Wolfsbane snacks/amuse bouche. Photo by Virginia Miller. It’s that time of year again: sifting through the hundreds of new SF Bay Area restaurants and bars I visited this year, among hundreds more internationally and across the U.S. Here are the newcomers that stand out most, opened between November 2024 and December 2025. The previous year’s top openings are here, notably… Read more →
Fu Hui Hua tangyuan. Photo by Virginia Miller. Along with Eater and the SF Chronicle, I’d rather not name eight-to-nine-seat restaurant Fù Huì Huá as the best of the year because it’s already impossible to get in. But it is one of the best anywhere… and there is no Chinese restaurant like it on the continent. Thus, it’s on my… Read more →
Flour+Water crudo. Photos by Virginia Miller.. With a little under 40,000 Italian population in San Francisco alone, we’re home to one of the stronger Italian demographics in California. Our rich Italian immigrant history since the 1800s (no surprise) has left a permanent mark on our food and drink, from our wine regions and grape varieties, to Italian-immigrant-created local dishes like… Read more →
SPQR corn panna cotta. Photo by Virginia Miller. With a little under 40,000 Italian population in San Francisco alone, we’re home to one of the stronger Italian demographics in California. Our rich Italian immigrant history since the 1800s (no surprise) has left a permanent mark on our food and drink, from our wine regions and grape varieties, to Italian-immigrant-created local… Read more →
Published in the Fall 2025 print issue of Distiller Magazine: New York City’s Top 10 Bars Read more →
Reviewed this issue:
— Veso Aperitifs Anchovy Vermouth
— Stranahan’s Snowflake American Single Malt Whiskey
— Sonrisa Puerto Rican Rum Oro Especial
— James Gin American Mustard Gin
— Two Stacks Double Irish Cream Liqueur
— SPYRT Worldwide Ukrainian Vodkas
— Smokehead 15 Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky
— Fuji Japanese Whisky
… and more Read more →
Shuggie’s front dining room. Photo by Virginia Miller. Truthfully, San Francisco never stopped being fun, but these four restaurants are next-level. Two are brand new, one is recently remodeled and reborn, the other opened January 2025. All are whimsical, even funky, sometimes brazenly colorful and daringly flavorful. Chicken Fried Palace. Photo by Virginia Miller. If Waffle House Were Gourmet: Chicken… Read more →
Bogota view. Photo by Virginia Miller. In 2018 was my first visit to Bogota, Columbia, an exciting melange of Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants awards, a deep dive into then up-and-coming restaurants like the great Leo and then brand-new El Chato (see my current review below). I wrote about Bogota’s burgeoning cocktail bar scene for Gin Magazine. I wrote dining/food… Read more →
In the Fall 2025 print issue of Distiller Magazine:
—My interview with Forthave Spirits’ Aaron Sing Fox and Daniel de la Nuez, Brooklyn’s James Beard–nominated distillery
—My interview with Iain Griffiths of Bar Snack, NYC Read more →
Reviewed this issue:
— Montara California Sparkling Verjus
— Liquoreria Friulana Vermut Opificium
— Second Sip Gin
— Westland American Single Malt Garryana Edition 10
— Sausalito Liquor Co. Unsinkable Chocolate Liqueur
— Buchanan’s Green Seal Blended Scotch Whisky
… and more Read more →