We want to start this blog post the same way a healthy minority of all of our daily interactions begin: there is this show on Netflix that you really should watch. It is not about money laundering, or queens or tiger kings. It’s about food… kind of.
It’s called “Chef’s Table” and it is one of our favorites. The imagery and accompanying music make it a sensory symphony but the personal stories these stand-alone episodes tell are the main course. Every episode focuses on one incredible chef at the top of their game, and describes who they are and how they became that person. The show documents the moments and challenges that shape these individuals and pushes them to achieve greatness. It’s like watching the Jordan Doc, only with chefs, and instead of dunking on Patrick Ewing, they use their talents and passion to create a deconstructed Reuben or something.
Like we said, it is not really just about food. It’s about individuals, families, societies, relationships, cultures, ideas, politics, struggles, failures, triumphs, tragedies, joys. It’s about humanity, condensed and displayed in front of our eyes through a single dish or meal in an hour long program. It’s about us.
After every episode, we feel like we’ve been on a journey and learned an invaluable lesson about life. Our teachers become the cook from New York who finds solace and grace from a bowl of ramen, or the reticent Italian butcher who finds dignity and worth carrying on his family tradition. We are obsessed with it. And like all people who are obsessed with something, you want to seek it out and be a part of it. Just like the hordes of people who visit Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney, we too wanted a chance to step inside and get a small taste of our favorite media content.
In a small, unassuming building located in the Mission District of San Francisco, we got that chance. The restaurant is called Californios, and it is Chef Val Cantu’s love letter to his culture and upbringing, and for us where “Chef’s Table” came alive. We were admittedly nervous before entering. It was our first really, really fancy dinner and our first Michelin Ranked Restaurant ever.
If you are unfamiliar with the Michelin Guide, it started as a reference book to encourage more road trips (and thus, more tire sales) for the Michelin company. Three stars is the highest accolade a restaurant can receive. There are only 14 three star restaurants currently in the United States. As of now, Californios has two stars. One star alone can indicate years, if not decades of grinding away towards excellence.
We did not know what to expect. Were we dressed right? Did we look right? Should we get there early? Should we get there late? We had no idea. After a lot of consternation, we decided to arrive precisely at the time of our dinner reservation and before arriving, we both workshopped our best Thurston Howell and Lovey impression if we felt out of place and needed to blend in.
We opened the door, and stepped into our Netflix browser and couldn’t have been more unnecessarily concerned. The staff was so welcoming and the space was comfortable. In an establishment that only has 27 guests a night, they knew who we were. Our names were printed on our very own menu booklet set on the edge of our table. They were shocked that earlier that day we were at a bagel shop in Raleigh and they felt honored that we had decided Californios would be our first big meal in a city boasting some of the best restaurants in the world. We felt special… and so did they.
And after our tentative introduction, they took us on an over two and a half hour journey of gastronomy. It was a constant rotation of not just one waiter, but an army of staff teaching, sharing and conversing about the ingredients, and the chef’s vision and story.
They brought out a rainbow of corn cobs to show us the unpolished, humble star of our 19 courses. This foundational ingredient of Latin American cooking was used to astonish and amaze us. Each plate seamlessly mixed simplicity and complexity to teach us about culture, history, and passion.
It was everything we could’ve hoped for and more. It was expensive. It’s not an experience you could do every week, or every month, or even every year. It was by far the most money we had ever spent on food… kind of. For us, it wasn’t just food.
Chicharron made with Black Barley, served with whipped Goat Cheese and a fermented habanero pepper salsa 
Arepa with whipped avocado, fresh and fermented radish 
Catfish with fennel aioli, topped with white sturgeon caviar 
Taro root croquette filled with Queso Oaxaca set in a Mole Rojo with creme 
Purple Peruvian masa Taquito with smoked trout mousse, fire roasted carrot and dill 
Purple Peruvian infladita, topped with sweet Hokkaido sea urchin, Delfino Cilantro Blossom and filled with chile Guajillo Chileatole 
Chilapita with Dungeness Crab, Radishes in the colors of the Mexican flag, topped with Golden Ossetra Caviar 
Sope with sweet potato folded in with Hickory Gold masa, fava bean, summer greens, candied pepitas, and preserved Meyer Lemon 
Bacalao taco. Fried wild black cod, Chile Costeno Baja sauce, bitter chicories, and Key Limes 
Tetela made from Oaxacan green masa, wrapped in squash blossom, filled with fermented sweet peppers, black beans, mozzarella cheese. 
American Wagyu street taco with fermented spring onion, horseradish crema, and wild pea shoots. 
Hielo. Hawaiian pineapple sorbert and sweet young coconut meat. 
Tres frijoles; mousse made with royal corona beans, paste of moro beans, raisins and ancho chili, and fresh cranberry beans 
Michelada Verde made with Modelo ESpecial and Green Tomato, over Kusshi Oyster with smoked creme fraiche and sea grass. 
Ceviche of cured shima-aji and Spring Crow peaches in a broth of habanero and fingerlime 
Smoked Aguachile of heirloom Tox Box cherry tomatoes, fresh tomato water, and a chili oil of New Mexico chiles 
Grilled California King Salmon served with stone fruit, chile guajillo, chile morita, and marcona almond 
House made plantain bread and vanilla planifolia-banana butter 
Carne asada, 30 day, dry-aged ribeye, from retired dairy cow, with wild chanterelle mushrooms, grilled dates, finished with mushroom and chile chipotle meco jus. 
Lamb Broth with chocolate mint, english peas and seranno. 
Grilled rack of lamb with a chile paisilla mixe and guajillo adobo sauce with side of fermented radishes and sugar snap peas. 
Sweet summer taco with raspberries, goat cheese, orange blossom honey, and sweet alyssum flowers 
Hoja Santa with summer melon and lemon leaf yogurt 
Tres leches with Appleton 8-year rum, Lustau white vermouth, and strawberry sorbert 
Dulces: Red popcorn and milk chocolate bonbon; Dark chocolate bonbon with coconut ganache; apple ‘oblea’ with fresh dulce de leche, Ginger juice with vermouth, lime and pink lady apple.
Favorite Tasting Dish:
Purple Peruvian infladita with sea urchin. If you have a chance to try sea urchin, you should. It’s rich, creamy, and vibrant. Like an oyster, it tastes like the ocean, but it’s like if the oyster went back to school to earn its PhD.
Most Meaningful Dish:
Tres frijoles. Translation: three beans. This is the signature dish of Californios. It never leaves the menu. It was served in bowls carved from the fruits of the calabash tree that the chef purchased while on previous trips to Mexico. The dish encapsulates what we loved about the restaurant, mixing simple and traditional ingredients to create something elegant and complex.
Personal Touches:
Before the lamb course, we were presented with a handsome wooden box with choices of handcrafted steak knives. It felt like being in Ollivander’s Wand Shop, with the handles of each knife sporting a flash of mother of pearl, or unique mix of wood.
Most Anticipated Bite:
Taro Root Croquette in Mole Rojo. We’ve never tasted real, authentic, high-quality mole. We’ve seen people on various shows try it and become unable to keep themselves from going back for another bite. We had that same thrill; we wish we had more.
Surprise Star of the Show
Chicharron with goat cheese and habanero pepper salsa. This was our first bite, and it set the bar high. The combination of the crispy chicharron (fried pork belly) with the light, tangy goat cheese was incredible. There was so much more depth to the flavors. It was the kind of thing where you take a bite, and you have no idea of what you just ate, but you knew it was delicious.
