Yeah, it’s the night most restaurants turn into temples of the prix-fixe menu. I have been drowning in press releases and dinner announcements for weeks. Here are a few ways to ring in 2010 that rose to the top.
~ORSON~ has a tasty-sounding menu lined up for $75, including the choice of cassoulet as a main dish, with no special seating times. Your bouche will be amused.
For a jazzy New Year’s Eve, ~CAFÉ CLAUDE~ is offering three seatings (6pm $60; 7:30pm $70; 9:30pm $80) with live jazz from 7:30 until midnight provided by the Jerry Oakley Trio.
Or across the alley, the sexy ~GITANE~ is offering the following seatings: 6pm for $70 (three courses); 8pm for $80 (four courses); and 10:30pm for $90 (five courses)—wine pairing is an additional $30.
You can have a bittersweet dinner at ~ZINNIA~, the restaurant’s final night of service, but chef Sean O’Brien’s menu is certainly a powerhouse. You can choose a three-course ($58) or a five-course dinner ($88), which includes luxe dishes like house-made tagliolini with sweetbreads, chestnuts, and brown butter.
More on the luxe tip: ~JARDINIÈRE~ has some some additional menu options in case you have a vegetarian or pescatarian in your group. The first seating is from 5:30pm-7:30pm ($145 per person, $65 for wine pairing) and the second seating will be from 8:30pm-10:30pm and will include live music from the Terry Disley Experience Trio, and Champagne at midnight ($195 per person, $85 for wine pairing). Nothing says Happy New Year like Five Dot Ranch filet mignon with oxtail cannelloni and Périgord truffles.
If you’re looking for live entertainment, the new-ish supperclub ~CODA~ will have a three-course prix-fixe dinner with quite the musical line up : Mike Olmos Organ Combo featuring Wil Blades (jazz) from 6:30pm-9pm; Dynamic (urban pop) 10pm-1:30am; plus a special late set with Hot Bag! featuring Skerik and Mike Dillon from late until… late! First seating is 5:30pm-7:30pm; second seating is 8pm-10:30pm. Dinner and music is $60. You can also just come by for a cocktail and dancing.
Mmmm, beer. Homer would approve of the beer dinner at ~MONK’S KETTLE~. Enjoy a four-course dinner and beer pairing for $115 per person. Doors open at 8:30pm for a reception beer, and the first course is at 9pm. Call to RSVP (415-865-9523) or email.
And if all these prices are freaking you out, give thanks to ~PALIO D’ASTI~ for offering an affordable New Year’s Eve menu. You get four courses, and four choices per course, for only $49 per person. And if you’re into fireworks, the Embarcadero fireworks are only blocks away. You can read all the dishes on the generous menu here.
Event Info
Thursday Dec 31, 2009
