Since I only had one night here for fine dining(most places are closed Sunday), I headed about a 20min walk from my hotel to PALETTE in the Yerba Buena District in a huge brick building with PALETTE in rough white paint on the front. The temps had dropped 20 degrees in 2 hours and it had gotten chilly, so the flame heaters were on in full force for the outdoor a la carte terrace dining on the street. I headed inside to the cavernous dining room with two sections in a giant oval separated by the open kitchen in the middle. The ceilings of each oval half are actually barreled and have windows in them so you see up to the nearby buildings. Various types of art in the form of small wooden boats hand way abouve with a large installation nearer the top way up of real whalebones (they looked like giant samurai swords) as well as some made of glass or plexiglass.
The tables are mostly of 2 and 4 with some a bit closer than I would like, clothed in black with linens and all hand-blown crystal made locally for the restaurant. The water glasses were a bit weird as they were dark colors with wavy glass ridges which get in they way of your lips as you sip.
The Master Sommelier Jeremiah Morehouse was knowledgeable and entertaining and always there to help. I started with a creamy herbaceous Sancerre Patient Cottat Ancienne Vignes 2020 and then decided on the parings for an extra $90. Before each course he told me what he was going to pour and if I was not excited, immediately came up with an alternate! The 4 course menu has multiple selections and runs $120 (there are a lot of options with supplements including one steak for an extra $180!!)which is a steal from the super talented Chef Peter J. Helmsley, who was always visible to us on our side of the prep area as each dish came out and he checked, double checked and then often even brought them to the table himself.
Three different amuses(although they were larger than what one normally gets) came first(all photos on FB):
-Lobster Salad on Puffed Rice Cracker with Meyer Lemon, Shiso and Smoked Sturgeon that was a wonderful one bit wonder.
-Foraged green salad with house made Green Goddess Dressing, Pickled Ramps and Nasturtium, a real nice change as a couture salad like this is so rare
-Brandade of Halibut with a Garlic Aioli with Pickled Hungarian Peppers
Pas De Monier Provence Rose was my next wine from Chateau Gassier which was very refreshing and nice with the awesome and complex Grilled Bigeye Tuna with Plum & Cherry Ponzu, Salted Cucumber and Bonita Flakes. The tuna was barely grilled on the edge and amazingly tender and exquisite and the fruit ponzu was intense and a perfect foil while the flakes added a novel texture.
My second course was the Plancha Fried Farm Egg with Hedgehog & Chanterelles Mushrooms and Peas over a Fava Bean Puree and Mushroom Jus. This dish was ingenious as the egg added depth, the mushrooms earthiness and the peas (Chef Carla Hall would have been in heaven) were all huge and fresh and almost a tad crunchy cooked to perfection. The paired wine was the best I had all night, and huge bodied Peay Pinot Noir 2012 from Sonoma Coast that was intense and earthy designed to match the mushrooms.
I asked my server Terrance for a nice break as the plates were huge and I actually did not finish most of them despite their magnificence. After a nice intermission the Roasted Duck Breast arrived cooked to perfection with Glazed Candied Carrots(how nice to see some purple heirlooms in the mix), Puffed Amaranth, Huckleberry Compote and Elderberry Duck Jus. The amaranth was a nice foil to the rich compote and adhered to each piece of duck for some fun crunch. The duck skin was cooked ideally with just a nice crunch as well. the wine was a spicy Equinoxe Crozes-Hermitages 2019 Syrah from Maxim Graillot. It was young but ideal. Four breads and butter were offered, but I had to decline!
A small bowl arrived with a palate cleanser of Watermelon Sorbet on a salted cookie crumble that was sweet and salty and crunchy!
My dessert was Plum & Burnt Honey Vacheron and the compote was delish with meringue that was crunchy and a Satsuma foam. Jeremiah treated me to a 2012 Vendages Tardive(late harvest) Gewurtztraminer from Domaine Schlumberger in Alsace that was rich, thick and had a nice acidity to cut the rich meringue and sweet plum.
Just in case I was still hungry and tiny house made marshmallow arrived with a superb mini Chocolate Macaroon.
The staff at Palette is brilliant, the service is beyond excellent, and the food is indeed perfect and all looks magnificent when presented. I can't wait to return to San Francisco to try this again!
