Where to eat with your family in San Francisco

Whether you’re going out with your own kids, friends with kids or taking out local niece and nephews as I do, you don’t want to compromise what you eat. And you shouldn’t ever have to in San Francisco.

There is no end to the wealth of food education one can casually participate in with children while eating heartwarming, fun meals. Covering a range of cuisines from Korean to Cajun — across neighborhoods — here are eight places you may not initially think of as kid-friendly: Read more →

August 15, 2023

THIS ISSUE:
— Little Shucker: Sunny, chic New oyster bar with low-ABV cocktails & irresistible seafood opening today.
— From Sushi to Gelato, Fresh Pastas Shop to Seafood Outpost Near the Ocean: 6 new SF food standouts.
— El Mil Amores: All-day brunch at this female owned Mexican breakfast newcomer.
— 10 Top Las Vegas Bars Now: My Distiller Magazine guide to top Vegas cocktails bars.
— Top 7 Tastes at Outside Lands 2023: Food and cocktails we’re ready to order again and can get year-round. Read more →

Top 7 Tastes at Outside Lands 2023: Food and cocktails we’re ready to order again

At last year’s August 2022 Outside Lands, I wrote about the festival’s top 7 eats, five of which were back — and still great — this year, and still available locally year-round. August 11-13 impressively marked OL’s 15th anniversary, the largest independently owned music festival in the US…

From a rousing Foo Fighters show (with surprise guest Michael Bublé popping up out of the audience), to an equally spirited Janelle Monáe set, the musical lineup was varied and diverse. So was the food and drink, with highlights here, which we can order year-round locally: Read more →

Sunny, Chic New Oyster Bar with Low-ABV Cocktails & Irresistible Seafood Opening Today: Little Shucker

San Francisco is blessed with iconic oyster bars, from the one, the only Swan Oyster Depot for over a century, to the Castro’s great Anchor Oyster Bar since the 1970s. As the city that gave birth to the likes of cioppino and Crab Louie salad, these oyster houses are decidedly West Coast, often showcasing our glorious local oysters and dungeness crab. But we don’t have one like brand new Little Shucker, opening August 9, 2023, on bustling Fillmore Street. Read more →

August 1, 2023

THIS ISSUE:
— Noodle in a Haystack: Ramen-inspired tasting menu from self-taught chefs.
— Portugal’s Dining & Lodging Scene Now: And chef José Avillez’ new Casa Nossa retreat, in my VOICES magazine feature
— Che Fico is a Restaurant Reborn Post-Pandemic: They also still serve unique pastas & one of the ultimate, much-copied pineapple pizza
— New Orleans Bar Guide: My latest 10 top Nola bars guide in Gin Magazine
— Interview with Lost Spirits’ founders Bryan Davis & Joanne Haruta & distiller Mary Dempsey: My interviews with the Jammyland Bar Team in Las Vegas
Read more →

Noodle in a Haystack: Ramen-inspired tasting menu from self-taught chefs

When international fellow dining judge friends are asking me about tiny Noodle In A Haystack in my city of San Francisco, I pay attention. I was already curious but skeptical about the pricey ($185 extended menu, $130 weeknight menu) cult ramen pop-up, opened by husband-wife duo Yoko and Clint Tan in spring 2022 as their first brick-and-mortar. It’s looks abandoned: an unmarked corner space with covered-up windows and a 10-seat counter in the Inner Richmond… Read more →