Our Valentine's Day Celebration (Plus Rich Table Tasting Menu)

A couple of weeks ago, Steven and I celebrated our third Valentine’s Day together. And while we totally understand why it’s a polarizing holiday that many people find silly to celebrate, we like to celebrate it more like a Thanksgiving of our relationship. Our anniversary is the time we get to reflect on our time together, but Valentine’s Day gives us a chance to appreciate each other for the daily joy we bring one another.

Last year, I shared with you our celebration as well as our trip to San Luis Obispo. This year we traveled to Santa Cruz for the following 3-day weekend, spending the bulk of it taking advantage of some much-needed R&R. While there wasn’t much to document from that trip, there was so much to talk about regarding our celebration on Valentine’s Day, including a beautiful dinner Steven was kind enough to treat me to.

Gift Exchange

Since Steven always takes me out for dinner every Valentine’s Day, I always make it a point to get him presents. I personally love the tradition of the guy getting the girl flowers and dinner. But the way I see it, it, if that’s going to be the case, then the guy should get something too for that special day. Hey, you gotta give them a reason to look forward to it too! That celebration’s not just for us!

I started by picking out a card from Papyrus. They are my absolute favorite spot to pick up beautiful cards for special occasions. With designs so stunning, that they’re a treasure to keep in a box and look back on. Seeing that this is our third Valentine’s Day together, I was excited to find a card with three roses on the front. I figure if there’s any special occasion where picking out a $9 card would be worth it, it’d be Valentine’s Day.

Now let’s get to what’s in the bag and the box.

Steven has been to the California Academy of Sciences once before, and I’ve been to the Exploratorium once before. But each of us have never seen the other museum, and have said for years now that we should attend both together.

In the bag were gift certificates for the museum. I can’t wait to finally knock these off our San Francisco couple’s bucket list.

And because Steven is a huge fan of chocolate, I got him the gorgeous Recchiuti Confections Love Birds box. Recchiuti makes hand-made chocolates right here in San Francisco. They’re known for their quality of ingredients and their ability to make custom chocolates for corporate events.

This variety box made for a gorgeous surprise that Steven got to enjoy for many days following our celebration.

Steven knows that I’m a girl who loves her flowers. So he knows that a bouquet of red roses on Valentine’s Day will be thoroughly appreciated. And I started a tradition back in the day where I’d give him one rose for every Valentine’s Day we spend together. This year, I purchased three roses for him from Divisadero Florist. The idea is that one day on our 13th Valentine’s Day together, I’ll be buying him more flowers than he’ll be giving me. And when we’re much older, our table will be nice and full with several bouquets.

Here the flowers are, displayed together on our coffee table. They added some beautiful rich color to our apartment. If only they could survive for weeks and weeks!

Dinner at Rich Table

When we first started dating, Steven and I came to Rich Table for an evening of drinking and dining. But we didn’t realize how popular it was until we found out the ridiculous amount of time we’d have to wait to sit at a table. We were offered seats at the bar that evening, and really enjoyed ourselves. We then vowed to return to the restaurant down the line, this time making a reservation.

Last year, he took me there to celebrate the acceptance of my new job with Chairish. And now we’ve returned for a third meal for Valentine’s Day.

Rich Table typically features a fixed menu curated for the time of year. And Valentine’s Day was no exception to this rule. We decided to go for the fixed menu and wine pairings.

It’s never lost on us that we are so lucky to have such close access to incredible restaurants such as this place. If you are able to make a reservation for your next celebration, we definitely recommend it.

Deviled egg, everything seed crumble, tsar nicoulai caviar

Any chance I get to taste caviar, I will take. Served over the subtle taste of deviled eggs with a crunch of firm seeds sprinkled on top, this was an excellent starter that really geared us up for the deliciousness that was to come.

Bites

Our next course was a beautiful selection of bites that included staples such as Rich Table’s infamous sardine chips and dried porcini doughnuts.

Below is their sardine chip dipped in horseradish creme fraiche. To quote Steven, it’s “one of the best things he’s ever tasted.”

Hon Hamachi Poke, Wakame, Sushi Rice, Sesame

Next was a fresh bowl of poke and rice. These familiar flavors are always welcomed in my book. And considering it was an Asian dish, it didn’t feel like it was in stark contrast on the palate to any of the other dishes.

Quinault River Trout, Sorrel, Black Trumpet, Blood Orange

These tasting menus are always so correct to put a light dish like trout in the middle of such a decadent meal. Combined with the taste of sorrel and blood orange, this was the perfect transition from appetizers to entrees.

Scrambled Eggs, Perigold Black Truffle, Brioche

This incredible scrambled egg dish was perfectly moist, the way scrambled eggs were meant to be. Paired with black truffle and a crispy brioche, I was in what tasted like breakfast heaven. Of all the dishes that night, this one was my personal favorite.

Campanelle, Pork Sausage, Apple, Maui Onion

Below was the alternative dish to my scrambled eggs. Steven is not much of an egg person, but he’s definitely a pork and pasta person. So this course worked out really well for the both of us.

21 Day Dry Aged Ribeye, RT “Poutine”

Gordon Ramsey would have been proud. This dish was the perfect portion and combination of flaky pastry, perfectly flavorful ribeye and impossibly soft potato mash.

Mint Chocolate Sable

Below is one of my favorite desserts in the city, Rich Table’s mint chocolate sable over a lovely light milk ice. This dish is an amazingly light yet flavorful dessert to end your night with. After a huge filling meal, there’s no way you want something heavy. but since there’s always room for dinner, this is the perfect solution.

And finally - as usual - they were kind enough to give us some honeycomb bites to enjoy on our way out.

We appreciate you strolling down memory lane with us as we reflect on how we celebrated the evening.

And I’d like to thank Steven for the amazing dinner and time we spent together. I can’t wait for the next time we visit Rich Table, and feel so lucky I get to celebrate this holiday with you year after you. Here’s to Valentine’s Day #4 and all of our future museum trips!

Side note: Steven’s mom pointed out how glum the people behind Steven look during their own dates. Not sure how that can happen when Michelin awarded food is right in front of their faces! Oh well.

Until we meet again!