So glad you guys like this place as much as we do. Chef Brandan is a super talented guy and very down to earth. He cooked my birthday dinner a few years back at Benu and I swear he was better than the master himself! We’re big fans of the David Chang Spicy Pork Sausage with Crispy Rice Cakes, though it seems to be off the menu currently.
BTW, have you all tried the third jewel in the Corey Lee crown, Monsieur Benjamin? The stuffed Quail a la Chasseur is quite delicious.
It’s currently back on the menu as of last week. I wish they would bring back the shrimp grits from wd-50, that was damn near perfection.
Yep, really liked the uni in white verjus and the artic char amandine.
I’d go to Monsieur Benjamin regularly if it were in Oakland.
Went with two friends. Two or four might be a better number given the way the dishes are portioned.
First and best bite of the meal, fish cake tempura. This was exactly like something I’d hope to get at a really good izakaya. Score one for In Situ. (We asked for a third, the normal order is two.)
Very similar to if not actually Acme levain. Brown butter (topped with chives etc.) was great. Two for In Situ.
Salmon: all hat and no cattle. In Situ, 2-0.
Asparagus with fried maitake, house-made tofu, and sesame mayo. This was great and again things I’d hope to get at a really good izakaya, albeit with the asparagus maybe not plated so fancily. In Situ, 3-0.
Octopus was surprisingly spicy with fun textures from rice and seaweed crackers. Reminded me of takoyaki, so again solidly in izakaya territory. In Situ 3, Peru 1.
Wasabi lobster with mango jelly, OK but kind of watered-down Japanese flavors compared with the previous dishes. Germany still no points.
Halibut, for me this was a hard fail. If I’d been alone I would have sent it back. Foul for Germany.
Jokbal, this was really good, especially that fermented barley whatever-it-is. There was actually a pretty solid amount of pork in the bowl, though we’d have liked more of the skin, cartilage, and fat like you’d get at a traditional place. Pickled perilla was too sweet for my taste but it was gilding the lily anyway. One point for Korea.
The cheesecake is really good. The filling’s savory and the only sweetness comes from the marzipan covering.
Final score In Situ 3, Korea, Peru, and Spain 1 each, Germany 0. The restaurant’s original dishes surpassing the rest puts the curated menu concept in doubt.
That was plenty of food for three, would have been fine with a dish or two fewer.
wow this place looks insane. Thanks for the rec @PorkyBelly !
I wonder why reservations are wide open when seemingly every worthwhile restaurant in the city is pretty much fully booked 30+ days out.
To me the atmosphere, comfort, conviviality, and service weren’t in line with similarly-priced places so I’m in no hurry to go back. Plus as I said since the restaurant’s original dishes were the best, the whole concept seems dubious to me.
Nice place for a drink and a snack when visiting the museum.
Every trendy restaurant.
what are some less trendy options that may be available?
looking to have dinner in SF on Saturday night in exactly one month
tried Mr. Jius and Rich Table - no availability
don’t care to spend Benu/Crenn/Saison/Quince type of $$$$ but still would like something classy with great food in the $100-150 per person food costs.
Cotogna is always good, and usually not too hard to get in. I also love Kin Khao. And don’t forget about Zuni, always a delicious meal.
La Ciccia, Zuni, Perbacco, Uma Casa, Acquerello, Commonwealth, Monsieur Benjamin, The Morris, Wayfare
Monsieur Benjamin
Sorrel (downside, can be a bit noisy, try to get a non communal table seating if possible but you will have to contact the restaurant after making a booking on Resy)
Californios (it’s now $170 + fees, a bit higher than your budget but well worth it)
Sushi Yoshizumi San Mateo, basic course (will run $155 + 20% service charge + tax) so it’s higher than your normal range at the end even without drinks except for tea, but it’s very good.
Birdsong, Nico, Commis shouldn’t be too hard to book either. There’s also Angler but I’ve heard mixed things from people (though it depends on what you order it is still rather casual despite the pedigree).
Mr. Jiu’s is quite casual so I figured that was not a big concern.
@beam what do you mean by “classy”?
Californios was my first choice but the moment they opened their reservation/tickets for march, the date I am going to be there was sold out. We loved our last visit to Californios last year and I dream to go again.
Will check out those others.
Hard to define “classy” for restaurants, guess they don’t have to be formal, but I suppose the food quality should be high and the service and and the environment have to be friendly, convivial, yet, there should be some degree of refinement about the place. Californios is a perfect example.
Consider Maum in Palo Alto, even though it’s outside of SF, heard good things from trusted friends. At least it’s different and it’s not the same as Benu, but in the vein of very Korean influence driven cuisine / fine dining style.
Informal restaurants with sophisticated food and polished service are definitely a thing in the Bay Area.
Maum is $175 per person before drinks, 20% service charge, and tax. Palo Alto is 40 minutes to an hour from SF depending on traffic.
When we go out for a special dinner I want the wine to go with it. Driving home an hour in the dark after drinking doesn’t work for us.
Was trying to decide on where to do lunch the last day in the city and very glad we choose here. We were running late for the reservations and you can’t call the restaurant to let them know, period. I did try to reschedule on Open table after we had missed our lunch time, and you can. I thought it might not let you reschedule after your reservation time had come and gone, but you can.
When we arrived, the host said he could see we had rescheduled and that was the only way you could let the resto know you were going to be late.
We had a very young waiter who seemed indifferent to our time constraints - we needed to leave by a certain time. Luckily, there was a manager? who helped out and was very good about keeping us on schedule.
Stealing the menu.
Chicken liver muesli - this was excellent and very original.
Lobster with yuzu cream. Fantastic!
Salad with a side of pork. All delicious.
I got the hake with squid ink. Excellent flavor.
Husband got the beef and bone marrow. He loved it.
We got this dessert, the cheesecake! Amazing.
Would happily return!
Looks like in situ in closing down
