AQ Restaurant & Bar

For our anniversary dinner this was a great place to go. The chef tasting menu was better than a lot of places we have tried recently. 10 out of 12 dishes were great. With tasting menus (we have tried a lot) you are never going to like everything, but if you come away from the meal with the feeling that you want to come back then it was worth it. For me a whisky and bourbon guy, this place had a great selection. Our server was the best and great for two people that have not been out much lately. (5 month old at home) Would suggest this place to friends and because it has spaces for big groups might plane on having a big dinner with friends here one day.

The challenge of picking the perfect anniversary dinner restaurant is eclipsed only by trying to pick a date, when we’re lucky enough to live in GS Warriors country during the playoffs Perhaps we should have thought of this when we got married oh so long ago. Oh well, this year was between A Q and Gary Danko, and the former won out. I wanted to finally try AQ after having bookmarked it almost since it opened. The wisdom of this choice was obvious, when we pulled into a parking place only 2 doors down. Traffic was light and parking was easy, resulting in us arriving 30 minutes early. Only one lone guy sitting at the bar, no one eating yet.
Despite the interior being mostly composed of hard surfaces, I’m pleased to say that even after it filled up, we were still able to hear conversation without strain, and the tables were spaced well enough to allow us to feel like we were neither eavesdropping or being listened in on.
The meal started with a collection of amuses bouches, which consisted of a financier, which tasted like a sweet corn muffin, with some kind of compound butter, a blini with an herb salad and a chip dusted with I forget what. These were all pretty but forgettable. We sipped two of their signature cocktails, The Magician for me, The World for him. Liked them both.
We opted for the 4-​course, prix fixe, instead of the chef’s menu, partially, because 10 courses no matter how small, seemed like too much, and my husband, was not thrilled about having no discretion over the selection. We did make sure to select different options for each course, so we could taste as many items as possible.
Too Many Peas 3.5: This beautiful presentation had raw English peas scattered over chopped butter clams, and trout roe sprinkled over. The briny sweet clams were the best part-​both texture and flavor. The peas a little more starchy than sweet, and the roe was very mild in flavor
New Potatoes 4.5: naped with a pesto made from dandelion, nori and ham. The addition of the fried potato crisp on top had just the right crisp distraction. This was a lovely dish
Artichoke, sourdough and fermented ramps (4): This turned out to be tiny ravioli stuffed with a soft mild (ricotta?) white cheese surrounded by a mild meaty tasting sauce with artichokes in it and a less than wafer thin sour dough «chip» on top. The ravioli had lovely silken skin and rich smooth filling. The artichoke and the crisp tasted great, but it was under seasoned, overall, and seemed not to all go together. I couldn’t detect any fermented ramp
Black Cod (3): steamed and accompanied by pine syrup, onion and warm pork fat, the best part, I’m ashamed to admit, was the pork fat. This dish was our least favorite and badly needed salt
Sonoma Lamb (4): The lamb was impeccably fresh. Originally I was told it would be a rack of lamb with crispy pork belly accompanying. What arrived was a single chop and lamb shank. As a fan of crispy fatty fried meats, I was disappointed by the substitution. The «caramelized walnut milk» was tasty, but too subtle and hence over shadowed by the well flavored shank meat. Again needed salt
Suckling Pig (4.5): served with wild ramps, of which I’m becoming a big fan, this was confitted and pressed into «logs». Very rich, very tasty. The rhubarb and ramp compote beneath was a real star. I would eat it on almost anything.
Cheese Plate (3.5): Nothing special here, one firm aged goat cheese and a cheddar
Strawberry hazelnut joconde, orange (3): I got this because dessert was one of the courses you have to select, I’m not a sweets person, and mainly, because it increased my culinary vocabulary. Who amongst you have ever heard of a joconde?
Service was efficient and pleasant, although she needed to loosen up a little. Demerits for not providing salt or pepper on the table. I think this is arrogant, and in this case, had we been able to easily add a little salt, I might have bumped my points up a little
I would definitely come again, and I think the bar might be a fun stop on it’s own.
Food: ³⁷⁄₄₀
Atm/​intangibles: ¹⁸⁄₂₀
Service: ¹⁷⁄₂₀
Value: ¹⁷⁄₂₀
Overall: 89/​100, just misses a 5 I’ll have to give them another chance and this time I’ll ask for salt and pepper at the table

Food was very good! Love that their menu changes with the season. The décor also changes with the season. We got to experience the spring and the chef did not disappoint us in any of the dishes he prepared. So much flavor and contrast. There were six of us. Only two of us have been there before, so we knew what to expect. Unfortunately the others were surprised that they only served a tasting menu of 10 courses and a four course pre fixe menu. There were no a la cart options. Also, It is a bit pricey especially when you add drinks.

This was, perhaps, the best meal I’ve had since Paul LeBrandt closed Corton in NYC a few years ago. It was challenging, creative, no holds barred — and we loved it from start to finish. From the amuse that came out just after we ordered though till dessert AQ surprised and delighted. The first course — pea purée with spring peas, pancetta, and clams — signalled that we were in good hands. The salty punch from the clams just lifted this dish to an ethereal realm. It was followed by a dish highlighting multiple variations of grilled asparagus — and the wines paired for us by a great staff worked brilliantly here and throughout. The highlight, though, had to be the artichoke agnolotti with sourdough jus (that’s right) and preserved chili kim chee. Wow. Halibut with vegetable «scales» followed along with a perfect lamb chob/​crisp lamb belly with anchovy greens. Dessert and cheese courses both brilliant. Not for everyone, but if you love food and want the envelope pushed this is the place for you!

Totally delicious! Loved their fois gras and duck dish was delicious and melted in my mouth which is rare for game meat!

I found this place to be fairly bland and of bad value given the price.

Great meal at a great price. I haven’t had food this good in CA for this price since RNM closed ($ 72 for a 4 course meal). Plus the wine pairings were both adventurous and familiar giving me flavors I wanted from regions and grapes I would not have picked for myself. My only regret is that I didn’t come here sooner.

Are you really confused by the reviews for AQ because they swing wildly from really bad to really good? Me too. Bottom line: would not recommend.
I came here with my SO about a year ago, and it was one of the best meals we’ve had. Everything flavored to perfection, and we’re both foodies that enjoy going out to «New American» places like this.
Fast forward to last Friday, when I thought, based on past experience, I’d bring my mom and brother to this place, since they were visiting SF. $ 300 for one of the worst meals I’ve had. We would have enjoyed cheap breakfast diner food more than what was an attempt at crafted food. One dish went back with each of us only eating a bite. The «Spiced duck for two» came bleeding (we asked for medium rare) and was just a bland roasted duck, no spices on it at all. Other dishes were generally bland or a mess of random flavors, nothing cohesive.
By the way, it was 7pm on a Friday and the restaurant was half empty (it’s a large restaurant).

First off, is it truly the case that dinner for two, with two drinks, clocking in at $ 270 warrants only a «$$$» cost rating?
I really wanted to love this place. You walk in, it’s completely charming, the servers are nice and the menu is exciting. It’s not my first rodeo and I can get behind the high prices. But, for that money, you’d better Wow me. And they did not.
We did the 4 course prix fixe with a couple cocktails instead of wine. The first two courses were very tasty and quite original. Nothing spectacular. But perfectly fine, given the context. But then the protein mains came out. Both were beyond underwhelming. At any price point, I simply would not have enjoyed them. You can’t mess up the main, folks. Not in your league.
And, when I told them I was underwhelmed, they merely offered, «Sorry to hear that».
Dessert was back in the category of «fine». Definitely tasty. But not remarkable.
As I write this, I’m tempted to lower the rating to 2-​stars. At this price point, the food needed to be much better. At least the main course, certainly did. I left feeling ripped off.

AQ was where I had my first official date with the boyfriend so I’ll admit it could possibly be the butterflies in my stomach that makes me adore this restaurant so much. AQ offers a four course prix fixe or full tasting menu which changes according to the season. We opted for the four course prix fixe since we had plans to attend the Beach Blanket Babylon show afterwards. The four course was just the perfect portion for dinner & took about 1.5 hours. I was quite astonished how captivating the ambience is given that it’s located in a rough neighborhood. The food was also fantastic and beautiful presented so I am looking forward to what AQ’s ever changing menu will unveil.

Phenomenal. Had such a great time with friends, in a beautiful atmosphere, surrounded by delicious food. What a way to end 2015. Our table enjoyed the 5 course tasting with the wine pairing. I don’t really think words can explain the degree of enticing items I had yesterday. Every dish prepared to excellence, presented with such artistry, and paired with delectable wine or champagne. Some of the items on the tasting included caviar, scallops that were super sweet, semi bitter cheese dip in a sweet pumpkin, pork belly, fish that was flaky and perfectly pan seared, etc. To top it off, an absolutely amazing wait staff who were attentive and helpful. Must at least try once if in the SF area. Street parking. A little pricey, but well worth the experience for any foodie. Somewhere I would def go again. Enjoy!

What an experience! This was probably one of the nicest meals that I’ve ever had. The service was superb, the ambience is great and the food is creative and full of balanced flavor. I enjoyed my meal so much that I forgot to take pictures of most food that was served!
Don’t let the rougher streets and the homeless guy passed out close to the door fool you. Go inside and you will be pleasantly surprised.
Décor: As you walk in the door, you can tell immediately the restaurant has very good attention to details. One of the first metal plates on the floor as you enter says «autumn» to set the current décor and food theme of the restaurant. As an east-​coaster who grew up 2 hours way from the Appalachian mountains, I do miss the fall and find the SF interpretation of fall colors probably as close to the fall as I will get around this area…
Food: The food is very creative with excellent wine pairing. For me, the portions are large, but I rarely ever finish my food at any restaurants. So bring a buddy that can finish your food or bring a buddy whom you want to steal the food from. The presentation is just BEAUTIFUL. Most dishes are well-​balanced in color and flavor. The king salmon is amazing. I’ve never seen salmon cooked this way, and it is an interesting almost half-​rare texture. The beef was tender. The desserts are definitely the best part of the meal for me. The grapes dish is heavenly. The purple barley is so good, and super filling (in case you’re not full yet from the other dishes). There are a couple dishes that I wasn’t too thrilled about, but it’s more of a personal taste. The foie gras is heavier than what I’m used to, and the sturgeon is slightly too salty for my taste.
Service: Watching the kitchen and the staff work is quite amusing. The staff are attentive without being invasive. Plates are cleared almost immediately when the last bite is done. and one glasses are switched out similarly. Even from the table, I can see the chefs at work plating and using tweezers to put on the finer elements on the plate. Each dish is described as they are brought to the table. Every word that comes out of the staff’s mouth is accompanied with a smile.
So the «cons»:
Noise Level: Like others have said, this place can get loud. The tables are fairly close to each other. So don’t expect an intimate conversation unless you want to shout it across the table, and potentially to your neighbors too.
Somewhat weird: Because it’s a slow night, the kitchen started packing up and cleaning around 9:40… While the idea of an open kitchen is really nice so you can watch your food being made, it’s not so nice when you’re eating and watching chefs start wipe the counters and packing everything away in tupperware. Perhaps I should come earlier next time…
Still, overall this is a great experience. See you next season AQ.

This was a last minute reservation for a dinner with colleagues during a short visit to San Francisco. I was surprised how difficult it was to find a reservation in the city and sort of cautious of this place since it had pretty open availability. In the end, I learned there was nothing to be concerned about. The place lived up rather well to the positive reviews it received upon opening several years back.
The service was attentive and knowledgeable throughout the full meal. I would say that plates were cleared quickly, water glasses were replenished with care and menu items were presented with concise yet colorful descriptions. The staff was not as passionate as other typical foodie establishments (like the late WD-​50 or other New York food scene staples), but given the city and what I’ve come to understand of west coast dining, I was satisfied.
The wine menu was okay, but I was not blown away by the options by any means. There was no walk through of the wine menu at the start, and I felt rushed to make a decision. I would have also liked a little more of a tasting recommendation or pairing menu given that the food menu is so limited at this establishment and already set up like a multi-​course meal or tasting. Finally, the wine pours were rather light, something the entire table noticed throughout the course of the meal.
When it came to the food, there was a strong attention to detail here that was very much appreciated. Some highlights were the arrangement of edible flowers in the sweet peppers and thinly sliced and crispy potatoes with the beef. I found it odd that the vegetarian option needed to be requested and wasn’t on the menu for the third course, especially given that so many people tend to be more sensitive about this in San Francisco. It felt a little bit of an after thought the way it was presented for my colleague. And with the grapes dessert, the crust for the brioche was very hard and not anything you would come to expect with a brioche. It made it very difficult to eat.
As for the décor, the tree branches were a nice touch, while the flower baskets were a little too much. I think they could strike a better, more sophisticated balance with the theme in the décor overall, but the restaurant itself has great architectural features. I’m curious to see how they convey the winter theme as I feel this would be the hardest in San Francisco since there isn’t snow (which would come off as a little cheap in décor if they went this route). The ambiance for the establishment was fine and well suited for conversation.
I’m glad I had a chance to visit this restaurant and would consider coming back knowing that it is a comfortable place for work related dinners. I don’t think I would consider it for friends or a date. Overall, worth a visit if you’re looking for something pretty middle of the road in atmosphere and a bit more refined on the palate.

Came here for a business dinner. It was good! Food was tasty and nicely presented, service was good. Their space is beautiful!
The four course prix fixe was a good choice for business meal — you get to enjoy, chat, at the same time you don’t get too full. I had the following:
— the amuse bouche: some very tasty mini brioche. yum! very memorable (more so than the mains)
— lamb tartare: awesome presentation. really good, fresh, not too lamb-​y, and good combination with the zucchini. Very impressive.
— artichokes and fois gras: a bit weird with the acidity of artichoke combined with the fois gras. Also I felt the artichoke could have a bit more crunch rather than mush. It was a generous serving of fois gras, though. Good quality.
— king salmon and chanterelles: this was good, but nothing too memorable.
— dessert — juniper: Amazing. Very creative. Penna cotta with lots of berries. Very very tasty, so much so I didn’t want to share my dessert with others.
Overall, I found the food to be good, some items stand out more than others. One thing I do notice is that it got a bit loud, and it was hard to hear others at my table — a bad thing for business meals. It was tough. But overall, we had a good time.
We had out of town guests from Europe, so they were a little surprised walking in the neighborhood with the amount of homeless people.

From a dining establishment like AQ, I was expecting much higher quality food than what I received when I came to dine here for dinner.
We tried the prix fix menu and basically ordered everything that was vegetarian.
Course 1:
We tried he melons dish and the sunflower dish. They vegetarian version of the melons was a stack of sweet and savory melons, topped with small seaweed crackers. For me, the seaweed crackers took over the flavor of the entire dish. The sunflower dish was just ok, nothing special as it was a cream with sunflower seeds and some salad to top it off.
Course 2:
Got the artichokes and the corn dish. The artichoke dish was probably my favorite savory dish of the night. The combination of the artichokes, the sauce, and the crackers it came was delicious! On the other hand, the corn dish was just meh. I love corn so I was super excited about this but it was nothing special. It was a polenta mash topped with some corn that didn’t even taste that fresh.
Course 3:
They brought out a vegetarian dish that wasn’t on the menu, but it was a medley of veggies and legumes topped with a tomato sauce. This dish wasn’t very flavorful, and it was nothing exceptional.
Course 4:
The dessert was the best part of the meal! We ordered the blueberry and the juniper. Both were amazing! Such unique dishes both with exceptional flavors and creative plating. I loved them both and would definitely recommend them!
Overall, at the end of the meal, I was satisfied, but I wasn’t left wanting to come back for more. The staff is very friendly and attentive; our server was super accommodating to the fact that we were vegetarian and slowly walked us through everything on the menu that we could eat. I really appreciate this hospitality. The plating on the dishes was amazing! You could tell how much time had gone into preparing each of the dishes and that just made it feel like a much more fancy meal. I just wish I could say all of this about the quality of the food, but I was not super impressed; I’ve definitely tried better prix fix menus in SF!

My boyfriend has learned that I will only be happy if dates start early. If dates start late then I am tired by the time we get home and cranky. So he planned the date to start at 5:30. We were one of the first people to get to the restaurant and the host sat us RIGHT next to another couple. #awkward We asked to be moved. Why did they seat us so close to other people in an empty room.
Food was good. No complaints there. It doesn’t matter how many times I have had a prefix meal, I always overeat the bread thinking the food won’t be enough.
Service was really good– except for the whole seating arrangement at the beginning. The servers were supppperr attentive.
I thoroughly enjoyed this date but would have enjoyed it more if he hadn’t decided he wanted to see a movie after, which kept me from my bedtime. :/

The food was okay. Nothing spectacular. But totally fine. What was really annoying was everything else.
The place is noisy. The acoustics suck. I was with my 85-​year-​old mother-​in-​law and she couldn’t hear anything, but neither could I.
The kitchen is slow. We waited at least 20 minutes between courses. Unable to talk because of the acoustics, we twiddled our thumbs.
The menu/​service is annoying. The menu is full, of ingredients that you’ve never heard of and sound pretentious. It’s okay when you’re reading the menu but comical when one of their Disneyland Animatroinic waiters comes to the table to present a dish, reciting in their best on-​the-​stage-​of-​the-​Globe-​Theatre Shakespeare diction.
The prices are high. If you like theatre and waiting, then maybe it’s worth the price. Not so much for me and my group. Too many better, less pretentious choices in SF.

First of all, let me say that I was very impressed with the cocktails that we ordered! So yummy and really original. I got the Raleigh Blue Streak which was smoky and sweet. My boyfriend got the Bianchi Specialissima which he loved and is not trying to recreate at home!
Ok now for dinner. We ordered off the Spring menu. Our friend doesn’t eat anything that comes from the sea so he had to make a lot of modifications. The servers were so nice and they accommodated him as much as they could.
I liked almost everything that I ordered. For the first course I got the shrimp and lamb tartar, to my surprise I really liked it! My partner got the cauliflower with the scallops. He said it was too bland and he wished he got my dish. Though I thought his tasted just fine. I did not like the Pacific Selfish dish for my second course. I wish I had ordered the halibut that my partner ordered because it was amazing! I tried both the beef strip and the pork loin and they are both cooked perfectly. So you will love whichever one you choose! For dessert I got the Strawberry meringue, it was awesome and so cool to eat because you have to break the meringue shell to get to the strawberries.

This place used to be amazing. But AQ’s season has passed. Party of 7, with a 7:30 res. Two of our party were 5 min late, but we didn’t get seated till 8, and by 9:10, we’d only been served one out of the four courses on the prix fix.
My brother in law (his birthday dinner) has serious celiac, gets a migraine just having grain vodka (potato is fine). But the bartender wanted to argue about if he’d get a headache. Then, even though the waitress asked very specifically about allergies, the kitchen sprinkled bread crumbs across his entrée. So that had to go back.
About half the dishes were excellent, but others were way over-​peppered or just bland.
In defense, the manager did take 25% off our bill for the slow service, which was very generous. But won’t be going back. Hopefully they’ll have more towels in the bathroom if you go (see picture).

This is a review of their winter menu which they have until March 23 (I believe)
They are great with allergy requests. Made everything we ordered without garlic!
All the hoops we had to jump through in order to get here were absolutely worth it!
I picked my sister up from the airport, and we headed for dinner in the city, only to discover that we made a reservation at the wrong restaurant. However, she was so in love with the food at AQ, we cancelled the existing reservation and headed to AQ.
We started the evening with cocktails at a really cool mixology bar, while waiting for our reservation time to come up, but once we came in here and I tried their cocktails, I realized that AQ puts up a good fight when it comes to cocktails. The ones we had at AQ were equally as good, if not better than those we got at the mixology bar. My sister had the
Comic Sans (Lemongrass pisco, lemon, velvet fallernum, cherry bitters, egg while sugar, and soda)
I went for
Courier New (Bergamot gin, grapefruit, lemon, cardamom)
Now for the food, you can either get chef’s tasting menu, or the 4 course dinner, and you get 3 – 4 options that you can choose from, which is what we did.
Course 1:
Potatoes, dungeness crab, sour beet juice, and seaweed: the crab was good, the rest I didn’t like as much; luckily, my sister liked this dish better, and I liked hers better, so we just switched
Forest mushrooms, sunchoke soup, and birch syrup: YUM!
Course 2:
Black cod, broccoli, citrus kosho, and clam butter: pretty good, the fish was nicely cooked
Carrots cooked in herbal butter, caramelized yogurt, and salmon roe: the most inventive dish ever, loved it!
Course 3:
Beef strip loin, salted pear, celery root, and cardoons: my second favorite dish that evening. The beef is perfectly cooked and seasoned
Risotto: didn’t really like it that much; I didn’t realize that it wasn’t actually made with rice
Course 4:
Citrus, chocolate caramel, earl grey tea milk: the earl grey tea milk is actually ice cream, and that was probably my favorite dish this evening
Coffee beets: interesting flavors, would have never thought of beets as dessert