Dine About Town, Round 1 - Vitrine

On a rainy and blustery MLK day, Therese, Justin and I ventured downtown to start off Dine About Town in style at Vitrine, an incredibly elegant and modern restaurant. Conveniently, this weekend coincided with the 75th anniversary of the Museum of Modern Art, which means... free admission! We decided to make a day of it: spend a few hours at the museum, then head to the restaurant and enjoy some fine dining on the cheap. Mmmm, that's the life. The restaurant itself is situated on the 4th floor of the St. Regis Hotel, which itself is located next door to MoMA.

Maine Lobster Bisque flavored with Lemongrass, Celeriac foam

The meal started of with a lobster bisque that was every bit worth the fat and cholesterol your arteries will be clogged with. Every spoonful was packed with intense flavor. The celery foam on top was interesting, with subtle flavor and texture complementing the soup well.

Walnut Crusted Squab Breast, Savory Cabbage Compote, Crispy Potato Galette

Therese and Justin both ordered the Chilean Sea Bass, which sounded incredibly tempting. For the sake of variation, I resisted and ordered the squab. Everything was cooked absolutely to perfection. The skin was crispy, yet the breast itself was tender and juicy, though to be nitpicky, wasn't all too flavorful. This was served on a delicately thin yet crispy potato galette, which to me was even better than the squab. Then again, I'm partial to things fried and crispy. (Side note: I always thought of a galette as more of a pastry, but I suppose this is their interpretation.) Rounding out the bottom was a bed of cabbage and carrots (eww vegetables), though obviously those weren't the stars of the show. All in all I was pretty satisfied, yet I couldn't help but feel the slightest food envy at having missed out on the sea bass. Just one of those 'Grass is greener' things, I guess. By the way, where was the walnut crust on this thing? o.O

Apple Tart with Lavender Honey Ice Cream and Salted Caramel Sauce

With the app and the entree, we were surprisingly full (considering how small these portions usually are), so we decided to split an apple tart for dessert. Not much to say here, just that the vanilla creme thing was a nice touch, and that the honey lavender ice cream was had a milder delicate flavor that is a great contrast to the sweet apple tart.

Total for the meal (w/ dessert split 3 ways): $25. Not too shabby.

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Vitrine

125 3rd St., San Francisco, CA 94103
http://www.yelp.com/biz/vitrine-san-francisco

"Located on the fourth floor of The St. Regis San Francisco, Vitrine offers a full breakfast and lunch menu based on the highest quality ingredients, with herbs and vegetables from the hotel’s organic terrace garden."