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The Shota San Francisco Reviews
Been awhile since we've been here but fantastic omakase
Been awhile since we've been here but fantastic omakase spot. Book farther in advance to get a reservation
This review is for my Jan 2025 visit.
While there are several excellent omakase restaurants in SF, The Shota is the only one left with a Michelin star. It's located in the Financial District and has a sleek, modern decor in white tones. The atmosphere is nice and intimate. Special mention for the beautiful dishware. They serve traditional Edomae sushi made with top-quality ingredients. The menu includes 16 courses, starting with a seasonal assortment, followed by chawanmushi, sashimi, a selection of nigiri, and ending with miso soup, tamago, ice cream, and Japanese sweets. 1. seasonal assortment: mategai (razorclam), kabocha (Japanese squash), tako sakurani (octopus) 2. chawanmushi with seiko gani (female snow crab), crab roe and shirako (cod milt) 3. sashimi: sawara (Spanish mackerel), kanburi (wintertime yellowtail), shiro ika (white squid) 4. kasugodai (sea bream) 5. Hokkaido hotate 6. Hokkaido uni 7. kamasu (barracuda) 8. amadai (tilefish) 9. honmaguro akami 10. honmaguro toro 11. ma saba (Japanese mackerel) 12. anago 13. honmaguro temaki 14. akadashi (aged miso soup) 15. tamago, hojicha (roasted green tea ice cream) 16. yokan (Japanese sweets) One downside: instead of a printed menu, you have to download it using a QR code. A bit underwhelming for a Michelin-star restaurant. After the seasonal assortment, a chawanmushi with crab and shirako (cod milt) was served. I've always avoided shirako, but decided to try it since it was cooked. Still a bit strange for me. The nigiri selection was classic. The quality was excellent and it was perfectly prepared. I appreciated that uni was included in the menu, especially since it's becoming more common to only offer it as a supplement. They also serve two kinds of gari (ginger) on the side. In the middle of the nigiri courses, a piece of cooked fish (amadai) was served, nicely done. A hot dish is always appreciated in the middle of an omakase menu. At the end of the meal, you can order a few supplements like uni, caviar, or Alba white truffle. Drinks: They have a solid sake list. I tried one of their seasonal specials (Matsuse Matsunotsukasa Angels Wing from Shiga.) It's a sparkling, light sake, but I didn't enjoy it. It reminded me of a basic sparkling white wine. That's on me, I should've asked to taste it first. Service was excellent. My sushi chef was Seth Ridgway: professional, friendly, and a pleasure to interact with throughout the meal. In conclusion it was a great dining experience. The Shota is definitely one of the top 3 omakase restaurants in SF.
The food was incredible and the service was above and
The food was incredible and the service was above and beyond. Nice atmosphere, a perfect spot for a date (just went for valentine's day and they gave my date and I a little card with a polaroid picture us). Hands down my favorite sushi place of all time. The fish is so beautifully savory that each piece felt like it was made of a magical delicate butter melting in my mouth. Friends of mine have come back from Michelin star trips to Japan and said that they prefer Shota. Always fresh and seasonal, always comforting and familiar yet always innovating with delightful surprises.
Context: sushi is my favorite food and I've eaten at many
Context: sushi is my favorite food and I've eaten at many of the best places in New York, California, and Japan. The shota is priced very high - as a very premier tier 1 spot, but it under delivers on that price point / expectation.
Worst experience!!!!!!!! I had a disappointing experience
Worst experience!!!!!!!! I had a disappointing experience at this restaurant. Its location next to a club means loud music from the club overpowers what should be a calm and enjoyable dining atmosphere. On top of that, the chef's approach felt unprofessional, and the food did not justify the high prices. Overall, it fell short of expectations.
It was a little confusing finding The Shota, but once we
It was a little confusing finding The Shota, but once we got inside, we were pleasantly surprised. We had excellent service and wonderful food! Everything was crafted with so much detail! I think this is the best omakase service I've ever had! I came here for my birthday and truly enjoyed my time here. The food was fresh and delicious and clearly served with pride. I would absolutely come back for an occasion.
Recently I dined at the bar in The Shota.
I'm Korean, but my companions were non-Koreans, so I don't think the staff knew I could understand what they were saying... First of all, the food was incredible. I'd say the best sushi I've ever had in the U.S.! However, the chef's manner of directing and instructing the assistant chefs, with disparaging and angry language, really affected my enjoyment of the dining experience. I'm not sure if this is representative of "fine dining restaurant culture," i.e. done with the purpose of maintaining the highest standards, but, personally, I think it's not the best way to teach and lead younger persons in any field. I hope that the chef can find a more positive way to address the assistant chefs, both for their benefit and for the benefit of patrons who can hear what he is saying.
Great food, amazing service, but location could be better.
This place shares a building with other businesses which could impact your experience. The restaurant also does not have its own bathroom so you have to use a common bathroom outside which cheapens the experience. Food wise, ingredients were fresh and the flavors were clean. They presented and explained all the ingredients well. However the price was very high and it's hard to justify it; this place has a Michelin star but the difference between this and a slightly lower tiered restaurant is not significant enough for the price. We came here to celebrate a special occasion so for us we didn't mind the splurge. But do keep that in mind. We have personally had comparable omakase experience that costed much less. Overall, we had a great experience. Chef Seth was very friendly and interactive, and the staff were very attentive. Out of all the other omakeses we have done, this place definitely by far had the best service and staff.
I was so excited to come here and celebrate my birthday
I was so excited to come here and celebrate my birthday last year! Seating is at the bar only, and the entire meal is an interactive experience where you see them create all of your small plates. Some dishes were winners, and some not so much... I still remember this odd dish that they served that had fish scales in it. It was like small hard pieces of bendable plastic, and well the entire section was not a fan. The ambience is very sterile, grey concrete, and the entire space is consumed by the massive bar. The service and presentation was lovely. Hitting on all the notes of customer care and enchanted visualization. For me, I am glad I experience it but didn't think the price tag justified the food. Kusakabe is still my number one Japanese tasting menu and it's been hard to beat.
Amazing food, service and people.
Highly recommend this place for a special occasion.
Connect with users posting reservations for The Shota San Francisco
AppointmentTrader is a community-driven platform where users can exchange their reservations or leverage their personal relationships with The Shota San Francisco. Buyers can make informed decisions using automated seller ratings, which reflect past transactions and reliability.
Each posting on AppointmentTrader shows you which user submitted it and along with that provides a trackrecord of that user which indicates how much experience
the user has and how many percent of their transactions resulted in them issuing a refund.
If there is no user posting that fits your schedule, you can bid on your preferred time.
Let's say Peter has a great morning and decides to take his three friends to The Shota San Francisco at 6 PM the same day.
He checks the restaurant's website and sees that no reservations are available. He then looks at the The Shota San Francisco page on AppointmentTrader, but finds that there are no user postings either.
That's where the community-driven bid process comes in.
Peter can place a bid on AppointmentTrader, which serves as a reward for any community member who chooses to work on securing the reservation. AT then notifies experienced users who may be able to help.
Step-by-Step Process
1.) Setting a Reward (Bid)
* AppointmentTrader uses historical data to recommend a reasonable reward amount for securing a reservation - let's say $100.
* Peter really wants to go, so he increases the bid (or reward) to $200.
* At this stage, the reservation does not exist yet.
2.) A Community User Picks Up the Bid
* FamousStation67, an experienced AT user, has a strong track record of successfully securing reservations and low refund requests, they receive a notification about Peter's bid.
* FamousStation67 picks up the bid, meaning they will now work on securing the reservation.
* Peter can now talk to FamousStation67 for any questions Peter may have as FamousStation67 user fills the bid.
3.) Finding the Reservation
* FamousStation67 now uses their connections at The Shota San Francisco to secure the table.
* If they successfully get the 6 PM table for four, Peter receives a confirmation that the reservation has been secured.
* If FamousStation67 fails to secure the reservation, the bid is returned to the pool so another user can try.
4.) Payment & Protection
* Once the reservation is secured, FamousStation67 receives the $200 reward which is credited to FamousStation67's AT balance, where users manage their own funds and can withdraw via available payout options such as bank transfer, PayPal, or Zelle.
* Peter can now enjoy the dinner with his friends at The Shota San Francisco!
* As with all transactions on AT, disputes and no-show fees are handled through the platform's community-driven resolution system. Users with a strong track record are incentivized to fulfill bids successfully, and community members can report issues to maintain trust in the marketplace.
