Harris': Close To Perfection

I could only describe our dining experience at Harris' as CLOSE TO PERFECTION.

Harris' has been serving steaks in San Francisco since 1984. We haven't had an enjoyable dinner such as our dinner at Harris' in a very long time.  We enjoyed the elegant venue and old-school service where patrons are catered to all throughout dinner. Harris' has mastered the art of turning simple beef into a well-crafted steak.

Harris' is like an old boys' club--handsome, dark and formal. Heavy chandeliers were hanging on the high ceiling, stained dark wood furniture and the oversized oval booths were made with real leather (and super-comfy!). The restaurant was divided into a number of dining rooms. The diners appeared to have been more of an older set (50+).

Harris' requests that patrons don a business casual attire. Almost every man that evening wore a black dinner jacket while women also dressed up for the classy venue.

Upon coming in we were given a complimentary crostini plate with butter and pungent cheese spread. Hot rolls were also generously given all throughout dinner.

EAGLE RARE MANHATTAN $13
I am not a hard liquor drinker but I am so, so, so glad that I ordered Harris' Manhattan! I think this was the most perfect drink that I have ever had. The single barrel bourbon whisky, aged 10 years and crafted exclusively for Harris' was so smooth, so balanced and so sophisticated! It was served with sweet vermouth and Peychaud's bitters.

STEAMED MUSSELS WITH PEPPERS A delicious bowl of plump mussels in broth so flavorful that when the server took away our bowl, we already wiped it clean with the hot fresh rolls that a server kept on putting on our plates. Each mussel shell came with a slice of pancetta. I am not prone to superlatives but along with the Manhattan, this dish of steamed mussels at Harris' was the best I have ever had and I've had many bowls of this dish in my lifetime.

STEAKS
*Each order of aged beef came with steamed brocollini and baked potato or buttermilk mashed potatoes.

~49 NINER CUT $53 
Knowing I will never finish this, I ordered this generous cut of bone in New York so I can have leftover for lunch on Monday. The beef was very tender and flavorful w/o any dry parts. It was perfectly medium-rare. Delicious!

~BONE IN RIB EYE $49

My guy ordered this, ate and enjoyed every bite of the marbled steak. I ate the crispy fatty pieces that he left on his plate. Very delicious and also cooked medium-rare.

 

*BROCOLLINI AND MASHED POTATOESEven the veggies were crisp and very flavorful. The buttermilk mashed potatoes were so creamy and also very nice.

BAKED APPLE TART W/ ICE CREAM & COFFEE $9 We hardly had any room after my guy ate most of my mashed potatoes, his whole ribeye and I had 3/4 of my NY steak in a brown bag right next to me. We still decided that a dessert would just be an appropriate way to end this sumptous meal. The apple tart was sweet and spicy. It was not remarkable but very nice. Even the coffee was well-made and strong.

TOTAL: $185 including 1 Iced Tea

A splurgey "special occasion" dinner for us but worth every hard-earned dollar. Despite the formal atmosphere and servers dressed in traditional black and white uniform that is rarely seen these days, the service was not stuffy and the servers were friendly.

Now I am dreaming of a life of idle luxury in San Francisco doing nothing but drinking Manhattan at Harris' in a little black dress and pointy heels. Maybe when I retire in a million years..........

Bluestem Brasserie

Dinner Date: July 14, 2012

Because of its proximity to hotels, Bluestem Brasserie caters to a certain type of clientele -- it is  frequented by conference attendees and tourists in "I Love SF" sweatshirts.

Despite our experience with one particular group of loud and obnoxious conference attendees, we had an enjoyable dinner at Bluestem Brasserie prior to seeing Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter at the Century Theatre. Bluestem is a great pre-movie dinner venue being just a five minute walk to the Century Theatre at Bloomingdale's.

Bluestem is sleek and contemporary with floor to ceiling glass walls, wood and dark leather.

For my drink I had the BLUEBERRY GIMLET ($10).   A little too tangy for me. I was not so happy with my drink but I never send my drink back. The prize of the blueberry  soaking in blueberry syrup in the bottom of the cocktail glass gave me the sweetness that I was craving for in my drinks.

We had LAMB SAUSAGE WITH YOGURT-MINT AND ROASTED EGGPLANT ($11.50) for our appetizer. It was a simple appetizer but the lamb sausage was surprisingly mellow yet flavorful. The freshness was very apparent which was not surprising because the sausage was made in house. The mint-yogurt and eggplant were equally tasty.

As my main meal, I ordered the DUCK CONFIT SALAD WITH POACHED DUCK EGG ($23). Not only this salad delicious, it was also very filling.  This salad was loaded with tender duck meat with perfectly poached duck egg on top that ran and mixed in with the greens and duck. The richness of this meal really satisfied me!

Enrique had the 12 OZ RIBEYE  $35 WITH BOURBON ESPRESSO SAUCE $3.75. Enrique reported that this was a disappointing steak. The steak was full of veins which made it chewy.

Our check was $104 with Iced Tea and tip

A delightful meal pre-movie date night dinner.  Service started out slow but turned out to be efficient. Our servers were friendly.  If given the chance I want that duck confit salad for lunch again one of these days.

Brazen Head

Saturday Date Night: February 26, 2011 @ 6:30 PM

Entering The Brazen Head is like entering Harry Potter's world. To me it resembled The Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley, and I almost expected Hagrid to burst in through the door any minute, and for the portraits on the wall to start talking to one another.


On a more mature level, The Brazen Head is speakeasy-ish, intimate and romantic. It is very dark, mysterious with an air of old-world charm to it. It is nestled among the residential part and few blocks away from the upscale shopping strip of the Marina district.

The place is only lit by a table lamp on each table. You could barely see the people around you. Dark but not perfect enough for clandestine affairs--so do not get any ideas! The place is loud and the tables are placed so close together.

The bar was packed more than the dining area. The place was classy but has more of a down to earth feel to it. The servers were friendly and very efficient.

We saw people having drinks and ordering few appetizers than eating dinner. Some just had few rounds of cocktails and/or lingering around over few bottles of wine.

Enrique and I went for dinner.

DARK AND STORMY: I thought it was only appropriate to choose this drink because the room was dark.  It had rum and ginger, I think. All I remember was that it was strong and not  very sweet. Well-made and I liked it!

1/2 DZ CHILLED OYSTERS $12: Very sweet and fresh. The only complaint I have is they gave us one oyster that almost had no meat in it. They could have discarded that one. We felt like they gypped us one $2 oyster.

BONELESS RIBEYE STEAK $29: 14oz. Certified Angus Beef, Herb Beurre Compose.
Enrique is very happy with his dish, and he is very picky when it comes to his steak. He enjoyed every bit and said the meat was tender and flavorful.

COLOSSAL PRAWN SCAMPI $19: Sauteed lemon, white wine and cream. Oh so deliscious! 4 big plump prawns in nice well-balanced sauce. I wish there were 6 prawns instead of 4 then it would have been a perfect portion for me.

CHEESE CAKE: It was okay and a good way to end a wonderful dinner!

Tab: About $90 including 20 % tip and Diet Coke.

PARKING: Very difficult but we found parking after driving around the block twice.

MIDNITE NOSH: Open until 1 am. Perfect for a romantic late night dinner or nightcap.


FOODIE GIRL'S RATING: 4.5 STARS
A sweet neighborhood spot. A great place to grab a drink or two or even have dinner after a day of shopping at the Marina. Unique and classy ambiance. Perfect for a fun and romantic dinner. If we are in the area, we will definitely return.

Key:
0 Star: Never again!!! These people should not be in business.
1 Star: Chalk it to bad experience. Live and learn.
2 Stars: Very disappointing but there it has some good things to offer.
3 Stars: It is okay but do not expect much. I will still return.
4 Stars: I like it! I will be singing your praises!
5 Stars: I will be dreaming of you at night!
6 Stars: Perfection (or close to!)

Steak and Seafood at Bobo's: Best of Both Worlds

YUMS! My parents taught me not to lick my fingers when eating at a restaurant. But being a Filipino and trained to eat with our hands came in handy at Bobo's. (You should at least know how to eat with your hands in theory even if you don't do it in practice if you are a Pinoy kid.)

Because at Bobo's, you'll get the best of both worlds: STEAK AND SEAFOOD.
And my Filipino seafood eating skills were put to the test. Who needs those metal thingy-s to crack crab claws? Bite into it and use your choppers!

Our dinner date started at 5:30 PM. We were seated at a super-tiny corner booth but the cuteness of the hanging colorful ribbons to give us privacy from the next booth made up for the feeling that we were being put on "time out" in the corner. Couples and groups of friends dressed to the nines started pouring in. They got the bigger, padded booths.

DRINK AND BREAD: And few minutes later, I was sipping a BOBOTINI (yummy but not strong enough) and devouring the half loaf of HOT, garlic bread oozing with butter that was served to us almost as soon as we sat down. (Note: I finished almost this half-loaf by myself with little help from fiance.) So addicting!!!

SEAFOOD APPETIZER: And not long after that, fiance and I got down and dirty. How could you not when you have a GIGANTIC SKILLET OF PRAWNS AND CRAB placed in front of you! Delicious seafood very seasoned in butter and herbs served with 3 flavored butter sauces for dipping. They were on the dry side and the prawns were not plump but they were delicious none the less. I have no mercy and took home the last 5 prawns left. And that's just for appetizer! ($40). 

STEAK: And the FILET MIGNON STEAK! Bone-in for fiance ($40), http://www.yelp.com/bi... petite for me ($30). http://www.yelp.com/bi... Bone-in Filet Mignon is the MAIN ATTRACTION. Bobo's signature steak. Both steaks were so tender. Melt.in.your.mouth. Period.

SIDE: As if we didn't have enough, we ordered a side dish of TWICE BAKED POTATO ($8). Big enough to share but ending up to be not our fave. We had two bites each and decided we did not like it. Tasted like a veggie quiche on top of the half-potato. Very untraditional.

DESSERT: And a CHOCOLATE BOMB ($8))! A mound of chocolate with truffle-like consistency drizzled with raspberry glaze. Even this lacto could not resist!

Our tab came out to be $180 (YIKES!!) including 2 diet cokes, tax and 20% tip. Definitely a pricey dinner but fit for a great dad like my guy. (Happy Father's Day!)

By the way, I licked my fingers all throughout dinner and I didn't care. My parents were not there to scold me!

http://www.boboquivaris.com/
1450 Lombard Street
San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 441-8880