Title: Meritage at the Claremont Hotel
Author: GCS
Last saved by: ENU

The sale of the Claremont Hotel, wherein resides Meritage, the only true 180°-scenic view restaurant in Alameda Cty, has finally closed, according to Berkeleyside. It now becomes one of the Fairmont Hotel properties.

Josh Thomsen has left for the East Coast, destination unnamed. New ExecChef as of September 1, 2012 is Josh Ladd, formerly exec sous chef since 2007 with Meritage. new Chef de Cuisine Scott Quinn

Meritage @Claremont Hotel in Berkeley, CA – update, dinner
http://www.meritageclaremont.com/food.html (note: the menus on the web are only about 60% accurate; many dishes change from day to day)
Review date: July 2013

We have dined at Meritage four times since late 2009. The food has ranged from good to superb, and we love that they offer every dish on the menu in both full and half-size portions. Add in (usually) good service – it sometimes falters under the pressure of too many large special parties – along with a multi-million dollar view, and it's easy to be pleased with this classic restaurant. 

It may have passé décor but offers comfortable chairs with large tables and sufficient aisle width. You'll never need to apologize for bumping your chair back against the person behind you at the next table when getting in or out. You'll never have to fumble with the dreaded Plate Shuffle here. Your table is always properly de-crumbed after the entrée plates are cleared.

However, the Claremont is on the selling block (again), and ExecChef Josh Thomsen left for NYC in summer 2012. The new chef de cuisine is Scott Quinn, who has a decent resume with more than fifteen years of restaurant experience, so we came back for one of our weekly dinners with Inez, to see what had changed. 

Meritage's view is really best experienced as the days lengthen, although we firmly believe that management should consider switching Meritage's location with its sister Paragon Grill. It's a smaller but nicer space, with a terrific outdoor patio.

Our waiter was Jon, whom we've had before. He's not the most polished waiter but is very pleasant and efficient. We prefer him to one of his co-workers, who is experienced but always seems somewhat perfunctory and borderline gruff. Although it may sound odd, one of Meritage's strengths are its busser staff. They are terrifically efficient and always on top of things. 

After a discussion with Jon, we decided to share the small portion of fried calamari with apricots. I was surprised when it came – usually half portions are truly small plate-sized. But this was big enough for all three of us to have three generous spoonfuls each. This worked out well, as my MIL Inez shocked us by taking not only a second spoonful but also a third! It's rare she will even eat a starter course, let alone take seconds. 

The baby calamari rings (no squiggly little tentacles allowed) had a light golden batter and were delicately tender. They came with a creamy vadouvan sauce, a judicious amount of finely diced barely-cooked carrots, and a few tart fresh apricot quarters. This was a wonderful combination of flavors and textures. It's creative yet well-balanced, a dish that any chef would be proud to claim as his/her own. 

Vadouvan is the French curry spice mix, and I suspect the name is often used on menus to coax reluctant diners into experiencing the flavor of curry mixtures as a seasoning, rather than just cheap Indian buffet food. Regardless of whether the mayonnaise-type sauce was seasoned with true vadouvan or merely a mild fragrant curry, this dish turned out to be the winner of the evening. 

Carlos ordered the truffled chicken nuggets, unable to resist seeing what an upscale McNuggets might be like. He received half-a-dozen two-inch neatly-cut cubes, with a crisp golden-brown crumb coating.

Alas, they had an odd texture, as if the chicken breast had been cooked, shredded, and then recombined into the cubes. The black truffle flavoring on the chicken shreds was very heavy, almost overpoweringly so. It was an awkward pairing with the whole-grain creamy mustard sauce that underpinned the plate. Carlos ate it, but said he didn't really care for it and wouldn't order it again.

I chose the beet salad, which had the interesting ingredients of pistachios, prosciutto and a blue cheese mousse. The baby beets were lovely, very fresh and sweet. The prosciutto was a fine quality, although Carlos suggested it would be better sliced paper-thin. The pistachios were mostly whole, which was a mistake on the conception side – they would have been better chopped finely or even left off altogether.

The blue cheese mousse was an unfortunate use of a fine blue cheese. It was very good, but it was dolloped on the plate far too generously and its strong flavor completely overpowered everything else. It might behoove Chef Quinn to pay a visit to Bravas Tapas in Healdsburg. Their phenomenal roasted beets with Ceylon cinnamon are the epitome of what one can achieve with restraint.

For my MIL Inez we picked the halibut, which came with a lovely accompaniment of crispy fried polenta balls and sautéed fresh vegetables. She enjoyed this and finished all of it. It was the perfect size for her, nicely sear-roasted.

Carlos decided on the "Mary's roast chicken", only to be surprised when he received a rigidly cut square almost three inches tall. A loose coarse polenta with sautéed mushrooms and an au jus encircled the chicken. The polenta and au jus were excellent, far better than the chicken. This unsuccessful creation consisted of two trimmed chicken paillards with a thick filling of truffled chicken mousse sandwiched in-between. If we thought the chicken nuggets had too much truffle oil, they were nothing compared to the mousse filling in this dish. 

This overdose of truffle oil was reminiscent of the very unsuccessful risotto Redd/Napa served us during our Napa trip, which we disliked intensely. The chicken cutlets were grossly oversalted as well, and outside of the overpowering truffle flavor, any other flavors were lost. Instead of an earthy accent, there was so much truffle oil used our taste buds felt bludgeoned rather than satisfied.

I ordered the filet with "potatoes Boulangere, cabernet essence, and Point Reyes fondu." The plate had been sitting under the heat lamp long enough for the cabernet 'essence', which was nothing more than a very sweet cabernet gelée, to have stiffened. I loved the use of the Point Reyes blue cheese as a topping for the filet, browned under the broiler. It was a thin layer and gave sufficient saltiness and a little funk to the mild filet. 

The fingerling potatoes were good, and came mixed with caramelized onions. This would have been a fine accompaniment by itself, but the addition of the cabernet gel was so dessert-sweet it threw the balance of the dish off, even though I ate as little of it as possible. A simple au jus reduction, or nothing at all except those tasty soft onion shreds, would have sufficed.

Before we finished our entrées, I asked the waiter if Meritage was still offering the classic soufflé, which must be ordered at least 15 minutes in advance. Jon said they did, and asked if we wanted to order it. Carlos asked to see the day's dessert menu, but after some debate we decided against ordering the soufflé. 

Once we finished our entrées and the table was cleared (and de-crumbed), we picked the pineapple tartin for Carlos, the strawberry cake for me, and the crème brulee for Inez. She loved Meritage's excellent custard. It was a relief to see it was not thickened with cornstarch. We have recently encountered far too many crème brulees weighed down by the improper use of cornstarch to stabilize the custard. It had a reasonably thin glazed crust, not quite as delicate as some places, but far superior to the super-thick windowpane style that too many kitchens produce.

Carlos liked his pineapple tart but didn't love it. Despite the menu listing rum and bourbon in it, he couldn't taste any liquor. I thought the sugar glaze on the fruit was too thick. This was a very sweet pineapple ring and didn't need the overload. Meritage has always executed well on their fruit tartins. This was good, but not at the same level as the magnificent peach tartin we had at our November 2010 dinner.

The flavors of my strawberry cake were so unexpected it took me a few bites to decide they were a good combination. The strawberries were sweet and sliced thin, mixed with a touch of good balsamic, but without sugar. There was the fragrant addition of muddled mint. The juices nicely moistened the rather heavy cake underneath. A spoonful of whipped mascarpone and heavy cream was a lovely complement, and exactly right. 

To our surprise, the waiter brought us a chocolate souffle to share, saying it was on the house. This comes with the traditional crème Anglaise; Jon made the center hole and poured half the crème in. We poured in the rest of it, of course. 

Never let a good crème Anglaise go to waste, that's our motto! 

Both regular and decaf coffees are strong and fresh. The efficient team of bussers make certain that no water glass, hot or iced tea, or coffee cup is ever left empty, sadly waiting for somebody, anybody, to please notice it needs refilling. There are any number of three- and four-star restaurants in the Bay Area that should send their buspersons to Meritage for training; we might finally see service levels begin to improve at last.

Unfortunately, despite the occasional flashes of talent that showed in our meal, overall we have to judge Chef Quinn's cooking to be more in the style of Napa's Redd (a place we wouldn't go back to unless someone else insisted and was paying) than some of our favorites, such as San Francisco's Fifth Floor, Lafayette's Artisan Bistro, Napa's Brix, or even Sebastopol's classy little K&L Bistro. 

There's talent here, as well as skill. But it's insistent upon the obvious, ending up sometimes going over the line into overwrought. We have had two dinners here that were close to perfect, and two dinners that fell short. Nobody hits home runs all the time, but this fifth dinner fell into the "like" category. We like Meritage, but this time we didn't love it. 

A professional kitchen is a symphony when it works perfectly, but it's cacophony when it doesn't. Overseason with a heavy hand or add one too many ingredients, and it's irrevocable. The diner can't take the salt or the truffle oil out of a dish once they're added to excess. 

Meritage's kitchen has great ingredients, creative concept, and technique. But it needs to stop thinking that every ingredient has to shout to be noticed. A little more restraint would make the food truly worthy of that view and the service. 

Still, it was close. That fabulous calamari, filet with the creative fondu topping, and an excellent halibut, show that the kitchen is capable of executing sophisticated, well-balanced food. 

We hope that in time Chef Quinn will both embrace a little simplicity and tighten up control over the line cooks. Meritage has so much going for them, but the kitchen needs to be more consistent and less careless. Of our five dinners here, this ranked the worst due to erratic execution. The highs were amazing, but too many lows undermined the overall impression.

Three people, dinner: three starters, three entrées, four desserts (one gratis), three beverages, with tip was $231.

Meritage @The Claremont Hotel in Berkeley, CA – update, dinner
Review date: June 2012
(previous reviews appended below)

We've picked Meritage for one of our weekly dinners twice in the past two years. Our first dinner was outstanding, but the second fell down noticeably, seemingly due to a large private party that took up most of the waitstaff's and kitchen's attention.

You'll want to come here for dinner in the summer, or for Sunday buffet brunch. The view is spectacular on a non-foggy day. Although they serve breakfast, the menu for it is very standard, with nothing creative or particularly interesting. Parking, BTW, has been turned over to the AMPCO private lot company, so be sure to get a separate validation ticket. Both the original ticket and validation ticket are needed by the attendant – even so, a 2-1/2 hr parking cost us $2 (normal charge would be $7). 

I started with the 63-degree poached egg, which interestingly enough, came lightly crusted with panko and deep-fried. It's served over a bit too many ingredients – wild arugula, frisee, thin shavings of carrot, zucchini and asparagus, wheat berries, black truffle and balsamic reduction, and a garnish of "apple bacon".

It's a real shame that Meritage doesn't offer more vegetarian dishes on the menu, because they have always done a very fine job on their vegetables. Without the wheat berries, this was a creative take on the traditional French poached egg/frisee salad. The greens and lightly blanched vegetables were wonderful with the soft egg yolk, with only the merest hint of truffle-balsamic, but the wheat berries – which I normally enjoy – just muddled the dish. 

The bacon was glazed with reduced apple cider and a generous dose of chipotle chile powder. Very crisp, salty/sweet/hot, Carlos said it reminded him of really good jerky.

Carlos tried the mushroom bisque, which came in an overly fancy silver soup bowl that couldn't hide a thinness of flavor. It either needed more mushrooms or more cream, without which it came off rather flat – good, but not great.

One of the best things about Meritage is that every one of their dishes come in half orders. It's a wonderful chance to taste your way through the menu. I was intrigued by the gnocchi dish, and ordered a half portion. Unfortunately, although the menu listed potato gnocchi, they were semolina gnocchi, which we don't like as much.  It came with morels, peas, tiny carrot balls, and oven-dried tomatoes. Instead of a standard gravy, this dish offered an asparagus puree as its base. The vegetables and puree were so lovely, they deserved only the best gnocchi, instead of second-level ones. Inez really liked the flavors in this dish, although Carlos was less fond of it.

Inez chose a half-order of the braised short ribs, with roasted root vegetables. The size was perfect for her, and she loved the tender beef and generous serving of baby carrots, potatoes, turnips, and peas. 

With the foie gras ban only two days away, Carlos and I both picked the filet Rossini, which comes with a slice of seared foie gras on top. The sauce was listed as a red wine reduction but tasted more like verjus – more of this idiot fad of sweet or sweet-sour with liver. The filet comes stacked atop a thick crispy mashed potato cake with a small padding of wilted baby spinach underneath the filet and foie gras. Carlos got a full order, I got a half order. Despite the fact we would have preferred a true red wine or Madeira sauce, this dish remains a great favorite with us. Meritage was the only restaurant who had it on the menu as a 'regular'. We'll truly be sad to see it go.

Inez got confused again by the phrase "crème brulee" and ordered it. She loves flan and custard, but hates the crème brulee melted sugar topping. I finally realized she keeps mistaking it for "crème caramel" or flan. Fortunately, Carlos hadn't ordered dessert and he actually likes the crispy sugar crust, so he scooped it off and gave her back the custard. His cappuccino was a decent blend, but the foam was coarse and the espresso was fairly 'wet.'

The fruit tatin that night was plums and raspberries. You can choose gelato or sorbet as an accompaniment, so I picked gelato, receiving a vanilla brown-sugar gelato full of vanilla bean flecks. The pastry base was a sweet puff pastry (pâte sucrée), topped with baked tender red plums and barely cooked raspberries. The fruit wasn't sweetened, getting just enough sweetness from the pastry and gelato, along with a drizzle of fruit syrup decorating the plate. It was a lovely dessert, and went beautifully with a cup of their strong, smooth decaf.

Carlos was a little peeved by the omission of the waiter's need to mention (for the second time in a row) that ordering the chocolate soufflé for dessert requires a 15-20 minute wait, so it's recommended that one order it in advance. Why they don't just print it on the menu itself, I have no idea.

Meritage hasn't raised its prices, despite the bankruptcy of the Claremont Hotel (it is currently owned by hedge fund founder John Paulson's Paulson & Co., and up for sale for $80 million as of May 2012). So the restaurant, which was originally on the high end for East Bay restaurants, has now fallen nicely into the middle of the pack. 

Considering the quality and creativity of the food, the stunning view across the Bay, the (usually) good service, the comfortable chairs (but still the same outdated 'garden room' décor), and a now-reasonable pricetag, Meritage has gone from being an upscale 'special occasion' place to a restaurant that competes very successfully against Riva Cucina, Gather, Wente, Lalime's, and even Five, Artisan Bistro and Duck Club. Despite the occasional flaws, we consider it one of the better restaurants in the East Bay, and one of the first choices if you're entertaining out-of-town family or first-time visitors. 

Summer is always going to be more crowded than off-season, due to big wedding parties and other private events at the Claremont. Balanced against this, however, is a view that no one else in the East Bay can boast, with really good food, a fine chef and well-trained waitstaff. In fact, there are not many restaurants outside Tiburon/Sausalito that can boast of such a scenic vista. We're lucky to have Meritage so close by, and we hope that whoever the new owner of the Claremont will be, that they are able to keep Chef Josh Thomsen and Sous Chef Manjee at Meritage.

Three people, dinner: Five small plates, one regular plate, two desserts, two beverages, with tip was $178.

Meritage @Claremont Resort, Berkeley - update dinner Nov 2010
(previous review appended below)

We dined here on August 2010 and were wowed by both the food and the view. The food was clean, elegant and balanced. I was especially excited about the Filet Rossini, a version of Tournedos Rossini, which was spot-on perfect.
 
Now that it's getting dark earlier and earlier, we were just in time to see a truly spectacular sunset. However, once it's dark (which it was for the rest of our meal), as Carlos points out, it loses that special excitement, as the dining room itself isn't anything special. And this time, our waiter, although friendly, was not quite as skilled as the previous waiter we had. He completely forgot to tell us about ordering the chocolate hot souffle in advance, for example, which was a small but notable gaffe. 

Meritage organizes its menu by wine compatibility, making it harder to read for Inez (plus it's dark in there!). She finally chose the half order of crab cake and half order of duck breast. Carlos ordered a cup of the potato-leek soup, a half order of halibut, and a half order of the venison with huckleberry sauce. I ordered the half order of pumpkin gnocchi with a full plate of the Filet Rossini.
 
Inez loved the crab cake, but the duck this time was just a little more sinewy, although the flavor with a quince glaze was good. The side was farro pilaf. Carlos liked the soup, which had a different flavor from creme fraiche instead of heavy cream. The leeks were also evident, not pureed into invisibility as they usually are. 
 
The halibut, although cooked beautifully, had the fluffy texture of a frozen fish - not ship-processed, but plant-processed. He also didn't like the celery as a vegetable, as he loathes celery by itself unless it’s in a mirepoix. The accompanying clam chowder was treated as a sauce by foaming it, a technique we consider more faddish than satisfying. The venison was very good, and the sauce was perfect - not too sweet.
 
My pumpkin gnocchi were strongly flavored with fresh sage and served with baby veggies in a cream sauce, which was lovely save for the pearl onions, which weren't cooked long enough to sweeten. But this time the Filet Rossini was flawed by overly salty mashed potatoes fried in a croquette, and a little too much salt in the au jus red wine reduction. The filet itself was beautiful, but the foie gras had shrunk to a tiny little pan-fried slice. It was delicious, but although still lovely with the filet, couldn't overcome the flawed side of potatoes and imbalance in the au jus.  
 
I picked a peach tartin for dessert, with a mango sorbet (you can choose any of their six ice cream/sorbet flavors). It's a shame we're seldom able to convince Inez to order dessert here, because their mango sorbet is one of the best around. It's not as sweet as most, retaining more of the fruit flavor. The tartin was just a simple square of puff pastry, with a fresh peach half caramelized under the broiler. Because the peach was left essentially whole, it still had the firm texture of raw fruit. The delicate brown sugar caramelized topping didn't obscure the taste of the peach, which was warmed all the way through. The puff pastry was delicately tender, unlike the indestructible croustade A Cote served us last week. 

We really like the sizes of their desserts, and wish more restaurants would copy them. They are just right for one or two people, never the ridiculous super-sizing that has taken root elsewhere. Carlos' cappuccino was 'dry', as we prefer it, with a good if not perfect foam. The decaf coffee is excellent, a smooth French Roast blend.
 
We came away a little disappointed this time. There was a carelessness, both in the kitchen and in the staff, that undermined perfection, and at these prices, Meritage needs to come closer to that elevated level. It is weak on fish, although the kitchen is very strong on red meat as well as vegetarian entrees. The quality of the halibut was far below the venison and filet, or even the duck. Yet despite the slight excess of salt in the filet au jus, the sauces at Meritage are lovely, showing skill in the kitchen. The pastry chef is very good, better than most. 
 
Even when it misses, Meritage is very close to one of the best. But even in the Bay Area, a great view can't excuse sloppiness. Consistency is the hallmark of a great restaurant. Meritage needs to try harder, if they don't want to be the next in a long string of failures that Claremont Resort has suffered over the decades.
 
Six half-plates, one entree, one dessert, three beverages, with tip came to $181.

Meritage at the Claremont Hotel
41 Tunnel Road, Berkeley
http://www.meritageclaremont.com/food.html
Review date:   August 2010

The Claremont Hotel, also known as “The Grand Old Lady”, is a historic spa resort hotel with two restaurants. Currently, those are Paragon and Meritage. Paragon is more casual, less expensive. Meritage is more expensive and upscale. Both have stunning views directly west over the Bay, framed by their exquisite landscaping and mature trees.

Neither Carlos or I have ever been here before. The parking lots are a bit confusing. The main entrance off Tunnel Road leads up to the entrance (closer to Paragon than Meritage) but there’s little parking there; most of the guest parking is found down the hill to the left, near the tennis courts. You can enter the Claremont’s rear entrance from those lots, then take the elevator up one floor to the lobby level. 

Meritage is just off the elevators to the left, although confusingly, it had no sign, only a bar area as you walk in. The dining room is surprisingly small, a rectangular room with a few comfortable-looking booths across from a single row of tables under a span of picture windows that make the most of that view. It reminded us of sitting on Auberge du Soleil’s outdoor patio, which is a huge positive.

The Claremont has done a lot of upgrading over the years, but has struggled with its restaurants. Paragon/Meritage are the latest iteration. Executive Chef Josh Thomsen is an experienced hotel chef who’s also worked with Thomas Keller at the French Laundry in Yountville, as well as Michael Mina’s Nobhill Tavern in Las Vegas (not that I’d consider that a positive, given our tremendous disappointments recently at both Mina’s flagship restaurant as well as RN74).

Meritage has gotten good reviews, so we picked it for one of our Friday night dinners. It’s not an especially attractive dining room for an upscale experience, however. It has the more casual look of a daytime dining room, with the olive green upholstered booths and substantial cane rattan armchairs (very comfortable!). The waitstaff is numerous and attentive, as well as properly trained. This is something of a bete noir for us – we dine out a great deal, and therefore expect really good service when we pay high prices. 

This does not mean let-me-introduce-myself chumminess – I don’t care what the waiter’s name is. I do care that they know when to take dirty plates away and from which side to do it correctly. I want smooth, professional service that knows how to be attentive without hovering. That means not walking through the dining room without checking the tables and diners, staying alert for anything from beverage refills to check requests.

The meal started off positively with warm bread rolls and soft butter, a combination that Inez loves with a passion (she ate two). They give a choice of white, whole wheat, and raisin. Carlos chose the raisin, which was unusually crusty and very good. The whole wheat roll, however, was indifferent.

One huge positive for Meritage is that every item on their menu, from starters to salads and every entree, is available in half sizes or full plates. And let it be noted, Meritage's full plates are fairly generous servings, although not quite up to One Market's Rabelaisian standards.

Inez started with a small Caesar, which had a moderately sized pile of young romaine spears, left whole (as is traditional, and the size was perfect). She asked for a half size of the duck breast, served sliced over farro with a tart apricot puree. Instead of dividing the usual large-size duck breast, Meritage uses what looks like a cute mini-duck breast, which Inez found both visually attractive and the right size she was looking for. 

Carlos started with a half-order of cioppino. It was a very refined version, which as he pointed out, isn't necessarily a virtue. Cioppino is a 'blue collar' dish, and this is very much a 'white collar' restaurant. Still, it was a tasty broth, with a nice array of seafood. Interestingly, some of the seafood, such as the scallops, are pan-browned first. This gave them a better flavor, and none of the seafood was overcooked despite the food being served at a hot temperature.

The broth was fine without the addition of the red pepper aioli, which Meritage serves on the side with two baguette slices of really superior toasted garlic bread. Carlos dipped the bread into the aioli, a tasty way to eat both.

Carlos' entree was the filet mignon Rossini. This is a simpler version of Tournedos Rossini, one of the great entrees of classic French cooking. Properly sear-roasted with a perfect grilled slice of foie gras on top and a flawless red wine reduction underneath (traditionally this should be a sauce Périgueux, made with chopped and sliced truffles), it was as close to the classic as I've seen in three decades and totally luscious! Meritage served it on a bed of fresh spinach with a square of potato pudding, a nice accompaniment.

I chose four small plates, using one as a shared appetizer. The Kurobota pork belly with Chinese buns was a thick, greaseless slice on a Chinese steamed bun, served with hoisin and shredded pickled red ginger. A half order is two buns, so a full-size order of four would make a hearty shared starter for four diners, or a filling a la carte entree with a vegetable side or salad.

My next plate was the goat cheese-potato terrine. This was the least successful plate in terms of concept. The goat cheese was lovely, but the potatoes were sliced very thinly and sparely used as a shell to contain the fluffy cheese, which was lightened by beaten egg whites and then baked. It just didn't have enough textural or herbal interest to stand by itself, although if you were going to slather it over bread the taste was excellent.

The vegetarian plate, however, was a sensation! A large heap of perfect maitake mushrooms were roasted, then served over some cauliflower florets and tiny diced mixed vegetables, with a curry cream sauce and an aromatic drizzle of saffron oil. Plumped-up golden raisins subbed for the apples mentioned on the menu, and were yummy in the veggie mix underneath. We are confirmed carnivores, but this plate was so good, I wish I'd ordered the entree-sized portion. It was amazing, both in concept and execution. Chef Thomsen deserves a huge accolade for this creation.

My last dish was the half-order of short ribs. I would have thought it was lovely if Carlos hadn't given me a bite of that filet Rossini first! Still, it was beefy and fork-tender, with an excellent reduction and a mix of perfect baby vegetables.

I'll note here that one of the best things about Meritage is that the food is full of flavor without tasting salty. The kitchen uses salt, but there wasn't a single dish where the saltiness dominated. It was a wonderful change from what we've been experiencing at too many otherwise excellent restaurants in the past few years.

This was a rare occasion where all three of us opted for dessert. Inez chose the crème brulee, which was very good if not quite to Palomino's superb rendition. Carlos picked the croissant bread pudding, which was good although not the version he's been searching for. Ten years ago I organized an event using a local caterer, who makes the most amazing bread pudding we've ever tasted (but they refuse to give the recipe to anyone). Still, he enjoyed it, as the croissants made it a lighter texture despite the formidable size of the serving.

I chose the chocolate souffle with crème Anglaise. Others should note that neither the waiter nor the menu warns the uninitiated that this will take 15 minutes. Fortunately we have ordered this dish before at other restaurants so knew the drill. A quarter-hour later they brought all three desserts out. The waiter poked a hole in the souffle and poured the crème Anglaise in – as it should be done – and the taste was as lovely as the first time I had it, many years ago at Cafe Jacqueline in San Francisco, one of the first dates Carlos and I had.

Meritage's regular coffee is extremely good, their decaf a level below that but still better than the average hotel coffee. Service was excellent, as good as One Market and far better than Michael Mina.

No, Meritage isn't perfect. The dining room isn't up to the elegance of the food, and that stunning view is all too often hidden behind the glare-reducing shades they have to use with all those west-facing windows. But it’s very comfortable and if you can avoid the sun shining in your eyes, it’s one of the most beautiful panoramas in the entire Bay Area. The food starts at very good and reaches the excellent level often enough to be worthy of return visits. Just for the Filet Rossini and those mushrooms, we would return. All three of us agreed we would put this on our “A” list.

Dinner was more expensive than One Market, but we ordered more food so overall the cost is comparable. Seven starters/half-portions, one full-sized entree, three desserts, three beverages, with tip cost $222.