Benu

Benu is definitely an experience, not just food. From the moment you drive into valet, to the moment you leave, customer service is excellent. Each bite size dish is carefully crafted and explained. There are frequent changes to serving utensils so you know what to use and using your fingers is allowed, especially when they provide wet nap. The beginning single bite small delicacies were my favorite- there's quite of few of those before you get to multiple bites items printed on the menu. The actual courses printed were good (not great). Is it worth the price tag? My husband ordered the BEST sake we've ever tasted for $50 a small cup, that he thought was worth it. For the experience and customer service the price tag is fine; for the food, we have had better (husband was hungry about 30min later). I was full at the end of the meal. Personally I was SO expecting something extraordinary that it really didn't live up to the hype - I would give them 4.5 stars, But husband thought they were 3.5 - hence 4 average. The courses printed were missing the multiple dimensions of taste and textures as compared to small delicacies and the meal itself ended on a somewhat disappointing note. The last dessert pudding with pleat was exceptional, but the final few courses including the spare ribs were plain, making the overall meal itself way overpriced.

Consistently delicious food . Friendly environment. You feel welcome. I was there last year and last night wasn’t a disappointment. Loved it!!

My wife and I wanted to step out of our food comfort zone and enjoy a world-class meal. We definitely got what we were looking for at Benu. The wait staff was very friendly and the food was unforgettable. We enjoyed talking to the Master Sommelier and agreed that the wine pairing was perfect for the food. We definitely left satisfied!

Everything was great. Service and food both. Benu met all of our expectations!

It’s a destination in it’s own right

What a lovely dining experience. The service was impeccable and friendly. The mussel, quail, and veal were divine. And shikye—so refreshing.

Every bite was an adventure!!!

So good! Worth the splurge! Go on a date or with a significant other!

Everything was absolutely impeccable. Fine dining at its apex!

Might be the best meal I have ever had.

The foods and courses are surprisingly a lot and great even though the menu only says the number of courses, the way they serve the food in course is very great and make the value very high.
I highly recommended this restaurant.
The only thing is the service has room to improve. There are times the waiters tried to provide food or setups while our family member was still eating.

Amazing place and lives up to all the hype. Truly an unforgettable experience.

Amazing food, good attention to detail, excellent and unique wine pairings

Unique, yet overrated for the price...

Love the food and the beverage pairings were excellent.

I wouldn’t say this is the best restaurant I have ever tasted. But it definitely worth to try. The front yard is cute.

Fantastic all around. Really amazing food and service!

An odd experience at Benu in SF. After all of the hype I had (perhaps unfairly) high expectations. I was extremely disappointed. Service was great. GM greeted us, and we received great attention plus banter with staff as my colleague had dietary restrictions. But the wine service was poor. Delivering standard lectures with no dialogue or interest in the guest. Most importantly 90% of the food was monolithic in flavor largely due to lots of / strongly flavored sauce. Highly complex ingredients with a lot of attention to sourcing and intricate prep were overwhelmed with simplistic tasting sauces which drowned any subtlety. A couple of dishes were nice but way too many misses. For $1400 for two with just the menu and wine pairing, not on point.

It's been a few years since my last visit but this place is still still amazing. One of the finest dining experiences in the Bay Area. Looking forward to my next visit.

The birthday menu has my name on it and the cake prepared is very nice.

The food was superb! It was an experience like no other. Highly recommended!

Great food and excellent service Thabk you to Ivy for her attentiveness!

Incredible experience, fantastic food and pairing!

ordered champagne for wife's bday. waitress said she'd let us enjoy drink before starting service but wine and starters came before we got through half our champagne drink. starters were great. meal was the same as discussed online - you tube vids; nothing new. servers were very friendly and glad to discuss the wines and food. mid-way chicken course disappointing; the rest was great great. won't return as creativity and pace of serivice not what we have experienced at other 3 michelin star places throughout the world

We had a spectacular time at Benu.
Please look at my Yelp review for photo's.

The best service-
Compactly professional combined with charming and engaging. There wasn't any stale / uncomfortable presenting.

The food-
Each item was delicious and abundant. We left very full and satisfied on every level. The Tea menu is complimentary and coffee/chinos.

Price-
Price per person+8.5%+20% ... It's like the price of going to a nice show or concert. It's much better spending the money on a really memorable meal and skip the concert or show.

Una experiencia maravillosa. El lugar espectacular, formal pero relajado y con ambiente perfecto para disfrutar una comida increíble. El menú de degustación es perfecto y el servicio impecable. Probablemente una de las mejores experiencias culinarias de una vida!

Awesome Som wine🍷🥂
Seating a bit austere minimalist grey for my dates taste... as well as mine. This was the first time I was sat away from the kitchen. Best seating around the corner to right.

Exceptional on all levels. Creativity and culinary execution at its best. Service was incredible - extremely attentive and helpful, yet subtle and unobtrusive. The perfect mix of excellent service, cuisine and attention to detail.

The courses fly at very high altitude; out of all the courses maybe two have been great but not spectacular. Cory lee fuses his meals into compositions that unfold great complexity with some daring moves along the way. The wine pairing was in parts unorthodox but overall very good, the food stood out though.

Service was impeccable. A memorable evening. No doubt we’ll be back.

The quail and veal were very ordinary not much flavor. A mundane meal at extraordinary prices. The wine pairing was great

It was a very nice meal to celebrate my 20th Anniversary.

It was a great birthday dinner, the environment is very high end and the food was very creative and blew my mind.

The food was excellent, every single dish. Unfortunately the prefixed menu was very pricey. It’s too bad they don’t have an open menu available.

WOW from beginning to end everything was spectacular. Every dish was creative, unique and delicious. Service was immaculate. Worth every penny. Can’t wait to go back ! Definitely recommend!!!

Best meal of my life, bar none.

Great place.. service and details were excellent as expected. Food was good and interesting

Amazing food, not very innovative in the pairing (mainly boring French and German wines), but highly overpriced for what you get.

We asked about adjusting the beverage pairings to avoid sake and beer, Table captain was not great about it. “Let me go see, not sure we can do that” same with removing sea urchin from one dish (after being asked if everything looks good). Not a great start, but a lovely meal. Three stars seems high, but a lovely evening.

Took my boyfriend here for his birthday. Absolutely outstanding service. Every single person we interacted with wished him a happy birthday, the menu was personalized wishing him a happy birthday and they brought out a little music box with a cake underneath at the end, they made our evening that much more special. Food and drinks were amazinggg. Everything about the experience was worth every penny.

We wanted to try a fine cuisine for my husbands bday.
We really enjoyed the food. Special, pretty and delicious.
Personally I liked the small delicates.
Warmly recommended