Promising New Restaurant

Review of: Coi

By: Janet Glasser

Rating: 4

Read review on Judy’s Book.

When we called Coi last month just to see if they were open yet, we found out that the first night they were open to the public was that Saturday (April 14), so we decided to go on a whim (even though first nights can sometimes be iffy).

You’d never believe that this place used to be Great Water Thai. The space has been completely transformed into an elegant dining room, with a lounge in front. The dining room itself is only 30 seats, so it’s not that large, but it’s comfortable and spacious enough that you aren’t sitting right on top of the people next to you.

That night they were only serving a four course prix fixe menu ($75), with a choice of one of three dishes (four for dessert) for each course, and the food was excellent. For an idea of the food, I started with the scallops marinated In delicate rosemary oil, which was really delicious, and then the asparagus soup with mint and blood orange scented Bellwether Farm ricotta, which was also excellent. I chose the poached and seared lamb rack for the main course, again excellent, and a surprisingly large portion as well. My dessert was a warm bittersweet chocolate tart with tamarind gelee and smoked yogurt, which was a really interesting and unique combination of tastes. They use local, organic and sustainable ingredients whenever possible, so every dish was fresh and full of flavor, in addition to being creative.

The chef, Daniel Patterson, personally thanked each diner for coming in. They plan to serve a nine course tasting menu along with a four course tasting menu each night, which will accommodate both real food lovers and people who want a shorter, more traditional meal.

A couple of interesting things to note: if you order sparkling water (they serve Gerolsteiner), they won’t leave the bottle on the table, but instead will personally pour it for you and always make sure that you have a full glass. Also, unlike most restaurants, the charge for sparkling water isn’t added to the bill. Nor is there a charge for the coffee (which is served in your own personal French Press). They do, however, add an automatic 18% service charge to the bill, which I have mixed feelings about. It says that they strive to give excellent service, but what about the times when they don’t? As the night went on and people started to leave, the staff did get a little distracted and were a little less attentive than they were in the beginning of the meal, but I’m chalking that up to the fact that it was their first night. All in all, an excellent dinner.

Top-Notch Seafood

Review of: Bar Crudo

By: Janet Glasser

Rating: 5

Read review on Judy’s Book.

Seafood lovers take note! Bar Crudo is a great alternative to going out for sushi. It’s a small place, with raw bar seating downstairs and some candlelit tables in the loft space upstairs. The seafood is fresh and wonderfully prepared — the crudo is good, the crab is really good, and the chowder is really, really good. They also have a really tasty cheese plate, which I loved. Service is ultra-friendly, but dishes do take some time to arrive at your table (all dishes are made to order), so if you’re in a rush this may not be the place for you. If you’re with friends, though, and want to enjoy some really great wine and conversation while waiting, it’s the perfect place. They also offer a substantial list of Belgian beers on the menu, a welcome surprise for beer lovers. All in all, a great place to unwind from a busy day/week with good food and drink.

Walking with Bill…

Review of: A Walk in the Woods : Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail (Official Guides to the Appalachian Trail)

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 4

Read review on Judy’s Book.

I’ve been a fan of Bill Bryson’s writing style for a while now – and as much as I’ve enjoyed reading about his travels through Europe, Australia and throughout his newly adopted home town in New Hampshire, this book might be my favorite.

Read the real-life story about how Bill, a middle-aged out of shape New Hampshire-ite (New Hampshire-er?) and his even more out of shape recovering addict buddy from Iowa took on the challenge of hiking from Georgia up to Maine.

Such a shame about the service…

Review of: Maya Restaurant

By: Avery Glasser

Rating: 2

Read review on Judy’s Book.

I’ve eaten at Maya a number of times, once in New York and four times at this location in San Francisco. Though the quality of the food stands the test of the time, this upscale Mexican restaurant just fails to deliver an acceptable level of service.

Tonight, I was there with a group of four for a very early (in my book) reservation: 7pm. With cocktails, guacamole, appetizers, main courses and dessert, we were out less than 90 minutes later… unacceptably fast by any means.

The service was also completely unprofessional – our main courses were presented while the appetizers were still on our table – not acceptable for a cheap restaurant and certainly not what I expect when paying more than $50 a head. The Maitre ‘d didn’t speak or understand enough English to even take our drink orders (two margaritas, on the rocks, with salt) or dessert orders (what kinds of ice cream do you have…. ice cream… helado… while pointing repeatedly at the menu).

The food, once spectacular, is now just acceptable. The guacamole and warm chips were the definite highlight, followed by good beef tacos on handmade corn tortillas. The carnitas were poor for the price, easily beaten by those made by Tres Agaves, Pancho Villa or even Mexico au Parc. Even the margaritas were lackluster.

It’s a shame. Simply polishing the service (which, to be noted, has been this brusque if not this unprofessional since they opened years ago) would have left a better taste in my mouth, even though the food failed to do so.

I don’t know why I went back. For $50 per person, there are many better options for Mexican in town.

Surprisingly Good Chinese in the Mission

Review of: Yum Yum House

By: Janet Glasser

Rating: 4

Read review on Judy’s Book.

I didn’t expect anything special when I walked into Yum Yum House, but they really surprised me. I had some really good hot and sour soup, good pot stickers, and some AMAZING Szechuan Stringbeans. The stringbeans at most other Chinese restaurants usually arrive limp, mushy and swimming in the requisite one-sauce-fits-all “brown sauce”. Yum Yum’s stringbeans (and accompanying slivers of red pepper) were crisp and fresh tasting, with no gloppy brown sauce in sight. Service was attentive and very friendly; they even agreed to make a dish for us that wasn’t on the menu.

Little detail-y thing: I also loved how each table had a different type of teapot – it gave the place a little bit of a cool funky-mismatched style!

Tea-licious

Review of: Modern Tea

By: Janet Glasser

Rating: 4

Read review on Judy’s Book.

So you find yourself in Hayes Valley on a Sunday afternoon, and it’s raining (again), and you just want to find a place to sit down and hang out for a while – but not a bar, because you’ve been overindulging a bit too much lately, and not a restaurant, because it’s too early for dinner – and suddenly in a perfect stroke of luck you notice that Modern Tea is finally open, so you run across the street to check it out.

It’s a cute place with kind of a light, airy feel: big windows, lots of blonde wood tables, light green colored walls. Upon sitting down, we were brought a carafe of water, a little plate of 3 petits fours (that tasted like gourmet fig newtons!), and a menu listing 16 different types of hot tea. Oh, and a dessert menu as well. The tea was great, served in tiny teapots that allow you to steep each cup individually. The menu also lists a description of each tea and how much caffeine is in each one.

The atmosphere was relaxing, and the service really friendly: even though they closed at 6 PM, they didn’t rush us at all when 6:00 rolled around, and even welcomed us to stay until we were done. We didn’t get to try any of their food, but I’m betting this would be a great place for brunch. The big windows look like they open up all the way for an open-air feel, which will be nice in warm weather.