Nico

I had a great experience at Nico. The service was both friendly and professional. Wine paring is a must! Without a doubt the best wine pairing I have had. I was impressed by the cleanness and refinement of the meal. Only negative point was Chicken as the «star» and finishing entrée item. It didn’t help it was paired with a heavier red wine. I would have preferred a lamb, duck, red meat ect. for a final menu item.

A great place for fresh, delicious and inspired dishes.
Eveyrthing on the tasting menu is light yet full of flavor.
There was a beet dish that was so good but i forgot the name.
Other noteable dishes I had were the panisse and this citrus dessert.

Went with a difficult (vegetarian) friend. Kitchen did not miss a beat and came up with delicious dishes. I think we did the wine pairing– not remarkable but I don’t recall regret.

Beautiful. Perfect. Artistically constructed plates with flavors that play on each other, visually pleasing presentations, layered complexity, and wine pairings that work. No point in telling what I had, your menu will be different. Don’t ask what is coming, just savor what arrives; you will not be disappointed.

3.5 STARS
*First course arrives*
My friends and I look at each other — we silently curse to ourselves.
Our first course (not an amuse bouche) was, I kid you not, ONE floret of cauliflower with some thousand island looking dressing that was supposedly uni based:
.
Hmmm, is this Nico’s way of hinting something? Are they helping us start our 2016 resolutions early, the Atkins way?
I whispered to my friend, «One last hurrah at Lucky Penny afterwards?»
(Hey, don’t judge — those fried mozzarella sticks with mystery meat sauce were my everything at 3 am!)
My friends and I had dinner at Nico in early December to celebrate a dear friend’s birthday. Reservations are highly recommended. There’s no valet and previous Unilocal reviews noted that there was easy street parking but this wasn’t the case on the Saturday night we went. We had to circle around several times before finding a space several blocks away on a hill.
Thankfully, things got better after the first course but I think your experience at Nico will greatly depend on what blind tasting menu you receive that day. If you don’t like, say olives or veal, you’re SOL if it’s on the menu that day. There are no substitutions unless you have a food allergy. You have an option to see the menu before being served but it’s essentially a 5-​Course Blind Tasting Menu ($ 65). It felt like an abbreviated 8 – 10 course tasting menu but with the same portion sizes. Each course ranged from 2 to 5 bites so you may leave hungry. They do offer complimentary bread so do take advantage of that.
B L I N D T A S T I N G M E N U ($ 65, +$ 55 for wine pairing)
(1) Cauliflower floret gribiche, uni, chervil: Hard, cold, and not very appetizing. There was no uni flavor. It was like dipping refrigerated cauliflower into fancy animal spread.
(2) Sunchoke, yellowfoot mushrooms, bottarga:
Our favorite course of the night, the «soup» was velvety smooth, earthy, and complex. Loved the crunchy sunchokes for a textural contrast. My only gripe was there was only 2 spoonfuls worth and we were all left wanting more.
(3) Red snapper, piracicaba, brussel sprouts, meyer lemon:
If you know me, than you know that I hate cooked fish because very few places can prepare it properly (medium rare w/​crispy skin). However, the red snapper at Nico was cooked medium rare so it was delicately moist and tender.
(4) Duck, celery root, apple, mustard greens:
The duck breast was beautifully cooked and rendered perfectly so you get a nice, crisp skin along with tender meat. I didn’t care for the roulade of duck confit because it tasted like deli ham.
(5) Squash, chestnut, tangerine:
The dessert didn’t sound appetizing on paper (I requested to view the menu before service began) but I was pleasantly surprised by the trio. It was on the savory sweet side so that punch of juicy tangerines really brightened things up!
The parting sea salt caramels were phucking delicious and were almost as good as the ones at Manresa:
. I guess that’s no surprise since the chef came from Manresa.
We opted out of the $ 55 wine pairing and decided to order booze by the glass (beer, wine and loophole cocktails only). Four of the six of us didn’t like our drinks. My first drink was a Fall Spiced Sangria w/​persimmon, baking spices, and vanilla ($ 11). It sounded great on paper but it was nothing more than a half glass of icy, watered down apple juice. I ordered a glass of red next (forgot the name) and it was like French kissing an ash tray. It was grossly smoky so I gave it to my friend’s boyfriend to finish.
Service was professional, refined, and attentive. The entire staff was really young so it was impressive to see them operate like a well-​oiled machine. The tasting menu took a leisurely 2.5 hours.
The dining room was warm, cozy and understated. Great for a date or a group dinner (no more than 6). I like the open kitchen so you can see the chefs in action. Well light but not too bright so you can snap some good food porn.
Is Nico Michelin-​star worthy?
I think that’s debatable. While the dishes were gorgeously presented and exhibited well-​balanced flavor profiles (except for that cauliflower floret), only one course was remarkable while the others were good but not great. If we received a different blind tasting menu maybe things would have been different? It was good to try Nico once but I’m doubtful I would return… unless I win tomorrow night’s Powerball, then dinner for everrrryone!

This was probably one of my favorite dining experiences in SF. We went in and didn’t even see a menu. The service and every course is fantastic for the price. It was $ 55 when we went and we all knew they would get a michelin star. I think it is $ 65 a person now, but wow, so worth it! Great place to celebrate birthdays and special occasions.

Back in the day, I used to love trying new fine dining spots around the city. I used to scout out Michelin-​starred restaurants that had great reviews. I loved the great service and the exquisitely plated food; but I always felt a bit pretentious and shorted with the actual food. The food was good, but never amazing. Since then, I’ve moved away from this scene because I’ve grown disappointed by the value of such a meal. But, I decided to give Nico a try with some friends this weekend. Maybe contemporary fine dining had changed and had more to offer?
We had a late reservation, but were quickly seated to a half-​full restaurant. We brought our own wine for this occasion — the corkage fee was $ 38. We ordered the $ 65 5-​course menu, which changes nightly. Our waitress gave us the option of having the blind tasting without seeing the menu, which we agreed to. The first course was a soft-​boiled egg with thinly sliced cauliflower, topped with dill and some other things. This was probably my favorite course as it was very well balanced in flavors and texture. Next, we had a butternut squash soup course. This was topped with a sweet/​tangy fruit and sunflower seeds. I’ve noticed a lot of butternut squash soups topped with sunflower seeds now, but I did like the sweet notes. Our third course was a very tender poached cod with Brussels sprouts. The cod was great, but everything was under-​seasoned. Our last meat course was braised beef cheeks covered with chard. Again, the texture of the beef was wonderfully tender, but the dish lacked flavor and I found the chard very difficult to cut as it was draped over the beef cheeks. Our dessert course was a bit fun with multiple different contrasting textures between the over-​ripe, but mildly sweet persimmon, the sharply tangy orange sorbet, the light, but cracker-​like meringue, and the dusting of bee pollen.
Overall, I found the flavors of Nico to be quite timid and subtle. I had hoped that there would be a progression of bolder flavors as our meal went on. I’m not sure if that’s just his style of cooking, the day’s offerings at the market, or some of our dietary restrictions that we set aside in advance, but I was disappointed by the lack of aggressive flavors. However, service was excellent and for a one star Michelin, a 5-​course tasting menu for $ 65 is a steal.

Good gravy, this place is good. It’s a great place to literally be surprised with every course. Go into in it without knowing that night’s tasting menu if you want the full experience. $ 55 for such a stellar 5 course meal makes this restaurant a must. And with the menu changing so frequently, a great place to try over and over.
MUST HAVES (on the night I went):
DUCK
turnips, dates, mustard
BRASSICAS
sabayon, seaweed (the sauce was incredible)

If any place is a hidden gem in SF, Nico would be it. I was describing Nico’s to friends and stated «great food, great service, easy parking, nice ambiance, reasonably priced and one fantastic rose wine». One friend joked I should put that on Unilocal,so here it is (thanks Sara!).
My friends and I were celebrating a birthday there, with one friend having been there multiple times and the rest of us visiting for the first time. From the moment we walked in the door to when we left, we were treated very well and the birthday girl completely enjoyed herself.
There is one menu per evening and you have the open of going with the suggested 5 course tasting or selecting a 3 course option from that menu. The fun part of the experience is choosing not to see the menu and being surprised with each course placed in front of you. They do ask about preferences and allergies and work to accommodate them. The menu changes daily and our menu consisted of a starter of lamb, followed by a cauliflower soup, fish, chicken and dessert of strawberries prepared multiple ways. The dish of lamb tartare initially gave me pause, as I am not a fan of lamb. However, I decided to just go with what they had and ended up enjoying that dish quite a bit.
All dishes are appropriately sized depending on the number of courses chosen. No dish was too heavy or rich, nor did we receive a mostly empty platter of leaves and roots with an occasional speck of protein. We all felt satisfied at the end of the meal, not hungry and not overly full. Two of my friends tried the wine pairing, while the rest of us had a glass of wine. We enjoyed the wines offered and would have had more if we could.
Service was friendly and helpful, helping to make the experience very enjoyable and memorable. Although the food could be considered «high end», the service was rather low key and down to earth. The restaurant is small and more casual than formal.
Parking on a Friday evening was rather plentiful (for SF) and there were several spots open nearby.
One friend has been to Nico’s at least 4 times and he found each visit a new experience.

Very nice food and presentation
Excellent friendly service
Reasonable price
Little noisy, some acoustic treatment would be nice
Worthy of 1 star Michelin

Good value where you get one star Michelin quality food at very reasonable prices but the service hasn’t yet caught up to their recent award. I’ve come twice in the last few weeks (before and after the star being given).
The first time was much better in terms of food and wine pairing. In both cases it was a 5 course meal where you don’t get to pick anything and could choose to be completely surprised by not looking at the menu. The menu changes nearly daily so not much to recommend specifically. I did find the technical skills in cooking the proteins to be superb though as the meat and fish always came out perfectly cooked.
The service is the most uneven part. Last night, we had a reservation but they kept us waiting (standing as there was no real room to sit and wait) for ~30 minutes past the reservation. 2 people in our party even arrived 15 minutes early so they were standing for 45 minutes. There wasn’t really much of an apology other than a quick sorry for keeping you waiting. Most Michelin places would give you complimentary drinks while you wait or desserts (or maybe a seat to wait?).
Also when we asked to split a wine pairing they just gave us one glass rather than the normal actual splitting into two glasses which makes cheering or toasting a bit awkward. When we asked to actually split it we were given sort of a hard time but eventually given it.
So I guess you get what you pay for. Not sure if it’d be so amazing if they end up raising the rates if they don’t step up their service game.

There are two things you must know before you even consider going to Nico. This will prevent confusion/​whining/​bewilderment/​peevishness for you and those within your 10 foot radius:
1.) There is no menu. See below for details as to why this is MARVELOUS.
2.) There are no vegan or vegetarian options. They call you ahead of time to ask if you have dietary restrictions and to accommodate you, but don’t waltz in here thinking there’s a soy cheese alternative or fluffy pillows of tofu stacked in the back just for your needs.
You are currently having one of the following reactions:
«No menu?! I thought this was ‘MERICA! I demand my freedoms! Where’s my musket?!»
«No menu? That’s intriguing. I’m sort of picky, though, so I don’t know if that will work for me. I might whine and piss off my date.»
«No menu? That’s awesome. I love when other people make decisions for me! How exciting!»
«No vegan or vegetarian?! Fascists! Carnivorous conspiracy! Down with the tyranny! Where are my tar and feathers?!»
Those of the first and last opinions should likely find somewhere else to dine. But let me explain to the others why this is a lovely, freeing, and delicious experience:
I like my freedoms as much as the next ‘Merican. But sometimes choice is exhausting. Because, when it really gets down to it, I DON’T always know what’s good for me. That’s why my mom had to force-​feed me vegetables and convince me that Cinnamon Toast Crunch is not a sufficient substitute for the entire food pyramid. But you know who does know what’s good for me? Nico. Because he’s an ARTIST. You are commissioning him for a work of art on your table and in your mouth. You wouldn’t say to Michelangelo «I demand you draw me the Baby Jesus in EXACTLY this way! And use these colors only! And do the right product placement of Huggies diapers so we don’t have to see Awkward Baby Jesus butt!»
There is no menu because Nico is such an artist that he literally creates a different artistic masterpiece – in fact, 5 different masterpieces, as there is a 5-​course menu – every single day. He goes to the market and finds whatever is fresh and seasonal and delicious, and his genius mind starts putting all the ingredients together like some kind of magical, culinary Tetrus where they all fall perfectly into place. Then he zips up to the roof garden of his establishment and selects the choicest herbs that are growing there to add flavor and garnish. The fresh sorrel or parsley or oregano on your plate? It was just picked. It was literally growing fresh and wild in the San Francisco moonlight just MOMENTS before you put it in your mouth.
Every plate is beautiful: somehow the Kitchen knows exactly how to float the fish on the emerald green pond of sorrel purée, how to nestle an egg within the soft, cupped leaves of a cabbage, how to array succulent pieces of chicken around a forest of roasted mushrooms… and the art is in every bite, too. My advice would be to try a bit of everything on the plate in every bite – the flavors are all there to complement one another, and do so in a very unique, delicious way. I highly recommend the wine pairings, too – each glass was perfectly chosen, and each sip was like an exclamation point at the end of the beautifully constructed sentence of every bite.
Shoot – I think I lost a few of you there in the miasma of my own pedantry. Sorry. But consider the kind of food that makes a person wax poetic! If you love the art of food, enjoy a romantic, chic atmosphere, and don’t mind exchanging your freedom for some utterly delicious food tyranny, come to Nico. Powerlessness can be surprisingly pleasant.

Well, overall, the food was pretty good. BUT, you have NO CHOICE. None, no choice, zero. The day we went I called there and they would not tell me. They asked if we had food allergies, but would not tell me what was for dinner. Then, I arrived at the restaurant and they had duck and I saw my neighbors were eating very, very rare duck which I don’t like. So, I said I didn’t want the duck and they gave me the course without the duck with no substitution and no discount and no explanation. I literally got a piece of cabbage for that course. Also, if you are still thinking of going to this place, their cheese course is one varietal of cheese served very cold, like on the airplane — they should know better. Pretentious… with no real reason.

My husband and I had reservations here on a Friday night. The ambiance is extremely clean and modern, dimly lit, with an older crowd and nicely spaced out tables. We were able to select either 3 courses or 5 courses. Our waiter said the chef recommends that the 5 course menu be experienced without looking at the menu, although you may review the menu if you please. People that are really picky with the way food is prepared or ingredients should let the waiter know if there is anything you wouldn’t like or wouldn’t eat.
We selected the 5 course menu and chose not to review the menu. The first course arrived and it was a lamb tartar, a dish my husband and I would have never ordered on our own. However, the dish was mind-​blowingly good and I’m so glad I didn’t review the menu before hand. The second dish was a corn gazpacho that was also amazing and explored different flavor combinations that were really interesting. The third dish was steamed salmon which we were also blown away by. The fourth dish was a chicken dish that was just okay. And dessert was a sorbet/​meringue dish that was also good.
The service was impeccable and the price is very reasonable for the food and experience. We will definitely plan to revisit this restaurant.

Nico has been on my list for a little while and I finally was able to make around to it. They were very accommodating when I changed times and the number of people around until the day of. I arrived a little earlier, but I was able to get a half glass of wine before my friend showed up for dinner.
Dinner was great otherwise. The food — which apparently changes daily — was delicious, even if not everything I super enjoyed. I do wish I was able to get the English peas that were on the 7×7 list, but I was happy to try this restaurant regardless.
I got the 5 course meal with the wine pairings (they were half glasses). The best two dishes for me were the two main dishes — the sea bass and the duck. I really enjoyed those two and definitely would have those again. The first two courses (a cucumber, melon and prosciutto appetizer and the corn and mushroom soup) were good, but they definitely weren’t amazing. I wish that I could have liked them better, but the two protein courses were the shining stars. The dessert was interesting as well. Berries paired with an interesting green sorbet and some white chocolate cream at the bottom. The berries with chocolate were delicious, but the sorbet created an interesting taste that I couldn’t decide if I liked or not.
Overall, the service was great and I really enjoyed my time there. The price is pretty amazing for the quality of food. I’ll definitely want to try this place again.
Protip: reservations are definitely recommended since it seems like the place gets pretty full and definitely go with the 5 course with the wine pairings. delicious! I’ll definitely be back!

One of the most pleasantly surprising dining experiences of recent memory. Our friends chose the restaurant, which I had never heard of prior, so we didn’t have any preconceived notions.
The staff was very welcoming and we’re kind enough to alter several courses to suit
the dietary restrictions for one of the other diners and myself.
The food was both beautiful and delicious; well worth the $ 55 for 5 courses. Two members of our party had the wine pairings which were generous and tasty. We chose not to read the menu in advance, so each course was a surprise.
While this neighborhood is not conveniently located, I would highly recommend a slight trek out of your normal area to try Nico!

I was looking forward to going here after reading the reviews. Maybe it was a fluke.
We went on a Thursday evening.
The wait staff was very slow. Our reservations were at 7:30 and we finished eating at 10:00pm. The time between courses was very long-​too long. The food was just OK. The Halibut was ok but bland. The salad was good. I did not try the pork but my husband says he’s had better. For all the hype –I’m not impressed. Not sure I would go back.

There are two kinds of people in the world — those who want to control their own destiny, and those who want be swept away– by someone, or some force of nature. I admit, I’m in the first camp, especially as far as dining is concerned. Only if the chef knows me well am I willing to leave it all in her/​his hands. I don’t like rules or contrivances directing my meal. So, when the waiter explained that the chef’s preference is to «surprise you», and they only show you the menu if you insist, I found this at best silly at worst irritating. They offer a 5 course prix fixe with no options at a very reasonable $ 55or a 3 course prix fixe ($ 35) where the diner selects any 3 of the 5 courses on that menu. They also require the whole table to select the same option (3 or 5). While I understand the pacing can be a bit challenging if not everyone has the same number of courses, since they only offer a total of 5 selections (along with only 3 appetizers), it seems awfully regimented to me. My annoyance at suppression of the diner’s desires was not great enough to detract from enjoying a creative and deliciously prepared meal.
Okay, glad I got that off my chest. We got the wine pairing as well ($ 45 for 5; $ 35 for 3). We enjoyed all of the rather obscure selections, especially the Arnoux Savigny Les Beaune 2008, served with the veal. My two little niggling comments here would be: 1. Why no domestic selections? 2. Why not provide the names of the pours in writing, so we can know what we’re enjoying (or not). On this latter issue, the waiter kindly wrote them all down at my request.
Here’s what we had:
Dungeness crab served with shaved beets and marrow foam. 4 star
While in general I’m not a foam fan, in this case it was just the ticket. I like the idea of marrow, but the texture kind of gags me, so foaming carries the earthy, meaty heft, but avoids the gooiness. This was avery assertive. earthy course for a first. The beets were mostly chiogga’s and shaved thinly in their raw state. I liked the textural contrast. The crab was fresh and in big enough pieces so you could get a mouthful of that briny sweetness. I did find a little errant shell, though. My husband, who «hates beets» liked the dish, and refused to believe it had beets in it.
Sautéed savoy cabbage, kale purée, pickled kohlrabi and farm fresh egg yolk. 3.5 star
I loved the brassica immersion concept here. With some little tweaks it could have been a stronger dish. While lovely to look at, having all the cabbage leaves so large in a liquid base made it difficult to eat without looking like a Cretan. The combination of the cold purée with the yolk could be a real challenge for the not-​very-​texturally-​adventurous (read my husband). It needed something with a little more viscosity, too liquidy
Block cod with chard, romanesco, and Buddha’s hand. 3.5
This was the most visually stunning dish. The color and textural elements and their composition were very appealing. I thought it was a little under seasoned. None of the elements of the dish really asserted itself. A friend just recently gave me a Buddha’s hand. It smelled lovely and looked wicked. I think it’s kind of gimmicky, though, and couldn’t really detect it. When black cod is poached as it was here, I think it has a bit of sliminess to it.
Veal tenderloin with nettle, sun choke and black trumpet mushrooms. 5 star
What can I say? The veal was done to a perfect rosy pink. It must have free range, because it had a lovely meaty flavor, and though tender had just the right touch of chew. The nettle, choke and mushroom tasted like a forest, in a good way, sweet, umami and a little tang from the nettles.
Meyer lemon cream, kiwi sorbet, pickled fennel with crunchy meringue. 4 stars
The pickled fennel was delicious — licorice, tart, crunchy. It elevated what otherwise would have been a pretty good dessert.
Overall, the food, service and intangibles were very good, but the value was excellent. Now if they’d just allow me to make my own informed choices. I will go back though!

Nico is a much needed addition to Pre Heights and Sacramento street. I mean seriously how many times can you go to Spruce, Garabaldi, or Sociale?
Nico is a sleek sexy intimate space with a pretty limited menu… but I will take a well executed and thought out sparse menu over a zillion choice mediocre one anyday.
We had the 5 course tasting menu paired with the wines… and I hate to say it but it was a bargain at roughly a Franklin. Everything tasted exceedingly fresh and well thought out. I thoroughly enjoyed the Black Cod dish it was set in a lovely sauce with cauliflower and various veggies. The skin had the right amount of crunch and the fish was left moist and succulent. The Duck was again executed perfectly with a lovely pink meat and a tasty crispy skin.
The only downside I could find was that some of the dishes were cute but lacking in substance. Yeah like placing veggies on a plate and brushing the plate with sauces cute. not really a fan.
However for a lovely romantic meal or a business pow wow I think Nico really fits the bill and I will comeback.

I have mixed feelings about this place. Average is 2.5 stars but rounding it up to 3. Here is the summary:
1 star for service
3 stars for food
4 stars for effort to make it right
The kitchen staff or serving staff (not our waiter) kept on serving the next table when the food is meant for us. We waited for almost 1hr between our 1^st and 2^nd course. We kept on calling their attention to this error but it happens again bet 2^nd and 3^rd. It’s a prefix menu so every one is getting the same food. However, we were the 4^th party to sat down when the restaurant opens and no one sat next to us until 30 – 40 min later. Yet they were confused (?) and serving the table next to us our 2^nd course before we got ours!
Now the food. It was okay. There is an interesting course (cauliflower) but the food is either bland or too salty. Not great to say the least.
Efforts: so they comp us on the drinks due to the bad service. Even after that, our bill total is still around $ 168, and we are still hungry when we leave.
It has a feel of a neighborhood bistro but lots of elderly couples celebrating their birthday.
We don’t think we would return or recommend considering the vast French bistro offerings the city has such as Monsieur Benjamin to name one.