When going out, we seem to have an aversion to making plans more than 24 hours ahead of time. For San Francisco, that means that booking a dinner reservation in order to get to any other plans is less "what finicky thing do I feel like" and more "what's nearby and has opentable reservations open tomorrow night so I won't be late to my other plans??" And that is how we stumbled into Aliment in Nob Hill on one Saturday night.
It's in a slightly nondescript location, which is likely the reason we easily got a reservation on 7pm Saturday. Very roomy and open place.
We shared the fried brussel sprouts, which were AMAZING. Fried, crispy, and in a rich sweet fish sauce glaze. I wouldn't have thought it was possible to make brussel sprouts taste unhealthy and downright decadent, but this greasy, sticky, and delicious mess of vegetable has proven me wrong.
I believe this was the hanger steak. Not bad, nothing too special.
I personally got the mushroom gnocchi, because I had never tried legitimate gnocchi before! SS, having traveled in Europe, assured me that it was legit gnocchi, but I didn't enjoy it as much - it looks like I just don't like gnocchi that much.
Braised short ribs - very soft, standard kind of sweet-salty glaze.
Scallops were simply done, but the green curry sauce made it more interesting.
We shared a yuzu cheesecake as dessert, which I thought was phenomenal. Very soft cheesecake, with some kind of a citrus jam or chutney spread on top to cut the sweetness.
If we had to pick a fault, it would be as JP said during dinner about San Francisco having too many of these New American cuisine gastropub-ish restaurants that they all seem boring unless they had something special to stand out. (First world problem of the day: have gone to so many top of the line restaurants that just a normal tasty one is too boring to return to now...) I'd agree that the entrees were entirely forgettable, but the brussels sprouts and the cheesecake are worth noting and returning for. Overall, Aliment is a pretty solid dinner spot in the city.
San Francisco, CA
