acquerello

[Diancecht]

there isn’t a thread devoted to this restaurant but there are various mentions all around the site. we’re having dinner there tonight and it’ll be our second time. our initial visit was in 2018 and ‘twas very memorable.

 

sfgate review from 2011

blurb in eater, earlier in 2023

may 2016 review

 

1772 sacramento (van ness)

[Diancecht]

i imagine the review from 2016 may be useful to some of you if you ever find yourself in town.

anyway, there will be pix later. 

[Diancecht]

[Diancecht]

trio of amuse-bouches:

oysters and some kind of raspberry coulis (a touch sweet and didn’t quite work which took away from the freshness);

potato cannoli with parmigiano custard, black truffles, gold leaf;

buckwheat profiteroles with ricotta, lemon and english peas

a bit blurry…this was a cornetto (“little horn”) pastry stuffed with rhubarb, duck, peppercorn and elderflower 

looked like a potted plant

 

smoked onion bavarese, caviar, salt-and-vinegar chips. this combination worked but i felt the gold leaf garnish was too much. in general, i’m a fan of minimalism especially when it comes to high-end dining.

scallop crudo, grapefruit, sunchoke, coffee

too many elements here. the coffee overpowered everything and the sunchoke chips tasted like nothing.

sesame-crusted salmon, artichoke, green garlic, spigariello, seaweed. 

needed salt—which was left on the table as a remnant from our bread-and-butter service.

the first of two pasta courses, this was veal and rabbit tortellini with morels, english peas, pea greens, sweetbreads and a mushroom sauce.

the sauce was over salted, the peas undercooked. i’m wondering if tonight was an off night for the kitchen. absent those two elements, this was pretty good…but would have been better if things were on point.

quail mortadella, pistachio praline, kumquat mostarda. very refined and it makes me want to look into making a ballotine as a friend did a while ago.

ribeye, razor clam, fava beans, asparagus, salsa rossa. 

the fava beans needed to be cooked just a little longer. sorry if i’m sounding like a broken record but this needed salt, and was a little too rare.

pasta with faux foie gras made from duck liver, black truffle and marsala

i’m going to remember the flavors and replay them in my head for the rest of my life. this was simply amazing. probably the #1 plate of the evening.

“less is more” and this was exhibit a

huckleberry and lemon verbena sorbet, buckwheat-pistachio granola, bee pollen. this was fine and they probably could have omitted the granola.

parsnip and brown sugar cannolo, brown butter gelato, poached pear, licorice caramel. way too sweet, it needed a little contrast or sharpness to offset the cloying sugariness.

mignardises: almond cookies, pate de fruits, mango parfait, and a few others i don’t remember.