Senses

2.5 to be fair. The best bet is the martini lobster with sweet potato. Foie gras is decent, but not too thrilled about their seafood casserole. Order a glass of cab and maybe the loud table in the corner will settle.

This place has always been somewhat of a mystery to me. It opened at some point last year a few blocks from my house and was always empty. Not only that, the menu was fairly ridiculously priced for its location. So it was no surprise when it closed its doors a few months back. And according to the previous reviews, it was not big surprise why…
Then, a few weeks ago I noticed that its doors were open once again, and this time there seemed to be a few more diners. I stopped to look at the menu and low and behold it was almost reasonably priced. I decided to look it up on Unilocal to find that on top of its changed menu, they have a great happy hour! Point being, this place has been reinvigorated.
A friend and I went here on Tuesday to grab dinner. The staff was fantastic, and even though we arrived a few minutes after Happy Hour ended (730), they still gave us happy hour prices. I got a great glass of wine for $ 5, and a very reasonably priced gourmet meal. Definitely try the pecan crusted salmon :) Not only that, we got the chocolate mousse for dessert and it was to die for.
It doesn’t get 5 stars because the entrée portions were a little on the small side. Even though the menu says everything is small plates the waiter assured us that all of the meats/​fishes are main dish sized. Also, if it were not for happy hour prices the meal would have still been a little over priced. But all and all a fun (and tasty) dining experience.

Senses — What senses?
I had senses alright, just bad senses though…:
— that the waiter was incompetent
1) waiter: What wine would you like with your appetizer? me: I don’t know you tell me I just ordered a food+wine pairing menu didn’t I?
2) I have to recommend you a great dish, it’s the lobster martini — it’s the best, trust me. OK, great, we’ll have 3 of them for the table. 15 mins later — I am sorry we ran out of Lobster Martini? What the H****??
— That waiting time was bad? 20 mins for our menu, 1hr for appetizer, 1 to 1:15 mins for our main entrée… total dining experience — almost 4hrs?
— The cook was obviously watching TV or listening to the radio while cooking — Would you like some fish with that SALT?
Daily Candy recommended this place? Who paid them? Who is sleeping with the editor?
Run, run, run away from this place — let a competent restaurant owner take over — please!

Make the Bad Man go away.
I would rather play Russian roulette with a nail gun than return to this bad dream. The service is so bad that you want to laugh, not weep, because new levels of incompetence are rarely illuminated so brightly.
The food is marginal at best. There is more salt in their dishes than the salt lakes of Utah. One of their signature dishes, «Tiger Prawns,» were baby shrimp for the love of all things holy. The scallop appetizer was worth the one star that I was forced to give at gun point. The dessert was on par with a McDonald’s apple turn over… you know… the 2 for $ 1 type.
This place must have deep pockets to have survived this long. Run in the opposite direction of this Titanic of eateries… run for your life.

The food is good, I force it on, feed it to my children every day” says the owner in the lead in a negatively focused article in the SF Chronicle.
Makes me wonder as he considers legal action against Unilocal if someone shouldn’t call Child Protective Services on him.

As I walked in to meet my coworkers, I thought, «Man this place looks kinda dumpy.» I was pleasantly surprised once I walked in, as the space is quite nice.
However my two friends sat completely alone in the restaurant, while the staff hovered around a bar. I think they may have been going through the Classifieds looking for new jobs. I mean seriously, we were the only people in there. And the second I sat down the boys said in unison «They don’t have booze. We’re thinking about going somewhere else.» So I had a glass of wine while we waited for the rest of the girls, and then we packed up and headed to Garçon.
The menu only looked okay, and just ordering wine was a bit of a challenge.
Me: «I’ll have the Pinot Gris please.»
Cute French Speaking Waitress: «I just warned your friends not to get that wine. It’s very sweet.»
Me: «Um, okay, how about the Pinot Grigio then.»
CFSW: «We’re out of that.»
Me: «Okay, let’s just work our way up from the bottom and you just bring me the first acceptable white you have on hand. Thanks.»
I have no idea how they’re staying open.

Wow! I read the previous reviews and I wonder if I am reviewing the right restaurant? A friend and myself ventured into Senses by accident, we were nervous because it wasn’t jam packed on a Friday night. The menu at the door was inviting so we gave it a shot. We both were very pleased with our meals. We ordered Fix Prixe, she had the lobster martini, salmon, and crème brule; I had the duck confit, black prawn risotto, and the chocolate lava cake.
The only two complaints I have are, they brought me out the wrong appetizer, I was given the asparagus, but when I pointed this out to the manager he told me to keep it and soon followed it with the correct one. And the other is the black tiger prawns seemed more like regular shrimp, but the dish was still a great; an excellent impact on the Senses.
We both left full and satisfied.

Food was good. The service was abysmal. There’s enough places in SF with good food and good service that it’s not worth going to a place with decent food but crappy service.
We asked the waitress about the lobster «martini» She explained it was like a shrimp cocktail but then when we got it, it was like a lobster bisque. Good thing I have no dairy issues.
The second question threw her for a loop — tell us about the seafood in the seafood casserole. First she said it was like a risotto and then she had no idea what kind of seafood was in it. Well — guess what –she said the wrong kind of seafood and it was more like a seafood stew/​cioppano than a «casserole.»
Good lord people — know what’s on your menu. Rule number 1 of being a wait person!

This place is horrible. If I could only rate it on the negative star scale…
I highly recommend dining across the street at The Last Supperclub instead.
If you are looking for the worst possible place to dine, then this is it! I had better food at Sparky’s diner than the slop that was included in the $ 25 Prix Fixe. I had the Brie Ravioli which was served luke warm followed by a rather dry serving of Chicken jambonette. We eat out alot and this was by far one of the worst meals I have had in San Francisco in the past 5 years.

We stopped in merely because we like to try new things and figured that a restaurant on the same street as Range and Luna Park can’t possibly be terrible, but boy were we wrong.
1. The interior yearns to be called pretentious: IKEA thinking its DWR.
2. The food is crap. We ordered scallops for appetizer. They arrived FROZEN INSIDE. We sent them back and, when they arrived 15 minutes later, they were still FROZEN INSIDE. After many apologies from the nice, professional, and worried owner, the entrees came. My sea bass was FROZEN INSIDE. After taking a tiny bite of my sea bass jamba juice, I’ve had enough and wanted to leave.
The owner was awesome and clearly distraught about our experience. He hand-​wrote a gift certificate for a free dinner (this time and next) but its unlikely we’ll be cashing it in. On Valencia there are a ton of better options, not excluding liquor store delis.

The points I gave is based on the quality of food and not the overall value or it will be a 5 stars.
I have read the review before I go to SENSES and thus, I chose dishes that I have experience with other restaurants that I often visit such as Gary Danko, 5^th floor, Fleur De Lys, Hawthorne Lane, Boulevard, Aqua, Marche’, Evvia, Spargos etc. Every year, we visit these restaurants on my wife and my birthdays, anniversary, Valentines day etc.
The bottom line is, the experience is not close to the level of Gary Danko, not even close. But it’s a lot better than 5^th floor, 101 market, Spargos, Evvia, and some others.
I ordered a 4 course meal which is only $ 40 is an extraordinary value. $ 20 wine pairing is also a good deal. Thus, if you look for quality food with value, this is a great place. If you looking for decoration and fancy experience, go to Fleur De Lys or Campton place, but I feel like an idiot because it’s not the money spent, it’s the overall value that made me feel like an idiot.
I had the sear Fois Gras, the flavor was perfect, but it seems to be a tint undercook. It’s silky and smooth. I prefer to have it sear longer.
The scallops were good, it’s like scallops from any top haute restaurant.
The sea bass was good, perfectly timed, juicy flavorful sea bass covered with crispy flaky cover has provided a great feel to the taste buds.
The dessert was a little disappointing. I always expect a lot from dessert but many of the top notch restaurants always disappoint me. So I don’t necessary blame SENSES. The chocolate platter that I ordered has a chocolate mousse, hot lava cake, chocolate/​coconut crme brule’e. The mousse was great, rich but not too sweet, but the lava cake was disappointing, there is not enough cake but mostly hot chocolate lava.
In conclusion, I think it’s got one of the best value even compared to upscale haute restaurants in the bay area. I’m very critical so can’t really use my opinion as standard but nonetheless, the quality of food should worth 85 pts out of 100 with the modest pricing strategy, it’s should be a 90.

Mediocre food at best… at ridiculous prices. Add in a pretentious waitstaff and it’s one of the worst restaurants I’ve been to in a long time.
Had a girls’ night out at Senses when it was relatively new, so perhaps they were just getting the bugs out of the system. But I’m not going back to find out. There are too many good restaurants in the Mission… I’d go to Limon, Picaro, Ti Couz, or Esperpento over Senses any day.

This is the worst restaurant I have eaten at in years. I don’t understand the positive reviews. All the flavors were off, from appetizers to entrees. Cold corn muffin (a faux soufflé) — yuck. Warm shrimp with marmalade in a plastic spoon — double yuck.
The only redeeming moment came when the waiter brought a little complimentary dish of cookies/​sweets. They were delicious, and we ate them so quickly, the owner didn’t realize we were delivered any and brought us another.
All else failed. The restaurant is overly ambitious, with the attempts of an amuse bouche and the dish of sweets at the end, but it falls flat on its face

The first hint of trouble came when we walked in the door — it was a Friday night and the restaurant was completely devoid of customers except for 4 small parties. As we were waiting to be seated, I noticed that the kitchen crew in the open kitchen was standing around with nothing to do, and the chef kept checking his cell phone — probably waiting on a call for a job interview somewhere else.
In my opinion our server did her best to put on a happy face and attend to us. She recommended our wine for the evening, a tasty Sauv Blanc named Gregory Graham, which was probably one of the highlights of our meal. Although the restaurant was empty, it still took a long time to get our food, and they even forgot one of our main entrees. The small plates and entrees we ordered were neither creative nor memorable, except for the steak, which was practically moo-​ing on our plates and had to be sent back for re-​work. By then the chef had already departed, leaving only his staff to tend to the cooking. Where’s the quality control?
After such a disappointing meal, some of us were tempted to skip out on dessert. Fortunately we decided to order it anyway and found that the desserts were much better than expected. The molten chocolate chestnut lava cake and the peaches with vanilla parfait were hits. However, their tea selections were dismal (Bigelow!!! we get that stuff at the office for FREE!). The lack of attention to detail is yet another sign that tells you how hard they’re trying NOT to succeed.
If you’re looking for ho-​hum food at inflated prices, then this is the place for you. Otherwise, save your $$ for the next restaurant to open up at this space… it’ll probably happen soon!

Has it not had been for that expensive wine list, I would have given it 4 stars.
Rack of Lamb is seriously one of the best I have had in really long time.
Seabass was forgettable. It could have used more flavoring. Filet Mignon was great. My friend ordered it more cooked that prefer, but I liked the taste of it regardless and it went well with pomme lyonnes (fancier potato gratin).
It was the $ 20 corkage fee and expensive winelist that inflated our bill more than necessary.
Deserts were decent nothing amazing except for a curiously fun jasmine infuse brulee (which was part of trio of brulee, vanilla, tarragon, and jasmine).
Chicken on the menu (stuffed with truffle stuffing was lacking the truffle flavor) faint at best.

With so many great places to eat in the Bay Area, why settle for mediocrity? From the looks of the space, Senses definitely appears to be a firm competitor in the SF dining scene. However after dining here recently, I can’t say I would go back. The appetizers were indeed tiny and not that tasty, as many of fellow Unilocalers have warned. We had the mushroom souffles which can be best described in the words of Sasha A. «These really were not souffles, but tiny hard baked biscuits with what tasted like canned mushroom soup lightly sprinkled on top.»
For once I strayed from my usual order of the fish dish on the menu and opted for the duck. That decision was the best one of the night since every one else at my table ordered the sea bass. Opinions on the sea bass ranged from «eh, it’s ok» to «not good.» My duck was the highlight of the meal. It was well prepared, but the sauce was a bit salty. Luckily, it was on the side, so it could be used sparingly. We decided to give dessert a whirl and ordered the chocolate lava cake which wasn’t that impressive to me.
In short, go here if you wish; but consider yourself forewarned, your experience could be mediocre.

Senses is new, so I don’t want to be too hard on them, but my meal here just wasn’t that memorable, and the place just isn’t very interesting. it’s sort of a bland stereotypical fancy restaurant.
Unlike other places that have opened up and down Valencia recently (Dosa comes to mind), Senses just doesn’t feel connected to the neighborhood vibe or community. It’s apparently designed by the same people who did Limon, but it just doesn’t seem to fit.
I’m usually really psyched when something new appears in my oft-​traveled Valencian route, but I’m not excited about Senses.

Do I have to rate this restaurant with 1 star I’d pick negative stars if I could.
Wow I was shocked to have my first negative experience with a restaurant in SF. The positive thing was it had a nice atmosphere. The food was horrible. I ordered seared tuna that was overcooked and it tasted like it was frozen beforehand, mushroom muffin souffl that was dry and difficult to swallow, goats cheese that did not taste very much like goats cheese. My sea bass entrée tasted awful the only thing I enjoyed was the wine and lentils that came with my sea bass.
I will not return to this establishment.

I was a little hesitant when I was able to get a reservation on Friday afternoon for that night but was pleasantly surprised. We went shortly after they had opened so maybe the word had not gotten around.
The room is cozy and inviting and there’s a family-​style table (all the rage these days!) in the bar area, followed by the open kitchen. I believed it’s designed by the same person who did Limon, so it’s a similar feel. The lighting was doing something funky but the owner said it was an electrical problem that would be fixed. (more on him later)
Overall, the food was delightful. The goat cheese, the mushroom soufflé, crab plate were hits while the the foie gras wasn’t getting rave reviews from the table.
Entrée wise we had a hard time deciding and settled on ordering individual entrees as well as «one for the table,» which turned out to be a grand decision. With the extra entrée we ordered the lobster stew. One word: divine. Our individual entrees were neglected until we tip-​toed around who would have the last bite. I might have been better off staying with the lobster as my lamb, despite what everyone else has written, wasn’t my favorite. The the crust was a bit think and a too salty for my palate (and I like salt). Otherwise, everyone else was happy with theirs (duck breast, fillet of beef and stripped bass)
As for the (co-)owner, Teo, he was a tremendous help in navigating the wine list. I can’t recall the exact bottles but the split of bubbles is a great way to start (or end) the evening. Otherwise, ask him and he’ll be happy to help out. Maybe he’ll hook you up with a crème brûlée!
It’s barely a month old and, as with most new restaurants, is working out some kinks but will be a great addition to the Valencia culinary corridor.

I went to Senses with 2 friends over the weekend. As others have noted, this is the new take on the old Watercress space. I really agree with Peter H’s characterization — the presentation was excellent while the food seemed to meander between California Asian Fusion and French.
I had the potato bass, which was good but not as good as the same dish at Isa. The shrimp appetizer was very nicely presented, but the orange marmelade didn’t do much to add any punch to the dish.
The hit at our table was the lamb. It was a bit fatty, but very flavorful and tender.
Our waiter was pleasant and attentive. Service was good but not great.
Overall, I would rather dine at Garçon if I am in that neighborhood.
4 stars for presentation, 3 stars for food. Because it’s a restaurant and not an art gallery, it get’s 3 stars.