Brasserie Savoy
580 Geary
Union Square
415.441.8080
| posthoc's Late Night Restaurant Guide |
Brasserie Savoy —the pre-eminent Gallic gustatory destination for almost a decade. It had been quite awhile since I’d visited, but I heard good things about the menu since Chef Paul Singhapong took over the reigns; I decided to visit again. The house charmer Ladis Prostredny is truly professional. Together, Singhapong and Prostredny put this stylish Brasserie back on the culinary map.
The Theatre District sorely needs this good French restaurant.
Guests enter through the lobby of a handsome, small European-style hotel and are greeted at the captain's podium by Ladis, natty and smiling warmly; he calculates the seating options before he escorts your party to the table he feels will give your party the most pleasure that the sophisticated dining room and bar offer.
The bar is large, rectangular and seats more than 20, an unheard of number for a brasserie, bistro or café one might encounter in France. But just off Union Square here in San Francisco, the large bar feels just perfect.
The dining room is dramatic, delivering on its promise to offer sensory, yet sensible, pleasure. From twenty-some-foot ceilings hang bold brass nouveau chandeliers; the walls are washed in a soft, pale cream and edged with high-quality mahogany moldings around the windows and wainscoting of all the walls. The floors are old, veined, black and white marble that adds weight and substance to the experience of the room. Tables are sturdy and napped in several layers of bright white cotton adorned with heavy, silver plate, quality china and crystal; herringbone wicker chairs, luxuriously comfortable and elegantly casual, sit around the tables. On the few available surfaces hang several large, impressionist oils (in the dining room) and a series of framed posters (in the bar).
The menu is straightforward and, so far, offers little that reveals Chef Paul Singhapong’s dramatic talents and fusion inspirations. Singhapong’s skill and mastery of the basics, however, is evident in everything we tried. Appetizers include le saumon gravlax et tarte a l'oignon (10.00): gravlax with a sweet onion tart and dill mustard remoulade. I tried la soupe a l'oignon gratinee (7.00) which was sensational with a hint of fresh chives, a prefect crouton, and Gruyere and Parmesan cheeses. Two salads, each 8.00, are available and both are delicious. La salade de truite pochee with watercress, Belgian endive and arugula served with a poached red trout filet in a balsamic vinaigrette was excellent; but la salade aux epinards et fromage de chevre was also great: baby spinach and frisee with peppered goat cheese in a champagne-walnut vinaigrette. Entrees include la daube de boeuf garnie (20.00), a daube of beef cheek with carrots and mashed potatoes; le faux filet grille sauce poivre vert et cognac (22.00), a large and perfectly prepared choice New York steak with green peppercorn-cognac sauce, excellent pommes frittes and asparagus; and, at 21.00, the most beautiful mixed grill I've ever seen: le plat de choucroute garnie featuring a hand sized piece of black forest ham and three different sausages with parsley potatoes and sauerkraut (a ten-out-of-ten for best kraut in town).
Brasserie Savoy offers seven desserts, each for 7.00. We tried a delicious French apple tart with vanilla bean ice cream and homemade caramel sauce; a chocolate Charlotte, rich with chocolate, custard and Grand Marnier sponge cake; and a near perfect opera tart, rectangular layers of white and dark chocolate in fine pastry drizzled with a fresh fruit sauce. Service is traditionally French: proper and heavy handed with a loving boost from Manager Ladis. Drinks are generous, the wine list is large and fairly priced, but beers and non-alcoholic beverages are given short shrift. The overall experience of this fine restaurant is very good; the ambience, service and general feel of Brasserie Savoy invite the Francophile back with open arms. Perhaps, with time, even people with no interest in anything French will grow to love this dining room. I highly recommend Brasserie Savoy. Brasserie Savoy, 580 Geary, Union Square, 415.441.8080.
Reproduction of material from posthoc is prohibited without written permission.
Copyright 2002, Posthoc, Inc.