Bobo's: Reviews | restaurant info + video | full episode video |

Other ways to watch episode online (and on video iPod):
Download episode (requires iTunes or QuickTime)
Subscribe to Video Podcast

Edmond Sullivan
Name:Edmond
Occupation: Teacher & Resources Specialist
Location: Daly City
Favorite Restaurant: Bobo's
Reviewed Bobo's: Friday, April 9, 2010

The first time that I went to Bobo’s, I went with my wife, and we were celebrating our anniversary. She normally does not like to go out for steak, but she went along to appease me. She ended up loving it, and as soon as I sampled my first bite, I realized that I had just tasted the best New York steak that I had ever had in my life!

Before I went to Bobo’s, I was on a mission to find the steak house that produced the best New York steak. I was ordering the New York steak, because many steak houses can crank out a great rib-eye because it is the cut of meat that has the most fat and thus produces the most flavor. But I was convinced that if a steak house could cook a great New York, which is an inferior cut of meat compared to that of the rib-eye, then, to me that would qualify as a top steak house.

I had been to famous steak houses in LA, Chicago, Portland, Nevada, New Orleans, and the SF Bay Area, and none of the New York steaks that I tasted proved to be "head and shoulders above the rest." But then I tried the New York bone-in at Bobo’s! This was a far superior steak compared to the New York steaks that I consumed in Chicago, which is known for having the best steak houses in the US, and I have not stopped going to Bobo’s for amazing steaks since.

[ad fullwidth]

Service: I have never ever had a dinner at Bobo’s wherein the service was sub-par. If I am in a chatty mood, the waitperson will converse with me and add to the enjoyment of the evening, but if I am engrossed in a conversation with a dinner partner, then the waitperson(s) is thorough, going about his/her job in an extremely efficient manner. I have never waited too long for a drink or for my food to arrive. The pacing is always perfect.

Parking: Two words: FREE VALET!

Décor & Atmosphere: When I have brought friends to Bobo’s, some have suggested that the restaurant is too small and cramped, but I actually like to think that the small individual dining rooms are cozy. I have been to other upscale, trendy, SF restaurants where I am actually touching elbows with the stranger sitting next to me. Bobo’s is smallish, but other restaurants seat their customers even closer together. So I have no complaints about the seating, and as a result of having four separate dining rooms, the noise level is quite palatable.

Boboquvaris is an Italian (Venetian) clown or court jester, who is depicted in the Italian style of theatre called "Comedia del' Arte," and the restaurant takes on a circus-like décor with bright colors and frills. The bar design is really spectacular, especially at night when the green Venetian glass above the bar illuminates the room. The bar is a great place to sit and enjoy a house special martini or even a full steak dinner.

Food: Hands down, the best steak in town and around the country! They are most well known for the bone-in filet mignon, which is even better than the New York. The steaks are dry-aged up to six weeks and cooked with just a hint of rosemary and garlic with a slight rubdown of olive oil. They arrive at the table at just the right temperature and are cooked medium rare to rare. One time, my wife had to send back her steak, because it was too rare for her liking, but they were very accommodating and did not give her attitude about her request. It arrived back at the table cooked to her taste and was delicious. The steaks are BIG and filling, and you definitely get your money's worth with each and every mouthwatering bite.

The apps and sides: I have eaten just about every appetizer and side dish and I have enjoyed them all. The portions for the side and apps tend to be on the small side, but it's okay because it leaves plenty room for the STEAK! No doggie bags! They have the best mac and cheese, onion rings, and Brussels sprouts with pancetta that I have ever tasted!

Summary:

"HANDS DOWN, THE BEST STEAK IN TOWN AND AROUND THE COUNTRY!"
Great food, great drinks, great service,
Dine solo or with a friend or five,
it’s the best steak and that’s no jive!

Neel Lilani
Name: Neel
Occupation: Attorney
Location: San Francisco
Favorite Restaurant: Tropisueno Mexican Kitchen
Reviewed Bobo's: Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Welcome to Bobo’s, a steak house with a touch of circus! Immediately upon arriving we were greeted by the enthusiastic valet parking attendant who, much to our delight, informed us that valet parking was provided complimentary for guests. Upon entering Bobo’s we were happily surprised by the bright décor touches that set the place apart from more traditional steak houses that are typically coddled in wood and leather.

Since my wife and I wanted to try many things on the menu, we opted to eat dinner tapas style by ordering a number of small plates. We started a decadent housemade burrata cheese, which is a soft Italian mozzarella that is creamy and yet magically airy at the same time. This was spread on crostini and a sour dough loaf stuffed with fresh olives and loaded with EVOO. A wonderful start!

Next, we moved on to the tuna carpaccio, which was impossibly delicate and flavorful. I had never seen fish sliced so paper-thin! We also had the crab cakes, which had the perfect amount of filler in addition to crabmeat and were perfectly crispy. The mussels that followed were a bit of a disappointment, as about 15% were dead and inedible. Also, the super high heat of the skillet upon which they were served combined with the excess of sea salt used in the preparation dried them out a bit and made the spices and salt completely overwhelm the natural flavors of the mussels. The modern mac and cheese side, that we ordered was fairly well prepared, but a little too liquidy to be termed spot-on.

The waitstaff was helpful and not overbearing, but did take a little time to take our dessert order as the restaurant began to fill up. They were completely accommodating in our request for a half order of dessert, as well as in answering our numerous questions about the menu.

Overall, the prices were a bit high, but I would come back for a special occasion dinner and try the famed bone-in filet next time.

Suwanna Kerdkaew
Name: Suwanna
Occupation: Firefighter-Engineer & Paramedic
Location: San Francisco
Favorite Restaurant: Pisces California Cuisine
Reviewed Bobo's:Saturday, April 17, 2010

I was so excited to eat at this restaurant. It was officially a date night! When my partner Tina and I arrived at the restaurant, the décor was absolutely a feast for the eyes with their "Cirque du Soleil" style. The staff was prompt, attentive, and absolutely warm and friendly. We were greeted and seated promptly. I thought, "This is going to be a great time." Then things started unraveling slowly.

I knew there was an upstairs, as the folks who were seated before us were taken upstairs. We were escorted to the area just to the right of the entrance on the main level. There were curtains separating tables and 80s music was playing, which was a bit odd but still enjoyable. We sat down, and our server was completely professional and warm and did her job with perfection. We did notice right away that the tables near us were exactly right next to us. We tried to concentrate on what we were going to enjoy that evening on the menu, and at first we kept our voices low, but we soon realized we couldn’t hear each other over the conversations near us, and so we found ourselves raising our voices a decibel louder until we were full-on projecting our voices to each other. My partner even had to pull the adjacent curtain back further, as she not only could hear what the next table was saying, but she could also see the other table intimately.

We started out with two cocktails, which were to our expectations. Our appetizer and salad were the baby romaine salad with tomatoes and avocados, and the tuna carpaccio. The flavor was spot on, fresh, and very enjoyable. The garlic bread was served warm and was delicious, though a bit on the oily side.

Tina and I decided to share a filet mignon as well as a whole garlic-roasted crab. Our sides were the Swiss chard, Bermuda onion rings and Modern Mac and Cheese. The filet mignon just melted in our mouths and was perfectly cooked medium-rare. The portion was decent, and the flavor was very delicious with the glass of Cabernet that I was enjoying. The whole roasted crab, unfortunately, was way over-roasted. The meat inside was dry and very difficult to get out of the shell. Being an experienced crab aficionado, I know that once the crab shell is cracked, it usually is fairly easy to get the meat to come out of the shell in one whole chunk. Not so on this night.

As I continued to struggle with the overcooked crab, I noticed the conversations around me getting more and more intrusive. On the left, we had a couple talking about a biopsy procedure. Behind Tina, someone was talking about an internal gastric issue. To the right of us, a couple had sat down and was over-the-top complimenting each other about each other. At this time, it was fairly funny to overhear the unusual conversations around us. I continued working on my crab and eating the sides, which were nice but not uniquely memorable.

Finishing our meal, our server came back, handed us a dessert menu, and left to box up our leftover mac and cheese (which I really had ordered for our daughter to eat the next day). Again the server was absolutely attentive, professional, and personable. As we pondered over which dessert we were to share, over to the right, the couple was making louder, even sappier comments about how they love being with each other and how great it is to be with each other. Clearly they didn’t know each other very well and were trying to make conversation. Perhaps they were tired of hearing our conversation? "Focus, focus, focus on the menu," I thought to myself, "Just think about the wonderful dessert I was about to order." But then over on my left ear, the conversation picked up again about the biopsy. I looked up from the menu and saw that my partner had the same look on her face that I had on mine: we had enough. The conversations so close to us surrounded and drowned us out, and I had to wave a white flag and admit that I would be driven out of the restaurant by the proximity of the conversations around us.

[ad floatright]

Sadly, I could not justify the $200 bucks I had just spent to listen to conversations around us, rather than enjoying the conversation between my partner and myself. The meal was decent for the most part. I wish the crab would have been more succulent, but I cannot speak more highly of the service and the unique décor of the place. Perhaps the management needs to rethink how many tables they are trying to “squeeze” in for dinner and take away a table or two to allow for the intimacy that folks seek when going out for a night of crab and steak. Until that happens though, I will not be back, as the cost of the food cannot justify the lack of wanted intimacy that this restaurant does not provide.

Bobo'sBobo's

Bobo's: Restaurant Info

Bobo's: Reviews