Zut Tavern

This is a downcheck. It’s been under new management for the past few months. The menu is different, and by different I mean worse. Fewer choices, less interesting food, smaller portions and higher prices. On the other hand, the location is excellent and the space is very pretty, so, three stars.

My friend and I decided to check out 4^th Street and Zut looked like a cute place to have dinner. The inside is nice and intimate — good place for a classy date. There’s not much on the menu so maybe not the best place for a picky eater. We shared the brussels sprouts and I ordered the wild mushroom risotto. The food was good but I honestly think it’s a bit overpriced for what you get.

I’d say overall everything was about 4.5 average. Honestly, I was a little nervous after reading some not so great reviews about new Zut Tavern. I really liked Zut! (miss the hummus with eggplant and pita bread platter but hey, it’s their restaurant now) but glad we came here to give the new owners a try because last night, dinner for two, with generous tip tax etc was $ 120 and we had a really good time. Had wine, Manhattan, beer, pizza, soup, brussel sprouts, risotto, coffee, bread pudding. Not bad at all. Service was efficient from hostess to server. Water was replenished. Friendly and professional without being overbearing.
Wine (cabernet $ 15) was smooth but didn’t have a full personality or flavor but still good. Manhattan ($ 11) was a bit too sweet and syrupy but still decent and strong. The special cauliflower soup ($ 6?)was delicious with the peppery infused oil drizzled on top (gets ya in the back of the throat). Bread pudding with vanilla bean ice cream ($ 9) was very good. Coffee was a very good dark roast. Mushroom risotto ($ 18?) was very good but didn’t prefer the squash that was in there. My absolute favorites were the brussel sprouts! Absolutely heavenly, perfectly cooked with crispy bacon. I’m drooling all over again. Yum! I was already pretty full by the time the pancetta pizza arrived but when I took a bite, I loved it so much that I finished an entire slice. We’ll definitely be back! Speaking of which, I’m going to end this review now so I can engorge myself with leftover pizza! Whoo hoo!

I really don’t know what to say… the experience and food was amazing!!!
We booked through opentable, received a window seat which was awesome. My girlfriend was a bit cold so they turned on the heater for her (they seem to pay attention to detail immediately) The crunchy brussel sprouts are to die for! I normally don’t like octopus dishes, had a small piece from my girlfriends dish and became an instant fan! I myself ordered half chicken meal, oysters and soup (delicious). Their dishes are to die for, AMAZINGLY delicious! Highly recommend this place with their attentive staff and awesome atmosphere.

My weekend brunch stop. Real hash, real burgers, and real cocktails served up my the GM, Calvin or the lovely, Kaylei. The Roast Chicken is well worth the price, with plenty leftovers to take home.

We liked the Old Zut so much better; sad that it’s gone. it was a great place for lunch. We had gone to this new Zut once, shortly after it changed hands. Can’t really remember what we had, but remember we were disappointed. The waiter (Orville, we knew him from Old Zut) told us that they didn’t have brussels sprouts, a previous favorite of ours and pretty much everyone else’s, because «they are out of season» (more on that later), and they had no pizzas. But Orville told us that brussels sprouts and pizza would be back, so we decided to wait a while and try it again. We did still love the restaurant physically, and have since it was Fourth Street Grill, then Ginger Island, then Eccolo, then Old Zut. It’s a lovely space and a nice setting, and the sidewalk tables are great in warm weather.
So this week we went back for lunch. First thing, no Orville. He had told us that the new management was keeping the old servers, but not for long, apparently. We didn’t see anyone familiar. The new staff was fine, though. Brussels sprouts were back on the menu, so we ordered those. I wanted to try the highly touted (formerly $ 17, now $ 16) hamburger, and my wife had the chicken pot pie. The brussels sprouts arrived, and again disappointment. They looked pretty good, though missing the cheesecloth-​wrapped lemon from Old Zut. But they were overcooked and mushy, and had an oddly sweet sauce which also made the bacon bits limp. The hamburger arrived, again with a nice presentation, especially the fries in a silver cone, but when I looked a little closer, the tomato slice was pale pink and hard (remember the «out of season» remark?). There was no aioli or other special dip or sauce for the burger, just Heinz catsup. And the meat, which I had ordered medium rare, was more like medium well, and not specially tasty. The bun was also too soft, the fries on top of the cone were OK but further down in they became shorter and shorter. In every way inferior to the Old Zut hamburger. The chicken pot pie again had a very nice presentation, with a golden crust draped over the bowl. However, that crust was tasteless, chewy like cardboard on the golden part, and gooey and underdone beneath. The pot pie itself had a decent flavor, but was notable for its high potato to chicken ratio.
Overall, 5 stars for the ambience, 4 for the service, and maybe 1.5 for the food. WE WANT THE OLD ZUT BACK!!!

I know some of the reviews shortly after the new ownership were mixed, so I waited a bit before popping in for lunch with a friend. There was a sizable pre-​holiday lunch crowd and they seemed to be firing on all cylinders.
We split the hamachi crudo appetizer and it was amazingly good — avocado crème, citrus, fennel, caviar and onion what a flavor blast and great combination of textures. My lox sandwich with aioli and arugula on buttery perfect toasted bread was also excellent. My friend’s lunch salad was also excellent, refreshing combo of greens and beautiful to look at.
I also have to say our server, I don’t recall his name, was super great — warm, prompt, knowledgeable and gracious.
Looking forward to my next visit.

Not too sure what to think of this place. It was very nice and the small plates were tasty but the atmosphere was odd to me. The cocktails were a very good plus though I’ll have to say.

Not great at all. The mushroom and choice omelet was uninspired and lacked flavor. The potatoes that came with it were tasteless. My friend got a pizza that was just so-​so. Def not worth the $ 42 before tip. and we didn’t even get drinks. Would not return tho the waitress and the décor were nice. Saving grace. But mediocre overpriced food

We went here Christmas Eve for a warm, cozy dinner. Well — forget the warm and cozy. It was freezing and there was no heat. We all ate with our coats and scarves bundled up to our ears. While the food and service was good, it was not comfortable and once the food was on the table it was quickly cold. I felt that there should have been an acknowledgment and a comp. We have been here many times in the past but we were very disappointed and probably won’t be back even if they do get the heat turned back on.

I love how they have seasonal foods! I ordered hamachi appetizer, chicken entrée and mint lemonade. My friend ordered the salmon entrée and ginger beer (Cock and Bull). The dishes were beautifully presented and tasted fresh.
The servers were very attentive! Since I couldn’t finish my half chicken (good thing I didn’t order the whole chicken), I requested a box. The server whipped one from his back. He knew what I wanted. :P
Also, the check came out inside an old book. A cute unique touch.

Great place for brunch. The menu hits lots of sweet spots for what you might want to have for a midday weekend meal. I’ve been here for brunch several times now and the service is always smooth and helpful.

I must have ordered the wrong item, because the carbonara I tried was just the worst. It didn’t seem to have any creamy egginess or pancetta flavor. In fact, it had NO flavor at all. The brussels sprouts were good, but the rest of the menu seemed rather noncohesive.
There were also about five or six black flies that surrounded us throughout the entire meal. No bueno!
The second star goes to our server who graciously removed the $ 18(!) carbonara from our bill.
It’s simple to make at home, but if you are craving some Italian nonna-​style carbonara, get it from Luca Cucina on San Pablo instead.

Reluctantly went here again to try their updated menu and they absolutely BUTCHERED the reputation of their mushroom risotto. We ordered 3 for our group of 8. Too much wine, and risotto was undercooked. So so disappointed that we didn’t bother making the kitchen refix it.
Ordered their cocolli and I asked to make sure it was the one with buratta cheese. The waiter said yes. We ordered 4. Though it wasn’t overly oily like last time, it came out with grated parmesan which changed the dish entirely.
A personal message to Zut Tavern: HIRE YOUR PREVIOUS CHEF!!! You were once such an amazing place for foodies but you have honestly killed the once amazing reputation of Zut.

Have been here twice since the new Owners took over.
Once for lunch in the sunshine, outside, great service.
Salad Nicoise and Pizza, 2 glasses of wine. LOVELY
Just went on Halloween at 2:30pm while kids were trick or treating along 4^th street. Was prepared for the worst because it was chaotic outside, but it was great. Who knew they have a happy hour menu from 2:30pm to 5pm. Limited items but what we had was good and the happy hour white was perfect for a hot and crazy afternoon.
We left happy and will be back.

The line at Bette’s was so long so we ended up here. Hmmmm, no line, no reason? Here’s why, Zut is kaput!!!
First off, it took a while for the spoon to arrive for my soup. But the soup was an insult to that spoon because it was saltier than the Dead Sea!!! Second, the beet salad, there was barely nothing there, it didn’t even fill half of the plate, and the beets were burned! My friend’s Salad Nicoise was ok, nothing like what she had at Bette’s recently. The dessert was actually pretty decent, it was the only thing good of the whole experience.
The waitress was nice but it seemed she was running around ragged.
Will we come back? Probably not…

Appetizers: octopus & beets are both fantastic. Timing at your desire. No pressure. Please enjoy the Deck Chair cocktail.

Poked my head in here to see if they still had the pork belly on the new menu (it’s seasonal, so they currently don’t…sadness!) but instead got suckered into the duck confit poutine. Props to the hostess as well as my waitress Pam, for making me feel so welcome at Zut even in all my haggard, post-​run, yes-I’m-going-to-keep-my-hoodie-on-indoors-because-everything-hurts-and-i-just-want-to-curl-up-and-sleep-but-friesssss! glory. =]
Service here is great! Not only was Pam super sweet in making sure I was comfortable («If you’re cold I can close the patio doors for you?»), she was also very attentive the whole time I was there. The girls at the table next to me had some trouble narrowing down their wine choices and Pam was happy to supply them with small tastes of each, which I thought was awesome.
Poutine was fabulous! The portion of duck meat was astounding and the egg on top was perfectly poached. The fries were fried just shy of too crispy in order to hold up to all the delicious duck gravy. Even though this dish was listed under «small plates», this definitely was more of a full on dinner entrée size for me.
Can’t wait to come back and try out the rest of the menu!

I used to frequent this place when it was just Zut! (previous incarnation) and really liked it.
This is my third time back since the new owners took over. I was very disappointed the first two times, and I’m glad I gave it another try. Looks like they’re finally getting their act together. The roast chicken which was one of my favorite dishes under old management is much improved. I asked the kitchen about it and they said they now brine it with with lots of herbs and I can taste the difference, it’s more complex, juicy and not just salty. The salads have also improved and the pizza is pretty decent but they still need to work on combination of ingredients and I’d like a little thinner crust. Oh, the zucchini pancakes were really good!

This could have been an easy 5 stars had our server, Louise (that’s what the check said), been attentive and knowledgable. There were many things I would have changed. Including telling Meg and I that their salads were larger enough to share… It was a tomato strawberry salad. There was probably 6 cherry tomatoes and two strawberries. I could have ate 3 plates alone.
I hate being harsh but I expect a certain type of service. Everyone is different but you should be knowledgable as a server and never suggest your guests get less food if the portions are extremely tiny. It’s also important to check on your guests multiple times.
But, with all that said, the food was great, simple and small. But good. I just wished it had more flavor. $ 36 for a Bloody Mary, a simple pizza and a tomato salad… Eh.