Boulevard consistently exceeds expectations!
Written: Apr 25 '04 (Updated Jun 11 '08)
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Pros: Superb food, gorgeous setting, excellent service
Cons: I can't afford to eat there every night.
The Bottom Line: This place sets the standards by which I judge all other top notch restaurants. Usually the best meal I have all year.
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| lyagushka's Full Review: Boulevard |
For the last night of our recent trip to the San Francisco bay area, my husband and I wanted a special romantic dinner to round off our visit. Based on three prior visits, Boulevard restaurant was the obvious pick, not least of all because we can say this is our favorite restaurant in the US, and a draw for our favorite restaurant in the world. As bay area gluttons, we have very high standards about food, and though Boulevard has set our expectations even higher by wowing us in the past, this restaurant consistently exceeds those expectations.
We duly made reservations, as all who want to eat here should do. When circumstances beyond our control made us run late, they were gracious when I called to inform them that we'd be a bit tardy. And they didn't hassle us about being an additional 10 minutes later than I'd estimated when I called, even on a Friday night. That graciousness did not go unappreciated - we managed to have the romantic dinner we'd planned despite our last minute rush to get there.
A little background on Boulevard
Boulevard is an upscale, full service restaurant located in the Embarcadero neighborhood at the very beginning of Mission Street, and not far from Fisherman's Wharf. With an interior designed by the restaurant architectural guru Pat Kuleto, Boulevard looks sleek, classy and very expensive. It's all that and more. Stepping through the old-fashioned revolving doors at the front of the restaurant, you feel as though you've entered a private oasis of calm and sophistication. There's just a touch of Casablancan hipness about the atmosphere here mixed deftly with belle époque touches, all helped along by the soothing dark wood fixtures and palms at the front of the house.
Executive Chef Nancy Oakes dishes up sumptuous New American meals with strong Mediterranean influences. The total package is a winning one, as evidenced by the restaurant perennially bagging the Zagat survey's "favorite restaurant" award for the bay area. When I last looked, Boulevard had won that distinction by popular vote for six years running, which is all to say that I'm not the only one who thinks this is a great restaurant.
Ambiance/Décor
The restaurant's polished ambiance might be intimidating if it were in any other city or country, but San Francisco is so laid back and unpretentious that diners are admitted here in blue jeans, though most of the patrons treat a meal at Boulevard as an occasion worthy of dressing up for.
The restaurant is divided into three somewhat discrete sections; the front bar/reception area, the central area around the open line kitchen, and the back area with the best views. Each of these three sections serves separate functions and has its own décor. The first section is defined by rustic brick barrel vaulted ceilings and wood floors. The middle area around the open line kitchen contains mostly two-tops. Blown glass and metalwork lamps, mosaic tile floors, wrought iron railings to cordon off the line and decorative tile on the walls make this area distinctive. Some seats in this area have views of the Bay Bridge. The back section of the restaurant is the quietest and has the best views. This area is mostly for larger parties. The carpeting in this area helps hold down the noise while the lovely stained glass lampshades provide a soft, intimate lighting. Overall, one gets the impression of separate rooms as one moves through the restaurant, even though it is all one long narrow open space.
Each table has its own gentle spotlight, while the lighting in general is subdued and intimate. This lighting scheme helped compensate for the busy feeling in the area around the line. On all our previous visits we'd been to Boulevard with a large group and were therefore seated in the back. But having a softly lit table for two in the midst of a dimly lit space made us feel we were in a private space.
The Menu and the Food
Boulevard's menu changes regularly, though at what interval I can't say for sure. We don't eat there often enough to know, but every time we've been there it's been entirely new to us. So we don't have any favorite dishes to recommend, but by way of compensation each visit presents us with a fresh look at what the chef's imagination has to offer. The menu can't be said to be particularly vegetarian-friendly, and vegans definitely are not catered to here. We've always found that the menu describes each dish very thoroughly, which helps diners choose dishes very knowledgeably. There were about 8 appetizers and 8 mains on our most recent visit, along with two nightly specials.
Our waiter was able to describe all the choices in even greater detail then the menu. I could tell by the way he talked about the dishes that he had actually tried them and was both passionate and thoroughly knowledgeable about food and cooking. We learned that he held a degree from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, where I also studied. Asked if he was trying to work his way into the kitchen, he demurred, saying he couldn't afford to work there!
Once our orders were placed, bread and butter were set out for us. Knowing that great things were to come, we mostly ignored the bread, but the few nibbles we took confirmed that it was excellent; my guess is that it was Acme bread from across the bay.
My husband chose a "crispy" calamari appetizer and an Alaskan ivory salmon steak with sautéed morels for his main. I ordered the special appetizer for the night: an artichoke fritter and small piece of rouget with a vegetable tian, all garnished with fresh greens and black and green olive oils. My main was a lamb chop with greens and asparagus. It was listed on the menu as coming with garlic mashed potatoes. When I requested that these last be omitted from my plate our waiter offered me an extra side of spinach which I was happy to accept.
To make a long story short, everything we ordered was superlative, especially my lamb main course. Each dish was beautifully plated and sized moderately by American standards. But the portions certainly couldn't be called stingy. I like the slightly smaller size of the dishes at Boulevard. When the quality is this high it's easy to forego quantity in favor of excellent modest portions, and it left us with room enough to order and enjoy dessert and a cheese plate comfortably.
We finished off our meal with a cheese plate and one dessert, plus two glasses of dessert wine. Drawing on my recent exposure to excellent Moscato in Italy, I asked for a glass of that, while my husband opted for the Bonnie Doone. The Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve, an artisanal domestic cheese made with unpasteurized cow's milk, perfectly complemented my meal and wound down the evening on just the right note. I was impressed by the subtlety and complexity of flavor in this medium-hard aged cheese. I don't think I've ever encountered such a depth of flavor in an American cheese before.
Prices
Unsurprisingly, a meal at this restaurant will cost you dearly. In the past we've gotten around this fortunately by having someone else pick up the tab. Business dinners are great when you can get the company to pay for a meal at the likes of Boulevard. This most recent meal came to a whopping $230 before the tip. On our budget that's a splurge, and a big one. But I don't grudge the expense. Much of that went for half bottles of wine and wines by the glass. The prices for the appetizers range from $10-$20 and for the main dishes, $24-$35. Desserts all cost about $9, while the excellent cheeses are priced at $5 or below, making a cheese plate one of the best deals in the house. If you can restrict yourself to tap water you'll save yourself a considerable amount. In any case, I see a meal at Boulevard as an occasion and one worth indulging in at least once a year.
Service
The service at Boulevard is of the highest caliber. It is attentive and extremely professional without any of the hovering or intrusiveness that can result from restaurants encouraging their waitstaff to oversell the product. Our waiter was definitely an asset for us. His ability to describe the dishes was exceptional, offering us extremely detailed and accurate information. And though this came up only in the case of two cheeses from the cheese list, he admitted when he had not tried something we asked about. All the dishes and wines he particularly recommended were superb.
Boulevard pays attention to all the details, so it should come as no surprise that they take the time to make sure that the beautiful stemware and silverware is flawlessly polished. We saw employees individually polishing glasses as they set them on the tables. Five different types of glassware were used at our table during our meal. Each type of wine we ordered was served in an appropriate glass and we had lovely blue water goblets for our tap water. Although our waiter helped us choose our wine, it was the sommelier who always brought our wine to the table and poured it for us. On previous visits, the sommelier had helped our groups select wines to accompany our meals. This meticulous attention to detail was carried off without pretension or unctuousness.
Final Thoughts
I would recommend this restaurant for a big occasion, such as an anniversary or birthday celebration. I've never tried to eat at Boulevard without a reservation and I get the impression that one would be crazy to try to eat dinner here without one, though on a Tuesday night or for lunch it just might be possible. Reservations would be the smart move.
All things considered, Boulevard garners top marks in every category. This place sets the standard for all restaurants of this class as far as I'm concerned. Each time we eat here we come away more and more impressed. If you've got the money for a gastronomic splurge, this would be the place to do it.
If you like the restaurant, you'll probably love Boulevard: The Cookbook.
Looking for other great places to eat in San Francisco? I've also reviewed:
• Woodward's Garden, which is almost as good as Boulevard
• Betelnut - highly recommended for a fun night with a group
• Suppenkuche - unpretentious German bierhaus charm in Hayes Valley
• Helmand - little known but excellent Afghan place and a great value
Recommended:
Yes
Kid Friendliness: No
Vegetarian Friendly: No
Best Suited For: Romantic Evening
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