Roasted carrot, carrot puree, celery. Pasta tasting $70
Flour + Water, San Francisco CA
Mmm, I love duck liver and this mousse was a great preparation. I don’t think I’ve ever had it paired with carrot, but it tasted great.
Lightly poached Kusshi oyster. NYE tasting menu $175
Californios, San Francisco CA
Campechano is a Mexican seafood soup, and this was definitely a fancy version! There was even a dollop of caviar on top. Yay!
Red basmati. $34
1601 Bar & Kitchen, San Francisco CA
This was delicious! There’s not a lot of restaurant where you can order goat, and it’s even better when it’s as great as this dish! I wasn’t sure how to eat it with the beetroot so I just ended up combining everything and eating it together. The horrible servers certainly weren’t going to help.
Beetroot, chevre mousse.
Apple, cucumber, mint. $13
Willi’s Wine Bar, Santa Rosa CA
I thought that the curried crab tasted good, but it was almost too wet. The taco shells were also soft and almost squishy, not crispy as they should be.
Pinot Noir Staff Picks. Flight $18
Romililly, Russian River, 2013. Wild Ridge, Annapolis, Sonoma Coast, 2012. Black Kite, “Kite’s Rest”, Anderson Valley, 2013.
With cracked pepper. Pasta tasting $70
Flour + Water, San Francisco CA
I guess “spuntini” means snacks, and in this case the snacks were fried pork rinds. Noms! These were fresh and tasty and fun to eat.
Fieldworks, IPA, Berkeley. $7
Black bean sope, salmon roe, creme fraiche, smoked cotija. NYE tasting menu $175
Californios, San Francisco CA
This was such a delicious bite! I can’t wait to return to Californios and see what else they come up with.
Desiccated coconut, cashew nut curry. $11
1601 Bar & Kitchen, San Francisco CA
This had good flavors, but it was definitely greasy. Perhaps the oil wasn’t hot enough or something, but greasy fried is the not most appealing thing to eat.
Refried beans, avocado, cheese, jalapenos and our cream. $9.25
Taqueria Vallarta, San Francisco CA
I think these nachos were just ok. The grilled beef was a bit dry and tough. Perhaps it was because I got these to go and by the time I got home, the tortilla chips were pretty soggy and the cheese was already congealed.
Squid ink tostada. NYE tasting menu $175
Californios, San Francisco CA
Omg, dinner here was amazing! We sat at the counter and chatted with Chef Val which was a nice treat. It was also great to see the staff make all the dishes. This uni tostada was delicious and the uni was so fresh and lovely. Noms!
Lime pickle emulsion, spiced carrot puree. $12
1601 Bar & Kitchen, San Francisco CA
These roasted cauliflower were really tasty! I loved the texture and the different sauces were yummy too. I just wish the service could have been better.
Served with mashed potatoes with mushroom bacon pan sauce, seasonal veggies, extra side of gravy. $14.95
Ovok, San Francisco CA
I liked the flavor of the meatloaf and the glaze was delicous, but it was a bit dense and try. The mashed potatoes were super heavy and just plugged up my stomach like a brick. Ugh!
Burnt onion creme fraiche, turmeric gel. $15
1601 Bar & Kitchen, San Francisco CA
This smoked salmon was delicious. It was SO soft and and flavorful. The burnt onion creme fraiche and turmeric gel were a nice touch but it really didn’t need many additions because the salmon was so good on its own.
What wasn’t very good was the service. It was very disorganized and slow. We literally had to wave down our server (or anyone actually) so get anything. Lame. It’s like nobody in this place had ever worked in a restaurant before it was so painful.
Firestone Walker IPA, Paso Robles, CA. $7
Vittle Monster 