Yip on Palomino

Palomino * 345 Spear St @ Folsom * San Francisco, CA 94105 * (415) 512-7400
Cuisine: Modern Italian
Neighborhood: Financial District

This place is like an extension of the Gap-eteria, since it is located directly between two huge buildings housing Gap Inc employees and right across the lobby from a third. It is a great location for a business lunch or a happy hour. And you’re sure to see a lot of fashionistas at both times of day.

The Scene

The big driver here is the expansive outdoor patio overlooking the Bay Bridge. Unfortunately, this calling card is in jeopardy because there is some mysterious construction across the street that could potentially ruin their view. The interior décor fits the formula for generic upscale chain in terms of fabric and furniture, and they have a huge bar and bar area. One thing I noticed which I was impressed by was their hand blown glass lighting. Shocker, I noticed the lighting … Their chairs also have high backs and are very comfortable. And they make you feel tall while you are sitting, which is always a plus for those of us that are vertically challenged without our 4”stilletos. Also, beware of what appears to be a normal restaurant napkin that sheds like the family dog. I was desperate for one of those roller lint removers when I got up from the table. Eww.

The Menu

They have a very extensive menu. In fact, it’s almost too much to read. Find something that appeals to you and stop. Just pick that. They have a great pick-two soup, salad, pasta and sandwich deal for lunch which I highly recommend. They also have an extensive apps menu, which would serve your happy hour needs. Their pizzas are the super skinny almost flatbread type. I would suggest that they relook at their soup assortment: if you have two soups on the menu, both shouldn’t be cream based. All a bit pricey for what it is, so beware you are not in store for a value meal.

The Food

We started with the cheese fries. And, I know what you are thinking. But these are not the usual pub fare, bar food, sometimes chili soaked, cheese fries. These have gorgonzola chunks and some kind of delicious white cheesy sauce. And then the fries are those superbly spiceful waffle-cuts. I highly recommend. They also start you with bread and a spicy chunky tomato and garlic sauce, if you can get them to remember to bring it to the table.

For my meal, I had the half mozzarella, tomato, basil Panini with a salad. Be sure to ask for no mayo or whatever weird sauce they put on the paninis. And make sure that they deliver to your table that way. There is plenty of butter to make the sandy mighty tasty that you don’t need mayo and an additional 10 grams of fat. As for the salad, I got the “chop chop” (which you have to pay $0.50 more for, but is totally worth it). I was forewarned that they are no good at putting an acceptable amount of salad dressing on the salad, so be sure to ask for it on the side.

The Service

Overall, I’d have to say it was absentee and not well organized. For some reason every item that came to the table from drinks to meals, the waitress had to recount who had what. “Who had the diet coke? Who had the iced tea?” Maybe it's just me (but afterall this blog is all about me), but that is totally annoying. I have worked in food service and while it can be challenging to deal with needy, hungry people, it is not that challenging to take orders in a systematic way so that you can deliver the items to the table without interrupting the patron’s enjoyment of each other’s company.

The Bathrooms

Well lit. Clean. And marble everywhere, but not in the Caesar’s Palace kind of way. Unfortunately, somewhere in the middle of my lipstick reapplication, the light bulb started flickering like mad, a la disco strobe light. I mentioned this to the hostess on my way out and nothing was done about it during my hour meal, as I visited the ladies again prior to departure. I also get kind of annoyed when you let them know something is wrong and they don’t take care of it. Just take the damn flicker bulb out – it’s not like it was going to be pitch black with one less bulb.

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In a spoonful, totally acceptable for a nice, downtown business lunch, but it is overpriced for what it is. Choose another place if you are looking for dinner, but celebrate a happy hour here while you can still enjoy the view. And for those post-work cocktailing bachelors out there, you might even score a few numbers.

Yip gives it 2 spoons

Yip on Fresca

Fresca * 2114 Fillmore St @ California * San Francisco, CA 94115 * (415) 447-2668
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
3945 24th St @ Noe * San Francisco, CA 94114 * (415) 695-0549
Neighborhood: Noe Valley
Cuisine: Peruvian

A Peruvian delight with locations in both Noe Valley and Pacific Heights. I have been to the one in Pacific Heights numerous times but decided to branch out and hit the Noe Valley location last night. Reservations can be a bit tough and walk in is nearly impossible at the Fillmore location, but the Noe location has a bar, so you might be safe with a walk in. I’d be skeptical about taking your chances though on a prime Friday or Saturday night. Stick with a resy on those nights or go a different time.

The Scene

In the Noe location, the restaurant is about 2x the size of the Fillmore location, but the décor and feeling are pretty much the same. They have awesome mosaic tiles on the floor and great art and lighting.

The Menu

Fresca is a Peruvian restaurant with a solid offering in the ceviche sector. They have like 15 different ceviches. They have a great selection of fish (this is what you SHOULD order from here), as well as meat dishes. We ordered one of each and to my surprise the pork dish was *almost* as good as the fish. It was deliciously NOT greasy and very flavorful.

The Food

Portions are HUGE! You can definitely family style it up, which they suggest sometimes but not always. If you dining with just one other person, I’d suggest ceviche starter, an app, and one entrée. We started with the halibut ceviche which was tangy, tasty, fresh and to die for. Love it. I could have just eaten mounds of that. We also ordered to entrées to share for main meal. Though we finished most, it was a lot of food. We could have gotten by with one, like I said. I was stuffed even before dessert – which of course we had to have the chocolate cake. I was wishing it was that delish molten choc cake, which maybe it would have been if they took it out of the oven a bit sooner. It wasn’t exactly overdone, but it could have had a little more moistness. The ice cream on the side was the perfect accompaniment.

The Service

They did a good job of suggesting a wine pairing from a Chilean winery, which I was totally psyched about. The wait staff was also very available but didn’t intrude on our conversations. In fact, they were so smooth, that they brought the bill and my friend treated me by paying literally right under my nose. He even played a trick on me, suggested we should dine and dash (in fact, he practically insisted!). Finally I let him convince me to walk out, when in the back of my mind I was praying that he already paid. They had my opentable.com information so they were going to get paid one way or another. I just hoped it would be because they came running out the door after us. My friend even had the table next to us in on the joke. Jerk.

I would be remiss if I did not mention one flaw, and accidents happen so you can determine for yourself if it is excusable. The tables are quite close together and as they were clearing out plates, the flatware fell of one of our plates directly onto the middle of the table next to us. It was loud, clanky and downright shocking, as it happened so fast that no one saw it coming. I thought the restaurant should have offered them free cocktails or something, and for all I know with my power of perception that night, maybe they did.

The Bathroom

As I walked down the long hall to the bathroom, I was thrilled by all the art on the hallway walls. When I got to the bathroom, I was even more thrilled: it was clean, appropriately decorated and the paper towels and trash were close to the door for those germaphobes like me that don’t want to touch a thing after they wash their hands. The only hitch … it was like a meat locker in there!!! It must have been sub 50 degrees. Yipes. OMG – arctic.

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In a spoonful, ceviche is excellent, fish is excellent, pork is excellent. Skip dessert but not the wine. And make a reservation. Oh, and bring a scarf and your warmest jacket with you to the restroom.

Yip gives it 3.5 spoons.

Yip on Fringale

Fringale * 570 Fourth St @ Brannan * San Francisco, CA 94107 * (415) 543-0573
Cuisine: French
Neighborhood: SoMa

Since I started writing this blog, people often tell me that they don’t want me to know about their favorite places for fear that I will go and report back with some horrible experience. Some, however, are up to the challenge, and thus I found myself at “a lovely neighborhood place” with a couple of friends that enjoy the overall restaurant experience as much as I do.

The Scene

When you walk up, look closely at the beautifully crafted “F” on the door, a special touch. When you enter, notice the little bowl of match books, another special touch my faithful readers know I enjoy. The restaurant is pretty small, no more than 20 or so tables, so it’s not a place for groups. The seating can feel a bit crowded, but you hardly notice once get settled in. The décor is simple and comfortable. They do have some strange background music that I didn’t even really notice until near the end of the meal, but it doesn’t exactly match. That being said, it doesn’t detract either. I was thinking that some French jazz would be perfect.

The Menu

I don’t often find myself in a position where it is nearly impossible to make a choice because all the items on the menu sound so delicious. Fringale has a great variety and several choices. Prepare yourself, as this place is a bit pricey, and I can’t believe my dining companions use this as their little “neighborhood place” for dinner on a random Tuesday night. Lucky me, I was here for SF’s Dine About Town and they had more than a few mouth-watering choices on this more affordable version of their menu. But it would be a perfect celebration spot for your next occasion, since that deal won’t be around for long.

The Food

I started with one of the special apps: the beet and goat cheese salad. It is well known that I love both beets and goat cheese to death, so naturally I licked the plate clean. My friends both also enjoyed the Soup Du Jour, which was a creamed cauliflower soup and the Frisée salad, which is a chopped lettuce salad with warm bacon dressing, poached egg & toasted pieces. Though the Frisée salad isn’t exactly my speed, but it was quite delicious. Don’t order if you’re not into bacon, but who doesn’t like bacon?!?! Besides Samuel L. Jackson’s character Jules in Pulp Fiction, that is. The soup was also excellent, but clearly not a calorie saver. But you probably shouldn’t be dining here if you are concerned about those things.

When we were reviewing our main course choices with the waiter, I was surprised to hear such a resounding recommendation for the chicken. I personally, 99.9% of the time, never order chicken when I go out to a nice dinner. I pretty much just consider chicken exclusively to be a salad topping, like cucumbers or shredded carrots. But this chicken, topped with a lobster sauce, was so different. It was my favorite. We also partook in the Lamb Osso Bucco, and it was savory and superb. Then there was the Pork Tenderloin, and that was my favorite. Each bite I took of each of the main courses totally swayed my opinion of what was the taste of the town. They were all phenomenal, and definitely warmed my appetite for a return trip.

Desserts were just as unbelievable but in this case, there was a clear winner for me. We sampled the chocolate bread pudding, hazelnut & almond mousse cake, and some sort of pear tart deliciousness: it was gorgeous, scrumptious, delightful and delectable. Oh, and don’t expect to get skim milk with your coffee. I have come to expect this at French restaurants. I don’t even know why I keep asking.

The Service

Timing was perfect. The staff was available but didn’t hover, which is a big thing for me. They even offered to take my coat, which you don’t find too much anymore. Also, one of the wine glasses at our table was a bit dirty, and one of the staff just whisked it away and immediately replaced it without fuss or distraction. Our waiter even shared a glass of wine with us at the end of our meal (we brought our own for a corkage).

The Bathroom

I waited until the end of the meal to visit the restroom. Since everything was so enjoyable thus far, I was nervous this would make or break my overall rating. They supplied a waiting chair outside both the ladies and the men’s rooms, which I rather appreciated, even though I didn’t use. They also had a chair in the ladies room to place your purse on, which I also appreciate. The décor wasn’t setting the world on fire, but it was clean and pleasant.

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In a spoonful, Fringale means “the urge to eat” and I second that with “the urge to return.” This place was near flawless, and I enjoyed every minute of it. But I wouldn’t want to go all the time. Some gems are meant to stay as special treats. And this one is about as special as they get.

Yip gives it 5 spoons.