I went to Saison for the first time yesterday. We were seated right in front of the open kitchen, which was great. The signature uni dish was unfortunately converted (temporarily?) into a supplement, and the server said that’s because the chef wanted to showcase the Dungeness crab dish. It’s a good business tactic, but I don’t like it when restaurants make the signature dish into a supplement. I also added the A5 wagyu and it was cooked well, but I would definitely have been full without it so it’s not “necessary” nor is it very different from how other restaurants cook it. It was a little less fatty than I’ve had it elsewhere (which I prefer, actually).
The standouts were (in no particular order) the 1) caviar, geoduck, asparagus, sturgeon broth; 2) trout and potatoes; 3) antelope loin and huckleberry gel; 4) sunchoke ice cream w/ brown butter cream. The sturgeon broth had an extremely rich and nuanced flavor that went well with the lighter asparagus cream; this was just a delight. I am usually disappointed with cooked fish at fine dining, but this trout was melt-in-your-mouth tender and lightly salted to perfection. The antelope loin tasted amazing with the sweet huckleberry. Finally, the brown butter cream was very rich and nutty, which went well with the more subtle and starchy sunchoke flavor.
Saison has very generous portion sizes (and number of courses). They emphasize salt and acidity, but neither to an extreme degree. Their techniques are great. The uni toast was definitely worth it. I wish they would have dialed down the saltiness a little bit – but the texture was great. The interior is also beautiful, and my dining partner wanted to make a last-minute switch from antelope to another option (two dishes before it was supposed to be served), and the kitchen made us a lobster + sundried tomatoes dish instead. I appreciated that.
I’ve been to four 2-stars in the Bay Area and I think my ranking is as follows: Californios > Saison > Lazy Bear = Commis. I think Saison and Californios is just a toss-up between cuisine preference. The bill for 2 people (with 2 uni toasts and 1 wagyu added, with 6% SF mandate and 20% mandatory service charge) came out to $1,136 which was hefty but I think it was worth it for a special occasion.
1. Welcome tea: strawberry rhubarb 2. Oyster, green strawberry, some sour juice 3. Caviar from Wilton, California; geoduck, white asparagus purée, white sturgeon broth 4. Dungeness crab, heart of palm, citrus, crab sauce, breadcrumbs 5. Crab meat spring rolls w/ sesame leaf, spring garlic foam 6. Crab shell broth, black cardamom 7. Trout, roe, peas, potatoes 8. Hokkaido uni, sourdough, brown butter sauce, nori flakes(?) (salty green powder) 9. Radish, green almond, fermented rice broth (palate cleanser) 10. Brioche with 60-year-old sourdough starter and cultured butter 11. Rabbit wrapped in bacon, rabbit belly, little gem lettuce, rabbit bone sauce, morel mushroom, mustard seeds 12. Antelope loin, antelope heart, endive, huckleberry gel, bone sauce 13. A5 Miyazaki Wagyu, mushroom sauce, asparagus 14. Blood orange sorbet, calamansi shell, orange segments 15. Sunchoke ice cream, brown butter cream with peanuts, white chocolate and tapioca cream, caramelized feuilletine-like crisp 16. Lemon poppy seed cake, white chocolate, elderflower 17. Stroopwafel, buckwheat tea 18. Take-home present: butter cookies, hot cocoa mix
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I went to Saison for the first time yesterday. We were seated right in front of the open kitchen, which was great. The signature uni dish was unfortunately converted (temporarily?) into a supplement, and the server said that’s because the chef wanted to showcase the Dungeness crab dish. It’s a good business tactic, but I don’t like it when restaurants make the signature dish into a supplement. I also added the A5 wagyu and it was cooked well, but I would definitely have been full without it so it’s not “necessary” nor is it very different from how other restaurants cook it. It was a little less fatty than I’ve had it elsewhere (which I prefer, actually).
The standouts were (in no particular order) the 1) caviar, geoduck, asparagus, sturgeon broth; 2) trout and potatoes; 3) antelope loin and huckleberry gel; 4) sunchoke ice cream w/ brown butter cream. The sturgeon broth had an extremely rich and nuanced flavor that went well with the lighter asparagus cream; this was just a delight. I am usually disappointed with cooked fish at fine dining, but this trout was melt-in-your-mouth tender and lightly salted to perfection. The antelope loin tasted amazing with the sweet huckleberry. Finally, the brown butter cream was very rich and nutty, which went well with the more subtle and starchy sunchoke flavor.
Saison has very generous portion sizes (and number of courses). They emphasize salt and acidity, but neither to an extreme degree. Their techniques are great. The uni toast was definitely worth it. I wish they would have dialed down the saltiness a little bit – but the texture was great. The interior is also beautiful, and my dining partner wanted to make a last-minute switch from antelope to another option (two dishes before it was supposed to be served), and the kitchen made us a lobster + sundried tomatoes dish instead. I appreciated that.
I’ve been to four 2-stars in the Bay Area and I think my ranking is as follows: Californios > Saison > Lazy Bear = Commis. I think Saison and Californios is just a toss-up between cuisine preference. The bill for 2 people (with 2 uni toasts and 1 wagyu added, with 6% SF mandate and 20% mandatory service charge) came out to $1,136 which was hefty but I think it was worth it for a special occasion.
1. Welcome tea: strawberry rhubarb
2. Oyster, green strawberry, some sour juice
3. Caviar from Wilton, California; geoduck, white asparagus purée, white sturgeon broth
4. Dungeness crab, heart of palm, citrus, crab sauce, breadcrumbs
5. Crab meat spring rolls w/ sesame leaf, spring garlic foam
6. Crab shell broth, black cardamom
7. Trout, roe, peas, potatoes
8. Hokkaido uni, sourdough, brown butter sauce, nori flakes(?) (salty green powder)
9. Radish, green almond, fermented rice broth (palate cleanser)
10. Brioche with 60-year-old sourdough starter and cultured butter
11. Rabbit wrapped in bacon, rabbit belly, little gem lettuce, rabbit bone sauce, morel mushroom, mustard seeds
12. Antelope loin, antelope heart, endive, huckleberry gel, bone sauce
13. A5 Miyazaki Wagyu, mushroom sauce, asparagus
14. Blood orange sorbet, calamansi shell, orange segments
15. Sunchoke ice cream, brown butter cream with peanuts, white chocolate and tapioca cream, caramelized feuilletine-like crisp
16. Lemon poppy seed cake, white chocolate, elderflower
17. Stroopwafel, buckwheat tea
18. Take-home present: butter cookies, hot cocoa mix
So pretty
Nice. Did you do the pairing?