The Resy Guide to Great-Value Tasting Menus in San Francisco

If you’ve got a large party of eight or more, Rob Lam’s inventive and playful takes on Vietnamese cuisine are a good option. He serves a set menu family style (starting at $52/person) that includes three appetizers like cha gio vit kieu phap (duck spring rolls) and much chien muoi (pepper and lime fried calamari), as well as your choice of entrée (we’re a fan of bun cha, the dish of grilled pork served with noodles and broth from Hanoi). Finally, select your dessert — pot de crème or crème brûlée.

Our absolute favorite way to experience Flour + Water is without a doubt their pasta tasting menu ($125/person). It comes with two antipasti — a crudo and a vegetable dish — three hot antipasti, a total of five pastas (including their stuffed taleggio scarpinocc and tagliatelle alla Bolognese), and the good ole budino for dessert. You won’t go home hungry.

Prubechu’s fiesta table set meal ($75/person) comes in three waves. The first is small and snacky. The second is where the party really gets started and includes red rice, a couple of vegetable sides, a small pickle salad of sorts, and two larger protein-based dishes like a roasted pork shoulder with onion soubise, plus all the dipping sauces your heart desires. The last wave is dessert, of course, either a sorbet situation or bunelos aga, aka banana donuts.

If you read our Angler Rundown, then you know the move is to let them cook for you. You get to set your price (starting at $125/person), depending on how hungry and how fancy you want to be, and they’ll customize the menu for you. But know that this is the way if you want to try as many of the things as possible, from the land to the sea and beyond.

Nari’s chef’s pick menu ($95/person) always changes and the quantity of food can depend on the number of people at the table, but it’s always served family style. The meal always starts with a couple of small bites, like gaeng gradang tod (pork croquettes with a northern curry paste), then proceeds to dishes like wraps or stone fruit salads, before moving on to the main courses, always a curry of sorts and then a stir-fry dish perhaps, a wok-seared cabbage vegetable side, and rice. Finish with a couple of icy desserts to cool your palate, and then roll yourself home.

Whether you go a la carte or otherwise, Brandon Rice’s eclectic cuisine will crush you, so might as well opt for the Let The Kitchen Cook For You option ($95/person). The first wave bombards you with seafood-centric snacks — oysters, a scallop crudo, and more. Then comes another wave of snacks — Parker House rolls, dumplings, beef tartare/ikura wraps. That’s followed by two more waves of savory dishes, a pasta, and two desserts. You will be in pain. You will be in pleasure. You will be thankful you listened to us.

Like Ernest, going with Chef’s Picks at Rich Table ($125/person) is the move — no surprise that this is where Brandon Rice worked before opening up Ernest. For two folks, you’ll start with an array of bites — arguably, the best part of the experience. You’re hit with 7-8 bites, including their iconic sardine chips and fried porcini doughnuts. Then there’re two small appetizer courses, a fish and vegetable course, two pasta courses, and a seasonally changing steak set. Finally, you’re finished with two desserts and two full bellies.