High-end Dining: Expectations and Reviews

[NoSoup4U]

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NoSoup,

Excellent report. Coincidentally, tonight at dinner my friend and I talked about how the only place neither of us had been that is on both of our current lists of "must-go" places is Masa. I recently read The Reach of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman (so-so book, nowhere near his amazing book The Soul of a Chef) where he described a Masa dinner in a way very similar to your description, but in much more length and detail. I'm going to go on an upcoming trip to NYC and I'm super-excited about it.

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Bribe, cajole, plead, whatever it takes -- but absolutely make sure you have a seat at the sushi bar. Don't let them put you at a table.

[SlowHabit]

High-end diner specialists,

After browsing the thread, I am down with "The Dining" @ Ritz and Restaurant Gary Danko in SanFran. I will be taking my gf out for a special night. El Diablo has commented that "The Dining" has a more romantic setting albeit older crowd [I don't mind the old, stuffy characteristic] while Gary Danko is his favorite SanFran restaurant.

I can't decide. Help. Thanks.

PS. I am also thinking of Ame if anyone wants to make a case for that over the other two options.

[mrface]

I was a bit underwhelmed by Gary Danko. Everything is nice, but just nice. I got the sense that they weren't pushing themselves as much as I expect in a place like that. On the other hand, if you like cheese, their cheese course is absolutely amazing. They have a decent selection, but more importantly the cheese is served perfectly ripe. I eat a lot of cheese and I can never find it in the peak quality they have at Gary Danko. Overall, I would say GD is a very good dining experience with solid food and better than average service, but I doubt I will go back (except maybe to the bar for some cheese).

The Dining Room at the Ritz has better food, though they may not be as consistent as GD. In my 9+ course meal there, I found a few courses amazing, but a few not so great. While the atmosphere might be more stuffy than your standard SF restaurant, I found the service to be spot on and better than GD. They definitely adjusted to the fact that we were half or 1/3 of the age of most of the other patrons. If you go, get the foie gras if you like it-- probably the best foie dish I've had. I also highly recommend the wine pairing.

Ame, while also good, I would probably skip. Neither the food, service, or experience is in the same league as the above two. I enjoyed my meal there, but it's also another place I probably won't return to.

If I can throw in another place to consider, I might think about Coi. I actually have not yet eaten inside the dining room at Coi, but after a few trips to the lounge where you can order a la carte off the tasting menu, it is one of my favorite restaurants in the city. The servers are awesome and really try to make your experience great. The other night I went there after a bad dinner, and even though it was 11pm and the kitchen was closed, the waiter went into the kitchen and put together a tasting of 3 ice creams for us. On top of that, he paired a different glass of sherry with each ice cream for the price of a single glass. Finally, before we left he gave us another dessert on the house of a vanilla milkshake with a pistachio financier.

So overall, I'd recommend The Dining Room for a nice, all-out, romantic dinner in the city. For something more casual, but with food nearly or just as good, check out Coi.

[SlowHabit]

Thanks mrface!

[prohornblower]

At $75/plate I do expect my peanut butter to be crunchy, if I do so desire. I also expect a crinkly straw at my request (if applicable).

[MCS]

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WD-50 in New York.

Wylie Dufresne's restaurant.

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I recently went to Tailor with my girlfriend. The chef is Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd~50. Here's my review:

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This is one of the best atmospheres in which I've ever eaten. The design theme is that of an old tailor's shop, with a little leather cutout in the middle of the table and lots of charcoals and browns, but there's still a strong modern feel. The servers wear gray flannel looking things and brown striped shirts. The design works really well; it's comfortable and stylish. The dining room is reasonably quiet, which I like because I want to feel relaxed, but there's enough music (I remember hearing Talib Kweli, Beatles, and Cranberries) and activity to keep it from feeling dead.

The service is outstanding. Our waitress was very knowledgeable and helpful with recommendations, they tried to find out the name of a song I liked, they folded our napkins for us while we were away from the table, they were quick to refill water and replace silver without just hovering around. The bill came with a clothespin on it which you could use to clip your card in, which was a cute touch. Very professional without being stuffy. Food presentation is also excellent.

Tailor is a small plates place. The menu has one side labeled "salty" and one labeled "sweet," each with about six dishes, and you can order any combination you want. Girlfriend and I planned to share six plates total, four salty and two sweet, and they decided the order in which we'd receive pairs of plates for three courses. Tailor also has about twelve specialty cocktails and some house-made liquor infusions.

Prices are around $15 per plate and $15 per cocktail. They offer a seven-course tasting menu for $85 or $120 with wine pairings.


Now, the meal itself:


<u>Bread</u>
Walnut raisin: Good, standard.
Green olive: Buttery olives and the right texture made this one stand out.


<u>Complimentary amuse-bouche</u>
Fig with bay leaf and pine nut foam: Like eating air if air were bursting with flavor. Very nice sweet fig with a little nuttiness from the foam.


<u>First course</u>
Foie gras terrine, cocoa dust, peanut soil, pear paper: Tastes a lot like a Reese's peanut butter cup with the nice texture of foie gras. Interesting, impressively original, and good, but not earth-shattering. You mostly taste the chocolate and peanut butter, so I felt like the foie gras wasn't as noticeable as I wanted.
Duck tartare, marjoram pesto, cashew, chocolate tuile: Where else am I gonna get duck tartare? Gamey and tasty, but again, not brilliant. Marjoram pesto very good and created interesting flavors. Crumbly texture. I keep thinking about it a few days later though, so maybe it's secretly hypnotic.


<u>Second course</u>
Passionfruit-poached arctic char, mushrooms, spaetzle, coconut shavings: Astonishing. Girlfriend thinks this may be the best thing she's ever eaten. Fish cooked perfectly, sauce wonderful, tiny mushrooms add just a little something extra that really works, coconut adds a little crunch.
Pork belly, butterscotch miso sauce, green apple sticks: Ungodly great. Pork was the perfect texture and saltiness, and the butterscotch adds the right amount of sweetness to it. I had to force myself to slow down and really make sure I was tasting the food rather than just shoveling it in. Girlfriend said it was vaguely reminiscent of bacon and maple syrup, which excited our waitress. It reminded me of sugar-cured bacon if bacon weren't as crunchy but was on another plane of tastiness. And bacon is my favorite food, so it's hard for me to see how it could be improved upon, but man.


<u>Third course</u>
Black olive cake, blueberry reduction, yogurt sorbet and foam: Tasty, especially the blueberries. The yogurt sorbet was a great texture but not very flavorful. The blueberries were amazing. Cake was good with a nice texture and balanced flavor. It didn't taste much like olives to me, but maybe it's not supposed to be strong.
Roasted banana, mustard ice cream, brown butter rum, crispy thin lengthwise slice of banana: Mustard ice cream?! Love it--the mustard was fairly subtle with just enough bite. I'm not usually a huge banana fan but this was probably my third favorite dish. The banana and mustard was an unusual and delicious combination. Girlfriend points out that bananas are "earthy" even though no one ever says that, which may be why they work well with mustard. And again we have something to add crunchiness.


<u>Complimentary dessert</u>
Red bell pepper petits four: A little sugar coated gelatinous cube. "Zantar is a gelatinous cube that eats warriors in a village." --Noah Vanderhoff, Wayne's World Much softer texture than a gumdrop. Tasty and interesting. I think this is a common ending to a meal at wd~50 as well.


<u>Drinks with meal</u>
Chanterais (walnut cognac, dandelion Cointreau, lemon juice): I like cognac, and I loved this. The walnut was subtle but noticeable if you're looking for it. It has some bite to it with the lemon; Girlfriend thought it was too much. Knowing cognac reasonably well probably made me appreciate this a little more.
The Waylon (100 proof bourbon, smoked cola syrup): Liked it even though I don't usually like bourbon. The smoked syrup really took the edge off the alcohol without being overwhelming.
Blood and sand (scotch, sweet vermouth, bitter orange sorbet, redbach beer): Girlfriend's favorite. I don't remember this one terribly well but it was good. Don't like "blood" as part of a food or drink name.
Agua verde (tequila, tomatillo, cilantro, habanero): Very spicy! I liked it a lot because I like hot stuff.


<u>Drinks at downstairs bar afterward</u>
Bazooka (vodka, bubble gum cordial, house sour): It's supposed to taste like Bazooka gum, and it really did! You have to taste this just for the novelty. Not a lot of sourness, but still would have liked less--I wanted for this to be pure sweetness.
Antoine's sazerac (cognac, peychaud bitters, absinthe): Very alcoholic, but still good. Tastes more like sour mix than I thought it would, and not bitter. Also, I thought absinthe was illegal so I assume this is some substitute, but that's fine.


<u>Summary</u>
This was one of the few truly great dining experiences of my life. The meal was excellent, except for the second course, which was blisteringly, indescribably awesome. The service and the environment were absolutely top-notch. The company was great as well. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]


I highly recommend Tailor for delicious, innovative food as well as excellent service and atmosphere.

[BK_]

Thanks for the review MCS. I have been meaning to go here since it opened, and after this review I will hopefully make it happen soon.

[PartyGirlUK]

MCS, price?

[howzit]

def going to tailor.

[MCS]

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MCS, price?

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Prices are around $15 per plate and $15 per cocktail. They offer a seven-course tasting menu for $85 or $120 with wine pairings.