Arquet Restaurant — Restaurant in San Francisco

Went for dinner last night. The food was delicious but I’m giving it 3 stars for the incredibly slow and poor service we got sitting outdoors.

The reservation process - unorganized. I called to make a reservation and they told me they’re completely booked until 8:30, meanwhile I saw a reservation on open table for 6pm so we ended up getting seated. Maybe they opened recently but I find this very disorganized like the front staff don’t know what they’re doing or using bad systems.

The food - really really delicious! we ordered the bbq duck, burrata, and ahi tuna to share. I have no complaints about the food. The duck was very tender and the tuna and burrata were in the soupy side but if you pair with bread it’s delicious. Btw, they don’t come with bread which is odd so I had to order them on the side which took forever to come out.

The price - The portions are much smaller than you think so this place can get very pricey so it’s not someplace I will come that frequently. Think of this place more like an upscale tapas place.

The service - My greatest gripe is the service standards were way below par for a restaurant of this price point. They never gave us waters until I asked 30 mins into the meal, our server didn’t seem to know the menu well so when we ordered I had to show him the menu item we were referring to by pointing to it, and when I softly expressed that the service is slow because the bread we ordered was not coming out for so long way into our appetizer course, he could have just acknowledged it but instead he was a bit abrasive and just told me that the restaurant is really crowded which is why the service is slow.

If you’re going to charge this much then I expect more professionalism as I would have completely understood if he said he will go check in on the bread and give me an update.

I’m torn because I want to come back for the food but the service and pace of the food coming out was way too poor for the price...

We were so excited to experience Arquet just one week into their opening. We had a fantastic time for a Sunday date night and will definitely be back!

We were such fans of Slanted Door and beyond excited that a new restaurant would be in this storied space. From the moment we walked in, we couldn't stop smiling! The decor is gorgeous and the vibe was welcoming. (The hosts and servers were so lovely throughout.)

We were seated at a table right by the kitchen, which I LOVED. Front row to the open-kitchen action! Seeing the fire from the massive hearth was awesome! And watching how smoothly everyone was working together was impressive....one week in, just wow!! We also loved how there was ample space in between tables, leaving us to feeling comfortable and not cramped.

We had the dungeness crab brioche (insanely good), the eat well sun gold tomatoes (refreshingly tart and savory), the half hot honey chicken and hen of the woods mushrooms from the fire....(delicious and cooked to perfection), the bluefin tuna (so fresh and the mixture of ingredients was so good) and the thai tea cream with boba and popcorn (so fun!).

We also had a chance to talk to one of the restaurant's exec. team and he was so kind and fun to talk to. A fun highlight for us!!

Can't wait to...

I’m on the fence about this place. The decor is beautiful, but the lighting was quite bright—possibly because we were seated near the kitchen.

The first two dishes we ordered were excellent: the Rojas family marinated citrus and the duck liver brûlée—both absolutely delicious. Unfortunately, the next two dishes were disappointing. The lamb tartare lacked flavor, and the bone marrow, served on one massive bone for $48, offered only about two small bites of marrow. At most restaurants, you’d get two or three bones, which provides a more reasonable portion. To make matters worse, we both found shards of bone in our servings. I had to spit mine out. When we told our server, he apologized but didn’t offer any further acknowledgment.

We also tried four cocktails—one we really enjoyed, one we didn’t drink, and the other two were just okay.

Overall, for a $225 meal plus a $50 tip, I’m not sure it’s worth returning. That said, they’re still new and may just need more time to work out the kinks.

One small suggestion: when something goes wrong, taking a drink off the bill as a gesture of goodwill can make a big difference, especially for a restaurant that’s still building...