Saint James French Diner

On our way into the city we had to make an audible and do last minute dinner plans and luckily, Saint James French Diner had reservations open for a Saturday night. Thinking it would be difficult to get one at a restaurant in the heart of the Gaslamp District I was surprised by how easy it was to get a reservation and after eating here, even more surprised by this isn't busier than it should be. Let me tell you about this great French restaurant. Atmosphere Very classy vibes with a feeling matching that of an alternative history where the late 1800s/early 1900s chic of French design took over the world. Vertical slats of wood frame the windows of the entrance with round tables placed in front. Teal hues cover the upper half of the walls with white subway tiles and maroon booths occupying the bottom. The bar takes the back half of the dining room space and this square design is stacked with bottles all around the perimeter, shone brightly from below. It feels cool just to dine here and by association, so are you. Food The food here is mostly hits with a few misses. Let's talk about the best stuff first. Both the Moules Frites and the Steak Frites are fantastic. Fantastic frites! With the Moules Frites, the mussels were cooked perfectly and the sauce accompanying was divine. An easily drinkable sauce perfect for slurping up with the mussels or sopping up with the savory, perfectly crunchy bread that comes with it, everything crafted to make this dish made it a work of art. As for the Steak Frites, the fries were fried to a golden brown with the type of crispness you hope for with a thinner cut potato. With a sprinkling of rosemary on top when it soaks up the juices of the steak and green peppercorn sauce these fries become the fries of dreams and memories. The steak is also cooked to your preference and I highly recommend you order it medium rare. It'll cook slightly more with the green peppercorn sauce, but it makes for a delectable cut of beef paired with the best texture juxtaposition to it. The middle of the pack stuff had to be the beef bourguignon and the beef tartare. The beef is slowly cooked and braised over hours and it is tender to the touch, easily breaking apart under a fork. The noodles were also cooked perfectly. Mixed together with the sauce the dish should've been perfect. However, for something that looks like it should deliver a strong flavor it is quite mild and in some bites, dry. Still tasty and easy to eat but a bit underwhelming in flavor. The beef tartare is also an interesting color of green and gray. I think it has to do with the mixture of horseradish in the tartare. It gives the whole thing a slight nose burning sensation, but when the chunks of beef do come out it is a ray of sunshine to the tongue. The lows had to be the sides that came with our meal. Not that sides are meant to be the show stoppers but they were just adequate enough to accompany our dishes. The asparagus was well cooked and seasoned but nothing unique to it. The same could be said about the green beans. The ratatouille, though pretty visually, was a dish you could have skipped and you wouldn't have missed a thing. Conclusion I love boutique hotels and the fact such an amazing restaurant as Saint James is connected to the Pali Hotel would make me a fan of the hotel even more if I was staying here. Rarely do hotel restaurants stand their ground on their own. But Saint James not only stands on its own two feet, but it is dancing in great food with a chic vibe. It's hard not to smile when you sit in their dining space and even harder not to gravitate towards their bar. A perfect place for both casual dining and casual drinking, don't be surprised if you linger longer than expected if you eat here. It can a pleasant surprise to the start of your evening.

The Burger Parisienne is one of my favorite burgers I’ve ever had. It was perfectly crafted and so flavorful - and very messy, but worth it! The garlic truffle fries it came with were the perfect compliment. Reservations are recommended as even early on a Monday night the restaurant was pretty full. Week days 3-6 is happy hour with burgers half off, making a pretty incredible deal!

Amazing in all categories. I happily spent 60 on myself (tip included) for a late dinner of beef bourignon and ratatouille with a bottle of soda. I wish I could bottle that gravy and save it for special occasions. The flavor and technique were brilliant. When I asked what dessert I should order, the waitress immediately suggested the strawberry bread pudding. I told her later that if I weren't married, I'd have kissed her pastry chef it was so wonderful. Staff are attentive and helpful. Food is French so care is taken in prep so it can take a little while to arrive but it's worth the wait.

I finally found the best burger in downtown. It's the Parisienne at the Saint James French Dinner. First of all, the restaurant is stylish. I think more stylish than almost of all restaurants in Paris. I knew reputation of this burger. It's over rated...No! It's very very delicious! Taste likes Paris! I felt adult and gorgeous. Beef, sauce, and cheese make it special one. It's not a just burger. It's fancy French dish. There are "Happy hours", which you can take it discounted price dulling 3pm to 6pm in weekdays. It connects America and French. (The Parisienne Burger and Fries $16.15 at Happy hour)

It was restaurant week, plus a convention of insurance salespeople in town, and it was not filled at 6 PM. The Hostess was also our Server. It took a long time to get drinks and food. It took 30 minutes for my husband to get a 2nd beer, so he canceled his beer. He had also finished his HAMBURGER before receiving his FF. It was just really slow service. I enjoyed my crispy skin DUCK confit which was a leg & thigh, plus sliced duck breast. A nice fruity sauce was served with it. I think the fried doughy bread served as a side was a “miss”. My CESEAR salad was good. It included endive and arugula, which is different, and I liked it! CHOCOLATE MOUSSE finished the 3 course meal for Restaurant Week. Cute diner, good food, but slow service with food coming out at different times.

It was okay. I was expecting more. Very limited menu. I was hoping for a bottomless mimosa breakfast, but it’s only done on the weekends. The only think that caught my eye was the american breakfast. I would’ve gone to a different place if i could, I was very limited on time before checking out of the hotel this establishment was part of.

Nice quaint restaurant & hotel. Tried the famous coconut french toast and that is absolutely a must anytime I come to SD. The croque madam was amazing also but FT was perfect, the crunch and light taste of the coconut was perfect.

So good The burger Parisienne is really worth a try, not a gimmick. I’ll order it again next time. Oysters were great Great aioli And soufflé, nice move The happy hour feels so cheap like I’m robbing the place