the house

if you are wondering.. no, this entry is not about a special house or anything.

but what it's about is an asian fusion restaurant at north beach in san francisco called the house. this was our rendezvous spot with james whom we were excited to meet face to face for the very first time. while we were looking for this restaurant, we walked passed it without noticing it and we had to retrace our steps and asked james for directions. lol. so if you are looking for it, it's just a few steps away from the corner of broadway and grant ave. if you walked two blocks passed that (like we did -.-), you've missed it.

it was a petite restaurant with minimal decor with natural light streaming in from the huge glass window at the front of the place.

james has been here several times and is one of his favorite places to eat in SF. so naturally, we asked him for some suggestions for dishes to order.

we started off with two appetizers to share and an entree each.

appetizer | steamed mussels with garlic infused shrimp broth ($10)

i've always loved mussels so i wasn't gonna let this pass me by especially since it was my first meal since i arrived at SF. it wasn't great but it wasn't bad. the mussels were fresh but i thought it was bland and needed more seasoning granted that i didn't really sip the spoonfuls of the shrimp broth since we were sharing the dish. it was probably the least memorable dish we had.

appetizer | deep fried salmon roll with chinese hot mustard ($9)

now this was delicious. james recommended this appetizer and boy, oh boy. a beautiful presentation with the roe upon the the salmon roll that was halved and served warm with a spicy mustard. the light crisp crust encased the salmon roll which was cooked perfectly with the middle still slightly raw. so you get three different textures. it is seasoned just enough and the roll goes awesome with the chinese hot mustard that has a same kick as a wasabi sauce. it reminded me of a no carb salmon sushi roll with a twist. :) nom nom. <3

entree | grilled sea bass with garlic ginger soy ($23)

this is one of the popular dishes at the house. the seabass had great grill marks and it's served with sauteed snow peas and a stir fried sweet soy udon. i really liked the overall taste. the snow peas and my plate glistened with oil so i thought the dish was a bit greasy for my liking. the sea bass could have done less time on the grill because it was a lil dry and the garlic ginger soy had to be added sparingly because it was quite salty and there was enough flavor on the fish itself.  the udon that came with was tasty that i couldn't stop eating it.  

entree | angus flatiron steak with roasted shitake mushroom sauce ($15)

i was pleasantly surprised by the presentation. ryan liked the punch of flavor from his first bite but he felt that the flavors were gradually muted the more bites he took. the steak were cooked just right with the sear he was looking for. overall he liked his choice but wished there was a contrasting element to refresh the taste buds.

entree | warm wasabi house noodles with grilled pork ($10)

james ordered this dish and he kindly offered me a few small bites so i could try. the piece of pork that i tasted was seasoned well, had a good crust and moist which is really hard to do sometimes with pork. but he mentioned the end pieces were a tad dry and overdone. the noodles had a very slight spicy kick. his verdict? he thought it was pretty good.

i noticed the cutest thing in the middle of our feasting.

a nice touch in personalizing their paper placemats. isn't it the cutest thing? :) (okay fine, i get excited for the smallest things..)

the house promises good combination of asian fusion flavors but with some room for improvement. does it earn a return visit? yes :)

disclaimer this is written based on my personal experience and opinion. experiences and taste buds may vary for others.