Ebisu

Ebisu

1283 9th Ave

San Francisco

CA, 94122

(415)566-1770

Ever wonder what the dishes of the Iron Chef Japan would taste like? Imagine the great tasting sushi and creative Japanese cuisine. Want to search for unbelievable Japanese food? Want to go to a neighborhood restaurant but with world class cuisine?

Well look no further than Ebisu in San Francisco. I used to go the Ebisu a long time ago, before they remodel. It had an old rustic look and was cramp. After they remodeled, it is way more modern, however even more cramped since they removed some seating. There are a couple of warnings before you venture forth. There are few seating so you may have to wait. The tables are packed close together, so do not expect to have private conversations. It is extremely noisy since everyone is trying to talk above everyone else. If you are a bit overweight, like myself, you may have trouble maneuvering around in the restaurant. This is Japanese food, so do not expect gigantic portions. The portion are small for western pallet, but they are in line with Japanese cuisine. There is always a line at Ebisu, due to the fact that it is extremely popular. Trust me, the food is worth the wait.

We were seated after a few minutes wait, on a tiny table for two. Most of the tables in the restaurant is tiny. The waiter was friendly and took our orders for drinks and appetizers right away. We ordered Clam Soup, Apple smoked scallop carpaccio , House cured kurobuta pork prime rib, Spider roll, and Caterpillar roll.

First came the Apple smoked scallop carpaccio. Be warned this is a raw shell fish, only those who are more adventurous should try it. The scallop was both tender and soft. There is a nice smoky flavor that permeates through the scallop. On the bottom of the dish, there is a blood orange vinaigrette. If the vinaigrette was just a bit more sour, the dish would have been perfect. As it is, it was already very good.

Along with the scallop came the clam soup. My wife, upon tasting it, said it taste very buttery. After I taste it, I realize that it was not butter at all, but a very complex layering of flavors. There is a rich clam broth that is base of the soup, and then the hints of mushroom and seaweed flavor layered upon each other that provides the buttery taste. It was good, but I felt it was lacking a certain punch in flavor. The owner came by and asked if I enjoyed the soup, I told him it was good, but the scallop was excellent.

Our main courses took a bit of time to get to us. We had to endure the endless shouting of people around us. Trust me, I know more of my neighboring diners than I could care to know. When our main dishes came, it was at least piping hot. The pork prime rib was excellently cook, and very well seasoned. It was succulent and juicy. The house sauce tasted like a mild BBQ sauce, that serves more of an accent than the main flavoring. It was mildly sweet but not overpowering. There were broccoli and crispy potatoes sides. The broccoli was green and fresh, while the potato had the excellent crispy skin. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

My wife had the two sushi rolls. In the past the rolls would look amazing, like edible art. Now they may look like normal rolls you see at other Japanese restaurants, but the tastes are worlds apart. There is a freshness and different layers of complexity that makes them great. You can taste each individual ingredient without one ingredient being the dominate flavor. Very hard to do with sushi rolls and not many restaurant can pull that off. My wife agreed, these were some of the best tasting rolls we have tasted.

Service, was above average, there were times where we were left alone for some time. The waiters and waitress were constantly moving trying to keep up with their customers while trying to avoid colliding with one another in the cramp quarters. On the whole they did an adequate job.

Final thoughts: What seems like a simple neighborhood sushi restaurant, turns out to be a hidden gem.

Food: 4 stars

Service: 3 1/2 stars

Price: Above average for a Japanese restaurant, but worth it.

Overall: 4 stars

Cliff House: Sutro's

1090 Point Lobos Ave

San Francisco, CA

94121

(415) 386-3330

The Sutro's restaurant is located in the cliff house at the ocean beach area in San Francisco. You may have to walk a bit from your car, since parking in San Francisco is always a premium.

The views from the restaurant is spectacular. Often in that area of the city the fog can obscure the scenery. However due to the large panoramic windows, even a foggy day is great.

The Sutro is located inside the cliff house itself, which is a city landmark. The interior is filled with old time memorabilia from San Francisco's past. You can see what the cliff house was like or paintings of the what the famous Sutro Baths was like before it burned down eons ago.

It's more of a modern decor with an old time accent. There are two levels but both levels provide equally great views.

My wife and I came right before the dinner rush, so we were seated by ourselves. Our server, named Richard, was excellent. Always very attentive and provided a friendly background to each course of our meal. He did not even have to note anything down, just took all our orders by memory. I must say even the rest of the staff was equally excellent. Not once did my wife or I had to ask for refills of our waters or drinks. Anything we wanted or needed as attended to quickly and with a pleasant smile.

Now to the food. All of our orders was presented beautifully. Each was well spaced and excellent color contrast. The little sprinkle of herbs and accents were everywhere. It was like ordering edible art. There is a price to pay for such good looking food. The average price is a bit steep for the entrees, about 20 to 30 dollars for the main entrees.

There was a bread server that provided us with some bread. I found the bread hard, though I did like the flavor. The bread was not warm as well, so that disappointed me a bit. I always felt that the bread provided should be warm and soft but with a crunchy crust. This bread was neither.

We ordered two appetizers, an Ahi tuna tartar, and a crab bisque. The Ahi tuna tartar was perfect. It at a raw quail egg on top when first presented, then our server mixed it in with the rest of the tuna. The quail egg added a richness that I did not expect. There were sea salt and paprika sprinkle across the plated that also added another layer of flavor. The crab bisque was also excellent as well, though it came out of the kitchen only luke warm. I was expecting a piping hot soup. It had a richness and lots of crab flavor that your would expect. They provided and butter bread sprinkled with chives that my wife just loved with the soup. The staff was thoughtful enough to have split the servings in the kitchen for us.

For the main course I ordered Maple duck prepared two ways, and my wife ordered the sea scallops with saffron pearl pasta. This is where Sutro's failed me. While both dish looked beautiful, but they looked better than it tasted. The duck had a good crunchy crust but the flavor was lacking, it was bland. The duck tasted more of like the ducks you eat at an asian restaurant, with a strong anise flavor. The seasoning did not seem right for either ways the duck was cooked. My wife's scallop lack the signature crust of a well cooked scallop. It tasted fresh, but it did not standout, and tasted a bit bland. The saffron pearl pasta tasted buttery than anything else. Once again the dishes were luke warm and not pipping hot. I really had hoped that our main courses was good enough to match the views of the restaurant.

For desert we ordered the banana bread pudding. It was a excellent. The bread pudding was in the middle with an ice cream on one side and chocolate covered bananas on the other. Although it was a heavy desert, I did not mind at all. The bread pudding was warm with good sweetness. The chocolate covered banana was made into lollipops which I thought was a creative touch. We did not leave a single crumb on the plate.

They do have a large conference room for weddings, and I was told this a very popular place for weddings. Given the views and imagining the sunsets, it is no wonder why.

Final words: The food does not quite live up to the views or the price.

Food: 3 stars

Service: 5 stars.

Price: Very High

Overall: 3 1/2 stars.