Need a 5 Star Restaurant that offers a Tasting Menu With Wine Pairings in San Franciscio!
 

I am meeting three friends in San Francisco in mid December. We want to celebrate being together at a special restaurant that offers a tasting menu with wine pairings. Price is no object and the tasting menu can be a chef's choice (preferred) or a published one. Any recommmendations? I know you Fodorite Foodies will steer me to the right one for us! Thanks in advance!

Sorry for the typo in the title! :(

topping

Try eGullet.

Ehhhh, can you give us some more info? Every "5 star" restaurant in San Francisco offers tasting menus with wine pairings. So what kind of cuisine do you prefer? French? Mediterranean? Californian? Italian? How about ambience? Boisterous? Romantic? If you don't describe your own tastes you'll get recommendations based on someone else's.

Aqua is a good seafood restaurant with a 7 course tasting menu with optional wine paring.
www.aqua-sf.com

There's also Quince and Gary Danko. It's best to make the recommendation a couple of weeks before the date.

Gary Danko, Fleur de Lys, Jardinere, La Folie, Masa's come to mind.

Price is no object?

Hire a limo and head out to The French Laundry. The only Michelin 3 star restaurant in the Bay Area. Must try to get reservations exactly 2 months to the date you want to dine.

In the city...Gary Danko is wonderful.

Gary Danko..
I love French Laundry but its almost impossible to get in..
You have to make reservations, 60 days to the exact date you want and the phone is always busy..try opentable

I am sorry I was not more specific. For ambiance I think I would prefer a restaurant that was not boisterous by any means but not necessarily romantic either...classic to modern decor. Somewhere you can have a conversation without having to shout across the table. New American, California, or French cuisines would probably be our choice but not a dealbreaker. I really enjoy a chef's choice tasting menu that surprises you with every course vs. one that is listed in the menu. I hope this helps. Thanks guys!

' been to them all. I think Quince fits the bill. Just get beyond the snotty telephone reservation person / hostess, and you'll be home free!

another excellent option is the Dining Room at the Ritz Carlton.

I have wanted to eat at Gary Danko for several years and for one reason or another have not been able to. Quince sounds really nice as well. Our two favorite tasting experiences have been at Driskill Grill in Austin Texas and at Restaurant August in New Orleans. Both Chef Bull and Chef Besh were very impressive in their offerings and the wine knowledge of the waitstaff was superior. Each were blind tastings with the waiter given the freedom to pair wines as he saw fit. It is that kind of experience we are looking for.

Chowhound.com
is great for advice on food.

We found Gary Danko disappointing. The food was quite good, but the atmosphere was bland. Business-like. I hear that Michael Mina and Fifth Floor can be similar, though I've never eaten there.

Quince is wonderful but I'm not sure that they offer a tasting menu every night. You should call and check. It is a small restaurant with good service and exquisite food - especially the pasta dishes. A lesser-known haute Italian restaurant called Acquarello does a magnificent personalized tasting menu if you ask. The energy level is a tad more sedate than at Quince. Aqua and Farallon are both impressive temples for seafood.

If you feel like heading north to the wine regions French Laundry, Cyrus, or Terra would all be fine choices.

I loved Gary Danko. The food and service were amazing and I liked the atmosphere--not noisy and overwhelming like so many trendy places (and I was there with a date, not for a business dinner and thought it was well-suited for that). Given what you say you're looking for, I think it would be perfect.

We just went to Gary Danko and it was the right choice for us. A fantastic evening. We never felt rushed. The tasting menu was very flexible and the wine pairings were some of the very best we have had. I recommend Gary Danko wholeheartedly for this type of experience.

Glad you had a great time at Gary Danko..
Also, for reporting back!
Merry Christmas apseals..
((D))