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Bar Jules: welcome to the neighborhood!
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January 08, 2008
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Bar Jules is a bit of an oddity. First off, it's a restaurant, not a bar, and despite the name, it doesn't (yet) have a liquor license. It's a tiny restaurant, but it doesn't take reservations. It sprung up on the site of the "Don't Call It Frisco" laundromat, an unassuming little spot way at the western end of the Hayes Valley strip. But despite the circumstances, Bar Jules may just be exactly what Hayes Valley needs.
The menu is very focused. There are typically four or five appetizers, two to three entree choices, and a couple of desserts. And it changes daily. It's written on two large chalkboards in the interior of the restaurant, though it's posted on paper on the outside window for passers-by, and -- brilliantly -- is posted every day on the web.
The preparations are simple and ingredient-driven. The night we dined, there was a ribeye available, but I've been trying to eat more fish lately, so with some reluctance I ordered the wood-grilled swordfish ($24). But the dish's focused presentation of fish, citrus, and olive flavors was far more satisfying than I expected. Rebecca had the farro and chestnut soup ($9) and the raw artichoke salad ($8). The soup in particular was curiously delicious, a tasty combination of uncommon flavors and textures.
If subsequent meals are this good, eating at Bar Jules might be a regular occurrence for us. (If they get their liquor license, they'll be a shoe-in!) Strangely, the overall Yelp rating sits at around 3.5 stars. Mostly this appears to be due to some hiccups during the first few weeks of being open, but a lot of it is due to the way people rate things on Yelp (and on open review-based sites in general) -- there's a strong tendency to give punitive one-star reviews, or to give artificially low reviews to "correct" what people feel are other reviewers' poor taste, ostentation or bandwagoning. Nevertheless, I think the rating will eventually converge on four stars. In any case, don't be put off by the Yelp score, whatever it might be. It's worth checking the place out for yourself.
Hayes Valley has a lot of restaurants, from casual eateries to high end destination spots. But to my mind, Bar Jules fills a need we didn't know we had. Welcome to the neighborhood!
January 8, 2008 in restaurants, san francisco | Permalink
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Comments
It's good to see you blogging again!
5-star rating systems are questionable. Usually folks are quite polar in their voting style. They either love it or hate it. Perhaps there's more to learn from digg-style voting than just a sorting technique.
I can't believe you spent Rs.1000/= on a dish. :)
Posted by: Joe Arnold at Jan 10, 2008 9:05:00 PM
