Low at the Great American Music Hall.
Steven has loved the band Low (chairkickers.com) for many years, and we've been lucky enough to see them play live in SF many times. On Wednesday, they played at the Great American Music Hall (gamh.com) in support of their new album. I had some doubts about their new album, which contains a bunch of electronic sounds that I found distracting. But all of their concerts have been amazingly good, and the shows are interesting to watch just because the fans are so... reverent. Low plays really quiet, slow music, which is intense (emotive) rock, and the fans become so completely silent during shows to hear every little beat of a brush on the drums... The audience becomes quieter than most folks in church, except for thunderous cheering at the ends of the songs. It's something to experience, a novel bonus to the great music.We went to see them on their second night in town, and decided to have dinner at the show. The GAMH has a full kitchen, and a sample menu is posted on line. The nearest restaurant that we really love is the fabulous pan-Asian (mostly Vietnamese-style) vegan restaurant Golden Era (goldeneravegetarian.com), but we were in a time crunch, and so decided to eat at the hall. They have "dinner tickets" available, where you receive priority seating at tables they set aside for you, though in this instance those tables were mixed in with others on the main floor, and so it clearly wasn't worth paying a premium for: the tables were reserved if you showed up late, however.
We sat at a good table and ordered. Steven ordered the veggie quesadilla, which was large and came with salsa, guacamole, and (I think) sour cream. I was feeling vegan, so I ordered the crispy tofu over curry noodle dish (which was on the day's special menu, but not on the web). It was a bowl of tender rice noodles and steamed or simmered veggies in a very mild coconut milk curry, topped with fresh herbs. It was tasty (despite being mild enough for my most spice-sensitive friends) and had a good texture. I didn't realize until I was nearly finished that there was no crispy tofu anywhere in the dish: the kitchen had forgotten it. Which is a shame, because it was a $16 "large plate," and the lack of tofu made that price seem even less appropriate.
Our meal was satisfying, and the wait staff were just attentive enough, but it seemed pricey for what it was. It was of respectable quality, and I was happy to find a vegan option on the menu. I would consider eating there again, but I would think of the prices as a premium for good seats more than for the food itself.
Low sounded GREAT, the audience loved them, and they played two encores.
Labels: club food
posted by Arlene (Beth)10:00 PM
