Animae

Review summary

1. C

   Christopher

   San Diego

   9 reviews

   vip
   2.0

   9 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 4

   The limited menu made it difficult to find a combination of choices and flavors that would suit our eclectic group of four, and this was complicated by the tapas / shared-plate style of dining. There were very few first-course choices that appealed to everyone at the table. Making our selections required some negotiation and compromise to ensure that everyone had something they wanted to eat. The crispy pig ears were unpleasantly chewy, and the sauce was sour. The lamb chops would have been flavorless if not for the cilantro sauce underneath. The Taiwanese chicken was good, but pretty ordinary. The challenge with the shared-plate style of dining spilled into the main course. My father and I decided to split the shareable-by-design 16-ounce Australian Wagyu New York strip ($150), but he likes his beef rare and I prefer mine medium. The server's best suggestion was to have the steak brought to the table rare, and then to send back half of it to be cooked further. This makes zero sense. The quality of the beef was pretty ordinary, certainly nothing special. We also had a side of crispy potatoes. The texture on the potatoes was quite nice (reminiscent of patatas bravas we had in Spain earlier this year), but they were unseasoned/bland and were floating in a flavorless milky sauce. Our other two dining companions both ordered the lemongrass chicken, and enjoyed the crispiness of the skin and the flavorful sauce. Service was a slow and aloof, and my questions about the menu seemed to annoy the server. The dining room is high on style, which was a good fit as a venue for our celebration, but overall this was disappointing, and neither the food nor the experience was anything special.
   

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2. P

   Patrick

   Los Angeles

   1 review

   3.0

   1 review

   Dined today

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 4

   Service was good, food was fine. Beautiful place.
   

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3. M

   Mona

   Los Angeles

   3 reviews

   5.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   went for their Thanksgiving Dinner menu, everything was delicious! Service is always awesome!
   

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4. J

   Jacqueline

   New York City

   14 reviews

   vip
   4.0

   14 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   The restaurant is beautiful definitely will try again, the food this time around wasn’t exceptional but i think i might have picked the wrong dishes for me
   

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5. L

   Lisa

   San Diego

   17 reviews

   5.0

   17 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Service was outstanding, friendly, efficient and accommodating. Portions were large, dishes thoughtfully designed and flavorful. Highly recommended!
   

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6. E

   Edwin

   Sacramento

   4 reviews

   5.0

   4 reviews

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Food (kare kare, tocino, tuna crispy rice, wagyu rice, cesar salad, ube dessert) and drink (the malarky) was all great. Service (Lelani?) was excellent. And really, i expected it to be all great for the prices they charge. And they really delivered.
   

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7. S

   Shaun

   San Francisco

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Mmmm. Great variety. Great place. And the staff and service is as great as the food!
   

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8. R

   Robert

   Atlantic Canada

   2 reviews

   5.0

   2 reviews

   Dined 5 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Expertly crafted Asian Fusion in downtown San Diego. Stands out from the crowd with a different looking menu and cleverly constructed dishes. Trendy setting and a relaxed atmosphere. Reservations recommended.
   

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9. J

   John

   Los Angeles

   1 review

   3.0

   1 review

   Dined 5 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 3

   1 out of the 8 dishes we got was out of this world. The rest were mostly good, some left a salty aftertaste. Get the pork tomahawk.
   

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10. T

    Thiago

    Denver

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined 6 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4

    The food and service was amazing.
    

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