Eos
901 Cole Street (at Carl)
San Francisco, CA 94117
415-566-3063
I’d been meaning to go to Eos for a while, and a friend let me in on his little happy hour secret. Well, except it’s not really a secret to those in the Cole Valley neighborhood, but I digress.
Sundays – Thursdays, from 5:30pm – 7:00pm, Eos serves fresh oysters on the half shell for $1, and has $5 wine and sake specials.
Eos (or Eos Restauran and Wine Bar) has been around since 1995, and its web site claims that it was one of the first restaurants in San Francisco to debut any of the following: a) small plates, b) Asian fusion (really?), and c) a wine bar. Funny that those things are all fairly ubiquitous in San Francisco now. I’m sure once restaurateurs realized the healthy margins they could make on skimpy plates and a lot of alcohol, they were pretty motivated to run with the formula.
Here’s the quick and dirty:
Pros:
- The tiny Kumamotos were fresh and buttery tasting. The mignonette sauce was just right – not too sour.
- Service – considerate and attentive. Very knowledgable about wine. Water was filled often, and the waiter made sure that my stomach had enough to eat at all times. One of the orders was placed after 7pm, but the waiter was gracious enough to grant us the happy hour price. (Regular readers may recall my annoyance at waitstaff that blame the computer software for not allowing special pricing after happy hour…)
- The bathroom – clean and relaxing.
- The rest of the food – tasty, although inconsistent portion sizes. One small plate would be miniscule. Another, ginormous.
- Ambiance – on the weeknight we went, there were enough people there to make it appear alive, but the noise level was moderate, and it wasn’t too crowded.
Cons:
- To be a true grubgirl, I have to state that I’d like more discounted items on the happy hour menu. Mind you, I still enjoyed the ahi tuna, mussels, and pork ribs after a couple dozen oysters (yes, I was on a roll). But from a value point of view, you may end up spending more than you saved if you let your stomach do the ordering.
- The table we were at was by the entrance. The chilly weather is kept outside by a thick, dark velvet curtain…but my seat was close enough to the door that the curtain sometimes flopped onto me like a cape, as unsuspecting arrivals pushed aside the curtain, assisted with a blast of wind.
- Cole Valley parking. If you’re not lucky enough to live in walking distance to this place, try to take an electric Muni line over, or pray to the parking karma deities for luck in finding a spot in this residential area. But don’t let that deter you – once you arrive inside, you’ll realize the parking search was worth it.
