Dine Again?
Why did we eat here? – Quipas is a restaurante de cocina peruana contemporánea ubicado in Lima, Peru. Not a big spot, about 12 tables and a bar counter. They serve lunch and dinner. This was our first dinner in Peru and a highly anticipated one that is rated at 4.9 on Google. (They do ask you to leave a review after you pay) A fellow foodie suggested we try this spot. We were trying to get the best of Peru, but without tasting menus.
Foodnut travels, eats, and tells! We’re based in San Francisco but have flown all over. We document our trip to Peru. Machu Picchu, Rainbow Mountain and a lot of eating in between. Lots of weird eats and unexpected new food finds.
Some American Express cards including their Platinum Card have $400 Resy Credit each year, $100 a quarter. There’s a lot of marginal spots on the list. What are the restaurants worth eating at in San Francisco?
We have been coming here for years to Boulevard San Francisco Restaurant near the Ferry Building in the Embarcadero waterfront area. It is one of our favorite places as it is pretty consistent.. Always a candidate for the short list of best restaurants. It earned One Michelin Stars last in 2015 and lost it after.
Why did we dine here? – Saam is the newest restaurant from chef Thitid Tassanakajohn of Thailand, this is his first venture in the United States after 18 years of cooking in Thailand.
Why did we dine here? – Rich Table is the work of Husband and wife Chefs Evan and Sarah Rich. (Bouley, Coi, Michael Mina) Pretty casual but full of middle aged well dressed foodies, this loud restaurant has a rustic, barn like setting. Our last visit was in Summer 2026 when we found them on the Chase Sapphire list! They also run RT Bistro next door.
Foodnut travels, eats, and tells! We’re based in San Francisco but have flown all over. We love Thai food and find some of the best in Thailand.
Why did we eat here? – We were staying at the Ritz Carlton Bangkok and had Free breakfast thanks to Chase Sapphire Reserved The Edit or Amex Platinum! It normally costs 1118 THB = USD$34, which is Very reasonable. This is not just a beautiful and great hotel, it is centrally located next to the One shopping mall. This mall has some great food options on floor B1 and 3rd floor.
Buffet Walk Through
Why did we dine here? – The Market is renoun to be one of the best Hotel Buffets in Hong Kong. Being big fans of luxury buffets and having ate at several over the years, it was next on our list.
Walk Thru Video:
One day in Hong Kong and we luckily picked a great dim sum restaurant!
This restaurant returned its original name: Lai Ching Heen – Signifying a homecoming, Yan Toh Heen got remodeled in 2022 and returns to its treasured original name, Lai Ching Heen after that. It started with that name back in 1984. Our latest visit was in summer 2026.
Why did we dine here? – Maria Isabel is the latest restaurant from the Laura and Sayat Ozyilmaz of Dalida Fame. Chef Laura’s family roots in Guerrero and Sinaloa allow her to purse this cuisine. We loved their other spot, so we had to give this new place a try. We gave the place about 2 months to dial in. This restaurant lives up to all the hype.
Acquerello Restaurant (which means “watercolor” in Italian) is an upscale Italian restaurant in the Polk Gulch Area of San Francisco, just off Van Ness. For over 20 years, they have been serving traditional dishes from all regions of Italy in a lighter, more contemporary style. Frankly, a lot of the dishes are more American or New American.
JouJou is a classic French restaurant from the folks behind Lazy Bear. We like Chef David Barzelay and his 2* spot and gave them a month to get dialed in before we dined. Rated 4.1 on Yelp, 4.3 on Google. Beautiful restaurant with multiple dining areas and large bar.
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Hodel’s Country Dining is a home style old school buffet that opened in 1967 and still packs locals in. We were passing through Bakersfield and had this on our bookmark list. The decor doesn’t look like it has changed much nor has the carpet or upholstery. They have several private rooms for Banquets and weekly meetings, which look very popular. Rated 4.4 on Google, 3.8 on Yelp.
Via Aurelia is a fine dining Italian Tuscan restaurant in the Mission Bay Area. The owners also run Che Fico. Via Aurelia takes its name from the historic road that traced Italy’s western coast to Rome. 4.4 on Yelp, 4.5 on Google
We had to try this hot spot. It was great to see how this neighborhood is taking shape. This restaurant is several months old and situated in a lovely spot. Lots of bar seating for those without reservations.
RT Bistro is the less formal bistro restaurant from the folks at Rich Table. Chef De cuisine Bill Wang. It is located Next door to Rich Table and is the less fine dining brother. This is a hard reservation right now, we show up 10 minutes before they opened (on a Friday) and walked in. This is a small restaurant with about a dozen tables hence the difficulty in getting a rez. The place is loud and filled with folks in the 30-50’s range. High 4.5 rating on Yelp and Google.
Won Kok Millbrae opened in November 2025 where Asian Pearl was last. Won Kok has had a location on Monterey Blvd in San Francisco for many years. This spot has updated decor from the previous restaurant along with a temporary wall to sub divide the room.
The menu is pretty straightforward old school traditional Cantonese dim sum. Not a lot of modern or cutesy dishes.
Why did we dine here? – Great Gold is popular Italian Pizza/Pasta restaurant in Truckee California with locally sourced ingredients. It is located away from downtown Truckee, in a strip mall. We’ve been to their sister French restaurant Tangerine Bistro (Which was okay) and decided to try this spot. The owner has worked for the Flour & Water restaurant group.
The Ahwahnee Hotel Restaurant in Yosemite is a must visit for new site-seers to Yosemite National Park. Steeped in tradition, this old dining hall brings you back to olden days.
Part of Koi Palace Empire.
Why did we dine here? – Dragon Beaux is a new restaurant from the folks who run our favorite Chinese restaurant, Koi Palace, Palette Tea garden, etc. This location is in the Outer Richmond district and focuses on Dim Sum during lunch and Hot Pot/Cantonese food at dinner. We came here when it first opened in 2015, and recently returned in the Spring of 2026.
Gnocchi and Salmon to die for. Stella formerly known as Stella Alpina Osteria is a small Italian restaurant located a block from the main Burlingame Avenue shopping area. Located below ground level, most people would never know it was here. The restaurant opened in May 2005, and was featured on PBS’ Check Please TV show. They moved to Burlingame Avenue into a much larger location. Our last visit was in Summer 2026.
Did you know the California state bird is a quail?
Why did we dine here? – State Bird Provisions has generated lots of positive buzz from reviewers to fellow food bloggers, with its excellent food and unique dim sum cart like serving system. 4.5 stars on Yelp, One Michelin star starting in 2014, James Beard award winning, you get it. Their sister restaurant next door is also fabulous, The Progress, which is more cutting edge and vegetable forward.
Best Vegan Bakery Ratings for Top Rated Cakes, Cupcakes, Pastries Etc in San Francisco Area
Blue Sky Cafe is a casual Hong Kong style Chinese eatery in the middle of an industrial park in Belmont. Weird location but very solid Cantonese Chinese food and a popular destination. If you appreciate this type of food, run here as there is nothing like it on the Peninsula. Everyone knows now, because the place is really busy on the weekend. Takeout on a Saturday night had a 2 hour delay, so order early for dinner, like at noon! Last visited in late 2026.
Joy, aka Joy’s Taiwan or 5 Joy Restaurant is a small restaurant in the Beach Park plaza strip mall bordering the San Francisco Bay in Foster City, just south of the Highway 92 San Mateo Bridge. A hidden gem in the middle of no where. The Thai restaurant in the same complex is also solid.
Top Notch Modern Hi-End Dim sum
Our goto Chinese Restaurant in San Francisco Area..
Why did we dine here? – HL Peninsula opened near Costco Business center of South San Francisco. This is a large and opulent restaurant that is typical of ones in China. High ceilings, huge TV screens, and many private rooms. (Reminds us of J Zhou in Tustin) There is no other place like this nearby. They are part of a restaurant group that has locations in Vancouver and China. Yes, China money is flowing in and we are benefiting from better restaurants.
Why did we dine here? – Harborview Restaurant is located in 4 Embarcadero Center, San Francisco. It takes the place of Crystal Jade, which spend $14 remodeling the space. This restaurant is run the founder of by the well established R & G Lounge Kinson Wong. Embarcadero underground garage parking validation available -> $2 parking on weekends.
Why did we dine here? – Nari (Women in Thai) is a contemporary Thai restaurant from the folks at Kin Khao. (Means “to eat” or “let’s eat” in Thai.) It is run by the famous food blogger of Chez Pim – Pim Techamuanvivit, girlfriend of Manresa’s chef David Kinch. Nari has One Michelin star.
Last Update: 2026
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Foodnut travels, eats, and tells! We’re based in San Francisco but have flown all over. We love Chinese food and find some of the best in Hong Kong.
Great choice for reasonably priced, solid dim sum in San Francisco.
Hong Kong Lounge is a popular Chinese Restaurant located in San Francisco’s Outer Richmond district that opened in late 2008. They serve dim sum at lunch time and are quite busy. Last meal was Summer 2026.
Why did we dine here? – Pho Ha Noi is a Vietnamese restaurant located in an outdoor mall Vietnam Town Plaza in San Jose. The area is full of high quality Asian restaurants and shops. Their pho is some of the top in the SF Bay Area. This restaurant also has a location in Cupertino and added Palo Alto in 2023.
Why did we dine here? – Four Kings is a Cantonese Chinese restaurant in San Francisco Chinatown. It is started by alumni Franky and Mike from nearby Michelin starred Mister Jius. Considering that this is one of our native cuisines, we just had to give it a try. The spot has also garnered extremely high reviews on Yelp. Last visit was in Early 2026.
Angler is a more casual seafood – meat restaurant from Three Michelin Star Saison’s Joshua Skenes. This restaurant has one Michelin Star of its own. Our last visit was in late 2025 for dinner. Without a reservation, we lined up before they opened. Seating at the bar is for walk ins but we lucked out and got a table.
Great Eastern Restaurant in San Francisco has been serving Cantonese Chinese food in this location for many years. They serve dim sum during lunch, dinner and traditional Chinese items during dinner. Great Eastern dim sum lunch was reviewed separately. President Obama dined here in February 2012, so did Tim Cook.
Dalida is a Modern Mediterranean Restaurant in San Francisco’s Presidio. Dalida gets its name from a few places. In Polish-Yiddish it means dahlia, the official flower of San Francisco, but its also chef’s mother’s name. The food is a little Turkish, a little Greek, Armenian, Jewish, Arabic and Persian. The couple also runs the Mexican Restaurant Maria Isabel. The chef Sayat Oyzilmaz worked at Blue Hill at Stone Barns and joined the Le Bernardin. He’s probably best known around SF in working at Noosh and leaving. (Yes we ate there when they were cooking) The food is geared towards eating family style.
Bourbon Steak has recently reappeared in the Westin Saint Francis. Deja Vu. We were last here about 15 years ago. Since then, prices have risen significantly. Steaks start at $70. it is Expensive, so let’s get that out of the way. The space is dark, clubby and loud with modern music.
First time in Texas and we had to get BBQ. Pinkerton’s BBQ has locations in Houston and San Antonio. It is one of the top spots on Yelp when we searched, plus it was not far from IAH airport.
Why did we dine here? – Arquet is a new restaurant from the team at one Michelin Star Sorrel. We were fans of Sorrel and chef Alex Hong, and had to give this newspot a try. It is located in the former Slanted Door location at the Ferry Building, right next to their bakery – Parachute. Arquet opened only 3 weeks before our first visit, so there were kinks definitely being worked out.
Must goto for SF vegans/vegetarians! Plant based cuisine satisfying even Carnivores.
Why did we dine here? – Shizen Vegan Sushi Bar & Izakaya has remarkable 4.5 stars on Yelp. With the plant based revolution booming, we just had to try this spot. We’ve returned a couple times.. Must go for vegans and vegetarians. They started offering takeout during the pandemic.
Why did we dine here? – Din Tai Fung is a popular Xiao Long Bao (It means small bamboo steamer bun in Chinese) – Shanghai Steamed Soup dumpling restaurant with locations in Bellevue, Seattle, Southern California, Taiwan, Japan, China, Indonesia, Macau, Singapore, and several other countries. Few Chinese dishes generate so much obsession. Think of it like a quest to find the best burger or pizza. We have been to this location several times. Din Tai Fung grosses more per location than any other restaurant, even Nobu.
Since 1999, they have been California/Mediterranean-inspired menu in a stylish setting in the middle of the Mission district of San Francisco. They focus on local and organic ingredients.
Where does a San Francisco Foodie eat in Morocco? Follow our journey and learn from our experiences. Here are Restaurant Reviews and Notes from our Summer 2025 trip to Morocco.
4505 Burgers and BBQ is run by chef and artisan butcher Ryan Farr. Ryan formerly was executive chef at Fifth Floor. They used to have a stand at the Ferry building but have since setup permanently on Divisadero in SF’s Nopa neighborhood. 4505 also has a thriving business in meat snacks and fried pork rinds. We gotten take out several times, last was in 2026.
A better BBQ place is Breakwater BBQ in El Granda. San Francisco’s BBQ pales in comparison with the real deal. Check out the best BBQ we’ve had – Pinkerton’s Houston.
Why did we dine here? – Valley Goat is a new restaurant from Chicago’s Girl and the Goat Chef Stephanie Izard and Boka Restaurant Group. Top Chef Winner, Iron Chef Gauntlet Winner, and James Beard Award Winning! She also runs Girl & The Goat Los Angeles. We loved our meal out there and couldn’t wait to give this nearby outpost a try, but Sunnyvale? This is located at the Treehouse Hotel Silicon Valley – Next door to the Google Cloud Building.
Why did we dine here? – Happy Crane is a brand new modern Chinese restaurant in San Francisco that has been eagerly awaited after a successful popup. In Chinese culture, the crane symbolizes longevity, wisdom, and nobility, while the name itself also pays subtle homage to the charming, storybook-style names found in traditional English pubs. Chef James used to work at Benu among other prestigious kitchens. We’ve eaten at Bo Innovation in Hong Kong, where he had worked. Definitely see the influence. This restaurant continues the movement toward modern Cantonese food in San Francisco. It builds upon the momentum of Four Kings and Mister. Jiu. We have eaten here twice.
