Sara Salas-Sarmiento

I had a fantastic dinner at pabu last week. I learned they just premiered a new spring menu, and my experience was even better than the one I had a year ago. The duck gyoza was a highlight as well as the “ricearoni” fried rice. I would definitely come back for lunch just to try everything again

+1

Elicia Nademin, PhD

O.M.G. My taste buds are in heaven!l from bite one! I ordered the omakase. I almost didn't! They just had a price increase to almost $200 and I was warned it is a LOT of food. But I thought, 'when in Rome!' And don't be deceived, 6-7 courses in THIS omakase is a whole lot of food!!! The nigiri sampling was only one course! Right out the gate, the warmth and energy here is palpable from the sweet hostess well welcomed me up my fabulous bartenders Matteo, Diego, & Carlos. Carlos made me refreshing nonalcoholic bursts of flavor between courses to open my appetite when I let him know I don't drink alcohol. Each was delightful and tart! Matteo went above and beyond to attend to my dietary preferences. Diego checked in on me regularly to ensure timing of all courses, smily Luis and his team of runners did a great job of explaining all dishes, and the chefs delivered the extraordinary! Talk about great teamwork though? Everyone here worked tender together to execute a perfect all around experience! My meal started with the Toro & Caviar Tartare. Truly undeniable flavor! So decadent! Perfect hint of fattiness. The caviar was exquisite. I felt like I had gold melting in my mouth! I added a bit of tamari to the seaweed accent and I enjoyed that along the way! Next I moved on to the panko crusted dungeness crabcake. I should say I'm not the biggest fan of crabcakes but as far as crabcakes go it was good. The sauce was very flavorful. Had a subtle kick but not spicy. Definitely needed the citrus/lime on top. I'm for sure not disappointed. I think anyone who loves hush puppies would love this! The miso broiled black cod was next in line. Yep, unbelievable! First bite was sweet and literally melted in my mouth! Utter perfection! So tender! And I loved that they left the skin at the bottom. So great! I asked them to keep a very slow pace so I could bask in enjoying every course and they have wonderfully done that. I'm at the just over one hour point as I round our third course. Course 4: Their nigiri course was so fresh and flavorful! The time under the individual pieces was a bit too cooked for my taste but I appreciated that it was minimal. The golden eye snapper and otoro fatty tuna definitely stood out! The third round of nigiri was the best. The sweet shrimp was so meaty and delicious! I love the uni and enjoyed it here though it was a tad fishier than I'm used to. I did enjoy the seaweed wrapped rice under it. The salt water eel was the best one had with a surprising and subtle sweet undertone. The 5th course, MEN aka Main , was Motoyaki Lobster Spaghetti with udon noodles. This was again unbelievably good! Perfect zest. A very mild peppery kick as you dug further in. The udon was so soft and buttery with a perfect hint of lime. Entering hour 3 with the 6th course, yakimono. Matteo was amazing at tailoring this exactly to my liking. Exemplary customer service was a "yes, let's try it!" attitude! Loved the grilled daikon and sauce that adorned the meat. I'll not a desert girl but the matcha ice cream atop the cake was a nice touch. The sauces all around here are magnificent. No wonder I saw so many guests doing happy dances as they ate! I'll add about the neighborhood, as a single woman traveling, I really wanted to pick a place that felt situated somewhere safe and this was it! Not only did I feel safe outside but these guys had me laughing all the way out. Such an outstanding experience! I highly recommend! Nice lil perk I stumbled on... download the InKind app and pay with the app and you'll save $50 with check total over $150! Just be sure to tip on prediscounted amount.

+15

Queen B.

My husband and I had an excellent culinary experience tonight at Pabu. Our tastebuds are still jumping. From the moment we walked in until the time we left, we felt well taken care of. The food was delicious and the service was outstanding. Special thanks to Tristan, who took his time to explain different options on the menu and made sure that we were satisfied with our food and drinks. If you’re looking for a classy, clean, and intimate ambiance for your next date night or team dinner, definitely check this place out! We look forward to returning next time we are in SF!

+2

Olga Liakhovich

We went to PABU for a special occasion. Amazing food. We really liked the grilled squid. Sushi and rolls were amazing. Cocktails are nice (and no headache the next day — quality ingredients). Pana cotta was a surprise and really good.

+1

Paul Pettersson (Petersson Fersman)

Very very good Japanese fine dining. I came here with a group from work at first we had problems finding places in the bar but we had a table booked for a later time. Wine and food is simply very very good service. Yes, very nice and friendly as well. Atmosphere is very nice. We were all very happy with the food and drinks - will be back!

+15

Harry

Had our team holiday lunch here. Service was exemplary, props to the team for that. As for the food... It was a bit of a mix. The nigiri was high quality and was probably my favorite. The karaage were a bit too dry, but I still enjoyed it. Flavor profile reminds me of Taiwanese popcorn chicken. As for my kastu, I was pretty disappointed. I've had better katsu for half the price. The meat was so tough too. Overall great restaurant. Probably not one I'd go to on my own budget, but it's definitely the experience that makes things worthwhile!

Kimberly Do

I’ve been here twice now. The servers are friendly and polite, but service is noticeably slow, especially considering the price point. This is definitely on the expensive side. We ordered à la carte and overall the food was good. Highlights included the tuna poke with tobiko, negi, and crisp wontons, and the house made duck gyoza with scallion, pickled ginger, and chili rayu. The butter lettuce and hearts of palm salad with radish, grapefruit, avocado, and carrot ginger dressing was fresh and well balanced. The miso broiled black cod was good, though a bit sweet for my preference, likely from the kabocha squash. The triple seared American wagyu strip steak with fondant daikon and grilled maitake mushroom was nicely cooked and flavorful. We also had a good selection of sushi, including fatty bluefin tuna o toro, yellowtail hamachi, Michael’s negitoro, and the rainbow roll, all of which were fresh and enjoyable. We had three cocktails and sake as well. The ambience is warm and relaxing, making it a nice place to sit and unwind. Overall, good food and atmosphere, but the slow service and high prices make it a place I’d visit occasionally rather than regularly.

+12

W T

$150 for two people and left still hungry. Had to walk down the block to Turtle Tower to top off ;) Food is delicate, delicious and well prepared. Service is well intended. Very nice hand written card for our celebration!

+1

KB Sim

Sushi is good but the omakase was not what I was expecting. I was hoping for more rustic and I got "fusion" food with what felt like thawed out frozen corn. It's a tasting menu at best. Service is great, would go back but only for sushi.

Stelios Serghiou

Not recommended. Prices are in Nobu territory, but the food is barely average. The tuna carpaccio was unremarkable. The duck gyoza tasted indistinguishable from Trader Joe’s frozen gyoza. The miso cod was genuinely delicious, but the portion was comically small for the price. The Ken roll was good, but overly salty. The nigiri was the biggest disappointment. The kampachi in particular was among the worst I’ve had. They aim for a modern izakaya vibe, but the execution falls flat. The music is too loud, and the overall ambience feels forced rather than refined. Save your money and get far better sushi at Nakama, Eiji, or Okane. Very disappointed and won’t be returning.

+3

Constance Shi

Came here 4 years ago and loved it. Came back and… wow. What happened?? This turned into the worst dinner I’ve had all year—in a so-bad-we-could-only-laugh way. Honestly, this place has probably survived this long with such high prices only because companies in the Financial District keep expensing fancy dinners. It’s far from a good izakaya. Highlights of the chaos: • Restaurant 1/5 full on a Friday night, yet we were told to sit at the bar. On uncomfortable stools. For almost two hours. • It took nearly two hours to serve six dishes—the kind of timing you’d expect from a tiny 7-seat omakase where the chef performs every course right in front of you… except here, there was no performance, no chef interaction, and honestly, barely any food. • Sushi chefs in front of us had no idea we ordered sushi until they casually asked, “Did you guys order?” • Staff vanished constantly, and when I finally complained, the “manager” showed up with zero apologies. Not even a fake one. We spent over $300 for 2 and left hungry, confused, and laughing hysterically at how surreal the whole night was. The grand finale: The “Wagyu on Hot Stone” that took nearly 2 hours to appear was… two tiny pieces of beef, gone in one bite each (though I have to admit it was one actually good dish, just very far from justifying its price and the crazy wait). Our waitress insisted we “needed rice” with it when we ordered it. We refused. They brought COLD rice that’s enough to feed 2 anyway as an “apology.” Not sure what we were supposed to eat it with—our memories of the beef? And when the bill came, the manager STILL didn’t apologize. Instead he asked—twice— “You’ll come back, right?” We didn’t answer. I mean, isn’t it obvious?