Relaxed Vibes and Amazing Food at Palm House San Francisco

This post is Relaxed Vibes and Amazing Food at Palm House San Francisco. It is a highlight of my wife and my lunch at the tropical themed Palm House on Union Street in San Francisco.

The article is part of my San Francisco Foodie Adventure.

For this visit, my wife and I were a guest of Palm House and San Francisco Travel. The views expressed were my own.

Palm House San Francisco

The Palm House San Francisco is a blend of Cuisines from Cuba, Hawaii, Brazil and the Caribbean and focuses on menus from the beautiful tropical locals with Palm Trees.

The restaurant is built around the oldest Palm Tree in San Francisco on the former milk and dairy district mansion.

Palm House is located at 2032 Union Steet, near Buchanan Street in San Francisco and is open seven days a week with extended hours on Friday and Saturday.

The core menu highlights unique starches like taro, yucca and plantains, as well as seasonal ingredients like cauliflower, sweet potato, winter squash, pomegranate, and fresh local daikon. Always prevalent are chili peppers such as habanero, serrano and scotch bonnet, plus spice elements like togarashi, a Japanese chili-based spice mixture made with black sesame, star anise, nori, sansho, hemp seed, ginger and burnt orange peel.

Specific new menu items include house-made spam and eggs benedict with braised pork shoulder, rice fritter, sambal hollandaise and poached egg; Caribbean braised short ribs with mash potato grits, braised seasonal vegetables and garlic, cilantro gremolata; Half-roast Mary’s Jamaican Jerk Chicken with sweet potato gratin, roasted cauliflower and baby kale and finally the extensive list of tacos which include blackened baja fish, Cuban steak and the 2016 Taco Knockdown People’s Choice Winner, Hawaiian smoked BBQ brisket taco with pineapple relish, sambal aioili, crispy spam, and wonton shell.

The innovative Palm House bar menu complements Chef Brenen’s menu, featuring classic and contemporary cocktails and the restaurant’s signature slushy.

Arrival

My wife and I arrived at Relaxed Vibes and Amazing Food at Palm House and immediately felt a sense of relaxation as we entered the hip location.

A sign invited guests to take a seat and select a menu and then order at the bar.

The bartenders smiled and greeted us warmly when we entered the restaurant.

We selected a seat in the main room across from the bar and took a few minutes to admire the unique décor of the restaurant.

It was amazing to see the Palm Tree in the middle of the restaurant and to tower over the location.

We relaxed a for a few minutes and reviewed the menu.

Menu

The lunch menu offers a good variety of food from tacos, to street plates and fusion specialties.

Some of the items included a brunch menu with housemaid span and eggs benedict with braised pork shoulder, calamari tacos, Thai and Caribbean plate dinners as well as Hawaiian specialties.

The cocktail menu was extensive as well and it offered an eclectic mix of tropical drinks as well as a full bar.

Lunch Experience

I approached the bar and the bartender welcomed me and he said he could assist us at our table. I accepted and he said he would be right there.

Within a minute or two, the bartender approached the table, introduced himself and welcomed us to the restaurant.

The bartender highlighted the menu and he suggested we have cocktails.

My wife and I asked about cocktail recommendations. The bartender suggested the Pina Colada and Tropical Thunder. The bartender described the drinks and they sounded excellent.

We ordered the drinks and the bartender thanked us.

The drinks were served within three minutes and they were presented in decorative glasses. In particular, the Pina Colada was served in a shell-like glass.

The Tropic Thunder was made with Gin, falernum, passion fruit, lemon and bitters.

The Tropic Thunder had an amazing taste and one sip took me to a tropical island. It was a perfect recommendation.

The Pina Colada was made with white rum, coconut puree, pineapple gomme and lime.

The Pina Colada was also excellent. It had a good mix of alcohol, coconut and pineapple and it was presented attractively in the decorative glass.

The bartender checked back with us within a minute and asked if we enjoyed the drinks. We said yes and he thanked us.

The bartender asked if we had any questions from the menu. We inquired about the Brussel sprouts and he described how they were prepared and served. He said they were excellent.

My wife also inquired about the different taco varieties. The bartender suggested ordering three or four if she was hungry.

We placed our order and my wife ordered two calamari tacos and one The People’s Taco. I ordered the Caribbean plate with pork and we elected to share the Brussel sprouts for an appetizer.

The bartender thanked us and he said he would get the order started.

About 10 minutes after ordering, the server delivered the appetizer.

Appetizer

For the appetizer, we ordered the Roasted Brussels Sprouts.

The Roasted Brussels Sprouts were served hot in a decorative dish. The Brussels sprouts were cooked perfectly with blistered pedron peppers, spiced peanuts and toasted coconut. The portion size was generous and it was excellent to share.

The appetizer had an excellent level of heat from the chopped-up peppers. The peanuts added a bit of crunch and the toasted coconut offered a bit of cooling from the heat which worked perfectly together in the dish.

The bartender checked back with us a few minutes later to see how we liked the appetizer.

After we finished the appetizer, the bartender returned and he offered to remove the dish from the table before suggesting a second cocktail.

We accepted and he bartender prepared two new cocktails for us including the Five Space Dark and Stormy and the Old Cuban.

The drinks were served a couple minutes later and they both were incredible as well and they enhanced our menu selections.

The Old Cuban was made with brugal anejo rum, champagne, lime and mint.

The Five Spice Dark and Stormy was made with Moost Gay XO, ginger beer, lime, Chinese five spice blend.

Entrees

A few minutes after our second drinks were served, the bartender returned to the table at Palm House to serve the appetizers.

My wife ordered tacos including calamari ones and the People’s Tacos.

The People’s Taco was made with smoked bbq brisket and was served in a crispy taco. The People’s taco was presented neatly on a single plate. The brisket was tangy and it had a bold flavor. The taco won the Eat Drink SF’s Taco Knockdown contest and it did not disappoint.

The star of her order though was the Calamari tacos though, which my wife said she could eat every day.

The Calamari tacos were served open face on fresh corn tacos. The tacos had a generous serving of calamari and a tangy slaw and aioli sauce. The tacos were incredible.

I ordered the Caribbean Plate which was served in a decorative bowl.

The Caribbean Plate included Cuban Style black beans and rice, sofrito wilted baby kale and shaved cucumber salad. It also offered a generous portion of Kalua Pork.

The Kalua Pork was tender and juicy and it had an excellent flavor. It was seasoned perfectly and went well with the beans and rice. The beans and rice were also flavorful and reminded me of being in the tropics. The salad was light and had an excellent dressing.

The server provided house made Hot Sauces to try with the pork and beans and rice.

The sauces were fresh and tangy. One had a slightly sweet and spicy taste and the other bolder flavor.

The bartender checked back with us a couple times while we were enjoying the entrees.

In addition, the manager visited our table to inquire about the meal. The manager made light conversation with us and told us a bit of history about the restaurant.

We learned that a new chef was re-designing the menu with some unique offerings that blended flavors from various tropical locations.

Departure

After we finished the entrees the bartender suggested we sample dessert or have additional cocktails.

My wife and I were both full at the time so we declined.

The bartender thanked us sincerely and he presented the check.

The manager also thanked us for dining and he invited us to return in the future.

Overall

Relaxed Vibes and Amazing Food at Palm House San Francisco is definitely what our experience felt like.

Overall, our visit to Palm House was excellent. We left in a relaxed vide with full stomachs and great memories about the experience. The bartender was attentive and he made us feel warmly welcomed. It was a nice touch that the manager provided the history about the restaurant as well. Hopefully you can experience Palm House on your next trip to San Francisco!