I’ve had 4 or 5 great meals here, and the latest was another great dinner. A big birthday party allowed the whole table to try 10 or 11 different dishes, including several appetizers and even more entrees. Although the plates are small, the execution is nearly impeccable.

Common dishes like shaking beef and claypot cod are among the best preparations I’ve had. More fusion-y dishes like the sea bass and lamb chops are equally successful and delicious.

The way to go is to split a lot of dishes, and don’t feel too guilty about the prices.

Aside from a short wait for a reservation, everything was great at Evvia – my 2nd time eating here. The service was smooth, friendly, but completely unintrusive. I really wonder why more servers can’t be as effective and genuine as ours. The space is large yet cramped because they pack people in, but I can see why people keep coming.

The lamb chops are recommended for very good reason. They are simply prepared yet full of flavor, especially with a spritz of lemon juice. The beef souvlaki also has a delicious pilaf of rice and farro, which adds a chewier texture to the side. Both meats were so good, yet they could have been even better. 2 of my 4 lamb chops, and half of the beef chunks were closer to medium than the medium rare we ordered. Is it really that hard for a long-tenured restaurant like this to cook meat to medium-rare? That takes Evvia from 5 stars to only 4.

Appetizers – I’ve had several good ones before, and this time tried some phyllo stuffed with cheese and various vegetables. Light and crispy, the phyllo went very well with the creamy cheese.

Dessert was a delicious honey pastry (more phyllo!) with vanilla and semolina custard and pistachio ice cream. Everything worked so well together, with the hot custard inside contrasting nicely with the cool ice cream, and the honey complementing the crunchy pistachios sprinkled around the plate.

Range has been earning raves from most publications and websites I read and everyone I know who’s eaten there. I would have raved, too, but my meal a couple weeks ago suffered from a major problem – too much SALT.

As in, both entrees I tried were salty to the point of ruining some finely crisped pieces of chicken skin! And going again and again for water is annoying, too. It’s like there were brief windows where you could taste the flavors underneath, but overall, you kept coming back to … SALT! That being said, the roasted chicken is juicy and fresh, the deconstructed “stuffing” on the outside was delicious with the chicken. The halibut sat on a very rich sauce, which in addition to being too salty, also kind of overpowered the fish.

Both appetizers were better balanced – green tomato soup and little gem salad. I appreciate the idea of the salad, using fresh little gem lettuce as a base for toasted almonds and fresh nectarines. But why only slivers of almonds? Surely, a salad deserves more than a couple almonds.

The chocolate souffle was one of the better souffles I’ve had in SF. Not too sweet, not too cakey. Just fluffy enough, and a rather generous portion.

Foreign Cinema is often touted just for its scene – a lively bar, the outdoor seating under the light of a foreign film, and a giant dining hall bustling with tables small and large. Tonight (and for several more weeks), the film is Ang Lee’s The Wedding Banquet. On this Monday night, perhaps the scene takes a backseat to the food. As packed as the restaurant was, it felt more like a typical popular restaurant that happened to be playing a movie outside.

Overall I’d say Foreign Cinema is worth the trip. The food was solid if unspectacular, but the place is gorgeous, and the service is efficient and superior to several restaurants at this price level. One note: the restaurant seems to skimp on some of the cheapest ingredients, e.g. crostini w/ appetizers and potatoes w/ entrees.

Appetizers – I started with a baked cheese, described as a milder version of Brie. As baked cheeses go, this was a simpler preparation, i.e. no tart or cooked vegetables really, just some fresh veggies on the side and some crostini. The cheese was tasty and a generous size.

I also tried a friend’s brandade, basically a salted cod paste. This was very good, and it that had more chunks of fish than usual, which I actually prefer. The portion was really small even by SF standards – I’ve had similar appetizers at similar class restaurants that had 2-3 times the fish.

Entrees – my salmon was delicately cooked and a nice medium. The plate overall was pretty spare, though – a few green beans and slivers of potato. A satisfying preparation, but I’ve had better and more generous dishes at other places.

My friend’s halibut had much tastier and much more accompaniments – braised artichokes and risotto. The halibut itself was pretty bland.

Desserts – tried fig tart, chocolate cake and ginger cake. All were pretty good and decent finishes to the meal. The chocolate cake in particular was rich and generous for $7.