Best Californian Restaurants in Japantown

Great meal - nice environment - attentive service!

Absolutely incredible meal! Everything about it from start to finish was near perfection! Firstly, the hospitality is on point. A server is always right there when you need them to be and they made the amazing suggestion to get half an order of each of the pancakes rather than a full order of one. The servers that come around with the trays of food also know what they’re doing. When I ordered a single oyster for myself and my partner made a comment about not liking oysters, the servers gave us an extra one for free just so my partner could try it. This was an absolutely amazing opportunity to show not just above-and-beyond hospitality, but also that the restaurant truly believes in the quality of its food. And you know what? My partner did say it was the best oyster he ever had! They’re known for their quail however, I just think it’s not meaty enough of a bird for how it was prepared (Most parts were more breading than quail). As for everything else I tried, I just can’t think of any criticisms at all. I guess I could complain about my glass of rosé but that’s entirely my fault. I went with sparkling when I should have gone with still. The hit of the night were the blue corn-pepita pancakes with braised bacon and coffee butter. I wasn’t even going to order it until the server made the suggestion and I’m glad they did! The pecorino and ricotta pancakes are good too just not as good. The wedge salad is all the right balance of flavors with a nice crunch of lettuce to feel extra bright and fresh. The fried brussel sprouts are paired with an incredibly deep cashew satay sauce. The umami richness is impeccable. The almond financiers with duck liver mousse are another example of perfect balance in flavor. The financiers are light and fluffy and the mousse is smooth and delicate. I thought the burrata and bread dish came a too late into the night for us to fully enjoy however the peanut milk was the perfect cap to our evening.

Outstanding food, particularly the signature duck and the Guinea hen. Kai is a superb waiter. He should own his own restaurant. Price reasonable for San Francisco.

Ambiance was fantastic, Food was great except for the burger which two out of the four of us ordered and was on the drier side/not juicy.

I was excited to check out this new place in Japantown and it did not disappoint. We had duck tacos and pork belly Benedict & they were delicious! Duck tacos were my favorite - savory and complex. The menu is mostly Asian fusion and the kimchi is house made (obvs in the name) and sooo good. Who knew kimchi & hollandaise combine to delicious effect. Cocktails were great too. Best of all was the server. So kind, friendly, and super fast. Also, we went for brunch and there was an entire baby group in there and it was not even loud. So everyone go check out the Fermentation Lab!!