by Lacey W. on East Side Show Room gets some pretty tepid reviews, apparently. I disagree. I've only been once, on a Sunday night, but I was astonished. The decor is perfect and unique; I loved the old-style lightbulbs and the way they illuminated the food in pleasant light. I love the old silent movies playing on the wall, and the live tiki band. The aesthetic of the place is right where I fancy my aisle to be, were I a more creative person. We started with cocktails, of which there were plenty. I don't pretend to be a mixologist, and I like my drinks on the pink-and-sweet side of things, but the drink I ordered got me genuinely excited about alcohol. I ordered a pisco sour, which was finished with some sort of nutmeg-flavored syrup that infused the drink slowly, so the last sip I took tasted completely different than the first. Color me impressed. Hot boyfriend was also pleased with his Rake's Muse, some sort of whiskey concoction, and his bourbon sour. We ordered the cheese-and-charcuterie platter to start, which that night consisted of chevre with red wine reduction, beer cow's milk cheese with fig preserves, rabbit pate, and curried chicken liver mousse. I am not a woman who likes my organ meats, but the mousse was spicy and smooth, and the cheeses were quite tasty. I did not have the too-little-bread problem that Kelly S. had, so maybe they have upped their portions. Also, figs with cheese is the best combination in this world. Try it. I had the grilled quail served with stewed peaches and mixed greens. The grilled quail lacked any gamey-ness to my palate, and was perfectly spiced. The peaches exploded with molasses flavor. (The molasses element might have been overdone for me, but was still enjoyable.) The greens weren't that exciting, but I'm not a greens person. I would have preferred the sweet potato mash that appeared on hot boyfriend's plate. Hot Boyfriend ordered the pork chop with figs, sweet corn, and sweet potato mash. He's had it about a week before (without me) and was less impressed the second time around, but found it still quite tasty. The figs shared the same molasses-quality as my peaches. Boyfriend decided that maybe this chop was not as good a cut as his last one, but still enjoyed his dish. We finished our meal with a glass of wine for me and some French press coffee for both of us. My Cuisinart four-cup coffee maker no longer cuts it; I must invest in a French press at the first opportunity. Several rateclubsers have complained about the service, and I don't want to discount your experiences. Our service, though, was impeccable. The food was slow to arrive, but my quail clearly stated "grilled to order" so we were prepared to wait. Meanwhile, our server was polite, knowledgeable, friendly, attentive, and never rushed us. I would be glad to come here again. One star docked because I would have loved to have a more inspired side than the mixed greens, and because Hot Boyfriend's dish was inconsistent from his last trip. I also hate to award five stars on a first visit, but it was hard not to.
by Marshall Koslow on The thing is, I had a good time the first time around so 2nd time should be the same right? I was verrrryyy wrong. This place is the worst place you could go to party in SF. There are a million other places that are consistently great with service and civility and class. Having a good time should not be a crap shoot. If you pick 'Slide' there's a 80% chance you'll run into an asshole manager or douche-y bouncer. Don't let that ruin your night out with friends. The venue should never be the reason for a bad time. Trust me on this, there are a ton of other choices. Don't pick this one.
by Nathanial Schindler on I am a fan of Blake's. They have good food (for a bar), the drinks are great. and there's never a cover. There's 2 levels at Blake's. The downstairs is usually always crowed and that's where the drag show is. But, upstairs you can usually find a place to stand around or might could even grab a table. I would recommend you checking out Blake's if you are in the area.
