Wolfsbane snacks/amuse bouche. Photo by Virginia Miller. These two new tasting menu restaurants are already playing for keeps, the kind of places that would fit right in on 50 Best or Michelin lists. They also are my number one and number two new restaurants of 2025, respectively. My full top 12 restaurants and bars here. Wolfsbane Is Immediately Firing On… Read more →
From an affordable Michelin-starred to top Korean, private dinner parties to fish and game perfection, these five restaurants exemplify why SF remains a wonderland of upscale innovation that is simultaneously soulfully delicious: Read more →
Reviewed in this article:
—Cuban Rooftop Party: Cubita, Mission
—Tiny Gem Turns 10 with Steal of a $52 4-Course Menu: Trestle, North Beach
—Tyler Florence’s OG Restaurant Reborn After 14 Years: Wayfare Tavern, FiDi
—Longing for More at Modern Ethiopian-Dominican Meski, TenderNob
—Modern German Beer Hall with a View: Radhaus, Fort Mason
—New Vietnamese Coffee and Bánh Mì Go-To: Angiday, Upper Haight
—Don’t Go Out of Your Way But Fun Finger Foods: Bar Darling, Marina Read more →
Large portions. Midwest comfort food with California freshness. A badass playlist from a co-owner who doubles as DJ. A cozy, packed neighborhood spot that has drawn crowds since it opened. This is husband-wife Caroline and Parker Brown’s new Side A in the beloved (for 27 years!) Universal Café space in San Francisco’s Mission district. And it is special: Read more →
Reviewed in this article:
— Modern Lebanese and Levantine Pop-up at Buddy: Ilna
— New Neighborhood Spot Ideal for Groups & Families: Fifty Vara
— Cocktails & Bites with Seafaring Touch: Bar Maritime
— Persian Mexican Lounge: Movida
— Japanese Hot Pot Lunch Go-To: Potto
— SF Chron’s #3 Keeps On Wow-ing: Rich Table
— Two Top Female Chefs Keep This 32-Year-Old Shining: Boulevard
— Killing It With Bold Veggie Dishes: The Progress
— The Farm-to-Table Legend Since 1971: Chez Panisse Read more →
Reviewed in this article:
—Modern Afghani Gamechanger: Jaji, Oakland
—Next-Level Sports Bar (and I’m Not into sports): Splash
—Ferry Building’s Latest Delights: Lunette, El Porteno, Ocean Malasadas
—Honduran-Yucatecan Heartwarmer: Catrachita Yucateca
—Glitzy Korean Steakhouse: AB Steak
—New Vegetarian Dishes Delight: Tiya
—14 & (Still) Fabulous: State Bird Provisions
—Tiny Cajun & Creole Go-to on The Hill: Po’Boy’s Kitchen Read more →
Portlandia references may be old news, but I can’t help but hear the show’s Dream of the 90’s song in my head when I return to these two great restaurants — Gary Danko and Boulevard — that have been showing San Francisco how it’s done since the 1990s. Here’s multiple reasons why they’re still relevant. Read more →
Change is hard, especially when a beloved restaurant, Gozu, morphs into something entirely new: The Wild, starting September 2024. Read more →
Raving about Merchant Roots’ wildly-changing, eight-seat dinners since chef Ryan Shelton launched the first themed menu in January 2019, I’ve felt this magical team and concept should have a Michelin star and more, though they are Michelin-recommended, thankfully. But it’s a whole “new bag” for the clever restaurant as they’ve just moved to a far larger, 4,500-square-foot space in SoMa, debuting August 23, 2024: Read more →
IN THIS ARTICLE:
—At 10 Years, Better-Than-Ever Neighborhood Gem: Causwells, Marina
—House of Prime Rib Pop-Up Tribute: Primebird at Nightbird, Hayes Valley
—Uber-Reasonable Prix Fixe Tasting Menus: Foliage, Precita Park
—Classic French & Classic Cocktails: Le Parc BistroBar, FiDi
—Spritzes, Pizza and Pasta: Fiorella Noe Valley Read more →