Gamine French Bistrot

Location: Cow Hollow, San Francisco
Cuisine type: traditional French
Atmosphere: casual European style cafe
Meal: brunch
Overall score: 8.4

Nina

Whenever I watch the Bay Area “Check, Please!” show (featuring three area residents talking about their favorite restaurant) I try to make mental notes of what I should try next. Unfortunately, I rarely remember those places long enough to follow through. This time, we happened to find ourselves in San Francisco the very next day after I got really excited about the presentation on this very tempting French establishment called Gamine. I looked up the address, and decided we would go there for brunch, since it came highly recommended.
We almost missed it the first time we walked by - this is a small and subdued place, with a couple of tiny tables outside (for that authentic European cafe feel) and still tiny and crowded tables inside, also quite true to form with French bistros I’ve experienced in Lyon. The atmosphere is light and casual, with very friendly service and an open kitchen space which you can see from the dining room and observe up close from the bar counter seating (no formal bar in the restaurant, though). They serve water in glass carafes with no ice, which just adds just another touch of authenticity.
The meal started, of course, with crunchy crusted French baguette and butter - I often think you can’t really wish for anything better than that, and they didn’t disappoint. The bread was a perfect balance of chewy and fluffy, with a deliciously crunchy crust, and the butter was fresh and just salty enough to bring out the flavors even better.

But enough about bread, let’s talk food. I picked the beef tartare for an appetizer, especially after a particularly good experience with it recently at Arcadia I was looking for more. The dish was good, though I did take one point off the food score for the heavy handedness in their use of seasoning on the meat, particularly Worchestershire sauce. While the meat was delicate and finely chopped, with a luscious creaminess from the quail egg yolk and in pleasant contrast with the crunch of the toast bits, the dressing was overwhelming at times and distracted from the dish.
Since we did make it there for brunch, I decided on a decidedly brunch-worthy dish, the oeufs cocottes with salmon and goat cheese. The concept was brilliant and the flavors were all there, but the seasoning missed the mark a bit (thus, the second point deducted from the food score). basically, I had a poached egg, surrounded by bits of lightly smoked and cooked salmon and spinach, and drowned in a cream sauce with goat cheese. However, the sauce was a bit too salty and as I ate it became almost overbearing, if there were only less of it or less salt in it, it would have been a delightful dish.
What French meal could ever end without coffee and dessert? While Ben ordered a shot of espresso, I picked the chocolate mousse, which did not disappoint. It came in a large sundae glass, and it was more than plenty for the two of us to share. The mousse was rich and creamy and smooth, with an intense chocolate flavor, and it was topped with freshly whipped cream that provided a lightly flavored counterpoint to the chocolate. Fantastic ending to this meal, and definitely left me with a yearning to go back someday.

Food	8
Drinks	8
Atmosphere	9
Service	9
Value	8

Ben

I couldn’t tell how french the service was, but the style, feel, and menu of Gamine was very authentic (not too much california-french fusion here). The french onion soup was perfect; obscenely cheesy, with a great caramelized onion flavor and crunchy little crouton. I will go back, if just for this soup. The tartare was solid, simple and flavorful, a slightly small portion for the price. While I really enjoyed the egg yolk, I found the sauce too acidic and would have preferred it more plain.

One of the best things was simply the baguettes; very fresh, slightly crunchy crust but very soft in the middle... one of the best baguettes I’ve had (stateside or otherwise). I sort of swung and missed with the lamb merguez sausage panini. The side salad was amazing, some magic with a fresh and simple vinaigrette over greens. The merguez were little sausages that were a little dry and awkward in a panini. I guess that’s what I get for ordering a spanish/italian fusion at a french restaurant (one of the few non-classic-french looking things on the menu). Nina’s salmon & chevre poached eggs were very good. Looking around, I am sure I will try the mussels (moules mariniere) next time. For dessert we had a fantastically rich but fluffy chocolate mousse, which went perfectly with the true european espresso I ordered. Overall a very pleasant place, though a bit cozy with many adjacent tables, there is outdoor seating (for when the weather is a little warmer).

Food	9
Drinks	8
Atmosphere	8
Service	9
Value	8

Étoile

Location: Yountville, CA (Napa Valley)
Cuisine type: classic (French) haute cuisine
Atmosphere: elegant high-end restaurant
Meal: dinner
Overall score: 9.4

Nina

As my birthday treat, we went to Etoile, the Domaine Chandon estate restaurant, and my first real Michelin starred experience (one star). Wanting to fully enjoy the experience, I decided ahead of time I would go for a prix-fixe menu with a wine pairing, and I decided on the four course dinner menu. I passed on that evening’s “Chef’s Menu” because some of the course proposed on that menu were not as exciting to me as some of the options among the four course offerings.

Our dinner was preceded by a complimentary rose champagne toast and chef’s amuse bouche as a perk of being wine club members at Chandon. While I already knew that I would enjoy the rose (I’ve had it a couple of times before), the amuse bouche blew me away and was a great way to start a meal. We were presented with a simple but elegant ceramic spoon with a smooth and light vegetable panna cotta on the bottom (I think it was corn, but I don’t recall). On top, there was some smoked salmon tossed with mild spices, a small sphere of what might have been cucumber juice (light, refreshing, and which melted in my mouth), and garnished with a single crunchy sprout. It was one perfect bite, with the flavors melding harmoniously in my mouth, and accomplishing the precise goal of this course - enticing the palate and raising excitement for the meal to come.

As we were waiting for our first course, we were presented with a duo of butters, a cow milk butter with coarse sea salt sprinkled on top, and a goat butter with an herb infused olive oil drizzled on top - needless to say, they were both addictive. A server would pass by every now and then and offer us a fresh portion of bread - I went for the olive loaf every time (imagine a beautiful crusty sourdough, with meaty and tart olives baked right into it), but the other two options were a multigrain and a french baguette style bread.

My first course was the lamb tenderloin carpaccio, served with small mounds of fresh minty tabbouleh, yogurt spheres, a dash of lime, and one thin slice of green tomato to top it off. The meat was more tender than I could have imagined, literally dissolved in my mouth, and the bright notes of the mint and lime countered the richness of the meat to create a perfect balance. The yogurt presentation was my first experience with molecular gastronomy. It was hard to believe that the tart and light yogurt could stay on the plate as the neat little spheres that the chef placed sprinkled across the plate in small clusters, but as soon as I picked them up they would fall apart in my mouth and meld beautifully with all the other flavors on the plate. This appetizer was paired with a light and crisp sancerre wine from the Loire Valley (Thomas & Fils “La Crele” Sancerre, Loire Valley, 2010), and it was quite pleased with how nicely the white wine complemented the lamb, even though it was not along the often used (and abused) white meat/white meat, red wine/red meat paradigm.

The fish dish was much more substantial, but equally beautiful and enticing. Two thick slices of flavorful heirloom tomatoes served as the presentation platform for a beautiful, creamy and perfectly cooked piece of salmon. The fish was pan roasted (though it was so incredibly tender I still have a hard time believing it wasn’t slowly poached), and served alongside a tart and smooth escabeche dressing and a frisee salad with radish and green beans. I can say with certainty that I have never had such a smooth piece of fish, literally melting in my mouth with every bite, and striking a perfect balance with the acidic sauce and bring and rich fresh tomatoes. The pairing was an aged Napa Chardonnay (Newton “Unfiltered” Chardonnay, Napa County, 2009), which had mild citrus notes to serve as counterpoints to the fish, but also enough smooth butteriness to go along with the texture of the meat.

My main entree consisted of medium cooked slices of veal tenderloin, served alongside roasted lobster tail. The meat came on a bed of mild and braised endives, alongside sauteed leeks and chanterelle mushrooms and a sweetbreads roulade. Upon presenting me with the dish, the server poured a rich and thick lobster sauce on my plate, which really brought together the sea and land components of the dish. As garnish, there were thin shavings of pickled ginger and creamy dijon mustard and seeds, all of which provided a bright acidic balance against the richness of the sauce and meat. This course was rounded off by a rich, almost chewy Cote de Rhone aged red wine (La Font du Vent, “Les Promesses” Cote du Rhone, 2009).

Dessert is, of course, my favorite course of any meal, not only in Michelin praised establishments, which made the decision on this course the hardest of them all. I finally settled on what I considered somewhat of a safe choice - the chocolate option. It was a chocolate marquise (thick mousse), topped with white chocolate ganache and served with house made cocoa rice crispies (yes, you read that right), and topped with a rich vanilla torrone ice cream. The plate was adorned with a reduced cherry compote (and a very artistic brush stroke with the cherry sauce), and garnished with very delicious chocolate covered espresso beans. This dessert was delicious, don’t get me wrong, but it was the first time (that I can remember) that the chocolate dessert was not my favorite. I can’t really put my finger on why that is, but the richness of the chocolate, combined with the amazingly rich and delicious vanilla ice cream and the thick and sweet cherry reduction felt like it was missing something. I actually preferred Ben’s dessert, which was a much more balanced dish, with a light vanilla cream infused with pear notes. The other small glitch on dessert was that the server left me with the impression that my four course dinner would come paired with four wines - as such, I was excited about the port listed as the pairing for my marquise. However, when the dessert came out I still had no wine, and the server I first asked said he would inquire and never returned. Finally, our server stopped by and apologized for the confusion, explained that wine pairing does not continue into the dessert course, but ultimately brought me a complimentary glass of dessert wine to compensate for the misunderstanding.

I finished the meal with a small but fragrant cup of espresso, that I topped with a teaspoon of milk foam. It was a great palate cleanser and a refreshing end to a long and delightful meal. I truly enjoyed every moment of this meal, and appreciated their careful attention to detail as well as the chef’s art of pairing flavors and textures in harmonious and inventive dishes. I would wholeheartedly declare this experience a success and am looking forward to trying out other restaurants of this caliber in the future (as well as returning to this one, of course).

Food	10
Drinks	10
Atmosphere	10
Service	9
Value	9

Ben

For Nina’s birthday, we had our first real meal at Michelin star rated restaurant (though we had previously stopped in for hors d'oeuvres at Bouchon), Etoile restaurant located in the Domaine Chandon winery in Napa Valley. We went with the prix fixe menu and ordered different dishes for each of the four courses to try a larger variety. We were started out with a toast - a bubbly sweet aperitif - and an “amuze bouche,” a delightful single bite spoon with smoked salmon as the star. Three types of fresh-baked breads were passed around, for tasting with three types of butter (including an incredible goat milk butter).

While we each tried all 8 dishes, I will focus on the four that I ordered. For the first course I had an oxtail aspic. This was the 3rd time in my life I’ve had oxtail, and definitely sets a new bar. The oxtail was blended into an almost molasses/bbq tasting jello, with bits of oxtail embedded. The dish itself was probably the prettiest dish I have ever been served at a restaurant. Along with the hemisphere of oxtail aspic, there was a diced stack of wild mushrooms, neatly halved snap peas in the pod, with a delicious sweet white corn sauce poured at the table, baby white corns and slices of white truffle. This was definitely a fantastic first dish, and our first courses set the stage - and standard - for the rest of the dishes.

The next dish I chose was similar in appearance to the first: 2 large scallops with a ring of mussels with a compressed squash topping, and a watercress sauce poured at the table. The mussels were a perfectly seared, buttery texture that went very well with the rich, herby sauce. The mussels and squash were a great pair as well, and the dish again demonstrated a great attention to detail and aesthetic.

The next dish was my favorite of the night: rabbit leg and tenderloin, each topped with a cherry sauce, a pistachio sauce, fennel and lavender flowers, and topped with bing cherries. The whole mixture was creative and simply fantastic. I finished off the night with a fantastic pear “mille-feuille” (“thousand sheets”), alternating puff-pastry and cream layers with caramelized pears. Like the others, this dish was clearly very carefully prepared and presented.

My overall impression was that there is a high effort and attention to detail, which was likely a large factor in Etoile earning their first Michelin star, and they appear determined to maintain or progress to another star. As expected, the price can get pretty high ($90 for the menu, $65 for wine pairing). For the attention to detail and the restaurant renown, the menu price is not bad at all. However, I might recommend against the wine pairings as they only provide them for the first three courses, so you come out around $22 per 4-5 oz glass. Optimally, a table of 6-8 could split the three bottles of the paired wines likely pay much less even with markup. Aside from that, the wine selection is top-notch and naturally features many of the award winning champagne-style wines of Domaine Chandon. The service was very friendly and patient, and the setting in the beautiful gardens of the winery is very pleasant. Overall, Etoile was quite an enjoyable and memorable experience.

Food	10
Drinks	9
Atmosphere	9
Service	9
Value	8

Bouchon

Location: Yountville, CA (Napa Valley)
Cuisine type: French
Atmosphere: European bistrot, small outdoor tables
Meal: late lunch
Price range: ~$15/appetizer
Overall grade: 8.7

Ben



Probably the finest restaurant we have visited in a little over a month in the bay area, appropriate for our first visit to Napa. The atmosphere is pretty upscale and offers pleasant outdoor seating with a view of the shopping center across the road. The service was very prompt and polite. The wine selection was fitting to Napa, and we went with the house wine at $8 / glass (off the menu was ~$14 and up) as we had just come from a vineyard. The starting bread roll and butter on the table were fantastic, and we ordered 3 appetizers - cheese platter, french onion soup, and salmon rillettes (a cooked&smoked salmon paste). The soup was served as we had in Europe, cooked in the bowl with a lot of cheese and crouton in the bowl – an incredible version of my favorite soup. The cheese was all very good – a nice french ripeness with a mix of goat, sheep, and cow milk, and served with  cranberry and walnut bread. The salmon rillettes was actually a great dish as well, though a new experience to me – served cold in a jar with a thick layer of fat gel settled on the top, which was to be eaten with  toasted bread. Overall the food was great, the wine selection expansive, the atmosphere light and chatty. The price is pretty high (~$10 soup and $15 for appetizers / wines), though reasonable for the location and quality.


Food 9
Drinks 8
Atmosphere 9
Service 8
Value 6

Nina

After a wonderful visit to O'Brien Winery living up to even the most romantic visions of Napa Valley (leisurely enjoying various estate wines while hearing the wonderful story of the O'Brien couple living their dream of operating a winery and while admiring the charming views of the vine covered hills), hunger came calling. I spotted a place downtown Yountville called Bouchon, which brought back pleasant memories of the authentic hole-in-the wall restaurants sprinkled all over old Lyon called "bouchon lyonnais".

To more fully enjoy the very authentic French cuisine on this menu we decided on a selection of smaller dishes to share. We started, of course, with French onion soup. It was served with a rich bread well soaked in the soup and topped with a thick slice of gruyere cheese, melted in the oven to seal all the flavors in the serving bowl. It was rich and flavorful, and it set the bar pretty high for the remaining dishes.

The next dish was something I had never tried before - rillettes aux deux saumons - essentially a chunky pate made with fresh cooked raw salmon, smoked salmon, butter (&olive oil), and spices, served with crispy bread crostini. I was not sure what to expect, especially when we were presented with a sealed jar, covered with a strange layer of fat on top of something which indeed looked salmon-y. It seems like the fat was a combination of the butter and olive oil use in the preparation of this dish as well as the natural fat of the salmon, and its placement on top served as a natural preservative for the home-made pate which was packaged in the jar for a unique presentation and quick serving. I found that the best way to enjoy this pate was to pick just a bit of the fatty topping along with a scoop of the spread, just enough to produce a crunchy-and-creamy bite on top of a small crostini.

The final savory dish was a cheese selection - tomme de savoie, tome brebis and fleur de marquis - served with slices of walnut and of cranberry bread, fresh honeycomb, sliced apple and candied walnuts. There is not much to be said about this dish since the components are fairly straightforward. The cheese tasted fresh and ripe at the same time, the flavors were rich and took me back to the days when I would stroll through markets in Lyon admiring and tasting various artisan cheeses.

No French meal would be complete without dessert. The most sophisticated selection on the menu was the ile flotante, a rich creme anglaise topped with a light and soft meringue, served with caramelized almonds and crunchy caramel. I chose this (yes, I usually make the call on dessert, no surprise there :) ) because the other offerings were much more predictable - the usual creme brulee, sorbet, chocolate cake, which not only I can get anywhere else, but also feel pretty confident making at home. The star of this dessert was the creme anglaise, which was rich in both texture and flavor, and coated each bite of the much blander meringue for a very harmonious combination. Finally, the caramel and almonds added the perfect crunch to finish the dish.

I absolutely loved this restaurant, which although a little on the pricey side not only featured an amazing authentic French menu but also had an excellent wine selection (many of which were also available byt he glass) and friendly, but not overbearing service.

Food 10
Drinks 9
Atmosphere 9
Service 9
Value 8