Week in Reviews: Domo, La Terrasse, St. Michael's, More!

A vacationing Bauer is still in other time zones and the Chron reviews are outside the city, so let's commence today's review edition with Paul Reidinger, who is at Hayes Valley sushi hotspot Domo. And it's all about the bar setup down on Laguna:

Given the appeal, not to mention fundamental logic, of the multistage, sushi-bar dinner, a haunting question is why someone didn't think to open a place like Domo years ago ... much of the tight space is lined with counter, and I noticed only one table. Domo is almost like a sushi kiosk (maybe at an airport or baseball park in some foofy city) that was given growth hormone. It's a masterful idea with some eccentricities.

Among those aforementioned "eccentricities" is the physical space itself: stools are too high and patrons face outward towards the bar or street, which makes serving rather awkward, especially when the restaurant is full. Reidinger's overriding positive, though: "The food, fortunately, is quite good, in that urban-hipster-sushi way." [SFBG]

Meredith Brody files today from the Presidio's La Terrasse, where the view—sorry, the "truly glorious view"—overshadows the food. Still, despite a few slight kitchen misses, Brody approves of the French joint: "But even after the disappointing desserts, we still left La Terrasse happier than when we arrived. On a clear day, there are few places more delightful to relax and enjoy the matchless San Francisco view over a classic steak frites or a lush serving of foie gras." [SFW]

At the Chron, Amanda Gold has a deuce for Palo Alto's Saint Michael's Alley. The choice of handing out a review update—not mention downgrading it from its previous 2.5 stars—to Saint Michael's is a rather odd one, mostly because the restaurant is in the midst of moving into a new space this fall. Until then, brunch outshines dinner in its current digs, just so you know. [Chron]

The other Chron review has Carol Ness handing out another two stars to Berkeley's new Thai restaurant Anchalee Thai Cuisine: "The best offerings are starters that found their inspiration in Thai street food ... Most of the rest of the menu is a familiar compendium of Thai in a style I think of as Americanized - plain dishes that have a tendency to stray too far into sweetness." [Chron]

THE ELSEWHERE: The EBX goes on a hotel dining tour (including Henry's) to discover that even East Bay hotels are stepping up their game, The CoCo Times visited Lafayette's wannabe fancy French joint Chevalier, The MIJ did sunny dining at Los Palmares in San Rafael, Bunrab gave the new Balboa Cafe in Marin a whirl, Senorita Hopstress is at the Jay'n Bee Club, 7x7 gets grappa at Bar 888, and earlier this week, the Sunday Chron review was a 2.5-star affair at Nob Hill's Le Club.

[Original photo]