Isidore

If you've read my review of The Pullman Market, then you already know my thoughts on the market's emphasis on locally sourced products and the ecosystem that feeds the restaurants contained therein. It's a concept unique to San Antonio and one that every San Antonian should embrace enthusiastically. Isidore -- the newest of the three full-service restaurants -- is unequivocally the crowning jewel of The Pullman: a celebration of the best of what is available within the ecosystem at any given time. Over the course of two visits, I was fortunate to sample a wide range of items, all of them outstanding. I had hoped to review every item in detail, but I once again find myself suppressed by Yelp's arbitrary 5,000-character limit. I will, therefore, limit my review to several standout dishes.I've read a couple of reviews that complain of pretentious, stuffy service, but nothing could be further from the truth. On both visits, I sensed a warm, genuine enthusiasm from every team member. The servers are well versed on where the foods are sourced, as well as the techniques (gastronomical alchemy) employed in the inviting open-air kitchen. Speaking of that kitchen, expect to hear staccato bursts of, "Yes, chef!" whenever Chef de Cuisine Ian Lanphear calls out an order. The call-and-response setup is not bluster, as it ensures that dishes arrive at the table in courses, a requisite for any restaurant promising something akin to a degustation, albeit one with Texas-sized portions.Oysters (5.0/5.0): A tray of plump, briny Otter's Choice oysters arrived atop a colorful array of rocks, a welcome change of aesthetic from crushed ice. Each oyster was shucked perfectly, retaining the liquor and containing no shell fragments. The latter point may sound like faint praise, but I have been the unfortunate victim of careless shucking at many restaurants throughout town. The accompanying lacto-fermented strawberry sauce was a pleasant sweet/acidic diversion from ketchup and prepared horseradish. True to Isidore's philosophy of local, sustainable product, the Poteet-sourced strawberries come directly from The Pullman's produce section. The oysters were delicious on their own but even more so with a dollop of the cocktail sauce.Roasted Lion's Mane Mushroom (5.0/5.0): This was a playful dish from the "small plates" menu, but it was large enough to be a vegan entrée. The mushroom arrived sliced into eight pieces along with a plate consisting of Bibb lettuce leaves, pickled green tomatoes, and three other macerated vegetables. The idea, explained my server, is for patrons to make customized lettuce wraps. The mushroom was tender, smoky, and paired well with the various accoutrements. I would recommend this as a dish for sharing with friends. If, like me, you have no friends, then enjoy nonetheless!Fish dip (5.0/5.0): Isidore dry ages its fish on the premises. Dry aging is most commonly associated with red meats, but it does wonders for other proteins as well. The fish (Gulf Coast red snapper in this case) was tender, flaky, and tasted more intense than traditional fish dips. If my description intrigues you or makes you salivate, then you, Dear Reader, belong to my exclusive tribe. If, however, the idea of an intensely funky fish dip makes you nauseous (wimp!), then perhaps look elsewhere. The accompanying chips -- fried in house from Kennebec potatoes (a starchy tuber ideal for frying) -- arrived crisp and held up against the dip. I was also impressed with the portion size, as I had expected a much smaller serving given the modest $15 price point. Dry-Aged Wagyu Ribeye (5.0/5.0): If you order only one dish at Isidore, then let it be this gargantuan slab of primal decadence. The kitchen dry ages its Wagyu beef (sourced locally from Peeler Farms) on the premises for 45 days, intensifying the flavor and breaking down the rivulets of intramuscular fat into tender, melt-in-your-mouth umami bombs. The steak was a sonata on its own, but the dish became a symphony when paired with the velvety richness of a superb marigold béarnaise. This is the type of steak I expect but seldom receive when I plop down $$$$ at a dedicated steakhouse. I read someone complain of the $78 price tag, but that amount is a bargain considering the quality of the product, the portion (I'd estimate 18 ounces), and the finesse applied to it by the kitchen. Dark Chocolate Sorbet (5.0/5.0): All four desserts listed on the menu sounded appealing, so I allowed my server to choose on my behalf. I'm glad I did. The intensely chocolatey sorbet was offset by a base of dehydrated local strawberries and a crunch that I mistook initially for chocolate sprinkles. They were, I soon discovered, kernels of crisped black rice. The sorbet came drizzled with a hot honey that provided a sweet, fiery finish to every bite. I appreciate the interplay between bitter, sweet, smooth, crunchy, and spicy. Alas, this is all Yelp will allow me to write. Go there now!

Good service Great architecture TrendyFood: steak was flavorful but tough B- Chicken very good A Salad ok B- Drinks good A Bread good but $$ ANegative Very Loud-Too Loud F-Affordable at upper end

The photos on YELP do not do the food justice what-so-ever! Everything was delicious & the service was great. Highly recommend you try Isidore, especially their Popcorn Chicken, which was definitely the favorite of the night.

This place had been on my list to try since they opened and I finally made it. Simply fantastic all around! The service was amazing and friendly from the hostess to the bartender to the server and even the manager. The restaurant and bar itself has such a great ambiance. Perfect date night spot or for cocktails with friends! We sat at the bar and had incredible handcrafted cocktails and got excellent recommendations for snacks - everything we had was impeccable! I can't wait to come back for dinner!

Esthetically and ambiance wise this place plays the part it's hyping itself to be. They have professional staff, sommelier, a "unique" pricey menu, and service that feels high end. I was excited to check this place out but underneath the shiny veneer it's just a regular ol' restaurant that may be trying too hard to be something it isn't. I started with a cocktail that was alright, not particularly balanced but drinkable. Since I only had one drink I would definitely give their bar another chance (the bar looks beautiful, by the way). I do highly recommend their wine menu, they have an excellent selection of wines probably one of the best I've seen in San Antonio. This place touts itself as a sharing plates kind of restaurant. You order a bunch of different items and share them with the party/table. The dinner highlights included the bread (yum) and butter along with their lion's mane mushroom. I would recommend all if these items! Delicious!We also had the red snapper crudo which came in a semi frozen form (basically like crudo ice chips). This is what I mean by a unique presentation. It tasted fine but not sure why they served it as "frozen ice chips".Next up we had the cheese curls (my pick since I'm a cheese fanatic). This dish was super disappointing. The cheese was flavorless and had a nacho cheese type of viscosity (yay for "ooze" boo for no flavor). Mind boggling since it was supposed to have cayenne on it. It was served on these weird steel springs which didn't add to the dish visually or taste wise. Here's another issue, all of these plates are meant to be shared but they each weigh a ton so it's hard to move them around the table especially when you have lots of glasses and cocktails in front of you. An opportunity to make the experience better in the future is to have the servers bring the dish to each person around the table so that they all have a chance to try it before setting it down (since the servers are usually standing nearby the entire duration of the dinner). The plates are pretty but not super functional. The lion's mane mushroom was the evening's highlight for me. It was delicious and flavorful. Unfortunately, there was a secondary plate that had all the accoutrements for the mushrooms but due to its size and heaviness it remained at the end of the table and only the people sitting next to it got to try the accoutrements. I think the idea of this deconstructed dish was to have all of us individually prepare our own mushroom "wraps" in lettuce and add our own desired sauces and acoutrements but I don't think the plating and presentation made it easy nor feasible to do so. Most of us just ate the mushrooms without the accoutrements (it was still very tasty). They really need to do something about these insanely heavy plates - they are not easy to hand to each other (nor is there a lot of space on the table). The grouper didn't have a lot of flavor. Our whole table was pretty disappointed. I want to be clear that it wasn't terrible it just wasn't flavorful or tasty at all. For the price point and all the hoopla I'm expecting a higher level of quality and least some flavor/seasoning. We also had the dry aged wagyu ribeye for $85. It was a really small portion which we didn't mind but we were expecting this to be a stellar dish in terms of taste and flavor profile. The ribeye was just okay. It did not taste dry aged and it literally had no flavor. These two main dishes were all style and no substance (especially for the price point). I don't understand how both dishes came out looking decent but a complete letdown in terms of flavor. Very unremarkable. I also had a chance to try two of their desserts based on the waiter's recommendation - Smores (Chocolate Mousse, Graham cracker, koji angelaise, and toasted meringue) and Avocado (watermelon granita, green tomato, and mint marigold). Y'all these desserts were awful. There was a whole production in toasting the meringue "marshmallow" right in front of us - it did smell quite amazing but the koji sauce ruined the dessert by completely overpowering and overwhelming the dish. The avocado dish was just very tasteless (basically just tasted like avocado in mousse form). By the way I love vegan chocolate mousse made out of avocado so I was excited about this dish. Unfortunately it was also a let down in terms of flavor. All these unique ingredients and flavor profiles (supposedly), and the dishes were just ok (and pretty bland). It was so odd.Based on my dining experience it seems there's a lot of potential but there may be a "balance" issue in some of these dishes. In terms of service, staff are incredibly attentive and you can tell they want to make your experience a special one. A+ for service and wine list. Everything else is a C minus at best (If i'm basing it on price I would go lower).

Isidore is a hidden gem that people need to experience at least once. It's a farm to market restaurant and the food is not only delicious but it's amazing g getting to see the art behind the food and the talent the chefs have. I would recommend trying all of the snack options on the menu. My favorite plate was the popcorn chicken, yuba & cream and then the steak. Everything was full of flavor, not to mention very filling.

We visited Isidore for a steak dinner shortly after the restaurant first opened for business; we had a great experience and we expect it to continue to develop. The decor is modern with organic touches like animal horns and blown glass. (Fitting for a building that used to be an industrial glass shop.) The noise level is buzzy but still good for conversation--probably because of the acoustic panels on the ceiling. The shelves feel sort of homey. We zeroed in on the dry-aged beef, which you can scope out in the glass cooler by the entrance. Our Wagyu strip loin was big enough for two. It's a dramatic bone-in presentation with a crust of funk and char. The meat melts in your mouth with an aroma of smoke. The beef entreé came with sides: a squash custard (pickly) and beeswax potatoes (savory). Also a bearnaise sauce sprinkled with edible flowers. The squash tempura was a treat: served on a wire mesh, each piece was crisp and flavorful. The service was especially attentive during the opening days for the restaurant. Our server answered questions about the food, which was helpful to understand all the pickling, fermenting, etc. going on

Excellent quality ingredients sourced locally, with a masterful presentation of each dish brought to the table from the open-concept kitchen. Small portions, thoughtfully crafted cocktails, excellent ambiance for date nights or gatherings of friends, and superb customer service. I would highly recommend and return!

Isidore, is absolutely amazing. The restaurant is breathtaking and all aspects. The food was spectacular. Just wonderful in every which way I felt like I was eating at a Michelin star restaurant and if they're not one, they definitely need to be one I would not only just highly recommend this place I will be returning myself. The food was on point probably some of the best food I've had in San Antonio in a long time their customer service was better than I could've ever asked for it was top-notch and beyond any expectation. They definitely exceeded it with flying colors. If you've never heard of this restaurant look into it went to a long time ago. Come back check it out. Tell me what you think I would love to hear your feedback. I highly recommend this restaurant now this restaurant is officially one of my top restaurants to visit in San Antonio but don't take my word for it. Come check it out yourself. Give me your opinion.

Stopped by for Drinks. Try the lemon drop Martini. It was nice and relaxing space to chill with a friend