Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About
    • About Me
    • Tiny Urban Kitchen’s Favorite Equipment
    • Press
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • Asian
      • Chinese
      • Taiwanese
      • Thai
      • Malaysian
      • Japanese
      • Korean
    • Appetizers
    • Soups
    • Salad
    • Pasta
    • Noodles
    • Rice
    • Vegetarian
    • Meat
    • Sweets
      • Baking
      • Ice cream
      • Cookies
    • Misc
    • Kawaii (Cute)
  • Travel / Restaurants
    • United States
      • Boston
        • Jen’s Picks
        • Boston
          • Allston
          • Back Bay
          • Brighton
          • North End
          • South End
        • Cambridge
          • Kendall Square
          • Inman Square
          • Central Square
          • Harvard Square
          • Porter Square
          • North Cambridge
        • Somerville
          • Davis Square
          • Union Square
        • Greater Boston
          • Brookline
          • Arlington
          • Belmont
          • Watertown
          • Newton
          • Lexington
          • Concord
          • Burlington
          • Natick
        • Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Berkshires
      • Vermont
      • Maine
      • New York
      • Washington DC
      • Philadelphia
      • Orlando
      • Chicago
      • Las Vegas
      • California
        • Los Angeles
        • San Francisco
        • Napa
        • Sonoma
      • Seattle
      • Hawaii
    • Canada
      • Montreal
      • Canadian Rockies
      • Toronto
    • Argentina
    • Europe
      • United Kingdom
        • London
        • Oxford
      • Italy
        • Rome
        • Piedmont
      • France
        • Paris
        • Bordeaux
      • Spain
        • Madrid
        • Barcelona
        • Catalonia / San Sebastian / Girona
      • Germany
      • Belgium
        • Brussels
      • Switzerland
      • Greece
      • Finland
      • Norway
      • Denmark
    • Japan
      • Japan Guide
      • Tokyo
      • Osaka
      • Kyoto
    • China (Mainland)
      • Beijing
      • Chengdu
      • Shanghai
      • Shaanxi
      • Shenzhen
      • Xiamen
      • Yunnan
    • Singapore
    • Hong Kong
    • Malaysia
    • Taiwan
    • Thailand
    • Australia/New Zealand
  • Michelin
    • Formerly had a star
    • Michelin Recommended
    • 1 Star
    • 2 Stars
    • 3 Stars
  • Jen’s Eating Guides!
    • Boston Restaurants
    • Boston Dishes
    • Tokyo
    • Hong Kong
    • Las Vegas
    • Napa / Sonoma
    • Taiwan (night markets)
    • Taiwanese (casual eats)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part I)
    • Street Foods of Bangkok (Part II)
    • Kitchen Equipment
  • Trip Reports
    • All trip reports
    • Around the World Trip Report
    • New England
    • New York
    • Washington DC
    • Las Vegas
    • California
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Florida
    • Japan
    • China

Luce

September 4, 2012 by Jennifer Che 12 Comments

Bryan at Matsuhisa
This blog could have so many more posts if Bryan would cooperate.You see, Bryan travels for work quite frequently. The nature of his industry allows him to visit some of the best food cities around the world. He often eats at great restaurants that I would love to write up. Unfortunately, whenever he shows me his dimly lit, fuzzy, yellow iPhone pictures that he took of his meals, I just can’t bring myself to put them up on this blog.

It would kill me, really.

Thankfully, things are finally changing.

Bryan recently bought himself a pretty snazzy point & shoot camera. I have to say, I’m really, really impressed with this little Sony camera. It’s small enough to fit inside his pocket, yet takes quite impressive food photos in pretty dark lighting.

Bryan really has no excuse now.

Lucky for all of us, Bryan has graciously agreed to start taking photos of the food he enjoys on his many business trips. We’ll start an ongoing series of “Bryan’s Travel Eats” on this blog. These posts will most likely be a bit more photo-driven, since I can’t personally write nearly as much about these visits since I’m not there. Nevertheless, I’m thrilled to be able to share about even more cool restaurants on this blog.

For these posts, I will usually at least write a summary of his general thoughts regarding a restaurant at the bottom of the post. Hopefully, I can add as much detail as possible (but it’s really all up to how much he can remember on these whirlwind trips that he takes).  🙂

Please enjoy! (and check out the debut of this little camera‘s work!)
Untitled
Luce is a modern, new American restaurant inside the Intercontinental Hotel in San Francisco. The space is airy, bright, and sleek. Some have criticized the decor as being too “corporate” and cold. However, there’s no denying that the impressive high ceilings and designer decor make this place well suited for power business meals.

Luce was previously helmed by the famous Dominique Crenn, who helped Luce earn its first Michelin star in 2010. Ms. Crenn became nationally famous when she won Iron Chef America in 2010 against Chef Michael Symon. Chef Crenn left Luce in March of 2011. Thankfully, the new chef de cuisine, Daniel Corey, has already proven himself by again achieving one Michelin star in 2012 for Luce.

Bryan came here with a co-worker during a business trip in San Francisco.
Untitled
Before dinner at Luce, they first stopped at Bar 888, which is right next to Luce inside the Interncontinental. Bar 888 is the nation’s first and largest grappa bar with over 120 (!) different grappas to try.
UntitledUntitled
Bryan tried a couple grappa cocktails, which he thought were fun and tasty.

For dinner, Bryan and his co-worker decided to try the “Summer Tasting Menu” for $85, or $140 with wine pairing. Similar to at many restaurants, the whole table has to participate if you want to try the tasting menu.
Untitled
The meal begins with a fun, savory amuse – savory, thin toasted bread topped with a single slice of tomato, a basil leaf, and a powdered “snow” (made from cheese, perhaps?).
Untitled
The summer tasting continues with its first course, Roasted Abalone and Diver Scallop, which is served with pickled ramps and raspberries in a vibrant green foam.
Untitled
The second course,Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes. is stunning in its artistic plating and is served alongside melon, pistachio, and basil.
Untitled
The third course features a Slow Cooked Hen Egg with summer truffle, smoked potato, and pork jus.
Untitled
Break the egg open to reveal the gorgeous, runny center.
Untitled
Next comes a palate cleanser cleverly called “Sweet and Sour“. Refreshing and light, it consists of marinated strawberries topped with a white balsamic sorbet.
Untitled
The fifth course is a Poached Lobster served with charred onion and fig vinegar, turnips, and buckwheat.
Untitled
The sixth course is a perfectly executed Herb Roasted Lamb Loin served with crispy belly, baby eggplant & fig, tiny dollops of yogurt, and berber spice.
Untitled
Before dessert, a second palate cleanser, the Raspberry Mojito Float, appears.
Untitled
The meal ends with an exquisite Elderflower Mousse, which comes with compressed white peaches and Bellini ice.
Untitled

General Thoughts
Bryan was very impressed with the overall meal. The space is stunning, the service was excellent, and overall the food was great. The dishes embody a food philosophy that is so Californian – a dedicated focus on the region’s rich bounty of  locally-grown, seasonal ingredients.

Bryan thought that $85 for a tasting menu of this size and caliber was quite reasonable, especially considering the location of the restaurant, the complexity of the dishes, and the cachet of the Michelin star. Perhaps we’re biased since we’re coming at it from a Boston perspective (where such abundant access to great produce and high quality execution is just a bit harder to get). Nevertheless, biased or not, Bryan still thoroughly enjoyed his meal and was quite excited to tell me all about it when he got back to Boston.

Luce
888 Howard St
San Francisco, CA 94103
Luce on Urbanspoon

©2009-2014 Tiny Urban Kitchen
All Rights Reserved

Filed Under: California, Michelin, Michelin1, Restaurant, Review, San Francisco Tagged With: American, French

« Happy Anniversary!
Kajitsu »

Recent Posts

  • Pertinence Paris France June 25, 2022
  • Napa Valley Trip Report June 10, 2022
  • 36 Hour Stopover in London May 29, 2022
  • A Day Trip to Antwerp, Belgium May 28, 2022
  • Arbor Hong Kong May 25, 2022
  • Mono Hong Kong May 23, 2022
  • Summer Palace Iconic Wine Lunch – Hong Kong April 29, 2022
  • Lucciola – Italian food at The Hari Hotel in Wan Chai March 22, 2022

Latest Chinese recipes!

Comments

  1. Wen's Delight says

    September 4, 2012 at 8:52 pm

    I’m impressed with the photos! Did you do any editing?

    Log in to Reply
  2. Cecilia says

    September 4, 2012 at 9:40 pm

    I can’t believe that’s with a point and shoot…I just bought a new point and shoot this weekend, I think I’ll have to return it…

    Looking forward to even more gorgeous photos and posts! 🙂

    Log in to Reply
  3. Jennifer Che says

    September 4, 2012 at 10:06 pm

    Ha ha, this is a very nice point & shoot. It can shoot in low light (down to f/1.7) and can also shoot in raw mode (which we haven’t tried yet, but will do soon!) These were just simple jpg shots. 🙂

    Log in to Reply
  4. Jennifer Che says

    September 4, 2012 at 10:25 pm

    Yes, I did process them. I always process my photos. Usually I shoot in “raw” format, which means you have to “develop” the photos digitally. Usually at a minimum I will white balance (get rid of that yellowish tinge), crop, and adjust exposure as necessary. Sometimes I will bring out certain colors or play with saturation depending on the photos. These photos were shot in simple jpg mode so I had a little less flexibility in how I worked them up versus if Bryan had shot them using raw format. 🙂

    Log in to Reply
  5. Cecilia says

    September 4, 2012 at 11:41 pm

    Someone needs to start a company that lends people cameras to test until they decide to buy. I feel like as soon as I’m done researching and purchasing a camera, a ton of new, better options come out. Ah well, I guess that’s technology!

    Log in to Reply
  6. Minnie Gupta says

    September 5, 2012 at 5:59 pm

    I absolutely adore my Sony point and shoot. I am not sure if it has a raw format though, I need to check. It’s a few years older, so maybe not……funny enough, my last post on my blog was about the camera as well :))
    http://www.thelady8home.com/2012/09/04/i-won-an-exotic-rose-drink/

    Log in to Reply
  7. Charlie says

    September 6, 2012 at 11:31 am

    Morning Jen!

    Brian you did an awesome job with the pictures, and with explaining them to Jen.
    I’m totally impressed.

    Jen I’m looking forward to seeing the posts on Brian’s travels.
    What a great idea!

    Have a Joyful Day :~D
    Charlie

    Log in to Reply
  8. Sarah says

    September 22, 2012 at 9:17 pm

    Lovely pictures – Bryan did a great job with the pics! Looking forward to seeing more of his culinary adventures on this blog. 🙂

    Log in to Reply
  9. Chris says

    October 1, 2012 at 9:30 am

    I’ve been casually looking to upgrade my point and shoot camera, so this post sold me on the Sony DSC RX100. I picked it up this weekend and I love it. Thanks!

    Log in to Reply
  10. Jennifer Che says

    October 1, 2012 at 10:33 am

    Awesome! Enjoy. 🙂

    Log in to Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Olo Helsinki - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    May 11, 2015 at 9:36 am

    […] for places he has visited (but I have not!) are Sushi Yoshitake (3-Michelin stars) in Tokyo and Luce in San […]

    Log in to Reply
  2. Sushi Kanesaka Palace Hotel (Tokyo) - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
    May 20, 2015 at 11:32 pm

    […] for places he has visited (but I have not!) are Sushi Yoshitake (3-Michelin stars) in Tokyo, Luce in San Francisco, and Olo in Helsinki.  This is also the 14th post of I’ve written in May as […]

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Categories

Awards

Saveur
PFB

BostonGlobe

Most Recent Posts

en croute

Pertinence Paris France

Napa Valley Trip Report

36 Hour Stopover in London

A Day Trip to Antwerp, Belgium

Arbor Hong Kong

Arbor Hong Kong

Mono HK

Mono Hong Kong

Summer Palace Hong Kong Iconic Wine Lunch

Summer Palace Iconic Wine Lunch – Hong Kong

Lucciola The Hari Wan Chai

Lucciola – Italian food at The Hari Hotel in Wan Chai

beef quesadilla

Studio City by Cali-Mex Causeway Bay Hong Kong

Petrus Hong Kong

Petrus Hong Kong

France!

Restaurant Le George Paris
Yam'Tcha Paris
David Toutain Paris
Divellec Paris
Breizh Cafe Paris

Kawaii! (Cute)

Norway!

logo
Food Advertisements by

Chinese Recipes

Okra with Chicken
logo
Food Advertisements by

Shop & Support us!

Spain!

Girona Spain
Amelia San Sebastian

Japan!

Bulgari Il Ristorante Luca Fantin
Sukiyaki Imafuku Tokyo
Sushi Ishimaya Tokyo
Disney Sea Tokyo
Tempura Fukamachi Tokyo
Shinjuku Gyoen

Cambridge restaurants

logo
Food Advertisements by
Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2022 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress