Quince or Delfina?

[oysterspearls]

I realize this may be comparing apples to oranges. But atmosphere, price and service aside. Purely based on food alone which would you pick?

[The Gourmet Pig]

Quince. No doubt.

But since when is price not at all a consideration? :)

Quince is obviously more expensive, but it's truly a fine dining restaurant. The food there is much more refined than at Delfina. However, Delfina's food is just delicious. Still, the pastas at Quince are the stuff of dreams, and any roast meat there is also worth getting. Finally, service is incomparable. Delfina is run by a bunch of incompetent hipsters, while Quince is very professional and European. Atmostphere at both have serious downsides. Delfina is super loud, while Quince feels weirdly stuffy and archaic, though they are moving to more modern new digs soon.

[oysterspearls]

Maybe when planning a trip for a year and throwing all your pennies in a jar. LOL
And having worked in the industry my primary focus is on the plate and the chefs passion and talent for his/her craft.

You have no idea how helpful your reply was. Being a fan of your blog and also a die hard Johnny Monis fan it's likely our taste is similar.

Thanks!

[JRinDC]

So, which did you pick? Any report? Heading out there soon myself.

[oysterspearls]

Just picking up thoughts and opinions at this point. The actual trip is still a month or two away.

[whiner]

My rec for Quince is strong. (ie. I love Delfina, but I don't think this is a very close call.) That said, don't assume "a month or two" is a lot of time for these restaurants if you want a reservation on a weekend. Reserve now. If you cannot yet decide, reserve at both restaurants and then cancel one reservation when you do decide. But I've been shut out of Delfina on 6-weeks-prior requests for 4 people on a Saturday... twice. And Quince is similarly difficult.

[oysterspearls]

Sounds like they come in second only to the FL in reservation difficulty. I had no idea. Thank you!

[whiner]

Well... by "shut out" I should have said, "there was nothing between 6:45pm and 8:45pm"

But, Quince and Delfina are both probably 2 of the 10 hardest restaurants to secure a weekend reservation at in SF and I would deffinitely make the reservations now (provided it is under 2 months away).

[JRinDC]

I'll second this -- I called Quince and they told me they take reservations one month to the day. I called last week for my date in October (early in the day too) and prime time was already gone. I was offered 5:30 or 9:30.

[whiner]

Quince