Fish & Farm
Categories: American (New), Seafood [Edit]
Neighborhood: Civic Center/Tenderloin339 Taylor Street
(between Ellis St & Ofarrell St)
San Francisco, CA 94102 (415) 474-3474
- Hours:
Tue-Wed, Sun 5:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Thu-Sat 5:00 p.m.-11:00 p.m. - Menu: MenuPages
- Price Range: $$$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: No
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: No
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Dinner
- Alcohol: Full Bar
125 Reviews for Fish & Farm
One of Fish & Farm's Favorite Reviews
Fish & Farm.....uhhh, doesn't that cover all possible food options then? Oh, I get it...it's all organic. But the coy name reminds me of Kathy Griffin's joke about Celine Dion when she tearfully introduced one of her songs..."Theez song eez for all the cheeldren of the world...and for all the parents of the cheeldren." Uhhh, Celine...isn't that like everybody?
My friend Sherry produced a truckload of good karma last night because out of the kindness of her heart, she decided to take me out for a nice dinner just because I gave her a reference that turned into a contract for her. I love when that happens to my most capable friends. And she has such good taste as she decided we'd dine at Fish & Farm, which I've been wanting to try since Yelpers have been heaping praise upon it for a while now.
Bad part of town. Ah yes, the Tenderloin and not a fun place to stroll to get here as we all know. If you do make it (and God speed), you may be as surprised as me to find it to be a small, narrow place with oddly teal-colored walls. Lots of fishing paraphernalia, wooden pigs...pretty much the Smith & Hawken catalog come to life. I got here early, so I immediately went for a glass of wine...a 2004 Pinot Noir from Burgundy...the Domain des Roches winery. OK, I just copy pasted that from the online menu. It was indeed fruity and soft...kinda like me and only $9.
Once Sherry arrived, we got down to business. We went for the $16 Fish & Farm Plate, which was heavenly. Four little morsels on a long plate, the chef's special creations - two fish and two farm. I couldn't even describe what made up each piece since the server sped through the descriptions like she was going to a fire or something. But on the fish side were fresh squid and mackerel, and on the farm side were a velvety chicken liver and duck.
Then we decided to split fish and farm entrees as well since we were beginning to appreciate the culinary symmetry now. The meat trumped the fish this time. We had a duet of perfectly prepared meats for $29 - a NY strip steak and a short rib over creamed parsnips and spinach. Incredibly delicious and just the right portion. We also tried the pan-seared halibut for $26, which came with pearl onions and the same spinach. Although it was good, we both found the fish a bit overcooked but not badly enough to complain about it.
At $6 a plate, the two side dishes were quite tasty. We tried the roasted cauliflower in brown butter and the piece de resistance, the sweet potatoes glazed in maple syrup. That was sinfully good, almost good enough to replace dessert....but not quite. Yes, we even went for two desserts, both $7. One was a chocolate pot de creme, which disappointed because of its watery consistency and the addition of sea salt which didn't do it for me. Much better was the pear and huckleberry crisp with vanilla bean ice cream, a huge portion and as good as it sounds.
By the way, we had a great wine with our meal, a 2003 Spanish Jumilla for $39, a fruity combination of monastrell and syrah, for you connoisseurs. That wouldn't be me. I'm already back to my Top Ramen and Diet Coke tonight, but thanks to Sherry's generosity, I had one top-rank meal that I'll remember for quite a while.
FOOD - 4.5 stars...despite the dry halibut and watery pudding, the rest was very nearly perfect
AMBIANCE - 4 stars...Smith & Hawken redux, but it's not too loud in here
SERVICE - 5 stars...very helpful and not too unctuous
TOTAL - 4.5 stars...I'm pushing this one to five stars because of the fresh ingredients served here...nothing to scoff at with all the chemical waste and insecticide residue probably flowing through my body
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Went here for dinner while visiting SF for work. I met my east bay friend at the door and we had a great experience, delicious local foods prepared with care. Informal, witty server shared some wine suggestions, delicious. The room is tasteful, cozy. I can't wait to get back to SF.
Here are the "positives" from my first experience at Fish & Farm: (can't post my negative opinions b/c someone scolded me last time)
-Cute & cozy atmosphere
-Delicious Seafood chowder
-Scrumptious Fish & Chips with several dipping sauces
-The "Huckleberry Friend" cocktail was definitely my friend that night, so tasty and refreshing!
I want to visit again, to hopefully, give this restaurant at least 4 Yelp-worthy stars.
WARNING: The menu on the website is not the menu you get when you go there.
Ok atmosphere, kinda dark.
Food was suckkkky.
The huckleberry martini tasted like cough syrup.
2 people ordered Halibut and one got a tiny portion and the other portion was larger--that's not right.
We got the bone marrow appetizer special-very oily. My dog is enjoying the bone though (after I boiled it).
It was truly nothing special and not worth the price.
Wish I had seen Bar Crudo before I saw the menu because I would have ditched my reservation if I had known.
Another $120 out the window.
**Good food, Sucky hostess**
Warning: Don't be late or the hostess will belittle you in front of all of your guests.
My fiance and I took some out of town friends and we were accidentally 12 mins late. Now, in my experience, you have a 15 minute grace period until you would lose your reservation. Well, not here! The hostess scolded us, saying we had to "rush through our meal because they're a small place and have A LOT of reservations" (Not to mention, that her confirmation call that day was like getting called in the Principal's office).
Once we sat down, the menu had a lot of options, the service was really nice/ helpful and our group had a great time.
Well, Devil Hostess was forced to address us when we were leaving and there were 3 open tables and no one waiting, "oh, sorry for before, but we need to make sure we stay on time for our reservations."
Well, I would rather go to the gyno than see that woman again. There are enough sustainable restaurants for me to go elsewhere...
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In a nutshell -
F&F serves up food that tastes good for you, but sort of missing that exciting *yumminess* factor.
Intro -
It's located in an unobstrusive, practically hidden away off the street (there's no outside signage, just their crest on the window) in the Mark Twain Hotel. Anthropologie-style (lovely baby blue/turquoise color on the walls), smallish restaurant with a separated bar area that also has a few ostracized tables.
For starters -
The amuse bouche was this cold english pea soup (to the innocent diner, looked like creamy lime green vodka in shot glasses). Oh, to be sadly disappointed . . . I think you can guess what it tasted like. It will make your face scrunch up and your tongue stick out.
The side order of asparagus consisted of a couple of tender sprigs with that cooked (grill marks/charred) flavor taste. We also got a side order of salted fries. Nice, but lacking that exciting punch. Dipping sauce rather bland.
Main course -
Salmon + sunchokes + rainbow chard = nice chunk of healthy & fine looking salmon. Would have liked more sunchokes in proportion to the chard (seemed like I kept eating the chard until it started to taste like spinach). The pork chop didn't taste like meat. It was super light and shaped like a pork chop patty. Sole with dungeness crab was a flavorful fish crisped to taste of a slight crunchiness.
Dessert -
We agreed their Pot de Creme was not as good as Town Hall's. This was more like a cup de creme, a little too sweet & light, like a milk chocolate pudding with a bit of grittiness. Dipping the choco cookie rounds in it was a pleasant combo tho'.
To conclude -
Light, organic, fresh stuff (Michael Pollan would approve). Nothing packed a lot of flavor taste-wise, except for maybe the sole and the pea soup (in a bad way). All in all, good, clean food. Strangely, I think I kind of like my food a little dirty (you know what I mean).
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Great bar in the hotel while you wait for Peg S. to show up. The Huckleberry cocktail is fantastic and POTENT!
Service was really good and attentive.
Notable dishes:
Asparagus with lemon - tender, juicy and ... lemony
Fries - CRISPY HOT!! But what is the dish of light green sauce... no flavor
Pork chop - nice little round of meat but if you are going to cut a round out of the WHOLE chop... you should be able to make it all meat and get rid of the fat. At least TRY!
The crusted fish was REALLY good. I want this next time.
The salmon was ok.
The chocolate pot was ok.
Oh, the amuse bouche - BLECK!! what the hell was that!?!
Very happy with the food. Love my companions.
The fish and chips looked pretty good and the table next to use exclusively ordered it.
Go for cocktails and get the crusted fish, asparagus and fries.
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I've sat on this review for a week plus because I wanted to think more about what to say. I went with a large party (people who all shared a mutual friend but weren't necessarily friends), and the stress of organizing a crowd meant that I didn't get enough time to think about or savor the food real-time.
So here's what I can say. Whatever the egg appetizer was? Great. I had in mind that everything was sustainably-produced within 100 miles, and the farmed salmon from abroad threw me, and it did not taste like wild Pacific NW salmon. It just didn't. The bite of halibut I had (with a pea puree) was very good. (My inclination was to order that, and I was swayed elsewhere.) The meat dishes were good. The wine prices were reasonable, and the selection was interesting. Score on the $5 corkage for California wines. It meant we could bring something really great. The service was a bit chilly (but I didn't really like us all that much either that night) (though that's probably not an excuse on the server's part). John (the owner) was warm and interested.
It's an odd location (and an odd lay-out, not quite the Bar Bambino/Maverick/Canteen feel that maybe it's striving for) (but it's okay, better than okay).
I'm fond of quoting Lawrence Jossel (who said it to me once at Chez Nous, and I've never forgotten it) (I think he attributed it to Gary Danko): "What makes a great restaurant is cooking with love." It's got to be hard when it's also about staying afloat, and dealing with unappreciative or (worse) inattentive customers. I didn't feel it here necessarily (maybe "harried" was kicking in a bit), but I also kind of got a good feeling about the under current. Maybe.
There's a reason that one needs to eat somewhere several times to write a decent review.
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No sardine appetizer on the menu tonite??
No huckleberry crisp dessert on the menu either??
So disappointing!!! I wanted to try both of these dishes based on all the raving yelp reviews. Sigh.
The squid appetizer was good but too salty!
The halibut entree was really yummy but again the top portion was on the salty side. I agree with my friend that the veggie pairings could've been better and there were way more onions than fava beans.
For dessert, we shared the carrot cake. It was underwhelming. I tasted mostly walnuts than cake and it wasn't as moist as I would've liked.
Overall, Fish and Farm serves tasty food but not a place I would go out of my way to eat.
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I came here for a company dinner. We had the bar to ourselves. Which was placed outside of the restaurant and next to the hotel lobby (Mark Twain) so while we were trying to have cocktail hour, hotel guests were squeezing pass us with their luggage. Then they took us into a room for our private dining. I was educated on the decor. Apparently it was designed by a fairly famous antique store in SF (name escapes me now).
My order:
- Farm Fresh Spring Salad
WAY, way too salty. It was all over the greens. I couldn't avoid it. The only thing I liked in the salad and wasn't drenched in salty dressing were the candied almonds. How sad.
- Steak of the Day (Ribeye)
When you think of Steak of the Day and it's a ribeye. What would you expect? I bet it wasn't 3 medallion-sized pieces of meat. Mind you, it was good but c'mon! I wanted some meat for goodness sake!!! Plus the mashes potatoes and spinach that it came with so cold. hmmmm...how long it's been sitting?
- Chocolate Pot de Creme
Now, I love me some chocolate but wow! this was way too sweet and rich. Even I, a dessert lover, couldn't finish it.
- Seasonal Sorbets (Chocolate and Peppermint)
Okay, so this was the only thing that made me happy. The peppermint ice cream was very refreshing and the chocolate was not too sweet. It was a very nice combo. A better end to a not so satisfying meal.
Overall, I probably won't go back there. Sorry but after $3K for 20ppl and I was STILL hungry after dinner? No thanks.
Feedback on other dishes from other ppl: Pan cooked local seafood chowder (not too heavy, not rich, lots of seafood), Slow Roasted Salmon (cooked just right with a little undercooked inside, great seasoning), Line-caught Halibut (ok, not great, not bad. Could use a little more flavor)
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I was really looking forward to trying out Fish and Farm, because a) I like fish, and b) how can you not love a restaurant that makes a point of featuring the bounty of food that is available from within 100 miles of here? My field's major national conference will be held here next year, and so in the back of my mind I am making mental notes for truly-only-in-SF dining experiences I can recommend to my colleagues. I had hoped Fish and Fish would be on that list.
Based on our visit last night, I am not sure that will happen.
On the positive side, we were able to get a same (week)day reservation at a reasonable time , and when we got their early, we were able to be seated. The decor is great: a narrow, cozy room, lined with leather banquette seats, tables that are small but not so tightly squeezed together that you have to move the table to get to your seat. On the wall opposite me a chalkboard listed the two appetizer specials and above me a giant clock, with numbers that reminded me of Paris, was frozen in time.
I started out with a glass of organic, Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc, which was probably the most bitter Sauv Blanc I've ever tasted, but that was actually a nice change from the zestier ones I drink regularly. We started with two salads: the squid (from Monterey) and the "Wine Country Green Salad" which had these amazing, slightly spicy (local) nuts in it. We also got a small basket of fresh bread with butter served in a cute miniature cast iron pan, along with the "gift" from the kitchen which was a shot type glass of chilled pea soup. I wasn't a huge fan of the squid, but the SO liked it, and neither of us were exuberant about the pea soup, but overall, it was a good start.
A good start which fell apart with the entrees. I had the salmon, which was lukewarm by the time it reached our table. The potatoes, sun chokes and chard beneath it were piping hot, so it made me wonder how long the salmon had been hanging out.
The SO had the cracker encrusted sole, which I would have ordered except it comes on a shallow layer of a broth which is made with chicken stock. This blending of the fish with the farm seemed to be a reoccurring theme on the F and F menu. From a foodie's perspective, I suppose one could argue that everything's better with bacon. From my perspective, as a "pescetarian," why ruin perfectly good fish by using chicken stock unnecessarily? The sole itself was pretty bland. Overall, another reviewer got it right when he said the food was "uninspiring".
I think the server figured out we weren't enthralled when she asked how everything was and my SO couldn't even look at her. I smiled and said "good" in that friendly-but-you-know-I-don' t-really-mean-it-w ay, and then I saw her face fall a little. At least, I think it did. I felt bad: it wasn't her fault.
So, I am torn: do I spend another 60 bucks giving F and F another chance in hopes the food will be served at areasonable temperature? Do I hope their salads were an indication of their true goodness? Or, do I set myself up to be sadly disappointed again?
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Press spins?
Oct 11, 2007 press release: "Fish & Farm, a unique restaurant passionate about food, farms, and the environment, opens today at 339 Taylor Street..."
First of all, that's not unique anymore. It has been becoming the standard for $$$ restaurants.
Secondly, they serve farmed salmon (I asked the server). Being passionate about food, farms, and the environment has to go beyond a 100-mile radius rule.
The quality of the food was generally pretty good (I had the duck confit, which was overdone, but the lentils it came with were good), but was not great enough to justify the price.
I hope it improves. The decor is good, the service is well above par, and I even like the location for being so close to Napa Valley Winery Exchange.
With tickets to the The Government Inspector at ACT we're headed to Union Square for dinner before the show. My Hottie Blade encourages me to be more adventurous and try new places. So I make reservations at Fish & Farm.
Fish & Farm gets 36 of 50 Fussy Fusspot Points... and 4 stars
---
Clean table and dishes? 5 of 5 points.
Yes, very clean.
Clean server? 5 of 5 points.
Clean. And she was very pretty too.
Clean bathroom? 4 of 5 points.
Subtotal = 14 of 15 Fussy Points on the Clean Scale.
Service? 5 of 5 points.
The service was friendly and attentive.
Ambiance? 4 of 5 points.
Very nice - great color scheme and setup. I especially loved the giant clock.
Friends from Finland Practical Scale? 2 of 5 points.
Small and down some stairs. Not convenient for anyone in a wheel chair. Also it's San Francisco so parking is always an issue.
Food? 7 of 10 points.
The complimentary Chilled Artichoke Soup was fantastic and Oysters Rockefeller salad was a delicious surprise. I ordered my pork chop medium-well but it came out medium-rare. They were very nice about taking it back and when it returned it was perfect. Plus they comped me a second glass of wine.
Price/Food ratio? 3 of 5 points.
Two cocktails. One salad to share. Two entrees. Two glasses of wine. One dessert to share. $128 not including tip.
Bonus? 1 of 5 points.
One bonus point for the great selection on the menu. One more bonus point for the Chilled Artichoke Soup. But -1 point for the candle that was too hot on a very small table and was heating up my wine glass.
Total: 36 Fussy Fusspot Points.
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I've been to F&F twice now, about 6 months apart, and the strengths are still strengths, and the hiccups are still as such. But overall, a great place for a lively bunch of friends who enjoy great drink and a loud night out over fish and meats.
The staff is superb. The bar gents are a great combination of handsome and super knowledgeable of what they pour and concoct. (Farm Martini with a rosemary stuffed olive. Excellent).
From host to bartender to waiter...the attitude is absent - no feeling like you've crashed someone's party, even with a reservation. Thank you. There is no need for that, and you will not find it with any of the staff. Heather (waiter) and Christopher (runner?) specifically, do a great job of seamless, invisible service. Kicking.
As for the noise, I'm not bothered by it. My dining companions did feel a bit hard of hearing, and we joked about our age, but it is what it is. Honestly, I consider it a non-issue, but others might not agree.
My only and major complaint are the portion sizes. For an entree special of Duo of Beef, at $29, I received a smallish rib-eye and braised short rib. Both cuts of beef represent two ends of a cost spectrum...when it arrived the servings were painfully small with the short rib eclipsing the rib-eye. Not adverse to small portions, but definitely feel like the portions and special prices don't match up.
The appetizer special, Bone Marrow at $10, was scrumptious (although I don't know why restaurants in CA shy away from a hearty portion of marrow bones like they serve in NY or abroad) with an anchovy remoulade and crostini.
At the end of it all, an excellent dining experience.
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Don't fall for the marketing ploy that is Fish & Farm. It advertises itself as using products from "within a 100-mile radius" of the restaurant, but my salmon dinner at Fish & Farm was made from Norwegian farmed salmon. Shockingly, the menu didn't mention that the salmon was neither local nor wild -- I had to interrogate our server to get this information. If the entire concept of a restaurant is based on being local, then the chef either shouldn't be serving salmon or should at the very least note that it is foreign and farmed on the menu. Never mind that the salmon preparation was delicious or that PC's pork chop was amazing -- I will never return to Fish & Farm out of sheer principle.
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Despite the restaurant being attached to a hotel (the Mark Twain) this restaurant is small and very intimate. Leather booths and rich wood tables gave it a nautical and rustic feel, without having to deal with an actual rocking boat.
For drinks, we had a glass of wine then split a half bottle of Cab. Would have liked more of a selection of wines by the glass (there were about 3 reds and 2 whites) but we appreciated the option to order a half bottle with dinner vs. drowning out the food with wine too early in the night (Which we later succeeded in doing so with Jello shots at Butter.) Saw some intriguing organic mixed drinks with huckleberry and lavender on the menu that I'd definitely like to try next time.
We started with the purple asparagus app that came with small potatoes and a light cream sauce which was tasty, but a little salty. Next we had the squid on special which was light and flavorful--nice alternative to deep-fried calamari.
For our main dishes, the boy had the steak and I had the sole, which was lightly crusted. I can't say I was blown away from my dish, although it was a good portion and well-prepared. I think between the two dishes we liked the steak better. I got a bite or two, but the birthday kid was pretty good at hoarding his meat.
Our carrot cake dessert came in a cute mason jar with creamy cow girl cream cheese frosting on top. Service was fine, a bit on the robotic side but otherwise no complaints. I definitely enjoyed the local, organic concept and comfortable but classy atmosphere of this place. Would be interested in trying again since it seems the fresh menu and specials are mixed up often, although I wouldn't consider this a go-to place quite yet.
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Fish & Farm is a nice little retreat from the world. Definitely plan ahead days in advance as last minute reservations are virtually non-existant.
My friend and I visited on a Saturday night before the evening performance at A.C.T. which is only a block away. Instead of eating in the main dining room, we walked through the lobby of the Mark Twain Hotel to the bar area, which had a few patrons. What is great is that you can order from the same menu being served in the dining area, but in a more relaxed atmosphere.
The food is delicious, but don't go in expecting to find a huge selection. The menu changes depending on what is available. It is also a bit on the expensive side, but well worth it. I ordered a glass of wine, appetizer and main course which came to about $60, excluding tip.
Make sure you talk to the waiters for their recommendations. They love answering questions and give excellent service. We had at least 3 waiters who stopped by our table - 2 of whom also served the bar/drinks and 1 waiter who delivered our meals.
Unfortunately, the dessert menu on this night wasn't very good, so we skipped it. But I would definitely go back as this has become one of my favorite restaurants. If only the show I saw had been just as good.
Let me start by saying that I was really looking forward to this place. I had read some initial mixed reviews, but then after reading the recent review in the Chronicle I thought it might be a good time to give this place a try.
SERVICE: 4 Stars - professional and friendly . . .can't give it 5 because we felt a little rushed.
AMBIANCE: 4 Stars -- nice decor, interesting space
FOOD: 1 star
WINE LIST: 4 stars - though there could be more wines by the glass
THE MEAL - WINE & APPETIZERS
Began with 2 glasses of white wine. I ordered the Chenin Blanc which was amazing and my girlfriend had the white from Lazio, which is a bad example of Italian wine, being both watery and over acidic.
The food was truly uninspiring. I ordered the bone marrow to start and was expecting something great! I normally order this when I see it on the menu and I haven't had a bad one yet. Well, there's a first time for everything. The marrow was undercooked. . .when I scooped it out, there were areas that were still pink. Then when I tried to spread it, it was still very fibrous. Marrow, when cooked well, should spread like butter. Needless to say I left 98% of it on the plate, though I did enjoy the shaved porcini mushrooms that accompanied the dish.
We also had the fries which were excellent, but then you'd have to be pretty bad to screw up fries.
ENTREES
My girlfriend ordered the porkchop which was shaped almost perfectly round and had grill marks that were a little too perfect. . . the presentation was a little boring, but we had high hopes. Unfortunately it was bland, somewhat cold and just uninspiring.
I ordered the beef Duo. The shortrib was amazing. . .great flavors, perfect texture, but the steak was horrible. It was cooked rare, but it was bland and the peppercorn sauce was off-putting. This dish was also at room temp. instead of hot.
DESSERT
Decided to skip it.
This meal was a disappointment. I had brought a very nice bottle of 2001 Copain Hein Vineyard Pinot Noir and as my girlfriend said, the meal did not deserve such a great wine.
I do have to say, that there could be a reason for the food being so cold. After our appetizer plates were taken, I called our server over and asked her not to fire our entrees because we wanted to take our time with the meal--especially since we were sharing a bottle of wine. Unfortunately, they had already been fired. It could be that the kitchen held on to them after plating, but I doubt it because they came out pretty fast.
So if you've been wanting to go to Fish and Farm, skip it. The food is bland and cafeteria-like . . .reminded me a lot of the bland food at Indigo. So sad.
Fish & Farm is a sweet spot in the heart of the TL! The menu choices were progressive, the dishes were fresh and our server was charming. Tasty, organic food, interesting wine list, delicious desserts. This is cozy place with a hip, but comfortable feel.
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Have you ever had oxtail soup? You should get it here -- amazing. It's kind of an informal space, and the Examiner reviewer dinged them on service in their review a week ago, so I think they're all on notice and extra nice (too many "thank you for dining with us"es, actually). Everything I've had both times I visited was super, the fruity marscapone dessert in the canning jar is fun and wonderfully tart. The fish is really fresh. The calamari appetizer I got reminded me of Chez Nous before they went downhill and then disappeared. Really great wine list. And the fact that everything is so environmentally friendly is just icing. I'd go back anytime I have a reason to be in the 'hood.
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i had high hopes for this place based on looking at the pictures of the food that looked delicious. when i got to the restaurant, it was cute and quaint.
split the grilled squid appetizer with my friend and thought it was only ok. the squid was served with frisee and a drizzled of olive oil. the squid had a nice smokey flavor but overall, i felt like it was really salty.
for dinner, we both got the halibut with cipollini onion, fava beans and pea puree. the halibut was cooked perfectly, nice and tender but overly salty (i promise that i'm not sensitive to salt, i like well seasoned food!). and i wasn't a fan of the grilled cipollini onions as the main side to the fish, they were just grilled whole and the fish was placed on top. i just think it's weird to have whole grilled onions and your veggie side, even though they're sweeter onions, i feel as if not many people would eat onions like that, and i like onions. the fava beans and pea puree were tasty, but i did feel that all the pairings to the halibut were sweet, i wanted something to balance the fish a bit better.
we finished with the carrot cake which came in a little jelly jar. cute presentation, but more nuts than cake and tasted more like cinnamon and nutmeg than carrots.
service was friendly and attentive but not overbearing. i would give fish and farm another chance, but i'm not running to go back there. i think they're so close to being a really good restaurant, but for now, are just merely ok. i have to say the fish and chips smelled great and the chips looked delicious, maybe next time i should get that...
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Do you know what the main ingredients to chowder are? Stretch marks and cellulite, right on to your butt. I say, just pile them on. If you ever tried the seafood chowder at Fish & Farm, you would agree with me. The chowder was so creamy. I cleaned the bowl with bread.
The entrees were a little bit on the salty side. I had the slow roasted halibut over risotto. The sauce was a little bit too lemony. Without the sauce, then would be just right. I had a bite of the petrale sole, lightly crusted, another must try. The side dish of sweet potato was the yummiest of all, caramelized and softened to perfection.
Unfortunately, the french fries with the curry aioli sauce and the duck confit were unmemorable. To quote a picky eater, "the duck would taste better if they serve it with mashed potatoes and a bit of sauce instead of whatever they serve it with." The french fries taste better with regular ketchup. Another small disappointment to me was the chocolate pot de creme or what I like to call chocolate pudding. I think if you get the instant package at the grocery store, it would taste very similar.
I must give a couple of ya yas to the staff. One of my friends arrived 30 minutes after the rest of us ordered our food. They were able to serve all of the entrees at the same time, no wait. I do wish the restaurant is located in a less shady neighborhood.
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Finally! A new good restaurant in Union Square! Hurray, Hurrah, Woohoo! We now have a new place to break the union square mold of Cortez and Scala's when guests stay in Union Sq.
FOOD: The food was very good. Organic, local, fresh. The server described it as rustic, but I would hardly describe it that way especially considering the chefs are from Fifth Floor. Who has ever seen a rustic pork chop that is perfectly round? But, the food was tasty, beautiful and well seasoned. Petrale sole was light, sweet and divine. Beef cooked perfectly. And never expected cauliflower to taste so good! If I could make it taste that good at home, I would surely eat it more often. Sweet Potato side was a big hit as well. Sparkling water drinkers - you're SOL. They don't have any! Ridiculous really - NOPA carbonates their own, why can't F&F?
ATMOSPHERE: Yes, it is in a hotel but does not feel like a hotel restaurant. The bar is part of the hotel, bit of a disappointment really. Space is small and cozy.
SERVICE: To be honest, the service SUCKED!! Our waiter was pretentious and said all the wrong things. When asked about his faves on the menu he responded with "I don't like spaghetti and meatballs and love this food." Who doesn't like spaghetti and meatballs? When asked if gratuity was included in the bill for our large party he responded "This isn't Red Lobster!" OK, none of us had ever stepped foot in a Red Lobster. Net net: don't sit with Daniel.
DECOR: I LOVE the turquoise and chocolate combo. Booths were soft puckered leather. Tables the perfect size for a great chatty evening with friends. And the butter dish was sooo cute - a mini cast iron skillet. I was just surprised they stopped there considering the salt and pepper shakers were straight from the restaurant discount supply warehouse.
WINE: great wine list. great prices, most if not all under $50. Many organic wines to chose from as well.
I gave this four stars, mostly based on the food and atmosphere. We'll def go back and ask for a different server ;-o
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Food was good, but the portions were far to small. I ended up having to order 2 starters and 3 main courses to be full.
One of the worst restaurant experiences of late. The managing partner was on the floor and seemed very upset that he had to be there. We had a larger group and tried to order a few bottles of wine, after we ordered the first the server ran away with the wine list. After about 10 min we got our first bottle of wine, told the server we wanted to order more (8ppl) seemed very put out about this.
Apps took 40 min's to hit the tbl.
All in all I we didn't feel like they actually wanted us dining with them.
And since the food was only OK we won't.
I'll get straight to the point.
* Fresh local ingredients (fish, meat, or veggie) were top-notch.
* ALL the appetizers we had (oxtail soup, chowder, calamari frisee salad) were great!! Nicely balanced, flavorful.
* Main course preparations were so-so. My cracker-crusted sole was over-fried and therefore overpowered the fish. One of my dining partners deemed his gnocchi "delicate" (aka bland). The veggies were all masterfully prepared, especially the asparagus side-dish.
* Desserts were ok. We liked the cookie plate, but the carrot cake disappointed.
* Wine list was nice without being overwhelming, and the wine descriptions were spot-on. I was a little put off by the Pyrex chemical flask used as a decanter. (The decor is a little rustic, but not funky enough to pull that off.)
* Bar drinks were weak and watery and not all that flavorful ... but we thank the bartenders for their food recommendations anyway!
* Service was great!
* Our total bill ~$75 pp.
Bottom line recommendation: Order a selection of apps and sides, skip the main course, choose carefully on the desserts. And get your bar drinks down the street at Bourbon & Branch (or another bar of your choosing).
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We had a great dinner at Fish and Farm last night. We arrived early for our 9pm reservation and thought we would have to hang out in the bar for awhile but they were super accommodating and seated us after just a short wait. This was greatly appreciated because we were both starving!
This place is like field and stream meets urban day dream. I loved it. We were seated in the corner booth and I found myself stroking the tufted leather from time to time. It felt amazing. It took a little while for someone to come over and welcome us but once they did they were friendly and totally unpretentious. Everyone who worked there smiled if you caught their eye and seemed eager to make sure you were enjoying yourself.
We ordered a bottle of Long Meadow Ranch Cab and started with the country pate. It was served with pickled baby carrots, a sprinkling of greens and toasted bread. It was a pork shoulder pate which I had never had before. It was yummy and had a great texture.
For mains (which took an awfully long time to arrive but I totally forgive them) we shared the duo of beef which came on mashed potatoes with a peppercorn sauce and spinach and the fish and chips. Holy Moly! Both were amazing. The cod was light as air and the house made tartar sauce was spicy and spectacular! The beef was perfectly medium rare and butter knife tender.
We chose the chocolate pot de creme and a glass of Muscat for dessert. I thought I was too full to eat it but it seriously disappeared right before my eyes. There was an amazing contrast between the whipped salted cream atop the fluffy and rich chocolate pudding. It was heaven on a spoon.
I am extremely happy we chose to spend our Valentine's day at Fish and Farm. It couldn't have been any better.
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It is Saturday night and Fussy Fusspot and I plan a night out at the theatre. Fussy has season tickets at A.C.T. and our box seats allow me to pretend that I'm Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. I wrapped myself in a red table cloth, pinned my hairdo up and tied a rhinestone choker around my stubbly neck; I was sure to make "private jet" sounds from out of my ass while riding on BART to reenact the movie as closely as possible.
Before the play, Fussy made dinner reservations at FISH and FARM on Taylor Street. Fish and Farm...???? What is that - I'm thinking. Should I have worn a gingham table cloth? Should I have worn Daisy-dukes? When I heard the name Fish and Farm, my memory banks took be back to when my parents took our family to a trout farm to go fishing. I was prissy even back when I was 6 years old. I didn't want to touch the worm, I didn't want to hook the worm and I certainly didn't want to touch the fish. And for heavens sake, I sure hoped no one expected me to eat something that came out of a dirty pond. Fish should always come on a square Styrofoam platter with plastic wrap on it, and even back then I had the expectation that food was disinfected with Lysol or some other cleaning agent. Anyway, after my father patiently took my fishing rod and wormed the hook, I put the string in the water and two seconds later I caught a fish, pulled it out of the water and screamed. Then I did it again, and two seconds later, I caught another fish, then I did it again. I even caught a fish by hooking the body side of a trout. Thirty minutes later my family had more fish than a hillbilly has gaps in their teeth. The trout farm people cleaned the fish, and packed them up for us in old washed out cardboard milk cartons stuffed with ice. It was a fun day, but I don't recall ever actually eating the fish. Ten to one the trout is still in the back of my parent's freezer in the garage.
I enter the restaurant first and am pleasantly surprised at the stylishness of the decor. The dining room strikes me as small, which is as the hostess puts it "intimate." The hostess is very friendly and so is the staff while I wait for Fussy to join me. I try one of their special cocktails - a citrus something or another and it's tasty and refreshing. The menu has a very nice variety of items to choose from, and additionally there are specials of the day. For dinner, Fussy and I share Oysters Rockefeller, the restaurant was nice enough to split our order and present it to us on two plates - gotta love that! The preparation of the dish was unusual, they fried the oysters and served it on a bed of spinach like a salad; nicely done. For dinner I debated over having fish or duo of beef which was a combination of rib-eye steak and short ribs. Having stuffed myself at lunch with my friend Sonia, my god son Magoo and my parents, I decided to go for the lighter Petroli Sole cooked in a cracker crust. It was delicious and the artichoke hearts were scrumptious.
Fussy ordered the pork chop with potatoes gratin. The pork chop was under cooked and had to be sent back, but the staff was so nice and apologetic about the incident that it was not an issue. A complimentary glass of wine followed the mishap, which was a nice touch on the restaurants part.
At the table next to me, I notice a pair of couples dining together. Kitty-corner and across from me I notice an attractive woman and she is wearing a low cut top and I became fascinated with the curvature of her breasts. I could not stop myself from staring. The black blouse had spaghetti straps and her perfectly shaped jugs looked so smooth, perky and playful. I knew I had to stop looking and glancing when the woman started making nervous twitches around her straps and started to put her hands at her neck, using her arms to hide her tah tahs. Has the connotation of fishing and farming turned me hetero? Not once did she make eye contact with me, but she could feel my eyes burning into her chest. So not to continue to make her feel uncomfortable and feeling like my old self again, I switched my attentions and began staring at her hunky date's crotch. He did make eye contact with me, and he did shoot me a smile and a wink.
I missed about 25% of the play, and Fussy had to nudge me twice to keep me from snoring loud enough for others to hear. Fussy Fusspot, like Richard Gere is my knight in shining armor.
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This is the perfect place to eat. It's delicious and the staff is friendly and attentive--Michael was our server : )
These people really get it -- they're supportive of our environment (filtered water, etc), humane treatment of farm animals and fish --they even purchase their eggs at a special farm that doesn't allow mistreatment of chickens (they get to keep their beaks).
All of this is in addition to the amazing flavors of this fantastic yet, simple food. Every single dish that we ordered was a melt-in-your-mouth experience...My God, the (salted) fresh whipped cream on top of the pot de creme was incredible!
The wine list was great and so was the atmosphere. This place is a must...not a splurge...a must, and as often as possible.
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Fantastic! One of the best restaurants I have been too recently. Lovely wine list. Amuse was a chilled cauliflower soup - delish! The Monterey Squid was tender, flavorful, one of the best I've ever had in a restaurant. Had an appetizer special, if I recall, were pork short ribs? Again, moist, succulent. Entrees - Sablefish and another fish, the name of it ... I don't remember the name, but it's not usually on menus - both executed with perfection, not overcooked, moist, tender and flavorful. We skipped on dessert, just because we're not dessert people, but were treated to some nice grapes to help finish our wines.
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This is a very nice cozy little restaurant.
The service is pretty decent, not 5 star worthy, but certainly good.
The food is very good as well, and reasonably priced.
Everyone enjoyed everything we had. Gnocci was raved about. I enjoyed the beef.
Cool tiffany blue and brown coloring too.
I enjoyed my meal. I wanted to try dessert, but was too full because I ate EVERYTHING on my plate. I'd ordered an appetizer, meal & side dish (all for me) because everything sounded so good.
I had the sable fish, which was perfectly cooked, and with a side of the cauliflower/capers dish. Both were really fabulous.
I thought the service was good, but the waitress seemed to be a little green (and not in the environmental sense). She mispronounced the name of the fish (but seemed positive she was correct), and her recommendations seemed a little off. I ended up going instead with recommendations I'd read on this site, and was very pleased.
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If you're driving, beware parking blows. You may have to put your car in a lot, I parked near Ruby Skye at Geary and Mason. That worked well, but beware the restaurant lives on a sketchy block and you'll have to walk past some crazies to get there.
The restaurant was booked up so we ate in the bar area. Decor in the small dining room was more romantic than the over-lit bar area. Also they didn't allow enough space between the booths (where we were sitting) and the bar, which meant people kept bumping into me as they walked through the bar (there was a lot of pass through traffic inexplicably).
Had the grilled sardines and the swordfish. Both followed a similar pattern of flawless cooking, but bland seasoning.
Final verdict, above average fish in a below average location. Would go again if someone asked me to, but not going on my favs list either.
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We had a great experience here a few nights ago. The poached egg appetizer is amazing! It's served in a small iron skillet with very fresh tasty asparagus and a light sauce similar to a hollandaise. Excellent. My husband had the halibut, which was amazing. The salmon wasn't the best I've had but was very good. Unlike Michael Bauer, we liked the cookie plate for dessert. The service was excellent and the wine list is very good - there's a $5 corkage fee for any CA wine ($10 for others). We recently ate at Spruce - I'd say that the food is just as good here and MUCH less expensive. Expect to pay at least $15 for a glass of wine at Spruce; here most are under $10. (one reisling at Spruce sells for $42/glass). Fish & Farm is a good value - great food and service and a fun atmosphere. Only downside is that the neighborhood isn't the best.