Trying a new restaurant that I read about in Eater. They just opened up less than 2 weeks ago. Restaurant is in Japantown at the Kimpton hotel. Chef had previous experience at Michelin star restaurants so we were very interested in a high end Thai dining experience.
The only option for the menu is the 11-course tasting menu, which was fine by us. Short review – many interesting combinations of flavors and the sauces, broths, and dips all had some very well developed flavors. Drawback for us was that is was in a bit in-between being truly fine dining (dishes were not cooked a la minute so definitely had a bit of a pre-made feel to them, but the combination of flavors and technique had aspirations to be high end) and with no a la carte option, would seem to be a challenge for the typical diner. We certainly did appreciate the chef coming out to our table to explain his signature dish (the scallop dish…again, the sauce was delicious).
Cocktails were different and just ok and nothing special (here in a city with some amazing cocktails). Wine pairing was good enough and modestly priced with some interesting pairings…I actually really liked the vermouth witht he first dessert).
We liked the amibition and some of the well developed flavors, but definitely think they’ll need to change things up a bit (e.g. a la carte options) to survive in the very competitive dining space in SF).
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