The Resy Hit List: Where In San Francisco You’ll Want to Eat Right Now

From the team behind beloved neighborhood bistro The Morris comes this new seafood-focused restaurant that opened at the end of January. It’s located in the old sister restaurant space, and lucky for us, chef Gavin Schmidt kept the pizza oven. Here, he’s using it to try his hand at live-fire cooking on things like whole petrale sole roasted until flaky and crispy skinned and charred Savoy cabbage tossed in an xo vinaigrette. Schmidt also does a seafood charcuterie program, which features things like plump shrimp chorizo and duck and lobster mortadella. However, not everything comes from the sea at Sirene: there’s a big focus on fried chicken, which you’ll want to get with all the fixin’s — a total of six sides and sauces like andouille gravy and octopus kimchi.

Kayla Abe and David Murphy’s oh-so-colorful Shuggie’s is a party in the front AND the back. The dual-roomed space — a vibrantly yellow front room and bar and a glittering green back room — provide ample opportunity for group dining, and if you’re lucky, you’ll get a visit from their friendly bulldog Beef. But just what is Trash Pie, exactly? Abe and Murphy make sustainably-minded pizzas with products that would normally go to waste, like their grandma-style pie with dough made from spent oats (usually discarded after producing oat milk), baked thin and crispy, and topped with bruised squash and mushroom stems. This is a restaurant with a mission.

Here’s the thing about creative Californian fare at Rich Table: it’s always consistent, and it consistently hits hard. The Hayes Valley stalwart is heading into its 13th year in operation, and it’s still firing like it just opened. Our favorite seats are the ones at the bar closet to the kitchen, where you’ll find chef/owner Evan Rich or the very talented CDC Gizela Ho either on expo orchestrating orders or on the line plating up pastas. You could just come in for a couple quick bites — menu mainstays like the sardine chips and porcini doughnuts are San Francisco classics that shouldn’t be missed. But really the move is to go with the chefs’ picks: Forgo control, and — you might be sensing a theme — let them choose your adventure for you.

SPQR is an acronym for Senatus Populusque Romanus, which translates to “The People and Senate of Rome.” It’s also the name of Matthew Accarrino’s contemporary NorCal-Italian restaurant, which has been a staple on Fillmore for nearly 20 (!!) years. As always, you can go à la carte and construct your own meal of spuntini and creative antipasti to start, before getting into housemade pasta and meaty mains. Or, if you don’t want to make decisions, just go with with the four-course $99 menu, which remains a true San Francisco treat. Pro tip: Wednesday and Thursday brings a five-course pasta tasting menu, aka heaven. Think squid ink ditalini with clam and mussel puttanesca, or guinea hen triangoli with Madeira braised mushrooms. Another pro tip: Get the wine pairings, drawn from the restaurant’s esoteric and awesome options.

Is the natural wine haven Snail Bar the best bar in America? It certainly is one of them, according to Esquire’s 2022 list. But it’s also a very, very good place to eat. That’s because it’s chef/owner/oenophile Andres Giraldo Florez has worked in some of the very best kitchens around the world, including the avant-garde Mugartiz in Spain as well as Saison right here in San Francisco. What he’s done is taken all the finesse and attention to detail and applied that to all the food on his menu in a very casual very cool setting in Oakland’s Temescal. The menu chalkboard menu changes multiple times per week (the snails are a mainstay, of course), and he often brings in talented chefs from around the globe to collaborate on the menu. What a special spot.

Bombera, the charming Mexican restaurant by Chez Panisse alum Dominica Rice Cisneros, is housed in an old fire station, which is fitting because the food is fire (sorry, we had to). In all seriousness, the restaurant is aptly named (“bombera” translates to female firefighter in Spanish), and the food features flair and soul. The pozole verde recipe comes from her aunt and features an intense chicken broth fortified with corn. Duck carnitas using Liberty Ducks from Sonoma are rich and crispy, a smart substitute for the usual pork product that’s typically used. It’s served with a green mole and is served with rice and beans and tortillas for you to make tacos with. Pair with some mezcal or a cocktail or two and you’ve got yourself a good ol’ time.

This Oakland stalwart is more than just a noodle shop. Expect plenty of small plates to snack on before you arrive at the main event, which might feature tempura fried maitake mushrooms with spicy corn mayo, pork and shrimp dumplings, and excellent pork fried rice. Ramen Shop comes from Chez Panisse alums who source so much of their product and produce from farmer’s markets nearby (you’ll quickly see how eating local can taste so good). Add to that incredibly thoughtful cocktails and highballs, and a secret private karaoke room in the back of the kitchen where you can dine and sing to your heart’s content.

If you haven’t been to the Swan Market in Old Oakland, now would be a very good time to revisit — there’s a new seafood stand, and it comes care of the mother-and-daughter duo Ofelia Barajas and Reyna Maldonado aka Las Guerreras. The La Cocina alums expanded to the back of the market, and the focus is now on the coastal cuisine from their native Guerrero. Sit at the counter, or if it’s nice outside there’s an enclosed patio out front. Sip on a michelada as the sun shines down and order some oysters, of course. Move to a zippy ceviche or a spicy aguachile verde filled with fresh bay scallops or blue shrimp (or go rogue and get both). You’d be remiss to miss the pescado a la talla, which features a big branzino butterflied and grilled before being painted with red and green salsas (it reminds of Contramar in Mexico City, if you know you know).

Find more info here.

At Besharam, La Cocina alum chef Heena Patel digs deep into regional Gujarati cuisine.  Gujarat, there are so many dishes that differ city to city — and even block to block — that each household effectively makes their own version, and at her restaurant, it’s no different. Besharam translates to “shameless,” and Patel fittingly does things her own way, presenting familiar dishes in novel ways. Take the dahi wada, for example. These dal fritters are typically soaked in yogurt so that they absorb the moisture, resulting in a sort of soft texture and bite. Patel instead serves hers thin and crispy and freshly fries them so that there’s textural delight. Go with the tasting menu, which is completely vegetarian, and a deal at $85 — and don’t miss lunch here, one of the best ways to enjoy midday in S.F.

It’s easy to walk down Mission street and totally miss Piglet & Co, chef Chris Yang’s two-year-old restaurant located in a former brewery. But, inside you’ll find a fun menu of powerfully delicious and comforting Asian fare inspired by Yang’s heritage and culinary experience. Yang was born-and-raised in The Bay, and his parents are Taiwanese immigrants; the creative menu reflects this. Exhibit A: the Honey Walnut Shrimp and Pork Toast, a dish inspired by two of Yang’s favorite dishes he ate growing up while going to Chinese restaurants in SF. It features shokupan topped with a breaded pork and shrimp patty with burnt honey mayo and ginger-scallion sauce. It’s sweet, savory, salty, and delicious—and that’s just one dish. Step in those doors to see what’s more.

There’s much to love about this high-energy, fun and funky Californian Jaliscan restaurant on Valencia St. Let’s start with the bar program, which features a slew of lesser available agave-based spirits like bacanora and raicilla, as well as a nice menu of highly quaffable natural wines. Pair your drinks with tacos, of course, and you should get as many as you can: the fried avocado taco has no business being so good, and the seared tuna taco as well as the taco tropical are non-negotiables, too. (Pro tip: tacos come in twos, but you can get half orders if you’re solo so you can try more things). But tacos are just the start — there’s so much more to explore on the sizable menu. Be sure to check the specials board, too.

Osito recently underwent a big redesign, and it’s better than ever. If you recall, the Michelin-starred live-fire restaurant from the very talented Seth Stoaway started off as a communal dining tasting menu, with one long table and a tasting menu. In Osito 2.0, there are separate tables and more options. Luckily, you can still do the classic tasting menu, but if you’re more pressed for time, you can go with an abbreviated four courses or go a la carte. No matter which you choose, you’ll eat incredibly well. Profiteroles cooked in the wood-fired oven with coppa and cultured butter is like the best ham and cheese you’ll ever have, while large-format claypot rice comes with shrimp, squid, and beef tongue, and can feed a small family. You can also sit at the redesigned bar and enjoy the a la carte menu along with a bevy of beverages.

San Franciscans are extremely lucky to have such a good drinking town, and those who live in The Mission are the luckiest of the bunch.  The 20th street corridor especially is remarkable. We have not one but two world class cocktail bars: the ever-changing Trick Dog of course, and the especially awesome True Laurel literally around the corner. Nicolas Torres’s cocktails rule: they’ve got the right balance of clever and quaffable (the clarified Mai O Mai is one of our favorite drinks in the world, his take on a clarified mai tai). The food rules, too. There’s the patty melt of course, and recently chef Nick Anichini (Ancora, Bar Crenn) took over the kitchen and is adding his fine-dining technique and flair to the menu in an approachable way (hello corn pancakes with caviar).

Find more info here.

Liholiho was part of the wave of wonderful heritage-driven restaurants that opened in the mid-aughts in San Francisco, along with places like Rintaro and Kin Khao. It’s hard to believe, but LYC just celebrated their 10-year anniversary. Time flies when you’re eating well. There’s nothing quite like Ravi Kapur’s restaurant, inspired by his mixed Hawaiian-Chinese-Indian heritage. Menu mainstays like tuna poke over nori crackers and fluffy poppyseed steam buns filled with beef tongue and kimchi still hit hard, while crispy swordfish katsu — a newcomer to the menu after their remodel a couple years ago — has become an instant hit and must-order. And of course, there’s the oh-so-‘grammable beautiful baked Hawaii for dessert.

The very vibey Moongate Lounge, the lunar-inspired listening lounge above Mister Jiu’s, is always an excellent time. The cocktail menu from Garrett Marks is inspired by the Chinese Lunar Calendar and the fruits, flowers, and spices that are dominant during the seasons. Drinks are divided between the ever-changing seasonal cocktails and house cocktails, like the sweet and creamy Major Cold, which features vodka, local coffee liqueur, Chinese black tea, and sweetened condensed milk — it’s almost like a frozen espresso martini. The citrusy and spicy Minor Snow features Tequila infused with málà spices, sweet tamarind, blood orange, and lime. Keep an eye on their calendar for fun events — last month they flew in ex-San Franciscan Danny Bowien for a fun and delicious night, and special guest DJs spin late into the night.

Find more info here.

Often imitated, never duplicated, Zuni is timeless, a San Franciscan institution. We could eat at Zuni every single day and be perfectly happy — its current chef, Anne Alvero, makes multiple runs to the farmers market and changes the menu daily with specials, which are nice to have while you wait for your iconic chicken to be roasted to order. (Yes, even if you think you’re not going to get the chicken, you’ll do so anyway.) Add some crispy shoestring French fries, some oysters, and a bottle of Burgundy, and take your time.

Find more info here.