directeur Vignes Et Vins
from Piper- Heidsieck Champagne in France. Through his interpreter,
Christian Holthausen, we learned of Regis’s love of
Champagne and were able to taste their latest releases.
They were so excited that the latest harvest is the best
since 1990. In France, we were told that Champagne is known
as “The King of Wines and The Wine of Kings.”
We particularly liked the Piper-Heidsieck Rose Sauvage which
paired perfectly with the Tomato Soup in Puff Pastry. Proprietor
and Executive Chef Philippe Jeanty,
who also happens to be from the Champagne region of France,
created the entire superb dinner. We particularly loved
the fabulous Steak Frites, which is a Rib Eye Steak with
Béarnaise Sauce on the side, the Puff Pastry Tomato
Soup and a superior dessert of Crème Caramel that
was the finish to a great dinner. www.JeantyatJacks.com
Once
again, this year we took advantage of San Francisco’s
annual world class dining event called “Dine About
Town”. This successful promotion allows diners to
enjoy over 100 of San Francisco’s restaurants at discounted
prices for 3 Course Lunches or Dinners. It is a win- win
as the restaurants stay busy in the normally slow month
of January and convert some of these new customers into
regulars. It’s a great opportunity for the diners
to try a variety of new restaurants. In fact the San Francisco
Convention & Visitors Bureau reports that participation
by diners was up 37% over last year and that nearly 90%
of the restaurants will participate again next year. We
had a fabulous lunch at Farallon near Union Square. The
undersea décor is stunning and was matched perfectly
by the sophisticated Coastal Cuisine. Executive
Chef Mark Franz and Restaurateur
Pat Kuleto have collaborated to create this
unique dining experience.
The
Farallon Prix Fixe Lunch consisted of a three course
tasting menu. The Cauliflower Soup with parsley coulis was
an excellent starter. The Seared Hawaiian Tombo Tuna was
accompanied by wilted baby spinach, tiny white beans and
topped with a fantastic piquillo pepper rouille. The Pumpkin
Spice Cake with orange caramel sauce, cream cheese Chantilly
and rum raisins was the perfect finish to an extraordinary
lunch. The cuisine was so tasty and the portions were so
large that this could easily have been priced twice the
$21.95 and been worth it. www.farallonrestaurant.com
Oola
Restaurant opened in
SOMA with owner / Chef Ola Fendert at
the helm. Try the Caesar Salad, Seafood Chowder and Lamb
Daube. www.oolasf.com.
La Suite is the latest “Place to be Seen” on
the Embarcadero. Chef Bruno Chemel
and Jocelyn Bulow
have created a new “in” spot. We look forward
to dining there soon.
www.LaSuiteSF.com. For
a quick tasty casual lunch or to linger over a glass of
wine or an espresso try Il Massimo on Market Street.
We particularly enjoyed the Panini sandwiches on
freshly baked focaccia and the healthy house-made salads
especially the Beet Salad. They have live music at lunchtime.
We loved the opera singers.www.888massimo.com.
We enjoyed a great Italian dinner at Buca Giovanni
Ristorante www.buca-giovanni.com.
Tonno Rosso has a new Owner, Chef Faz
Poursohi. The cuisine is Mediterranean with
Italian influences. www.tonnorosso.com
The Wine
Country also continues to be a great destination for Bay
Area Fine Dining. We recently dined at Ledson Hotel
& Harmony Club located on The Square in Sonoma.
Try the Cream of Artichoke Soup made with puree of Jerusalem
Sun Choke topped with Chive Oil. It is difficult to find
a better soup! Another must is the Seared Foie Gras with
a Mulled Wine Apple Napoleon and Pear Sorbet. It just melted
in your mouth having a distinctively delicious consistency
and delicate taste and aroma. Our favorite Entrée
was the Fennel Crusted Salmon with Sautéed Escarole,
Celeriac Ravioli and apple tarragon broth. It was pan fried
after being wrapped in fennel, creating an extremely moist
center with a superior crust. The slice Fuji apples made
this a World Class Entrée. The Petite Filet Mignon
with Lobster Griddle Cake, creamy spinach and lemon tarragon
butter was our second favorite. The delicate lobster flavor
really came through to pair with this perfectly prepared
Filet. The Pommes Frites were the final touch and we loved
their extra salty crisp taste. The Desserts were all beautiful
to look at and you could see that considerable effort went
into their preparation. Our favorite was Michele’s
Peanut Butter Waffle Cup with Chocolate Ganache & Banana
Gelato. This was unique with excellent texture. The Wines
of Ledson Vineyards are sold at the Winery and are featured
here at The Ledson Harmony Club & Hotel as well. We
enjoyed Ledson 2001 Reserve Russian River Chardonnay and
the Ledson 2003 Russian River Chardonnay with our Oysters
and the Seared Foie Gras. Their 2001 Russian River Ancient
Old Vine Zinfandel paired perfectly with the Filet Mignon.
Dessert wines were hard to pass up so we enjoyed the 2000
Madera Port and the 2003 Orange Muscat. www.ledsonhotel.com
In Healdsburg
Charlie Palmer’s Dry Creek Kitchen is also
an excellent destination. Try the delicious Langoustine
“Cappuccino” and the Steak Frites and enjoy
some of Sonoma County's great wines. www.drycreekkitchen.com
In the East
Bay, Montclair Bistro recently opened to great reviews.
Chef Henry Vortiede brings a
wealth of experience and is now realizing his dream of owning
an up-scale, friendly and charming California/ French Bistro.
He studied at Le Cordon Blue and L’Academie du Vin
in Paris and his excellent dishes reflect his training.
For an Appetizer you must try the Seared Day Boat Scallops,
Sonoma Foie Gras with a port reduction sauce on toast. It
was decadent but luscious. An excellent Entrée is
the Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb with white beans and a vegetable
boquetiere which was prepared pink as ordered, tender and
spiced perfectly. For dessert we enjoyed Pastry
Chef Ray Onate’s
signature Frangelico Grand Marnier Soufflé with crème
anglaise and whipped cream. Montclair Village has gained
a terrific addition to Oakland’s already excellent
dining scene.www.MontclairBistro.com.
In Berkeley
we dined at Filippos, a new fun casual
and reasonably priced Italian Restaurant. Filippos serves
a great Fruita di Mare that we had with fettuccini, clams,
mussels and prawns. For dessert the Panna Cotta is a must
www.filippos.com.
Adam Keough, the new Executive
Chef at Garibaldis
in Oakland is excited about being able to create his menu
using so many fresh vegetables and California raised meat,
fish and poultry. We enjoyed the Wild Nettle and Ricotta
Cannelloni which was prepared with roasted garlic cream,
macadamia nuts and ricotta salata cheese. The Neiman Ranch
Pork Chop with Parsnip puree, baby turnips and honey lime
leaf glaze was also delicious.
On the Peninsula
in Burlingame we had an enjoyable lunch at Straits
Restaurant. Chef Christopher Yeo has added
to the fine dining in Burlingame with his Singaporean/ Asian
Cuisine. We enjoyed the Roti Prata which is a Crisp griddled
Indian Flatbread with curry dipping sauce. It was fabulous.
The Fugi Apple and Prawn Salad with poached shrimp, Fuji
apples, cilantro and jicama in lemongrass- mint vinaigrette
was very refreshing. The Nasi Goreng, spicy fried coconut
rice with prawns and mixed vegetables was delicate. We have
heard that it is a “hot spot” for dinner. www.straitsrestaurants.com.
We’ve enjoyed Stoa in downtown Palo Alto. www.stoarestaurant.com
In Marin
E & O Trading Company has arrived in Larkspur
Landing with its fabulous Southeast Asian Cuisine. We have
always enjoyed the San Francisco Sutter Street location
and were glad to see they had expanded to Marin County.
New Executive Chef Barney Brown from
Honolulu, known as “the pioneer of Pan-Asian tapas”
overseas both locations and brings his flair to an already
successful menu. Try the Indonesian Corn Fritters with chili
soy dipping sauce! Mango Glazed Thai Ribs are just fabulous!!
They are rubbed with brown sugar and glazed with mango mustard
sauce. They were so good we had a second order. Save room
for the Fried Bananas dessert.www.eotrading.com
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