Kiln — Restaurant in San Francisco

To me an amazing fine dining experience is like reading a great novel.

It takes you on an adventure, immersing you into its story be it set in an exotic, fantastical locale or just simply down the corner. These novels are replete with the classical dichotomies of light and dark, conflict and harmony, joy and sadness, birth and passing, elation and conclusion.

Kiln is a great novel over 18-20+ courses. From its opening pages to closing, Kiln is an epically rich story, complete in its ethos of cooking, singular in its approach, minimalist in its environs, rounded in its experience, and luxuriant in its pairings.

From when you enter it's an experience. A frosted glass door leads down a long, dark wood corridor akin to a Narnian wardrobe which then explodes into a loft of light and cement and airiness with a strangely Gondorian, Lord of the Rings tree planted in the middle. Brutally minimalist in its layout with white canvases hanging from the bare cement walls surrounded by art gallery lighting, it almost sets the stage for Pollock to walk up and improvisationally throw paint on them.

Every course is meticulous and calculating yet playful with touches of exquisite flair. The opening bites are exercises in bursts of umami with malt vinegar, beef tendon, and roasted onion and anchored with the earthiness of the counterbalancing ingredients.

Dramatically minimalist akin to an theater lowering its lights to focus on the soprano on center stage, the courses are explosions in reductionism, with a rabid focus on ingredients, French, Nordic, and Japanese technique, and preparation.

A carabinero prawn with kohlrabi, chamomile, and grilled cream with a touch of spice from smoked peppers / chipotle.

A beet cornette with a dallop of bone marrow which blended smokiness, fried goodness similar to how a fast food french fry hits during a long roadtrip, and brought full circle with a juicy, acidity of biting into a (huckle)berry.

Chef John and General Manager Julianna hail from Sons and Daughters, perhaps my favorite Michelin-starred restaurant in the Bay Area. Where Sons and Daughters' ethos was minimalism with California flair and color, Kiln SF is that philosophy approached maniacally and singlemindedly.

This is most reflected in the fish course of a Norwegian mackerel that's dry aged and sauteed with ramp and shellfish. It was a delectable combination of crisp, fried seaweed-like fish skin with a luxuriant shellfish sauce with notes of scallop and lobster.

Following the mackeral was squab. A notoriously difficult bird, essentially an innocent, baby pigeon before it hits teenage years and morphs into a raving lunatic New York City pigeon. Its preparation was akin to a Peking duck with lacquered skin accompanied with an asparagus head, burnt honey, and a liver ganache.

Another highlight were the trio of dishes that showcased venison. Prepared 3 ways - a custard, grilled, and on the side, the dishes were executed, technically perfectly. The grilled filet was wondrously tender, finished with a beautiful sauce whose acidity helped balance and cut its richness and a little cabbage leaf whose crispness was a tidy addendum.

Throughout the evening, service was attentive yet discrete with a sincere warmness.

And the wine pairings ($165)... oh the wine pairings. The beverage director, Vincent Balao, most recently hails from Atelier Crenn, and is unleashed on this banquet of possibilities. A sake made with olive yeast, a gorgeously layered yet acid-forward, rich riesling trocken from Mosel, a fantastical vouvray, and a rioja fit for a king (among others), were beautifully paired. Depth yet rounded, exuberance yet can be buttoned up - these wines and sakes were spectacular.

Kiln reminds me of other ascendant restaurants in SF that have opened recently - Ssal and Nisei. Michelin stars will inevitably come in the near future. Yet Kiln stands above. It's perhaps the best restaurant I've dined at in SF in the past 4 years. Make a reservation. Indulge. Think. Savor. Enjoy....

We got the 8-10 course tasting menu option with wine pairings and non alcoholic pairings. Both pairings were interesting. The decor vibe read like an industrial loft or art gallery, with lots of hard planes and spot lighting. The tree in the middle of the restaurant offered a nice contrast to all the hard surfaces. The restrooms felt very luxe with amenities.

The menu was varied and will no doubt evolve and change with seasonal ingredients. The first two courses we were offered were bite sized "snacks", one which gave the impression of an elevated cracker with cheese, the other which was a deep fried beef tendon that was reminiscent of a fried wonton or chicharron with a sweet and sour sauce.

There were three seafood courses. The first was a raw mild fish. The second was a coin of thinly sliced prawn on braised kohlrabi, with sauces on top that vaguely reminded me of sushi. The third was cooked mackerel with a sauce.

There was a bread and soup course, the bread was beautiful and complicated with a cultured butter. It was good but the flavors were fairly strong for what most people might expect from bread and butter. The soup that came with it contained an uncooked egg yolk which enriched the broth they poured in tableside, which was fantastic already and didn't really seem to need anything to enrich it. I wished the broth had been just a little hotter because the end result was slightly warmer than lukewarm.

There was one meat course, squab, which was delicious and a highlight of the evening. It ended with three dessert courses: a chamomile sorbet, a goat butter ice cream (this was another highlight), and a box of assorted house made candies...

For being only its opening week, Kiln exceeded all my expectations. I learned later that the entire Kiln team previously worked together at Michelin-starred SF institution, Sons & Daughters. Given their history together, it's no wonder they were able to provide such an outstanding dining experience.

For starters, my friend and I opted for the expanded menu (18 - 20 servings) instead of their abbreviated menu. We ordered both the alcoholic pairing, as well as the spirit-free pairing. As for drinks, both pairings were spectacular. The alcoholic pairing included both wine as well as sake, while the spirit-free pairing was a diverse mix of non-alcoholic fruit wines and unique mocktails.

Moving on to food, the dishes struck the right balance between being creative while still providing the diner with a sense of comfort and familiarity. In particular, the progression of dishes allowed for an experience where each flavor led to the next in a meaningful way. Every component that I had was perfectly cooked, and the portions were ideal. In particular, the fermented potato bread with beef drippings was spectacular, as well as the duck, lobster, and custard dishes. Both desserts were absolutely perfect and we left at the end of the night completely satisfied, both with our experience as well as the amount of food consumed.

As for service, it could not have been any better. Given that it was their first week, I did get a glass of wine out of order, but they quickly fixed that and comped the early glass for me.

All-in-all, what a wonderful addition to the neighborhood, could not...