After Thanksgiving, my mom left for Taiwan (she’s coming back tomorrow) and Ryan and I decided to go on a diet. Two weeks after mediocre effort eating lean sandwiches and salads for [nearly] every meal, I fell ill with a horrible stomach flu (possibly combined with food poisoning). For five days straight, all I ate were saltine crackers with gatorade (which my stomach rejected anyway) and congee on the day of recovery.
…and then the holiday dinners began. Since I work for two startups, there were two company dinners, and since Ryan’s family is pretty much my family, we had multiple family dinners, meaning…I gained back all the weight I lost (roughly 5lbs) in no time.
Here’s a gastronomical break down in chronological order:
Fleur de Lys
777 Sutter St.
San Francisco, CA
This place is fantastic and forever emblazoned in my memory. Not only was the food superb but the service was immaculate; waiters explain every dish before you begin, fold your napkins each time you leave, and come by constantly to offer more pistachio or olive bread (which, btw, are both amazing).
For the appetizer, I chose the symphony, which featured a tiny foie gras burger, watermelon cubes topped with caviar, small salad, chickpea fries… basically really cute amusements which made me feel 100% giddy and happy like a child discovering miniature toys for the first time. For the first of two entrees (if you pick the 4 course meal), I tried the Hawaiian swordfish, which came drizzled in a really thick sauce (online menu says pinot but it tasted a tinge like coffee) with a side of an even thicker soup (consomme? puree?), which tasted like lobster bisque to me. Online menu says saffron soup, which makes me believe that they switch up the menu or I have faulty taste buds… As for the meat entree, I went with the lamb duo. The lamb loin was absolutely delicious and the lamb shank was so soft it fell apart in my mouth. It also came with really big pearls of couscous, which I’ve never seen before!
To wrap up, we asked the waiter for his personal recommendations, which were the fleur burger and raspberry something (tart? or some sort of pastry). Since everyone else went for the fleur burger, I went for the raspberry dessert, which was a good choice since it also came with a chocolate mousse mouse and a tiny ice-cream cone with vanilla bean! J’adore this place!
