Orson
Category: American (New) [Edit]
Neighborhood: SOMA508 4th St
(between Bryant St & Brannan St)
San Francisco, CA 94107 (415) 777-1508
- Hours:
Mon-Sat 6:00 p.m.-12:00 a.m. - Price Range: $$$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: No
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Dinner
- Alcohol: Full Bar
468 reviews
Neighborhood: Mission
"Two dinners and one brunch later, I have a five-star feeling about Maverick. Nothing screams five stars, but you know how the…" read more »
241 Reviews for Orson
This place is easy miss on 4th street if you aren't paying attention - so pay attention or you're gonna end up in the Glas Kat nightclub next door. I was at Orson a few weeks ago for happy hour and was impressed with the decor - this is a cool looking place. Orson has a varied menu with lots of small and large plate options. They even have a tasting menu if you want the kitchen to choose your courses. The cusine is described as Edgy California cusine and they certainly have some unusual dishes like the parmaggiano pudding and the smoked tempura egg nori. This is certainly a place to go to if your taste-buds are in an adventurous mood.
The Hi-lights:
*fun happy hour bar-ambiance on the main floor (great for a girls night out!)
*main floor lively, with modern-retro details.
*comfy square-ish low couches next to the bar.
*cocktail specials on classics, $5 during happy hour (in bar/lounge only) - get there before 7p. http://www.orsonsf.com...
*cocoa nib explosion (a.k.a. pop rocks) in parmaggiano pudding - clever, dyno-mite!
*yummy smoked tempura'd egg appetizer.
The Lo-lights:
*very dark brown 'cave' room upstairs, where we had dinner.
*too quiet for us gals. Might be good for a romantic date, but we nearly fell asleep.
*dim, very dim...meditation anyone?
*our 2.5 hour meal...zzz...
*we should've wrapped up our meal with more cocoa nib explosion! ;)
My sister and I took my aunt to Orson for her birthday last July. I hate to diss Elizabeth Falkner because her cakes are awesome (I love you Tropical Shag cake), but Orson's decor was more impressive than the food. The food was mediocre, the portions were small, and our dinner was expensive. We could have spent the same amount of money at Spruce, Michael Mina or Boulevard and had a more satisfying meal. However, if you don't mind sitting at the bar, the bar menu features less expensive dishes. And the bar scene was hopping for a Saturday night.
Kudos to the architect/interior designer because the space and décor are SUPER cool! (I posted some photos of Orson in my "Local Photos" link). The restaurant is situated in an industrial warehouse and has a large loft area upstairs (I heart lofts) and very striking modernist furniture and décor (taupe microsuede banquettes and white leather chairs, a rad bar lamp + lighting fixtures, a white cubby bookcase in the lounge area, polished concrete floors, steel beams + trusses and great art on the walls). The interior is very art gallery-esque. A nightly movie is also projected onto one of the walls in the bar area (Willy Wonka was on rotation that night), which adds a nice touch to the ambiance. How very Foreign Cinema of Orson! (I luuuuv Foreign Cinema!)
We ordered the following dishes - the charred hamachi tartare with avocado, radish and citrus; the little gem salad with peas, mint and basil vinaigrette; the house made charcuterie with rye salami, terrine, curry lardo and sprice tri tip; a half dozen oysters; the tomato, guanciale, egg, chili flake and robiolat pizza; and the seared skate with turnips, potato confit and watercress. For dessert, we had the "Sundae Always Comes Too Late" with chocolate croquette, banana mousse and pecans. The best dishes were the charcuterie (which is Orson's special) and the sundae (not surprising for Falkner), but everything else we ordered was unremarkable.
As for drinks, I ordered the Lady from Shanghai with gin, passionfruit puree, ruby red grapefruit juice and osmanthus flower foam. My sister and aunt ordered the Passionista (which is very similar to a mojito) with sagatiba cachaca, passionfruit, lime and simple syrup. Our drinks were very tart and extremely hard to drink.
The service was also far from stellar. It took us 15 minutes to figure out what to order and our waiter seemed perturbed by our indecisiveness. He left our table several times and when he returned, he was irritated that we still hadn't figured out what to order. So we told him to order for us!
Faulkner did redeem the restaurant by walking up to our table and asking us about our meal. We were somewhat honest, but didn't want to bruise her ego. I was excited because I got to meet the woman behind the best cake ever! When I shook her hand, I told her that the Tropical Shag cake rocks my world. She cracked up and winked at me! :)
I'm giving Orson three stars because the restaurant just opened a couple months ago, so they have an excuse for mediocre food. It'll probably take the chefs and bartenders a couple more months to perfect their craft and if it happens, I will bump Orson up to 4 stars. And of course I'll add on an extra star for the kick-ass interior!
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We have a lot of respect for Elizabeth Falkner and we wanted to like this restaurant better, but while we were intrigued by her vision, the meal felt confused and some of it missed the mark.
The ambiance is clubby, which worked with some in our party of eight, and not with others. We sat on the second floor overlooking the bar, and that gave us a view of the action without overwhelming our own conversations.
We ordered the three-course tasting menu for the table, with a few extra sides tossed in. The portions, generally speaking, are very large. Two of our group had dined at the restaurant before and found the five-course tasting too large for comfort, and they're not dainty eaters. And our server waved us off the five course, saying no one could finish it.
That's an issue because this isn't a doggy-bag kind of restaurant. If the kitchen is consistently overwhelming the diners, then what we're generating is wasted food, and diners who are either too full or who feel uncomfortable leaving so much uneaten food. The balance could be better, and it would improve the profit margins, probably.
A few food notes on the negative side: the foie gras had a sinewy texture and an off-taste. The onion soup-style amuse bouche also had an off flavor, as though the onions had burned slightly during cooking. Throughout the dishes we encountered a number of concepts that we intellectually appealing, but didn't hold up in execution, including the smoked tempura egg in scallion bouillon, which quickly turns into a soggy mess, although the flavors were nice. We were passing dishes, and this was one where I didn't try to get a second bite.
On the positive side: dishes like parmiggiano pudding with cocoa nibs, the boudin noir, arugula, potato and oregano pizza (it could make you a believer in blood sausage), the chicken beer sausage was excellent (even though the accompanying gnocchi was leaden), delicious seared skate, and perfect garganelli pasta with guanciale and summer squash. The desserts were excellent - blackberry cornbread was spot on, among several good desserts.
On the macro level, this restaurant does a good job at rich, creamy textures, but as the dishes pile on, there's a serious want of acidity - something to break it up. The palate begins to tire under the weight of it. I don't want to overstate that because I have a bias toward acidity, but it would add a some high notes to this meal.
Decor is striking, and well done.
Bar is cool, drinks are damn good and original.
Service is like in NYC--swarms of good looking gay guys in cool uniforms with lots of bonding things around their arms.
The food--well. I love good food, and this was good--but some things are not good just cuz they're weird--like bacon ice cream. We tried it--but it needed more flavor--it was between 2 worlds, and would have better bolder.
The white dessert was just plain gross--even tho it looked beautiful.
Truffle oil meringue? Weird.
A slider usually comes as 3--that thing was tiny, and should have been a strong classic--but they tweaked it to death....it didn't look or taste like fried chicken by the time the staff of 100 got done "reworking the concept".
I think they should swing back to classic-retro.
Without the comfort of an expense account, Orson was an overpriced, confusing experience. Course after course, the food seemed to be overworked and overanalyzed.
My least favorite was the smoked tempura egg nori with scallion boullion. For $10, you get a soft boiled egg entombed in a sort of breaded "sac", for lack of better words. I'm sorry it sounds so graphic, but I honestly don't know how else to describe it. When you lance it (again, sorry for the language), the bowl fills up with a gamey smelling raw egg, which leaves its mark on your wine glass as well as your silverware and stays with you for the remainder of the evening.
I held out more hope for the seared skate, but even that was salty from far too much butter foam, and the flavors were ill balanced.
I don't eat meat, so I can't rate much else, but my three companions seemed fairly mystified as well. From where I sat, I can safely say that the chicken beer sausage needed to put a robe on. I have to make an exception for the duck fat fries. The meat eaters gave those high marks.
The desserts were just as fussed over as the rest of the food. They looked as if several people had had their hands on them throughout the life of the order, rolling and shaping and fluffing. They must have a whole team of pastry fluffers. The taste? We were underwhelmed and even a little concerned. The flavors just didn't go together. And one dessert tasted like it was seasoned with copy toner. I'm not being cheeky - I'm completely serious. It may have been a reaction to the very decent Pinot Noir we'd been drinking.
Overall, there were simply too many ingredients in these dishes. The chef's inability to edit led to a real disharmony on my palate. You shrug and try to write it off as a bad night, until the bill comes. If you're lucky, you might have enough left over to hit that burrito joint on the way home.
Decent place. The decor and scene is great, so maybe a light meal and drinks is worth it. Otherwise I would say the food was 'eh' to okay. Nothing really grabbed my taste buds. We tried all the main courses and many of the appetizers. Not one "yummm..." came out of my wife's mouth or mine.
My one strong criticism is their short ribs. How can you mess up short ribs? The dish was plain and not tender. Not horrible, but if the short ribs aren't at least tender then you don't know how to do it.
I grabbed dinner at Orson with two of my friends. I heard a lot of good things about this place, so I was really disappointed when reality hit.
(1) FOOD PORTIONS....Seriously am I suppose to be full after eating here?
(2) Waiter couldn't even pronounce the names of certain things on the menu i.e. "creme frai^ce" he was calling it "Cream fresh" and he wanted to CORRECT US. I was like uhh dude my friend has been speaking french for the past 22 years.
(3) AGAIN FOOD PORTIONS. I ordered about 3 dishes and I was still hungry. I ended up walking down the street to the "monkey" Thai restaurant and picked up Pad Thai to go.
I gave it one star for the ambiance. The place is hip.
Just sat at the bar to catch up with an old friend. Had cocktails and a few apps. Tofu was good. Cheese thing was odd, tasted a bit like cheese (cheez?) whiz. Is that bad? Yes, I think it's bad.
Still, the decor is good. Are they trying too hard? Yes, johnboy, they are. When your restaurant is next to the Utah, you can't serve cheez whiz as an app.
PD expensive, though.
Orson was a last minute dinner decision, so I crossed my fingers and hoped we wouldn't have to wait too long. Luckily, you can order dinner at the bar or any of their lounge areas. We scored a comfy couch on the second floor with a great view of the bar downstairs. While it wasn't the most comfy way to eat dinner, it was better than waiting.
We ordered the 3-course tasting menu ($55pp) since it gave us the best opportunity to taste a number of items. Our waitress even let us incorporate some items we had eyed on the menu.
Our first course included the lengua croquette, an arugula salad with melon and chicharrones, and fried tofu with house kimchee. The lengua was a pleasant surprise; the salad had a unique combination of textures and flavors, while the fried tofu had a lot of flavor with just a little kick. The three items didn't pair well together, but it was a generous sampling of different tastes.
The second course was the chicken beer sausage, smoked trout and a side of the duck fat french fries. The sausage and fish were so different that eating them in the same course was odd, but the dipping sauce on the fries was rich and delightful.
The final course included an avocado ice cream palette cleanser (not as sweet as I like), followed by two desserts - the roasted pluot with olive oil ice cream and the chocolate ganache with ice cream and stout foam. I stray away from chocolate desserts, but this one made me want to lick the plate.
The creativity and seasonality of Orson's menu makes you want to keep coming back for more, which I plan to do soon.
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Overall I thought it was great. We opted for the three course tasting which was the perfect choice and for SF a great value at $55 per person. Liking a surprise, they brought out what the chef decided to prepare. We loved everything from the sardines and white beans to the tempura egg resting in broth. The cheescake mousse at the end was equally delightful. The food was unexpected but solid, and the flavors worked nicely together. I appreciated Chef Falkner briefly coming out to greet patrons. Only issue was the dishes came out a little too fast (plates starting to pile on the table). Easy fix!
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On a whim, I called last week to see if we could swing a last minute Friday night reservation at Orson. I'd wanted to visit ever since the opening, but was a little hesitant based on all the mixed reviews. Needless to say, they exceeded my expectations. We were seated immediately upon arrival at a great table near the bar. Throughout the meal, we received impeccable service. My water glass was never low; the waiter offered tastes of wine for my husband to decide upon a glass; our food arrived at perfect intervals and they even offered me a replacement for a liqueur that I ordered (and subsequently didn't like.)
The food portions were very generous- we started with the grilled octopus salad and greens with seeds and melon. The octopus had a wonderful smokey flavor to it and just the perfect hint of spice (without ruining the palate.) For our mains, we shared the chicken beer sausage and the smoked trout, with a side of beans. Both the sausage and the trout had such rich, distinct flavors- thought I must admit that succulent pink, smokey trout with perfectly grilled bacony corn will be the entree that brings me back. Wow.
And dessert- well, it is Elizabeth Falkner's restaurant, after all. We ordered two and ate all of it, an unusual occurrence for us. The "vice city" rocked my chocolate to the moon. Yeah, baby. That's what it's all about.
Maybe the restaurant listened to the initial feedback and took it to heart. Or maybe we lucked out- all I know is we had an excellent, memorable dining experience and wouldn't hesitate to return and bring friends. Bravo to Orson!
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After going to Orson's for the second time, again I find it to be just the right balance of a fun bar/lounge scene, and a good small plates restaurant. The large circular bar in the middle of the room is a great place to sit, chat with friends and people watch. The place is a huge open warehouse with a great vibe, beautiful contemporary decor and frequented by a mixed young and older trendy crowd.
The food is delicious - tried almost everything on the appetizers and main plates menu and all is very good. Have not tried the pizza's or desserts yet. I could do without the foam thing on some dishes - never cared for that trend in food. Otherwise the ingredients are very fresh and all dishes so very flavorful.
Both times, Chef Faulkner came around the room and chatted with patrons at most tables, which is such a refreshing thing for her to do.
Definitely a top place to start a fun, casual evening on the town.
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Came here with two friends for the Gin & Stone menu. All five courses(which featured a stone fruit of some sort) were accompanied by a gin-based cocktail. For $65, I thought it was a fair price..
I couldn't possibly remember anymore the exact dishes but they were all delicious and unique. And the cocktails were to die for. They have an amazing mixologist on hand!
I can tell you that the Fairly Jaded
(right gin, kubler absinthe, ceylon tea, pineapple, lemon, mint) got me Fairly Faded!
Service that night was quite friendly, but the foodrunners and bussers didn't seem to communicate well and at times there was confusion.
Space is gorgeous, can't wait to go back.
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The decor is a 5 star and worth the trip alone. The bar is this beautiful marble horseshoe smack in the middle of the room. Excellent bartenders.
We sat at the bar and had a couple of apps and a pizza. It was all very good, especially the sardines. We had a great time and will definitely come back for a real dinner.
What a bar!! who would want to sit at a table? The bartender was adorable and recommended a great wine. We weren't there for dinner but ordered serveral appetizers (all were great) Being from the South, I am picky about my fried chicken and it was great (even though I wanted I bigger piece). All-in- all I can't wait to go back
Orson may not be for everyone, but I think of it as super San Franciscan. Beautiful modern space. Lots of 30 year old nerds. Adventurous and interesting menu.
Our group of 4 shared a lot of the menu:
charred hamachi tartare, avocado, radish, citrus: Pretty much like all other fish tartares. A good version but not like waow. Not that interesting compared to the their dishes.
grilled octopus salad, beef tendon, sprouted nuts: My favorite dish of the night by far. Tons of different textures, fresh and light flavors. Nothing off putting whatsoever. If every dish were as surprising and delightful as this, I'd give it 5Billion stars if I could.
lengua croquette, cherry, purslane: Tender lengua. Maybe a little underseasoned.
parmaggiano pudding, pepper jam, cocoa nib explosion: YUM. Cheesy and comforting.
bone marrow, parsley, garlic confit: Yummy. But give us more bread and also cut the bone lengthwise to make it easier to extract the marrow.
chicken beer sausage, nectarine, frisee, pistachio, gnocchi: WAHOO! this worked even though the plating kept it all quite separate. Just very well done and well seasoned. Juicy ass sausauge.
short rib, spinach, espresso, potato: I wasn't that impressed with this, esp as short rib is usually so amazing. This was tender as all get out, but the flavor was lacking, and I missed the bones. I tasted the espresso quite distinctly, which seemed a bit jarring.
roasted pig: Savory, tender, crisp. What roasted pig should be. Really needed a lot more of it!
We also had some desserts but i'm not much of a dessert person. I appreciated the fact that they were interesting flavor combinations as well, and nothing seemed too sweet. Definitely of the quality you expect from the chef of Citizen Cake.
Really fantastic and interesting wines complement the menu. The mixed drinks seemed more interesting than they tasted.
Problems:
It's loud, which was slightly problematic for my friend's parents that we brought here. But a little wine and the fantastic food softened them up considerably. As did Chef Elizabeth Falkner's little walk through the tables.
Other con is that the servings are TINY. and the prices are HIGH. but this is sf. oh well.
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I was skeptical about this restaurant since I suggested coming here with my girlfriends. I've heard rumblings that it's still a new restaurant and there's certain things to stay away from on the menu. But to my amazement it was great. The ambiance is nice and different from your typical SOMA restaurant. Our group shared everything:
-Oysters - delicious
-Foie Bon Bon - interesting...I wouldn't recommend this
-Tempura Egg - must order because it's so different
-Charcuterie - really good & housemade - most impressive
-Hamachi Tartare - good/avg
-Pizzas were really good we tried a boudin noir and sausage, and I enjoyed both
-Duck Fat French Fries - good but and just barely a hint of duck flavor
-Short Rib - succulent & fall off the bone
-Sundae always comes to late - sooo delicious
-Summer Snow - interesting...
My friends & I were crazed over the "Lady from Shanghai" cocktail but substituted w/ vodka. I hope to be back here for happy hour soon.
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I went to Orson to meet my wife and friends for dinner. I and most of my foodie friends like Citizen Cake so it seemed like a no brainer.
To start the staff was great, I arrived a little early and they let me wait at the table. I brought corkage and they were gracious in offering to decant it. They won my (pregnant and starving) wife over immediately by bringing bread immediately. The celery gimlet is a great cocktail
We were primed to really like the dinner. The way the menu read was great I wanted to try everything....I ordered the Hamachi tartare, It was perfect! Other folks had the green salad and the Charcuterie plate. The Charcuterie was generous and satisfyng.
The entrees were less so....
The Roast Pig seemed over smoked and a little dry, I picture roast pig as falling off the bones and super juicy. The short rib contained a surprise, it had been rubbed with vanilla. This was unpleasant to all at the table. The winner was the chicken beer sausage. the sausage was wonderfully most and tons of flavor while maintaining balance.
The favorite dish at the table was the duck fat french fries, I think I would go to the bar just for those.
Overall I don't think any of us would go back, we all just something more simple, more elegant.
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Main course or dessert? Sweet or savory? At Orson, it's a little bit of everything. But before I talk about the food - I love that there is a great new space in my 'hood. And $5 happy hour cocktails from 5-7 pm! The minimalist, modern yet warm decor of Orson is a nice backdrop for the avant garde food. And the food is very avant garde. We had no idea what to expect from smoke tempura egg nori in scallion bouillon (basically a soft-boiled egg wrapped with seaweed tempura batter and deep fried, in a salty broth) or a dish of slightly cheesy farro with grilled peaches, or fried tofu with kimchi (nothing like Korean kimchi-tofu bokkum, but fairly interesting and tasty nevertheless). I've never previously had the combinations of ingredients that Falkner and her crew put together, but I think for the most part it worked.
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I went in for what I'd hoped would be a nice birthday meal with my boyfriend. I am a huge fan of Citizen Cake and was looking forward to what Orson might had to offer. We'd spent the day relaxing in the sun with friends and planned to carry that same vibe along with us to dinner. It was not to be. The hard lines and cold warehouse feel of Orson immediately threw me off. It seemed depressing and overbearing.
The waiter seemed disengaged and even brought my boyfriend the wrong cocktail. To start, we ordered the cheese plate (which was ok, but not that exciting) and the hamachi tartare that involved some kind of foam stuff that was not in the least appealing. At this point Joe had begun to feel ill (probably unrelated, but inopportune nonetheless), we didn't like the food and the oppressive decor made me feel like we were dining in a dungeon. We didn't see the point in splashing out more money for what was already a disappointment and asked for the check. Once home, my BF spent several hours throwing up. Usually all I care about on my birthday is having a nice leisurely meal. I've certainly had better.
Service= The waiter was very informative and attentive.
Food= Everything seemed about 20 degrees less hot than it should have been....even the espresso. How do you screw up espresso?
Atmoshere= Large warehouse feel was nice. Movies were projected on the one huge white wall.... nothing special to write home about.
Homo factor= Seemed like everyone working was hella gay and everyone seated were middle aged heteros seeking hip venue.
Price= If the food didn't suck I would say it was fairly priced.
Parking= We found parking right away.
Bathrooms= Very clean and stylish.
found another place to go for happy hr! too bad this place is not walking distance from work! i love the fact that this place is so humongous! i felt like i was in a huge warehouse disguised as one of those trendy and chic new york art galleries. This is definitely a great place to host parties since there's a bunch of sofas, two floors of dining tables and enough bar seats for 30.
I ordered the margarita but it was too sour. The southside, on the hand tasted similar to a basil gimlet and was refreshing and minty. The food was pretty interesting. Somethings that tasted out of the ordinary were the pizza with a half cooked egg on top and the tempura egg. The dessert was quite different....some of it was decorated with bacon....which didn't sit too well with my taste buds. Salty and sweet? Not a really good mix.
I would definitely come back just to lounge (the decor is rocking!) and to also try the other goodies!
*This review is for happy hour drinks only*
I went with a crew around 5:30 on a Friday and enjoyed happy hour. The vibe is cool as everyone knows... very SOMA hip. The specials for happy hour were good ($5 drinks). But they hide those drinks on the second page of the menu! So we accidently ordered $12 thinking they were $5, and the drinks were so unusual some of us didn't like them so it was money down the hole.
My roommate stayed on and had some appetizers. She said they were good, and everyone around seemed to be enjoying their food. I don't think it would be worth going out of your way for given the cost. It seems like one of those places whose popularity is a fad and the buzz will die down. Not a classic with truly good food. But if you live or work close, it's certainly a nice addition to the neighborhood to stop by for a drink.
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we came here friday night after dinner at oola. as soon as we walked in, we spied 3 open stools at the bar. perfect. once we settle in, we took in the space, which is open and airy. it reminded me a bit of a movie set with what looked like rafters.
the very attentive bartender greeted us with glasses of water and menus. one friend had a glass of viognier, the other cappuchino and i had a glass of cava. we also ordered the chocolate croquette with banana mousse. both were not overly sweet and the flavors were surprisingly subtle. it was a very comfortable spot to linger. the music was at the right volume. we stayed for a couple of hours and had many glasses of grape juice.
I am definitely coming back to try their duck fat fries and tempura eggs.
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This might affect my review a bit, but I was going to go grab dinner with a chef buddy of mine. As we are walking to the restaurant there was a guy with a big pitbull, I didn't think anything of it and was chatting with my buddy about food. Next thing I know the dog turns around and jumps at me. I dodge and move up a bit, next thing I noe I hear a crack noise. BAM CRACK. I put my hand in my pocket and pull out my fone, the screen is cracked so bad that i couldn't even use my fone. I was madd by the time we got to the restaurant I was not a great mood, I needed to get some alcohol in me. So I ordered a total of two drinks not even realizing that it was bout a half hr after Happy Hour, so I had to shell out 18 bucks for two drinks. Boo. Both me and my buddy chose the three tasting menu which consists of an appetizer, main course and desert. the food overall was very interesting, I had never drank soup in a shot glass before. I also tried this tempura, nori egg. It was the most interesting thing of the nite.the egg was fried in tempura with nori and when i cut into the egg, it was still oozing and liquid. The taste was amazing. next came the Chicken Beer sausage, this was jest okay in my book. Nothing reallie special. The dessert on the other hand was amazing, it was a cheese cake but yet it wasn't. It was light and had some ice cream. AMAZING!!! The food overall was good, but the check wasn't. we split the bill and with tip it came out to about 82 bucks a person. thanks for reading my very long review and stuff tat didn't even pertain to the review. =D
Chicken sliders were the highlight...juicy, tender, flavorful but not too over the top - imagine buffalo wings in sweet pork buns. Tempura egg was also unique, I liked the raw yolk, that was a surprise. Duck fat fries were crispy and very good, but didn't think the 'duck fat' made any difference. They have a reasonably priced tasting menu, will want to go back for that. Negative of this place - no AC, so pretty hot during heat wave
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What a nice place to sit and chill with some friends after work. The bar is terrific, so open and roomy. The bartenders are a kick and they really have their moves down when preparing the cocktails. did I mention they have martini's at happy hour prices. YUM.
We tried the duck fat french fries, crisp shoestring accompanied with wonderful mellow Bearnaise butter dip.
The fried chicken sandwich at the bar was so good my gf wouldn't share. I was miffed but just had another $5 drink.
GF likes this crazy named wine "Its so nice" and the bartender loved pouring it while saying it with an Italian accent. Cute.
All in all, a hit with us and we'll be back
I came here with a friend after work and my eyes immediately went straight to the huge projection of 1950's movie stills behind the bar. Nice touch!
The space is open with a huge second floor that overlooks the city streets and also the bar in the middle.
Music was playing at the right volume, cocktails were flowing throughout the restaurant, and Elizabeth Falkner was gliding around chit chatting with the patrons.
I just wish I can put the food on the same pedestal as the ambiance and decor.
The portions were a bit small and the flavour was a bit lacking. Nonetheless, I would probably be back for a nice little after work get together for a nice bottle of wine.
hint: The duck fat fries were too rich so don't order it unless you're with a huge party.
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This is a wonderful open and airy loft space within walking distance from my office. The bartenders are a little slow with service and the food is rather unusual, otherwise I'd give them 5 stars. However, that being said, the bartenders mix amazingly refreshing cocktails and the Happy Hour M-F from 5-7pm and is the best deal in fine-drinking in South Beach. I have to say the food is more like a work of art than a meal but usually it works, especially the smoked tempura egg nori with scallion bouillon and the duck fat french fries with browned butter béarnaise sauce. HOLY COW! Where did Elizabeth think this stuff up and how does she do it? All in all a dining experience you won't forget. Try to fir one of her prix fixe meals, like Bourbon & Bacon - can you say "Howdy Vincent Van Gogh"?
Orson reminds me of a girl I once met in Los Angeles: Dangerously alluring appearance, but once we started talking, vapid and unmitigatedly disappointing.
I am a sucker for good design. Thus, I eagerly awaited the opening of this outwardly hip little joint fewer than two blocks from my house. To be sure, the aesthetic of this place did not let me down.
However, with each successive course, I began to have the sneaking suspicion I was the unwitting subject of a new Food Network candid camera special exploring the psychological impacts of hype and slick decor on perceived taste. Every single offering that night was deplorable. About 2/3 of the way through the meal, we threw in our napkins and begged the ref to call off the fight. Check, please, please please...
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Dear Elizabeth Falkner and the entire staff of Orson,
Thank you so very much for an amazing birthday dinner last week!!!
The food was creative and perfectly prepared. We shared several of your dishes and fell in love with how fun each plate was! The bone marrow was rich and kept us wanting more. The octopus and beef tendon salad was clever and delicious! The duck fat fries didn't really taste like duck, but they were cooked to perfection! The chocolate pizza is unforgettable! It's sweet, savory and spicy - so unique! The short ribs were just mindbogglingly intense with espresso! The roasted pig came with a surprising ravioli of broth - so cool!
Plus, there's happy hour with $5 cocktails! Lastly, I would like to say that the service was impeccable! From the hostess, to the lounge waitress to our dinner table waiter. They all were a delight!
Yours truly,
Lisa N.
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Agreed - overpriced. BUT, you expect it coming here. You feel a bit robbed, but its a stab in the gut, not the back.
$5 HH Margaritas = BEST IN THE CITY. The bartenders are awesome too.
The space feels very LA or South Beach, airy and beautiful. Crowd is good looking and pleasant. Oooh, did i mention the MARGARITAS?! Taste-ay!
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I'm a veg-hed and even then, I ate just fine at Orson, something I'm not used to in such a high-end establishment. Their service was great -- professional AND friendly, and their presentation and decor is simply immaculate. I'm looking for another special occasion to go back...
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I haven't been here for dinner and have no plans to.
But the bar and lounge. Awesome. Very slick with the decor and lots of light. But mostly, $5 happy hour M-F from 5-7. And not some cheapass cocktails but real adult cocktails. I think this is going to be my new go-to place near work for HH.
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I really, really wanted to like this place as I had heard from a fellow foodie friend that this was a challenging sort of place in a foodie way. I wanted to be worthy of that challenge!
Long ago, I told my mom it was pretty clear what she mean when she referred to something as interesting. Well, Our dining experience at Orson was interesting. Oh, and yes, challenging. Complex. Odd. Unique. Perplexing. Certainly an experience! We opted for the tasting menu, which seemed like a great, adventurous way to try a lot of interesting flavors. In some ways, that could have been true, but so many of the dishes were unbalanced with flvaor profiles that did not win out table over. We began with an amuse bouche of melon and a cheese/marshmallow and pink peppercorn concoction that was initially concerning, but a lovely treat! Then onto the tempura egg nori. Um, that's where things became complex, confusing, and, oh,... "interesting." We had a pork plate of sorts that had a rib of sorts, and what seemed to be raw, completely fatty bacon and like Chris S, that's where we threw in the towel. [if anyone was braver than us, please do let me know what that actually was on the pork plate]..... However - The French Fries (cooked in duck fat) were great. We tried to taste the pizza, but that never made it to our table. The skate was terrific - light, bright flavors. Surprisingly, the butter beans and sardines were good. (Surprising, as I did not think, in general, I would like the little buggers in general. Can't say I am a huge fan, but they were interesting to try and not totally gross.) The sausage was very flavorful and rich. The faro seemed to have an identity crisis, as it was reminiscent of home baked apple pie. We also had sugar pea ravioli in a carrot broth, which was more like gnocchi, and was quite nice though definitely had an overriding sweetness from the peas and carrot broth. The desserts were also complex. Sounded great, but they did not win us over. Overall, there is a lot of foam, a lot of unexpected ingredients, confusion of sweet vs. savory, and a menu that succeeds at being challenging! I felt like the dishes were perhaps gratuitously challenging just to push the culinary envelope even further. I'm all for that on occasion, but it seems that is the overarching culinary theme Chef Faulkner has in place here. She in fact is actively in the kitchen, and made the rounds greeting diners - a very rare and nice experience.
Our waiter was fabulous. The space is great and very cool, but comfortable. Bar area is a good spot to grab a drink and from what I read good happy hour prices and bar food. I will be back to try that limited aspect.
I wanted to like this place, but here is where I came out.
first, it's overpriced, no matter how creative the chef is. the food was good but nowhere near the hype... and the literally bite-size portions were utterly disappointing.
i think that several of the wines on the list are definitely not organic or even sustainable, contrary to what is stated at the top of the list. i know that Medlock Ames and Baker Lane fit the standard, but Vie (which we ordered) and some of the others, not so sure... i can live with that, but it makes me wonder if the same applies to the ingredients that they use...
all in all, 2 stars because this is yet another new restaurant that assumes that because it looks good (and the decor is indeed very nice) it can get away with overpriced food. i'd much rather head to CoCo500, where at least you get bang for your buck and can hear what your dinner date has to say.
Definitely a fan. From the minute I walked in the service was GREAT! The girl at the front literally walked me over to the Happy Hour lounge area with menus after I told her it was my first time there. This place gets crowded after 6pm or so I was lucky to get a seat. The prices are high, but the food is unique. The "duck fat french fries" kinda freaked me out, not going to lie..but I applaud them thinking outside the box. Fun, mixed crowd. I like the glass catwalk on the level upstairs and the movies playing on the projector screen. Looking forward to having dinner here.
Five stars for the happy hour bar and two stars for the food, at least the food on the bar menu. The pork buns were one of the most disappointing appetizers I've had anywhere - basically fried dough with some tiny cubes of tasteless pork in the middle. None of the food we tried seemed all that good, and portions aren't great for the price.
I will return to sit at the bar and drink, but that's about it until they improve the food quality and value.
Update: I'