Benu**

San Francisco, CA

For our annual Christmas gifts to each other, our tradition is to go out for a nice meal. This year, during our short time in the Bay Area for the holidays, we selected to return to Benu. Our last visit was just weeks after they initially opened and it was excellent. To this day, the best beef dish we’ve ever had came from that meal. Since then, Corey Lee has received lauded reviews, two Michelin stars and even a tweet from David Chang calling it the best restaurant in the U.S. We were utterly excited for the updated menu, with only three dishes carried over from our first visit. Our host, sommelier and server were the same staff that had waited on us 16 months before. I think that says a lot about the consistency and growth of the restaurant since there is so much turnover in the industry.

1000 year old quail egg, potage, ginger

Our first bite was an updated version of the 1000 year old quail egg. This time, the quail egg was accompanied by a sharp, ginger cream soup, very tasty.

oyster, pork belly, kimchi

Next was a creative presentation of oyster, pork belly and kimchi formed together to look like a shu mai Chinese dumpling. The skin was crisp, while the filling of oyster and pork belly tasted like breakfast sausage to me. It wasn’t Chu-Toro’s fav, but I was thoroughly impressed with the construction.

monkfish liver, caviar, pistachio, cauliflower, lemon jelly

Chu-Toro’s proclaimed the monkfish liver to be the best course of the night. Starkly contrasting to the classical monkfish liver torchon we received last time, this presentation was more whimsical and well proportioned. Paired with a delectable pistachio butter, thin slivers of cauliflower, a small lemon jelly (buried) and nice salty caviar, it was a harmonious, ingenious creation.

brioche

And of course to top it all off, it came with the best brioche toast ever. This is one of the namesake items brought from TFL and it never disappoints.

jasmine chicken with dates

Jasmine chicken with dates was something that made us smile. The small bite encompassed the concept of a traditional Chinese chicken dish that is served cold. Corey Lee’s version used two sous vied, moist, bites of chicken, skin included surrounded by a sauce flavored like jasmine. The small bits of dates added a subtle sweetness to course. It provided a nostalgic feeling of eating the classic Chinese chicken followed by a gulp of jasmine tea.

eel, feuille de brick, cream friache, lime

One of the dishes that did remain on the menu from our first visit was the eel.  Within the egg roll like presentation was an eel that had been marinated for over 24 hours. With or without the cream friache dipping sauce, this item was delicious.

chilled homemade tofu, pumpkin juice, black truffle

A strange homemade tofu dish was next. Strange because Chu-Toro felt it was a bit too firm, and it was surrounded by pumpkin and truffle flavors. Not something that you would ever think of, but that’s in part why I appreciated it. If I haven’t said it before, I hate Asian fusion. But Cory Lee’s use of Asian flavors is more about technique and presentation while adding layers of depth to his creations and how can you not like that?

salt and pepper squid

The gorgeous squid cracker was next. It was more like a shrimp chip that you get with your roast chicken at a Chinese restaurant. The squid ink was used to color the chip that was topped with bits of squid, Serrano chile, and snow (but I can't remember what it was made of). But extremely tasty and unique in every bite.

chicken velvet, abalone, matsutake mushroom, chrysanthemum

Chu-Toro wasn’t a fan of the next dish, mainly because she thought this chicken dumpling was softer than the tofu. I thought the broth was homey and heavily layered with chicken and mushroom flavors.

caramelized anchovy, lily bulb, peanut, pickles

We were both shocked about our satisfaction with the anchovy gelee because we didn’t like it the last time around. It was the exact same dish last time with lily bulbs, peanuts and pickles, but this time around it was a surprising favorite of ours both.

foie gras xiao long bao

One of the most exciting dishes that I was looking forward to were the fois gras xiao long bao. A dumpling filled with delicious broth, Chinese people will tell you that they are very picky about it being done right. From the thickness of the skin, the heat of the broth, to the flavor of the meat, everything is subject to judgment. Thankfully, Corey Lee is one bad ass chef and this course was excellent. The wrapper was a bit thick, but the broth inside was so flavorful, with just a slight hint of fois for richness and texture. One of our favorites of the night.

fresh noodles, shrimp roe, tarragon, veal jus

I was a bit bummed the last time I didn’t get the sea urchin risotto because it wasn’t on the tasting menu, and even more upset this time it wasn’t on the menu altogether. But for our pasta course, we had shrimp roe fresh noodles. Very al dente with a surprising spicy kick, this was a very different course that we both liked. I'm still bummed about the risotto though.

duck, celery, chestnut, persimmon, Shaoxing wine

The portion control is just right at Benu, because usually by the protein courses, we're too full to enjoy the food. The duck was filed with a foie gras moose. An extremely well cooked, tender piece of duck, probably one of the best we've ever had, and matched well with the sweet persimmon and earthy chestnut sauces. 

beef braised in pear, beech mushroom, sunflower seeds and leaves

This poor beef dish just never stood a chance. When you have the best piece of beef in your life during your last visit, everything else is just going to be a substitute dish. The braised beef was actually quite bland when eaten alone, but combined with the sunflower seeds and leaves, it was a pretty good dish. Who knows, maybe it was really amazing but we were so blinded by the thought of our beef cap. 

"shark's fin" soup, dungeness crab, Jinhua ham, black truffle custard

Chu Toro enjoyed the faux shark fin soup more this time around, while I think it was not as amazing. I think the initial novelty the first time just rubbed off, but still a very unique and one of a kind course.  

grapefruit, espelette, white chocolate

acorn-cranberry custard with banana ice cream

The desserts were both light and refreshing, exactly what we needed after the first sixteen courses. The grapefruit and white chocolate really tied in well but the highlight was the banana ice cream which carried a heavily infused banana flavor. Both nice, light, interesting desserts.

chocolates

The meal was excellent, one of the top three of the year (Momofuko Ko in New York and Le Cinq in Paris were the others) and now that we've been here twice, we can officially call Benu one of the best restaurants we've ever been to. To constantly be challenged by the preparation and presentation, yet comforted by the flavors make this a can't miss dining experience. If we had the rib cap as our meat course, it could've been pretty close to a perfect meal. 

Rating 9/10

December 29, 2011