Nuea yang nam tok ($9), or grilled beef salad, the best starter sampled, is a less assertive, but very agreeable amalgam of tender beef slivers atop red onions, scallions and roasted rice with but a hint of mint.
Superior starters sampled included a kani salad ($4), with crab meat, julienne cucumbers and carrots, tobiko and mayonnaise; a feathery marinated seaweed salad ($3.50); scallop Kushiyaki ($6 , a couple of skewers of broiled morsels napped in a tasty teriyaki sauce; and shumai ($4.50), eight delicate shrimp- and vegetable-stuffed dumplings.
They conduct sneaky interviews to make sure they find true self-starters (sample question: "Describe a great day at the office") and place potential hires in two- or three-month trial postings.
Nearly all the starters we sampled were rich in texture and taste.
Most of the starters I sampled, including asparagus in a mousseline sauce and lobster bisque, were appealing, though few commanded rapt attention and a couple were letdowns.
Other starters we sampled were escargots, dripping in melted butter, shaved parmesan, garlic and herbs; cumin-rubbed tuna sashimi, brought to life by the spice; and dark-gold deep-fried Dungeness crab cakes, with an herb remoulade.
For starters, I sampled lobster bisque with a fair amount of nearly raw lobster in it, and that special crab-gut flavor, nicely done, and an ultra-creamy soup of Jerusalem artichokes.
Other starters worth sampling were that eggplant mix ($6) with its smoky, lingering aftertaste; the simple, true flavors of the four freshly made spreads on the sampler plate ($9); an equally commendable hot mezze selection ($9) featuring crisp calamari and an earthy lamb kebab; and a special of Greek sausage slivers atop tiny clams in a heady, white wine garlic-sauce.
For starters, the sample size was small and the volunteers had certain qualities in common: They were willing to submit surveys on their mental health and were relatively active on social media.
