Great service, fantastic food, and wonderful interior. There was Hokkaido Red Uni, abalone, raw shrimp, absolute delight. The cocktails should be noted, too. It was my first to have a grey, yet enticing, looking cocktail that was not overly sweet and overall well balanced.Madison seated us, Kent was our server, and Jennifer engaged us to the fullest with a tour of the kitchen.Extremely well done and executed. Thank you, Manresa!
Covid Review: The restaurant is currently closed for covid shelter in place, but they are doing a family style pick up meal with a new menu each day. You order the day before, pull up in front of the restaurant and within a minute someone brings the food to your car. Simple heat up when you get home and you are eating dinner prepared by a 3 Michelin star restaurant for only $50/person. Food was great and portions were good sized. Will definitely be back again and cant wait to go when restaurant is fully open again!
Great dining experience. Atmosphere was relaxed, but charming. Service was phenomenal, we enjoyed the friendly smiles. Food and cocktails were spectacular. We had so much fun here.
Ive been lucky enough to dine at Manresa since they opened and have seen Chef Kinchs cuisine and restaurant continue to evolve. In my opinion, Manresa, is still one of the best restaurants in the world. When I compare it to the 3 star restaurants that Ive been to in France and California (and we are truly lucky in Northern California to have so many wonderful restaurants), it easily is in the top 3. The cocktails are sensational, the wine list and recommendations from their master sommelier excellent, the service highly attentive, and the food beautiful to look at and devour. Prices are high but fairly priced for this caliber of meal and experience. This restaurant is not for everyone. If youre a picky eater or have major dietary restrictions, while they will certainly cater to your needs (with advanced notice), you may not have the optimal experience. However, if youre someone who will eat or try anything, dont mind spending money on dining experiences, and love food that has layers of incredibly well thought out and beautifully executed complexity, do yourself a favor and try Manresa.
My moms birthday lead us to this amazing place. The courses do seem small when you start, but everyone in the family ended up being pretty full by the end of the meal. The flavors were the most amazing combinations Id ever had the opportunity to enjoy, yet each dish had seeming simplicity to it that I cannot explain. It has been some time since this dinner, but the fact that it still sticks in my mind as amongst the best (in not the best) meal Ive been lucky enough to enjoy speaks volumes about this place. I wouldnt hesitate to place that future reservation if youre looking, even though it is likely a long wait. So worth it.
Fantastic meal, one of the best Ive ever had. There was a great balance of many different types of flavours as well as an assortment of both savory and sweet dishes. The service is fantastic which is to be expected from a 3 star restaurant. I was also a big fan of the decor inside with the mix of traditional and modern design, definitely worth going out of your way to experience.
Excellent food and service! We were blown away with the flavor and creativity. The staff were attentive and patiently answered our questions.Thank you for a memorable night!
The best dining experience that I have ever had.I am glad I got to try the tasting menu of 2 highly acclaimed Chefs!Each dish came at good timing-spaced evenly after the next. Each flavor of every item was AMAZING.bursting with originality and such thought.I am still watering at the mouth just thinking of the dishes that were created.I have included most of the dishes that was served that night and I wish the food never ended.I have had uni 3 times before this and I have always hated it.I have no idea why this time I had the courage to give it another shot.I am so glad that I did because it tasted the cleanest and most delicious uni ever! So creamy and flavorful.Without giving too much of the experience away since this is a place one must visit in their lifetime! The servers,chefs,bartenders and receptionist all deserve raises! Thanks for the little take home gift bags as souveniers!I plan on making another reservation again soon!
We had the meal described in the attached photo. The roasted carrots were presented to look like crab legs. I thought they were the tastiest side dish, my wife didnt care for them. The broccoli dish was good, not awesome. There are 2 pieces of grilled lamb loin per serving, with a significant layer of fat on the top. We both liked the dessert the best. All in all Id say it was a good value compared with most other take out options. And a fairly accessible way to sample a 3-star Michelin restaurant (although its a far different experience - set your expectations accordingly..)
This may have been the best meal Ive ever had. I know the crescent cake with vanilla ice cream was the best thing I have ever eaten ever in my life.
We got the vegetarian Family Meal-To-Go package for around $100. We received Braised endive with beans, citrus segments and cashews, Farro verde with gouda, Roasted Tokyo turnips, Grilled radicchio salad with sour cherries and toasted sunflower seeds with sweet onion and sherry vinaigrette, Garlic Parker House roll, & Peach cake. Although all foods were thoroughly prepared, we were responsible for reheating. There was an abundance of food, the menu items were interesting, & the ingredients were good quality. However, the flavors of these particular dishes were just okay. It was a fun experience and I am glad we tried it, but Id prefer to have tried a different meal.
Came here for dinner to celebrate a birthday.They called a week ahead to ensure attendance and to ask about dietary restriction or preferances.The entrance has a small garden and immediately makes you feel like youre entering a space separate from the city.The interior is well-lit, not dim nor bright. Just enough so you can focus on the person in front of you and the food they present. The decor is a soft egg-white with small paintings of nature. Nothing drags your eyes around nor does it feel emptyPart of the course is for you to be presented the meal without the menu. Every dish is a pleasant surprise one after another. All I will say is that the spring course menu had strong presentation and will make anyone reconsider vegetable entrees.Some small mishaps happened that took away from the experience, but its very much clear that it was an anamoly and nothing reflective of the restaurants standards.I look forward to trying their winter courses in the future.
We had a wonderful experience. Every dish was thrilling, especially the into the garden dish. The final dish was delightful, but I wont spoil that on case it is still the same (also left out of my photos)
I made reservations for Manresa months in advance of my birthday dinner and I was very excited for the meal. However, my girlfriend and I were pretty disappointed by the food and its flavor. The items were overwhelmingly salty and sweet and lacked the balance that is expected in a restaurant of this caliber. The oyster, however, was extremely well made and was a highlight of the meal, along with the attentive service (even though the service was a bit too formal for my liking). The desserts were all very disappointing. Especially the strawberry Pate de fruit that tasted like Smuckers strawberry jelly. It was a fun experience but a little disappointing.
This place continues to be one of two favorite dining experiences. They have never disappointed in the decade and a half we have been going there for special celebrations. Everything was wonderful. In the awesome/amazing category would be the :- Granola crisp with goat cheese (great mix of texture and taste)- Starry flounder with shellfish essence, citrus marigold- into the vegetable garden (wow, the spectrum of flavors and texture was out of this world. That means a lot from a carnivore)- chilli peppers rockfish, craw fish and koji butter- Porcini and red walnut, abalone XO- roast duck, beets and blueberry (dont know how they did the reduction/dehydration or something for the beets and blueberry, but it was delightful)- spring lamb, salted baked onion and rampsThere were more, but these really stood out. Desserts were wonderful and they brought a special piece of celebratory cake for our sons graduation. What a nice touch. Staff was awesome as always.It was a great four hour experience.(The only downside was the AC was rather strong. Even the table next to us grabbed something to cover up).
It was a 5* experience when we first to Manresa couple of years back, however this time around, felt let down. Except for the two stand out dishes, Crab & Citrus pannacotta and Into the garden, which was absolutely stunning, nothing else really made an impression. It seemed more french than Californian this time around and the desserts which was never their strong has in fact become worse. I would rather have skipped it altogether. The grapefruit, coconut combination was not only weird but it was quite unpalatable...tart hell. Hoping that they get their groove back but with all the wonderful new restaurants that keep cropping up, you wonder if youll make it back unlike the first experience when you came away wondering when youre going back.
Ive eaten at Manresa a number of times, and love it, but my kids have not. So took my son Josh and his GF Aran for their 25th birthdays, along with my Sweetie Teresa (her 2nd time) on Feb 12th. We all had the tasting menu with the wine pairing, which came to a total (with bubbly and still water, one G&T, and 3 coffees to about $2700 including a $500 tip, which sounds steep but was SO worth it!Started with 2 Amuse Bouches: a petit fours of red pepper gellee with black olive madeline, and an incredible multi-seed granola crisp filled with goat cheese. This was followed by two small plates: iced geoduck clam with kolrabi and turnip, and an exquisite sunchoke royale, with roast chicken jelly and Ossetra cavier. My only small critique of these 4 starters, all of which were both beautiful & delicious, was that they probably would have been even more heavenly if accompanied by champagne. This alcohol-deprivation was soon rectified, however.The next course was a delicious abalone chowder with poblano chile mouse (sp?), paired beautifully with a 2017 Alzinger Gruener Veitliner Smaragd - Steinertal (a somewhat grassy, superb Austrian white.The salad course was a complete knock-out (see photos) - with crunch, savoriness, just wonderful, paired with the same Austrian white.The next course was fabulous, a Romanesco, Dungeness crab concontion with koji butter, which we all gleefully sopped up with the sourdough (one of three never-ending Manresa-baked bread choices), paired with a superb 2013 Comtesse Bernard de Cherisey Meursault Genelotte.This was followed by Kinmedai and squid with grilled onion jus, paired well witha 2017 La Marca di San Michele, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi CapoVolto (a grape Ive never heard of - delicious!). This squid course, while delicious and satisfying, was probably the most one note flavor palate of any of the courses due to the grilled onion jus.The 1st meat course was another knock-out: roast veal sweetbreads with coffee potato & black garlic, paired beautifully with a 2009 Michael Gros, Vosne-Romanee Clos des Reas.The final meat course was the far and away the meatiest fowl course Ive ever had, and pushed all of my beef buttons. It was a roasted (rare) squab breast and a confit squab leg & thigh in an incredible foie gras sauce Albefera, paired with a lovely Syrah, the 2013 Clusel-Roch, Cote-Rotie Les Grande Places.By this point we were all satieted and a bit tipsy, but had room for most of the 3 dessert courses, paired with a wonderful old Port, a 1962 Muse Wines, Banyuls Pietri-Geraud.The 1st was Kafir lime with pistachio & squash, combining sweet & savory notes with the citrus of the kefir lime. The 2nd was a amazing tower of roasted pear hidden below a chocolate crisp with fennel, followed by strawberry petit fours with chocolate madeleines, tying into the 1st amuse bouche.Coffee was excellent, as expected, and happy we all Lyfted there and home. Meal began at 5:30, and ended at 10:15 with a dessert doggy bag, plus a couple handfulls of their butter carmels and individual clear boxes of their homemade granola for breakfast the next day.If youve never eaten at this local 3 Michelin starred gem, you owe it to yourself to try it for a special occasion. The ambiance, the decor, the service, the presentation, and especially the food, with amazingly contrasting colors, textures, and temperatures within a single dish, are all fantastic and worthy of 3 Michelin stars. To my mind, Manresa is botb closer and better than the French Laundry.
The overall food experience was absolutely wonderful and met our groups very high expectations. There were probably more seafood dishes than I cared to have, but the plethora of delicious desserts completely made up for that.It was a tough night on the atmosphere front, with paramedics being called and multiple times dishes fell and broke. I would have also preferred a little more extravagance in the decor, but the clearly the focus was the seafood and the deserts.There are also small surprises during various times in the night that made the evening just that much more special. It is definitely worth going to Manresa!
Manresa is my favorite restaurant in the Bay Area. While there are places that have served better individual dishes there is no place that has surpassed the overall dining experience. For our 20th anniversary we went to 20 of the best restaurants in the Bay Area, and Manresa was the best.The remodeled dining room is wonderful. The staff is attentive, but not doting - Refined, but not stuffy. The personal touches for the dining experience were exceptional.The food was incredible, so many combinations of fresh and tasty ingredients.I only wish I cold afford to eat here more often!
Great family meal to go! I would like to try again with my best friends! Some of my favorites include the blue shrimp cocktail, extra large dry aged beef, marinated tomatoes etc.
Great experience and amazing food. You cant believe how they manage to get so many flavor profiles concentrated in their dishes. The staff are also really slick and accommodating. Theyre really clever and witty when appropriate if you are making conversation about the food and what theyre serving you. As a three star I think this has the best value and experience. You wont feel like a fish out of water or like you dont belong.
Absolutely delicious. Great wines and service. The tasting menu that they had was incredible and some of the best food Ive ever had. Loved the duck and scallops.
My wife and I loved our visit to Manresa. The service was first class, and the food was amazing. Every dish impressed, which is rare, even at these top-end restaurants. The cuisine was creative, but not over the top. Flavors take center stage here, not flowery platings. Overall, we would highly recommend Manresa for a special night out.Here was our menu:1) Amuse bouches:Red pepper gelee paired with an olive Madeleine- Granola crisps- Chestnut truffle with a truffle and cocoa nib shortbread and gold leaf. Really flavorful. Left a rich aroma in my nose afterwards2) Kushi oysters from Vancouver blanched in their shell, and served with caviar, creme fraiche, bonito butter, and shisho. Rich and briny.3) Striped jack fish sashimi with cauliflower, anchovy cream, toasted almond, dinosaur kale, and yuzu rind for a citrus kick. The fish was so fresh, it had zero fishy taste. Instead, it delivered a really aromatic fish oil umami.4) Bitter greens with roasted leek and a crunchy crisp5) Braised abalone with Hokkaido uni, and sea vegetables on a bed of buckwheat soba, presented in a bowl of vegetable dashi. Delicious6) Grilled squid with Spanish chorizo served in a squid broth and topped with a squid ink tuille7) Roasted squab with squab leg confit, served with butternut squash and green apples. Full flavored and delicious8) Asparagus with morel mushrooms stuffed with chicken9) A5 Waygu beef cooked shabu shabu style in a hot onion broth, with taro and partially sprouted lentil beans10) Hazelnut Paris-Brest puff pastry11) Yuzu cheese cake12) Coconut and matcha cake with grapefruit sorbet and granita13) Chocolate on pressed pastry14) Petit fours:- Strawberry gelee with chocolate chocolate Madeleine- Kafir lime truffle- Almond nut truffle- Macaroons: banana, chestnut, and mint chocolate
Intimate atmosphere, friendly, unpretentious service. Food was very good but not spectacular for my personal taste. Had a few memorable dishes like the salad called Into the Garden, and the dessert courses were amazing. I can see why this place was awarded 3 Michelin stars but my palette loves French/Asian fusion cuisine such as 1 Michelin star Gary Danko in San Francisco. Maybe my pallete isnt a huge fan of French cuisine. But by all means try it. Their menu is seasonal so maybe youll have a different experience than I did.
There is not enough word to describe how good Manresa is. The dining experience was extraordinary. Deserve the Michelin 3 stars.
Not what I expected for a Michelin 3-star restaurant. Food was presented very well but oftentimes not very flavorful. The staff tried to be friendly but came off forced and even pretentious. The wine course was marginal as it mostly missed the mark when pairing with each dish. One of the winepairings was a Farmhouse sour Saison that was the worst example Ive ever been exposed to. Overall there are better restaurants for a tenth of the overall cost.
Still as good as ever. I’ll keep coming back to this 3 star michelin restaurant on special occasions. The quality and taste of food, service and ambience is perfect!!
Outstanding! Highly recommend. I wonder what it would be like if this area collaborated with quantum computers. Semper Fi.
Super fancy if youre into that kind of thing. Parking was a pain - had to park a few blocks away. Closest thing to French laundry without going to North Bay.Desserts and caramels are awesome. Skip the cheese unless youre really into cheese.
Review is for the family meal take out during covid.Purchased online and went to pick up, got slightly confused on pick up location with the back road instructions but eventually found my way to the curb side pick up. Food was already ready and they drop it right into your car. Everything was well packed for traveling, with recommended reheating instructions.The menu changes every day so theres no point in reviewing the specific set we ate. Overall the quantity was good (my pictures dont show everything), the variety was nice, and everything tasted great (as expected!). The one thing I also really appreciated was that the food felt light and healthy, no heavy greasy dishes that make you feel bleh afterwards. Will definitely do again!
Three Michelin star restaurant is offering meals for pick up, amazing quality and affordable, compare to on-site dining! Every part of the meal from salad dressing to desert was excellent!
Manresa was ok. Would I give it a 3 Michelin star? Absolutely not. Food and service was good butI had better. I dont think I would come back. To be honest, Id rather pick Gary Danko over Manresa, my personal opinion.
Actually the best restaurant we have ever eaten in. The food is innovative and beautifully cooked and presented, with always seasonal and local ingredients. The wine pairings complement the food perfectly,, including a beer produced by a former employee. There are also a range of seasonal cocktails.The service is exceptional: friendly but always professional and informative about the dishes served.. And you even get a goodie bag to take home. Very pricey but perfect for special occasions. Very much a dining experience
I’m very sad to say, that we left let down. We came for my birthday and after having been to other Michelin restaurants, French Laundry, Plumed Horse, Commis, my expectations were pretty high for this restaurant. Things started off odd as we were the only two people in the main dining room and I waited a total of 30 min for a cocktail due to the bartender being “7 tickets behind” trying to serve people at the bar. We waited up until midnight for the reservation and I wondered if that didn’t maybe give us an edge on being served over people just there to drink. I wasn’t recommended any wines that might go well with the food, and so four plates in I asked if I could maybe have wine with my food since my cocktail had been empty for twenty min. We easily sat waiting fifteen min between courses and while the food was good and several of the waitstaff were friendly, our main waiter, Shae, seemed to be busy with a couple tables that were “regulars” or people who were deemed more important. He was friendly, but did not give Michelin service. There was very little conversation or recommendations on wine other than one red and one white that was brought at the beginning and end of the meal.. Near the end, I finally asked how exactly it worked at this restaurant. “Do I need to ask for wine when my glass has been empty for thirty min? Do I need to ask if there are after dinner drink options such as coffee or digestifs?” The food was well-prepared, but not overly unique or artistic. The staff was well-versed on the dishes and we felt we had a good understanding of what we were eating. My thoughts were for around $600 per person before we added the amazing truffle dish with pasta for another $250 a person, that we were important too. I tipped one waiter separately and thanked him for how much he tried for us to make it a great night. For our main server, I felt we were let down and abandoned, drawing out our meal to a four hour sitting time as we watched people around us be wined and dined and values as customers. I left wishing we had gone to any other Michelin.
This is the best fine dining offered in the Silicon Valley. Its amazing. The atmosphere, the service, the food: its all top notch, top shelf, and topped my expectations, everytime. Go there, enjoy the chefs tasting menu. This is a 3 star Michelin restaurant, its the best. Every bite is worth it.
Really enjoyed the daily family meal! The adobo chicken and stir fried squash & green beans where so delicious! Thank you to the chefs who prepared our meal, it was such a fun experience having this food
Fantastic food experience. Loved all the dishes - really tough to pick a favorite. Come eat!
Fantastic dining experience that I will not forget. Not only the food was great, the service was amazing. The Garden was the highlight on the menu that everyone should have, but make sure you have your cell phone camera ready. If you only want to take one picture while youre there, this is it! I will go back some day for sure.
One of my best dinning experience! Love the food and excellent service!
All around amazing experience..Definitely a well deserved Top 100 Restaurant in the World ranking...
The food was good but not spectacular. The servers were polite but not very attentive. We had wine pairing and I told them that I drink a lot of water with wine but still had to remind them four times throughout our meal to fill my empty water glass. Expected more from a three star restaurant. Also, the bathroom needs an update to match their dress code (currently reminds me of a public bathroom in a mall). Overall not too impressed. For the price tag, I’d definitely go somewhere else for a much more polished experience.
Felt let down for the price. The food was good but not really memorable. It felt like there was a reliance on expensive ingredients over creativity or risk taking. The dining room is a standard mid century modern affair. Service was friendly, but they kept taking our napkins and forgetting to bring fresh ones. Not a huge deal, but also not something I expect to have to keep prompting for at 3 star restaurant. The standout of the show were the drink pairings, and the sommelier himself was delightful.I was expecting more from a restaurant demanding $500+ a person, especially when compared to other Michelin restaurants nearby like Lazy Bear in San Francisco.
The service was excellent, Michelin 3 star level. The ambience and vibe was 2 star. And, most importantly, the food was no more than 2 stars. It was good, but disappointing for a Michelin 3 star restaurant. There was no wow dish for me. The ambience needs help. Also, their dress code was violated by several men who wore T-shirts. Based on my experience, I dont know how they keep getting 3 Michelin stars!
Excellent food with attentive, friendly service staff. Well with the detour to South San Jose.
One of a kind dining experience! The best meal Ive ever had!!
Friendly and helpful staffs. Dishes were at times bold and daring. The place feels a bit dated though.
Amazing service, infinitely knowledgeable. Unbelieveable food with imaginative presentation. Just as much thought goes into their cocktails.
I’ve eaten at other 3 star Michelins, and they were great. But this was a whole other level. If the other were 3’s, this deserved a 4.David Kinch is a master. He’s in the group that includes Lionel Messi, Yo-Yo Ma. Creative and boundary pushing. You are elevated, you are witnessing something rare and special.The staff is relaxed and sincere. They make you feel comfortable and more receptive to the experience.
Took a group of 7 to dinner, tasting course with the wine pairing. Ordered the only two additional courses — 1/2 caviar and the black truffle dessert. Total cost was $8k. And for $1,150 per person, I left hungry and ended up eating a leftover sandwich in my hotel room afterward. Food is excellent, but I learned you shouldn’t think of this as a meal. A better way to think about your time at manresa is that you’re getting a wine course with some food to nibble on.
One of the best restaurant experiences I’ve had. They had no problem making a vegan tasting menu for my wife that had the same quality and detail of the regular one. The drink pairings were perfect. My only complaint is that reservations are so tough to get.
It makes me sad to hear Manresa will be no more, the depth of flavor in Kinchs seafood broths will haunt me forever. I can still taste them in my mind. Every single dish was the best thing I ever put in my mouth. My husbands favorite dish was the salad course, mine was the grilled mackerel, my sons was the crudo.
Very mediocre. Not sure how they got 3 michelin stars. Decor is non existent. Chef never showed up to say hello. The food was pretty lame with very small portions. Well never be back.
One of the best meals of my life. Highly recommend you try this before you die. 😀
Great flavours and service. They dont hold back on the desserts!
I and my dining companions immensely enjoyed the dishes came out, save one, which was quickly substituted for another amazing dish. The service was exceptional, and we were treated as honored guests from beginning to end. All dietary restrictions and preferences were seen to, and nobody felt like a burden at any point in time. The pacing and portions were perfect. Thank you for an incredible, memorable experience!
Food doesnt even deserve to be called mediocre. I dont understand how they get three stars. I wouldnt come here if they paid me to.Update: I heard news that this place is closing down. My guess is because they know for a fact they are going to lose their stars when the new guide comes out given how bad their food is. I personally wish they had closed earlier, wouldve saved me a bunch of money and time.
To be honest, I really had a very high expectations as this restaurant is 3* Michelin but food was very normal in taste only the dip was amazing & rest nothing exclusive. Portion was pretty good. But still I am not judging as Michelin is more about experience & will surely visit when they starts dine-in and it might give me a better experience.
Manresa lives up to the hype. My wife and I had a special dining experience here on a Friday evening and the food and service were spectacular. Weve been to a few one and three star Michelin rated restaurants and this was the best, by far. Of the 10+ courses, there was maybe only one dish that was good and not great. Contrast that to other high end restaurants where 30+% of the dishes were just merely ok. The highlights of the three hour tasting menu were the salad and the beef. The way they prepare the beef takes so much effort and the result is certainly worth it - melts in your mouth and has intense umami flavor. Just spectacular. Parking was not too big an issue though you may have to search a bit and the decor was modern and refined. Drink selection is extensive and perfect as you can expect. The service is customized to each person and they are extremely adaptive to individual allergies and dietary preferences. This was the meal of a lifetime and will be hard to top. Amazing and highly recommended.
Tried takeout during the lock down. I had welcoming experience as I went in in addition to the food that I enjoyed with my fiance. Pasta was right up there with the best tastes of the city, tender and ready to eat, exactly the way we wanted it to be.We would love to have this experience again to renew our taste buds with the same sensation we had on this day.
Manresa is 5 stars in normal times, but it shines in a truly unique way in the COVID era. Unlike some other, snobby Michelin star places, Manresa showed no ego in reinventing to meet the current regulations. Weve been several times through the pandemic, and its proved a relatively affordable option for procuring high quality food with excellent service in dangerous times. Sure, there are cheaper options for takeout, but nothing weve found offers so much variety and flavor for the same value. Is it a Michelin star experience? Hard to say. Its a family meal, so forgo any preconceived notions of delicately presented tasting courses. But the curbside service is top notch. The food is delicious, just be prepared to reheat it properly at home (especially the proteins).
Positively stunning fine dining. Every little aspect of the experience is so intricately thought out and prepared. To begin, the food is really mind blowing. The flavors and quality are the height of freshness. Everything looks like a work of art. Wine pairings were beautiful and near perfect. Staff were insanely attentive, funny and delightful. It goes without saying this a pricey night, but if you’re looking for the epitome of fine dining, Manresa has deservedly earned its 3 Michelin stars.
Manresa was a wonderful dining experience and my first Michelin star experience as well. I really like that although this is a 2 Michelin star restaurant, you can still wear nice jeans and a button down shirt and be totally welcome aboard (no need for a jacket). The service was wonderful, with every dish brought out in a choreographed fashion, making it as fun to watch as to eat. The tasting menu (we got the bar bites) was exceptionally varied but had a common themes throughout. Clearly time and effort were involved in creating the menu, and it showed. My favorite dish was the salmon roe with an almond paste of sorts beneath it. Delicious! The cocktails are also wonderful. I cant see myself necessarily doing the wine paring because it is super expensive but maybe for a super special treat. This place is pricey, so expect to pay for it, but for special occasions I can see myself coming back here for sure.
The most elegant restaurant ive ever visited, the prices are a bit high but its worth it 100 % i dont regret everything i spent 🙃 the staff was very kind. i missed trying the desserts, but im sure ill be back.
We came in with a party of 8 (called months beforehand to OK large party), cocktails before dinner were amazing. Dinner service, presentation, sommelier service (John was very attentive and helpful), were all incredible. We were very grateful that Chef took time to greet us into service to check on the table (twice even). Food was varied in flavor, with several meat and fish courses. Wine (and one beer) pairing was excellent, always adding to the flavors of the dish and never detracting.
The best culinary experience we have had so far. The food was so good its hard to put into words. Beautiful plating and presentation. Impeccable service. Amazing bread and desserts. And they were not even pretentious about giving us as much bread as we wanted. It received the third Michelin star between the time we booked and went there and we could totally see why. Definitely go here for an experience you will not forget.
Wonderful service, attention to detail without being overbearing.Food is flavorful for me, but tad bit salty for my moms diet.Its a traditional dining experience, aka 3 to 4 hours long. Several sweet and savory courses.For me, its an experience of a lifetime, but I certainly hope to try it again in near future, after all, their menu chances according to seasonal goods!!
This place most definitely DO NOT deserve any Michelin star. We ordered a take out menu and it was horrible. Food was very, very medicore, but the worst part is the customer service. They gave us bunch of stuff with no instructions and we wanted to call to see what sauce went with which dish (there were no labels). I called like 5 times but it wouldnt go past their voice mail. I paid $500 for the meal and I would expect some form of customer service. Its really not worth it. Dont go here.
The last time I was at Manresa, I had their Fall Garden menu. Overall, it was a bit of an underwhelming experience compared to those at other Michelin-starred restaurants of the same price. There were only 1-2 dishes among 10 (+ 3 desserts) that stood completely stood out.The menu was also a bit light. Surprisingly, I wasnt full by the time we got to desserts. As for the desserts, they were a bit too sweet.Service was just average--another disappointment for a restaurant of this class. That being said, I couldnt thinking of an egregious flaws, but there was also nothing that particularly stood out. I just wasnt a memorable experience.The venue is quite spacey, and the warm interior is comforting. I would consider it a good location for a fancy date.
Excellent all around. Worth every penny. Not going to give too many details because everyone should have an excellent surprise experience. Definitely some of the best food I have ever tasted.
As grand as ever! Creative delicious food, gracious service and an excellent sommelier. Although the wine pairing with the dinner was perhaps an A minus for including a challenging (underripe) Cab with steak and a somewhat flaccid Vouvray with a VERY tart dessert...
Went for my friends birthday. The four of us had a lot of fun. Excellent tasting menu with wine pairing. Good cocktails too. Awesome service. I didnt even mind the hour long Uber ride back to SF afterwards.I particularly enjoyed the Crawfish dish, the duck, and the first (rhubarb) dessert. The optional cheese course was also very much worth it. But I never met a (real) cheese I didnt like, so...Again, I cannot compliment the service enough. Just what youd expect from a 3-star restaurant. And better than Ive had at some.Go and enjoy yourself!
One of our best dining experiences ever! Creativity, highest quality ingredients, and freshness are masterfully married by Chef Kinch that equally delight your palate and warm your soul. We celebrated my husbands birthday at Manresa just before they received their third Michelin star. They made our evening so special with their great attention to detail and the wonderful farm-to-table seasonal dishes with a fantastic selection of wines to match. We still vividly remember some of their creations to this day. We cant wait to go back.
Superb dining experience here! The service was precisely coordinated and flawless. The quality and attention to detail lavished on the food was clearly apparent in every dish served.
Food is delicious, service is excellent. Interior setting is a kind of simple. The dining room is divided by the bar in the middle. The night when we had dinner, there seemed to a party on the other side of room. It was really noisy. Other than that, it was a great experience.
One of the few restaurants in the Bay Area that deserves its 3* rating. Service is a bit too much on the formal side for my liking, but its very competent. The menu is creative and delicious, and about the right length for my appetite (which is on the large side). They also have a great bar program featuring some excellent cocktails.
This place is amazing. The best meals Ive had in my entire life. I was a little concerned about how full I would be at the end, but I was so stuffed with deliciousness, it was almost painful. We also did the drink pairing which was so good. They are very generous with the pours. It is impossible to not leave happy from Manresa.
Review for Manresas pricier and fancier weekly takeout meal: we ordered a single meal of the Japanese wagyu, and we loved it! We heard that the weekly meals were pretty sizable so we shared a single order between the two of us. We couldnt finish all the food. The single meal came in a large paper bag that must have weighed 8 pounds.Portions were generous and everything was delicious and high quality. You get more food in this single takeout meal than you would with a regular tasting menu. Highly recommend as this was the fanciest and tastiest takeout meal weve ever had. Cant wait to try another weekly meal!
Been here twice. The presentation is spectacular, but I walked away feeling an overwhelming sense of both hunger and dismay at the price.The wine list was somewhat astounding, and yet had nothing I recognized at any price point. It was almost like someone intentionally wanted only obscure names so you couldn’t judge the markup. My comparison was to a dinner at the kitchen table at Charlie Trotters (Chicago), where the sommelier asked what we liked and how much, and then blew us away with his choices!Wouldn’t go back.
I had special diet and let them know about my diet restrictions ahead of time, but I was planning to have a vegetarian tasting menu anyways just in case, but Manresa staff had a special menu tailored for me and every dish was delicious, creative, and amazing. The service and staff were impeccable. I am so grateful for the special menu they made, only because it is a complicated diet and they could have given me a vegetarian menu. They were so accommodating and made me feel very welcomed. I am thinking about going back soon because I know theyll take a very good care of me.
Every bite was delicious, beautifully presented and graciously served
Michelin 3 stars, and lived up to the expectations. Very friendly staff and the food and drink was amazing. Expect to pay for it (wine pairing was about the same price as the food service). Parking can be a bit challenging as they dont have their own but a couple block walk after the meal is welcome! They readily catered to all the various food allergies and intolerances that our group had.
We heard of this place after it was recommended by the chef at lazy bear in SF. We had very high expectations and unfortunately, Manresa fell short of expectations. While the food wasnt necessarily bad, it wasnt amazing and above average at best. They were accommodative to our dietary restrictions - vegetarian, but the dishes on the tasting menu didnt really move us the way our previous experiences at lazy bear or Kobo or Als place. The best part of the meal were the drinks which were really nice cocktails. The only items I liked from the tasting menu were the kohlrabi and sea lettuce and the vegetable garden. The service itself was quite slow, the 12 courses taking about 3 hours and the portion sizes were on the smaller side. At the end of the meal, I was still hungry and felt that the food was totally not worth the price. The atmosphere was nice, the staff were friendly and Los Gatos is an amazing town - but the food was disappointing.
Phenomenal food and service, as you would expect. My one issue was with the wine pairing that our waiter highly encouraged us to do. It had a couple of misses, for my personal taste. In particular, a very potent sherry that overpowered its pairing and lingered in to the next course.
One of the best meals I have ever eaten. Be ready for at least 18 different courses over a three hour period from amuse bouche to multiple desserts. Everything was perfectly executed and amazing. The service and the food were outstanding and definitely a one a lifetime experience!
I came here with my parents for my birthday. We made a reservation well in advance because they are booked solid for weeks. The level of service at this establishment will exceed expectations. I have dined at the finest restaurants in the world, most of which were in Japan, and the level of service at Manresa was on par if not better than other restaurants in this category. Certainly much better than most fine Bay Area establishments. Their staff is impeccable and from the first moment we walked in, we felt accommodated at every turn.The atmosphere is well designed and compliments the style of the restaurant. We were seated almost immediately and the seating area in both rooms has ample room between tables and comfortable chairs. The staff is for lack of a better term - perfect. They bring out the courses on time, a glass of water or wine is never empty and they pay attention. I did not have to ask for anything I did not already have in front of me.The best part of the restaurant is the food. The courses are planned by the executive chef and he is one of the most welcoming owners of a restaurant I have met. The food is intricate, but precise. The flavors are complex and palatable. If I am not mistaken we went through 12 courses, two of which are desert. I cannot describe any of them, I simply could not remember all of the ingredients, some of which I tried for the first time. It is a lot of food for anyone, the courses are small and there is time between them. Settle in for a few hours in order to enjoy this experience. This is not a dinner in Santana Row. Think of it as a performance, the price of the performance, service, quality of the food and the time you spend with them is very reasonable, but be prepared, this is not Dennys.The dress code is casual, but dont show up in shorts and a t-shirt. I feel like they would still let you in, but you will feel out of place.Kudos to David for an outstanding operation!
I had the fortune to dine here two years ago and it was just amazing. The presentation was top notch, food tasted wow, sadly my only complaint was that I got too full towards the end to fully enjoy the last few courses. Get the full tasting and let the chefs handle the rest. If you asking for special accommodations and you are not allergic, you probably shouldnt be here.
An overdue review of a night that was exceptional. We celebrated our 25 year Anniversary with friends. Each and every course was impeccably presented. The service was executed flawlessly. - from the clearing of plates being discreet to the informative description of what was being presented. We will return for many celebrations to come. Thank you!
For a 3 start Michelin restaurant the price is extremely reasonable.The food was so amazing its easy to think one died and went to heaven. Each serving was an explosion of finely balanced flavors.Cant wait to go back.
Tried takeout amid the pandemic. The pick up experience was great, but the food was truly underwhelming. Super SALTY lasagna, nearly impossible to eat. Also, the good was cold from the fridge, with the heating directions that just barely warmed it up. So it took much longer to properly heat up the food. Lasagna was the main dish. Vey generous portion, but insanely salty as I said. Other dishes were a joke.
Plenty of variety and very unique presentations. All of the food was amazing, but the portions were quite small, even for as many courses that there were. This might not be as much of an issue if the meal hadnt lasted more than four hours.
We spent a wonderful evening over their tasting menu: this meant there was a constant stream of very interesting food coming to us, maybe 3 bites per plate, with well matched, small glasses of wine to match. Fantastic way to spend 3+ hours if you enjoy fancy nontraditional (but not weird) fare; a real treat.
Great social distancing. If you can get a reservation you will be one of the few to enjoy this experience. Also due to the limited patrons at the restaurant, the staff now have even more time to give you their impeccable level of service. A must experience for foodies.
Just be prepared for four plus hours of decadence. 💯
Our dinner at Manresa as others have described was an experience. The food was creative and delicious, and we didnt leave hungry despite small portions in each course. The disappointments came in the service and the dessert. Compared to the rest of the meal, the dessert left something to be desired. The service was also disappointing for the investment made in the experience. Despite multiple servers, food runners, and management in the dining area, about two thirds of the way through the meal, they seemed to forget about us. We had a late seating for a Thursday, but it appeared that they were busy cleaning up and getting ready for close, rather than ushering us through the remnants our meal. They forgot to offer us any coffee or tea before the desserts starting coming, and there were much longer pauses between the last several courses than we experienced in the beginning. At one point we were searching for someone to ask for coffee from, and the table next to us was frantically searching for a server to get to bill from. Eventually, we both flagged someone down to help us. It sounds a bit a ridiculous to be complaining about this, but again given the cost of this meal, I would have expected the food and the service to be supurb.
Manresa is simply phenomenal. Amazing culinary creations & wine pairings. Make for a fantastic evening in an elegant romantic atmosphere.
Came here on a Wednesday night, walked in, nice little restaurant in a house-like structure separated into two dining rooms. Nice decor, with a cute little Christmas tree, very comfy and cosy. The host / hostess gracefully greeted us at the door and we were offered to sit at the bar area while we wait for our friends to arrive. Extensive wine and alcohol list and the sommelier was very knowledge, overall great experience so far.Ordered the regular tasting menu instead of the seasonal one but overall the food wasnt what I expected of a two Michelin star restaurant. The flavors just didnt quite taste right with too many dishes that were sweet / savory mixed together which made the taste balance kinda off. I enjoyed the scallops but the flavors of the squab and almond tofu was not ok (verging on off).I appreciate the chef wanting to be inventive putting together different ingredients (e.g. cucumber / basil / buttermilk pudding) but unfortunately I didnt love it. I was also disappointed that the staff didnt really explain the dish that I would expect at a Michelin star restaurant (e.g. explain the various ingredients and how you would eat the dish vs just telling us what the dish is). They were very professional and gracious, I just expected slightly more.One major star of the meal was the brioche, it was divine. Apparently they sell these at Campbell Markets but I have yet to verify this.
Good but prob not $250 per person good. I think its so hard to live up to a 3 michelin star rating so its not gonna live up to everyones expectations. That being said I felt some dishes were very good and interestingly complex while some fall a little flat. My favorite dishes were the salad, caviar, oyster, and Dungeness crab.
Another great night at Manresa. This is our fourth time dining at Manresa over the last ten years and the food is as good as ever. The restaurant remains worthy of its 3-star designation and the courses have evolved positively over time. I was surprised that the into the garden course had been miniaturized, and although it did not have nearly all the elements it had in the past it still packed a yummy punch. The only negative from this visit was that it took 29 minutes from the time we sat down until our first course arrived (a very satisfying amuse-bouche that I scarfed down before I remembered to take a photo). After that initial misstep the service was stellar; everyone who works there is friendly and approachable. We did pick a truffle supplement dish to go with our dinner and that ended up being comped (maybe for the initial wait, or for our celebratory visit, or for another unknown reason) and that was a nice touch. We will return again! Thanks for a great night Manresa!
They’re back! Just dined here last weekend after the COVID reopening, and the service and food are as good as ever. Very little has changed, and the signature “In the Garden” course was the best they’ve done in the years I have visited.Tables are a little more distant, and the staff is masked, but Manresa is still an experience above all other dining.
Been having take out from Manresa recently and really enjoyed it. Easy to follow instructions make for fun preps at home. The taste is great and the portions are so generous that we usually end up having two full meals.
Our favorite restaurant, period. Interesting, thought-provoking, delicious, creative food (and now cocktails in the new bar). Fresh, locally-sourced proteins and veggies (via Love Apple Farms) forged into memorable dishes. Low hype, comfortable atmosphere, but still with Grade-A service (many of the servers have been there since we started going, back in 2002-ish). A must-visit. Go.
My wife and her parents were able to enjoy this booking that we had at Manresa Los Gatos. Guy Savoy in Paris, Restaurant Gordon Ramsey in London, Benu in San Francisco are in our top favorites all time. Manresa is different and has special dishes compared to our favorites above. Manresa to us was a much better experience than we had at Le Bernardin in New York. Gary Danko in San Francisco is another of our favorites but completely different from Manresa.We cannot compare any of the above to Omakase, Kusakabe, or Akikos all in San Francisco as sushi is another world for us where Sushi Kashiba in Seattle is by far our favorite of all time even after having Jiro Dreams of Sushi in Japan. In our sushi top four add in Chef Ray of Hihimanu Sushi in Oahu Hawaii and Chef Kate of Zilla Sake in Portland.Manresa is comparable to some of our favorites like Canlis in Seattle and Ad Hoc in Japan. Bottom line it hit the mark for us and we are raving fans. We highly recommend the experience and if you are a rum drinker have them pour you a Clement 1970 on a rock. You will not be disappointed.Our dinner had very delicious flavors and everything was fresh as would be expected from a 3 Michelin Star restaurant. As the dinner progressed the portions although still petite were a bit larger as the heartier meats were presented.I enjoyed the ahi, duck and sweet bread which is normally the pancreas of a baby calf or veal. The fish dish with the crispy skin was also memorable. Flavors when mixed together had perfect balance!We highly recommend this local place for us but be prepared to dent your wallet.This is a DMF approved restaurant 11/17/19
We had the September seasonal tasting menu. Really beautiful fresh ingredients, prepared with an understated, innovative style and exceptional service. The surroundings and ambience are great too. Yes it is very expensive but totally worth it for an occasional treat.
The food was good, I think the sweet bread served with the cheese was too sweet. The waiter made a mistake: the Reblochon cheese is NOT from Switzerland, it is a french cheese.Just after my partner and I had finished our coffee, the waiter put the bill on the table, for me it is totally unacceptable for an expensive restaurant like this, it is non appropriate. I know it’s a cultural thing but it is not elegant, so please wait at least 15 minutes !
Absolutely wonderful evening and food! Every dish was exquisite, some of the standouts would be the salad (gorgeous, with flowers) and a couple of the desserts! Of course service is top-notch.In the category of 3-Michelin star restaurants, I still feel that Manresa fell short of TFL (you know, in Yountville) in two areas. One is acoustics. At TFL, I could not hear anything said by other diners (which is how it should be). At Manresa, I could hear the annoying teenager at the next table opining on world politics. It was very annoying. The other thing is that we were charged for coffee. Come on, at these price points, cant the coffee just be complimentary?That said, its an amazing experience and I highly recommend.
The real Chef is not the one who knows how to cook, but the one who knows how to cook exceptionally well and... is able to take you on a culinary journey. One of the best meals Ive ever had and definitely the best story ever told (or shall I say eaten?). The whole ceremony has started and ended with the identically looking dishes. What a treat! Thank you! & thank you for you kind tour. Loved your kitchen.
Definitely a five-star taste experience to be remembered. Highly recommended.We had the October seasonal and spontaneous tasting menu with the extra cheese course, and I was thoroughly impressed by each and every dish. Even the simplest-seeming preparations, such as the salad course, were full of wild and perfectly-matched (or contrasted) flavors.The tasting menu consisted of about twelve courses, depending on how you count, and foods included: red pepper gelatin candy & hazelnut madeline cookies, hazelnut truffles, millet bread with salted butter, abalone panna cotta, clams in dashi, raw oyster with seaweed ice, herb & flower salad with two dressings, seared tuna steak with fried plantain, popped whole grains & fruit chutney (farro and plum? I cant quite recall), pears & chard in hazelnut sauce, venison, and mint chocolate bon-bons. They also brought out a piece of chocolate mousse cake with gold flakes and a candle to celebrate my wifes birthday.The cheese course was delightful. In particular I was excited to be able to sample a strong water buffalo cheese, and a wine-soaked goats milk cheese from a farm in Chester County, PA -- familiar territory back East.The freshness of everything was particularly impressive. This was definitely not the standard fine dining experience with lots of butter and lobsters and red meats, and the change was most certainly welcome. Im not usually too keen on raw oysters, but the one they served was by far the best Ive ever had, and one of the stand-out dishes of the night. The pairing of salty, meaty abalone and sweet, creamy panna cotta was I think the most unusual and inspired idea on the menu.If I had any complaint, it was that some of the dishes with many ingredients were served in portions too small to be able to taste the ingredients separately as well as in combination. Also, the wines, while paired well, were not particularly impressive on their own (apart from one), and with twelve courses it gets to be quite a lot of wine!
We went on a Weds at 7 PM. It was not crowded. We had the 12 course tasting. I could not eat 4 of them. I was stunned! The bill was over $500.00 w/tip. There are plenty of better, more reasonable restaurants in the Bay Area.
Everything you dream a Michelin Star restaurant to be- worth every pretty penny. Without trying to sound cliche, this is not just dinner, Manresa is an experience. From start to finish you receive the most attentive service. The meal is perfectly timed and you leave incredibly satisfied- not craving more (I expected to be hungry because of the small portions of each dish) or overly stuffed. I recommend taking an uber here so you can truly enjoy the wine pairings and creative cocktail list.
An amazing meal with friends. We all let chef Kinch and the sommelier take the wheel for the meal - which took an amazing and delicious 5 (yes, five) hours to complete. The menu is uber-seasonal and much of the food comes from local farms, so it changes often. I dont want to post pics because I dont want to spoil the surprise of your meal or show something no longer on the menu.Each course was perfectly crafted and plated, and went amazingly with the wine (and one beer, an amazing saison), and the timing with the service staff was equally attentive yet nearly invisible. Everything was either there when you needed it, or gone when it needed to be taken away.Dont sleep on their cocktails, cheese course or dessert wines, either.All in all, exactly what Id expect from a 3 Michelin star restaurant. And very special and meaningful for chef Kinch to come by and visit every single table.
They certainly earn their 3 Michelin Stars. Outstanding food presentation, and staff that makes you feel welcome. The cheese course is highly recommended. And do sample the various breads ...
I had pretty high expectations when I went here because a foodie friend of mine highly recommended this place. However, I was quite disappointed by the whole experience. For the price of the meal, I was expecting two things. 1) service would be just as amazing as it was at Gary Danko, and 2) the food would be at least as spectacular as Gary Danko. Manresa failed on both counts.The service was hardly friendly. The wait staff was more concerned with clearing our table than with interacting with us.As for the food, I wish I could have asked for a refund. I understand that taste is subjective and with as many courses as there was, I was bound to have some favorites, but there just werent that many. The majority of the courses were just total misses, and one of them even made me a little sick to my stomach.Heres a short list of what I loved and hated:- loved the strawberry gazpacho- loved the crispy kale- hated the chicken confit in warm poultry bouillon- wasnt too fond of the vegetableOverall, Id say this place is completely overrated, over-priced, and I would NOT recommend this place to any of my friends!
I have mixed feelings about this place. Ive only been to Manresa twice. The first time was underwhelming. Everything was just OK. The waitress tended to mumble when describing the food. There was nothing special. No passion. No excitement. No surprises. However, the second time was amazing. We had quite a few memorable dishes. So... I really dont know what to think of Manresa due to the inconsistency. I guess Ill just have to increase my sample size in order to form a more conclusive opinion.
Great ambience and service. The plates were all beautiful, but we were quite underwhelmed with the taste. It seemed like they were more concerned with texture than flavor.
Exceptionally fresh and inventive food, but over the top expensive. The formal service and michelin star atmosphere are not really to my taste, I like more laid back places. All the same, some of the dishes were amazing. Some were just weird for weridness sake, though.
Disclaimer: only review for takeout during COVID-19. I enjoyed the dining in service at Manresa in the past! However, the takeout during COVID was a bit disappointing to be frank. Maybe it was that week’s menu only. The duck was way to dry and too chewy to eat and the salad with beet, strawberry, pistachio and mint was nothing special... I’m excited to come back when they reopen.
This is fixed price menu of around 14 items for $198. They are very accommodative of vegetarians & those with dietary needs. Each portion is small. The food is creative & the ingredients are explained. You need to plan 2-4 hours to enjoy this. They also have an alcoholic & non alcoholic drink tasting menu for $60. It is difficult to get reservations. Parking is readily available. Service was good but twice they brought out egg items though we had clearly told them prior to arrival & upon arrival that we dont eat eggs - for the price of the restaurant, they should know better. I also found the restaurant very formal - too much for an informal Californian. They did not want me to wear Vibrams there. So this was a fine dining experience with creative quality healthy food with good taste, but for a long dining experience, Taj Campton place in San Francisco, or Millenium (currently in San Francisco but moving to Oakland) are still my preferences, especially with their prices being half of what Manresa charges. If you want to appreciate the thought & creativity of each item in a series of dishes, this is the place.
Food: 4Decor: 5Service: 5Michelin: **My gf made a reservation here to celebrate my early birthday and anniversary. She requested my napkin be made into a dinosaur (stolen from Reddit), and lo and behold, there was a dinosaur napkin waiting for me when we were seatedSince we had a large lunch in LA, we opted for the prix fixe (125 pp, ~8 courses) instead of the tasting (175 pp, ~10-12 courses). Sadly, I didnt see their famous egg or into the garden dishes on either :(1. Garden beignets and crispy leaves~Pretty good.2. Tomatoes, barely cooked, flowering coriander ice~Very good. Coriander ice worked surprisingly well with the tomatoes.3. Summer clams, lightly smoked, tomato and lemon ice, savory granola~Delicious. I have a sweet tooth, and the lemon worked beautifully with the tomato and clams.4. Abalone and roasted sunchokes, seaweed persillade~Pretty good, although I was surprised by the persillade texture.5. Salmon marinated with herbs and citrus, beets~Pretty good, although a bit of the salmon got stuck in my teeth.6. Duck roasted in salt crust, fig, and wild fennel confit~Pretty good. Duck was a bit too fatty for my taste, but I liked the fig component.7. Chamomile and mint tea~Pretty good. Decent palate cleanser after main courses.8. Reine claude plums with buckwheat and Crescenza, saba~Delicious. Loved the plums, and it went surprisingly well with the Crescenza cows milk-cheese.9. Chocolate cake with caramel ganache for birthday and anniversary~Pretty good. Thought it was funny that they gave us this dessert, since we received an identical one at another restaurant a day earlier in SD.10. Raspberries and yellow peach curd, basil and peach leaves, old-fashioned vanilla ice cream~Pretty good, although I think it would have been better with some fresh peach slices.11. Chocolate and lemon verbena macarons~Pretty good. Nice finish to meal.Loved how they had continuous bread service throughout meal until you said you were done. The baguettes were so good I had at least 4 of themService was excellent and was reminiscent of Alineas in terms of attention, although I did find the multiple servers rather unusual.To top it off, they also give everyone a muffin to take home, as well as a handful of caramels. I had both the day after, and they were both very good.
We did wine pairing, food were amazing. Part of 6 ppl and staff very amazingly attentive!!
Since I have a foodie friend who speaks highly of Manresa, I decided to make reservations here for me and my parents for my 23rd birthday. The restaurant is a little harder to find because it is in the alley way of a bank and looks like a small cottage, not a restaurant. I do love the ambience of the restaurant when you walk in as it has a classy, but homey feel- not to mention that the service is impeccable. However, the food was not as expected for the price. We ended up getting the October Manresa tasting menu w/ my friends recommendation. I personally prefer seasonal tasting menus since the menu consists of special ingredients - this time- it included on of my favorites, yuzu! I do like how the our waiter took his time to explain each of the ingredients to us - he was also very patient in answering questions for noobie foodies like my family and I. He had quite a sense of humor too, which definitely made our entire dining experience a lot more enjoyable :)After we ordered, the waiter brought out Manresa bread for us. For those of you that dont know, Manresa has a booth at the farmers market that sells their bread. I hadnt had the chance to try it out beforehand so I was excited - it definitely did not disappoint. I cant remember what they had... wheat bread, brioche, white bread, baguette.. all quite yummy and I love carbs! Who doesnt!! Hahah.I would normally go through every course of the meal, but its been a couple months so I wouldnt be able to describe each dish in detail. I do remember the meal starting out strong and ending weak. My favorite course of the meal was the oyster dish. It was an Alaskan oyster (I believe) served with meyer lemon and shiso leaf w/ yuzu. The oyster was perfectly shaped and placed on a big oyster-looking dish, haha! There was crushed ice on the oyster that chilled the oyster to a perfect temperature and slid into my mouth with ease. This was probably the highest point of the meal, and then everything went downhill/not as expected.I was most disappointed in the dessert, actually. It was thoughtful of Manresa to bring out a surprise small (more like tiny) chocolate cake w/ a candle for my birthday - thank you! However, each of the dessert plates that we tried - all were too sweet! The last dish was a Gouda ice cream w/ a chocolate cake w/ huckleberries - Manresa could have done a much better job with this but the flavors together were too sweet and too sour, nothing balanced out! However, I would like to mention that the wine pairings were perfect for each dish, and made each dish seem better in comparison to what it would have been without the pairings, the dessert wine especially :)Overall, I did enjoy my experience at Manresa but not primarily because of the food. I do believe the service and of course company made up the great experience. I wouldnt highly recommend it to others and probably wouldnt come again due to the high price but I do recommend that everyone try this place at least once! Rounding up to 4 stars.
We came here while we were over on holiday from Austraila. It did not disappoint. The wine matching with the food was out of this world. The staff were a little standoffish and cold but the food....... amazing.
Manresa makes you realize that Michelin 3 star restaurants are indeed unique. Amazing food, service, and atmosphere with prices to match. Still, a wonderful treat. The wine pairing is a must.
The meal was astounding. Chef David Kinsh is on another level. Service and communication were great as well. The staff was incredibly helpful getting us rebooked after their latest kitchen fire. Our somm was Jim Rollston. Totally listened to our likes and dislikes and suggested a wonderful Montrachet that went perfect with our meal.Would have liked to say hi to chef during our meal however. Instead he was busy listening to a table next to us casually berate him about how there have been two fires at Manresa. Oh well!
Overpriced and underwhelming. Or maybe Im just not educated or rich enough to enjoy this. But Ive definitely been jaded about Michelin rated placed after this experience.
Many tiny courses, each with the appropriate matching sip of wine, for a once in a lifetime experience (not more often, given the huge price)
Oh my goodness. We originally heard about Manresa through Mind of a Chef on Netflix where David Kinch was on several episodes. Ever since then, Ive wanted to go. The food was exquisite. I have no words. We did the drink menu along with our food and it was plenty of food and drink. I was floored by the depth of flavor that each dish had. I highly recommend Manresa.
Great food, worthy of its 3 star. Definitely ask the price when you are ordering addons . The black coffee was $22 which was ridiculous even for a pour over from Michelin 3 star hence -1 star.
It was ok, but compared to the cost I cannot rate it as 5 stars. The food was very good, but the serving felt rushed. This is a great place for foodies and wine lovers.
Finally I could visit this place and the experience was lovely. The ambiance was very cozy and superb. The food menu was so attractive and I wanted to try out all the dishes but whichever we tried were extremely fantastic.
Okay, have wanted to come here for 10 years but when was I ever going to Los Gatos?? Well, this summer we watched the chef on Mind of a Chef on PBS and that sold me. Special trip to Los Gatos. Great, great experience at Manresa. As good as advertised. Worth the trip.
[from April 2008]Ive always thought of myself as a foodie. But perhaps I need to rethink that; maybe Im just a guy who loves delicious food AND loves enjoying lingering meals with good friends and good wine.Given this, Manresa was indeed an enjoyable experience for me, but I would never pay full-price to eat here again.Stepping back for a moment, let me help relay the context. A group of about 8 of us won a prize that entitled us to a dinner anywhere in the Bay Area of our choice, with a $150 per person limit (with us having to pay any overages). When we got to Manresa, we were all intrigued and tempted by the tasting menu ($159/person, if I remember correctly), and so went with that.THUMBS UP:- Service. Our main server was friendly, knowledgeable, helpful, and just all round a pleasure to interact with. Additionally, it was stunning and delightful just how attentive our servers were... filling water glasses, placing down plates practically in unison, etc., without being obnoxious or obtrusive.- Creativity of the food. We kept wondering, what will they think of next? Presentation, texture, flavors... all quite quirky, interesting, different.- Patience. This should probably go under service, but I loved how we were not rushed... how we felt comfortable spending nearly 4 hours lingering and chatting and tasting. More meals should be like that in America!THUMBS DOWN:- Some things seemed to be different just for the sake of being weird or different. At times, I was craving something more familiar, comfortable, normal.- My lord, the prices! Maybe I still need to expunge some more of my college-student-discount mentality, but... with just a glass or two of their (less expensive!) wine + tasting menu + tip + tax, it came to around $225 a person. For one meal. Holy cost insanity, Batman!I think Im also a bit spoiled, too, because I get a lot of outstandingly delicious food at Google for free.Maybe if I were hugely wealthy, Id enjoy going to Manresa occasionally... primarily for the attentive service and classy atmosphere. But as it stands now, Im glad I went once, but dont plan to be back again. Id rather spend $225 on a plane ticket to go see visit a friend :)
Ive dined at Manresa twice and both times the experience has been exquisite. Chef David Kinch does not pull any punches when it comes to innovative, pitch perfect preparations. I still consider his fried soup cube amuse bouche to be one of my most surprising and delightful culinary experiences. The ingredients used by the kitchen are very fresh and come directly from a local partner farm. Service is equally excellent and beautifully choreographed. Manresa is highly recommended to anyone looking for a transcendental dining experience.
Best meal we’ve ever had. Truly top notch establishment, service was warm and friendly and the atmosphere was inviting. Will come back as often as we can!
Cozy little spot tucked away behind the hustle of Los Gatos main drag. Coffee is sold and the pastries are well made, though they do seem to like keeping them in the oven a bit longer and/or at a higher temp than your average bakery (darker and crispier). So caveat emptor. Service can be slow even when theyre not particularly busy.
Too precious. Every serving was a culinary feat but not necessarily delicious The wait staff were like small herds of guinea pigs following each other in small lines delivering dishes to each diner at exactly the same time. Like a ballet
Best Pizza in SC County. The Ceasar Salad is out of this world. Service is also very good. I hope to be able to dine-in there sometime soon.
An amazing experience. Innovative food, amazing flavors and incredible service. Also has some of the best cocktails in the south bay.
Blown away by the food. Well keep coming back for anniversaries. Sommelier service was slow when we were there and by-the-glass wine selection wasnt the best, but thats the only negative I can think of.
Wow! Local fine dinning is a lot of fun. So happy I was able to experience this. They wholly deserve their Michelin stars.
We ordered the take out menu for steak. You need to heat by yourself, it’s poorly instructed and quality of the meat is worse than buy from Costco and cook by yourself.
Excellent meal with excellent service.
Perfect Dinner with word class cuisine.
What can I say that hasnt been written by others? Wow, what a great experience. Beyond fantastic food. Worth the price? 100 times yes.
Creativity and dynamism define Manresa for me. Ive had the pleasure of watching Chef Kinch refine and elevate his unique fusion of Love Apple Farm produce, the bounty of the Northern California seas, and the latest in Spanish and French culinary technique. You can see the (acknowledged) influence of Alain Passard and his Paris restaurant, LArpège, that also has its own farm, but having visited both I think Kinch is the one who has mastered his craft. A Manresa meal is an odessey, one that starts in such an unassuming way that you might be left wondering at first, Is this all there is? A stinkin radish? Fear not. With the inevitability of a monster wave swelling, looming, and crashing on Santa Cruzs Manresa Beach, you are along for the ride. The staff works like clockwork to bring the seemingly endless variety of dishes, and the wine pairing will show you aspects of pairing food and beverage that you never suspected. (I prefer the regular pairing, the premium has better wines that dont match quite as well with the food.) Weve been back once or twice a year for almost ten years and its only gotten better.
Staffs were nice and attentive. Their location is great and the ambiance is good. Great menu and wine listing.
They don’t take cash excuse cross contamination! But they served me in a plastics cross contaminated container. Dang liberals, won’t purchase from them again even if covid is done and dead!
Worth all three Michelin Stars. A wonderful 14 course meal served over 4.5 hours with impeccable and excellent beverage pairings.
Great food. Great atmosphere. The dishes were unique, well presented, fresh flavors. Very upscale dinning.
Good services, great food presentation, good wine list. Food slightly too salty to my taste... oh and $250 per head (without wine).
The menu is so unique. You can taste every ingredient in the food. Beautiful plates.
3/3/2018 Most memorable dining experience me and my husband ever had. The best abalone dish, ever.
Absolutely delicious, The testing menu was incredible we went for my birthday and it was wonderful. Great service and excellent food.
Amazing detail and technique. Truly an experience.
Great experience! More an event it special occasion than a meal. Food as art. New flavors and combinations of flavors in every course!
Amazing food experience, impeccable service. Were pleasantly surprised to discover a 3 Michelin star restaurant in a small town of Los Gatos.
The food was not bad, but the service has been very disappointing, some servers showed no respect, i will never come back nor recommend this restaurant.
Much better this time around. Food was excellent and so was the service. My wife and I went 11 years ago and were underwhelmed with the service. They have definitely solved their service issues.
Extraordinary food worth every penny. The staff was extremely attentive and polite. Will definitely come here again.
Absolutely fabulous dinner on Nov.25th 2016Wine pairing was meeting the outrageously delicious and flavorful servings.
Came here for a birthday dinner. One of the best meals (if not the best) of my life. Highly recommend the wine pairing.
Really sorry to say this during such difficult times but maybe just don’t bother with the take out family meal. Quite a disappointment. All the food taste like half finished.
I just picked up. its kind of hard to find. There is Manresa bread that is very close so you can just go there and walk to the left and you would find it. the food was delicious. I wish i was there when covid didnt happen.
Macarons and bonbons is super good. I like the vibe of this place too.
Food quality and portion size are much worse than other Michellin 3-stars we tried.
Lives up to its 3 Michelin star rating. Its an experience rather than a meal. Food as an art form rather than sustenance..
Loved everything on the menu. The service was perfect.
Amazing chefs mastery! Awesome combination of flavors and best quality ingredients. Super attentive and professional staff
Ive been to several Michelin 3 star restaurants, and Manresa is head and shoulders above the others. Freshness and creativity are the keys. David Kinch is a genius.
One of the greatest dining experiences I have ever had...incredible. Kinch is a genius. Excellent service.. everything, top to bottom excellence.
Fabulous meal. we took the tasting menu with wine. top notch service and a good wine list. world class.
Excellent 3 Michelin star experience that did not disappoint. Much better than French Laundry.
Everything up to desert was unbelievably delicious! Deserts were a bit average. Overall, a must try for a special occasion
The food is delicious and affordable! If you are a busy person, this place is perfect for you! The service is fast and efficient!
Fabulous dinner 3 nights ago. Cocktails plating, pairings, cuisine, and service were impeccable.
Terrific food and great wines. Making a reservation was a chore but once we got there everything was great.
Always an amazing experience.
In the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. And thus it is in Silicon Valley where there is more money than truly inventive dining. Were this place in San Francisco or NYC, it would have been eaten by wolves. But out here in strip-mall and McMansionland, it reigns supreme.
Didn’t have room for big momma. Also no smoking area big mama didn’t get to smoke
Best restaurant in California, possibly the entire US. At some point you have to get a thesaurus out to find the correct words to describe a place like this:)
Lives up to the hype. Truly creative, delicious courses sourced from local ingredients. Phenomenal service.
Thanks allot, 3 people tasting dinner was very impresive, flavors were very good verstile and truely seasonal, service was imacluate, too formal though, the time spent on service rituals slowed down the pace of the meal and the peak of the meal, the duck dish that was amazing was lacking the feeling of catharsis that occurs at the peak of a great meal...Nevertheless wine & beverage service was unique professiinal and cool as its director
Wow. The food was so yummy. I highly recommended this resturent.
Excellent food! The chefs treating menu was great. It is very expensive, so be warned.
This is one of my favorite Michelin Star restaurant. I will definitely go back.
Very good attention to detail and Christopher was very thorough for allergy information. Would recommend the experience.
A great tasting menu and a wonderful, pleasant yet unobtrusive staff. Very good dealing with food allergies.
Even with long lines due to Easter weekend, the service was friendly, the baked goods outstanding and the coffee was excellent.
A dining experience unlike any other. Very expensive but you are buying more than a meal. You are buying a memory.
Surprise and delight! The meal was incredible and the staff were absolutely wonderful.
Total reviews rating 4.7
199 Reviews for Manresa 2024:
Review №1
2023-11-24 15:42:21Good takeout options for those who want to enjoying good food in comfortable settings. Didn‘t require any reheating. The duck breast was really good.
Review №2
2022-04-08 17:01:51This was an incredible experience, each dish was artfully and carefully crafted. Manresa absolutely deserves the 3 Michelin stars that it has.We also chose to enjoy the wine pairing, and it was perfect. I appreciated that even a saison style beer was included because it fit with the salad fantastically.We especially enjoyed the sashimi, the shrimp and morel mushroom dish, and the waygu dish.
Review №3
2018-12-01 03:13:47Manresa knocked it out of the park for my 40th birthday. We had an amazing seafood-driven dinner, course after course. The cuisine was phenomenal, the presentation was impressive, and the service was as good as I’ve experienced anywhere. It was a lot of food, but thankfully we were able to enjoy each course. The drink & wine pairings were also top notch. It was well worth the 3000 mile journey from Maine.
Review №4
2020-03-10 21:27:35Definitely worth the Michelin Stars. Service was excellent, attentive and friendly without being overbearing or aloof. Food was well proportioned and a variety of flavors/textures/and something always new.It is expensive, and some may dislike one course or another (palette is subjective and people like/dislike differently), as a whole it is a great dining experience
Review №5
2019-01-10 07:35:55Lives up to the expectations. Absolutely delicious courses. Each dish introduced unique flavors that I have never tried before. The service began a tad slow but reached good pace by the middle of the meal. Reserve three hours for the experience as there are many courses that will leave you feeling full if you eat too quickly.
Review №6
2018-10-13 06:08:12Service, presentation, and atmosphere get 5 stars, but we werent overly impressed with the food. The staff were overly attentive and friendly, arguably the best wait service. The restaurant is small and cozy. While the presentation of dishes was stellar, we werent overly impressed by the menu. Flavors were decent but nothing stuck out as memorable.
Review №7
2019-05-19 05:58:20Amazing food, fantastic service. Very cozy and friendly atmosphere. Loved all food selections. Wine pairing and overall flavors were fantastic. Needless to say it’s an expensive place but if you have a special occasion, it’s very much worth it. A very memorable experience.
Review №8
2021-05-23 03:17:18Manresa is open for dine in service!Weve been rescheduling our reservation for over a year and are happy that we were finally able to dine in at the restaurant.Our food was delicious and we enjoyed every bite of it. Very high quality and you can tell how much work and love went into creating each dish.Service was great, attentive and friendly.
Review №9
2021-09-05 01:07:13Chef Kinch and the team at Manresa fully deserve the 3 Michelin star rating and are well worth the price. The service was impeccable and the food made me comment that “my mouth was in heaven”! We had the wine pairings along with the tasting menu and the sommelier’s choices were very apt and enjoyable. The menu was themed “The Summer Garden” and the delectable freshness and variety weaved beautifully throughout the courses but most especially in the almost too beautiful to eat summer salad. The sea urchin and the duck courses were probably my favorites but I loved every bite of every course. I can’t wait for a chance to return and try their fall menu!
Review №10
2022-04-16 05:11:12Best Michelin restaurant Ive ever had and the only one I went there again.The first time there was amazing and Ive never had anything close to the Tidal Pool and the sashimi they served. The second time alal the dishes were great but nothing stands out.