So very good. We have been searching for a restaurant with wonderfully crafted food, good service, nice ambiance, and no hipsters...this hits the mark. It's a small converted house, the acoustics were great...not loud at all considering the space. We had an amuse-bouch consisting of a savory cannoli that was fantastic. Started with the scallop and pork belly, both were very good...although i got some sand in the scallops. We had the beef and duck entrees. I would have liked my duck skin a bit more crisp, but otherwise the dish was very tasty. There was some kind of broccoli/pineapple thing on the side that was amazing. The beef was also very good, but a bit more typical fare. Dessert was salted caramel flan, fantastic and there were so many desserts on the list that sounded amazing. The plating for all the dishes was very nicely done. This is a high end, Michelin rated restaurant...you will be paying $18 for 2 scallops, but frankly at these prices and the accolades of the restaurant I was surprised by the large sizes of all the portions. My one tip, besides the sandy scallop...it seems the meal calls for one more amuse-bouch, maybe just a palette cleanser before the entrees. And I'm curious how often the menu changes, I forgot to ask. read more

My birthday treat dinner out was an amazingly good find! The service was endearingly hospitable from the first phone call I made to secure a reservation to the affectionate warm thank you from the staff and hostess as we left for home after a very satisfying dining experience. The food was exquisitely prepared and served. It was delicious all the way around. When trying a new restaurant you never know if it will have be chalked up as just having been out on a "lark" or if you will come away from the evening knowing you now have a "real find" for a new go-to place. All Spice is a real find. We will go again and bring some friends next time, too. read more

All Spice - My birthday dessert - pure coconut ice cream lemon chiffon cake joy! - Indian Near Me - San Mateo, California

Everything is prepared so delicately yet so full of flavour. Every bite all delicious and everyone including the servers and the host made it a wonderful experience. read more

All Spice - Everything is prepared so delicately yet so full of flavour. - Indian Near Me - San Mateo, California

I must say I was a bit disappointed with All Spice. I really really want to like this place, but I have to stay true to myself and fellow yelpers. My verdict...so so...somewhat overrated. After so much raves and 5 stars reviews on Yelp..I was extremely excited to celebrate my anniversary at All Spice. My first impression of entering the restaurant was "woaaa, oh la la :)" It is such a very very pretty cute little place. We were seated in the first room, in front of the fireplace. I love the colorful walls..it felt very cozy. Although the tables were kinda close to another that it didn't feel private. We ordered: - Ode o my wife: the dish was as interesting as its name, certainly got an "A" for creativity. Goat cheese ice cream? interestingly delicious and didn't have too strong of the goat cheese smell or flavor. It was served with small cubes of candied beets and a few lettuce. It tasted more like a dessert because of the sweetness and "coldness" from the ice cream. - Indian Bread Fritter: This was one of my favorite dish of the night. It reminded me of Indian samosa, but the outside is bread..and of course you can't go wrong with anything fried :) I also love the flavor of the chickpeas curry that came with it. It has a bit of a kick (heat) but not too spicy. - Bacon Wrapped Lamb: This was such a disappointment to me. I love lamb and I usually order lamb in restaurants because I don't cook lamb much at home. Unfortunately, the lamb was far from fresh. The meat was somewhat grayish pink when I cut into it and the smell was a bit funky...I know how lamb should smell like.. my lamb and bacon smelled like defrosted meat that's been sitting out for a while, definitely not fresh. It also didn't have much flavor to it.. interestingly .. the bacon had almost no flavor.. not even salty. The mushroom sauce that came with the dish was a bit sweet and sour.. the only thing with flavor on the plate. - Seabass: delicious BUT not spectacular (it didn't feel like something that you can't find anywhere else). The seabass was fresh and the texture was amazing! perfectly cooked. I also loved the light curry sauce and the vegetables that came with the dish. - For dessert we had their berry brullee. It came cold and the caramel sugar was so thick and extremely HARD to break into. We were struggling and making lots of noises as we tried to break the sugar top to dig into the brulee. Unfortunately, after we successfully broke the sugar, we were welcomed by watery brulee. It tasted great BUT we were wondering if it was a failed experiment by the chef since the custard did not sit at all. In the beginning of the meal, they served what they called "amuse-bouche" COLD soup. Although.. it was not a "one bite size" it was pretty small and cutely served in a small glass cup. It was basically potatoes puree (pretty thick and creamy...humus texture) topped with a couple pieces of croutons and thinly sliced fried garlic. It was ok, but not something I would order again. The BF liked it though :). They also served us some Indian roti (not naan) with our main courses. The texture of the roti was a bit grainy, it would be better if they gave us naan. We also ordered their sparkling rasberry (or black or bluebery) tea, it was good, tasted like rasberry soda, delicious and refreshing. It's in the sweet side though. I ordered the passion fruit mint lassi. It was sweet and thick and quiet tasty, but a bit too rich for a drink before your meal. Total spent $90 and some change (including tax, before tip). So, price wise.. it wasn't too bad really..It was certainly a culinary adventure...but at the end of the meal..I felt like we were the guinea pigs as the chef was still "experimenting" and hasn't yet mastered all his creative recipes. I said this because some of the creativity fell flat in execution..(the not fresh and tasteless lamb and failed brulee). RE: Service...improvements needed! It took 10 minutes to get a dessert menu and another 10 minutes to take our dessert order.. really??!! As the dining room got crowded..our waiter disappeared to the other room.. we felt neglected really!! No refill on our water..no checking how food was.. The owner and hostess, Soshannah (spelling) was really sweet and friendly..but other waiters were pretty snotty and ignorant. Conclusion: 1 star for Friendly Soshannah, 1 star for presentation & decor, 1 star for creativity :) read more

Great as the food is (and it is pretty damn tasty- innovative but not annoyingly so), the service is even better. Warm, gracious and yet super efficient - they've created something special here. Located in a charming mansion on El Camino (they have parking!), the dining room is a cosy romantic jewel box. We had the passionfruit mint lassi, yogurt kabab, yam soup, nihari lamb shank, laksa sea bass and 3 desserts- one of them complimentary because we told Shoshanna we couldn't pick just 2. We'll be back! read more

My favorite restaurant in the Bay Area. Every time we return, we are never disappointed. The ever changing menu is always fun to explore. The courses are inventive with lots of little nuances sprinkled throughout each dish making each bite layered with complex goodness. So happy to be back after a year away! read more

A great experience and value for the price. Very attentive service and good sized portions. We enjoyed Ode to My Wife, Indian Bread Fritter, Seabass, and Coconut-lemongrass tri-tip. All were very flavorful and delicious. As beer people, we appreciated that they also had good beer on the menu (often if you go to a wine place and you don't drink wine, you get offered Heineken and Peroni - ugh!). We had date and walnut cake with homemade cinnamon-cardamom brown butter ice cream - I would have liked to have tasted more brown-butter flavor, but the ice cream tasted just like a spice cookie, which was lovely. The absolute best thing we had though was the "kulfi" - it was like very rich frozen chocolate pudding or fudge. It was one of the best desserts I've ever had. I already want to go back for more!! read more

Came here on a Saturday night for dinner. The service was exceptional and the food quite tasty. The ambience was a bit loud given the close proximity of tables and that reviews stated this was a quiet and more intimate atmosphere. All-in-all, a great experience and I would definitely come back again. read more

Talk about a hidden gem. I was delighted with the atmosphere. The owners have made a house into a restaurant fit to be photographed. In fact, I found myself counting the chairs... somewhere around 34 in the entire restaurant...small enough to consider renting the whole place for a private party! The Indian bread fritter appetizer was ridiculously delicious. I had the shortrib Vindaloo- 5 star food. My girlfriend had the Sona Chandi and was disappointed in the over abundance of cardamom (including in the "vanilla scented bread") and said it needed a little salt. The shortrib was definitely the winner at the table. We also enjoyed the date and walnut cake and french press coffee. Service was professional and friendly. I will definitely be a return customer. read more

Location: random little house next to Metro PCS. very easy to miss so look for the sign pointing to All Spice and directing you to the parking. There you will find the little yellow house that is oh so cute and out of place in the row of commercial shops on El Camino. Came with a party of 5 and reserved a nice center table in one of the rooms of the house. Service: attentive and knowledgeable Food: They try to fuse Indian with Western foods. Mostly successful though flavors lean towards one or the other rather than a pure marriage of the 2 styles. Appetizers: - Ode to my Wife aka Beet Salad ($9), "ricotta-almond cheesecake layered with red and golden beets in a sundried tomato crust, with goat cheese mousse, crushed walnuts and lightly dressed green". It was rather small though presentation was pretty. - Indian bread fritter "ma mere" aka Samosa bread fritter ($8), "stuffed with mushrooms, potatoes and cheese, served over cumin tarbais beans". To me it was a samosa just not triangular in shape. Tasty though. Main: -Pan-seared seabass ($30), "lemongrass shrimp mousse, pea shoots, summer corn polenta cake, sherry-sausage vinaigrette and smoked fish cream". Very light and tasty though not sure where the Indian flavors are. - Lemongrass-braised wagyu beef shortrib ($28), "tiny root vegetables, charred carrot, roasted garlic cream, cashew coconut yogurt reduction". My hubby ordered this one and we both thought while it was good it wasn't the best short rib we've had. Beverage: - Passionfruit Mint Lassi ($3) - really refreshing and light for a lassi. Dessert: - Summer snowglobe trifle ($9), "a soft pistachio butter cookie with pina colada ice cream and peach fluff". This was surprisingly good. We devoured the layered ice cream cookie combo. Overall - pretty good and innovative for the San Mateo area but would have liked to see a true fusion of Indian flavors. read more

Consider it 4.5 stars. Maybe if I wasn't Indian and married to big eater, I would give it 5? Hubby was still hungry when we got home (after 3 courses). Then again, he has an appetite that puts mere mortals to shame ;-) I think my problem was that I ordered the veal cheeks vindaloo. When I think vindaloo, I have a very specific flavor in mind; this dish wasn't spicy enough and was missing something. It was tender and beautiful and a decent portion, though. I will go back, and next time I will order something that isn't traditionally Indian. This isn't an Indian restaurant. It's Indian inspired. Remember that. I will say that beet appetizer was absolutely delicious and everyone else's food looked great. We were a party of 5 and all left happy; our companions raved. Dessert was phenomenal--best kulfi on the planet! I'm thrilled they're in our neighorhood...good food, good service, good ambience, and a refreshing change for Peninsula dining. Reasonably priced for fine dining, too. Like I said, we'll be back. read more

We were seated in front dining room. The house is very small so the 3 rooms downstairs are very small and quaint. It was a comfortable setting. Our party opted for the 4 course tasting menu. Each dish was beautifully presented. I wish I had full descriptions of the dishes but they don't have a listing of the tasting menu so I had to rely on remembering the description given when the dishes were served. 1st course: don't remember what it was but it tasted just like a tiny dosa. It was delicious. 2nd course: lobster tempura colored with squid ink. This was my favorite dish because of the presentation. It looked like burnt food but taste really good. Fun!!! 3rd course: Wagyu Beef. You can really taste the marbling of fat. Yum. 4th course: the dessert dish contained a cigar infused ice cream, panna cotta, meringue, berries, nuts and jack fruit puree. We all thought this dish was too complicated. It looked like someone grabbed all the left over from the pantry and put it on the plate. The ingredients just didn't go well together. The cigar infused ice cream was really nice and unique. You could actually taste the cigar; it was pleasant and I don't smoke. The portions were very small so the 4 courses wasn't enough food. Oddly, they don't serve bread so you can't fill the void with bread and butter. I think they need to serve bread or make a 6 course tasting menu. I liked All Spice. Their little sauces (e.g. jack fruit puree) are really good. The staff was really nice. We got the pleasure to be served by the Executive Chef and owner Sachin Chopra who had to substitute for his wife that night. He was very nice and answered our questions about the food. I don't know why but everyone thinks this is an Indian restaurant. It is NOT! It is Californian cuisine and if you keep that in mind, you won't be disappointed. The portions are small so don't go there starving. If you want to be entertained by nicely presented dishes that tastes good and you aren't on a budget, All Spice might just delight you. read more

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One of the best restaurants on the peninsula, with consistently superb quality of service and delicious dishes. Keep it up!

Pros: * Interesting building (a Victorian hidden among the strip malls of El Camino) * Polite, attentive service. * Pleasant interior. * Interesting concept - French + American + Indian synthesis * Nice presentation of food. Cons: * Of the four dishes I tasted, only my lamb loin seemed "cohesive." My wife's fish was not good - the fish was very rubbery and unappealing. The appetizers I sampled (chicken kabobs, salad pt. 3) had fine ingredients - they just didn't work well together for me. Summary: An interesting enough place, but for the price the execution towards deliciousness was just not there for me. read more

We had a lovely evening and culinary adventure at All Spice. The menu continues to be imaginative and on point for fine dining, including the ambience and service. We were surprised at the generous servings and were stuffed after our 3-course dinner where we tried the steak and the salmon as entrees, which were both delicious. This, along with the watermelon-tomato gazpacho and scallop appetizers and desserts of the pineapple mouse/pastry and cheesecake made for a delicious dinner from start to finish. read more

I am still giving them a 5 star. The food is still excellent and the ambiance & service outstanding. They are still waiting for the liquor license - so no corkage, that is an outstanding value when you can bring your own bottle of wine. There is also a Safeway across the street if you want to swing by and pick up a bottle or two. The appetizers, main course and deserts where all very nice. The six of us ordered: App: Veg Chaat, Bread fritters and Curry wings. Main course - Lamb vindaloo, pumpkin dosa, sea bass and Veg Kabobs Desert: Date cake and Dark Chocolate ice cream Polished it off with a couple of bottles of Cab. The owner stopped by to say hi and chat. Another great night. read more

Such a cute little place on El Camino... You wouldn't expect to find such a cute restaurant for where it's located. Staff is very friendly. The food was very rich but DELICIOUS and so flavorful. I recommend the: - Indian bread fritter with garbanzo beans! Enjoy each bite. - The short ribs vindaloo - meat falls right off the bone. It was amazing. Next time I'm going to try the tomatoes and goat cheese ice cream. read more

I ate here a few weeks ago. When you walk in the restaurant, you already know you are in for a different experience. This is an old house that was turned into a restaurant. They kept the styling of the restaurant true to its house design and didn't try to make it look like something that it's not. All in all, the service was great and the food had sooo much flavor! I wasn't disappointed with anything I ordered, even the wine was delicious and perfectly chilled. I ordered the mustard-dill seabass. The mustard-dill had very rich flavors and the vegetables were fresh and perfectly cooked (not too hard, not too soft). This is a must try! Only warning is that you want to make sure to have reservations because I tried walking in a few times and they were booked. I also recommend knowing exactly where the restaurant is before you drive there the first time. The only thing you see from el camino is a small driveway. Enjoy! read more

Not sure what else I can say that others haven't, but after growing up and living off/on on the Peninsula for decades, I can't believe I didn't realize this place was here -- a cute, little house hidden just off of El Camino, near the 92 ramp. The menu identifies the cuisine as New American exotic. Our server referred to it as French Californian. Some Yelpers mentioned contemporary Indian fusion. I don't care what you'd call it -- it's delicious. Wasn't sure what their house wine blend would be like, but we ordered a carafe and enjoyed it -- it went with everything we ate. We started with the endive salad (very good, and I love how it's displayed on the plate, though I wish there was a bit more!). We also had the scallops -- also delicious bites, but again, wished there were more than a few. My husband had the Aab-e-gosht -- boar with a lovely, complex sauce of coriander and fennel, served inside a container, with flatbread -- and I had the venison, which was a interesting dish with chlorophyll cake (!), beets, and a really good red cabbage puree/sauce. Desserts were great: my husband, who loves chocolate, had the kulfi, which felt like a more classic dessert, while I had the salted rosemary creme caramel. So good -- especially the bacon-peanut brittle, of which I added a bit to each bite. Cozy, intimate spot for dinner and a nice occasion. Bill for two at just under $150 wasn't too bad -- initially I thought the servings were small, but when I left, we were satisfied -- yet not too full -- so I realize the sizes were just right. read more

Excellent food, service and ambience - bacon lamb chops -outstanding - short ribs- outstanding - scallops app- outstanding read more

I was expecting much more from a Michelin starred restaurant. Food was just okay, nothing was memorable. Service was hit and miss. I can't say that I would return. read more

Wonderful decor, extremely attentive hosting and wait staff, heavy/beautiful silverware and that's all before even mentioning how delicious every single item I tasted was. The desserts especially are such a wonderfully original retelling and fusion of the classic Indian desserts. Deserving of its Michelin Star. read more

I've been here several times over several years. I think it's on its last legs. I was surprised to get a same-day reservation on a weekend. That should have been a clue. Soup was very good, sea bass very good, service was good, but not Michelin star level. Steak was terrible. Dry, overcooked, way too salty. I almost sent it back, and I've never sent a dish back in my life. read more

Expensive for a small portion. I recommend the Bacon-wrapped Rack of Lamb. The "Coq au Vin" was okay, but their chicken was definitely not as good as their lamb. Yummy bread. Setting.. hidden in a little Victorian house! how cute. Small and fancy dining. Good for dates. Oh, when you walk in they ask you if you've made a reservation. Friendly staff. I am pleased. read more

I don't even know where to begin. When people refer to a "dining experience" they must be talking about All Spice. We started going here when they first opened. And we go back every date night, birthday, friend is in town chance we get! It truly is amazing. Enough drooling...here is the short list of my love for All Spice. Beautiful decor - Victorian house renovated 5 star service- from beginning to end Mouthwatering food Crazy amazing desserts & french press (try the ice cream trio!) Great wine list Did I mention the amazing food? Every time we go...we splurge. If your going to have a night out to remember...go to All Spice. read more

It's relatively inexpensive for a one start Michelin restaurant. I loved the cozy ambiance. They also have a small parking lot. The food was really tasty. I had the Smoked Seabass. It was really tendered and flavorful. However, the portion was really small. read more

Amazing, innovative food from their winter menu as cited in the reviews below. Great service, fairly quiet atmosphere. Go while it's still affordable and unknown. Thanks for a great dinner--you'll be seeing us many more times. read more

So we saw this on check please bay area. We were super excited about the place because it was close enough to us (20min). We came here on my birthday and noted it on the reservation. We ordered: Ode to my wife as the appetizers and it was very good. We enjoyed the textures of the beets, with the ricotta cheese and the cheese cake texture. It was definitely the high light of the evening because the entrees were not that great. 5 star for this appetizer The entrees we ordered: Coffee braised tri tip: this is what I ordered: It was salty as hell. Okay the sauce wasn't bad but I wish there was some rice or something to go with it. It was almost inedible. I was very dissapointed. There were some small onions with the dish with some brocolli but there was not enough veggies in general to balance the salty ass dish. 2 stars for the dish. Meat was cooked well but couldn't tell if it was moist due to the over saucing of it. My date ordered the : Shortrib vindaloo and it was also overly sauced and kind of spicy. He wasn't overly thrilled with the dish either. I felt it was very salty so we would give around 2 stars for this dish as well. The desert: We ordered the 3 home made ice creams. On this evening they had: Fennel flavor, Peach cobbler and corn. The ice cream was on top of some nuts and dates. We really liked the peach cobbler, the corn one was unique but too weird for us and the fennel one was okay as well. All in all, don't understand the hype. We were disappointed with the entrees the service was good, but we won't be coming back because the food was just okay and the place too expensive for just okay food. In addition, they didn't even acknowledge my birthday which speaks to the attention they give to their patrons: poor. read more

This is not your usual indian food. It fine dine fusion indian food and its pretty good. I would definitely go back and leverage their nice ambiance and excellent services to host my business relationships. I enjoy the way how the chef combine the spices and different flavors, and it is obvious that every dish is created with love. Although some dishes are a bit too salty/heavy for my taste. read more

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Something is very, very wrong with All Spice. We had a grossly expensive ($500 incl tip for 2 ppl) "tasting menu" meal on New Years Eve that was an inchoate mess. Seven courses of wine-paired disasters that seem to have been designed and prepared by someone who once read a book about fine dining, but had no innate sense of the fine dining experience. Of the poorly-selected high dollar courses: half a boiled potato in bland curdled cheese broth. That was followed by an uninteresting wedge of boiled cabbage, and a boiled radish/wagyu beef course with a stunning lack of flavor, a curious trait, given the name of the place. The radish was a large, boiled half-cylinder filling most of the plate, and contributed no flavor, texture, or appeal to the course. Even the dessert course, a cheesecake piece with peppermint pieces and bland chocolate crackers unceremoniously shoved in it at obtuse angles, overwhelming any balance or delicacy that might have made it enjoyable. It tasted frozen. The one course we found interesting, "Obsidian River", was a highly-reduced mushroom puree whose inky black color and pieces of wild mushroom popped out in appealing contrast against the flat white plate on which it was served. It was unusual and delicious, a welcome standout from the bland boiled vegetation courses that bookended it. Unfortunately, and typical to the evening, the consumption of the course was not considered in its presentation: we were given a rounded soup spoon with which to try to pull this thin slurry off of the flat plate. It didn't work, sadly much was left on the plate. The final insult was given in the form of a "panna cotta" they called the "kiss goodbye" (we had another name for it). This erstwhile delicate custard was not served edibly, but instead was inexplicably frozen into the mold of a pair of lips, then covered crudely with a square of edible gold and then slung with chunked strawberry compote. It was frozen so hard that it was nearly impossible to get a utensil through it. Just as well, it and felt like hard, grainy ice. Nothing like a panna cotta. We tried to get into it, but ended leaving all but the one bite we fought through on the plate. The service was mostly disinterested, if there was a theme or reason to the boiled vegetable theme, none was offered. They mumbled through the course names, mispronounced ingredients and wine names, but could be heard clearly shouting to "chef" in the kitchen. Nearly a week later, I feel the dinner was abusively expensive and conceived of and executed by amateurs who have not experienced fine dining commensurate with their price, and could not have given a care whether our experience was enjoyable. Ending on an up note: The paired wines were well chosen, though served in proportions that could have been improved to dull the pain of the meal. Toward the end of the 3 hour experience, we decided to open a bottle we brought. The cork the 23 year old wine we brought broke while opening, and the server volunteered to decant it. Someone had provided at least that much that training to him, and we appreciated it. We have eaten at All Spice before, and found it excellent. It has certainly taken a down turn. Very poor experience. read more

Exquisite food, beautiful decor, gracious service. For appetizers I had a tasty butternut squash soup, and my husband had the creative and delicious ahi tuna. For entrees, my husband had the bacon-wrapped lamb chops with chili sauce, which had a perfect spiciness. I had the sturgeon with sourdough crumb crust and spicy hummus. The fish was fantastic - cooked just right and the spices were a perfect compliment. Dessert was intriguing - I had to order the trio of ice cream because I couldn't resist trying a black pepper ice cream - a little spicy, a little sweet, plenty of depth and subtlety. The chili mango challah bread pudding that my husband had was an absolute winner! Everything came out beautifully plated, little edible works of art to complement the tasteful, vibrant interior of the restaurant. Opening night, but we'll be back and bring our friends. read more

We just came back from a wonderful dinner and I have to say, this is the best restaurant in San Mateo! Everything was just perfect: the beet salad (Ode to my wife), the lamb "Sona Chandi" and the amazing roasted walu: with sauces that complemented each other, so delicious! I would love to come back again and try other dishes! read more

I hesitate to use such cheap twitter/texting lingo as this but I absolutely have to give an OMG to All Spice!! This was one of the best dining experiences I've had in a long time. While you can find tasty morsels at many places, this one gave them to me in tasty punches! From scrumptious sardines (which I had never enjoyed) to oxtail and wild boar stew. The Indian-esque spicing and flavors were amazing, I will go to this place every chance I can! (oh and aside from the amazing food, the staff were amazing and friendly, super helpful with wine and food recommendations) read more

Sorry but they have really declined. A year ago I'd have given a 4.5 but tonight a 3. The wife ordered the short ribs. It was smothered in a sauce that looked and tasted like A1 sauce. My wild boar was great but it was like a lamb curry and they served without rice. They served it with greasy flat bread. The server asked what I thought. When I suggested it would be great with rice he responded that they didn't have any rice on the menu whatsoever, as thought it was a boasting point. The dessert was way too sweet. Sorry. It was a huge disappointment. read more

All Spice is all kinds of surprises.. its a lovely house-modeled into a cozy seating restaurant. I loved their menu choices, all exotic and interesting. Appetizers quantities are small, so hard to share with more than two people. Very tasty and mix of flavors. Main entrees are good portions: we tried lemon crusted cod, scallops, crispy pork belly and veal..and all of them were really well prepared. Dark chocolate kulfi was average, if you expect the traditional kulfi, but tasty nevertheless. Walnut-date cake was warm and tasty. Would surely go back to try other items on the menu. they also have good choices on wine read more

I'm torn about All Spice. I liked the beautiful house in which the restaurant resides. It is obviously a labor of love. I liked and appreciated the food. It just wasn't my thing. I don't know exactly why, so pay me no mind. This review is just a reminder for myself. Butternut squash and carrot soup was poured over minted squash noodles and a cube of herb butter. I liked it. I liked it a lot. Yum. The farro in farro chaat came over potatoes and beneath some cauliflower florets. The heaviness of the plate was relieved by a masala vinaigrette. Even so the farro and potato combination was a bit heavy and I couldn't quite make out the taste of the cauliflower. Nice but not my thing. Shortrib in the shortrib vindaloo was over baby bokchoi and beneath warmed goat cheese. This unwieldy stack of food had to be deconstructed to be eaten and was surrounded by a complex sauce that rendered the plate too complex for my humble palate. But I did love the combination of goat cheese and shortrib. Service was tip top and nicely enthusiastic. So, as I say, All Spice is very nice but just not my thing. read more

There's nothing better than trying a new restaurant and then realizing that you just hit the jackpot! Oh yes, this is how I felt about this place. It was unique, romantic, and most importantly, delicious. Their restaurant crew was so amazing, I'd give them an extra star if I could! This restaurant is hidden behind a few other businesses. You wouldn't know that this place was here unless you were actually looking for it (even then it's pretty hard to find). It's a small tiny restaurant in a house-like place. It's small size and cozy atmosphere makes for a very romantic evening :). However, it also means that you need to make reservations far in advance! Their menu was interesting. There were a lot of different dishes. I tried the venison steak for my main entree and the scallops for my appetizer. Wow... I was blown away by both dishes. I loved the texture and sauce of the scallop dish. The venison steak was very flavorful and came with a yummy risotto and mushrooms. I tried my boyfriend's wild boar and was really surprised at how tasty it was. For dessert, we had the Kulfi. The description on the menu doesn't do it justice. This dessert is absolutely amazing. It's a small chocolate ganache-like cake and ice cream mixed into one small piece of dessert. That probably doesn't make sense, but it doesn't matter... Because you'll take one bite of this thing and think it's amazing. Oh yea, one last thing... they serve my favorite beer- Young's Double Chocolate Stout. It didn't go with my meal, but it was still delicious, as always! :) read more

The atmosphere is nice, and it's in a small victorian house off el camino. It's cute and quiet. I came here for my birthday a couple of years back. their lamb is very tendered, dosa was huge. I also ordered a couple of desserts - feeling indian desserts are too sweet for me, so next time i won't order the desserts but just entrees. read more

My boyfriend took me here for our anniversary dinner. I was a little let down that he said we were going to eat in San Mateo...I know....when I think anniversary dinner I want SF! I got over it and tried to go into it with an open mind. I did some research on the way there and saw that it has a Michelin Star. The fact it's in a Victorian home got me super excited for the ambiance. There are a few different rooms all with a different charming ambiance. I saw a lot of pictures on yelp of things I had in mind to order but their menu does rapidly change. Go into it with an open mind and ask your waiter for suggestions! I ordered the sea bass which was melt in your mouth perfect! I downed it with a Hitachino beer which is now my favorite Japanese beer. The service was absolutely perfect. Not too pretentious, just warm and welcoming. Will definitely be back for another special occasion. read more

3.5 stars. My first time at a Michelin starred restaurant - decided to take my friend here for her bday. Reservations were easy. The great - Service was amazing - very attentive and knowledgeable servers. We arrived a few min after our reservation and were greeted and seated promptly. Ambiance and decor had a cozy feel. The restaurant is in a house with plenty of dedicated lot parking (huge plus since parking on El Camino is almost impossible to find!) Beautiful presentation of the food. Housemade zinfandel was delicious (and I'm not normally a fan of zins). The good - Ode to my wife part V - beet salad with ricotta Chocolate terrarium for dessert The average - the entrees The food - I had the braised beef cheeks and my friend had the wild boar. Although the beef cheeks were very tender, they were oversalted and a bit on the fattier side. I also tasted my friend's aab-e-gosht (wild boar) and wasn't impressed. Not sure if we just ordered the wrong entrees.... Overall, I'm not sure if my expectations were too high going in but i was very underwhelmed by the food here. The overall dining experience was nice, but the entrees we had are overpriced for their quality. read more