Manresa

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madbulk

Joined 5 years ago

One of the best in the world.. The back and forths slay me. The one-star rating juxtaposed with the five star rating. Everybody here wants their opinion to be the last word. There probably is no last word. It depends on you almost entirely. This is one of the best restaurants in the world. And if you can easily afford it, just go and find out. (If you hate it, you hate it.) If you are a special occasion splurge situation and you're just perusing city search looking for a highly rated place -- consider who you are. foodwise. If you eat your steak medium and wouldn't dream of eating your eggs undercooked, don't do this to yourself unless you can chalk it up to experience and forget it. You're gonna come back and write a review like the gentleman who keeps saying, "AWFUL." And to him, it was! This level of cookery is not for everybody. For me, this is a remarkable godsend of a restaurant. If I'm going out to eat within an hour of my san jose home, which is only a few times a year, I'm going here. Over and over and over. This isn't just a good restaurant. This is a superb restaurant. Almost certainly the best within a hundred miles in any direction.

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3seas

Joined 5 years ago

great service, freshest ingredients around. the goon below me knows not what he says. sour cream on the egg? clearly you werent paying attention to the servers explanations of the dishes. i know from many trips there that theres no sour cream on the egg amuse. if you felt the meat was raw, why didnt you tell them to cook it longer? your "rookieness" is shining through in your review as well. restaurants, especially ones like manresa have the advantage of charging customers 160 for 4 courses on holidays like valentines day, new years, etc...but if you had known better you could have gone the next night for even less money and gotten the 10 course tasting for $150. sounds like you were a bit out of your league and if you want your meat served medium, with mashed potatoes and asparagus better stick to the classics like chart house, steamers grill, or gordon biersch. theres no better restaurant in the bay area, manresa owns any other spot in san fran.

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Joanna Currier

Joined 8 years ago

Chef David Kinch's internationally acclaimed, progressive cuisine has forever put the village of Los Gatos on the foodie map.. The Scene
Though ranked among the most rarefied of American restaurants, this simple, attractive dining room's lack of affectation provides welcome comfort. The warm ambience--fresh flowers, white tablecloths, exposed wood beams--feels upscale village local; and while certainly refined and professional, staff here clearly care little for small-minded pretense. Patrons are visibly at ease: Collars are loosened, smiles are sincere, and dates and small clusters of diners stretch into heady lingering over top-tier wines and tasting menus that can number upwards of 18 courses. Oriental rugs add rich, red-inflected touches of color to the scene.

The Food
Chef David Kinch continues to thoughtfully tinker with convention and cuisine on an almost cellular level--literally. Already famous for his cooking pedigree (some of the world's finest kitchens, including El Bulli), his growing collection of Michelin stars and many other awards for his innovative new Catalan cuisine, Kinch has dug in deeper with his evolved use of ingredients from the restaurant's own biodynamic garden. Hand-picked produce, roots, sprouts, herbs and other day-fresh ingredients are shaped into playful, expert contrasts on the plate--sweet with savory, cool with warm. One mouthful of his seasonal cuisine can unpack into an intense, unique experience with layers of surprise. We particularly recommend not only the farm-fresh produce, but also his soups, foie gras dishes and anything with shellfish.

Hits: Chef Kinch's famous garden-fresh ingredients are as local, seasonal and exquisite as you can get and are best represented in the dish "Into The Vegetable Garden...," a collection of the day's freshest textures and flavors.

Misses: Don't think you have to get the tasting menu (which takes several hours); two-to-three perfect dishes can provide ample perspective on the best of Kinch.

Doesn't Recommend

jarodl

Joined 5 years ago

Awful food for an absurd price. Utterly disappointed.. After seeing it reviewed on the Michelin guide, I went here for their Valentine's day special meal. What a complete WASTE of money ($360)! Don't believe the other reviews. They offered a 4 course meal for the night. For the price I expected so much more. The proportions were ridiculous and I'm not even a big guy. You would be satisfied if you're an anorexic midget. The dishes are served on big plates, but the actual food is about the size of *very* small tapas plate.

Before you start saying, "ok so this guy is just complaining about the portions/quantity" I'll now describe the food itself. Every entree that came out had something wrong. The beef dish was undercooked (90% raw), the duck dish had an extremely bitter sauce, the oyster muse wasn't fresh, the dessert had some odd super sour flavor, this odd egg muse had some really bad sour cream on the top layer (it was served inside a partically cut egg). I could go on and on, but I'm trying to forget the awful experience.

It was like the chef was experimenting with different combos of flavors in every dish and failed miserably.

Save your money and go elsewhere. I think people that are giving it good reviews are just trying to convince themselves the meal was good since they spent so much money on it.

If I could give NEGATIVE stars, I would. I'm so disgusted and utterly disappointed.

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sblackwell

Joined 6 years ago

Good but not the Best. Manresa is an interesting dining experience. The food is very creative, lot's of interesting combinations, textures and flavors. Some courses don't make sense to me and some ingredients give me the creeps. Like say.....tripe or uni. My dining companion loves that kind of stuff so it's definitely a subjective thing. I mention this because a lot of the reviews just say it's a good restaurant and never mention the unique ingredients. Not a list for people with texture phobias. I do recommend the Chef's Tasting Menu with the wine pairing, but again I must mention the price...party of two out the door for over $500.

In light of all that, this is not a restaurant experience for a casual drop in dinner. It is a special type of event to dine here. Be prepared for changing out of those blue jeans into at least yur dockers and have your savings account stocked.

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emm70

Joined 7 years ago

One of the best restaurants in the world!. I have had the privilege and immense pleasure to experience Manresa 5 times already and every time I have been unequivocally impressed! The outstanding service, the ever-evolving seasonal menu, the wines, the chef's creativity and brilliance are all standards every restaurant should aim for. Manresa more than deserves their 2 Michelin stars, having eaten at several star studded restaurants all over the world, I wholeheartedly approve of the ratings! There isn't a bad dish on the menu, every thing I have ever tasted is a solid 10. Expect to be amazed!

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erikasf

Joined 7 years ago

Best four star experience yet. My husband and I have been to several high-end Bay Area restaurants, including French Laundry and Michael Mina. Though we enjoyed the others, we agreed Manresa was the best experience. We had the multi-course tasting menu. It was the only time I was able to finish all of the dishes, which were unique and well-balanced. The flavor profiles were excellent. All staffers conveyed a sense of great care and pride in the restaurant. It was a fine-dining experience without all of the pretension and stuffiness of some of the other high-end places.

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kellybosco

Joined 7 years ago

SUBLIME. I have been to Manresa twice and can't wait to go again.

Food is amazing, wine list is fantastic (great local wine selection), ambience and decor perfect.

Staff was attentive and provided good service.

You can't go wrong at Manresa.

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samjose

Joined 7 years ago

Doesnt live up to the hype.... ...or the prices! I was expecting a lot, given other reviews and what not, but chances are I'm not going back. The atmosphere was stuffy, people were not friendly (kind of an impatient feel throughout), and it was ridiculously expensive. Theres other options.

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thndrbill

Joined 7 years ago

Kinch is the best. Manresa is really expensive but worth it. I actually preferred his previous location, Sent Sovi, more because it was more intimate and a lot less formal. David Kinch is the most creative and pasionate chef around. Who elese could make an unforgettable dish from pigs feet? Plan on spending two the three hours and leaving amazed.