Palomino Euro Bistro
345 Spear Street (at Folsom)
The Embarcadero
Tel: 415-512-7400
Palomino is perhaps the first successful full-service restaurant to morph into San Francisco during my dining and drinking life. Although it feels like it would be more at home in LA or Vegas, it's a surprisingly easy fit here in the Gotham of Gastronomy.
The principle reasons for this success in my humble opinion are: location, design and décor, and a fastidious attention to detail. Any restaurant operator would be hard pressed to fail in a waterfront location like the reconceived Hills Brothers Coffee plant, sitting across the emerging Embarcadero esplanade. Palomino sits within a newly constructed addition to the original Hills plant, facing the bay and an expansive, thoughtful courtyard where as many as 100 people are seated in the fresh bay breeze on days not deemed frigid by management. The interior is a dramatic marriage of Frank Lloyd Wright and Georgia O'Keefe with some warm Diebenkorn thrown in for a seamless effect. Everything flows in gentle curves and ingenious elevations, providing interesting views from each table. In fact, some of the tables may be the only right angles in the place. Maybe I should say here that Palomino suggests the taste and elegance of Aqua, but with heart and soul. The attention to detail is most noticed when one leaves, realizing that from the moment you entered Palomino, everything has been near perfect. There is nothing that overwhelms any of your senses throughout your visit, everything seems anticipated and expected, so the whole experience seems flawless from the front of the house greeting to the thank you when exiting. The staff all seem well trained and versed in every detail of the operation, leaving few opportunities for problems in delivery of everything from the menus to the guest check upon completion of your meal. The staff wear a colorful, hip yet casual uniform and are neither idiotically 'chipper' nor morbidly 'down.'
My last visit was my least memorable, but it was still miles above what is offered in service professionalism by most San Francisco eateries. We were put off by the management's decision to prohibit outdoor seating on what appeared to be a truly spectacular day. It was early November, about 70 degrees, light winds and crystal clear, but they have a strict policy of closing the outdoor patios in mid October. That personal gripe out of the way, everything else was excellent. The service was attentive, not overbearing or pushy, and from the generous drinks served in leaded, designer glasses to the housemade breads served upon seating, things flowed flawlessly. I started with a robust corn/chipolte chowder at $4.95 which was just as described by our waiter, my colleague had the wood oven roasted green lip mussels at $8.95. I chose the applewood grilled chicken with spicy tomato sauce, chevre butter and mashed potatoes at $10.95 and my partner selected the butternut squash risotto at $9.95, both were large portions and very well prepared and plated. The waiter re-iterated the menu suggestion of a glass of Martini non-vintage Merlot at $6.75 a glass, which was a practical and affordable house selection.
All of the dishes are made of top-notch quality products. This is particularly noticeable in dishes like a risotto, where the substitution of lesser ingredients can easily destroy even the greatest chef's skills and imagination. We finished off with a fresh berry and apple strudel topped with vanilla bean ice cream at $6.95, which was outstanding.
Palomino is a warm, exciting and inviting restaurant and bar with great service, very good food, a luxurious and vibrant décor, generous portions in food and drink, and excellent ingredients in everything they serve. They survive in a city known for its hostility to transient fads and glossy exteriors because they deliver quality and substance to a sophisticated and knowledgeable audience.
I highly recommend Palomino Euro Bistro.
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