Magical Masa’s
For more than a quarter century, Masa’s in San Francisco has not only survived, but thrived at the top echelon of fine-dining in the Bay Area.
That’s quite the achievement when you consider that the restaurant has weathered the loss of its founding chef, Masataki Kobayashi, whose slaying still remains unsolved; the departure of successor Chef Julian Serrano to Picasso in Las Vegas; and the loss of Chef Ron Siegel to the Dining Room at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco.
Since 2004, though, the venerable restaurant has been in good hands with Executive Chef Gregory Short, a former sous chef at the French Laundry in Yountville.
In this dire economy, with diners leery of splurging too often — if at all — Masa’s has not been immune from a drop in clientele. But as it has always done, it’s managed to roll with the times.
A new, less expensive three-course prix fixe was added this year for $65 to go along with the regular $95 five-course and $155 nine-course options. And if the recent Tuesday night when I was invited to dine with a group of other food writers is any indication, business is definitely on the upswing. On this weeknight, the dining room was almost full. And the experience was as divine as always.
No matter how much you spend, Masa’s always delivers a special experience from the moment you walk into the striking dining room with its dark brown walls, deep red drum lights, and stark white tables. You can’t help but feel ensconced in stylish, warm elegance.
Short sent out two amuses: A creamy, buttery spot prawn bisque alongside a crisp, smoky grilled spot prawn. Next came a quenelle of California white sturgeon caviar with Marchall Farms creme fraiche and the lightest, tenderest tiny blini ever.
We were allowed to choose five courses from any of the menus. I started with “A Composition of Summer Figs,” which were grilled, marinated, and made into marmalade. A sliver of crisp, dehydrated fennel, and a dollop of creamy, salty Roquefort completed this edible still life.
Next, I enjoyed sweet basil agnolotti, enriched with white corn polenta with creamy mascarpone, and tossed with delicate, peeled orbs of toybox tomatoes that made me wish summer was still here.
Beeler’s Ranch Duroc pork rib-eye was meaty, dense, and rich tasting. Poached Pippin apples lent an aromatic autumn touch.
Pastry Chef John McKee, former co-owner of La Seine Bakery in San Francisco and former executive pastry chef of Noe Valley Bread and Baking Company in San Francisco, has a most creative touch.
His intermezzo of apple-wasabi sorbet with lemongrass gelee and shiso broth was deft and memorable. Sweet, floral, and icy, yet with a haunting subtle burn at the back of the throat, it’s made with real wasabi root. It’s not in-your-face fiery, yet still flaunts the complexities of this distinctive, nasal-clearing rhizome.
For dessert, I opted for the tomato cannoli filled with ricotta cream, and accented with tomato marmalade and an orange-mint sorbet. It’s a dessert that makes you remember that tomato is actually a fruit. And when it’s candied in marmalade, it’s sweet and addicting.
The sweets never end there. Not at Masa’s. The candy cart is rolled to your table for you to make your selections from a myriad of house-made truffles, lollipops, macarons, cannelles, caramels, and nougats. The staff is only too happy to wrap some up for you to take home, too.
Because at Masa’s, they know how to take care of you most deliciously — even in these challenging times.
Such beautiful presentations of each ingredient in the dishes – works of art!
What “candy” did you try. I have been obsessing about macarons after reading about them on http://lisa-is-bossy.blogspot.com/
That agnolotti looks positively mouthwatering. A friend was suggesting Masa for our next trip to SF, your post has completely convinced me, thank you!
JulieK: I think the question is more like, “What DIDN’T I try from the candy cart?” Hah. Even though we were all so full after the actual meal, we still managed to nibble on the sweets at the end. The macarons were crisp on the outside, and melt-in-your-mouth sticky-tender on the inside, just like they should be. The cannelles were wonderful — crispy on the exterior, with that lovely burnt sugary taste. They also packed us up with some sweets to take home. I just sampled one of the lollipops last night. It had a lovely honey taste to it.
Is it weird that I’m jealous of your lighting for the photos and not focused on the food? Ha! Beautiful photos, really makes the dishes look delicious! I may have to try that three course prix fixe!
wow! amazing presentation, and nice creative plays on traditional ingredients. Love!
Nice! The food looks phenomenal. Is this related to the Masa in NYC?
I so enjoyed reading this review! And your photos are absolutely beautiful as always…
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What a feast! That basil agnolotti looks especially beautiful.
Oh! Everything looks so yummie…great pictures! Would love to try them all 🙂
Jen: Nope, the New York Masa’s is not related to the Masa’s in San Francisco. The former is a super-pricey, exquisite Japanese restaurant known for its impeccable sushi. The latter, as you can see from the post above, has some Asian sensibilities, but is definitely not a sushi bar. 😉
Single Guy: I somehow lucked out with the lighting. It was not a brightly lit restaurant, but somehow the lighting in the photos actually came out OK — a rarity when shooting in restaurants at night, as I know you know only too well. Nice to have shared a table with you at Perbacco earlier this week.
Waw,…this is real food art!! The dishes look superb!! Lucky you!!!
That summer fig dish is the highlight! OH EM GII!!! Looks magnificent!
And I wonder….isn’t figs supposed to be in season right now? I can’t find any! 🙁
Sophia: It’s getting to be the tail-end of fig season, which is generally summer and into early autumn. You still might find some around. I know I saw some at my neighborhood grocery store last week.