Trailblazer Tavern San Francisco

Great food inspired by Hawaiian classics.The only drawback is it is quite pricey or maybe I am not used to US prices.

Interesting Take on Hawaiian Cuisine in the Financial District/Embarcadero We love Hawaiian Cuisine, or to be more specific, “New Hawaiian Cuisine,” as espoused by a loosely knit group of chefs, including Alan Wong, Sam Choy, Peter Merriman, and others, formed in the 1970's to further, refine and redefine Hawaiian Cuisine. They drew upon their roots, and histories, to take dining in Hawaii beyond the smorgasbords, that had basically taken over the Islands. They took things to a whole new level, but based on history. We are also fans of Chef Michael Mina, and have dined at many of his restaurants, and attended seminars with him, and his teams. When I read of chefs Michelle Karr-Ueoka and Wade Ueoka of Honolulu, joining forces with Chef Mina, and opening an Hawaiian-themed restaurant in San Francisco, I knew that I had to dine there. The menu, that I saw, indicated a take on that New Hawaiian Cuisine. In October, while in San Francisco for my wife’s business meetings, I had my chance, but unfortunately, the only night with availability, was one, when she had a dinner meeting - I was going solo. The restaurant is in the lobby of SalesForce East Tower at 350 Mission St, is interesting, to say the least. The entrance is through the Mission St side of the building, and the left corner is the restaurant with a bar, and sitting area. Then, up on the Mezzanine, is a bit more formal dining area, and another bar. I cannot say if the menus are the same upstairs and down, but the lower level areas look to be more casual, and an after-work meeting place, more focused on the bar, but I could be wrong. The most striking aspect, as I entered, was the number of photographs of Hawaii, and especially waterfalls. Then, there was an odd “play area,” with cartoonish characters, mostly not Hawaiian in appearance, or dress. Once past that, the soaring lobby, frames the two bar/dining areas, in an interesting way - but then the color scheme of Trailblazer Tavern seems a bit garish - almost a caricature of Hawaii. Let’s just say that I am not a fan of what the designers did, but also, I am likely well beyond the target demographic, which has to focus a bit on the employees of Sales Force, and those working in this area of Mission St. That is probably why I just did not get it. I spoke to the bartender in the lower area, who kindly directed me to the elevator, up to the Mezzanine, where I was greeted by a hostess, who directed me to a banquette booth, looking back to that dining room, and the bar. A little confusing, but everyone was friendly, and I felt that they had directed many lost souls before. I quickly had the wine list, and the menu. One thing that I can always be assured of, is that if it’s a Michael Mina restaurant, there will be good wines. His corporate Sommelier, Raj Parr always does a great job. Though short, I was correct - some interesting wines, and even in the B-T-G selection. I had a glass of the Domaine Chavy-Chouet Les Petits Aligoté (a white grape of Burgundy, though one not often seen outside of Burgundy), while looking over the menu. Like the wine list, the menu is fairly simple, and though tempted to go with the Chef’s Taste of Hawaii, I decided to be eclectic, and mix and match from the á la carte menu. I started with the Ahi Poke Nachos. This dish was good, but not the best Poke I have had - even in San Francisco, let alone Hawaii. Good start, but not a great one so far. Along beside it, I added the North Shore-style Kaua`I Shrimp - a nice dish, and I liked it better, than the Poke. The Shrimp were succulent, with a crispy coating. I added some more wines: Domaine Du Carrou Sancerre, Sandi Santa Barbara Chardonnay and Pence, Pence Ranch, Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir. For a Main Course, I went with the Grilled Octopus w/ Togarashi-spiced potatoes, scallion and miso aioli - this was a very good choice, and the Octopus had nice grilling, and a bit of smoke. Well done! My service was a bit spotty, with one server seeming totally disinterested, and absent most of the meal. However, after I flagged down, a young lady, who

Pretty good happy hour. The restaurant is inside one of the salesforce buildings.Cocktails are anywhere from $14 to $18. Hit or miss. Martini is solid. Pass on the coconut ice cube one, supposed to be like an old fashioned but it’s a bit light to me. Tom Selleck drink is a fun one.

Very clean, very sanitized, very prompt to assist, extremely friendly, explained every food item that we had, is very conscious about the sitting areas between customers, would totally come back

Excellent food, and some of the best service I've experienced in SF in a while. Went with a group of 5 and was able to try a wide range of great dishes. Everything was paced out nicely and set up family style. Loved the Kalbi Short Ribs, Sunomono Crab Salad, Kim Chi Fried Rice, Homemade Spam Musubi. Cocktails were delicious.

We enjoyed an excellent dinner at Trailblazer on Friday, March 13. Probably because of Coronavirus, the restaurant was not as busy as normal. We both had the multiple course tasting menu and enjoyed it greatly. Its a very reasonable price at $65 each, with a wine pairing at only $15. The multiple appetizers were outstanding as were the main dishes. We were very full at the end of the meal. We had excellent service for the entire meal. We will definitely return to this terrific restaurant.

It has this Hawaiian vibe all over! Pretty place and amaze food. I called for a salad and my friend called for a sandwich - both were beyond our expectation. So so good!

We ordered 4 dishes, an appetizer, a salad, and two glasses of wine to share. The service was excellent as was the wine and all but the lobster and scallops dish were very good. The lobster/scallops dish was $42 and included less than one 6 oz lobster tail cut up and only one scallop with slices of tofu. I think the restaurant must have run out of lobster and scallops as I was told they had run out of their other fish dish. I should have complained. Instead, I just won’t go back.

Always nice ambiance, unique drink options, variety of delicious plates you've probably never seen before. Always pleased with the service.

It just feels corporate-y. No tropical escape happening. Service was outstanding. Food pretty good. Dessert outstanding. Drinks were not craft level.

Excellent, attentive service. Food was tasty and innovative and gave us a chance to eat items that we would normally not be eating. Some food, such as the abalone-lobster-scallop entrée, didn't fil the bill, but the miso-glazed butterfish was excellent. With the Travelzoo coupon, it's a great deal.

Lilikoi Mule is the only way you should have a mule. The happy hour prices are very reasonable (under 10 coctails) which is unheard of in downtown SF

We were attracted to the restaurant based on the reputation of Michael Mina, the chef. The restaurant was very nice, but the food was just average.The eggplant side dish was overcooked. The appetizers were bland.The main dishes were good, but not great. The wine prices were high.

This place has consistent good food and great vibe. We always order the tasting menu and we have always been happy with what we get. We recommend this place to anyone who likes Hawaiian food and great atmosphere.

Amazing! Incroyable! Tolle! Stupefacente! Fantastisk! Asombroso! ("Amazing" in different languages.) Definitely will be back!