Paul K

199 Gough St, San Francisco, CA

(415) 552-7132

http://www.paulkrestaurant.com/

Came here on a Tuesday night with the boyfriend for our anniversary. We are both foursquare.com user. So right after we were seated, my boyfriend checked into foursquare. He found that if you're a foursquare user and is a first timer at Paul K, you get half off on your entree. Yeah yea! Immediately we figured we have extra money for appetizers!

Paul K is a Greek and North American inspired restaurants. The ambiance was very modern and dim. The walls were hanged with paintings by artists and Paul himself. It was very quiet that night, with only about 3-4 tables including us. The service was great! Our waiter was very helpful and attentive.

Shortly after given our menus, our waiter put down a basket of warm housemade flat bread with hummus. The pita smelled very different and tasted different from the ones I usually see at Greek restaurant. It was much thinner. The hummus was thick and lumpy. I like it because the hummus was not overly salty like most I had.

Ahi Tuna Tartare with Lemon Oil, Pickled Radish and Sweet Potato Chips

I love appetizers made with tuna! So I knew we had to order Tuna Tartare. The tuna was very firm and finely diced. It was not mushy at all. The pickled radish along with lemon oil added some tanginess to the fishy tuna. Pretty good, but nothing to wow for. The sweet potato chips were very crisp and did not taste like sweet potato at all...I just thought it was regular potato.

Batter Fried Green Beans with Lemon Aioli

The Batter Fried Green Beans definitely reminded me of the ones from Coco500. But of course, they were both good in their own ways. Paul K's battered fried beans uses tempura-liked batter, whereas Coco500's uses the kind of flour batter you can find in taro croquette.I like it. It was crispy, oily and very aromatic. Oh and you have to eat it with the aioli..yum!

Seafood Stew with Fennel, Merquez Sausage, White Beans, Chili, Harissa Tomato Broth

I love cioppino! So when I saw seafood stew on the menu, I just order it without any thoughts. The seafood stew contains two type of clams, mussels, fish and shrimps. One type of clam is Manila, and I have no idea what the other one is. The other kind was so mushy and fishy; it was barf-inducing. The broth was watery, and lack tomato flavor. The beans were interesting; I never had beans in a seafood stew. I wish the bean would soak up the favor of the broth more though. The sausage was not very good, it tasted gamey, like lamb. Ehh, I don't think I'll order this again.

Grilled Hanger Steak with White Beans and Salsa Verde

The hanger steak was made nicely as ordered--medium rare. It was topped on a bed of the same white beans I found in the seafood stew. The beef was tender, and the salsa added some sweetness and tanginess ot it. It's good!

The food at Paul K seemed pretty ordinary. I like the atmosphere, the services, but I think I'll come back only if they have deals or I am happened to be in the neighbor. Otherwise, I don't think I'll pay the money for it.