V Restaurant-Beautiful and Elegant

Photo by Michael Reiss

The newly opened V Restaurant dispels the myth that there can not be another good restaurant in San Francisco. V offers outstanding California French cuisine. Located in the brand new, from-the-ground up Orchard Hotel at 655 Bush Street V is beautifully appointed with rich fabric banquets and flashes of modern art on the walls. The restaurant is opulent, sophisticated with impeccable, unpretentious service.

We opted for the "Chef's Tasting Menu" with wine. This many-course tasting menu started with a surprise amuse bouche that our server described as "Torchon de Foie Gras, Champagne Gelee, Truffle Oil." This bite size "mouth teaser" was a foie gras mini terrine accented by champagne and truffle flavors. We had Chenin Blanc, Vouvay Moelleux "Aigle Blanc" Loire Valley, 1990 ($9). This wine's clean rich fruit went well with the foie gras.

Next came a soup course that was equally surprising. It was described as "Black Trumpet Mushroom 'Cappuccino' Soup." This pureed trumpet mushroom soup was served in a coffee cup and finished with foamed milk, so as to resemble a cappuccino. It was rich, unctuous, earthy. It has smooth, creamy elegance. We had Ruby Cabernet, Altavistic Thrill "Carmine," Santa Maria ($5), bargain priced and created by the ebullient Jim Clendendon of Au Bon Climont. This red wine brought out the earthiness of the mushrooms and was a good pairing.

Our "Poached Lobster Salad, Sugar Cane Vinaigrette" ($15) was served next with the tender, moist, perfectly-cooked lobster served warm and presented in tact out of the shell. This rendition of lobster was in sharp contrast to the rubbery, tough, cold lobster salad frequently served at other establishments. We had Perrier-Jouet "English Cuvee" Brut, France, N.V. ($14), whose delicate acidity did not overpower the lobster.

Sommelier Jean Luc so far had chosen wonderful wines. Photo by M. Reiss

All the while Sommelier Jean Luc Lametrie was assisting us with the wine-food pairing. Jean Luc so far had chosen wonderful wines from the interesting "Wines-by-the-Glass List" offered at V Restaurant. The Wine List itself at V is organized in the tried-and-true format of wine origin ( California, the Loire Valley, etc.) and by varietal ( Pinot Noire, Sauvignon Blanc), rather than in the Progressive Wine List" format (Light, Medium or Heavy Bodied Wines). The wine list has a good range of offering--from a bottle of Argentine Malbec at $17 at the low end to Chateau de Beaucastel, 1995 at $120, and beyond to prestigious wines of greater cost. The V Wine List is particularly strong in California Cabs and Blends, offering Opus, Insignia and others.

V's Sommelier Jean Luc is from France and demonstrated excellent wine-food knowledge, serving wine with great efficiency and finesse.

Our next course was "Coriander Seared Diver Sea Scallops, Golden Beet Carpaccio, Sweet Onions, Apple Cider Vinegar" ($14). These were perfectly cooked sweet, plump scallops accompanied by crispy, sweet onions placed above thinly sliced orange beets, finished with a hint of corriander--really a wonderful, light, elegant dish. The Sauvignon Blanc, Fiddlehead Cellars, Santa Yenez Valley, 1999 ($9) offered a crisp, clean pairing.

Crab cake comes in many shapes and seizes in California and across the country, and V's rendition, "Dungeness Crab Salad, Jalapeno Walnut Aioli, Peruvian Chips ($17) was light and fresh, made mostly of crab, not filler, and was accented by osetra caviar and salmon roe, an addition that somewhat overshadowed the delicate crab flavor. We had Riesling, Leon Beyer, Alsace, 1998 ($7) whose fruit-acid balance worked well with the crab.

The next course and the piece de resistance of the meal,was the Chef's signature "Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras, Brioche, Micro Green, Black Cherry Vinaigrette" ($16). This ethereal foie gras was some of the best foie gras we have tasted either in the U.S. or in France. The Chef has taken the foie gras, lightly scored it, added a reduction of black cherry vinaigrette and place it on a light brioche. The foie gras seems to float on the brioche below. It is a light, airy, incredibly well balanced symphony of flavor, unctuousness contrasted with acidity. We had Zinfandel, Lake Sonoma Cellars, Dry Creek Valley, 1998 ($8). This spunky zinfandel was a good pairing.

Executive Chef Denis Soriano has hit his stride. Photo by M. Reiss.

Chef Denis Soriano, Executive Chef of V Restaurant, will no doubt achieve superstar chef status with this kind of Michelin 3-Star-level cuisine. We had known Chef Denis Soriano when he was cooking at The Grand Cafe at the Hotel Monaco. There he was cooking good French bistro-style cuisine. Here at V Restaurant Chef Soriano has met his stride in his expression of superbly executed California French cusine which shows flashes of originality and care.

We found Chef Soriano dish presentation dramatic and eye appealing. Each dish was beautifully presented in the manner of Tru Restaurant of Chicago on large clear plates, garnished with color in a Japo-modern idiom.

Items included on the menu were "Sautéed Chilean Sea Bass, Asparagus, Black Pepper Sauce ($28)" which we tasted and it flaked apart, delicious and perfectly cooked, "Filet Mignon 'Argentine' Polenta Cake, Foie Gras Jus, Mushroom Ragout"( $28 ), a generous serving which we spied at the next table, along with another dish, "Roasted Muscovy Duck Breast, Tower of Spaghetti Squash, Duck Confit, Orange Essence" ($24), a item that had multiple interest on the same plate.

For Desert we had well prepared French style souflees--Grand Manier and Chocolate, a real treat!

In Sum, V Restaurant rates with the finest restaurants in the city. In terms of price-value ratio, particularly with the tasting menus, it is at the top of the list--a real "find" and a welcome addition to the San Francisco culinary scene.

V Restaurant Wine Bar
665 Bush Street,
San Francisco, California 94108
415-837-1680, FAX 415-362-8088

Food *****
Service *****
Atmosphere ****
Value scale ****
Tasting Menu Food/Wine Pairing *****

Scale:
***** Outstanding
**** Excellent
*** Good
** Fair
* Poor