Making a splash for seafood

dRestaurant Review of Aqua

For my brother's birthday we headed to the 2 star Michelin restaurant Aqua that serves high-end sea food dishes.

The restaurant has a grand entrance. When you enter you see vaulting ceilings and gigantic mirrors that hang from the walls making the place feel deceivingly large.


We were sat down at a uniquely L-shaped booth with felted seats. The waiter immediately came over and to offer his greetings and tell us the specials of the night. Aqua's menu has two pre-fixed menus. There is the three course menu which includes an appetizer, entree and dessert and the 7 course citrus tasting menu for $130.

We decided to stick with the three courses menu.

These were following dishes we ordered.

Starters


To start off we were given a refreshing little starter compliments of the chef. It came in nice platter divided into 3 slots. One had a nice cup of candy orange soup. The soup was excellent with small pieces of orange rinds and candied syrup at the bottom. Then there was the turnip croquette which was moist and flavorful. Last but not least there was the Monterey anchovies drizzled with lime another flavorful composition.

Appetizers

The Hamachi with Tandoori Spices, Sea Vegetables, Grapefruit was the weakest appetizer. The ingredient combination was completely off as the tandoori spices did not jive well with the citrus flavors.


The Dungeness Crab with Meyer Lemon Cucumber Caviar, Curry Poppy Seed Vinaigrette was my favorite dish. A great composition of prepared crab salad neatly wrapped in a cucumber skin packed with lots of flavor.

The Kabocha Squash Soup with Maine Lobster, Vadouvan Cream, Squash “Couscous" had a nice smoky flavor and was a very filling soup.

Entrees

A special on the menu was the Wagyu Beef with glazed onions. The meat was tender and quite juicy but could have used a bit more flavor.

The Striped Sea Bass with Saffron Rice, Chorizo, Green Almond, Fruits de Mer was decent but nothing to brag about. Although somewhat flavorful, the fish could have been a bit more moist and tender.

The warm Scottish Salmon with Rye Gnocchi, was an excellent dish. The salmon was cooked to perfection and had some nice seasonings.

The Roasted Atlantic Cod & Pork Confit Under Smoked Chilies, Gigante Bean, Aged Garlic, Fennel Pollen & Meyer Lemon Jus, was nicely presented in a bed of red chilies. A nice dish with a some good zing.

Desserts

The Crepes "Dentelle" Apple Confit with Spiced Date Cream and Yogurt Sorbet was quite nice but was a bit to sweet for my liking.


The Tahitian Vanilla Bar Glace consisting of Walnut Cake and Pear & Lime Sorbet and Roasted Pear a delicious and elegant dessert that was this hit of the night. A nice bar of lime sorbet on top of crumbled walnut cake. The slightly bitter sorbet with the sweet cake paired perfectly.


Finally the Madagascar Chocolates consisting of Flourless Chocolate Cake, Milk Crémeux, Dark Mousse was also another amazingling scrumptios dessert.

Overall it was a decent visit, although it's hard to say it deserved 2 michelin stars. The appetizers were excellent but the entrees were not able to maintain the level of consistency. However, the night was saved with great dessert selection wich made this a experience memorable experience.


Service: 4 bites
Ambiance: 3.5 bites
Appetizers 4.3 bites
Entrees: 3 Bites
Desserts 4.8 bites
Overall: 3.8 Bites

AQUA
252 California Street,
San Francisco, California 94111
http://www.aqua-sf.com