Isa Restaurant

In love with this restaurant! My fiancée took me here on one of our first dates and we recently came back again. Even better than the first time we came here! We even got the same friendly waiter (who I think his name is Lee) again. Lee is such a wonderful guy and makes the experience even better. He's so friendly and welcoming! He deserves a raise!

We arrived when it just opened with no reservations and was able to get seated right away. For our starters, we got Tomales Bay oysters and the Arugula Salad. You can't go wrong with oysters from Tomales Bay! So good! The Arugula Salad was light and refreshing. Love the sweet apples and light dressing. My fiancée was so excited when she saw that they had their "Spaghetti" on their menu, and I was excited to try it because it's one of the dishes she raves about. It's not always on their menu, which is very surprising. Their Spaghetti is delicious! It's simple but all the ingredients in it were so fresh! I could taste the truffle, tomatoes, and basil. I don't think I have ever had such good spaghetti. The pasta was cooked perfectly. The Truffle Risotto was tasty, but I definitely would choose the Spaghetti over the Risotto. The entrees are meant to be shared.

The service was quick! The staff were friendly and attentive. We ended with Espresso Martinis as our desserts. Everything tasted amazing and we wish we lived closer! One of our favorite restaurants in the city!

Note: This is the review for my SF restaurant week dining experience at Isa 11 months ago. I posted my review on Google but forgot to add it on Yelp. Better now than never.

I went to Isa for SF Restaurant week. They had a 4 course set menu.
First, let's talk about the place and the ambiance. The restaurant is in a nice neighborhood, so you can walk around and find some good restaurants and boutique stores close by. Parking can be tough. They have two indoor dining areas- one in the front and one in the back. The front dining area has a very minimalistic look, and it has a darker setting with dim lights. As you walk towards the back seating area, you are greeted by a lush display of indoor vines that climb up the walls and hang from the ceiling, giving the space a vibrant and organic feel. The lighting is warm and ambient, with a combination of pendant lamps and hanging bulbs that cast a soft glow throughout the room.

Now let's talk about the food. My friend and I ordered all these dishes -
First course-
1. Main lobster broth
2. Potato and leak soup

Second course-
1. Yellowfin tuna
2. Salmon carpaccio

Third course-
1. Maple leaf duck breast
2. Hanger steak

Fourth course-
1. Amaretto
2. Creme brulee

Both the items from course 1 were pretty good. They were served somewhat lukewarm.
Both yellowfin tuna and salmon carpaccio were served with grilled bread. Yellowfin tuna had mild flavoring, so the grilled bread didn't help. Of the two, salmon carpaccio was more flavorful because of cucumbers and capers.
Hanger steak, in my opinion, was more juicy and flavorful than the duck breast. Menu mentioned that duck breast has bacon in it as well, so I was excited about that only to find a few tiny pieces of bacon in the small salad portion that comes with the dish.
Creme brulee was really good but amaretto was very disappointing.

The service was great. Nice staff. I think it's a bit on the pricey end. I was hoping for a little bit more quality food than what we got. Overall, it was a good experience.

I've been impressed with Isa since it opened in the 90s. But last night I had to wonder if it's starting to slip. The service was extremely inattentive and sloppy. We felt invisible, watching all the other tables get their drinks, food, etc. while we just sat there. We were eventually helped by 4 different people over the course of our meal, one of whom said they have a "team approach". Well, the team was not strong last night. The drinks took over 30 minutes to arrive from the time we sat down. We immediately ordered so as not to lose the chance with our waiter. One friend got her entree a good 5 or more minutes before the others in our party and had to sit there watching it get cold until we were served.

The waiter who took our order seemed disappointed with our choices and tried to redirect, which didn't feel great. My friends were happy with their food but it was their first time. I ordered the duck which was just not as good as I remember it being. Not enough of some key ingredients like the goat cheese and potatoes.

I hope our experience was a fluke. I want to see Isa stay open!

sf office holiday dinner!

* seared scallops with mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, white butternut squash, bacon & topped with truffle sauce
* japanese yellowtail hamachi w/ watermelon radish, jalapeno, toasted sesame, daikon spro
* dungeness crab salad with avocado, apple, grapefruit, tarragon & mustard aioli
* grilled local calamari with red bell peppers, spice, flageolet beans, arugula & red aioli
* maine lobster broth with prawns, cream, tomatoes, celery & tarragon
* simply sauteéd sea of cortez wild prawns w/parsley, garlic, lemon, shallots, tomato confit & brown butter
* vanilla bean crème brulée

Once upon a time this was a favorite of family and friends. Unfortunately during our last visit the owner refused a gift certificate because they had changed providers and wouldn't bother to log into the old account to verify. They then, only after many emails with Open Table and the restaurant did they offer a bottle of wine of that value to take home. It was just an insulting way for us to end what was meant to be a fun night in the city, and a sad change in service at what was once a favorite place in that part of town. We won't be back.

Isa is an exquisite restaurant with a beautiful ambiance. The patio behind the restaurant was also stunning Upon entering you are welcomed by such friendly and professional staff. They are very knowledgeable about every dish they offer and are passionate about their craft. Our waiter made sure we paired our entrees with the appropriate wine and it made the entire experience even better! While enjoying our dinner, the owners come by and talk with us and make sure that we are being taken care of. Everything that we ordered was absolutely fantastic and felt like fireworks in my mouth!

Came here during SF restaurant week. Street parking is hard to find so I recommend parking in the residential area, or Uber, walk, bus.

$66 per person, 4 courses

Course #1 soup
- Maine lobster broth with prawns, celery, tomato and tarragon. If you like seafood, I highly recommend this soup. Came with 2 prawns. (5/5)
- Potato leek soup with cream, parsley, truffle oil and croutons. (3.5/5)

Course #2 appetizers
- Oysters : paired with spicy orange mignonette. This was my favorite that I ordered an extra of this. The spicy orange mignonette was so good that I drank it like a shot. It was not spicy at all. (5/5)
- Hamachi with watermelon radish, jalapeño and sesame seed. The sweetness of this dish wasn't for my tastebud but it was good. (4/5)

Course #3 main
- Rack of Lambs : 2 pieces of lamb on top of diced ratatouille. (5/5)
- Truffle Risotto: Rice with truffles and other mushrooms. Very wholesome dish. (5/5)

Course #4 dessert
- Creme brûlée : Pretty standard creme brûlée. You can see the vanilla beans. (5/5)
- Semifreddo all' amaretto : Crunchy sweet pistachio almond like ice cream. Comes with 2 mini cookies. (5/5)

Friendly staff, great service, all their food is carefully thought through. They don't use starch or any processed ingredients. The ambience was very nice for a date.

They have a nice covered patio area that's good for events. Parking can be a challenge, but if you are willing to go a few blocks south, there should be available residential parking.

Arugula salad: refreshing and light
Yellowfin tuna with crostini: Japanese flavors from the sesame and nori. An extra $3 for additional crostini is a bit overpriced as they are quite small.
Steamed PEI mussels: Surprised these are PEI as they are on the smaller side. Wished there was a bit more sauce.
Prawns: Delicious and well cooked

Braised short rib: very tender and delicious
Scallops: again well cooked
Sea bass:
Maple leaf duck: sweetness from the figs came throug
Hanger steak: nice medium rare
Truffle risotto: truffle flavors come out nicely and pairs well with the mushroom medley

Server was a bit aggressive and constantly urged us to order more food, which was a bit uncomfortable.
Overall, the food is great and would come back, but the pricing of some things seems a bit inconsistent.

We made a reservation on a Sunday night, we were greeted as soon as we walked in. Everyone was very friendly and we got seated right away. Ambiance gives me chill and relaxing vibes, can be intimate but also casual.

I am really impressed by the service here, it was outstanding! Our server has been with the restaurant for 20 years, he was really warm, friendly, patient, gives great suggestions and makes our experience here fun and enjoyable!

Now let's talk about the food, absolutely loved everything we've ordered, and surprisingly good portions as well.

Appetizers:
Dungeness crab salad (4/5) - tasty and refreshing, but a bit blend for me.
Yellowfin tuna (5/5) - this is a MUST! If you don't know what to order this is the one.

Entree:
Seared Scallops (4/5) - I enjoyed mashed potato more than scallops, but the scallop itself was good just not amazing.

Seared Fresh season fish (5/5) - MUST try, a one of a kind dish you won't regret getting.

Maple Leaf Farm Duck Breast (3.5/5) - a bit disappointing with the sauce personally, but my family loves it.

Truffle risotto (5/5) - very rich and creamy

Spaghetti (3/5) pretty average

This may be a great place to do fine dining in SF. We got Yellowtail Hamachi and Dungeness crab salad for appetizer, seabass and beef brisket for entree, and brussel sprouts with bacon and garlic for side dish. For dessert, we got trio gelato. I have to say the service is pretty great and staff was very friendly. Overall, the dishes we ordered are also very well balanced in flavor. The ambiance is really nice indoors. They also have a great outdoor patio where you can enjoy nice decors. Apparently, the staff said this has been opened for over 20 years and there are several long standing staff members who've been working there for that long. You can chit chat with them if you wanna learn the history of the restaurant and the chef!