373 Broadway
San Francisco, CA 94133
Occasion: Friday night dinner with Henry. February 2011. I finally got to use up the gift certificate Dr. T gave me for my bday last year! Thanks=]
**Two Michelin Stars**
Presentation of the food and the ingredients used were definitely impressive, though it's not so much my taste. Glad I can say I gave this place a try though!
Frozen Mandarin Sour
This was quite interesting. Shaved ice with some kumquat flavor to it...not too powerful. Tasty...not so much, but unique combination of texture and flavors.
Clam with geoduck, kelp, lemon juice and fennel
Amazing crunchy texture of the geoduck and kelp with the aromatic and tasty fennel.
Pasture: The greens and earthy dish.
It came with some mixed greens: bok choy, cabbage, onions in some kind of tasty broth. I had this instead of their original beets dish. I liked it better than the beets.
The orginal pasture dish with mushed up beets. EGH!
Crab Melt
It was like an open faced grilled cheese sandwich with little chunks of crab meat. Freaking delish! I liked it better with out the green sauce on the side, which tasted like grass!
Farm Egg
with cauliflower, nettle dandelion salsa verde
I've never been a big fan of cauliflower, maybe it was just the way it was made at home, so I was a bit skeptical when I saw it on the menu. To my surprise, it wasn't that bad and complimented the egg and the greens well. I love almost anything made of eggs. This egg was very peculiar though. It wasn't poached, but it was boiled, kind of runny and very good. Definitely something different.
Fried Veggie Chips
Could be eaten on it's own or crumbled and eaten together with the next dish.
Savory Wild Mushroom Porridge
Maybe I just prefer more authentic tasting food. I've grown up with porridge all my life and this one is definitely more artsy and fancy than any of the other ones I've had. Presentation I've really got to give it to the chefs, but I wasn't impressed with the taste of it. I guess I know that I can make something better than this at home for a lot cheaper. But then again, you have to give it to them for their artistic and creative skills that they used to compile this simple little dish.
Earth and Sea: Steamed Tofu Mousseline with mushroom dashi, yuba and fresh seaweed
Frou Frou version of bean curd soup. I am Chinese and nothing beats home made bean curd soup. I give them props for trying to replicate it, but also giving it a more fusion twist/taste to it. If I could choose between home made and this...home made definitely wins! i can see how non Chinese foodies would be impressed.
Grilled cheese on rye with pickled daikon
Loved the cheese they used for this sandwich. They looked like small litle bite sized sandwiches and it looks like you can swallow those little suckers in a heartbeat, but nope...to my surprise, I was getting quite full. Again impressed by the attention to detail in its presentation. Also pretty tasty to me.
Prather Ranch Beef
with potato, coastal grasses and Monterey cypress
Just freaking stuffed by thte time this came out. Meat was ok, I've definitely had better and more soft! I think by this point I was so full my taste buds were having trouble to decipher whether or not it just tasted whatevers or if it was because I was so full already!
Fennel Sorbet with ruby grapefruit, campari and pomelo
Bittersweet yet refreshing. Fennel made it feel more nature-y and refreshing. Definitely a palate cleanswer to end our meal.
Coffee cake with Medjool date, raw milk ice and lime
Complimentary jelly dessert covered in sugar. NASTY!
Great dining experience. Portions were small, but 11 courses really does fill you up! I was so freaking stuffed!
