Like everything else we experienced at San Francisco Union Square Hilton Hotel the food and service was special, especially at the Urban Tavern.  This restaurant has been designed to show a contemporary California cuisine with a decor that hints of the past with unpainted wood beam ceiling and native southwest designs but otherwise strictly 21th century.
We had the opportunity to meet and discuss Urban Tavern with James McCasland, Hotel Concierge Manager and a member of Les Chefs d'Or USA.
The menu is divided with names like smalls, not so smalls, bowls and sides.  Chef is Michael Raub who offers foods that emphasize fresh vegetables that appear in every entree.
From Smalls that included chicken meatballs or spiced cucumbers we chose the braised Spanish Octopus which came with gigante beans.  Our Not so Small entrees were the Brandt Beef Skirt Steak which came with crispy potato, wild mushroom and toy box tomatoes.  Also Pacific Northwest Arctic char with beluga lentils, roasted brassicas and fennel.
Pastry Chef is Caryn Martinez and from the desserts listed simply as Sweets we chose the TCHO Sea Salt Brownie Skillet with honeycomb candy, brandied cherries, hazelnut and orange whiskey jelly.
For the quality of the food and personal excellent service we thought the prices moderate.
Urban Tavern is open for breakfast with a unusually bountiful buffet including some Asian dishes and a large selection of bakery items.
Open daily for breakfast 6 a.m. to 11 a.m., dinner 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Bar to 11 p.m..
Street entrance at 333 O'Farrell Street, San Francisco.
Tomorrow we will tell of our dining experiences in the Marina District and San Francisco's most popular tourist destination, Pier 39.