575 Mission St. (between 1st & 2nd St.)
(415) 777-0277
Hawaiian Fusion in Financial
This is a very popular restaurant (a CHAIN! gasp!), and shinie and I went not knowing what to expect since it could've been overrated. To our delight, it was pretty good =) The service was really good -- everyone is really friendly and greets you with "aloha." The place is HUGE and spacious. I haven't been to a nice restaurant that wasn't small and intimate in a long time. It was a Thursday night and still pretty busy, and it's probably a popular place for people to go after work. Nonetheless, I still sat alone at the bar (how tragic) with a Hawaiian martini (think strong pina colada) as my only friend. tear =(
Food:
Three of us had a sampler (basically a 3-course prix fixe for $33), which is a really good deal since all of their regular dishes are $25+. Appetizers in the sampler include: 1 crab&something else potsticker (came with reallllllly good butter sauce), 1 short rib (eh), and 1 shrimp (shrimp is shrimp to me, but jess really liked it).
Entrees included the mahi mahi (I thought it was good... especially with the butter sauce... I'm drooling as my body prepares for a heart attack), the braised short ribs (cooked for 16 hours... it was too chewy though), and the butterfish (very Chinese, and kind of salty... nothing special).
For dessert, we had both the macadamia tart (I liked it) and the chocolate souffle (still hot in the middle mmm). The souffle was good and is their signature dessert... but it's VERY RICH. Jess ate the whole thing of hers, but I could only take a few bites because it was too much chocolate for me... but it's good quality =). They also brought out a cute little dessert plate for Val with "Happy Birthday Valerie" written on the plate. Very cute =)
Food-wise, this place is pretty good. Not great. I'd go back for their appetizers, but not anything else. This is a good place for groups and events since they are so accomodating.
- k (+ shinie's input)
** Edit: I've been here multiple times since the original review, and I've decided the food is just average, but very satisfying for non-foodies.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Roy's Restaurant
Kan Zaman
1793 Haight St. (at Shrader)
(415) 751-9656
Mediterranean in the Haight
Went here for a friend's birthday on a Saturday night and it was PACKED. The host is kind of snotty - it takes forever to talk to him because (1) it's so crowded in the entryway that it takes forever to get through, and (2) he doesn't even give you a chance to ask for a table because he's too busy talking to staff or staring into space. =P
However, our waitress was friendly and accommodating. One person didn't get her drink until after asking for it twice, but other than that, the service was pretty decent. Our large party of 13 sat in a booth aka raised floor, cross-legged style. If only there was enough room to actually sit cross-legged.... =P They have a pretty interesting drink menu; the spiced wine (served HOT) is realllly good! It's like spiked apple cider. =) You can order it by the glass or liter.
The food itself was ok; I've had better middle eastern food. For cold appetizers, we got hummus, baba ganoush, and tabouleh, which were just ok spreads. Some of the pita were a bit burnt. Our hot appetizers were meat pie (not good) and falafel - really good! I've had falafel in berkeley before and thought it was disgusting, but this one I liked. For main dishes we got beef and veggie skewers. Beef was eh; veggie was good and coated in this garlic stuff mmm....
Overall, this is a very trendy and popular place (it's the Haight - what do you expect) with a loud but fun atmosphere (oh yeah, they also have belly dancing every 1-2 hrs). The food is just ok, but if anything, go for the spiced wine. =) For birthdays, they give you a little piece of baklava with a candle in it hehe. This place isn't great on the food side, but a good experience anyway.