The Desmond

"Little gem in the Gaslamp District, away from the crowds, upscale. Love the atmosphere and the decor, the staff and service are really nice and most important the food is DE-LI-CIOUS. The sweet potato gnocchis are a must, and the Budino dessert to die for. Can’t wait to be back."

"The Desmond (B ) : Another should be “great” but only “pretty good” and ultimately, not worth revisiting because other spots offer better value. My lovely wife booked “the Desmond” for my birthday dinner based on multiple good reviews and it’s always fun to try out new restaurants. The last time we went for dinner at Gaslamp, we went to Fogo de Chao last summer. Even after dinner, the sun was out, allowing for a nice after-dinner stroll. With standard time and the sun setting at 4:30pm, the Gaslamp district gave a very different vibe. Finding a parking space at night was no fun. We were quite lucky to find a space about 3 blocks from the restaurant, but this time, there seemed to be quite a few homeless people laying on street corners, some roaming around with grocery carts. None approached us or asked for money, but it simply didn’t make for a nice, pleasurable stroll. The Desmond is on the 2nd floor of the Kimpton Hotel. Google map took us to the hotel, but we had to ask the staff to find the actual restaurant. The restaurant itself is very nice. Tables nicely spaced out, not too bright, not too dark. Everyone, from the greeter to the restaurant manager was very nice. Their service was very good deserving a strong B+ with timely order taking, water refills, cutlery changes, etc., a definite plus to the overall experience. The food, however, was a little disappointing. I’m not naive enough to expect everything to be spectacular, but my hope when going to higher-end restaurants is for everything to be “good” with at least one or two bites where I want to share that experience with all my friends and loved ones. This didn’t happen. Overall, everything was nicely plated and you can envision what the chef was trying to do with all the different food components. Unfortunately, although some dishes were quite good, nothing stood out as “wow!” Bread service (B+ ) : the garlic herb focaccia was very nicely baked - soft inside, crunchy crust, with some nice smoky garlic. The dip, light and creamy, with a touch of honey for sweetness to contrast with the bread and some sunflower seeds for added texture. One of the two best dishes of the night. Octopus al pastor (B- ) : this was a bit of a disappointment. It wasn’t bad tasting, but $21 for a taco that’s only slightly bigger than a street taco from TJ’s, I expected greatness! The octopus was nicely cooked, moist, slightly charred on the outside, but it was so over-seasoned - too salty and acidic - that none of the natural sweetness came though. The avocado added creaminess and helped cut the seasoning a touch, but definitely not enough to pull-through. Buffalo mozzarella & pears salad (B+ ) : the second of the two best dishes. Ingredients were super fresh, and the creamy mozzarella with sweetness from the pear, balsamic and candied pecans almost made it dessert-like. It felt like a western version of “douhua” (tofu custard), and was very enjoyable. Hokkaido scallops (B ) : the scallops were good, well cooked, a nice char and appropriately seasoned. The downfall, the chef was too heavy handed with the seasoning on everything else that was on the plate. The sauce, the parsnip gratin, all over-powered the delicate flavors of scallop resulting in a somewhat unbalanced dish. Again, it wasn't bad tasting, but for $40 for three scallops, it needed to be better. Mary’s duck breast (B- ) : the best thing on the plate was the cherry sauce, tangy, sweet, with an awesome addition to any meat. The two thick pieces of duck breast gave a very substantial mouthfeel, almost like biting into steak, and were cooked to a nice medium. However, the skin didn’t have enough crunch, the meat itself was under seasoned resulting in a somewhat gamey flavor. Basque cheesecake (B ) : the cheesecake was good, light, creamy with a good balance of cheese and sweet flavors. But I think the dish was overly complicated. The meringue wasn’t done particularly well with the texture being a little too marshmallow-like, the almond cookie competed for attention, and the horchata ice cream was simply too icy."

"By far one of my favorite dinners of 2023. The food was delicious. Every single appetizer, entree and dessert we had was incredible. My favorite part of our dinner might have been the appetizers, they were fresh and full of flavor. Good cocktails too."