Last night with a couple of friends I took a stroll back to my old neighborhood, Cole Valley.

We entered EOS with very little hope that we would be seated right away but we did! A Saturday night, wow, things Are slowing down.

We were seated upstairs, it’s nice and cozy, with all the people on a first date. Another restaurant lacking of good lighting, the food was all brown, it was so dark I couldn’t distinct if my meat was medium or rare.

Anyway, the service was so so that night, to my surprise.  I have been to EOS quite a few times now and that was the first time I received such a bad service. I think the waitress was a bit overwhelmed, we started ordering and she left before we were even done!

We started with a dozen oysters. They were serving Beau Soleil, my favorites, with a glass of champagne. I really like their mignonette dressing with a hint of ginger.

Then, we had to order their “oh so famous” Shiitake dumplings. This dish is so rich and decadent, you will want to have it just for yourself. My friend and I had to soak up the rest of the flavor-intense sauce with some bread. This is such a wonderful dish I would absolutely recommend it!

Then we ordered the Goat cheese fondu. I am not sure what went wrong in the kitchen but 25 minutes later, still no fondu. I complained a bit to our waitress and she apologized. I think our order might have been lost somewhere. I became a bit disappointed when our entrée started to show up and still no second appetizer. Finally it showed and to tell you the truth I wasn’t impressed with it. The combination beets/goat cheese always sounds good to me but in this case, the goat cheese was melted and warm, a bit strange with the beets. Perfect with the bread though!

My friend ordered the chicken curry claypot, and the Mahi mahi special. I order the hanger steak.

We were all happy with our entrée, even if it was a bit difficult to see what we were eating. The hanger steak was served with corn meal breaded onion rings, I could have gone without them, they were a bit dry, not too interesting. The potatoes served with the meat were very dry, thank God for a nice thick sauce at time a bit over powering.

To have us forget about their serving mistakes, the waitress brought us 2 desserts on the house. I liked the attention, it is so rare nowadays! She brought us an apple cobbler and a banana tiramisu, both good but I am not so much of a dessert person anyway. I did order some cheese last night and they were out of cheese, it was 8pm (it’s me raising my eyebrow).

Note: EOS also have a wine bar just next door to the restaurant, I would recommend it if you are only 2. If you are lucky to be there on a Wednesday then you will find James behind the bar who is a friend and an excellent bartender! I know he works sometimes as a waiter in the restaurant in the beginning of the week. Ask for him you won’t regret it. He is the best and he is very knowledgeable in wine.

Summary: EOS is one of my favorite place in town. They were having a hard time last night. I was wondering why the place was crowded but not frantic! Anyway the service was not so good and I will never want to have that waitress again. The food was good though. I will recommend this place if you are in the neighborhood or if you want to try something new. Bill for 3: $274.40 (not including tip, but including $130 of wine+ Champagne)