Birch & Rye San Francisco - Buy Reservations

If you go expect the unexpected! The inside was very comfortable and not noisy at all! This place is a gem and I am sure they will continue to advance known Russian food favorites.

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Growing up I ate a lot of Russian food so before coming to I wasn't sure what to expect according to the reviews.After dining there however, I can clearly see the only reason for bad reviews is because people are expecting russian food to be colloquial and cheap which is often the case. This is definitely not what it's evoking since this is on par with other michelin star restaurants I've been to in San Francisco. If anything I think it was on the cheaper end of the spectrum. So if you don't want to pay the price for a good quality experience, then I suggest cooking at home.Good restaurant these days want to take care of their staff so I'm more than happy to contribute- especially after th pandemic.Anyways....I went with a big party so we tried most of the things on the menu. The highlights were definitely the Pilemi, duck mousse, stroganoff, and salmon with rye bread. The cocktails were amazing as well.Thank you for such a lovely experience!

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We enjoyed dinner Friday night at this new elite restaurant. There are so many positive things to say about it. They greet you with a smile and very warm atmosphere and the ambiance is spectacular. We had already paid for the tasting menu but could not resist having some caviar from their great selection. They also offered several infused vodkas and we enjoyed two of them immensely. Their food was very fine and inventive, on the level of Atelier Crenn. The flavors were exceptional for every course and the presentation was very beautiful. This was my first introduction to Russian cuisine so I did not know what to expect but was definitely amazed at the quality and flavors that I was introduced to. I can recommend this special restaurant to anyone who enjoys fine dining and is wiilling to pay for it as they automatically add a 24% charge to cover health benefits for their staff. This was a spectacular meal that my wife and I will remember for a long time.

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Was told it was Russian food, so this would be my first time eating the cuisine. After a friendly greeting, we were seated at comfortable and cozy table for the four of us. It was immediately apparent that the staff was very knowledgeable about the experience we were about to embark upon. We started with cocktails from there fine selection of spirits and wine. The house made infused vodkas were the obvious choice. For the meal, we started with some caviar. Seemed like the right thing to do and it was, In a word, wonderful . Not being a caviar aficionado, I was delighted. We moved on to the newly introduced tasting menu with wine pairings. Not knowing the menu, thought it best to let the chef make the decision on what is best from the kitchen and the bar. Good choice! Got to taste a number of things I was unfamiliar with. All of the items were superb. Portion of food and wine were generous. Often when eating a prifix menu, portions are small. Not the case here. Plenty of wine to accompany the delicious bites as well. Not only was the food prepared to perfection, all of the baked goods/breads were baked in house. The way it's supposed to be. Even though we were pretty much full, we decided we were on a roll and had the doughnuts for dessert. Like all of the baked goods, freshly made, in house.All in all, exceeded my expectations given I didn't really know what I was getting into. We will be going back. Just one last note, given what is going on in our world. This is a Russian restaurant in American. Need I say more??If your looking for a taste experience like no other, stop in, you won't be disappointed!!Did I mention the staff is wonderful? I think I did but it's worth repeating!

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This is a new take on artisanal, farm-to-table, healthy, thoughtful, and delicious dining informed by traditional Russian foods. Each dish comes with its own history and is exquisitely made in-house. The presentation is phenomenal, and the knowledge, service, and attentiveness of the staff were like nothing I've experienced before. The attention to detail in both the assembly, flavor, and serving of the foods felt like I was in a Wes Anderson film. Details, glorious details. We had the tasting menu, pictures below. We initially thought it might be too much to eat but the portions were perfect. The flavor was amazing. I can't wait to return.

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This restaurant spent too much on advertising and not enough attention to food. I waited for a long time for them to open and was super excited. But Food is NASTY, learn how to cook properly please. Feels like a great idea that was poorly executed. We ordered:Fake Borsch - 2 stars( just for originality but don't call it borsch. The only borsch there is color....Khachapuri - 3 stars. Tasted ok but the thing was size of my finger... Ripoff Pelmeni - 0 stars. I've tried idk maybe 100 different pelmeni dishes and you can tell they BUY premade pelmeni. But please at least buy it somewhere like in a Russian store so it tastes ok. They are made in those forms that are sold for home cooking who are too lazy. Excuse me but shame on you for not making your own pelmeni. For the amount of money you charge for that thing it's rip off, nasty, no meat, tasted like it's filled with paper. If I could I would take your license away just for selling them to the public. How dare you offer something so disgusting?! They almost had no meat and just tasted weird, like I have tried store pelmeni and it's not bad, but this thing was gross. Not only gross but they also gave like 8-10 tiny pieces.

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I love a khachapuri and was really excited to eat at this place. I made a reservation through Tock for "patio dining". (Photo attached.). I'm immune-compromised, so my doctor strongly advises that I not eat indoors. This required a $50 deposit for a table for two.When my dining partner arrived, the "patio dining" was essentially indoors with essentially zero airflow. While they had outdoor tables, they refused to let us sit there. As per my doctor's advice, I did not eat indoors and left.They kept the $50 deposit - despite a request for a refund, since I, like any reasonable person, had assumed that a patio was outdoors. (The website had specified that the patio was heated - which again, I assumed meant there were normal patio heaters, not that it was indoors.).They told me that the best they could do was move the reservation for another week - but that at no point would they have outdoor dining, despite selling reservations for such. So they're charging for reservations for a service they don't offer.Edited to add: we left and went to Leleka, a Ukrainian restaurant. 5/5, delicious dumplings, had no issue with outdoor seating.In order of the host's points:1. A patio is... outdoors. Not another room. You even *have* outdoor tables, at which we were not permitted to sit.2. I called when my dining partner arrived, looked at the "patio" and was like "this isn't outdoors".3. I will not become suddenly not be immune-compromised in the future, so I fail to see how changing the time would help.4. Yeah, I dislike it when restaurants charge for things they don't offer.

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We tried many different dishes, all of which were delicious, many different cocktails and glasses of wine, and some caviar. I have never seen such elevated Russian food before, and I was very pleased with all that we ordered. Our server was knowledgable about the menu and answered our many inquiries readily. It is fine dining, yet a nicely understated atmosphere. It's particularly nice to have this addition in the Castro, and area that lacks and abundance of quality food. I look forward to returning, and especially to coming in for the delectable looking brunch menu.

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We had a celebration dinner last night and enjoyed every minute. Service was perfect, champagne and wine and vodka infused with caviar. I had the black cod and my husband the wagyu beef, and we started with duck liver pâté on a brioche. Their back patio was warm and inviting and chef came over to congratulate us and brought the most amazingly moist chocolate cake. We plan to go frequently

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The restaurant is lovely and it was bustling on a Thursday evening. The food is visually beautiful, so if you eat with your eyes you won't be unhappy. Some dishes didn't live up to expectations - cured salmon was perfect but the sea Buckhorn sauce didn't add much. Olivier was also nicely flavored if light years away from its traditional roots. The "barley risotto" (wasn't called that on the menu) was rich, so intense with fresh mushroom flavors, amazing it was vegan, a little goes a long way - I thought it would benefit from some fresh veggies. Oh and the borsch was very refined, beautiful, flavorful, but a little incongruous since it was so delicate. My one true disappointment? The rye bread. Clearly an ambitious menu. Overall we left happy and the food definitely sparks conversation.

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